Dan Vs. Avatar

by Barrobroadcaster

Chapters

Prologue: Tom
Chapter 1: Bad Quarterly Statement
Chapter 2: Impact
Chapter 3: Priorities
Chapter 4: Rising
Chapter 5: Burning

Prologue: Tom

"Twenty-four, player busts."

"Dammit."

"Sorry sir. Better luck elsewhere," the dealer said, and with an elegant sweep, removed all of Tommy's chips.

Tommy grabbed the last of his drink, downed the last of it in a single gulp and left the glass on the blackjack table.

Earth, 2148

The casino was a blaze of lights, colors, noise and people. Everywhere you looked, it was meant to attract attention. To Tom, it might has well have been invisible. His head swung around like it was on a swivel, looking for something, anything to do. Unfortunately, the one thing he didn't want to see in the casino found him. To be fair, he'd been looking for him.

"Tom! Tom!"

"Norm hey. You having any luck?"

"Uh, yeah- I found you. Listen, it's getting late- we should be back at the university." Norm's voice was more worried than insistent. His partner in the program, Tom had learned to read him long ago. Of the two of them, Tom was more the leader than Norm Spellman.

Tom left his defeat at the blackjack table and waded through the other tables. Norm was hot on his heels the entire time, almost as hot as the money in his pocket. He grabbed his wallet and approached a more promising-looking roulette table with a pretty petite blonde attending it. Did this casino offer escort services? He wondered what the price might be.

"Can I get fifty in chips? Hey- hey-"

"I'm sorry, sir. This table's not accepting new players."

"Fuck."

"Tom," Norm finally grabbed him by the shoulder, "slow down, man. How much have you even spent?"

"Relax, Norm. It's not like we're... not like we're gonna be needing this again, right?"

"How MUCH, Tom?"

He looked around again, hazily trying to remember how much he'd put down at each table. "Maybe a few... err, thousand."

"A few THOUSAND dollars?" The concern in Norm's voice was unmistakable.

Tom turned away from his friend again. "Look, can you just give me this one night?"

Norm's face looked flushed. "You're acting crazy, man. I'm just saying... you might wanna calm it down."

"What's the matter?" Tom shrugged. "We're leaving in two weeks anyway, right? What's the harm in a little fun?"

"One week," Norm's eyes lowered to the floor. "And... I guess so."

"You're not gonna tell Grace about this, are you?" Tom asked.

"No, but I mean... she's not the only one," Norm said. They both knew who he was talking about.

"I know- hey," Tom took him by the shoulders and looked him straight in the eye. "This is all for him. I mean, not this but, if this works- the program, I'll have the money. A few bad hands aren't going to change that."

"One bad hand might," Norm added. It didn't make either of them feel any better.

Tom put his arm around him. The two had gone through both school and Dr. Augustine's Avatar Program together. They were best friends, and they both knew they could count on each other. Soon, they'd finally be there- Pandora, learning and studying with Dr. Grace Augustine herself, learning everything about a brand new ecosystem. The work they would be doing was on the cutting edge of science, research at the edge of civilization, the frontier of a new world. It was exciting.

And it was a bit scary. Despite Tom's knowledge and his genius at mathematics, he was still frightened at the prospect of cryosleep and waking up on a new world. More than that, waking up in a new body, an avatar. His brother Jake was a soldier, he was the fearless one. Although they were twins, Tom often felt like he lived in his brother's shadow. Until his brother was injured in combat and lost the use of his legs.

"Look, just... just give me tonight, alright?"

"Alright..." Norm said, reluctance heavy in his voice. Tom encouragingly spun him around and sent him on his way.

"I'll meet up with you at the lab tomorrow. We can see how much they've grown!"

"Yeah," Norm said. "Just be careful, alright? It's getting late."

"What's to worry about? Think about Pandora!"

"Okay. I'll see you later, Tom."

Tommy smiled as Norm left, his fellow scientist fading into the lights and colors of the casino. He pulled out a few dollars, ordered a drink and some casino chips and went back to gambling.

This was what he needed. A last night out, one last big bender. He'd never admit it but taking care of Jake and being a scientist were heavily taxing on him. He needed a release, especially with Pandora coming up. This was his last chance to have some fun on Earth for probably the next two decades. The way things were going, he might not come back to Earth; the planet was in rough shape.

"Another fifty in chipth, please." Still a few hours left, can't afford to get all slurred now.

Although he was a decent scientist, Tom Sully was not the best gambler. Counting cards should've come naturally to him, with his background in math, but for some reason it escaped him. He was pretty drunk and down to his last two-hundred dollars when he left the casino. He figured he'd still need some money before next paycheck, so he stopped before losing it all and headed home.

Boston was pretty cold at one in the morning. The mega-city covered a full quarter quarter of Massachusetts up and stretched up and down the coast. Other communities, other cities had been absorbed by it- it was all Boston now. Skyscrapers stretched high into the sky, turning the streets into dark alleys even in the daytime. Darker now at night.

Tommy stuffed his hands in his pockets and headed for the subway station. He'd probably get home in another hour, back to the apartment he and Jake shared near the university. The booze was playing with his memory and he couldn't remember if Jake was at home or at the veteran's hospital today.

The subway station looked empty but the trains were automated. He approached the terminal and reached for his wallet to pay for a ticket. His other hand was still in his other pocket to keep warm.

"Hey man." A voice came from the shadows. "Hey."

Tom turned around. He couldn't make out who it was, but the voice didn't sound good. It sounded predatory. He stuffed his wallet back in his pocket.

"Hey man." Whoever it was, they were coming closer.

He tried to ignore it. Just get home. Just gotta get home.

"Hey."

"What?"

A figure appeared from the shadows. Tall, hooded, hands in his own pockets. Dangerous-looking. A bit shifty eyed, almost a foot on Tom. The kind of person that didn't hide they were a thug, a hood, because there wasn't much of a point to it. A dangerous and desperate soul, probably also nearly freezing.

"Hey man."

"I... I don't have anything. I don't have anythi-"

"Lemme see some paper."

"What?" Tom should've expected it, but it was still surprising.

"Your money, man. Hand it over."

Tom knew what was happening. People got mugged, but this was his first time. He imagined what Jake would do. He tried to summon all his courage, all his aggression, everything he could to make him as tough as his brother.

"Hey," he said, "You don't wanna mess-"

*BANG* *BANG-BANG*

Maybe it was a combination of the booze and the cold, or maybe it was something else but for a brief moment, Tom thought he was going to be okay. For exactly half a breath, he felt no pain, no harm, nothing. But then that final breath was followed by a feeling of great and tremendous loss as the planet suddenly rose up to meet his side and Tom found he couldn't feel anything at all. Nothing.

His breathing was suddenly very difficult. And each breath provided no relief, like it was wasted effort. His body seized up, and for a moment, it was like being in one of the link pods again. Would it be like dreaming?

His last thought was of Jake and Norm. The words "I'm sorry" formed silently on his lips, before a boot pushed him over and a pair of hands hastily relieved him of his belongings. Alone in the dark, Tom Sully was no more.

Jake was informed at the veteran's hospital. The next day, Norm and Dr. Augustine came to visit him. The funeral was brief, as were all funerals on Earth, and Jake skipped therapy for the next week, choosing to remain at home instead. The criminal that killed Tom Sully died two days later in a subway fire that resulted from gang-related activity. He was not identified.

The following week, a couple short days before Tom had originally been scheduled to leave, Jake received a phone call. Although he initially declined, he eventually accepted. Within a month, he was on his way to Pandora.

Chapter 1: Bad Quarterly Statement

Sometime Later

Parker Selfridge went over what he was going to say again. This was the part of his job he hated: interfacing with the shareholders. When he'd signed up with the Resource Development Administration, he knew that travel was going to be part of the job. He'd envisioned himself taking clients and executives on factory tours, playing golf and tennis on different planets. Once in a while, an apology had to be made, this was one of those times and unfortunately, he was the one to make it.

"Shame about Quaritch, right?" Parker ignored the first mentioning of the late security operations chief, prompting, but not wanting, his subordinate to continue. "Guy went through a lot of bush back home, gets whacked on some frontier shithole."

"We're done with that," Parker said. "That's another condolence letter I have to write, by the way." His clipboard was held tightly in his hand- a detailed list of everything he needed to over with their biggest shareholder.

"Yeah, I hear that." The interior of the shuttle was quiet enough for the two to hear each other without shouting, but the jarhead seemed to shout anyway. Parker decided not to chew him out; Tony was one of the few company marines to make it off Pandora alive. 'Company marines,' the term for the security personnel RDA employed- straight out of service.

"About all we got outta Pandora was bodies anyway."

"Not only bodies," Parker said through gritted teeth. "Debt. And lots of it. But also... we learned a few things." He flipped to the next page of the clipboard. The second page was the details of the late Dr. Augustine's research into Pandoran botany. That, plus all of their samples the science group collected, might be enough to cushion the blow a good amount. Still, he did think about Quaritch and the others.

Parker Selfridge was not a selfish man. He tried to do things humanely. When that didn't work, when it looked like war was inevitable, he authorized a preemptive strike. That had been a mistake. He went into unknown territory hoping to do what he'd always done, what the company had always done, and things had fallen apart. His failure to recognize that was on him. Those lives lost, they may not all have been on him, but he shouldered the responsibility. What he was doing right now was for everyone, for all of them. Unlike before, he was sure it was the right decision this time.

"Just let me do all the talking," Parker said, and he realized he was raising his voice over the sound of the engines. Abruptly, they cut off and the shuttle bay doors opened. "Try to look... I dunno, determined or something."

"Should I bring a gun?"

"Hell no. Just follow me, stand there, smile if they look at you and don't say anything," Parker said.

As they walked up the white-marbled steps, Tony stopped. "Shit man. I don't know if I'm ready for this."

"Just relax. We'll be in and out."

The royal guard ponies opened the doors to Canterlot Castle before them. Inside, dozens of ponies and other visitors had already gathered. The rear foyer was more of a business entrance than the main hall, but it was still lavish and luxurious in every essence of the word. Twin staircases led up to a mezzanine on the floor above them. Golden rails lined the stairs and opulent red carpets stretched from the doorway all the way down the hall. It looked to be all one piece of fabric.

"Results of the last survey came in. Only about eighteen percent."
"Eighteen percent? What's the point if we keep getting back low numbers like that?"
"To give the speculators at least SOME good news. Eighteen percent isn't nothing."

Two stallions were talking about, naturally, the same thing Selfridge was here to discuss: Unobtanium. The precious metal was worth enough by the ounce to buy entire starships. A pinch of it could power a building for a decade, not to mention what else it could do. The properties of unobtanium allowed it to be used to create unbelievably advanced superconductors, gravity-field manipulating technology, energy-stabilization. Some people even referred to it as metal magic, the "godmaterial" or other such nonsense. Selfridge knew what it meant to everyone in between: money. Opportunity. Life.

A pair of royal guard ponies led them from the entrance through the halls. Branching off the side from the back entrance to the throne room was a hall that led to a series of chambers, and finally, the conference room he'd been expecting. The guards ushered the two of them in after a final check.

"-and I want you to know, that we spared no expense in this-"

"Ah. Excuse me Mr. Chairman, but that seems to be the administrator now."

"Uh, hi, yes," Parker said, bowing. He only just now realized he'd never actually been told what to expect with royalty, so he figured bowing was a good start. And he was wrong.

"There's no need for that. Please, take a seat."

"Thank you," he said. Tony awkwardly stood by the door.

Parker looked down at the clipboard, went over his notes one last time, leaned forward, took a deep breath and started. "Now, first, I want you to know I take full responsibility for what happened to your investment. The entire company, all of us are sorry for this loss, and we're willing to offer-"

"Calm down, Mr. Selfridge."

He looked up. Rather than a cold, unforgiving glare like he was used to getting, the face he looked at conveyed only warmth and happiness. Of course, Princess Celestia had that kind of reputation.

"I would like you to please, explain to me, in your own words, precisely what took place on Pandora."

He felt his stomach sink. He decided it was best not to lie about this. "We... were out of line. All of us."

"What happened?" Another pony wearing a crown, a shorter purple mare, asked that question.

"We got into a conflict with the, with the natives. It escalated out of control, diplomacy failed, so we tried to use force."

"Force?" Celestia repeated.

Selfridge nodded. "Force, unfortunately. It was the wrong decision, we lost people because of this but the ultimate blame... lies with me. And I am, very, deeply..." he looked up at both of them, "Sorry." He was more sincere than even he realized. Maybe it was because he was on Equestria or that he was happy just to be able to breath air without a mask, but he genuinely felt regret for essentially starting a war. He knew his hand wasn't the only one in it, but he could have stopped it. He could've stopped it all. Now, he was just trying to pick up the pieces.

Celestia nodded. "We understand."

"Understand?" he blurted out. "I mean... uh, I'm sorry. But uh, would you care to elaborate?"

"Unobtanium is just as valuable to us as it is to you," Twilight explained. As she did, Celestia got up from her seat and paced slowly to the end of the table. It was just then Selfridge noticed a familiar silvery chunk of ore sitting at the edge of the table. It floated above a tiny pedestal, floated on its own.

"There have been losses, that we understand," Celestia said, her back towards them. "But the point of a lesson is to ensure that the same mistakes are not made again." She spun around to him. "I don't think you're going to make the same mistakes."

"I-n-no, no ma'am." Parker had no idea what she was talking about, what she meant but knew enough to just go along with it and keep his mouth shut.

The princess nodded contentedly. Despite being a being of immense power, she had an odd serenity about her. To men like Parker and Tony, it did nothing to lessen their intimidation, but it was strange to see.

"We need each other. That's why we entered into this arrangement in the first place. And... we're smarter than we look," Twilight said, still seated. "We were aware of the risks."

Celestia nodded. "We all took a risk. We were to share this burden. Our only disappointment was that you didn't share as much with us sooner." She leaned forward, ethereal mane towering over the practically-cowering Parker Selfridge. "So why didn't you ask us for help?"

"I uh," he cleared his throat, "I'm-I'm not sure what you're saying."

"It's simple. We want a return on our investment."

"Are you kidding me?" he couldn't stop himself from saying. "The company's going to be lucky if it survives the fiscal year, let alone see any real returns. We can barely afford to the minimum insurance on our principals."

"This is all true," Celestia said, her voice still even and content. "If you give up Pandora."

Like a hammer to his skull, it hit him. "Ohhh, umm... you're not actually suggesting..."

She nodded. "I am. We're not going to give up Pandora. Neither of us can afford to."

Equestria was not just a shareholder in RDA; they used Unobtanium. Their applications were more magic and construction-based rather than for energy or stabilization, but the outcome was the same. And a bad outcome on Pandora was bad for both of them.

"We want you to go back to Pandora," Celestia stated. She opened the door and walked out.

Selfridge was stunned. The thought of going back to Pandora made him feel like he had one of the Na'vi's neurotoxin-tipped arrows in his gut. He almost didn't realize she intended for him to follow before she was halfway down the corridor.

"But please, your majesty, the losses we encountered- ninety percent of our security forces, the chief of operations-"

"Plus all the hardware. Shuttles ain't cheap," Tony added, catching up.

"I know," Celestia replied. "I also know it was quite outdated."

Both men stopped in unison and said, "Outdated?"

"I can understand cutting costs, but seeing as how there have been... unforeseen complications, we'll be sending you back with the proper means this time," Celestia said. She led the two bewildered and confused mean back to the foyer, down the staircase and all the way to the entrance.

She approached the door and turned to face them. "You'll be going back with more equipment, more personnel and... a new operations chief. One more-suited to the task."

The door opened, blowing Celestia's mane and tail inward. Despite this, she was unphased. The same could not be said of Selfridge and Tony.

"I hear you've been having some trouble getting some kids off your lawn."

"Um... kind-of?" Parker said. He didn't see whoever was speaking yet, but behind Celestia, he noticed something different about the sky. Specifically, there didn't seem to be much of it left any more. It was full of ships. Aircraft, spacecraft, shuttles, heavy machinery and equipment, legions of the stuff, along with flying ponies were taking off to the sky.

"I'd heard as much. You should've called me earlier; we have preparations to deal with that sort of problem."

"What the hell is all that?!" Parker asked.

"Our new preparations."

Even as he asked, more and more vessels, ships he'd never seen before dotted the sky. Some were the size of buildings while others were as tiny as gyrocopters and yet hoisted somehow things that were the size of buildings. More than a few were the Earth-standard orbital shuttles he was used to, but there were far more of... everything else.

The man came into view. He was short, shorter than Selfridge but wore armor similar to the pony royal guards, only black in the center. A logo in the center spelled out the word JERK.

"Pretty nifty, huh? Hi. I'm going to be teaching you how to get both your pay and payback at the same time. I'm Dan."

Chapter 2: Impact

One Earth News

BREAKING NEWS: Hope on the Horizon for RDA?

Major losses have been announced this quarter for the Resource Development Administration after reports indicated one of their mining operations escalated into what can only be called a full-scale war. With massive equipment and personnel losses and little to show for it, RDA seemed on the verge of bankruptcy yet again following its complete withdrawal from its latest ventures on the planet Pandora.

That is, until the unbelievable happened: in a move officials are calling a modern-day miracle, the Kingdom of Equestria has agreed to take on ALL of the corporation's debt. In exchange for a partnership and the rights to nearly half of the company's existing holdings, Equestria has taken on all of the company's financial obligations. This shocking development comes alongside the announcement that Equestria itself is launching its own operations on Pandora, effective immediately.

This unprecedented move has likely saved the company but put Equestria's own economy in peril once again. Like Earth, the energy crisis continues for Equestria as well with supplies running thin on both sides of the universe. Although this new agreement has eased the burden for RDA, experts say this is only a temporary solution for the ongoing energy crisis.

In related news, the New Houston blackout has finally ended after thirty-seven days of near total darkness. RDA technicians released emergency supplies to repair the city's aging power grid and have been successful in installing new superconductors to primary substations. City officials estimated that nearly eight-thousand deaths were a result of the reactor failure alone and that many more would have occurred if not for the timely intervention.

We will have more updates as this story develops.

Pandora

Neytiri crept through the forest. The ershwinna was still close by, likely trying to camouflage itself. She'd never hunted this far away before and the area was still unfamiliar to her. Even as she tracked her prey, she had to take care that she did not become prey herself.

Carefully, quietly, as silently as possible, she lifted the low-hanging petal of the glopyrus flower. To her people, they were called 'bol-bwissa', meaning light flowers. The ershwinna was directly ahead of her, trying to hide itself under a bol-bwissa across the tiny clearing. Neytiri did not hesitate; she drew her arrow and fired, sticking the creature in its neck.

Step by step, she crossed the clearing and knelt by her kill. Roughly the size of a human itself, it would provide a meal to at least a few of the tribe. There had been more when she first found their herd, but they had scattered when she killed the adult. When she'd been forced to kill the adult. She removed her arrow from the hide of the creature, thanked Eywa for the meat and shouldered it, preparing to make her way back to camp.

It was just as she was getting back up that she noticed a sparkling, translucent vine wrapping around the base of the flower. Her eyes went wide; she dropped the dark blue boar almost immediately.

With care, she worked over the vine, unwrapped it from the flower, felt it, pulled it to test its durability. It was an older vine, extremely rare. It would work perfectly. She ignored her dinner for a solid few minutes as she carefully severed the shiny vine from its source, bundled it up and took it with her along with the boar. It was heavy, but important to carry both. If she needed to, she would've dropped the ershwinna boar to carry the vine.

"You've been gone a long time."

"Hsssh, Laca. Where is Jake?"

"Where you left him," Laca said. She was a foot smaller than Neytiri and was still too young to ride or hunt, but was wise for her years and made a good attendant. Her mother, Mo'at, insisted she have one for as long as she was with child.

The ikran grumbled in the fern above them. Cle-ka, Neytiri's newest bonded ikran, was among them. The winged creatures preferred great heights to being low to the ground, but they would have to make due until the Omaticaya found a new home.

It had been several weeks since they departed the Tree of Souls. Although it was a spiritual site and their natural link to Eywa, it was near no fertile or hunting grounds. The Omaticaya Clan had always dwelt with the trees and the loss of Hometree, as well as many of the clan's members, was still heavy on their minds. Hometree had been there home for generations. Jake Sully, the new clan leader, was determined to find them a suitable new great tree to call home.

Unfortunately, that was beginning to look like a harder prospect than any of them imagined.

Neytiri entered the small hut she called home. "Ma Jake."

"Neytiri," Jake said, smiling as she walked in. He steadied himself, wincing only slightly. "How was the hunt?"

"Jake," her voice became scolding, "you should not be standing. This is not good for-"

"I know, I know," he said. He pushed through her wifey berating and hugged her tightly. They kissed, momentarily forgetting everything but each other. The moment passed quickly, and he was forced to sit down again.

"Jake..." she repeated, tone now heavy with concern. She looked down at him, through his optimism and down to his legs. She knelt down to rub them, causing him only mild pain.

"Neytiri, Neytiri... that's enough, thank you," he said.

She suddenly shot up, excited. It was one of the traits he loved about her. "I found something! While out hunting- something to help with your pain! We can make shima-tse, the medicine!"

"Neytiri," he reached out to her, and took her hands in his. He took a deep breath, sighed, then nodded. "Okay. Thank you."

"It will help you, Jake. Eywa- She guided me to it! It will make you better!"

"Okay, but after dinner!" he called after her. He sat back down in the hammock again and shook his head. Pregnant wife and she's more worried about him than he is. He looked down at his legs and rubbed them. The muscles under his blue skin tingled slightly.

Avatar bodies had been grown and engineered for the purpose of interacting with the Na'vi, not becoming one of them. They had never been meant to be used for such prolonged periods. Not only that, despite being Tommy's genetic twin, the avatar Jake Sully was inhabiting was based on Tommy, not him. Honestly though, none of that mattered to him. He was a Na'vi now, this was his reality. He had to find some way to fix it.

It was getting harder for him to walk every day. It had happened slowly, first with him being unable to run without pain and then even standing became difficult. His leg muscles, the muscles of his Na'vi avatar body were degenerating and becoming like his human legs had been. First there was just burning, but now he was beginning to lose sensitivity. The thought of him having to go back to a wheelchair was both terrifying and saddening to him.

Not to mention what his child might be like. A baby conceived by an avatar body? It had never been done before. Neytiri seemed to be taking the pregnancy well, but it was still early, even if Na'vi pregnancies were only six months long.

Dinner was quiet, but happy. The boars that Neytiri and the other hunters had fed, along with some fruit they gathered, made a decent meal. The camp was not home, but at least they were not going hungry. At night, the children danced and Rusu and Nanat sang. Jake took his medicine and it did help some with his pain, although he didn't want the pain to completely go away. Some feeling in his legs was better than none.

The next morning, the clan packed up and prepared to move again.

"We are nearing the coast. If we keep moving, we should see the beaches before midlight tomorrow," Hirum said. His name meant 'sight self' or 'deep seeing.' Like Laca, he was a young scout but wise and a good ikran rider. They would all have to be in order for the clan to survive.

"Pah, there's no good hunting near the coast. Nothing but bek'sha and tesslik cubs," Keenok said.

"There is good fishing. Plenty of fish and clear waters."

Keenok grinned a toothy smile and leaned to his friend. "Good, then I can use the fish to bait something bigger!"

"Must you talk incessantly?" Neytiri asked, more of a command to shush. They picked through the underbrush together. Hirum and Keenok were two of the best hunter/trackers left in the clan. Neytiri lead them, and right now needed their eyes and ears, not their mouths. Two of their other scouting parties she knew were making progress. Unua and Laca led them while Veruna and Veruga, the two oldest members of the tribe, stayed with Jake and the others.

It was complicated. With Jake losing the ability to walk, Neytiri had become de facto leader of the Ometicaya. Her mother, Laca and Tekoret tried to help her, but she felt the people's burden on her shoulders weighing down heavily. Growing up, she had been taught that she would become a spiritual leader, and so had studied and communed with Eywa. In her heart, she was still a hunter, and felt the call of the wild constantly. She would rather be doing something with her husband, hunting together instead of leading alone.

Right now, she felt very alone. Even before meeting Jake, she had not been looking forward to her arranged marriage with Tsu'Tey. Her parents had told her it was her youth, that she would hear the call to her role as Eytukan soon enough. But instead, she had heard Jake. She would still be Eytukan, but in ways she had never imagined.

Eywa is a wild spirit at times, her mother had told her. You cannot always see her or hear her until she makes her call, but call she does. Jake had said Earth had a similar spirit among them, and had said "God works in the ways of mysteries," or something like that. But the Sky People did not listen to their mother, they had murdered her, and now sought the same of Eywa. She would not let this be, not for Jake or for anyone else.

They pushed through the leaves until the foliage became less dense and more green. Finally, they arrived at the coast.

"Ahhh, sun's light. It is good to feel the sun again, yes?"

Keenok, arms folded, relented from his stubbornness for the moment. "It does feel nice." The older brother gazed up and down the length of the coast. The Ossa Shiir, or Ocean of Many Eyes stretched out before them. The Osska Cove was one of the largest they had found, and they could fish there, but it was no Home Tree.

The Ometicaya were tree-folk and fliers, not fishermen. Perhaps they would be nomads now, like the plain-riders. But for now, they were all survivors, and the cove would serve them until they could find a new home.

"Unua!!" Hirum waved. The female warrior looked around, then smiled and waved back with her spear. For a young man, fewer gestures mattered more in that moment. He could feel his heart nearly set ablaze by it.

"I see someone has already been fishing. But who has caught who?"

Hirum quickly lowered his hand. Older siblings were the same on every planet. Keenok socked him in the shoulder, and Hirum did his best to ignore it, hoping Unua didn't see.

Neytiri left the two of them to see Unua and Laca.

"The water is so blue! More blue than the lakes and more clear!" The sky was as blue as the sea, gorgeous to behold.

"This is your first time seeing the shiir?"

Unua nodded. "Yes, it is beautiful! Will we swim to the islands?"

Neytiri returned the nod but spoke firmly. "There will be time for exploring but for now, we must make camp. Take time to rest and then we must gather wood."

Both of them nodded, and then bowed. "Yes, Eytukan. Eywa will provide."

She shook her head at their jokes. She was about to say something else, chide them for their impertinence when something broke the sky above their heads. A loud hum filled the air, several birds broke from the treeline.

They all searched for the source of the disturbance, but it seemed to be all around them. The leaves from the trees shook as if with fear, and the ground vibrated with rapid pulses. It was as if a great drum were beating near Pandora, a drum that shook the world.

Hirom pointed to the sky. Neytiri followed it to see a mountain flying overhead. Like one of the floating mountains, but Neytiri could see this mountain was not of Pandora. This mountain was made of cold metal, the kind on which no seed could take purchase, the kind which shoved aside the dirt and trees wherever it went. And now, it was flying over them.

The Sky People had returned.

It was large and oddly-shaped structure. If she had not been mistaken, Neytiri would have thought it was an uprooted tree. The Sky People mountain was being hoisted by some great machine, but not like one she had ever seen before. She heard the hum of their 'cutters', the spinning blades their steel-fliers used as wings. So violent was their nature that they cut the very air to fly. The structure had six long and massive legs, like dangling tree roots. Painted on those legs was a symbol she recognized, "3."

She felt her breath catch in her throat. The Sky People were planting their own Home Tree.

"Neytiri," Laca said. Her friend's voice shook her out of the trance she had been in. "Go tell Jake." The graveness in her voice was unmistakable. It matched the feeling Neytiri felt grip her heart.

She ran back to the forest as fast as her legs could take her, back to where Jake and the others were. But before she even reached the trees, another floating mountain appeared. And another... and another... and another...

Chapter 3: Priorities

"Looks good so far! We're right above it!"

The pilot and copilot pegasi gave the all-clear signal. Dan nodded. "Plant the flag!"

"All compartments, prepare for landing sequence. All compartments, prepare for landing sequence."

The landing craft slowly lowered the derrick into position. All six of its legs dipped into the water. Around them, the Equestrian Condor-class gunships and human Scorpion-class gunships circled in a wide pattern. Usually, the pegasi would prefer to use their own wings, but it wasn't safe enough yet. A few of the gunships dropped off submersibles- the RDA's Excavation Extraction and Loading or EEL-S subs.

The subs went to work immediately preparing the foundation and getting the legs into place. RDA had surveyed the areas previously and determined the bedrock suitable enough to anchor the rigs. All that was left was to confirm it, test it, re-test it, seal it into place, half a dozen over things and then the rig would be set up. All in all, took about half an hour.

"Sonar buoys are in place! We're clear to cut 'er loose!"

The landing craft let go of the rig and headed back up into the atmosphere. Within a few hours, five more rigs would be set up.

Dan set foot on the drilling rig. The rebreather felt a little itchy on his face, but he would live with it. "We couldn't have picked a place with more shade, could we?"

"We could set up some umbrellas. I mean, if it weren't for the travel distance, poison gas atmosphere and the fact that every living thing on this rock wants to kill ya, this place'd make a nice spot for a resort."

Dan spun around. "Need I remind you, Mr. Selfridge, we are not here on vacation. That being said, play your cards right and we'll have golf courses and waterslides here before the year's out. Nicky!!"

Stepping out of the dropship and also into this spinoff was Dan's righthand man, Phoenix Wright. Dressed in a bright, blue tropical shirt, cargo shorts, sandals and sporting sunglasses under his breath mask, he looked about as far away from the courtroom as he possibly could.

"Can I object to the no vacation thing?"

Dan looked around, then threw up his hands. "Alright, alright, fine. AFTER we set up the extractors, we can have a beach day or something. Set up a volleyball net at least."

"If we're playing volleyball, you wear a shirt this time."

"I'm having enough trouble with these damn masks."

Phoenix patted him on the back and helped him tighten the straps. "Yeah, well, keep it on if you want to keep breathing."

"Yeah, yeah."

"Commander Dan to the control room please, Commander Dan to the control room."

"Time to get to work. Both of you, you're with me, c'mon. You can find an office where you can set up your golf mat, Parker. I know you brought it with you."

"It's, uh, it's a good luck charm."

"Uh huh." Dan led the two men to the conning tower.

The drilling platforms were identical in structure- three hexagon platforms with six thick legs each resting lightly on the sea floor. To help stabilize the structure, the legs were partially flooded. Atop each platform were the support and command structures, office-like compartments surrounding the conning tower on one side and a large crane on the other. In the center was the landing pad, and underneath that was the cargo, crew and drilling structures inside the platform itself. All very pristine and state-of-the art.

The crane blared out a warning alarm as it turned and lowered into the ocean. Ponies all over the structure where at work. They moved, prepared the platform for drilling and worked with purpose. They moved with focus and discipline unmatched by any laborers Parker had ever seen.

"His majesty Duke Dan, on deck!"

The ponies rose and saluted Dan before he entered. Phoenix and Parker came in behind him and closed the hatch. The hatch sealed, and the rush of conditioned air greeted them refreshingly.

Dan panned the room, letting the ponies, mostly guards and pegasi, hold their salutes. He looked back to Parker Selfridge and held his gaze for a long moment, letting the company man drink in what he was seeing. Phoenix took note of this and said nothing; this was a message of its own they were witnessing.

Finally, Dan carefully removed his rebreather mask. "At ease." Parker had been impressed by the display; he hadn't even seen them blink.

Captain Springer, an old friend of Dan's, approached. "Lord Dan, sir, some of the pegasi squadrons are having difficulty with the clouds. It may take more time to establish the forward operating base."

He nodded. "It's not critical at this time; tell them they can take some extra time, but get it done right."

"Affirmative, sir."

"On that note," Commander Spitfire herself was the second to approach Dan. Soarin, ever the supporting wingpony, was next to her. Because of Dan's promotion, Springer actually outranked the Wonderbolt leader now, but the Wonderbolts were hers to command alone. "Soarin would like to ask something."

"We're not calling the FOB 'Soarvania.'"

"But, but I was the first to touch it!"

"We're NOT calling it Soarvania!" Dan repeated.

"Awww..." The pegasus hung his head low. Under pegasus regulations, cloud structures began with a sort-of race. The first to build a structure in the new territory got to name it- usually after themselves, their family or pegasi of old.

Dan sighed. "I'll get you a pie later."

Soarin instantly perked up again. "Dutch apple crumb or lattice?"

"Lattice."

"Deep dish, ala mode?"

Dan pointed sternly at the door. "Get your flanks back out there and finish the base!"

"Sir, yes sir!" He fixed his mask back on and bolted for the airlock. Soarin was enthusiastic and young, but not an idiot. Getting to name a pegasus fort on a new planet was a pretty big deal; Dan would probably relent and let him name it Soarvania eventually. He just wouldn't get to name it in an official capacity at the moment. Sky Station-1 would work for now.

The pegasi needed their own base, a cloud fort, to begin producing oxygen and clean water. So far away from Earth and Equestria, they could not rely on resupply trips alone to sustain them. Solar panels, wind turbines and hydroelectric generators provided power, but to get more air and water, they needed a proper treatment facility. That was where the pegasi had come in, and was one of their goals until they could properly terraform a portion of Pandora. For food, they had some hydroponics labs and a greenhouse in each platform along with a few of Equestria's best farmers. All and all, they were very prepared.

Now, they needed to focus on what they had come to Pandora for: Unobtainium.

"Uhh, hey, Dan?" Vinyl Scratch spun around in her desk. She had volunteered to handle communications, "tunes and good vibes." "Got a call for ya."

"Are the sonic emitters said up?"

"Most of 'em, yeah," she said as he walked over. "But there's a call coming in from somebody. You know a guy named Drake?"

"Ah, yes. I'll, uh... can I have one of those headsets?"

Vinyl peeled off her headphones. "Sure, you can have mine."

"Uh, no. I'm grabbing another pair."

"But why no-"

"Because they're gonna be all warm and sticky and still have your ear sweat on them!" Still seated in her rolling chair, Dan pulled her away from her workspace, the communications monitors.

"They're not that sweaty; Tavi and I share all the time."

"Because you're gay."

"Hah," Vinyl said, taken back a bit. "I'm bi, Tavi's not even my type. We're just friends, dude."

"I didn't ask for your excuses!" Dan barked. "Parker! Over here!"

The company man exchanged glances with Phoenix Wright, who shrugged at him. Phoenix was used to Dan's 'style' so to speak while Parker was seeing it for the first time. Vinyl was also used to Dan's behavior and simply put back on her headphones, flipped down her shades and put on the next song on her playlist.

Parker could feel eyes on him. The ponies were not the same as the mercenaries and scientists from his last operation on Pandora. He'd been in charge there, everyone had been on RDA's payroll and it went through him. He had been the boss. Now, Dan was the boss, standing at nearly a foot shorter than him dressed like some kind of knight with a black t-shirt. Dan wore his royal guard uniform with his shirt over it.

"Hey Drake, it's Dan. How's it look up there?" Neither Phoenix nor Parker could hear the other man through the headset, whoever he was. "No, no. You're here already? Alright, put down on platform three. I'll see ya in a sec."

"What was that about?" Parker asked.

"Just one of our pilots coming in. He's making a special run."

"A special 'run'?" Parker repeated.

Dan didn't answer his concern. "I need you to enter your administration code."

He looked at Dan. "My RDA admin code?"

"No, your country club member code- YES, your RDA admin code! What other codes do you even have?! Is there ANOTHER intergalactic mining conglomerate you're involved with?"

Parker straightened up. "I did work with Concordance Extraction Corporation for a few years."

"Fantastic, you can help if we have a problem with mutant space zombies, then. Put in the code."

He sat down and did as he was told. RDA's old software booted up in the window of the Equestrian display. Parker typed in his code and they were in.

Dan quickly pulled him off the terminal. "Good. Thank you, Mr. Selfridge, you're free to practice your putts now."

"What's all this about- hey! Don't get pushy with me!"

"It's nothing you and your bosses didn't already sign off on," Dan said firmly. "Now, if you'd like to check on the rest of the operation, we'll get you a tour guide but for now, there's work to do. Captain Britannia!"

"Sir!" The mare answered the moment he called.

"Show Mr. Selfridge his office."

"Sir, yes sir!" The English officer-mare escorted Parker to one of the rooms off to the side of the control center. It had a window, more like a larger porthole that he could see out of but it was something. There wasn't much he could do, so he set up his golf mat, sat down at his desk and logged in to his terminal. Spreadsheets didn't start themselves.

Dan returned his attention to the terminal.

"Looks like that dude's code worked. We've got a response from the RDA network," Vinyl said.

The terminal's display lit up with information. RDA's information. Parker Selfridge's code gave them control over what was left of their Pandora network. It had only been a few months since they had abandoned the planet previously; very much longer and their plan probably wouldn't have worked.

"Accessing rigs... and..." Vinyl keyed commands into the computer. Dan, Phoenix and a few of the others waited with bated breath. "Response pings: six green lights, five reds, the rest nothing."

Dan nodded. "Good. Get a rundown of the controls but don't activate them yet."

"Gotcha," Vinyl said.

Dan stepped away from Vinyl and the terminal. He and Phoenix locked eyes and Dan nodded.

"Plan F?"

"Plan F," Dan confirmed. And that was all the exchange they needed.

RDA had left a lot of equipment behind when they left, not unlike InGen had at Site B on Earth during that incident. The equipment RDA had left, however, were things Dan and company could still use. Right now, Vinyl Scratch and a couple of the other ponies were going over the operations and controls for what they were after most: the drilling rigs. The largest of them, the Bucket Wheel Excavator, was giving out a weak signal but the other rigs were online along with several bulldozers and other vehicles, all automated.

When RDA evacuated, they only had one TAV(Trans-Atmospheric Vehicle) shuttle after the first using and losing the first one as a bomber. They simply hadn't been able to remove all their equipment from Pandora, and so had just left after brief negotiation with the Na'vi to end hostilities. The Na'vi were not a violent race, though a few were motivated to further destroy the RDA's leftover vehicles, most of them held firm in the belief that Eywa would reclaim it eventually. And that was true in the sense that nature would erode the machines in a few years.

That is, if they had been left alone. Dan had other plans.

He spun around. "Vinyl."

"Yeah?"

"Change of plans. Get the smaller units working, deploy them now. Right now. Priority-one. Nothing near Hell's Gate but anything on the roads or near the mine, get it working now and send it out. Try to do it quietly, no running lights."

"Uhm, okay. That might get a little complicated."

"As quick as you can, as safe as you can," Dan said.

"Sir, we've got a few malfunctions on the BWE."

"Handle it- discreetly," Dan ordered.

"Aye, sir."

A lot was happening all at once. Dan figured it was better to use the momentum while they had it rather than not. The sea platforms were their main drilling operation, yes, but as with all Dan's plans, it was only one of many. There were multiple moving parts both literally and metaphorically at work here and Dan was monitoring them all in his head. There goal was to get unobtainium and Dan intended to get it if he had to dig it out of the dirt by hand.

Miles away, RDA Extra Solar Colony 01 or Hell's Gate as it was more popularly known, began to show the slightest activity again. Its generators received the remote startup code from the drilling platform, and some of the lights began to switch on. They weren't covered in much dust but some animals were grazing on the tarmac. A few mammalian creatures had crept their way into the base and the farms were growing wilder than they ever had when humans in avatar bodies tended to them. The base was abandoned, shut down, but was now showing signs of life once again.

Like the other equipment left behind, the Na'vi had left Hell's Gate largely untouched. Some of the more aggressive tribes had said they should burn the base or bury it, but cooler heads had prevailed. That, and Jake and Neytiri's own insistence had helped.

Ultimately, the RDA, Hometree, the war, all of it were things Jake and most of the Na'vi, most of the Omaticaya, wanted to forget. Move the clan to a new home, start a new life. Over time, RDA's influence would be erased from the surface. It would fade away like a bad memory, like the memory of Tom's death.

Jake felt his avatar legs, however, and it was like reliving those memories all over again. He remembered the base, the wheelchair, the IED on the street in Puerto La Cruz that sent his vehicle flying and the moment he woke up in the field hospital and was told by a nurse translating for the doctor that he was paralyzed from the waist down. The nurse's voice had been so soft, too soft to deliver such news.

He was making his way through the jungle when Neytiri and the others came back for him. He saw the panic in their eyes, the rush as they shouted.

"Sky People! The Sky People have returned!"

"Jake..." Neytiri ran up to him quickly, but he already knew. "Jake, my Jake, what do we do? What can we do?"

He braced on his walking stick and looked her in the eyes. "I... I don't know. But... but for now, we make camp. Call everyone back. Send word to the other clans- tell them not to provoke them. Tell them the truth and tell them... to be ready."

She nodded. "I will, Jake." Her voice sounded heavy and uncertain, full of the worry a loved one had for another loved one. The kind of painful, fearful uncertainty that was always the hardest to hear, when someone's life was on the line. If you've ever heard it before, you know exactly what it's like- both the fear, the uncertainty and the resolve. The thread of courage and focus, the tiny sliver needed to break through it. True bravery. And you know that it is the heaviest, hardest tone that a voice can ever have.

Chapter 4: Rising

Jake didn't know how well the other clans would take it when they saw him. He could have tried to hide his condition for the sake of their confidence. The Na'vi still saw him as Toruk Makto, and likely would for the duration of their history. These were a very spiritual and primitive people, all of the clans and stories were told through word and song. The only histories they had were those that were passed down and to them, Jake Sully was a legend. How would they see him now?

It was best not to hide anything from them, he decided.

In three days' time, the clan made camp at a bend in the river a good distance from the beach, a place where the Equestrian/RDA gunships wouldn't notice the occasional ikran flying. Representatives from the other clans arrived to discuss a course of action; best not to assemble all of them, lest they start a war they weren't ready for. In truth, none of them were ready, but if they had to fight, they would. Some of them, especially the younger Na'vi, wanted it.

The representatives of the clan gathered around a campfire. The others stayed a respectful distance from the circle, but watched and listened. There was nothing hidden.

He approached them, Neytiri on his shoulder, walking stick in the other. Some of them, their mouths hanging open, were in a state of disbelief. "Toruk Makto" was whispered among some of them, loud enough for him to hear. He sat down in front of the fire, wincing only slightly.

"What you have said has come to pass, Jake Sully. The Sky People have returned." First to speak was Quoh'timo, leader of the Gar'ta'racen people, which meant Riders of the Farthest Plains. Their clan was the largest in number and very protective, but also very peaceful. They had the fewest ikran riders, but still more than some of the smaller tribes and were largely nomadic, following herd animals throughout the western part of the northern hemisphere of Pandora.

They waited for Jake to respond. "They have. I didn't expect them to return this- this soon. But they've returned."

"They come for more rising rock? They will dig again- their machines, the machines will dig again?" Verritan, female representative of the Kotakovu, the High Cave people.

The Kotakovu were generally considered reclusive and, well, strange. Verritan, her name meaning "deep stone," spoke with a more aggressive and anxious tone. Her people hated the Sky People the most, had committed all their warriors in the last conflict and lost quite a few. Even when the Sky People first landed, Kotakovian warriors harassed RDA mining operations more than any other tribe. They had discovered the Sky Peoples' goal- 'rising rock', or unobtainium.

Jake answered honestly. "Yes. Please, all of you- you must understand. They're desperate. They're very desperate for unobtainium- rising rock. We all know what they're willing to do for it, how far they're willing to go."

"What do you suggest we do?" Quoh'timo asked.

Jake took quite a long time to answer. Eighteen clans had sent representatives. Eighteen in such a short amount of time, just three days. The exact number of clans wasn't even known to the Na'vi themselves. Some clans were as small as a few dozen Na'vi, others numbered in the hundreds, with the largest being a couple thousand strong. But not the numbers humans had on Earth, or the numbers ponies had on Equestria. And their numbers had been devastated after the last war.

Jake looked into all of their faces. Scared, worried, like him. "I... I don't know."

"We ask Eywa for guidance." Gova-tso was a spiritualist. He was a large Na'vi, one of the tallest, if not the tallest, and built like a mountain of muscle. He was also a very great warrior and meditated a lot- physically, which honed him in body and mind. He was not a great singer, but supposedly could dance very well and was known to tell jokes once in a while, usually involving the creatures of pandora and what they think of the Na'vi. His people, the Goenkaru tribe lived at the base of one of Pandora's largest mountains to the north, which saw snowfall half the year and tropical heat the other half.

Gova-tso's comments drew concerned whispers.

"Eywa has made her intents known, Gova-tso!" Ti'Ila of the Orimwatu tribe, small but very fierce warriors. "We saw Eywa attack their machines, attack the Sky People to protect the Tree of Souls." The small female Na'vi rose. "We should attack the Sky People now."

"They have broken the treaty!"
"Toruk Makto!"

Voices were shouting now. They were angry, the Na'vi were angry. Their tempers still boiled, wounds from the last battle with the Sky People still fresh. Lost loved ones had been gone too short for them to forget. The young and some of the old shouted for retribution and defense of their land.

"Sky People will not rest until they have destroyed Pandora, carved it to bits for rising rock!" Verritan added.

"You claim to know the will of Eywa, Ti'Ila?" Gova-Tso asked. The small woman standing barely met his height while he was seated. "But the Sky People have landed. Three days and we have seen no sign from Eywa."

"Eywa bides her time as she did before," Ti'Ila said. "The Mother works through Na'vi! We should strike- now!"

"We do not want war!" Neytiri spoke up. All were silenced. "We... we..." She felt dizzy. She wasn't used to leadership, this much, so fast.

Jake held her hand, took her close to him. "Neytiri's right. We don't have the numbers for war. Those platforms the, the large islands they brough with them and put in the water off shore, we don't know what they do."

"Heh, they anger Morasuvo, we find out, then," one of the younger Na'vi said.

Quoh'timo raised his arms. Once again, they all were silenced. In the absence of Toruk Makto, he seemed to have appointed himself a mediator between those that called for violence and those that did not.

"Jake Sully," Quoh'timo said, "There are two choices. You know the Sky People better than any of us. If we are to leave them... to let them continue, will they respect Eywa? What will happen to Pandora?"

"I..." Jake searched for an answer. "I don't know."

Quoh'timo leaned forward. His voice became very serious. "They could destroy Pandora. All the Na'vi, all of us. For stones. This is true?"

He looked down, finding it difficult to meet the other chief's gaze. It was like talking to Eytukan, Neytiri's father again. He felt the older chief's eyes weighing heavily on him, like stones on his back.

"Yes," Jake said.

"And what of the path of violence? If we strike them, is there a chance we could force them to leave as before?"

Inhale, exhale. Jake didn't like the answer he had to give. "Possibly."

Quoh'timo leaned back, as if leaning in to the entirety of the Na'vi behind him. He waited a long moment. "We must bring word of this to the other clans, to the people. If we are to go to war again, without Toruk Makto, we will need another leader."

Without Toruk Makto. Those words hurt Jake the most. He'd love to be on his ikran with Neytiri. Just flying, the two of them, somewhere far away. But right now, the people needed him. This was where he was needed the most and he needed to make them see, to understand. He needed to understand as well. This was a time when it was helpful that he was part of two worlds.

"Wait," he stopped them. And he stood, without his stick. Unsteady, but unaided. "Let me talk to them."

"Talk to whom?"

"You cannot fly to all the clans. You can barely stand," Ti'Ila said. She was a young firebrand, almost like Neytiri was at one time. Just as likely to kill someone with a bow and arrow as spare them.

"I will talk to the Sky People," Jake declared. "I will meet with them, find out what it is they want, why they have returned."

"And if there intentions... are to harm Eywa again?"

"We'll have intel on their operations," he said, just a little slyly. Just as he had been a spy of sorts in the Omaticaya, he could now spy on RDA. As with Hometree, he could find the structural weaknesses in the drilling platforms for them to exploit. At the very least, he could find out what kind of forces they brought with them. It was useful information.

"You will go to see them alone?" Verritan asked.

"No," Jake said. "I will go see them tomorrow. I'll take a few of our warriors with me."

"Jake..." Neytiri grabbed his arm. She wanted to go with him, he knew it.

He turned to her. "I have to do this. For us. For all of us."

She nodded, understanding. Their foreheads touched, his hands slipped down to the swell of her abdomen, the life within. It was enough to bring them both to tears. But they had to be strong right now.

"Very well," Quoh'timo said. "Jake Sully... we will return to our clans and make ready. If you are able to convince them to leave, we will not have war. If the people decide that we must defend Eywa again... there will be nothing we can do to stop them."

So, there it was. And it sounded all too familiar. Once again, he was a 'negotiator' with loyalties to one side more than the other. Once again, they were on the brink of war. Once again, many Na'vi, many humans and their lives hung in the balance. They rested on his shoulders. And he could barely walk.

Once again.

The rest of the Ometicaya gathered around Jake and Neytiri as they rejoined them. Laca made most of them disperse quickly, reminded them of tasks they needed. She was a good attendant. Hirum, Keenok, Laca and Unua did not disperse with the others, but they were close to Jake and Neytiri. They both could use the company, just not all of it at once.

"Ometicaya do not want war," Laca said, doing her best to be supportive. "We will fight, but we do not want war." She must've asked around a bit, listened to what the clan thought. She was good like that, a good listener.

Keenok bit into one of the beets they had brought with them. They used to grow near Hometree, now, the Ometicaya had no reliable place to farm them and only had what they brought with them until they found a new home. He chomped huge bites of it, and they all knew it was intentional to quiet his own tongue.

"The Cliff Dewellers, Cave People, the Sea-Riders and Wind-Singers want war," Hirum said. "I... I spoke with riders from their clans. Some have noticed the Sky People beasts, the... the earth eaters, moving again."

"Beasts? The machines?" Jake asked. Hirum nodded. "Where did they see this?"

Hirum shook his head. "I did not ask. Their fliers said their ma... ma-sheens are moving once more. The ones they left. Some have said they, they stir even when Sky People were gone. Like angry spirits."

"Gova-Tso was right," Unua said. "We must speak to Eywa."

They all agreed with that, with only the slightest hesitation from Jake. He didn't understand Eywa and he was reluctant to put his faith into some sort of deity, even if he had already done so once before. Faith was one thing, but waiting for a god to do something for you was another entirely.

"Neytiri," he said, taking her hands. "You have to go to the Well of Souls tomorrow."

"But, but Jake-"

"I have to go meet the Sky People." His eyes instinctively went down to his legs, hers followed. It was involuntary, but now he was beginning to wonder himself. There was more than one reason he had to meet with the Sky People again. Was it possible for them to fix his condition?

"I want to be with you, Jake," Neytiri said. Pregnancy was making her more emotional, more fragile than she already was. She was a strong warrior but cared much for her family.

Laca leaned forward and reached out to her. "I will go with you. We will take my ikran. Jake will go with our warriors, he will be safe."

"No..." Neytiri said. Her voice was pained, as if she would never see Jake again.

Jake held her shoulders. "It's going to be alright. Hey, look at me." He helped her meet his eyes. "We're not going there to start anything. We're just going to talk."

Neytiri nodded nervously, trying to reassure herself.

"I will go with you, Jake," Keenok spoke. He held his beet, half-eaten by the stalk.

"Keenok..."

"What?" He nearly cut off his brother mid-sentence. "Jake will need warriors. We do not have many left. I am a warrior."

"It is not your decision," Unua said, supporting Hirum.

Keenok turned to Jake. He calmed down a bit, waited for an answer.

Surprisingly, Jake said, "Okay. I'll go with you, Kyrall, Turess and Rusu."

At that moment, Mo'at decided to join them. Neytiri embraced her immediately. "My daughter..."

"Mother..."

Jake was still acclimating to his role and didn't know what way was proper to react to his mother-in-law. Thankfully, she did it for him.

"It will take time for the clans to gather again," Mo'at said. "Without Toruk Makto, each clan must decide for themselves what to do about the Sky People."

Some of the clans were already decided and had struck the Sky People's machines. There wasn't much success, but with the proper tactics and setup, they could definitely impede their operations, Jake knew that. They could block roads, dig holes, disable the diggers and transports very easily, turn it into a war of attrition. But none of the Na'vi were ready for the repercussions. The Sky People were a hornet's nest that was unwise to kick at any time, especially now.

"Mama," Neytiri said, sounding very much like a little girl, "come with me to speak with Eywa."

She held her daughters shoulders firmly. "No, my dear. One of us must stay with the clan. Jake will speak with the Sky People, you will speak with Eywa. I must stay here."

"Mama," she held her tightly again.

"What if you went to speak with Eywa?" Hirum asked.

Mo'at shook her head. "I am not Tsahik any longer." She turned to her daughter. "You must be strong, Neytiri. You are Tsahik. Laca, you must protect her."

Mo'at was one of the most spiritual Na'vi living, which was saying something. Still, religious or not, sending your own, emotionally distraught and pregnant daughter to go flying to a secluded part of Pandora with only her friend wasn't the most practical of ideas. In Mo'at's mind, it was right, however, and necessary for her daughter to become the strong Tsahik the clan needed her to be. For the record, what feels like "destiny" may just really be a bad decision. So Jake would probably send a couple more to fly with them just in case, Nanat and Cahna at least.

"I will, Tsa- I mean, I, I will."

"Let's get some rest," Jake said. "We've got a lot of work ahead of us."

The camp quieted down until nightfall. Around the campfire, the clan representatives sang and told stories, exchanged news of the world. Most did their best not to talk about the Sky People, but a few did.

Hirum worried about his older brother.

"Jake told me once, the Sky People need rising rock. They need it for sit-tees."

Tra'vey, one of the riders from the fishing clans nodded. "I've seen pictures of their sit-tees. They are great, tall and made of stone. All stone and lights."

"Glow rock. So they use glow rocks and rising rocks."

"Hahahaha, maybe we should call them Rock People and not Sky People!" That got laughter from all assembled.

Hirum was young. He looked up at the others. "You saw pictures?"

Tra'vey nodded as he chewed on a weed. "I went to their school. I was the only one of my clan who did, so I learned as much as I could. They have many more metal beasts and more Sky People. But there is little green on their planet."

"Jake said... said they killed their Mother."

The fisherman shifted. "Why would they be trying to aid her if she was dead?" That question drew silence from the others.

"Perhaps one day... Na'vi will go there."

"They are like locust," one of Ti'Ila's clan said. "They go from planet to planet, destroying all for stones. To give to their... their machine-gods."

"What if we were to gift them stone?" Hirum asked. A few of the clan looked at him. "We could dig ourselves, protect the land."

"Their hunger for stone surprasses Na'vi! They will kill Eywa for stones!"

He found his confidence. "They are desperate. If we give them enough, maybe..."

"If we force them off Pandora, they will go elsewhere to look for stones. Jake said this," Keenok reminded them. "If they do not anger Morasuvo."

Hirum leaned forward. "What is Morasuvo?"

"Morasuvo is a myth," one of the clan members said. "Old legends of the Last Light."

Tra'vey spat out his weed. He pulled out another to replace it with. "Pandora has many such myths. Very few are useful to us now."

"Tell us," Keenok said. "Tonight is a good night to hear tales of sea monsters!" They all agreed, some were even excited.

But Tra'vey was not as excited. He was the one who had to fish the waters, so that was definitely understandable. Still, he told them, told them all the tales of the great beast known as Morasuvo- Last Light. Toruk was Last Shadow, Morasuvo was Last Light. And while there was Toruk Makto, Rider of Last Shadow, there was no Morasuvo Makto. For good reason.

Chapter 5: Burning

Pandora
Dr. Grace Augustine's school
Some time ago

Neytiri didn't like going to this thing called "school." It seemed more like a cage. The Na'vi taught each other by leading them out into the forests, communing with nature, listening to Eywa. Here, inside this strange box, it was nearly impossible to hear Eywa.

Dr. Augustine's school was built to help integrate Na'vi and humans. The modular unit was developed to accommodate both species, but it had been designed by RDA's scientists and Grace was the only one close to being an expert on the Na'vi. Still, the Avatar program looked a bit successful, and the avatars they had could play games like basketball with the Na'vi. They had to work every angle at the same time to try to build a bridge with the Na'vi, to keep peace and find a way their cultures could live in harmony.

But Neytiri hated it. The material under her feet was cold and white, like ice but dry. Still, her father said it was important for them to learn all they could about the Sky People, so she was there.

Surprisingly, Tsu'tey was there as well. He was in one of the front rows of these strange chairs the Na'vi were sitting in.

"Very good, Tsu'tey. I wonder what the weather will be like next week as well." Dr. Augustine smiled. As part of her teaching, she was not in her avatar body, but her assistance, Norm, was. One of them was always in an avatar, or "dreamwalker" as the Na'vi called them and the other wore a breathing mask. Neytiri learned very early on that the humans could not breath the air of Pandora, and had to bring air with them.

None of it made any sense to her. Why did they come, what did they want? Why would they be here if the air did not want them? Eywa was not welcoming to these Sky People.

What was even stranger, however, was that Tsu'Tey was smiling. He spoke to them in Sky People language, a little. He was learning about them.

Grace spoke to each of them individually, got to know them. She walked down the rows of the chairs, so Neytiri could tell when she would reach her, next to Rusu. Class was mostly girls, which was one possible explanation for Tsu'tey to be there, even though he was betrothed to her. As Dr. Augustine got closer down her row, Neytiri turned away in dread. She did not want to be there at all.

"Neytiri," Grace said, smiling. "How are you today?"

"I be... good." She hoped that would be enough.

"I AM good," Grace gently corrected. "How is your family?"

"They are... be... good," Neytiri forced out.

"How are you feeling on the inside?" Grace asked. She was speaking the language of the Na'vi now. She could tell Neytiri was uncomfortable. "You can be honest."

Neytiri turned to her. "I... I do not like it here."

"Is it too cold? I knew it was too cold. We could do something about that if you like," Norm offered quickly. He was a bit jumpy, awkward even, but nice. Good dodgeball player from what she'd seen.

"I..." She didn't know what to say, where to begin. How could she just tell them the whole place felt wrong and that they shouldn't be here? They were here, this was happening but it was hard to accept.

Grace nodded. "You can leave if you want."

"No," Neytiri said. She swallowed physically, also swallowing her discomfort. "I wish... stay." She spoke in Sky People language, what they called ing-lish.

"Alright then. What do you think the weather will be tomorrow? Do you think it will rain, or will it be sunny?"

"I... think tomorrow... will am sunny."

"It's actually "be" that time. You think it will BE sunny tomorrow, you mean."

"I thh... thhhink it will be sunny... tomorrow."

"Good, good! Very good job, Neytiri."

She bowed her head. "Thank you." She felt no pride, she was only doing what was necessary.

The ing-lish lessons continued. Many of the Na'vi were curious, but just as many, if not more, were not fond of the Sky People. Their words and language lacked the flow and rhythm that the Na'vi language had. They had boxes, some of them had seen, that could play music. It was usually very loud and hard to understand; how did one sing without a throat? Make music without instruments?

During the class, Neytiri's attention was more on Tsu'tey than anything else. They began with the language lessons, then brief history lessons and talked about how Earth and Pandora were so similar. But, in the pictures, Earth and Pandora looked nothing alike. They played basketball after that and again, Neytiri was surprised to see Tsu'tey trying to learn as much as he could. The Na'vi had games as well and basketball was at least fun.

Tsu'tey noticed Neytiri watching him eventually. He smiled at her, a toothy grin that reminded her of a predator like the cooran-cooran. It was a large cat-like predator, so its name in Na'vi emphasized its speed and danger if you saw one, like saying "go run, go run." That made sense to her, ing-lish did not. It was too blocky and rigid, hard to sing with.

Grace, in her avatar body, approached after the basketball game. She was sweaty and out of breath, but clearly made the effort to talk to her specifically.

"Good game, good game," Grace said. "You learn quickly." She was speaking in Na'vi tongue again. She made it clear they would try to make them comfortable, only speak Sky People language in the classroom.

"Thank you." Still, not comfortable enough for Neytiri to want to be around them, even the dreamwalkers.

"You don't seem to like it in the classroom," Grace said. "Was Norm right? Is it too cold in there?"

"I..." she started, then started thinking, trying to prevent too many words from spilling out of her mouth at once. "Yes."

"Okay, we can fix that. I noticed you looking at the plants."

Surrounding the chairs in the classroom were plants. They were isolated, some kept in jars. Some were apparently plants from Earth while others had been taken from Pandora. Why would someone do that? Why would they take a flower from its home and keep it prisoner? She understood farming, but to put a planet in some kind of isolated cage where its roots were confined... it seemed like a punishment.

"Why do you keep the plants in jars?"

"Oh," Grace seemed surprised. "Well, they're to study. And they also look nice, they make room a little less... well, sterile."

She turned to Grace. "The plants cannot sing, they cannot breath, they cannot hear Eywa if you take them from the ground. If not to eat them, why do you take them? It is cruel. Eywa does not forgive cruelty."

Grace looked away. She was a scientist, and was trying to find a bridge between faith and science. She still struggled with it, though.

"We'll, uh... we'll put the plants back," Grace said. "Would that make you more comfortable?"

Neytiri nodded. "Yes. Let them hear the Mother again."

Grace nodded again, thanked her for her time and then walked away. In truth, the plants had been brought in to help the Na'vi feel more comfortable. It shouldn't have been surprising that it had the opposite effect. They were also learning tools, but there were other tools they could use. They could've had a school outside, but with the constant machines and gunships coming and going, the trucks driving in and out, it would be nearly impossible to hear anyone. And trying to make a school outside of the compound was too risky. No, they needed to bring the Na'vi to them as much as they needed to go to the Na'vi. Integration only worked when it was a two-way street at least.

If it worked at all.

Eventually, school ended and they went home. Tsu'tey wasted no time to sneak up on her as she was walking and tickled her hips.

"Skaung!" she shouted at him for startling her.

"Hahaha, you are still too easily distracted."

She pushed his shoulder in retaliation. "Maybe I save my focus for hunting. You would not find me so distracted with my bow."

"Ahahaha," he chuckled. "It is good that my wife will be a fierce hunter, then."

Neytiri turned away from him, doing her best to hold her tongue. But Tsu'tey knew this and noticed this. He approached her and gently put his hands on her shoulders. He could sense her discomfort.

"We both must be strong and fierce... and wise. For the people. Our people, one day."

She pulled out of his embrace. She had had enough discomfort for that day.

Still, Tsu'tey persisted. "You will be my wife, Neytiri. I will be clan leader and you will be by my side."

Finally, she had enough. She turned to him. "Your wife? You want me to be your wife?" He nodded, she continued. "This is why you spend all your time with Oruva and Rusu?!"

Tsu'tey, one of the clan's strongest warriors, recoiled just a bit. His sly grin wavered.

"I am no fool, Tsu'tey. I know what you are doing when you say you are hunting trips with Vey'ala, Rusu and Te'Anin."

His smile completely faded. He wasn't exactly being subtle. Subconsciously, sure, Tsu'tey knew that anyone with half a brain knew he was hunting more than just boars, river-runners and bao-bao birds when he went out hunting with the females and his friends. He just didn't think that it would trouble his future wife as much as it did.

Tsu'tey approached her again but did not touch her. "I am still to be clan leader, Neytiri. And you are to be my wife. You know this. Our families have ordained this. Do you wish to go against the will of Eywa?"

She huffed a mixture of displeasure and discontent, turning away from him. There was no way out of this situation, even if she didn't like it. Neytiri's father was clan leader, her mother was tsahik, they had chosen Tsu'tey as the next clan leader. By the will of Eywa, this is the way things would be. At least, they believed that at that moment.

Arranged marriages among the Na'vi were like those between humans. The leaders of the clans, their families, groomed their children and trained them all their lives, from birth for the positions their parents held. If Neytiri had been born male, she would have been groomed to be the clan leader and not Tsahik, and a female of their tribe would have been chosen to be her mate.

Tsu'tey and Neytiri were no exception. They were both still young, not long out of their adolescence and still acclimating to adulthood. They still felt like kids, both of them, and kids did not like restrictions. Neytiri found it difficult, but the pressures on Tsu'tey's shoulders were mounting and expectations of him were high. So, he did as many do and screwed around, took long excursions with his friends and exercised what little freedom he had. Soon, the responsibilities of clan leader would fall to him alone, the burden of leading Omaticaya.

Right now, Tsu'tey could afford a little leisure. The elders, his parents, even Neytiri's parents understood that, even if they did not approve of it. But, for one supposed to be his wife, it was... insulting, even if it was not meant as an insult. Tsu'tey worried, as many would in his position.

"What can I do for you, Neytiri? How can I... make you happy?" Tsu'tey asked, getting straight to the point.

"Stop acting like a child. And stop treating me like one. One day, I am to be tsahik and I can barely hear Eywa near the Sky People!" She stomped off.

"And I am to be clan leader, Neytiri," he raised his voice after her, but did not yell. "That is why I am here, to learn about the Sky People."

She turned to him, skeptical. "You? What could you possibly want to learn from the Sky People? What have they taught you?"

Tsu'tey smiled, his sly grin returning. "The construction of their box houses."

Puzzled, slowly realizing, she pressed him further. "What do you mean?"

He looked around, walked closer to her and pulled her further from the Sky People camp. "Their houses, the school... their machines, even the flying ones, they are more fragile than they appear."

"We know of this already, Tsu'tey. The ikran toss their... noisy, metal bird-things about like leaves on the wind. Even when they spit fire, their wings are broken too easily. You speak of nonsense."

Tsu'tey shook his head. "I know more, Neytiri. They make their lights from things called "gen-orate-oars". They have many in the caves they dug beneath their metal houses. Some are smaller- the human, Al-Ex, he shows me one. They have special people they call "engine-ears" to work on them."

She pulled away from him. "What are you talking about, Tsu'tey?"

He straightened up. "We can force the Sky People to leave. Without their gen-orate-oars, they will have no lights. They need fuel, like fire. The humans, even here, they do not respect the balance of life. They steal fire and trap it in a loud, spinning machine. It spins, always spinning and the spinning spreads the fire into the lights through why-oars across their houses. But, if we are to stop the machines, the fire will go out and they will leave."

Neytiri shook her head. "No... no, Tsu'tey, no. You cannot make war with the Sky People! What will happen if you anger them? They will come for you, they would come for all of us! You'll anger them, enough for them to come take Home Tree!"

"They will already come."

"But they are not there yet, Tsu'tey, skaung! Skaung, it is clear they want peace, not war! While they try to teach us their language, they seek peace! We must seek peace- only together do two make something so fragile."

But then, Tsu'tey shook his head. "My wife... my Tsahik..." he approached her again. "There is much you don't understand. I admire your commitment to Eywa. You will be a good Tsahik indeed. But I am to be clan leader, Neytiri. I must make decisions, difficult ones. For Omaticaya and all Na'vi. I must see long into the future and I know that we must act or Sky People will act first."

"No, Tsu'tey, no. They still seek peace. If you strike them, it will be the reason they need to abandon friendship in favor of force."

He grinned again. "Ahahaha... you will see, Neytiri. I am no skaung. I will show you what your husband and clan leader can do. You will see," he said. And then, he left her, alone, feeling worse than she did when she was in the school.

That night, Tsu'tey left for another long hunting trip with his friends. Half their party, the females, took their ikran south into the valley. Tsu'tey and his closest male friends, however, warriors like him, they went further west. Tsu'tey made them all agree that if anyone were to ask, they all went to the valley together. He even told Vey'ala to catch the biggest boar she could find for him, so that he could say it was his.

Tsu'tey had indeed learned about the Sky People. He and his friends infiltrated one of the buildings after the Sky People had gone to sleep. They killed two of the guards patrolling and took the bodies so they would not be found. Tsu'tey's ikran ate well that night. Then, they took the first generator and slashed it, broke it and ripped it from its housing.

Tsu'tey himself did not know much about the generators outside Grace Augustine's school. He wanted to get closer, into one of the larger buildings, even the main one but it was more complicated. Also dark. He saw fairly well at night, but not enough to navigate a strange place like the Sky People compound, all while avoiding their strange lights and secure-it-tea cam-rahs. He was also angry, as were his friends. The Sky People did not belong here, he would prove it.

So he yanked the sparking generator, part of it, out of its housing and threw it into the window of Grace Augustine's school. This would be the first part of their message to the Sky People.

Dr. Augustine's school building was a bit of a feat of engineering on its own. It had two separate climate control systems, one to simulate Earth's atmosphere and another to simulate Pandora's for the Na'vi. The oxygen was filtered out and kept in storage tanks which had to be refilled. Unfortunately, it had been a bit hastily constructed and the oxygen's filtration system and storage tanks were located right next to the primary power coupling which Tsu'tey and his friend Nev'aren had just ripped out.

The atmosphere was not complete oxygen inside the school, so it didn't completely burst into flames. But it was still oxygen-rich enough that it ignited pretty fast and expanded outward. Tsu'tey backed away as the fire quickly burst from the building's windows.

"Look! The fire spirits, they awaken!"

"Lower your voice!"

"Hahaha, it is like I told you, brother. The Sky People-"

*BOOOOM!!*

Nev'aren was not lucky. He remained too close to the oxygen tank when the fire reached it through the vent system and it exploded. Tsu'tey and their other friends panicked and fled, running to the edge of the forest and calling their ikran. Nev'aren's body was half-incinerated and the rest of it flung into the fields nearby.

Dr. Grace Augustine's school was destroyed, burned completely to the ground in barely a minute's time. A good portion of their crops, a water shed and part of the irrigation system were also damaged in the process. Dr. Augustine would request support from RDA and her scientific advisors at the university for another building, but she would be denied.

Instead of another school, RDA would receive additional security personnel and equipment. The spot where the school was remained a burned crater serving as a reminder to the humans' efforts at diplomacy. Nearby, an AMP suit armory would be built. AMP suits were self-contained and the armory did not require an atmosphere system.