The Red Sowing and the Cost of Trust

This thread traces how Rhaenyra’s recruitment of dragonriders becomes both a military necessity and the source of fatal distrust.

increasingBearing stren­gth in each eventdecreasing

A Claim to Dragon Blood

Who May Ride a Dragon A Royal Monopoly Weakens Dragonseeds demonstrate that dragonriding may extend beyond acknowledged royal children. The discovery challenges the family’s control over a defining source of power. Need Overrides Tradition The war makes recruitment attractive despite the political risks. The crown grants opportunity to people it would otherwise keep subordinate.

Nettles Tames Sheepstealer

A Rider Without Proof Patience Instead of Lineage Nettles feeds Sheepstealer daily until the dragon accepts her. No confirmed royal parentage explains her success. The Value of Skill Her achievement unsettles the assumption that blood alone determines who can ride. Practical trust and persistence also matter.

The Two Betrayers Rise

Opportunity Becomes Ambition Honors Are Not Enough Ulf White and Hugh Hammer receive dragons and knighthood, then seek estates and crowns beyond what Rhaenyra grants. Defection Changes the War Their treachery converts individual ambition into a military catastrophe. The queen’s own recruitment strategy has armed men whose loyalty she cannot secure.

Addam Is Accused

Trust Turns to Suspicion Mysaria’s Accusation Rhaenyra hears that Addam may share the betrayers’ intentions. His birth makes suspicion easier to accept. A Loyal Man Flees Rather than submit to questioning, Addam escapes. The queen treats flight as proof, while he later proves loyalty through action.

The Queen Orders Nettles Killed

Suspicion Becomes Policy A Personal Accusation Mysaria tells Rhaenyra that Nettles shares Daemon’s bed. The queen accepts the claim despite conflicting evidence. A Broken Alliance Rhaenyra orders Nettles killed and sends Addam to be seized. These choices cost her a rider, a dragon, and confidence in her own cause.

Late 129 AC, before the Red Sowing

Late 129 AC, during the Sowing

129–130 AC, from the Gullet to Tumbleton

130 AC, after the first Tumbleton betrayal

130 AC, while Daemon and Nettles search for Aemond