"Guys ?! Seriously it's not funny ! Where are you ?!", Lo'ak called with all his might.

It was getting late and only the sound of the wind and the waves answered him like many times before. Lo'ak hadn't stopped shouting Aonung's name and those of the other boys since he surfaced. It was endless. Even though he still got the same result, he continued without giving up and looked around as if some poor miracle was about to appear.

He knew it was useless but he just didn't know what else to do.

Lo'ak couldn't leave the fishing area. If he did he wouldn't know where to go and would probably get even more lost than he already was. He couldn't come back. Everything was alike and confused. North and south or west and east. He no longer knew. All he could see was the vast expanse of blue that seemed to go on forever, as if nothing existed except the ocean and its blinding water.

Maybe Eywa would take pity on him and would send him a sign to guide him to the reef if he was desperate enough for her to grant him such a thing. It might even be his only chance to get back, but Lo'ak knew that Eywa didn't intervene for such trivial things as a teenager lost at sea.

He was completely screwed.

He never should have followed or trusted them with their fake truce and fake smiles. He was too naive to think they were sincere for even a second. Of course they were going to frame him for revenge. Their ego had been hurt and their pride had driven them to fight back. It wasn't even a surprise after all.

Lo'ak didn't want to feel hurt or even betrayed but there was still a rather painful twinge in his heart. He had finally thought he was doing something good. He had thought his father would be happy and proud if he managed to befriend them once the fishing was over, but now he was back to square one or maybe even worse than that.

Bad luck could really be his nickname at this point

Suppressing a scream of pure frustration, Lo'ak slammed his hand into the water and splashed a few drops on him while doing it. He had no way to fend for himself and his father was going to find out that he had disobeyed him. He was going to be so mad at him for putting himself in such a reckless situation again.

Sometimes Lo'ak didn't even know how he got into this kind of position. Either he was looking for trouble, which what wasn't the case this time, or he was just a problem magnet and he couldn't control it. Either way, it was just as bad and his father wouldn't make a difference because the result was the same. He had messed up. That was all he remembered each time.

Lo'ak moved slowly on his ilu, waiting without knowing for how long. He was tired and his stomach felt empty. It was even going to get dark soon and there was still no solution to get out of there before the night come.

The bitterness had taken place in his rib cage, it was hot and purulent, like an infection that was spreading throughout his body. But it wasn't directed towards the metkayina boys or even towards his father. It was aiming straight at him and only himself. Everything he did was destined to fail. This fact seemed to be as natural as his own existence and it was a fatality that would follow him to his deathbed.

He could never do anything right.

Feeling his eyes burn, Lo'ak fought back his tears so as not to look even more pathetic than he already was. There was nothing here, calling for help was pointless, and he had to get back close to the cliff before he got too far. He could barely see them from here, they seemed to have shrunk and almost disappeared.

Lo'ak pointed his ilu in the direction of the three peaks without taking any detours. The sea was calm as it was in the reef and the waves corresponded to a continual and gentle rocking. There was nothing alarming or ominous that could disturb the serenity of this place. But still, there was a bad feeling that was buried deep inside him. It throbbed in the back of his skull but he couldn't put words on it or place it while his ears were moving in alert in all directions despite himself.

He was staring at the water around him listening to his instincts when his ilu suddenly turned his head to the side before making high-pitched sounds. The poor creature's eyes were wide open and panicked and Lo'ak felt a shiver run through his spine. The tsaheylu, he realized. It was his ilu who was stressed and his concern was conveyed to him through their bond.

"Hey buddy, what's wrong ?", he whispered to the animal while caressing its long neck to soothe it.

His heartbeat had accelerated because of the bond and he was trying to slow it down by meditating. Lo'ak was also trying to convey his own emotions to prompt the ilu into calming down. He didn't know why he was suddenly panicked like that but it didn't reassure him at all.

The ilu continued to make high-pitched clicking noises as it moved a little faster. Lo'ak didn't want to give in to the animal's feelings but they were getting stronger and harder to contain. The young na'vi made sure to regulate his breathing with all the concentration he could muster. He was scared but he still didn't know why.

As his yellow eyes scanned the surroundings, his breath stopped when he was suddenly thrown into the air. The force of the impact below him was so powerful that it landed him a few feet away from his ilu and Lo'ak struggled to regain his senses. A thud made his ears ring and for a moment he didn't even know which direction the surface was as his blurry vision began to clear.

A gigantic akula was chasing his ilu at phenomenal speed and he almost succeeded in killing him as he bit one of his lower limbs. Fortunately, the bite was not fatal and the animal managed to flee as a long trail of red blood followed its path. The fish swam quickly to reach its prey but instead of pursuing the ilu which was already far away, the creature slowed down before slowly turning back towards him.

Lo'ak was completely petrified and his eyes were wide the whole time, and then his blood started to freeze in fear as the huge akula spotted him.

He was screwed.