Avatar - Me and the Devil.

XI

I lean back in a chair staring at the ceiling, my mind going a mile a minute.

"This is how it's done. When people are sitting on the shit you want. You make them your enemy. Then you're justified in taking it." Jake angrily spits out throwing Graces Na'vi book into a crate.

"Quaritch is rolling up the gunships. He's gonna hit hometree."

I stand from my seat, panic and fear hitting me.

"My god." Grace exclaims as she gets up and we race to Selfridge.

"Doctor Augustine you cannot be up here!" A marine yells as Grace races towards Selfridge.

"Back off." She smacks the soldier,

"Parker, wait. Stop. These are people you're about to..." She shoves the guy grabbing her arm. "I said back off!"

"No, no, no. They're fly bitten savages that live in a tree! All right? Look around. I don't know about you but I see a lot of trees, they can move!" He shoos off the soldiers and looks at Grace.

"There are families in there. There are children, babies. Are you gonna kill children?" Grace asks him,

"You don't want that kind of blood on your hands, believe me." Jake says, shaking his head.

"Just let us try and talk them out. They trust us."

#

"Calibrate fast. We're going in. Right now." Grace says speed walking to hers as I sit myself in mine as it opens.

"Calibrating three, four and two." A technician says,

"Run sequence."

"initiating. Thirty seconds."

Selfridge leans over Jake pointing a finger in his face. "Listen to me, you've got one hour. Unless you want your girlfriend in there when the ax comes down, you get them to evacuate. One hour."

He closes the machine as I close mine and close my eyes.

—

I run down the spiral and follow Neytiri to her father.

"Ma sempul, ma sa'nok!" she calls out to both her parents who look at us. Tsu'tey's eyes find me and leave me just as fast. My heart clenching as I focus away from him.

"Ma Eytukan, lu oeru aylì'u frapor." Jake says approaching Eytukan,

"Pivlltxe, ma TsyeykSuli." He says gesturing with his hand to speak,

"Eo ayoeng lu txana tìkawng." He explains and I step forward to speak.

"Tawtute zera'u, fte fol Kelutralti skiva'a. Skiva'a!" I desperately try to get the point across, Tsu'teys eyes go to me and remain there. I look at him with pleading eyes, my ears pinning to my head, giving him the best puppy dog look I could ever muster in my whole career as a behaviorist.

"Tell them they're gonna be here soon." Jake turns to Neytiri and she nods,

"Pìyate fìtseng ye'rìn!"

I look at Neytiri then Eytukan,

"You have to leave, or you're going to die." I plead with them as Jake nods,

"Are you certain of this?" Mo'at asks, I look at Jake as he steps forward.

"Look, they sent us here to learn your ways, so one day we could bring this message and that you would believe it." Jake begins to confess,

I look at Jake and then Tsu'tey as his eyes burn holes into my head. I pleaded to him through my eyes, begging him to see the innocence behind it, I didn't want to do this.