ONE LIFE ENDS, ANOTHER BEGINS (PART 2)
At the bombed site of Hometree near the tree coven that Jake and Neytiri stayed, a collection of branches that used to create the inner spiral of Hometree all remained as barbs from the generational pillars they once were. The plantlife in the area was torched black. Any green that had managed to replenish itself around the wooden ruins contrasted brightly from the woods. Dust billowed from the ravaged trunks in winds that passed. Mo'at coughed slightly at some of the broken branches' particles she inhaled in a second breeze while she sat in place on the ground and took in the atmosphere of the late noon. She mourned the place that the common site of the clan used to be. While most her people still preferred to socialize and eat at the site of their ancestral tree when night came, a presence of sorrow had never quite left the place.
Mo'at missed Hometree's colossal branches that shielded her first seconds of awakeness from the bright morning Suns since she was a child, or the cool nightshade the branches kept over everyone when the moon and stars took the Suns' place. For now, Mo'at's people were doing their best to cope. The people had fashioned new Hammocks to sleep in and tied the beds to other trees that weren't too far from the roots of Hometree. The beds of string were not as high as they once were, like most Omatikaya preferred them to be for a closer view of the night sky, but they were functional.
The long term, Mo'at was sure, would call for them to resettle in a new tree to call home for themselves, their children, and their children's children, just like the Omatikaya had lived for thousands of years. Mo'at inhaled again. She took everything in. The sweet oils of re-growing treelife, the stench from old fire and flaming arrows from the Skypeople's flying ships, the dew from the new underbrush, the Skypeople's metal shrapnel that still lodged itself unknown, and the earthy smell of soil underneath her. She smelled the forest's sorrow and its growth. There was always growth.
Na'vi passed through the largely abandoned site and made presses in the grass that alerted Mo'at's ears while she meditated. In one of the bypassing groups of girls from the village was Mi'nat, who had arrived too early to continue Jake's singing lessons.
"Mo'at!", Mi'nat said happily when she saw the former Tshaik. She promised her two friends that she would come back to follow them to the river to swim and cool from the heat.
Mo'at recognized the young daughter of the clan's oldest and most respected family of weavers immediately. "Kaltxì, ma 'evi," Mo'at welcomed.
"Kaltxì!" Mi'nat said. She looked confused. The other older women who should have also arrived before time to teach Jake their village's songs were nowhere to be found.
"Jake cannot sing with us today. I was told to wait for him until he returns."
"Why must you wait, teacher?"
"If only I could answer," Mo'at smiled. "Neytiri has also not explained this to me. But, she has told me something interesting: she asked me to not be upset when they do return."
Mi'nat bent beside Mo'at and sat on the soil. "Then, I will wait, too."
"Nonsense! You will go play with your friends. They are waiting."
"You cannot wait all alone. You will be lonely."
"You are certainly your mother's daughter," Mo'at complained about Mi'nat's stubbornness. "Go, now. Life is too short to not enjoy it when you are young."
Mi'nat's friends shifted when more Na'vi from the village began to congregate around the site rapidly. Voices rose in interest as more Omatikaya jogged in site to view the commotion.
"Mother, I want to hide!" A child cried.
"Fwew ayfol!" Look at them!, said a curious middle-aged Na'vi to his friends who had followed the crowd after the Avatars.
"Jakesully!" One of Mi'nat's friends cheered. Jake Sully tapped her head lovingly as he passed her, but quickly replaced his focused expression as he and his followers neared Mo'at.
"What is happening?" Mi'nat asked Mo'at.
Mo'at took Mi'nat's hand and followed the gaze of the audience that had now become tens in number. Mo'at saw Jake and Neytiri and Tsu'tey leading Renéharper, three of the clan's Tsamsiyu, and three unknown Skypeople in Na'vi bodies. Mo'at inmediately knew they were foreigners because they moved unsurely the closer they came to the grounds of Hometree. Mo'at was surprised to see Norm Spellman and Max Patel with them also.
The Avatars were surprised to see what Jake had become. He looked respected and regal among the Omatikayans as he led them to their unclear destination. Along the way, however, Jake was friendly to the Avatars and gave them big reminders that his Human soul that they were aware of from before the Great Battle was very much alive in his new Na'vi form. His calm attitude put the Avatars somewhat at ease.
The Avatars thought it was jarring to walk in their forms along Max and Norm, who both wore breathable masks and toted automatic weapons like security guards. Luckily, Norm and Max didn't make any moves to use force on the Avatars. Stern looks from both scientists were the only confrontations the Avatars faced so far. Dr. René Harper and the Omatikayan warriors in Tsu'tey's lead treaded obediently to the destination, but couldn't stop sharing unsure looks with the Avatars. Sky thought they, especially Tsu'tey, all looked guilty in some form that they had not protected them from being seen by their clan leaders.
"Do not be afraid," Tsu'tey spoke again to Sky, Tanner and Victoria. "One more time, you all are not in trouble with us."
Neytiri supported Tsu'tey's earnest plea for his friend's understanding. "We have always taken unknown visitors in clan to Mother. I am Tsahik now, but my training is not over. Mother will decide the will of Eywa."
"The will of Eywa?" Tanner questioned aloud. Unexpectedly, Jake answered after being mostly brief-worded for the entire length of the journey to the ruins of Hometree.
"It'll make sense soon," Jake said. "Don't be scared of Mo'at. She's only going to ask you a few questions of why you're here, and then we'll decide what happens next." Jake explained that it was customary for all tresspassers in the clan to be placed on trial. "Be a hundred percent honest with the dragonlady. She can see through you like a plastic bag."
Ree'ahn, Itoyo, and Piral followed René Harper when Neytiri corralled them together as witnesses. Neytiri startled when Mi'nat rushed from Mo'at to cling to Ree'ahn as he shuffled beside the other warriors.
Victoria met Mi'nat's eyes. Ree'ahn returned a placid look. He felt neutral about Victoria recognizing his sister he had mentioned. Ree'ahn whispered at Mi'nat to be quiet when she kept asking him what was going to happen next.
Neytiri met her four fingers to her temple to greet Mo'at, speaking, "Oel ngati kameie, ma sanok."
Mo'at chuckled in the quiet before the crowd and her daughter. "Why did you bring these Skypeople here, again? Was there another sign from Eywa?"
"No," Jake said to Mo'at and all of his people, causing slight confusion and ruahed murmurs. He allowed Max and Norm to state their case.
"We were on a patrol of the site outside the RDA barracks, Mo'at, and we found these three, including my sister, wandering our land with no permission from Jake." Max began in his speech to the people. Neytiri translated the message swiftly for those who did not understand.
Sky bit her lip hesitantly when her little brother, Max, gave her a pointed look. Max and Norm stayed observant of the other Avatars before them. Whispers from the mass of Na'vi villagers filled the silence.
Norm continued, "We discovered Jake and Neytiri and Tsu'tey were also looking for breachers in the territory. It has come to our knowledge that Tsu'tey has been the first to see these Avatars, and he has not reported them on his first sighting."
The Avatars watched on when Tsu'tey bowed slightly before his former mother-in-law and spoke in Na'vi with resignation to the ground, "It is my fault for not turning them away before. Please do not think bad of them, or of me. They are good-hearted Skypeople and will leave in peace if you ask."
Mo'at took in the information from her clan's human ally, Max, and theorized why his statement was true. Tsu'tey was very loyal to the clan's customs. Surely he had protected them because he had been friends with them in some form. "They will not be sent away so quickly," Mo'at reasoned. "They could have reasons to be here that we do not know. I trust them, because Tsu'tey trusts them." Mo'at looked to Tsu'tey and René Harper, the clan's oldest Skyperson who had learned their ways long ago. They both looked ready to speak for the three Avatars and explain the Avatars' true intentions for going against Jake's orders to not enter the clan and leave Pandora on schedule with the RDA. "Neither of you will speak on their behalf!" Mo'at declared.
"Ma Tsahik..." Piral cheeped from her place near Neytiri.
"And neither will any of you!" Mo'at said to the warriors. "These Skypeople will answer to me."
Tanner's eyes shifted away from Piral when Mo'at stalked his way. He couldn't hear a pin drop when she boomed to him, "what are you called?!"
"Uhh," Tanner stuttered. He struggled to remember his own name. He thought he had no choice but to use his full birthname when Mo'at stared at him like she was reading his soul. She removed a needle from her stately headpiece that formed a bar across her collarbone. "Tanner Martinez-Brown? Gah!" Tanner grabbed the place where Mo'at's bone needle for sewing had striked his arm. He was puzzled when Mo'at pinched the needle in her mouth and tasted his blood.
To avoid similar fates, Victoria and Sky quickly stated their names.
Mo'at pondered an unknown thought to herself, and assumed the two other females carried similar traits in their makeup since they were close friends with the male Skyperson. She said next to all three of them, "Why did you come to us?!"
Sky looked squarely to Mo'at, deciphering that they all had one slim chance to be accepted to stay with the clan or be stuck on Earth forever. Although Sky loved Parker and her family, she knew that Earth was lost as a planet and she didn't want to spend her remaining days there. She felt Max's eyes on her and she knew he was coming to terms with what she may decide to do. A feeling of immense sorrow weighed on Sky, and it tightened her throat when she answered Neytiri's mother. "We came...to learn."
Victoria looked to Tanner beside she. They both realized, too, what was happening. Their only other option besides leaving for Earth was staying with the clan before the RDA starship departed not too long from then.
Tsu'tey listened in awe when he heard Sky declare her intent to stay with his people.
"We have taught other Skypeople," Mo'at said. "It is hard to fill a cup which is already full," Mo'at repeated for a third time as she had done with Renéharper and Jakesully. She repeated it because it was truth. Mo'at chose to explain herself that time, since the three looked slightly misunderstanding. "As you were a child in your world, you will become a child again, here. It will not be easy."
"My cup's empty," Victoria said, ending in a whisper, "trust me."
Ree'ahn held Mi'nat's hand as he wondered what Victoria meant. Itoyo and Piral kept their ears open at the scene.
Mo'at took interest in Victoria. Instead, Jake made clearance for himself and spoke in front of everyone to Victoria, "what are you? A soldier? A scientist?" He smiled in patience.
Victoria looked to Jake and saw he was studying her intensely. He had truly changed and she felt she had no authority to explain who she was. She was, honestly, nobody. She wasn't as important to the RDA as her friends, for she was only an intern. She was abandoned by her own mother as a child. She had nothing of true worth to attach to her name. Sky was an amazing scientist, and Tanner was a chief field medic in the RDA. Who was she? Jake waited for her answer patiently.
"I... don't know yet." Victoria admitted, blinking back unexpected tears.
"What has she said?" Mi'nat asked Ree'ahn. She thought it was ridiculous for anyone to not know who they were. All had a purpose in her clan. "That's silly!" Mi'nat yelled at the tall Skywoman, earning some laughs from the tribe at her squeaky outburst. She was annoyed when Ree'ahn urged her to stay silent and listen.
"You can find out, here with us." Jake said in a soft approach to the Avatars. He placed his hands on Victoria's shoulders. He could tell all of them had made up their minds. They would become one of his own people if they accepted the chance he was giving them. "Would you want to learn?"
Victoria looked up into Jake's set and golden eyes. The blue skin around them crinkled. Victoria felt a strange feeling. She felt like she was being welcomed home, like she finally found somewhere she belonged. She and Tanner and Sky agreed, "yes."
Neytiri joined beside Jake to welcome the Avatars' decision with a bright smile.
"Wait," Max blurted. He came to Sky's hip at his human height. "Are you sure about this, Sky?" His voice wavered. He thought of Grace, eho had died in an attempted soul transfer to save her from a fatal wound. "Not everyone can pass into their Avatar bodies. I don't want to lose you!"
Sky nodded, unable to speak. Floods of memories of their family and her fiancee filled her mind. There was no turning back if she decided to undergo a transformation ceremony to separate herself from her human form. "You'll never lose me, Max." Sky embraced him and wept. Norm patted Max on the shoulder and looked in confirmation to Jake.
"I sense this decision is being smiled upon by Eywa. We will hold a ceremony immediately," said Mo'at, who looked pleased beside Jake and Neytiri.
Tsu'tey was flabbergasted by the sudden decision of his friends. They looked determined to leave their old lives behind. There must have been something monumental that happened when he was away, Tsu'tey thought, that pushed them to want to stay in the clan and learn to be Omatikayan. He looked to his warriors and Ree'ahn, who all looked equally dumbfounded. Tsu'tey would ask them more about their decision when there was good time to do so. If it was Eywa's will for them to be accepted, Tsu'tey did not wish to interfere.
Norn spoke up to the Avatars, "if you're all sure about this, you can all stay with Jake here and we'll take care of everything else."
"Thanks, Norm," Jake said. He straightened like he remembered something. "Oh, yeah. Who's going to teach them?" Jake looked hopefully to Neytiri.
"I am sorry; I am too busy now," Neytiri said truthfully.
"I don't mind," René spoke up. He drew attention from the crowd because he had been a silent observer of the trial for a while. He looked at Sky and her human brother who were still hugging and crying. "There is much they must learn from me first, since I used to be in their shoes."
"Kehe, Renéharper; they will be taught as you were taught." Mo'at corrected kindly. It would be better for them to seek counsel with one of their own but be instructed in a new way of life with a native Omatikayan. Neytiri had done well with Jake, but it was true that she would not have the time now to dedicate to the Avatars' resocialization. "Tsu'tey..."
"I will be happy to teach them," Tsu'tey said. Tanner and Victoria showed small smiles of comfort at knowing they would be initiated by someone they trusted and knew personally.
"You will not teach the Skypeople either. You have yet to be rematched with a mate and you have too many responsibilities as a mowarsiyu. You will appoint someone capabale of taking your place."
Kempe?!, Tsu'tey reeled to himself. He thought of Piral, but she would push his friends too hard. Itoyo was very patient, but there was a chance he could be too hesitant to point out anything the Dreamwalkers did wrong, and that was costly if his friends wished to navigate the forests on their own. There was no other choice.
"Ree'ahn'eylan," Tsu'tey spoke smugly. "You will take my place. You will teach them our ways to speak and walk as we do."
Ree'ahn looked wildly to the dozens of eyes that turned his way. He pleaded to Mo'at, "Ma Tsahik, that is not fair! Why me?"
Mo'at raised her hand to the warrior. "It is decided!"
Ree'ahn snarled so loudly it echoed. Mi'nat giggled by his hip.
"Ree'ahn te Tskaha Ree'ahn'itan will teach you our ways. Learn well, Victoria, Sky, and Tanner. Then, we will see if your insanities...can be cured." Mo'at's broad nose fanned upward when she grinned.
Tanner, Sky, and Victoria nodded together, feeling as if their lives were being reborn at that very moment.
END of Act 1
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