A/N: Here we are, Chapter 18! We are so close to where Jake does the ceremony where he becomes one of The People!! I'm so excited. Also, I had to change my pfp to the SFW version of the one I had up then switch it back because someone decided to report it. I'm an 18+ Rp and mature account, for flip's sake. My pfp is my pfp! By Eywa, I don't know. Sorry for the ramble. But I am not pointing out names cause I don't want any backlash or anything mean coming back to me. So, on with the story, now that we're done hearing me ramble. Also, don't own anything except for my OC, and Alex belongs to Malrog_the_dragon !

(Siera's POV-In the air)

Jake, Neytiri, Alex and I are flying through the air one crisp morning on a hunting excursion. If we find the prey, which could be anything, we end it, send a prayer, then take it back for the clan to eat.

We are stone-cold aerial hunters, death from above. The only problem is, we're not the only ones out here. I watch as Alex shifts a bit on his Ikran's back, getting his bow ready. He makes a bird call to me, and I do one right back. Jake and Neytiri do the same before a large shadow passes over us. I gasp as Alex looks back.

"Dive!" Jake yells as this large shadow turns out to be one of the largest, most massive Ikrans I've ever seen, and I thought Tsu'llu was massive. No, this big boy definitely is bigger. Jake steers his Ikran away as both the legs and the mouth try to attack him head on. Neytiri moves her Ikran, and so do I. Alex then sees an opening.

"Jake!" He calls. Jake nods then turns back to me and Neytiri. We fly through the trees, hoping to lose this massive beast. It doesn't seem to work, cause it still manages to fly through. Son of a-

"Siera, this way!" Alex calls to me, as I steer Tsu'llu in the direction of where Alex is with his Ikran, my own flapping her massive wings with powerful strokes against the wind, which seems to push back this large colorful Ikran. Blinking, I don't have time to register anything before I'm once again steering clear of the trees so I don't crash. We make bird calls to each other so we know where we are, which is smart.

"Go, go!" Jake yells to his Ikran as my own Ikran pumps her wings harder to get away. I watch as Jake turns back to us again. Neytiri makes a couple more bird calls as Jake looks at us then yells at us,

"Follow me!" He didn't have to tell me twice. I tighten my grip on Tsu'llu's queue and steer her towards Jake and Neytiri, Alex on my heels. The large Ikran continues to chase us until we make it through some thick vines. Just as we do, I hear the screech of this massive beast as its claws dig into the vines.

"Whew," Jake says softly as he looks back.

"Is everyone alright?" Alex asks. Jake and Neytiri don't answer him, but I do.

"Aye. I think we're okay." I look behind me as with another roar, the large Ikran leaves. It beats its wings once more as it leaves.

With hoots leaving our mouths, Neytiri, Jake, Alex and I land our Ikrans on a tree, panting and catching our breath. Neytiri says something soothing to her Ikran in Na'vi as we can feel the heavy breathing of our respective mounts. I look to Alex with wide eyes, then we turn to Jake and Neytiri before the four of us break into outright laughter in total relief and joy.

Back at Hometree, we see that there is a mounted skull of the same creature that chased us not even hours ago in the middle of Hometree. Jake reaches to caress the teeth of the skull.

"Our guys call it a Great Leonopteryx," Jake says. I blink at him.

"Yah don't say." I tell him. Alex hums.

"Looks pretty cool, if not kinda creepy." He remarks.

"It is Toruk," Neytiri says. "Last Shadow."

"Yeah, right," Jake says as he takes a look at it from a different angle, myself and Alex watching him. "It's the last one you'll ever see." Neytiri moves to the same side, but looking at it from behind.

"My grandfather's grandfather was Toruk Makto, Rider of Last Shadow." Jake blinks as he looks at the skull again and so do I, in shock and awe.

"He rode this?" He asks.

"Toruk chose him," Neytiri explains. "It has only happened five times since the time of the First Songs."

"That's a long time," Jake says. Neytiri smiles.

"Yes," she tells him. "Toruk Makto was mighty. He brought the clans together in a time of great sorrow. All Na'vi people know the story. Same with Hufwe Makto." I blink my eyes.

"Hufwe Makto?" I ask her. Neytiri nods.

"Yes. Hufwe Makto, like Toruk Makto, was mighty. She was brave and strong, knew what to do. It has been said that both Toruk Makto and Hufwe Makto were either mates or brother and sister. Either or, they were powerful and mighty."

"It means 'Wind Rider', does it?" I ask her. She nods again.

I crack open my eyes in my human body. Everything definitely feels different now. It feels backwards now, like being in my Avatar is the real world, and being in my human body, here in the RDA, feels like a dream. I get up from my link bed, as I get out of it, groaning softly. Rubbing my eyes, I look around a bit before getting up, and sliding on my boots. I immediately shower so I'm not all sticky, then look at the calendar. It's been three months, three months since we started this thing, three months since we have joined the Omatikaya clan, three months since Alex and I got into a relationship. By the Four Spirits, it doesn't feel like it's been three months. It really doesn't. I then see Jake.

He looks a lot more scruffy than he looked when he landed. He's grown his hair out, he has a scruffy beard that runs all along his face, and to make things worse, his human legs are nothing but skin and bone. I blink. My gosh, it has been three months. Where has the time gone?

"I barely remember my old life," Jake says to the video camera, which shows that it's his 87th log entry, time's 23:00 hours, and it's the 13th of August. Holy shit. I shake my head in disbelief. "I don't know who I am anymore." I then hear a yawn behind me as Alex walks up.

"What are yah doing up?" I ask him. He just shrugs and places his head on my shoulder, as he kisses it.

"I should be the one asking you that," he says, his voice muffled. He sounds sleepy. Very sleepy. "Is Jake awake?"

"Aye, unfortunately." I tell him as Grace gets up and starts walking around, handing us coffee and MREs. She must've seen Jake and how bad he's looking, cause she is still coercing him to eat.

"Grace, leave him," I say. "There's no point." Grace turns to me as if I'm off my rocker. I then watch as Jake grabs shaving cream, facing the mirror, and wipes it over his beard so he can shave.

Later, after we're all cleaned up and looking a bit more healthier, we head back to Hell's Gate, Alex and myself standing next to a table while Jake has his hands in front of him on one. I then turn my head as I hear footsteps and I narrow my eyes.

"Haven't gotten lost in the woods, have you?" Col. Quaritch says to us as he grabs a chair and turns it backwards, sitting in it.

"Your last report was more than two weeks ago, for all of you," he explains. "I'm starting to doubt your resolve." He sits down as he looks at us. I know what Jake is doing, he's fallen for her. He's fallen for Neytiri, and Quaritch is making him, making us— choose sides. We turn to him as he leans forward a bit in the chair.

"The way I see it, it's time to terminate the mission," Quaritch says. Jake shakes his head, turning back to me and Alex.

"No, we can do this." He says to him. I nod and so does Alex.

"He's right, we can." I tell him. Alex shoots me a look.

"You already have," Quaritch says, his eyes on us. "You give me good, usable intel. This Tree of Souls place. Yeah, I got them by the balls with that when this turns into a shit fight, which it will. Yeah." He keeps his eyes on Jake, but they linger on me twice, making me uncomfortable.

"Angel..." Alex whispers. I nod and purr softly in his ear, reassuring him.

"Now it's time to come in," Quaritch says as he gives Jake's shoulder a squeeze. "By the way, you gonna get your legs back." Jake turns to him, looking kinda shocked that Quaritch kept his side of the deal they made. Question is: what about mine? Wasn't he supposed to find out why my mother disappeared? No, why she's dead?

"Yeah. I got your corporate approval," he says to Jake. "It's a done deal. Gonna have you on a shuttle tonight. I'm a man of my word." Yeah, right, jackass. You say that, but you're not gonna help me find my mother? Or better yet, hunt down my mother's killer? Bullshit. I want to say these words, but with Alex drawing circles in my hip with his fingers, I can't move. The effect this man has on me is insane. Jake seems to smile before he looks the Colonel in the eyes and says,

"I gotta finish this. There's one more thing. Ceremony. It's the final stage of becoming a man. If I do it, I'm one of them. It's the same for Alex and the same for Siera as well. The final stage of becoming both men and woman. If we do this, we are one of them. And they'll trust me, trust us. And I can negotiate the terms of their relocation." I blink as I look up.

When the hell did I become part of this conversation? I bite my lip to keep from saying this out loud as Quaritch gets up then walks out of the room. As he does, he turns back to us and says to Jake and me,

"Well, then, you'd better get it done, Corporal, Sergeant." He then walks away and I turn to Jake. I don't say anything to him at first, but I wait until we're back at Site 26.

(Alex's POV-Site 26, ha, bet you guys didn't expect that!)

I wait till we're inside before I turn to Siera, but just as I do, she whirls around and backhands Jake across the face, hard. Jake doesn't even flinch, but I can see it: angry tears streaming from her eyes.

"How dare yah..." she hisses low. "How dare yah. Did yah really think that he would do it? That yah'd be able ta leave this place and get yer legs back, all because of some stupid deal yah made with him?! I told yah I didn't trust him, Jake, and now I feel like we're up shit's creek right now! Yer full of shit, Sully, and yah know it! What did yah expect from the Colonel anyways! All he cares about is-..." Jake cuts her off.

"I know," he says. "That's why I'm doing this. I'm doing the ceremony. I think Neytiri called it the Dreamhunt."

"It's because you love her, don't you, Jake?" I say to him. "You love Neytiri?" Jake nods, tears in his eyes. I didn't expect this and neither did Siera, cause her hazel eyes are wide in alarm as she looks at the both of us, then turns to Jake.

"Jake.....'m sorry," she says. "I didn't—...." Jake cuts her off again.

"No, it's not your fault, Siera," he says. "You're just being that protective sister I never had." He wheels away and I turn back to her, kissing her.

"Have the dreams returned?" I ask her in Na'vi. She nods as I wipe her tears from her eyes.

"Yes," she replies in Na'vi. "They keep coming back, they're haunting me, I can't..." she stammers, and stutters as she releases another shaky breath. "'M nervous, Alex. I'm scared." As soon as she says that, I know that she is. She is trembling, her entire form is trembling as I wrap my arms around her and kiss her deeply yet reassuringly.

"It's gonna be okay. I'm right here with you. I won't leave your side. Ever." Siera nods as she sniffles, resting her head on my chest as I cradle her to me.

A/N: Woo, this was a doozy to write! But I loved this chapter!! Shoot, we got to see the changes each character is going through, the doubts they have on the RDA, Jake's brotherly bond with Siera, not to mention Siera's backlash and anger towards Jake and Quaritch, plus a little Starrick moment, with Alex, in his POV for ONCE, to see how he and Siera will fight for their relationship, and how Quaritch will try and break them apart otherwise. Well, I won't go too deep, but I hope you loved this chapter, and I'll catch y'all in the next update hopefully! Also, what did you guys think of Siera backhanding Jake? Was this the right thing for her to do??

Next Chapter Title: Children of the Omatikaya