House of the Dragon : Proof that Daemon actually had Laenor murdered for real

Proof that Daemon actually had Laenor murdered for real

This theory contains major spoilers for events that have not yet happened on the show.


We know from the show that Laenors "murder" was staged and he fled across the Narrow Sea to Essos with his gayboy lover Ser Karl to live a good life of obscurity in the Free Cities with a huge bag of gold, but I believe what Daemon said to him beforehand along with his mannerisms and an understanding of Daemon reveals they may have actually pulled the wool over our eyes.

When Daemon first meets with Ser Karl he concludes by telling him he wants it done quickly & quietly, with no witnesses. We then get a show of their duel played out with MANY witnesses knowing what has transpired, as they burn "Laenors" body in the fire to hide their deceit, and Laenor is last shown boarding a boat with Karl to sail away, forever.

I think it was pretty clear Karl did not carry out Daemons orders, and the entire thing was a show for Rhaenyra. I think once Karl was far enough away with Laenor, he did as Daemon bid him, killed him quickly, quietly, and with no witnesses, dumped his body in the sea, ad sailed on to Essos with his newly acquired wealth. A short time later he would have met some Faceless Man from Bravos who would have silenced him as well. After all, the only way 2 people can keep a secret is if one of them is dead.

Of course, that's just a theory. What isn't a theory is what happens next. Laenor commanded the dragon Seasmoke, having bonded with it 20 years previous. Later, The Greens, specifically Daemon, decide they need more dragons, and Daemon sets about finding new riders for the unclaimed and wild dragons, to strengthen their cause.

First off, you're going to need Targaryen blood to bond with a dragon, and after they find some eligible candidates, this event becomes known as the Red Sowing, and most of the participants who tried to claim a dragon were burned alive or burned very badly, failing. One who succeeds is named Ser Addam, who, along with his brother Alyn, are propped up as bastard sons of Laenor, but are actually bastard sons of Corlys Velaryion. Rhaenyra legitimizes them as true born sons of Laenor, and Addam is named Heir to Driftmark, which basically keeps their line intact and semi-legit, which it was not with her own son in that position, since he was a Strong bastard.

The interesting thing about this is it's very improbable that Laenor is still alive, as he's already bonded to Seasmoke. Laenor has to be dead for another rider to bond with his dragon, otherwise he would reject him, absent or not. No claimed dragon has ever been known to be claimed by a new rider while the old rider still lived. Daemon knew Laenor had to die for real, and Karl carried out his plan as he was told to do it only to fool Rhaenyra. If Laenor was still alive living the good life in secret, Daemon wouldn't have been able to find a new rider for him.

The Lion does not give a fuck. Bring. More. Sheep.
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