At last, Shaddam sits on the throne of the Golden Lion, his precarious position as ruler of the Known Universe dependent on whether he will have a son as an heir. But his leadership is also threatened by the ambitious Baron Vladimir Harkonnen, whose lust for power leads him to plot against one of the most powerful forces in the Empire, hoping to raise his own brutal House to unprecedented heights of power. His main targets: House Atreides and the mysterious Community of Bene Gesserit Sisters. The Sisterhood is unaware of this threat as they prepare for the culmination of their work to create a super being, the Kwisatz Haderaha. The world of the X-Machine has fallen victim to a conspiracy and is now ruled by the treacherous Tleilaxu. But the ruling House of Ix still does not know that Emperor Shaddam IV is behind this conspiracy, wanting to gain unprecedented power. To achieve this goal, he decided to create an artificial spice, which is an important substance in the universe and which until now could only be obtained on the desert planet Dune. The treacherous Tleilaxu are trying to create an artificial spice for the emperor in Ix's underground laboratories. But a small force of renegades begin to fight, trying to restore Ix's freedom. New heroes appear: the young Liet Kynes on Dune, the cunning and patient K'ther on Ix and the unyielding Gurney Halleck on Gyedi Prime, who wants revenge on the Harkonnens. For Leto Atreides, the moment has come when he must choose between love and honor, friendship and duty, safety and fate. Leto already has an heir to House Atreides, Victor, and will take whatever action is necessary to save his son. However, for House Atreides there is only one choice - fight or be defeated. Shaddam IV's project to create an artificial spice is about to end. When the emperor has artificial spice in his hands, he will be ready to sacrifice even Dune, and this could lead to an inevitable disaster. Meanwhile, Baron Vladimir Harkonnen suffers from a disease that he was secretly infected with. Even the overly expensive Dr. Sook, Wellington Yue, cannot cure the Baron. Duncan Idaho trains with the elite swordmasters of Ginaz, while Lady Margot Fenring, wife of the Imperial overseer on Arrakis, enters into secret contact with the Freman priests.©www.arrakis.ru