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The "Fish Speakers" were an army created during the rule of God Emperor Leto Atreides II. So named because the first priestesses spoke to fish in their dreams, the Fish Speaker army was entirely composed of women, with men having no roles in the Fish Speakers' lives other than that of husband. Men were totally shut out of the Fish Speaker combat forces, though male Duncan Idaho gholas were still employed as the emperor's bodyguards and Fedaykin as house guards. They were trained to be fanatical, disciplined, and extremely effective soldiers and police. The Fish Speakers were also used in Leto's breeding program, taking advantage of their speed and strength.Early HistoryLeto II founded the Fish Speakers to enforce his rule over the known universe. He found the existing Fremen and Sardaukar forces unsuitable to his needs. Leto believed that male dominated military forces were essentially predatory and would turn against the civilian population in the absence of an external enemy, whereas a female one would remain tame and calm. He also needed a reliable religious organization to enforce what came to be known as Leto's Peace to ensure the unfolding of the Golden Path.The Fish Speakers were one of the few effective all-female militries throughout the history of the universe; They were also, in terms of worlds ruled and historical longevity, one of the most effective militry force ever known.Post God-Emperor RuleAfter Leto II's death, control of the Fish Speakers passed to the ghola of Duncan Idaho and Siona Atreides. Their influence had significantly waned in comparison to the Tleilax Bene, Ixians, and Gesserit Bene. A Fish Speaker council controlled some areas of space that used to fall under Leto's rule. By this time however, the Fish Speakers had also incorporated men into their ranks, and held little in common with the force maintained by Leto II, in terms of philosophy and practices.Also by this time, many of the leaders of the Fish Speakers had been replaced with Tleilaxu Face Dancers, essentially making the Fish Speakers, and the realms under their domain, puppets of the Tleilaxu. It would be a thousand years before this plot was discovered, and three thousand before the last of the Face Dancers were rooted out and eliminated, most of them burned alive if they survived being shot in the arrest.With the Fish Speakers freed from Tleilaxu control, they became even more fanatical, with the realms under their control in the Diaspora pushing to return to the Old Empire and restored to Imperial control.General InformationName: Fish Speakers.Colors: Black And RedSymbol/Crest/Banner: The House Atreides and Royal Lion.Owner: "Ownership" is difficult to quantify in the case of the Fish Speakers; They are in fact self-owned, but their only loyalty is the to God Emperor's Throne. They also own lesser empires of their own.Leadership:The Chain Of Leadership for the Fish Speakers is:The God Emperor;The High Preist Of The Golden Path (an appointee of the God Emperor);The High Priestess of the individual faction of Fish Speakers;Regional Governors;Local Priestess.Tactics: Enforce the Golden Path by whatever means necessary; Often simply talking is tried, and sometimes this is effective.Size and Orientation:Large Army (500); Individually, the various factions of Fish Speakers qualify as small empires in their own right.Features: |
