Chapter Eight

    Another voice rumbled from the speaker: "This is Spotter Control. Sighting confirmed. Stand by for contact fix." There wa...ause, then: "Contact in twenty-six minutes minus. That wa...harp estimate. Who's on that unlisted flight? Over."

    Halleck had his harness off and surged forward between Kynes and the Duke. "Is this the regular working frequency, Kynes?"

    "Yes. Why?"

    "Who'd be listening?"

    "Just the work crews in this area. Cuts down interference."

    Again, the speaker crackled, then: "This is Delta Ajax niner. Who gets bonus credit for that spot? Over."

    Halleck glanced at the Duke.

    Kynes said: "There'...onus based on spice load for whoever gives first worm warning. They want to kno...quot;

    "Tell them who had first sight of that worm," Halleck said.

    The Duke nodded.

    Kynes hesitated, then lifted the microphone; "Spotter credit to the Duke Leto Atreides. The Duke Leto Atreides. Over."

    The voice from the speaker was flat and partly distorted b...urst of static: "We read and thank you."

    "Now, tell them to divide the bonus among themselves," Halleck ordered. "Tell them it's the Duke's wish."

    Kynes too...eep breath, then: "It's the Duke's wish that you divide the bonus among your crew. Do you read? Over."

    "Acknowledged and thank you," the speaker said.

    The Duke said: "I forgot to mention that Gurney is also very talented in public relations."

    Kynes turne...uzzled frown on Halleck.

    "This lets the men know their Duke is concerned for their safety," Halleck said. "Word will get around. It was on an area working frequenc...ot likely Harkonnen agents heard." He glanced out at their air cover. "And we'r...retty strong force. It wa...ood risk."

    The Duke banked their craft toward the sandcloud erupting from the factory crawler. "What happens now?"

    "There'...arryall wing somewhere close," Kynes said. "It'll come in and lift off the crawler."

    "What if the carryall's wrecked?" Halleck asked.

    "Some equipment is lost," Kynes said. "Get in close over the crawler, my Lord; you'll find this interesting."

    The Duke scowled, busied himself with the controls as they came into turbulent air over the crawler.

    Paul looked down, saw sand still spewing out of the metal and plastic monster beneath them. It looked lik...reat tan and blue beetle with many wide tracks extending on arms around it. He sa...iant inverted funnel snout poked into dark sand in front of it.

    "Rich spice bed by the color," Kynes said. "They'll continue working until the last minute."

    The Duke fed more power to the wings, stiffened them fo...teeper descent as he settled lower i...ircling glide above the crawler...lance left and right showed his cover holding altitude and circling overhead.

    Paul studied the yellow cloud belching from the crawler's pipe vents, looked out over the desert at the approaching worm track.

    "Shouldn't we be hearing them call in the carryall?" Halleck asked.

    "They usually have the wing o...ifferent frequency," Kynes said.

    "Shouldn't they have two carryalls standing by for every crawler?" the Duke asked. "There should be twenty-six men on that machine down there, not to mention cost of equipment."

    Kynes said: "You don't have enough e...quot;

    He broke off as the speaker erupted with an angry voice: "Any of you see the wing? He isn't answering."

    A garble of noise crackled from the speaker, drowned in an abrupt override signal, then silence and the first voice: "Report by the numbers! Over."

    "This is Spotter Control. Las...aw, the wing was pretty high and circling off northwest...on't see him now. Over."

    "Spotter one: negative. Over."

    "Spotter two: negative. Over."

    "Spotter three: negative. Over."

    Silence.

    The Duke looked down. His own craft's shadow was just passing over the crawler. "Only four spotters, is that right?"

    "Correct," Kynes said.

    "There are five in our party," the Duke said. "Our ships are larger. We can crowd in three extra each. Their spotters ought to be able to lift off two each."

    Paul did the mental arithmetic, said: "That's three short."

    "Why don't they have two carryalls to each crawler?" barked the Duke.

    "You don't have enough extra equipment," Kynes said.

    "All the more reason we should protect what we have!"

    "Where could that carryall go?" Halleck asked.

    "Could've been forced down somewhere out of sight," Kynes said.

    The Duke grabbed the microphone, hesitated with thumb poised over its switch. "How could they lose sight o...arryall?"

    "They keep their attention on the ground looking for wormsign," Kynes said.

    The Duke thumbed the switch, spoke into the microphone. "This is your Duke. We are coming down to take off Delta Ajax niner's crew. All spotters are ordered to comply. Spotters will land on the east side. We will take the west. Over." He reached down, punched out his own command frequency, repeated the order for his own air cover, handed the microphone back to Kynes.

    Kynes returned to the working frequency an...oice blasted from the speaker: "... . almos...ull load of spice! We have almos...ull load! We can't leave that fo...amned worm! Over."

    "Damn the spice!" the Duke barked. He grabbed back the microphone, said: "We can always get more spice. There are seats in our ships for all but three of you. Draw straws or decide any way you like who's to go. But you're going, and that's an order!" He slammed the microphone back into Kynes' hands, muttered: "Sorry," as Kynes shook an injured finger.

    "How much time?" Paul asked.

    "Nine minutes," Kynes said.

    The Duke said: "This ship has more power than the others. If we took off under jet with three-quarter wings, we could crowd in an additional man."

    "That sand's soft," Kynes said.

    "With four extra men aboard o...et takeoff, we could snap the wings, Sire," Halleck said.

    "Not on this ship," the Duke said. He hauled back on the controls as the 'thopter glided in beside the crawler. The wings tipped up, braked the 'thopter t...kidding stop within twenty meters of the factory.

    The crawler was silent now, no sand spouting from its vents. Onl...aint mechanical rumble issued from it, becoming more audible as the Duke opened his door.

    Immediately, their nostrils were assailed by the odor of cinnamo...eavy and pungent.

    Wit...oud flapping, the spotter aircraft glided down to the sand on the other side of the crawler. The Duke's own escort swooped in to land in line with him.

    Paul, looking out at the factory, saw how all the 'thopters were dwarfed by i...nats besid...arrior beetle.

    "Gurney, you and Paul toss out that rear seat," the Duke said. He manually cranked the wings out to three-quarters, set their angle, checked the jet pod controls. "Why the devil aren't they coming out of that machine?"

    "They're hoping the carryall will show up," Kynes said. "They still hav...ew minutes." He glanced off to the east.

    All turned to look the same direction, seeing no sign of the worm, but there wa...eavy, charged feeling of anxiety in the air.

    The Duke took the microphone, punched for his command frequency, said: "Two of you toss out your shield generators. By the numbers. You can carry one more man that way. We're not leaving any men for that monster." He keyed back to the working frequency, barked: "All right, you in Delta Ajax niner! Out! Now! This i...ommand from your Duke! On the double or I'll cut that crawler apart wit...asgun!"

    A hatch snapped open near the front of the factory, another at the rear, another at the top. Men came tumbling out, sliding and scrambling down to the sand...all man i...atched working robe was the last to emerge. He jumped down t...rack and then to the sand.

    The Duke hung the microphone on the panel, swung out onto the wing step, shouted: "Two men each into your spotters."

    The man in the patched robe began lolling off pairs of his crew, pushing them toward the craft waiting on the other side.

    "Four over here!" the Duke shouted. "Four into that ship back there!" He jabbe...inger at an escort 'thopter directly behind him. The guards were just wrestling the shield generator out of it. "And four into that ship over there!" He pointed to the other escort that had shed its shield generator. "Three each into the others! Run, you sand dogs!"

    The tall man finished counting off his crew, came slogging across the sand followed by three of his companions.

    "I hear the worm, bu...an't see it," Kynes said.

    The others heard it the...n abrasive slithering, distant and growing louder.

    "Damn sloppy way to operate," the Duke muttered.

    Aircraft began flapping off the sand around them. It reminded the Duke o...ime in his home planet's jungles...udden emergence int...learing, and carrion birds lifting away from the carcass o...ild ox.

    The spice workers slogged up to the side of the 'thopter, started climbing in behind the Duke. Halleck helped, dragging them into the rear.

    "In you go, boys!" he snapped. "On the double!"

    Paul, crowded int...orner by sweating men, smelled the perspiration of fear, saw that two of the men had poor neck adjustments on their stillsuits. He filed the information in his memory for future action. His father would have to order tighter stillsuit discipline. Men tended to become sloppy if you didn't watch such things.

    The last man came gasping into the rear, said. "The worm! It's almost on us! Blast off!"

    The Duke slid into his seat, frowning, said: "We still have almost three minutes on the original contact estimate. Is that right, Kynes?" He shut his door, checked it.

    "Almost exactly, my Lord," Kynes said, and he thought...ool one, this duke .

    "All secure here, Sire," Halleck said.

    The Duke nodded, watched the last of his escort take off. He adjusted the igniter, glanced once more at wings and instruments, punched the jet sequence.

    The take-off pressed the Duke and Kynes deep into their seats, compressed the people in the rear. Kynes watched the way the Duke handled the control...ently, surely. The 'thopter was fully airborne now, and the Duke studied his instruments, glanced left and right at his wings.

    "She's very heavy, Sire," Halleck said.

    "Well within the tolerances of this ship," the Duke said. "You didn't really think I'd risk this cargo, did you, Gurney?"

    Halleck grinned, said: "No...it of it, Sire."

    The Duke banked his craft i...ong easy curv...limbing over the crawler.

    Paul, crushed int...orner besid...indow, stared down at the silent machine on the sand. The wormsign had broken off about four hundred meters from the crawler. And now, there appeared to be turbulence in the sand around the factory.

    "The worm is now beneath the crawler," Kynes said. "You are about to witnes...hing few have seen."

    Flecks of dust shadowed the sand around the crawler now. The big machine began to tip down to the right...igantic sand whirlpool began forming there to the right of the crawler. It moved faster and faster. Sand and dust filled the air now for hundreds of meters around.

    Then they saw it!

    A wide hole emerged from the sand. Sunlight flashed from glistening white spokes within it. The hole's diameter was at least twice the length of the crawler, Paul estimated. He watched as the machine slid into that opening i...illow of dust and sand. The hole pulled back.

    "Gods, wha...onster!" muttere...an beside Paul.

    "Got all our floggin' spice!" growled another.

    "Someone is going to pay for this," the Duke said. "I promise you that."

    By the very flatness of his father's voice, Paul sensed the deep anger. He found that he shared it. This was criminal waste!

    In the silence that followed, they heard Kynes.

    "Bless the Maker and His water," Kynes murmured. "Bless the coming and going of Him. May His passage cleanse the world. May He keep the world for His people."

    "What's that you're saying?" the Duke asked.

    But Kynes remained silent.

    Paul glanced at the men crowded around him. They were staring fearfully at the back of Kynes' head. One of them whispered: "Liet."

    Kynes turned, scowling. The man sank back, abashed.

    Another of the rescued men began coughin...ry and rasping. Presently, he gasped: "Curse this hell hole!"

    The tall Dune man who had come last out of the crawler said; "Be you still, Coss. You but worsen your cough." He stirred among the men until he could look through them at the back of the Duke's head. "You be the Duke Leto...arrant," he said. "It's to you we give thanks for our lives. We were ready to end it there until you came along."

    "Quiet, man, and let the Duke fly his ship," Halleck muttered.

    Paul glanced at Halleck. He, too, had seen the tension wrinkles at the corner of his father's jaw. One walked softly when the Duke was i...age.

    Leto began easing his 'thopter out of its great banking circle, stopped a...ew sign of movement on the sand. The worm had withdrawn into the depths and now, near where the crawler had been, two figures could be seen moving north away from the sand depression. They appeared to glide over the surface with hardl...ifting of dust to mark their passage.

    "Who's that down there?" the Duke barked.

    "Two Johnnies who came along for the ride, Soor," said the tall Dune man.

    "Why wasn't something said about them?"

    "It was the chance they took, Soor," the Dune man said.

    "My Lord," said Kynes, "these men know it's of little use to do anything about men trapped on the desert in worm country."

    "We'll sen...hip from base for them!" the Duke snapped.

    "As you wish, my Lord," Kynes said. "But likely when the ship gets here there'll be no one to rescue."

    "We'll sen...hip, anyway," the Duke said.

    "They were right beside where the worm came up," Paul said. "How'd they escape?"

    "The sides of the hole cave in and make the distances deceptive," Kynes said.

    "You waste fuel here, Sire," Halleck ventured.

    "Aye, Gurney."

    The Duke brought his craft around toward the Shield Wall. His escort came down from circling stations, took up positions above and on both sides.

    Paul thought about what the Dune man and Kynes had said. He sensed half-truths, outright lies. The men on the sand had glided across the surface so surely, moving i...ay obviously calculated to keep from luring the worm back out of its depths.

    Fremen! Paul thought. Who else would be so sure on the sand? Who else might be left out of your worries a...atter of cours...ecause they are in no danger? They know how to live here! They know how to outwit the worm!

    "What were Fremen doing on that crawler?" Paul asked.

    Kynes whirled.

    The tall Dune man turned wide eyes on Pau...lue within blue within blue. "Who be this lad?" he asked.

    Halleck moved to place himself between the man and Paul, said: "This is Paul Atreides, the ducal heir."

    "Why says he there were Fremen on our rumbler?" the man asked.

    "They fit the description," Paul said.

    Kynes snorted. "You can't tell Fremen just by looking at them!" He looked at the Dune man. "You. Who were those men?"

    "Friends of one of the others," the Dune man said. "Just friends fro...illage who wanted to see the spice sands."

    Kynes turned away. "Fremen!"

    But he was remembering the words of the legend: "The Lisan al-Gaib shall see through all subterfuge ."

    "They be dead now, most likely, young Soor," the Dune man said. "We should not speak unkindly on them."

    But Paul heard the falsehood in their voices, felt the menace that had brought Halleck instinctively into guarding position.

    Paul spoke dryly: "A terrible place for them to die."

    Without turning, Kynes said; "When God hath ordaine...reature to die i...articular place. He causeth that creature's wants to direct him to that place."

    Leto turne...ard stare at Kynes.

    And Kynes, returning the stare, found himself troubled b...act he had observed here: This Duke was concerned more over the men that he was over the spice. He risked his own life and that of his son to save the men. He passed off the loss o...pice crawler wit...esture. The threat to men's lives had him i...age...eader such as that would command fanatic loyalty. He would be difficult to defeat .

    Against his own will and all previous judgments, Kynes admitted to himself...ike this Duke .

    Greatness i...ransitory experience. It is never consistent. It depends in part upon the myth-making imagination of humankind. The person who experiences greatness must hav...eeling for the myth he is in. He must reflect what is projected upon him. And he must hav...trong sense of the sardonic. This is what uncouples him from belief in his own pretensions. The sardonic is all that permits him to move within himself. Without this quality, even occasional greatness will destro...an.

    - from "Collected Sayings of Muad'Dib" by the Princess Irulan

    In the dining hall of the Arrakeen great house, suspensor lamps had been lighted against the early dark. They cast their yellow glows upward onto the black bull's head with its bloody horns, and onto the darkly glistening oil painting of the Old Duke.

    Beneath these talismans, white linen shone around the burnished reflections of the Atreides silver, which had been placed in precise arrangements along the great tabl...ittle archipelagos of service waiting beside crystal glasses, each setting squared off befor...eavy wooden chair. The classic central chandelier remained unlighted, and its chain twisted upward into shadows where the mechanism of the poison-snooper had been concealed.

    Pausing in the doorway to inspect the arrangements, the Duke thought about the poison-snooper and what it signified in his society.

    All o...atter...e thought. You can plumb us by our languag...he precise and delicate delineations for ways to administer treacherous death. Will someone try chaumurky tonigh...oison in the drink? Or will it be chauma...oison in the food?

    He shook his head.

    Beside each plate on the long table stoo...lagon of water. There was enough water along the table, the Duke estimated, to kee...oor Arrakeen family for more tha...ear.

    Flanking the doorway in which he stood were broad laving basins of ornate yellow and green tile. Each basin had its rack of towels. It was the custom, the housekeeper had explained, for guests as they entered to dip their hands ceremoniously int...asin, slop several cups of water onto the floor, dry their hands o...owel and fling the towel into the growing puddle at the door. After the dinner, beggars gathered outside to get the water squeezings from the towels.

    How typical o...arkonnen fie...he Duke thought. Every degradation of the spirit that can be conceive...e too...eep breath, feeling rage tighten his stomach.

    "The custom stops here!" he muttered.

    He sa...erving woma...ne of the old and gnarled ones the housekeeper had recommende...overing at the doorway from the kitchen across from him. The Duke signaled with upraised hand. She moved out of the shadows, scurried around the table toward him, and he noted the leathery face, the blue-within-blue eyes.

    "My Lord wishes?" She kept her head bowed, eyes shielded.

    He gestured. "Have these basins and towels removed."

    "Bu... . Noble Bor... ." She looked up, mouth gaping.

    "I know the custom!" he barked. "Take these basins to the front door. While we're eating and until we've finished, each beggar who calls may hav...ull cup of water. Understood?"

    Her leathery face displaye...wisting of emotions: dismay, ange... .

    With sudden insight, Leto realized that she must have planned to sell the water squeezings from the foot-trampled towels, wringin...ew coppers from the wretches who came to the door. Perhaps that also wa...ustom.

    His face clouded, and he growled: "I'm postin...uard to see that my orders are carried out to the letter."

    He whirled, strode back down the passage to the Great Hall. Memories rolled in his mind like the toothless mutterings of old women. He remembered open water and wave...ays of grass instead of san...azed summers that had whipped past him like windstorm leaves.

    All gone.

    I'm getting ol...e thought. I've felt the cold hand of my mortality. And in what? An old woman's greed .

    In the Great Hall, the Lady Jessica was the center o...ixed group standing in front of the fireplace. An open blaze crackled there, casting flickers of orange light onto jewels and laces and costly fabrics. He recognized in the grou...tillsuit manufacturer down from Carthag, an electronics equipment importer...ater-shipper whose summer mansion was near his polar-cap factory...epresentative of the Guild Bank (lean and remote, that one)...ealer in replacement parts for spice mining equipment...hin and hard-faced woman whose escort service for off-planet visitors reputedly operated as cover for various smuggling, spying, and blackmail operations.

    Most of the women in the hall seemed cast fro...pecific typ...ecorative, precisely turned out, an odd mingling of untouchable sensuousness.

    Even without her position as hostess, Jessica would have dominated the group, he thought. She wore no jewelry and had chosen warm color... long dress almost the shade of the open blaze, and an earth-brown band around her bronzed hair.

    He realized she had done this to taunt him subtly...eproof against his recent pose of coldness. She was well aware that he liked her best in these shade...hat he saw her a...ustling of warm colors.

    Nearby, more an outflanker tha...ember of the group, stood Duncan Idaho in glittering dress uniform, flat face unreadable, the curling black hair neatly combed. He had been summoned back from the Fremen and had his orders from Hawa...quot;Under pretext of guarding her, you will keep the Lady Jessica under constant surveillance ."

    The Duke glanced around the room.

    There was Paul in the corner surrounded b...awning group of the younger Arrakeen richece, and, aloof among them, three officers of the House Troop. The Duke took particular note of the young women. Wha...atc...ucal heir would make. But Paul was treating all equally with an air of reserved nobility.

    He'll wear the title wel...he Duke thought, and realized wit...udden chill that this was another death thought.

    Paul saw his father in the doorway, avoided his eyes. He looked around at the clusterings of guests, the jeweled hands clutching drinks (and the unobtrusive inspections with tiny remote-cast snoopers). Seeing all the chattering faces, Paul was suddenly repelled by them. They were cheap masks locked on festering thought...oices gabbling to drown out the loud silence in every breast.

    I'm i...our moo...e thought, and wondered what Gurney would say to that.

    He knew his mood's source. He hadn't wanted to attend this function, but his father had been firm. "You hav...lac... position to uphold. You're old enough to do this. You're almos...an."

    Paul saw his father emerge from the doorway, inspect the room, then cross to the group around the Lady Jessica.

    As Leto approached Jessica's group, the water-shipper was asking: "Is it true the Duke will put in weather control?"

    From behind the man, the Duke said: "We haven't gone that far in our thinking, sir."

    The man turned, exposin...land round face, darkly tanned. "Ah-h, the Duke," he said. "We missed you."

    Leto glanced at Jessica. "A thing needed doing." He returned his attention to the water-shipper, explained what he had ordered for the laving basins, adding: "As far as I'm concerned, the old custom ends now."

    "Is thi...ucal order, m'Lord?" the man asked.

    "I leave that to your ow... . a... . conscience," the Duke said. He turned, noting Kynes come up to the group.

    One of the women said: "I think it'...ery generous gestur...iving water to th...quot; Someone shushed her.

    The Duke looked at Kynes, noting that the planetologist wore an old-style dark brown uniform with epaulets of the Imperial Civil Servant an...iny gold teardrop of rank at his collar.

    The water-shipper asked in an angry voice: "Does the Duke imply criticism of our custom?"

    "This custom has been changed," Leto said. He nodded to Kynes, marked the frown on Jessica's face, thought...rown does not become her, but it'll increase rumors of friction between us .

    "With the Duke's permission," the water-shipper said, "I'd like to inquire further about customs."

    Leto heard the sudden oily tone in the man's voice, noted the watchful silence in this group, the way heads were beginning to turn toward them around the room.

    "Isn't it almost time for dinner?" Jessica asked.

    "But our guest has some questions," Leto said. And he looked at the water-shipper, seein...ound-faced man with large eyes and thick lips, recalling Hawat's memorandum: "... and this water-shipper i...an to watc...ingar Bewt, remember the name. The Harkonnens used him but never fully controlled him ."

    "Water customs are so interesting," Bewt said, and there wa...mile on his face. "I'm curious what you intend about the conservatory attached to this house. Do you intend to continue flaunting it in the people's face... . m'Lord?"

    Leto held anger in check, staring at the man. Thoughts raced through his mind. It had taken bravery to challenge him in his own ducal castle, especially since they now had Bewt's signature ove...ontract of allegiance. The action had taken, also...nowledge of personal power. Water was, indeed, power here. If water facilities were mined, for instance, ready to be destroyed a...igna... . The man looked capable of suc...hing. Destruction of water facilities might well destroy Arrakis. That could well have been the club this Bewt held over the Harkonnens.

    "My Lord, the Duke, an...ave other plans for our conservatory," Jessica said. She smiled at Leto. "We intend to keep it, certainly, but only to hold it in trust for the people of Arrakis. It is our dream that someday the climate of Arrakis may be changed sufficiently to grow such plants anywhere in the open."

    Bless her! Leto thought. Let our water-shipper chew on that .

    "Your interest in water and weather control is obvious," the Duke said. "I'd advise you to diversify your holdings. One day, water will not b...recious commodity on Arrakis."

    And he thought: Hawat must redouble his efforts at infiltrating this Bewt's organization. And we must start on stand-by water facilities at once. No man is going to hol...lub over my head!

    Bewt nodded, the smile still on his face. "A commendable dream, my Lord." He withdre...ace.

    Leto's attention was caught by the expression on Kynes' face. The man was staring at Jessica. He appeared transfigure...ik...an in lov... . or caught i...eligious trance.

    Kynes' thoughts were overwhelmed at last by the words of prophecy: "And they shall share your most precious drea...quot;He spoke directly to Jessica: "Do you bring the shortening of the way?"

    "Ah, Dr. Kynes," the water-shipper said. "You've come in from tramping around with your mobs of Fremen. How gracious of you."

    Kynes passed an unreadable glance across Bewt, said: "It is said in the desert that possession of water in great amount can inflic...an with fatal carelessness."

    "They have many strange sayings in the desert," Bewt said, but his voice betrayed uneasiness.

    Jessica crossed to Leto, slipped her hand under his arm to gai...oment in which to calm herself. Kynes had said: "... . the shortening of the way." In the old tongue, the phrase translated as "Kwisatz Haderach." The planetologist's odd question seemed to have gone unnoticed by the others, and now Kynes was bending over one of the consort women, listening t...ow-voiced coquetry.

    Kwisatz Haderac...essica thought. Did our Missionaria Protectiva plant that legend here, too? The thought fanned her secret hope for Paul. He could be the Kwisatz Haderach. He could be .

    The Guild Bank representative had fallen into conversation with the water-shipper, and Bewt's voice lifted above the renewed hum of conversations: "Many people have sought to change Arrakis."

    The Duke saw how the words seemed to pierce Kynes, jerking the planetologist upright and away from the flirting woman.

    Into the sudden silence...ouse trooper in uniform o...ootman cleared his throat behind Leto, said: "Dinner is served, my Lord."

    The Duke directe...uestioning glance down at Jessica.

    "The custom here is for host and hostess to follow their guests to table," She said, and smiled; "Shall we change that one, too, my Lord?"

    He spoke coldly: "That seem...oodly custom. We shall let it stand for now."

    The illusion tha...uspect her of treachery must be maintaine...e thought. He glanced at the guests filing past them. Who among you believes this lie?

    Jessica, sensing his remoteness, wondered at it as she had done frequently the past week. He acts lik...an struggling with himself, she thought. Is it becaus...oved so swiftly setting up this dinner party? Yet, he knows how important it is that we begin to mix our officers and men with the locals o...ocial plane. We are father and mother surrogate to them all. Nothing impresses that fact more firmly than this sort of social sharing .

    Leto, watching the guests file past, recalled what Thufir Hawat had said when informed of the affair: "Sire...orbid it! "

    A grim smile touched the Duke's mouth. Wha...cene that had been. And when the Duke had remained adamant about attending the dinner, Hawat had shaken his head. "I have bad feelings about this, my Lord," he'd said. "Things move too swiftly on Arrakis. That's not like the Harkonnens. Not like them at all."

    Paul passed his father escortin...oung woman hal...ead taller than himself. He sho...our glance at his father, nodded at something the young woman said.

    "Her father manufactures stillsuits," Jessica said. "I'm told that onl...ool would be caught in the deep desert wearing one of the man's suits."

    "Who's the man with the scarred face ahead of Paul?" the Duke asked. "I don't place him."

    "A late addition to the list," she whispered. "Gurney arranged the invitation. Smuggler."

    "Gurney arranged?"

    "At my request. It was cleared with Hawat, althoug...hought Hawat wa...ittle stiff about it. The smuggler's called Tuek, Esmar Tuek. He'...ower among his kind. They all know him here. He's dined at many of the houses."

    "Why is he here?"

    "Everyone here will ask that question," she said. "Tuek will sow doubt and suspicion just by his presence. He'll also serve notice that you're prepared to back up your orders against graf...y enforcement from the smugglers' end as well. This was the point Hawat appeared to like."

    "I'm not sur...ike it." He nodded t...assing couple, saw onl...ew of their guests remained to precede them. "Why didn't you invite some Fremen?"

    "There's Kynes," she said.

    "Yes, there's Kynes," he said. "Have you arranged any other little surprises for me?" He led her into step behind the procession.

    "All else is most conventional," she said.

    And she thought: My darling, can't you see that this smuggler controls fast ships, that he can be bribed? We must hav...ay out...oor of escape from Arrakis if all else fails us here .

    As they emerged into the dining hall, she disengaged her arm, allowed Leto to seat her. He strode to his end of the table...ootman held his chair for him. The others settled wit...wishing of fabrics...craping of chairs, but the Duke remained standing. He gav...and signal, and the house troopers in footman uniform around the table stepped back, standing at attention.

    Uneasy silence settled over the room.

    Jessica, looking down the length of the table, sa...aint trembling at the corners of Leto's mouth, noted the dark flush of anger on his cheeks. What has angered him? she asked herself. Surely not my invitation to the smuggler .

    "Some question my changing of the laving basin custom," Leto said. "This is my way of telling you that many things will change."

    Embarrassed silence settled over the table.

    They think him drun...essica thought.

    Leto lifted his water flagon, held it aloft where the suspensor, lights shot beams of reflection off it. "A...hevalier of the Imperium, then," he said, "I give yo...oast."

    The others grasped their flagons, all eyes focused on the Duke. In the sudden stillness...uspensor light drifted slightly in an errant breeze from the serving kitchen hallway. Shadows played across the Duke's hawk features.

    "Her...m and her...emain!" he barked.

    There was an abortive movement of flagons toward mouth...topped as the Duke remained with arm upraised. "My toast is one of those maxims so dear to our hearts: 'Business makes progress! Fortune passes everywhere!' "

    He sipped his water.

    The others joined him. Questioning glances passed among them.

    "Gurney!" the Duke called.

    From an alcove at Leto's end of the room came Halleck's voice. "Here, my Lord."

    "Give u...une, Gurney."

    A minor chord from the baliset floated out of the alcove. Servants began putting plates of food on the table at the Duke's gesture releasing the...oast desert hare in sauce cepeda, aplomage sirian, chukka under glass, coffee with melange (a rich cinnamon odor from the spice wafted across the table)...rue pot-a-oie served with sparkling Caladan wine.

    Still, the Duke remained standing.

    As the guests waited, their attention torn between the dishes placed before them and the standing Duke, Leto said: "In olden times, it was the duty of the host to entertain his guests with his own talents." His knuckles turned white, so fiercely did he grip his water flagon. "I cannot sing, bu...ive you the words of Gurney's song. Consider it another toas... toast to all who've died bringing us to this station."

    An uncomfortable stirring sounded around the table.

    Jessica lowered her gaze, glanced at the people seated nearest he...here was the round-faced water-shipper and his woman, the pale and austere Guild Bank representative (he seeme...histle-faced scarecrow with his eyes fixed on Leto), the rugged and scar-faced Tuek, his blue-within-blue eyes downcast.

    "Review, friend...roops long past review," the Duke intoned. "All to fat...eight of pains and dollars. Their spirits wear our silver collars. Review, friend...roops long past review: Eac...ot of time without pretense or guile. With them passes the lure of fortune. Review, friend...roops long past review. When our time ends on its rictus smile, we'll pass the lure of fortune."

    The Duke allowed his voice to trail off on the last line, too...eep drink from his water flagon, slammed it back onto the table. Water slopped over the brim onto the linen.

    The others drank in embarrassed silence.

    Again, the Duke lifted his water flagon, and this time emptied its remaining half onto the floor, knowing that the others around the table must do the same.

    Jessica was first to follow his example.

    There wa...rozen moment before the others began emptying their flagons. Jessica saw how Paul, seated near his father, was studying the reactions around him. She found herself also fascinated by what her guests' actions reveale...specially among the women. This was clean, potable water, not something already cast away i...opping towel. Reluctance to just discard it exposed itself in trembling hands, delayed reactions' nervous laughte... . and violent obedience to the necessity. One woman dropped her flagon, looked the other way as her male companion recovered it.

    Kynes, though, caught her attention most sharply. The planetotogist hesitated, then emptied his flagon int...ontainer beneath his jacket. He smiled at Jessica as he caught her watching him, raised the empty flagon to her i...ilent toast. He appeared completely unembarrassed by his action.

    Halleck's music still wafted over the room, but it had come out of its minor key, lilting and lively now as though he were trying to lift the mood.

    "Let the dinner commence," the Duke said, and sank into his chair.

    He's angry and uncertai...essica thought. The loss of that factory crawler hit him more deeply than it should have. It must be something more than that loss. He acts lik...esperate ma...he lifted her fork, hoping in the motion to hide her own sudden bitterness. Why not? He is desperate .

    Slowly at first, then with increasing animation, the dinner got under way. The stillsuit manufacturer complimented Jessica on her chef and wine.

    "We brought both from Caladan," she said.

    "Superb!" he said, tasting the chukka. "Simply superb! And no...int of melange in it. One gets so tired of the spice in everything."

    The Guild Bank representative looked across at Kynes. "I understand, Doctor Kynes, that another factory crawler has been lost t...orm."

    "News' travels fast," the Duke said.

    "Then it's true?" the banker asked, shifting his attention to Leto.

    ......