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House of the Dragon episode 9 sets up a sad battle that's still to come in the show's future. Episode 9 revolves around the aftermath of King Viserys' death, narrowing in on Team Green to reveal their reaction to the seismic event. Two major players in the episode, though, are set to come to truly tragic blows in the future.
Before we go any further, be warned that the following contains major spoilers for the show and the book! Turn back now if you're not up to date – and if you don't want to know what might be coming up in future seasons of House of the Dragon!
Still here? Then let's dig into spoilers. 'The Green Council' brings identical twins Erryk and Arryk Cargyll to the forefront, with the duo searching high and low for Aegon Targaryen, who the greens are planning on crowning the new king.
Erryk and Arryk, though, have differing opinions on the prince. Ultimately, Erryk smuggles Rhaenys from the Red Keep – revealing his loyalties lie with the blacks. That difference of allegiance is going to come to a heart-breaking head.
In George R.R. Martin's Fire and Blood, while Erryk joins the blacks, Arryk will remain with the greens. Ser Criston Cole, now head of Aegon's Kingsguard, sends Arryk (posing as his twin) to sneak into Dragonstone, where Rhaenyra and her children are based. But, Erryk finds his brother in the castle, and the duo draw swords.
Now, Fire and Blood is written as a history collated from multiple unreliable accounts, so there's no clear-cut version of what happens next. Some say that Erryk and Arryk fight for an hour, then die together after declaring their love for one another. The story also goes, though, that they each call their brother a traitor, then die very swiftly after that.
Whichever way the show decides to tell the story, it's clear that the final showdown between Erryk and Arryk will be very tragic indeed as brother turns against brother.
Check out our House of the Dragon release schedule to find out exactly when the next episode drops in your time zone – and in the meantime, see our guide to the Targaryen family tree for a deep dive on Westeros's ruling family.
