The Call of the Wild

Chapter 2

I do not own James Cameron's Avatar all rights go to its creators!

Not edited.

The ride down to the surface was approximately an hour and the cabin buzzed with nervous energy as we got closer and closer to our new home for the foreseeable future. Jake and I spoke quietly throughout the flight about everything and nothing as I struggled to remain calm. I couldn't tell if I was excited or scared out of my mind. On one hand, I would get to see all the incredible plants and animals I had learned about first hand. On the other, I would be surrounded by unfamiliar faces, most of which would be soldiers, in an unfamiliar place that could very well induce old memories I would much rather remain buried. The talking helped keep me calm and I was reminded, not for the first time, that without Jake I probably would have driven myself insane a long time ago.

Our chat was interrupted by a man in fatigues wandering down the aisle yelling at us to get our Exo packs on. "Exo packs on, let's go! Exo packs on! Remember 2, 4! You lose that mask you're unconscious in 20 seconds dead in 4 minutes!" He droned monotonously as if giving a speech about possibly dying in toxic air was an everyday occurrence. He said something else witty about nobody dying cause it looked bad on his report but I had well and truly tuned him out by that point focusing instead on attaching the mask securely to my face. I had no intention of dying before I got to explore the world I had worked so hard to reach.

The wheels touched smoothly onto the ground and suddenly there was a flurry of movement in the cabin, everyone rushing to get their harnesses unbuckled and pick up their bags before lining up in the aisles. I stayed where I was peering around Jake at the door as the commander continued to shout out orders. The doors cracked open with a hiss everyone bobbing their heads up and around the others to try and get a glimpse of the world outside.

I was thoroughly disappointed when my eyes adjust to the bright sunlight outside and all I could see was the bland concrete of the base and a dark shadowy tree-line surrounding it. It was dull and bleak, the complete opposite of what I knew this planet was like and it left my head spinning to think we'd already tainted this pure world in the same way we'd tainted our own.

The door hit the tarmac and everyone was quick to start unloading jogging straight from the plane towards the main building where we'd get our official 'welcome to Pandora' speech. I almost scoffed at the thought, all I wanted was a brief summary and then someone to point me to my bunk so I could shower and then get a good night's rest.

I grabbed my bag standing behind Jake as he reached out to unfold his wheelchair and put on his bag. Once a marine, always a marine, and independence had been a big factor in helping him heal. We started out the plane me walking briskly behind him as the commander peered back towards us. He sent me a glare that I matched obviously unhappy that I didn't move forward with all the able-bodied soldiers before turning his stare to Jake. "Let's go special case do not make me wait for you!"

I bit back a scathing retort as he insulted my friend but I knew Jake could handle it. Besides, there was no use making enemies on the first day. I wandered along beside him as we moved towards the building, both of us staring at our surroundings in curiosity. An amp suit came walking swiftly towards us and both Jake and I dodged out of his way before continuing on our path, stoutly ignoring his call of "lookout hotrod."

Our path was blocked once more by a huge truck that had obviously come from the unobtainium mine but that wasn't the fascinating part. The large expertly crafted arrows sticking out of the back tires are what caught my attention and my eyes followed the brightly coloured feathers until a gentle tug on the wrist from Jake reminded me to keep moving.

The compound was crowded so I wandered ahead of Jake making sure to keep wishing his eyesight to find the room where the safety briefing would be taking place. I peered into the room looking back at Jake to make sure he knew where we were supposed to go and got an understanding nod from him as I entered the room. I settled myself at the back just as the Colonel began to speak, "You are on Pandora, ladies, and gentlemen. Respect that fact every second of every day. If there is a hell you might want to go there for some R and R after a tour on Pandora. Out there beyond that fence, everything that crawls, flies, or squats in the mud wants to kill you and eat your eyes for jujubees."