In the background of the raging Targaryen family conflict in House of the Dragon, Daemon has been assembling quite the dragon army. No longer warring in the Stepstones or murdering/mourning his various wives, he's busy collecting dragon eggs and bolstering his forces. After all, Aemond Targaryen—King Aegon II's younger brother—rides Vhagar, the largest, oldest, and most fearsome dragon in Westeros.
Now, in the finale, audiences seem to have met Vermithor, a massive beast from the time of Jaehaerys Targaryen's reign, along with Vhagar and Balerion. (Vhagar is still the larger dragon, according to George R.R. Martin's Fire & Blood, so Aemond still has the advantage. Balerion, meanwhile, has long passed on.) Vermithor, though old-aged, would still be a massive addition to Daemon's dragon army, especially as they plan to avenge the death of Rhaenyra's second son, Lucaerys.
In an episode that included a shocking death and an extended, harrowing miscarriage scene, Vermithor's entrance to the fantasy series was the largest mystery. Rattling off the names of dragons without riders, Daemon hints that there are many young dragons yet to mature on Dragonstone, as well as wild dragons who can still be claimed. Daemon already rides Caraxes, so it was surprising when he went a-singing down into the caves of to meet the old dragon. According to Fire & Blood, there are five other wild dragons at Rhaenyra's home base, including Seasmoke, Silverwing, Sheepstealer, Cannibal, and Grey Ghost. We won't spoil how each creature plays into House of the Dragon's future, but suffice it to say that wild, untamed dragons who can be claimed by anyone can easily change the tides of war.
Before his tease in the finale, Vermithor was ridden by Jaehaerys, the king before Viserys. (He was the old dude sitting on the throne in House of the Dragon's prologue.) It was his council that chose Viserys over his cousin, Rhaenys—Corlys's wife and the Queen Who Never Was. Since the old king's death, Vermithor has lived unclaimed in the caves of Dragonstone below an active volcano.
Who will be his new rider, and how will he play into the future of Westeros? Well, that's all for Season Two and beyond. As the war heats up, we should see more dragon battles and fearsome foes when House of the Dragon eventually returns—wings beating and jaws snapping.
Josh Rosenberg is an Assistant Editor at Esquire, keeping a steady diet of one movie a day. His past work can be found at Spin, CBR, and on his personal blog at Roseandblog.com.
