Navigators of Dune

60

Arrakis remained a hardscrabble world with rugged inhabitants who had learned how to survive there. Now the desert planet would be Josef’s sanctuary, and he damn well wasn’t going to let anyone strike him here. After fleeing from the holocaust, he ordered the recall of all of his remaining forces to protect the spice operations as well as his refugee Navigators and other VenHold personnel.

He still could not wrap his mind around what had happened: Kolhar was destroyed! The Butlerians had used forbidden atomics!

In warfare, in business, and in politics there were rules of civilized behavior. In humanity there were expectations. But these savages were not civilized; they barely qualified as human. After seeing what they had done, Josef was even more convinced that the half-Manford and his insane followers would destroy the human race if left unchecked. Mankind had accomplished too much over the millennia, built too much, created too much to let a wild mob tear it all down. Josef knew that he had to win this war.

And if Emperor Roderick would not stand up to them, then Josef would have to find some way to do it himself. He refused to let the march of history simply head off a cliff.

Manford had bombarded a settled planet with nuclear weapons, bringing about a catastrophe as had not been seen since the end of the Jihad. The madman! Such weapons were as reviled in the Imperium as the thinking machines themselves. Did Manford think the Emperor would simply ignore this? Roderick would be forced to turn against the Butlerians now.

Josef clung to that hope. This would be the tipping point indeed — it had to be.

He was wounded to the core, and not even Cioba’s well-practiced Sisterhood skills could begin to soothe him. He took comfort in telling himself that he would send his large force of cymek war machines to Lampadas, where they would exterminate every last one of the antitechnology fanatics. In fact, he thought with a razor smile, once he overwhelmed that planet, he would make it his new headquarters. An eye for an eye, and more.

“You underestimated your enemy,” Cioba said as their flagship drifted in Arrakis orbit, joining the other defensive forces there.

“I underestimated the extent of their madness; that was my mistake. I will never discount their state of mind again. I would rather destroy them down to the last follower than try to understand their motives.”

As Josef gazed out at all the ships he had rescued from Kolhar, thanks to Norma’s prescient warning, he knew they would form a formidable defense here. His ship captains had orders to immediately attack and destroy any Butlerian vessel that dared to approach the desert planet.

Josef could not overlook the possibility that the legless leader might have more warheads.

He could not tell whether even these remaining ships would be sufficient to defend Arrakis if Emperor Roderick decided to launch a full-scale invasion to recapture the spice operations. Josef didn’t know what to believe anymore. The universe had gone berserk.

Were the Emperor and Manford Torondo working together as part of a secret plan? Had Roderick himself authorized the use of atomics?

No, that Josef could not accept. Roderick Corrino was not perfect, but he was still the man Josef had hoped would restore civilization. And the use of atomics would unravel the fabric of society, including everything House Corrino stood for. Roderick would never have authorized their use. It was unimaginable.

Josef suspected the Emperor didn’t even know how the Butlerians had destroyed Kolhar. He had probably been told a lie. But the man needed to understand what the fanatics had done.

“My Navigators require ships,” Norma Cenva said from her tank. “My Navigators require spice. You know this, Josef. We have been hurt badly.”

“We hold Arrakis, Grandmother, and I do not intend to lose it. This will be our base of operations now, the most defended planet in the Imperium. You will have your spice.”

“We rescued scores of Navigators from Kolhar, and I will guide and nurture them,” Norma pressed. “Others will require vessels. The universe is ours — if you provide us with ships. With Navigators and ships, your fleet will be stronger.”

Josef smiled as the solution came to him. “I’ll have the ships for you soon. They are at Denali — another forty ships, old thinking-machine vessels. At this moment they are being fitted with Holtzman engines. When ready, each one will be guided by a Navigator. Is that acceptable?”

She drifted in her tank. “I will send Navigators to Denali to retrieve them. Yes, forty more ships are a step in the right direction.”

AS THEIR SHUTTLE descended to Arrakis City, Josef sat beside Cioba, trying to control his anger. He would not lose any more ground. He would put an entire crew of his rescued Kolhar employees to work in the spice operations and increase production at all costs. He would find more VenHold ships to add to the defenses that were already here. Arrakis would be utterly secure.

He growled, “I lost my banks because of the Emperor, and I lost Kolhar because of the barbarians. I will never give up my spice operations here!”

“No, my husband.” Cioba sounded confident. “We will not.”

His company had suffered a giant blow with the destruction of the spice stockpile, but Josef had ordered his Mentat administrators to dispatch all harvesting teams. They had scoured the Arrakis City repair yards and placed every available piece of factory equipment into service, even the older, inefficient harvesters. Josef intended to rebuild his supplies of melange, and his fortune. Once he satisfied the desperate Navigators, any surplus would be sold at exorbitant prices to the wealthiest addicts in the Imperium. Under the circumstances, it appeared to be the only way VenHold could restore its finances.

The Arrakis City spaceport was relatively calm after the VenHold crackdown on the Imperials and black marketeers, but it was still a lawless zone. Smugglers had begun to encroach on the new spice operations again, but Josef would put an end to that quickly and severely. He could no longer afford to be tolerant. He put all of his operations on high alert.

He and Cioba arrived at the fortress headquarters of Combined Mercantiles, whereupon he summoned Rogin and Tomkir. Josef sat tensely in the meeting chamber. “I need to leverage the disaster we just suffered on Kolhar — to open the Emperor’s eyes.” Even in the hurricane of defeat and devastation, Josef Venport could see opportunities.

Cioba and the two Mentats looked surprised, but he did not doubt himself. “Think about it. Manford Torondo just changed this conflict in a fundamental way. He stepped over a line that should never have been crossed. Suddenly, we are the victims, the horrendously wronged party for all to see. What that madman did at Kolhar exceeded his worst crimes on other planets. This was a crime against humanity itself.” Josef’s voice rose. “By using forbidden atomics, the half-Manford shows that he must not be allowed to exist in any civilized society. Yes, I know Emperor Roderick hates me, but he must be made to hate this more.”

He looked around the room. “We have to make him see that I am not the threat he should fear most. I am the reasonable alternative who will ensure stability and the future of humanity.” He turned to Cioba. “I’ve got to talk with Roderick Corrino face-to-face and clarify the situation for him. It is critically important.”

“But you have already asked for that repeatedly,” Cioba said. “He never agreed. You tried to force him to concede with your siege of Salusa, and now he will not even talk with you.”

Josef took her hands in his, giving and receiving strength. “Then we have to change his mind — and for that I need you.”

“Me? How can I help?”

“You were trained in the Sisterhood. Even if they spurned our offer of an alliance, you can still use the skills you learned. Go to Salusa and find a way to deliver a message to Roderick. Tell him I request a détente meeting, here in orbit above Arrakis. It is not exactly neutral ground, but considering recent events, I will not make myself any more vulnerable. He can bring whatever security he deems necessary. But we must have a discussion.”

“Will he listen?” asked Tomkir.

“Manford Torondo just proved he is a mad dog with no respect for the laws or morals of humankind. How many more atomics do the Butlerians possess? Enough to threaten Salusa Secundus itself? What is to stop them from unleashing atomics on the capital world if Manford is displeased with the Emperor? Roderick knows it is a valid possibility. No matter what the Emperor thinks of me, surely he’ll be more frightened of the Butlerians.” He flashed a hard smile. “I’ll offer to destroy Manford Torondo for him, if he will grant me amnesty.” In fact, he would relish the job.

Cioba pondered. “What if the Emperor still believes you want to take his throne?”

Josef placed his fist on the table in the conference room. “No one but a deluded fool would want to be the Emperor of the Imperium. Roderick himself never wanted it, and I don’t want it either.” He beseeched Cioba. “Make him see that. Convince him that this is a sincere offer and not a trick.”

She rose from the table. “I shall do my best, Josef. I’ll use everything I learned from the Sisterhood — and Fielle can affirm the truth of my words. If Norma Cenva will guide a ship, I’ll depart for Salusa immediately.”