House Of The Dragon: How Does Aemond Targaryen Die In The Book?

Contains spoilers for "House of the Dragon" and "Fire & Blood" by George R.R. Martin

Anyone who's watched "House of the Dragon," the spin-off and prequel to "Game of Thrones" that uses George R.R. Martin's book "Fire & Blood" as its source material, loves to hate Aemond Targaryen. Played sneeringly by Ewan Mitchell, this second-born son of Queen Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke) and King Viserys I Targaryen (Paddy Considine) — who's behind his equally odious brother Aegon Targaryen (Tom Glynn-Carney) when it comes to the line of succession — thirsts for power. That's probably why, as a child, Aemond secretly and steathily tames the massive and ancient Vhagar and claims her as his own to look like the biggest, baddest guy in the room. His eyepatch also isn't an accessory; during a childhood fight with his half-siblings and cousins, he was caught in the eye with a knife and adopted a sapphire eye in its stead. So how does he die?

We haven't seen, as of this writing, Aemond's bitter end on "House of the Dragon" yet, but here's what we have seen. During the Season 1 finale, a dragonback battle against his own kin — Lucerys "Luke" Velaryon (Elliott Grihault), son of Alicent's enemy, step-daughter, and former best friend Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D'Arcy) results in the death of both Luke and his dragon. In Season 2, we watch him attempt to kill his own brother during the Battle of Rook's Rest (which doesn't work, but does result in Aegon becoming injured and disfigured). As Season 3 continues — and eventually, when we see the fourth and final season — we'll have to see what happens to Aemond. If you've read "Fire & Blood," though, you already know his fate ... and how it's intertwined with that of his uncle Prince Daemon Targaryen (Matt Smith).

On "House of the Dragon," Daemon spends a considerable amount of time at the potentially haunted Riverlands castle of Harrenhal — and in Season 3, Aemond's mother Alicent convinces him to go there too. That's what makes it strangely appropriate that the two fight their final battle at Harrenhal.

In George R.R. Martin's "Fire & Blood," Daemon leaves the home of the Lord of Maidenpool, Lord Mooton, and tells him, "If my nephew Aemond dares face me, he shall find me there, alone." Naturally, that's exactly what Aemond does.

"On the fourteenth day of the prince's vigil, a shadow swept over the castle, blacker than any passing cloud. All the birds in the godswood took to the air in fright, and a hot wind whipped the fallen leaves across the yard," the book reads. "Vhagar had come at last, and on her back rode the one-eyed Prince Aemond Targaryen, clad in nightblack armor chased with gold." There's one huge twist, though: Aemond brings Alys Rivers, played on the series by Gayle Rankin, with him ... and she's pregnant with his child. There's no way that Daemon, who has a previous bond with Alys from his time at Harrenhal (depicted in Season 2 of "House of the Dragon"), is pleased by this development.

Ultimately, the two men take flight on dragonback — Daemon on Caraxes, known as the "Blood Wyrm," and Aemond atop Vhagar — and as the two dragons and men face off, Alys watches. So who emerges victorious? Well, at first, it's Daemon. "The attack came sudden as a thunderbolt. Caraxes dove down upon Vhagar with a piercing shriek that was heard a dozen miles away, cloaked by the glare of the setting sun on Prince Aemond's blind side," the story goes.

As Daemon and Aemond's battle at Harrenhal continues, it seems, at first, like Caraxes gets the upper hand; George R.R. Martin describes the Blood Wyrm as slamming "into [Vhagar] with terrible force." Despite Caraxes fatally injuring Vhagar by sinking her massive teeth into her neck, the older dragon does fight back; Martin writes, "Even as Vhagar's claws raked his belly open and Vhagar's own teeth ripped away a wing, Caraxes bit deeper, worrying at the wound as the lake rushed up below them with terrible speed."

That's when the entire ordeal ends. Martin writes:

"And it was then, the tales tell us, that Prince Daemon Targaryen swung a leg over his saddle and leapt from one dragon to the other. In his hand was Dark Sister, the sword of Queen Visenya. As Aemond One-Eye looked up in terror, fumbling with the chains that bound him to his saddle, Daemon ripped off his nephew's helm and drove the sword down into his blind eye, so hard the point came out the back of the young prince's throat. Half a heartbeat later, the dragons struck the lake, sending up a gout of water that was said to have been as tall as Kingspyre Tower. Neither man nor dragon could have survived such an impact, the fisherfolk who saw it said. Nor did they."

So — there you have it. Aemond and his uncle Daemon die together, locked in a battle that, in the end, neither of them can win, thanks to Daemon's quick swordwork and the injuries Vhagar inflicts upon Caraxes as they both struggle in mid-air. Until that's depicted on-screen, the show airs new episodes every Sunday at 9 p.m. EST on HBO and HBO Max.