Hey everyone. I know it's been a while. I've been studying a lot, and also been a little depressed about Hurricane Irene that hit New York, where my family lives. Thankfully, no one in my community was killed, but everyone has been hti bad by it. We're slowly rebuilding. Any help you can offer is greatly appreciated. Thank you.
Chapter 7
Follow the Leader
Jake sat with Neytiri by his side. They were within one of two Valkyrie shuttles that were flying to the north. Na'vi warriors and human soldiers sat on the seats in the wall. Crates and packages of guns and ammunition sat in the center of the cargo space. The other shuttle carried ten of the clan's ikrans, ten pa'li, and six of the army's AMP suits and eight new model ATVs. The majority of Na'vi warriors appeared very nervous and tense, being on board a human machine. Some were even getting a little sick from the high speed they were not normally used to.
It had been thirteen hours since Philip had left for the north with a few of his men and the Avatars. And it had also been six hours since they received their last contact with him; if a distress signal could be considered contact.
"Mister Sully," the pilot said over the radio from the front of the ship. "We're approaching the source of the distress signal. And there's something else you should see."
"Good," Jake replied. He left Neytiri and went to the cockpit. He looked through the window of the cockpit and saw, a few hundred meters away, a circle of crushed trees and a wrecked shuttle. "Have you tried contacting them?"
"Yes, but now reply, Mister Sully," the pilot replied. "Just the beacon. There's something else." He pointed further across the horizon.
Jake saw the hundreds of metallic spires that rose above the trees far off in the distance. This was definitely off. He set aside his amazement and shock and focused on the matter at hand.
"Take us as low as you can and put us in hover," Jake ordered. "We're going to drop from cables."
The pilot acknowledged and brought the Valkyrie twenty meters over the wreckage.
Jake moved to the back of the shuttle. "Everyone, exo-packs on," he ordered. The crew hastened to get their masks on. "I need ten soldiers to drop down with me."
Ten soldiers rose from their seats and joined him by the rear ramp. Extension cables with harnesses slowly slithered down from the ceiling. The soldiers slipped the harnesses on. It took Jake a little more time since he had to adjust his to his own height.
Jake checked his rifle slung over his shoulder. "Guns ready?" he asked.
"Yes, sir," they replied, their rifles slung over their backs. Jake might not have been their Captain, but they still had respect for the chieftain.
When they were ready, Jake gave the okay. A soldier flipped a latch and the rear ramp opened, Pandoran air slipping inside.
Neytiri ran up to Jake, her face worried. "Be careful, my Jake."
Jake smiled. "Relax, babe. I'll be back before you know it."
With that said, Jake and the troopers jumped off the ramp. They fell only briefly until the extension cable brakes began to slowly apply pressure, slowing their descent. When the troopers finally touched ground, they disconnected themselves from the cables, drew their rifles, and moved over to the downed aircraft.
The rear ramp was open. Something didn't seem right. They moved into the wreckage and it was empty. Jake still didn't let his guard down.
"Hello," Jake called. His voice faintly echoed then went silent. No reply came. "Move in!"
They soldiers flanked both sides of the shuttle as they strode in. Jake went up to the cockpit. He peeked his head in. Every instrument and monitor was trashed.
"What a mess," said Sergeant Julian as he stepped beside Jake.
It was a little harder for Jake to move in such a crowded space. "Look for the beacon," he said.
Julian and another soldier moved inside and began searching.
"Here! I found it," said Julian, leaning under the right pilot's seat. He pulled out a small emergency locater beacon, it's light still blinking. "Well, that explains the signal."
Jake furrowed his brow. "But that doesn't explain what happened to Captain McCoy and the expedition team."
"Could they have been captured?" the other soldier asked. "Maybe the enemy spotted them and shot them down."
"Someone as bad ass as the Captain could never get captured," Julian exclaimed.
"I agree," said Jake. "If they were captured or ambushed, there would have been evidence of a firefight."
Philip rose from the crumpled flight deck. The consoles and monitors were shattered and shedding sparks. He checked the two pilots and they were all right. Marcus and Norm were also okay. Avatars were more durable than humans – a keen fact that Philip hated to admit.
What was that force that hit them? Had the RDA discovered how to utilize the alien technology?
If so, then Pandora was in big trouble!
Philip and the two Avatars moved into the cargo hold. The soldiers and other Avatars had been safely strapped into their seats during the crash. Valkyries were constructed to endure extreme stress depending on the angle of its fall, though never crash landings.
"Norm, Marcus," said Philip. "I want you to organize our equipment and the team. We've still got a mission."
Norm stared at him incredulously. "Are you kidding me? We just crashed and that's all you can-"
"Don't argue with me," Philip said in raised voice. "It would be no different than our away missions back in Nigeria. If we were ever downed, we still carried out the mission if possible. Now do it!"
Norm wanted to argue, but went to his work with Marcus in tow. Philip moved over to the metal case and inspected its contents anxiously. He sighed with relief to see that the real package was undamaged.
However, the fact that they were a few kilometers from the ancient city was a major setback to his plan. He closed the lid securely and went back to the cockpit. The pilots were trying to contact the base camp at Hometree.
"Mayday, mayday," Gary, the head pilot, said into the radio. "This is Away Team. We have crashed and are in need-"
Philip flipped off the radio. "Forget transmitting and come help us in the back."
"Sir, shouldn't we call for-"
"That's an order!"
The pilots abandoned their stations and moved to the cargo area.
When they were gone, Philip opened up the panel covering the electrical system. While no one was looking, he cut several cables and pulled out the essential fuses, effectively cutting off all power to every one of the shuttle's still operable system.
Philip went back to the team as they began loading their equipment into their four Ground Assault Vehicles – also known as Swans. At least they still had a fast method to reach their destination. Philip put the metal case into the first truck's compartment in the back of the vehicle. He could not risk it being exposed to the outside.
"What's that?" Norm asked curiously.
"Emergency supplies," he said, which was not a lie. There were indeed rations and med-kits inside to conceal the package within.
Marcus furrowed his brow. He motioned Philip over to talk with him away from the others.
"Philip, I don't think that this is right," said Marcus. "They at least deserve to know the truth."
"We've already gone over this, Marcus," Philip said sternly. "If we tell them, there will be arguments. If they argue, we put this mission into jeopardy. There are other people at stake here. Now my mind is set. No more talk about this."
Marcus nodded in understanding.
They moved back to the four trucks. The team stood on the deck, waiting for the Captain.
Philip began. "All right, listen up. I know we're in a rough situation here, but we are not abandoning our original goal."
"Sir, shouldn't we wait for backup," one of them suggested.
"Negative. We have no other functioning radios, our throat-mics don't have enough signal strength, and the Valkyrie has no power."
Gary argued, "But we were just transmitting a moment ago."
"Not anymore," said Philip. "The power's gone. Our only choice now is to approach the target area. If we can capture the enemy forces, they may have some radios we can use. Besides, the Avatars can disconnect any time we want if things get bad."
"What are we supposed to do then?" Gary asked, indicating to himself and his copilot.
"It won't do any good staying behind," said Philip. "Everyone is going on this mission. It's safer that way. No arguments. Is that understood?"
"Yes, sir," they responded, the pilots less enthusiastically.
"Then let's mount up."
The soldiers pulled on their exo-helmets. Everyone jumped into the trucks. One soldier ran to the back of the shuttle and opened the loading ramp, plumes of toxic air venting into the now uninhabitable shuttle.
Philip took the wheel in the front truck and gunned the vehicle to life. He drove first out of the shuttle and into the Pandoran jungle. Although Pandoran terrain was rough, that didn't mean that ground vehicles could not navigate them. Swans were built just for this purpose. Although choppers were the preferred mode of transportation on Pandora, Swan trucks, built with six wheels, could climb over nearly any terrain with efficiency, as long as one could fit in between the trees. A Swan was also featured with a gunner platform.
That didn't make the trip any more comfortable, though, for the team in question. They were constantly jerked around as the trucks bucked and jumped over roots, rocks, and bumpy terrain.
Gary looked back to his copilot and whispered, "Hey, Frank. Did you activate the beacon?"
Frank nodded. "Yeah. We should be getting help in no time. As long as Captain Hot Rod up front doesn't get us killed first."
"Mister Sully," another soldier called from the rear end of the wrecked ship. "We found some tracks behind the wreckage. They match the wheels from the trucks the Captain and his team took."
"Where do they lead?" Jake asked.
"Into the forest."
The soldiers stepped outside the wreckage. A couple meters away from the ship were curved lines imprinted in some mud. They turned through the jungle, between the trees, heading north.
"I know where they're going," Jake said to the soldiers. "We're done here. Back to the shuttle."
They pulled their harnesses back on and the extension cables pulled them back up to the ship. When they were back inside, Jake hit his throat-mic. "Pilot, head for those... those towers you saw."
"Yes, sir," came the reply.
Neytiri walked up to Jake. "What is it, Jake?" she asked. "What has happened to Philip?"
"He's gone somewhere," he answered. "Someplace strange. I know it."
"What strange place?"
"We'll find out soon enough." Jake wasn't as worried for his friends' safety as much as he was for Philip's choice of action. What was Philip up to?
