Avatar: A lost survivor on Pandora

Far within the Eastern Sea in an atoll where shallow water meets the one the deep ocean, growing from the crystalline water was a rocky island in the shape of a moon crescent.

From its surface arches of stone butter outward, forming the shape of a circle of which through it Polyphemus could be seen eclipsing the sun when the planetary alignment corresponded, those arches existed because of the high concentration of potent magnetic vortices.

Those vortices were the product of a very high amount of pandorium within the ground, it was also due to this peculiarity that the vertical half-disc-shaped structures above the island formed and a hundred stones could be seen floating on about higher above, there were from the size of a pebble to small island and of shape carved by millennia of sea winds.

A sight reminiscent of the Hallelujah Mountains on a smaller scale, but that was because the main island and the archipelago around with the gallery of hovering stones were but the tip of the iceberg. 

It was but a tiny percentage of the total that made the geography of the area, the rest lay below the waves, crevices of unfathomable depth with rivers of dens oil rich in pandorium and Psionic flowed with rocks in between defying gravity breaking the powerful chaotic current originating from the labyrinths of caverns where cold and hot water mingled.

None that could be seen at the surface for forests of algae, coral, and sea anemone-like creatures blocked most of the sight, still, that didn't mean it was perfectly safe to be within this water, particularly on a ship or raft that could suddenly be sucked below the sea with the sudden movement of floating rock formation and never be seen again adding that all conventional technology was obsolete in nearly fifty kilometers radius, the deeper the worst it became. 

This was without taking into consideration the danger brought by the flora and fauna when not following certain paths. As picturesque and surreal as this island and its surroundings, danger lurked.

This place was known under the name Cove of the Ancestors, the most sacred site of the oldest and most powerful of the Eastern Sea clans, the Metkayina but not only, other Na'vi clans regularly went here and it was one of the main hubs for pods of tulkuns.

Why was it the case for all of those points and the general topography of the area? The answer was simple, growing in the center of the crescent made by the island underwater was a Tree of Souls, or more accurately a Spirit Tree, Ranteng Utralti in Na'vi.

It's a sea-adapted variant of its land counterpart, this one was old, nearly as old as the oldest one of the Hallelujah Mountains, and ever so slightly bigger. Like any other held the ancestors of all the Na'vi but also tulkuns, it was a place rich in meaning, emotions, and history.

Today was the day those three points saw a major shift, one never seen before in this place. One that has brought hundreds of Na'vi and tulkuns, far less than the event.

Tonowari, the Olo'eyktan of the Metkayina rode his tsurak, or skimming in English, a predatory hyper-aggressive fish looking like the hybrid of a barracuda and flying cod the size of two great white sharks. 

An animal only the strongest could tame, and that wouldn't even be fully due to the relatively low intelligence, stubbornness, and powerful instincts of such powerful beasts, it remained wild all long of its relatively short life span slightly above that of cats.

Tonowari was a broad-shouldered Na'vi, his powerful muscular ut almost the antithesis to the elfish one of his species, the one of the seas was naturally more gifted in that aspect but even then he stood out.

His azure skin glistened under the descending sun as breathed deeply to clear his ever-so-conflicted mind, his gaze moving to that of his mate and Tsahìk of their clan, Ronal. Her face was serene as she moved the ilu she was riding toward a massive armored creature with him.

It was a nalutsa, the King of the Sea, and not any random one, the one that had the honor to have been bested and tamed by the All-Father, a large metallic platform was atop its armored body, blue particles of flight floating all around. On it was a circular and flat structure that he came to learn was called a Tek Teleporter and transported anything and everything from one Teleporter to the others. He would have called it madness and lies if it wasn't for the fact he used this impossible device of godly power more than a few times.

The Teleporter suddenly flashed and a creature of metal appeared, a Tek Stryder, its neck turned around while its antler lit a soft white, and its four long legs moved with supreme grace as it walked toward the water but to the shock of all it didn't fall.

Its hooves of metal shifted, tiny fragments orbiting around as each of the creatures created a bridge of iridescent blue composed of hexagons that materialized as it advanced in the air with grace.

Soon after Scouts were teleported and like ants worked around maintaining the hard light bridge, more Tek Stryders came and walked on the bridge, then Enforcers warped all around, and the crowd farther away unable to discern the strange light from the rest could but gawk in dumbfoundedness at the various Tek beasts walking on the air.

{The Children of Metal…}, Ronal said with both worship fervor and fear of those creatures that came out of the techno divine device that broke her view of reality. The star of the show, Tek Stryders, is the original and first true creation of the All-Father, those beings were gifted with the power to bring both creation and destruction.

It was but a natural reaction to feel fear to such a creature that if armed correctly could fire beams of pure energy that would vaporize everything in its path from a seemingly unlimited range, it was a sane reaction. She and Tonowari had been witness to its power as a demonstration after one child had asked, it had neutralized an incoming thunderstorm, the sky dividing in two. 

One single beam and half of their clan would be gone, razed off existence. Of course, it will never come to this but it showed the sheer power of only one of twenty-five of such creatures that were currently trotting on the multiple bridges of light. 

They might look like prey animals, the kind that runs and never fights back unless cornered. Their size was the only truly threatening aspect of their bodies. So as harmless as they might look at first glance, with no claws, fangs, poison, or sharp parts they weren't at all, even if their main function was to be workhorses.

{I see you Olo'eyktan and Tsahìk of the Metkayina.}, a rumbling voice akin to a clap of thunder in power and volume reached the Na'vi couple's ears, the one who spoke hovering down from the platform with his Tek Armor.

{I see you, All-Father.}, both said in unison, surprise obvious in their respectful voice and body language at the sudden appearance of the voice owner.

A 'human' male of size not incomparable to that of Tonowari but far more physically developed was the owner of said voice, his bearded face unhidden by any helmet gave sight to two silver eyes glowing with potent blue and purple energy, the same energy that was trailing on the left of his dark brown hair and left ear, some even going down his forehead in the form of cracks.

This schism between organic and energy was ever-shifting as if his body didn't know what state it should be in, if one were to look even closer and be patient enough one side could be seen advancing, winning over the other in this tug of war. 

The energy as soon as it touched the air and expanded seemed to flicker out of existence, unknown to the Na'vi this was exactly what was happening. But it was inconsequential at such a scale, the energy instantly being replaced in an infinite cycle.

 

'I will need a bit more time to get used to people calling me this… At least they don't consider me a god.', Liam thought, he wasn't that detached from reality to not find it a little weird, and their demeanor toward him… It wasn't one new for him but one that has become night omnipresent and it wasn't a development he didn't anticipate. 

Generally, when something unexplainable and so far from common happens it brings two main things into the heart of sapient beings, curiosity, and fear that can lead to veneration to varying degrees, and others but here it was this. 

Make this into an individual repeatedly breaking their view of reality and this led to the current result for the vast majority. 

Liam knew he was to blame for this treatment, so he didn't complain as he had no right to, he didn't do things discreetly, he was blunt and to the point, a bit theatrical even, and in the end it only accelerated the inevitable. That didn't mean he considered himself or his mate as some kind of divinity, far from it but he acknowledged the vast difference in capabilities.

'I'm the equivalent of Mother Nature's husband for them… Their goddess… It would be weird if they treated me like a regular man or anything close to that term.', he thought briefly, one of his several lines of thought running simultaneously in his brain when he didn't need to think on complicated subjects that needed his full focus.

{As there has been any discontentment or complication within the clans for today's goal?}, Liam asked, his pupils dilating as he gazed through the hundreds of Scouts present at the same time. He didn't mention the whales as they all fully understood and accepted the incoming change. 

It wasn't so much the case for the Na'vi. 

There were a few seconds of silence where Tonowari thought about the questions, not sure how to respond in a way that wouldn't anger the superior being in front, then he closed his eyes and spoke.

{There have been very vocal adversities… Even within our clan and even me. Change is something we are unfamiliar with, such a drastic one on such a personal level even more so. It does not matter for many if the reasons behind are a necessity. Once a way is set it is a hard task to sway it in another path.}, the Olo'eyktan of the Metkayina said his tone calm but with a certain edge of anxiety and frustration.

{As I forethought but it will be so, no matter what might be the consequences. It is not me who will suffer.}, the All-Father said but the cold and hard truth was it was a matter of power, as all things were. It wasn't a matter of who was right but who was strong.

Eywa was with him… The Olo'eyktan was far from pleased with this situation, but he was powerless, it was the ground of his ancestor, and he couldn't understand how his mate, the most stringent and less acceptable of change, was the one fully agreeing to such a thing. He couldn't see it.

Tonowari's eyes sharpened and he dared to ask, it was the RDA even if he never had to deal with them, it reminded him of the stories that evolved with a similar scenario, {Couldn't it be built elsewhere…? Why here on our ground? The ocean is vast, you have space in abundance. Why ask us if it is to ignore our pleas?}

{Do not confuse me with merely informing you of what is inevitable to me asking for your authorization, you do not possess such power, none but my mate does, if you did I would have asked. As false as it sounds, it displeases me to force it upon you and your people, it infringes on your belief but I must for the Obelisk to function properly. Survival is more important than emotional attachment and feelings.}, Liam explained in his usual way of speech, low in emotions and concise. There was no arrogance or disdain in his voice, it was simply facts.

{However, fret not. I will not bring destruction to the Cove of the Ancestors for it is unnecessary for the Obelisk to be constructed.}, he said hovering backward with a smile, the Avatar of Eywa suddenly appeared next to him from thin air.

The emplacement of the Obelisk and their environment was equally important to that of their winners working, they weren't perfect machines as much as they might seem from anyone else but Liam.

They were imperfect, flawed, a temporary solution, their hovering capabilities in a grand party thanks to the pandorium and Psionic of the location. But that was the most he could do with his time, knowledge, and intelligence.

As such it was to be built for it was the only area rich enough in the superconductor far enough from the Hallelujah Mountains and quite a few more points. He did with the hand he was given, if it displeased some then so be it. 

Then the construction began, from behind the arches of stones was a circular platform of metal in its middle was a Terminal where Liam was placing his specimen implant.

In a fashion identical to the first Obelisk this one was built from spires to bottom in a matter of minutes by the combined effort of Tek Stryders, Scouts, and Enforces, its size and design would be a perfect copy if not for the blue beginning to be emitted instead of green.

'Let's turn you on…', he thought, his heart hammering in his chest as a tingling sensation spread through his body.

As he turned the megastructure on a beam of pure white energy shot out to heaven exploding once it reached a certain height and as the process proceeded on exactly like for the Green Obelisk, a shield of energy covered the sky, cutting all external sources of light until the two third complete World Barrier turned transparent.

"Only the Red one to go.", Liam said joyfully teleporting himself and Eywa to his island, letting the crowd calm down and his creatures move away. There was no need for any more fanfare.

His hands were trembling, his face sweaty, and dark red blood started to trickle down his nose, left eye, and ear in great quantity, Eywa gazed at him with worry even if she knew it was as they predicted. 

It never was a pleasant sight to your other half in nothing less than perfectly healthy. If anyone were to see him in such a state, catatonic shock would be their only response, the stoic tall mountain of a man in a state that for many will be one for being fully bedridden and on heavy painkiller drugs.

This attracted his attention and he used a Scout to observe himself, he frowned before shaking the trembling out of his hand and cleaned the flow of blood with a handkerchief for the most part. It was only his body expelling what wasn't needed, still it was unpleasant.

"How do you feel, my love?", she asked with her right hand cupping one of his cheeks while her pink eye focused on his silver ones, the capillary pulsing with blue and purple as bright as they ever had been.

"Physically it is complicated to put into words but wrong would be the term, my body is confused about what it should feel and how it should work. As for mentally, relieved… The threat of dissipating or turning into a mutagenic ball of flesh is soon going to be distant though when I can Ascend.", he answered with a faint smile, his usually pearly white teeth now painted with his blood.

"That is reassuring to hear.", she said softly kissing on the lips then she added, speaking the obvious, "Part of you as it may be Element is truly a boon and a curse."

"It is indeed, but it is necessary and I will take control of it, reign it in as any part of my body should. It is but a matter of time.", he promised his smile back then he invited her to take a bath, which she accepted in a heartbeat, a new shower would be needed after this.

*

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