Spoilers below.
Throughout House of the Dragon’s second season, we’ve met a handful of new characters from around Westeros whose purpose has been a bit unclear, at least to those of us who haven’t read Fire & Blood; but in episode 7, “The Red Sowing,” everything starts to come together. For a story set among nobility and a warring royal family, these newcomers, or dragonseeds, show that the smallfolk and working class have an important role too.
First, Queen Rhaenyra meets Seasmoke’s new rider. It’s Addam of Hull, and the two meet on the beach, just them and their dragons. He promptly bends the knee to her, saying all he wants is to learn the art dragonriding and serve her as queen. When she asks him of his parentage, he doesn’t reveal his father (Corlys Velaryon). She invites him to Dragonstone.
In King’s Landing, Grand Maester Orwyle is treating Alicent Hightower’s wound from the attack by the protesting townspeople in the last episode. She seems demoralized; she doesn’t see what influence she has on her children or her constituents. She goes to the Kingswood with just Ser Rickard of the Kingsguard and no one else.
Meanwhile, Lord Jasper Wylde has heard from his squire that Seasmoke has been spotted with a rider. He tells Larys Strong the news, but considering the source of the gossip, Larys thinks it might be best not to share the intel with Prince Aemond yet.
Rhaenyra shares the news about Addam with Mysaria but is unsure where she might find more potential riders. Mysaria says the answer might be under their noses: Royal Targaryens have frequented brothels in King’s Landing for years and have secretly had children out of wedlock. There are many more illegitimate Targaryens out there. “Let us raise an army of bastards,” Rhaenyra declares.
Corlys is also shocked by what Addam has done. He finds him in Dragonstone and gives him leave from his sailing duties so he can study dragonriding. But he doesn’t elaborate further or address their relationship, leaving him only with a “well done.”
In Harrenhall, the young Lord Oscar Tully returns, now as the Lord Paramount of the Riverland following his grandfather’s death. The boy clearly has big shoes to fill. He needs to get the Riverlords to trust him, but he must also deal with Daemon’s request for an army. Oscar decides he’ll uphold his grandfather’s oath to Viserys and support Queen Rhaenyra, but, to appease the Riverlords, he needs to address the atrocities inflicted upon House Bracken, which Willem Blackwood organized with Daemon’s support. He orders Daemon to behead Willem for his crimes so that justice is served. After, Daemon has another Viserys vision. He’s sitting on his bed in his decrepit state, holding the crown. “Do you want it still?” he asks Daemon.
How’s King Aegon Targaryen doing, you ask? He’s trying to walk now, but is in terrible pain. Larys is impressed by his progress, but says he still has to work harder to gain his strength back. The maester says Aegon needs rest, but Larys wants to push him.
Corlys does some dragonriding recruitment of his own. He tells Alyn that his brother, Addam, is Seasmoke’s new rider. Corlys doesn’t know the ancestry of the boys’ mother, but as for himself, his family hails from Old Valyria. If the prerequisite to dragonriding is in one’s blood, then maybe Alyn might be capable of it too. But Alyn refuses; he is “of salt and sea” and doesn’t desire anything more than sailing.
Another Velaryon relative might be in search of a dragon. In the Vale, Rhaena Targaryen and Rhaenyra’s sons leave for Pentos, but she sneaks off to look for the wild dragon Lady Arryn told her about. Considering Rhaena has dreamt of claiming a dragon since she was a child (which the show repeatedly reminds us), she might finally get her chance soon.
Though Rhaenyra’s “army of bastards” plan sounds promising, her son, Jaecerys isn’t pleased. He’s worried it might threaten the legitimacy of his claim as her heir. He knows he’s a bastard and that his biological father is Harwin Strong. Could any of these other dragonriding bastards claim the throne in the future? Especially the ones with actual Targaryen-silver hair?
Thanks to a game of telephone started by Mysaria, word lands in King’s Landing that Rhaenyra is inviting Targaryen bastards to come to Dragonstone to possibly claim a dragon. Ulf is peer-pressured by his friends into going. Hugh Hammer also considers it after the death of his child, but his wife protests. Hugh didn’t know his father, but his mother, who worked in a pleasurehouse, was the sister of Baelon Targaryen, father of Viserys and Daemon.
While smallfolk are leaving King’s Landing, Alicent isn’t sure she’ll ever go back. Out in the Kingswood, she goes to swim in a lake alone. What is she doing out here?
Finally, about a few dozen hopefuls arrive to Dragonstone for Rhaenyra’s dragonriding auditions. (The High Valyrian-speaking dragonkeepers, however, don’t approve of this plan and leave.)
Rhaenyra takes her guests to see Vermithor, the largest dragon in the world after Vhagar, and it shows. When the beast emerges from the shadows he towers over Rhaenyra, even more than Seasmoke did, or any of the other dragons on her side so far. But things descend into chaos when the first hopeful steps up. Vermithor lights not only the volunteer on fire but nearly all the other recruits, sending everyone running into the dragonpits. Vermithor only continues to chase after them, setting them on fire, stomping on them, eating them alive—it’s like Jurassic Park down there. Hugh finally confronts the dragon, ready to accept his fate, but the creature seems to like his bravery. Vermithor bows down to him, and Hugh pets him on the nose. Rhaenyra hates that she’s caused even more destruction, but at least she can claim this win.
Ulf, meanwhile, escaped and wandered deep within the dragons’ layer. As he stumbles around, he accidentally steps on a dragon egg, awakening another dragon: It’s likely Silverwing. Instead of roasting him alive, she chooses Ulf as her rider. Ulf is very new to this whole dragonriding thing though, and when he gets on his first ride, he ends up flying over King’s Landing, scaring the townspeople and interrupting a small council meeting. Aemond rushes to his own mount, Vhagar, to pursue Silverwing and her new rider to Dragonstone.
By this point, we know that if Aemond and Vhagar are chasing you, it’s not going to end well; but this time, Aemond shows a rare moment of restraint and orders Vhagar to turn around. There are (at least) three dragons with Rhaenyra on Dragonstone, and even Aemond knows that if he were to start a fight now, he might not win. That’s a first. With only one more episode left this season, perhaps Rhaenyra’s new army will finally be put to the test against the greens.
Erica Gonzales is the Senior Culture Editor at ELLE.com, where she oversees coverage on TV, movies, music, books, and more. She was previously an editor at HarpersBAZAAR.com. There is a 75 percent chance she’s listening to Lorde right now.