I've Read Fire & Blood, HotD S2 Side Character Everyone Ignored Will Be the Most Hated One Soon

Dragons have always been the main attraction of the Game of Thrones universe. And if the first season of House of the Dragon introduced us to just a few of the most important dragons, the upcoming episodes will introduce us to a whole army of them.

According to the original text by George R.R. Martin, Daemon Targaryen will be involved in the search for riders to take part in military operations on the side of the Blacks.

Men and women of lesser birth but with Valyrian blood will be chosen as new riders, for only Valyrians have the gift of controlling dragons. In Fire & Blood, Daemon manages to find several illegitimate children of the Targaryens and Velaryons during his mission.

Hugh Is Not Just a Side Character

Now let's recall a scene from the first episode of Season 2. Aegon is not very secure on the Iron Throne — for example, he promises to pay the blacksmiths in advance without thinking that the money is needed for the coming war, and his Hand has to sort out the king's rash decisions.

The blacksmith who came to the king with a request is called Hugh, and while this name may not mean anything to those who have not read Fire & Blood, those familiar with the book immediately understood what role this character would play in the future.

Hugh Will Mount One of the Most Powerful Dragons

At the end of the first season, we see Daemon decide to visit Vermithor, a dragon without a rider, and sing to him in Valyrian. Vermithor's former rider was the former King of Westeros, Jaehaerys I, Viserys' predecessor. Vermithor is one of the oldest, strongest, and largest dragons in Westeros, capable of standing up to the equally powerful Vhagar.

Daemon's song was probably meant to contact Vermithor and let the dragon know that he would soon have a new rider. And yes, that rider would be Hugh.

Hugh's Story During the Dance of the Dragons

Hugh, who would become known as Hugh Hammer, is a bastard who becomes a key character in Fire & Blood. Hugh's origins are unknown, and he is described as a tall man born to a blacksmith on Dragonstone.

Hugh rode Vermithor to the Battle of the Gullet on the side of the Blacks. However, during the First Battle of Tumbleton, Hugh and another bastard rider, Ulf the White, defected to the Greens and became known as the Two Betrayers.

After the battle, Hugh decided that he needed to be King and soon had himself crowned with a black iron crown. When the Second Battle of Tumbleton began, Hugh was inside the city walls. He ran down the stairs to the courtyard, demanding a hammer, and a horse so he could ride beyond the walls to Vermithor, where he met Jon Roxton, one of the lords of the Green Party.

Noticing Hammer, Roxton plunged his sword, the Orphan-Maker, into the traitor, slicing the bastard from belly to throat.