Dune: Prophecy episode 2: Sister Lilas prophecy, explained
Another episode of Dune: Prophecy means another cryptic prophecy to break down.
Episode 2's prophecy comes courtesy of Sister Lila (Chloe Lea), a young acolyte in the Sisterhood who makes the decision to undergo the dangerous ritual known as the Agony long before she's ready.
During the Agony, a Sister takes the poison known as the Water of Life, derived from baby sandworms. Thanks to years of physical training, a well-prepared Sister should be able to neutralize the poison within her body. That process will unlock her genetic memory, making her a Reverend Mother. We've seen this ritual before in Dune: Part Two, when Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson) successfully transforms the Water of Life and becomes a Reverend Mother to the Fremen.
However, failing to change the Water of Life means death. That's why less-experienced acolytes like Lila don't take it. So why is she subjecting herself to it?
As we learn in episode 2, Lila is the descendant of Sisterhood founder Mother Superior Raquella Berto-Anirul (Cathy Tyson), who first foretold the oncoming reckoning known as Tiran-Arafel. Current Mother Superior Valya Harkonnen (Emily Watson) and her sister, Reverend Mother Tula Harkonnen (Olivia Williams), hope that if Lila can unlock her genetic memory and connect with Raquella, she'll be able to deliver some wisdom that will help the Sisterhood prevail over the trials to come.
What is Sister Lila's prophecy, and what does it mean?
Of course, the plan goes as poorly as can be expected. Lila, brave as she is, succumbs to the Water of Life. Before she does, though, she delivers a foreboding prophecy — not from Mother Raquella but from Raquella's granddaughter, Dorotea (Camilla Beeput). Dorotea speaks through Lila, revealing, "The key to the reckoning is one born twice. Once in blood. Once in spice. A revenant full of scars. A weapon born of war, on a path too short."
So who could she be talking about? Who do we know from Dune: Prophecy who has been born twice?
As of now, all signs point to soldier Desmond Hart (Travis Fimmel). Like all humans, he was born in blood, but he also experienced a rebirth in the Arrakis desert, when he was swallowed by a sandworm. Given that Arrakis is the only planet where the spice melange exists, and that sandworms are a key part of spice production, Hart's experience facing Shai-Hulud sounds as close to a birth in spice as you can get. He also bears several scars on his face, and as a soldier, he is the definition of "a weapon born of war."
However, there's one word in Lila's prophecy that could change everything: "revenant." That term could reference someone who's come back to life. Or it could reference another element of Frank Herbert's Dune lore: gholas.
Could Desmond Hart be a ghola?
A ghola is essentially a human clone, but instead of being cloned from living tissue, a ghola is replicated from dead tissue. Pretty gnarly, right? They're created by a faction known as the Bene Tleilaxu, and they play a large role in Dune Messiah and onward.
So, with the concept of a "revenant" on the table, could Dune: Prophecy be implying that the Desmond we meet in the show is actually a ghola? Perhaps the original Desmond died in the sandworm attack — which seems basically impossible to survive, as cool as that would be — after which his dead body became the base for his ghola. Add in some extra genetic manipulation during the ghola creation process, and boom, you're looking at Desmond's fire powers.
Of course, this is all just conjecture, and Desmond Hart could simply be as powerful as he claims he is. Or the prophecy could be pointing to someone else entirely, and Desmond is just a red herring. But for now, who else do we know who's been reborn in spice? We've got our eye on you, Desmond!