Prologue
They didn't see it coming until it was right above them. The small group of Na'vi children looked up when they heard the heavy object come crashing through the dense tree tops. Assuming it was a "night squirrel" they weren't concerned at first; except this creature was falling with an extreme velocity. It sliced through branches like a meteor falling from the sky.
"Sky machine!" a young boy promptly shouted. His slender blue finger pointed up at the small silver device. They all screamed and instantly scattered right as it crashed into the dense forest floor with a heavy thud. Dirt flew everywhere.
The machine was no bigger than a paint bucket, they usually were, but this one was different. It began to levitate out the foot deep hole in the ground. The children's eyes widened with fascination. Never before had one floated above the ground. Instead of running off like they were supposed to, they stayed and watched.
"Sky machines" were scientific projectiles being sent illegally from a floating Resource Development Administration (RDA) lab near the planet Prometheus. Mostly used for gathering plant samples and taking pictures on celestial environments considered too hostile for humans, these devices were now landing on Pandora, an inhibited moon that was home to the Na'vi.
After the incident on Pandora in August 2154, when a war broke out between the Na'vi and a military group that protected the RDA compound known as Hell's Gate, the Interplanetary Commerce Administration (ICA), considered Pandora off-limits to all organizations. Thanks to numerous environmental protection agencies, word got out to the public about how many humans and Na'vi had lost their lives in the fight. Everyone was outraged and pressure fell on the ICA to cease any research on Pandora that would agitate the civilizations there. It was obvious the Na'vi had won that war and were a group not to be messed with. No one was to tamper with, set foot on, or even fly within so many miles of Pandora until better solutions were met.
The RDA complied for awhile, ordering all remaining humans on Pandora to return to Earth. No longer allowed to mine the planet for their money-making fuel source, unobtanium, RDA went in a new direction. There was too much value in creating more vaccines and commercial products from research on the flora and fauna. A few months later, the first sky machine flew there, going unnoticed by radars because of their small size.
As this new one hovered three feet above the ground, to the curious eyes of Na'vi children, one had to question RDA's current target. The tiny lights on the machine began to flash rapidly and a low buzz sounded from within. One of the children decided to move closer, much to the discomfort of others. They warned him to stay away. At once the noise inside stopped. Three small pistons ejected from the side, and before anyone could react a light mist was discharged into the air. It burst out with such force that some flew onto the child's face. Everyone cried out in panic and ran off. The unlucky one standing closest wiped the dew from his face and followed the rest. The lights on the machine stopped blinking, pistons withdrawn, and the object hastily darted back up into space.