However, drawing out the Targaryen conflict (and ultimately giving itself too much ground to cover in Season 3) might be the least egregious of its sins. In Season 2, Episode 3, Rhaenyra sends her stepdaughter, Rhaena Targaryen, with her sons, Joffrey Velaryon, Viserys Targaryen, and Aegon Targaryen, to Jeyne Arryn in the Vale. In addition to watching over the three boys, Rhaena must keep an eye on Joffrey and Aegon’s dragons, Tyraxes and Stormcloud, and four dragon eggs, three of which will inevitably hatch 170 years later for Daenerys Targaryen in the Dothraki Sea. At this point in Targaryen history, those eggs should be in Essos, not Westeros. This Daenerys retcon doesn’t make sense in the grand scheme of things.
The History of Daenerys’ Eggs, as Told in ‘Fire & Blood’
Later, Rhaena and Elissa moved from Fair Isle (the seat of House Farman) to Dragonstone. Elissa dreamed of leaving Dragonstone to sail the Sunset Sea and discover the uncharted territories beyond Westeros. However, Rhaena denied Elissa gold to construct her own ship to fulfill this dream. Thus, their relationship became rife with tension.
After begging Rhaena to leave Dragonstone with her one last time, Elissa absconded with three dragon eggs from the Dragonstone hatcheries. At Driftmark, Elissa boarded a ship to Pentos. From there, she sailed to Braavos to petition the Sealord of Braavos under the alias Alys Westhill. Elissa sold the three dragon eggs for enough gold to build Sun Chaser, her vessel. Sure enough, the egg theft sent a ripple through House Targaryen. The prospect of a warlord or sellsword having dragons didn’t sit well with Jaehaerys. However, the Sealord of Braavos denied having the eggs.
Thankfully, the egg dilemma concluded with little fanfare after the Sealord agreed to reduce the Iron Throne’s debts to the Iron Bank of Braavos. That’s not to say the Old King forgot the damage Elissa inflicted upon his house, though. Two years later, he sent Lord Donnel Hightower to intercept Elissa’s voyage across the Sunset Sea, but she evaded capture and was never seen again.
Why the Lore Retcon in ‘House of the Dragon’ Doesn’t Make Sense
Elissa Farman sailed for Pentos in 54 AC. House of the Dragon Season 2 takes place around 129 AC (with the Dance of the Dragons ending in 131 AC). In Game of Thrones Season 1, Illyrio Mopatis of Pentos gifted Daenerys with three dragon eggs for her wedding to Khal Drogo around 298 AC. They hatched in 299 AC.
This begs the question: Why are the dragon eggs in Westeros in 129 AC after Elissa sold them in Braavos? Presumably, the eggs remain in Essos until they come into Dany’s possession. Timeline-wise, it makes the most sense. Perhaps these are three random, unidentifiable dragon eggs, but even episode three’s director, Geeta Vasant Patel, confirms they are, indeed, Dany’s eggs.
Later, in House of the Dragon Season 2, Rhaena, Joffrey, Aegon, and Viserys departed the Vale for Pentos. Earlier in the season, Rhaenyra asked Rhaena to write to Reggio Haratis in Pentos, who Rhaena, her sister Baela, Daemon Targaryen, and Laena Velaryon lived with in Season 1. The goal was to seek asylum in Pentos and ride out the Targaryen civil war, with Rhaenyra resting in the assurance that her bloodline would continue should Team Black lose. However, Rhaena surreptitiously broke from her party to search for Sheepstealer, the wild dragon inhabiting the Vale, leaving her brothers, their dragons, and the eggs to board a ship to Pentos without her.
