Gone in the Dark
By SparklyTree3876
Rating: PG-13/R
Genre: Drama/Romance
Pairings: Jake/Neytiri, Tonowari/Ronal, Lo'ak/Tsireya, and Aonung/OC
Author's Notes: Hi, readers. I want to wish everyone a Happy New Year. I would like to present my first chaptered Avatar fic. It is set three years after Avatar: The Way of Water and shows Metkayina and the Green Spears beng engaged in a full-blown war after reigniting their rivalry in which Jake, Neytiri, their children, and their friends find themselves swept up in it and aid Tonowari and Ronal in caring for the injured and dying on both sides. The idea for this fic came to mind when I wondered what would happen if the Sully family and their friends found themselves in the middle of a war between Na'vi clans and helped each other care for the victims on both sides. As a result, it was born. I decided to do a prologue because it contains a great amount of detail that would take too long to cover in any chapter. This fic is inspired by 'Is There a Doctor in the House' from Xena: Warrior Princess. I want to warn everyone that this has sexual content. If that makes you uncomfortable, don't read this. Otherwise you may read at your own risk. I hope you enjoy this fic. Constructive criticism is welcome.
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Prologue
Three years had passed since the battle between the RDA and the Metkayina at Three Brothers. Jake, Neytiri, Lo'ak, Tuktiery, Kiri, and Spider decided to reside with the Metkayina permanently. Spider knew he would have to train hard to be part of the clan, but he was determined to do it. Jake vowed he would continue to fight the humans. There had been a number of skirmishes over the years, but none of them exploded into major battles. Of course, that was subject to change.
A week after Neteyam's funeral, Jake and Neytiri returned with their children to the rainforest, so they could see their friends and family. They spoke of his death in which it devastated them. They told everyone they would not be returning to the Omaticaya. This shocked them with the exception of Mo'at, who had a feeling about this news. Jake and Neytiri explained how Tonowari had recognized them as Metkayina and that they felt their place was there now. Mo'at revealed she was training a young woman named Athena to take her place as tsahik. She said she wanted to join her family once it was complete. This made them all happy, especially Tuktiery, who had missed her grandmother the most of all the children. Mo'at said Athena's training would be complete within a year and that Norm would bring her to Awa'atlu.
Norm revealed he and Max had developed a serum that would allow humans to breath Pandora's atmosphere permanently. They kept it secret because they knew the RDA would kill to get their hands on it if they found out about it. Spider was the first to be injected with it. He felt so relieved he would not have to wear an exopack anymore. The Avatar Team decided to continue using their avatars as they felt more at home with them than they did as humans. Payakan was welcomed back into his pod due to his heroism. The Metkayina accepted him back as well.
Two weeks later, Spider confessed to Lo'ak and Kiri that he saved Quaritch from death. This shocked them greatly. Jake and Neytiri overheard this and expressed just as much shock. Spider feared they would be angry, especially her. Instead, they were very understanding as they knew that he had bonded with him due to being his son. Neytiri pointed out she had always cared about him, but her doubts about him plagued her. This brought him much relief. She asked for his forgiveness for the way she treated him. He accepted it and embraced her, as did she with him. Aonung, Tsireya, and Rotxo learned about human culture from the Sully children. They found it very interesting, especially Greek mythology.
Ronal gave birth to a baby girl a month later. She and Tonowari named her Kiki. Jake and Lo'ak's relationship improved immensely. Lo'ak admitted to him he flipped Quaritch off on both hands when he and his siblings were captured by him. Jake was amused and revealed he gave the finger to a man after the latter walked out in front of him on a street without looking where he was going just before he left for Pandora. Lo'ak found that funny.
Spider trained hard to be a Metkayina. He enjoyed the challenge of learning to free dive and hunt on the back of an ilu. He became accepted by the clan. Ronal found a new spirit sister in form of an adult female tulkun called Riti. Riti was known to be an incredible singer, though she was not as good as Roa had been. Tsireya revealed the name of her spirit sister was La, Tonowari's spirit brother Ren, Aonung's spirit brother Luta, and Rotxo's spirit brother Cu'tu.
Five months after Kiki's birth, Tonowari and Ronal learned they were expecting another child. This shocked them as they had been using contraception in the form of herbs six weeks after their daughter's birth. Neytiri told them she got pregnant with Lo'ak just a few months after Neteyam was born, despite she and Jake were doing the same thing they were doing. Ronal gave birth to a boy she and Tonowari named Kipling after the author of The Jungle Book six months later. Mo'at joined her family not long after.
Lo'ak and Tsireya's relationship turned from friendship to romance during her mother's pregnancy with Kipling. Their families were very accepting of this. Their siblings teased them occasionally and even sang a Na'vi version of 'Sitting in a Tree.' Aonung told Lo'ak that Tsireya was rejected by a boy named Ko she really liked sometime before he and his family came. He became very protective of her due to this. He warned Lo'ak to never hurt his sister, or he would make him pay for it dearly. Lo'ak promised he would never do that.
A year after Kipling's birth, tensions began to rise between the Metkayina and the Green Spears. Their hunters and warriors clashed with each other whenever one crossed into the other's territory. The Sully family learned from Tonowari and Ronal that both clans were involved in a civil war many generations ago. It led to great losses on both sides. After it ended, they realized how brutal it was and began practicing the tulkun way of no killing unless it was for food. They announced a truce.
Neytiri became fearful the Green Spears would try to kidnap Spider and use him as a hostage because he was human. She discussed with Jake about sending him back to High Camp until tensions settled down. He suggested they leave it up to Spider whether or not he wanted to stay. She reluctantly agreed. They told him about the risks of staying with the Metkayina. Spider told them he was not leaving. Jake and Neytiri accepted his decision.
The tensions between the Metkayina and the Green Spears grew worse over the next six months. The clans became engaged in a full-blown war two months later. Tonowari and Ronal forbade anyone from going out alone due to the danger of being attacked unprovoked by their enemies. They punished those who engaged in unprovoked attacks against the Green Spears by making them stay in Awa'atlu until the war ended. That was unless they were needed on the battlefield. The leaders of the Green Spears, Uzukay and Nessa, made similar instructions in their village of Kia. The leaders of both clans instructed their warriors and hunters to bring any injured enemy to their villages for medical treatment.
Mo'at and Neytiri helped Ronal and her healers provide medical treatment to individuals on both sides. Jake helped out as well due to having knowledge of treating injuries on the battlefield during his time in the military. Lo'ak, Kiri, Spider, Aonung, Tsireya, and Rotxo were eager to pitch in. Jake taught his children how to mend injuries his way. He did the same with his fellow Metkayina, whom became fascinated with human medical care. Even able-bodied Green Spears pitched in. The Metkayina and the Green Spears decided to postpone their annual tulkun celebrations. They feared warriors from either clan might kill tulkuns and use them as bait for traps.
Unfortunately, the injuries continued to mount in large numbers. Jake called Norm for help. Norm flew out with Max and members of the Avatar Team to assist with medical care. Tonowari and Ronal contacted smaller Metkayina villages for assistance in fighting their enemies and defending Awa'atlu of which they accepted. Lo'ak and Tsireya went to see Payakan a few times to make sure he was all right. Payakan was grateful to them for being so concerned about him, though he reassured them he was capable of taking care of himself, as were the other tulkuns. Little did they know that the course of the war would begin to twist and turn in unexpected ways.