Chapter 11

Left.

Right.

Strike.

Dodge.

Strike.

Block.

Harry's blue form darted around his training room, assaulting his mechanical training droid. On Earth, this sort of device was used to train elite soldiers to master the myriad martial arts that had been developed over thousands of years of Earth's history.

Harry was no elite soldier.

By including the footage, and therefore the experience of thousands of hours of masters of combat, he was able to programme the machine to train him to fight. Luckily, he could adjust the difficulty and speed of his opponents, however his progress was still slow. Painfully slow. The limited combat training he had experienced at the base was useful, but not enough.

Harry was determined to learn not only Earth's mightiest fighting styles but also the Navi's. There was less footage of them, however he was able to extrapolate from the little he did possess. That meant he could safely fight against opponents repeatedly, building up his skills until he was proficient to protect his life.

Learning how to react.

Learning how to win.

Smack!

The machines, thankfully cushioned limbs, punched his cheek and sent him rolling on the floor. Stars dotted his eyes as he fought to regain his vision. That hurt! He roared in his head.

"Alright. That's how you want it" He challenged and charged with every intention to claim his revenge.

He dodged the first strike and was able to use his forearm to block the next. Taking the opportunity he used the foam knife in his hand to go for the killing blow.

"Shoosh!" Harry's legs vanished from underneath him as the machine swiped his legs.

The sudden weightlessness caused his grip on the knife to fail, the machine quickly took advantage. As Harry hit the padded floor, the knife, his knife, was pressed against his throat.

"Dead." The machine intoned without any feeling or pride.

With a sigh, he reset the programme and prepared to have another go. He paused. Then decided to lower the difficulty by another notch. He was getting bored of losing.

The next few rounds were far more even, with Harry still losing two more bouts but claiming victory in the fourth.

Beep! Beep! Beep!

His wrist started to vibrate and alert him. He moved to the control centre of the base. Large holo-monitors hung on the walls with quick access to all the defences and sensors he had started setting up.

Looking at the long-range sensors of the mainland, he saw it.

A Great Leonopteryx!

It swooped down low over the jungle, hunting a smaller prey that divided and dodged its grasping claws. Its red and yellow skin was flashing dangerously, like a living fire just waiting to consume all in its paths.

Harry pressed a large red button. Doors started to shut and the turrets, the two sets he had installed, whirred to life beginning to track the beast in case it decided to investigate his island.

He focused the lens on the poor prey that was being hunted with such enthusiasm. The lens blurred and then cleared. He could see a banshee, green and blue.

No, not blue. The blue was a smaller figure crouched on its back desperately trying to hang on.

Navi!

Struck with horror, Harry could only watch. The Great Leonopteryx could rip apart his plane with ease and his turrets didn't have enough range to hit it at such a distance. A rescue was out of the question.

The Navi guided his banshee to bank left, then in another quick turn, before finally diving down. The Lenopteryx bite just missed the Banshee's tail.

He saw the Navi look back in triumph. Harry could imagine the Navi thinking how lucky he was.

He was wrong.

The claws of the great beast reached out with a speed unexpected of one his size. The claws raked the back of the Banshee and over the Navi.

Droplets of crimson blood showered the air. Harry felt his breath hitch in his throat.

The pair fell into the forest below, through the thick vegetation of the treetops. The Great Leonopteryx tried to follow, to finish its hunt but was stopped by the green barrier of the thick trees.

It released a screech of anger that Harry knew would terrify any local wildlife, then flew off back further in land, to hunt other prey.

Harry let out a breath. Seeing one in close action was both amazing and terrifying. He looked at the carnage of the fight. His camera could catch the glint of red in the treetops.

"Were they dead?" He asked himself.

He continued looking before he came to decision. He would go and find out.

His scanners indicated a storm was incoming, but he should have time, if he was fast.

Releasing the lockdown, and grabbing an extra medical kit he hurried to his rotorcraft and took off.

The flight was short as he pushed the engines as far as he could. The first storm winds constantly trying to push him of course and into the waves below.

When he approached, he knew he wouldn't be able to get close by coming down through the trees. If it was thick enough the stop a Great Leonopteryx, it would stop his plane. Instead, he slowed down and started to weave through the trees, far closer to the ground. Too close to the ground for comfort.

He dodged trees left and right. Vines tore at his craft and he only hoped they wouldn't break the engine or he would be stranded. Seeing a shaft of light in the distance and the broken remains of trees where the beast had tried to force its way in, Harry knew he had arrived.

Setting the rotorcraft down, he nervously approached on foot. The banshee was the first victim he saw. The flesh along its side and back was torn bone-deep. A wing had almost been completely severed from the fall. Its head hanging ever so slightly open revealing only a hint of the danger within. Its eyes wide, and dead. Harry only hoped its end had been quick.

Looking around for the rider, he suddenly heard a groan. Spinning around to a large patch of colourful fern-type plants, he moved in.

Gently moving the plant to the side, he saw the Navi.

He lay on his side, a leg bent with a bone poking through the flesh. Across his chest, Harry could see the claw marks of the beast. Thankfully they were shallower than he initially thought. He imagined most of the damage must have been taken by his ride.

"I've got you, brother. Rest well" Harry whispered soothingly as he reached into his medical kit. He didn't know if he could help him. The injuries were beyond critical. Looking at him Harry could see he was young. Younger than even the gathering party he had encountered before. He would be surprised if he was of an age to even take the hunter trails.

For a moment, just a single short second, the Navi opened his eyes and looked it to his.

He applied the bandages. Injected him with various compounds that would reduce the blood loss and encourage rapid healing. Looking at the gashes, he applied a spray before squeezing the two sides of flesh together. Taking the leg he tried to set the bone back into place, which he then had to close the wound and apply a brace to keep it straight.

He worked tirelessly for several minutes. He had attached sensors to the patient so he could observe his heart rate and other vital signs. He was no longer dying as quickly. His wounds however were too deep to fully close quickly and constantly wept blood around the seals he had put into place. His work had brought him time though.

He looked back his plane and then back to his patient. If he took the Navi back to the island, he had set up some medical equipment that might help. And, he thought slowly, There was always the Tra'vre.

Picking up the Navi with as much gentleness as he could muster, ignoring the slow trickle of blood running down his chest, he carried him to the rotorcraft. Tying him down in the passenger seat beside his, he started his return journey.

This time with his first guest.

Unconscious and near death. But still, the first guest.

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Harry held the Tra'vre in his hands looking at it wistfully. He had barely had a chance to research it beyond an initial scan. All the other tests and experiments he could have completed with it might have revolutionised medical science.

On the other hand, he could save this kid's life. Harry sighed. It wasn't a choice.

All the other medical equipment he had failed to do more than slow down the Navi's death. He needed something more. Something miraculous.

Using his hand to force open his patient's mouth, he squeezed the juice of the fruit onto his throat, then shut his mouth and held his nose forcing him to swallow.

He repeated it three more times until a healthy blue colour started to return to his skin. The wounds that were slowly trickling blood, stopped. From the scanners, he observed the bones starting to knit together. The flesh around his cuts wriggling together until smooth, unblemished skin remained.

They were all within Harry's expectations from hearing about the fruit. What he didn't expect was the additional marking that seem to form on the boy's skin. A pattern of light that shone as if a flower blooming, rippled across his skin. It was something that went beyond his understanding of science. If he was a religious man, he would have called it a Miracle.

Seeing the Navi's heart sound stronger with every beat, he relaxed. He sank into a nearby chair and closed his eyes. The days exhaustion catching up to him.

"Beep! Beep!"

His green eyes open suddenly, looking around wildly. He had fallen asleep.

The Navi was currently trying to yank the connecting wires from his body.

"Nimwey!" (Peace)

"Who are you! Where am I? What have you done to me!" He responded with blind panic.

"Nimwey. You are at my home. I found you injured in the forest. I brought you here to heal you. To save your life." Harry gestured to his wounds that were not little more than faint lines and would probably disappear soon.

"Where am I?" He repeated looking around at the very un-Navi like furnishings.

"My home. An island just off the coast."

The young boy's head turned left and right scanning the surroundings and when finally seeing the familiar coastline in the distance concluded. "Bad rock island?" It was more of a literal translation of what the natives must have called his home. Harry made a mental note to re-brand his home with a different name. Something more fitting.

Ignoring the commentary on his island Harry continued. "You were attacked by the Toruk. Do you remember?"

The boy eyes went wide and nodded. He started looking around as if he had lost something. "Ray'na. Ray'na" he called out. He made a whistling sound. When nothing happened, he looked at Harry with pleading eyes. Only then did Harry understand.

"Your Ikran?" He asked, knowing this would be a difficult topic.

The young boy's head bounced up and down shouting "Where!"

Shaking his head Harry explained. "It didn't survive the attack. When I found you, it was already with Eywa." Spontaneously, the young Navi boy burst into tears.

Harry reached out and held him close, letting his shirt dry the boy's eyes.

The loss of a loved one, no matter the species, was always hard.