With two episodes left to go , Dune : Prophecystill has a lot of inquiry St. Mark floating through its plot of ground . We get laid where thing will suffer 10,000 years in the future tense — but how isthe Sisterhoodgoing to overcomeDesmond Hart ’s uncanny magic and confirm its power ? And how willthe Harkonnensrestore their position as a Great House ?
Not all is divulge , of course . But this week ’s “ In Blood , Truth ” leave us some big lump to chomp on while we look to see how the HBO show wrap up all its zesty , sandy scheming .
After a coup d’oeil of the Emperor ’s shining fresh fleet circle the planet , we get a look at Desmond Hart in his castle quarter — on the face of it recovered from last workweek ’s exhausting , violent heroic meter , and donning a nippy raw uniform . ( Still no haircut though ; his training shout “ rocky and ready ” and he ’s keeping it that way . )
Sister Francesca (Tabu) makes a big impression this week. © HBO
The novel turnout debuts at a ceremony in which the Emperor praise Desmond ’s trueness , then announces he ’s elevating him to Bashar , in program line of a Modern elect regiment dedicated to rooting out treason . Everybody ’s seen what he can do , and he already makes everyone uneasy anyway , so it feels like the perfect promotion .
Princess Ynez flounces out of the ceremonial occasion as presently as she ’s able , but as we ’ll see , this is Constantine ’s week to step up . Thus far Ynez ’s half - buddy has been sort of in the background — he ’s Corrino ’s bastard son , so is n’t in blood line for the throne — and we ’ve seen him company , screw around , and lose his nerve when Ynez asked him to back her in demanding an probe into Desmond . But “ In bloodline , Truth ” fills in some of the big blanks , including who his mother is — which in turn explains a lot about why Empress Natalya hates the Sisterhood so much .
Corrino much gasps when he run into her : Sister Francesca , stunningly beautiful even in her Sisterhood robe and veil . ( We ’ve seen the jr. version of this character before ; she was in Valya ’s tight - knit mathematical group in their acolyte geological era along with Tula and Kasha . ) Natalya ’s human face , meanwhile , contorts into covetous disgust . “ I am here to see my son , ” Francesca excuse , but we right away see she meansourson . It can only be Constantine she ’s mouth about .
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utter of , he ’s at that moment making amends with his babe for leaving her in the lurch at the Landsraad . “ I wo n’t let you down like that again , ” he prognosticate .
On Wallach IX , the acolytes are in the middle of a lesson with Sister Avila when Jen ca n’t stop herself from utter out . Though Jen ’s peradventure the only onenothaving the shared nightmare , she ’s furious that Sisterhood leading has n’t carry more action . “ Whoseeyes check from the darkness ? , ” she demands . “ You want us to make out truth ? How is that potential when none of it subsist here ? ”
Tula enters the classroom at that second and orders Jen to come with her . But she ’s not expelling her , as Jen expects ; she ’s in need of service that only someone whose mind has been able to resist the nightmare can give . It ’ll require Tula letting Jen in on the fact that Lila is a ) awake , and b ) now and again being possessed by Mother Raquella . She manage it pretty well , all thing considered ; mostly , she ’s just thrilled to see that her dear friend , who she saw die before her middle , isn’tactually dead .
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Back in the castle , Constantine and Francesca reunite . He assumes she ’s there because of Kasha ’s end , but it ’s the first she ’s hearing of it .
Nearby , Baron Harkonnen visits Desmond to apologise for mouth against the Emperor at the Landsraad . Both men are polite ( Desmond is , as always , in the “ menacinglypolite ” sphere ) ; both men also have their own agendas . Harrow blames his Aunt Valya for his error in perspicacity ; Desmond takes that as an gap . “ I want to know what the ties are between the Sisterhood and the insurrection , ” he says , offering Harrow a booze-up of spiciness . “ Give me evidence and the Imperial house will reward you . ”
After he featherbed , Harrow takes a deep breath and tells Desmond he might have some utile entropy in hand already . His seek to stop pirate ship from cut off his whale - fur business led him to discover a halo of Arrakian moon-curser with their hands on all the contraband in Zimia , Salusa Secundus ’ main urban center . The Johnny Reb must have become through this underground grocery store , Harrow postulate , to sell spice to get the money to corrupt their “ thinking political machine ” weapon system .
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Desmond front intrigued . “ It ’s a start , ” he suppose . “ But to net your name , I ’ll necessitate proof that your aunt is involved . ”
Speaking of Aunt Valya , she ’s meeting with Francesca , who ’s irritated that she was work to Salusa Secundus under untrue pretext . But Valya assure her there ’s a effective ground for all the concealment . “ The office is too precarious , ” she order her old booster . “ What happened to Kasha was just the start . ” After she take Francesca in on what ’s happened since Desmond appear , Francesca right away recognizes that it ’s Raquella ’s vaticination , starting to come reliable .
Valya tells her she ’s incur a architectural plan to take out Desmond ; Francesa ’s part is to exploit her special connection with Corrino to bring the Sisterhood back into his good Grace . They need Princess Ynez to study on Wallach IX , and there ’s something in it for Constantine , too : would n’t he make a fantastic commanding officer of the Emperor ’s novel fleet ?
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Francesca worry that this rake wo n’t shore if Desmond ’s in the way , but Desmond is now occupied with his new task , mirthfully looking for insurgents . ( Travis Fimmel ’s line of work pitch when Desmond ask Keiran Arteides “ You want to come?”—complete with eyebrow waggle!—ischef ’s kiss . )
Keiran decline and chance a manner to wriggle out of his sword - fight lesson with Constantine , point straight to the club where Mikaela — the Fremen undercover Sister who ’s both part of the rebellionandValya ’s main information reference on the rebels ’ activities — is the opponent of disquieted about being found out . Instead , she ’s collect explosives to greet Desmond and his soldier when they come a - knocking .
Desmond Hart ’s deoxyribonucleic acid sample arrives on Wallach IX as Jen and Lila are partake in a devout here and now . Jen ’s lamentable she did n’t do more to protect Lila , but Lila forgive her . Suddenly , the young girl ’s countenance changes all ( props to Chloe Lea , whose two - in - one character carrying out is telling ) when Jen mentions the nightmare . “ The gaping maw of Shai - Hulud … swallowed by dark until two eyes asterisk back , ” she intones . “ It was n’t a nightmare , it was prevision . I foresaw the reckoning that would drive the empire to authoritarianism . Ifhesucceeds , humanity will lapse into ego - destruction . ”
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These are clearly the language of Raquella , now keep in line Lila ’s body and quick towork . She abound into Tula ’s lab and ingest charge , straight off inspect Kasha ’s tissue sample . ( She does n’t seem to know Dorotea ’s fate , to Tula ’s relief . ) While a rummy Jen take in it all in , LilaQuella take in a startling proclamation : “ This tissue damage … I ’ve get word this before , during the war . ”
Back in the Harkonnen house , Valya asks Harrow “ Did the lead I give you help?”—in case anyone thought she was n’t fully cognizant of Harrow ’s confluence with Desmond . She distinguish her nephew that the information about the smugglers wo n’t defrost the relationship between Harrow and Desmond , but “ we can habituate his distrust to your advantage . ” If he helps the Bashar , it ’ll help House Harkonnen in the eyes of the Emperor .
He warn Valya that Desmond is very concerned in what the Sisterhood is up to — something Harrow himself is also concerned in , though his aunt is n’t about to permit him in on their secrets . “ You ’ll just have to trust me , ” she say , and the smirk they switch over as she hands over Evgeny ’s ring telegraphy that they ’re both glad the old man is beat . They have that in common , at least .
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After Harrow dutifully departs to bring Evgeny ’s remains to the Harkonnen home planet , Theo step frontwards . She ’d also care to know what the Sisterhood is up to , since she ’s part of whatever it is . Valya explains that Sister Francesca has a limited adherence with the Emperor—”imprinting , ” another Sisterhood acquirement — that forms “ an aroused and strong-arm bond that never breaks . ”
We cut to Francesca tilt into that chemical bond by telling the Emperor their inept son involve to be given more responsibility , or else he ’ll never memorise to be a leader . His response to this parenting chat is to buss her , but she pulls off . She ’s not there to bust up his marriage , she says — but it ’s indeed very clear he has powerful feelings for her .
Meanwhile , in Tula ’s lab , LilaQuella is telling Tula and Jen what she meant by “ I ’ve seen this before . ” During the warfare , “ machines plan a pathogen that hatch in the human torso , releasing an enzyme that infect the liver . ” The enzyme that killed Kasha is similar , but instead of her liver , it concentrated in her “ care center . ” Fear is the nous killer , literally !
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Sister Avila shows up then with Desmond ’s DNA sample , and she ’s understandably dismayed to see Lila up and about and saying things like “ This is a virus : the nightmare , the end , they ’re connected to a genetically modified airborne RNA retrovirus . ” Tula swears her to secrecy .
Back in Mikaela ’s nightspot , she ’s still place her booby gob — with Keiran ’s helper — when Desmond saunter in , eager to discover if the place is , as he ’s tortured out of a source , “ a hotbed of insurgent activity . ” ( Desmond is in a very good mood this hebdomad ! ) She deny it , but soldier bug out ripping up the place anyway .
Desmond turns to Mikaela and inquire her how she , as a Fremen , has justified what she does for a living : “ profiting off the rape of your own planet , communing with your oppressors . ” He nigh - talks her , asking her “ how the Sisterhood is link up to the rebellion . ” She ’s not intimidated , and spotter as Desmond and his gang head upstairs for additional ransacking . Just as Desmond bring out her Sisterhood robe and is fondle it with fascination — and just as Keiran notice Mikaela is post one of the Sisterhood ’s signature tune sword — the place irrupt . He ’s raging that she ’s in secret been a Sister all this time , and they part on bad terms .
On Wallach IX , Jen raises a very good question with Tula : “ Is Lila just being used for the Sisterhood ’s amplification ? ” The answer is clearly yes , but Tula snap back with Valya ’s old “ sometimes sacrifice must be made ” parentage . When Jen asks what Tula has sacrificed , her human face darken . “ More than you’re able to ever imagine , ” she says .
We cut back to the smolder ruination of the nightclub to see not only did Desmond somehow survive the burst , he ’s completely uninjured . Viewers were likely not atallsurprised by this ( were you ? ? ) , but Valya is disappoint to get word he was n’t among the all in . Then she shrugs it off . “ So be it , ” she tells Mikaela . “ There ’s a contingency program for him . ”
Mikaela is distressed . Her entire operation , years of work , has been whole ruin , both in a literal and a undercover agent - craft sense — all so that Francesca could get to the Emperor for five minute and engineer Constantine ’s promotion without Desmond leer over his shoulder . It gets bad when Valya tell her to go to the Sisterhood ’s safe house on Arrakis , and Mikaela respond by saying she wo n’t betray her own the great unwashed , not like she did the Johnny . Theo steps in to remind her “ the Sisterhood is your people , ” and Mikaela ’s disgusted by the unreasoning respect . “ countenance ’s see how long you remain this unenlightened , acolyte , ” she mumble as she exits .
Speaking of , back at the palace , Francesca find Constantine in a testy mood . He ’s having an experiential crisis along “ What was I made for ? ” lines . She separate him to be patient ; the father he ’s never take along with will soon be gift him a big opportunity . But his use , she explains , is to protect his baby , the next leader of the Imperium , from “ anyone who seeks to do her damage . Including the ones who claim to bed her . ”
He ’s given a chance to do just that when he discovers Keiran ’s carelessly discarded scans of the throne room — intel he conduct for the rebels in advance of their failed dud secret plan . Keiran is swiftly cop and taken to hiatus jail .
Then , we get a tense dinner vista stuffed with sullen hitters : the Emperor and Empress , Francesca , Constantine , and Princess Ynez are all there . The Emperor announces that they ’ve nabbed a traitor thanks to Constantine ( Ynez ’s typeface send away when she realizes who he means ) . Then , Corrino make the announcement we all eff was coming : Flavius Valerius Constantinus is the newfangled fleet commandant , shortly to be on the front argument supervise the spiciness trade on Arrakis . “ I jazz your mother is as proud of you as I am , ” the Emperor pronounce . Francesca look cheerily startled by the cry - out ; Natalya , meanwhile , fret in hysteria .
After dinner , Ynez visits Keiran in the jail and apply true statement signified on him . She require to bang if he was just using her affectionateness for him to help the rebels . “ I chose you over my precept , ” he admits . “ But I am unforced to decease for them anyway . ” He truly wants to bring about a best Imperium , he says , and he believes he can do it .
On Wallach IX , Tula takes Desmond ’s genetic sample to the supercomputer . To empathise his power , Valya instructs her baby in voice - over , “ We must understand his bloodlines . ”
While that ’s find , we shorten back to the castle . Desmond is holding a small piece of fabric we ensure him with earlier in the episode . What could it think of ? Not sure yet , but it ’s clearly important , and he keeps it tucked in his outfit . “ I should have drop dead , ” he tells Natalya , who ’s fall to see him after chuck the dinner company . “ You ’ve been prefer , ” she suppose . Then she goes off on how she was also choose to avail top the empire into the future , but the Sisterhood get in her means . “ What did they do toyou ? ” she ask Desmond .
We lean forward . in conclusion , some dirt on this guy ! On Wallach IX , the figurer spits out “ Bloodline … Atreides . Bloodline … Harkonnen . Match … identified . ” A picture of a sister appears , and Tula begins to heave and cry .
Meanwhile , Desmond explicate it for us : “ The char who gave giving birth to me sent me away to inhabit among scavengers , and left me fighting for scraps just to subsist . She was a baby . ” This divine revelation moves Natalya to plant a osculation on Desmond . “ Let us disembarrass the Imperium of these witches forever , ” she siss .
An Atreides - Harkonnen baby ? We ’ve view people from that crime syndicate claw up ( see : episode three ) . Is the mathematics correct , though ? What other secrets are Tula and Valya protect ? We ’ll detect out next week , presumptively , with just one episode lead to go .
TheDune : Prophecyfinale arrives Sunday on HBO and Max .
Want more io9 news ? Check out when to expect the latestMarvel , Star Wars , andStar Trekreleases , what ’s next for theDC Universe on film and TV , and everything you need to know about the future ofDoctor Who .
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