The Navi Link (James Cameron's Avatar)

Faith and Anguish

Faith suddenly flinched, her hands instinctively rising to the pained area to find that in the first time in a long time, she had to bite back the unfamiliar sting of tears crowding her useless eyes. The sensation of the liquid upon her skin was the start of the shift in her system. In a flash of movement, the teenager wretched up from the chair, its legs screeching harshly against the ground. "What can we do?! That is the clan's sacred home! Generations of their families have lived, hunted and prayed there and now those hotshot war mongers think that just 'cause they managed to find this planet, they have a right to mine it as they see fit?!"

Under her knowledge, those who greedily sided with the generous patronage of the mining projects threw fatal looks her way. Though none of them cared. No one had the balls nor the reason to stand against the blind girl while their future was promised of a sea of riches. To them, her tears were nothing but disposable martyrs.

Norm noticed the glares and fought to calm the teenager in any form he could. Yet, before he had the chance to reach for her, a more influential presence took his place.

"Thats why we're getting a second chance to convince them to leave."

Faith's instincts reacted well beyond what she expected to hearing the sound of her 'brothers' voice. In one quick turn, the teen had raised her flattened palm in the air and threw it against Jake's face. A lucky shot, she thought to herself, but making her point that much more displayed.

The smack resonated loudly as well as a grunt of pain from both attacker and victim. Faith's palm stung with the impact, and for a second, she had wondered if it had hurt less if her fist was closed. But it was too late now. Her fury was made clear.

"God damn!" The cripple cursed, instantly covering his red cheek with his own cool hand for comfort.

"Faith-!" Her mother tried to reprimand but was taken instantly taken aback by the sight of her daughters eyes veined with crimson from irritation and the obvious salted tears staining down her face.

"You knew." Faith growled. "You both knew this was going to happen to the people and you told me nothing."

"But whether you like it or not," The cripple quickly retaliated. "Your position here means you were doing just the same as us."

Faith had no other desire but to smack him again tenfold for the claim he made against her. Yet the realization, as much as she hated it, was clear. Whether she was aware or not, she had just as much fault in this as anyone else in the program. She was one with the people. She had a voice that they would listen to. A voice that was for all intensive purposes meant to bring down the society of the Omaticaya clan.

Jake took notice of her expressions discrete change, his heart guiltily weighed with his previous words. But as both her brother as a Na'vi and a close friend, he sought to ease her own crippling guilt. "However, Selfridge has given us one more shot -and I'm willing to take it if you are."

Everyone silenced themselves. This was something they owed Faith. If she was willing to go, they would support her all the way. But as the teen stood, thinking about Drewan, Rennet and Yusna, she dug deep to find the courage she would need to save them. The humans would not be halted but the least she could do was keep her people alive. "How long do we have?"

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"Thank Eywa!"

Almost before the Dreamealkers had even opened their eyes, their mates were engulfed in their arms, their lips running over their lover's foreheads as affection and thankfulness to their All-Mother.