The division was personal, more than just a power struggle or philosophical dispute. When Sister Dorotea had discovered she was Raquella’s secret granddaughter — yanked away from her mother and raised without any knowledge of her parentage — she had resented the Mother Superior and the Sisterhood’s heartless ways. Because of her emotional reaction, Dorotea made flawed decisions. The Sisterhood had been broken because of it.
Emotions caused so much collateral damage!
As she tried to rebuild her school on Wallach IX, Raquella pondered the best way to save her precious order, to heal the two broken halves. The clamoring voices of Other Memory offered no useful insights, though their cacophony continued. A few louder individuals beckoned to her, demanding that Raquella join them in the eternity of death and let these problems solve themselves, as they always did.
Perhaps she should just surrender, name Dorotea her successor, and let the two groups merge. They would become the totality of the Sisterhood, with the Emperor’s blessing. Maybe the orthodox Sisters on Salusa Secundus would welcome the most talented women from Wallach IX.…
Or if not Dorotea, then Valya might be her only hope.
Raquella felt a renewed vigor as she embraced Valya Harkonnen, a prodigal daughter come back to the Sisterhood. The young woman smiled with pride. “I’ve found you again, but it’s not just me, Mother Superior. I’d like you to meet my sister, Tula. I gave her some training on Lankiveil, and you’ll find her as dedicated and determined as I was at her age.”
Raquella turned to the girl, whose eyes were as pale as glacier ice. “Valya has set the bar high for you, but I am always pleased to welcome new recruits.” Keeping her expression mild, she reached out a withered hand to pat the young woman’s shoulder, while using all her skills as a Reverend Mother to read nuances on Tula’s face. If anything, this young woman had an even wilder intensity in her demeanor than her sister did.
A tool to be sharpened and put to good use for the Sisterhood, she thought.
During the Mother Superior’s absence, Valya and Tula had quickly settled into the Wallach IX school. Though Raquella had yet to accept Tula formally as a new student, Valya continued training her own sister, demonstrating techniques of her own devising; some of the other trainees also observed and learned. Raquella appreciated Valya’s initiative, and she would make every effort to shape her ambitions for the good of the Sisterhood.
The ten new Sister Mentats came forward to join the other Sisters, looking in reserved dismay at the new facilities on Wallach IX. Before they had departed for Lampadas to begin their intensive Mentat training with Headmaster Albans, the Sisterhood school had been thriving on Rossak. Now, they regarded the prefab structures Josef Venport had provided, along with the cool and bleak landscape that was so different from the lush silvery-purple jungles. Everything on Wallach IX was much more raw than the ancient and imposing caves on Rossak.
But at least the Sisterhood has survived, Raquella thought. And we will rebuild.
Fielle, the brightest of the new Sister Mentats, remained near the Mother Superior. Raquella noticed Valya’s quick assessing glances toward each of the returning Sister Mentats, as if she were trying to determine whether they might be competition. She could not help but notice Fielle’s bond with the Mother Superior, and Valya’s eyes hardened for just an instant.
Raquella was sure Valya would realize that a Mentat Reverend Mother such as Fielle had skills she did not herself possess — useful skills. While a rivalry could force both women to develop their best talents, it could also lead to friction, even another dangerous rift, and the Mother Superior could not allow that. She would intercede and make certain these two became allies. Combining their skills, Valya and Fielle could become a team far more powerful than anything Dorotea could offer.
RAQUELLA RESETTLED HERSELF in the modest rooms she maintained on the school grounds. The buildings were new but drafty, without the warmth and familiarity of Rossak, without the gravitas of history. But that would change. Perhaps the Sisterhood would someday return to Rossak, or perhaps Wallach IX would grow into an important Mother School in its own right.
After resting, Raquella changed her robe and walked outside, where the weak sunshine warmed her face. She felt refreshed, better able to face her continuing obligations. So much to accomplish … and she dared not let herself die with all that important work unfinished. But she had to be realistic.
On an expanse of brittle blue-green grass outside the complex, she watched Valya and Tula practicing martial arts, with other Sisters gathered around to watch them. Though separated by seven years in age, the two Harkonnen girls were about the same height and build, both physically fit and flexible.
From prior testing, Raquella knew the Harkonnen bloodlines could be suitable for a beneficial intermingling that the breeding computers had projected. The school’s few Sister Mentats had difficulty reproducing the projections now, limited by the bound copies of the Rossak files they had managed to rescue.
It was plain to Raquella that she needed to retrieve the sophisticated computers from their hiding place in Rossak’s jungles. Those gigantic databases with a wealth of genetic data from noble houses and other significant families could not be lost. The bloodline archives would enable her experts to suggest optimum genetic matches. It was time to get them back, and Valya’s return was serendipitous. The Harkonnen woman had dismantled the computers and hidden the components. She would need to lead a retrieval mission.
As Raquella watched, the two Harkonnen sisters performed a series of swift combat moves that Valya had developed with her brother Griffin. The young women struck out at each other and fell back, feinted, advanced, dodging blows with precision, as if this were a complex, well-rehearsed dance. Their movements were fluid, graceful, and lightning fast. They charged at each other; Tula leaped over Valya and went into a smooth roll, while Valya rolled in the opposite direction. Less than ten meters apart, they sprang to their feet, whirled, and charged again, ignoring the gasps and cheers of Sisters watching them.
Raquella considered that Harkonnen genetics might offer intriguing possibilities, but she could not visualize Valya as a breeding mistress — she was too independent, too forceful. This beautiful new girl Tula, on the other hand, might be perfect for the program.
Valya and Tula stood back-to-back and each took one step, then whirled and struck out with hands and feet. A pair of blows struck home, as Valya kicked her sister in the abdomen, receiving a hard chop to the neck in return. Three more times they stood back-to-back, took a step, and whirled on each other. Raquella realized this was their variation of a less-than-deadly duel, in which they tried different attacks each time.
Raquella had already observed Valya’s impressive fighting abilities on Rossak, but her speed and fluidity had improved significantly. Additional Sisterhood training, as well as greater control as a Reverend Mother, had made Valya astonishing. She monitored her muscles, reflexes, and every move she made with precise control. It was obvious that Valya had taught Tula a great deal, because they shared the same instincts and speed. As a fighting team, they could be quite lethal.
When the young women concluded their impromptu demonstration, some of the onlookers asked Valya about her technique, while Tula stood looking quiet and shy. With a glance at the Mother Superior, Valya raised her voice. “When I trained with the Sisterhood, I identified a number of talented fighters in our ranks. Back then, the exercises were informal demonstrations of bodily control, but now they should be more than that.” She wiped perspiration from her brow. “We Sisters know our bodies and our reflexes better than any typical fighter — we can take advantage of that, develop it. We need to be able to defend ourselves against outside threats. Our Sisterhood has already been massacred once.”