Your love shines the way into paradise

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𝔹𝔸ℂ𝕂 in the home tree, the Na'vi people gathered, their spirits fueled by a shared sense of rage. Tsu'tey, with a heavy heart, recounted the devastating events surrounding the Tree of Voice, detailing the callous actions of the sky people. He stood before his kin, surrounded by fellow warriors who had witnessed the destruction firsthand. As the gravity of the situation sank in, the clan leader Eytukan solemnly declared, "Tsu'tey will lead the war party." The crowd erupted in cheers, their anticipation for retribution palpable. However, amidst the fervour, Grace stepped forward, pleading for restraint. "Stop, please! This will only make it worse," she cautioned, her words slicing through the clamour.

Silence settled upon the crowd as Jake stood beside Grace. Tsu'tey's anger flared, dismissing her words with a sharp retort, "You do not speak here!" The tension hung thick in the air until Tsu'tey addressed the assembled Na'vi, rallying their spirits. "We will strike them in the heart," he declared, reigniting the cheers of the people.

Yet, a new presence entered the scene as Neytan and Arya, hand in hand, appeared on the outskirts of the gathering. "Tsu'tey! Don't do this," Arya implored, her words catching his attention. The two mates separated, and Tsu'tey approached Arya, handing his bow to a Na'vi as he passed. Arya pleaded with her brother, "Listen. Brother..." But Tsu'tey, consumed by anger, interrupted her with a forceful push to the ground. Neytan, protective and furious, screamed at Tsu'tey and pushed him away from Arya.

Held back by Neytan, Tsu'tey stared down at Arya, accusing her, "You mated with this man?" Grace and Jake shared an incredulous moment, expressing their surprise in unison. "Oh, shit." Mo'at approached her son, questioning the truth of Arya's alliance with Neytan, "Is this true?"

Neytan, unyielding, affirmed, "We are mated before Eywa. It is done." Arya rose, Tsu'tey's anger escalating. "She is one of them! A dream walker!" he declared. Neytan defended his choice, "She is the woman I choose to have." Arya, desperate to avert disaster, implored her brother, "Brother, please. Do not attack the Sky People. Many Omaticaya will die if you do." Tsu'tey, frustrated and disbelieving, turned away, unsheathing his blade. "You are not my sister!" he declared, targeting Arya.

However, Arya, with swift agility, dodged the attack and countered by flinging Tsu'tey to the ground. Grace restrained Jake as Neytan stood with his father. Tsu'tey quickly rose, and Arya, drawing her own blade, asserted, "And I am not your enemy!" She shouted as she tossed her weapon aside.

"The enemy is out there, and they are very powerful!" Arya proclaimed, the tension in the air thick with the weight of internal strife among the Na'vi.

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Back at the Hallelujah Mountains, the colonel and his team arrived in a swift, determined manner. The sound of the jet engines echoed through the majestic landscape as they disembarked and advanced toward the link shack. Norm, stationed inside, glimpsed their approach through the window, his expression turning grim. "Oh, no."

"I can talk to them," Arya insisted, addressing Tsu'tey with a plea in her voice. However, he was resolute, dismissing her words with a firm declaration, "No more talk." His aggression escalated, and once again, he targeted Arya. As she deftly maneuverer to avoid the impending strike, the blade made contact with her chest, leaving a painful cut. Arya winced, placing her hand on the wound, while Neytan, consumed with anger, screamed Tsu'tey's name.

"Tsu'tey!" Neytan attempted to rush to Arya's aid, but his father held him back, the tension in the air thickening. Undeterred, Tsu'tey charged at Arya once more. This time, Arya seized the moment, gripping his arm and delivering a series of powerful blows - a punch to the face, a knee to the stomach, and another punch that sent him sprawling to the ground.

"I am Omaticaya. I am one of you. And I have the right to speak," Arya proclaimed to the onlooking crowd, her voice resonating with determination. Tsu'tey, recovering from the exchange, glaring at her. Undeterred, Arya continued, "I have something to say... to all of you." She took a deep breath, her gaze briefly meeting Neytan's before she spoke again, "The words are like stones in my heart." Neytan watched her intently, waiting for the revelation that would follow, the air heavy with both tension and anticipation.

The colonel stomped in the link shack with anger and determination walked through and Norm came in front of him trying to block him, "Sir, I'm sorry. No, no, no! Hold on!" Norm said as the colonel pushed him back out of the way, "You can't interrupt a link in progress! It's very dangerous" Norm screamed as he was pushed and the colonel and another soldier went to a unit pod and pressed the red button. Grace and Jake succumbed to unconsciousness, collapsing on the ground. In the chaotic aftermath, Ninat hurried to Jake's side, her worry etched across her face. Simultaneously, Neytan rushed to Grace, calling out in concern, "Grace!" His voice carried a mix of fear and urgency. Arya, witnessing the distressing scene unfold, muttered in dismay, "Oh, no," her eyes widening with realization.

"Wait!" Norm shouted, struggling against the firm grip of a soldier restraining him. "Stay down, sir," the soldier insisted, his tone reflecting a stern determination. Meanwhile, the colonel marched purposefully down the scene, making his way to a unit pod with an air of authority and impending action.

"Okay. Look..." Arya began urgently, "I was sent here to..." attempting to convey crucial information, but her words were abruptly cut off as the colonel, in an unrelenting move, pushed a button. Arya fell unconscious, her message left incomplete. Tsu'tey, seizing the opportunity, approached her, towering over her prone form. With a swift and threatening motion, he pulled Arya's head back and pressed his knife against her throat.

"You see? It is a demon in a false body," Tsu'tey proclaimed, preparing to end Arya's life. In a moment of desperate intervention, Neytan sprang forward, launching himself at Tsu'tey. He tossed the aggressor aside, kicking him away from Arya. As Tsu'tey regained his footing, Neytan towered protectively over Arya, holding his blade at the ready and hissing at Tsu'tey with anger.

Frustrated, Tsu'tey groaned, his plans thwarted by Neytan's intervention. He circled around Neytan, glaring at him with resentment. Neytan, undeterred, continued to shield Arya, his gaze never leaving Tsu'tey. With Tsu'tey now at a distance, Neytan spoke softly to the unconscious Arya, his voice filled with concern and affection, "Whatever happened, please be okay." The scene remained tense, the air thick with the ongoing conflict between the Na'vi and the invading forces. Arya gasped as she lifted the lid of the unit, her eyes narrowing in a glare directed at the colonel. With a quick motion, she sat up, confronting him with an incredulous expression. "Are you out of your goddamn mind?" she exclaimed, her voice laced with disbelief and anger.

Ignoring her question, the colonel sternly addressed Arya, "You crossed the line." Without further warning, he swung a punch at her, effectively knocking her back into unconsciousness. As Arya slumped back into the unit, the colonel ordered a soldier, "Take this meat out of here."

The soldier promptly approached, securing straps around Arya's wrists to cuff her. Meanwhile, Grace, bewildered and concerned, questioned, "Arya! What the hell is going on here?" Her inquiry fell on deaf ears as the soldiers efficiently carried out their orders. With Arya restrained, they loaded her into the jet, and the aircraft swiftly took off, disappearing into the skies on its way back to headquarters.

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"You let me down, little lady," the colonel sneered as he paused the video, revealing Arya hitting the camera with a rock back at the Tree of Voices. He looked down at Arya, her cheekbone bearing a wound from his earlier punch. "So, what, you find yourself some local tail and you just completely forget what team you're playing for?" he taunted. Arya, undeterred, glared defiantly at the man, showing no signs of intimidation. "Parker, there is time to salvage the situation," Grace interjected, attempting to defuse the tension. The colonel, annoyed, snapped back, "Shut your pie hole!" Undeterred, Grace retorted, "Or what, Ranger Rick? You gonna shoot me?" The colonel responded coldly, "I could do that." Ignoring him, she turned to Parker, saying, "You need to muzzle your dog."

"Yeah, can we just take this down a couple of notches, please?" Parker intervened, stepping between the two. However, the verbal sparring continued. "You say you want to keep your people alive? You start by listening to her," Jake insisted, addressing the colonel. Grace added, "Those trees were sacred to the Omaticaya in a way you can't imagine."

Parker, dismissive, sighed annoyed and quipped, "You know what? You throw a stick in the air around here, it's gonna land on some sacred fern, for Christ's sakes!" As the tension escalated, Grace continued, "I'm not talking about some kind of pagan voodoo here. I'm talking about something real, something measurable in the biology of the forest."

Parker, skeptical, folded his arms and asked, "Which is what, exactly?" Grace explained, "What we think we know is that there is some kind of electrochemical communication between the roots of the trees, like the synapses between neurons. And each tree has ten-to-the-fourth connections to the trees around it. And there are ten-to-the-twelfth trees on Pandora." Parker, still unconvinced, responded, "Which is a lot, I'm guessing." Grace affirmed, "It's more connections than the human brain. Get it? It's a network." She passionately emphasized the interconnectedness of Pandora. "It's a global network, and the Na'vi can access it. They can upload and download data. Memories. And sites like the one you just destroyed. Yes!"

Parker, scoffing, remarked, "What the hell have you people been smoking out there?" Ignoring him, Grace continued, "They're just goddamn trees!" Parker laughed dismissively before Grace implored, "You need to wake up, Parker."

"No. You need to wake up," Parker retorted. Grace argued, "The wealth of this world isn't in the ground. It's all around us. The Na'vi know that, and they are fighting to defend it. If you want to share this world with them, you need to understand them."

As the colonel went through the monitor, Norm watched him intently. "I'd say we understand them just fine, thanks to Arya here," the colonel said, playing a video showing Arya looking tired and defeated. "They're not gonna give up their home. They're not gonna make a deal. For what? Lite beer? And blue jeans? There's nothing that we have that they want. Everything they sent me out here to do is... is something. They're never gonna leave Hometree." Arya's eyes teared up as she looked down, feeling the weight of the situation. Grace and Jake offered comfort, placing their hands on her shoulders. The colonel, however, continued callously, "So, since a deal can't be made, I guess things get real simple. Arya, thanks. I'm getting all emotional. I might just give you a big wet kiss."

Arya sighed in frustration, glowering at the man. "Son of a bitch," she muttered, her anger palpable.

Tsu'tey and the Na'vi erupted in cheers as the RDA machines crumbled and ignited in flames. The victorious warriors, mounted on direhorses, charged forward, while others soared through the sky on their ikrans. The exhilaration of their triumph echoed through the Hallelujah Mountains. Amidst the celebration, Neytan couldn't shake the worry for Arya from his mind. Despite the destruction of the RDA machines, his thoughts were drawn back to her safety. As the Na'vi warriors returned to Hometree, the jubilation around him was bittersweet, his concern for Arya lingering.

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By: SilverMist707

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