Kea Am'a

1-6:'Ewan Key

While Jake's days were full of pa'li training, I simply helped the clan where I could, watching children for mother's, harvesting, minor hunting trips, hanging around Tsu'tey.

I don't like that I felt forced to tell him that I killed someone. That person was bad, I didn't know them personally. But they were human like me. They probably had a family back on earth. But I can't regret it. Not after seeing those "trophies".

He's a big grump, Tsu'tey. He's not super nice when he doesn't have to be. And his demeanor has changed considerably since we last talked. I don't know why but I don't care. He's taking me to Iknimaya and helping me find my sister and that's it. Even if it takes forever.
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Grace suddenly made the decision to start packing up, so begrudgingly, I got to work. I don't have much, but it's enough.

"Hey, Ess?" Trudy touched my shoulder to get my attention. I don't have the energy to look up.

"What's up?" I set my bag down in the computer chair and slid some books from the desk into the open bag.

"There's a call for you from Dr. Kailani Reed."

"Oh jeez. Hand me the phone." I rolled my eyes. I'm right in the middle of something.

I look at the image of her face on the phone, she lights up as soon as my face is on the camera.

"Hi mom."

"Mele! You need to come home."

"What? No, why!?"

"You're going out too far away."

"No, dad said what he said and I'm committed to this now. Bye." I hung up on her.
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"So where are we going?" Sanui asked Trudy from the back.

"We're going to the place that fucks up my instruments." Trudy said. She was glum about it at first until Norm started asking questions.

"It's gonna get bumpy guys." Trudy warned us as the turbulence began to wobble us.

We passed under a rib-like mountain formation. Many other smaller "broken ribs" stuck out from the cliff face adjacent to the first full rib. Above it, another huge rib stretched out, blocking the sun.

"See these magnetic arches?" Grace pointed to Jake, "we're getting close."

"Yeah, look at my instruments." Trudy chuckled.

"Yup, we're in the flux vortex." Grace said.

The flux vortex is a natural phenomenon that occurs strongly in the na'vi's spiritual places. It's linked with the electro currents in the plants of Pandora, thickest at the willow trees and large plant formations like the hallelujah mountains and na'vi hometrees.

"We're VFR from here on out." Trudy mumbled.

"What's VFR?" Norm asked.

"'Means you gotta see where you're going."

"I can't see anything." Norm grumbled.

"Exactly, ain't that a bitch." She grinned.

The soupy clouds enveloped us like fog. But it cleared to reveal the most stunning sight I've ever seen. Groups, branches, couplings of mountains hanging in the air like balloons hovering stagnant. Water from the roots and vines that hold them together, poured down the mountainside and into a cloud below.

"You should see your faces." Trudy giggled.

We came to land on one of these floating mountains, a mobile site, old and unused, sat unbothered until Grace and I hopped out to take a look. We took our masks off inside and opened the airlock door to greet the filtrated air of the shack.

Grace powered it up with a smoke in between her teeth.

"I'm calling this bunk." Grace set her bag down on it territorially.

"Fine but I get top bunk." I propped my things up there and waited for the others to file in.
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Back in hometree, I greeted my favorite visitor, Tana'rì. She's a little toddler girl whose barely able to talk but she hangs around me while I weave with the small loom group. We all adore her, but her mother is not of this clan and her father is always too busy to take care of her mid-day so he asks me to watch her.

Not a big deal.

She's not very noisy, she's smart and she likes chewing on large beads. She's teething. I even made her a necklace with her favorite beads. But my favorite thing she does is her stretches when she stands up. Her little face scrunches up and and her toes curl in the mossy ground of hometree.

To be fair, not many people in the RDA choose to have children. Those who do have to stay until their child is at least 17-18 to leave. And that's if their child wants to leave too. I was lucky enough to come here at 17. So that being said, I haven't seen a baby in 4 years.

So, here she is. Small, chubby, but she can walk around better than any human 2-3 year old. Na'vi kids stay babies longer so that their body can store nutrients to shoot up once they are 4-5. In a year or two she'll be hitting those growth spurts, once a year until she's at her full height as a 16 year old.

But she's got a while to go.

"Hey Tana'rì, wanna sit?" I ask her and pat the ground near me. She coos and sits next to me, hands on her necklace, wrapped in a small shawl used to keep the young and restless children in their hammocks at night.

She likes trying out new things and I guess today, it's napping while leaning on me. She cuddles up and pulls her blanket up to her chin.

"She really likes you." Sorewn, a healer and a weaver in her spare time, she's been friendly ever since I came here.

"It's almost sad." Saeyla, a na'vi after Tsu'tey's affections snickered at the sleeping child, no, laughing at me.

"She has to cling to an alien because her mother isn't here." That comment received a light slap from Sorewn.

"Quiet! Sanuìti is a good person, and a child would cling only to nice people. That's why the children stay away from you." Sorewn hissed quietly at Saeyla.

"Sorewn, you don't have to say anything nice about me. I know the people do not care for aliens no matter how nice or close they are."

"You too, silence. I think you're worth caring about. Don't let Saeyla get in your head." That silenced all of us for a time.

"Demo-"

"Silence Tsu'tey, the child sleeps." Sorewn scolded.

"Apologies Sorewn, I have guidance for my student."

Saeyla looked up excitedly at Tsu'tey, which he didn't notice.

"Sorewn, can you take Tana'rì? I wasn't expecting company." I scooped up the child and handed her to A nodding Sorewn. Her children are older now, teenagers ready to face their first hunt so holding a child is a rare joy.