"I told you he couldn't be trusted!" Jake screams pointing at Miles.
We're in the chief's pod, only Tonowair, Ronal, Jake, Neytiri, Miles and me.
When we told Jake that we had something urgent to tell them they got away from the party.
"Talk. Now," Neytiri demands him.
"The tracker was initially placed there in case he wanted to escape and... he would end up taking us to you," he says.
"Who has access to it's location?" Jake asks.
"Everyone on the ship you destroyed and... General Ardmore," he says.
The name rings a bell to me but I can't remember her, I concentrate and then I do. She's the woman back at the base who put us in cells and tortured us in that machine.
"What?" Neytiri asks noticing my discomfort.
"I don't like her,"
Jake seems meditative and Miles too, their soldier training probably guiding them into all the different ways this can go.
"Well if you say there's something in the mask then let's just take it off," Tonowari speaks.
"We can't do it, to do so we would have to take off the mask and we'll need tools to break it open and destroy it," Miles explains.
"Then let's just destroy the mask," Ronal says.
"Ronal, the kid can't breathe without it," I say.
"He doesn't belong," Neytiri whispers.
We're all in tense silence. I can see that Ronal and Neytiri lean more towards getting rid of the mask and don't care much about Spider.
I feel bad for him because I heard him earlier and I know that he would give anything to be able to breathe and be like the rest of us.
"It's too late for that," Miles says suddenly.
"What?" I ask.
They all turn to look at him.
"It's too late for anything. Destroy it or whatever, we've already been here for one week and no one at the ship has answered to the general. By now she must know that something happened and that if the kid is here then he probably is with you," Miles explains.
"Let's move the kid then," Neytiri proposes and Jake gives her a tired look.
"What? If we let him stay here he is risking everyone!" She exclaims.
"What's the protocol?" Jake asks Miles.
"If they went three days without any signal of us then they would track the ship and send a rescue team," he answers.
"So we're four days late," Jake says.
"Let's take Spider somewhere else, of they see that the signal moves then they'll go after him," Neytiri says.
"Aunt..." I beg.
"Can't your friends that came help your son come and get the kid away?" Tonowari asks.
"That would risks the people back home," I say.
"If the problem is the kid then we should take care of the kid," Ronal says.
Soon there's just noise because everyone is giving their opinion on how it would or wouldn't help to get rid of Spider, Miles argues with Neytiri that she shouldn't make such desitions and that Kiri will hate hef if she does, Tonowari and Ronal argue that this is their home and they have to protect their people while I try to calm down Neytiri and Miles before they kill each other.
"Silence!" Jake yells.
Everyone shuts up but Tonowari gives him a hard stare.
"Just hear me out," he says in a more controled voice. "I hate to give this guy the reason but, it's true that it's too late. No matter if we move Spider or no, the sky people will come here. Not just for him but because the ship sunk very close to here and then because Spider is the only survivor that they know of," he explains.
"No, no. No. I'm jot leaving, I don't want to go! I don't want to hide, I don't want for kids to grow up like this without a real home!" Neytiri shouts.
I can feel her pain and from the first days that we talked and she told me that she and Jake had to renounce to be the leaders of our clan... my poor aunt, always having to give and sacrifice and life just doesn't stop taking.
"I know, I don't want that either. I don't but we have to do something because they'll come here," Jake tells her taking her hand.
"It's all your fault!" Neytiri yells to Miles and a single tear falls down her eye.
"What do you mean they're coming?" Ronal asks Miles.
"I just said-" Tonowari interrupts him.
"Would they come to seek vengeance? Will they come and burn our village?" He asks, Ronal's lips waver a little.
Miles sighs and hugs his body.
"Given that we had already visited two villages and... we knew that Sully had to be in one, they probably think that whatever happened to the ship was because of him and... regardless of us being here or not... the people from they sky don't know how to ask nicely," he looks to the ground and the to Jake, into his eyes.
"They'll come here and burn everything just because they can, they'll look for Spider and kill anyone that gets in the way of them killing you," he says.
"Then all that's left is fighting? Fight even if we don't want to? Just because there is no choice?" Ronal asks in a firm tone.
"I'm afraid so," Miles says.
Tonowari roars and paces around a little. I offer Miles my hand, he's not one, he doesn't have to bear everything alone.
"How long?" Jake speaks.
"The trip here was like a month and a few days, if they are already coming then a month," he says.
"They won't make any stops along the way right?" I ask.
"I don't think so," Miles says.
If they did then we could win like one or two more weeks.
"What about the stupid mask?" We still need to get rid of it, wheter they come or not," Neytiri says.
Jake turns to look inquisitively at Miles and he shakes his head.
"The kid needs it and we can't take it off to destroy the thing," he says.
"Can't he hold his breathe or something?" Ronal asks.
"Maybe if I ask Norm they have another one, they could take it here and we can destroy this one," Jake says.
"I advice all of you to get a good night of rest, because tomorrow early we'll have to come up with a plan to fix this," Tonowari warns in a firm tone.
With that we're all dismissed.
Miles and I silently walk to our pod, both of us lost in our thoughts.
"Everything is going to start unfolding right?" I ask breaking the silence.
"I guess that it will speed things up," he says.
"Do you think we'll have enough time to plan everything?" I ask rubbing my belly.
It is now almost the same size as Ronal's was one week ago.
"We'll make it work," Miles says and gently guides me inside the pod.
We sit there and make a little fire, we like to warm up this place a little before we sleep.
"And what about him? Neytiri and Ronal almost seem like they're trying to see who kills him first," I say referring to Spider.
"I feel like if Jake wasn't fond of him... then she would have killed him a long time ago. They even sent him away now," he says.
"Well, to be fair, back at the forest he didn't sleep with their family either, he went back to the lab and had his room there," I say.
Miles sighs and rubs his forehead.
"Relax... relax, you can't be bearing all this stress within you," I say kneeling behind him and gently rubbing his shoulders.
"It's just... I- I don't know. In theory I'm not really his father, we're nothing to each other but I just feel so bad... the poor kid has not belonged anywhere since he was born, and it doesn't look like it's getting any better,"
I really don't know what to say, because I don't know what the right thing would be.
"All you can do is try to... help him, you know? Protect him maybe," I say.
"I'm not his father but I'm technically a bad father," he says looking at the fire.
"Don't say that! You'll be a great father!" I shake him a little and sit next to him, he rests his arm over my shoulders and pulls me to him.
"That's something that worries me too," he whispers.
"What?" I ask looking at him.
"Our baby... I'm afraid that you'll have it during this... war that's coming for us. I'm afraid that anything will happen to you, for the first time... I'm afraid of losing someone," he says.
"My love," I say rubbing his cheek.
He lifts his hand and gently puts it on my belly.
"You're gonna be okay right little guy?" He whispers to my belly. The sight makes my eyes water a little.
"We are all going to be okay," I tell him, he gives me a sad side smile but nods.
"We're all strong," he whispers after a while.
We stay there, sitting together and looking at the fire in comfortable silence until Spider comes.
"Um hi, sorry to... interrupt," he says at the entrance.
"Don't worry it's fine, did you have dinner yet?" I ask.
"Yeah," he sighs.
"Lights out in ten," Miles says.
Spider was sent to sleep here with us because... the Sully's pod was full and they didn't want to give him one of his own, so every night he comes and sleeps here and normally when we wake up he's already out somewhere.
"Sure," he murmurs.
Miles and I turn to look at each other, we try not to show it too much but we feel sorry for him.
He puts down something for his head to rest more comfortably and some kind of blanket made out of seaweed that Kiri gave him.
"Night," he whispers to us.
"Goodnight," We say back.
Miles puts out the fire and we place our things on the floor, another -pillow- for Miles to put his head on and that's it.
We lay down and he offers me his arm to sleep on, then one of his arms covers my body and I intertwined our hands.
He gives my head a kiss and we try to sleep.
To be honest I notice that is hard for both of us to fall asleep but in the end I do and I think I dream of my home, the forest.
Later I feel cold, only cold and when I reach back I notice that Miles is not here anymore.
"Miles," I whisper but no one answers.
Without making a sound I get out of the pod and start walking around the village to find him.
The sun will come out in a few hours I think, so everything is still kind of dark.
Finally I find him.
He's standing at the edge of the sea, the waves barely touching his feet and he has his arms crossed.
"Miles?" He doesn't move or react.
"Are you okay?" I ask again and rub his arm. He only sighs and offers me his hand.
I try to look out to where he's staring, but I see nothing different than the sea.
"Miles you're scaring me..." I say.
"I'm afraid," he whispers. "I am very afraid," he says again in a sad tone.
I don't have the chance to speak before he wraps his arms around me and I feel some of his weight fall onto me.
"How ridiculous... but I am truly afraid because I know this won't be easy. I know that what's coming will cost many lives... I'm afraid for us," he says.
"It's not bad to be afraid, just don't let it freeze you," I tell him softly.
I feel him nod but he doesn't say anything.
I comfort him and stay there with him until he sends me back to sleep and promises that he will be there soon too.
"Take your time, but then rest too," I say as goodbye and give his cheek a kiss.
Then I leave him alone with his thoughts, I know he is strong, I know he has to feel and understand all that's happening and then he will be able to fight this.
We'll be able to bring down the people from the sky.