After Prince Aemond
caused the death of Rhaenyra's son, Prince
Lucerys Velaryon, her husband
Daemon Targaryen hired two men to murder one of Aegon and Helaena's sons as revenge. The
assassins were aware that Helaena was accustomed to bring her children to her mother's chambers in the
Tower of the Hand every night before they were put to bed. Thus these two men, known as
Blood and
Cheese, hid in Alicent's chambers, bound and gagged Alicent, and murdered her
bedmaid. There, they awaited Helaena's arrival. After killing her guardsmen and barring the door, they took Helaena and her children hostage, and forced Helaena to choose which one of her sons would die. Helaena offered herself, but was refused. The two men forced Helaena to make a decision when they threatened to have Blood rape Jaehaera, and to kill all three of her children should she refuse to choose. In the end, Helaena reluctantly named her youngest child, Prince
Maelor, who she deemed to be too young to understand what was happening. In response, the two men killed Prince
Jaehaerys instead, cutting off his head with a single swing of a sword, and fled with it while Helaena screamed.
After Jaehaerys's death, Helaena became deeply depressed and slowly sank into madness, and refused to eat, bathe, or leave her chambers. Nor would she look at her younger son, Maelor, knowing that she had chosen him to die.
[6] Aegon and Helaena slept apart from one another from then on, and after Aegon was severely injured at the
Battle at Rook's Rest, Helaena did not even make an attempt to visit him. She became unreliable as a
dragonrider, incapable of flying into battle.