The big death in Episode 2 of Prophecy isn't as tragic as it seems

Key insights

• In Dune: Prophecy, bodies are piling up, hinting at a future war between the Great Houses.
• Lila dies in a tragic sacrifice, strengthening the strength of the Bene Gesserit.
• Lila's death raises questions about her mysterious mother and her possible return in the future.

Diane Ademu-John and Alison Schapker Dune: Prophecy It's only in the second week, but the bodies are already piling up. The Great Houses aren't quite at war yet, but with a rebel uprising on Arrakis and the Bene Gesserit already showing fractures, things are moving in that direction Dune: Prophecy Season 1.

It takes place 10,148 years before the birth of Paul Atreides dune The prequel chronicles the rise of the Bene Gesserit under the stoic Mother Superior Valya Harkonnen (Emily Watson). While the Bene Gesserit have plans to put one of their own on the throne, their ranks lost another in the November 24 episode “Two Wolves.” It was appropriately tragic, but not scary. Sacrifice only makes the Bene Gesserit stronger.

Who dies in Dune Prophecy Episode 2?

It was a short but nice stay Dune: Prophecy for Chloe Leas Purple. Although Tula Harkonnen (Olivia Williams) foresaw her as a future Reverend Mother, Lila died in the Sisterhood's attempt to save themselves. In the first episode, while Valya was away dealing with the deaths of Lord Pruwet Richese (Charlie Hodson-Prior) and Reverend Mother Kasha (Jihae Kim), she left her sister in charge of the school and asked her to give Lila the “Spice.” to undergo torment.”

Tula was seen preparing the Rossak poison, which is a reference to the ritual associated with its discovery on Rossak in the books. 2004s Dune: The Battle of Corrin by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson fleshed out the ritual when it confirmed that Raquella Berto-Anirul (Cathy Tyson) was poisoned by Rossak sorcerer Ticia Cenva and she managed to successfully transform the drug into a harmless substance. One of the side effects of the substance is the ability to visit the combined ego and memories of a person's female ancestors. But as Lila's death proves, they don't always welcome visitors.

“The Agony” is already familiar to fans of Frank Herbert’s original books and the films. Both Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson) and Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) have been through it. Most famously, Paul took in the torment Dune: Part Two and emerged on the other side as the legendary Kwisatz Haderach/Lisan al Gaib. In the Spice Agony, would-be Reverend Mothers ingest the blue substance, but as terrible as it is for them, it's just as bad for men. As Reverend Mother Helen Mohiam noted duneall the men who tried to transmute the water of life died.

After being inflicted with a deadly poison, Lila metabolized the poison and successfully brought her consciousness to meet her ancestors in her Other Memory. She met with Raquella, who was not only the first leader of the Bene Gesserit, but also Lila's great-great-grandmother. Although Raquella looked like she was there to help her relative, things were interrupted by the ghost of Sister Dorothea. Thirty years before the main events of the series, Valya first used “the Voice” and forced Dorothea to kill herself.

As the vengeful Dorothea Tula warned, Valya took her future, and now she is taking her “hope.” Since Lila was something of an adopted daughter of Tula, Dorothea delivered a shattering blow to the gut by killing Lila on Wallach IX, thereby killing her physical form. Considering that Lila seemed like an underrated, promising character without the ego of some of the other girls, it was a shock that she bowed out so early – especially given her connection to Raquella and the fact that Dorothea was her own grandmother.

Lila's death makes perfect sense

There is already a theory that Lila may not be gone forever. Herberts Children of Dune shows Paul's sister Alia (briefly played by Anya Taylor-Joy in Dune: Part Two), possessed by the spirit of Baron Harkonnen – her biological grandfather. Dorothea was out for revenge, and if she could possess Lila while also tricking Tula into believing she was still alive, there could be serious problems at the school.

Most importantly, Lila's death allowed Raquella to warn the sisters of the impending Tiran Arafel by telling the young acolyte:

The key to reckoning is being born twice. Once in the blood. Once in seasoning. A revenant full of scars. A weapon born of war on a path too short.

The first episode heralded a great reckoning by a tyrant, with ominous images foreshadowing the destruction of the Bene Gesserit Temple on Wallach IX. While it seemed like this was hinting at Leto Atreides II as Dune's God-Emperor, the fact that Demond Hart (Travis Fimmel) “died” on Arrakis and was reborn in the midst of the war makes him another potential player than the fabled Tiran -Arafel.

It brought yet another mystery into play as fans asked what happened to Lila's mother. The young girls are separated from their birth mothers at birth to prevent a bond between them, and although Tula told Lila that her mother died in childbirth, this appears to be another lie from the Harkonnens. A hopeful Lila suggested that she might see her mother in her other memory, but when Dorothea emerged from the shadows, she told Lila that her mysterious mother was not there. Instead, she suggested that the Bene Gesserit used it as a tool to get Lila to go there.

It is clear that Lila's mother did not die in childbirth. Since she is not present in her other memory, there could be significant consequences if she is still alive. Whether it's a character that has already been introduced or someone yet to debut, Raquella's great-granddaughter could be a powerful ally or enemy. There's a reason why Valya and Tula keep their fate a secret, but with Lila now dead, the past may catch up with the Harkonnen sisters. After all, Desmond Hart has already shown Valya that she is not as powerful as she thinks.

Even if Lila disappeared in physical form, she could appear later. As Sister Emeline (Aoefie Hinds) told Lila before the ordeal:

Reverend mothers know better than anyone that the dead have not disappeared.

It is tragic that Lila made the decision to put herself through the ordeal. But while the Raquella Line has lost another person, it feels like the persistent failings of the Harkonnen Line are coming back to haunt Valya and Tula. The show's opening statement said it was about correcting inaccuracies in the history of House Harkonnen, but Mother Superior could be heading toward her own Duniverse version of it Macbeth.