Chapter 79 (How do we measure the loss of Salvador Corrino)

Roderick mourns as weeks pass with no sign of Salvador’s Imperial Barge. Multiple investigations—of Arrakis logs, the Salusa maintenance teams, and House Péle—find no sabotage, only an old FTL vessel that likely vanished en route. Josef Venport offers condolences while subtly promoting Navigator safety, but Salvador remains missing.

Haunted by riots that killed Nantha and Headmaster Albans, and by Anna’s disappearance on Lampadas, Roderick resolves to send forces to Lampadas to confront the Butlerians and search for his sister. Recognizing the vacuum of leadership, Haditha urges him to take the throne provisionally to stabilize the Imperium.

Roderick convenes moderate Landsraad leaders. Naza Ibilin and Chamberlain Bakim formally press him to accept the crown. Roderick agrees, pledging to yield if Salvador returns, and steels himself against whispers that he engineered the loss. Haditha publicly supports him at the throne, reinforcing his resolve.

After receiving guarded congratulations from Venport and Manford, Roderick rejects their presence at his coronation to assert Corrino primacy. He orders the Imperial forces to high alert, confronts the legacy of neglect and dependence on VenHold transport, and targets weak leadership—beginning with General Odmo Saxby—for reform despite expected noble resistance.

Balancing state and family, Roderick arranges protection for his children—naming Javicco a future heir—while asking Haditha to remain by his side as counsel. He commits to restoring Imperial relevance, confronting Manford on Lampadas, and diminishing VenHold’s leverage over Imperial power.