  |
This article's content is marked as Mature The page contains mature content that may include coarse language, sexual references, strong drug use, extremely traumatic themes, and/or graphic violent images which may be disturbing to some. Mature pages are recommended for those who are 18 years of age and older. If you are 18 years or older or are comfortable with graphic material, you are free to view this page. Otherwise, you should close this page and view another page. |
| “ | They cannot cow us, for our cause is just. We'll slash through them and ride hell-bent for King's Landing! Sound the trumpets! We'll make another Redgrass Field today. | „ |
| ~ Daemon to his forces as Lord Bloodraven's host approached. |
Prince Daemon Blackfyre, disputably Daemon II Blackfyre and known in disguise as Ser John the Fiddler, is a supporting antagonist in the A Song of Ice and Fire novel series.
Daemon II Blackfyre was the Second Blackfyre Pretender, being the third son and eldest surviving heir of Daemon I Blackfyre, the founder of House Blackfyre and a claimant to the Iron Throne of the Seven Kingdoms in Westeros. Two decades after his father's defeat, he became the central figure in a conspiracy to start the Second Blackfyre Rebellion. Unlike his father and two dead elder brothers, Daemon II wasn't a capable warrior or leader. As a result, he was unable to gain sufficient support and was arrested by Lord Bryden Rivers before his insurrection could even begin.
Appearance[]
When Daemon was first encountered as Ser John the Fiddler, he appeared as a young man who was lean and lithe, had a clean-shaven face, collar-length black hair, and eyes that caught the deep blue color of his doublet. However, he was noted by Duncan the Tall to have the same purple-colored eyes as his squire Egg (Aegon V Targaryen).
When he reveals his true identity, Daemon has washed off the black dye from his hair, revealing it to be silver-gold, the same hair color as the Targaryens and Valyrians.
Personality[]
Daemon II was seen as a cheerful person who is also really courteous. He is shown to be quite a party animal, as he really enjoys being at parties during special events such as marriages. In addition, Daemon, like his father, also has a sense of honor, as he was willing to challenge Ser Glendon Ball to a trial by combat to prove his innocence.
Biography[]
Son of the Black Dragon[]
Daemon Waters was the bastard son of King Aegon IV Targaryen, the ruler of the Seven Kingdoms of the continent of Westeros. Aegon IV was a greedy and lustful monarch who sired many bastards during his reign. Daemon Waters was a favorite child of King Aegon, so much so that he knighted him at the age of twelve and gave him the Valyrian steel sword "Blackfyre," a treasured heirloom of incredible import to House Targaryen. Daemon Waters henceforth took the name "Daemon Blackfyre." On his deathbed, King Aegon IV, as he died, proceeded to legitimize all of his bastard children, giving them a claim to the Iron Throne of the Seven Kingdoms.
Aegon's eldest son and successor, King Daeron II Targaryen, gave his younger half-brother Daemon lands of his own and allowed him to form House Blackfyre in the year 184 AC. In the same year, Daemon Blackfyre married Lady Rohanne, a noblewoman from the Free City of Tyrosh on the eastern continent of Essos across the Narrow Sea, and had twin sons: Aegon & Aemon. Daemon the Younger, who was named after his father, was the third son of the couple, born in 189 AC. Young Daemon experienced "dragon dreams," prophetic dreams that accurately predicted the future. Only Targaryens had dragon dreams, and even then, only rarely.
Over the years prior to and after Young Daemon's birth, Daemon Blackfyre and Rohanne of Tyrosh had several other children. Among them were several daughters, including Calla Blackfyre, and four more sons, all born after Daemon the Younger. The eldest two of Daemon's younger brothers were named Haegon Blackfyre and Aenys Blackfyre. As a child, Young Daemon met and befriended Alyn of House Cockshaw. Daemon and Alyn were both inclined towards men rather than women and shared a mutual attraction. They were often bullied by Aegon and Aemon Blackfyre, who, unlike Daemon the Younger, were valiant warriors like their father.
The First Blackfyre Rebellion[]
Despite the fact that the Seven Kingdoms prospered under King Daeron's rule, there were many who viewed him as being feeble in both body and mind. Spurred on by their individual grievances, some lords began secretly beseeching Daemon Blackfyre to usurp his brother's crown. Though he ignored their wishes for many years, Daemon eventually changed his mind and decided to claim the Iron Throne for himself. Crowning himself King Daemon I Blackfyre in 196 AC, he launched what would later be called the "First Blackfyre Rebellion." Young Daemon was only seven years old at the time, so unlike his older brothers, he never joined his father in battle.
Young Daemon had a dragon dream that his older brothers would be slain by arrow fire. He tried to warn them, but Aegon and Aemon laughed him off. The First Blackfyre Rebellion ended in the Battle of the Redgrass Field. As foretold by Daemon the Younger, Aegon and Aemon were killed by arrows unleashed by Lord Bryden Rivers, also known as Lord Bloodraven, and his personal guard, the Raven's Teeth. Daemon I Blackfyre was killed by Lord Bloodraven's arrows as he tried to recover Aegon's body. Ser Aegor "Bittersteel" Rivers, another of King Aegon's bastards and Daemon I Blackfye's chief supporter, retrieved Blackfyre and retreated from the battlefield.
Prior to The Mystery Knight[]
Bittersteel took Daemon the Younger (who was now Daemon I's eldest surviving male heir) and the rest of House Blackfyre and fled to Tyrosh across the Narrow Sea. In Tyrosh, his mother's home, Daemon and his family lived with impunity and began plotting future attempts to take the Iron Throne. Daemon the Younger grew into a handsome and charismatic man, though he was still lacking in battle skill and charisma. Eventually, he had dragon dreams of a tall man serving as a Kingsguard and a dragon hatching from its egg at Whitewalls, a Westerosi castle that belonged to Lord Ambrose Butterwell, who gave support to both House Blackfyre and House Targaryen in the First Blackfyre Rebellion.
Lord Gorman Peake, a Westerosi nobleman who had fought for House Blackfyre, learned of the dream Daemon the Younger had and urged him to return to Westeros and make a play for the throne. A wedding tourney, which would be held in 212 AC by Lord Butterwell, would serve as a pretext for Daemon to gather and rally supporters. When Aegor Rivers refused to support Daemon, his exact reason became a subject of debate amongst the maesters of the Citadel; While many believed that Daemon and Lord Gormon were unable to convince him that their plan was sensible and will succeed despite the odds, some thought that Aegor had little use of anything but war, and distrusted Daemon's dragon dreams and love of fine things. Others think that he is perhaps troubled by Daemon's homosexuality, which might be enough for Bittersteel to deny him the sword Blackfyre and the support of the Golden Company.
Despite not having Bittersteel's support, Daemon secretly crossed the Narrow Sea and entered the care of Lord Peake. In order to keep his identity a secret, he disguised himself as a humble hedge knight under the alias of "Ser John the Fiddler." In Westeros, he was reunited with his childhood friend, Alyn Cockshaw, with whom he began a romantic relationship.
The Mystery Knight[]
A Meeting in the Hedges[]
Lord Butterwell did possess a dragon egg, as Daemon had dreamt, and he decided to allow the Blackfyre Prince and his supporters to secretly gather at Whitewalls under the pretext of a wedding. The wedding in question would be between Lord Butterwell himself and the daughter of the head of House Frey. In 212 AC, Daemon, as John the Fiddler, travelled with the entourage of Lord Peake and Lord Cockshaw on their journey to Whitewalls. On the road, they encountered a large hedge knight and his young squire hiding in a bush. John instantly recognized the hedge knight as the man from his dreams who would become a knight of the Kingsguard.
Daemon believed that the hedge knight, whom he found considerably attractive, was destined to serve him. The knight introduced himself as Ser Duncan the Tall and his squire as Egg. They were hiding in the bush because they had initially been unsure as to whether or not Lord Peake's procession were bandits. Whereas Peake and Cockshaw were challenging and rude towards Duncan, John, however, was courteous. He tried to hit on the hedge knight, who remained oblivious to his advances. He invited Ser Duncan and Egg to attend the wedding at Whitewalls, but Duncan declined, causing John to state that they'd meet again before he rode on to re-join Lord Peake, Lord Cockshaw, and the rest of the entourage.
At Whitewalls[]
Ser John is present in the great dining room of Whitewalls, where he is seen making a toast before the wedding feast begins. Upon seeing Duncan and some friends, he immediately headed over to them. Turning to Ser Glendon Flowers, one of Duncan's friends, he tells Glendon that he hopes that he is "Fireball's son," which surprises Glendon, as the latter believes himself to be the son of Ser Quentyn Ball, also known as Fireball, who trained and fought alongside Daemon I Blackfyre during the Blackfyre Rebellion. When Glendon asks him who he is, John introduces himself as John the Fiddler, but he continues to hide his true identity as Daemon II Blackfyre. He then boastfully revealed that he himself has been given a place of honor on the dais by Lord Butterwell, but he prefers being in the company of hedge knights, "Fat Pink Ladies" and "Old Men." When Glendon criticizes John for his inappropriate boasting, the latter immediately apologizes. When Duncan left to get some fresh air, John told him to hurry back as there were jugglers that had yet to arrive and reminded him not to miss the bedding.
After a while, when Duncan returned to the dining room, John was seen enjoying the entertainment. When the bedding came, he called out that Duncan should carry the bride to the bedchamber. Later, John finds the hedge knight and remarks that Whitewalls nearly look like they're covered in snow since the stones glowed white under the moonlight. When he asks Duncan if he had been north of the Neck or had seen the Wall, the hedge knight states that he didn't and reveals that he and Egg are going to Winterfell, which is their destination. When John asks Duncan to show him the way in case he joins, the latter tells him that Winterfell is right up the King's Road and that he has to continue going North. When Duncan asked him why he followed him, Daemon revealed that he saw him slip away from the bedchamber and slip in after him.
John then revealed to Duncan that he dreamed of him before they first met, in which he saw Duncan as a Kingsguard, the greatest knight in the Seven Kingdoms. After John revealed to Ser Duncan of his knowledge that the latter had dreamed the same dream, a doubtful Duncan states that it makes no matter what he himself dreams and reminds Daemon that only the king can make a knight of the Kingsguard. When John asked him if he preferred being a lord and that being a Kingsguard didn't suit him, Duncan responded that he wouldn't and that he would rather sport two blue wings and fly away. John then reveals to him the dream in which a dragon would hatch at Whitewalls, which surprises Duncan, and the former reveals the dream in which he saw his elder brothers lying dead, though he didn't reveal to Duncan their identities or that they had died on the Regress Field.
This made Duncan remember the dragon-dream of Prince Daeron Targaryen, in which it foresaw the death of Prince Baelor Targaryen, who was accidentally injured in the head by his own brother, Prince Maekar, during Duncan's trial of seven and tragically died because of that. When John tried to win Duncan over to his side, Lord Gormon Peake arrived to get him, as John was going to joust the next day. Before leaving, the latter states to Duncan that Ser Pimm must fall. The next day, during the wedding tourney, Ser John the Fiddler arrives wearing blue and yellow-colored armor and successfully unhorses Ser Franklyn Frey.
Later, Duncan quickly realized that John was not the Fiddler's real name and soon found him. John remarks that Glendon Flowers (whom he referred to as Fireball's Bastard) had knocked Alyn Cockshaw during their joust, causing the latter to land on his butt. This caused Alyn to hatefully state that Glendon is no son of Fireball and that he should have never been allowed to compete in the tourney. John then invites Duncan into his tent and reveals to the hedge knight that he'll give him back his arms, armor, and horse after he unhorses Ser Uthor Longleaf, who had unhorsed Duncan by giving him a blow to the head with his lance.
Imprisonment and Death[]
Rather than being executed, Daemon II was taken as a prisoner to the Red Keep, the residency of House Targaryen in King's Landing, the capital city of the Seven Kingdoms. Lord Bloodraven intended to keep him alive as a hostage. He deduced that so long as Daemon II lived, Bittersteel wouldn't be able to crown another Blackfyre as the rightful Lord of the Seven Kingdoms. Daemon II ultimately died in captivity at some point during or prior to 219 AC. Bittersteel subsequently crowned his younger brother, Haegon Blackfyre, and a Third Blackfyre Rebellion broke out. Like his two predecessors, Haegon I was defeated.
Powers & Abilities[]
Powers[]
- Precognition: Some members of House Targaryen, and those who bore the family's blood, were known to experience vivid visions in their dreams that foretold future events. Referred to as "dragon dreams," these prophetic visions always came true. However, the details in the dreams were often vague and up to interpretation, and the dreamer had no way of controlling when the prophecies came to them. Dragon dreamers were a rarity, with Daemon II being the only known Blackfyre example of one.
Gallery[]
