Not The Carefullest Of Girls

C1

The sterile and mechanical atmosphere of the station is horrifically boring, and the monotonous humming from the lights drilled into Äptei's skull. The tight confinement of the base made Äptei claustrophobic, despite the fact that it was growing every day. More living quarters being added, sections being renovated and of course the population was steadily growing. There was a law against having children on Pandora but of course when a child was born it had to stay on the odd moon until it was old enough to become useful, or be shipped to Earth. Äptei was one of these children, but her situation was different to say the least. Her mother was Na'vi and her dad is a human, leading to some odd genetic mutations. She was mostly na'vi, but her height was affected, leading her to only grow to about 5'9. Scientists predicted that she would age similar to na'vi, but she would have a lifespan only a little longer than an average human.

Her physical differences lead to some minor problems in her life. She didn't fit in with the scientists, they just wanted to research her genetics and talk about what her genetic family tree could possibly look like. She definitely couldn't associate with anyone in the military sector of the Pandora base, she was 'too close to the enemy to be trusted' at least that's what she's heard multiple times. She felt lost in the human world, and it was no better in the avatar/recom/na'vi world. She didn't fit in, she was too short to keep up with anything, and was 'a constant annoyance to everyone around, despite how hard she tried to be somewhat normal. With being the outcast she found herself finding comfort in the Na'vi deity eywa, a sort of religious thing. Äptei found it comforting to know that there was something connecting them all, something real that she could feel flowing through her and nature at all times. She often would go out into the forest just to connect with eywa, even if she wasn't able to connect with the deity as closely as the Na'vi people were.

On this brisk rainy day Äptei found herself going to the forest as usual, even if it was just for a moment to clear her mind. How could anyone expect her to stay inside when the nature outside was flourishing with the gift of rain. She had decided to exit through one of the side doors, that ended a hallway that ran through the recom military rooming. It was a quieter walk, less people too bother her. The recom solders didn't like to be loud, they really only used the rooms for sleeping. However today was a little different, there were a few recom solders in the halls, chatting and whatnot. Must just be their day off.

Äptei made it to about 15 feet away from the exit before nearly being ran over by someone. She quickly glanced up and backed up, trying to avoid being run over. Her heart sank as soon as her brain recognized the man in front of her. Miles R Quaritch was one of the pandora exploration team leads, having hundreds of solders working under him every day. Practically everyone knew his name, he was well respected and highly feared.

Quickly, Äptei pulled her first three fingers on her right hand from her forehead, dipping her head along with the motion. It was a sign of respect that she had grown accustomed too, using it out of habit.

"Ah, I'm so sorry I was in your way sir,"

She says quickly, hoping she didn't offend him. He had to physically look down, just to see who was talking to him. He was slightly surprised to see the short na'vi, who looked so out of place in the busy hallway.

"Watch were you're walking next time."

He growls out, glaring at Äptei. His annoyance penetrating the atmosphere.

"I'm so sorry, it won't happen again."

She respects his rank and power, and definitely doesn't want to annoy him any more than he already was. She couldn't notice her tail whipping back and forth out of a slight fear, closer to anxiety. Miles noticed this, and for some reason it intrigued him, he wanted to impose his power, making sure she and everyone around knew that they needed to treat him with the utmost respect.