'Careful!' Orange flamed in Great Honored Matre's eyes.
'Generations of development went into the creation of the Futars,' Lucilla said.
'We hunt them for our pleasure!'
'And the hunter becomes the hunted.'
Great Honored Matre leaped to her feet, eyes completely orange. The Futar became agitated and began whining. This calmed the woman. Slowly, she sank back into her chair. One hand gestured at the caged Futar. 'It's all right, darling. You'll eat soon and then I'll rub your back.'
The Futar resumed its purring.
'So you think we came back here as refugees,' Great Honored Matre said. 'Yes! Don't try to deny it.'
'Worms often turn,' Lucilla said.
'Worms? You mean like those monstrosities we destroyed on Rakis?'
It was tempting to prod this Honored Matre and evoke the dramatic response. Alarm her enough and she would certainly kill.
Please, Sister! the Lampadas horde begged. Endure.
You think I can escape from this place? That silenced them, except for one faint protest. Remember! We are the ancient doll: seven times down, eight times up. It came with a rocking image of a small red doll, grinning Buddha face and hands clasped over its fat belly.
'You're obviously referring to the revenants of the God Emperor,' Lucilla said. ' I had something else in mind.'
Great Honored Matre took her time considering this. The orange faded from her eyes.
She's playing with me, Lucilla thought. She intends to kill me and feed me to her pet.
But think of the tactical information you could provide if we did escape!
We! But there was no avoiding the accuracy of that protest. They had brought her cage from the lighter while it was still daylight. Approaches to the Spider Queen's lair were well planned for difficult access but the planning amused Lucilla. Very ancient, out-of-date planning. Narrow places in the approach lanes with observation turrets projecting from the ground like dull gray mushrooms appearing at the proper places on their mycelium. Sharp turns at critical points. No ordinary ground vehicle could negotiate such turns at speed.
There was mention of this in Teg's critique of junction, she recalled. Nonsense defenses. One had only to bring in heavy equipment or go over such crude installations another way and the things were isolated. Linked underground, naturally, but that could be disrupted by explosives. Ligate them, cut them off from their source, and they would fall piecemeal. No more precious energy coming down your tube, idiots! Visible sense of security and Honored Matres kept it. For reassurance! Their defenders must spend a great deal of energy on useless displays to give these women a false sense of security.
The hallways! Remember the hallways.
Yes, the hallways in this gigantic building were enormous, the better to accommodate giant tanks in which Guild Navigators were forced to live groundside. Ventilation systems low along the halls to take out and reclaim spilled melange gas. She could imagine hatches thumping open and closed with disturbing reverberations. Guildsmen never seemed to mind loud noises. Energy transmission lines for mobile suspensors were thick black snakes winding across passages and into every room she had glimpsed. Wouldn't do to keep a Navigator from snooping any place he desired.
Many of the people she had seen wore guide pulsers. Even Honored Matres. So they got lost here. Everything under the one giant mound of a roof with its phallic towers. The new residents found this attractive. Heavily insulated from the crude outdoors (where none of the important people go anyway except to kill things or watch the slaves at their amusing work and play). Through much of it, she had seen a shabbiness that said minimal expenditure on maintenance. They are not changing much. Teg's ground plan is still accurate.
See how valuable your observations could be?
Great Honored Matre stirred from her reverie. 'It is just possible that I could permit you to live. Provided you satisfy some of my curiosity.'
'How do you know I won't respond to your curiosity with a flow of pure shit?'
Vulgarity amused Great Honored Matre. She almost laughed. Apparently no one had ever warned her to beware of the Bene Gesserit when they resorted to vulgarity. The motivation for it was sure to be something distressing. No Voice, eh? She thinks that's my only resource? Great Honored Matre had said enough and reacted enough to give any Reverend Mother a sure handle on her. Body and speech signals always carried more information than was necessary for comprehension. There was inevitable extra information to be sampled.
'Do you find us attractive?' Great Honored Matre asked.
Odd question. 'People from the Scattering all possess a certain attraction.' Let her think I've seen many of them, including her enemies. 'You're exotic, meaning strange and new.'
'And our sexual prowess?'
'There's an aura to that, naturally. Exciting and magnetic to some.'
'But not to you.'
Go for the chin! It was a suggestion from the horde. Why not?
'I've been studying your chin, Great Honored Matre.'
'You have?' Surprised.
'It's obviously your childhood chin and you should be proud of that youthful remembrance.'
Not pleased at all but unable to show it. Hit the chin again.
'I'll bet your lovers often kiss your chin,' Lucilla said.
Angry now and still unable to vent it. Threaten me, will you! Warn me not to use Voice!
'Kiss chin,' the Futar said.
'I said later, darling. Now will you shut up!'
Taking it out on her poor pet.
'But you have questions you want to ask me,' Lucilla said. Sweetness itself. Another warning signal to the knowledgeable. I'm one of those who pours sugar syrup over everything. 'How nice! Such a pleasant time when we're with you. Isn't that beautiful! Weren't you clever to get it so cheaply! Easily. Quickly.' Supply your own adverb.
Great Honored Matre was a moment composing herself. She sensed that she had been placed at a disadvantage but could not say how. She covered the moment with an enigmatic smile, then: 'But I said I would release you.' She pressed something on the side of her chair and a section of the tubular cage swung aside, taking the shigawire netting with it. In the same instant, a low chair lifted from a panel in the floor directly in front of her and not a pace away.
Lucilla seated herself in the chair, knees almost touching her inquisitor. Feet. Remember they kill with their feet. She flexed her fingers, realizing then that she had been gripping her hands into fists. Damn the tensions!
'You should have some food and drink,' Great Honored Matre said. She pushed something else on the side of her chair. A tray came up beside Lucilla - plate, spoon, a glass brimming with red liquid. Showing off her toys.
Lucilla picked up the glass.
Poison? Smell it first.
She sampled the drink. Stimtea and melange! I'm hungry.
Lucilla returned an empty glass to the tray. The stim on her tongue smelled sharply of melange. What is she doing? Wooing me? Lucilla felt a flow of relief at the spice. The plate proved to hold beans in a piquant sauce. She ate it all after sampling the first bite for unwanted additives. Garlic in the sauce. She was hung up for the barest fraction of a second on Memory of this ingredient - adjunct to fine cooking, specific against werewolves, potent treatment for flatulence.
'You find our food pleasant?'
Lucilla wiped her chin. 'Very good. You are to be complimented on your chef.' Never compliment the chef in a private establishment. Chefs can be replaced. Hostess is irreplaceable. 'A nice touch with garlic.'
'We've been studying some of the library salvaged from Lampadas.' Gloating: See what you lost? 'So little of interest buried in all of that prattle.'
Does she want you to be her librarian? Lucilla waited silently.
