They say where one goes, the other follows.
In the sprawling expanse of the cosmos, Paul Atreides and Seraphina Sylvane are bound together by an unbreakable tether. Despite the light years and planetary divides throughout the Known Universe, their...
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"This is Duke Atreides. We're coming down to extract the crew of Delta Ajax Niner," Duke Leto's voice resonated through the communicators, calm and authoritative as he smoothly increased the altitude of the Ornithopter following a steep dive. "We'll set down on the west side."
As the Ornithopter landed at a safe distance, the crew could see the crawler had finally halted its harvesting. The crew members, covered in dust and fatigue, acknowledged the rescue with a sense of relief visible even from afar.
"Shield generators weigh a hundred kilos each," Paul Atreides informed, his mind racing to solve the weight issue that could affect their ships. His hands moved swiftly, unbuckling the straps of his seatbelt. Beside him, Seraphina had already undone hers and sprang from her seat, heading directly toward the back of the thopter.
"Yes, Gurney, have our escorts throw out the shield generators," Duke Leto ordered, his voice firm. Gurney immediately responded with a curt affirmation. Paul followed closely behind Seraphina, who trailed Gurney to the opening ramp. "And Paul, Seraphina, I want you both at the back of the thopter. No going further, do you understand? Guide them in, and no, Seraphina," Duke Leto added sternly, preempting her inevitable protest, knowing already that the girl would want to head straight to the crawler. "You stay together. The crew acknowledged us, and our soldiers will meet them by the crawler. They'll head in our direction themselves."
Paul noticed Seraphina's shoulders slump slightly as she nodded, clearly reluctant but compliant.
"Stay by my side, alright?" Paul whispered to Seraphina, who nodded silently. They rushed towards the lowering ramp, her frustration evident in her rigid posture and furrowed brow.
"Delta Ajax Niner, put seven men each in my ships now," Duke Leto's voice commanded through the communicator, his tone brooking no argument.
Following Gurney and Seraphina, Paul stepped out onto the ramp. The sun's intense glare made him squint, and the air was thick with swirling dust and sand. He inhaled deeply, his nostrils assaulted by the dry, gritty air and the unmistakable scent of spice. The visibility was poor, the dense sandy air obscuring the landscape, but Paul remembered the crawler was somewhere across from where their ornithopter had landed.
As Paul slowly walked out from the shadow of the ship, the heat of the sun bore down on him, making the skin of his palm tingle. He knelt, reaching out to touch the sand. Unlike the pale white sandy beaches of Caladan, Arrakis' sand shimmered with a golden hue. Paul squinted, focusing on the sparkling red spice mingled with the sand. The grains trickled through his fingers, carried away by the arid wind, each one a precious fragment of the desert's wealth.
Slowly standing up, his eyes scanned his surroundings, his dark curls tousled by the wind as he finally saw the crawler now beside him. Wait, how far did I just walked? Paul turned around, searching for familiar faces. It was like he was in a trance, the ornithopter was far from the distance now. Then a powerful sound of metal was heard, making him look up seeing the carryall finally released the crawler abandoning its work after the failure of its anchor. Another wave of spice filtered Paul's air and his mind sunk again.
