The storm did not end gently.
For hours, Nussudle had flown through wind that fought Nova at every turn. Clouds pressed low and heavy, thick with rain that stung against exposed skin and weighed down wings. The sea below was dark and restless, its surface broken by whitecaps that rose and vanished just as quickly. Through the bond, Nussudle felt Nova's focus tighten, each wingbeat measured and deliberate as they pushed forward.
Then, without warning, the resistance faded.
They burst through the final curtain of cloud into open sky.
The world beneath them changed completely.
The water below was no longer dark and violent but stretched out smooth and calm, a wide expanse of light blue that reflected the sky almost perfectly. Sunlight broke through the thinning clouds, scattering across the surface in long, shimmering paths. The air smelled clean here, sharp with salt but no longer heavy.
Nova let out a low sound of wonder through the bond.
Nussudle felt it too. The sudden openness, the way the horizon curved uninterrupted in every direction, made the forest seem distant and enclosed by comparison. This place breathed differently. Slower. Wider.
"Easy," Nussudle murmured, though his own voice carried awe. "We're almost there."
They descended gradually, circling as the water below revealed more detail. Reefs appeared beneath the surface, dark shapes breaking up the pale blue. Schools of fish moved together in fast, coordinated patterns. Large creatures passed deeper below, their shadows gliding silently through the water.
Nova adjusted instinctively, wings angling to ride the air currents rising from the sea. The ikran's tension eased, replaced by cautious curiosity. This was not his home, but it was neither hostile nor welcoming.
Then Nussudle saw it.
At first, it looked like a scatter of shapes across the water. Platforms. Arches. Curving structures rising directly from the sea itself. As they drew closer, the shapes resolved into homes woven from living coral and fibre, supported by broad roots that sank into the reef below.
The Metkayina village.
Nussudle slowed Nova instinctively, guiding him into a wide circle around the outskirts. He did not want to arrive suddenly or aggressively. This was not forest land. These were not his people.
Below, movement caught his eye.
Na'vi moved through the water with ease, bodies cutting through the sea as naturally as walking. Some rode large, sleek sea creatures beneath the surface. Others stood on platforms, looking up as the shadow of Nova passed overhead.
Nova felt it immediately.
Attention.
The bond tightened, not with fear, but awareness. Eyes followed them now. Voices carried faintly upward, sharp and alert.
"Let them see us," Nussudle said quietly. "No surprises."
They circled once more before descending toward a stretch of solid reef just beyond the main village. Nova touched down carefully, claws gripping the sandy stone as his wings folded in close. He hissed softly, more uncertain now that the air was still.
Nussudle dismounted slowly, hands open, posture calm.
He had barely taken three steps before movement surged around them.
Figures emerged from the water and platforms alike, weapons held ready but not raised. Spears tipped with sharpened coral. Nets are weighted and coiled with precision. The Metkayina warriors moved with confidence born of familiarity with this terrain.
At their centre stood a tall Na'vi with broad shoulders and markings shaped like flowing lines rather than forest stripes. His skin carried a green-blue tone lighter than Nussudle's own, and his expression was cautious but controlled.
"I am Arvak te Tsika'u," the man said, voice carrying easily over the sound of waves. "You fly a forest beast into sea territory. That is not done without reason."
Nussudle inclined his head respectfully. "I am Nussudle of the Omaticaya."
A murmur rippled through the gathered Metkayina.
Forest Na'vi did not come here often.
Arvak's gaze sharpened. "The Omaticaya do not cross the ocean unless they are lost," he said. "Or outcast."
The word hung heavy between them.
More warriors moved closer now, forming a loose semicircle. Nova shifted behind Nussudle, wings twitching, teeth bared slightly in warning.
Nussudle raised a hand without looking back. Nova stilled.
"I am neither," Nussudle said evenly. "I come to learn, and to trade, if you will hear me."
Arvak studied him for a long moment, eyes flicking briefly to Nova, then back to Nussudle's face. "Those are large requests for a stranger," he replied. "And strangers bring trouble."
Nussudle took a steady breath.
"My father is Kamun te Tskaha," he said. "Olo'eyktan of the Omaticaya."
The murmuring stopped.
Arvak's posture shifted, just slightly.
"You carry a heavy name," he said. "Why does a chief's son stand alone on my reef?"
Nussudle met his gaze without flinching. "Because I have a purpose," he said. "And because this journey is mine to make."
The crowd and the sea itself fell quiet around them.
The silence stretched longer than Nussudle expected.
Arvak te Tsika'u did not answer right away. He stepped closer instead, stopping just outside arm's reach. Up close, the differences between forest and reef Na'vi were clearer. Arvak's arms were broader, his tail thicker, built for power in water rather than balance in trees. The markings along his skin followed flowing patterns, shaped like currents rather than branches.
"You come alone," Arvak said at last. "With one ikran. No escort. No message sent ahead."
"That is correct," Nussudle replied.
"And you expect welcome?"
"I expect to be heard," Nussudle said. "Nothing more."
A few warriors shifted at that. One of them, a younger male with a coral-bladed spear, scoffed quietly. "Forest Na'vi do not come to the sea unless they want something," he said. "Or unless they have nowhere else to go."
Nussudle turned his head slightly, acknowledging the speaker without anger. "I want knowledge," he said. "And cooperation. I offer trade in return."
Arvak raised a hand, silencing the murmurs.
"Trade," he repeated. "You carry little."
"I carry skill," Nussudle answered. "And as a hunter and warrior of the ometikaya clan, I hold tales and abilities those of the Metkyina do not."
Arvak studied him again, slower this time. His gaze moved from Nussudle's face to the bow at his back, then to Nova, who remained tense but still. The ikran's presence alone was enough to unsettle some of the Metkayina warriors. Ikran were rare here. Dangerous in unfamiliar air. And with an Ikran of such size, it could easily be classed as a Mighty.
"You bring a sky hunter into reef waters," Arvak said. "That alone is a risk."
"I will keep him away from your herds," Nussudle said immediately. "He hunts the air and land, not the sea."
Nova hissed softly, as if offended by the implication.
Arvak's mouth twitched, almost a smile, but it faded quickly.
"Forest Na'vi talk much about balance," he said. "Yet your kind cuts paths through trees and builds villages in places the forest once stood."
Nussudle felt the weight of that statement and chose his words carefully.
"We take only what we need," he said. "And we give back when we can. I am here because I know we do not know everything."
That earned him a few surprised looks.
Arvak turned slightly, speaking to a woman standing beside him. She was older, her expression sharp, eyes scanning Nussudle with open scrutiny.
"He does not speak like an exile," she said. "But neither does he speak like a child."
"Or a fool," Arvak added quietly.
He faced Nussudle again. "You say you wish to learn our ways," he said. "The Metkayina do not teach lightly. Knowledge here is survival."
"I understand," Nussudle replied. "I am willing to work for it."
Another warrior stepped forward, taller than the rest, scars marking his arms. "Words are easy," he said. "The sea does not care for them."
Arvak nodded once. "Then we test him."
The statement landed with finality.
Nussudle did not react outwardly, but his muscles tightened. "How?"
Arvak gestured toward the water. "You will enter our territory properly," he said. "On our terms. You will show us that you do not drown where the forest ends."
A ripple of approval passed through the gathered Metkayina.
Nussudle glanced briefly at the sea. It was calm on the surface, deceptively so. He had swum before, but not like this. Not here, where a single difference in shade could be either a rock or a predator ready to split you in half.
"I will do it," he said.
Arvak inclined his head. "Good."
He turned and spoke to the warriors. "Lower your weapons."
Reluctantly, they obeyed.
Arvak faced Nussudle once more. "Your ikran stays," he said. "He waits here."
Nova growled low in his chest, wings twitching.
Nussudle rested a hand against Nova's neck. "It's all right," he said quietly. "I'll be back."
Reluctance flowed through the bond, but it was tempered by trust. Nova settled, though his eyes never left the Metkayina warriors.
Arvak motioned toward the water. "Follow," he said.
Nussudle took a final look back at Nova, then stepped forward.
The sea closed around his ankles, then his knees, cool and steady. Each step pulled at him differently than the forest ground ever had. There were no roots to grip, no solid angles. Only movement.
As the water reached his waist, Arvak spoke again.
"One more thing, Nussudle of the Omaticaya," he said. "If you fail, you do not return to the reef."
Nussudle nodded. "I understand."
He stepped fully into the water, diving as Arvak entered the water beside him without hesitation.
After swimming a good fifty metres, the two surfaced as Arvak spoke. "You fight against the water."
Nussudle looked at Arvak, wondering what that meant.
Arvak looked at Nussudle before further explaining, "Listen with your body, loosen those limbs and flow like a fish, not a Syaksyuk grappling for life."[1]
Taking Arvak's words, Nussudle breathed deeply before he dived into the water again with Arvak following just a step behind.
Cold enveloped him instantly.
Sound vanished, replaced by a deep, muffled silence broken only by his own heartbeat. The light shifted too, bending and fracturing as it passed through the surface above. He kicked instinctively, but his movements felt clumsy, inefficient.
Hands closed around his arm.
Arvak pulled him forward, guiding rather than dragging. Through gestures alone, he showed Nussudle how to angle his body, moving more like a native than an intruder.
The pressure eased.
He realised then that the sea was not trying to pull him down or push him away.
They surfaced together.
Nussudle sucked in air, chest burning slightly, but he did not panic. The Metkayina warriors watched from the shallows and platforms, faces unreadable.
"You did not thrash," Arvak said. "That matters."
He gestured again, this time toward a shallow reef further out. "Again."
They moved deeper.
This time, Nussudle prepared himself before submerging. He let his limbs relax, movements slower and more deliberate. He followed Arvak's lead, mimicking the way he angled his body and used small adjustments rather than force.
It was not graceful.
But it worked.
When they surfaced again, Arvak studied him closely. "You adapt quickly," he said. "That is rare."
Nussudle wiped water from his eyes with his hands before looking at Arvak.
Arvak gave a brief nod. Then he spoke, "You now can swim like a fish, but can you hunt like a Skinwing?"
Arvak spoke loudly enough for all to hear. "Bring my personal Tsurak."
A murmur passed through the gathered Metkayina.
Arvak faced Nussudle once more. "You will not learn our ways in a day," he said. "Or a week. If you stay, you will be treated like any child, yet we will respect a warrior nonetheless."
"I accept that," Nussudle replied without hesitation.
Arvak studied him for another long moment. Then he nodded.
A warrior from the group arrived with the Tsurak and Arvek in swift motion moved to sit atop the beast.
Arvak gestured back toward the shore. "Come. Your ikran waits, and my people are curious."
As they returned to land, Nussudle felt the eyes on him again – no longer hostile, but wary. Assessing. Measuring.
Nova let out a sharp hiss when he saw Nussudle emerge from the water, wings lifting slightly in relief. Nussudle approached him calmly, resting his forehead briefly against the ikran's neck.
"I'm fine," he murmured.
Through the bond came reassurance, tempered by unease. This place was still wrong to Nova. Too open. Too wet.
Arvak watched the exchange carefully. "Your bond is strong," he said. "Stronger than most."
"He is my partner," Nussudle replied simply.
Arvak nodded. "Then see that he does not hunt our waters. If he does, the reef will answer."
Nussudle straightened. "He will not."
The Metkayina leader turned toward the village. "Come," he said. "You will meet the rest of us. And you will begin to understand why the sea does not forgive carelessness."
As Nussudle followed, he looked once more at the horizon.
Storm clouds still lingered far out over the ocean, dark and distant. Beyond them lay his home, his family, his mate. With a final breath, Nussudle turned and followed Arvek as the two were followed by the other Metkayina who entered the village.
[1] Prolemuris. Or those monkeys you see in the opening parts, where Jake shits himself and nearly shoots them. Avatar 1