Legacies Recap: Death Toll Rises In Penultimate Episode, Setting Up Emotional Series Finale

Spoiler alert: The following recap breaks down the outcome of Legacies' final battle (and it was a doozy).

"Ken is the only one dying today, I promise," Lizzie told MG atop Thursday's Legacies. Boy was she wrong.

As it turns out, no less than four major characters — excluding the aforementioned god of handsomeness and perfect hair — lost their lives during the show's penultimate episode. And in an even more shocking twist, half of those deaths actually stuck!

Hope and Ken's final face-off took place at the Salvatore School as scheduled, but that's pretty much where the Super Squad's master plan fell to pieces. The ending wasn't entirely unhappy, but thanks to an unexpected challenger, a pack of rabid werewolves and far more Klaus references than we ever imagined, it became considerably more complicated.

Read on for a breakdown of how everyone in the squad fared in Legacies' final battle, then drop a comment with your hopes for next week's (gulp) series finale below.

The episode's first major death happened offscreen (boo!) when Alaric stepped in to save MG and Lizzie from a rabid Jed, whose werewolf curse Ken was able to manipulate.

Ben's "curse" was also lifted, and he had an extremely human reaction to discovering Jed's corpse, releasing his pain through a guttural scream the likes of which we haven't seen since... well, since Cleo watched Kaleb die in front of her last week. (Damn, the Super Squad has been dropping like flies lately.)

The moment was made even more painful by a previous scene during which Jed admitted to being more worried about Ben than about his pack. He even prepared Finch to step up as the new alpha "if things so sideways." Spoiler alert: THEY WENT SIDEWAYS.

Of course, Jed's death was merely an appetizer in this feast of tragedy.

MG was the next to go, succumbing to venom from too many werewolf bites for Lizzie to siphon. "All you've ever done is protect me," she told him. "Just once, I was supposed to be protecting you."

And in true MG fashion, he managed to deliver one last heartbreaking compliment before he died, telling Lizzie, "You can be mad at me later. Right now, you have to go kick that god's ass. And I know you will, because you're awesome. I knew it the minute I first saw you.

Pour one out for this queen.

Aurora began the hour on the wrong team, showing up to battle Hope in Ken's place, and she came armed with more than just a god-forged weapon capable of killing a tribrid. She also brought along the endless baggage she's been carrying around from her relationship with Klaus — and she intended to bury his daughter in it.

"I have been under your father's sway for centuries, desperate for even the smallest expression of love, only to be reminded time and time again of his cruelty," she told Hope as she prepared to make her final strike. "I've been caught in a cycle from which there is no escape, until now. The last vestige of Klaus Mikaelson, wiped from the world forever!"

If she'd done less yapping and more stabbing, Aurora would have won right there, but that's not really her style. This allowed Hope to get the upper hand, but instead of killing Aurora, she showed something you don't see from a Mikaelson every day — mercy.

"I am my father's daughter," she said. "But there was another side to my father, one that you never saw. One that was decent, kind and loving. He knew he couldn't make up for his past sins, but he still tried. He didn't want pain and suffering to be all he left behind." It was this mercy that ultimately pushed Aurora to sacrifice herself, stepping in front of Hope just as Ken prepared to impale her.

"You were right about me," Aurora told Hope as she died. "I loved your father as much as I hated him. His spirit, his indomitable will. I wanted him to change for me, but I wasn't enough. You were. He changed for you. And I saw in you everything I couldn't have. I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry too," Hope replied. "For what he's done to you, and for not seeing this side of you sooner."

Then came Aurora's final words: "You have the very best parts of him in you. Finish this, and never forget who you are."

Aurora was given a traditional Viking funeral at the end of the hour, with Lizzie delivering an extremely Lizzie eulogy: "Aurora was a badass bitch. Our relationship was complicated, but she taught me that complicated doesn't mean broken."

Because death means almost nothing anymore, MG and Jed met up with Kaleb in Limbo, where they accepted a hell of a favor from Landon. The phoenix-turned-ferryman offered to use his one "Get Out of Limbo" card on them, despite not knowing the personal price he'll ultimately have to pay.

Of all the deaths Legacies put us through this week, Ethan's was the only one for which we were truly prepared. From the moment we learned about his finite powers, it was a foregone conclusion that he would end up sacrificing himself to save the squad.

What we weren't prepared for, however, was MG's touching eulogy to his fallen friend, who used the last bit of his power (and his life) to save Lizzie from exploding alongside Ken.

"This school is full of students who are more powerful than you, but at the end of the day, it was you who made the ultimate hero move," he said during a private vigil. "The world may never know who Rescue Guy was, but I will never forget you. What you stood for. Because I will stand for it, too. I promise."

Which brings us to the only death we actually wanted to happen — this dick.

In fact, that's exactly how Cleo phrased it when she arrived on the scene to exact a bit of fury justice. "It is not treachery, it is judgment," she told Ken after freezing his weapon before it could pierce Hope's chest. "You're a dick, and your punishment is... her." Right on cue, Hope sent Ken flying onto his own weapon.

Giving credit where it's due, Hope also got an extra jolt of strength from Lizzie ("Our sire bond may be gone, Hope Andrea Mikaelson, but you and I are bonded for life!"). And the explosion certainly weakened him, not to mention left him looking like a melted Red Skull action figure.

Side note: Did anyone else think Alaric was a goner when he took that arrow for Ben?

When all was said and done, only three of this week's deaths seem to be sticking: Ken (yay!), Aurora (boo!) and Ethan.

Actually, we're not so sure about that last one, since the episode ended with Ethan arriving in Limbo.

Regardless, we only have one episode of Legacies left. Your hopes for the series' final hour? Drop 'em in a comment below.