Heretics of Dune

After Sheeana’s initial trial with the sandworm, the High Priest gives her his superior quarters, and the church grants all her wishes over the years. The Bene Gesserit confirms that she is the child they have spent generations to produce and patiently observe her development. Sheeana tells no one of what happened to her parents and the villagers and believes that Shaitan, the term she calls the worms, has spared her life. The priest Dromind explains that Sheeana’s name is a modern form of Siona, the Atreides who served and eventually killed Leto II to fulfill the Golden Path. Dromind shares the lore of Siona and Duncan and their numerous descendants who bear the gene that protects them from prescient detection. He requests that they continue to test the child. High Priest Tuek calls Sheeana “a new Siona” sent by God and silences all Dromind’s doubts and inquiries by ordering his aides to abandon Dromind in the sand with thumpers (123).

Fifteen-year-old Duncan Idaho is frustrated with his imprisonment at the Gammu Keep. He tires of Teg’s repetitive drills, and Patrin refuses to answer his questions about gholas. Duncan begins to recall strong memories that feel simultaneously vague and familiar.