Where in the world is Aemond Targaryen? House of the Dragon season three started with putting him front and center as a serious threat to Rhaenyra’s ascension to power. He is quite unhinged, angry, and has the power of Vhagar on his side. But, after Aemond killed Ser Simon Strong and was gravely wounded, it took a while to see him again. He reappears in episode 5, and he is not quite himself in more ways than one. Here’s what’s going on with Aemond in House of the Dragon.
We see him fairly early in the episode when he awakens from a dire dream at Harrenhal. Alys is there and has been acting as a shield to keep him protected as he heals. He grabs his sword and starts to ramble about his brother Aegon’s face being on fire. He says Aegon was clutching at him and dragging him down into the dark. Alys takes his weapon and tells him that it is just the dream once again.
We can see the bandages around his waist as he clings to Alys, saying that “she” said he would die and that he ruined everything. This feels like a pointed reference to Haelena’s prophecy in the season two finale. Helaena revealed that she knew about Aemond burning Aegon at Rook’s Rest before telling him of his ultimate fate. “You will be dead. You are swallowed up in the God’s Eye, and you are never seen again.”
That will surely come to pass but it does not happen in this episode. Rhaenyra is on the hunt for Aemond, and makes yet another bad leadership decision in the process. She’s now offering Harrenhal to anyone who kills Aemond, which rightfully angers the Freys. There was a promise to them made by Jace that they would have Harrenhal as recompense for their loyalty. Instead, Rhaenyra is offering them a seat on the council, which simply is not enough. Sigh.
Aemond awakens from another dream about Vhagar, who is flying around on vibes and cooking up some snacky snacks. He has a conversation with Alys, and realizes that Rhaenyra is actually the Queen now. He also believes that Aegon is truly dead. Aemond cries as he recalls how he used to worship Aegon and yearned for more love from his mother. Another sigh.
Shortly after, a few men show up looking for Aemond at Harrenhal, one of whom threatens to sexually assault Alys and take her as his salt wife. She attempts to fight back and receives a rightful assist from Aemond, who seems to have some fighting vigor now. It seems that he’s back on his feet and ready to find his dragon, but that’s going to be a difficult task. And, with Rhaenyra’s price on his head, he will have to fight off a lot of men who wish to have Harrenhal. We will see what Aemond does next as House of the Dragon season three starts to come to its close.