Can someone explain Pree's reaction?

[Howie Manderly]

Currently re-reading ACOK and just finished Dany's house of the undying chapter.

After she is accosted by the undying and Drogon sets the house ablaze, she finds Pyat hopping back and forth on one leg while wailing some weird language. I think he is probably saying some sort of prayer but why would he be doing the jumping thing? This chapter really disturbed me so if someone could offer insight.

[BlackBrother55]

I thought he was trying to do some spell or something to prevent the palace from being burned down and killing the undying.

[Beathag]

I have never understood that chapter. Okay, Dany sees the visions or whatever.

But what did Pree expect to happen? Dany to come out and say, nifty place, thanks?

Or Dany to be sucked into one of the tableaus? Maybe it was a The Shining kind of thing -- Dany and a Dragon become part of the House of Undying (which seems to be dying) and infuses it with her magic and strength, and the warlocks become more powerful.

If Pree is such a great warlock, why can't he cast a spell to save the house? In fact, if the house is magic-filled, how can it be destroyed?

[caliquenor]

:agree:

Same feeling here, I never got that chapter... A bunch of prophecies, some of them were quite clear, some of them could mean a thousand different things, and then the jumping warlock. Quite a mess in my opinion. I hope it gets a little more clear once I get there on my re-read.

[Bahlrokhin]

I'm fairly certain that Dragonfire is not like normal fire. And if there's anything i learned from reading "A Sword of Truth" it is that magic is obscure. We may never know the details.

[AerionBrightflameII]

I have never understood that chapter. Okay, Dany sees the visions or whatever.  

 

But what did Pree expect to happen?  Dany to come out and say, nifty place, thanks?

 

Or Dany to be sucked into one of the tableaus? Maybe it was a The Shining kind of thing -- Dany and a Dragon become part of the House of Undying (which seems to be dying) and infuses it with her magic and strength, and the warlocks become more powerful.

 

If Pree is such a great warlock, why can't he cast a spell to save the house? In fact, if the house is magic-filled, how can it be destroyed?

I think he expected her to die in there.

From the way the Undying Ones were trying to suck the life out of her.

 

If you listen to what the Merchant Prince Xaro Xhoan Daxos says about The Warlocks when he first meets Dany about them not having any power anymore, The Warlocks by the end of the book he warns her that their power is returning... and the Alchemist/Pyromancer said to Tyrion about the spells to make Wildfire are suddenly a lot more effective and asks if Dragons have returned. 

 

I think at the point where he is hopping from one leg to another he is trying to cast a spell but their magic has not fully returned it's only just starting too.

[John Suburbs]

I just chalked up the jumping to him having an involuntary reaction as the leaders of his order, the undying, are inside dying. He probably has some kind of mind connection so their pain becomes his pain.

[AerionBrightflameII]

No he is trying to work some feeble magic..They were trying to drain the life from ther that is why they were all biting licking and sucking her,

IIRC it was working she was stuck in the visions until the dragon burned them all. It failed drastically haha