Chapter 47 chapter Ten

Baron Vladimir Harkonnen stood in the royal audience room with his eyes on the floor.This is an oval hall in the metal barracks of Emperor Padisha. The baron surreptitiously surveyed the metal-walled room and its occupants—officers of the Emperor's personal guard, squires, guardsmen, and Sardaka soldiers who stood round the walls.They stood beneath the tattered and bloodstained banners.It was a trophy, and the only ornament of the hall. "The emperor is here!" The voice came from the right side of the audience room, echoing ear-splittingly in the high and deep corridor. Emperor Padisha, Saddam IV, came out of the corridor and entered the audience hall, followed by his retinue.He stood and waited for his emperor's throne to be carried in.He did not glance at the baron, nor did he seem to see anyone in the reception hall.

The Baron found that he could not ignore the Emperor.He looked at the emperor, looking for clues about the purpose of the emperor's summoning him this time, guessing the emperor's intention.The emperor stood there poised, waiting for his throne to be lifted out.He was slender and elegant, well-fitted in his gray Sadoka uniform with gold trim.His thin face and stern eyes reminded the baron of Duke Ledo, who had died long ago, and he bore a resemblance to the carnivore.But the emperor's hair is red, not black.Most of his hair is hidden under General Sadokar's helmet, which bears the emperor's golden crest.

The attendants carried the emperor's throne.It was a large chair carved from a single block of Hagar quartz—a translucent turquoise with streaks of yellow flame.They put it on a high platform in the audience hall.The emperor climbed onto the high platform and sat on a chair. An old woman in a black Freeman's loose gown, with her hood drawn down over her forehead, left the emperor's entourage and stood behind the emperor's throne.Her one clawed hand rested on the back of the quartz stone imperial chair, and her eyes peeked out from behind the visor like a caricature of a witch—deep-set eyes, protruding cheeks, overgrown nose. , freckled skin, prominent veins.

The Baron trembled at the sight of her, Our Lady Keith Helen Mohiam. The appearance of the emperor's truth talker shows the importance of this meeting.The baron turned his eyes away from her and scanned the emperor's retinue, trying to pick out some clues from them.There were also two representatives of the Gilders: one tall and thin, the other short and stout, and both had flat gray eyes.Among the attendants stood one of the Emperor's daughters, Princess Iriland. They said she was being trained by the strictest Bee Geist, a woman destined to be a Madonna.She was tall, fair-skinned, with a pretty face and green eyes that could see through others.

"My dear Baron." The Emperor noticed him, condescendingly greeted him in a strenuously controlled baritone voice, and at the same time expressed indifference towards him. The baron stooped low and stepped forward to the place where he was asked to stand, ten paces from the dais on which the emperor sat. "I am summoned to see you, Your Majesty." "Called!" said the old witch, giggling. "Okay, Madonna," reproached the emperor, but he was amused by the Baron's discomfiture."First, tell me where you hid your subordinate Safi Hawat," he said.

The baron looked around, regretting that he hadn't brought his guards here.He thought: not because of their usefulness against the Sardaka, but because... "Huh?" said the Emperor. "He has been missing for five days, Your Majesty," the baron glanced quickly at Gilder's representative, and then looked back at the emperor. "He should have landed at the smuggler's base and tried to infiltrate the crazy Fremen's." Camp. This Moyadi..." "impossible!" The witch's paw-like hand patted the emperor's shoulder, leaned forward, and whispered a few words in the emperor's ear.

The emperor nodded and said, "Five days. Baron, tell me, why are you not anxious about his disappearance?" "I'm a little anxious, Your Majesty!" The Emperor continued to stare at him, awaiting his answer.Then the Holy Mother giggled. "I mean, Your Majesty," said the Baron, "that Hawat will not survive a few hours anyway." He explained to the Emperor the poison Hawat had taken lurking in his body, and the need for an antidote. "You are very clever, Baron," said the Emperor. "Where are your nephews Rabin and little Phyde Rose?"

"A storm is coming, Your Majesty. I sent them to check our perimeter defenses, lest the Fremen attack under the cover of the wind and sand." "Check the ring fortifications," said the emperor, as if he were pursing his lips. "The storm won't be very strong in this depression. I've got five legions of Sardaka soldiers here, and Freman bastards dare not Attack me." "Certainly not, Your Majesty," said the baron, "but the error of prudence cannot be blamed." "Ah—" said the Emperor, "blame. Then, shouldn't I say how much time this Arrakis nonsense took me? And I shouldn't say that UDC money is being dumped down this rat hole ? Shouldn't I also say that because of this unfortunate incident, I have had to delay and even cancel court activities and state affairs?"

The baron bowed his head, terrified by the emperor's wrath. The Baron's delicate position here, alone, dependent only on the declarations of the Great United Council and the Great Houses, terrified him.He wants to kill me?the Baron asked himself.He can't kill me!You can't kill me in front of other big families!Let alone find an excuse for the unsettling turmoil in Arrakis and kill me! "Have you brought the hostage?" asked the emperor. "It's no use, Your Majesty," said the baron, "these Fremen lunatics are burying every captive as if they were already dead."

"Is that so?" The baron waited, looking left and right, at the metal walls of the royal audience hall.Even the Baron himself was awed by the thought of the perilous scalloped metal tent around him that represented limitless wealth and supreme power.He took his squires, thought the Baron.There are also useless court servants, his women and their companions - barbers, dressmakers... all the parasites in the palace that live on the court.All the people here, who flatter, do sneaky intrigues, and live a "rough and uncomfortable life" with the emperor...they're here to watch the emperor get it over with and make short satirical poems about battles, Worship the wounded.

"Perhaps you never took the right hostage," said the Emperor. He knows something, the Baron thought.Fear swallowed him like a stone, until the thought of eating could hardly be resisted.The feeling was like hunger, and he balanced himself in his sling weight several times, trying to order someone to bring him food.However, no one here obeys his orders. "Do you know who this Moaddi is?" asked the emperor. "It must be a lunatic," the baron said, "a Fremenian lunatic, a religious adventurer. They regularly appear on the fringes of civilized society, and His Majesty knows it." The emperor turned his head and glanced at his truthsayer, and then Turning around and staring at the baron, he shouted, "Do you know anything else about this Moyadi?" "A madman," said the baron. "All Fremen are mad." "go Ape?" "His men went into battle chanting his name. Women threw their babies at us and threw themselves on our knives so their men could attack us. They had no... no... rules." "That's so bad," murmured the emperor.But his playful tone did not escape the baron's eyes. "Tell me, my dear Baron, have you conducted any surveys of Arrakis' South Pole?" The baron looked up at the emperor with wide eyes, startled by the emperor's sudden change of subject. "But... well, you know, Your Majesty, that whole area is uninhabited, it's the wind and the sand lizard. There's not even a spice of decay in those high places." "You didn't get a report from the spice plane that there were patches of green?" "There are always some reports like this. Some of them are investigated—that's a long time ago. A few plants have been seen, but quite a few orthopters have been lost. Too expensive, Your Majesty. That It's a place where humans can't live long-term." "That's how it is," said the emperor.He flicked his finger, and a door behind his throne to the left was opened, and two Sadokas came out from the opening, dragging a little girl.She appeared to be about four years old, and was wearing a Freeman's gown, with a hood hanging behind her head, exposing the filtration suit attachment at her throat.She didn't look scared at all.The way she looked at people disturbed the Baron for some reason. Even the old Bee Geist Truthsayer backed away from the little girl and made a gesture of avoidance when the little girl passed her.The old witch was visibly taken aback by the little girl's presence. The emperor coughed and was about to speak, but the little girl spoke first.She spoke softly, but articulately. "So here he is," she said, stepping forward to the edge of the ledge. "He doesn't seem like much, does he? A frightened old fat guy, too frail to be without a weight-relief." I can't support my body." The completely unexpected words uttered from a child left the baron dumbfounded.Although he was very angry, he was speechless.Is she a Confucianist?he asked himself. "My dear Baron," said the Emperor, "meet Moaddi's sister." "Mayadi's sister..." the baron turned his attention to the emperor, "I don't understand." "I, too, sometimes err on the side of caution," said the Emperor, "that I have been reported to show evidence of human activity in that uninhabited polar region you speak of." "But that's impossible!" protested the baron. "The sand lizard... there's only sand, obviously..." "These people seem to be able to avoid the sand lizard," said the emperor. The little girl sat down on the dais beside the throne, kicking her legs with her feet dangling over the edge, evidently appreciating her surroundings. The baron stared at the kicking feet, the movement of which set off the folds of the black robe and slippers beneath the fabric. "Unfortunately," said the emperor, "I only sent five military transport planes to transport a small number of troops to capture prisoners and bring them back for interrogation. We only had one plane to return and bring back three prisoners. I want you to remember, Baron, I Almost all of the Sadoka were wiped out by fighting forces made up of women, children, and old people. This kid here commands a fighting squad." "You should know, sire," said the baron, "what kind of people they are!" "I let you catch me myself," said the little girl. "I don't want to see my brother because I have to tell him that his son was killed." "Very few of us have escaped," said the Emperor. "Escaped! Do you hear me?" "If it weren't for the flames, we'd kill them too." "My Sadokars have used the etheric jets as flamethrowers on their transports," said the emperor, "and the only thing that can be done, in a desperate move, is to let them go away with three captives. You Remember, my dear Baron: the Sardaka were forcibly removed from women, children, and old people in melee." "We should send a large army," said the baron angrily, "we must destroy the last remnants..." "Shut up!" the emperor yelled angrily, and he moved forward on the throne, "Don't belittle my ability anymore. You stand here and pretend to be ignorant..." "Your Majesty," said the old Truthpeaker. He waved her to be quiet. "You said that you don't know about the human activities we discovered, and you don't know about the fighting abilities of these outstanding people!" The emperor raised half of his body from the throne, "What do you think of me, baron?" The baron took two steps back, thinking: It's Rabin.He gave me this hand, Rabin has... "And this fabricated dispute with the Duke of Ledo," said the emperor, happily and contentedly, and sat back on the throne. "You handled this matter more beautifully!" "Your Majesty," begged the baron, "you..." "shut up!" Old Bee Geist put one hand on the Emperor's shoulder and whispered in his ear. The little girl sat on the ledge, stopped kicking, and said, "Make him scared again, Saddam. I shouldn't like this, but I find I can't contain my joy." "Be quiet, child," said the Emperor.He leaned forward, with one hand on the child's head, and his eyes fixed on the Baron. "Is it possible, Baron? Is it possible that you are as simple-minded as my truthsayer said? Don't you recognize this little girl as your ally, the daughter of the Duke of Ledo?" "My father was never his ally," said the little girl. "My father is dead. The old Harkonnen beast has never seen me before." The baron stared numbly at the little girl, and said hoarsely, "Who are you?" "My name is Alia. I'm the daughter of Duke Leido and Mrs. Jessica, and the younger sister of Duke Paul Moady." The little girl jumped off the high platform and landed on the floor of the imperial reception hall as she said. "My brother swore to hang your head on his battle standard. I think he will." "Stop talking, child," said the Emperor.He sat back on the throne, resting his chin on his hand, and looked at the Baron. "I will not obey the emperor's orders," Alia said, turning to look at the old Virgin on the high platform. "She knows why." The emperor looked up at his truthsayer. "What did she mean?" "That child is a nuisance!" said the old woman, "and her mother deserves more than any punishment in history, death! To that child, or to the woman who bore her, It can't come too fast!" The old woman pointed a finger at Alia: "Get out of my head!" "Telepathy?" the Emperor whispered.His attention returned to Alia. "Great Madonna!" "You don't understand, Your Majesty," said the old woman, "that it's not telepathy. She exists in my head, like those before me, who gave me their memories. She exists in In my head! She couldn't be there, but she was there!" "What did you say?" asked the emperor, "What is this absurd thing?" The old woman straightened up and lowered her hand pointing at the girl. "I say too much, but the fact remains that this child who is not a child must be removed. We were warned long ago: to be on the lookout for such things to happen, to prevent such births. But one of our own Betrayed us." "You're talking nonsense, old woman," said Alia. "You don't know what's going on, and yet you babble like a fool." Alia closed her eyes and He took a deep breath and held it. The old Madonna groaned and swayed. Alia opened her eyes and said, "That's what happened. An accident in the universe...and you played a role in it." The old lady stretched out her hands and pushed Alia in the air. "What happened?" asked the emperor. "Son, can you really put your thoughts into another person's brain?" "That's not the case at all," Alia said. "I can't think like you unless I'm born you." "Kill her," murmured the old Mother, clutching the back of the throne chair for support, "kill her!" Her sunken old eyes fixed on Alia. "Quiet!" said the Emperor, eyeing Alia. "Son, can you talk to your brother?" "My brother knows I'm here," Alia said. "Can you tell him to surrender in exchange for your life?" Alia smiled innocently at him and said, "I don't want to do that." The baron staggered forward a few steps and stood beside Alia. "Your Majesty," he begged, "I don't know..." "You're interrupting me again, Baron," said the Emperor, "and you'll lose your ability to interrupt...forever." His attention was still on Alia, squinting at her. "You don't want to, huh? Can you see what I want to do? If you don't obey my orders." "I said, I can't read minds," she said, "but people don't need telepathy to know your intentions." The emperor scolded angrily: "Son, you are incurable. I have to gather my army and make this planet become..." "It's not that simple," Alia said.She looked at the two Gilders: "Ask them." "It is not wise to go against my will," said the emperor, "you should not refuse my little request." "Here comes my brother," said Aliya, "and even the Emperor might tremble before Moad'di. For he has the power of justice, and the Great will smile at him." The emperor stood up hastily. "This game is too much, I will catch your brother and crush him and this planet..." The room shook violently, and a cascade of sand poured down from behind the throne, connecting the metal barracks there with the emperor's dirigible.The sudden intensification of pressure on the skin tells people that a large area of ​​the shield has been broken. "I told you my brother was coming," said Alia. The emperor stood in front of the throne, with his right hand pressed tightly to his ear, listening to the situation reported by the service receiver.The baron moved two steps behind Alia, and the Sadoka immediately jumped to the exits to prepare for the battle. "Let's go back into space and reorganize our forces," the emperor said, "Baron, please accept my apology. These lunatics attacked under the cover of a storm. I will show them the wrath of an emperor." He pointed at Ali Ya said, "Throw her body into the storm." As he said this, Alya was terrified and backed away, trying to run away. "Let the storm take all it can!" she screamed, falling back into the baron's arms. "I have her, Your Majesty!" cried the baron, "to kill her. . . . . . . . . . " He threw her to the ground and she grabbed his arm. "I'm sorry, Grandpa," Alia said, "you've hit Gomgaba of Atrez." She stood up, and a black needle dropped from her hand. The baron fell to the ground, his eyes bulging outward, staring at a red spot on his left palm. "You...you..." He was rolling in his weight block, slack muscles supporting him inch by inch off the floor, his head drooping, mouth gaping. "These people are mad," howled the Emperor. "Quick! Get in the ship, and we'll wipe out every single..." Something was sparking to his left, and a ball of lightning struck the wall over there.When it touched the sheet metal wall, it made a cracking sound.The royal reception hall was filled with the smell of burnt insulating materials. "Shield!" cried a Sadoka officer. "The outer shield has collapsed! They..." His words were drowned out by the roar of the violent shaking of the bulkhead of the spaceship behind the emperor. "They blew up the nose of our ship!" someone yelled. Dust billowed in the room.Alia took the opportunity to jump up and ran out of the door. The emperor spun around, signaling for his men to enter through the open security door on the side of the spaceship behind the throne.He beckoned to a Sadokar officer, and through the dust cloud, he ordered: "We're here to resist." Another violent crack shook the metal barracks, and the double doors on the other side of the audience hall were slammed open, and the wind blew sand in, only to hear people shouting and screaming.In the dim light, a small, black-robed figure could be seen—Alia.She rushed out of the hall, found a knife, and killed the Harkonen and Sadoka wounded as she had been trained by Freeman to do.The Sadoka soldiers rushed through the green dust and rushed towards the blasted gap. With weapons in hand, they quickly formed an arc-shaped guard circle to protect the emperor's retreat. "Evacuate, Your Majesty!" a Sadoka officer shouted, "Evacuate into the spaceship." The emperor was still standing alone on the high platform, pointing to the door.A 40-meter-long section of the temporary barracks had been blown up, and the mouth of the imperial audience hall was open to the quicksand, and dust clouds blowing from afar hung low outside.Through the dust cloud, static lightning from colliding dust clouds and sparks from shorting shields due to the storm's charge can be seen.The level ground was full of fighting men--Sadoka and leaping robed men who seemed to have descended from a storm. All of these constitute the picture of the emperor's finger pointing. Many neatly glowing ghosts emerged from the sand mist, and suddenly turned into the bloody maws of sand lizards.The sand lizards formed a huge wall, each sand lizard loaded with attacking Fremen.The sand lizards hissed and rushed over in a wedge formation.The Fremen's robes fluttered in the wind.They charged into the melee crowd on the flat ground. They rushed towards the Emperor's makeshift barracks, while the Sadoka stood bewildered.For the first time in their history they were terrified by an attack they were mentally unacceptable to. It was a human being that leapt from the sand lizard's back, and that ominous yellow-glowing blade was something the Sardaka had been trained to face.These men went into battle.It was a man-to-man battle on the plains of Arakane.At this time, a selected personal guard pushed the emperor into the spaceship, and then closed the door, attempting to use the door as a partial shield to resist desperately. It was relatively quiet inside the spaceship.Still in shock, the Emperor stared at the wide-eyed faces of his entourage.He saw his daughter, flushed cheeks; the old truthsayer was standing there too, like a black ghost, her hood drawn down over her face; at last he found the face he was looking for—the two Gilders.They wore the unadorned gray garments of their Gildians.Despite the extreme tension around them, they maintained a calmness befitting their costumes. The taller of the two covered his left eye with one hand.While the emperor was looking at him, someone bumped his arm.He pulled his hand away, revealing the eye, where he had lost his contact lens.The eye looked out, completely blue, but so dark that it was almost black. The little Gilder took a step forward, getting closer to the Emperor.He said, "It is impossible for us to know how things will develop." The tall Gilder put his hands on his eyes again, and added coldly, "This Moaddi doesn't know either." After hearing these words, the emperor woke up from his confusion.He made a visible effort to check the contemptuous tone of their words.For it does not take the simple mind of a Gilder pilot to gather his thoughts to consider whether he can see the future on this plain.Are these two too dependent on their devices to use their eyes and their reasoning abilities?the emperor asked himself. "Our Lady," he said, "we need to work out a plan." The Virgin pulled the hood from her face and looked at the Emperor without blinking.They exchanged glances of complete understanding.They have only one weapon, a weapon both of them know: bribe and betrayal. "Send Lord Fenlon from his dwelling," said the Mother. Emperor Padisha nodded and waved to one of his entourage to carry out the order.