It's a new day, but it all feels old
It's a good life, that's what I'm told
But every day, it all just feels the same
At my high school, it felt more to me
Like a jail cell, a penitentiary
My time spent there it only made me see
That I don't ever wanna be like you
I don't wanna do the things you do
I'm never gonna hear the words you say
And I don't ever wanna, I don't ever wanna be
The Anthem - Good Charlotte.
Chapter 3: Big Words.
Half an hour later, Jake and I were shuffling through all the other new recruits with duffels in hand. My eyes, however, kept shifting behind me where a young man seemed to be following us eagerly. He looked sort of familiar; I may have done Avatar training with him along with Tommy.
"Yeah, you're Jake right? Tom's brother?" The guy asked as he caught up with us. He reminded me of a adorable, yet dorky guy. "You look just like him."
Oh – ouch. Bad call.
Jake glared at him. As if he didn't have enough to live up to.
I decided to intervene. "Spellman, right?" I said.
"Norm," he filled in for me with a blush and smile.
I gave him an easy smile, "Oh yeah, you're the Xenoanthropologist."
He nodded with another bright blush. I could tell he had no experience with the female gender, it was just a guess.
"Yeah."
"You, ah, did the Avatar training with Tommy and me, yeah? I thought I recognised you," I continued with another grin. I turned to Jake, "This is Norm Spellman, he was with Tommy and me during the training."
Norm shook Jake's hand. "He was a great guy, funny. It was a big shock to all of us," He said, a bright smile on his lips. We flanked my brother as he continued, "Duh. Obviously you look like him and all. I mean, if you weren't genetically identical, you wouldn't have been able to take his avatar."
"That's why I'm here," Jake replied, rolling through the corridors.
"So, do you want to go check it out?" Norm questioned, almost bouncing in his step. I bet he still lived with parent's and played video games in the basement. But that was my assumption.
"Sure," I said, shrugging. I wanted to see my avatar, and what I looked like as a native.
Jake smiled slightly at me, and nodded in agreement.
We entered the Bio-lab, a large lab complex with a load of of rooms. The technology in this place was amazing. One of the scientists were looking over three shipping tanks. The one closest to us looked exactly like Tommy, well, Jake. There was blood circulating through a synthetic umbilical cord into the blue creature's abdomen.
The creature had cyan-blue skin and a lemur like tail with long black hair tyed together on the head in a braided ponytail.
"Damn, they got big," I exclaimed, eyes widening.
Norm chuckled, "Yeah, they mature on the trip out. So the proprioceptive Sims worked out pretty well."
A scientist walked up to us, warm chocolate eyes smiling at me. For a scientist, 'Max' already looked cool.
"Yeah, they've got great muscle tone. Give us a few hours; you guys can take 'em for a swim," Max said and turned to me. "Miss Sully, would you like to see your Avatar?"
I nodded enthusiastically and he walked me over to the end pod. Like Jake's, the female avatar had blue skin and black hair in a braided ponytail. Except the females skin seemed a bit darker and the waist a little skinnier than it already was. These ten foot tall natives really had a strange skeletal structure.
Tall yet lithe stances with skinny waists and feline ears, flat noses and tails.
After being introduced to our avatar's we were sent to the computers where Max told us to video log the first day. I offered for Jake to go first, because I really didn't know how do do one.
"Is this right? I just say whatever in these video logs?" Jake asked us as he spoke into the computer.
Norm nodded and replied, "Yeah. You just need to get in the habit of documenting everything. What you see, what you feel, it's all part of the science. Good science starts with good observation. Now hurry up, Lara still needs to do hers."
"Great," I said sarcastically, rolling my eyes.
"Right. Okay," Jake said before turning back to the computer. "So whatever, here I am, doing science, never been in a lab before."
"Okay log off," Max ordered, "it's Lara's turn, and then you get to meet your boss for the next five years."
I logged into the computer and brought up the camera, pursing my lips. "So," I said, glancing around the room a bit, "okay, um, my brother is filling in for my other brother, Tommy, because he died and they needed a genetically identical bloodline. Enough about my brothers...uh, this is harder than I thought. This is my first day here, and i'm, ah, really excited to become my avatar."
"Okay log off, it's time," Max told me. I nodded and logged off, excited about meeting the boss.
Max led us through a short corridor and into the 'link room'. Oh boy. Nerves from high school and meeting a new boss for a job came bounding back. I wrung my hands together and followed the three males, biting my bottom lip.
We entered the link room, a large room filled with machines that resemble a cross between coffins and MRI scanners. I think they're called Psionic Units, or something like that.
What is it with these people and coffins, I thought to myself.
"Grace Augustine is a legend," Norm explained excitedly. "She's the head of the avatar program, and she wrote the book – I mean, literally wrote the book on Pandoran Botany."
Max smirked. "That's because she likes plants better than people," he told us.
I laughed.
One of the 'coffins' opened, revealing a woman probably in her early 50's with fiery red hair. She had a strong face and jaw, and she seemed to be a little cold even without me meeting her yet.
"Where is my goddamn cigarette?" She yelled, getting out of the transferrer to storm about the place.
So that was Grace Augustine, I guessed.
A Tech woman shakily handed a lit cigarette to Dr. Augustine as she stood board still. Apparently when she says jump, they say, "how high?" A scowl was on the doctor's face as we walked towards her.
"And there she is, cinderella from the ball," Max said with a bounce, obviously trying to lighten the mood. "Grace, I'd like you to meet Lara Sully, Norm Spellman and Ja-"
Grace cut him off, "Norm, I hear good things about you. How's your Na'vi?"
"'Awvea ultxari ohengeyä, nawma sa'nok lrrtok siveiyi," Norm said in Na'vi to Grace.
She nodded approvingly, a criticising look on her face. "Tsun tivam. Aylì'u ngian nì'it skepek lu," She replied.
"Zìsìt amrr ftolia ohe, slä zene fko nivume nìtxan."
I furrowed my brow at them, wishing that I at least new Na'vi. I didn't want them insulting me the entire time.
Max cleared his throat and said, "Uh Grace, this is Jake Su-"
"Yeah, yeah, I know who you are and I don't need you. I need your brother," Grace rolled her eyes and gave Max a cold, calculating glare. "You know – the PhD who trained for three years for this mission."
I clenched my teeth. "He's dead," I told her with an almost sarcastic smile. "I'm sorry if that's such an inconvenience for you and everyone."
She rolled her eyes and ignored me, turning to Jake, "How much lab training have you had? Ever run a gas chromatograph?"
"No," Jake replied with a shrug.
"Any actual lab work at all?"
"High school chemistry. But I ditched."
Grace rolled her eyes once more and turned to me, "Lara Sully. I recognise you from the training. Good soldier from what i've heard. How's your Na'vi language? And research on the planet?"
I shrugged, "I had to leave training before I even learnt the language. But I know enough to be able to do this."
She glanced at Jake once more before rounding onto Max. "You see? They're pissing on us without even the courtesy of calling it rain." She turned away. "I'm going to Selfridge." Grace shoved past me, knocking my shoulder.
"Grace, that's, uh, not such a good idea," Max called out to her.
He was promptly ignored.
Max turned towards Jake and I. Well, mostly Jake with a pained look. "Here tomorrow, eight oh hundred hours. Try to use big words," He added hastily and walked off.
I said goodbye to Norm and Jake and I walked off.
We spent that night with me teaching Jake 'big words' to use the next day.
I hoped you liked it :)
Oh yeah, and I was just wondering...are you enjoying this rewritten version, or do you think you should shoot me for deleting the other one..?
I have baked a fresh batch of imaginary cookies and if you press that pretty green button, that imaginary chocolate chip cookie will be yours! Haha
xx