We are like salmon, swimming upstream against the current of life. Each of us is desperate to learn where we came from—who our ancestors were and how they lived—as if their past will provide guidance for our future.

—ABULURD HARKONNEN, his Lankiveil notes

When Valya was assigned to conduct an hour of private intensive training with Anna Corrino and the two young daughters of Josef Venport, the age disparity of the acolytes was remarkable, but their skill level was roughly equivalent. If anything, young Sabine and Candys, aged nine and ten respectively, were more focused and talented than the Emperor’s flighty sister.

When the Reverend Mother asked her to take time away from studying the computerized breeding records, Valya’s initial reaction had been one of annoyance, because using the computers to make bloodline projections seemed so much more vital to the Sisterhood’s purpose, and to her own advancement. However, she definitely saw the advantages of establishing close ties with both Anna Corrino and the two Venport daughters.

“I’ll do my best, Reverend Mother,” she said.

Raquella had given Valya no specific curriculum, leaving the instruction to her own discretion; she wondered if the Reverend Mother was using this as a means of testing her as well.…

“We call this the labyrinth wall,” Valya said, leading her three students into a small, dim chamber. On one entire wall of the room (behind a thin pane of plaz) was a layer of finely sifted earth that held a complex insect colony. In the sandwiched tableau, a hive of armored burrowers—clawed nematodes covered with chitinous plates—excavated a maze of twisting tunnels. They had hollowed out a central pocket from which their queen guided all the operations of her drones. Valya secretly thought of the queen burrower as the “Reverend Mother.”

“We have been here before,” said the nine-year-old, Sabine, sounding superior.

Valya frowned at her. “You have not seen what I intend to show you.”

Candys was fascinated by the elongated bugs that continued to excavate and rearrange the architecture of their colony. Anna looked irritated.

“I want you to study the movements of these creatures, analyze their activities, and interpret the intriguing order of their pathways. This burrower colony is like a microcosm of the universe, filled with pathways that intersect, some that branch off, and others that simply stop at blind ends. It’s like the map of a person’s life: It only makes sense if you study it carefully.”

Anna’s voice carried impatient annoyance. “My brothers didn’t send me to Rossak to stare at an insect hive all day long.”

“An hour is hardly all day,” said Sabine Venport.

“Your brothers perform equivalent exercises,” Valya said. “Doesn’t Emperor Salvador have to think about the connections among the planets in the Imperium, the noble families, the bloodlines, the intermarriages, the feuds?”

“Our parents run Venport Holdings,” said Candys. “That’s almost as important as being the Emperor.”

Anna scoffed at the child. “There’s no comparison.”

Valya interrupted the brewing argument. “You are all acolytes now, and your family is the Sisterhood. Corrino and Venport mean nothing here.” She spoke with great conviction, although she felt otherwise. Valya didn’t want them asking about the Harkonnens.…

If she pulled the right strings, made the proper connections, Valya could salvage her family’s situation through the power and influence of the Corrinos and the Venports.

Directing their attention, Valya stood close to Anna Corrino as the three looked intently at the scurrying burrowers. “Study them until you see the pattern, and you will have a glimpse into their purpose. The hive queen must have some overall blueprint that we can unravel.”

“I like to watch them,” Candys said.

Valya whispered, as if sharing a secret with Anna alone. “Some of the Sorceresses use this as a mental exercise. After years of practice in directing their thoughts, a few have learned to change the pattern of the tunnels. They can rewrite the blueprint.”

“Could I do that?” Anna said.

Valya didn’t laugh, did not discourage her. “I don’t know. Can you? It takes great concentration.”

Anna looked up at Valya, who saw a scared little girl behind her eyes. “I had a special fogwood tree back at the palace, and over the years I made it into my own secret hiding place. I could make the branches grow in whatever directions I wanted. A lot of people can manipulate fogwoods, but not that particular variety, and I was especially good with it. Sister Dorotea was intrigued when she heard about it, but I refused to show her. She didn’t believe I could possibly have mental powers like that, but I wouldn’t perform for her—why should I?” She sniffed.

“Well, I believe you,” Valya said, because it made Anna smile at her.

“Can we do it?” Sabine asked. “We’re young, but we’ve already studied with the Sisterhood for two years.”

Valya paused to consider how the Reverend Mother might have answered, and told them, “Some say a person can accomplish anything she likes, if she applies herself, but that’s just an empty platitude. You can’t actually do ‘anything,’ but if you apply yourselves, you will discover strengths that others don’t have. You’ll surprise people who don’t expect it of you.” She lowered her voice. “And that is how you become powerful.”

The three spent the remainder of the hour staring in silence, studying the burrowers. Valya remained with them, but her thoughts were far away, contemplating connections and possibilities in her own future.

*   *   *

ALONE AGAIN TO catch up with her duties in the high and secret caverns that held breeding records, Valya Harkonnen sat in the center of a computer carousel, using hand gestures to touch screens that paused in front of her, accessing the records she wanted. She sifted through historical and family files, exploring tributaries of data that flowed from the main river of famous events that occurred in the Jihad.

Aged Sister Sabra Hublein had trained her how to use the systems, which Valya found remarkably intuitive, and she enjoyed delving into the electronic strata of genetic information, as well as family histories and personal records.

Each time she slipped through the hidden holographic door into these computer chambers, Valya appreciated the great privilege that Raquella had bestowed on her. She always did her best to prove that she deserved the honor.

Though she and the Reverend Mother were separated by a vast gulf in age, they shared something that could not be expressed in words; Valya saw it in the caring way the old woman looked at her, the smile crinkles around the pale-blue eyes, the good-natured way she pursed her lips when talking. The hope she felt for Valya, like a parent wanting her child to succeed.

The Sisterhood was the young woman’s family now, as the Reverend Mother insisted, but Valya’s biggest secret was that she could not forget about her other heritage. She kept her divided loyalty as carefully hidden as possible.

At the unexpected return of Vorian Atreides, her simmering anger had clamored for her to destroy the thorn in her family’s side, but she had passed that noble obligation on to her brother, and she knew Griffin would not let her down. She wondered where he was now.…

Nearby, robed Sisters sat at other carousel screens or bustled in and out of the hidden chambers, but Valya paid them little mind. She was focused on digging for information, excavating historical files that showed the tangled relationship between Vorian Atreides and the Harkonnen family.

Buried deep in the records, mislabeled (perhaps intentionally) so that no one had found them, were letters that Abulurd Harkonnen and Vorian Atreides had written to each other years before the Battle of Corrin. Her eyes widened as she pieced together the information: Vorian Atreides said he wanted to restore Xavier Harkonnen to the good graces of history, insisting that the man was a hero, not a traitor to humanity, but the League had no desire to hear it.

She found two letters Abulurd had sent to Vorian, back when the men were still friends. The first, written in the heat of the Jihad, read: “Some say that Harkonnen blood running through my veins disgraces me, but I don’t accept the lies I have heard, the attempts to blacken the role of my grandfather. You and I know why he did what he did. To me the actions of Xavier Harkonnen speak of honor rather than cowardice.”

In another letter, Vorian promised Abulurd that once Omnius was defeated he would work tirelessly to restore the Harkonnen name. However, after the events at the Bridge of Hrethgir, Vorian broke his vow, turned his back on the Harkonnen family, and saw to it that Abulurd was sent into exile.

Abulurd’s final letter in the archives, written during the dark days of disgrace following the Battle of Corrin, was even more telling, and accusatory: “Vor, this is my second letter to you—my second urgent request. I know you want to destroy me and my name. Does that free you of your promise to correct history? At least let honor be restored to Xavier Harkonnen, who bravely flew his ship into the sun to destroy the evil Iblis Ginjo. Or will you cast Xavier aside, and all Harkonnens, because of your disappointment in me? What does that say about Atreides honor?”

Valya looked away and realized she was crying. She wiped the tears away. She had faith that Griffin would do what was necessary. That detestable man deserved to die!

Using a hand signal to activate the carousel, she scanned the files and traced her family tree, recognizing many of the names—from Abulurd, back to Xavier, Ulf, and even generations further into the archives of history. So many heroic deeds … but after Xavier killed himself and Grand Patriarch Ginjo, public opinion so turned against him that descendants changed their family name. Xavier’s grandson Abulurd tried to reclaim his heritage, but his later banishment only completed the destruction of their legacy.

The next carousel screen showed seven images of Abulurd at varying ages. Her heart sank as she watched the faces change from youthful exuberance to the sad recognition of failure at the end of his life in exile.

She was startled when a breeze touched her face, a warm gust of air in the cavern, as if someone had breathed hard on her and then flitted away. Nearby, she heard a whisper of sound that faded into the shadows. Valya looked around, her senses heightened, but saw no one. Other trusted Sisters worked at computer stations inside the large chamber, but all were far from her. A tactile sensation like gooseflesh skittered down her back … and then was gone.

She waited, tense, but the sensation did not recur. She heard only the hum of fans and cooling systems, the subsonic pondering of thinking machines. Everything seemed normal.…

Unsettled, she tried to calm herself by remembering how she had joined the Sisters of Rossak, when a black-robed woman came to Lankiveil on a cargo transport. Sister Arlett, a graduate of the Sisterhood, a traveler who stopped in out-of-the-way places to discuss the Rossak School. The missionary had seen a hunger and a potential in Valya’s eyes, and she gave the young woman hope when Valya knew she had little chance of bettering herself on Lankiveil. “The Sisterhood strives to improve humanity, one woman at a time,” Arlett had told her. “On Rossak, you can learn to become yourself, and more than yourself.”

Valya was fascinated by the choice. The Rossak School was her chance to improve her prospects. Although Griffin was sad to see his sister go, and their mother dismissed the girl’s aspirations, Valya had made up her mind quickly. She’d flown away with Sister Arlett, feeling no regrets at all.…

Now, after she finished working with the hidden computers, Valya returned to the main warrens and the classes where acolytes had just completed a meditation session. Presently, she saw Anna Corrino hurrying toward her, followed by an impatient-looking Sister Dorotea. No doubt Anna had been troublesome in the class.

“I don’t need meditation classes,” Anna said. “I want to work on the breeding program with you.”

Valya slowed, but continued walking into the main school complex. “The breeding program?”

“Everyone knows the breeding records are up that trail.”

“Each Sister has responsibilities beyond continuing her education,” Sister Dorotea said pointedly to Anna. “Sister Valya has her own duties, and I have mine assisting Karee Marques in the jungles.”

Valya had heard rumors that Dorotea might even become the leader of the Sisterhood one day. But if so, Valya wondered why the Reverend Mother had not let her in on the secret of the breeding-record computers. Perhaps because Dorotea had spent years studying with the Butlerians on Lampadas?

Anna took Valya by the arm, happily claiming friendship. “I want to see the breeding records. They must be very important.”

Valya’s mind raced. Anna Corrino was not accustomed to being denied access anywhere. “Once you become a full Sister and pass all your tests, maybe I can use my influence to arrange a brief tour, but detailed family trees are generally off-limits.”

Anna grinned. “I know all about House Corrino already.”

Valya wondered if Anna had been told about the Harkonnen offshoot of the Butler/Corrino family tree. Would it surprise you to know we are cousins? Rather than answering Anna directly, she paraphrased the Reverend Mother’s words. “Maybe so, but remember that we are all Sisters, and the Sisterhood is our family now.”