The Avatar

A work based on James Cameron's hit movie

"The Avatar"

The Avatar

Forebear of Light

A Fan fiction by Acton Caetum

Chapter 1

The sound of the rain splashing against the leaves was almost symphonic.

Jake looked up through the canopy of leaves, leaves that seemed to each have their own unique shape and texture. It puzzled Jake how everything on Pandora seemed to bring such wonder and awe to him whenever he focused on it.

It had been two months since the RDA had left the planet and he had relinquished his role as Teruk Maktao. It had been his responsibility to lead the Omaticaya Clan to a new home tree. After relinquishing the Teruk it had been a hectic time, he wasn't used to having so many people depending on him.

Neytiri had helped him throughout the whole process, translating for him when a specific member of the clan who didn't know English had a problem for the Olo'eyktan. He did his best to help each member of the clan and they were always grateful for his assistance.

The Na'vi where a people who always surprised him, they were so different from humans in so many ways. He had expected there to be a lot of complaints from the Omaticaya after their exodus from the Tree of Souls. After all it was a place of comfort and familiarity for them. Jake at first was also hesitant to leave the Tree of Souls behind; it was where he had officially become a Na'vi.

But as the leader of the Omaticaya it was his responsibility to protect and serve his clan. So they had ventured out in search of a new home tree.

Today they had camped down in an area close to a small river they had come across two days before. When they had arrived the river was perhaps a third of the size that it currently was at present. They had to move back their camp twice to keep well clear of the rising banks. Being that until just recently Jake had not been a native of the planet; he hadn't realized that they were on the verge of entering the wet season.

It seemed to have been raining every day since they had left the tree of souls, and it seemed to be transforming the forest. Jake had thought the forest had been vibrant before when he first arrived on Pandora nearly four months ago, but that was nothing compared to this.

With the wet season new insect like creatures called nekx-ngawng had appeared. Neytiri told him that these creatures appeared at the advent of every wet season to feed on special mucus that the Hammerhead Titanothere secreted on the petals around their neck to attract a mate. The Titanothere used it as a territorial marker to warn other males not to come into their territory. For the Na'vi it served a second purpose. It was a water resistant flammable liquid sap.

At least his clan wouldn't be cold during the wet season. Many of the Omaticaya females where currently out foraging collecting the Titanothere sap to bring back to their camp, Neytiri was with them.

Jake was leading a hunting party to capture one of the many Tapirus that where native to this area of the forest. One of Tsu'Tey' previous hunters had told him about this area and the legendary Tapirus herds that roamed the area. From their descriptions, and glimpses Jake had of them during his previous excursions, they where boar like creatures that had tough armor on their back, making it hard to hunt them without a good line of sight at their exposed areas.

The Tapirus had evolved to walk in such a formation that they limited their exposed under bellies to attack from projectiles. So the Omaticaya had developed a simple method for capturing these creatures without trying to kill one or two of these creatures before scattering the rest of the herd.

They had made pitfall traps with sharpened sticks buried into the ground at the bottom of the pit. These where laced with a special poison extracted from the sap of the Titanothere as to not prolong the suffering of the Tapirus. It had been an ingenious plan, except for the part where Jake and his hunters had to wait in the rain for hours on end.

At first Jake had been grateful for the quite time, it gave him time to think and it gave him some peace away from the the clan. The Omaticaya where grateful and didn't complain nearly as much as he had expected but being the clan leader was still a handful. It was a role he was still having trouble adjusting too.

Jake scanned the area for any signs of movement, and then looked to his right to nod to his right hand man. Änsìt was a stealthy perceptive hunter that seemed to always notice things Jake did not. Jake had noticed that this area was a Tapirus trail by the markings they made on the side of the trees next to the trail. What he didn't notice was how the markings where spaced apart from each other, and what it meant. Änsìt had told him this meant that the herd they were trying to snare was a rather large pack of breeding males. They where at least twice the size of their female counterparts, and because it was mating season they were in rut. Because of this they were flooded with a testosterone like hormone which made them very aggressive but also made them more reckless. They had a better chance of capturing the whole herd then they did with capturing a herd of female Tapirus.

Änsìt pointed to the right of Jake. He could see the warbonnet move back and forth quickly, disturbing the many nekx-ngawng that were starting to luminance with the oncoming of dusk. Jake gripped his bow tightly in his hand hoping that the Tapirus didn't sense any danger and kept to the trail. Jake looked to his left and nodded to Änsìt to instruct the hunters to attempt to flank the Tapirus so if they tried to turn tale and run they would be herded back this way into the pitfall. Five of his hunters departed in the direction of the Tapirus without a single sound. They knew how much the Omaticaya depended on them for sustenance, and how they couldn't afford any mistakes. Jake was confident in these hunters, he had handpicked them himself. Two of them had been there with him when he first went into the Hallelujah Mountains to make the bond with the Ikran.

Jake watched as the first of the Tapirus emerged from the Warbonnet fronds while rubbing the side of his belly against a nearby tree. The rest of the group emerged from the forest casually while scouring the ground for any roots or any other morsels they might feed on. Jake was satisfied with the amount of Tapirus in this herd. There where perhaps fifteen to twenty males in this herd, it would feed the Omaticaya for days. Änsìt nodded his approval; the Tapirus where in the correct formation to be herded right into the pitfall they only needed to be spooked. They needed to make sure that the herd didn't scatter but ran in the same general direction towards the pitfall. To do this his hunters who he had instructed to flank the Tapirus needed to be at the correct position but Jake couldn't confirm if they were in position due to the thick Warbonnet cover. So he waited for the audio cue from his hunters that they were in position.

Then the Tapirus paused and looked to their left. There was something else moving amongst the Warbonnet fronds. It was too big to be one of his hunters, and it was creating too much of a ruckus to be a predator. Then he saw it, it was a lone male Titanothere. This could ruin everything, the Titanothere and the Tapirus got along pretty well, in fact they usually ignored each other but that wasn't the problem. The Titanothere was headed right for the pitfall trap which would ruin everything. The Titanotheres hide was too thick to be killed by the pitfall but it would injure it, and the hunters didn't have the necessary long spears to bring down the beast, let alone haul it back to camp.

Jake acted quickly, he moved towards the Titanothere stealthily as to not give away his presence to the Tapirus. Jake needed to divert the Titanothere without having it charge him or this would scare off the Tapirus. There was only one thing he could do, and he knew it was going to be dangerous.

Jake moved towards the Titanothere on all fours towards the creature, being sure to move as quietly and quickly as possible. He knew this was going to be tricky and he had to act fast for it to work. Jake had brought some of the raw Titanothere sap along with him to make poison for the pitfall trap. If Jake was able to smear some on a tree in the Titanotheres path it might preoccupy the Titanothere long enough to get the Tapirus to stampede into the pitfall. The only problem was there was only one tree along the path between the Titanothere and Jake, and Jake had to get there first before the Titanothere saw him to smear the sap onto the tree. If Jake had just made a run for it would have alerted the Titanothere to his presence and made him charge, so his only choice was to crawl on all fours and hope he got there before the Titanothere did.

Jake moved over a large root in the path and then crawled under a Warbonnet frond. He saw Warbonnet frond moving about 10 feet in front of him, and the tree was about five feet away. Between him and the tree was a clear space so he would have to make a run for it. Jake looked back over his shoulder at Änsìt nestled amongst the branches of a tree about 15 feet behind him waiting for his cue. He didn't want to move if the Titanothere was facing his direction.

Änsìt nodded, and Jake charged towards the tree. To him it seemed like time had slowed down and his feet could not carry him fast enough. All of his training to become part of the Omaticaya clan had trained him for this exact moment. He needed to trust his body and his judgment and the rest was left up to Eywa.

Jake dived towards the tree and went to reach for his pouch of Titanothere sap; he dipped his hand in it and lathered his hand in the sap. He could hear the rustling of the Titanothere close by. It was moving closer. Jake lathered the base of the tree in the sap and then he saw it. At the base of the tree there was a shiny metallic object with strange glyphs on it. Jake could hear his heart beat slowly as he looked at the object and a strange familiar feeling came over him.

The object was nothing like he'd seen before. It definitely did not come from earth, the mineral had a sheen to it like nothing he had ever seen before, and the glyphs where not from earth either. Then he looked up and he saw a multitude of wood sprites floating amongst the leaves of the tree. He felt goose bumps rise up on his arms as he looked up at them. He hadn't seen this many wood sprites since he had departed the tree of souls many weeks before.

Then he heard a sound and snapped back into reality the Titonothere was nearly upon him. Jake dived for the nearest Warbonnet frond and just in time. The Titonothere came around the base of the tree and looked around. Jake held his breath as to not alert the Titonothere to his presence. The Titonothere seemed bobbed its head and sniffed the air. Jake could see the many nekx-ngawng hovering around the beast as they tried to feed on its sap. The smell was noxious and overwhelming. The Titonothere was literally standing over Jake as it inspected the tree. It had smelled the sap, the plan was working. Jake whistled alerting Änsìt to give the cue to the hunters to stampede the Tapirus.

Jake heard Änsìt give the audio cue, and then he heard the whistle of arrows slicing air as they flew towards the Tapirus. The ground started to vibrate under him as he heard the Tapirus stampede, then he made a dash for it while the Titonothere was looking in the direction of the Tapirus.

Jake dived behind a tree hoping the Titonothere hadn't seen him. It seemed to him as if his heart might explode from his chest at any moment. He waited in anticipation for the Titonothere to charge. Instead it fled into the Warbonnet fronds away from the pitfall trap where the Tapirus had charged into. Jake finally let out his breath with a sigh of relief and headed over for the pitfall.

Änsìt walked towards him with a huge grin on his face as he shook his head, "That was crazy! I don't know if I've ever met someone as brave, or as crazy as you in my life! It is always an adventure to hunt by your side Jake Sully."

Jake grinned as well as he walked towards his right hand hunter, "It if wasn't for you I think I might have become a pancake over there."

Änsìt cocked his head to the side with a quizzical look on his face and asked, "Pan-cake?"

Jake laughed and looked down at himself. He was covered in sap from the Titonothere. Jake went to a nearby Warbonnet frond and used the rainwater collected in the base of the fronds to wash it off. Then he walked over to the pitfall to inspect the results. His hunters where saying the ritual to wish the Tapirus farewell, while finishing off the ones that might still be alive.

"It's unfortunate that we have to make these creatures suffer but unfortunately there is no other way to feed our whole clan while on the move", Jake said.

Änsìt nodded his head in agreement, looking down at the creatures in pity, "Yes but it is necessary, Eywa will understand that our people have need and will provide."

Änsìt hopped down into the pit and helped the other hunters remove the carcasses from the stakes while binding them to poles to be carried back to camp. The other hunters looked up at Jake and nodded in agreement showing that they understood why it was necessary to do what they were doing.

Jake looked back towards the tree where he had seen the metallic object with the strange glyphs on it. He remembered how he felt when he first saw the object and then he remembered the wood sprites he saw. It was becoming dark now and he wanted to get back to camp, and back to Neytiri.

"Brother Änsìt, when I was over at that tree near where the Titonothere was I saw a strange object with weird glyphs on it. I'm not sure what it was, but then I looked up and I saw wood sprites floating amongst the leaves of that tree. I think it may be a sign from Eywa."

Änsìt looked up at Jake with a look of interest on his face. He scratched his head while he tied one of the Tapirus to the pole. "Really? I have never heard of such an object before."

Änsìt and Jake walked over to the tree to inspect the object. It was nestled between two of the trees roots partially submerged in dirt. It appeared to be made of some sort of metallic mineral with glyphs on one side of it. It was about four feet long and 2 feet wide. On the side with the glyphs the texture of the object was smooth and felt cold. The object seemed to be very old and the glyphs seemed to be worn but they were clearly visible.

Änsìt looked up at Jake with awe, "What do you think it is Jake Sully? I have never seen anything like this before. Do you think it comes from the sky people?"

Jake bent down over the object and brushed some dirt away from the surface of it looking down at the glyphs, "No these glyphs are nothing like what we have on earth. This material is totally foreign to me as well. Brother Änsìt bring one of those poles we brought along for the Tapirus and let's see if we can get this thing out of the ground"

Änsìt called over to two of his hunters to bring some of the poles to try and pry the object from the ground. They jogged over and looked at the object in wonder. Änsìt handed Jake one of the Shovels they had used to dig the pitfall and Jake dug out some of the dirt from around the perimeter of the object being careful to not damage the object in anyway.

"Okay brothers try to pry the object out of the ground now", Jake said.

The two hunters stuck the poles around the object and pushed down on the poles. The object came out of the ground a lot easier then Jake had expected. Jake bent down to get a closer look at the other surfaces of the object. The object was about 6 inches in depth on the right hand side of the object, and on the left it was about 8 inches in depth. On the reverse side of the object the texture of the surface was rough to the touch; it seemed to have come off of some larger object. None of the other sides had any glyphs on them. Jake picked up the object, surprised by how light it was. It was indeed unlike any other material Jake had ever seen before.

Änsìt looked down at the object and then up at Jake, "If this is indeed something that Eywa has meant for us to find, maybe we should take it back to the camp for Mo'at to inspect. After all she is very close to Eywa."

Jake looked around to see if there were any other objects lying on the ground or if there was any evidence of where the object came from. Besides the hole from where they dug the object up, there was nothing out of the ordinary. Jake looked up to see if there where anymore wood sprites amongst the leaves but there were none. The other hunters where gathered around him looking at him expectantly. They were starting to bioluminesce with the oncoming of night.

Jake nodded to Änsìt, he was eager to get back to camp. "Load the Tapirus and the object onto the Pa'li. We should have enough room for it. It is getting late and the clan will be looking forward to a good meal."

Änsìt nodded his agreement and called to the Pa'li. Jake looked over Änsìt shoulder and saw them coming through the brush. The stopped before Änsìt and pawed the ground in impatience. It seemed even they where eager to be off. Änsìt nodded towards the hunters and they loaded the Tapirus while Änsìt helped Jake load the object onto one of the other Pa'li.

"It was a pleasure to hunt with you today Jake Sully", Änsìt said with a grin.

Jake looked up at Änsìt on his Pa'li then and pat him on his leg, "The pleasure was all mine Änsìt."

Jake hopped up onto his own Pa'li and then performed the Tsahaylu with the Pa'li and then directed it to move forward. As the Pa'li moved ahead Jake looked back over his shoulder one last time at the tree at which he had found the object at its roots. Only the glowing nekx-ngawng where left feeding on the sap that Jake had smeared on the tree earlier.