Fragile | Tsu'tey

two

The Valkyrie finally landed in the only pocket of space there was on this torture base. Everything was taken up by mining and fighters walking around in those huge mech-suits and other people who've come to destroy Pandora.

"Exopacks on!" The crew chief yelled obnoxiously. Rachel put hers on and turned the knob to let the flow of air in, disappointed she had to don it again already. "Remember people, you lose your mask you're unconscious in 20 seconds and you're dead in four minutes. Let's not let nobody be dead today, it looks bad on my report."

Rachel waited anxiously, already wishing she could just be out in the forest. Would that be so hard? "Go directly into the base! Do not stop! Go straight inside!" Norm and Rachel unclasped their seatbelts and stood up, waiting for everyone to pass, even Jake, before he helped her walk forward, bit by bit. It was a good thing Norm was so patient.

The crew chief gave them a scorning look as they passed, and Rachel was tempted to point her middle finger at him, but she didn't. She especially didn't want to do anything that could stop her from getting into her Avatar.

They followed the crowd into the base, down a long hallway, and into what seemed to be the cafeteria. Rachel gave Norm a thankful look and he smiled a little and motioned for her to focus on whatever the man with the large pistol was talking about. 

She didn't.

She wasn't interested in listening to an hour-long speech about things she knew about Pandora already. Instead, she played with her fingers, trying not to focus on the voices around her.

***

After the briefing, Norm saw Jake rolling down the hallway and ran to catch up with him. Rachel gave a small sigh and decided to walk alone to the med lab. She couldn't run anyway. That was fine. There were times when she liked the solitude and times she didn't.

When she finally managed to get into the med lab, Jake was sitting near the door. "--Rachel still isn't speaking to me. I know she's here, somewhere. I'm pretty sure she's pissed that Tom died, and I'm taking his place."

Taking her eyes off of him, Rachel walked into the lab, spotting the tanks. Heading towards them, she was stopped by a scientist in a lab coat. "Hey, I'm Max Patel, one of the lead scientists here on Pandora."

"It's nice to meet you, Max," Rachel replied softly. "Can I see my Avatar yet?"

"Not yet. Grace wants to speak to you first." Max said, and Rachel nodded, a bit disappointed. Well, she could wait a little longer.

"Log off. It's time to meet your boss for the next five years." Max told Jake, and he complied immediately. Looking around, he finally noticed Rachel, standing beside Max. He gave her a small wave, and she nodded at him in response.

Max led Jake, Rachel, and Norm into the link room, where there were dozens of psionic links for the Avatars. "Grace Augustine is a legend. She's the head of the Avatar Program, and she wrote the book -- I mean literally wrote the book -- on Pandoran botany." Norm was saying, and Rachel began to get excited. Maybe Grace could teach her a little about Pandoran botany.

"That's because she likes plants better than people," Max commented.

Grace sat up in her link, cracking her neck. She had fiery red hair, fierce eyes, and seemed to be around fifty. "Who's got my goddamn cigarette?" Grace yelled, making Rachel jump in surprise.

"And here she is, Cinderella back from the ball. Grace, I'd like you to meet Norm Spellman, Rachel Sully, and Ja --"

"Norm. I've heard good things about you. How's your Na'vi?" Grace asked, focusing all her attention on Norm.

"May the All Mother smile upon our first meeting." Norm replied, dipping his head.

"Not bad. You sound a little formal." Grace commented, approving. 

"There is still much to learn," Norm said.

"Uh, Grace, this is Rachel Sully and-"

"Rachel," Grace smiled for the first time, turning her attention towards Rachel. "Top of your class. And how's your Na'vi?"

"I see you, Grace," Rachel answered, grinning back. She touched her forehead lightly and extended her hand towards Grace, just like the Na'vi.

"Perfect. How many hours have you logged?" Grace questioned. 

"Around 43,800 hours."

"That's the equivalent of five years. Good job." Grace praised, and Rachel had to try her hardest to keep a cool, calm face. Grace had just complimented her. Grace was the head of the Avatar Program!

"Grace." Max cut in. "This is Jake Sully." Grace turned the full force of her glare towards Jake.