Brotherhood Chapter 27
Yes, you're probably all getting sick of the daily updates now....but I don't care!
See! I told you I could do it! A couple chapters I still want to get out by the end of the week, of course, but I'm so gonna get there...just watch!
I feel it's important, before this chapter gets started, to provide a small disclaimer to one bit of information contained within. I have created an animal which I am using in this chapter. Yes, I fully admit it is not a canon occupant of Pandora, and I had to fight with myself long and hard over whether I was going to actually break my rule about "making shit up" but in this case I feel it was necessary. I'll give a more complete explanation of my created animal at the end of the chapter, along with a few other bits of information people might find interesting about things that come up in this chapter, but for now, just enjoy!
Brotherhood Chapter 27: Uniltaron
A couple of days later, when the trading group finally made it back to Kelutral, Neytiri came to a decision. She waited until Tom and Jake had run off together for a little brother-bonding time to catch up on what each other had missed while Tom had been away, and then she approached Ninat.
"I wonder if I might speak to you about something," she asked her childhood friend carefully, not particularly wanting to be overheard, since the last thing she wanted to do right now was start a rumour which might not come to pass.
"Of course," Ninat smiled, "I was going to speak to my father about something but it can wait a little. You look as though this is something important. Shall we walk to the river? I suddenly have a desire to wash, after my long journey."
"Of course," Neytiri smiled, "I can't blame you. It must be exhausting and dirty having to travel so far on a pa'li."
That made Ninat laugh. "You ikran aymakto have no idea!" she said, "Especially you. I don't think I've seen you ride a pa'li for any reason if you could take your Seze instead from the moment you bonded with her."
"Why ride when you can fly," Neytiri shrugged, "but that is only my thinking."
"So, what is it you wished to speak to me about?" Ninat asked as they reached the river's edge and she knelt down to scoop the clean, fresh water in her hands and splash it over her face and shoulders.
"I believe that Jake is ready for uniltaron," Neytiri said quietly, kneeling next to her and watching her expression, "but it would not be right for him to become a man without Tom, so I did not want to bring it up to him until I had a chance to speak with you and see if you think Tom is also ready."
"That is actually the very thing I was going to speak to Sempul about," Ninat laughed lightly, "I do, indeed feel Tom is ready, but..." she blushed, "well...things have changed between us somewhat since we left on our journey, and I want to be sure I'm not assuming he's ready simply because I want him to be, for my own, selfish reasons."
That made Neytiri laugh as well, but Ninat caught a flash of longing pass over her friend's face that was very telling. She hoped Neytiri knew what she was doing, and, more importantly, that she would listen to the words of Eywa in her heart rather than doing something she would regret forever. Whatever that was. Ninat was no tsahìk-trained, but she knew the old songs, and she knew what happened when a mating was forced which was not meant to be.
"I will wait until you have spoken to Kxawn'e sempul, then," Neytiri agreed, "but may I say...I hope he, too, agrees Tom is ready. Something is telling me that if all is to be well, those two must become a part of the Omatikaya, and soon."
"Have you spoken to your mother?" Ninat asked.
"Not yet," Neytiri shook her head, "but you are right, I should speak to her. It is decided, then. I will speak to Sa'nok, you will speak to your father, and then we will meet back here before we go to the boys."
"As you say," Ninat nodded, throwing another scooped handful of water over her head, droplets glistening in her hair and on the feathers of the necklace she was wearing as she got to her feet again with a smile. It would be...good, if Sempul agreed that Tom was ready.
As one of the many comms-ops personnel assigned to Hell's Gate, Jamie Ricketts didn't stand out...and that was entirely on purpose. Oh, sure, he had that distinctive Newfie accent that made everyone want to talk to him, if only to laugh, and he had a nice, deep voice all the ladies appreciated, especially the (few) lady pilots, but that was all easy enough to pass under the radar with, and Jamie was only too glad of that. He fit into comms so well, in fact, that few would have guessed he was ever trained as anything else. Obviously he was a former military man, but had anyone ever been asked, they would have simply assumed he'd worked comms in the military too.
They would've been dead wrong, of course, but Jamie wasn't about to correct that assumption. In point of fact, Jamie had been a highly decorated member of the PPCLI - or the "Patricias" as they were more affectionately known - and a crack shot, until the assignment that ended his sniping career for good. Which wouldn't have gotten him that dishonorable discharge, except for the fact that they figured out he'd wrecked his own shoulder to get out of the assignment. So sue him, he hadn't wanted to kill the guy in front of his kid! Seriously!
Before they'd figured that out, though, he'd been relegated to desk duty in comms, and that was the part he talked about if anybody asked him for credentials and whatnot, although of course if anybody actually looked up his service record they would've found the rest...but he'd been careful to not tweak anybody's interest enough to actually make them look, and that was good enough for him.
Still, a trained sniper, wrecked shoulder or not, is still a trained sniper, and it wasn't like he could turn his eyes off. He'd noticed the science geeks being extra sneaky lately, and he suspected they were up to something. He would've reported it, but...well... He'd never been one to go along with the kind of willy-nilly destruction the RDA was perpetrating on this moon. That had been more than half the problem with his military career. He'd go along with orders just fine when he agreed with them, but being raised on "The Rock", where history was long, he knew from his grandmother's stories just exactly how much could be screwed up with a little wanton destruction in the name of progress, and while he might not've been the type to join one of those "Environmental resistance" organizations, it didn't mean he didn't have sympathies in that direction, or that he wouldn't stand up to his "superiors" if he thought they were being jackasses.
Which was why he was currently watching the rest of the comms-ops center with circumspect attention, looking for any useful bits of information he might just be able to pass along to the geeks...without letting on it was him doing it, of course.
"In a time long ago, and yet not that far past that it has been forgotten, there lived a young man who was not that remarkable," Ninat began as the clan's children began to gather around her. Word had gotten out that she was going to sing the song of the fifth Toruk Makto - the one the Omatikaya could claim as their own through blood - and even those who had heard the tale a thousand times were more than eager to hear it again, especially in Ninat's sweet voice. Even if she hadn't been next in line to become High Singer of the clan, everyone agreed her voice would have counted her as the best singer the Omatikaya had boasted in three generations.
"Now, this man may have been ordinary in every way, but that did not mean Eywa did not have a plan in mind for him, even if he did not know what it was..."
Jake grinned as he caught the look on his brother's face once Ninat started to sing. Tommy was so obviously entranced, and he wasn't even doing anything to hide it anymore. They hadn't exactly gone into details, but since Tommy had arrived home, Jake had definitely noticed a change in him, and most of it had to do with the pretty singer in front of them. Not that he had a problem with that, of course. Tommy deserved to be happy just as much as anyone, and Jake had known Ninat would be a good match for him ever since he'd first seen the two of them together, even if Tom the Totally Upstanding had denied it at first. But now...
His eyes drifted over to where Neytiri was sitting and his grin shifted to a rueful smile. Now he was the one being "Totally Upstanding" and didn't he wish he could get over it? He had a lot to think about in the next few days. Neytiri had told him that in her determination, he and Tom were ready for uniltaron, and once he'd done that, he would be a full member - an adult - of the tribe, and that came with certain benefits that he couldn't help thinking about.
"The young man watched from his place in the bushes as the weaver-girl sang to herself and gathered grasses for her loom. He had always watched the weaver-girl from the time they were both in their mothers' arms, but he knew that her interests did not lie with him. There were many, far more deserving males whose looks made her smile, or whose humour made her laugh her sweet laugh, so why would she want anything more to do with him than to call him "tsmukan" as she always had when they played together as children. Besides, lately the riti had been telling of a budding promise between her and the strongest of the hunters, and the young man had no reason to doubt that this should be true. She deserved the best, after all."
Yeah, Jake knew just how that was, definitely. Neytiri deserved the best, and much though he might toot his own horn now and then, he wasn't so full of himself that he didn't know what his standing was. Even if he made it through uniltaron in one piece, he was still nothing more than a weird, alien dreamwalker with delusions of trying to fit in.
He found himself drawn into the story in a way he hadn't expected, though, and whether it was because of the hypnotic cadence of Ninat's voice, or whether it had more to do with the fact that he was really starting to identify with the trials and troubles of the People and, more specifically, that "ordinary young man" who was obviously destined for eventual greatness he couldn't quite tell. There was just something about the story...
Cathy yawned and streched as she sat up in the nivi she shared with her mate. As Tom had asked, she was getting more rest in her human form, and she had to admit it did feel a little better when she woke up each morning, although she missed waking up with Antsu. He would have waited in their nivi for her to wake each morning, but she had told him in no uncertain terms that he shouldn't waste hours of time that he could be putting to better use. After all, first thing in the morning was when the little children had their lessons, and she knew he loved that part of the day most of all. She did too, of course, but for a few days she was willing to give it up while she recuperated.
Still, perhaps it was best that Antsu wasn't here this morning, since he would have asked questions about her going to see Mo'at, and she didn't want to tell him her reason until she knew whether it would make a difference or not.
She hopped up out of their nivi, pulled on a fresh top and settled her necklaces over it, and ran her fingers through her braids to settle them into order before heading toward the center of Hometree and the alcove where the tsahìk usually spent much of her day.
"Come in, Ka'tsi," Mo'at called before she even announced her presence outside the alcove, and Cathy swallowed nervously, then stepped through the beaded curtain.
"I'm sorry to interrupt your day," she hesitated, but Mo'at shook her head.
"Sit, child," she indicated a space across from herself, "tell me, what is it that brings you to see me today?"
"I wish to..." Cathy hesitated, unsure, now that she was here, just exactly how to phrase her request, "The boys will undergo uniltaron soon, and I know when I mated with Antsu both you and Eytukan said that it wasn't necessary for me to do the same, that my trip to the Anurai would prove my worth as one brought into the clan through mating, but...it just doesn't sit right with me," she shook her head, "I am glad that you accept me as Antsu's mate, but...but I would like to be a member of the clan in my own heart as well, and I cannot do that without passing through the same trial expected of every other adult."
"You wish to take uniltaron," Mo'at said thoughtfully, "have you spoken to your mate about this decision, Ka'tsi?"
"Not yet," Cathy admitted, "I...didn't feel I ought to bring it up until I had spoken to you first."
"Ah," Mo'at nodded slowly, "I see. And are you ready physically for uniltaron? It is unusual for a mated woman to take such a chance."
"I...don't see any reason why I should not be ready," Cathy hesitated slightly, "unless you think there is a reason I have not thought of..."
"You are not yet blessed by Eywa?"
"Blessed by... No!" she said quickly as she remembered her most recent talk with Louise, "No, I don't think so. I mean, I'm not having any of the signs like Louise told me about."
"Luuisì, Taka's mate, hmm?" Mo'at smiled slightly, "Neytiri mentioned to me that she is expecting their first child together. Unusually quickly after their mating, but of course Eywa chooses the time of each child when it is meant to come, and not before."
Cathy just nodded, not wanting to interrupt as Mo'at frowned thoughtfully. All of a sudden the tsahìk drew her ceremonial thorn knife, piercing the back of Cathy's hand and letting the small drop of blood thus collected pass across her tongue.
"You should speak to your mate about this decision," she said finally, "but when he is in agreement, I will say you are ready to take uniltaron if you still wish to do so." She smiled, then, "but speak to him soon, for your window of time to do this will swiftly close."
"Irayo, tsahìk Mo'at," Cathy bowed low before standing up to go, "I will speak with him today, and come to you again when we have agreed."
Jake had a problem. Well, okay, depending on who you asked Jake had many problems, but this one was a bit different and unusual. This problem might very well not even really be a problem, since there was every chance that the circumstances surrounding this problem might never come to be, and he'd long since resigned himself to that, but at the same time...well...he couldn't help but hope, and with that hope came the realization that he...well...had a problem!
Which was why, after a lot of circular thinking and arguing with himself, he ended up flying out to Site 12 the day before his uniltaron, ostensibly to bring them some meat and teylu. Neytiri had told him that they needed a supply of the grubs and didn't have one nearby, which confused him but whatever. Something was going on out there that made her have these mysterious little smiles, which were pretty damned hot, actually, but he tried not to think too much about it. He figured he could ask Taka what was up at the same time he was asking his...other questions.
Once he'd said hello to the babies and dropped off his shipment of meat, while Louise took it inside to get it into the fridge (and do something with the teylu which involved an old rotten log someone must had dragged over since the last time he was there) Jake approached Taka with a hesitance he hadn't felt since grade six biology.
"Look, man, can I talk to you about something?" he asked quietly, glancing around to check whether they were out of earshot of anyone who might overhear their conversation.
"Sure, what's up?" Taka asked, taking him by the arm and leading him over in the other direction, for which Jake felt a small measure of relief. At least the guy could tell this was something that needed to be private.
"I wanna know... Look, if this is too personal feel free to kick my ass, but I just... Tom'n me are gonna be doing uniltaron tomorrow, I dunno if you knew, but anyway, it's got me thinking, and...well... Not that I even know for sure if it's gonna be an issue but...what's it like, doing it in this body? I mean, the equipment looks pretty similar, and it seems to work pretty similar, at least when I look at a pretty girl and all, but I just...don't wanna screw up and look like a fool or, even worse, hurt her 'cause I don't know what the fuck I'm doing," he finally managed to mangle his thoughts into some sort of coherency.
Taka blinked, and then he got the most wicked-looking grin Jake had ever seen on his face. "You want to know," he asked slowly, "what it's like to have sex as an avatar? That's a pretty big step to be contemplating, you know."
"I know, I know," Jake nodded, "and I doubt it's actually even gonna come up, I mean, why'd she ever want me in the first place, you know? But it's a training thing, you gotta be prepared for anything. Least that's the way I'm looking at it."
"Right," Taka nodded, "well, I have to warn you right off, once you have sex as an avatar you'll probably never want to do it as a human again."
"Not a problem," Jake laughed a little harshly, "it's not like the plumbing works with any kinda predictability anymore. Fuck, I can't even feel it, so it's not like I'm gonna be missing anything I didn't already say "bye" to over a year ago," he shook his head.
"Oh." Taka's dots - didn't Neytiri call then sanhì? - brightened in the Na'vi form of a blush, "I'd forgotten about that."
"Naw, don't worry about it, man," Jake forgave him, "so...what's it like?"
"Well, you're right," Taka smiled, glancing over to where Louise was, "it's very similar to human sex, although when you add in the tsaheylu it's light-years beyond the most amazing sex you've ever had in your entire life...and then some. I guess the most important thing you need to know is Na'vi girls have this...kinda built-in "no sex before mating" thing. If they get too aroused and then they don't make tsaheylu they get all weepy and upset. Louise once compared it to suddenly feeling like you have an emotional black hole in the middle of your chest, and nothing you can think of in the way of happy thoughts or physical pleasure could possibly ever fill it. At that point, you either have to stop making out, or take the next step and make tsaheylu, then everything's alright again."
"Okay," Jake nodded, "but the sex's prettymuch the same? "insert tab A into slot B" and all that?"
"Pretty much," Taka laughed. "There are minor differences, but nothing that'll get you in trouble. I gotta warn you, though, muntxa is pretty damned addictive! Even if it weren't for the bonding part, just think about how much more sensitive your avatar's senses are than your own. Just the scent of her on the breeze sometimes is enough to set me off now, although it's not nearly as bad as the week after we mated," he grinned, "That took "sex on the brain" to a whole new level!"
Jake laughed too. "Yeah, I can see how that could happen," he agreed, "I mean, even now I'm getting more and more...aware of her scent. It's weird, really." He shook his head, "but anyway, thanks for the info, man, and thanks for putting up with me asking about shit I shouldn't ask you about."
"Not a problem," Taka waved his apology off, "If I'd had someone to ask I would've taken the same advantage before Louise and I took that step. Not that I regret it in the least, but I do sure wish I'd known a bit more...especially about..." He grinned, "hey, that's an important one to know. If your awareness of her scent suddenly skyrockets after you're mated, watch out, or you'll end up like me."
"Like you?" Jake asked, confused, "how's that?"
"Expecting," Taka's grin almost split his face as he watched Louise walk down out of their avatar bunkhouse and over to the rotting log.
"Expecting? You mean she's..."
"Pregnant," Taka nodded. "That's why we needed all the extra food. The midwife told us she needs to be eating more meat, and especially teylu, for the baby to grow and be healthy."
"Wow. Congrats, man, seriously!" Jake thumped him on the shoulder, "how long to go?"
"About ten and a half months, they said," Taka smiled and shook his head, "it's exciting and terrifying, all at the same time, but mostly exciting. So, who's the girl you've got your eye on? Anyone I know?"
Jake shook his head. "Someone I shouldn't," he said, "and someone who shouldn't want me, either. Which is why I said it might not even be an issue at all, but I still gotta hope anyway, even if it's stupid."
"Well, good luck to you tomorrow," Taka said, "and whatever happens, it's meant to happen. That much I have learned about living in this place."
"Yeah man," Jake agreed, "I totally know what you mean. Here it's not like Earth; here there's a real...destiny."
The morning of the day before the Site 26 group was due back at Hell's Gate for their monthly meeting, Nala got a bit of a surprise when she went out for her usual morning visit to Taka's experiments...and the little "secret" he'd left her in charge of before he headed out. She knelt down beside it and linked her queue up like she often did - Taka had said it was really relaxing and that she should feel free to take advantage if she felt the need, and she definitely had - but this morning instead of merely hearing distantly echoing voices, she got a distinct sense of "someone on the other end of the line", as though she'd picked up a phone and there were crossed wires and she could hear bits of someone else's conversation.
"Um...hello?" she said out loud, sure she was being an idiot, but at the same time...
«Hello,» she heard a child's voice say in her mind, «Close your eyes, tsmuke, then you can listen better.»
Nala wondered what exactly was going on, but she closed her eyes anyway. After all, it wasn't like it was going to hurt anything.
«See? That's way better, isn't it?»
She suddenly realized that now that her eyes were closed, she not only heard the child, she could also faintly see him in her mind's eye. The boy was sitting cross-legged in front of her, just out of reach. She was definitely sure it was a little boy, about five years old or so, and he had a big grin on his face that she couldn't help but smile right back at. "It is better," she agreed. "How are you doing this? I've never had this happen when I linked up to the tree before."
«Usually I can only talk to Sa'nu or Sempu if they call to me,» the boy admitted, «but today Nawma Sa'nok let me come talk to you because I'm non-threatening. Whatever that means.»
"Oh..." Nala was more than a little stunned, "and what are you supposed to tell me?"
«I'm supposed to tell you...wait,» the boy hesitated, «once I tell you what I'm supposed to tell you, then I have to go away again! And I've got lots of stuff to say. I haven't talked to anybody in ages and ages and ages! Can't we talk a little bit first?» he asked, pouting cutely at her, his ears drooping like a sad puppy's and his tail-tip wrapping around one of his crossed ankles.
"Okay, we can talk a bit first," Nala shook her head ruefully. She'd always been a sucker for kids this age, and apparently being Na'vi only made them cuter. Those ears! Just way too adorable! "My name's Nala, what's your name?"
«I'm Kewat,» he said, and like that the smile was back, «You're pretty, Nala! And your name's pretty too. I bet someday you're going to have really pretty little girl babies! Oh, but we're not supposed to talk about babies when you haven't even met your mate yet, are we?» he giggled.
Poor Nala was just a little floored. "Well, maybe someday that will happen," she said finally, "but I don't see it happening anytime soon. I'm a bit busy with other things, at least for now."
«That's right, you have other things to worry about for now,» Kewat agreed, and his little face turned sad, «I guess I should tell you what you need to hear, but...promise me you'll ask to talk to me again sometime, maybe when you have your babies?»
"I promise," Nala smiled gently, "so what is it that I need to know?"
«It's time for the uniltìranyu here to find out about this utral aymokriyä,» he said, «Nawma Sa'nok says that if they are to make the right choices in the future, they need to understand the land better, and to do that, they need to understand the true meaning of tsaheylu. Not just to be able to link to animals or your mate, but to join with Eywa'eveng and hear her cry out with the pain she now suffers.»
"I will tell them," Nala nodded, "I'll start today and make sure all of them get a chance to share in this."
«Good,» Kewat said firmly, then he smiled again, «Don't forget, when you have your babies you'll call for me and we can talk more, kefyak?» He got to his feet and rushed over to hug her, and Nala could almost swear she felt the little arms and legs and tail wrap around her before the sense of him was gone again.
"I won't forget," she whispered, even though he was no longer there. Somewhere, she was sure he'd heard her. She opened her eyes, feeling as though everything around her was glistening with an overlaid iridescence that had carried forward from that "inner world" she had just experienced. She shook her head, and the effect faded a little, but not completely, and then she got to her feet and headed for the rest of the avatar compound. It looked like she had a job to do, although...perhaps she'd better keep little Kewat out of the explanations to her colleagues, at least for now. They would understand better if she brought it to them as a scientific experiment at first. The real explanation could come after they had Seen the way she just had.
When they got back up to Site 26 that night, after their check-in with headquarters, the mood around the table before bed was sombre, at best. Jake couldn't get Quaritch's words out of his head, but of course, it wasn't like he could talk to any of the others about what the colonel had said to him, since he hadn't said anything to Grace or Norm about his "side-mission" this whole time, and it wasn't like he could start now.
Well, maybe he could, but it would take a lot of explaining that he really didn't want to think about right now. Aw fuckit, he could talk to them about it later, after uniltaron when he could actually try and make some kind of difference. Quaritch had wanted to send him home, get him on a shuttle back up to the Venture Star and back to Earth, but the thought of returning to that...that dead place had almost made him sick. He'd had to be really careful not to sneer at the man and let on about the deep attachment he'd created with the forest here, with the People. No, Quaritch wouldn't have understood, so as usual, Jake fed him what he would understand, the desire to "see things through", and that had been enough, for now, but he knew he wouldn't be able to hold the man off forever. First thing tomorrow, he decided, he was going to have a little chat with Tom and try and figure out how they might possibly salvage the situation.
The next morning, the morning of their uniltaron, Jake found Tom after the breakfast they didn't eat because they had been fasting since the day before, and pulled him aside.
"I need to talk to you about something," he said in "twin", "it's kindof serious."
"Okay, what's up?" Tom asked, sitting down in a quiet spot and making room for Jake to sit beside him.
"I'm worried about what Quaritch might have up his sleeve," Jake sighed, "Look...when all this started, you know he'd approached me about finding out intel on the Na'vi, right? And you know I've been feeding him stuff that's mostly wrong but with some bits of truth? Like the specs he asked for about Hometree?"
"I remember you mentioning that, yes," Tom nodded, "is it turning into a problem?"
"That's what I'm not sure about," Jake shook his head, "when I reported in yesterday, he wanted to send me back to Earth, he said the deal had gone through fr them to fix my spine, but more to the point, I'm pretty sure he knows something's up with me being out here."
"You mean he might be suspecting that you're giving him false information?" Tom asked, feeling a twinge of concern.
"Maybe, or maybe he just thinks I'm losing myself out here," Jake sighed, "which could be right, in a way. I hardly feel human anymore, Tom. Everything is starting to get backwards, like this, here, you and me sitting under Hometree talking in ten-foot-tall bodies with tails, is reality and everything that happens when I wake up from link is just some kinda bad dream."
"I know just what you mean," Tom agreed, "honestly, I'm starting to view my human body as little more than a liability that keeps me from being as much "here" as I want to - almost need to be."
Jake chuckled at that, "And by tomorrow that's only gonna get worse, isn't it?" he said, "but hey, man, I don't mind the thought of finally having a cool sister-in-law, especially seeing how happy she makes you." He shook his head, "but...man, just, I'm worried about what the colonel might do. He's sure this is gnna turn into some kinda "shit fight" before long, and I have a really bad feeling that he knows what he's talking about."
"Well, we'll just have to do everything we can to try and make sure that doesn't happen," Tom shook his head, "once we're full members of the clan, hopefully they'll all listen to what we have to say. I think maybe tomorrow, you and I should speak to Eytukan about human military tactics and just what kinds of nasty sneaky things they're capable of in the name of escalating violence while still looking innocent to the folks back home."
"Alright," Jake nodded, "it sounds like a plan!"
"Don't worry," Tom grinned at Jake as the two prepared for their dream hunt, "it can't be any worse than the time Da gave us pituri when we were sixteen."
"True enough," Jake laughed, "and Mom's not here to freak out afterwards either. Not that there was anything to freak out about anyway. It was totally cool, and it wasn't like we were doing it just for the hell of it. It was so we would know more of Da's side of things, right?"
"Right," Tom nodded. "Like Da always said, you have to give these things their proper respect, or they'll come back and bite you in the butt."
"Exactly," Jake agreed, "which is why I think we'd better shut up, since it looks like we're about to get decorated." He glanced over to where Neytiri and Ninat were heading their way, pots of white pigment in their hands.
"Looks like it," Tom grinned. "Where's Cathy anyway? I thought she was supposed to be doing this with us?"
"Ka'tsi tsmuke said to Antsu she did not wish to have you two males see his hands covering her skin in paint," Ninat laughed as she set her seedpod paintpot down in front of Tom, "it must be some tawtute thing."
"Naw," Jake shook his head, "it's a mated couple thing, take my word for it!"
"If you say so," Neytiri laughed lightly, "now it is time for you to be quiet, I do not wish to have you make a mess of this because you speak too much." She dipped her fingers in the gloopy white paint and raised them to begin the first whorl pattern over his heart.
"You don't have to do this," Antsu sighed as he drew careful lines and swirls over his mate's skin, his fingers tingling at the contact that he was struggling to keep from being a much less platonic caress. "You are a part of the tribe already, through me. There are none here who do not acknowledge you."
"We've been through this," Cathy sighed and shook her head, "I'm not doing uniltaron for anybody but myself. I know the others acknowledge me due to our mating, but...I do not yet acknowledge myself."
"I know," Antsu sighed, "and I even understand, I just...worry for you. I know the chances of something truly bad happening during uniltaron are small, but still, I was without you for so very long...I do not want to face the thought of that again." His hands stilled and he leaned forward, pressing his forehead against her still-unpainted one.
"I will be strong, ma yawne," she smiled, then tilted her face a little to kiss him, "I will be very strong and come back to you, and then no one can ever doubt me again, not even myself."
The three candidates for uniltaron, painted in white swirls and appropriately serious, reflecting the seriousness of their undertaking, were led down a spiraling root to a cavern deep under the roots of Kelutral, and as they entered the enclosed, womb-like space, a sense of purpose came over them.
Which didn't stop Jake from leaning over to whisper to his brother "we look like aborigines, seriously, Da would've loved this."
"Shhh..." Tom shook his head, "yeah he would, but if you put images like that in my head before our little trip..."
"But we do!" Jake protested in an urgent whisper.
"If I see roos instead of a proper Pandoran animal, I'm blaming you," Tom glared, "now shut up!"
Jake shut his mouth, but he couldn't entirely hide the small smile that was replacing the full-on laughing grin he wanted. Damn, now that the suggestion was there, probably both of them were going to end up seeing roos or something stupid like that!
An echoing cascade of drumbeats began as the three reached the floor of the cavern and sat, sacred smoke passing over their bodies and helping to purify them for their journey ahead. Cathy had closed her eyes, already becoming entranced by the atmosphere, and when she felt something touch her lips the opened her mouth automatically. Mo'at said something she didn't entirely register as she placed a glowing worm onto Cathy's tongue and indicated that she should chew it.
As she was concentrating on not gagging over the sour/bitter taste of the worm, Cathy heard a low chant begin in counterpoint the drums, and before she realized what was happening, there was a sharp jolt of pain to the back of her neck, as though she'd just been plugged into a live wire and electricity was shooting up and down her spine. She swallowed convulsively, preparing to cry out, but then the world arund her started to fuzz out and she drifted peacefully down a river of sound, smells causing beautiful lights in the sky and every touch to her skin making the most sweet, delicious tastes bloom on her tongue...
"Oh wise worm, eater of the sacred tree, bless this worthy Singer with a true vision," Tom heard Mo'at say as she placed a glowing worm on Cathy's tongue. While she was doing this, Eytukan opened a stone jar and reached in, pulling out a kali'weya, the scorpion-like stiinging aracnoid he'd read about in books and papers on Pandora but never before seen up close. He pressed it to the back of her neck, causing it to sting her, and her whole body stiffened in reaction before slumping into unconsciousness.
Mo'at caught her and laid her down on the ground, then moved to Tom. Their eyes met, and Tom thought to himself that there was...something...some connection between them that he couldn't quite explain. And then he, too, was being offered a worm to chew, and even though he knew it was coming, the sting of the kali'weya burned like the flickering of delicate flames all over his skin.
As he'd said to Jake, this wasn't their first sacred trip, so the synesthesia wasn't a total surprise, but his logical mind was very quickly overwhelmed by echoes as if hundreds of thousands of people were all around him but on a slightly different plane. He couldn't see them or touch them, but he could hear them, laughing, crying, giggling, wailing in pain, whimpering in fear, moaning in the most sublime pleasure he'd ever imagined...
Jake watched the other two begin their journeys with a weird sense of detachment. He ought to be scared of the scorpion-thing. He'd always been terrified of scorpions and spiders as a kid, but somehow the mood of the room had taken over and the only thing he cared about was swaying in time with the drumbeats, the chanting of the people around him rising and falling in his ears like breathing.
He took the worm wordlessly when he was offered it, peering down at the purple-glowing specimen writhing on his tongue briefly before bringing it back into his mouth and biting down. The taste was nasty, but he hadn't expected any less, and even though he was expecting it, the scorpion-thing's sting shocked him when it came, suddenly, his body going stiff as buckets of burning icewater seemed to pour through his veins. The world around him doubled, tripled, quadrupled...
And then in a flash it was gone, and he was surrounded by multicoloured smokey fog. It whirled around him with a soft whooshing white noise like the sound of waves on a pebble beach, or the sound of your blood passing through your veins when all other sounds were gone...
At first, Cathy wasn't sure where she was. There were new sounds around her, and they sounded a little like children laughing. She looked around and found herself in a forest clearing. There wasn't anyone else there, though, so she sat down on her haunches, rested her chin on her crossed hands and waited. They should be out soon, dusk was coming on, and their midday nap had usually ended by now. They would be hungry, she thought to herself with a smile.
She felt a tug on her tail and her mouth gaped in a canine grin as she spun around to see her three cubs approaching. They were getting very good at sneaking. Soon they would be old enough to follow her and their father and uncles and cousins on their nightly hunting forays. She looked forward greatly to that day. She missed hunting with her mate, their paws biting into the ground as they ran, claws gripping the bark of trees as they climbed above their prey. But for now, she must stay with the pups. They were still too young to defend themselves, and her mate was worried for all their safety. The bad-smelling beasts encroached on their territory, and it might soon be time to take the pups from their ancestral den and flee.
Cathy, the part of herself which was human? Na'vi? slowly began to wake in the mind of the nantang mother. She could hear the far-off sound of dozers, and it struck a fear deep in her heart which could have been the nantang female's or hers, but was the thing which most stayed with her as she suddenly snapped back to waking deep under the roots of Hometree.
"What did you see?" the woman's voice asked, and Cathy realized it was Mo'at and she was back.
"I saw nantang," she whispered, "I saw nantang."
Tom settled down in a warm, snug burrow, wrapping his tail around himself until the sounds began to fade, along with the light. Once the bioluminescence of the nighttime forest had begun to bloom in earnest he uncurled himself and climbed down from the tree he'd been sheltering in. There was something nearby - something bad - and he needed to make sure it wasn't a threat to himself or his mate. He followed the scents and the ... he didn't know what else to call it but "sense" of the intruders, until he came upon an encampment of the metal people. Their stink was all-pervasive and he frowned, lowering his frilled crest in disgust. Still, bad-smell or not, he needed to make sure they weren't going to be a threat to him, or his mate and the kits she would soon bear.
He trotted along the outskirts of their encampment, checking the ground for any signs, sending out a message to the trees and plants to go dark and hide him. They seemed to have been traveling a long way in the same direction, so he continued in the direction they would be traveling. Soon a small puddle of darkness joined his own, and he rubbed his shoulder against that of his mate. She shouldn't be here, putting herself and the kits in danger, but there was little he could do to stop her.
They soon came to a grove of glowing willowy trees, and he frowned. The metal people should not disturb this place! Not the place of voices! His mate sensed his agitation and chortled soothingly to him, her sweet mews calming him down. He passed his hands over her face, delicately tracing over her crest and along her neck and back, eliciting soft purrs as she wrapped her large tail completely around his body to draw him closer.
The darkness enveloped him and then he opened his eyes and he was awake again, under the roots of Kelutral and Mo'at was speaking to him.
She had to ask him what he'd seen twice, and even then he wasn't really sure what it had been. "I was...like palulukan but small," he frowned, "I do not know the name, but I made shadows..."
"Täftxuk," Mo'at said with a slight frown, "you were täftxuk."
Jake was flying. He almost thought he was back in his hospital dreams, except that this was even more real. He could feel the slipstreams of air passing over his wings, his feet pulled up tight to his body as he rode a thermal high into the air among the floating mountains. He was in the mood to hunt, and he turned to glide along the riverbed which defined his usual hunting grounds, his sharp eyes on the lookout for prey.
When he turned his gaze below, however, he quickly realized that something was very, very wrong. Instead of the tops of trees, he saw flickering flames, the skeletal remains of trunks clawing at the sky and ash falling like rain. Something was very, very wrong, indeed. As he glided over a lake which should have been crystal clear but was now clogged and black with ash and debris, he caught sight of his own reflection, the crimson of his wings flowing over the water like an oil slick of blood, and the deep purple of his crest looking almost bruised.
He wanted to be sick, but more than that, he wanted to make this right again, and the only way he could think of to do that was by killing those who had caused this desecration and destruction. He rose to the heights again with a shriek, winging his way with lightning speed to the hive which homed the metal creatures. He would rip them apart and eat their tender bits like candy...
Jake sat up suddenly with a deep gasp, almost choking on his own breath, the smell of the ashes from the fire which had brought the sacred smoke stinging in his eyes and making him want to throw up. He could barely hold onto himself as he struggled to get his breathing and heartbeat under control.
"Did your spirit animal come to you?" he heard someone ask, and blinked a few times until Eytukan's face began to come into focus. There were a bunch of faces all peering in on him, and he...he just couldn't...
Mo'at's hand against his fevered brow felt like the most soothing balm in the world as his heart began to slow again.
"It has come, hasn't it, ma 'itan," she said softly, then she turned back to the others. "He is not yet ready to speak of what he saw. It will be revealed when the time is right."
Jake slumped in relief. What he had seen was horrible, and he knew...he knew that it had all been his fault. This was what would happen if Quaritch and Selfridge were not stopped.
Neytiri's hands lifted him to his feet and he wandered back up to a different level of Hometree where water and special medicines were ready for them, to help them recover fully from their journey. He sat and sipped slowly, unable to meet the eyes of those around him. Tom had been wrong. It was way more powerful than the time they'd taken pituri...way more. Toruk had come to him, and he would never be the same again.
So...what did you all think of that? Interesting chapter, kefyak? I've had bits and pieces of this in my head for months now, so it was really good to finally be able to write it all down.
There are questions I'm sure you all want to ask, so I'll list the most obvious ones:
1. who are the PPCLI? For those who aren't familiar (probably a lot of you) the PPCLI are the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry, a very well-known and decorated infantry unit and an integral part of the Canadian Forces since WWI.
2. what is "pituri"? Pituri, just in case you wondered, is a nicotine-containing plant which was used by the aborigines of Australia, and can be a hallucinogen in high enough concentrations. It also has important antispasmodic and analgesic properties which can be beneficial medically. Feel free to do more research on it if you want.
3. synesthesia? WTF...? Synesthesia is really pretty cool, actually. For most of us it only comes with mind-altering substances, but for some people it's simply a part of their everyday life. In the most basic terms, synesthesia is a neurologically-based condition in which stimulation of one sensory or cognitive pathway leads to automatic, involuntary experiences in a second sensory or cognitive pathway. (straight from wiki) which means that you might be able to taste music or feel colours or even give different shades to different letters. Fascinating stuff, and very trippy!
4. täftxuk, no, it isn't a real animal even by Avatar standards... Yes, that's right, I made it up, but at least I put some thought and planning into its creation. This is a short blurb on it, and I've got a sketch of it which I put up on my deviantart page if you go looking...
Täftxuk: (Shadow Weaver)
(scientific name: Felix umbraticus, common name: shadowcat) arboreal and semi-aquatic, exclusively nocturnal small predator. Close in size to a medium-sized dog or coyote on earth, equivalent size to a cat, otter or swift fox comparatively. Hexapedal, front forelimbs have four-fingered hands with opposable thumbs. Hind forelimbs have semi-webbed toes to assist in swimming. Tail is paddle-like and completely prehensile. Fringe behind the head contains sensory quills similar to palulukan. Colouring is black brindled with deep purple and blue. Can exude a pheromone which disables the bioluminescence of the plants and animals around them, creating a patch of darkness which confuses both prey and predators and for this reason are rarely seen even by the Na'vi. Täftxuk mate for life and are deeply pair-bonded and very devoted parents. Litters of four to six pups every two years or so. Their main prey are riti and fish, and they are especially fond of shellfish, which they are able to crack open using rocks. Vocalizations consist primarily of low chuckles, mews and rumbles among family members, high-pitched hunting shrieks which confuse riti, and defensive hisses and growls when cornered or during mating competition between males.
In Na'vi culture täftxuk have a similar reputation to foxes - they are seen as sly and sneaky - but are admired for their devotion to their mates and family and their high level of intelligence relative to their size. Someone who sees täftxuk during their uniltaron would be regarded as a wise friend and councillor but someone not to cross, as the wrath of täftxuk people comes from an unexpected angle in the middle of the night when almost all others have forgotten the initial offense.
And now that all that has been dealt with and put to bed, it's time for...
Vocab:
Kelutral - Hometree
pa'li - direhorse
ikran aymakto - banshee riders (plural)
uniltaron - dreamhunt - the rite of passage to adulthood for the Na'vi
Sempul - Father
tsahìk - spiritual leader of the tribe
Sa'nok - Mother
Toruk Makto - rider of toruk, an important central figure for the Na'vi who brought the clans together in a time of great sadness
tsmukan - brother
riti - stingbat
nivi - hammock
Irayo - Thank you
teylu - edible grubs, a mainstay of the Na'vi diet
tsaheylu - the (all-important) bond
muntxa - mating
tsmuke - sister
Sa'nu - "mommy", an affectionate way of saying "Sa'nok"
Sempu - "daddy", an affectionate way of saying "Sempul"
Nawma Sa'nok - "Great Mother", a formal way to refer to Eywa
uniltìranyu - dreamwalker, avatar
utral aymokriyä - tree of voices, a sacred place where the Na'vi can go to experience the spirits of their ancestors and pray to Eywa
Eywa'eveng - the Na'vi name for the moon Pandora on which they live
kefyak - "right? Is it not so?" somewhat equivalent to the ubiquitous Canadian "eh?" or the Japanese "ne?" or the French "hein?"
tawtute - sky person, human
yawne - beloved
kali'weya - aracnoid, the Na'vi equivalent to a scorpion. Its sting is used to bring on the vision state for uniltaron
nantang - viperwolf
palulukan - thanator, biiiig kitty!
täftxuk - I made this from "täftxu" - weave, and "uk" - shadow, so I translate it as "shadow weaver"
'itan - son
Toruk - "last shadow", Great Leonopteryx, apex areal predator on Pandora
See! I told you I could do it! A couple chapters I still want to get out by the end of the week, of course, but I'm so gonna get there...just watch!
I feel it's important, before this chapter gets started, to provide a small disclaimer to one bit of information contained within. I have created an animal which I am using in this chapter. Yes, I fully admit it is not a canon occupant of Pandora, and I had to fight with myself long and hard over whether I was going to actually break my rule about "making shit up" but in this case I feel it was necessary. I'll give a more complete explanation of my created animal at the end of the chapter, along with a few other bits of information people might find interesting about things that come up in this chapter, but for now, just enjoy!
Brotherhood Chapter 27: Uniltaron
A couple of days later, when the trading group finally made it back to Kelutral, Neytiri came to a decision. She waited until Tom and Jake had run off together for a little brother-bonding time to catch up on what each other had missed while Tom had been away, and then she approached Ninat.
"I wonder if I might speak to you about something," she asked her childhood friend carefully, not particularly wanting to be overheard, since the last thing she wanted to do right now was start a rumour which might not come to pass.
"Of course," Ninat smiled, "I was going to speak to my father about something but it can wait a little. You look as though this is something important. Shall we walk to the river? I suddenly have a desire to wash, after my long journey."
"Of course," Neytiri smiled, "I can't blame you. It must be exhausting and dirty having to travel so far on a pa'li."
That made Ninat laugh. "You ikran aymakto have no idea!" she said, "Especially you. I don't think I've seen you ride a pa'li for any reason if you could take your Seze instead from the moment you bonded with her."
"Why ride when you can fly," Neytiri shrugged, "but that is only my thinking."
"So, what is it you wished to speak to me about?" Ninat asked as they reached the river's edge and she knelt down to scoop the clean, fresh water in her hands and splash it over her face and shoulders.
"I believe that Jake is ready for uniltaron," Neytiri said quietly, kneeling next to her and watching her expression, "but it would not be right for him to become a man without Tom, so I did not want to bring it up to him until I had a chance to speak with you and see if you think Tom is also ready."
"That is actually the very thing I was going to speak to Sempul about," Ninat laughed lightly, "I do, indeed feel Tom is ready, but..." she blushed, "well...things have changed between us somewhat since we left on our journey, and I want to be sure I'm not assuming he's ready simply because I want him to be, for my own, selfish reasons."
That made Neytiri laugh as well, but Ninat caught a flash of longing pass over her friend's face that was very telling. She hoped Neytiri knew what she was doing, and, more importantly, that she would listen to the words of Eywa in her heart rather than doing something she would regret forever. Whatever that was. Ninat was no tsahìk-trained, but she knew the old songs, and she knew what happened when a mating was forced which was not meant to be.
"I will wait until you have spoken to Kxawn'e sempul, then," Neytiri agreed, "but may I say...I hope he, too, agrees Tom is ready. Something is telling me that if all is to be well, those two must become a part of the Omatikaya, and soon."
"Have you spoken to your mother?" Ninat asked.
"Not yet," Neytiri shook her head, "but you are right, I should speak to her. It is decided, then. I will speak to Sa'nok, you will speak to your father, and then we will meet back here before we go to the boys."
"As you say," Ninat nodded, throwing another scooped handful of water over her head, droplets glistening in her hair and on the feathers of the necklace she was wearing as she got to her feet again with a smile. It would be...good, if Sempul agreed that Tom was ready.
As one of the many comms-ops personnel assigned to Hell's Gate, Jamie Ricketts didn't stand out...and that was entirely on purpose. Oh, sure, he had that distinctive Newfie accent that made everyone want to talk to him, if only to laugh, and he had a nice, deep voice all the ladies appreciated, especially the (few) lady pilots, but that was all easy enough to pass under the radar with, and Jamie was only too glad of that. He fit into comms so well, in fact, that few would have guessed he was ever trained as anything else. Obviously he was a former military man, but had anyone ever been asked, they would have simply assumed he'd worked comms in the military too.
They would've been dead wrong, of course, but Jamie wasn't about to correct that assumption. In point of fact, Jamie had been a highly decorated member of the PPCLI - or the "Patricias" as they were more affectionately known - and a crack shot, until the assignment that ended his sniping career for good. Which wouldn't have gotten him that dishonorable discharge, except for the fact that they figured out he'd wrecked his own shoulder to get out of the assignment. So sue him, he hadn't wanted to kill the guy in front of his kid! Seriously!
Before they'd figured that out, though, he'd been relegated to desk duty in comms, and that was the part he talked about if anybody asked him for credentials and whatnot, although of course if anybody actually looked up his service record they would've found the rest...but he'd been careful to not tweak anybody's interest enough to actually make them look, and that was good enough for him.
Still, a trained sniper, wrecked shoulder or not, is still a trained sniper, and it wasn't like he could turn his eyes off. He'd noticed the science geeks being extra sneaky lately, and he suspected they were up to something. He would've reported it, but...well... He'd never been one to go along with the kind of willy-nilly destruction the RDA was perpetrating on this moon. That had been more than half the problem with his military career. He'd go along with orders just fine when he agreed with them, but being raised on "The Rock", where history was long, he knew from his grandmother's stories just exactly how much could be screwed up with a little wanton destruction in the name of progress, and while he might not've been the type to join one of those "Environmental resistance" organizations, it didn't mean he didn't have sympathies in that direction, or that he wouldn't stand up to his "superiors" if he thought they were being jackasses.
Which was why he was currently watching the rest of the comms-ops center with circumspect attention, looking for any useful bits of information he might just be able to pass along to the geeks...without letting on it was him doing it, of course.
"In a time long ago, and yet not that far past that it has been forgotten, there lived a young man who was not that remarkable," Ninat began as the clan's children began to gather around her. Word had gotten out that she was going to sing the song of the fifth Toruk Makto - the one the Omatikaya could claim as their own through blood - and even those who had heard the tale a thousand times were more than eager to hear it again, especially in Ninat's sweet voice. Even if she hadn't been next in line to become High Singer of the clan, everyone agreed her voice would have counted her as the best singer the Omatikaya had boasted in three generations.
"Now, this man may have been ordinary in every way, but that did not mean Eywa did not have a plan in mind for him, even if he did not know what it was..."
Jake grinned as he caught the look on his brother's face once Ninat started to sing. Tommy was so obviously entranced, and he wasn't even doing anything to hide it anymore. They hadn't exactly gone into details, but since Tommy had arrived home, Jake had definitely noticed a change in him, and most of it had to do with the pretty singer in front of them. Not that he had a problem with that, of course. Tommy deserved to be happy just as much as anyone, and Jake had known Ninat would be a good match for him ever since he'd first seen the two of them together, even if Tom the Totally Upstanding had denied it at first. But now...
His eyes drifted over to where Neytiri was sitting and his grin shifted to a rueful smile. Now he was the one being "Totally Upstanding" and didn't he wish he could get over it? He had a lot to think about in the next few days. Neytiri had told him that in her determination, he and Tom were ready for uniltaron, and once he'd done that, he would be a full member - an adult - of the tribe, and that came with certain benefits that he couldn't help thinking about.
"The young man watched from his place in the bushes as the weaver-girl sang to herself and gathered grasses for her loom. He had always watched the weaver-girl from the time they were both in their mothers' arms, but he knew that her interests did not lie with him. There were many, far more deserving males whose looks made her smile, or whose humour made her laugh her sweet laugh, so why would she want anything more to do with him than to call him "tsmukan" as she always had when they played together as children. Besides, lately the riti had been telling of a budding promise between her and the strongest of the hunters, and the young man had no reason to doubt that this should be true. She deserved the best, after all."
Yeah, Jake knew just how that was, definitely. Neytiri deserved the best, and much though he might toot his own horn now and then, he wasn't so full of himself that he didn't know what his standing was. Even if he made it through uniltaron in one piece, he was still nothing more than a weird, alien dreamwalker with delusions of trying to fit in.
He found himself drawn into the story in a way he hadn't expected, though, and whether it was because of the hypnotic cadence of Ninat's voice, or whether it had more to do with the fact that he was really starting to identify with the trials and troubles of the People and, more specifically, that "ordinary young man" who was obviously destined for eventual greatness he couldn't quite tell. There was just something about the story...
Cathy yawned and streched as she sat up in the nivi she shared with her mate. As Tom had asked, she was getting more rest in her human form, and she had to admit it did feel a little better when she woke up each morning, although she missed waking up with Antsu. He would have waited in their nivi for her to wake each morning, but she had told him in no uncertain terms that he shouldn't waste hours of time that he could be putting to better use. After all, first thing in the morning was when the little children had their lessons, and she knew he loved that part of the day most of all. She did too, of course, but for a few days she was willing to give it up while she recuperated.
Still, perhaps it was best that Antsu wasn't here this morning, since he would have asked questions about her going to see Mo'at, and she didn't want to tell him her reason until she knew whether it would make a difference or not.
She hopped up out of their nivi, pulled on a fresh top and settled her necklaces over it, and ran her fingers through her braids to settle them into order before heading toward the center of Hometree and the alcove where the tsahìk usually spent much of her day.
"Come in, Ka'tsi," Mo'at called before she even announced her presence outside the alcove, and Cathy swallowed nervously, then stepped through the beaded curtain.
"I'm sorry to interrupt your day," she hesitated, but Mo'at shook her head.
"Sit, child," she indicated a space across from herself, "tell me, what is it that brings you to see me today?"
"I wish to..." Cathy hesitated, unsure, now that she was here, just exactly how to phrase her request, "The boys will undergo uniltaron soon, and I know when I mated with Antsu both you and Eytukan said that it wasn't necessary for me to do the same, that my trip to the Anurai would prove my worth as one brought into the clan through mating, but...it just doesn't sit right with me," she shook her head, "I am glad that you accept me as Antsu's mate, but...but I would like to be a member of the clan in my own heart as well, and I cannot do that without passing through the same trial expected of every other adult."
"You wish to take uniltaron," Mo'at said thoughtfully, "have you spoken to your mate about this decision, Ka'tsi?"
"Not yet," Cathy admitted, "I...didn't feel I ought to bring it up until I had spoken to you first."
"Ah," Mo'at nodded slowly, "I see. And are you ready physically for uniltaron? It is unusual for a mated woman to take such a chance."
"I...don't see any reason why I should not be ready," Cathy hesitated slightly, "unless you think there is a reason I have not thought of..."
"You are not yet blessed by Eywa?"
"Blessed by... No!" she said quickly as she remembered her most recent talk with Louise, "No, I don't think so. I mean, I'm not having any of the signs like Louise told me about."
"Luuisì, Taka's mate, hmm?" Mo'at smiled slightly, "Neytiri mentioned to me that she is expecting their first child together. Unusually quickly after their mating, but of course Eywa chooses the time of each child when it is meant to come, and not before."
Cathy just nodded, not wanting to interrupt as Mo'at frowned thoughtfully. All of a sudden the tsahìk drew her ceremonial thorn knife, piercing the back of Cathy's hand and letting the small drop of blood thus collected pass across her tongue.
"You should speak to your mate about this decision," she said finally, "but when he is in agreement, I will say you are ready to take uniltaron if you still wish to do so." She smiled, then, "but speak to him soon, for your window of time to do this will swiftly close."
"Irayo, tsahìk Mo'at," Cathy bowed low before standing up to go, "I will speak with him today, and come to you again when we have agreed."
Jake had a problem. Well, okay, depending on who you asked Jake had many problems, but this one was a bit different and unusual. This problem might very well not even really be a problem, since there was every chance that the circumstances surrounding this problem might never come to be, and he'd long since resigned himself to that, but at the same time...well...he couldn't help but hope, and with that hope came the realization that he...well...had a problem!
Which was why, after a lot of circular thinking and arguing with himself, he ended up flying out to Site 12 the day before his uniltaron, ostensibly to bring them some meat and teylu. Neytiri had told him that they needed a supply of the grubs and didn't have one nearby, which confused him but whatever. Something was going on out there that made her have these mysterious little smiles, which were pretty damned hot, actually, but he tried not to think too much about it. He figured he could ask Taka what was up at the same time he was asking his...other questions.
Once he'd said hello to the babies and dropped off his shipment of meat, while Louise took it inside to get it into the fridge (and do something with the teylu which involved an old rotten log someone must had dragged over since the last time he was there) Jake approached Taka with a hesitance he hadn't felt since grade six biology.
"Look, man, can I talk to you about something?" he asked quietly, glancing around to check whether they were out of earshot of anyone who might overhear their conversation.
"Sure, what's up?" Taka asked, taking him by the arm and leading him over in the other direction, for which Jake felt a small measure of relief. At least the guy could tell this was something that needed to be private.
"I wanna know... Look, if this is too personal feel free to kick my ass, but I just... Tom'n me are gonna be doing uniltaron tomorrow, I dunno if you knew, but anyway, it's got me thinking, and...well... Not that I even know for sure if it's gonna be an issue but...what's it like, doing it in this body? I mean, the equipment looks pretty similar, and it seems to work pretty similar, at least when I look at a pretty girl and all, but I just...don't wanna screw up and look like a fool or, even worse, hurt her 'cause I don't know what the fuck I'm doing," he finally managed to mangle his thoughts into some sort of coherency.
Taka blinked, and then he got the most wicked-looking grin Jake had ever seen on his face. "You want to know," he asked slowly, "what it's like to have sex as an avatar? That's a pretty big step to be contemplating, you know."
"I know, I know," Jake nodded, "and I doubt it's actually even gonna come up, I mean, why'd she ever want me in the first place, you know? But it's a training thing, you gotta be prepared for anything. Least that's the way I'm looking at it."
"Right," Taka nodded, "well, I have to warn you right off, once you have sex as an avatar you'll probably never want to do it as a human again."
"Not a problem," Jake laughed a little harshly, "it's not like the plumbing works with any kinda predictability anymore. Fuck, I can't even feel it, so it's not like I'm gonna be missing anything I didn't already say "bye" to over a year ago," he shook his head.
"Oh." Taka's dots - didn't Neytiri call then sanhì? - brightened in the Na'vi form of a blush, "I'd forgotten about that."
"Naw, don't worry about it, man," Jake forgave him, "so...what's it like?"
"Well, you're right," Taka smiled, glancing over to where Louise was, "it's very similar to human sex, although when you add in the tsaheylu it's light-years beyond the most amazing sex you've ever had in your entire life...and then some. I guess the most important thing you need to know is Na'vi girls have this...kinda built-in "no sex before mating" thing. If they get too aroused and then they don't make tsaheylu they get all weepy and upset. Louise once compared it to suddenly feeling like you have an emotional black hole in the middle of your chest, and nothing you can think of in the way of happy thoughts or physical pleasure could possibly ever fill it. At that point, you either have to stop making out, or take the next step and make tsaheylu, then everything's alright again."
"Okay," Jake nodded, "but the sex's prettymuch the same? "insert tab A into slot B" and all that?"
"Pretty much," Taka laughed. "There are minor differences, but nothing that'll get you in trouble. I gotta warn you, though, muntxa is pretty damned addictive! Even if it weren't for the bonding part, just think about how much more sensitive your avatar's senses are than your own. Just the scent of her on the breeze sometimes is enough to set me off now, although it's not nearly as bad as the week after we mated," he grinned, "That took "sex on the brain" to a whole new level!"
Jake laughed too. "Yeah, I can see how that could happen," he agreed, "I mean, even now I'm getting more and more...aware of her scent. It's weird, really." He shook his head, "but anyway, thanks for the info, man, and thanks for putting up with me asking about shit I shouldn't ask you about."
"Not a problem," Taka waved his apology off, "If I'd had someone to ask I would've taken the same advantage before Louise and I took that step. Not that I regret it in the least, but I do sure wish I'd known a bit more...especially about..." He grinned, "hey, that's an important one to know. If your awareness of her scent suddenly skyrockets after you're mated, watch out, or you'll end up like me."
"Like you?" Jake asked, confused, "how's that?"
"Expecting," Taka's grin almost split his face as he watched Louise walk down out of their avatar bunkhouse and over to the rotting log.
"Expecting? You mean she's..."
"Pregnant," Taka nodded. "That's why we needed all the extra food. The midwife told us she needs to be eating more meat, and especially teylu, for the baby to grow and be healthy."
"Wow. Congrats, man, seriously!" Jake thumped him on the shoulder, "how long to go?"
"About ten and a half months, they said," Taka smiled and shook his head, "it's exciting and terrifying, all at the same time, but mostly exciting. So, who's the girl you've got your eye on? Anyone I know?"
Jake shook his head. "Someone I shouldn't," he said, "and someone who shouldn't want me, either. Which is why I said it might not even be an issue at all, but I still gotta hope anyway, even if it's stupid."
"Well, good luck to you tomorrow," Taka said, "and whatever happens, it's meant to happen. That much I have learned about living in this place."
"Yeah man," Jake agreed, "I totally know what you mean. Here it's not like Earth; here there's a real...destiny."
The morning of the day before the Site 26 group was due back at Hell's Gate for their monthly meeting, Nala got a bit of a surprise when she went out for her usual morning visit to Taka's experiments...and the little "secret" he'd left her in charge of before he headed out. She knelt down beside it and linked her queue up like she often did - Taka had said it was really relaxing and that she should feel free to take advantage if she felt the need, and she definitely had - but this morning instead of merely hearing distantly echoing voices, she got a distinct sense of "someone on the other end of the line", as though she'd picked up a phone and there were crossed wires and she could hear bits of someone else's conversation.
"Um...hello?" she said out loud, sure she was being an idiot, but at the same time...
«Hello,» she heard a child's voice say in her mind, «Close your eyes, tsmuke, then you can listen better.»
Nala wondered what exactly was going on, but she closed her eyes anyway. After all, it wasn't like it was going to hurt anything.
«See? That's way better, isn't it?»
She suddenly realized that now that her eyes were closed, she not only heard the child, she could also faintly see him in her mind's eye. The boy was sitting cross-legged in front of her, just out of reach. She was definitely sure it was a little boy, about five years old or so, and he had a big grin on his face that she couldn't help but smile right back at. "It is better," she agreed. "How are you doing this? I've never had this happen when I linked up to the tree before."
«Usually I can only talk to Sa'nu or Sempu if they call to me,» the boy admitted, «but today Nawma Sa'nok let me come talk to you because I'm non-threatening. Whatever that means.»
"Oh..." Nala was more than a little stunned, "and what are you supposed to tell me?"
«I'm supposed to tell you...wait,» the boy hesitated, «once I tell you what I'm supposed to tell you, then I have to go away again! And I've got lots of stuff to say. I haven't talked to anybody in ages and ages and ages! Can't we talk a little bit first?» he asked, pouting cutely at her, his ears drooping like a sad puppy's and his tail-tip wrapping around one of his crossed ankles.
"Okay, we can talk a bit first," Nala shook her head ruefully. She'd always been a sucker for kids this age, and apparently being Na'vi only made them cuter. Those ears! Just way too adorable! "My name's Nala, what's your name?"
«I'm Kewat,» he said, and like that the smile was back, «You're pretty, Nala! And your name's pretty too. I bet someday you're going to have really pretty little girl babies! Oh, but we're not supposed to talk about babies when you haven't even met your mate yet, are we?» he giggled.
Poor Nala was just a little floored. "Well, maybe someday that will happen," she said finally, "but I don't see it happening anytime soon. I'm a bit busy with other things, at least for now."
«That's right, you have other things to worry about for now,» Kewat agreed, and his little face turned sad, «I guess I should tell you what you need to hear, but...promise me you'll ask to talk to me again sometime, maybe when you have your babies?»
"I promise," Nala smiled gently, "so what is it that I need to know?"
«It's time for the uniltìranyu here to find out about this utral aymokriyä,» he said, «Nawma Sa'nok says that if they are to make the right choices in the future, they need to understand the land better, and to do that, they need to understand the true meaning of tsaheylu. Not just to be able to link to animals or your mate, but to join with Eywa'eveng and hear her cry out with the pain she now suffers.»
"I will tell them," Nala nodded, "I'll start today and make sure all of them get a chance to share in this."
«Good,» Kewat said firmly, then he smiled again, «Don't forget, when you have your babies you'll call for me and we can talk more, kefyak?» He got to his feet and rushed over to hug her, and Nala could almost swear she felt the little arms and legs and tail wrap around her before the sense of him was gone again.
"I won't forget," she whispered, even though he was no longer there. Somewhere, she was sure he'd heard her. She opened her eyes, feeling as though everything around her was glistening with an overlaid iridescence that had carried forward from that "inner world" she had just experienced. She shook her head, and the effect faded a little, but not completely, and then she got to her feet and headed for the rest of the avatar compound. It looked like she had a job to do, although...perhaps she'd better keep little Kewat out of the explanations to her colleagues, at least for now. They would understand better if she brought it to them as a scientific experiment at first. The real explanation could come after they had Seen the way she just had.
When they got back up to Site 26 that night, after their check-in with headquarters, the mood around the table before bed was sombre, at best. Jake couldn't get Quaritch's words out of his head, but of course, it wasn't like he could talk to any of the others about what the colonel had said to him, since he hadn't said anything to Grace or Norm about his "side-mission" this whole time, and it wasn't like he could start now.
Well, maybe he could, but it would take a lot of explaining that he really didn't want to think about right now. Aw fuckit, he could talk to them about it later, after uniltaron when he could actually try and make some kind of difference. Quaritch had wanted to send him home, get him on a shuttle back up to the Venture Star and back to Earth, but the thought of returning to that...that dead place had almost made him sick. He'd had to be really careful not to sneer at the man and let on about the deep attachment he'd created with the forest here, with the People. No, Quaritch wouldn't have understood, so as usual, Jake fed him what he would understand, the desire to "see things through", and that had been enough, for now, but he knew he wouldn't be able to hold the man off forever. First thing tomorrow, he decided, he was going to have a little chat with Tom and try and figure out how they might possibly salvage the situation.
The next morning, the morning of their uniltaron, Jake found Tom after the breakfast they didn't eat because they had been fasting since the day before, and pulled him aside.
"I need to talk to you about something," he said in "twin", "it's kindof serious."
"Okay, what's up?" Tom asked, sitting down in a quiet spot and making room for Jake to sit beside him.
"I'm worried about what Quaritch might have up his sleeve," Jake sighed, "Look...when all this started, you know he'd approached me about finding out intel on the Na'vi, right? And you know I've been feeding him stuff that's mostly wrong but with some bits of truth? Like the specs he asked for about Hometree?"
"I remember you mentioning that, yes," Tom nodded, "is it turning into a problem?"
"That's what I'm not sure about," Jake shook his head, "when I reported in yesterday, he wanted to send me back to Earth, he said the deal had gone through fr them to fix my spine, but more to the point, I'm pretty sure he knows something's up with me being out here."
"You mean he might be suspecting that you're giving him false information?" Tom asked, feeling a twinge of concern.
"Maybe, or maybe he just thinks I'm losing myself out here," Jake sighed, "which could be right, in a way. I hardly feel human anymore, Tom. Everything is starting to get backwards, like this, here, you and me sitting under Hometree talking in ten-foot-tall bodies with tails, is reality and everything that happens when I wake up from link is just some kinda bad dream."
"I know just what you mean," Tom agreed, "honestly, I'm starting to view my human body as little more than a liability that keeps me from being as much "here" as I want to - almost need to be."
Jake chuckled at that, "And by tomorrow that's only gonna get worse, isn't it?" he said, "but hey, man, I don't mind the thought of finally having a cool sister-in-law, especially seeing how happy she makes you." He shook his head, "but...man, just, I'm worried about what the colonel might do. He's sure this is gnna turn into some kinda "shit fight" before long, and I have a really bad feeling that he knows what he's talking about."
"Well, we'll just have to do everything we can to try and make sure that doesn't happen," Tom shook his head, "once we're full members of the clan, hopefully they'll all listen to what we have to say. I think maybe tomorrow, you and I should speak to Eytukan about human military tactics and just what kinds of nasty sneaky things they're capable of in the name of escalating violence while still looking innocent to the folks back home."
"Alright," Jake nodded, "it sounds like a plan!"
"Don't worry," Tom grinned at Jake as the two prepared for their dream hunt, "it can't be any worse than the time Da gave us pituri when we were sixteen."
"True enough," Jake laughed, "and Mom's not here to freak out afterwards either. Not that there was anything to freak out about anyway. It was totally cool, and it wasn't like we were doing it just for the hell of it. It was so we would know more of Da's side of things, right?"
"Right," Tom nodded. "Like Da always said, you have to give these things their proper respect, or they'll come back and bite you in the butt."
"Exactly," Jake agreed, "which is why I think we'd better shut up, since it looks like we're about to get decorated." He glanced over to where Neytiri and Ninat were heading their way, pots of white pigment in their hands.
"Looks like it," Tom grinned. "Where's Cathy anyway? I thought she was supposed to be doing this with us?"
"Ka'tsi tsmuke said to Antsu she did not wish to have you two males see his hands covering her skin in paint," Ninat laughed as she set her seedpod paintpot down in front of Tom, "it must be some tawtute thing."
"Naw," Jake shook his head, "it's a mated couple thing, take my word for it!"
"If you say so," Neytiri laughed lightly, "now it is time for you to be quiet, I do not wish to have you make a mess of this because you speak too much." She dipped her fingers in the gloopy white paint and raised them to begin the first whorl pattern over his heart.
"You don't have to do this," Antsu sighed as he drew careful lines and swirls over his mate's skin, his fingers tingling at the contact that he was struggling to keep from being a much less platonic caress. "You are a part of the tribe already, through me. There are none here who do not acknowledge you."
"We've been through this," Cathy sighed and shook her head, "I'm not doing uniltaron for anybody but myself. I know the others acknowledge me due to our mating, but...I do not yet acknowledge myself."
"I know," Antsu sighed, "and I even understand, I just...worry for you. I know the chances of something truly bad happening during uniltaron are small, but still, I was without you for so very long...I do not want to face the thought of that again." His hands stilled and he leaned forward, pressing his forehead against her still-unpainted one.
"I will be strong, ma yawne," she smiled, then tilted her face a little to kiss him, "I will be very strong and come back to you, and then no one can ever doubt me again, not even myself."
The three candidates for uniltaron, painted in white swirls and appropriately serious, reflecting the seriousness of their undertaking, were led down a spiraling root to a cavern deep under the roots of Kelutral, and as they entered the enclosed, womb-like space, a sense of purpose came over them.
Which didn't stop Jake from leaning over to whisper to his brother "we look like aborigines, seriously, Da would've loved this."
"Shhh..." Tom shook his head, "yeah he would, but if you put images like that in my head before our little trip..."
"But we do!" Jake protested in an urgent whisper.
"If I see roos instead of a proper Pandoran animal, I'm blaming you," Tom glared, "now shut up!"
Jake shut his mouth, but he couldn't entirely hide the small smile that was replacing the full-on laughing grin he wanted. Damn, now that the suggestion was there, probably both of them were going to end up seeing roos or something stupid like that!
An echoing cascade of drumbeats began as the three reached the floor of the cavern and sat, sacred smoke passing over their bodies and helping to purify them for their journey ahead. Cathy had closed her eyes, already becoming entranced by the atmosphere, and when she felt something touch her lips the opened her mouth automatically. Mo'at said something she didn't entirely register as she placed a glowing worm onto Cathy's tongue and indicated that she should chew it.
As she was concentrating on not gagging over the sour/bitter taste of the worm, Cathy heard a low chant begin in counterpoint the drums, and before she realized what was happening, there was a sharp jolt of pain to the back of her neck, as though she'd just been plugged into a live wire and electricity was shooting up and down her spine. She swallowed convulsively, preparing to cry out, but then the world arund her started to fuzz out and she drifted peacefully down a river of sound, smells causing beautiful lights in the sky and every touch to her skin making the most sweet, delicious tastes bloom on her tongue...
"Oh wise worm, eater of the sacred tree, bless this worthy Singer with a true vision," Tom heard Mo'at say as she placed a glowing worm on Cathy's tongue. While she was doing this, Eytukan opened a stone jar and reached in, pulling out a kali'weya, the scorpion-like stiinging aracnoid he'd read about in books and papers on Pandora but never before seen up close. He pressed it to the back of her neck, causing it to sting her, and her whole body stiffened in reaction before slumping into unconsciousness.
Mo'at caught her and laid her down on the ground, then moved to Tom. Their eyes met, and Tom thought to himself that there was...something...some connection between them that he couldn't quite explain. And then he, too, was being offered a worm to chew, and even though he knew it was coming, the sting of the kali'weya burned like the flickering of delicate flames all over his skin.
As he'd said to Jake, this wasn't their first sacred trip, so the synesthesia wasn't a total surprise, but his logical mind was very quickly overwhelmed by echoes as if hundreds of thousands of people were all around him but on a slightly different plane. He couldn't see them or touch them, but he could hear them, laughing, crying, giggling, wailing in pain, whimpering in fear, moaning in the most sublime pleasure he'd ever imagined...
Jake watched the other two begin their journeys with a weird sense of detachment. He ought to be scared of the scorpion-thing. He'd always been terrified of scorpions and spiders as a kid, but somehow the mood of the room had taken over and the only thing he cared about was swaying in time with the drumbeats, the chanting of the people around him rising and falling in his ears like breathing.
He took the worm wordlessly when he was offered it, peering down at the purple-glowing specimen writhing on his tongue briefly before bringing it back into his mouth and biting down. The taste was nasty, but he hadn't expected any less, and even though he was expecting it, the scorpion-thing's sting shocked him when it came, suddenly, his body going stiff as buckets of burning icewater seemed to pour through his veins. The world around him doubled, tripled, quadrupled...
And then in a flash it was gone, and he was surrounded by multicoloured smokey fog. It whirled around him with a soft whooshing white noise like the sound of waves on a pebble beach, or the sound of your blood passing through your veins when all other sounds were gone...
At first, Cathy wasn't sure where she was. There were new sounds around her, and they sounded a little like children laughing. She looked around and found herself in a forest clearing. There wasn't anyone else there, though, so she sat down on her haunches, rested her chin on her crossed hands and waited. They should be out soon, dusk was coming on, and their midday nap had usually ended by now. They would be hungry, she thought to herself with a smile.
She felt a tug on her tail and her mouth gaped in a canine grin as she spun around to see her three cubs approaching. They were getting very good at sneaking. Soon they would be old enough to follow her and their father and uncles and cousins on their nightly hunting forays. She looked forward greatly to that day. She missed hunting with her mate, their paws biting into the ground as they ran, claws gripping the bark of trees as they climbed above their prey. But for now, she must stay with the pups. They were still too young to defend themselves, and her mate was worried for all their safety. The bad-smelling beasts encroached on their territory, and it might soon be time to take the pups from their ancestral den and flee.
Cathy, the part of herself which was human? Na'vi? slowly began to wake in the mind of the nantang mother. She could hear the far-off sound of dozers, and it struck a fear deep in her heart which could have been the nantang female's or hers, but was the thing which most stayed with her as she suddenly snapped back to waking deep under the roots of Hometree.
"What did you see?" the woman's voice asked, and Cathy realized it was Mo'at and she was back.
"I saw nantang," she whispered, "I saw nantang."
Tom settled down in a warm, snug burrow, wrapping his tail around himself until the sounds began to fade, along with the light. Once the bioluminescence of the nighttime forest had begun to bloom in earnest he uncurled himself and climbed down from the tree he'd been sheltering in. There was something nearby - something bad - and he needed to make sure it wasn't a threat to himself or his mate. He followed the scents and the ... he didn't know what else to call it but "sense" of the intruders, until he came upon an encampment of the metal people. Their stink was all-pervasive and he frowned, lowering his frilled crest in disgust. Still, bad-smell or not, he needed to make sure they weren't going to be a threat to him, or his mate and the kits she would soon bear.
He trotted along the outskirts of their encampment, checking the ground for any signs, sending out a message to the trees and plants to go dark and hide him. They seemed to have been traveling a long way in the same direction, so he continued in the direction they would be traveling. Soon a small puddle of darkness joined his own, and he rubbed his shoulder against that of his mate. She shouldn't be here, putting herself and the kits in danger, but there was little he could do to stop her.
They soon came to a grove of glowing willowy trees, and he frowned. The metal people should not disturb this place! Not the place of voices! His mate sensed his agitation and chortled soothingly to him, her sweet mews calming him down. He passed his hands over her face, delicately tracing over her crest and along her neck and back, eliciting soft purrs as she wrapped her large tail completely around his body to draw him closer.
The darkness enveloped him and then he opened his eyes and he was awake again, under the roots of Kelutral and Mo'at was speaking to him.
She had to ask him what he'd seen twice, and even then he wasn't really sure what it had been. "I was...like palulukan but small," he frowned, "I do not know the name, but I made shadows..."
"Täftxuk," Mo'at said with a slight frown, "you were täftxuk."
Jake was flying. He almost thought he was back in his hospital dreams, except that this was even more real. He could feel the slipstreams of air passing over his wings, his feet pulled up tight to his body as he rode a thermal high into the air among the floating mountains. He was in the mood to hunt, and he turned to glide along the riverbed which defined his usual hunting grounds, his sharp eyes on the lookout for prey.
When he turned his gaze below, however, he quickly realized that something was very, very wrong. Instead of the tops of trees, he saw flickering flames, the skeletal remains of trunks clawing at the sky and ash falling like rain. Something was very, very wrong, indeed. As he glided over a lake which should have been crystal clear but was now clogged and black with ash and debris, he caught sight of his own reflection, the crimson of his wings flowing over the water like an oil slick of blood, and the deep purple of his crest looking almost bruised.
He wanted to be sick, but more than that, he wanted to make this right again, and the only way he could think of to do that was by killing those who had caused this desecration and destruction. He rose to the heights again with a shriek, winging his way with lightning speed to the hive which homed the metal creatures. He would rip them apart and eat their tender bits like candy...
Jake sat up suddenly with a deep gasp, almost choking on his own breath, the smell of the ashes from the fire which had brought the sacred smoke stinging in his eyes and making him want to throw up. He could barely hold onto himself as he struggled to get his breathing and heartbeat under control.
"Did your spirit animal come to you?" he heard someone ask, and blinked a few times until Eytukan's face began to come into focus. There were a bunch of faces all peering in on him, and he...he just couldn't...
Mo'at's hand against his fevered brow felt like the most soothing balm in the world as his heart began to slow again.
"It has come, hasn't it, ma 'itan," she said softly, then she turned back to the others. "He is not yet ready to speak of what he saw. It will be revealed when the time is right."
Jake slumped in relief. What he had seen was horrible, and he knew...he knew that it had all been his fault. This was what would happen if Quaritch and Selfridge were not stopped.
Neytiri's hands lifted him to his feet and he wandered back up to a different level of Hometree where water and special medicines were ready for them, to help them recover fully from their journey. He sat and sipped slowly, unable to meet the eyes of those around him. Tom had been wrong. It was way more powerful than the time they'd taken pituri...way more. Toruk had come to him, and he would never be the same again.
So...what did you all think of that? Interesting chapter, kefyak? I've had bits and pieces of this in my head for months now, so it was really good to finally be able to write it all down.
There are questions I'm sure you all want to ask, so I'll list the most obvious ones:
1. who are the PPCLI? For those who aren't familiar (probably a lot of you) the PPCLI are the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry, a very well-known and decorated infantry unit and an integral part of the Canadian Forces since WWI.
2. what is "pituri"? Pituri, just in case you wondered, is a nicotine-containing plant which was used by the aborigines of Australia, and can be a hallucinogen in high enough concentrations. It also has important antispasmodic and analgesic properties which can be beneficial medically. Feel free to do more research on it if you want.
3. synesthesia? WTF...? Synesthesia is really pretty cool, actually. For most of us it only comes with mind-altering substances, but for some people it's simply a part of their everyday life. In the most basic terms, synesthesia is a neurologically-based condition in which stimulation of one sensory or cognitive pathway leads to automatic, involuntary experiences in a second sensory or cognitive pathway. (straight from wiki) which means that you might be able to taste music or feel colours or even give different shades to different letters. Fascinating stuff, and very trippy!
4. täftxuk, no, it isn't a real animal even by Avatar standards... Yes, that's right, I made it up, but at least I put some thought and planning into its creation. This is a short blurb on it, and I've got a sketch of it which I put up on my deviantart page if you go looking...
Täftxuk: (Shadow Weaver)
(scientific name: Felix umbraticus, common name: shadowcat) arboreal and semi-aquatic, exclusively nocturnal small predator. Close in size to a medium-sized dog or coyote on earth, equivalent size to a cat, otter or swift fox comparatively. Hexapedal, front forelimbs have four-fingered hands with opposable thumbs. Hind forelimbs have semi-webbed toes to assist in swimming. Tail is paddle-like and completely prehensile. Fringe behind the head contains sensory quills similar to palulukan. Colouring is black brindled with deep purple and blue. Can exude a pheromone which disables the bioluminescence of the plants and animals around them, creating a patch of darkness which confuses both prey and predators and for this reason are rarely seen even by the Na'vi. Täftxuk mate for life and are deeply pair-bonded and very devoted parents. Litters of four to six pups every two years or so. Their main prey are riti and fish, and they are especially fond of shellfish, which they are able to crack open using rocks. Vocalizations consist primarily of low chuckles, mews and rumbles among family members, high-pitched hunting shrieks which confuse riti, and defensive hisses and growls when cornered or during mating competition between males.
In Na'vi culture täftxuk have a similar reputation to foxes - they are seen as sly and sneaky - but are admired for their devotion to their mates and family and their high level of intelligence relative to their size. Someone who sees täftxuk during their uniltaron would be regarded as a wise friend and councillor but someone not to cross, as the wrath of täftxuk people comes from an unexpected angle in the middle of the night when almost all others have forgotten the initial offense.
And now that all that has been dealt with and put to bed, it's time for...
Vocab:
Kelutral - Hometree
pa'li - direhorse
ikran aymakto - banshee riders (plural)
uniltaron - dreamhunt - the rite of passage to adulthood for the Na'vi
Sempul - Father
tsahìk - spiritual leader of the tribe
Sa'nok - Mother
Toruk Makto - rider of toruk, an important central figure for the Na'vi who brought the clans together in a time of great sadness
tsmukan - brother
riti - stingbat
nivi - hammock
Irayo - Thank you
teylu - edible grubs, a mainstay of the Na'vi diet
tsaheylu - the (all-important) bond
muntxa - mating
tsmuke - sister
Sa'nu - "mommy", an affectionate way of saying "Sa'nok"
Sempu - "daddy", an affectionate way of saying "Sempul"
Nawma Sa'nok - "Great Mother", a formal way to refer to Eywa
uniltìranyu - dreamwalker, avatar
utral aymokriyä - tree of voices, a sacred place where the Na'vi can go to experience the spirits of their ancestors and pray to Eywa
Eywa'eveng - the Na'vi name for the moon Pandora on which they live
kefyak - "right? Is it not so?" somewhat equivalent to the ubiquitous Canadian "eh?" or the Japanese "ne?" or the French "hein?"
tawtute - sky person, human
yawne - beloved
kali'weya - aracnoid, the Na'vi equivalent to a scorpion. Its sting is used to bring on the vision state for uniltaron
nantang - viperwolf
palulukan - thanator, biiiig kitty!
täftxuk - I made this from "täftxu" - weave, and "uk" - shadow, so I translate it as "shadow weaver"
'itan - son
Toruk - "last shadow", Great Leonopteryx, apex areal predator on Pandora