Chapter 02
Posted: 01 Mar 2008 11:53
This chapter is from the Hadi Benotto translation of the volumes discovered at Dar-es-Balat:
I WAS born Leto Atreides II more than three thousand standard years ago,
measuring from the moment when I cause these words to be printed. My father was
Paul Muad'Dib. My mother was his Fremen consort, Chani. My maternal grandmother
was Faroula, a noted herbalist among the Fremen. My paternal grandmother was
Jessica, a product of the Bene Gesserit breeding scheme in their search for a
male who could share the powers of the Sisterhood's Reverend Mothers. My
maternal grandfather was Liet-Kynes, the planetologist who organized the
ecological transformation of Arrakis. My paternal grandfather was Leto Atreides,
descendant of the House of Atreus and tracing his ancestry directly back to the
Greek original.
Enough of these begats!
Leto goes on to say that his Golden Path is no more or less than the survival of the human race and being prescient forces this responsibility on him. He also tells us that his prescience is stronger than Pauls. Arrakis is no longer desert except for a tiny remnant Leto calls his Sareer. All the worms are gone. There is no more spice, except Leto's hoard, the Bene Gesserit and Guild stores and the stashes of the few remaining Great houses, and Leto doles it out as a reward and holds it back as punishment. Through his absolute control over the remaining spice Leto enforces peace in his empire. He says he knows how he must "die" but not when or the players involved, only if the Golden Path endures. He gives us a physical description of himself:
At this writing, the whole could be considered rather gross. I am what could be
called a pre-worm. My body is about seven meters long and somewhat more than two
meters in diameter, ribbed for most of its length, with my Atreides face
positioned man-height at one end, the arms and hands (still quite recognizable
as human) just below. My legs and feet? Well, they are mostly atrophied. Just
flippers, really, and they have wandered back along my body. The whole of me
weighs approximately five old tons. These items I append because I know they
will have historical interest.
He mentions the importance of Siona, but also that he would have let her die in the forest. They are an extention of his purpose which is to be the greatest predator ever know.
I WAS born Leto Atreides II more than three thousand standard years ago,
measuring from the moment when I cause these words to be printed. My father was
Paul Muad'Dib. My mother was his Fremen consort, Chani. My maternal grandmother
was Faroula, a noted herbalist among the Fremen. My paternal grandmother was
Jessica, a product of the Bene Gesserit breeding scheme in their search for a
male who could share the powers of the Sisterhood's Reverend Mothers. My
maternal grandfather was Liet-Kynes, the planetologist who organized the
ecological transformation of Arrakis. My paternal grandfather was Leto Atreides,
descendant of the House of Atreus and tracing his ancestry directly back to the
Greek original.
Enough of these begats!
Leto goes on to say that his Golden Path is no more or less than the survival of the human race and being prescient forces this responsibility on him. He also tells us that his prescience is stronger than Pauls. Arrakis is no longer desert except for a tiny remnant Leto calls his Sareer. All the worms are gone. There is no more spice, except Leto's hoard, the Bene Gesserit and Guild stores and the stashes of the few remaining Great houses, and Leto doles it out as a reward and holds it back as punishment. Through his absolute control over the remaining spice Leto enforces peace in his empire. He says he knows how he must "die" but not when or the players involved, only if the Golden Path endures. He gives us a physical description of himself:
At this writing, the whole could be considered rather gross. I am what could be
called a pre-worm. My body is about seven meters long and somewhat more than two
meters in diameter, ribbed for most of its length, with my Atreides face
positioned man-height at one end, the arms and hands (still quite recognizable
as human) just below. My legs and feet? Well, they are mostly atrophied. Just
flippers, really, and they have wandered back along my body. The whole of me
weighs approximately five old tons. These items I append because I know they
will have historical interest.
He mentions the importance of Siona, but also that he would have let her die in the forest. They are an extention of his purpose which is to be the greatest predator ever know.