A New Mission: Ash to Fire

Intermission

The Marines flew back to their camp, eclipse beginning to lift. Lyle, Mansk, and Zu got off their Ikrans quickly, Zu taking a moment to hold Karuk, needing his comfort. Karuk pressed his big scaly head into her body, having sensed her uneasiness on the flight down. Miles was the last to dismount his Ikran however. He slowly moved off of Cupcake and approached a tree, finally taking a moment to let the hurt in.

He leaned against the tree with his left forearm, bracing his forehead against it, tenderly clutching himself between his legs with his right hand, the throbbing pain from Mo'at's hit still ever present even after the flight back to the camp.

Miles let out an airy groan and Mansk looked at him, confused, then asked Lyle, "Uhhh.. what happened?"

"Old broad kneed him in the nuts," Lyle replied with just a tiny modicum of amusement in his voice.

Mansk gave a pained look and sound on behalf of his Colonel.

"Need an ice pack, Colonel?" Lyle asked, the same slight amusement in his voice.

Miles still leaning against the tree, after a moment without looking at Lyle, reached his left hand back behind him indicating that yes, he did want an ice pack. Lyle went to get one from the first aid kit, activated it with a crack and a shake, and gave it to Miles who then went over to sit on a log, knees wide, exhaling on the way down, and gently placed the ice pack between his legs.

That old bitch.

Miles sat with his eyes closed and looked up for a moment. He should be enjoying his victory of completing the first stage of the mission, but he felt moderately humiliated by that old woman. And he sensed the empathetic looks from his two Marines, feeling weak. Still though, hurt or not, he tried to look to the good.

The pain will subside, but the success will endure. Mo'at was soon going to be rescued from that floating mountain by other Na'vi. She was going to tell them what he told her to tell them, and they would tell Jake. Then, in three days, he was going to finally get Spider and his payback.

Mansk and Lyle went and sat on some logs near Miles. The three more or less in a broad circle in the center of their camp clearing, their Ikran resting nearby where they landed. As Lyle sat, he started cutting a piece of fruit into slices with his knife, eating off his blade. Mansk was just sitting with his hands on his weapon across his lap, deep in thought.

Zu left Karuk and slowly approached Miles and sat next to him on his right. Quiet. Miles noticed this. He cautiously scanned her, his mouth slack.

She returned his look with a neutral face, then glanced down at the ice pack. "What is that, My-ulls?"

Miles was not fully in the mood for exposition on human stuff at the moment, but he still wanted to be kind to Zu. He gave a simple short answer, "It's an ice, uhhh cold pack... It helps the injury."

Zu had an inquisitive look and reached her hand down in an attempt to feel its cold surface, but before she could, Miles flinched, his tail flicking upward, and Zu's hand stopped. He looked at her, with a soft concerned smile, and expressed, "Gentle."

She pulled her lips in and touched the ice pack very carefully, sure not to press it down any further, feeling how cold it was. She was fascinated that this object could be cold like this when it was stored in a warm place, it didn't make any sense to her, but she wasn't going to ask precisely how it worked at this moment, sensing Miles' fatigue and discomfort. Zu then sighed and nestled into Miles' right shoulder with her head.

"We wait now My-ulls?"

"We wait," he responded and leaned his head down into hers.

Zu then glanced at Miles' ice pack again and commented very casually in a way that Lyle and Mansk could hear, "No making love until you heal."