After the RDA

Started by Puvomun, November 01, 2010, 03:08:28 AM

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Puvomun

41. Activities at the base

The base looked small from the distance. Puvomun was surprised suddenly, as he saw the place lying there, as a scar of the face of their wonderful world. The light was different today, making things look different too. The base was the only area that still reminded everyone of the presence of the aysawtute and the things they had done.

Most of the places where the large machines had cut into the ground had already started healing. Small bushes were pushing up through the soil, tree saplings made their way towards the sky as well. The ground looked like a new song, the singer in him decided, and he looked at it intently, to remember it as it was now.

They flew on, and Puvomun noticed that two of the large craters that the Sky people machines had made were filling up with water, creating new lakes. To his surprise he saw a group of animals already at the side of the water, using the place as a waterhole.

"Nusumea," Puvomun said, pointing down.

Nusumea Tirea grinned, he had already seen it.

They decided at the same time, without the need of words, to circle and fly over the twin lakes again, at a lower altitude. As they did so, Puvomun decided that he would have to do this again with Amhul by his side. She had to see this as well.

Then the two turned towards the base again. That was after all where they were meant to go.

Once there, they found Sky person Norm yelling at a few people to be careful with some boxes they were carrying.

"Oh, hello guys. Jake already told me you were coming. He explained about the whole thing that happened. Mankx must have lost it." Norm watched the men with the boxes again, and this time it all seemed to go well.

"Come with me," Norm said as he walked off towards the new building which looked like it was completed, to Puvomun's untrained eye.

"It still needs a lot of work, but the outside's okay," Norm explained. It told Puvomun that he should not attempt to judge aysawtute buildings again.

They walked around the building. It looked nothing like the grey concrete buildings that were strewn all over the premises. The outside consisted mainly of wood. Norm pointed out small wooden panels that covered windows, and he went on about something on the top of the building that collected sunlight and turned that into the energy they needed for their air machines.

"It's all primitive, I admit," Norm said at the end of the tour, "but it will do for what's to come."

Puvomun and Nusumea regarded the entire thing and could not find anything primitive about it. There were a lot of things in it, as sky people liked to have, but for the rest...

Nusumea then kneeled down, so he was at eye level with Norm. "Jake told us that we should tell you that we are ready for the plan to start."

Jake had told the two men that they would have to carry the message to the base. He could not do that over the radio, because there was a possibility that the Dreamwalkers would hear it, and he wanted to avoid that at all cost.

"I suspected so much," said Norm. "Well... let's get things moving then." He looked at the small radio that hung from his belt. "This is going to be a lot of leg-work."

Ignoring this cryptic information, Puvomun and Nusumea followed Norm to the main building. Norm went inside and started giving orders.

Soon the doors of the building opened again and many people came out, wearing their masks and carrying many things. Puvomun and Nusumea helped them taking all their boxes to the new building, which saved a lot of time as they walked much faster with their long legs.

Finally Norm appeared again. "Right. Most people are in the new place now. It looks as if that part of the plan is working. Now for the really hard things."

The scientist took his radio and pushed a few things. "Now be silent, guys, this has to sound convincing." Norm turned back to the open doors and waved a hand.

From inside the building came a howling noise that startled the teacher and the healer hunter, but Norm gestured that they should relax.

"All part of our plan," he yelled over the noise. Then he took the radio firmly in his hand and started screaming into it.

"Baker! Manx! Louis! Anyone, do you hear me?!" He had to repeat his yelling a few times, and then there seemed to be an answer, but Puvomun could not hear it because of the noise from the building.

"We discovered a breach in the building!" Norm screamed into the radio, "there is Pandoran atmosphere leaking in, and the section where you are in is affected too!"

Puvomun looked at Nusumea. He had not heard of a breach or a problem. Then a man came running from the open doors with an axe in his hand. He went past the building as fast as he could and at a certain spot he hacked into the wall a few times, carefully looking at the damage he was creating.

The teacher grinned. So that was what Jake had meant by 'smoking them out'.

"No! We don't know where it is! You have to disable the bomb on the door so we can throw in some masks, Mankx!!" Norm sounded very convincing as he pretended his panic.

"Hey, with you guys holding the detonators, how are we going to do something? Hurry man, or you will be affected and blow the place up!" Perspiration was on Norm's brow now, maybe things were not going the way Jake and he had planned. Or at least hoped.

There was some more yelling back and forth and then Norm switched off the radio. He grinned in the mask, and then he yelled that he'd be right back. He disappeared into the building.

"This noise is amazing," Nusumea yelled at Puvomun, "and I don't like it!"

The teacher singer shook his head, he did not even feel like yelling at his friend because of this sound. He was surprised that Norm was not affected by it, it started hurting his ears.

The man with the axe came running back. He stopped for a moment as he was near the two Na'vi and flashed them a grin.

"This... 'plan' is madness," Puvomun then decided, walking away from the open doors to where the sound was less taxing. "They first damage their building and then they give these men breathing masks?"

Nusumea followed the teacher. "We can only wait and see what we can do, ma tsmukan. And hope that nothing goes wrong while they do what they do. The outcome is in Eywa's hands."

Suddenly Puvomun was not so certain of that. After all, they were dealing with madmen now, madmen who did not belong here.

The waiting did not seem to end, nor did the howling from the building. It worried Puvomun that nobody was coming out, he knew there were at least six aysawtute in there, not counting the mad Dreamwalkers, the ayuniltìranyu lekye'ung.

Suddenly a person came running to them from the new building.

"Are they out yet?" the woman asked Nusumea.

Puvomun replied in his friend's place, as his grasp of the Inglìsì language was better. "Norm has spoken with Mankx, and then he went into the building to give them masks."

"Oh, good, so we're on schedule."

Puvomun looked at Nusumea, who undoubtedly shared his wonder about the schedule.

At that moment Norm came running out again, searching for a moment. "Oh, heck, I thought you ran off!" he half spoke, half yelled as he had joined them. "We're almost ready. They disabled the bomb and they are now putting on their masks one by one. That takes some time, I hope the hole in the wall isn't too big. I don't want people to die."

Norm looked at the thing on his arm, the watch. Puvomun had learnt about these things from Dr. Grace. "I think ten more minutes."

This information at least seemed to mean something to the tawtute woman who was standing with them, because she nodded.

"We're all prepared," she told Norm and the men. "Let's hope they react the way we hope they do."

This did not sound reassuring.

"Well, they may be crazy, but they're not..." Norm said, then stopped. "Okay, they are." He looked up at Nusumea and Puvomun. "I think now is a good time to talk with Eywa."

Nusumea held out his hands. "This is not the very good place."

"I know," Norm admitted, "but it's the best we have for the moment." He seemed nervous now. "I wonder what's taking them so long."

"No ten minutes yet, Norm," the woman said, pointing at her own watch.

Puvomun had the uncanny feeling that everyone here knew more about the so called plan than he did, or Nusumea.

"I'm going back inside to check," said Norm, and without further explanation he went inside again.

Puvomun shook his head. "What is he doing there?" he asked the woman.

"What? Are you kidding me? You mean nobody told you?" she asked, entirely surprised.

"We were told some parts of the plan, but not everything. Not the parts you will be doing here. Jake said we would not understand most of those."

"More like we're winging it," the woman grinned.

In some way she reminded Puvomun of Trudy, the woman who had flown the Samson for Dr. Grace, before the fighting had happened. They never had heard of Trudy again.

Norm came bolting out of the building again, his radio in hand. "Okay people, get ready. We're almost there!"
Krr a lì'fya lam sraw, may' frivìp utralit.

Ngopyu ayvurä.

Puvomun

42. When the ground shakes

Puvomun and Nusumea were more and more surprised, and asked Norm what was going to happen.

"Sorry, I don't have time to tell that now," Norm replied as he watched two people coming from the building. The two carried things that looked like aysawtute weapons.

"What's taking them," Norm mumbled, when a woman came out and told Norm that it was "all set".

The two men with the metal things did not need another word, they ran to the spot where the man with the axe had been hacking in the wall and pointed their weapons at the building.

Norm took the radio. "Mankx, do you hear me?"

"We do, what the hell is going on?"

"Mankx, the wall is giving in," Norm said over the noise of the never ending alarm. He also waved his arm, as a signal to the two waiting people near the building.

The two men aimed and then a fine line of fire came from their weapons, cutting into the wall.

"We are doing what we can to stabilise it, but the rooms now are flooded with Pandora air, so stay inside those links if you want to remain alive, do you get that?"

Puvomun heard that Mankx was yelling something, and then the voice of Baker came from the radio.

"Hey, Spellman, I hope you are not screwing us over. Keep us updated or we are going to blow the entire base to hell."

A loud crash made everyone look up. The two men had cut a large opening in the wall of the building and the freed part had fallen out. One of the men waved a hand to indicate that everything was fine. Then two more people came out of the building, carrying a big silver coloured box.

"Can you help us get this to the opening?" one of them asked, as they put the thing down. Clearly it was very heavy for them.

Nusumea did not hesitate and picked up the thing. He quickly went to the opening in the wall, the two men running behind him.

"Can I do something?" Puvomun asked Norm, but the man did not seem to hear him as he was watching what went on near the opened wall.

The two men took the silver box and dragged it into the building again.

"That's where the idiots are, in the links," Norm pointed, making sure he did not push any buttons on the radio.

The woman who was with them then went into the building.

"Puvomun! Za'u! Come!"

The teacher heard his friend call out and ran over to the hole in the wall.

Inside the room the two Sky people men had mounted the silver box to one of the metal boxes that had a man inside. They were working fast to disconnect wires from the box and then pushed it towards the opening.

"They want us to carry that box to the new building," Nusumea said.

The two grabbed the box and lifted it from the room. The whole thing was heavy, very heavy.

"Don't let the generator fall off!" one of the aysawtute called to them.

Puvomun assumed it was the silver thing they had mounted on the box. Together with Nusumea he walked away from the building with long strides, keeping the whole contraption as level as they could.

The teacher saw a few more people come from the building and run for the new building they were approaching as well.

Norm, together with a man Puvomun had seen before, at the site where the Samson had crashed, were the last ones to run away from the building.

The doors of the new building were open. Four people wearing masks were waiting there and as Puvomun and Nusumea pushed the large box inside, they helped and pulled it in.

Most other Sky people fled inside too, and the doors closed. Norm and the other man stayed outside, while Norm was talking in the radio again. Puvomun did not understand a word of it but the scientist talked fast.

The other man, Puvomun now remembered that his name was Randolph, told him and Nusumea to get behind the building. As the man pointed, Puvomun noticed he held a small box in his hand. These aysawtute and their boxes, he thought as they circled the building and sat down against the far wall.

Norm and Randolph joined them.

"Ready?" Randolph asked.

"Ready as we can be," Norm replied, and to Puvomun and Nusumea he said: "Hold your ears, this is going to be loud."

Randolph then flipped a switch, and the two sky persons covered their ears.

For a few counts nothing happened.

Norm and Randolph looked at each other, they apparently were surprised also.

The ground shook as enormous bolts of noise deafened the teacher. Four, five, six times the ground trembled, sometimes closer by, sometimes further away. The impact of the explosions was so acute that Puvomun felt physical pain and dizziness as the air around them pushed down and released its pressure in rapid succession with the explosions.

And then it was over.

As Puvomun took deep breaths before daring to look around, he heard Norm and Randolph talk. They said that it had to be safe now.

"What is safe?" he asked.

Nusumea also seemed shook up by the experience. He still sat with his eyes closed.

"Ma tsmukan? Nga nìltsan?" Puvomun asked.

Slowly the healer hunter opened his eyes. "Srane. Yes. I am well. What happened?"

Puvomun wanted to know that as well, but Norm was busy talking in his radio, and Randolph had jumped up and run off.

"Jake?" Norm said, "Things happened. Looks like the problem's gone, but not the way we planned. No, I did not look yet, I wanted you to know that- What? Yes, they're here and they're fine."

The scientist looked at Puvomun and Nusumea and nodded, holding up a thumb.

"Yeah," he then said in response to something Jake said, "send over some people to make sure the avatars are disabled. I'd be surprised if they aren't. Yeah, will do."

Then Norm stood up. "Are you okay?"

"Yes. We are." Puvomun was grateful that they had left their ikrans in the forest this time.

"Good. Come with me, please."

The three rounded the corner of the building.

"Jesus," Norm said.

Four of the large buildings that had made up a large part of the Sky people base were now collapsed heaps of rubble. Several parts were burning. Smoke rose up everywhere, and dust was dancing in the air everywhere.

Norm walked along the building and turned around the corner. Puvomun and Nusumea followed him, amazed by the unreal destruction that lay in front of them. Norm went inside the building for a moment, and came out.

"They're all fine," he said. "Jake and Neytiri are going to where they held the children hostage, to make sure it's over."

"Norm Spellman, what happened?" Nusumea asked.

"Yeah, I'm sorry this all was so messy."

Norm then started to explain.

"We used their bombs against them. It was very difficult to overpower them, because we never knew who held a dead man's switch. We had thought of switching off the power to their links, but they would just wake up and they were mad enough to blow up the base and everyone on it."

Norm explained what a dead man's switch was for the two, then continued: "We also wanted to get Mendelson out of there, which was a big problem, as they never let him out of the link alone. And we could not get into their room, because Natasha had confirmed there was a real bomb on the inside. That would go off if we were to open the door."

Puvomun and Nusumea understood that the Dreamwalkers had gone through a lot of trouble to make things very difficult.

"So when they made their first bomb go off, to warn us, we thought up this plan to make it look as if their own bomb had created a problem in the walls of the building."

"That was the man who hacked into the wall," Puvomun understood.

"Indeed. That is also why we set off the alarm, to make it more real. We called them and said they would need masks to breathe. They had to wake up and disable the door bomb so we could throw the masks into the room. It was a bit of a gamble then, we did not know if they would take the time to enable that bomb again. They did not, we think."

At that moment, the door of the new building opened, and two men came out. One of them supported the other one, who looked exhausted.

The exhausted man looked at Puvomun and managed a smile. "I know you. You are the teacher."

Puvomun recognised the voice, This was Mendelson, the scientist that had been with the insane people.

"I wanted to meet you in person, Puvomun. To thank you for everything you tried to do for the children. How are they?"

"We do not know," the teacher said. "Our Olo'eyktan is flying to them now, to see how they are. And I did only little. There are many who did much more."

"Don't give me that, my man," said Mendelson. "I know you people. You do so much all the time. I'll speak with you again, later, when I feel better."

The supported man was then helped back into the building...
Krr a lì'fya lam sraw, may' frivìp utralit.

Ngopyu ayvurä.

Puvomun

43. Returning to Kelutral

"You can't believe how relieved I am that this building withstood the blasts," Norm said, more to himself than to anyone else. "Right, where was I. Oh, yes. So once these guys had their masks on I told them that things were getting worse."

"Your men that made the hole in the wall," Nusumea nodded.

"Exactly. We had prepared the generator which could keep Mendelson's link going. It needed to have enough power to keep the machine going and also handle the connection to the link system for a while. That was a big gamble, we had no idea if this would work. But we could not simply disconnect his link unit to get him out, because then the other three would see Mendelson's avatar go limp."

Norm looked out over the heaps of debris that had been the buildings of the base.

"Only once we had Mendelson in safety, Randolph set off a grenade that one of the technicians left in the link room. A bomb."

The bomb had destroyed all equipment in the room, finishing the link from the mad men to their dreamwalker bodies, Puvomun understood. It had probably also killed the three remaining men in the boxes. And that meant they released the switches they held to prevent the bombs from exploding.

"You let them destroy the whole base to save Mendelson," Nusumea said.

"The whole base, and themselves. It was the only option we saw," Norm elaborated. "Going in through the wall, with guns firing, would be stupid, as one of them could be awake in the link unit. They would set off a bomb. Gassing them would not be fast enough and that would get Mendelson killed as well. Now at least Mendelson is safe, and the pxeskxawng killed themselves."

The scientist shrugged and looked up at Puvomun.

"It also was a good moment to see if Amhul's idea would work."

"But everything in the old buildings is now destroyed," Puvomun assumed. After all, the devastation that remained after the explosions was extensive, nothing or nobody could have survived that.

"Yes," Norm nodded, "everything that was in there. But we had a few nights with little sleep during which we moved as much gear as we could to the old sleep barracks where the avatars used to stay. Gear we think we will need in the future."

Puvomun and Nusumea were surprised about that. Even with the situation as strange as it was now, the teacher had to smile. Amhul would be so amazed when he told her this.

"Is there something we can do for you now?" Nusumea asked Norm.

"I'm not sure," Norm said. "For now we'll first assess the damage and see if there is stuff we can still salvage from over there." He loosely pointed at the remains of the buildings. "Won't be much left there, though. It's scary to see what these guys did with their bombs. Maybe we can find their bodies. If so, we can bury them, but from what I can see there is not much left to bury."

A few more people emerged from the building to look around. One man informed Norm that the new building had not sustained any damage from the blast.

"The wood that the Na'vi told us to use is amazing," he stated, "looks as if that can take an even harsher beating."

"Harsher? This was bad enough for me," Norm said. "I hope we're done with bombs for the rest of my life. I am a scientist, not a war monger."

Norm then turned to the teacher and the healer hunter again. "I suggest you go home now. We'll be busy here, sorting out things. We can always get to you by radio when we need you."

"Sìltsan, ma Norm," Puvomun said. "Good luck with your work here."

"Kìyevame, friends," Norm nodded and raised a hand.

As Puvomun and Nusumea Tirea left, the other Sky people also waved their goodbyes.

The two found their ikrans safely in the tree where they had left them. Still impressed and shocked by the experience, they flew to Hometree.

The teacher sensed Kilvan being restless. He assumed it had to do with the explosions.

-=-=-

Puvomun was very surprised to find that Amhul was not there.

Amaya told him that Jake had asked Amhul to come with them. "He said that the children know you, Puvomun, and Amhul is your mate and a teacher. She would be able to deal with the children much better than he or Neytiri."

Puvomon wanted to fly out to the Dreamwalker camp immediately, but Amaya, Nusumea and also Mo'at held him back.

"They left a long time ago, karyu. You don't know where they are. They will have dealt with the ayuniltìrantokx now, the dreamwalker bodies, and taken the children to their home clan. So you will sit here. And eat and rest."

That last bit of advice was given to Nusumea as well, and then they were almost ordered to tell what had happened at the base of the Sky people. Their account of events was more than shocking for the people who were listening.

"They really did that? They destroyed their aysawtute buildings to put an end to what these stray Dreamwalkers did?"

"Srane, they did, yes." Puvomun heard himself say the words and still had a hard time believing it, even when he had been there to see it.

Amaya slowly got to her feet. "I think I have to talk to a few ikrans." Without saying more she walked off.

Nusumea and Puvomun just exchanged glances, they knew what she was going to do. That woman had an amazing way with animals.

Mo'at looked at the teacher. "I will tell you what you have to do now, Puvomun. You will go to the children and sing with them."

Puvomun smiled. Yes, that was the best thing for him. Singing always liberated his inner feelings and let out the pain if there was any. "Maybe you should come with me then," he suggested to Nusumea.

"Irayo, ma tsmukan," the healer hunter said. "Thank you, brother. I have my own ways to deal with this, but maybe later I come and sing with you."

Puvomun understood. He got up and asked if they would call him as soon as Amhul returned, which of course everyone agreed to. He walked to his favourite spot near the river and looked out over the flowing water, remembering how all the strange events seemed to have started when Txetse had found the ikran claw in the water.

"Puvomun?"

He looked where the young voice came from. "Ah, ma Ikranari. What can I do for you?"

"You look a bit sad," said the young boy. "Can I make you laugh?"

Puvomun had to smile about that wonderful offer. He kneeled down. "You always make me laugh, ma 'ewan, but sometimes a person has to be sad for a while."

Ikranari frowned as he thought about that. "Like when everyone was sad after the aysawtute killed so many Na'vi." He sat down. "Did someone die?"

"Yes. The three men who made so many problems. The ones who killed Na'vi from the hill clan, and who took the two children from the forest clan."

Ikranari nodded. "But they did bad things. When they die they do not more bad things, srak?"

"That is true. But still, it is painful for me that they did these things. So much pain and suffering."

Ikranari studied Puvomun for a while. "But you are not crying."

"I am not. Because through the pain I feel, I am happy that the bad aysawtute will not be able to bring more misery."

The young boy nodded. "That must feel strange, when you are sad and happy at the same time."

Puvomun had to grin about the young wise words. "It does, Ikranari. It does. I think I want to sing a few songs. Do you want to sing with me?"

"Yes! Wait, I will get the others!" Ikranari jumped up and ran off to gather as many children as he could.

Soon a large group was singing songs, and Puvomun started feeling better and better because the children chose more and more happy songs. The last one they were singing was about the baby nantang who got lost in a field of flowers, and the children made all kinds of funny noises with that, so he could not keep his laughter.

Ikranari grinned.

Rakan surprised Puvomun in the middle of the laughter. "Hey, Puvomun. There's someone here to see you." The young warrior's face was quite serious, so Puvomun quickly got up.

"Who is it? What is the matter?"

"Come," Rakan said, walking back to Hometree.

The teacher singer followed him, unsure of what and who to expect, when suddenly someone flung herself at him and threw her arms around him. It was Amhul, and she almost made the two of them fall over.

Both singers laughed and cried, happy that they saw each other again. After having a few moments for themselves, they just smiled at each other and then Puvomun thanked Rakan for calling him.

"You have a strange way of telling me, though."

"He is strange," Mo'at reminded him. "I still do not understand why Lolet and he chose each other."

"It's good to see them so happy," Neytiri said. She and Jake had been standing there all the time, and Puvomun had not noticed them at all. Next to them he also noticed Ateyo and Miktan.

The teacher then sat down with them and heard how they had dealt with things.

"We got the word from Norm, after things had gone up in smoke at the base," said Jake. "He told us that everything had been blown up, so the avatar drivers probably were dead. That is why he dared to use the radio. So Neytiri and I asked Amhul to come with us, to the camp where the children and the avatars were. And Mendelson."

"We flew hard, ma Puvomun," Amhul said. She held his hand and had her tail curled around his waist. "We flew so hard, it was scary. We came to the camp, and that was very worrying. Miktan and Ateyo were there, in the tree, and they had not seen anyone moving for a while."

"We went to the camp and found the dreamwalker bodies silent. They were empty. Dead. We freed the children too, and Amhul took care of them. She said she was your mate and that they were safe. Puvomun, in a few days you have to go to the forest clan and look up these children," Jake continued the telling. "They kept asking where you were and they wanted to see you. We promised that you would visit them, but they need a few days to get stronger again."

The clan leader's face showed that he was troubled by the memory of how they had found the children, but was relieved to hear that Mendelson had been saved, and he was impressed about the way that Norm and the others had pulled that off.
Krr a lì'fya lam sraw, may' frivìp utralit.

Ngopyu ayvurä.

Puvomun

#43
44. There has to be a party

In bits and pieces the clan members present had heard about the events from everyone involved.

Jake then thought it a good idea to celebrate that all problems had been solved and that things had gone relatively well. He suggested that there should be a party, something that everyone agreed with. He then got on the radio and told Norm about the idea. The clan extended a warm welcome to all the people at the base as far as they wanted to come.

There was of course the problem that the humans could not join in eating and drinking because of their breathing masks, but they decided that such a detail should not spoil the fun.

Towards the evening Norm arrived at the village, and Mendelson and many other people were with him. They had come with two of their flying machines to carry all the Sky people. They had all come.

"I tried to talk him out of coming, Jake, honest," said the scientist as two men lowered Mendelson on a block of wood where he could sit, "but he is stubborn as scientists come."

"Don't give me bother, young man," Mendelson said. "I told you I had to come here and personally thank all the good people here. They all helped in resolving this sad situation and make something good of it. I told you this before, and I shall tell you again if your memory fails you the next time."

Norm chose to ignore the reprimande and found a good place to sit among the other people.

Puvomun heard Jake ask his scientist friend why he had not come in his Avatar body.

Norm shrugged. "We don't have enough power to keep the remaining link unit running. But that's okay. We survived everything, that's what matters."

Everyone agreed to that.

Puvomun and Amhul walked among all the people and found Rakan and Lolet carry large jugs. Somehow Lolet had found time to make more kava, clearly to Rakan's delight, and they were getting ready to fill the cups for everyone who wanted one.

Txetse and Ikranari stood by and watched the two kava carriers.

Puvomun grinned as he heard Txetse ask Ikranari if they should try to get some also.

"Perhaps you are still a little bit too young for that, Txetse," the teacher said.

Txetse pretended to look annoyed by that remark, but he could not hold his face straight long enough. Soon the two boys were off to find more children, so they could play a few games.

"Don't run too far!" Puvomun called after them. "We need some singers later on!"

Amaya and Nusumea Tirea joined the teacher singer couple.

Amaya looked very pleased about something. "Nusumea has told me he will try to teach me a few of the things he knows. Things that make me an even better animal healer."

"That is wonderful!" said Amhul with a big smile. "We will have the best healers of all clans."

"Yes. Because we have Mo'at," Nusumea said with a grin.

The Tsahik heard her name and looked up, not sure if she should ask what was going on. As she saw the smiling and grinning faces, she relaxed and grinned too.

Ninat then came to the small group, and asked if Puvomun and Amhul could help her with something. The teacher singers followed her and to their delight they saw that Eyamsiyu had prepared three log drums and he had also made a second large flute.

"What about your new instrument?" Puvomun asked as he and and instrument maker picked up one of the flutes.

"I get a sore head from that," Eyamsiyu grumbled, "I am sure I am doing it almost right but the strings are breaking very often."

"Maybe we can all look at it someday," Puvomun said.

They carried the first flute to a set of trees and hung it in the ropes, adjusting the height to the first player, and then they brought the second flute. Amhul and Ninat were putting the log drums in place so people could pick them up if they wanted to.

Puvomun looked up as he heard some commotion in the corner where most Sky people sat. The noise came from Mendelson who clearly wanted a closer look at the instruments that they were setting up. Two of the men with him helped him walk over.

Puvomun looked around and told one of the children to fetch the wooden block, so the man could sit closer to the instruments. The girl nodded and ran, and was back with the improvised seat before Mendelson had arrived.

"Oh, irayo, ma 'ewan," he said, grateful of the service. "Thank you, little one." Then he just sat in silence, waiting for what was coming.

"Is there something you wish to know?" Amhul asked as she sat down with the man. She spoke her Na'vi slowly, as she was not sure how well he could understand her.

"Actually there is," Mendelson said. "I know that Omatikaya means 'Clan of the Blue Flute', so I had hoped to see the famous blue flute. These are... not so blue."

Amhul grinned. "Srane, yes. These are our normal flutes and our normal drums. The Blue Flute is..."

"Not real?" Mendelson's voice sounded disappointed as he guessed.

"Oh! It is real! But it is not made now," Amhul explained. "Some people know how to make it. But not many. It is... something of the Omatikaya."

"I understand. A clan tradition. A bit of a secret."

Amhul nodded. "Yes. But we will make music now, and sing our songs, and dance. Maybe next time you are better and you can dance with us."

Mendelson smiled, he clearly was very charmed by Amhul. "That would be nice. I shall sit here for now, and watch your dancers. I shall call this a lesson in dancing for me."

Amhul looked at Puvomun.

Her face was wonderful, he thought.

"Come, ma yawne, we will find some people to sing one of the First Songs," she said.

Hand in hand they walked to Ninat, then looked for Ateyo and Amaya. Nusumea joined them as well.

Amhul had chosen the first song they would sing. When they began singing, quickly all talking died away, and more and more voices joined as the song went on.

The first six singers stood hand in hand, their eyes closed, being one with the song. They reached the end then and kept their eyes closed for a few more moments, to allow the power of the words to flow away calmly.

Some of the Sky people clapped their hands together.

"Why do they do that?" Amhul asked Puvomun.

"I don't know," he whispered back, "but I think this means they liked it." He was aware that many of these people had never heard Na'vi singing before.

Nusumea suggested they would sing the song of the thunder next. "I want to try one of the new drums," he said with a grin on his face and shining in his eyes, so the others agreed.

Ateyo also took a drum, the flute players took their position, and then Eyamsiyu took the remaining log drum.

The flutes started the music, and the drummers slowly picked up the rhythm, making their noises resemble the thunder over the forest. Everyone who knew the song worked along, adding their voices to the elements of nature. Wind, rain, the moaning of trees bending in the storm, everything was added to the song.

Some of the Sky people looked a bit frightened, but they would get used to the song, Puvomun estimated. And also, the song would not take very long.

Mendelson seemed to enjoy everything tremendously, although at times he covered his ears. He was very close to the flutes and the drummers.

After the song of the thunder, Rakan took his chance to start handing out the kava.

Jake explained to the new visitors what it was, and that they probably would not like it. Someone asked if he could take some home with him, just to give it a try.

Mo'at advised against that. "It would be better if you look at the things we have for food and see if you can eat that," she told the curious man.

He looked at her and for a moment there was a bit of tension between the two, but then he saw her reason and he agreed. He even apologised, to which Mo'at shook her head.

The party went on until deep in the night. Some Sky people had joined the dancers and tried to follow their movement, but that had proven harder than they had thought. The clan members took care not to run into the dancing visitors, so everyone could have a good time.

The dancing and singing had gone on for a long time, but everyone was getting tired, so slowly the festivities came to an end.

The Sky people all were very pleased that they had come. The saying goodbye took long, as everyone wanted to hold hands with everyone, if only for a moment. Puvomun and Neytiri patiently stood by everyone and translated the words for the people who did not speak each other's language.

Peace and quiet returned to the village, and most of the children were carried off to their hammocks, to sleep further there.

Rakan and Lolet sat with the kava jugs, looking like they'd had enough. Ekirä and Korun were halfway down the path of being asleep and a few people tried to convince them of that.

Amhul and Puvomun sat with the remains of the fire.

"So much has changed," she said, as she poked the embers with a stick.

"Yes. Very much. We have changed as well," said the teacher. "And now there finally is time..." Slowly he undid the leather bracelet that Amhul had given him. "It is time to give this back."

Amhul looked at his face as he carefully and tenderly put the bracelet back on her arm. "Some things have not changed, ma Puvomun," she said after he was done. "You are still the one that makes me happy."

"Since you make me happy, that comes very easy to me," he smiled. "I should make a song about you."

"No, you should not," Amhul said, looking away to hide her smile.
Krr a lì'fya lam sraw, may' frivìp utralit.

Ngopyu ayvurä.

Puvomun

45. Epilogue

There is peace again now. The remaining Sky people, who we should give a better name now, will come to us and we will together find a good place for them to live. We will help them, to build their kelku, their house, and it will not be far away.

We will go to visit the children of the forest clan. They will know we have not forgotten them.

Our ikrans... they have changed much for us. Never before teachers had ikrans. Yet, we will remain to be teachers and singers. We will teach everyone about our world, about Eywa and about the Na'vi.

And when the right people come to us, we will teach them all the First Songs, and everything we know, so they can become teachers and singers after us.

Amhul,
teacher and singer of the Omatikaya.

Eywa ayoenghu
Krr a lì'fya lam sraw, may' frivìp utralit.

Ngopyu ayvurä.