"Lo'ak," Neteyam urged, shaking his younger brother up. "Come, it is time to learn."
Lo'ak groaned and dug his head further into the yerik leather of his bedding. Neteyam rolled his eyes. "Come on, baby bro," he coaxed. A broad smile crossed face before he poked Lo'ak in his side once more. "I bet Tsireya will be there."
Lo'ak instantly shot up, his eyes wide open as he pushed Neteyam away. "Shut up," he growled. But Neteyam just chuckled and strapped his knife to his side, pulling his beaded choker around his neck. His brother was quick to follow and the young hunter fastened his claw necklace before sheathing his blade to his belt. "Let's go already!" he said, suddenly the impatient one.
Neteyam let out a heavy laugh and slapped him on the shoulder. "You, little brother, have it bad." Lo'ak said nothing but was quick to push his hand away. The two quickly headed out of the Marui and made their way down to the docks, swiping a few native fruits as they went along.
"Ah, finally, the great Sully boys have decided to join us." A mocking taunt came from the chief's son, who leaned casually against the wooden post.
"Aonung!" Tsireya chastised, slapping his arm in annoyance. "Please excuse my brother," she said, smiling up at the two Omaticaya boys.
"No, no," Neteyam said, holding his hands up. "The fault is ours. Someone-" he said grinning at Lo'ak, "could not get his skxawng ass out of bed this morning."
Lo'ak gave him an angry hiss before turning away in frustration, arms over his chest.
"It is no matter," Aonung said definitively, swiping his hand through the air. "Let us get in the water before we lose more daylight."
With that, the elder boy dove into the water, breaking the surface in a practiced dive he left the group behind. Tsireya gave them a welcoming smile and gestured for everyone to follow her as she too dove elegantly beneath the waves.
The brothers wasted no time jumping into the sea behind them with a whoop of excitement. The cool water was a refreshing embrace on his skin after so many days of traveling. Neteyam looked around, letting his eyes adjust to the reef water. What he saw took his breath away. Under the water was an entire different world. Schools of fish swam by, flickering with pale colors, transparent in the sunlight that broke through the waves. The sand below was host to a myriad of beautiful twisting corals. Each piece more vibrant than the next. Bubbles escaped his mouth as he turned towards Lo'ak only to see the same look of wonder on his brother's face as he took in the reef life.
A splash from behind him told Neteyam that his sisters had joined. Kiri and Tuk eagerly pushed forward to join them underwater. His youngest sister let out a sound of delight as a school of silver fish darted past her, escaping the bubbles that came out of her mouth. Everything beneath the waves held an air of enchanting beauty, dipped in a teal light that shone from the surface. Below him, Tsireya and the other Metkayina boys turned to glide easily to the ocean floor. The chief's daughter looked up and smiled, clearly happy the newcomers loved her reef as much as she did.
Lo'ak motioned for him to follow and Neteyam pushed his arms through the water, kicking himself forward. As they swam, he couldn't help but notice how adept the others were at moving through the waves. Their bodies were more streamlined and easily propelled them forwards with a swish of those paddle like tails. Tsireya's hair flowed out behind her as her hips swung side to side with ease. Neteyam did not need to see his brother to know that his yellow eyes followed every movement rapidly. His brother was hopeless. But it was Aonung who caught Neteyam's gaze. He was surprised that the Olo'eyktan's son could move through the water with ease, despite the broadness of his shoulders that the Metkayina seemed to sport. But just like his sister, his body rippled through the current as though he was made of water himself. Neteyam couldn't look away.
An ache in his lungs caught him by surprise and his hand flew to his throat, body telling him that he was dangerously close to needing air. It seemed Lo'ak was having the same problem because the other Na'vi kicked desperately to get to the surface.
Neteyam's head broke the waves and he inhaled rapidly, relief coursing through his veins as his lungs filled. Quickly, he ducked his head beneath the waves and watched as Tsireya brought her hands out in a series of quick gestures. Lo'ak tilted his head in confusion so the girl just smiled and gestured for the Sully sibling to come back down with them. Taking in another deep breath Neteyam submerged himself again and kicked, aiming for the large chunk of coral that the others easily swam beneath. Aonung ducked past it gracefully and let his finned hands trail delicately across the colorful surface. Angling his head up, the older boy caught Neteyam's gaze and glared at him. He quickly stopped his staring and focused himself back to the coral below.
Once again he found his lungs burning, exhausted from the strain of holding his breath. Turning to his brother once more he signaled that he needed to go up and Lo'ak gestured his agreement. The two pushed back to the surface, sending an apologizing look down to Tsireya who tilted her head in confusion. Tuk was already above water and clung to Neteyam's arm when he joined them.
A moment later, Tsireya broke through the water, followed by Aonung and another curly headed boy. "Are you alright?" she asked kindly.
"You're too fast. Wait for us!" Tuk said dejectedly, wiping the water from her eyes.
"You are not good divers," Aonung insulted, with a grin. "Maybe swinging through trees, but-" Tsireya cut him off with a slap to the back of his head and a firm, "Rä'ä!"
"Come on bro," Lo'ak said rolling his eyes.
"We don't speak this-" Neteyam gestured with his hands above the water. "-finger talk. We don't know what you're saying."
Aonung tracked his movement from behind Tsireya, still smirking. "We will teach you," his sister said calmly with a smile.
Neteyam nodded his thanks before locking his yellow eyes on Aonung, challenging him to say something else. For a moment the other boy's eyes darkened, like he was about to speak, but was interrupted by the shorted Metkayina boy that had joined them.
"Where's Kiri?" His accent clipped over the second 'i' in the pronunciation. Neteyam briefly remembered his name being Rotxo after Tstireya had scolded him on the beach.
"Kiri?" Tuk said, confused, looking around.
"Where's Kiri?"
"Did you see her?" Tsireya questioned.
Neteyam quickly turned his head and ducked down back into the water. His gaze tracked through the waves until he spotted his sister. Still underwater, she hovered with her hands out, facing a beautiful angel fish that swam elegant circles around her. With a shock, Neteyam realized that she had been holding her breath this whole time. Wherever she went, Eywa always seemed to call out, embracing her. He was briefly aware that the others were watching her too but he brought his head up and pulled their attention away, not wanting to give them any more reasons to call his family 'freaks'.
"So," he said with a practiced grin. "Are you going to teach us how to breathe or not?"
The group sat on a rock a ways away from the village. Tsireya had elegantly placed herself on the ledge, legs crossed while she inhaled firmly.
"Breath…" she commanded gently, "from here."
Her light teal hand rested delicately over her stomach as she demonstrated a proper inhale. "Breathe in," her second hand fell to her throat, "and breathe out."
"Imagine flickering a flame. You must slow down your heartbeat." Her words were calm and soothing, letting the instructions wash over them. Lo'ak attempted to mimic her and he watched a small smile traced the girl's lips. She reached over and let her hands settle on his lower stomach and chest. His brother immediately paled and tensed under her touch.
Not noticing, Tsireya met his eyes and instructed him again. "Breath in." With a shaky breath, Lo'ak inhaled quickly. The Metkayina girl shook her head and pressed lightly with her hand onto the skin of his stomach. "Breathe from down here," she corrected, "and then breathe out slowly."
Lo'ak searched her face as he exhaled, and Neteyam could practically watch his brother fall in love.
"Lo'ak," she said gently, "Your heartbeat is fast. Try to focus."
A blush immediately colored his cheeks and he apologized. Neteyam couldn't help but glance at Aonung with a sly grin. The elder boy smirked back knowingly, trying not to laugh. Kiri, who sat beside them on the rock, saw their exchange and rolled her eyes, unamused with their humor.
Drawing his attention back to his own breathing, Neteyam focused on the sound of the waves around him. He inhaled deeply allowing the smell of the salt water to fill his lungs with ease. Then with pursed lips he exhaled slowly letting the air sink out of him. As he breathed again, he felt the prickle on the back of his neck signaling that someone was watching him. He turned sharply and saw Aonung staring intensely at him.
"What?" he asked defensively, keeping an edge to his tone. Aonung's eyes snapped up to his and watched as the boy's expression soured.
"You're doing it wrong, forest boy," he sneered.
"Aonung!" Tsireya said sharply.
"What?" he responded, throwing his hands up angrily. "They do not belong here, look at them! Unable to even breathe correctly."
Resentment coursed through him but Kiri opened her mouth before he could. "Maybe we could if you bothered to show us, instead of just mocking our faults." She spat out angrily.
Fury exploded over Aonung's face and Tsireya looked nervously between them. But just as quick as it appeared his expression was replaced with one of feigned passiveness. "Fine," he said unhurriedly. "You want to learn? Get in the water."
"Aonung…" Tsireya warned. But he held up a hand, silencing her. The Metkayina boy stepped out into the sea and let his arms fall open in a challenging stance. Lo'ak rose to meet him, but Neteyam held his hand out firmly and stopped him. Getting up on his own, Neteyam stood protectively in front of his little siblings and got in the water.
"Alright," he said coolly, mirroring the others' pose. "Teach me."
Aonung's eyes flashed but a callous grin soon took over his face, making Neteyam's stomach clench.
"There-" Aonung stated, pointing down into the water. "-is a bed of piak si clams. It is Metkayina tradition for children to swim down and grab a pearl from an open shell, to prove they are ready to swim in the ocean unaccompanied. Surely a seasoned warrior such as yourself would have no trouble retrieving a simple token."
Neteyam glanced down to where Aonung was pointing. Further down the seabed, on the ocean floor, a cluster of dark brown shells sat, nestled amongst the coral.
"Neteyam," Tsireya called from the rock. "You do not have to. It is a far dive for a beginner-"
"Oh come now," Aonung interrupted, drawing out his words. "It is just a child's game. I'm sure the son of 'the great Toruk Makto' can manage it easily."
He quickly glanced back at the rock. Toruk Makto. His father. The name he had spent his whole life trying to live up too. "I'll do it," he said firmly. The leering grin on Aonungs face only grew wider.
"Brother…" he heard Kiri call from the rock, clearly uneasy. But he pushed his way forward, ignoring her concerns. Eyeing the reef below, Neteyam gauged the distance before inhaling a deep breath.
Unlike his first experience underwater, he wasted no time admiring the sea life around him. Kicking his feet with purpose, he zeroed in on the piak si clams. As he continued to swim, Neteyam realized that the seafloor was much further down than he originally thought. A quick glance up to the surface showed him he was only a little over halfway. Ignoring the pressure that was starting to build in his lungs, he continued to push forward with broad strokes. Each minute brought him closer and closer to the clams, until they were only an arms length away.
From the surface the shells had looked a murky brown, but up close he could see that each was lined with gray rings that widened at the tip. A fair portion of the clams already lay open with shining pearls held in place by firm muscley tissue. Neteyam couldn't help but grin as he spotted the largest one, sitting near the back. Its iridescent coating shone brightly and the green tinge reminded him of his ikran. Brandishing his knife and he drew closer, keeping one hand on the back of the open shell as he approached. He made to swiftly cut the pearl out but the second his knife sliced the sensitive internal tissue, its jaws burst forward slicing through the water with a fearsome snap. All the air ripped from Neteyam's lungs as he jerked his hand away, moments before the sharp curve of the shell clamped down fiercely.
Everything else seemed to happen in slow motion. As he shoved himself away from the traitorous clams, his hand caught on the edge of its shell. A sharp pain ran up his arm as it sliced a biting cut into his skin. Neteyam let out a hiss of bubbles just as his chest began to constrict painfully. Fuck. The shadows from the world above him began to blur and he realized he needed to get out now.
Urgently pushing forward, he tried to make his way to the surface. Desperately kicking he began his assent as shakes wracked his body. The painful burning in his lungs only increased until he was gripping at his chest and throat, bubbles escaping his nose and mouth as he panicked.
The surface seemed so far away and the heavy thudding of his heart echoed in his ears. Remembering what Tsireya said, he stilled his mind and forced himself to focus. Panicking would do nothing to help him. Clamping his mouth shut he firmly extended his arms and began to kick again, desperately trying to convince his body not to inhale. The light from above was getting closer and closer, soon he could make out the shapes of the others hovering in the water. Just a few more meters, he thought to himself. But it was too late. His lungs burst. The deep pressure in his chest exploded and he inhaled involuntarily. Seawater was forced into his lungs and pain radiated through his chest as the saltwater flooded his senses. Consciousness was fading from him quickly and with a last desperate shove to the surface, his head broke the water.
Everything zoomed back into focus all at once. He gasped frantically as the sun hit his face and stung his eyes. He heard the waves lapping on the rock and Tuk's voice from above.
"Neteyam!" Someone shouted as he dragged himself to the edge of the rock, coughing and hacking.
From behind him, he heard Aonung snorting with laughter. "Oh! Did I forget to tell you they bite?" he exclaimed mockingly, before cackling again. He wanted to turn to the boy and growl but his body began convulsing against the stone. His chest wracked with spasms as the water he swallowed forced its way out of his mouth.
Immediately hands were on him, pulling him out of the water. The laughter died out of Aonung all at once. Tsireya's hands swiftly rolled him to his side, allowing his lungs to drain. As soon as he could, Neteyam gasped in deep breaths of air, pulling as much oxygen in as he could.
"You think this is funny, asshole?!" Lo'ak shouted back to Aonung. But the older boy was no longer laughing. Gentle hands eased him up and he gripped the rock below him shakily for support.
"Oh, god! Neteyam you're bleeding," Kiri exclaimed, grabbing his sliced wrist. But he pulled it from her grasp with a quick shrug. "It is nothing," he said quietly.
"No, it is not," Kiri argued but Neteyam wasn't listening. Instead he turned to Aonung with silent anger. But all the humor had left his face. Without saying anything Neteyam threw the pearl at the other boy's chest. "Take it," he spat.
The shock on Metkayina's face quickly turned back to his cold mask. He opened his mouth to say something but Tuk threw herself into Neteyam's arms with a wail.
"You're ok!" she cried, tucking herself into him worriedly. With one more glare towards Aonung, Neteyam turned away and focused on his sibling.