The leaders of the Great Houses continued to argue, not wanting to accept Paul's Imperial proposal without adding their own voices. Each felt something more was owed to his House. Paul tuned them out. He was waiting, listening for the changes that would signal a need to take immediate action.
A supple garden tree bent nearly double in the wind, snapped back with a pop! A burst of rain hammered the window behind him. He closed his eyes. One heartbeat, two, three heartbeats. There! A stone dislodged from a garden border, falling with a dull thud.
Paul's eyes flew open. He sprang to his feet, swept the table with a glance.
"I am going to evacuate my family. I suggest you leave as well before the Keep is flooded."
He motioned for Stilgar and Gurney Halleck to follow him.
"Duncan!" he shouted as he sprinted into the hall.
"Yes, M'Lord?" Duncan Idaho appeared and saluted.
"Duncan, find my mother and Alia, bring them to the rooftop 'thopter pad. Gurney, bring my Ladies and the children from my chambers. Stilgar, come with me to prepare the 'thopters."
As Paul dashed up the circular staircase to the roof, he heard Gurney grumbling to Duncan.
"His two Ladies and the children? That is not a one-man job."
"He manages,"Duncan retorted. "What're you so worried about? They don't bite- usually."
Chani might, if she had heard that last remark. Horror replaced amusement when he realized his pace had slowed as he listened to the banter. Had he jeopardized the delicate path to safety? He had no time to seek answers.
On the flat rooftop, Paul and Stilgar stepped out under the dubious protection of an awning. Horizontal sheets of rain tried to pin them to the wall. By sheer force of will and training, Paul pushed himself to the first ornithopter. Flinging the door open, he threw himself inside. He glanced over his shoulder, saw Stilgar staring in wonder at the downpour.
"Stilgar!" he shouted over the wind as he began the power-up sequence,"I need you to start up the second 'thopter. We'll need both to fit everyone."
Finally breaking free from his trance, Stilgar nodded understanding and hurried to the 'thopter, less sure footed in the pooling rain than Paul had been.
Paul switched the 'thopter's jets on and they sputtered to life. He looked over his other shoulder at the ground below. Water already lapped at a second story window sill.
The sputtering jets stopped. Paul tried again. The jets sputtered once more, then stopped. He inspected the panels, finding nothing wrong. He climbed out and slid between the landing struts to check the power core. Blinking back rain, he opened the compartment and peered inside. The wind and rain had battered their way in, cracking the water-proof casing.
The narrow path to safety had grown more fragile.
"Muad'Dib!" He heard Stilgar's voice through the rain. "The 'thopter's jets will not start."
"Water has gotten into the casings. It interferes with the power flow." A necessary precaution, he knew. But now a dangerous one.
"Keep trying," he instructed, rising and mounting the landing struts.
The rooftop door opened and Duncan rushed through with Lady Jessica and Alia in tow.
"Here they are, as ordered!"
Perched on the strut, Paul opened his mouth to speak, getting a mouthful of rain water. Fremen instincts told him to swallow the water; Caladan instincts warned him against it.
Duncan approached and held out his hand. "If I may, young master? You get back under shelter and I'll see to this ornery 'thopter."
" You mean ornithopter," Alia corrected him with a smirk.
Paul shook his head. "Go help Gurney with the Ladies and children. He seems to be having trouble."
"Maybe Chani bit him," Alia suggested. "I was going to bite Duncan if he didn't let me stop for my knife."
Paul frowned, asked, "Why weren't you wearing your knife?"
"Oh, I was. I wanted to make sure I had an extra."
Duncan rolled his Tleilaxu eyes at this. He disappeared back into the Keep while Paul continued his fruitless efforts to start the jets. The rain continued to pour.
The door banged open and Paul turned, saw Duncan nearly dragging Irulan with one arm, her little Paul tucked unceremoniously under the other. Chani's twins, Leto and Ghanima, followed, watching the rain with memory-filled eyes.
"Where's Chani?" Paul demanded.
Before Duncan could respond, Irulan wrenched herself free, slipping in the rain to fall at Paul's feet.
"She won't come, Paul!" she half-sobbed. "Please don't be angry. She won't listen and I had to get the children to safety."
She stopped, trying to catch her breath as the rain assailed her. She choked on water. Paul pulled her to her feet and guided her to the overhang.
"Gurney is with her," Duncan said. "He wants to know if he can use physical force."
"I will go to her. Keep the women and children against the wall and help Stilgar with these ornery ornithopters."
Paul sprinted through the door, taking the stairs three at a time. Oh, Chani, I know you don't understand. But I need you to trust me.
He considered sliding down the railing to reach her faster, discarded the idea. Too many variables were at play already. He came to the third floor and raced down the hall. The bedchamber door stood ajar. Across the room, the balcony door was also open.
"It's water," Chani said. "Why should I be afraid?"
"Too much water can be dangerous, " Gurney insisted. "Being covered in water is like being buried in sand. You can't breathe."
Paul hurried onto the balcony, almost slipping. "We need to go, Chani. Now."
Water filled the balcony, rising quickly.
"It's so wonderful," she murmured.
No more time. Paul lifted her in his arms, noting that the blowing rain had soaked her in spite of her waterproof coat. "I need you to trust me, Beloved."
He ran as fast as he could with Chani in his arms, pausing to wrap her in a woolen blanket from the bed. With Gurney close behind, he pounded up the stairs. If Duncan and Stilgar had somehow managed to coax the 'thopters to life, they could still make it safely to higher ground.
As he rounded the final curve, an unmistakable rumbling in the distance told him that the river had overflowed its banks to join the flood. He had seen this possibility. Flight could not save them from the coming deluge.
He burst through the door, placed Chani against the wall with a kiss and called, "It's no use! We can't fly out now."
He had barely finished speaking when the downpour tripled in strength and volume, blinding in its force.
Author's Note: In this AU, I decided Irulan should have a child of her own. Chani will always be Paul's number 1, but he can be kind to Irulan, too.