I remember it clearly; I was in my office on Kaitain when we learned about the surprise invasion of Ix by the Bene Tleilax. I could scarcely believe it; the honorable Earl Dominic Vernius and his Lady Shando, who both dined at my master's mansion not a month ago, enemies of the Imperium... Punished for defying the Great Convention…
What became of them I do not know. They died, most likely. And that would have been the fate of their House as well had the old Duke Paulus Atreides not interceded on behalf of their children, Rhombur and Kailea, whom he promised to keep under close watch. A smart bet; Rhombur eventually took Ix back twenty years later, and House Vernius was cheered and reinstated into the Landsraad as if it had never left. House Atreides was now one ally stronger, and more popular than ever. Much to the Emperor’s chagrin, I’d wager…