Sparks notes3/25/2023 THE NEXT DAY, a calm and sunny morning, Leto stood next to Rhombur at an open window, admiring the quays at the base of the promontory. Sunlight glittered like sparkflies on the rippled surface of the sea. The engines carried them away from the cliffs, beyond the shielded harbor, and out into open water. Rhombur wandered the deck and tried to help, doing whatever Leto told him to do. As the mariner assistants cast off the lines, one asked, "You can handle this yourself, m'Lord?" An Atreides burgee flew from the stern, snapping in the breeze. "Is your wife's leg better, Jerrik? Did you finish the roof on your smoke shed, Dom?"Īfter all preparations were completed, he and Rhombur boarded the wickerwood coracle. Rhombur watched Leto treat these people as friends while they loaded the gear. Servants packed them a lunch while three mariner assistants checked all the onboard systems in preparation for a day-long voyage. But local coral gems were lovely, nonetheless. Because of the hazards and expense of containment, the gems did not support much of an off-world export market, given the more viable alternative of soostones from Buzzell. Coral gems were said to hold tiny living creatures that caused their inner fires to dance and simmer. These precious stones, found in knobby coral reefs, were popular pieces on Caladan, but perilous to handle. That choice will cost you and our House dearly." "You're the one who has made a choice here, Paulus. She lashed out at him with such vehemence that Leto took a silent step backward in surprise out in the shadowy hall. "Just keeping you out of trouble is, uh, effort enough," Rhombur countered.įar off to starboard a pod of murmons swam like furred logs, large but harmless creatures that drifted with ocean currents, singing to themselves with low, hooting sounds. "It's about time you started to earn your keep around here." We can dive without air tanks." He slapped Rhombur on the back. Then we can go diving." He opened a compartment and withdrew a sack and a small spatulaknife for each of them. "We'll anchor about half a kilometer away so we don't risk ripping open the hull. Don't worry, we won't go far, just to the reefs." The seas are calm, and we have a shore-com aboard. "Jerrik, you know I've been handling these boats for years now. Rhombur soaked up the experience of water and wind and sun, smiling. The Prince of Ix stood at the bow while Leto worked the controls. Additional modules stored on shore could be installed to change the functions of the craft: adding more cabin space or converting one or both cargo holds to additional sleeping or habitation areas. Aft of the cabin were two decks, at midship and aftship, with cargo holds below: a nice setup for fishing or motor cruising. With a wide, beamy hull, it featured a spacious cutty cabin in the front and sleeping quarters beneath, reached via a spiral staircase. The Duke had several boats tied up at the dock, and Leto chose his favorite coracle, a white motorcraft around fifteen meters in length. "You must live with the consequences, and be damned by them." Your decision alone, Paulus Atreides." Her voice was frighteningly cold. "Still it was your own decision, despite my warnings and despite my advice. If you've never had paradan fresh from the sea, you're in for a taste treat.though the fruit's a bit salty for me." "If you want one, just reach over the side and take it. Looking overboard, Rhombur saw rafts of leathery-leafed seaweed and round gourdlike fruits that held up the plants like air bladders. She would probably appreciate it either way. With the wealth of House Atreides, he could afford to buy Rhombur's sister many greater treasures if he wished, but the gift might mean more if he procured it himself. Leto thought he wanted to give one to Kailea as a present. Unsettled, Leto crept away, his question forgotten, without waiting to see how soon they extinguished the lights. Isolated black ridges of rock barely poked above the waves like the spine of a sleeping leviathan. He handed Rhombur a set of binoculars and indicated a frothy, tumultuous patch on the sea. Leto sailed the coracle for about an hour, consulting satellite maps and charts, making for a knot of outlying reefs.
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