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Times of extremis demand extreme actions.
Under her orders, the members of the united Sisterhood now removed the powerful weapons from their no-ships, battle cruisers, and infiltration vessels. She would take them to Ix herself. Murbella cut off continued arguments as she marched with a small entourage toward the Chapterhouse spaceport.
"But Mother Commander, at least negotiate patent protections," Laera said, a flush showing even on her dark skin. "Impose restrictions so that the technology does not become widespread." She was one of the most businesslike Reverend Mothers, filling much of Bellonda's old role. "Proliferation amongst planetary warlords could result in the devastation of the largest star systems. CHOAM alone, working with Ix, could wreak--"
Murbella cut her off with a disgusted noise. "I have no interest in who may or may not benefit commercially after we win this war. If the Ixians help us achieve victory, they are entitled to profit." She rubbed her chin thoughtfully as she looked up at the ramp of her small, fast lighter. "We'll let the planetary warlords deal with their own problems."
You play with feelings as a child plays with toys. I know why your Sisterhood does not value emotions: You cannot value what you do not understand!
--DUNCAN IDAHO,
letter submitted to Reverend Mother Bellonda
Sheeana used an authoritative tone, just short of Voice. " 'Respect for the truth comes close to being the basis for all morality.' And I want the truth from you. Now."
Garimi raised her eyebrows and said calmly, "A quote from Duke Leto Atreides to bolster the interrogation? Shall we bring in blazing lights and a Truthsayer?"
"My Truthsense is sufficient. I have always known you well enough to read you."
The shock waves from the appalling crime in the birthing center rippled through the no-ship. The slaughter of unborn gholas, the destruction of three axlotl tanks--tanks created from volunteer Sisters!--went beyond anything Sheeana had expected from even her most vehement detractors. Her suspicions had naturally turned toward the outspoken leader of the ultraconservative faction.
Inside an interior conference chamber whose doors were sealed, Sheeana stood like a stern schoolteacher, facing nine of the most prominent dissenters. These women had opposed the ghola project since its inception, disagreeing even more vehemently after Sheeana's decision to restart the work.
Under the blistering scrutiny, Garimi stared back, while her supporters were openly hostile--especially the squat Stuka. "Why would I damage an axlotl tank? It makes no sense."
Within her mind, among the lives in Other Memory, she heard the now-familiar voice of the ancient Serena Butler, sounding horrified. Killing a child! Serena was an odd visitor in Other Memory, a woman whose ancient thoughts should not have traveled down the corridors of the generations, and yet she had been with Sheeana for years now.
"You have shown a previous willingness to kill ghola children." Sheeana finally sat down.
Garimi fought to control her trembling. "I attempted to save us before Leto could become a threat, before he could become the Tyrant again. That was all, and I failed. My reasons were well known, and I stand by them. Why would I go to such extremes now? What do I care about Halleck? Or old General Xavier Harkonnen? Even Serena Butler is so far buried in our past that she's little more than the smoke of a legend. Why would I bother with them when the worst gholas--Paul Muad'Dib, Leto II, the fallen Lady Jessica, and Alia the Abomination--already walk among us?" Garimi made a disgusted rumble in her throat. "Your suspicions offend me."
"And the evidence offends me."
"Despite our disagreements, we are all Sisters," Garimi insisted.
At first the fleeing Bene Gesserits had had a common cause, a shared goal. But in a matter of months after their escape from Chapterhouse the divisions had begun, power struggles, command questions, a bifurcation of visions. Duncan and Sheeana focused on escaping from the outside Enemy, while Garimi wanted to found a new Keep and train a fresh Bene Gesserit population according to established ways.
How have we changed so dramatically? How did the divisions get so deep?
Sheeana gazed from face to face, looking for indications of guilt, particularly in the eyes. Short, curly-haired Stuka had a line of moisture on her upper lip, one of the indicators of nervousness. But she detected no hatred there, no loathing sufficient to have sparked an act of such brutality. With dismay, she had no choice but to conclude that the perpetrator was not here.
"Then I need your help. The person standing next to any of us could be a saboteur. We must interview everyone. Gather our qualified Truthsayers, and use the last stores of the truthtrance drug." Sheeana rubbed her temples, already dreading the huge task. "Please leave me alone, so I can meditate."
After the nine dissenters departed, Sheeana stood alone, her eyes half closed. The population aboard the Ithaca had grown, spread out in the no-ship over the years. Even she wasn't sure how many children were aboard, but she could easily find out. Or so she presumed.
She murmured to Other Memory, "So, Serena Butler--was your murderer in the room? If not them, then who could it be?"
Serena's voice interjected, full of sadness. A liar can hide behind barricades, but all barricades eventually fall. You will have other opportunities to discover the murderer. There is sure to be more sabotage.
THE TRUTHSAYERS TESTED each other first.
Twenty-eight qualified Reverend Mothers were gathered from Garimi's followers and from the general population of Sisters. The women did not protest their innocence or complain about the suspicions cast upon them. Instead, they accepted mutual questioning.
Sheeana observed coolly as the women formed triads, two individuals acting as interrogators, the third as the subject. As soon as each subject passed the rigorous questioning, the roles switched, so that everyone was questioned. One by one, the Truthsayers created an evergrowing pool of reliable investigators. Everyone passed the test.
Once the Truthsayers had confirmed each other, Sheeana allowed them to question her. Garimi and her dissident Sisters also faced the challenges and proved their innocence, as did Sheeana's staunch followers. All of them.
Next, with a Truthsayer named Calissa beside her, Sheeana stood before a stiff-backed Duncan Idaho. The very thought of Duncan being a murderer and a saboteur struck her as absurd. Sheeana wouldn't have believed it of anyone on board, and yet three axlotl tanks and three ghola children had been butchered.
But Duncan . . . Standing so close to him, smelling his perspiration, feeling him somehow fill the room with his presence, summoned dangerous memories in her. She had used her own sexual bonding skills to break him free of Murbella. Despite their backgrounds, both knew there had been more to that passionate encounter than just a necessary task. Duncan had been uneasy around her ever since, afraid of what he might succumb to.
But in this situation there was neither romance nor sexual tension, only accusations. "Duncan Idaho, do you know how to bypass the security imagers in the medical center?"
He looked past her, not blinking. "That is within my capabilities."
"Did you commit this terrible act and cover your tracks?"
Now his gaze met hers. "No."
"Did you have any reason to prevent Gurney Halleck, Serena Butler, or Xavier Harkonnen from being born?"
"I did not."
Now that Duncan faced her and a Truthsayer, Sheeana could have asked him questions about their personal relationship to witness his reaction. He would not be able to lie to her or pretend. But she feared his answers. She didn't dare ask.
"He speaks the truth," said Calissa. "He's not our saboteur."
Duncan remained in the room when Bashar Miles Teg came for questioning. Calissa displayed images of the horrific scene from the birthing chamber. "Are you in any way responsible for this, Miles Teg?"
The Bashar stared at the images, looked up at her, turned his gaze to Duncan. "Yes."
Sheeana was so startled that she struggled to think of another question.
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"How so?" Duncan asked.
"I am responsible for security aboard this no-ship. Clearly, I failed in my duty. If I had done a better job, this atrocity never would have occurred." He glanced at the troubled Calissa. "Since you asked me in the presence of a Truthsayer, I couldn't lie."
"Very well, Miles. But that isn't what we meant. Did you commit this sabotage or authorize it? Do you know anything about it?"
"No," he answered emphatically.
Dozens of private chambers were set up, where the interrogations could continue unabated. They asked every one of the ghola children, from Paul Atreides all the way to nine-year-old Leto II, and the Truthsayers detected no criminal falsehoods.
Then the Rabbi and all of the Jews.
And every other passenger aboard the no-ship.
Nothing. Not a single person seemed to be connected with the murderous incident. Duncan and Teg used their Mentat skills to check and recheck the lists of people aboard, yet they could find no errors. No one had evaded questioning.
