A/N: Wassup everybody? God, it feels good to get back into the swing of things. So, I saw Avatar opening night, in 3D. FAVORITE MOVIE OF ALL TIME!! NOw, for you followers of my other work, you'd know how I get when I'm obsessed with something, and that's how I am now. So I'm using the Activist Survival guid for avatar, along with the wiki for it to write this new tale. THe only thing that upset me about the movie was Trudy's death. She was my favorite character in it, though they all kicked major ass, so im like, okay, screw it!
Now, on to the story itself. This takes a few months before Jake arrives, I'm not sure how its gonna go when the time line gets closer to the movie. I've read multiple things about Pandora hosting a bunch of ecosystems, so this is gonna start off in a subarctic region. What the hell? Right? I gotta have something to keep me sane. Hope you guys enjoy!
A New Start
The wind blew mercilessly in the southern most reaches of Pandora. The desolate landscape was traveled not often b y those who chose their own path. But the Ta'haow tribe lived day to day, every waking and sub-conscience moment in the desolate subarctic reaches of the moon.
Unlike their cousins to the north, the Ta'haow tribe was not bothered by the RDA and their pursuit of obtaining the unobtanium, which, in a way, was most ironic. For in the southern region of Pandora, lay the most infamous and rich batch of unobtanium birthed from Eywa.
And on the frozen lands, the Ta'haow thrived. Powerful, noble, wise, and strong. Strong in battle. Strong in mind. Strong in spirit. Strong in heart. That was their meaning, that was who they were. But a war would be taken to their land, and their lives would need fighting for, as a sky people ship hurtled towards Pandora. Life was about to change.
"Hell's Gate, this is echo seven-four-eight, please be advised that we are in route to your position with cargo."
"Roger that echo seven-four-eight; what is ETA? Over."
"ETA is… twenty-three minutes and counting."
"Roger echo seven-four-eight. Transmitting a message from Doctor Grace Augustine for passenger Stephen Childs, Military ID 398756."
"Copy that Hell's Gate, just one second… Go ahead and send, hey, marine! You've got a message coming through on your link pad! Hell's Gate, please send landing sequence and pad number clarification."
"Echo seven-four-eight, you are cleared for landing at pad number-"
Stephen Childs stopped listening to the commotion coming from the front of the Valkyrie shuttle. He could care less on what they talked of; all he cared about was getting to the base, laying in an actual bunk, and catching at least a few hours of r and r before getting back to work.
Encased in the metal ship, he couldn't see any of Pandora's beauty, as described to him by his aunt. None of the towering trees, whose arms reached for the heavens and were greeted with peace and life in return. None of the Tetrapterons, whose grace flight made people, feel inferior with their blocky legs and chunky arms. And certainly not the Hallelujah Mountains, a stunning, for lack of better term, phenomenon. Nothing. Just an RDA corporate logo and metal grates. That was it.
It didn't matter, he'd see it eventually. Sighing, he pulled out his link pad and scrolled past the bright blue neon screen and into the yellow dim message board. There, in red letters, was a message from his aunt, Grace Augustine. He clicked it twice, opening it on the first click and playing the sound through his private channel on the headset.
A radiant smile flashed before his eyes, it looked as if she hadn't slept in some time and the smile seemed a bit hollow.
"Hello my darling nephew! It's been a long time, hasn't it? My, my, a Sergeant. Your parents would be so proud Stephen. I'm glad you decided to take me up on my offer, at least you have a brain in that jarhead… head of yours." Her smile fell almost instantly; she cupped her face in her hands, putting her cigarette away first, and mumbled. "Thing's here are getting testy Stephen. Shit's hitting the fan. Their going through my notes, they are tearing up the lab, the RDA think they run everything. God damn bastards!" She smacked a stack of papers and cans off of her desk. Her heavy breathing didn't sound good, yet she still took a long drag. "I'm sorry. I just… I can't really say anything specific. We'll talk when you get here. One of the only people I trust here is a pilot. Her name is Trudy Chacon, she's going to meet you at the docking bay and show you around the base. I'll see you later kid." She smiled again, slightly, more of a smirk, and turned off the camera.
Stephen leaned back and settled into the seat. "Landing now! Grab your shit and get out marine!"
"Damn it." He spoke for the first time since entering the Valkyrie, his voice rough and low for a thirty year old. "Just got comfortable too."
A yerik stumbled through gnarled and thick tundra brush. It looked up at the purple hue, whispering the word of her mother, the beautiful night sky hung protectively above. The gentle beast went back to walking.
Fifty meters away, a pair of yellow eyes broke through the night. They followed the yerik closely, watching each breath, watching each step it took. Bursts of smoky air moved past the yellow orbs, breaking into pieces amongst the branches of tundra bush. Haudö'laktii held her breath and waited.
The yerik quickened its pace, and Haudö'laktii pursued just as quietly as the wind. Her leather footwear didn't crunch in the snow, it glided across the glossy top. Her blue and yellow hide poncho caught on not one branch. She was the ultimate hunter. Or so it was thought.
Somewhere behind her, watching her as she watched the yerik, was something much, much worse. A palulukan, the ultimate killer. It was death. A Navi may have been a spectacular hunter, at best, but the palulukan was death itself. Eywa had been more than efficient when making sure that death was the best.
The creature cocked its head to the side, watching with interest. It wasn't hungry for the blue killer, but the way it moved enthralled the palulukan to no end. Limberly, even in the howling wind and stinging snow, it moved gracefully. The glowing light from Polyphemus lit up the valley where the blue killer stalked the precious meat. That's what the palulukan was after, another of Eywa's creatures. It began to move, slowly, but efficiently keeping up with the blue killer.
Haudö'laktii listened to the yerik move. It wasn't feeling well. She could hear its labored breathing over the howling wind; she could see how limply it moved. It was an easy kill. It was a gift from Eywa.
Gifts always come at a cost, most are larger costs in the southern hemisphere of Pandora. As Haudö'laktii moved in for the kill, a roar made her clothing seem inexistent. Her skin and blood froze, her mind whimpered in fear. A palulukan leapt out of the darkness at her, at her kill. Eywa must have chosen her to be placed with her mother and father. It was her time to become one with her race.
Hells Gate was huge. Six point one six kilometers, yeah, huge was an understatement. Echo seven-four-eight landed on platform three, dumped Childs off along with his equipment, and took off into space again. Stephen didn't think twice of it. His gear would find some way into the base. Fastening his exopack to his face, he made his way to the nearest hanger.
AMP suits walked and ground their way across the rough gravel surface, kicking dust up high into the bright light. He still didn't look at the flora; all he wanted was a cot. That's it. A vehicle almost ran him over, blaring its horn and the driver flipped him off.
"Damn newbie!"
It didn't matter to him. He'd read up on the RDA. All of their employed security teams were ex-marines. He held authority over them. Hell, he'd held authority over them even when they were in service. Colonial Marines always held authority.
He got into the hanger, unscathed, and took off his exomask when the door closed behind him. Thirty rows of Scorpion and Samson aircraft were in front of him. At the end sat a large, flying fortress with a dragon decal on its side. He let out a low whistle. "Damn."
"Pretty impressive, huh?" A woman asked from behind. Stephen nodded and turned to face whoever it was who was talking to him. The woman, in either her late twenties or early thirties, was gorgeous. She had tan skin, a radiant smile, smooth and flowing black hair, a small scar under her right eye, and just the tiniest, most eager bounce to her step.
"Yes, it is rather impressive. Where I come from I don't see too many personalized fliers and certainly nothing like that. Stephen Childs, by the way." He stuck out his hand. She smiled at him and put a strong grip into her handshake.
"Trudy Chacon at your service. Nice to finally meet you Mr. Childs, Doc's told me a lot about you." She snapped her gum through her smile. "Where's your luggage?"
"Well, I must have done something to piss in the pilot's cereal that brought me here, because he just left me out on the landing platform and my shit is still out there." Trudy's smile faltered for a moment and she bit the inside of her lip.
"Really? Wait here a second." Trudy pivoted on the spot, her small, but firm and fit physique filled the flight suit flawlessly. She marched up to an AMP suit driver, jumping up onto one of the platforms while it was moving, and opened the hatch. The driver began to say something, but she grabbed him by the hair on the back of his head, and began to talk very quietly to him. After a minute of verbal abuse, she jumped down and glared at him. The driver took off towards the landing platform where Child's supplies still sat.
Trudy walked back over, resting her forehead in the crook between her thumb and pointer finger, shaking them both. She stopped and looked up at him "I'm really sorry about that, you'll have your stuff soon enough."
"It wasn't that big an issue, but thanks." She smiled at him again, that same, goddamn intoxicating smile.
"Well, shall I show you around Hell's Gate?"
"You know, I'd really just care for a cot if you don't mind." Trudy shook her head.
"Of course not. Doc said you'd be tired. Hope you don't mind, but we are bunking in the same room. I fly science crew, and you being security with us makes you part of the team. That, and I heard you aren't a stuck up, standard issue like the rest of the RDA guys." If he'd been ten years younger, Child's might have blushed. But, he was too old for that anymore. He just smiled. Though, it seemed as if there was a hint of disappointment in her voice.
"Sounds like my Aunt has been doing a lot of talking." Once again, Trudy smiled.
"That might be an understatement." She laughed, they both laughed, and Trudy Chacon broke years of barriers that Stephen Childs had put up to block people out.
Haudö'laktii hissed as the palulukan swiped a large claw at her. It growled and backed into its lunging stance. Haudö'laktii pulled a large knife from her leg pouch. She crouched and strafed around, never turning her back to the creature. It was getting more and more difficult to stay standing. The harsh winds of Eranda had begun to blow harder and harder, throwing snow into her eyes and at the outer reaches of her skin. No bioluminescent light shone. There was nothing left to the land, besides Haudö'laktii and Nїїk'ta, the palulukan that killed her family.
A/N: So, I hope you guys enjoyed chapter 1. I went through several drafts, two computers, seven thumb-drives, and a couple meltdowns to get it.
So, a few things.
-Yes, Stephen Childs is a colonial marine, from James Cameron's oither masterpiece: Aliens.
-No, this will not be a crossover. I'm going to use elements and such from both universes, but no, there won't be any aliens on Pandora.
-YES, Childs and Trudy are going to be a pair. Deal with it :-p
-I'm going to explain other things all the time, at the end of each chapter. If you guys have any questions, just message me or leave a comment bout it and I'll respond in a message or in the chapter itself. I am going to have it split, the human and Navi perspectives, so I'm gonna be doing my usual jumping around. Thanks for reading everybody! Until next time, peace.
SMH