Camping and Trains

A long year had passed since that tragic day. And it was not easy for the Sullys or their people to accept that they had a war to face, a more powerful threat than before. But they knew they had to be strong. They had to believe in Eywa. Just as long as they stayed together they would all be safe.

Sylwa was flying on her Ikran Skeera over the great forest. She was covered in a wrap and armed with a bow and arrows. They flew high above the trees, hearing distant Ikran screeches. Her father was leading an army of Ikran Flyers to attack another supply train that was on its way to the Sky People's fortress leagues away from the forest. She had to make sure she was out of sight. She was not supposed to be out here.

It was the early morning of that day. She was sitting on some cliffs just outside the Hallelujah Mountains, staring out into the open air, at the trees. She would give anything to be down there. Skeera sat next to her, purring. "I know girl," Sylwa patted her side. "We should be flying out there. I wish we were," her best friend purred again. "You're right. Let's just go for a flight. A quick one," she stood up and was about to mount.

"Not so fast," a sudden voice made her jump.

She turned around to see her dad, a stern expression on his face. "Dad? I was just ah…"

"You know you're not supposed to be out here. You could get spotted,"

"I was just looking out at the forest,"

"Don't ever leave the tent or scare us like that again," he said strictly. "Now come on. Back where you belong," he took her hand and pulled her up gently nudging her to go back into the cave.

She rolled her eyes. Escorted back to the camp in the mountains, she saw her mother and siblings rushing towards her, Neytiri pulling her into a tight hug. "I'm fine, mum," she muffled.

After her mother let go and Tuk threw her arms around her waist, Neytiri clasped her shoulders seriously. "Don't ever leave the camp like that,"

"I was just sitting outside. Is it that bad I can't have some time to myself?"

"You could have been hurt or worse," Neteyam pointed out.

"She can take care of herself. And what could happen?" supported Lo'ak. "She's not helpless,"

"That's not for you to decide," said their mother, leading to a huff from the two twins.

"It's time for the battle meeting," announced Jake. The morning passed and the entire camp was awake. Today it had been reported that another supply train would be heading through the jungle towards Hell's Gate where laid the Sky People's fortress. For months he had been leading guerrilla campaigns to relieve them of their supplies and now today was another opportunity to strike.

In their large tent, Jake, Neytiri and their sons were getting ready. Today Neteyam and Lo'ak would be spotters. The daughters would stay behind with their grandmother and take care of the mothers and children. One daughter, however, wanted to fight.

Sylwa grabbed her bow and arrows. Today she was gonna get out there and join the fighting as well. But as she prepared to leave with her choice of weapon, her dad stopped her. "You're not coming Sylwa,"

"Dad…I really think I'm ready to fight now. I can shoot like mum,"

"No. You're staying here with your grandmother and sisters so you can stay out of danger,"

"I can take care of myself. I'm not helpless,"

"You're not going Sylwa. I'm not gonna risk your life. I want you to stay here where you're safe. Now you stay here and take care of your grandmother and siblings," he gave her a quick hug and turned his back and left the tent. "Come on boys,"

Her brothers sent sympathetic glances to her.

"You'll get your chance," Neteyam consulted. He walked out.

Lo'ak hugged her. "I'm sorry," he followed behind his brother.

Sylwa huffed. Ever since she had nearly died that dark day, her father had constantly kept her under constant watch, doing anything to keep her from leaving the camp or getting into any manner of conflict. But in secret, she had improved her skills in archery, and trained herself to defend herself and her loved ones…it seemed that all that effort she had gone through had been wasted.

"Your father's only trying to protect you," her mother comforted behind her.

"I'm not helpless mum. I can take care of myself," she said. "I don't get why Lo'ak can come. He was in that fire too,"

"But he wasn't crushed under a burning branch and didn't need to be saved by Eywa," Neytiri sighed, seeing Sylwa still huffing in annoyance. She turned her daughter around and cupped her cheek. "One day you will be out there fighting but for now, just please do what your father says. He just wants you to be safe,"

"I know. He always says that. I just wish he would believe in me,"

"He does. Even if it doesn't seem like that. We'll be back soon," she kissed her head and walked out of the tent after her sons and mate. Moat and the three granddaughters stepped out of the tent. Kiri lifted Tuk into her arms. They watched as their family mounted their Ikrans and flew out of the giant campsite into the open air for another attack against the Sky People. They were joined by their scientist friends and Spider.

Tuk sniffled, worried for their loved ones.

"Don't worry Tuk," their grandmother said. "They'll be back. Let us go inside," They turned to leave but Sylwa stayed where she was. "Sylwa?"

"I just want to stay outside for a bit longer,"

"Okay," said Moat, deciding she should have a break from their overprotective gazes.

She sat down. Spider remained with her. "Hey, Monkey boy,"

"You okay?" he asked.

"I just wish everyone would stop treating me like I'm helpless,"

"They're just…"

"Trying to keep me safe. That's what they always say," she said irritably. "Sorry Spider. I didn't mean to talk like that,"

"It's okay. I'd feel really irritated too," he comforted. He suddenly noticed a change in her facial colours. "l know what you're thinking and you might as well forget it,"

"I need to Spider. I can't spend another moment stuck in here. If I could just get out there and join in the fighting…" her answer was a roll of his eyes. "I need to prove to my dad that I'm not helpless,"

"What if you get hurt?" he was worried.

"I'll be fine," she promised. She hoped she could keep it. "I'll be on Skeera the whole time,"

"I just hope you know what you're doing,"

"I hope so too,"

"I'll try and cover for you,"

She smiled. "Thank you, Monkey Boy," she reached over and hugged him; he hugged back. Out of all the Sully siblings, he was closest to her and Kiri who loved to call him that cute pet name. "No matter what my mother says, you're a brother to us in every way,"

"That means a lot coming from you," he smiled affectionately. He didn't know his mother and his father died many years ago. Though raised by the scientists, he was family to the Sully Siblings in every way.

Sylwa hoped that this wouldn't backfire. She had to join in the fighting. She was not going to spend another day in that cave. She just needed to get out there. She had to prove to everyone that she wasn't helpless, that she was more capable than they realised. "Okay Skeera," she patted the side of her neck. "Remember we keep our distance but blend in, okay?"

Absolutely. Her steed chirped.

The Sully girl pulled a hood over her head and pulled a mask over her face. She pulled out her bow and arrows. "Let's do this,"

Keeping a distant and invisible distance, they followed the army of Ikran towards the train line that lay on the western sections of the rainforest. They kept behind the tall trees to keep hidden from any Ikran riders who might look out. Soon they heard the loud engines of a train and it meant that the railway was close by. They then heard the buzzing of plane engines.

Perching on a tall tree, they watched as it sped through the jungle. And then all of a sudden…Boom!

The railway line exploded and the front carriages of the train went flipping, tumbling in mid-air. She pulled out a telescope from her side pouch and peered through. Just then she spotted two Ikrans, her parents flew from the sky. Jake shot one down with his gun. Neytiri shot two arrows and the other one went down. Soldiers emerged from the remaining carriages to defend their cargo but Navi came riding in on Direhorses with guns and shot them dead. They had successfully prevented another supply train from reaching the Sky people. Many of the Ikran descended towards the wreckage to gather as many weapons as they could. Two Ikran remained in the air. She glanced through and saw her two brothers. Just then Lo'ak started heading down. Then Neteyam too.

"What the…what are you two doing?" hissed Sylwa. They were supposed to be spotters. She knew that this would only lead to trouble. Quickly she re-mounted Skeera and they flew towards the battle. They watched as everyone started gathering as many weapons as they could, her father commanding them. She peered through her scope and saw her twin getting a gun. He was so gonna get a lecture from dad later if he spotted him.

Just then Sylwa heard the sound of choppers behind her. Two of them. She turned around and saw the Sky People's flying vehicles heading towards them. She had to cry out. Even if her dad would find out she had followed and then scold her, she had to do what her brothers were supposed to do. "Choppers!" she cried out loudly.

Jake heard her voice and felt his heart jump. He turned his head up and saw her. Her mother did too. She heard the source of her voice and gasped seeing her up there, the Sky People's flying crafts behind her. "Sylwa! Get out of there!"

Skeera flew out of range as the flying crafts started shooting explosions upon the Navi. Sylwa gasped when she saw her brothers nearly killed in the impact. Her father was rushing towards them. Quickly she pulled out an arrow and loaded her bow. She drew it. It shot right through the windshield, piercing the pilot. It plummeted down, crashing among the rest of the wreckage. But the other craft kept shooting at the Navi, descending lower upon them. She had to do something quickly. Suddenly she saw Lo'ak standing up spotting her, but he was about to get shot. Quickly she pulled out another arrow and pulled back on the string. Sensing through that bond, Skeera dove downwards and in seconds, her rider shot the same plane down too.

But as it exploded into a burst of flames, Sylwa froze. She found herself back in that moment when she was in the forest of fire. But as she did, she lost focus and Skeera rocketed upwards in flight. She didn't have time to react. She lost grip of the saddle and she fell and landed with a thud on the ground below.

Neytiri gasped when she saw her daughter plummet from the sky. "Sylwa!"

As he was regrouping with some soldiers, Lo'ak heard his mother cry out his sister's name. His heart froze.

The frantic mother urged her Ikran to fly towards the explosion. Flames surrounded the vehicle.

As he carried the wounded Neteyam to safety, Jake looked up and saw his mate flying towards the wreckage surrounding his flames. He prayed his daughter had survived.

Neytiri's Ikran backed away from the flames but the chief's mate could just make Sylwa push herself up. She was okay. But she was covered in bruises everywhere and she was surrounded by flames. When she saw the flames around her, she froze again, fear petrifying her from head to toe again. The Ikran flapped her wings, pushing the flames back. Then with a leap of faith, Neytiri leap over the flames and landed right where her daughter was. "Are you all right?"

With her mother in front of her, Sylwa regained focus and saw her angry, worried eyes. "I'm fine,"

"Come on," Neytiri pulled her to her feet and they tried to escape through the flames but the fire was burning around them severely. Even her Ikran couldn't flap her wings to make the flames die down. They needed help. "My Jake!" she screamed. "My Jake!"

Jake with his wounded eldest child just heard her voice as he regrouped with Lo'ak. He heard her scream. She needed help. "Take your brother to safety," he said to Lo'ak. "Go!"

Lo'ak helped Neteyam whilst the father rushed back towards the source of that voice, finding his wife and daughter trapped behind the flames, with no way of getting out. He had to do something quickly. Quickly he found a huge piece of train wreckage. With all his might, he pushed it down and it landed on the flames providing a way for his family to get out. But Sylwa froze again. With no choice, Neytiri heaved her over her shoulders and passed her to Jake who had rushed inside and run through.

They regrouped with the soldiers and the Ikran.

Sylwa regained focus the third time. "Dad?"

"What are you doing here?" he berated. "What the hell were you thinking?"

"Give her to me," Neytiri mounted her Ikran and helped her daughter sit in front of her on the saddle, keeping her arm around her shoulders to keep her safe. They carried her up and they were joined by Skeera. Jake found the boys and soon everyone remounted the Ikran and flew away, victorious.

Back at the camp, Moat and the two granddaughters were looking for Sylwa. Spider usually tagged along, trying his best to keep her covered but the plan was failing miserably.

"No sign of her anywhere!" whined Tuk.

"Don't worry Tuk. I'm sure she's around here something," Spider tried to sound reassuring but to little effort.

"That's what you last the last two times," said Moat.

"Granny," Kiri didn't want her to be a little antagonising towards Spider like her mother was.

Tuk rushed off in one direction taking a toy with her. Moat went off to another part of the camp. Kiri gave Spider a playful look. He realised he was caught. "She went to join the raid. But she's more than capable of looking after herself,"

"I won't tell anyone you let her go," Kiri promised. They went off and she painted blue paint on him so he could look a bit like a Navi.

Just then little Tuk came rushing in crying out: "The War Party's coming back! Come on! Come on!"

The two granddaughters and Spider rushed towards the spot in the giant mountain cave where the Ikrans were landing; the teens prayed Sylwa was amongst them. They saw her in front of Neytiri; she looked really bruised. Spider coiled himself with guilt.

"It wasn't your fault Spider," said Kiri. "let's just not tell my mum you let her go,"

He nodded. At times he was very scared of her. Before the war, she had believed more in humans than her children. That dreaded taste of rejection still quivered him today. They saw the Sullys and their steeds land. Neteyam was in front of Jake as he had been quite wounded in the battle. Lo'ak could tell how angry their dad was about what they had done today. Tuk's eyes brightened when she saw Sylwa with their mother. She rushed and threw her arms around her waist for the second time today. "Where were you Sywee?"

Sylwa blushed hearing her call that. She called her Tuki. They loved each other dearly. "I was nowhere Tuki,"

"Easy Tuk," her mother ushered. "Your sister's just had a rough day," as she spoke, she was sending a soft but firm glare at Sylwa who pursed her lips.

"Sylwa!" Kira rushed forward and hugged her tightly. "you're okay," she was relieved. "What were you thinking?" She didn't get an answer.

"Sullys fall in!" Jake ordered. Everyone crowded in. "You're supposed to be spotters!" he lectured his sons angrily. "You spot bogeys and you call them in. From a distance! Does any of that sound familiar?" he noticed Lo'ak, nervous at his temper was keeping a distance back. "Get in here!" he was deeply frustrated. "Geez I let you two geniuses fly a mission and you disobey direct orders," He noticed Kiri looking at her brother. "Kiri, can you go help your grandmother with the wounded? Please?" his tone was softer. He didn't want his anger to be aimed at everyone.

"My brother is wounded. And so is Sylwa,"

"Just go, please? Tuk, go with her! Go!"

Tuk was checking on Lo'ak but he was all right. Rolling her eyes, the oldest sister took Tuk's hand and led her away.

"Sir, I take full responsibility," Neteyam spoke up.

"Yeah, you do. That's right. Because you are the older brother and you gotta act like it," Jake criticised, the eldest child lowering his head at his response. Lo'ak hung his head too in guilt for his brother taking the blame.

"Dad, it was my idea to go out. Neteyam had nothing to do with it," Sylwa spoke.

Jake was about to give her a lecture too when his mate spoke up. "My Jake...your son and daughter are actually bleeding," her soft voice eased the tension.

"Mum, it's not that bad," Sylwa tried to say. Jake gave her a good glance. "Go," he said. Neteyam and Sylwa were escorted away, the latter looking back at her twin who was now being scolded by their dad for his disobedience. As she did, she saw their dad sending a disapproving glare at her. She knew she was going to have a big talk with him later.

The two wounded children were escorted to the hut and Moat was relieved to see her granddaughter safe. She hugged her tightly. She and Kiri got to work in helping prepare a special remedy. Compared to Sylwa who took it lightly, Neteyam kept gasping out, "Ow! Ow! Ow!" as the tonic stung his wounds.

"Aww, you want a kiss on the boo-boo?" Spider teased Neteyam.

Sylwa giggled at his joke.

"Give him this," Kiri gave Tuk some water to give to their brother. Neteyam ruffled her hair and she giggled.

"I would use yalna bark," Sylwa suggested.

"And who is Tsahik?" teased Moat.

"You are," she answered back.

As they all joked about which herb to use on Neteyam so he'd stop crying out loud, Sylwa heard their parents talking outside. "They try to live up to you. And so does Sylwa," Neytiri spoke. "You are hard on them,"

Jake was adjusting parts to their gun. "I'm their father. It's my job,"

"This is not a squad. It's a family,"

Jake sighed and let his gun fall onto his knees. He knew there were times when he sounded more like a commanding officer; times had turned hard and to him, hard times required hard men. "I thought we lost them," he confessed, tears brimming in his eyes. "I thought for certain we were gonna lose her this time,"

Understanding his strict nature, Neytiri grasped his wrist in comfort, assuring him that they were alive and that was what mattered.

Sylwa had overheard the conversation from the tent. She felt incredibly guilty for scaring her dad again. And her mum. And everyone else. She sighed deeply. She had been nearly killed by fire. Again. She had to be rescued. Again.

Neteyam came to sit beside her, seeing how useless she was feeling. "I saw you shoot down two crafts. That was incredible,"

"I still got myself into danger. Again,"

"Still…you taking out two choppers shows what a warrior you are," said Spider, trying to sound enlightening.

"Warrior! Warrior! Warrior!" Tuk clapped her hands, giving her a congratulatory hug.

Neytiri entered the tent. She gave Sylwa a soft glance. She sighed knowing she was going to have a big talk with her dad. She walked aside, trying to hide her ashamed face from her dad. Before he walked off to follow her to a spot for her confrontation, Neytiri clasped his shoulder. "Jake…don't be hard on her. You saw what she did today. She tries to live up to you especially," she implored, hoping he'd listen to reason. He walked off. She hoped this wouldn't lead to another heated argument.

They walked to a private spot near the camps. Jake with a strong glare had his arms crossed and Sylwa gathered the courage to face. "Sylwa I am very disappointed in you,"

"I know," she lamented.

"You could have been killed. You deliberately disobeyed me. And what's worse…you put your mother in danger,"

Sylwa sighed in tears, guilty that her mother could have been killed by the flames saving her. "I was just trying to show you that I'm not some helpless creature. And besides, if it wasn't for me you all wouldn't have been warned of those choppers when Teyam and Lo'ak left their posts,"

"Don't downplay your defiance," he continued scolding. "What you did today was so reckless. Do you have any idea how scared I was? How scared your mother was? You and your brothers have given us more heart attacks in one lifetime. And I thought your brother was the reckless one today," he lamented.

"I can't spend the entirety of my life stuck in this cave until this war is over,"

"I know how much you hate being cooped up in this cave. I hate it too. But in here is where you're safe,"

"You know that I can fight like mum. I'm not the same daughter who had to rescue in that fire,"

"When are you gonna realise you're delicate?"

Sylwa fumed. "I'm not delicate! There is so much more to me than you think," she stalked off, frustrated, hurt.

Jake wanted to scold her again but he stopped himself. He sighed. He had been so scared today of what had nearly happened to his three kids that he couldn't bear to go through that feeling again. Not a third time.

Sylwa went to the far side of the camp where she saw the Ikran being tended to by her brother. Lo'ak was having a lot of trouble feeding them all at once per his punishment for disobeying orders. "Need a hand?" She picked up one of the baskets to help feed them.

"Thank you," he said grateful for the support. She helped him finish the rest but as they left she gave him a punch to the soldier. "What was that for?"

"For disobeying dad's orders!"

"You disobeyed his orders too!"

"Well at least I didn't endanger our brother's life by slacking off my post," she argued back. Her brother froze. "I'm sorry. I…I…I…didn't mean it like that. It's just venting my frustration at dad at you. I know you're trying to be like dad. But please never ever do anything as reckless as that. I was so scared seeing you down there," she implored, still frightened that he and their brother were nearly killed today. She noticed something off about her twin. "What's wrong?"

"When you were in that fire I was so scared," he lamented. "I felt myself back at that moment…"

She knew exactly what was wrong with him. She hugged him tightly. He hugged her back. "You're never going to lose me. I'm so sorry I scared you guys,"

"It's my fault. If I hadn't of left my post, you wouldn't have to fly in and do my job. It's my fault you and Neteyam were nearly killed today,"

"We're all alive and together. That's all that matters," she couldn't give him any more lecture than he had already gotten from their dad. "The storm will pass,"

They let go of each other and chose to sit down together. "How did it go with dad?"

"He still thinks I'm helpless. I just wish he'd stop being so overprotective of me. I nearly got killed today because of that fire…" she quivered.

Her twin placed a hand on hers.

"It's okay," he comforted. "You're okay now. We're back here together,"

"But dad said you needed to be kept an eye on at all times,"

Sylwa rolled her eyes. "Please…just for a while?"

"Okay. But don't be long," he held out a pinkie. "Pinkie swear?"

She hooked it with her pinkie. "Pinkie swear,"

Her twin left her alone and she sat alone with her sketchbook. She looked through the pages of the forest. She missed being in the trees. She missed swimming in the rivers. She missed swinging on the vines. She missed everything. Her art book was the only condolence she could see comfort in when she thought about their former home in the forest.

She heard footsteps. She turned to see it was her grandmother. "Hi, granny,"

Moat sat beside her, giving her a soft glare. "I'm sorry I left and gave you a scare,"

"I'm more relieved than scared to be angry at you," she embraced her granddaughter. "But you don't ever scare me like that again," she warned.

"I won't," she promised. She sighed. "I didn't mean to scare you all. I just wanted to show dad that I'm not some helpless creature.

"What happened to you a year ago still weighs heavy on his shoulder,"

"I just thought if I could participate in this mission it would finally lessen everyone's worries about me. But I blew it. And it's all because I'm scared of fire," she felt so stupid. She felt like she was back in that awful moment when she was surrounded by flames destroying everything she loved. "I had to be saved. Again," she felt deeply guilty that her mother had to rescue her from those flames. "Maybe dad's right. Maybe I am delicate. Maybe I'm not ready to fight,"

Moat shuffled close and cuddled her close. "You're stronger than you know Sylwa. There will come a time when it will be your moment to make a stand. But you don't choose that moment," her granddaughter looked up at her. "That moment chooses you. But until then…you need to be patient,"

Sylwa snuggled into her arms. "Thanks, granny," in times when she often argued with her parents about their overprotective nature, she would always consult her grandmother other than Lo'ak about her queries.

That's the fourth chapter done. What did you all think of Sylwa and her relationship with her family? Please let me know what you all thought so far. See you all soon.