FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Disclaimer: Blah, Blah, Blah. I don't own Avatar; James Cameron does. All the Avatar stuff belongs to him. However, my Na'vi character, myself, the Dragon Weyr and its technologies, and the Pandoran animals of my menagerie are all mine. The Protoss - apart from my characters - all belong to Blizzard Entertainment.

Pandora's Templar

A Work-In-Progress Story by Coranth Dehanae

(Continued from Chapter 39...)

You may wonder, dear readers, why we chose to push the Gravitic Sled manually, instead of sending it and its contained lethal cargo through the Warp. Well, truthfully - although safely contained in the Cells and incapable of causing harm to anyone, now - Ieesha and I still distrusted the stability of the missile and its Warheads; that, and the slightest amount of Warp turbulence could potentially disrupt the operation of the Stasis Cells, resulting in catastrophe! Thus, we pushed it manually through the forest - moving it up, over, or carefully through whatever obstacles we encountered - as we headed back to the new Omatikaya Hometree. ~I don't understand, sweet David~ Ieesha said, once we were a short way into the journey.

~Why are we taking this cursed thing back to new Kelutral? Wouldn't it be better to just have the Dragon Weyr bring the shuttle back here in order to transport it back to the Homestead directly? Why are we pushing it along in front of us mounted on a GravSled?~ The "GravSled", or Gravitic Sled, she spoke of was a simple device; a psi-steel slab of any convenient size and shape fitted with hand grips, inside which was a pair of Gravitic Thrusters. when idle, the Gravitic Thrusters ensured the Sled stayed aloft at roughly waist height above the ground unless, of course, the user of the Sled desired to raise it higher or drop it lower; at which point the thrusters would compensate to keep the Sled aloft at its new position.

The Gravitic Sled was an unusual construct because no matter how much weight was placed on it, the device's Gravitic Thrusters would increase or decrease power to equalize said weight such that the Sled would always remain weightless, meaning that it could be maneuvered by hand with ease. "We could do that Ieesha" I replied as we continued pushing this particular Sled and its cargo through the forest, "but Jake might want proof of what's happened today - what's been done at the site - and I intend to give it to him! I'll not bandy about and say we've 'done this or that thing' without strong evidence to prove it; I'm no teller of tall tales!" At my curt words, understanding and determination filled my thoughts, Ieesha nodding as she promptly replied, ~I understand David.~

Thereafter, we continued our journey in silence, carefully moving the old missile back to the new Omatikaya Kelutral. By the time we arrived there it was mid-afternoon; Alpha Centauri B was high overhead, and we were both drenched in sweat, despite the best efforts of our Encounter Suits to keep us cool. "Whew," I breathed to Ieesha as we took the last few strides to our destination, "don't get me wrong Ieesha - I love it out here, I do, but... by Adun's Holy Grace I wish I could be back inside the Dragon Weyr right now. I could really do with a nice cold shower..." Walking beside me, her fine pointed tongue lolling from her mouth as she panted softly, Ieesha grumbled irritably, ~Tell me about it. Vach Encounter Suit!

I thought these damn things were supposed to help regulate our body temperatures as part of their Life-Support capabilities!~ Our journey came to an end as we neared the Gateway at the outskirts of New Kelutral, for we were leery of moving the missile any further. Leaning gently against my beloved's armored body I responded, "They do regulate temperature, Ieesha, but they were designed to be used on Aiur, and other worlds with far cooler temperatures than this." Irritation filled my thoughts, then as Ieesha heaved a frustrated sigh before snarking, ~Well, at least the NBC shielding works. If it didn't... at worst we'd be dead, and at best we'd both have a nice, healthy green glow! Stupid damn missile...~

Embracing her presence through our bond, I let her feel my pride and love and at that, her head lowered as she started to relax as we listened for a moment to the sounds around us; Pandora's untouched beauty. Beyond the outskirts, near the Kelutral itself, Jake, Neytiri and Mo'at sat with the rest of their People - and my own - around the ever-burning mreki u'lito, the Fire Pit, talking, joking and gossiping as they partook of the afternoon meal: a freshly caught yerik that was being spit-roasted over the crackling orange flames of the pit. Laughing aloud at a funny joke told by one of his Clanspeople, Jake turned to address another Na'vi, but as he did so he caught sight of us and - a huge smile splitting his face - he called out, "Zealot Txa'vit, Templar Iee'zha! Kaltxi. Please, come and join us all; you've arrived just in time for after..."

A moment later, however, he caught sight of the Gravitic Sled in front of us - and of what was upon said Sled - and then, everything changed. Jake froze, his cyan skin paling to sky blue, his eyes widening as his jaw dropped open, the Leaf Plate he held slipping from nerveless fingers onto the ground. A moment later, however - as his and my own Clanspeople gathered about him in concern - he leaped to his feet, a cry of "Ma 'Olo! Ma 'Olo, Za'u!" escaping bloodless lips as he raced over to us with all the speed his kind possessed. Fearing that their beloved home might be in danger from whatever it was that the Tawtute had brought with him, seconds after their Olo'eyktan raced away, the rest of the Omatikaya and their ten Tawkami guests set aside their meals and drew their weapons as they hastened to join him.

Upon drawing near us, Jake stopped and slowly walked the length and breadth of the Gravitic Sled, staring in awe and more than a little fear at the missile and its warheads. Then, a moment later - as the rest of the Omatikaya caught up with him - he whistled softly in awe. "Damn..." he murmured in English, "when you said there was a Nuclear Missile beneath our old Hometree, you weren't kidding around! So this is it, huh?" At his question, Ieesha and I nodded sadly as I replied, "Yep, this is it, Warheads and all." Leaning against Neytiri for support, Jake rested his head in his hands, whilst Tsa'hik Mo'at just gazed silently at the disarmed missile, her aged eyes shining with unshed tears. A moment later, Jake lifted his head to affix me with a stern gaze as he said, "Let's hear it. I want to know everything. What kind of missile is it and where did it come from?"

As Jake put forward the questions - her sadness thick and heavy in my thoughts - Ieesha moved to face him and then, she answered. ~This is an RS-24 Yars; a Russian thermonuclear intercontinental ballistic missile~ she responded, tonelessly. ~First tested on the 29th of May in the year 2007, the RS-24 YARS was designed to replace the older R-36 and UR-100N; two missiles that were already used for almost fifty years. Measuring approximately twenty three by two meters in size, the RS-24 YARS is a solid propellant-fuelled missile, equipped with four Multiple Independent Reentry Vehicles, each of which houses a 550 kiloton Nuclear Warhead.

This particular missile,~ she continued, gesturing to said missile with a wing, ~was a relic of the last Great War humankind had; the United States versus the New U.S.S.R.~ As my beloved lapsed into silence, I picked up from where she'd left off. "As for how it got here, well - put simply - the RDA got it. How did they get it? Well... money talks. Grease enough palms and you can do anything." Jake nodded tightly and at that moment, dear readers, I realized that my beloved's previous words to me - that 'this was the last thing Jake needed to hear' - were so very true; Jake looked like he was about to blow his top, whilst beside him Neytiri was glaring at me as if I had personally caused the missile to be brought here to Pandora.

Mo'at, meanwhile, just looked crestfallen as she rested her head in her hands, unable to stop the flow of tears streaming through her fingers. Soon, my attention was returned to Jake as he faced me and hissed through tightly clenched lips, "That's all well and good, but, why the /hell/ did you bring it here and how are you going to get it back to Txra'kon We'er so that he can get rid of it?" In answer to his first question, I responded heatedly, "Proof, that when you give us a mission we do our best to achieve it!" A moment later, I continued, answering the second of the questions he'd asked. "As for how we'll get it out of here... I'll contact the Dragon Weyr and have it send back the shuttle we arrived on; the missile will then be picked up and transported back to the Weyr without delay!

Don't worry, man; Ieesha and I want this damn thing gotten rid of as much as you do, and the sooner it's exploded in the sun, the happier we'll all be." Suddenly, at my words, Mo'at spoke up. "You... you will not send this tìkawng thing quickly through the Tawfya'o to Txra'kon We'er?" she asked. Immediately, Ieesha and I shook our heads before I replied, "Kehe, ma Tsa'hik, I will not; it would be far too dangerous to do so! Instead of that, I will contact Txra'kon We'er and have him bring a Tawsìp into which we will load this tìkawng thing..." And with those words, I did just that; via the psychic bond I shared with the great Nexus, I reached out to it; one of the few acts uses of Psionics that was permissible whilst I was under Penance. 'My friend' I thought, 'are you there?'

Almost immediately, feelings of warmth, reassurance, and affection filled my thoughts, along with concern over what had occurred between me and Ieesha at Old Kelutral. 'There's no need to worry, my friend; everything's fine between us, now. Ieesha just needed to blow off some stress. You know, of course, of what's been going on these past few days, right? How we disarmed the missile beneath the Omatikaya's old Hometree?' At the question, seething anger filled my thoughts, along with a vision... Sarah Connor looked at her son, John, exasperated and stern, before she said, "It was stupid of you to go there." As the vision faded, I looked first at Ieesha and then at nothing, blinking in surprise. A moment later I responded, 'I had to go there - going there and removing the missile was part of the Penance Jake gave me - and there's still work to do out there so Ieesha and I will be going there again, tomorrow.'

At this, a mixture of exasperation, anger, and concern from the Weyr filled my thoughts, along with its reply... "Goddamnit, you have to be smarter than that!" Sarah snapped. "You're too important! You can't risk yourself, do you understand? Jesus. You almost got yourself killed!" As the edited clip from 'Terminator 2: Judgment Day' faded from my mind, though I appreciated the concern of the Nexus greatly, I quietly and sternly intoned, "Though I appreciate your concern my friend, the choice of whether to risk my life for Pandora, and its animals and people is mine to make. That aside, what's done is done; the missile is disarmed and is no longer a threat to anyone. Now, I need some things from you.'

Affirmation filled my thoughts, as the Weyr prepared to listen to my commands, and at that I smiled as I said, 'Has the shuttle we all came here on returned to the Homestead, yet?' Again, affirmation filled my thoughts; the shuttle was indeed back at the Homestead, having returned two days ago, due to there being nothing within to prevent it from travelling at greater speed than normal. 'Alright, well, I need you to tell her to come back here, this time right to the outskirts of the Omatikaya Kelutral.' A feeling of questioning from the Weyr filled my thoughts, then, and I answered, 'Yes, I know Ieesha told you to bring the shuttle home, but I'm countermanding that order; I need her back here to transport this missile to you so you can dispose of it safely.'

The Weyr's affirmation filled my thoughts for a third time, then as the Nexus gave me an ETA for the craft - two days - and at this, I couldn't help but smile. 'Thank you, friend' I replied. 'Now, there's one more thing I need to ask of you...' When the Weyr responded with a feeling of questioning I said, 'Tonight, when you bring our armors back for rad-scrubbing, could you attach kits to them containing supplies necessary for an archaeological dig? Oh, and I'll need a sheet of Psi-Steel thin enough that I can roll it into a tube. Think you can do all that?' A mixture of affirmation and determination filled my thoughts; it would be done. 'Thank you, my friend; you've aided us both greatly today!' I said. The Weyr's response was a kind of absent acknowledgement as it busied itself with readying the items I needed.