Chapter 15
"Lefpom People?" Tonowari walked around his home. The children were out, probably swimming on the reef or fishing with the hunters. Neytiri stood by the door, halfway turned for easy access. Jake noticed her fingers tapping against her thigh lightly, when he reached out to touch her, she snapped her head in his direction. He let go just as fast. "Interesting…"
"What is it, Tonowari," Jake asked. "What do you know?"
Ronal cut fruit on the floor behind her husband, preparing for lunch. She did not greet Jake when she let them into her house, but she did smile at Neytiri. Jake liked that, at least, she was becoming fast friends with his wife. He couldn't care less if the woman liked him; he didn't care for her too much, either. She did not look at them as they all sat in a small circle in the middle of the room, but Jake knew she was listening. She was the Tsahik; she always had to be listening.
Tonowari exhaled through his nose. "I haven't heard that name in a long time, JakeSuli." Jake gave him a look that said, "I don't know where you are going with this." Tonowari sighed again. "The Lefpom are a group of very ancient Na'vi—"
"One of the oldest tribes to ever walk on Pandora," Ronal cut in. "So old, they do not have a clear age."
"We have never heard of them," Neytiri said. "Who are they?"
"You have never heard of them?" Tonowari questioned. "They started in the jungle—"
"We are from the forest," Neytiri said sharply, and Tonowari's ears flattened. "I'm sorry for snapping at you. I am…I am just nervous."
Tonowari nodded. "I understand. They are at least 500,000 years old; they are so old, they used to be nomads in the jungle, then they settled down in different spots no one knew." Ronal nodded. "They used to be seen all the time, then suddenly, they disappeared."
Jake passed Neytiri a look. "You make them sound like myths."
"They might as well be," Tonowari cut in. "People would claim to see one here and there, but no one else could back up those stories. But if you saw a group of 25, there is a tribe around here."
"They said we shared an ocean," Neytiri said. "That means they are close."
It was Tonowari and Ronal's turn to share a look. Excitement buzzed through them. Jake was unsure about this new revelation of another Na'vi tribe. Granted, they didn't live on this side of Pandora for a long time, but he would think Dr. Augustine or Norm or Max, hell, even damn Quaritch, would say something about this mythical tribe. How does a whole tribe of people as old as dirt disappear?
"Can you tell us more about the Lefpom people?"
"They were known as the 'Friends of the South," Tonowari said. "They were guides and protectors. They were diplomats, spies, and even assassins."
"Assassins?" Neytiri asked.
Tonowari nodded solemnly. "During the Time of Great Sorrow, they were hired as killers."
"I can't imagine that group of people killing anyone; they looked harmless in retrospect."
"Oh," Tonowari corrected. "They did not kill for trivial reasons; they had to have a good reason. If a tyrant was rising, smaller groups would hire a Lefpom person to take them out."
"How?"
"Because they are small," Ronal said. "And they are so dark; they blend into the shadows. It is easy to kill what cannot see you."
Spooky… Jake thought. Tonowari must have seen the look on his face because he said, "But mostly, they kept to themselves. They offered help to anyone that needed it. They were pretty much harmless."
"And it never backfired?"
Ronal shook her head. "No. Never. Hardly anyone could find them, and they were of so little consequence in the grand scheme of anything that they were deemed a nonthreat. They skuttle around like the mice-creatures you have on earth, JakeSuli."
"No wars have ever been started by a Lefpom person."
As this conversation was going on, Jake was starting to feel worse and worse about how they treated that young man and his people. Neytiri made no expression, not even a twitch to let him know how she was feeling.
"They have a rich culture," Tonowari added. "Music and dance and food; a lot of food from this side of Pandora stems from their food."
Ronal nodded. "And they never forget."
That caught Jake's attention. "What?"
She nodded. "Not a face, not a name, not a smell—they never forget."
"They are like that creature on earth, JakeSuli," Tonowari rubbed his fingers together to help remember the name. "The one with the long memory and can hold grudges. With the big ears."
"An elephant?"
Tonowari pointed at Jake. "Ah, yes," he exclaimed. "An Elephant."
"And what does that mean," Neytiri said. "When you say they don't forget faces or names."
"They always remember," Ronal clarified, plating whatever she cut. "Everything. They remember. They remember how someone has treated them; it is not rare that some tyrants got further along in their takeover because the people who tried to hire a Lefpom person were the same people who did them wrong in the past."
Jake's mouth opened slightly. They could use someone like a Lefpom person on their side in this fight against the Sky People. Someone who can hide in the shadows and be small enough to fit into cracks could do damage. He stared at Neytiri, who did not look at him, although, her ear did twitch slightly. She was worried too.
"But if you treat them right, you will have a friend for life," Ronal concluded.
"I cannot believe they are still around," Tonowari was in shock. "We would hear rumors about people being saved by a Lefpom person, but—no one had proof. We truly thought they were all gone. Dispersed into different tribes, their blood so diluted that it didn't matter."
"They sound kind," Neytiri said softly.
Ronal nodded. "They truly were," she then corrected. "Are."
Jake rubbed his face with his hand. "We messed up…" Tonowari and Ronal stared at him. "We messed up bad."
"What do you mean?' Ronal questioned.
"We…we thought they were a threat," Neytiri tried to explain. "We didn't want them to get to the islands, and they asked too many questions. They might even think we are the threat."
"Oh, they do," Jake corrected. "I shot a gun in the air after the guy said he could help us, then I pointed the gun at him and said he could be next." Jake shook his head. "They didn't have weapons more than a club and a few slingshots. I doubt they could have done much damage..."
Tonowari and Ronal glanced at each other before looking back at Jake and Neytiri. "Are you stupid?" Ronal asked crassly.
"Ronal…" Tonowari said softly.
"Are you a fool?" She powered on, looking between the two of them. "You threatened a Lefpom person—"
"You threatened a person you deemed a nonthreat," Tonowari cut in. "Let alone a Lefpom person—"
"I know," Jake said. A soft hand landed on his shoulder, and he looked over to see Neytiri looking at him with those beautiful eyes. She was the most beautiful person he had ever seen. The mother of his children, the light of his world. The times, in the last three months, where he has felt nothing but guilt for being cross with her, to see the look in her eyes that made it seem like she didn't know who he was… The nights where they slept apart…
"You don't know!" Ronal hissed, she pointed her knife at both Neytiri and Jake. "You don't know what you have done."
"Are they going to come and attack?" Neytiri asked. "You said they were harmless for the most part."
Tonowari lowered the knife his wife was holding. "Not attack," he said. "But…they will remember."
Multiple feet came running to the door. Ao'nung, Rotxo, Tsireya, Kiri, and Spider came running up to the door, panting, Tuk following close behind. When they saw Jake and Neytiri, the group stopped and looked around.
"What is going on?" Ao'nung asked.
"Nothing." Ronal said sharply, casting darking looks to Jake. "Come take your bowls and eat outside."
Spider, Tuk, and Tsireya stormed in, taking the books from Ronal, saying their thanks, and leaving, but Jake saw Ao'nung and Kiri linger in the doorway. Ronal held up two bowls to them and tried to smile as if nothing had happened. Ao'nung and Kiri weren't buying what she was selling, and they shared a brief look before taking the bowls and turning.
"What do you say?" Jake called.
Kiri stopped and bowed slightly to Ronal. "Thank you, ma'am," and she and Ao'nung ran off after the others.
Ronal handed Jake and Neytiri a bowl each. "You messed up JakeSuli," Ronal said shortly. "Because like the elephants your people have, the Lefpom people hold grudges."
-Later that day-
"Where are you going?" Lo'ak came in from the ocean at the time Neytiri said to be in. He was drenched from his head down to his feet and smelled of brine and salt water. He spent so much time in the ocean that his forearms were bulkier, and his shoulders were bigger. His hair curled at the ends, and it took Neytiri twice as long to detangle it than it had when they were in the forest. Lo'ak looked at the bags Jake packed. Two, one for Neytiri and one for himself, filled with blankets and food and medicine just in case. Neytiri had her bow and arrows against the door for easy access when the morning came.
"Out," Jake said sharply; he didn't look at Lo'ak. He wasn't upset at his son; he didn't pull the trigger, but when he looked at him, he couldn't help but fill a hot sort of anger build up. Why couldn't he have just followed directions from the start? Why did he even have to go into that clearing in the forest in the first place? Neytiri told Jake to go easy on him, but Jake felt the boy needed to feel his ire. It was a dumb decision that cost them a member of their family.
"Out where?" Lo'ak sat in the corner of the room, just watching.
"Where are your sisters?" Neytiri asked.
Lo'ak shrugged. "Probably with Spider."
Neytiri shot Jake a look. He didn't know what she wanted him to do about it. Spider was a good kid; he had never done anything to harm them. Her hatred of the kid was completely confusing to him, though he never went against her. She must have her reasons.
"Can you go find them?" Jake asked.
Lo'ak got up and as soon as he went to the door, Kiri and Tuk came in. They were laughing, but another laugh was added to them. A male's laugh. Jake turned around to see Spider a few feet away from the door, shadowed by the night.
"Thank you, Spider," Kiri said.
"No problem," he said. "You guys have a nice night. See you in the morning," Spider then noticed Jake looking at him. He lifted his hand. "Mr. and Mrs. Sully." Jake turned to see Neytiri staring at the young man, her back straight, her hair nearly standing on end.
"Night, Spider," Jake said simply, waving back.
When Neytiri didn't say anything, Spider nodded, clapped his hands, and walked away. When he was gone, Jake turned to his daughters and asked, "Spider walked you both home?"
"Uh-huh," Tuk nodded. "He was going towards the Humans anyway, so he just made sure we got home."
"That's nice of him," Jake shot Neytiri a look, but she kept her head down. "He's a good kid."
"Yeah…" Lo'ak said under his breath before returning to his corner. "Sure…"
Kiri hissed at her brother, who ignored her.
"What are you doing?" Tuk poked at the bags.
"We have to go out, my love," Neytiri said softly. "Just for a little while."
"Where?" Kiri asked. "I thought Ronal said Tonowari took Dad off of patrol."
Jake shot his daughter a look. "How do you know that?"
Kiri's ears flattened, and she smiled, knowing she wasn't supposed to say something. "Tsireya told me."
Jake sighed and rubbed his forehead. "Listen, your mother and I will be gone for a few days. You will be in good hands with Tonowari and Ronal." It took some convincing to let the children stay with them because of Spider, but it was either them or the scientists, and Neytiri would rather have one human around their children than what could pass as a clan of them. "It will only be a few days, and then we will be back. Simple."
"But where are you going?" Lo'ak stressed.
"We don't know yet," Jake said. "We will know when you get there."
"So, you're just leaving," Kiri asked. "Just leaving us."
"Oh, baby girl, don't say it like that," Jake came over and placed a hand on her shoulder. "We'll, be back. We will always be back."
"Whatever," Lo'ak laid down, his back turned to his parents.
Neytiri looked ready to say something to their son, but Jake held his hand up. That night, Neytiri found Jake on the beach, looking out into the ocean. She stood next to him; Jake could smell her.
"Are you all right," she asked him in the silence of the night.
"Maybe we don't need to go," Jake suggested. "Maybe we can just…fight without them."
"Do you not want to go?" Neytiri asked. "We can stay."
Jake weighed this in his mind. "If we go and we find them, we will be the only ones among them," He said. "If we go and don't find them, what then?"
"And if we don't go?"
"And if we don't go…" He looked at her. "If we don't go and we lose this fight, I will spend the rest of my life wondering 'what if.'"
Neytiri took a breath. "Then we go."
The next day, as they paddled out to sea, Jake looked up at one of the many diving cliffs of the island. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up, and when he looked, he could have sworn he saw six tiny figures on the edge of the cliff.
"Neytiri…" He pointed at the cliff, but when he looked back, they were gone. A chill ran down his spine.