Chapter 27 Chapter Twenty Seven

"Quick!" Ghanima called.Leto, running two paces ahead of her, had reached the cleft in the rock.Without hesitation, he jumped into the gap and crawled forward until the darkness completely surrounded him.He heard Ghanima jumping down behind him too, but after a moment of silence came her voice, neither impatient nor frightened. "I'm stuck." He stood up, even though he knew that doing so would send his head under the claws that were prowling around.He turned around in the crack, then got on his stomach again, and crawled back until he touched Ghanima's outstretched hand.

"My robe," she said, "is hooked." There was the sound of falling stones.He grabbed Ghanima's hand and tugged, but it didn't help. He heard gasps from above, accompanied by low growls. Leto tensed his body, squatted firmly on the rock, and pulled Ghanima's arm hard.There was a sound of fabric tearing, and he felt her pushing towards him.She gasped, and he knew she must be in pain, but he pulled harder anyway.She moved a little further into the crack, and then she was in with her whole body, falling beside him.At this point, they were still too close to the entrance of the crack.He turned around, landed on all fours, and quickly crawled deep.Ghanima followed closely behind him.As she crawled, her panting grew louder, and he knew she was hurt.He crawled to the end of the crack, turned over, and looked out of the shelter.

The crack was about two meters above his head, and the sky was full of stars, but part of the sky was blocked by a big guy. The continuous low roar filled their eardrums.It is a deep, sinister, ancient sound, the voice of hunters speaking to their prey. "How are you hurt?" Leto asked, trying to keep his tone as calm as possible. She followed his tone and tone as she said, "One of them scratched me. It tore my still suit along my left leg. I was bleeding." "How serious is it?" "It's a vein. I can stop it." "Hold on," he said, "don't move. I'll deal with our friend."

"Be careful," she said, "they're bigger than I expected." Leto drew his Howling Blade and held it upward.He knew the tiger's paws would go down.The cracks are only wide enough for their claws, not their bodies. Slowly, slowly, he thrust the knife upward.Suddenly, something hit the blade.He only felt a shock in his whole arm, and the knife almost fell out of his hand.Blood flowed down the hand holding the knife and splashed on his face, followed by a scream that almost deafened him.The stars are all exposed.Amidst the piercing cry, something tumbled from the rock and fell on the desert.

The stars were obscured again, and he heard the hunter's growl again.A second tiger came along, not caring about the fate of his companion. "It's really persistent." Leto said. "You must have hurt one of them," said Ghanima. "Listen!" The screaming and tumbling below faded away.But the second tiger still obscures the star. Leto retracted the knife and touched Ghanima on the shoulder. "Give me your knife. I want a clean blade for this one." "Do you think they have a third tiger as backup?" she asked. "Unlikely. Lazi tigers are used to hunting in pairs."

"Like us," she said. "Yes," he agreed.He felt that she stuffed the handle of the Xiaoren Knife into his palm, so he clenched it tightly.He stabs upwards cautiously again.The blade only touched the air.He raised his body and put himself in danger, but it still didn't work.He withdrew his knife, wondering what the hell was going on. "You can't find it?" "It doesn't act like the last one." "It's still here. Smell it?" He swallowed and moistened his throat.A foul-smelling breath, mixed with the tiger's breath, rushed straight into his nostrils.

The stars are still obscured.There was no more sound from the first tiger.The Screaming Blade has done its job. "I think I'll have to stand up," he said. "No!" "I have to lure it into range of the knife." "Yes, but we agreed that if any of us can avoid injury..." "You got hurt, so you're the one to go back," he said. "But if you're hurt too, and it's bad, I can't leave you," she said. "Do you have any ideas?" "Give me back my knife." "But your legs!" "I can stand on one foot."

"That thing can sweep your head off with a single paw. Maybe a shotgun..." "If anyone in this place hears a gunshot, they'll know we're prepared—" "I don't want you to take that risk!" he said. "Whoever's here can't let him know we have shotguns—not yet." She touched his arm. "I'll be careful and keep my head down." He remained silent.She continued: "You know I have to do it. Give me my knife." Reluctantly, he stretched out his hand, and after finding her hand, he handed the knife into her hand.It was logical to do so, but logic and emotion were at war in his head.

He felt Ghanima leave him and heard the sound of her robes scraping against the rocks.She gasped, and he knew she must have stood up.Be careful!He thought, almost pulled her back, and suggested the shotgun again.But doing that will remind those around here that they have this weapon.Worse, doing that might drive the tiger out of the crevice, where they'd be stuck with a wounded tiger hiding behind some rock, ready to kill them at any moment. Ganima took a deep breath and leaned back against the cracked rock wall.I must be quick, she thought.She held the point of the knife upward.The place on the left leg where the tiger scratched was throbbing with pain.She felt the blood forming scabs on her skin, the fresh blood dripping warmly across the surface.Must be very fast!She focused on Bee Geist's ready posture for a crisis, leaving the pain and all other irrelevant factors behind.The tiger must be stretching its paws down!She slowly stroked the blade along the opening.Where is the damned beast?She gestured again.nothing.Tiger should have been fooled and attacked.

She sniffed around carefully.Warm breath came from the left.She kept her balance, took a deep breath, and screamed, "Taqwa!" This was the battle cry of the Fremen long ago, and its meaning can still be found in the oldest legends: the price of freedom! With the cry, she turned the blade and stabbed towards the dark opening of the crack. Before the knife pierced the tiger's flesh, the tiger's claws swept to her elbow.Before the huge pain spread from her elbow to her wrist, she seized this critical moment and lifted her wrist vigorously.In severe pain, she felt that the tip of the knife had penetrated into the tiger's body.The handle of the knife twisted violently between her numb fingers.

The stars at the opening of the rift were revealed again, and the howling of the dying tiger filled the night sky.Then there was a sound of struggling and rolling.Finally, everything returned to deathly silence. "It hit me in the arm," Ghanima said, trying to tie a knot in the wound with her robe. "is it serious?" "I think so. I can't feel my hand." "Let me light a lamp—" "Don't click until we hide!" "I try to speed up as much as possible, just take a picture." She heard him turn to grab his Freeman survival kit, and felt the slick sleeping bag cover her head and tuck it in behind her.He didn't take the time to tidy it up enough to keep the moisture from escaping. "Here is my knife," she said. "I can feel the handle." "Leave the knife alone." He lit a small spherical lamp.It was so bright that it made her blink her eyes. Leto set the lamp on the ground, then looked at her arm, and gasped.The claw made a long, deep gash that started at the elbow and spun along the back of the arm to the wrist.The shape of the wound itself also explains how she turned the blade to stab the tiger. Ghanima glanced at the wound, then closed his eyes and began reciting prayers against fear. Leto, too, felt the urge to pray, but he put aside his tumultuous emotions and began to bandage Ghanima's wounds.He had to be careful not only to stop the blood but also to make the dressing look clumsy, as if Ghanima had done it himself.He let her use her other hand and teeth to tie the final knot for the bandage. "Now look at your legs," he said. She turned to reveal another wound.Not as bad as the arm: two shallow paw prints along the calf, bleeding continuously into the still suit.He washed the wound as well as he could, and bandaged it.Finally seal the distillation suit with a bandage. "There's sand in the wound," he said. "Have someone look at it as soon as you get back." "There's always sand in our wounds," she said. "We're Freemen after all." He forced a smile and sat down. Ghanima took a deep breath. "We made it." "not yet." She swallowed, trying to recover from the excitement.Under the spherical light, her face was pale.Yes, we must act quickly.Whoever controlled those two beasts was probably already waiting nearby. Leto stared at his sister, feeling a sudden pang of loss.Pain pierced deeply into his chest.He and Ghanima had to separate.From birth to now, they have been like one person for so many years.But their plan requires them to go through a qualitative change and embark on different journeys.Their different experiences made it impossible for them to integrate into one person as before. He brought his thoughts back to the necessary details. "Here's my survival kit. I got the bandages out of it. Someone might check." "Yes." She exchanged survival kits with him. "Someone hiding here has a signal for the tiger," he said. "He'll probably be waiting near the aqueduct to make sure we're dead or not." She touched the shotgun on the Freeman survival kit, picked it up, and tucked it into the shoulder strap of her robe. "My robe is torn." "yes." "Searchers may be here soon," he said. "There may be a traitor among them. You'd better sneak back by yourself. Let Sasa hide you." "I... started looking for the traitor as soon as I got back to camp," she said.She glanced at her brother's face, sharing his pain. From this moment on, they will accumulate different life experiences.It is no longer possible to be alone, sharing knowledge that no one else can understand. "I'm going to Jakrutu," he said. "Fondacker," she said. He nodded in approval.Jakrutu/Fondak - definitely the same place.Only in this way can the legendary place be hidden from the world.That's a good job for smugglers.For them, changing one name into another is a piece of cake.After all, there was an unspoken agreement between them and the rulers of the planets that acquiesced in their existence.The ruling family on the planet must prepare a back door for escape in case of extreme situations. In addition, maintaining smuggling channels can also allow the ruling family to share a small share of profits.In Fondak/Jarkrutu, the smugglers have taken over a fully functioning den, taking advantage of the religious taboo against Fremen to set foot here, and thus keep Jakrutu hidden from broad daylight. "No Fremen would think of looking for me in that place," he said. "They would ask the smugglers, of course, but..." "We act according to the plan you and I agreed upon," she said, "just..." "I know." Listening to his own voice, Leto realized that they were living the last moments of their life together.A wry smile formed at the corner of his mouth, making him look much more mature than his years. Ghanima felt as if she was watching Leto grow up through the veil of time.Tears welled up in her eyes. "Don't offer water to those who are not dead," he said, patting her on the cheek. "I'll go far away, where no one can hear me, and then I'll call for the sandworms." He pointed to the folded maker's spear hook hanging on the outside of the survival kit, "At dawn in two days, I will arrive at Jakrutu." "Bon voyage, my old friend," she whispered. "I'll be back for you, old friend," he said. "Remember to be careful when crossing the aqueduct." "Pick a good sandworm," she said in the Fremen farewell, extinguishing the globe light with her left hand, pulling the sleeping bag aside and folding it into her survival kit. She felt him leave, heard him climb off the rock and onto the desert.The sound of small footsteps gradually disappeared. Ghanima stood there dumbfounded, thinking about her next move. She had to act like Leto was dead, she had to convince herself of it.She couldn't have Jakrutu in her mind, even though her brother was on a quest to find this place lost in the Freemen mythology.From this moment on, she must abandon the subconscious that Leto is still alive.She had to adjust herself so that all her actions were based on the hypothetical fact that her brother had been killed by the Lazi tiger.Few could fool a Truthsayer, but she knew she could...must. The countless lives she'd shared with Leto had taught her a technique: a theoretical approach that existed in ancient Sheba's time, and she might be the only contemporary who could remember the time of Sheba. After Leto leaves, Ganima spends a long time carefully forcing herself to reframe her consciousness as the lonely sister, the survivor of the twins, until she finally believes the story completely. After all this was over, she found that her inner world was silent-the life that had invaded her consciousness disappeared.She hadn't expected the technique to have such a side effect. It would be nice if Leto survived and learned about this side effect, she thought.She didn't see anything wrong with the idea.She stood still, looking at the place where Leto had been killed by the tiger.There was a sound in the sand, growing louder.It was a sound so familiar to the Fremen: the sandworm was passing there.Although their numbers are becoming increasingly rare in the desert, one still makes it here.Maybe it was the first tiger's dying struggle that attracted it... yes, Leto killed one of the second before he was killed by the second one.The arrival of the sandworm once again triggered the obsessive imagination in her heart.The imaginary was so real, she even saw three black spots on the desert far below: the two tigers and Leto.Then the sandworms came, and then there was nothing on the desert, except for the wavy traces left by Xia Hulu after passing by.It wasn't quite a big sandworm...but it was enough, and her imagination didn't allow her to see the small figure riding on the sandworm's back. With grief, Ghanima strapped on the Freeman survival kit and carefully crawled out of her hiding place.She clutched the shotgun in her hand and scanned the distance.No one with the signal was found.She fought her way up the rocky heights, into the shadows cast by the moonlight, and waited to make sure no assassins were in ambush on her way home. Looking across the open space in front of her, she could see torches flickering in the direction of Taib's lair.People are looking for both of them. A shadow in the sky was coming across the desert towards the First Rocky Belt. She descended from the rock and headed further north of the search party's line, into the shadow of the dunes, and began to walk toward the still place between Leto's death-place and Mibu.She staggered her steps cautiously as she marched, so as not to attract the sandworms.She knew to be careful when crossing the aqueduct. Nothing will stop her, and she will tell everyone how her brother died trying to save her.

---

Notes: