The following contains spoilers for House of the Dragon Season 1, Episode 7, "Driftmark," which aired on Oct. 2, on HBO.
Throughout Game of Thrones and now House of the Dragon, it has become abundantly clear that all Targaryens embody the House's motto: Fire and Blood. The Targaryens are vicious, deadly and vengeful. Alicent was not a Targaryen when she married Viserys, but she is beginning to show that she belongs more with House Targaryen than ever before. Her son lost his eye, and now she is ready to bring down the Targaryens, and she will spew fire and spill blood to do accomplish that goal.
The Targaryens conqueror Westeros with fire and blood. Aegon the Conqueror and his sister wives brought their armies and dragons against Westeros and united all the Kingdoms. It's fundamental to the Targaryens to strike with force and show strength to anyone who opposes them. Alicent, however, is a Hightower. She is more political and scheming, yet the more time she spends among the Targaryens, the more she becomes like them. She started out as a sweet, innocent child. She has now grown into a powerful and dangerous woman. While Rhaenyra may still be the rightful heir, Alicent would kill her to satisfy her rage.
Alicent's Embodies the Targaryens' Fire and Blood
At this point, Alicent has hated Rhaenyra for over a decade -- ever since she found out that Rhaenyra had sex with Ser Criston Cole. She was jealous of the freedom Rhaenyra had, while she was caged as Queen. The animosity between them has continued to grow, with Alicent spreading vile rumors about Rhaenyra's children. Each insult she hurls, each veiled threat and every backhanded compliment draws blood and is as scorching as fire. She burns Rhaenyra's reputation throughout the court and slowly bleeds the realm of its loyalty to the Targaryens.
When Lucerys Velaryon defended his cousins from Aemond Targaryen, he ended up taking Aemond's eye. He was not only defending his cousins, but his family's honor as well. Alicent was furious, though, and she tried to paint her son as the sole victim, and even demanded that Lucerys suffer the same fate. She ordered Ser Criston to take the boy's eye, but even he wouldn't follow her order. This is the kind of fire that exists within the Targaryens. Game of Thrones fans saw it many times when someone wronged Daenerys or the Mad King. Despite not sharing blood, it seems that the fire (and madness) of the Targaryens has begun to bloom in Alicent.
Alicent's Wants Rhaenyra's Blood
When her "justice" was denied, Alicent charged at Rhaenyra with Viserys' knife. She planned to take a child's eye, or kill Rhaenyra. She ended up only cutting Rhaenyra, but this is a deep cut to the unity of the Targaryens. In the Dance of the Dragons, this may be the first blood to spill, and it was Alicent who drew it. She made her intentions very obvious: she wants Rhaenyra and her children gone. In front of everyone, she declared that she is willing to do anything to secure the throne for her son. Viserys is blind to many things. The parentage of his grandchildren and Alicent's ambitions are what will cause the downfall of his line.
House of the Dragon has created some vile characters, but Alicent is one of the worst. She is beginning to come into her own and truly embody the virtues of a Targaryen: fire and blood. She is burning the bridge between herself and Rhaenyra, even turning down proposals for peace and marriage. War has come to House Targaryen, and Alicent intends to fight it like a Targaryen.
New episodes of House of the Dragon air on Sundays on HBO.