DUNE Page #9

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An old Woman comes up, and kisses the hem of Paul’s cape.

THE OLD WOMAN:

You are the holy child of the legend, son of a Bene Guesserit! You will take us out of this hell!

One by one, the beggars kiss Jessica’s and Paul’s clothes. Paul is embarrassed. Leto urges him forward towards the beggars, murmuring:

LETO:

They take you for the Messiah! You must profit from this myth.

Soon, the square is empty. The soldiers and the chief of staff have left. In the distance, a man claiming to have discovered water shouts out his fantastic cry.

Leto, Paul and Jessica are now alone in the middle of the dust. Paul has filled his cape with the gifts donated by the beggars. Among them is a rag doll resembling him in the arms of another doll dressed like a Bene Guesserit. Both dolls have completely blue eyes.

Leto is sad and preoccupied. Jessica takes the key of Caladan castle out from its velvet bag, caresses it and, determinedly, kneels down, digs a hole in the sandy earth, puts the key in it and covers it with earth. Walking resolutely, Leto, Jessica, and Paul move towards the palace. The wind has erased their footsteps where the key was buried.

EXTERIOR:
AN ARRAKEEN STREET

Idaho and his group of soldiers are actively helping the people to put out fires with buckets of sand, take the wounded out from the wreckage, and bandage the wounds. Besides the ambulances, files of wounded are laid out on stretchers. The Atreides have improvised a hospital. While the soldiers make bandages, Duncan Idaho organizes blood transfusions.

A group of free Fremen, distinguishable from the Beggars by their haughty walk and strange clothes, watch Idaho’s actions with discretion. The completely blue eyes of the man appearing to be their leader are staring at the bottles of blood. The liquid sound of blood running in the tubes makes his ears move slightly, like

an animal’s.

EXTERIOR:
A TOWN IN THE DESERT

Duncan, his ambulances, and soldiers are approaching a town built in the middle of the rocky desert. The aftermath of battle can be seen: smoke, charred doors, streets full of bodies.

A group of free Fremen is hiding among the rocks, the leader speaks to one of them, who begins to run towards the Atreides, like a deer. From behind the dunes fifteen Harkonnen soldiers emerge, ready to bar his way.

The Fremen draws a strange short, phosphorescent sword and scrapes the ground with it, surrounding himself with a cloud of dust which seems impenetrable. The Harkonnen enter the cloud. They come out of the strange dust mortally wounded, one after the other... All fifteen of them die. The Fremen comes out of the cloud, covered with wounds and staggering. He runs towards the Atreides.

The Fremen in agony stops Duncan when the latter has just arrived at the town gates. He no longer has strength enough to speak. He draws his sword, gives it to Idaho, points to the sky, makes a negative motion, and dies.

Idaho looks up at the sky above the town and understands.

IDAHO:

There isn’t a single vulture! It’s a trap! Shoot the bodies!

The Atreides get ready and attack. The “dead” tear off their disguises revealing the Harkonnen uniform and hurl themselves into attack against Idaho’s soldiers. Outnumbered, the Atreides are soon in great danger. The Fremen come silently out of the desert and throw birds of prey who go and peck at the Harkonnen’s eyes. The Fremen use the resulting confusion to rapidly finish off the Harkonnen. The Fremen’ leader speaks to Duncan:

FAROK:

You have helped our brothers! We have saved your life. The debt of water has been paid.

The Fremen go off into the desert.

Duncan pulls on the Fremen knife hidden under his cape, and takes it out of its sheath. To his great surprise, it gleams and gives out a vibrating sound.

INTERIOR:
JESSICA’S BEDROOM – GOVERNMENT PALACE

With the help of soldiers, Jessica is busy making her bedroom look pretty. She has painted gardens, a valley, mills and a river on the walls. The whole room is a picture showing the Caladan landscape. Her assistants are putting up flowered curtains. Jessica is finishing a paper branch ornamented with roses.

Soldiers enter, together with a group of female Fremen servants beautiful women with blue eyes wearing the brown garment of slaves. Among them, there is an old woman called Mapes. All the others kneel down, except her.

JESSICA:

(to the soldiers)

Let nobody enter until I call ...

The soldiers, as well as those who were working on the room, go away closing the door behind them.

Jessica violently confronts Mapes.

JESSICA:

Do you think I’m blind? You’re no servant...! You have had six children. All of them have died. You have killed men, and you’ll continue to do so!

MAPES:

(surprised)

You can ...!

JESSICA:

I heard the grandmother’s voice!

Mapes falls to her knees, moved but still in doubt.

JESSICA:

You are hiding a dagger under your blouse!

Mapes draws out a black sheath from which she pulls a white, phosphorescent knife.

MAPES:

A gift if you are really Her!

JESSICA:

And an instrument of death if I’m not!

Mapes gets up and, knife in hand, dangerously draws near Jessica.

MAPES:

Tell me what it is!

JESSICA:

(guessing)

A tooth!

Mapes cries out and falls to her knees. All the Fremen touch the ground with their forehead.

MAPES:

You are Her! (giving her the knife). Carry it on your body. Far away from you, it would disintegrate after a day. Let it accompany you till death! It’s a tooth of Shai-Hulud, the great father of the desert, the holy Worm of the sand!

JESSICA:

(relentless)

You draw out and put away this Krys without shedding blood?

Mapes opens her blouse. She shows her hanging breasts.

MAPES:

This is the water of my life!

Jessica gashes her right breast, and a trickle of blue blood coagulates immediately, secretly. Mapes passes her hand over the encrusted blood which falls into dust, leaving no scar. She closes her blouse.

MAPES:

The legend is beginning to happen; you are one of us. You will not leave this planet alive.

Jessica opens her blouse and puts the Krys away between her breasts.

EXTERIOR:
GOVERNMENT PALACE.

Groups of beggars, water sellers, lorries, and the group of soldiers under Duncan Idaho can all be seen. A car in which Leto and his group are sitting arrives at the Government Palace gates. Idaho has displayed some objects on piece of cloth.

DUNCAN:

The Fremen send us these gifts: distilling devices to economize water, jewels for Lady Jessica, spice brandy, medicinal plants...and something special for me.

He points to the black sheath which contains the Krys of the dead Fremen. He makes as if to take out the knife, but a voice from the group of beggars stop him.

VOICE OF FAROK:

Leave it in its sheath!

Everyone is looking. Farok emerges from the group of beggars. The guards draw their swords.

IDAHO:

Stop! He has saved my life.

The guards let Farok come closer towards Idaho.

FAROK:

This knife belonged to a man who gave his life for you. You alone can see it, but never impure men. Their eyes would stain the honorable blade!

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