Pandora: The Final Solution
I gratefully acknowledge one of the foremost creative geniuses of our times, James Cameron, for conceiving the lush moon Pandora and the "noble savages," the Na'vi, that inhabit it. This story uses the characters and setting he created for his movie, Avatar. I have not received any money for my work based on Avatar. If I could get paid by the hour for these stories, I would retire and spend all my time dancing and writing in comfort.
Sorry for the brevity of this chapter. The next two will make up for the shortness of this one. I need to get these published so I can get them out of my system.
Most of the words below were written around Veteran's Day here in America. I salute the veterans of the USA, and those who serve or have served in the militaries of their countries around the world. Historically, a soldier's life has always been a difficult life, and that still is true today.
Chapter 5: Omatikaya
As the meeting breaks up, Norm and Max head up the trail to the link module. After a couple of steps, Jake orders "Hold up, you two. I forgot that Neytiri's thanator is still up there. You need an escort."
Turning towards Mo'at, Jake asks "Tsahìk, do you have several healing warriors that can't hunt yet but could escort Max and Norm? They might encounter scavengers near the dead palulukan that Neytiri rode in there."
Mo'at answers "There are many who are not able to hunt and would welcome escort or sentinel duty. I'll send some here for your tawtute brothers." She glides silently down the path to the sacred tree and the places where the wounded are convalescing.
Jake looks back at the two humans and says "Wait here until your escort arrives. Norm knows the language, so he can do the talking. You can tell me later how you like the fixes I had made to the module. Have the escorts check out the inside for small critters before you enter." With that, he puts his left arm around Neytiri's back, resting his hand on her hip, and takes her hand in his right hand. They walk down the trail towards the common area where food is being prepared and served for all Na'vi at the Well of Souls.
Over her shoulder, Neytiri yells in Na'vi "May Eywa be with you."
Norm answers in Na'vi "May Eywa be with you and your mate."
Max looks to Norm and says "You must start giving Na'vi language lessons. I understood Eywa, but that was it."
"Yeah, that's a good idea. The humans at Hell's Gate will be seeing much more of the Na'vi from now on. Just hope there are others that can teach it besides me. Grace took us out to Site 26 so soon after I got here, I hardly got to know anyone."
"I know most everyone that stayed here on Pandora. Grace was the best Na'vi speaker, and no one else is as good as her or you. Lots of specialists have left. With so many gone, it will be hard to keep the place running."
"Do you know anyone that can handle Jake's operational security?"
"No. The Sec Ops folks ran all the computers and networks. We'll have to ask around and see if anyone can figure it out."
"Are you in charge now?"
"I am by default, because I was Grace's assistant in charge of avatar medicine. But I'm a research physician, not an administrator."
"Neither am I. I'm a biologist turned anthropologist. Do you think Jake will run Hell's Gate?"
"No, he's got his hands full now with a homeless clan."
"Yeah, I agree. Just had to ask. As Toruk Makto, he's a mythical figure to the Na'vi. Don't think they'll let him go, especially now that he's the Omatikaya clan leader. OK, Max. I'll give you a few basics while we're waiting." Norm has Max repeat several sentences in Na'vi, sticking to simple greetings, farewells, and a few other useful words like yes and no, please and thank you.
Mo'at left the meeting in awe of human medical knowledge, but the more she thinks about it, the more unsettled she becomes. She encounters a senior warrior of the Omatikaya on the trail, and asks him to organize the escort for Norm and Max and the sentinels for Jake and Neytiri. She suggests several names for the escorts, and lets him pick the sentinels, to include some of the walking wounded in each watch. She makes it very clear that Jake and Neytiri are not to be disturbed tonight. Norm will take care of dog tags, and she will take care of everything else. He gladly takes on these assignments, as the warriors need a purpose now that the battle is over and the clans have not dispersed. She realizes many fine warriors have been lost, notably Tsu'tey and his deputies. Jake needs to reorganize the remaining warriors and assign new deputies. This stark reminder of lost clan members makes her even more unsettled, so she decides to commune with Eywa to improve her spirit.
She walks to the sacred tree and makes tsaheylu, sitting among the other tsahìks doing the same on the small terrace reserved for them. With all the time they have spent soothing their grieving clan mates, they are in need of the "calm of Eywa" themselves. Toruk Makto barely experienced this calm the night before the battle when he asked Eywa for help. His mate interrupted him and he broke the bond abruptly, so he did not get the full effect. The next night, she took him back to the tree when he expressed his sorrow at the great loss of the battle. Much to her surprise, he found the experience so healing, he commanded all warriors to make tsaheylu with the sacred tree. He said many human warriors that have seen too much in battle get a sickness of the mind and spirit, some killing themselves to escape it, that he wants to avoid among the Na'vi. Now, almost every reachable frond of the tree has a Na'vi attached. He really didn't need to make that command, many warriors had already done so, but it was seen as another sign that he truly understands and respects the Na'vi ways. Mo'at can only marvel that the smelly alien skxawng Neytiri brought to Hometree less than 128 days ago has turned into such an insightful and respected leader among the Na'vi. Now he wants to leave his human body behind, and become completely Na'vi. He is even thinking of having all remaining humans become Na'vi. His commitment is beyond all expectation and understanding.
She begins reviewing the meeting, and is surprised by the detail of her recollection. She senses that Eywa is very keen on every word said by Maxpatel, the chief healer of the humans. The Na'vi have always understood how blood is essential to all animal life, but Eywa is the source of all life energy. Somehow, humans can make life from blood without Eywa's energy. They also know how to assist making life in more natural ways, as is necessary for Jake and Neytiri to have babies. These ideas fly in the face of conventional tsahìk knowledge. The Na'vi need Eywa for everything, and humans need Eywa for nothing. As life here is very hard, the Na'vi must work together to survive, and Eywa always encourages such cooperation. The humans can work together when they desire, but seem to prefer their isolation and individuality. Eywa controls the balance of life here, and nothing controls that balance on Earth or beyond. Maybe that is the source of the problems with humans. She will have to learn much more about humans to work with those remaining here, but she is not certain that that knowledge is something to welcome. She begins to understand Jake's dilemma about what human knowledge could damage the Na'vi. She hopes Eywa can recognize where to draw the line, and then communicate it in some unequivocal way. Mo'at exhausts her concerns, and does the best she can to clear her mind.
Ewya never speaks to anyone, not even senior tsahìks like Mo'at, but She does impart a wonderful sense of well-being. Soon, Mo'at feels her worries melt away as the "calm of Eywa" overtakes her unsettled feeling. No new insights occur to her, so maybe Eywa will make Her wishes known through a dream tonight.
She briefly makes contact with Eytukan to exchange loving feelings, and then breaks the bond. She feels re-energized and ready to face her myriad duties once again.
While Max is trying to repeat a sentence in Na'vi carefully enunciated by Norm, the escorts silently arrive. All are sporting leaf bandages on their arms or legs, and one has an obvious limp. The leader greets them in Na'vi, and Norm replies. This time, Max understands most of the greetings, but then is mystified by the conversation that follows. Using Norm as a translator, Max asks about the sprained ankle that the limping escort has, and immediately begins examining her. He would have ordered the warrior to continue resting the ankle, but clearly having an assignment other than resting has made this warrior very happy. Even with her limp, she and the other escorts must slow their pace as the humans have trouble keeping up. The Na'vi laugh among themselves because the humans move so slowly but so noisily. Norm is not so bad, he did learn some skills in his avatar, but he has never tried them in his human body. Max shuffles his feet when he gets deep in thought and is lurching or tripping in the uneven spots in the trail over the rocky ground. Max has always lived in urban areas, and his outdoor experiences are mainly walking level city sidewalks. The trip to the link module is routine, with no wildlife causing concern. The stench of the dead palulukan is noticeable but not overpowering as they reach the clearing with the link module.
Norm says "I really miss my avatar, but this smell would be difficult to deal with because its nose is so much more acute than ours."
Max replies "The escorts don't seem bothered by it."
"I'm sure they don't like it, but they won't complain. They are all hunters and warriors, and death is a daily part of their jobs."
The most obvious change to the link module they see are the animal hides stretched over the destroyed window. The hides keep the weather out, but not the small creatures of the forest. The AMP suit is still where it fell, and its shattered door and broken glass from the module window have been piled within. The escorts find the broken glass fascinating. They have never seen a material that is clear like water but hard like stone. The limper picks up some larger pieces and uses her shaping stone on them, but she can't make them break the way she wants. When she sees that the tempered glass cannot be shaped and does not give sharp edges like some stones, she throws the glass pieces back into the AMP suit. Norm unlocks the door, reaches in to turn on the lights, and asks the escorts to check out the module, which they oblige. Two of the escorts go inside, and soon they are yelling and making loud noises by slamming their bows against the floor. Several small animals scamper out the open door, along with some insects that fly out. The escorts come out laughing, and throw out some insects they caught. Norm and Max warily walk in, and see that the broken glass has been cleaned out. Except for the smashed middle link and large window, the module is pretty much the way Norm remembers. Norm decides to keep Grace's samples, so they consolidate them into a single refrigerator. They empty the food refrigerator out completely, putting what little is left into a leather carry sack. Norm finds the jerry jug of water, and fills some small plastic cups. These will become ice cubes in the food refrigerator Max has set to -10 degrees C. Max wipes out the sample refrigerator, adjusts the racks for his blood test tubes, and sets it to +5 degrees C. Norm inserts the locking pins in the refrigerator doors, and they exit the module. After turning off the lights and locking the door, the group returns to the Well of Souls.
Again, the trip is uneventful, except for the time Max trips and falls down. Only his pride is hurt, and he resolves to walk more carefully. He has Norm ask the escorts to teach him how to walk silently, and they eagerly give him his first lesson in the Na'vi ways with Norm's translating help. They were told Maxpatel is the leader of the human healers, and they are impressed that such a high ranking human is willing to ask for their help. By the time the group gets to the sacred tree, Max and Norm are moving as silently as Na'vi youngsters. Some predators will be able to hear them, but the predators have already feasted on the animals drawn into the battle, and are not interested today. The escorts tell them they will be quieter if they give up their shoes, but the humans are not ready to go that far yet. At the top of the trail into the well, Max turns to them and speaks slowly in Na'vi, surprising the group of escorts, saying "Thanks. May Eywa be with you." The escorts return his farewell, and rejoin the convalescing warriors. They are impressed with these tawtute, not by their reputations or skills, but by their willingness to work with them to learn the Na'vi language and ways. Some Na'vi believe all tawtute should have been banished from Eywa'eveng. These Na'vi see that there are tawtute, like Toruk Makto, that can learn to live here with them as brothers and sisters.