House of the Dragon: How the Sowing Works and Who Claims Seasmoke?
House of the Dragon has just reached a point where the Targaryen bastards have the opportunity to claim dragons and be recognized by their family (there are spoilers for Episode 6). Following her conversation with Jace about the possibility of other members of the extended Targaryen family being able to ride the riderless dragons found on Dragonstone and Driftmark, Rhaenyra finds her first candidate for the test, leading to an event that becomes known as The Sowing or The Red Sowing. Corlys Velaryon is now Hand of the King to Rhaenyra, and with Mysaria’s help, she enacts a plan to gain the support of the people of King’s Landing, who are holed up in the city on Aemond’s orders (who has asked for Otto Hightower to be brought back to act as Hand of the King again). Following her newfound ally’s advice, Rhaenyra sends small boats filled with food – and her insignia – into the city, which helps, but also leads to chaos.
House of the Dragon: How the Sowing Works and Who Claims Seasmoke?
On the Greens’ side, Aegon II has just woken up to find that his brother (who is desperate to end the blockade on the city, and for this he wants an alliance with The Triarchy, formed by the free cities) was elected as regent in his place and that means two things. First, that his life is in danger, and second, as Larys Strong tells him, that he needs to stop taking the pain medication they give him, as it numbs his mind and renders him unconscious. Also, as a consequence of Rhaenyra’s “gift”, Alicent, is recently “dismissed” from the council, and Helaena is trapped in the city in the middle of an uprising, where they too realize that Rhaenyra is gaining strength, and they need to do something about it. The Sowing doesn’t start as Rhaenyra expected and her first candidate ends up very badly, but by the end of the chapter something happens that will reveal to her which is the best option to carry out this plan successfully.
Another Dream for Daemon Targaryen and an Omen!
In this House of the Dragon episode, while Rhaenyra tries to add more dragons to her armada, Daemon continues to have realistic dreams and visions. This time, he dreams of his brother and his dead wife, Aemma Arryn, and the former king tells him that he must return home to his wife, but he doesn’t talk about Rhaenyra and Dragonstone, instead, he mentions Runestone, which is the home of the Royces. This means that the dream is talking about Rhea Royce, who was Daemon’s first wife, whom he killed so that he could marry Laena Velaryon. This could mean two things, first that Daemon must join his first wife in death, and second that he might have to find a way to gain the support of the Royces. Also, Daemon asks Alys Rivers for advice on how to win over the Riverlords, to which she simply replies that he should not act for now and that the “winds” are going to change in three days, hinting that something will change and lead the Riverlords to join his army. Grover Tully’s death is one of those changes.
What Dragon is in The Vale?
Rhaena and Joffre are in The Vale, where they find a burned area, proof that there is a larger dragon nearby, and Lady Arryn tells Rhaena that rumors of a dragon there began before the war. It’s big and powerful, but it’s a wild dragon, meaning it’s a dragon that’s never had a rider, which is the case with Sheepstealer, Grey Ghost, and The Cannibal. Only three wild dragons are mentioned in this story, but by this point, none have been seen, so the dragon Jeyne Arryn mentions could be any of the three.
What is The Red Sowing?
Rhaenyra tells her council of her plans to get riders for Vermithor and Silverwing and says she wants to start by testing Steffon Darklyn, claiming that the Darklyns and Targaryens share blood. According to Rhaenyra, Steffon’s grandmother’s grandmother was Aeriana Targaryen, one of the twin daughters of Aegon I and Rhaena (who is not the same Rhaena we see in the series), so it’s possible that he could claim a dragon, and he’s willing to try. But this is a dangerous process and, at this point, it had not been attempted before. And as the queen says, to claim a dragon, one must be willing to die and must not show fear, plus they must have dragon blood.
Steffon is the first to try, and Seasmoke appears in response to the call, but after letting him get close and just when he thinks he has him, the dragon rises and burns him alive, then escapes from Dragonstone. This is why The Sowing is also known as The Red Sowing (more than a dozen men are said to have died and many more were burned or seriously injured), as many try to claim the dragons, but many die in the attempt. This first approach makes Rhaenyra doubt her strategy, but Mysaria convinces her to keep trying and look beyond the nobles of the family.
Who Claims Seasmoke?
After fleeing Dragonstone, Seasmoke returns to Driftmar and descends onto the beach, where Addam runs with the others to try to escape, but the dragon intercepts him and approaches, but then stops when it recognizes something in him, probably the Velaryon blood he shares with Laenor, his former rider, and, although it is not seen what happens, news soon reaches Rhaenyra that Seasmoke now has a rider. That rider is Addam , who is the brother of Alyn of Hull and the bastard son of Corlys Velaryon (it is said that Addam might be the son of Laenor , who was Rhaenyra’s first husband and Seasmoke’s previous rider), which is why he has Valyrian blood and is a Dragonsed. Seasmok is left riderless when Laenor must fake his death and abandon him, but Adda, comes from the same family and this is what allows her to claim the dragon.
