When Paul Atreides was twelve years old, he nearly died in the War of Assassins that consumed the noble Houses of Atreides, Ecaz, and Moritani.

These events set him on the path from boyhood to manhood, from noble son to true ducal heir, from mere human to the revered Muad’Dib. Through the people he met from an early age — friends and traitors, heroes and failures — he learned the fundamentals of leadership and the consequences of decisions.

On his life’s journey, Paul faced the hatred of enemies he had never met. From the moment of his birth, he was ensnared in a web of politics. His eyes opened to the vast Imperium that spanned many worlds beyond Caladan.

In his youth he watched and learned from his father’s changes in response to his own battles. Duke Leto Atreides was not an easy man to know or understand. There were cold aspects to him that occasionally thawed — and then only slightly — before they grew icy again. The Lady Jessica knew this better than anyone, and she, too, instructed their son.

In facing the tragedies that lay in store for House Atreides, Duke Leto tempered the steel of character for which he was most noted. He learned to act rather than wait, and he learned to survive.

Our story begins on the eve of my father’s fifth marriage, at a time when the life of young Paul Atreides seemed to lie before him like a great adventure.