What, actually, made Rhaenyra Targaryen go up against her half-brother Aegon II? The tipping point that brought all of Westeros into an all-out battle? The simple answer is the right of succession to the Iron Throne. However, the season finale The House of the Dragonavailable now in hbo maxshowed that what triggered a considerable tragedy was an almost fortuitous event.
Lucerys Velaryon’s death was the primary reason Dragonstone’s court took the first step in hostilities. It all happened after a confrontation between the queen’s son and Aemond Targaryen. However, although it might seem like a hostile act of direct provocation, the script chose to give the event an air of accidental tragedy. What changes, in fact, the original story and reconfigures the perception of the future confrontation between factions of the Royal House.
In the end, it was not a mean or cruel decision on Aemond’s part, despite his anger against Rhaenyra’s children. In reality, Lucenys’s death occurred when his dragon, Arrax, breathed fire at the formidable Vaghar and it went in pursuit of him. An almost instinctive reaction between the two mythical beasts that his riders could do little to stop. Finally, Aemond’s mount lunged at Lucerys and devoured him in a brutal and violent scene.
The House of the Dragon is the new series of the Game of Thrones universe
The event that triggered the civil war in The House of the Dragon
The famous civil war that decimated the dynasty and devastated much of The Seven Kingdoms is one of the events that George RR Martin has paid most attention to in his stories. In particular, the reason that caused a schism of such magnitude that the fight between relatives ended up being a historical event.
In the last episode of the prequel to Game of Thrones, The House of the Dragon, the main questions are answered. But specifically, its ending shows the pivotal incident that caused Rhaenyra Targaryen to decide to attack. Something that she avoided for a good part of the chapter and that even led her to confront her husband Daemon Targaryen.
Lucerys Velaryon, who was sent to Storm’s End, ancestral territory of the Baratheons, flew on Arrax to the fortress. His mission was to be his mother’s messenger and announce the claim he would make against Aegon II. Until then, the Baratheons had been loyal to Viserys I’s heiress. Twenty years earlier, Lord Boremund bowed the knee to the monarch’s succession decision. But Borros, his successor, was a mystery to Rhaenyra. So, in a gesture of majesty, he decided to send Lucenys to remember the old agreements.
Except that, once the prince reached Storm’s End, he found that Aemond had made it through the air long before. Like an advertisement, the huge and terrifying figure of Vaghar loomed over the fortress in The House of the Dragon. Still, Lucerys demanded an audience and relayed her mother’s words to Borros. The Baratheon heir then explained that Aegon II had already made a “tempting” offer, which included a marriage bond. It is then that the scene shows that Aemond is in the room, listening intently.
The confrontation between nephew and uncle is imminent. After Borros refuses to admit his duties to Rhaenyra, Lucenys, in response to his promise not to show himself as a warrior, decides to leave. But Aemond continues to provoke him, insisting that he “must give her an eye” as retribution for the one he lost in childhood.
Borros Baratheon is enraged and pushes both young men out of the throne room. Outside, and in the middle of a storm, Lucenys runs to get on the back of Arrax. But Vaghar is no longer there. As he takes flight, he realizes that Aemond ambushed him.
Death in the middle of the sky
But what began as an almost childish act of provocation on Aemond’s part ends in tragedy. Vaghar relentlessly pursues little Arrax, who instinctively spits fire at the other dragon. Causing Aemond’s massive mount to disobey his rider and begin a swift flight against his foe. In the end, it ends up devouring Arrax in the air, killing Lucenys.. Aemond looks shocked and, for once, completely overwhelmed by what has just happened.
the season of The House of the Dragon It ends with the image of Queen Rhaenyra receiving the news from her husband Daemon. The camera then focuses on her furious face and it is evident that she considers the death of her son a first announcement of hostilities. The Targaryen civil war has just begun.
