We rode out to the four winds. To the Horse Clans of the plain to the Ikran People of the Eastern Sea. When Toruk Macto and the Tsahik rider of First Dawn called them, they came.
After gathering as many clans as we could, we returned to the Tree of Souls where everyone recuperated from the long journey. Jake had gotten somewhat of a makeover, wearing a thin sort of forehead guard as he weaved different feathers and beads into his hair. As for me, I was gifted a small headpiece by all 15 clans we have joined with collectively, as their welcome as a new fellow leader.
It was a beautifully crafted piece. It was a crown shape but wasn't made out of sparkling diamonds or any of the sort. It was a simple, white wood carved into an arch sharp as it sat in my hair. Intricate designs weaved within it with a singular lapis lazuli. It's meaning being truth and compassion.
As Jake and Grace, who was doing much better now, went to meet up with Trudy at the bunker to talk with Max, I stayed behind with Tsu'tey to discuss tactics. "It seems our bow and arrows do not work on their flying machines." My mate stated as we sat with the other clan leaders.
"Then how will we fight?" The leader from the horse plains asked. "We have something they do not. We understand the workings of these mountains. We can easily take them by surprise with our attacks. They're tracking equipment does not work around here, meaning they fire at us by their own sight." I replied as they all chatted amongst each other.
Then, the leader of the Ikran People turned to us. "What about the ones on the ground?" She asked. "We managed to steal a couple of guns that were made for the Avatars. Besides that, our arrows can pierce the unprotected forms of the humans and the glass of their machines on land much easier." I informed them since Tsu'tey didn't know much of this either.
"However, no matter what, we must protect the Tree of Souls. If this place is destroyed, all of the Na'vi will be devastated. Their will to fight will dissipate faster than it came." I added as they nodded, heavily agreeing with that statement.
Later that night, I sat in front of the tree as I connect my Tsaheylu with it, immediately feeling a connection with the Na'vi ancestors and even Eywa. "I realize you do not pick sides. However, there will be no sides to pick if you do not lend us just a mere speck of your help. We have gathered as many clans as we could in this short amount of time. But the Sky People have technology strong enough to decimate my previous home. You can search my memories, even, to see the destruction they have caused to the once lusciously green and pure planet called Earth. I have no wish to see the same happen here. Pandora has given me a new life and all I want is to repay the lives that live here by protecting them against these invasive demons. Please... just consider." I say aloud as I hang my head.
Because I was talking to the tree, I failed to hear the quiet footsteps approaching me until I felt a gentle but strong hand on my shoulder. Looking up, I see Tsu'tey looking down at me as he helps me up. "Our Great Mother only does things to balance life. You understand that, right?" He asks me as I shrug, laying my head on his chest as his arms wrap around my waist.
"It was worth a try. We need all the help we can get, Tsu'tey." I reply. He hums before lifting my head up, bringing his down so our noses touched making me giggle. We just took the moment to relish in each other's presence, not having the time to do this with all that has happened. We shared small kisses for the rest of the night, just wanting to comfort one another before the big fight.
"You know, little flower, as soon as I laid eyes on you I could tell you were the one." Tsu'tey whispered in my ear as we laid against the other. "Oh really? I might've thought you were pretty hot yourself, but I was a little preoccupied trying to keep Jake from getting us killed." I joked with a chuckle as he did the same, pulling me closer against his chest.
He kissed the top of my head as he traced mindless patterns into my back. "Yes, but you were so ready to sacrifice yourself for your brother, it was definitely different to see from other Sky People. That is why I took a liking to you so easily. If you were any different, I would have hated you as much as Jakesully." He replied as I snorted, still thinking it's funny that he can say my name perfectly well but then he goes and says Jake's like that.
"Hey, why do you call me 'flower'?" I suddenly asked him, propping myself up on my elbow as I held my hand underneath my head. He gazed up at me, pushing a strand of beaded hair behind my ear. "You are smaller than most male Na'vi." He began as I frowned and smacked his chest, making him wince and chuckle. "However, it's also because you have an innocence and softness about you for the things and people surrounding you." My mate added as I titled my head, "That's it?"
He shook his head. "You also have a dangerous passion in you that you use solely to defend yourself and those around you. Like... what was it? Oh! A rose with thorns?" Tsu'tey questioned himself as the end, using the things I taught him about Earth before it became like it is now. I smiled warmly and nodded, moving myself so I was now lying on his chest.
However, my smile soon turned into a frown as I snuggled into him more. "What's wrong?" Tsu'tey asked, pulling me impossibly closer somehow. "Just... I'm scared. For The People, for Jake, for Neytiri... for you." I mumbled. "Even if I do die, I will always love you, Zen." He tried to soothe me, but it didn't really help. "But that's the problem. I don't want you to die. I just got you, Tsu'tey. It would not just emotionally, but physically and mentally kill me as well. I don't think I could live without you." I sniffled as tears swelled in my eyes at the thought of it.
"Shh, sweet mate. I promise not to leave you this early. I have no wish to leave you alone, either. I love you." He cooed as he placed kisses all over my face, making me lightly laugh. "I love you as well." I muttered as we finally kissed on the lips, making an euphoric feeling bubble inside of me. I would not let this man die, even if I have to risk my own life to do so.
~~~
We had split the clans between our air and ground forces. Neytiri, Jake, Tsu'tey, and I took to the air on our Ikran. Jake had a gun and some explosives with I had my bow and arrows as did everyone else. I was never good with human artillery, but I took to the bow like a fish to water. They wouldn't work on the helicopters themselves, but they had their own weak spots I could expose to my aim.
We all had war paint on, acting as one cohesive clan instead of the 16 separate ones we started out as. More than a thousand of us hid ourselves on the sides of the floating mountains, waiting for the right moment to pounce.
As the ships flew into our sight, Nu'it unlatched from her perch as we flew next to Jake and Tsu'tey. "Fly your Ikran! We move now!" I shouted orders along with the other two as everyone dove behind us, flying with us four in the front.
I knew by now that the Pa'li riders would be charging at the ground forces. "Brothers, I'm going to punch a hole, follow me through." Jake told Tsu'tey and I through our communication device in our chokers.
"Always/Understood." We answered as we flew above the helicopters that surrounded the main two. Jake went straight in for it as Toruk took one by the tail end and threw it into the side of a mountain, making it explode. The others shot their arrows through the glass windows, killing the pilots quickly.
'Let's show them how badass a Tsahik can be, Nu'it.' I said through our bond as she screeched in agreement, diving for a copter as she ripped the blades off with her teeth, causing it to spiral out of control and crash to the ground way below.
I took out my bow and shot two pilots down in less than three seconds, causing two more helicopters to be useless. As I could see the smaller ones being taken care of, I turned Nu'it towards the ship I knew the explosives would be on, which was also the biggest one here.
They had shooters set up on top and more stationed out in the open carrier. I knocked two arrows on my bow as my Ikran flew by the opening, allowing me to shoot and kill two gunmen before flying away so they couldn't harm my bonded. I have never been more grateful that Tsu'tey taught me how to use the bow.
However, the helicopters started to switch to missiles which took out more Ikran riders as a whole, making me grit my teeth. "Jake, Zen, you hear me? We're pulling back, we're getting destroyed." Grace said over the choker. She had remained on ground as our eyes and ears since she doesn't even have an Ikran. "Get out of there, Grace. Regroup before you do anything else." I order as I avoid a missile directed at me.
It was quite hard to maneuver a giant Ikran amongst all of this. I looked over to see Jake having the same problem as what looks like the commanding ship chasing after him with their own missiles. I knew that's where Quaritch would be too. "Let's go smoke some meat, girl." I said in English, but Nu'it got my meaning as she flew towards them.
Though, I see a helicopter painted with a blue stripe down its side start firing at the bigger ship, telling me exactly who it was. "You are such a badass, Trudy." I whisper to myself as I watch her dodge the missiles and bullets using the floating mountains.
She managed to fire some bullets into the windows, causing holes to appear. I started to laugh before noticing they were firing more and more artillery at her. "Oh no you don't, Quaritch." I mutter to myself. 'Go, Nu'it, shake them up.' I urged as my Ikran flew forward, ramming into the side of the commanding ship as it made it tilt and fly to the side, but it was far from destroyed.
I looked over at Trudy's copter to see it smoking. "Land, land Trudy!" I yelled, signaling to her to go down. Thankfully, she listened, flying away to find a safe spot to hideout. She's helped out enough and I can never thank her enough. After she was safely away from the fighting, and Jake was away from Quaritch, I fled from the giant ship myself. I wasn't capable of taking it on on my own.
I, instead, went around shooting down more pilots as Nu'it tore through the aircrafts themselves. We were about to take another pass at the carrier that had the explosives when I noticed a familiar figure inside of it. "Tsu'tey!" I screamed in terror as I watched him strike the gunmen with his bow up close before one shot him, causing him to fall and roll off of the ship and down onto the ground below.
'Catch him!' I commanded my Ikran as she tucked in her wings and dived. We got closer and closer to the ground as my heart sped up, fearful for the man I love. I pushed First Dawn faster until she passed Tsu'tey, catching him on her back before flying up, keeping us from crashing into the ground that was only a hundred feet below.
I got her to fly us to a secluded area and land, quickly getting off as I carefully pulled Tsu'tey down onto the ground. I checked him over to see the bullet only grazed his skin, not a lethal wound, but it still needs stitching. For now, I grabbed some giant leaves and tied them together to use as a gauze for the bleeding, trying it around his waist.
"Don't mess with that." I ordered him sternly as he nodded weakly, sitting up. "Thank you." He told me as I smiled and nodded, petting his hair. Suddenly, my ears flicked around as I heard a lot of movement ahead of us, and it was only getting closer.
"Nu'it, fly away. Hurry!" I shouted at her as she screeched at me in concern before lifting off, flying to help the others most likely. "What's wrong?" My mate asked as I tugged him, or tried to, behind a tree. Thankfully, he decided to just go with it and carry his own weight a bit until we were safely behind the thick tree trunk.
"They're coming. My Ikran would've been killed easily with how many I hear. They're probably the same ones that made Grace and the rest of the Pa'li riders retreat." I told him as the sounds of the robot's footfalls got louder, along with the quieter ones of the humans on foot.
I grabbed the choker around my neck. "Jake, Jake answer me." I hissed through it. "Zen? Where are you? What happened to Tsu'tey and Trudy? Neytiri?" He questioned me. "Trudy's fine, I got her away from the battle. I have no idea where Neytiri is, I hadn't seen her in the air for a while. Tsu'tey and I are now stuck on the ground. We're hidden behind a tree as the humans on the land get closer to us. I sent Nu'it off since she'd have been killed quickly." I answered all of his questiones, my voice getting quieter when I hear the enemy's forces stop about 100 meters away.
I cautiously took out my bow and knocked an arrow. "Zen, if it's just you two do not attack. Brother, do not shoot." I could hear Jake order me, but too bad I was the leader, not him. We were cornered, if we take one step from behind this tree, Tsu'tey and I would be shot dead before we'd make it a yard.
I peeked around the corner to see all of the robots and humans frozen in a line, more behind them. "Zen, there's too many." Tsu'tey tried to argue with me as I looked back at him. "I don't have a choice, Tsu'tey. You're in no condition to fight right now, even if you did have your bow. What else do you expect me to do?!" I exclaim quietly as my tail moves around wildly, showing how upset I am.
I pull back my bow string and peek back around the corner. I bit my lip in thought before cursing under my breath as I turn back around, slumping against the bark, knowing it'd be no use.
I suddenly perked up, along with Tsu'tey, as we heard rumbling in the distance as the ground shook. It was coming towards us and the humans behind us. I gasp as a gigantic herd of Angtsík, or the Hammerhead Titanothere, emerged from the brush, charging at the enemy line as they completely avoided us.
I looked back around the tree to see them ramming into the robot suits and stepping on the defenseless humans as the bullets did basically no damage to their thick skin. I laughed in astonishment as they eliminated most of them, their cries of despair and retreat music to my ears.
"Zen, Eywa has heard you." Tsu'tey said to me in English as we heard multiple squaks and screeches overhead to see thousands of wild Ikran flying towards the helicopters to help those still in the sky. "Eywa has heard you!" He repeated loudly this time as I could only imagine the havoc they were now wreaking on the aircrafts. We completely outnumbered them now, so they were probably plucking the people out of them with no problem at all.
I laughed as I took ahold of Tsu'tey's hand, pulling us out from behind the tree trunk. I looked around before spotting a bow left behind by one of the retreating Pa'li riders as I picked it up. "Think you can still shoot?" I ask as he smirks at me and plucks it out of my grasp. "Don't underestimate me, little flower." He warns.
"Wouldn't dream of it." I grin as I tilt my head towards the Angtsík before running after them where more humans would lay. Tsu'tey followed after me, being careful of his wound, as Nantang, or Viperwolves, appeared as well. They hunted like a true pack, tearing off as many human faces as they could as they ripped out their throats as well.
I drew back my bow and shot an arrow through a human's chest, pinning him to a tree trunk as the life left his eyes. I did this two more times, as my mate did as well, before another animal jumped out from beside me.
I shouted in surprise as it was the Palulukan, or Thanator, that chased Jake and I on our first day out in the forest in our Avatars. I hunched down as it growled lowly, stalking towards me. I was prepared to take off again when it made a rumbling sound in its chest before bowing its head, looking up at me.
"All Pandoran creatures will be at your service, my dear Tsahik. It is the gift I gave you before when we first met." The voice of Eywa informed me in my head as my eyes widened. "Zen?" I hear Tsu'tey question as I glance at him to see his bow aimed at the big cat creature.
I held up my hand as he lowers it. "It's fine. Eywa has told me all creatures will do as I say. It makes sense now. Remember the Ikran?" I ask him as he nods, remembering how they all bowed to me as well.
I smiled and kissed him before jumping onto the back of the Palulukan. "Stay hidden. You are injured." I warned him as he sighed but nodded. I formed Tsaheylu with it as we both got used to the new bond. We quickly shook it off, though. 'Head for the Tree of Souls.' I directed it as it began to sprint, being faster than a Pa'li. I was not going to stop fighting now, especially when even Eywa wants us to win.
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I couldn't bare to have Grace, Trudy, or Tsu'tey die. I even tried writing it to see where I'd go with it and I started crying.
Hope you've enjoyed 💜💜💜💜💜