Another Chance |Ao'nung x Neteyam|

Chapter 31: Your Name

The war is far from over; despite Quaritch lying dead on the ship, Ao'nung must go back to the waters and aid his father in fighting the remaining enemy – his mind is on autopilot. He doesn't think about anything, but the child born without him there.

He hisses at a human in a strange suit – shooting at him from a small ship –twisting in the air with his tsurak and slamming his spear into the chest. The human splutters from the force of Ao'nung's attack and stumbles back, toppling over the side of the boat, hacking up blood.

Before he can fall, Ao'nung yanks his spear out.

The sky people stole that precious moment from him; he won't ever get to witness the birth of his first child. He never got to hold Neteyam's hand through it all – Tonowari glances at him, brows drawn together in worry.

He needs Ao'nung to focus and wake up from whatever frenzy he's in, but he worries that his son might get injured if he calls out to him. With pursed lips, all Tonowari can do is tail after him, stabbing down any creature, man, recombinant, or avatar that Ao'nung doesn't notice in his dissociation.

Jake Sully flies above them on Toruk's back, gun loaded, face pulled back in a vicious snarl.

Tonowari takes down a boat, flying over it with his tsurak; he's learnt the weaknesses from Jakesuli. He disappears underwater and bolts away as the boat malfunctions and squids up onto a jagged rock-formation, going up in flames as the fuel is spilt.

Ao'nung had taken a mere second to explain what happened with Neteyam to Jake and Neytiri and it had set Neytiri off; he had never seen a woman more furious than her. Ao'nung had fled the scene, terrified that perhaps she might lose herself to her rage beyond recognising her allies. But her fury awakens his own and he sees red – blood smears on his face as he attacks yet another human.

He doesn't why there are so many; they must have sent backup when Teneytano and his warriors showed up.

Still, Ao'nung takes his mother's final words to him to heart; he will return for her. He will hold her in his arms if it is the last thing he ever gets to do.

But he knows it won't be.

Ronal hurries along the paths of the forest, clutching the newborn child to her chest, fierce and protective; she prays that the sky people are busy on the water, not venturing into the forest to find those in hiding, unable to fight.

Eywa answers her prayer – but she struggles to protect the life she nurtures, too many prayers uttered in a time of need.

The child fusses, whining terribly for the familiar feel of her birth giver; Ronal had given up on shushing her. She continues crying terribly, missing Neteyam despite her contact with him barely-there. Her soft tuffs off hair stick up, pin straight.

Ronal doesn't have time to take in the new, little features, to see if she is adorned in Neteyam's silver glowing dots or if they're a little greener, a bit more Metcayina – either way, without even really knowing what she looks like, Ronal feels a love so intense for her first grandchild, that despite the war, her heart soars in delight.

She climbs over rocks and fallen, rotting trees fading into soil skilfully, familiar with the tropical forests of her home that she spent days exploring before she became Tsahik.

Finally, after an excruciating hour, Ronal makes it to the cave. The child stills, nose twitching. She doesn't open her eyes yet, though Ronal is most curious to see her. She can likely smell the many scents of the Metcayina hidden inside the formation of rocks.

Ronal steps inside, drawing attention to herself despite not wishing for it. She has only one thing on her mind, and it is to find the person she hurt the most with her weaknesses nearly one year ago – that thought worries her.