Beneath the Red Dragon

Chini drew a dagger from her waist and handed it to the clean young boy.

Paul looked somewhat confused at the girl’s beautiful eyes.

”This Crystal Fang Dagger was left to me by my family, made from the sharp teeth of Xia Hulu, the sacred Sand Worm,”

Chini’s beautiful blue eyes gazed at the boy, full of affirmation.

”To die holding it would be a great honor, and Jamie is a powerful Warrior; he will not let you suffer.”

In the eyes of Chini, the Female Warrior, young Paul was undoubtedly unable to pass Jamie’s test, a formidable Warrior, and would die at Jamie’s hands.

But young Paul dared to stand up for his mother, facing Jamie’s challenge, proving the courage this boy had.

”Chini,”

Paul looked into the girl’s eyes, hesitating, wanting to tell her that he had seen her in a dream, but finally, his lips closed, swallowing all his words.

He held Chini’s dagger and followed the girl to the flat ground.

All around, the Fremen Warriors looked on coldly, their eyes probing, while his opponent Jamie had long awaited his arrival.

Paul saw his mother Jessica’s concern, but surprisingly, there was also worry in Stilgar’s eyes, or perhaps, the believer’s worry about Paul’s other identity.

”May your blade prove fragile!” Jamie rose from his crouching stance.

Paul held the dagger across his forehead, his expression turning serious; when the future intertwines with the present, and the illusion meets reality, does he have any other choice?

Jamie stepped forward, initiating an attack on Paul, the motions and traces of the dagger swing appearing particularly familiar to Paul.

In his dreams, Paul had sparred with Jamie; using this foresight, Paul dodged Jamie’s attack, the dagger in his hand whirling back and forth in over ten rounds in a flash.

Jamie’s experienced attacks were always intercepted by Paul midway, the clash of arms replacing the duel of daggers.

When the scene from the first prophesy flashed by, Paul intuitively turned away Jamie’s desperate and full-force thrust, twisting Jamie’s dagger-wielding right hand with his left hand, his own right hand placing the dagger against Jamie’s neck.

”Do you yield?”

Paul shouted loudly; he did not wish to die, nor did he want to kill anyone. He loathed the proclamation of fate.

”Ha,”

Voices from the Fremen erupted around.

”This young man does not understand our Fremen rules,”

Stilgar said loudly, ”In Emtair Law, there is no say for yielding, it’s either you die or I die.”

Jamie, the Fremen Warrior, felt insulted and shouted loudly, pushing away Paul who awaited his surrender and began attacking like a rabid dog.

Paul fended off Jamie’s attacks again and again, placing his dagger against Jamie’s neck to press for surrender.

The surrounding Fremen began booing, even Stilgar couldn’t help but ask Jessica, ”Is he mocking him?”

”No, Paul has never killed anyone,” Jessica said tremblingly, fully understanding her son’s actions as a mother.

Stilgar’s expression immediately turned serious, rising from his seated posture.

In the midst of conservative fighting, the frenzied Jamie increasingly fatigued Paul, whose Physical Strength was rapidly depleting; he began to realize that if this continued, he would die.

As seen in other fates, if it doesn’t return to destiny, he would face even worse outcomes.

Fury rolled out from Paul’s eyes, and in his daze, he heard ancestral cries, ”Kwisatz Haderach, rise, climb!”

He sidestepped, the knife fell.

The one who fell was Jamie, while Paul stood.

Paul walked out of the decisive field in loss, with Fremen Warriors clapping their hands on his shoulder, a recognition of a Warrior, acknowledging his courage and strength, acknowledging the courage he possessed to kill.

”You are one of us now,”

Stilgar said, ”A life for a life, join us to Teb Cave.”

”No, Paul must leave this planet,” Jessica stepped forward to stop this act, saying, ”You must have a way, among you there are smugglers of spice, you have spacecraft, you...”

”No,” Paul spoke, for the first time in his young life so opposed to his mother’s opinion.

Paul’s face returned to calm, but his eyes were firmer than ever, he said deeply, ”The Emperor sent us here, my father came,”

”But not for wealth, not for spice, but for your Fremen power.”

”Destiny guides me into the desert,” Paul paused for a moment, ”I can see!”

His determined gaze turned to Stilgar, ”If you accept me, we will go together.”

The sun ascended high in the sky, and Paul and Jessica joined the Fremen.

They faced the radiance, wrapping Jamie’s body in cloth, embarking on the road home. But as they walked out of the canyon, Paul seemed to instinctively feel the gazing eyes.

Thus Paul Atreides turned and looked towards the top of the cliff.

He seemingly could see the illusion that was present there.

It was a being appearing in future memories, standing on the cliff-top with that holy Angel, as if watching him.

In this Cosmos, there were no Dragons, but upon seeing that being, he understood, that was the mythical Dragon, perhaps even, a god on Earth.

Yet in this world, there should be no gods.

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