"Useless!"
"Giftless!"
"She's not a Madrigal!"
"She doesn't have a gift!"
"She'll destroy the magic!"
"She's not worthy to be in the family!"
Mirabel gasped for air and starts breathing. The voices in her head kept echoing in her mind and felt the sweat on her face. Tears started to come out as she can hear the villagers' and her grandmother's voices speaking horrible things about her like they would actually say. Mirabel tried to wipe the sweat and tears from her, but she couldn't.
She was strapped to the bed and couldn't move. But then she noticed something. Her hair starts floating around only all single strands were longer but curlier. Mirabel remembered that her hair was short, and the curls were still there. But there was more to it. The drops from the sweat and tears were floating around her face and then she was floating.
Suddenly, she felt moving, and a flash of light hit her eyes. Mirabel squinted her eyes from the brightness but blinked a few times until she spotted a man, who was a Med Tech, coming close to her as he was about to check on her.
"Where am I?" Mirabel questioned but to her surprise her voice was different.
"You're actually here, querida." he answered.
"Pandora?"
"That's right."
Mirabel looked at the Med Tech as he was going through some numbers and documents until he starts releasing her from the strap.
"You do look very healthy for nine-year-old, Miss Madrigal." he spoke to her.
"Nine?" the child questioned as she was floating.
She looked at herself knowing that her body has changed. She was no longer small but she was the size that is almost close to the Med's head.
"I don't understand. Carlos told me that the cyrosleep will keep me stay the same size. Why am I bigger and my hair got longer."
"We did add something for your chamber to make you age. After all, you were only a child, the first child here."
"You said I was nine, so..." Mirabel starts counting with her fingers, "I've been asleep for four years?"
"Five actually. It's January the eighth." said the Med Tech and then he floated away.
The young girl looked around as more people coming out of the chambers and the Med Techs were checking on them. There were so many questioned in her mind, and she even looked at her hair until she heard one of the Med Tech announcing to everyone.
"People, you have been in cyro for five years. You will be hungry; you will be weak. If you feel nausea, please use the sacks provided for your convenience. The staff thanks you in advance."
Five years was a shocker. Sleeping for five years. It feels like yesterday to Mirabel, maybe a hundred like in the fairytale book. She even realized that now she's nine, meaning that her prima: Rosa, has already got her gift. Suddenly, she felt her shoulder being tapped.
"Glad you're awake kid."
Mirabel turned to see Carlos holding out a pair of glasses. They didn't look like the ones she wore when she was little, but they looked new with black frames.
"Thought you need a new pair. The Meds checked your eyesight and decided to make a new pair." he said.
The girl gently took the pair and starts putting them on. Her vision started becoming clear as she looked around.
"They're perfect."
"Come on, I take you somewhere to eat. Then we'll get you ready for the landing." said Carlos as the two floated away.
A moment pass, the passengers were at the shuttle. Carlos sat beside Mirabel as he was helping her with the straps until the crew chief came by, yelling in command.
"Exopacks on!" he spoke.
Mirabel looked around seeing all the passengers putting on masks and breathed the air as they twisted the knob. Carlos also put on his but also helped on Mirabel's. She was confused to why they are putting the masks on until she heard the crew chief's explanation.
"Remember people, you lose your mask you're unconscious in 20 seconds and you're dead in four minutes. Let's nobody be dead today; it looks bad on my report."
The girl's eyes grew wide. Pandora doesn't have that kind of air that Earth has. She'd now guess that the planet will be very different for her.
"I have a friend that might be able to take care of you." Carlos spoke to him. "She does have a way with kids, but she might take you under her wing along with her work."
"What does she do?"
"She's a scientist. A researcher. She's been studying about Pandora and the language of the Na'vi."
"Huh?" Mirabel looked confused.
"You'll understand about when we get there."
Mirabel sat still from her seat as the shuttle began shaking. Her heart was beating fast from the rough flight, but it became smooth, and the girl can feel as if the shuttle has landed on the ground. Mirabel watched the passengers got their straps off and starts getting up. She felt Carlos helping her with the straps again and the two got up.
"Now remember," the crew chief spoke again as he put on his mask, "Go directly into the base! Do not stop! Just go straight inside!"
Mirabel stood close to Carlos as the cargo ramp opens.
Once the people start their leave, Carlos held Mirabel's hand and the two starts walking as they finally left the shuttle. Mirabel looked around to see some soldiers walking around or talking to each other, but she did notice some looking at her. If she had Dolores's hearing ability, she would hear what they're talking about but mostly it was all the questions of wondering why a kid like her, come to Pandora?
Finally, as they reached to the base, Carlos carefully took Mirabel's mask off along with his. Mirabel covered her mouth as she doesn't want to be killed with deadly air but as she saw everyone without their masks and their bodies weren't dropped, she uncovered her mouth and realized the air was clear like the Earth. Now Mirabel was curious how they brought Earth oxygen to Earth. Suddenly, her mind snapped back into reality as Carlos starts dragging her with a small tug on her hand.
"Hold it!" a soldier spoke as he stopped the two. "Sir, this is a restricted area. We can't have children here. In fact, the children aren't supposed to be here."
"Please, señor. I need to see a friend of mine. This child has been kicked out by her own family. She needs someone to look after." Carlos tried to explain.
"This place is not a nursery. We can't have here."
"Look let me just find her, I'll leave her here for you to watch."
"I'm not a babysitter and I can't watch her. Now leave! Both of you!"
"That's enough, Luis!" a female voice spoke, "Let me handle this."
Mirabel along the other two men turned to someone has spoken and Carlos smiled. A woman in mid 40s with auburn hair came by as she was wearing a white lab coat over her blue buttoned shirt and pants.
"Grace! So good to see you!" Carlos spoke.
"You too, Carlos. So, what's going on? Who's this?" Grace questioned as she noticed Mirabel.
"That's why I want to talk to you about. But can we talk somewhere in private?"
Grace looked at him for second but looked down at the child. She saw how scared and shy she looked until she looked back at Carlos.
"Follow me."
"But ma'am..." the soldier tried to speak as he stopped them.
"I told you I'm handling this, Luis." Grace interrupted him, "Unless I can throw you to the viperwolves if we're near one."
"You know that's a threat."
"Don't I know that?" she said and walked off with Carlos and Mirabel.
In the lab full of link beds that are closed, Mirabel looked at them while the two were talking.
"They did what?!" Grace questioned in a hushed tone while Carlos explained to her.
"Her abuela kicked her out of the house and the rest of the family agreed. All because she's not special with no gift and room. I guess none of the villagers to where was from won't take her."
Grace was really confused but still stunned they abandoned a child who is at the age of five.
"And you said the butterfly somehow led her to the town to the ship?"
"That's what she told me. I don't know if I'm crazy but my only theory that maybe it was God's plan or something. If He brought her here for a reason, then maybe there is something special about her."
Grace looked at Mirabel as the child was looking at the link beds but also looking at the screens of people sleeping.
"I know it's too much to ask. But the child need someone to take care of her. I can't raise her on shuttles and space crafts. It'll be too dangerous for her. I only thought of you because you have been schooling the young Na'vi as you told me."
"I understand what you mean. It might be tricky on both work and raising a kid, but I'll do it. If God planned on her coming here, maybe there is something she could do."
Carlos smiled and thanked her in his native language until he approached to Mirabel.
"Niña..." he spoke as he got the girl's attention, "I'm about to go, okay? But my friend Dr. Grace will be looking after you. You'll behave, won't you?"
Mirabel nods her head. "Will I ever see you again?"
"On some other year. Once I bring back more passengers." he answered.
The little girl quickly wrapped her arms around Carlos's neck as a hug which she felt he hugged her in return.
"Thank you." she whispered.
"Take care, okay?"
Mirabel nods her head again and watched her adult friend leave the room until he was gone. There was awkward silence in the lab until Grace stood beside the child.
"So, you're staying with me kiddo. You got a name?"
"Mirabel... just Mirabel."
"I take it you don't like the last name of your past which I understand it. I know that I'm supposed to take care of you, which I'm going to try, but I also do have work. So... if there's anything you need. Just ask."
Mirabel looked at her for a moment but then looked back at the screens.
"There is one question, Dr. Grace. Why is everyone sleeping? Are they in cyrosleep, like Carlos told me?"
"They're not actually asleep. They're controlling something."
"Like what? What are they controlling?"
"Let me show you."
A moment later, Grace led Mirabel to a different lab. The young girl was confused and curious to know why the scientist brought her here until the two stopped at a huge window.
"Turn around and take a look." Grace spoke to her.
As Mirabel turned to look through the window, she could hardly believe was she saw as her eyes grew wide and her mouth was opened.
What she saw were giant blue people-looking creatures. Bigger than human beings but with tails, their ears are pointed, their hair are black in different hairstyles but with longer braids, and also their faces are in different structure with a shade of blue stripes.
"What are they?" Mirabel questioned as she was in awe.
"They are Na'vi but to our version that the people are controlling called avatars." Grace answered as she smiled.
"And they're not wearing masks for air."
"That's because the Na'vi can breathe the type of air for them."
From the moment Mirabel looked at them, all the questions and confusions have drained away from her mind and her face was in amazement as she let out a smile until she thought one thing.
"Dr. Grace, I was wondering... Will you teach me about them? I want to learn about Pandora, the Na'vi, the avatars."
Grace looked at her for a moment.
"Are you sure about that, sweetie?"
"If the butterfly lead me to the town to the ship and brought me here for a reason, then maybe there is something I can do here. Please, will you teach me?" she asked.
Grace looked at her more as she remembered what Carlos told her about the butterfly. She smiled as she bent down to the girl's level and spoke just one word.
"Alright."
To Be Continued...