The beginning of a reign, or a regency, is a fragile time. Alliances shift, and people circle like carrion birds, hunting for the new leader’s weaknesses. Sycophants tell leaders what they wish to hear, not what they need to hear. The beginning is a time for clarity and hard decisions, because those decisions set the tone for the entire reign.

—ST. ALIA OF THE KNIFE

The envoy from Shaddam IV arrived less than a month after Paul vanished into the desert. Alia was astonished at how swiftly the exiled Corrino Emperor acted.

Because the representative was so rushed, however, he had only a sketchy knowledge of the situation. The man knew that the twins had been born, that Chani had died in childbirth, that Paul had surrendered to his blindness and vanished into the sandy wastelands. But he was unaware of the many dire decisions Alia had made since then. He did not know that the Steersman Edric and Reverend Mother Mohiam had both been executed, along with Korba the Panegyrist. The envoy did not know that Shaddam’s daughter Irulan was being held in a death cell, her fate undecided.

Alia chose to receive the man in an interior chamber with walls of thick plasmeld. Bright glowglobes flooded the room with garish yellow illumination, not unlike the lighting in an interrogation chamber. She had asked Duncan and Stilgar to sit on either side of her; the long table’s veneer of blue obsidian made its polished surface look like a window into the depths of a distant ocean.

Stilgar growled, “We have not even announced formal plans for Muad’Dib’s funeral, and this lackey comes like a vulture drawn to fresh meat. Official Landsraad representatives haven’t arrived from Kaitain yet.”

“It’s been a month.” Alia adjusted the sheathed crysknife that she always kept hanging on a thong around her neck. “And the Landsraad has never moved quickly.”

“I don’t know why Muad’Dib bothered to keep them in the first place. We don’t need their meetings and memoranda.”

“They are a vestige of the old government, Stilgar. The forms must be obeyed.” She herself hadn’t decided how much of a role, if any, she would let the Landsraad nobles have in her Regency. Paul had not actually tried to eliminate them, but he had paid them little attention. “The main question is—considering the travel times, and the fact that we did not dispatch any notice whatsoever to Salusa Secundus—how did their emissary get here so swiftly? Some spy must have rushed off within the first few days. How could Shaddam have already put a plan in place . . . if it is a plan?”

Brow furrowed with thought, Duncan Idaho sat upright in his chair as if he had forgotten how to relax. The man’s dark curly hair and wide face had become so familiar to Alia, who remembered him with a double vision—the old Duncan from the memories she’d obtained from her mother, superimposed over Alia’s own experiences with the ghola named Hayt. His metal, artificial eyes—a jangling, discordant note on his otherwise human features—served to remind her of the new Duncan’s dual origin.

The Tleilaxu had made their ghola into a Mentat, and now Duncan drew upon those cerebral abilities to offer a summation. “The conclusion is obvious: Someone in the exiled Corrino court—perhaps Count Hasimir Fenring—was already prepared to act on the assumption that the original assassination plot would succeed. Although the conspiracy failed, Paul Atreides is still gone. The Corrinos acted swiftly to fill the perceived power vacuum.”

“Shaddam will try to snatch back his throne. We should have killed him here when we had him prisoner after the Battle of Arrakeen,” Stilgar said. “We must be ready when he makes his move.”

Alia sniffed. “Maybe I’ll have the envoy take Irulan’s head back to her father. That message would never be misconstrued.” Even so, she knew that Paul would never have sanctioned Irulan’s execution, despite her clear, if peripheral, role in the conspiracy.

“Such an act would have grave, far-reaching consequences,” Duncan warned.

“You disagree?”

Duncan raised his eyebrows, exposing more of the eerie eyes. “I did not say that.”

“I would take satisfaction in throttling that fine Imperial neck,” Stilgar admitted. “Irulan has never been our friend, though she now insists she truly loved Muad’Dib. She may be saying that just to save her body’s water.”

Alia shook her head. “In that she speaks the truth—Irulan reeks of it. She did love my brother. The question is whether to keep her as a tool whose worth has not yet been proven, or to waste her on a symbolic gesture that we cannot retract.”

“Maybe we should wait and hear what the envoy has to say?” Duncan suggested.

Alia nodded and her imposing amazon guards led a statuesque and self-important man named Rivato through the winding passages of the fortress citadel to the brightly lit meeting room. Though the route was direct, the sheer length of the walk had confused and flustered him. Shutting him inside the thick-walled chamber with Alia and her two companions, the female guards stationed themselves outside in the dusty passageway.

Composing himself with an effort, the Salusan envoy bowed deeply. “Emperor Shaddam wishes to express his sorrow at the death of Paul-Muad’Dib Atreides. They were rivals, yes, but Paul was also his son-in-law, wed to his eldest daughter.” Rivato glanced around. “I had hoped Princess Irulan might join us for this discussion?”

“She is otherwise occupied.” Alia briefly considered throwing this man into the same death cell. “Why are you here?”

They had placed no empty chair on the opposite side of the blue obsidian table—an intentional oversight that forced Rivato to remain on his feet as he faced the three inquisitors, and kept him off balance and uncomfortable. He bowed again to hide the flicker of unease that crossed his face. “The Emperor dispatched me instantly upon learning the news, because the entire Imperium faces a crisis.”

“Shaddam is not the Emperor,” Duncan pointed out. “Stop referring to him as such.”

“Your pardon. Since I serve in his court on Salusa Secundus, I tend to forget.” Regaining his momentum, Rivato forged ahead. “Despite the sad events, we have a tremendous opportunity to restore order. Since the . . . fall of Shaddam IV, the Imperium has faced extreme turmoil and bloodshed. The Jihad was driven by a man of great charisma—no one denies that—but with Muad’Dib gone, we can now return much-needed stability to the Imperium.”

Alia interrupted him. “The Imperium will stabilize under my regency. Paul’s Jihad ended almost two years ago, and our armies remain strong. We face fewer and fewer rebellious worlds.”

The envoy tried to give a reassuring smile. “But there are still places that require, shall we say, considerably more diplomacy to settle things down. A restoration of the Corrino presence would calm the waters by providing continuity.”

Alia regarded him coldly. “Muad’Dib has two children by his concubine Chani, and these are his imperial heirs. The line of succession is clear—we have no further need of Corrinos.”

Rivato raised his hands in a placating gesture. “When he took Princess Irulan as his wife, Paul-Muad’Dib recognized the need to maintain ties with the former Imperial House. The long tradition of Corrino rule dates back to the end of the Butlerian Jihad. If we strengthen those ties, it would benefit all humanity.”

Stilgar pounced on the remarks. “You suggest that Muad’Dib’s reign did not benefit humanity?”

“Ah, now, that is for historians to decide, and I am no historian.”

Duncan folded his hands on the table. “What are you, then?”

“I offer solutions to problems. After consulting with the Padishah—I mean, with Shaddam—we wanted to suggest ways to face this transition of rule.”

“Suggestions, such as?” Alia prodded.

“Rejoining the bloodlines, in whatever manner, would eliminate much of the turmoil, heal the wounds. There are many possible avenues to accomplish this. For instance, you, Lady Alia, might marry Shaddam—in name only, of course. It has been well established that Muad’Dib took Princess Irulan as his wife in name only. There is an obvious precedent.”

Alia bristled. “Shaddam’s wives have not had a high survival rate.”

“That is in the past, and he has been unmarried for years.”

“Nevertheless, the offer is unacceptable to the Regent.” Duncan’s voice carried a slight undercurrent of jealousy, Alia thought.

“Tell us what other marriages you suggest,” Stilgar said, “so that we may scoff at those as well.”

Unruffled, Rivato sorted through his fallback plans. “Shaddam has three surviving daughters—Wensicia, Chalice, and Josifa—and Muad’Dib has a young son. Perhaps the Atreides boy could be betrothed to a Corrino daughter? The difference in ages is not so significant, considering the geriatric effects of melange.” Seeing their scowls, Rivato continued quickly. “Similarly, the Emperor’s grandson, Farad’n, by his daughter Wensicia, could be betrothed to the daughter of Muad’Dib. They are close enough in age.”

Alia rose to her feet, a sixteen-year-old girl among grim men, yet she was obviously the one who wielded the power. “Rivato, we need time to consider what you’ve said.” If she let him continue to speak, she might order his execution after all, and then she would probably regret it. “I must attend to many pressing matters, including the state funeral for my brother.”

“And a Fremen funeral for Chani,” Stilgar added in a low voice.

She gave Rivato a cold smile. “Return to Salusa and await our answer. You are dismissed.”

With a hurried bow, the unsettled man withdrew and the amazon guards marched him away. As soon as the door closed again, Duncan said, “His suggestions are not entirely without merit.”

“Oh? You would have me wed old Shaddam?” The ghola remained impassive, and Alia wondered if he felt nothing for her after all. Or did he just hide it well? “I will hear no more of these dynastic absurdities.” With a brisk gesture, she cut off further discussion. “Duncan, there’s something else I need you to do for me.”

The following day, Alia peered into the death cell through a hidden spy-eye. Princess Irulan sat on a hard bench, looking at nothing in particular, showing no sign of impatience. Her demeanor exuded sadness rather than fear. Not terrified for her life, that one. It was difficult to accept that she was truly mourning the loss of Paul, but Alia knew it to be true.

Bored with the game, she left the surveillance screen and instructed one of the yellow-robed Qizara guards to unseal the door. As the Regent entered, Irulan rose to her feet. “Have you come to inform me of my execution date? Will you kill me, after all?” She seemed more interested in the answer than afraid of it.

“I have not yet decided your fate.”

“The priests have, and their mobs howl for my blood.”

“But I am the Imperial Regent, and I make the decision.” Alia gave her a thin, mysterious smile. “And I am not yet ready to reveal it to you.”

Irulan sat back down with a long sigh. “Then what do you want from me? Why did you come here?”

Alia smiled sweetly. “An envoy from Salusa Secundus came to see me. Through him, your father suggested outrageous marriages into House Corrino as a way to solve most of the Imperium’s problems.”

“I considered that myself, but you no longer listen to my counsel, despite the respect you had for me when you were younger,” Irulan said evenly. “What answer did you give him?”

“Late yesterday, the envoy boarded a small shuttle to take him back to a Heighliner in orbit. Unfortunately, his shuttle experienced inexplicable engine failure and fell out of the sky from a high altitude. I’m afraid there were no survivors.” Alia shook her head. “Some people suspect sabotage, and we will mount a full investigation . . . as soon as we have time.”

Irulan gazed at her in horror. “Did Duncan Idaho sabotage the engines? Stilgar?”

Alia tried to maintain her implacable expression, but she softened, remembering when she and the Princess had been rather close. This was not a black or white situation. Grayness surrounded Irulan. “With my brother gone, conspirators and usurpers will come at me from all directions. I need to show my strength and mettle, or everything Muad’Dib worked for will be lost.”

Irulan said, “But what else will you lose along the way?”

“Perhaps you, Princess. It would take only a flick of my finger.”

“Oh? Then who would raise Paul’s children? Who would love them?”

“Harah is quite competent in that regard.” Alia left the death cell, and the Qizara guards sealed the door again, leaving the Princess alone with her unanswered questions.