The Bloodline
| The Bloodline | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Type | Journey |
| Journey Arc | The Great Convention - Part 1 |
| Rewards | 100  |
| Added in Version | 1.2.0.0 |
DESCRIPTION BEFORE COMPLETION
My last meeting with Ariste was a disaster. With her help, I was able to enter the Arrakeen Archives and sneak my way to the hidden Bene Gesserit Archival System buried deep under the palace, hoping to learn more about my lineage as a Ghola from my genetic material - a drop of my blood.
Whoever it was taken from however seems to be restricted knowledge, related to "the Zanovar incident." Before we could investigate further, we were interrupted by Lady Jessica and Lady Margot Fenring, who revealed to Ariste my involvement with Fenring... and my hand in Zantara's death. Ariste fled before I could explain myself.
Objectives
Meet Ariste
Ariste has finally reached out - once again she is waiting to meet with me at the Salusan Bull at Arrakeen. She wants a full account of what transpired beneath Old Carthag and told me she has something important to discuss with me. I should meet her in Arrakeen as soon as I can - she doesn't know when she'll find time again.
- Talk to Ariste at the Salusan Bull.
Make your way to the Archives under the Palace
- Present Ariste's token at the Western Palace Barricade
- Follow Ariste to the Archives
Sneak through the Upper Archives
- Find young Ariste's first etching
- Find young Ariste's second etching
- Find young Ariste's third etching
- Distract the guards and progress through the Archives
- Find young Ariste's fourth etching
Meet with Ariste in the Lower Archives
- Look for hidden notes in the Lower Archives
- Pass the Bene Gesserit test
Find out about your origins
- Enter the breeding matrix
- Provide a blood sample
- Leave the Arrakeen Palace
Dialogue
When starting objective: Meet Ariste
Ariste: Finally! You have no idea how frustrating it's been. Trying to find a moment to get away from my insufferable mother and... I'm sorry. You've just gotten here and I'm already venting at you. Bene Gesserit poise be damned. I'm just glad to see a friendly face. Now tell me what happened in old Carthag.
Player: 1. I have to talk to you about Zantara. 2. It was terrible! Zantara-- 3. I finally got my chance at Zantara--
(1)(3) Ariste: Shhh! I should have warned you. Father has tightened up security since our mutual friend was spotted here last.
Don't mention him. Don't say his name - either of them. Thufir Hawat has eyes and ears everywhere.
Player: 4. Doesn't that mean they are listening to us right now? 5. But it's important! Zantara is-- 6. It's important... but it can wait.
(4) Ariste: Almost certainly. Tufir Hawat even has men who can read lips in case of a cone of silence.
Don't worry. Thufir has certainly judged you to not be a threat. Else, you wouldn't be talking to me at all.
Now tell me about old Carthag. What did you find there?
Player: 4.1 Describe the Bene Tleilax lab and your discovery of your origins.
(5) Ariste: Silence! I'm sorry, but you just can't, Please... trust me.
Now tell me about old Carthag. What did you find there?
Player: 5.1 Describe the Bene Tleilax lab and your discovery of your origins.
(4.1)(5.1) Ariste: The Bene Tleilax? But what could they possibly want here? And why this obsession with Finding the Fremen?
And that recording we decoded. The Sleeper. Why would the Bene Tleilax send you after him?
Player: 7. The recording we found mentioned "a particular Fremen". Could it be this Stilgar? 8. Maybe the Sleeper escaped the Bene Tleilax? He seemed to be searching like us? 9. >| It doesn't bother you that I'm a ghola?
(7) Ariste: Stilgar was a leader among the Fremen. Duncan Idaho made diplomatic contact with him before we came to Arrakis.
I remember that meeting. I thought Gurney was going to start a war when Stilgar spat at my father.
It's a sign of respect amongst the Fremen. Duncan had to explain it. But Stilgar. A hard man. As hard as this planet.
He disappeared with the rest of the Fremen. If he is alive, I wouldn't even know where to start.
Player: 8. Maybe the Sleeper escaped the Bene Tleilax? He seemed to be searching like us? 9. >| It doesn't bother you that I'm a ghola?
(8) Ariste: And in return, they sent you after him? That might be the case. But it doesn't help much, does it?
We still haven't found the Fremen. And we don't know where the sleeper went.
Player: 7. The recording we found mentioned "a particular Fremen". Could it be this Stilgar? 9. >| It doesn't bother you that I'm a ghola?
(9) Ariste: I've always felt there was something special about you. But what about you? Does it bother you?
Player: 10. I don't remember anything about who I was. Hard to be bothered by it. 11. It bothers me to think I am wearing someone else's skin. How much of what I do is me, what is them? 12. I haven't really had time to absorb it. Too busy surviving.
(12) Ariste: Distraction works wonderfully. For a while. But some questions have a way of forcing themselves.
I could have ended this war... The reality is that I am in no position to judge anybody.
Do you remember the last time we met here? And I saw somebody at the bar? His name is Feyd-Rautha, the na-baron of House Harkonnen.
My betrothed. All I have to do is accept it. Marry the dashing nobleman. And all of this strife can end.
My mother wants it. My father... well he will accept it. But I can't. I can't bring myself to do it.
And it isn't because of Feyd-Rotha at all. He's actually very charming, in spite of what he did to that bull. It's because... I want to choose.
So believe me when I say that I would never judge you. Because of who or what you were. I could end this war tomorrow. And I won't do it.
That's who I am. And perhaps there is a way to figure out who you were. I have an idea... but no it's probably too dangerous.
Player: 13. I'd like to find out. 14. I'm not afraid of a little danger.
(14) Ariste: This won't be like exploring dusty sietches, or labs full of abominations. This will be going up against mother.
Player: 14.1 Is she worse than a cannibal or an facedancer?
(14.1) Ariste: So much worse. With luck, she'll never know. If I can sneak you into the archives beneath the residency, we can... search for your bloodline.
Player: 15. That sounds vague. Search how?
(15) Ariste: Best not give too many details. We're being watched, remember? Bring this token to Lie ne. She's one of the guards on the barricade outside the residency. She'll bring you inside. and I'll find you there.
Player: 16. I'll bring your token to Liene. <Leave> 17. I really hope you aren't setting up an ambush for me.
When starting objective: Make your way to the Archives under the Palace
- Present Ariste's token at the Western Palace Barricade
Liene: Hail citizen, have you come to gawk at the plascrete wonder that is the Arrakeen Residency? Or do you have other business?
Player: 1. Ariste gave me this. She said you'll help me inside. 2. What can you tell me about the residency.
(1) Liene: Ary gave you this? You?!
Player: 1.1 Yes me.
(1.1) Liene: Oh... Look, never mind. She told me to bring you inside - and to make sure her mother didn't find out. But before we go, let me tell you a few things. I'll be taking all your weapons. And your clothes. Don't be alarmed, I have a servant outfit for you to wear. You'll blend right in. Are you ready?
Player: 3. Yes, take me inside. 4. No, I'll return later.
(3) Liene: Come on then. Let's get you undressed.
Player: 3.1 Alright. <Enter archives>
- Follow Ariste to the Archives
(Meeting Ariste at the entrance) Ariste: Tonight, my parents are holding a banquet and Count Fenring and his Lady are the guests of honor. Mother wisher me to shine like a jewel for all to see. I think she's forgotten what Lady Fenring looks like if she expects anybody in the room to be looking at me. But enough, we need to go. The banquet is the perfect distraction - I'll keep my parents focused on the party. you can sneak into the archives. But we need to go, now.
(Ariste approaching the retinal scanner) Ariste: Just a moment. That's then. Make your way to the lowers levels. The guard on the upper floors will probably just throw you out if they spot you. It gets trickier on the lower levels... you'll see. I'll keep in contact over the 'net. And when I can. I'll catch up to you.
When starting objective: Sneak through the Upper Archives
Ariste: You need to stay out sight. The troopers in the upper archives are good people - don't hurt them.
Ariste: Get to the lower archives as quickly and quietly as you can.
Ariste: A lot of memories down here. Ten thousand years of recorded Arrakeen history.
Ariste: Mother made me spend hours down here studying. I used to carve answers into the tables to help me pass her tests.
Ariste: The letters I carved into those tables - pay attention. The Bene Gesserit have an archive of their own, buried in the lowest levels.
Ariste: The symbols I used to carve are the order of the test.
Ariste: Wish me luck, I'm about to start mingling with the guests. Count Fenring is here - I can't abide that weasel of a man. Father says he is a deadly fighter - but he hides it beneath that mumbling veneer...
Ariste: Just be glad you aren't stuck at this banquet. One of the Bewts, a water shipper, is pawing at a banker's daughter. This could end in a duel if it escalates.
Ariste: You still moving? The staircase to the lower archives is guarded. You'll need to distract them.
Ariste: You might have trouble hearing my signal in the lower archives. The stone interferes.
Ariste: Down here, it's more like a catacomb than a library. The history of ten thousand years mouldering in the darkness. No human guards, but the glow globes have motion sensors and automated alarms. Don't let them see you!
Ariste: If you get too deep in the archives, we might lose contact. Just keep moving forward and I'll join you as soon as I can slip away.
When starting objective: Meet with Ariste in the Lower Archives
- Look for hidden notes in the Lower Archives
Ariste: Can you hear me? If you can, listen. Do not try to find the entrance to the bloodline archive. I will come to you. There is a Solido projection and a deadly trap.
Ariste: The lights are sensors - careful not disturb - The four stones.
- Pass the Bene Gesserit test
[TO DO : add all branches of sequence]
(First interaction)
Reverend Mother Projection: External cognitive agent detected. Full Sister authorization not present. Proceeding with limited-access heuristic. Welcome, acolyte, to Relay Node Seraph-One. This system archives the seeded vectors of the Mahdi prophecy, dispersed through oral tradition channels among desert tribes. Contained data is restricted. Decryption requires demonstrated comprehension of cultural vectors and myth-seeding protocols. Begin myth-sequence verification.
Player: 1. Start. 2. Leave. <Exit>
(Secondary interaction)
Reverend Mother Projection: Begin myth-sequence verification.
Player: 1. Start. 2. Leave. <Exit>
(Start the verification sequence)
(1) Reverend Mother Projection: You will be tested on the illusions we crafted: virtues rewarded, evils punished, love earned through valor. Myths, all. Your task is not to believe. Your task is to see. Question One: What lie did we craft to make tyrants seem temporary, monsters forgivable, and systems of punishment appear enlightened?
Player: 3. Any bad human can be reformed. 4. Virtue always triumphs. 5. Evil men never prosper. 6. A good deed is its own reward.
(3) Reverend Mother Projection: Correct. A necessary fiction - one that spares tyrants and executioners from their guilt. Question Two: isolate the myth designed to sustain hope through deferred justice and moral inevitability.
Player: 7. Only females understand the ancient mysteries. 8. Evil men never prosper. 9. Honesty is the best policy. 10. The rich are doomed to unhappiness.
(7) Reverend Mother Projection: A useful myth, yes - but not one that binds evil to consequence. Pattern inconsistency exceeds tolerance threshold.
Player: 2. Leave. <Exit>
(8) Reverend Mother Projection: Correct. The dream of inevitable justice- woven so the meek would wait for thunder that never comes. Question Three: What lie did we whisper in incense and shadow, that cloaked us in mystery and made obedience feel like awe?
Player: 11. Only females understand the ancient mysteries. 10. The rich are doomed to unhappiness. 9. Honesty is the best policy. 6. A good deed is its own reward.
(9) Reverend Mother Projection: No. That illusion was designed for traders and bureaucrats, not revolutionaries. Pattern inconsistency exceeds tolerance threshold.
Player: 2. Leave. <Exit>
(11) Reverend Mother Projection: Correct. We shape the unknown into a crown, and let them yield before what they could not name.
Question four. What illusion did we embed in the myth of sacrifice, so that the broken would praise the blade that cut them?
Player: 12. Everything happens for a reason. 13. Pain makes us stronger. 14. Suffering is noble. 15. The strong owe the weak protection.
(13) Reverend Mother Projection: A salve for survivors. But not the key that turns victims into devotees. You have failed to demonstrate mythic comprehension - internal concordance below threshold. Vocal stream: TERMINATED.
Player: 2. Leave. <Exit>
(14) Reverend Mother Projection: A useful balm. But nobility is not obedience. The myth reached deeper.
You have failed to demonstrate mythic comprehension - internal concordance below threshold.
Vocal stream: TERMINATED.
Player: 2. Leave. <Exit>
(12) Reverend Mother Projection: Correct. The master stroke of consolation: We taught them their pain was part of a plan -- so they would not rise against its authors.
You have spoken the illusions as we planted them.
Few recognize them for what they are. Fewer still understand why they were necessary.
Missionaria records unlocked. Proceed with caution: The weight of revelation is heavier than ignorance.
Player: 12.1. Leave. <Exit>
When starting objective: Template:Find out about your origins
- Enter the breeding matrix
Ariste: If I'd known you would get down here this fast, I'd have insulted the Guild banker a lot sooner. Mother thinks I'm sulking in my room while she soothes their egos. Father's trying to talk to the good Count and his Lady - which involves a great deal of patience as Fenring mumbles and murmurs his way through a sentence. Well, I calculate we have a couple of hours to before someone comes looking for me. Let's go and find out who you are...Or were?
- Provide a blood sample
Ariste: One thing you can say about the Bene Gesserit - they don't think the word forbidden applies to them. Spectacular, isn't it?
Ariste: It's impressive that they managed to hide this down here for ten thousand years. Of course, I imagine the breeding matrix that they have at the chapterhouse is much more impressive. This one is simply a copy. Still, it has access to the complete bloodline registry of the entire Imperium. We can search for who you were.
VI: Acolyte Ariste. Welcome. What is the nature of your enquiry?
Ariste: Bloodline search.
VI: Insert blood sample into receptacle.
VI: Processing.
Ariste: Feels like we always end up here. You bleeding to further our cause.
Ariste: I've always hated this place. Since my mother explained to me my "great destiny". A broodmare for their plans. No choice. No love. The future is a trap. I want to be free to choose.
VI: Search complete. Information on this Bloodline is restricted to Reverend Mothers.
Ariste: Restricted? By whom?
VI: Details of the Zanovar incident are classified for the Security of the Imperium. The security of the Imperium? What does that even mean?
Lady Jessica Atreides: It means that some secrets are too dangerous for petulant girls.
VI: Truthsayer Jessica and Truthsayer Margot. Welcome. What is the nature of your enquiry?
Lady Margot Fenring: Shut down.
Lady Jessica Atreides: Daughter. This place is not for the uninitiated. Who have you brought here?
Ariste: My... friend, mother. One who shares my fascination with the Fremen. We were doing genealogical work and wanted to test some sampl-
Lady Jessica Atreides: Stop. Your lies are disappointing. The act of lying is one thing. But the tone, the voice control. Have you forgotten your training? If you want to lie to me, daughter, then Lie to me!
Ariste: Lie... to you? Like you lied to me about the betrothal. Like you lied to father? It seems the only thing this Sisterhood has taught you is how to lie. This is my friend. Someone I'm trying to help. Someone who I trust. That is no lie.
Lady Jessica Atreides: I see. A friend. Perhaps a confidant? Maybe even a... lover?
Lady Jessica Atreides: Stand aside, Ariste. I want to ask your "friend" some questions. Like who they are and what they want with you.
Lady Margot Fenring: There's no need for this, Jessica. I know this one. It works for my husband. Quite the skilled assassin, if what Hasimir told me is true.
Lady Margot Fenring: Why, Hasimir even told me that it killed Zantara the Lion. Stabbed him in the back.
Ariste: No! No that isn't true! It can't be true.
Lady Jessica Atreides: Master your emotions, girl and look! She is telling the truth.
Lady Jessica Atreides: Ariste! I would have shielded my daughter from this pain. But perhaps, in time, it will help her to overcome weakness. For you though, a quick death will be your mercy.
Lady Margot Fenring: Sister, please. My husband still has a use for this... weapon.
Lady Jessica Atreides: Very well, sister.
Lady Jessica Atreides: You. If I ever see you near my daughter again, there will be no second chances. Ariste is to be left alone. Do you understand this?
Lady Jessica Atreides: Then prepare yourself.
Findings
Examining etchings during objective: Sneak through the Upper Archives
- Artiste's First Etching
A number and an ideogram are etched: "First" and "Jar".
- Artiste's second Etching
A number and an ideogram are etched: "Second" and "Mother".
- Artiste's third Etching
A number and an ideogram are etched: "Third" and "Dirt".
- Artiste's fourth Etching
A number and an ideogram are etched: "Fourth" and "Water".
Distract the guards: Sneak through the Upper Archives
Solido projection: Now let us shift our gates from the past to the present, as we witness history in the making. Here stands Duke Leto Atreides I, the head of House Atreides, ruler of Caladan, and rightful ruler of Arrakis. In the Standard Year 10,191 A.G., Emperor Shaddam Corrino IV ordered House Atreides to take over the government of Arrakis from House Harkonnen. Duke Leto rose to the occasion and entered into a very dangerous situation.
Solido projection: Though a cursory look at Arrakis seems to reveal an environment completely inhospitable to life, the desert planet is home to a surprising array of fauna and flora. Perhaps the most emblematic representation of the unlikely tenacity of life is the kangaroo mouse or muad'dib in Chakobsa. This species of jumping mouse, genius Microdipodops, is a member of the rodent family and specially adapted to not only survive but thrive on Arrakis. This little creature lives in sand desert ecosystems, foraging seeds and vegetation where they can find it. The kangaroo mouse rarely drinks water, instead deriving it metabolically from the foods it ingests. It maintains large catches of food underground. The Fremen associated the muad'dib with their earth-spirit mythology. Muad-dib is also celestially personified as a figure visible on Arrakis's second moon, as well as its own star constellation. The Fremen admired this diminutive creature for its ability to survive in the open desert. Young Fremen are said to have been required to learn from the ways of this sacred rodent. Given the Fremen's impossible-seeming ability to likewise survive in the dunes, that admiration appears to have been well-paced.
Solido projection: Frightening isn't it? what you just heard was a sample recording taken, from a safe distance, of the spectacular, the gargantuan sandworm. Arrakis's most famous inhabitant.
[TO DO] Add other projections and full transcript
Look for hidden notes in the Lower Archives: Meet with Ariste in the Lower Archives
- Angrily thorn letter: The upper part of the letter is missing. The rest reads:
"and he has shown penitence. Doesn't the fable of the broken jar that we see throughout the Imperium teach us that even the most wicked amongst men can be redeemed? You have trained her well. With our careful guidance, I trust that Ariste can learn how to contain him. Maybe even learn to love him. But keep in mind, above all, that this alliance could put an end to this war. My kindest wishes, MORGOT LADY FENRING"
On the surface of the letter, a dotted message you cannot decipher has been lightly etched. Over the word "jar" you can count four little dots.
- Letter from Lady Margot to Lady Jessica:
"A perfectly balanced ecosystem requires a good measure of small cruelties. You will come to see it too, here on Arrakis: the dull twinkle in the eyes of the wretches of the Graben, Sink and Pan, exploited for a little water and a semblance of protection pacified by the sweet promises that our tales have sown, that there is a mystical reason for their suffering."
Over the surface of the letter, a dotted message you cannot decipher has been lightly etched. Over the word "water" you count three little dots.
- A draft from Lady Jessica's desk:
"You know the tale: An evil man kills his wives to collect their dowry. At dawn, he finds that their gold has turned to dirt in his coffers, and he must start all over again. Eventually, turned mad, he is swallowed by the earth, never to be seen again. When Ariste heard the story as a child, she proceeded to ask me why the Harkonnens, for all the evil that they do, still prospered so..."
The letter is unfinished. Over the surface of the letter, a dotted message you cannot decipher has been lightly etched. Over the word "dirt" you count two little dots.
- Message to Lady Jessica:
"For the non-initiates, motherhood must be shrouded in absolute mysticism, undisputed and uncomprehensible. But for us, it must be a tool. Motherhood binds the mother and subjugates the child. Only one of those is a desirable outcome. Teach them, scare them, shape them. Cultivate a bond, but no more than is useful to you. And never let your emotions cloud your judgment."
Above the excerpt a terse note was written by hand. "I would advise you to recall what I taught you, Jessica."
Over the surface of the letter, a dotted message you cannot decipher has been lightly etched. Over the word "mother" you count seven little dots.
Notable Thinking machines
- Reverend Mother Projection: Solido projection capable of scanning visitors to determine their clearance level and of querying visitors to determine whether grant them access to the next chamber.
- VI: Breeding matrix capable of facial, voice, and bloodline recognition.
- Other forbidden technologies: retina scanner for the principle entrance to the Upper Archives, and hand scanner for chamber in the Lower Archives containing the Breeding matrix.
The entrance to the Forbidden Testing Station, under Imperial Testing Station #29, shown during the Digging Deeper journey, shares certain features with the Bene Gesserit chamber under the Arrakeen resident: a visual scanner to identify the visitor and wide platform for a solido projection in font of the door. The platform for the solido projection outside the Forbidden Testing Station (look at the middle of the room, while going down the stairs) is inactive, likely since sector power inside the station is disabled. However, there is a visual scanner to determine clearance level (i.e. "unauthorized visitor"). The chamber in the Lower Archives is likely a Forbidden Testing Station in itself.
Trivia
Breeding matrix under the Arraken residence, shown as part of the The Bloodline journey, mirrors the one shown under the school on Wallach IX, shown within the Dune Prophecy series.