Chapter 7a

CHANI KYNES

Chani walked towards the entrance of the sietch, conflicted in her heart and mind as she saw Inzal standing there all alone with a bag filled with all his belongings, his face impassive, and stock giving no inkling about what was going on inside his head.

She had been there when Jamis had told Stilgar about how they had escaped from the Harkonens and just what Inzal had done to rescue them. Infiltrating the city all alone, he had attacked the Harkonen's in their home, just to rescue the members of this sietch.

Yet she was conflicted, for he had kept quiet about his heritage, even though a part of her could understand why he would do so.

"I know you are there," his voice rang out, surprising her. He still had his back to her, and Chani was quite proud of her stealth. Yet he had somehow sensed her approach even without turning his head.

She stepped out of the crevice and walked up to him. As he stared into the dawn and the rising Sun, it was such a peaceful sight.

"So, you are the Emperor's son," she began, and he nodded.

"I am," he agreed and she looked towards him, as she asked in confusion.

"Why didn't you say anything?" she questioned, a bit of hurt leaking into her tone.

"What was I to say that I am the son of the man whose actions have ruined your lives? That I am the heir to the throne, that my own mother placed me in a ship and sent me into open space in an attempt to kill me," he said, and his tone was somber as he looked her in the eye.

"I made a home here, made a home with Fremen, and though I am a Corrino by blood, I am a Fremen in all the ways that matter," he replied, and she realized that he ahd grown up beside her, besides them.

"Why don't you announce your presence to the Landsraad? You told me yourself that teh Emperor wishes for a male heir, and that way, you shall be the next Emperor," she proposed, even though she could sense that things would not be so simple, for you could call Inzal many things but dumb was not one of them.

"It would not work. The Bene Gesserit control the throne and act as truth sayers. they would simply declare my words as lies, and I would be killed soon afterwards," and his lips thinned as he said those words.

"What of teh doctors?" she recalled one of his lessons.

"Don't they have some special training to be impartial?" she questioned, and he nodded.

"They do; it is called the conditioning, and there are ways to control them even after that. And even if I had the opportunity, I would not take it," he said, surprising her.

"Why?" she questioned, life on Arrakis was hard. Why would he put himself through such a harsh life when he could enjoy all the luxuries of life by just declaring his identity?

"I told you of the Three Pillars of the Imperium, didn't I?" he asked, and she nodded.

"The Emperor, the Noble Houses, and The Spicing Guild," she repeated, and he nodded.

"Indeed, and though on paper it may seem that the Emperor has the most power, it is not true, for teh Bene Gesserit control many Noble Houses and wield considerable influence, and the less said about the Guild's monopoly on space travel, the better," he said as he looked into the sky.

"And in the center of it, all lays Arrakis, with the Spice. To change the fate of this planet, I would need considerable power in the Landsraad, power that will elude me even if I become the heir or the Emperor today. No, if I wish to bring substantial change to this planet, then I would need to plan to gain enough power to do it before I make my bid for the throne, for after that, I would have exposed myself to the world. I would be given no space to maneuver," he said, and she was surprised that he had thought so in-depth about all this.

"Do you really think that you could change Arrakis into a paradise?" he asked, shaking his head.

"A paradise I couldn't say, but I believe I can make it better. I can give the Fremen their freedom. I can give them prosperity. I can bring about change, even if it may not be as glorious as those so-called prophecies. I believe I have enough strength in my arms to change teh fate of these lands," he said as he reached for the sky, grasping the fate he spoke of.

"And what strength he lacks, he shall find in us," came a voice from behind. Chani's head snapped back, and she saw about a dozen Fremen standing behind her, all fully packed and ready to leave.

"Shishakli," she gasped as she saw just who had cut in. Her childhood friend led the group and gave her a tired smile as she said.

"Chani," she greeted her as she walked up to her, and Chani realized just what this meant.

"You are leaving," she confirmed, and Shishakli nodded.

"I am," she said as she looked up at Inzal.

"It is time that we stop believing in century-old prophecies and grasp our freedom with our own hands," she said, and her eyes narrowed as she recalled something interesting from the Council earlier.

"You knew, didn't you?" she questioned, and her friend nodded.

"I did. I have known for quite a few years now," Shishakli told the truth, and it all made much more sense on how her friend would always follow Inzal around. SHishakli held her hand as she looked him in the eye.

"I have grown tired of the thirst, of not being able to shed a tear for those we love, of not being able to live as we may wish to," she said, and her eyes widened, and she did not miss how her friend's eyes lingered on Inzal as she said those words.

"You could die out there for no reason. Arrakis is harsh, and you have no place shelter," she pleaded, yet her friend smiled as she hugged her, wrapping her arms around her tightly and whispering in her ear.

"Then I shall die fighting for a purpose much greater than I," she said. Chani had no answer as she hugged her friend.

"If we are to reach the place I have chosen, then we must leave now," Inzal's voice cut in from behind as they two separated, and Shishakli moved beyond her with a parting greeting.

"Take care of yourself," and she joined the dozen or so people who had decided to leave the Sietch with Inzal, believing in his words.

"How will I reach you?" she questioned as Inzal put on his mask and glanced towards her.

"Tell everyone that if they ever need me, just say my name, and I shall be there," he said as he left the Sietch to begin a new journey.

Chani would remain standing there, only to be joined later by Stilgar when one could barely see their silhouettes in the distance.

"You could have stopped this, you know," she said, and he nodded.

"Maybe, but one can rarely stop a storm that has begun to brew, just as one can seldom dam the seas," he replied as she turned towards their Nabi.

"So you think he will succeed," and Stilgar shrugged.

"I know not whether he will succeed or not, but I do know that we are on the precipice of change, and that boy shall be in the center of it all," he remarked as his eyes glinted.

"I still don't know why he kept his heritage from us. I feel betrayed," she said as her fists balled up.

"Have you thought of this from his perspective, Chani?" Stilgar began making her frown.

"He was a child raised by us. He watched how we lived our lives, lived it with us, while knowing that his own blood had done this, caused all this atrocity on us. He was but a child, who carried on his back the burdens of both a Fremen and a Prince and many more," he said softly, and it was illuminating. She had not thought of this from his perspective.

"Regardless of what becomes of him, he is a Fremen, one of our own. He fights for us, for our freedom, for our prosperity, and we must cherish that even if we may not agree with him."

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