obsidian and emerald × feyd-rautha harkonnen

Chapter Two - Arrival

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~ Two months earlier ~

Emerald silk enveloped Adalia's frame, the fabric flowing down her body in a river of the darkest green.

Adalia's father, Leto Atreides, had officially been titled Duke of Arrakis, and not a day later, they had uprooted their life in Caladan to their new home in the desert. 

Adalia adjusted the thin veil covering her face, the silver chains adorning it scratching at her skin slightly. She, along with the rest of her family and their most trusted soldiers, faced the soon to be opened doors of the ornithopter.

They had arrived on Arrakis, and before they could enter the city's walls, they would first have to walk past the masses of the natives of this world. The Fremen. A little daunting, Adalia had thought, but seeing as her brother was heir to the planet and not her, most of their eyes would be on him.

The ornithopter groaned, and the seal of the doors hissed as they slowly started to open. Leto glanced back at his children, giving them a reassuring look as the doors opened further.

As the doors opened more and more, the Arrakis sun beamed through, basking them in a golden glow. Adalia wanted to block the sun with her hand, but opted on squinting instead. She didn't want the Fremen thinking she was unable to cope with a little bit of sun.

“My lungs taste the air of time, blown past flowing sand…” Gurney said, making Adalia chuckle. He always had some sort of philosophical poem to recite.

The doors hit the desert sand with a thud, allowing them to leave the ship. Adalia stood a little straighter, taking in a large breath to steady herself. She quickly regretted that decision when the clean air she had been used to was replaced with a mouth full of dust and sand.

Adalia struggled to keep her stoic expression as the sand scratched at her throat. She cleared it quietly as her father descended from the ornithopter. Once he stepped foot onto the sand, the patriotic band started playing their instruments.

Adalia followed after her father, as did Paul, their guards a few steps behind them. Flags embroidered with the Atreides symbol waved in the Arrakis winds, lining the walkway towards another ornithopter. From there, they would use the vehicle to enter the city.

Up ahead, a short, heavy-set man stood dressed in the Atreides uniform.

“Thufir Hawat” Paul called over to him, a smile forming on his face.

Paul ran over to Thufir in a few quick strides, engulfing the man in a brief embrace.

“Young master,” Thufir replied, returning a smile. “How does it feel to walk on a new world?” he asked.

“Exciting to say the least,” Paul grinned as Adalia approached the two with her father.

“My lord” Thufir bowed to Leto.

Leto clutched the man's arm “How are you old friend?”

“My advance team has secured the city. We’re still smoothing out a few rough spots” he explained.

“My ladies” Thufir bowed to both Jessica and Adalia.

Adalia gave the man a smile, before following after her mother towards the ornithopter. Paul quickly caught up to them both, falling in step with his sister.

As they walked on, crowds of the Fremen people, all wearing shrouds to protect from the desert winds, came into view. Adalia looked over at the mass of people, feigning strength. But she quickly realised that none of them were looking at her.

All of their eyes were on Paul.

“Lisan al Gaib” a woman in the crowd says, causing the rest of the crowd to start murmuring.

After the first woman shouted, the crowd grew louder, all of them now chanting the same words.

“Lisan al Gaib, Lisan al Gaib, Lisan al Gaib”

Paul, out of instinct, subtly grabbed his sister's hand for comfort. The chants had all been directed at him. Adalia's thumb rubbed the back of his hand to calm him, a habit that she had never grown out of doing since they were children.

Adalia stared at the chanting crowd, watching as some fell to their knees in chant. Her face contorted in confusion, what did that phrase mean? And why were they saying it to Paul?. She held onto Paul's hand, knowing that he was just as confused as she was. To be on an unknown planet with a mass of people chanting at you must have been unsettling for him.

They continued chanting as the three of them approached the ornithopter, Thufir waiting for them at the open entrance. 

“Don't be fooled by the welcome” he says, noticing Paul's scared look.

“They follow their old masters' rules, mandatory attendance. That's Harkonnen love out there.” he lies through a smile, in an attempt to calm Paul. He gives him a curt nod in reply.

The siblings turned to look at the crowd one more time before entering the vehicle. As the machine whirred to life, the wings of the ornithopter started to move rapidly to begin flight. There was a moment of silence besides the machine hum in the vehicle before Paul spoke up.

“They were pointing at us,” he quietly said to Jessica, making Adalia turn to face him.

“What are they shouting?” he asked.

“Lisan al Gaib. Voice from the outer world.” She clarified, eyeing Paul carefully. “It's their name for Messiah. It means the Bene Gesserit has been at work here”

Adalia scoffed as she shook her head, of course they had been a part of this. Part of her wishing she hadn't been born half-Bene Gesserit.

“Planting superstitions,” Paul replied.

“Preparing the way, Paul” She corrected him. “These people have waited centuries for the Lisan al Gaib. They see you. They see the signs” she continued, planting her own seeds of the prophecy in her son.

After seeing Paul’s worried expression at the daunting prospect his mother was bestowing on him, Adalia could no longer keep quiet.

“Stop. We have been on this planet less than an hour and you're already forcing your ridiculous prophecies onto him. Let my brother live” Adalia snapped, sick of her mothers ramblings.

“The prophecies affect us all, Adalia. That includes you” she warned, as if their lives had already been predetermined by the Bene Gesserit foretelling.

Adalia scoffed, “Not me. And not Paul.” she protested, crossing her arms and turning away from her mother.

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