Reflections of Eywa (Ch 6)
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Pairing: Na'vi oc x Na'vi oc
Sänari knows the risk of entering a war zone with nothing but a hunting knife and a bow. But as the sky people close in, the forest begins to wake, and the lines between hunter and prey blur. In the heart of the burning swamp, a different kind of warrior is born.
Childhood Friends to Lovers ⢠Mutual Pining ⢠Battle Couple ⢠Found Family ⢠Angst & Hurt/Comfort ⢠Wilderness Survival ⢠Original Na'vi Clan ⢠Eventual Smut ⢠Blood & Violence ⢠War ⢠Idiots in Love
I am so sorry in advance. I cried writing this chapter. But yay So'lek makes an appearance! He will probably be making regular appearances for the foreseeable future.
Warning: You will be emotionally devastated if you like these characters
Trigger Warnings for this chapter:
Graphic violence (gunfire, combat, bodily injury)
Character death (major, on-page)
Child death (on-page, emotionally intense)
Panic / survival situations
Blood, injury, and battlefield aftermath
Fire / burning environment
Emotional trauma / breakdown
Brief suicidal ideation (moment of surrender vibe)
Always posted to AO3 first under PinkStarDust, this is intended to be a long running fic so go give it some love.
Chapter Six: Fire in the Mangroves
âI donât know.â Kea admitted their footsteps hurried, Sänari having to take two steps for each of Kaeâs long strides.
Kae not being able to read the warriors intentions or to not be filled in on whatever was going on by his father was no small thing. Whoever this was, was experienced and capable of keeping his intentions hidden and his reactions minimal.
When they got to the heart of the commotion it was to a tall Naâvi standing next to a blue and purple ikran. His back was turned to them, seemingly in deep conversation with Txuâkan.
âGood, you found her.â Txuâkan said as they approached announcing their arrival.Â
The warrior turned, and Sänari tensed. He was covered in a mix of sky people and Naâvi gear, a collection of small metal things dangling from his harness. He was physically imposing, even by her people's standards, and the presence of sky people items did nothing to help it.
His gaze flicked over Sänari, assessing. âThis is her?â He asked, looking between Kae and Txuâkan. âShe isâŚsmallâ
âAnd you are huge.â Sänari shot back bristling.
The warrior simply arched a brow at her.
Kae looked almost embarrassed, his gaze darting between the warrior and Sänari who looked like she was about to start hissing at the man. âYou should not let her size deceive you.â he sighed.
That seemed to only irritate Sänari more. It felt like he was trying to apologize for her biting back.
âWhat is this?â Sänari demanded looking at the men gathered in front of her.
âThe dog tag warrior wished to speak with those who came into contact with the sky people.â Txuâkan explained.
âDog tag warrior?â Sänariâs nose wrinkled at the title, her gaze darting back up to the large male.
âMy name is Soâlek.â He explained moving to tower over her. âI was told that you protected your clan and fought against the RDA and the Recomâs.âÂ
Sänari swallowed hard staring up at him, she felt Kae tense at her side.
âRDA?â She said the letters slowly, her brows furrowing.
Soâleks expression darkened when he realized that Sänari had no correlation between what the false Naâvi and sky people were and who the RDA was. His gaze flicked around the village, the people tense but seemingly going about their day like normal.
He turned to Txuâkan. âThe RDA is on its way here with its war and machines, why are you not readying yourselves?â He questioned.
Txuâkan looked almost taken aback. âWe do not participate in this war you and your people have with the sky people, and we are making preparations to leave.âÂ
Soâlek looked irritated. âThe RDA does not care about your position or your clan politics, they are on their way here now. You should be preparing to fight.â He bit out.
âWhat do you mean on their way here now?â Sänari snapped.
Soâlek looked at her. âIt is why I am here. My people heard them on their radios, they intend to take the swamp and clear out the Naâvi.â He told her.
âWe will be fine for a time. They have not found this place, Sänari and Kae made sure of it.â Txuâkan with confidence.
Soâlek made a clear sound of displeasure, looking like he wanted to say something diplomacy would not allow. âIf you wish to evacuate the village, do it now. Do not wait.âÂ
Txuâkan looked conflicted for all but a few seconds. âFine. We will leave now.â He declared.
âI have to go.â Sänari said, pulling away from the group.
Kae caught her arm. âNo, you should stay, leave with your mother and the others.â He told her.
âI let Anu go out to the hunters with a knife. I have to go.â She said, tearing away from him before sprinting towards the dark shadows of the swamp.
Kae spared the two older males a glance, for once unsure of what to do.
It was Soâlek who broke the tense silence. âYou can fight?â He asked.
Kae gave a curt nod. âYes.â
âGood. Go gather anyone else who wants to fight, I will track your friend and we will buy the village time.â Soâlek told him before climbing onto his ikran and taking to the skies.Â
---
Sänari ran through the swamp, along hunting trails her father had once taught her to follow, oneâs shad ran down so eagerly once to bring the hunters lunch, or hide in the hunters outpost with her father when the other children picked on her.
Her lungs burned and her stomach flipped violently as she sped towards the hunting grounds. Her heart dropped at the sound of gunfire in the distance, flashes of light cutting through the murky darkness of the swamp.
âAnu!â She bolted towards it, even as her panic and instincts screamed at her to run the other way.
She didnât bother with caution, or hunter stalking this time. Sänari landed on the small mass of land to the chaos of fighting. The hunters outpost was actively on fire, sky people and hunters clashing with a ferocity that was disorienting at first sight. She rushed towards the burning structure, leaving the hunters to deal with the sky people and their weapons.Â
Sänari tried to get close but the heat was intense, the humidity of the swamp making it nearly unbearable. Then she spotted him, huddled under it behind one of the large mangrove roots. She moved quickly, rushing to his side, trying hard not to think of or look at the fallen hunters she had to clear to get to him.
âSäni!â Anu cried out when she reached him, the boy sounding relieved.
âAre you hurt?â She asked, grabbing his face, inspecting him.Â
He pulled away shaking his head. âWe saw them early, they told me to hide.â He said.
As much as she disliked the hunters at least they had thought to hide Anu before the fighting had started.Â
âWe are leaving.â She grabbed his arm intending to pull him in the direction of home but he dug his heels in resisting.
âI want to stay and fight!â He told her.
âNo, you are a child. We are leaving here and you are staying with Saânu.â She told him firmly.
âNo! I want to fight!â He insisted, fighting her grip.Â
âAnu, look at me!â She said, grabbing both arms and holding him firm. âThis is not a game. Your brothers are dying, we are leaving. You can walk or I can carry you.â She said firmly.
â...Iâll walk.â He agreed reluctantly.
Sänari nodded before taking his hand. âStay close, and do not stop.â She told him before peeking around the root.
Somewhere overhead an ikran screeched.Â
Soâlek hit the ground with a resounding THUD, one of his arrows sinking home into a human's chest. What few hunters were left rallied, even as bullets sprayed.
Sänari rushed from their hiding spot behind the root, half dragging Anu behind her as they moved back towards the direction of home. If they could just get off the land mass and into the dark of the swamp they could sneak away back to the village.
One of the sky people moved to intercept them, leveling their gun at Sänari. She let out a hiss of warning as she pushed Anu behind her, her grip tightening on her bow.Â
She was starkly aware of how vulnerable she was, she had run directly into a fight with no arrows, a hunting knife and a child trailing after her. The sky people would take one look at her and see two easy targets to pick off.
She rushed forward swinging the bow upwards hard, the curved tip catching the bottom of the gun and jerking it upwards as bullets sprayed. She grabbed the gun and slammed it forward twice into the human's face before watching them crumple.Â
She turned and looked at Anu, âGo!â She growled at him to the treeline, the boy was just standing there staring at her, the small knife clutched in his hand.
Sänari whipped back around to see more of the sky peoples warriors arriving, among them a familiar figure. The masked Naâvi walked onto the battlefield between plumes of smoke and fluid grace that reminded Sänari of a pululukan emerging from murky shadows.
Their eyes locked across the battlefield, and the masked Naâvi seemed to give an order she couldnât hear, but she didnât need to, to know that him raising a hand and pointing directly at her had just marked her as a target.
âGo, go, go!â Sänariâs voice was urgent as she snatched a quiver of arrows from a nearby fallen hunter, before pushing Anu into the treeline before following him into the swamp.
The two of them ran, taking slicker paths, covered with moss and algae. Riskier footing but hoping the false Naâvi with weird foot coverings wouldnât have as much traction on the slick roots.
âKeep going, do not stop!â She pushed Anu ahead as he started to slow, his smaller body struggling to keep ahead of her pace.
A bullet shot past them and hit a tree, bark and wood exploding from the impact and raining down on them causing Anu to cry out in fear.
âThis way!â Sänari pulled him sideways off the path onto a large mangrove root.Â
It was a desperate change of direction. An attempt to lose their pursuers. She found a dark hidden bundle of roots.Â
âGet in.â She told him.
âWhat?â Anu protested.
âItâs dark and the roots are thick. You will be safe.â She promised.Â
Anu looked between the hiding spot and his sister before listening, slipping into the deep dark recess between the trees, his form all but disappearing from view.
âWhatever you hear, you do not leave this spot.â She told him firmly.
âBut Säni!â He protested the sound coming out more like a whimper.
âNo.â She snapped. âPromise me. You will stay hidden.â She said her gaze searching his.
âI will not leave.â He promised with a small nod.
Sänari let out a relieved sigh before nodding and climbing higher until the was walking along the highest part of the root system looking down at the path they had been on earlier.
The forest was silent now. Her ears flicked, searching for any little sound. She planned to stay close. She was useless in a head to head confrontation unless it was against something smaller and weaker, like sky people, but when it came to hiding in the swamp and picking things off, that was where she excelled.Â
She wouldnât fight them head on. Anu was hidden and protected for now. She would wait and she would watch, and she would pick them off one by one.
They did not appear one by one as she had hoped. The group of false Naâvi appeared, the masked Naâvi missing from their group. She didnât know if he had stayed behind to fight but it didnât matter.
She slid an arrow silently from the quiver she had strapped around her waist, and started to pull back the string of her bow. Her muscles burned and trembled as she struggled to hold the string back, trying to aim. She was used to treading water, and using her entire body and tools to harvest plants, not pull a bow string.Â
She aimed down, at the one closest to her. The closer they were, the less power the bow needed, meaning the less effort she would have to exert drawing and aiming. She let the arrow fly, and it landed home spearing through the recomâs back and chest, a her aim off considering she had aimed for the head, but still effective as the warrior dropped alerting his allies to her presence.Â
She darted around the trunk of the tree for cover as bullets sprayed. She inhaled slowly, then exhaled, forcing her heart rate to slow. She edged around the base of the tree dropping down to the lower roots, the shadows obscuring their view of her.
âWhere is it!? Does anyone have eyes on it!?â One of the false Naâvi shouted, sounding panicked.
Good. Let them be afraid.
She knocked another arrow before letting it fly, this one missing, ricocheting off one of their guns.Â
She cursed and scurried through the dark tangles as the fired blindly into the dark of her hiding spot, one of the bullets narrowly missing her.
âWho has incendiaries!?" One of them shouted.Â
She had no idea what that word meant, but whatever it was it didnât sound good.
Her ears flicked, and she glanced down at the sound of water splashing. She caught sight of a mix of bright colors and muddy hues, the broad head and the long fin-like tail were unmistakable.
An entire pack under her.Â
If she could lure them toward the false Naâvi-
She didnât get to finish the thought as the roots exploded around her.Â
Heat, fire, roots crumbling. She was tossed backwards, her back slamming into a knot in one of the roots before everything under her collapsed, roots and debris falling into the water below as the massive mangrove tree burned.
Sänari hit the water hard, sinking below the surface and into the murky embrace of the swamp.Â
Her head was spinning, her ears were ringing, the explosion disorienting her.
She stared up, the sunlight refracting through the blue-green water that on any other day would have been a dazzling display of light and color. Now it felt soiled, tarnished by the burning debris that was falling into the water, sinking with her.
For one terrifying moment, she considered letting the swamp take her.Â
How easy would it be to give up, to let it consume her.
No more struggling, no more fighting.
And then, as if eywa herself forbade it, a figure appeared blocking out that dazzling light. The creature moved quickly, eating up the space between them in the water with predatory speed and then, a yellow and teal face was invading her space.
She let out a shocked sound, precious air escaping her before clamping a hand over her mouth.Â
The paluvan cocked its head at her curiously before swimming around her, as if it was taking measure of her.
Sänari could feel her lungs starting to burn. She started moving, swimming for the surface that somehow seemed further away now.
She wasnât going to make it.
And then a large solid body collide with hers from underneath and her hands scrambled to find something to grasp, her hand latching onto a kuru and holding tight as the paluvan broke the surface.
Sänari gasped, dragging air into her lungs as she clung to the creature.Â
The paluvan seemed pleased with itself letting out a low frequency rumble that vibrated through its body.
She stared down at it, her eyes wide. This was a swamp predator. Something that hunters and warriors trained years to bond with and she was justâŚsitting on it in the water, its kuru still in her hand.
She still had the false Naâvi to deal with. And Anu.
âPlease donât reject meâŚâ She murmured before pulling her own kuru over her shoulder taking the end in her hands, the dusty pink tendrils it houses writhing, searching for connection before joining it with the paluvans.Â
Both animal and Naâvi jolted, the connection jarring. It was a rush, feeling the power and muscle. Normally there would be time to bond, time to train, time to adjust.Â
They did not have that time.
âGo!â She told it, and it lurched forward launching itself onto the land, its low slung body sprinting across the ground directly towards the false naâvi.Â
Bullets flew past them, as they rushed them. The paluvanâs jaws clamped down on one of the guns, crunching it with sheer bite force rendering it useless. Sanari launched off paluvan, pouncing on the nearest false naâvi, the two of them tumbling through the mud, hands slipping until Sänari landed on top, her hunting knife plunging down with brutal efficiency.
She didnât get a chance to process what she did, the mud and blood slick on her hands before one of the recomâs grabbed her kuru, yanking her back off his fallen comrade with a sharp cry.Â
The paluvan, that had been busy mauling his current target, turned at the sound, a low growl reverberating through the air as it prowled towards her.
The false naâvi tightened its hold on her, his blade pressing against her throat as he put Sänari between himself and the animal as if she would shield him from the creature.
She couldn't decide if it was incredibly stupid or incredibly smart on the warriors part.
âLet go of Säni!â A voice shouted before both Sänari and the false naâvi toppled backwards.
Sänari scrambled to her feet, Anu was actively squaring off with the false naâvi, blade clutched in hand, his ears pinned, fangs bared in a hiss and his tail lashing angrily.Â
The false naâvi lunged for the boy, but Sänari was faster, launching herself at him, her smaller body slamming into him. They grappled, before he threw her down hard into the mud, her vision blurring as mud and water coated her face, his hand gripping her head shoving it into the wet slick ground even as her hands tore at him, trying to get lose.Â
And then his hand went slack, his heavy body going heavy on top of her.Â
Sänari scrambled out from under him. She turned her chest heaving, her breathing ragged and her face covered in mud just to see Anu standing over the false naâvi, his knife sticking out of its back.
Anu looked at Sänari, eyes wide and brimming with tears. âHe was hurting youâŚâÂ
Like he needed to explain himself.Â
âI know.â Sänari reached for him.
For one gut wrenching moment, time stopped.
One second, they were just there, staring at each other, and the next a shot was ringing out, hitting Anu with enough force that it knocked him off his feet.
âAnu?â It wasnât a scream. It wasnât some desperate cry. Just the small soft call of his name like she expected him to answer.
She wasnât even paying attention to the false naâvi, the palawan focused on terrorizing them and keeping them at bay.
Sänari rushed to Anuâs side, her hands pressing against the gushing wounds in his side. His eyes were wide, looking up at her, wide and panicked. He tried to speak, blood pooling between his lips.
âNo! No, no, no! Itâs ok. You will be ok. I can fix this, I can-â Her words cut off into a choked sob as Anuâs hand grabbed hers.
She held his hand, the moment lasting only a few seconds before his hand went slack, his gaze dull and distant.
The sound that left her was gut wrenching and mournful. No words, no laments.
In that moment something inside her shattered.
She yanked the blade she had given Anu free from the false Naâviâs body, gathered her own hunters blade and slowly rose to her feet before turning to face the remaining false naâvi that the paluvan had cornered.
Her rage was not a boiling inferno like she had seen from Kae and other warriors, hers was cold calculation, something much more terrifying.Â
The false Naâvi were no longer hunting down a girl desperately trying to save herself and her brother. They were now facing a monster of their own creation, the consequences of every decision that had led them to this point.Â
---
By the time Kae and Soâlek had managed to regroup and locate her, it was in the wreckage of the fight. A smoldering mangrove tree looming over Sänari who was holding Anuâs broken body, the paluvan curled protectively around her, the bodies of the false naâvi littered the area, left where they had dropped like discarded waste.
Kae was the first to attempt to reach her, approaching her like he would a wounded animal. Slow, predictable. As soon as he got close the paluvan lifted its head letting out a low growl. He stopped, lowering into a crouch, giving her distance.
âSänari?â Kae tried softly.Â
She didnât look at him, her gaze locked on the small figure in her arms, tears cutting jarring clean tracks of blue through the blood and mud still clinging to her face.
âI told him to stay hidden.â She said softly.Â
Kae tensed, swallowing hard before glancing at Soâlek who was still surveying the carnage.
âI know you did. You always make sure theyâre taken care of.â Kae reassured slowly moving closer. He reached for Anu and Sänari jerked the boyâs body out of his reach.
âDonât touch him!â She growled at Kae, her fangs bared, her ears pinned.Â
Kae stared at her his hand frozen mid reach.
It was Soâlek who somehow managed to reach her through the grief.Â
âWe should take him home. The little warrior should be with his people.â He said walking over, gazing down at Sänari who was huddled up against the side of the massive swamp predator, curled around the body of her brother as if she was afraid some one would take him from her.
Sänari moved slowly, her movements sluggish with the weight of grief and exhaustion.
Kae kept close but didnât touch, respecting the boundary both she and her paluvan had set. âDo you want us to carry him?â Kae asked.Â
Not because she was weak, but because the Anu was sizable compared to her and he could see she was hurt and exhausted.Â
She shook her head adjusting her grip on Anu. The paluvan rose, stretching, before walking beside her. Soâlek and Kae trailed behind as they headed back towards the village and away from the devastation of the sky people and the false naâvi.
I know this chapter is considerably longer than the any I've posted so far but I started typing and couldn't stop. I'm also sorry for the emotion damage that this chapter inflected but I hoped you guys liked it.
Chapter Seven will be up soonđ¤
