Great Schools of Dune, #2
Mentats of Dune
by Brian Herbert, Kevin J. Anderson
Contents
Chapter 56 (One of my primary tasks in advancing the)
Overview
At a strained Imperial reception, Emperor Salvador’s volatility underscores court instability. Reverend Mother Dorotea spots Sister Arlett and learns Arlett is her birth mother. Confronting past manipulations, Dorotea hears Arlett’s plea to end the Sisterhood schism. Arlett reveals Mother Superior Raquella is dying and urgently summons Dorotea to Wallach IX to name a successor.
Summary
At a glittering but restless Imperial Court, Emperor Salvador grows irritable and bored with the entertainment, dismissing performers and drinking heavily, while Prince Roderick and Reverend Mother Dorotea quietly observe his volatility and the court’s emptiness.
Amid the dispersing guests, Dorotea notices a black-robed Sister—Sister Arlett—who is not among Dorotea’s orthodox entourage. Dorotea approaches, suspecting an urgent purpose. Arlett brings a request from Wallach IX, but Dorotea, wary and resentful over past Rossak corruption, challenges her.
Dorotea abruptly reveals the truth: Arlett is her biological mother, separated from her at infancy by Raquella to prevent bonding. Drawing on Other Memory, Dorotea recounts intimate details of Arlett’s past and conception, forcing Arlett to accept the revelation with stunned wonder and pain.
When Arlett urges healing the rift between the Sisterhood factions, Dorotea resists, blaming Rossak’s forbidden computers for their downfall. Arlett counters that both factions share the goal of advancing humanity without machines and that Dorotea’s role in the schism weakened them all, pressing her to repair the damage.
Finally, Arlett reveals the urgent stakes: Mother Superior Raquella is dying and will soon announce her successor. She summons Dorotea to Wallach IX immediately, warning that time is short and implying that the future of the Sisterhood hinges on Dorotea’s response.
Who Appears
- Reverend Mother DoroteaOrthodox Sister at court; confronts Sister Arlett, learns maternity truth, and hears Raquella’s dying summons.
- Sister ArlettMissionary Sister; revealed as Dorotea’s mother; appeals to end the schism and summons Dorotea to Wallach IX.
- Emperor Salvador CorrinoIrritable, intoxicated ruler; dismisses entertainment, exposing court instability and paranoia.
- Prince Roderick CorrinoConcerned brother who steadies Salvador and witnesses the tense evening.
- Imperial SommelierNervously attends Salvador, highlighting the Emperor’s excessive drinking.
- Chusuk Baliset PerformerTalented musician dismissed mid-performance, reflecting Salvador’s capriciousness.
- Arrakis StorytellerPerforms Zensunni tale before being cut off by Salvador.