After walking back to the hometree with a pulsing and aching arm, Awa got ready for the day. It was training with the newbies day at Hell's Gate so most of her day would be spent over there. Last time she was there she was supposed to talk to Grace about quitting the job but in all her boredom she forgot, but this time, this time she wasn't going to forget. She was done with the RDA, she was done with humans (With a few exceptions) and she was finally ready to cut all ties with them.
"Tsu" She called out to her mate after walking back up to their shared hammock. Her arm was pulsing with hot burning pain and she knew she needed to go see Ngeha before leaving to her job. She was in no state to teach but she would have to bear through it.
Said Na'vi responded with a sleepy hum from the hammock, his eyes were closed and he was curled up to her side of the hammock.
"I have to leave now" She told him with a smile, he was cute when he was sleepy. "I'll be back later" Awa continued and leaned down to press a kiss to the corner of his lip, which made his lips curl into a slight smile.
"Quit your job" He mumbled out and then smacked his lips together before shifting slightly to make himself comfy. "Don't want you around those bugs"
Awa chuckled at his words, remembering a time where he used to call her the same thing. It felt like an eternity ago, but at the same time it felt like only yesterday that Atxa offered to train her. "I know, I'm quitting today"
Her mate mumbled a good and then waved her off with a sleepy grin.
...
"I'm here to see Selfridge" Awa told the guard standing outside of his office, the na'vi sized mask sitting way too tight on her face and makes speaking difficult. The hallways of this place was way too small for her so she had to constantly bend down to avoid banging her head on the ceiling, the doorways were even smaller. So much that she could barely squeeze herself through them. Her arm had been put into a sling by Ngeha who had deemed it in a worse condition than when she broke it.
"And you are" The guard sassed back, putting his hand on his hip with a defiant look on his face. He either didn't understand that she could crush him like a bug in less than a second or he was trying too hard not to seem afraid.
"You're new" She commented, he had obviously come with the later batch of RDA people. "I'm Awa"
"Stay here" He ordered her and then punched in the code needed to get into Selfridge's office with clumsy movements. He was really new, she observed. When he got the door open he stomped inside and the door closed behind him with a gentle swoosh and then a click.
"If it isn't my favorite traitor" A male voice mused from behind her, the voice all to familiar and making a deep shiver go through her body. "I heard you're having a meeting with Selfridge, I hope you know what will happen if you quit your job"
"You never let me forget, Quaritch" Awa snapped back, her tail making a aggressive swing and a hiss built in her throat. "Don't let him get to you, don't let him get to you, Don't let him get to you" She whispered to herself and took several calming breaths before she felt the the overwhelming fear slowly ebb away.
"I miss you" He whispered in what she assumed was supposed to be a seductive tone as he stepped closer to her and actually dared to stroke a hand over her stomach.
She snarled at him and knocked his hand away with a quick swat of her own. "Don't touch me"
"Deny it all you want, monkey lover, you love it when I touch you." Quaritch told her and carressed a hard hand down her thigh, she was sure he would have gone higher if he was actually tall enough to do it.
"Leave me alone" She whispered, her hands beginning to shake as memories pushed their way through, images flashed of similar moments where he had done it, and times where it got worse.
He chuckled, the sound loud and sarcastic. "I will never leave you alone" He smacked her thigh with his hand, making a loud slapping sound as his hand met her skin.
She jumped away from him with a yelp of pain, the are was already turning a deep red, standing out from the blue and cyan stripes of her skin. "Don't touch me, please" Awa begged, tears forming in her eyes and her tail laying limp on the floor.
"I will touch you when I want and where I want" He hissed back and raised a hand, ready to hit her again when the door opened and the guard stepped outside with a bored look on his face.
"Colonel" The guard greeted with surprise coloring his voice. "I didn't expect you"
"I was just passing by, decided to greet an old friend" Quaritch replied with an innocent smile, as if that was all he was doing. Not at all ripping up old wounds and further hurting Awa.
The guard nodded with a blank face, bowing his head slightly before turning to where Awa stood frozen and shaking like a leaf. Her face was pale and tears dripped from her redding eyes. "Selfridge is ready for you in his office"
That snapped Awa out of her fear induced haze and her eyes snapped back into focus. "Thank you" She told the guard, her voice shaky and dripping with emotion.
She turned to walk into the room when Quaritch voice stopped her in her tracks. "Don't forget what I told you, Awa"
Awa didn't answer him, only rubbed a spot on her arm before walking through the door and into the office of the one she came to see. Hopefully this would be a short meeting so she could go talk to Grace before she had to go back. She didn't like being away from the clan territory for long.
The Na'vi shuffled her feet as she walked up to the small desk with an even smaller Selfridge sitting behind it. He was staring down at his papers that were organized in a neat pile, not a single paper out of line or sticking out of the bunch.
"You wanted to see me?" He asked her without looking at her, pushing a pencil to its place in the line of pencils he had placed on the right side of his pile of papers.
"Yes" She answered and shuffled her feet a bit before continuing. "I want to quit my contract with the RDA"
He hummed in response, not a single emotion showing in his face besides the concentration he had when organizing his things. "And why is that?"
"I don't want to work for you anymore" Awa stated simply and prayed that she didn't have to elaborate on the why.
"So you want to stop working for me and instead live full time with than clan of wild beasts of yours? In a body the RDA made for you?" Selfridge asked, placing the pen in its right place and then looking up at her with a blank look on his face. "You do realise we are the reason you are here?"
"Yes, and I am very thankful for it but I don't want to work for you anymore." Awa thanked the man without a single genuine tone to her voice, they had ruined her and now he wants to stop her from leaving.
"Terminating your contract means that we will no longer recognise you as one of us, you will officially be seen as one of the Natives. You understand this?" He spoke slowly and drew out all the words, it was almost as if he was doing it on purpose to make her seem dumb. Of course she knew what it meant.
"I'm aware" She nodded.
"And you still want to go through with it?" He confirmed with a small grin on his face. "If a war breaks out we will kill you along with all of those beasts."
"I understand." She responded, her anger rising at his words but she knew this wasn't the place to show it.
Selfridge sighed and reached into one of the drawers to pull out a thick file with notes and papers of different colors and shapes popped out. Her file, she noted. He flickered through them before drawing out a single white sheet with the contract on it, her signature glaring at her. "Just rip this up and you're free to go"
She looked at him strangely, that's it? Awa nodded regardless and reached out to grab the paper and after a small tugging game with her former superior she ripped the paper in two and dropped it on his desk. "I'll take my leave" The Na'vi told him with a smug grin on her face. She was finally free, she celebrated in her head.
He waved her off and she strode out of the office with long strides fueled by her success. She would never have to back to the hell hole that was Hell's gate. She would never have to see Quaritch ugly mug. She slowed down and her shoulder slumped, she would never be able to see Grace like she used to.
...
Awa walked into the linking room and greeted the technicians that she recognised from her time there. Most of them were old timers but there was some newer ones, two young women.
"Grace" She called out and wrapped her much bigger arm around the Grace's small frame. "I've missed you"
"Yeah, Yeah, now let me go" Grace waved off her embrace with a swat off her hands and a firm tone in her voice. "Training was cancelled today so I'm free"
"I finally did it, Grace, I quit my job" Awa squealed and tightened the hold she had on the older woman with a big smile on her lips that stretched from ear to ear. "I'm free"
Said Grace pushed herself out of the firm embrace and glared at the technicians which made them wince and then stumble out of the room in a rush.
"God, I hate them" Grace muttered and then bitterly chuckled. "I miss the good old days"
Awa sat down on the cold floor with a small shake off her head as she smiled at her good friend. "The 'good old days' were exactly the same, only different people"
The human nodded with a pointed look and lit a cigarette. "Exactly my point, I miss the good old days when decent people worked here and we actually tried with the Na'vi."
Awa looked down in thought. Decent people? There's never been decent people working in Hell's gate, only rotten people who only cared about money and nothing else. Those supposedly decent people that wouldn't help her even if she cried out for help as Quaritch abused her in the middle of hallways or wherever he pleased. The same people who belittled her, spat at her, emotionally abused her? No, there's never been any decent people here. "Sure"
"Did Jake tell you that we moved the linking units to the Hallelujah mountains?" Grace asked, noticing what mood Awa fell into. She never realised exactly what was going on but she regretted that she didn't spend more time investigating it.
Awa perked up at that, her braid slapping her in the face. "No, when did you move?"
"A few days ago, I'm only here to pick up some paperwork and then I'm going back. I've got so many new samples to test, you should see the flora there. It's amazing" Grace gushed with a passionate fire burning in her eyes.
"Why did you move? I thought the units here were fine?" Awa asked, pushing herself to sit straighter.
Grace took a deep inhale from her cigarette and then blew out all the smoke with a angry smile. "Found out Jake was more or less Quaritch and Selfridge's spy. "