back to you | paul atreides

twenty five

It was amazing to see what existed deep underneath the surface of the desert. It was right in front of me, the civilization that the Fremen had created and managed to hide for centuries.

I would have described it as a bunker but it was evident that to the Fremen it was just their home. They used used a natural underground cave system and turned it into their own, with a few manmade caverns, but to my surprise the majority of it was clearly natural.

The architecture was well thought out, beautifully done as well. There was a narrow opening at the top of the ceiling that was big enough to let in natural light, but small enough to remain hidden from sight. Old calligraphy and carvings filled the empty spaces of certain walls, while others took on accent colours that made put everything together as if they were puzzle pieces. It felt magical standing before such a design.

"This is beautiful." I breathed as I stared ahead of me. Dozens of other Fremen went about their day completely unfazed by our presence, unaware of the war going on so many kilometres away. 

"It is." A voice agreed from beside me. I looked over to see the same girl, Zeina. "So tell me, why were you lost in the desert?"

I stared at her. "Um, well..." I began with a sigh. "My home and my family were attacked. In Arakeen."

She didn't answer right away. "Like, the Duke's palace? You lived there?"

I nodded. "Yes, I lived there. Our parents are close friends."

"You know the young boy? The son of the Duke?" She asked, her eyes wide.

I nodded again. "Yes, Paul and I are close."

"Wow..." She trailed off, staring at me in awe. "What is he like?"

I pursed my lips as I tried to stop myself from grinning. How funny it was that they seemed to be so interested in Paul. "Well he's... he's kind. Very selfless, and brave too."

She nodded. "I'm sure he would be."

I thought back to the prophecy of the Lisan al Gaib we had learned about upon our arrival. Did they truly think Paul was going to save them somehow? I wouldn't put it past him for trying, that seemed like something Paul would do.

My eyes looked down at my wrist to see the familiar glow coming from my bracelet. I smiled at the sight, holding it between my fingers.

"That's our Naib." Zeina said.

I looked up and followed her gaze to the side of the room where an old lady sat peacefully, her a thin blanket draped over her shoulders.

"Wow," It was Yuma's turn to be surprised. "I don't think I've ever heard of a sietch leader being any older than fourty years old."

This lady was clearly much older than that, but she radiated power. I could understand why the other Fremen would respect her, if she demanded something of me I was sure it would be hard to resist as well.