While "The Winds of Winter" is heavily rumored to be released in 2017, fans never cease to brew up rumors and theories to unravel the mysteries in the "A Song of Ice and Fire" universe. The newest one connects the Doom of Valyria to the Starks and Targaryens.
Houses Stark and Targaryen
When Maester Aemon died, his last words to Samwell Tarly was "The Sphinx is the riddle." While this has been the subject of theories and speculations, a new one came up on Reddit just before the release of "The Winds of Winter."
Taking the theory outside the universe of "The Winds of Winter," famous horror novelist Edgar Allan Poe has a story titled "The Sphinx." This story tackles the way we interpret symbols and omens influenced by our perspectives. This theory then connects to the greatest issue in "A Song of Ice and Fire," on whether the White Walkers are there because of the perception of people in Westeros.
The theory goes on to say that a pact was originally created so that the White Walkers would be the last resort to prevent the Ice and Fire to coalesce. In "The Winds of Winter," the Ice is seen to be the Starks, represented by Jon Snow, and the Fire is manifested as the Targaryens, constituted by Daenerys.
The pact stands due to the two families' abilities. The Targaryens are known for their capability to hatch dragons. The Starks, on the other hand, are known for their warging abilities, so they could actually control animals. With the looming unity of the two Houses in "The Winds of Winter," the bloodline would be a very powerful one.
The Doom of Valyria
Going back to Valyrian times, the two families are theorized to have united before, and nearly conquered the world. It was the White Walkers that eventually stopped them, which was then the pact was created to divide the two families. "The Winds of Winter" still sees the two most likely candidates from each house not crossing paths and are still geographically distant.
This union may have brought the Doom of Valyria, as it was the Stark blood that made people control their advanced warging abilities. Bloodline preservation and purity also explains the internal marriage within the House Targaryen in "The Winds of Winter" book.
With this theory, "The Winds of Winter" will definitely be an exciting one. Will the union of Houses Stark and Targaryen bring peace or destruction to the world?