7 Chapter 4b-A Defiance Long Forgotten!
Chapter 4b
~Start of DUNE~
PAUL ATREIDES
Paul's mind had been a whirl of thought and worry as he stood on the shores of Caldan, the land he had always known and called home. The land which twenty-six generations of Atreides had called home, including him.
Yet that was set to change.
It had already entered its final stages, and the ships had begun to leave with their belongings. The Emperor's herald had arrived a day ago with the call, and House Atreides had answered as they were sworn to. And they had done so without question.
His dreams had been more and more erratic, shifting, changing until nothing made sense. He saw people, he had never seen, men and women in the desert, men and women he knew not of, at least not yet.
It was not only his dreams that were erratic life itself, and the people around him had changed as well.
The Reverend Mother had come with the Emperor's herald, and his mother had left him with her as she had tested him. For what? He understood not, yet the whole event had his mother nervous, as the final mutterings between the old woman and his mother continued to reverberate in his head.
'Kwisatz Haderach.'
'Trap.' 'Death'
Paul was not blind to what was happening in the castle. He could sense the tension and worry that gripped his mother and father even as others rejoiced as the Duke was blessed with this new, richer fief. Arrakis was the land that produced the mysterious spice, an extremely expensive and valuable commodity, one which they would mine and sell to the spicing guild and earn exuberant profits.
The Duchy had come with a directorship in CHOAM as well, ensuring for their House a greater share of the profits and a greater voice in the Landsraad. Yet the tension in his father and mother told a different tale.
There was something more to it, something more sinister, more dangerous that only fee knew.
"You seem in rather deep thought; the words broke him out of his trance as Paul's head snapped back, and he found his father standing behind him. They had seen little of each other these days since he would often remain bust throughout the day.
"Father," he greeted as he stood up, and cleaned his hand, the man smiled as he slapped his back.
"You have grown taller, Gurney was praising you earlier," he added, and it was nice to know that despite his schedule, he at least thought of him.
"Those were not his words to me," he added, recalling how the man had chewed him out earlier in training.
"He has to be hard on you as a teacher, but behind your back, he calls you his finest student," his father added. He knew the man was not lying, so the words filled him with pride.
A gust of wind blew, wafting the air with the thick oceanic smell so home to Caldan as Duke Leto took a deep breath as if savouring the smell, as his expression shifted. It was for a second, as longing came over that face, yet it was not lost to him because of his Bene Gesserit training.
"I shall miss this smell," he added, and the Duke nodded.
"Me too, but soon Arrakis shall be our home. Our Legionnaires have already secured the palace there, and tomorrow, we shall depart for our new home as well," his father said with some tightness.
"You have been distracted lately, may I know why?" his father questioned, and Paul looked down, recalling the words of the Reverend Mother, the tensions he had observed as he weighed just how much he could say, how was he to say.
"This change, it is not as simple as it seems right," he began as he looked up at his father, who did not say anything, indicating that he should continue with his words.
"You and Mother have been tense ever since we learned of this. I think that we may be...."
"...walking into a trap," he finished, and for a second, his father was quiet as he raised a brow before he clapped him on the back.
"I am impressed that you were able to reason it out," his father praised him, confirming his suspicion and the words of the old Bene Gesserit.
"If we know that, then why are we accepting this? We could petition the Landsraad and speak against..." but his father shook his head.
"Half the battle is knowing where the trap is, and no matter what, the dukedom of Arrakis carries with many benefits as well," his father began.
"As the rulers of Arrakis we will be control of spice production and distribution a highly lucrative and important task that shall help bolster our coffers and allow us a stronger, greater voice," his father said.
"Dangerous it may be, but we cannot make a rash decision..."
"Because you suspect that the Emperor has chosen a side in the conflict between our House and House Harkonen," he finished, and his father nodded.
"Maybe, but we must be vigilant and attentive. The Harkonens are devious and have no honor and will not rest until they have ended us. So, we must prepare, you must prepare and prepare well, for you are the future of House Atreides," he said as he held his arms.
"A very bright future," he finished with a smile.
And it was a great burden, a burden which he often too big for his shoulders, especially as he looked at his father before him and how he had always stood as a rock, seemingly infalliable before him, taking all the burdens, leading them, their men, and their House through the treacherous waters of politics and warfare alike.
"But what..."
"No buts," his father cut him off as he raised his head and looked him in the eye.
"You are my son, a scion of the proud House of Atreides. Do not doubt yourself," he said with a smile.
"You shall make a Duke finer than even me. I am sure of it," Paul said, moved by his father's belief in him. The two embraced each other, and Paul felt the anxiety and worry ease as he lay his head on his shoulders.
"From tomorrow you shall join me in the war councils, you are ready," he father announced as a pair of footsteps interrupted them.
"Sire, we have received a message," the colonel said as he handed his father a messenger rod.
"From who?" his father questioned as he rolled it out and began to read it.
"From Duncan," and Paul was surprised by those words.
"Duncan?" he confirmed, and the colonel nodded as he turned towards his father, who was frowning as he read the message.
"What does it say?" he asked, and he saw his father hesitate for a second before replying.
"He asks to bring some rather interesting things with us to Arrakis," his father told him as he handed him the messenger rod, and Paul read it for himself, mouthing the demands with surprise.
"Suspensers and water..."
"A lot of water," his father added, looking toward the expansive ocean with a frown.
"Colonel, see if you can spare a ship or two. I will see what to do with this strange request. And have Gurney come to my office," his father ordered the colonel, who saluted.
"As you wish, sire," and with that, the colonel was away.
"What is going on, father?" he questioned.
"For now, even I do not know."
0000
JESSICA-The Duke's concubine
Jessica walked behind the Reverend Mother in another part of the castle, who had just put her son, Paul, through a test.
The Gom Jabbar, Jessica wished she could have taken it for him, yet it was his test, and he had succeeded, much to her relief.
"So much potential wasted in a man," the Revered Mother Mohaim complained bitterly as they stopped infront of her sip, and Jessica faltered at those words.
"If only you had birthed a girl as you had been commanded to do so," she complained, as she had many times, Jessica's eyes glued to the ground.
As a Bene Gesserit, she had been commanded to give the duke only daughters. As a Bene Gesserit, they had the power to control the gender of the babe, yet the Duke had mellowed her heart, conflicting it as love blossomed between them.
"It just meant so much to him," she said with a shaky tone, yet Mohaim's face did not shift.
"And now we must get rid of an entire house because of your actions, one with so much promise," she complained. Jessica's heart tore at those words as she looked up at the Revered Mother.
"There has to be a way," she said, and the Revered Mother touched her face.
"I wish so, my child, but there is not. Now we must salvage what we can," she said, and Jessica had known that, known that House Atreides had been marked for eradication, marked for death.
Her Leto, her Duke, was marked for death because of her actions.
"A path for you has been prepared on Arrakis. Make of that what you will," said the Revered Mother as she turned away from her and began to walk towards the ship, leaving Jessica all alone with despair.
Yet the Revered Mother stopped after a few steps and uttered in a soft whisper.
"In some way, your defiance is of my own making," the Revered Mother spoke softly as she glanced at her from the corner of her eye, surprising Jessica with her words.
"I know that Anirul talked to you before she put that child on the ship. I know you helped her with it all those years ago," she said, and Jessica stilled as the Revered Mother reminded her of a memory she had long buried.
"Had I disciplined you for your actions, maybe it should not have come to this," said teh Revered Mother as she turned away and began to walk away.
"Take care, my dear Jessica."
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A slower chap as I set up things.
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