Chapter 27-The Whisper of a Name!

Chapter 27

IRULAN CORRINO

Irulan had always felt that a part of her missing, that she was the incomplete half of a picture, the whispers and assurances of a voice that she would often dream of yet would never hear again for years.

And now she had her answer, as she sat in the once Atreides castle, heartbroken at what her own father had envisioned for her, what the very order she was a part of, had revered religiously, had done to her family.

His face was different than her own, less pale, yet their features were similar, in some ways, not a lot, for he had taken after their father a bit more just as she had done so for their mother.

"You look much like her," he said, and those words coming from him had a profound effect.

"But you never said...." but he did, of course, he did, and he recalled as well, for he was no ordinary human.

No, he was Bene Gesserit's worst nightmare, one born aware during birth, one born with the access to his genetic memories while being nothing more than a plethora of cells in their mother's womb.

An Abomination.

And by law, all abominations were to be killed for the sheer danger they posed, as a sort of mercy to the child that was never born, for until this day in the thousands of years of recorded history no Abomination had ever survived, they had lived yet as not themselves but as an amalgamation or a copy of a strong personality inhabiting their memories.

Possession, it was called, yet somehow he had been able to beat it, and survive for all these years, a testament to his mental prowess.

And that was not his only anomaly, no that was but the beginning.

"How did you know?" she asked, referring to the betrayal of her own father.

"I was monitoring the movements inside his castle for days, and when I saw a Bene Tleilaxu member replace the herald, I knew that something was up," he said, unbothered at how he had just admitted to being able to see and monitor movements half a galaxy away.

Yet that was just one of his powers as a False Haderach. However, she believed that a Half Haderach was the more appropriate term, one who was only half of what their order sought so dearly.

A Kwisatz Haderach, the one who could be at many places at once, and if one were to go by the literal definition of the word Inzal, was just that.

"Moreover, say what you will of our father, but he knows politics. He knew that his days were numbered, as he must have been told by the Reverend Mother himself, and so he knew that the only way to save his own neck for what he had done to the Atreides was to make them into abhorrent villains. Villains that the whole galaxy would wish to destroy them," he finished as he stood up.

"And you were but a pawn in that scheme of his," he told her.

She knew that her father cared little for her, that he yearned for a son, and that her presence was only ever a reminder of the son he never had. But she could hardly fathom the Revered Mother being a part of the plot, the very person who had helped her through the pain of losing her mother and taught her the ways of the Sisterhood.

"I know what you are thinking," he cut in, and her head snapped up.

"I know that you are thinking of the Reverend Mother on how she has betrayed you, and how could she do this to you," he spoke softly, and his words pained her greatly.

"But understand this, Irulan, she is not loyal to you or our family. She is only an instrument of the Order, and she serves only that as do all Bene Gesserit," he said sharply his own hate against

"And you are not the only one she has betrayed," and with that, he turned towards Lady Jessica, who sat with them, silent and with a swollen belly.

"I was once an apprentice under her, just as your mother was," she began softly, her lips thinning as she laid her emotions bare, letting go of the control over them.

"And yet she sent me and my kin to death, knowing that I carried an innocent child in my womb. All for I had defied her and the Order in giving Leto a son and interfered in their grand plans," she said, and she could seldom believe it, that her father's lack of a son was not an affliction that it was deliberate action from their mother and the sisterhood.

And she was a mess, with rage, frustration, sadness, joy, and emotions. They were too much for her, and she could feel her control getting strained with every passing second.

"I need to go now, I need to make preparations to oversee the Spice deliveries," Inzal said as he gave her a nod and walked away, leaving her alone with Lady Jessica.

"And Irulan," he stopped by her seat, and she looked up at him as he gently caressed her face and smiled.

"I know that you are troubled and feel betrayed. I would as well if I discovered that I had a brother such as me," he added with a chuckle, and she smiled at his jab.

"But as long as you are with me, you do not have to fear for your life or anything else at all. Take all the time you need. None here shall seek to use you, harm you, or even disturb you. You are free," he assured her.

"Even if I decide to go against you," and he nodded and walked away.

"Even then. After all, isn't it an elder brother's duty to look after their sister?"

0000

REVEREND MOTHER GAIUS HELEM MOHAIM

With Irulan's address, all the plans to end the Atreides line had been foiled, and the Emperor and themselves had been pushed back into a corner, yet it all had made one thing clear as well.

"How could this happen? How could a Face Dancer of the Bene Tleilaxu fail," Shaddam asked, nearly driven to madness after his constant failures.

"I do not know, but all indications point to one single thing, that the plans have failed and that Princess Irulan has changed sides," and what a shame was that. Irulan Corrino was a valuable pawn, one that would have provided much-needed legitimacy to a successor of their choice through her Royal Blood.

And yet, now she could feel all their plans unravelling infront of her eyes.

"Of course, she has. What should one expect from daughters?" Shaddam roared in rage as Hasimir stood there impassive, his gaze constantly turning towards her.

"With the departure of the Imperial Physician and all the equipment they asked for, the embargo on Spice has been lifted, and shipments have begun coming in," Hasimir informed.

"I DON'T CARE ABOUT SPICE!" Shaddam roared.

"MY VERY THRONE IS BEING THREATENED! IF WE DO NOT DEAL WITH THIS SOON ENOUGH, MY REIGN WILL END, AND AN ATREIDES WILL SIT WHERE I SIT!" and his fears were indeed true, rumors about the treachery of House Corrino and House Harkonnen had taken root, and with each passing day, the two Houses lost political power.

"We have no choice now, Princess Irulan's message was broadcasted all over the galaxy. We cannot break the terms," Hasimir advised, and as she had said they were in a deadlock.

The end of House Atreides had seemed like a done deal. None had even imagined that the House would be able to survive the combined might of House Corrino and House Harkonnen. They had believed that in one night, everyone sitting on this table would be rid of all their political headaches.

The end of the Atreides will create a power vacuum that only House Corrino could fill. It would rid House Harkonnen of their eternal rivals, and for herself and the order, it would put an end to a prospect that had come ahead of its time, put an end to renegades who had defied their order's codex not one but twice.

And yet, each and every one of their plans had been unraveled, broken apart, and turned around in a way that could only happen in one way.

The Kwisatz Haderach.

'Could it really be....' had Jessica's son been the one they had sought all these years? Was he truly the one, a Kwisatz Haderach, and if so, then the powers of this being were beyond her imagination?

There was no other explanation.

.

.

Hasimir watched as the Revered Mother left the room, leaving him alone with the Emperor.

"While scouring the transmission from the ship, I was able to scour out a rather interesting audio," Hasimir told him as the Emperor frowned.

"What?"

Hasimir reached out and played it for him.

"My...shhhh...ame...s....Inza....Kaza....orrino..."

And he saw the Emperor pale as he had, as he had tried to make sense of what he had heard.

"Inzal," he whispered, awestruck and pale hands shaking as he looked into Hasimir's eyes.

"It was the name we chose for a son."

0000

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