【 CHAPTER TWO 】

FLIGHT excited Ruth Carson so much so that she insisted to be hanging from the door gunners position mid-flight, the wind battering against her face and sending her braid billowing at her back. Four avatars cramped into the SA-2 utility helicopter had been a challenge, but with Ruth and Jake willing to hang from either gaping window, sitting space remained available. This left Grace and Norm secured in the middle. Going about ten or so clicks outside of base, they were in search of particular samples that day.

Choosing to dress herself in cargo pants similar to that which she wore as a human, a green tank top embroidered with some random patterns and a backpack latched around her hips and shoulders, Ruth was ready to spend the late morning and afternoon in the forest.

More than once since they'd loaded into the aircraft did she notice Norm's gaze lingering on her a little longer than casual observance, ears perking anytime he thought she might be turning to speak to him. He'd been more timid upon their arrival but now had gained a sense of boldness she had no desire to deal with. She and Grace had shared a few looks after the instances during the flight, an unspoken understanding that the new doctor had already taken a liking to Ruth.

Far too many men had pursued her since arriving at Pandora, whether it be the military grunts or fellow scientists. Colonel Miles Quaritch, the marine senior officer at least fifteen years her senior and a prominent figure on the base, had made a move on her fairly early on into her arrival to the moon.

Since the interaction that had involved her vehement rejection of him, despite his willingness, Ruth made every effort to avoid the man. No matter what his proposition was, not with his willfulness to accept her wishes.

She had learned quickly that he did not handle rejection well. Perhaps it was his innate desire to have control over anyone and everyone, possibly the reason he chose the military life. Or worse, he saw women as a conquest. That thought alone had left her with a particularly sour taste for the colonel at any given time. Regardless, the men in Hell's Gate pined for female attention.

Eyes squinted to bare against the wind, Ruth Carson gazed over the lush terrain of the forest the zoomed under them. Her heart thudded with excitement, as it had been quite some weeks since they'd gone to the field.

With her focus of study primarily on the fauna of Pandora, the animals for simpler terms, one of Ruth's biggest goals was to finally spot and document the Thanatora Ferox — the apex land predator on the moon. Thanator, a word derived from the Greek word of death, she'd once read.

Perhaps it was best that she had never seen one in her three years of being here, some would consider it lucky. For her, the beast was a challenge. Not much was known of its anatomy or behavior except a few notable rituals that could be observed from a safe distance. Part of her never believed she'd get the opportunity. Alongside the apex land predator, there was an apex aerial predator. The Great Leonoptryx was a dream of every scientist on base to study. That flying creature was considered harder to find, let alone observe safely. Seeing the animal made you one step closer to death.

That was the reason it was called the Last Shadow.

Upon finding a proper landing area under the canopy of the jungle, Trudy, the pilot who was designated to fly the avatar teams for research, brought them to an area teaming with life. Animals called off in the distance, likely the primate-looking creatures known as Prolemurus that howled like Earth's monkeys. Ruth hopped out from the gunner's window, head ducked down as she braced against the harsh window of the propellers.

Luckily, Grace told Trudy to cut the engine since they were staying a while, allowing for the forest to resume its natural ambiance that was like music to Ruth's keen hearing. She glanced around at the area, a smile on her features as Jake wandered up to her side with Norm close behind.

"This is what I live for," she stated as she drew in a deep breath. What sunlight managed to slip through the canopy warmed her cyan-striped skin, the feeling comforting. Jake and Norm gazed around, Ruth noticing the large machine gun grasped in the marine's hands as if its mere presence was going to protect him indefinitely. "Try not to use that," the doctor teased him before stepping off, a swagger in her step and tail.

Soon enough, Ruth, Grace, and Norm were beginning to run a few tests on the roots of the trees, studying the transduction on their handheld monitors. Ruth allowed Grace to teach Norm, as she was the leading doctor within the program. Her eyes drifted over to where Jake had begun to wander away and explore a bit, she grinned to herself to see his tail twitching in curiosity, head on a swivel. The body language of the avatars and Na'vi were fairly readable in one's ears and tail movements.

"So I hear fauna is more of your focus, Dr. Carson?" Norm asked Ruth, looking up while waiting for the test to run its course on the translucent tablet. Turning her attention away from the direction Jake had wandered in, she nodded.

"Yeah, I prefer it. Biology is fascinating in all of its areas, but the wildlife here intrigues me the most."

"She sat on one dire horse during a visit with the clan," Grace grinned, teasing Ruth. "After that, her focus shifted." Ruth rolled her eyes at Grace's jab.

Norm seemed intrigued by the mention of the clan, looking between them both before asking, "Do we have contact with the local clan still? Could we visit them?"

Immediately, Grace and Ruth shared a look. Choosing to let her senior do the explaining, Ruth crossed her arms, ears pinned back. Grace sighed, pursing her lips before speaking.

"We had a school. We were teaching the Omaticaya English. Things happened. . . Terrible things. Since then, we haven't been welcome. They will not make contact with us. Reasonably so, unfortunately."

"The school isn't far off from our current location," Ruth added. "We haven't been back since."

Norm's expression turned crestfallen, likely realizing he pushed a touchy subject. Before another word could be said between the three, an earth-shattering roar jarred them to their feet. Ruth was the first to run in the direction Jake had likely disappeared.

"What has this jarhead got himself into?!" Ruth exclaimed fearfully, running. Rounding a tree, she suddenly skidded to a stop. Jake stood defensively, gun raised at the massive Hammerhead Titanothere displaying its chitinous fan-crest. It was an angry bull and he was ready to defend his territory.

"Don't shoot— don't shoot you'll piss him off!" Grace was quick to tell Jake from where she, Ruth, and Norm stood behind the cover of the tree.

"He's already pissed off!" Jake's fear screamed in his tone. His eyes were wide, canines bared as he poised himself to take action.

"It's a territorial threat display," Ruth warned him, wide eyes darting back and forth between the bull and Jake. "If you shoot, he'll charge."

Jake scoffed, ears pinned to the sides of his head. "What, you want me to do the funky chicken with it?"

"Just- hold your ground," Ruth ordered him. Almost instantly, the bull began to charge, sending Ruth nearly unleashing a cry before Jake offered his own challenge, raising the gun high and letting out a battle cry as he raced forward to face the massive beast.

Skidding to a stop, the Hammerhead's crest dropped as it let out a surrendering huff. Jake, victorious, let out a laugh. The bull turned, running back toward the members of its herd in the near distance.

"Yeah! That's what I'm talking bitch. Run your little punk ass back to mommy," Jake taunted the Hammerhead as it retreated.

Jake's enthusiasm might have been amusing, causing Ruth to blush in attraction if it hadn't been for the dread that immediately fell over her once her eyes landed on the black figure menacingly stalking its way into view behind the marine. Flaring its sensory quills and lip flaps, a low growl rumbled in its throat.

Jake's expression turned to pure terror once he turned to see the Thanator at his back. Ruth flinched once the beast landed on the forest floor with a thundering boom after leaping over Jake. The feline-like animal let out a defining roar at the Hammerheads before ultimately turning its attention to Jake, prowling with its large, swaying tail. The Thanator was what sent the bull back to his herd, not Jake.

"What about this one— run, don't run?" Jake quickly asked as the predator inched closer.

"Run," Ruth quickly told him. "Definitely run!"

Jake was sprinting off into the forest within moments, the Thanator trailing after him in a deadly pursuit.

Ruth, Norm, and Grace remained quiet for a few very long moments, the three of them stunned. Ruth's initial reaction was to chase after him, find his dumb ass before he found himself dead. Yet, she had hardly any experience with weapons, having only taken the mandatory class on the firearms that all personnel on Hell's Gate had to learn to handle.

She stopped herself in the middle of the clearing he'd been standing in, tail twitching anxiously.

"We have to go after him," she stated immediately, turning toward Grace and Norm with her tail flicking. She was confused when she saw Grace's frown. "What?"

"His chances of escaping the Thanator are slim to none as is," Grace stated grimly. "And given the chance he does survive, he knows nothing about survival here. We're risking our own lives while still remaining on the ground as is. We need to get back to the aircraft. We can continue our search in flight."

As much as Ruth wanted to disregard Grace's orders as the senior member, she shrugged off her anxiety and followed them back to the equipment to begin quickly packing before they returned to the helicopter.

After nearly three hours of searching for him with binoculars scanning from both sides of the window, the began to lose hope of catching sight of the marine. The chances of finding him were looking slim to none. Until eventually time ran out.

"Is there no infrared on these things? Nothing to pick him up from under the canopy?" Ruth asked Trudy over the radio as she looked over the device in her hand, the worry heavy in her time. "Was he not given any sort of comms?" She asked rhetorically.

"It's getting too late. The colonel ordered no night ops. He's gonna have to wait until morning," Trudy told them over the radio. Ruth sneered at the mention of Quaritch, ears pinned back.

Grace let out a heavy sigh as the path of flight began to change back towards base. "He won't make it till morning."

•••

RUTH was immediately at Jake's link unit the moment she was able to leave her own. Grace was already there, Norm and a few others of the avatar team waiting anxiously as Grace tried to wake Jake, a flashlight moving across his vision. He appeared unconscious still, eyes open yet unmoving. Ruth shoved her way to the side of the link, peering down at him.

"Jake," Grace kept saying over and over in hopes of producing some sort of reaction out of him. "Jake, wake up."

Impatiently, Ruth waited until the life came back into his eyes and his breathing seemed to catch up. She helped Grace lift him up into a sitting position. "Is the avatar safe?" She immediately asked him.

He grinned like a fool, looking between them both. "Yeah, dog. And you're not gonna believe where I am."

"Apparently you're not dead, then," Ruth muttered, rolling her eyes. "I told you to not let that five billion dollar body go to waste."

"I think I put that price tag into good use," Jake smirked at Ruth. "The clan. They found me. They're gonna teach me their ways, apparently."

Ruth froze, realizing the opportunity she'd been praying to happen had finally come. A way back in with the clan, with the people she's grown to love. The change in pace coming so fast.

"How even...?" Ruth muttered half to herself.

"Chief's daughter found me. Neytiri," Jake pronounced her name wrong but the mention of her sent Ruth's heart leaping regardless. She'd missed Neytiri dearly. It'd been over two years since she'd last seen her. "She was gonna kill me, I guess. But took me to their tree instead."

"Holy shit," Grace exclaimed, accentuating each syllable. Her brown eyes looked to Ruth, who held the same opportunistic expression. "It appears we can finally try to rebuild our relationship with them."

Once Jake had recovered enough, dinner was being served so they made their way toward the cafeteria. Ruth was still beaming with excitement as she imagined getting to return to Hometree, where she could visit those she'd missed over the past two years. She'd only gotten to be present for the schoolhouse for a little over eight months after arriving to Pandora, but she'd built remarkable relationships with some of the clan members. Notably Neytiri. And her sister, Sylwanin.

"The last thing we see is this marine's ass disappearing into the brush with this angry Thanator running after him," Grace told the other scientist as they all ate, intrigued by the day's events. They huddled around the chow table, excited to hear what had happened.

"It's not somethin' you can teach," Jake grinned through a bite of food.

"I'm still on the fence with reasons why the Omaticaya chose you," Ruth jabbed at him as she took a bite of her food. Either way, she was grateful. Jake provided them with an opportunity they had previously thought would never occur.

"And not only that, Ruth was ready to run in after him," Grace exclaimed, smiling. "You two will be a diabolical duo if you keep this crap up. You're gonna get yourselves killed."

Those in attendance to the story all laughed and chattered about the excitement and thrill of it all. Ruth hummed a laugh at her mentors joke about her persistence to save Jake before she caught his gaze from a crossed the table. She diverted her attention away, heat filling her cheeks.

author's note:
I'd definitely be lying if I said I didn't know most of the canon dialogue by memory🥲 please don't be a ghost reader!! Leave comments and likes! Thank you for reading!