Jace’s Fate In House Of The Dragon May Be As Tragic As His Brother’s

After an entire season spent between Dragonstone and King’s Landing, it appears that we’re headed back to Winterfell in House of the Dragon Season 2. The season finale of the Game of Thrones spin-off set the stage for the Targaryen Civil War. Though they may not be full-blooded Targaryens, Rhaenyra’s (Emma D’Arcy) sons Jacaerys (Harry Collett) and Lucerys (Elliot Grihault) were thrown into the fray along with their mother.

After Rhaeyrna learned of Aegon II’s (Tom-Glynn Carney) coronation, she quickly took sides against the usurping greens. Reticent to dive headlong into war, Rhaenyra opted to garner support from all corners of the realm. Her quest for allegiance stretched to the North, as she sent her eldest son Jace on a mission to the Vale and Winterfell. As stated in the finale, there’s never been a Stark who’s broken an oath, and during the end of Episode 1, the Starks swore fealty to a then-teenaged Rhaenyra.

What Happens To Jaecerys In Fire & Blood?

Jace’s journey in the show is similar to his journey in George R. R. Martin’s Fire & Blood. For his entire life, Jace had his parentage questioned. Many residents of the realm believed he was actually fathered by Rhaenyra’s shield, Ser Harwin Strong. Nevertheless, Rhaenyra maintained that her eldest son would ultimately be her heir. The Dance of the Dragons began when Jace was a teenager; so despite his willingness to fight on his mother’s behalf, he swore not to engage in the fighting. Instead, he flew to the North to earn support from great houses of the realm. He successfully curried favor with House Arryn before also garnering fealty and strongholds across the seven kingdoms.

In his pursuits, he befriended Lord Cregan Stark of Winterfell. The Stark lord reminded Jace of his late-brother Luke, who died at the hands of Aemond. While visiting Winterfell, Jace fell in love with Cregan's half-sister, Sara Snow, and goes on to marry her in a secret ceremony. It was also rumored that Jace’s dragon, Vermax, laid a clutch of eggs under the crypts of Winterfell, thus sparking the pact of ice and fire.

By the time Jace finally returned to Dragonstone, the blacks had killed Aegon II’s son Prince Jaehaerys Targaryen as revenge for Luke’s murder. The greens then sent Ser Arryk Cargyll to kill Jace as payback; however, Ser Arryk was killed by his brother Ser Erryk.

At the height of the civil war, Rhaenys died in battle. She may have survived if Rhaenyra had allowed Jace to accompany her in flight, but the Targaryen queen didn’t want to risk losing another son. Rhaenys’ death caused Corlys to become estranged from Rhaenyra and Jace. However, the young prince was able to reason with his grandfather, and the duo planned an attack on King’s Landing. Corlys was named Hand of the Queen, while Jace became something of a general, sending his family members across the realm to fight for the blacks. Jace was in charge of finding riders for the dragons whose owners were murdered in battle.

But it wasn’t just the war that Jace was cultivating, it was also peace. He’d been working to find safe passage for his younger half-brothers Aegon III and Viserys II and ultimately found them a ship in Pentos. Jace accompanied his half-brothers to their vessel before it was ambushed by enemy ships. What ensued was known as the Battle of the Gullet, wherein Jace was attacked by the triarchy. While atop his dragon Vermax, Jace mistakenly flew too low and Vermax was stuck by a crossbow bolt. Jace managed to leap to safety before being impaled by a litany of arrows and sinking to the bottom of the sea. His death struck a major bow to Rhaenyra and her supporters.