Fans of HBO's fantasy drama "Game of Thrones" thwarted the premium cable network's plans to have the latest teaser trailer expire after a single viewing by posting the 10-second spot to YouTube, where it has been watched more than a million times.

The "infuriatingly short" video depicts a "misty view of a miserable-looking Sansa Stark, a shadowy Tyrion Lannister and his sinister sister Cersei," according to The Independent. A few seconds later, viewers can appreciate "the open-mouthed face of the weirwood tree, a hand trailing in water and an unidentifiable character in a rowing boat."

The message at the end is promising.

"This vision has come and gone," it says. "Keep watch. More may come."

The trailer was released through HBO's teaser site "Three-eyed Raven," which prompts fans to sign up for text or email alerts, Entertainment Weekly reports. Subscribers to the site received a link to the video, which originally was intended to be watched only once.

Viewers managed to preserve the trailer by posting it online, however, which may have done the cable network a favor as the strange publicity stunt of restricting the number of views upset many especially considering that the video did not work at first for some.

"Game of Thrones," an adaptation of George R. R. Martin's "A Song of Ice and Fire" series of fantasy novels, is scheduled to start Season 5 in Spring 2015. The critically acclaimed series has proved immensely popular with fans and has garnered numerous recognitions, including a Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation and a Peabody Award. The show was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series each year during its first four seasons.

The new 10-second spot, as well as an earlier released 5-second teaser trailer, do not exactly reveal much of the storyline viewers can expect in the upcoming season. "Games of Thrones" followers do, of course, have the option to turn to Martin's books to find out what happens to their favorite characters although the HBO series does not mirror the books perfectly.

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