Author's Notes: Hi, readers. Here's chapter twenty-nine of 'Gone in the Dark.' It has some Lo'ak/Tsireya and Aonung/OC. Some of the kids will head out to see Payakan and La in the next chapter. Stay tuned for chapter thirty.

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Chapter 29: Looking Out/Begging

Lo'ak stood on the beach at midmorning. He had his arms behind his back and his eye on Polyphemus. He felt waves come up around his feet and emitted a soft sigh. They retreated out to sea, only for more to come in. The wind picked up a tiny bit as four tetrapteron flew past Polyphemus. He listened to their squawks and chirps.

He closed his eyes as a tear fell down his cheek. He wished he could have done more to save the man's life. He understood his wounds had been too severe for him to live, yet he felt bad over his death. He was grateful to his father for telling him it was not his fault. He'd heard stories of doctors being blamed for the deaths of their patients, though it was well known they could not be saved.

His thoughts shifted to Keye'txon. He was glad that the Green Spear managed to wake up. He continued to wonder how long his enemy had been stranded on that island. He estimated that it was anywhere from an hour to four hours. He knew a wound could become infected very quickly. He did believe Keye'txon would have developed sepsis and died if Aonung, Riri, and Rotxo had not found him.

Lo'ak snapped out of his thoughts when he heard squawking. He opened his eyes and spotted three more tetrapteron flying past Polyphemus. They went into a straight line. They flapped their wings in almost perfect unison. They opened their beaks and flicked their tongues. They closed their and did three simultaneous flaps of their wings. Footsteps caught his attention. He turned to see Tsireya and Rishi coming his way.

"Hey, Tsireya, Rishi," Lo'ak greeted.

"Hey yourself, Lo'ak," Rishi answered as she and Tsireya stopped beside him. "Are you doing okay?"

"I am all right. I just never thought I'd have a patient die in front of me," Lo'ak admitted, sniffling.

"No one with knowledge of medical care thinks that will ever happen to them," Tsireya said, folding her hands and placing them against her stomach. "Unfortunately, it eventually does."

"You wonder what you could have done to save your patient," Lo'ak said, his ears lowering in sadness. "However, you can't keep dwelling on that. You have to keep caring for other patients."

"You could be caring for multiple patients at once. Even with others helping, it is still very hard," Tsireya added.

"Our parents know that better than anyone. They've cared for the most patients out of everyone here," Lo'ak pointed out truthfully.

"My parents are dead," Rishi whispered, a tear falling down her cheek. She emitted a soft sniffle. "They died in the Skirmish at Three Brothers. I was just sixteen years old. Tonowari took over my training. I was nearly ready to tame a tsurak when this war started. Training has been put on hold until it is over."

Lo'ak and Tsireya glanced at Rishi as she looked down at the sand. They felt bad for her regarding postponement of her training. They were eager to see her riding a skimwing in the future. They knew they would begin preparing to tame their own skimwings very soon. They recalled how shocked they were when they learned Jake wanted to tame one right away instead of starting with an ilu. They thought he was crazy for doing so, but they were proud of him for succeeding.

"I helped Mom with the surviving patient after Dad suggested it following my breakdown," Lo'ak murmured, sighing softly. "It made me feel a little better."

"I can't blame you for letting your frustrations out, Lo'ak," Rishi commented, turning to him. "You were unable to save a patient. That would be hard on anyone."

Tsireya touched his arm. "The bright side is you did not keep your feelings bottled up until you exploded in anger. An angry person can be quite the scary sight."

"When your parents found out about my friendship with Payakan, they were fairly angry, but they did not explode. I could tell by the tone of their voices," Lo'ak explained.

"It wasn't just you they were angry at. They were angry at Aonung and me too. Aonung gave me a look that said, 'We are getting it big time, sis.' He did not mind you bonded with the outcast. I should say former outcast," Tsireya said and blew a raspberry.

"It's not easy to refer to Payakan as a former outcast, though it has been three years since he was welcomed back into both Na'vi and tulkun communities. We were so used to referring him as one," Rishi added.

Lo'ak scoffed. "I can't understand how a society would forbid all killing, even in cases of self-defense. If you don't fight back because you fear killing someone, you would likely end up dead."

Rishi rubbed her nose. "That's why the tulkuns revised the Tulkun Way. Killing is allowed in cases of self-defense. Deliberately provoking someone into attacking and trying to claim self-defense is not allowed. Neither are unprovoked attacks."

Lo'ak stretched his arms above his head. He let out a long yawn and smacked his lips. He placed his hands on his sides. He swung his tail from side to side. He suppressed another yawn. He, Tsireya, and Rishi heard footsteps. They saw Aonung and Riri coming their way.

"Well, well, if it isn't the Dynamic Duo," Lo'ak teased.

"Ha, ha, ha, ha. That was so funny that we died laughing," Aonung responded sarcastically. He and Riri stopped beside Tsireya. "We might as well fall down now."

Rishi blinked twice. "That'd be nice."

Riri rubbed her nose. "Anyway, are you doing okay after what happened earlier, Lo'ak?"

"Yeah," Lo'ak admitted with a nod. "It's going to take a while for me to get over it."

"Who can blame you? You've never seen a patient die in front of you," Riri whispered. "In fact, none of us kids have."

"Mom and Dad have many times. Each death hit them hard, but they kept going," Lo'ak said, looking toward the ocean along with the others.

Tsireya wrapped her arm around his. "You can't keep dwelling on what might have been. That was then. This is now."

Lo'ak placed his hand on top of hers. "So true."

Lo'ak kissed his girlfriend's temple. He kept his lips there for thirty seconds before pulling away.

"There is one way you could get your mind off what happened," Riri commented.

"What's that?" Lo'ak wondered.

"How about you three come with Riri and me to see Payakan and La?" Aonung asked, a small smile forming on his face.

"You're kidding," Lo'ak said with a chuckle. He stopped when Aonung raised his eye ridges. "Oh, shit. You are serious."

Riri nodded rapidly. "Aonung suggested it last night. We asked Rotxo and Kiri. They accepted it. We asked Spider, but he turned us down."

"I see," Lo'ak answered. "It would be good to go see my brother again."

"The same goes for me with my sister," Tsireya squealed in delight.

Rishi held up her hands. "Come me in. I am eager for adventure at Three Brothers."

Aonung and Riri chuckled delightfully as Rishi placed her arms at her sides. Lo'ak began telling him about the time he placed a rubber frog in Tuktiery's sleeping mat.

00000

Neytiri walked into a marui with bandages and penicillin-filled bottles in the late morning. She passed forty-five-year-old Ferris, who was seated in a chair and was looking over a wooden carving of a humpback whale. She came to a table and placed the supplies on it near threads and needles. She sorted them into groups.

Ferris looked toward the warrioress. She was a Green Spear who happened to be slightly taller than Ronal was. She had scars starting at the palms of her hands and stopping just above the spots where her elbows bent. Her left strake appeared to have a small chunk taken out of the middle. Her hair was in braids. The upper part of her right arm was bandaged due to a gash in it. She looked toward Neytiri, who pulled a braid behind her ear.

"This carving has very fine craftsmanship," Ferris whispered with a small smile. She saw Neytiri look toward her. "It reminds me of the tulkun."

"Yes, it does," Neytiri agreed and went over to her. She took the whale from her and touched its flipper. "Norm made this for Jake. The humpback whale was hunted to the brink of extinction. It made a comeback after whaling was banned. Unfortunately, it went extinct after Earth's human population exploded and resulted in mass deforestation, pollution, overhunting, and overharvesting."

"I recall Uzukay and Nessa being outraged when they learn tulkuns were being hunted for their amrita. They do not like the creatures are being harvested for their meat now," Ferris said, her ears lowering in sadness.

"I hate the hunting as much as you do. The hunters may not be wasting the animals anymore, but it is still quite heartbreaking," Neytiri responded and sniffled.

"There are reef clans that hunt the tulkun for food. They use every part of the animal possible," Ferris pointed out.

"Hunting an animal for sport is cruel. The Omaticaya banished those who engaged in that practice," Neytiri said, pressing her lips together.

Ferris leaned forward. "The Metkayina and the Green Spears have done it as well. Many clans share the same values."

"Indeed, they do," Neytiri said, nodding in a slow manner. "Jake and I battled about how to raise our kids. It wasn't frequent, though."

"Ronal told me she and Tonowari battled about how to raise their kids occasionally. I did it with Jolan over Dila too. Most couples do, regardless of the species," Ferris said and cleared her throat.

"What sets human parents apart from other species is they will fight over the stupidest things regarding their kids. This includes who will help them with homework and take them to whatever activities," Neytiri mumbled with a roll of her eyes.

"It sucks," Ferris said irritatingly.

Neytiri sighed heavily. "Very much so."

Ferris rose to her feet and went to the window. She touched her bandage, wincing in some pain. Neytiri came to her side while swinging her tail back and forth.

"I remember when you were first brought in yesterday. The gash on your arm looked nasty," Neytiri admitted, glancing at her.

"I know. Despite I was stranded on an island for hours, it did not become infected at all. Keye'txon wasn't so lucky. He believed infection set in his wound very quickly," Ferris responded.

"I have seen infected wounds up close many times. His wound was the worst one I had ever seen," Neytiri admitted, cringing badly.

"Thank Eywa he woke up after being out cold all night," Ferris whispered in much relief.

"The penicillin has done wonders for him. It sucks he will have to be on it for several days. We can't risk the infection flaring up again," Neytiri said with a heavy sigh.

"I am sure he will want to eat something soon," Ferris suggested. "Being out cold for an entire night can make a person quite hungry."

Neytiri nodded in agreement. Ferris moved her ears back and emitted a worried sigh. Neytiri heard it and became concerned. Ferris clasped her hands together and placed them against her chest.

"What is wrong, Ferris?" Neytiri asked.

"It's nothing really," Ferris insisted and looked away.

"Come on," Neytiri replied with a scoff. "I know something is wrong with you. You may be a Green Spear, but that does not mean you can't tell me what is bothering you."

Ferris snorted before looking down at the floor. She had to admit Neytiri was right. Being enemies did not mean they could not discuss issues, especially when it came to their clans. She recalled talking to Uzukay and Nessa about problems she was having with Dila during her teen years. This included her daughter sneaking out to explore the rainforest behind Kia. She turned to Neytiri.

"I am just really worried about my daughter. I have not seen her since we left Kia to fight at sea yesterday," Ferris admitted.

"Maybe your clanmates found her and took her home," Neytiri suggested.

"No," Ferris commented with a shake of her head. "I have a feeling that something is very wrong."

"I am beginning to get similar feelings," Neytiri said honestly. "I was once in training to be a tsahik."

Ferris swallowed hard as they faced each other. "Do you think you go try to find Dila?"

"I am not sure if—" Neytiri started.

"Please, Neytiri," Ferris interrupted while grabbing her arms. "She is my only child. I have to know if she is alive or not."

Neytiri shuddered. "Ferris—"

Neytiri lowered her ears as Ferris broke down crying. She wasn't sure about going on another search party after nearly getting killed by Nekx. She still had to admit that Ferris had the right to know about Dila's status. After all, there was a chance she could be found alive.

"Okay. I will go find Dila for you," Neytiri relented softly.

"Thank you. Thank you," Ferris said in relief.

"I am coming with you, Neytiri," a female voice said.

Neytiri and Ferris turned to see Ronal standing in the doorway. The tsahik walked up to them, her ears going back.

"How long had you been standing there, Ronal?" Ferris wondered and exhaled sharply.

"Long enough to learn your daughter was missing," Ronal answered in a calm yet firm voice. "Neytiri and I should go now. Time is of the essence."

Neytiri blew hard. "I agree."

Ronal waved her hand toward herself. "Come on."

Neytiri and Ronal headed out of the marui. They picked up their pace somewhat as they reached the bridge.

"How many Na'vi should we take with us in this search party, Ronal?" Neytiri wondered.

"I would say eight would be a good number. We can't risk diminishing the village defenses," Ronal responded.

"We should not forget some of our kids and their friends are heading out to see Payakan and La," Neytiri pointed out seriously.

Ronal cleared her throat. "They should be okay."

Neytiri snorted. "Let's hope we find Dila quickly and bring her here."

Neytiri and Ronal broke into a run as they went through another marui. An ilu swam under the bridge with a soft squeak.