"Do you ever... think of Earth?"
The question instantly stunned Spider, almost falling into the lake below where he had previously been observing.
Like on Earth, the forests of Pandora contain a wide diversity of flora and fauna. These are all part of the giant neural network that covers Pandora. The forests were full of bioluminescent life.
Raven was proud to call Pandora her home.
Spider furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. "What do you mean? Why would I?"
To others, it would sound like he was being extremely blunt, rude maybe, but that's just how Spider spoke, straight and to the point. Raven was used to it.
Raven shrugged and kicked her feet slightly. Ripples echoed from around her as her feet disturbed the water below them.
"Like, do you ever think what life would be like if we were able to be taken back into cryo?" She explained.
Silence sits around the two teenagers.
Nothing but the rustling of wind through the trees surrounding them and the ambience of Pandoran fauna. The Eclipse won't be for hours, but it was already starting to cool down.
"I mean... sometimes." Spider admitted, keeping himself facing forward, not looking at Raven, not looking at anything really. He was just staring off. "But then... all I can think about is how much I love it here... on Pandora."
There was a lilt in his voice, something Raven couldn't place. It was like a certain grace, reverie or relief. She knew exactly what the feeling was like, she felt it every night lying in her bed looking out into the bush, every time she would venture out with the Sully's.
The Sully's were basically Ravens family.
Raven has a very close and special relationship with Kiri. The Na'vi compares her to being like 'the sister she never had', despite having one already. They enjoy having common activities and constantly try to protect each other.
There was Lo'ak. He and Raven have a good relationship as they played together a lot when they were younger. He loved to explore his home just as much as Raven did. Often receiving scoldings from his older brother and his father, they hung out a lot, running around like children all the time. They'd do anything for each other, just like brothers and sisters.
Then there was Neteyam. He and Raven have a great relationship. He taught her many ways of the omaticaya clan, he taught Raven to train, her body gaining muscle and building strength. He also taught her to shoot arrows with a bow. He was very protective and tries his best to look after her. Based on the teachings of their father Jake, it was clear that Neteyam cares for the well-being of his siblings and friends.
Finally, Tuk. She was very fond of Raven and looks ups to her as an older sister; everything Raven says and does is amazing to her.
That was Raven's family.
"It's not like you have anything to compare it to." Raven joked, knocking him with her shoulder. Spider chuckled lightly and bumped her back.
"What I do know, is that if it's filled with people like my dad or people who want to destroy my home... I don't want it." Spider said with a small frown.
Raven knew how Spider felt about his dad. It made her chest hurt a bit whenever he was mentioned.
Colonel Miles Quaritch was a RDA Security Operations commander, serving as the chief of security on Pandora in the early 2150s.
Serving as the senior RDA commander during the Pandoran War, he directed the destruction of the Omatikaya clan's Hometree and led SecOps forces in the Assault on the Tree of Souls, where he was killed in action by Neytiri at the age of 51.
Raven shuffled closer to Spider and placed a hand on his arm. "Well, according to Jake some people on Earth are actually nice."
"Yeah. Besides..." Spider continued, neither of the teenagers looking at each other. "I've got everything I need right here."
He slowly inches his hand closer to where Raven lies on the ground beside him. She could see his cheeky smile from the corner of her eye and couldn't help but match it as she grabbed onto his hand, intertwining their fingers together.
"Yeah?" Raven whispered.
"Yeah." Spider promised, giving her hand a gentle squeeze.
••••
A FEW DAYS LATER
"Come on, Spider! Keep up!"
Spider groaned at the tug on his arm, trying to keep pace with the nimble girl in front of him as she effortlessly leaps from vine to vine.
"Slow down, Raven!" Spider called out desperately.
Normally Raven wouldn't even think of leaving the lab at night, but this was her favourite thing on Pandora; watching the sun set and the beauty begins.
Raven had been able to easily persuade Spider to rethink that little instinct called common sense to join her on an adventure. All she needed to do was flash him her pleading puppy eyes of hers, and he was strapping on his exopack before he could even say yes.
"Hurry up, Spider! You know this is my favourite thing." Raven responded, not even pausing in her trek as she continued pulling him along.
"I know, but we're going to get in a lot of trouble." Spider pointed out.
Raven turned to face him with a smirk. "Only if Jake and Neytiri don't know."
Spider playfully rolled his eyes, jumping across vines spread father apart and landed on one of the large branches as Raven pulled him across the gap. Her grip on his hand tightens, keeping him in place as he catches his breath, putting the exopack to work to accommodate his gasping inhales.
Raven waited for Spider. When he had caught his breath, he straightens, still holding her at his side by her hand imprisoned in his.
"Okay, so where are we going?" Spider wondered.
"You'll see."
And that's the only Spider got as he continued on his partially unwilling adventure. Raven at least having the kindness to slow down and walk side by side instead of dragging him around by the arm like a child.
Soon enough, the were higher up in the forest, 'The Lookout' everyone called it, a safe spot high in the forest above the hills, a spot through the trees where the stars shone down into a wide path of grass.
Raven watched excitedly as the sun's light is blanketed by darkness, the world falling silent with its absence.
And then she watched as it comes alive again.
It starts as a mere glimmer, a flickering of light that Raven caught from the corner of her eye. She faced it, and as if waiting for her gauze, it continues. The very Earth ripples to life, vibrant colours blooming before her very eyes.
The plants moved on their own accord, blossoming in a firework of colours as they reach for the moon as if in thanks. Lakes and rivers shimmer, harnessing the moon's shine to guide wandering souls to their calm waters. Beasts of all kinds prowl through the undergrowth, movements strong and graceful, only accentuated by the glow that flickers across their bodies. And then there are the Woodspirites. They sparkle among the forest, glittering like stars descended from the heavens as they serenely float through the breeze.
Pandora is beautiful when bathed in the sun's bright caress, but it is at night when it truly shines.
Turning to Spider, Raven expected to find his eyes glued onto the magnificent view before them, unable to look away from the beautiful sight. But as she faced him, she found his gaze locked on her, completely ignoring the beauty Pandora has to offer.
Rich colours reflect off his exopacks mask, swirling in his eyes until a kaleidoscope of deep blues and bright purples shimmer through his natural brown. Golden flecks glitter in them when the moonlight hits just right, and just like below, it sparks something unreadable to life there, something that only grows the longer she looks at him.
A soft smile curls Spider's lips, small but offering more warmth than Pandora's sun and heating Raven's skin just as thoroughly.
But it's when he speaks that her brain seems to lose all function, all thoughts brought to a grinding halt except the ones featuring him. All because of how softly he whispered her name, in a tone so unlike his normally playful one of it that it shocked her to her very core.
The teenagers sat down beside each other, the sound of animals around them croaked. Spider's hesitated for a moment before his arm crept around Raven's shoulders and pulled her into him gently.
Raven laid back looking up at the sky, her head on Spider's chest, hearing the thump of his heartbeat which oddly grew faster by the second.
She tilted her head up at him to ask what was wrong, but before she could get a word out, she noticed a new star in the night.
With furrowed eyebrows, she stood up and stared at the sky in confusion. Spider quickly noticed what she was looking at and stood beside her.
To their horror, they realize it signals of a fleet of RDA interstellar ships. Humans have returned to Pandora to further colonize in the wake of the fall of Hell's Gate, due to Earth's energy crisis and impending environmental collapse. The RDA ships drop giant structures via space elevator.
Raven watched in horror as the thirty story tall cargo vehicles used giant plasma weapons, burning the forest and at least 187 of its animals in a 20km radius.
A soft whimper left Raven as she turned to Spider and wrapped her arms around his waist. Spider held the girl in comfort as she curled herself into him, trying not to cry.
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PUBLISHED: June 8, 2023
A/N: I rewrote this chapter because it was annoying me haha. I really liked this chapter, it shows more of Raven and Spider's relationship.
From here, the book is going straight into Avatar: The Way of Water film
I hope you liked it!