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When House of the Dragon season 2 kicked off a few weeks ago, we knew that viewers would be needing a family tree to sort out all of the peroxide blonde Targaryens — now, we're kind of wishing we had included their dragons, too. After all, most of the Targaryens have their own dragon — and, yes, these dragons will play a very important role in the coming battle. And, no, it is not easy to keep track of them all.
So far, we've met a number of dragons. There's Vhagar, the powerful dragon that Aemond claimed after the death of Laena in season one. Then there's Syrax, Rhaenyra's dragon and Caraxes, Daemon's dragon. There's the beautiful Sunfyre, ridden by Alicent's eldest, Aegon.
Then there are a few “unclaimed” dragons — in other words, dragons who are yet to be tamed and ridden by any living Targaryen. As season two rages on, some fans have begun to hypothesise that one of these untamed dragons, Vermithor, the dragon we met briefly in season one of the show, is due to make an explosive reappearance. Of course, fans of the books by George R. R. Martin already know which Targaryen is destined to ride this dragon. As one fan teased in a Reddit thread, “We've already met his rider [in season two of the show]. And from a quick shot in the trailers, [it is confirmed] we'll see the dragon this season. I reckon the final [episode] we get a shot of him bowing his head to his new rider.” Colour us intrigued.
Well, based on the new teaser trailer for episode six, Vermithor might be making his reappearance this Sunday.
So, for all of you House of the Dragons fans out there, here's a little deep dive into Vermithor. Warning: House of the Dragon spoilers ahead…
Wait, who is Vermithor again?
Vermithor is an untamed dragon who we first meet in episode 10, the finale of season one.
Vermithor was the mount of the Old King, Jaehaerys the Conciliator, but has not had a rider since then. This makes him almost 100 years old. He is described as being a bronze dragon with tan wings. He is also the the is the second largest and second oldest dragon next to Aemond's dragon, Vhagar. Vermithor lives in the caves of Dragonstone.
Why did Daemon sing to Vermithor in season one?
As the second oldest, second biggest living dragon, Vermithor is pretty powerful and would make an excellent asset in the coming war. In the season one finale, Daemon visits the caves of Dragonstone in an attempt to win over Vermithor for Rhaenyra's cause. Daemon sings “Hāros Bartossi,” a Valerian dragon song, in his attempt.
Vermithor initially rejects Daemon and warns him off by blowing fire around him, but he then seems to calm and the pair gaze into each other's eyes.
“What Daemon is trying to do is expose Vermithor to human presence and make him more susceptible to being claimed by someone other than him so that he can be useful in the coming war,” writes one fan on Reddit. “Vermithor is a very good get for Team Black. He’s the second largest domestic dragon in the world and the one with the best chance of standing up to Vhagar successfully.”
And that is the last we have seen of Vermithor — so far.
Who rides Vermithor in the books?
Ok, now for some spoilers courtesy of the books. According to Fire & Blood, Vermithor eventually gets a rider named Hugh Hammer – a bastard blacksmith from Dragonstone – when Prince Jacaerys Velaryon declares that the Blacks need more dragonriders to fight in the civil war.
He invites volunteers to try to bond with the dragons – following which many, of course, die or suffer severe burns – and Hugh is one of the lucky few who survives (and succeeds). Since Vermithor bends his neck to him, it's believed that he has some Targaryen blood in him… which leads to plenty more drama when Hugh renames himself ‘Hugh Hammer’ and eventually makes a play for the Iron Throne (which ultimately ends in he and Vermithor's demise).
Of course, we never know whether the TV show will follow the books exactly, so we'll just have to wait until episode six airs on Sunday…
Here's what we can expect as the Game of Thrones prequel continues.
