‘Game Of Thrones’ Season 6: Just What Are Cersei And Qyburn Up To?

Episode 8 of Game of Thrones sixth season showed a very brief conversation between Cersei Lannister and her aide and the Master of Whisperers, Qyburn. It left fans wondering just what this pair is up to. So just what was said in the cryptic conversation and what does it all mean?

SPOILER ALERT: This article contains information and speculation about upcoming episodes of HBO’s Game of Thrones as well as the books the TV series is based on. Please proceed with caution if you wish to avoid potential spoilers.

In Episode 8 of Game of Thrones Cersei (Lena Headey) learns about King Tommen’s (Dean-Charles Chapman) decree that the “trial by combat” option she had been relying on had now been removed and she was now faced with an actual trial – a trial that will be more reliant on what the Faith Militant believe to be true rather than basing their opinion on physical evidence. But it was her short conversation with Qyburn (Anton Lesser) that was the most interesting.

“‘That old rumor you told me about — my little birds investigated,’ Qyburn says.

‘Tell me, was it a rumor or something more?’ Cersei replies.

‘More, Your Grace. So much more.'”

Surely Cersei should be more concerned about the power she thought she had in her trial and the fact it had just been removed, meaning she was now vulnerable to a trial involving the charges of incest and regicide. However, it seems she is intrigued what Qyburn’s words, and the audience was left wondering what they had missed in previous episodes of Game of Thrones.

As Refinery29 points out, Qyburn uses the children of King’s Landing to listen out for all the rumors and gossip that might be of interest to both himself and Cersei. In return, Qyburn rewards the children with sweets. It is an excellent way to source information, as adults will usually talk in front of children and think nothing of it.

But what could the children possibly have heard that will help out Cersei in her current situation? The Independent thinks Cersei and Qyburn are talking about the long-held suspicion that the Mad King Aerys II had a hidden stash of wildfire. If Cersei could get her hands on it, she could easily cause enough chaos so she and her son could escape King’s Landing. If Margaery were to die in the fire, it is likely Cersei would not really care, as it would place Tommen back into her control. While this notion seems quite random, there is some weight to it once you start looking.

For the longest time, Cersei has threatened to “burn cities to the ground” in relation to her saving her children if she had to. And at the moment, it seems pretty obvious that King Tommen is no longer under the control of Cersei, but rather his new bride, Margaery (Natalie Dormer), a woman Cersei despised well before her current situation.

Another interesting thing to note is the fact that, not long after this conversation is had between Cersei and Qyburn, there is a scene involving a rather lengthy conversation between Cersei’s brother, Jaime Lannister (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau), and Edmure Tully (Tobias Menzies). This conversation centers around Jaime talking about how similar Cersei is to Edmure’s sister, the late Catelyn Stark, in regards to how fiercely they both defend their children. In particular, Jaime stated Cersei would “burn cities to ash” for her children. Could this be HBO foreshadowing in regards to the previous conversation between Cersei and Qyburn?

Entertainment Weekly also seems keen on this wildfire theory. A recent article points out the fact that, in the books the TV series is based on, Cersei does get her hands on some wildfire in A Feast for Crows. Sure it had nothing to do with the Faith Militant, but it is confirmation that Cersei would be the sort of person who would do bad things with wildfire in her possession.

Vanity Fair also points out that there is still another clue that wildfire could be seen in upcoming episodes of Game of Thrones. A few episodes ago, in one of Bran’s visions, the audience learned there was indeed a huge stash of wildfire underneath King’s Landing. In this vision, it was shown that the wildfire had erupted, and the suspicion is that this vision of Bran’s was, in fact, a flash-forward – not a flashback. So, could this mean Cersei will be successful in igniting King’s Landing with wildfire? Only time will tell.

If the teaser video below and title of Episode 9 of Game of Thrones is an indicator, it seems this little mystery is unlikely to be solved in next week’s episode. Perhaps fans will have to wait until Season 7 to find out more. However, considering it was Cersei that uttered the famous line, “When you play the game of thrones, you win or you die,” fans can expect Cersei will not go down without a fight.

What do you think Cersei and Qyburn were talking about in Episode 8 of Game of Thrones? Let us know your thoughts and theories by commenting below!

Season 6 of Game of Thrones returns to HBO with Episode 9, entitled “Battle of the Bastards,” on Sunday, June 19, at 9 p.m. ET. As yet, no official synopsis has been released for this episode, but it is fairly clear this episode will be all about the massive battle between Jon Snow and Ramsay Bolton.

[Image via HBO]