Olivia led her to the young Mother Superior who stood in front of the stone building, talking to a man in a tan work suit who made notes as she spoke. Although Valya noted Cioba’s arrival, she remained engrossed in her discussion until she dismissed the contractor.
Cioba was married to Josef and was a vital part of Venport Holdings, but she had been raised and trained in the Sisterhood, so her allegiance to the Mother Superior was deeply ingrained. Raquella’s successor was not an easy woman to know, with complex, sometimes contradictory ambitions and a wall around her.
When Valya turned her attention to Cioba, she spoke bluntly, “I am surprised you came here, Cioba Venport. The Emperor would pay a fine ransom if we delivered you to him—a small sacrifice on my part to obtain a great deal of influence.”
Cioba had hoped for a cordial conversation, and negotiations. She even wanted to visit her daughters Candys and Sabine, who were being taught here. But in light of Valya’s aggressive comment, she shifted her entire approach. “With respect to you, Mother Superior, I would advise against that. I am a Sorceress and a Reverend Mother. If you were to treat me so disrespectfully, it could create a new rift in the Sisterhood—just when you are trying to heal an old wound.”
Valya turned away to look at the construction activities. “Even so, your coming here entails great risk for us.”
“Perhaps, Mother Superior, but I am certain you have ways to prevent the escape of the information. I am here to ask you to take another risk, on my husband’s behalf. Just as he took a big chance himself when he helped the Sisterhood after we were disbanded by Emperor Salvador.”
Valya arched her dark eyebrows, looked deeply apprehensive. “What would you ask of us?”
“The Sisterhood could serve as an intermediary to resolve the dispute between Josef and Emperor Roderick. Negotiating peace would bring stability to the Imperium and place both the Emperor and VenHold in your debt.”
Valya narrowed her gaze. “The Emperor has confiscated all VenHold financial assets and seized their banks across the Imperium. Your husband recently laid siege to Salusa Secundus and retreated in defeat after the Butlerians drove him away. What possible advantage would the Sisterhood gain if we were to strengthen ties with Venport Holdings?”
Cioba forced calm upon herself. “That is an inaccurate assessment of events, Mother Superior, but keep in mind that VenHold still controls significant economic assets in other areas. Josef went to Salusa not to conquer, but to force an end to the dispute.”
“And the reason he retreated so suddenly? I don’t feel as if we have received all of the information on that.”
“I am not a military tactician,” Cioba said, with the most enigmatic smile she could muster.
Valya gave her a wry smile in return. “All right. But as for the ‘dispute,’ I believe it began when your husband assassinated Roderick’s brother—murdered an Emperor.”
Cioba struggled to find a way to break through the Mother Superior’s stony resistance. “Salvador Corrino was a volatile and dangerous man. Do not forget that he slaughtered many Sisters on Rossak. Whatever my husband’s actions, you have to agree that the Imperium benefits from a more stable Emperor.”
The young Mother Superior gazed at her dispassionately, not seeming to care about her problems. “Agreed, and that is why the Sisterhood has strengthened ties with Roderick Corrino, the Imperial Court, and many Landsraad nobles. I do not wish to jeopardize that.”
Cioba continued doggedly, “Because of Roderick’s grievance against Josef, the Butlerian fanatics have been gaining influence and power at the expense of reason. I know you have no great love for the Butlerians, Mother Superior. Think of the damage the Orthodox Sisters caused to our order, how they nearly destroyed us!”
“Yes, but that is an internal matter to the Sisterhood, and it has been resolved.” Valya gave a grudging nod. “However, I do agree that we would all be much better off if the dispute were to end. One retaliation leads to a counterretaliation, which leads to another, ad infinitum. But I have well-placed Sisters in the Imperial Palace, including Fielle as the Emperor’s Truthsayer. Those women are required to serve both the Sisterhood and the Emperor to the best of their abilities.”
“Sometimes at cross-purposes, though.”
“The Sisterhood’s purpose is paramount.” Valya’s dark eyes were hard.
“The Sisterhood’s purpose is wide-ranging,” Cioba countered. She hoped this cryptic statement was enough to remind Valya that Cioba knew about the Sisterhood’s hidden computers and their extensive genetic records. In fact, Cioba herself had arranged for the secret VenHold transport that had retrieved these computers and records from the Rossak jungles. “For the good of the Imperium, we must force a wedge between the Butlerians and the Emperor. Venport Holdings can do that, and only my husband has a military force sufficient to oppose the fanatics. He calls on the Sisterhood for assistance. You can serve as an intermediary between Josef and Roderick, finding a way for them to become allies.”
Valya crossed her arms over her chest. “Helping Josef that way would bring the wrath of the Emperor and the Butlerians down on us.” She shook her head. “No, Sister Cioba. After the setback we suffered on Rossak, I don’t think that’s wise. As Mother Superior, I will not place our order between another collision of titanic forces. Too dangerous for us. The Sisterhood must remain neutral in this matter.”
Valya dismissed her and walked briskly off to the main complex, accompanied by Deborah, leaving Cioba alone, stunned and disheartened by the aloof dismissal.
* * *
WHEN VALYA RETURNED to her offices, she received a surprising intelligence report that made her pulse race. Fielle had rushed a coded message directly to her from the Imperial Court, news that she knew the Mother Superior would want right away. Yes, Fielle knows me all too well.
Vorian Atreides had gone there to meet with Emperor Roderick on Salusa, and after the hated man left, the Truthsayer had been able to gather important information. There were strong indications that he had gone to Corrin, and that he thought he could hide there.
He was wrong.
In this vast and infinitely complex universe, danger is always present. For an ordinary person, the challenge is to determine the pitfalls and how to avoid them. Like other humans, I am not perfect, but my prescience elevates me to another level of consciousness.
—NORMA CENVA, recorded comments
Sometimes the revelations of prescience came to her unbidden, but the universe had so many variables, far beyond even her comprehension. Reality itself was imperfect and unpredictable.
Like other Navigators, her expanded prescience allowed her to see safe pathways through and around countless star systems. In this sense the universe was hers and available to her, as much as she wished to explore, and she wanted to give the universe to her Navigators. But the universe was not exactly a safe place.
Troubled, she gazed out upon the Kolhar field of Navigator tanks with tender feelings, letting her thoughts run through countless possibilities. These were her children, she was their creator. And this maternal sense, this undeniable love for her creations, was stronger than any feeling she held for her great-grandson. She worried about Josef’s welfare, but he had caused his own problems.
Due to the commercial embargo the Emperor had imposed throughout the Imperium, many of her Navigators had been withdrawn from their great spacefaring ships, and remained here in their tanks. Now, with the spice stockpile on Arrakis destroyed, vital melange supplies were curtailed. Even though Josef had increased harvesting to higher levels with all his teams, there still was not enough spice for her or for her Navigators.
Because of the feud with Roderick Corrino, her Navigators were suffering. Josef had withdrawn so many of his commercial ships that only a handful of Navigators were still active, and being cut off from foldspace travel caused them great distress. They reacted as if the universe had been stolen from them. Norma did her best to stabilize the damage, to coax and comfort her Navigators
; to balance the situation as much as possible she redistributed some of the limited spice gas, strengthening those who needed it most.
Conversely, without VenHold commerce, the Imperium itself was straining. Unrest brewed among populations that did not receive their regular shipments of vital commodities; countless addicts were longing for melange, just as her Navigators were. Prices had skyrocketed.
Though Norma usually remained aloof from human concerns, she could see the crisis building, and feared that inaction would result in violent repercussions. People did foolish things, and she worried that Josef’s enemies would soon take rash actions as a result.
And those actions could adversely affect her Navigators.
Manford Torondo hated what they represented, and his followers had slain one of her precious children on Baridge. Now, Emperor Roderick held Dobrec hostage as a research specimen on Salusa Secundus. Both of these leaders were desperate, superstitious … and dangerous.
In the fractured map of prescience, she had foreseen the possibility of a Navigator being kidnapped, but the greater disaster of the wrecked spice bank on Arrakis had blinded her at the time. She had not rushed back to Kolhar soon enough to prevent the loss of Dobrec.
Now, her thoughts tangled in knots. She gazed beyond the field of Navigators, extending her mind’s eye far out in space toward Salusa Secundus, which was the heart of a psychic storm she was feeling. She could sense the tension in Dobrec’s mind there, the crisis he faced as the Imperial interrogator pressed him more and more strenuously. Prescience provided her with few clear details, but she learned enough to realize that the captive Navigator would not survive.
Even from Kolhar she could visualize the secret underground laboratory, the prodding, sampling, and tormenting that was being inflicted on Dobrec—all in a clumsy attempt to understand what no mere human could ever comprehend. Yet the Scalpel interrogator understood techniques that no Navigator knew, techniques that no Navigator could resist.
Norma felt hollow inside.
Emperor Roderick Corrino might be a moral man in the human sense, but Norma’s morals were not the same as his, nor Manford Torondo’s … nor Josef’s, for that matter. Yet all of those men, in their righteous cocoons, professed to be taking actions for the proper reasons.
Because of who she was—and what she was—Norma’s obligations were greater than herself, greater than those men and their goals. The captive Navigator created an immense problem for her.
In the far-distant tank, Dobrec drifted, trapped, but Norma could see only visual echoes of his presence. The Emperor would do anything to understand Navigators, to find a way to strike against Venport Holdings. Roderick Corrino did not comprehend the great danger of his decisions, nor did Josef understand what he had provoked. And Manford Torondo, especially, did not know the terrible consequences of his actions, or actions that were to come.
She could not rescue Dobrec because of all the soldiers the Emperor had stationed to guard the laboratory, but she could help him in another way, show him how to take an infinite and necessary journey.…
Through her agitated awareness, Norma sensed the dark storm coming, a menace to her Navigators that was greater than any peril they had ever faced. The danger loomed over all of them on Kolhar, over all of Venport Holdings … over the future itself.
The threat and terror were crippling. She had no answer. Norma felt as if she were drowning inside her isolated tank. She felt … helpless. And the threat was coming here to Kolhar. And soon.
In a frantic attempt to understand, she reached out with the tendrils of her remarkable mind, probing, searching.…
Grant me the proper weapons and I will conquer the soul of humanity.
—RAYNA BUTLER, final public rally on Kellimor
After she returned from Lord Pondi’s planet, Anari Idaho’s report was exactly what Manford had hoped for. With her own eyes, the loyal Swordmaster had seen Pondi’s stockpile of atomics, doomsday weapons like those that had been used to wipe out the thinking machines.
But not all of the warheads had been used in that ruthless holocaust, and a planet-killing reserve had been set aside on Gillek. The nobleman was far too frightened to keep it there, and he was such an eager convert to the Butlerian movement that he had offered it all to Manford—who knew exactly how to make use of such unexpected bounty, and strength. It was just what he needed against Venport and his supposedly impregnable stronghold on Kolhar.
Over the course of several days on Pondi’s planet, Anari and her team had worked under cover of darkness to remove every one of the atomics. As she prepared to depart with her prize, the nervous nobleman had remained behind, bowing, weeping with happiness, thanking Anari for relieving him of such a terrible burden. Her Butlerian spacefolder raced back to Salusa Secundus with a full arsenal of forbidden atomics, and when the ship slipped in among Manford’s fleet, no one guessed how much destruction she carried in the hold.
Proud of her accomplishment, Anari shuttled down to rejoin the ever-growing hordes camped in Zimia’s palace square. Manford was relieved to have her back, and not just because of the news she brought. He was a far stronger leader with his Swordmaster present, and not merely in the physical sense. He could never have asked for a more perfect bodyguard, nor a better emotional bulwark, a stabilizer.
After Anari delivered her oral report in a low voice, close to his ear, Manford heaved a long, ecstatic sigh. Looking toward the towering Imperial Palace nearby, he narrowed his gaze. “I would prefer to keep this knowledge away from our dear Emperor Roderick. It does not concern him, and he has already shown that he is unwilling to take difficult but necessary actions. Therefore, we will use the atomics against our mutual enemy. And we will win. Anari, I am certain that Roderick Corrino will thank us.”
Both he and the Emperor were determined to crush Directeur Venport and erase his cursed technology, but Manford didn’t entirely trust Roderick’s convictions. While weak-willed Salvador could be pressured into doing what he was told, his brother had an unfortunate habit of thinking for himself.
Anari warned, “The use of atomics is strictly forbidden—particularly atomics against humans.”
During the long days of waiting for her report, hoping for the best, Manford had already thought through the consequences. “The use of thinking-machine technology is also forbidden, and Venport is clearly guilty of violating that. He sent cymeks to Salusa Secundus! I will use one anathema to destroy another. Thinking machines tortured and enslaved us for centuries, but remember that atomics liberated us. There is no moral equivalency.” He flushed as he thought of the glorious mission that lay before them. “After we wipe out Kolhar, if Roderick is too upset, I will explain that we did it to avenge the murder of his brother. If there is still too much uproar about our method, we can be contrite and beg forgiveness.” He smiled, nodding to himself. “I don’t expect it to be overly difficult, though. Roderick also gets what he wants.”
“If we succeed,” Anari said. “Remember that Kolhar is the most heavily defended planet in the Imperium. Despite our atomics, we could suffer heavy losses.”
He looked at the sprawling encampment of Butlerians all around him. “We have plenty of blood to spend.” He gestured to Anari, having already made his plans. “Take me to the Imperial Palace. I will inform the Emperor that we intend to conquer Kolhar, and all my followers will depart immediately. He doesn’t need to know more details.”
He had many warships in orbit alongside Roderick’s Imperial Armed Forces, including the hostage fleet that Admiral Harte had recently brought home. All those fighters were happy comrades for the time being … but Manford knew that the Butlerians had overstayed their welcome. The Emperor wanted them to leave.
When Manford returned after defeating Directeur Venport, though, his followers would never leave. They would be here to stay.
* * *
EMPEROR RODERICK SAT with Haditha in his private suite in the Palace, reading the unexpected handwritten message from Manf
ord Torondo. The Butlerian leader announced that his entire fleet would depart for Kolhar, “to do what must be done. My forces are sufficient and my followers are determined. We will break through Venport’s defenses and lay waste to his entire planet.”
It was welcome news indeed.
He caught his breath as he handed the message to his auburn-haired wife. “I will tell Manford he has my blessing. The Butlerians will surely be slaughtered in the attempt, but they might still inflict considerable damage on Venport.” He tapped his fingers on the ornate bloodwood table. “Both sides may decimate each other.”
Haditha finished reading and set the note aside. “Manford must know that, though. He seems altogether too confident. Or foolish.”
“They can’t depart from Salusa swiftly enough, as far as I am concerned.” Although the Butlerian ships had made no overt threat against the Imperial capital, Roderick knew they could just as easily turn against Salusa, and maybe even attempt a coup. “I don’t trust Manford Torondo any more than I trust Directeur Venport.”
By now, he had decided that General Roon’s strike force had been lost somehow. Admiral Harte’s hostage battle group from Kolhar consisted of slow FTL ships that could not compete with even the old-model Butlerian fleet. Roderick had a plan for Harte’s ships, though—one that would be effective against the Butlerian homeworld, provided they were not totally destroyed at Kolhar. Either way, he felt confident that the Butlerians would be defeated.
The Emperor was supposed to possess the strongest military force, bar none, but during the course of his reign Salvador had let the fleet degenerate into corruption and incompetence. Salvador had become too dependent on the VenHold Spacing Fleet for transport, which left his military nearly helpless when Directeur Venport betrayed the Imperium.
Roderick stifled a groan. His brother had weakened the throne in ways that would take generations to repair … if House Corrino survived that long.
In the meantime, Roderick had signed extended contracts with EsconTran and other foldspace shipping companies to transport his peacekeeping ships around the increasingly restless Imperium. But only VenHold had Navigators, and so far Roderick’s scientists had not been able to poke, prod, or analyze the answers out of their captive specimen.…
Navigators of Dune Page 27
