41 • The Hunt: Phase Two Pt. II

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"Do you think any of our family members will win?" Lo'ak asked Tsireya.

"Why? Do you not have faith in your father or brother? Or are you just trying to take a dig at mine?" She asked, giggling. Lo'ak laughed a little, shaking his head.

"...just trying to start conversation."

Kiri and Liyanin were now sitting, talking to each other. Now that the participants have dashed off, the bystanders would have to wait for news of which areas had their sum atxep found.

"My brother seems to be very serious about winning this; he even tied his hair back." Kiri mentioned.

"I was surprised to see the change in hair." Liyanin replied, avoiding telling her why he might have been so serious.

"You have tied your hair back as well, Liya. Is today just a day for change or something?"

"Oh, we always dress differently during the different phases of the Hunt. It is...kind of customary."

"I see..."

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"If this was where I was...then here...and...there..."

Neteyam was studying his map very closely, trying to pinpoint his exact location. The map was a bit hard to read, but he got most of it, for he always had a knack for these kinds of things. He had passed up the closer area where one of the sum atxep were hidden, and it was a good thing he did because at least 5 other Na'vi went diving for that one. But now he was a bit close to the reef's edge, straying farther away from the easier hidden shells. He hadn't come across some of the marker Na'vi for a while, so he was starting to get a bit worried. Did he misread something on his map? Did he end up miscalculating the distance he had travelled? He was so on edge right now even his Ilu would squirm underneath him.

He kept on swimming, though, hoping for the best. He was swimming fast, but steady, not wanting to miss anything he wouldn't be able to see while speeding through the water. After a while of sprinting, he came back above the water, hoping to gauge his surroundings. And finally, he saw a marker Na'vi. He beamed and sighed with relief, making his way quickly over to her.

He pulled out his map from the sack, unfolding it fast so he could make sure of where he was.

"Excuse me, could you tell me which area this is?" He asked her, holding the map up to her.

She nodded and proceeded to look at the map. "You are here, in the Eastern Coral Wall."

"Thank you!" He replied, earning a respecting nod from her in response. He then proceeded go into the circle, preparing to take a deep breath. He had no idea how deep this sum atxep would be, so he kind of fretted over how he would breathe. He almost panicked, but he quickly pulled himself back to reality.

You gotta focus up, Neteyam.

He gave himself a mental slap, straightening out his worries. He breathed in slowly, then exhaled with the same pace. He tightened his grip on his Ilu, making sure it was good. His mind then wandered back to the recitation that Liyanin taught him: The Way of Water. He always seemed to calm down and do better with the sea whenever he heard it, so he let his mind settle on that.

I got this, he thought. Then with one, final breath, he dove.

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Jake was so lost. Actually, lost would probably be an understatement at this point. This map he had, it was utter rubbish to him. It only contained of drawings and pictures, not even a compass—or something that would at least resemble one—was on the map. He could not figure out where they had started from, or where he ended up now. All he knew was that he hadn't came across any marker Na'vi at all.

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