Mentat for Hire...Cheap (Introduction) Note: I don't own Dune or anything to that matter. This story is mainly related to my MUSHing experience on Dune 3. Basically this was my background required for acceptance. This story takes place between the dates of 10051-10091 which places it before Atredies rule of Arrakis and Paul's Jihad. From the beginning I wasn't excepted as a loving child nor a child at all. I was my parent's last hope. I was born on Kaitain which was the seat of the Padishah Emperor. It was from there that my parents operated as Guild liaisons to the various Houses that had embassies there. My family consisted of my brother who I had never seen and my parents who I rarely ever knew of their existence and not to forget my various tutors and scribes. From what little I heard of my older brother I received only that he failed to become a Guild Navigator but was subjected to the spice. He mutated appearance was more for to bear and committed suicide. Thus my father said I was to succeed where my brother had failed and become one of the Guild elite. From the age 5 on I was surrounded by the best tutors available. I was forced upon studies 16 hours a day. At about the age of 6 I started to show various signs of higher intelligence and analytical computation. Soon by the age of 14 I had become a genius be all rights and gained the attention of the Order of Mentats. One night our family was visited by man named Artimies. I had unsightly stains to his mouths which in the colors of a dark red wine. Not realizing what I was seeing I was sent away by my parents who seems furious. As I passed the man he palmed me a worn Shig wire and a small case. Soon I heard several screams and a loud door slamming. Figuring that I was never to see the man again I tossed the old shig wire out but kept the case. That night I opened up the case to fine a small fine red orange powder. I carefully sniffed the package and was taken back by its strong cinnamon odor. Fishing back out the shig wire I popped into my worm Filmbook and watched in amazement that things before me. There appeared Artimies before my screen. He told me to take a straw and place it into the powder and sniff hard. I did so and I fell back into a deep sleep. In my dreams I saw things never seen by normal eyes. The powder displaced my normal thoughts and opened my consciences to the real problem, my parents. The next day I fled my estate. The Shig wire told me about the Spice Melange and what I had done. It also told me in detail the happenings of a Mentat. It gave me a place to go and within a week I was on a highliner bound for an unknown place. When I arrived I was quickly loaded onto a Ornithopter carryall with about another 5 boys my age. On the flight Artimies appeared again. He said that we had gained acceptance into the Order of Mentats for training. With a loud voice he proclaimed The next 15 years of our life now belonged to him. Thinking with feeling and emotiion would be erased. Your minds will be expanded and made to think in ways not possible by normal beings. I will never forget that speech he made that day. My life would never be the same after that fatefull meeting. END Intro Note: The next chapters will be posted as time goes along.