Here is the next chapter, you know the drill...rights and blah blah.

Navi Language: Italics

Jess' thoughts: Bold

Come on just on with it, you know they want to know what's going on.

Oh,...uhmm right anyway, enjoy. Love Dash

Chapter VIII – Kitten's Gamble

With her knowledge as a Xenoanthropologist Jess was always seen as an outsider in the military, but her knowledge about species-biology is what landed her the job. Although she kept fit and exercised regularly she was never too nimble and quite clumsy. So most of the time she spent with her family in the lab. Her parents are Marine Biologist, and she helped them from time to time in one of the last known aquariums.

It's tough being in the military, but being recruited when your Seventeen is even tougher. As a child she always had good grades, but times were tough and the military was desperate as the world was getting worse. They started looking for news ways to survive, the only hop was the avatar project. But space was limited. Everyone knew what was at stake, and these stakes were too high for some people to manage.

Jess had always had a keen interest in animals, during school she was always the best in her class when it came to biology, and it showed. Being taught by two renowned ones, outside of school. Her parents. With this she used her knowledge to help clone tigers back from extinction, as she understood the bio-chemistry better than anyone. With the help from her parents she video-called with scientists in Beijing to achieve this. Quite the achievement for a sixteen year old girl.

This is how she got the attention of the military. Later that same year, she was taken out of school, and recruited. She was told to learn this strange new language called Na'vi. Only being told that is is essential for the military position.

To her surprise she picked it up quite easily, everyone in the class was doing well though, and everyone would help each other out. The class would take place every three days. Some even dropped out. But it was worth while. Then eight months later came the reward, the last class. She had made some friends but her best friend was Tommy, he was also a scientist. He knew a lot more than she did as to what was going on but was sworn to secrecy. He also had twin brother called Jake, he was always a the serious one, Tommy quite the mischievous one.

They got into loads of trouble together. He always had a keen interest in Jess but they were just friends in the end. Never in a romantic way, but more like a little sister. She was a mate, trustworthy, supportive, too clever for her own good, but still lovable and adorable.

Whilst they were in the military learning a new language Jake was away fighting on the front lines. He was a soldier and was currently away with the fifth team also known as 'Jar-head'. Who's current goal was focused on retrieving foods and supplies behind enemy lines. However he came home earlier than planned. Being to close to land mine he was injured and shrapnel that was embedded in his legs was too severe and resulted in nerve damage he lost their function. This was a massive blow to Tommy, almost loosing his brother. But they pulled through and got even closer. Jess was there for them, and they carried on like nothing ever happened. Except for Jake who was never the same afterwards, but stayed strong for his brother and Jess.


Back on Pandora (Present Day)


Jess sat next to Sylwanin, her eyes watering, dripping down her face. Sylwanin had blood dripping down hers, head injured. She then realised that they were both in danger. She didn't want this to happen, not again. Her injury was not as bad as she thought, and her leg felt better with a bit of rest. Hugging Sylvie's body she put her ears over her chest, still breathing. 'Thank God' no 'Thank Ewya'.

The rustling came closer, but suddenly it seemed like it came from all sides. Desperate she looked around for a some something she could use as weapon, but couldn't find anything. Out from the bushes came a Viperwolf. a hyena/wolf-like carnivore that has six legs, a lean, powerful torso and has evolved to travel swiftly over long distances in search of prey. Very few predators will attempt an attack on a viperwolf. Walking towards them inspecting it's caught prey, it came closer. Her ears perked and she turned her head, two more from the sides, and one more from behind. They were surrounded, desperately she tried to think of something to do. The Viper wolves started circling the two of them, carefully assessing their prey. They could smell the blood from Sylwanin's wound and were

"You will not take her." Whispering underneath her breath, as she was crying, keep her friend safe close. Again "You will not have her."This time a bit louder. She looked down at Sylwanin, kissed her forehead, slightly licking her wound. Then taking all her courage and putting it into one pot, she stood up and sobbingly screamed at the top of her voice. "Nantang, Xie karr...Leave her... alone, you will not have her. She is mine." Breathing heavily her tears stopped, and she was filled with rage and the will to protect the girl beside her.

The Viperwolf or Nantang that was the first to approach, and the leader of the pack came towards her first. Jess bared her teeth towards it and started hissing, and with a deep growl she took a fighting stance. The viperwolf slowly came closer, slightly intimidated by the young Na'vi in front of it.

"Go away, you want her you go through me." She growled as the Viperwolf stopped in it's tracks. A windy breeze came across her, almost weary and chilling. All that could be heard was the angry growl from Jess and the heavy breathing from the Viperwolves. This sent a chill down her spine all the way through to her tail. Then miraculously they started to disperse, and disappear just as swiftly as they arrived. She quickly turned her attention back to Sylwanin still lying on the floor. Ever so gently and with care she picked her up. Legs over one arm, back resting on the other and head resting on her own shoulder.

Walking carefully away on the opposite direction to the Wolves. She tried to make her way back towards the clearing and the lake they were before. It was getting dark and was more and more difficult to see, but the darker it got the more the forest lit up. There was a glow along the roots, almost guiding her way through. Spending a few nights out and away she knew that the bioluminescence of the forest was bright if you allowed it to be, however it never had such a distinctive path to follow. It was almost as if she was guided. The only thing on her mind was to get this gorgeous young girl in her arms to safety.

So she eventually made her way out. Putting Sylwanin gently on the sandy bank, she quickly gathers some moss, flowers and some leaves from the surrounding trees and supports her head. She knelt down beside her. She ripped of a piece of her top, using her fangs. Taking some of the moss she gathered, she wrapped it into the leather from her loincloth. Jess started to clean the wounds on Sylwanin's head, thankfully the cut was not too deep. After the wound was cleaned, she continued to apply some pressure. After a few minutes, she let go.

There was no more bleeding, and the wound had sealed up with a small of the moss. Which she had made into a small green paste to seal the wound. Moss is naturally one of the most cleanest substances found, there are small amounts of healthy bacteria found in moss, which is great for short-term sterilization. Something she picked up as a survival trick, through her biology research. All she could now is wait. Laying down, cuddling up next to her she hugged Sylwanin to keep her warm. The nights were cold, and this is all that she could do right now. Being next to her, she couldn't help but smell the sweet yet flowery scent coming from her hair. It was intriguing but also quite satisfying at the same time.


Meanwhile Jake's also got a new problem. He sees shapes moving with liquid grace in the night like shadows behind him. He is being stalked by a pack of Viperwolves. Jake catches only glimpses, a glint of eyes, a slinking black movement. Then nothing. Darkness. Ripping apart his T-shirt with his bare hands he knots his T-shirt around the butt end of the spear. A long stick he sharpened earlier with his knife. Tree sap trickling down a tree-trunk. Jake jams the makeshift torch into the sap, soaking the shirt with it. Taking a waterproof match from his survival kit lights the torch. The torch creates a pool of light surrounded by pulsing, leaping shadows.

Jake turns warily as he moves along the trail. Behind him are several pairs of reflective green eyes. Another pair flanking him beside the trail. Black-on-black shapes which seem to flow like liquid. He looks up, sees one cross a limb overhead. Another on his opposite flank. Then a hideous sound, like a hyena's psychotic laugh. The Viperwolves can run like a dog and climb like a monkey. They are hunting Jake from the ground and the trees. Jake runs by torch-light, on the edge of panic. He reaches a steep banked stream and without thinking runs across it on a horizontal trunk and stops dead on the other side. The torch illuminates the green eyes cutting ahead of him across the trail. The Viperwolves have him encircled. The psychotic barks become more intense as they signal each other, getting excited. One makes a run at him, angling on his legs from behind but Jake whirls, jamming the torch in its face. It yips and goes past, but another already moves in. He jabs it with the business end of the spear and it snarls in despair, retreating, baring its fangs. Now half a dozen are circling him in the open, and he finally sees what he's up against. The six-limbed, shiny chitinous skin, their paws leathery black claw like hands. Intelligent eyes. Glistening black teeth in dead white gums.

Jake realizes that he is making his final stand. He whirls the torch in an arc, keeping them at bay, and feels a rush of adrenaline. It goes through him like a lightning bolt and the fear is gone. Screaming at them

"I don't have all goddamn night! Come on! Come on!" With snarls and a blur of motion they attack. Jake sprints, trying to escape, but a snarling viperwolf leaps, grabbing him by the ankle with its fore-hand. Jake tears away, sprawling, scrambling to get up as three wolves charge at once. The nearest leaps at his throat just as, Thunk! An arrow appears in its chest. The wolf lands on him, already a dead weight. He pushes it off in time to see a blue amazon like warrior emerge from the trees, as she locks another arrow, draw and fire in one fluid motion. An unearthly yowl as another wolf falls.

It was Neytiri, Sylwanin's older sister. She leaps right over Jake, and cracks her bow down on the skull of a circling wolf. Jake was just standing there in awe as she drops under its weight, but rolls, coming up on top of it with a knife in her hand. Her knife flashes down, buried to the hilt in its chest. Snarling a wounded wolf attacks Jake, and he kicks it away, but it spins and leaps back onto him, and Jake barely catches its throat in time to keep the snapping jaws away from his face.

Meanwhile Neytiri swings her bow in a big arc, cracking it like a whip across the heads and shoulders of two remaining wolves.

"Rrreeyaaah! Hyaaaah!" she hisses as the wolves slink and circle, yelping as the bow whistles past them. Finally they break and run, with Neytiri chasing and they bound away through the foliage as she SHOUTS after them "Raaaarrrr!" Jake has his adversary pinned and is choking it with all his weight. Finally it stops thrashing. Panting, he releases it and looks up at this Na'vi in front of him.. Her tail lashes from side to side as she scans the forest, listening to the fading yelps of the wolves. Satisfied the attack is over, she turns. She regards him coldly for a second, then walks past him. Neytiri picks up the torch and extinguishes it in a stream.

"Wait, don't..." Jake blinks around at the darkness, then realizing he can still see. In fact, with the blinding torchlight gone, the forest is transformed. The jungle has come alive with bioluminescence. All sorts of spots and patterns, ghosts and galaxies of blue-green light. Jake scrambles to recover his spear.

As Neytiri kneels beside a dying wolf. It's cries are pitiful, and yet full of sorrow. It paws the air, trying to raise its head. She pulls her knife from its chest. And in a calm voice;

"Forgive me, my brother." She cuts its throat, ending the pitiful cries. She touches its head gently, regarding it with sadness. Jake couldn't understand the Na'vi language and was confused. Neytiri wipes the knife and returns it to the sheath at her waist. She crosses to another slain wolf and kneels, pulling the arrow from its heart.

"Look, um, I know you probably don't understand this. But...uhmm... thanks. Thank you. I owe you." Neytiri ignores him, assuming a prayer posture over the next dead animal. Again soflty speaking in Na'vi

"Forgive me. May your spirit run with the Great Mother."

"I would have been screwed if you hadn't come along...hehe." he states sounding pleased that they held them off. She rises and walks away without looking at Jake.

"Hey, wait. Wait! Where you goin'?" He crashes through some plants, catching up to her. "Slow down a second will you. I just want to thank you for killing those..." He makes the mistake of grasping her shoulder and almost instantaneously she wallops him upside the head with her bow in a fierce backhand swing, laying him out flat. He looks up to see a the fury standing over him. A Fury who speaks English heavily accented, halting, angry English.

"Don't thank! You don't thank for this! This is sad. Very sad, only."

"Okay, I'm sorry. Whatever I did...I'm sorry." She gestures at the bodies of the viperwolves.

"All this is your fault! They did not need to die."

"Hey What...They attacked me. How'm I the bad guy he..." She silences him with the tip of her bow at his throat.

"Your fault! You are like a baby, making noise, don't know what to do. You should not come here, all of you! You only come and make problems."

" I don't argue with that, but why save me, they could have eaten me?" Gesturing back a the wolves that lay in their wake. Suddenly silenced herself Neytiri, was in thought.

"Why save you? She then asked.

"Yeah, why save me?" Jake muttered back.

"You are strong of heart, no fear.." turning around almost not willing to admit it. But then turns "...but ignorant, stupid like a child. As naïve as my sister."

"Wait you have a sister?" he asks intriguingly. She quickly turned away and kept moving as Jake followed her through the woods, he kept trying to pester him, and eventually she caved and let him follow. As they came across the elevated root of an enormous tree. A horizontal trunk as big as an oak. They cross a deep gorge. A waterfall shimmers silver in the Polyphemus-light. Vines hang down a hundred feet into the gorge, and among them swoop stingbats and other night flyers.

"Hey, slow down. Look, I think we just got off on the wrong foot and..." Jake looks down, suddenly aware of the height... "you just have to get to know me. I'm Jake. Jake Sull..." A vine catches his spear and spins him off balance. He drops the spear and almost falls off the root. "Whooaa, shit!" Neytiri catches him with one hand, gripping his arm. He watches the spear cartwheel down to splash in the river below. She pulls him upright. Shouts at him something in Na'vi.

"Look, I need your help."

"You should not be here." she demands gesturing away the way they came.

"So take me with you."

"No. You go back, we do not need more of you sky people." Getting rather annoyed again. "Wait, what do you mean more sky people." He paused for a moment. " Do you mean Jessica?" he asked. Neytiri looked at him with a confused look, as she wasn't aware that they knew each other.

Then suddenly from above several wood-sprites float down through the trees. Following them, they descend silently toward Jake and Neytiri. Sensing a presence, she looks up to see the wood-sprites, pulsing with purpose, float right towards Jake. They dance gently around his shoulders and head. With this she knew that he had some purpose. And Just her like her sisters vision she knew that Ewya had a greater plan for him too. So she allowed him to continue following her, taking him to Home-Tree.


While they have given up on trying to wake Jess from Cryo knowing that she is busy as an avatar, over in the lab they desperately check Jake's vitals, as they have no idea what is going on with him. Jess was probably in her avatar for twenty hours easily, however there is still a body on the other side. She was dreaming about her first meeting with her, and how far their friendship seemed to have come in this short time. She continued to hug her tightly in her sleep not wanting to let go. However there was good news, sometime through the night Sylvie woke up and saw this Na'vi girl. She felt her presence the entire time, she knew that she was there this entire time.

Gently she woke her up, stroking the side of her face.

"Hey there, how's my little hero?" Lying next to her, she looked into Jess' eyes as they opened.

"You're awake." Filled with Joy, she hugged her even closer, Sylwanin hesitated for a second, at the sudden hug. But it was expected and returned it. "I thought I lost you to those Nantang."

"You didn't lose me kitty. You found me, and brought me back from my darkness." She looked into her eyes, starting to tear up. She didn't expect such a cute response. "Hey...don't cry, it doesn't suit you." She comforted Jess, licking up her tears as gently as a Lioness comforts her cub. It was only a moment but Jess suddenly found her mind lost. It was almost as if Sylwanin was cleaning away her doubts. Jess turned looked her deep in the eye's;

"Lets go back home, get some real rest." Smiling as she tries to stay strong.

"Agreed let's go home." Sylwanin smiles back, as they help each other from the floor supporting each other as they stand. Also using it as an excuse to keep the contact. Walking along the side of the lake, they headed towards the slightly larger clearing they arrived from. Holding hands they didn't say anything. Besides they didn't have to. They both knew they wanted this closeness of each other. The warmth of each others hands said all they needed to.

Not having to walk too far, they already saw their ride home, Kirr'ar was sleeping under some trees further down the lake, she had built herself a small nest using some leaves. Ikran's are very loyal, and the bond they create is only with one single rider in their lifetime, and most Na'vi only ever have the one bond too. Gently the two girls woke up the resting friend. Greeting them both them she bowed her head, and so did Sylwanin before they went in with a small nuzzle. Climbing on top Sylwanin, took point, reaching out she helped up Jess. Who sat behind her. Sylwanin took both her arms and wrapped them tightly around her waist. So tightly in fact that she pulled the whole girl with her. She peered over her shoulder so she could see.

"So, ready to go home?" Sylwanin asked as she turned towards Jess, who simply nudged her head slightly, and kissed the young Na'vi, who was tightly in her grasp on the lips. Sylwanin turned quickly. "Grrryyiiuup!" She mimicked an Ikran sound, elegantly as the creature it self, and they both set off into the night sky. The stars strung across the velvety night. All the distressed feelings from the challenging day seemed to disappear. As they left the small Island behind. As they went into the distance they noticed a shooting star. Jess made a wish, simply resting her head whilst embracing her beautiful companion in her arms.

Hey there Guys, it was fun writing this one. I apologized for the wait before, but I'll do it again. Sorry for such a long delay. It has been a busy year for me. Hope you can forgive as the chapters will come a lot sooner now.

Love you guys and thanks for being so patient with me ^_^