Neteyam. His ocean blue skin and gorgeous amber eyes fall upon my helpless body, and even despite the circumstances he still flashes me his handsome smile that reminds me how I fell in love with him. The way his fingers twitch on the pole he was stood upon, and the wrap of his tail that I knew so well against my own. His pointed canine teeth that loved to gently sink into the skin on my neck, shoulders and back when it was just the two of us, teasing me effortlessly. Even down to the muscles that were taught over his chest and stomach, giving him that toned athletic body he had aquired from his years with the Omatikaya. All of it, the picture of my true love.
He leaps down onto the deck beside me and takes a few strides to my side, surveying the situation before him as a kind hand falls on my lower back. His fingers dart to the long knife he kept in his belt, pulling it from its sheath and towards my restraints. "No, help the others first." I breathe, meeting his eyes once more with soft tears. I had been so worried about him, and now, seeing him before me, I realised that there was nobody on this planet that I ever cared more about.
Sure, Tsireya and the baby were a close second. But they weren't him.
He seems unsure of my words, but when I nod my head once more to reassure him, he leaps away from me and rounds over on Tsireya. With a little saw motion, his knife glides through the restraints and frees her, letting her rub her wrists as he stepped towards Lo'ak.
Their previous feud seemed to have been long forgotten about, as another playful smile lands on his perfect lips. "Hey, baby brother. Need some help?" His words were taunting, though there was no anger behind them. Even though they were said directly for Lo'ak's annoyance, the younger boy can't seem to find it in him to scowl, only smile at his savior.
Neteyam cuts through the restraints, just as Lo'ak responds. "Shut up." But they were both chuckling. "Who's the mighty warrior? Come on, say it." Neteyam continues, putting his hand on Lo'ak's head which he knew the boy hated so much, and rubs it. Lo'ak can't stop smiling, though bats Neteyam's hand away once he's free.
My husband moves onto Tuk, giving her a reassuring smile before he once more steps before me, quickly cutting through my restraints and freeing me. I don't even bother to wait for him to cut through the second one before my hands have clasped around his face. We push our lips together furiously, the fear and worry fuelling the kiss long before the relief and love can cut through it.
"I- I thought you could have been dead." I murmur against his lips, pulling away to look at him. He was completely unharmed, though his attention flew to a small cut I had recieved somewhere along the lines on my forehead. I didn't feel it. Before he can reach out to touch it, I've flung my arms around his neck and pulled us into a tight embrace, letting Neteyam take my weight and stand us up.
"Come on, Ina! We have to go!" Tsireya's desperate voice shouts, pulling me out of the moment. The ecstacy drains from my body, remembering what was going on around me. Tuk has Reya's hand clutched tightly in her own, and Lo'ak was stood behind Neteyam, waiting for us to part before he spoke.
"They've got Spider. We've gotta get him," Lo'ak explains, a newly found gun sat in his hands. "Come on." Neteyam looks to me, my hand glued tightly to his in a vice like grip. He can't leave, not again. He has to stay here, help us get out of here. I know his parents will be counting on us to get Tuk to safety. And-
I need him.
He seems to contemplate Lo'ak's words, glancing between us all as if he was trying to find the best solution. 'Come with us,' I think to myself, 'Come with us and then we'll all be safe.' But I can't let the words fall from my mouth. I hadn't heard much about Spider, but I knew enough. He was like a sibling to them, a best friend. I couldn't make Neteyam choose between us and him.
"Come on, bro. We've gotta save him." Lo'ak continues, plucking a low, frustrated growl from Neteyam's lips when he realises that his younger brother was going to go either way.
The amber tones meet mine once again, apologetic and sad. "I've got to go and help him." He says to me, his words hollow and exasperated. My eyes are welling up again, a few tears streaming down my cheeks. "Then let me come with you." I offer, though it was more of a plead. A beg for us not to be seperated again. He shakes his head, "I can't risk you and the baby getting hurt. You have to go with Reya and Tuk."
I grip onto his hand as he tries to walk away, pulling him back to my side. "I can't leave without you." I try again, my voice a hoarse whisper. Anything could happen to him on this ship. If I could guarantee his safety then I would let him go in a heartbeat. But I've seen how cruel these people can be, how futile their efforts at peace are, their hidden agendas.
He presses his lips to my forehead. "You have to. I need you to keep Tuk safe for me." He whispers back, the precious seconds of our time slipping away as I'm left with no choice. His fingers leave my hands, slipping away from me as he walks towards his brother. "I'll be safe." He tries, though I knew that wasn't a promise he could keep. I can barely see him through the blur of my tears, but I can feel how much this is breaking him to see me like this. I don't want that on his conscience, but I can't deny that a small part of me hoped he would say 'Screw it' and not leave my side.
I was naive to think that.
He has duties to many more people than just me, and it's unfair of me to ask him of that.
"Don't do anything stupid and reckless." I mutter, yet the words were intended more forceful then how they came out, it was merely a squeak of a mouse.
Lo'ak drags him into a run further onto the ship, leaving me with the two girls a few steps behind me watching as I tried so hard not to crack. Seeing Neteyam run head first into danger made me feel so small, so helpless. But there was one thing I could do to help, to help them both. Keep Tsireya and Tuk safe.
I sniff back my tears and furiously swipe them away from my eyes, jumping over to the girls as I took Tuk's other hand. Without a word, we break into a run, sprinting over to the edge of the boat and jumping down into the cool water below. I welcomed the cold, it felt so much better against my stinging eyes. We emerge back at the surface, gulping in breaths of air as we treaded the water, searching for the quickest and safest way out of here.
There were still people dropping dead in every direction, both Sky People and Na'vi, and the deafening sound of heavy artillery was hurting our ears. I was quickly reminded that we had to be 10x as careful now in the midst of the fight.
A loud scream rings above our heads as an Ikran carries a helpless Na'vi over onto the ship behind us. "Look!" Tuk shouts, pointing to it as we see the nimble girl pinned down to the deck. The colour of her skin was an unmistakable deep blue, and her hair only reached her shoulders. "It's Kiri..." I say, mostly in shock as I watch Quaritch jump down from his tame and grab her by her queue. She lets out a shriek of pain, but he takes no notice as he forces her down the same path Neteyam and Lo'ak had disappeared into not a minute ago.
Tsireya and I were so consumed by watching her so helplessly from below, that we entirely missed Tuk swimming back towards the boat among the debris. "Tuk, wait!" I shout to her, but she doesn't stop. "We've got to go back for her!" She shouts, not even looking in our direction, "Sullys stick together!" I knew the words meant much more to her than what was on the surface level, a lot like how 'mighty warrior' meant something to Neteyam and Lo'ak.
The words penetrate through my skull, reverberating against every thought that came into my mind louder. Sullys, the one word stuck out to me like a thorn, changing my mindset in a mere second. I'm a Sully now, and that means my duty is to stick to them.
