Dream Walker

With cuts on her face from the branches she hadn't been able to push aside in time, Grace continued to run at full speed through the middle of the jungle, her breathing ragged and her body tired, Grace had pushed her avatar to the limit.

She couldn't remember how long she had been running, but she knew she shouldn't stop, not yet, as the strange, ferocious beasts were still following her.

However, she reached a point where her body could take no more and leaning against a tree, Grace decided to take out a canteen to drink water, but great was her surprise when the fabric of the canteen was broken, letting the water spill out.

Grace, surprised by this, took a good look at the canteen, observing that it had a hole through it and that there was some kind of liquid that was breaking down the fabric as if it were acid.

It was there when he saw the tree behind him, which had embedded in its thick bark a large spike, perhaps thirty centimeters long, which was hollow inside, a hole from where the same black substance that had dislodged the fabric of the canteen came out.

The two beasts had found her, and noticing the two beasts in front of her, her assumption had become true.

Observing her surroundings, Grace saw herself surrounded by a large rocky mountain, with the only visible exit in the place where the two animals were, so deciding to fight, Grace took out a knife from her backpack, ready to defend herself.

But just at that, a sharp sound could be heard, to which the two beasts responded, moving their two limbs from their backs, producing a sound very similar to that of a rattlesnake. Grace stood not knowing what to do, but still with her knife in her hand when from the great treetops fell six Thanator, all over ten feet high, with a menacing and fearsome bearing.

Atop the ferocious beasts, stood six Na'Vi, armed with great bows and with a great spear on their backs. When the Na'Vi arrived, the two beasts that had been following Grace approached one of them, who left his tsaheylu with his mount, to connect with one of the felines.

The Na'Vi, after seeing what he needed, went back to making tsaheylu with his Thanator, then readied an arrow and took aim at Grace.

"What's a dream walker doing in Subaiya territory?" asked the Na'Vi, ready to release her arrow at the first sight of danger from Grace. Grace, wasting no time, raised both her hands, and in a pose of surrender spoke; "I am Grace... I seek Aleyx, son of the Olo'eyktan Sukai."

The Na'Vi, upon hearing the name of his Olo'eyktan blinked a few times, as his face looked thoughtful.

"What are you looking for from him?" Grace, knowing that her avatar's well-being was at stake, measured her words well; "I wish to learn of his people, to learn more of Eywa, of the jungle, of everything."

"HAHAHA, we have tried to teach you before, you have never survived, you will be no different, but give thanks to Eywa that the Olo'eyktan has given orders not to murder sky people, otherwise..." the Na'Vi replied, leaving the last part blank, letting Grace assume the ending.

The Na'Vi to whom Grace had spoken gave an order to one of his companions, which he reluctantly agreed to. The Na'Vi then proceeded to approach Grace on his mount, and then get down from it and tie Grace's hands with a kind of lasso, and then get back up on his Thanator, and signal Grace to start walking.

Grace, not wanting to object for fear of being killed, began to walk, as she watched the two beasts that had been following her change their appearance, returning to their friendly appearance... Grace only began to walk while her mind was immersed in those two creatures, it was as if entering Subaiya territory, she had entered a completely new part of Pandora.

Two new species were discovered on the same day, thousands of new plants and flowers, and a whole new world of research at her fingertips, she just had to survive first.

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In the tribe, Aleyx was in the territory of the hammerheads, the herd, which had grown to about 78 adults and 28 young.

Not only that, but more and more Titanothere and other species now lived throughout the territory, this had caused Aleyx to develop ongoing work with his mother Ma'ora to create a type of pheromone based on the venom of the Kali'weya, a scorpion-like insect.

This was done to render the creatures, or at least the ones Aleyx kept bringing back, harmless, until they felt threatened, of course, with the Na'Vi using the tonic, which was imbued in necklaces that each Na'Vi of the tribe was required to wear.

And while that would not have been enough, a few orders from Aleyx to the animals and the problem was solved.

That was something that Aleyx was still discovering, the uses that his gift had, so far he could communicate with wildlife, not that he could talk to them, but he could feel their emotions, as well as their intentions.

Likewise, Aleyx had discovered that he could, in a certain sense, impose his will on them, making the animals obey him, or a wild Thanator behave like a house cat in front of him.

It was something fantastic and beautiful at the same time.

"Aleyx! Look, he's not afraid of me anymore!" a Na'Vi girl, shouted at Aleyx, causing him to turn his face in the girl's direction.

Today, Aleyx was tutoring some of the tribe's children, showing them the hammerheads, their characteristics, and why they were so important to the clan.

At first, the hammerheads had been reluctant to the children's presence, but after a few minutes, they became more open to her presence, something that showed when We'lya, the girl who had spoken to her, was now petting a baby hammerhead, which was stroking We'lya with one of its large neural tails.

"Well done We'lya, see? There is nothing to be afraid of" Aleyx said to the girl, who puffed out her chest by way of pride, "However, you must keep in mind that outside the tribe, you are not to approach any wild angtsìk, as they will feel threatened and attack you, understood?"

"Yes!" the children answered him, still encouraged by it all.

At that moment, Sume'y arrived at Aleyx, who told him that the scouts had brought a dream walker to the tribe, making Aleyx finish today's class, to then go with Sume'y to the mother tree, to see who the avatar that had the courage and bravery to enter his tribe.