Days passed, and Dany flew alone again, skimming over the waves, low enough so they splashed her. Drogon loved the water, smacking it with his tail to see it turn to steam. He and Rhaegal became playful in a way they had never been before, tumbling over and around one another as they fell with resounding splashes into the ocean. They would swim underwater as far and fast as they were able, to burst out into the sunlight, glittering and shedding sea-spray like stardust.

One day Dany was flying, high above Viserion and Rhaegal, with Drogon casually looping back on himself and flying upside down from time to time, when Dany spotted a ship, a queer dark ship, not one of hers. She tapped Drogon urgently. "Level out. Fly lower."

Drogon did as she asked, and swooped closer to the ship. It was flying the kraken of house Greyjoy. Dany frowned. "No Greyjoy would be so far from the iron isles, surely?"

A trumpet sounded, and Drogon swung back towards the flagship, where Viserys was just alighting. "That's a greyjoy ship," he called as Dany landed on the deck, jumping off Drogon's reared neck.

"What is it doing here?" Dany asked Ser Barristan.

"I don't know, my queen," the knight said warily, rubbing his stubbly jaw. "But nothing good, I would wager. Look."

Dany looked towards the now-distant ship, where a group of men were struggling to lift something: a large object covered by a black cloth. One of them tore off the cloth, and Viserys swore softly. It was a large black horn that twisted and curled, with glowing Valyrian glyphs etched onto it. The dragons bugled as they saw it, calling to one another. Drogon lifted out of the water and flew quickly towards the ship. Dany looked at Viserys, concerned. "Where is he going? Ser Barristan, what is that thing?"

Ser Barristan could only spread his hands in bewilderment, as Drogon dove, his jaws gaping, towards the ship. Fire licked from his mouth and took hold of the ship, setting it alight within moments. Viserion tipped back his head and shot flame into the air too, and Rhaegal rose from the water and went to join Drogon in setting the ship aflame. Ser Barristan gasped in shock. "My queen – the dragons! They are killing innocent men! They must be stopped!"

Viserys shook his head. "No. That thing had high valyrian glyphs on it, and whatever those sailors were trying to do with it, it wasn't good, I'd wager."

"Yes," Dany agreed. "I've never seen them act that way before, conferring and then immdiatley burning something – not when there's no immediate danger to us or to them. That horn must have been a danger."

"But – the Greyjoys–!" Selmy spluttered.

Dany rested a hand on his arm. "We can only trust the dragons, Ser. They must have some instinctive knowledge of this thing – that its harmful. We should just be glad that it is gone."

Ser Barristan gasped again, and Dany turned back to see Rhaegal pluck a screaming, burning man from the deck and soar up into the air with him. Viserion hissed and swam quickly towards the burning, sinking ship, and dove underwater as he neared it. Members of the crew were beginning to jump overboard, but one by one, they were grabbed from below and vanished. Viserys laughed. "Its Viserion. He's taking them from beneath, like a shark."

Dany could not bring herself to smile, though some part of her knew that her children had been right to burn this ship. Its black sails would not have boded anything but ill for the Targaryens.