Chapter Text
A small leaf is carried by the wind as its path begins to be illuminated by the forest during Pandora’s night. Kiri watches, leaning against the roots of one of the trees surrounding the Omatikaya village, peacefully observing every movement as if she were part of the breeze traveling through the air.
Calm nights were Kiri’s favorite; she could spend hours simply contemplating every second of life unfolding around her.
Her moment is interrupted by her mother’s arrival at her side.
“It is time to go inside, your siblings are waiting for you for the story.” Neytiri calmly speaks as she runs her hands through Kiri’s hair.
With one last long sigh, Kiri turns to her mother with a smile.
“Alright.”
The two Na’vi walk side by side to join the rest of the family, who are already waiting around the small fire in front of the family tent. Jake is holding little Tuk, just three years old, resting on his lap as he laughs at something Lo’ak is saying. Neteyam stands beside his brother, leaning against a broken tree trunk and smiling.
Neytiri approaches Jake and settles down beside him, while Kiri fits into the remaining space, closing the circle the family had formed around the fire.
Storytime was a tradition they upheld to preserve the history of their people, keeping their songs and memories alive just as they were in Eywa. Neytiri made it a point, after so many losses, that the children know what life was like for the Na’vi before the war.
It was more than just recounting the family’s past, it was bringing back to life all those who were no longer here.
“So, what is on today?” Jake asks, settling in more comfortably next to Neytiri and cradling Tuk in his lap.
“Could you tell us more about Toruk? Why do you not ride him anymore?” Lo’ak asks his father curiously.
“Toruk is not an ikran, Lo’ak. You call him in times of great distress,” Jake turns to answer Lo’ak with a half-smile, half-grimace. It wasn’t the first time Lo’ak had asked about it, and Jake didn’t want to show just how much the wound of war still echoed in his mind.
Every time Jake thought about the sensation he felt when connecting with Toruk, memories of war and death came flooding back, and it wasn’t something he wanted to remember
"But I have a story about Toruk that you do not know." Neytiri tries to divert Jake’s attention. She knew how much her husband disliked the subject, even though to her, riding the great Toruk should be viewed with more pride. "My great-great-grandfather was Toruk Makto before your father. A great warrior. In all of history, since the first songs, only six Toruk Makto have ever existed."
"Who were they?" Neteyam asks, excited at the prospect of hearing more about Toruk.
"I think we have the story for today. The first rider of the Last Shadow."
Neytiri’s voice began to echo in time with the movements of her hand, which, illuminated by the flames of the fire, cast shadows that seemed to dance around them, drawing the children into the story.
"A long, long time ago, a devastating catastrophe put the lives of several clans in danger, but amid all the chaos, two friends proved that age does not determine the courage that exists within each of us."
In the Omatikaya clan, there were two fourteen-year-old boys named Ralu and Entu. Although they were the same age, Entu saw Ralu almost as a mentor. After losing his parents at a very young age, Ralu’s family adopted little Entu, caring for and raising him as if he were their own.
The two boys were at the age to begin the Omatikaya rite of passage to become warriors, and both couldn’t have been more excited for this journey.
Ralu was the son of a formidable hunter, and from a young age he was regarded as a prodigy within the clan. With a maturity beyond his years, Ralu had always been very disciplined and focused.
Entu wasn’t as talented hunter as his best friend, but the young man managed to stand out with his instincts and courage, adding to his list of achievements the saving of more than one life in danger through his strategies.
Entu was standing still, watching Pandora with his bow in hand, thinking about what the future held for him, when a voice from behind him startled him, causing him to drop his bow as he turned around.
“Ma Entu!” Ralu shouts after Entu with a smile on his face. Ralu takes advantage of his friend’s distraction to grab his bow and run. “Stä’ni oet, txo tsun!” (Catch me if you can!)
It didn’t take a second for Entu to run after his friend. With protests from the adults present, the two continued running through the mother tree, bumping into an artisan working there every now and then. Ralu was faster than Entu, and he knew it, but even his speed wasn’t enough to stop Entu.
Taking advantage of the brief moment of distraction that Ralu had when he had to veer toward the tree’s exit, Entu veered slightly off his path, cutting across the route, which allowed him to leap over Ralu, who was caught completely off guard by his friend.
“Ma Ralu. You are getting slower.” Entu teases as he stands up and extends his arm to help Ralu up.
“In your dreams, skxawng,” Ralu accepts the help and stands up, laughing.
“If the prey is anything like you, passing the hunting stage will not be hard.” Entu gives his friend a light shove with his shoulders as they walk together out of the mother tree.
"I would not count on that."
The boys walked side by side, teasing each other whenever possible, until they reached the training area. Both wanted to train one last time before the hunt that the young Na’vi would face the next day.
The rest of the afternoon and evening passed as usual, but neither boy could get a proper night’s rest for the next day, no matter how hard they tried. In the end, they accepted the few hours of sleep they would get that night.
Morning came very early, and with the first rays of sunlight making their presence known, Ralu and Entu were already fully prepared to set out on this stage of an Omatikaya’s adult life.
"Today you continue the journey to become taronyu (hunters). It is not an easy task; don’t feel bad if you don’t succeed on your first try." Touew, a great Omatikaya warrior who led the small group of young warriors, began to explain how the hunt would work.
Ralu was the first to attempt the task, and unsurprisingly, he succeeded with great success.
Entu waited anxiously for his turn, but he couldn’t have predicted what would happen. All his prior training wasn’t enough, and just when he needed it most, his bow broke, preventing him from continuing.
Had he strung the string wrong? Had he used too much force, or had he simply pulled it the wrong way? Entu couldn’t understand how he could have messed up at such a decisive moment. It would have been better to miss the target than to never have had the chance to shoot at all.
Even though he was devastated, Entu tried to stay strong in front of the others and show genuine happiness for his friend’s achievement.
That night, those who had successfully completed their trial would take part in the final rite, the Dream Hunt. Ralu tried to find his friend while undergoing his vision trial with the clan’s Tsahìk. Though worried, Ralu pressed on with his initiation, promising himself that as soon as it was over, he would find Entu.
It is a challenging moment in which the Na’vi seeks his spirit animal in a ceremony induced by the venom of the kali’weya,a creature that resembles a scorpion. During the vision, Ralu received the knowledge of the Na'vi way—the knowledge of the wind, the light, the shadow, and the beast. In the midst of the song of the ikrans and toruk, the Tsahìk gives him a talisman of the toruk, his spirit animal.
"May you be as strong as the Toruk!"
The celebration that followed was short-lived, interrupted by a massive earthquake that could be felt across the entire eastern expanse of Pandora.
Panic spread among everyone present. Screams could be heard as others fell to the ground. Some of the structures that had been standing collapsed, mingling with fallen branches.
Just as suddenly as it had begun, the earthquake ceased, leaving silence where celebration had once reigned.
The Omatikaya Tsahìk stood before the fire, her eyes fixed on the flames. What began as a soft whisper turned into an agonized scream in seconds, terrifying everyone present.
"Tree of Souls. The Tree of Souls!" Tsahìk screamed. "The Tree of Souls is in danger!"
During all the chaos, some Na’vi were lying on the ground, and it was impossible to tell if they were injured. Ralu couldn’t quite make sense of what was happening, and he didn’t even stay to find out. Ralu needed to know if Entu was okay.
Entu was at the Tree of Voices when all the commotion began. Whenever he needed to think or be alone for a while, he found refuge there with those who had passed away, alongside his parents.
“Ma Entu?” Ralu asks as he arrives amid the vines of the Tree of Voices. “Ma Entu… Ma Entu!” He runs up to Entu, who is crouched beside some of the tree’s tendrils.
“What are you doing here?” Entu asks, confused. He loved his friend, but at that very moment he needed to be alone.
"Do you not feel it?" Ralu seems just as confused as Entu. "It is not safe here. We need to go home." He approaches his friend, trying to get him to stand up, and receives a protest in response.
"No. Not now. I do not want to go back yet." Without looking at Ralu, Entu closes his eyes and takes a deep breath as he turns his gaze forward and connects with the tree.
Seeing that he couldn’t convince his friend at that moment, Ralu gives up on returning to the village and joins Entu in performing the Tsaheylu at the spirit tree.
Surrounded by the whispers, Entu didn’t expect to hear his mother’s voice uttering those words.
"Only the Toruk can help save the Tree of Souls. To approach the Toruk, you must gather five sacred objects from five different clans." Entu’s mother’s voice joins those of the other ancestors as the phrase is spoken.
“What was that?” Ralu, who witnessed that moment, is a bit lost. Minutes ago, he had received the Toruk as his spirit animal, and now his friend had received a call from the ancestors to save everyone.
The young men looked at each other, and Entu’s gaze fell on the talisman Ralu had just received, resting on his chest. The small representation of Toruk seemed to weigh heavily around Ralu’s neck with that small gesture.
Ralu had one, and four more objects were missing.
Upon returning to the clan, the atmosphere of chaos seemed under control, but the tension in the air was undeniable. The Olo’eyktan was briefing three different groups on some mission they couldn’t hear. A few people were still moving about the great hall, but many had already returned to their respective families.
Ralu spotted his parents from a distance and could sense the tension in his father’s posture. The boys crossed the hall in slow steps, as if everything around them were moving more slowly.
It was too much information all at once, and the young men didn’t know what to make of it. What did the elders mean by meeting with a Toruk? Its name alone told the story of everyone who had dared to approach the great beast of the skies.
“Where were you?” Ralu’s mother approached the boys. “This is not a good time to be out right now.”
“What is going on?” Ralu asked, hoping for some answer amid so much uncertainty.
“We are not sure yet, but the Tree of Souls is in danger.” The woman replied with a frightened look.
“But how?” Entu couldn’t process how the strongest connection they had to Eywa could be in danger.
"Lava. A river of lava is approaching and…" Ralu’s father doesn’t finish, but the boys can picture the rest of the scene in their minds. And it will be the end for everyone. In the fire, no tears can extinguish it.
The earthquake had triggered a massive eruption, unleashing a river of fire that burned the forests and destroyed the rivers in its path.
"But we will not give up without a fight. The groups are already gathering to ask our neighbors for help. I am sure that if all the clans help, we will find a way to save everyone." The man continues in an optimistic tone, though one that doesn’t inspire confidence.
Ralu and Entu look at each other as they realize what the ancestors wanted from them. They need Toruk, and with Toruk they could save the clans. To reunite those who had long since stopped trusting one another. It was a journey they had to undertake, even without knowing where to start, the young people couldn’t just do nothing.
During the night they rested as much as they could, and in the morning they would set out without knowing what the future held for them.
At dawn, the two Na’vi had to explain the entire situation as best they could, with the little they understood, to Ralu’s parents. Not wanting to go against the ancestors, Ralu’s mother gave the boys a tight hug, tears in her eyes, trembling with fear of what might happen, asking the Great Mother for protection on this journey.
Without looking back, so as not to risk giving up, the young men set out in search of their people’s last chance at salvation.
“Where are we going?” Entu asked after they had walked a few meters from the exit of the mother tree.
“I do not know,” Ralu replied. He had never felt so helpless in his life.
The look of worry and fear was etched on their faces, and with a silent agreement, they took a deep breath and pressed on in search of the artifacts needed to assemble the great Toruk.
After a long walk, they still didn’t know how they would find the artifacts—or the other clans. Pandora was a dangerous place for those who didn’t know how to navigate it.
When they came close to a small island in the middle of the river, they were surprised to spot a girl. As they approached, they realized she was a Tawkami. The girl laughed at the look on the boys’ faces.
"What is your name?" the young Na'vi asked, addressing Ralu, who was standing slightly ahead of Entu.
“Oel ngati kameie.” (I see you) He made a gesture of courtesy before answering. “Ralu.”
“And yours?” Entu blurted out, unable to hold back and forgetting all manners. Embarrassed by the look on her face, he greeted her. “Oel ngati kameie.”
With a smile on her face, the girl replied, “Oel ngati kameie. My name is…”
Her speech is interrupted by an atokirina, a seed from the Tree of Souls, which gently surrounds them.
"Tsyal," the Na’vi finally replied, her voice as soft as a breath of air—a perfect match for her name—after the shock of seeing the atokirina surrounding them.
The three young na’vi, understanding through a sign from Eywa, decide to spend the night on that small island and get to know each other. When Ralu and Entu explain what was happening and where they were going, Tsayl decides to help them, and as soon as dawn breaks, she will take them to speak with her father, the Olo’eyktan of the Tawkami clan.
At dawn, Tsayl wastes no time and immediately begins leading the boys toward their clan’s mother tree. As they walk, the forest grows denser and the vegetation taller.
“How do you manage to get around in the middle of all these plants? It is hard to even walk.” Entu asks Tsayl as he tries, without much success, to walk without crushing a plant with his feet.
“We are a clan of botanists and herbalists; plants are our specialty,” Tsayl replies, walking easily through the plants.
Upon reaching the mother tree, the reception is not what they expected. The adults present there stare suspiciously at the Omatikayas who have entered their clan.
As they climbed the tree, they spotted Tsayl’s father in the background with an expression the young people couldn’t quite read.
"Oel ngati kameie." Ralu immediately paid his respects, knowing he had entered an unfamiliar clan without having been properly invited.
“Oel ngati kameie,” replied the Olo’eyktan to the two boys. “What are you doing here, young Omatikayas?”
“Our Tsarik had a vision. She saw the spirit tree in danger. We need to find the Toruk to save it.” Ralu tried to explain, even though he felt the words stumbling out of his mouth without seeming to make any sense.
Ralu looks at Entu, who is just as confused as he is by the silence that follows. Perhaps trying to prove a point, Ralu pulls the talisman from his chest to show Chief Tawkami the purpose of their journey.
“We need the Tawkami seed to continue.” Entu says as he stands beside Ralu.
Eywa’s message seemed clear now; the seed of the Tree of Souls would guide them to the next destination on their journey.
Tsayl’s father looks at the talisman and then at the two Na’vi in front of him and can’t help but laugh.
"We cannot help you. We don't have any herbs to help, but good luck on your journey." Olo’eyketan says after laughing, already preparing to leave.
“I am going with them.” His daughter’s voice makes him stop.
“No. I forbid it.” Her father’s firm voice makes Tsayl a little apprehensive, but within seconds she recovers and stands by her decision.
“It is Eywa’s choice.” She tries once more.
"You do not know what you are talking about. It is too dangerous."
Amid Tsayl’s protests, Entu and Ralu leave, feeling humiliated by the clan they were leaving behind without having achieved the goal of their journey.
The young people realized they couldn’t count on help to reach Toruk and would have to fend for themselves however they could. And so they set out once more on a journey into the unknown.
Walking along the riverbank, they followed the current downstream in the hope that Eywa would guide them once more to their next destination, even though they had failed at the previous one.
They were so lost in their thoughts that they didn’t notice until the last minute the sounds of animals approaching in a not-so-friendly manner. Huge creatures appeared, cornering them at the riverbank. Their only option was to fight, and with their bows in hand, they prepared themselves as best they could.
Before the first arrow was fired, a girl’s voice echoed behind them across the river.
"Faza'u!" (Get on board!)
Without thinking twice, the two boys jumped into the small rowboat the young woman was steering down the river, managing to escape the beasts still advancing toward where they had been just seconds before.
"Irayo!" (Thank you!) Entu says as soon as he relaxes, feeling safe again,
"Irayo, ma Tsyal!" Ralu says upon seeing the face of his savior. "I am happy to see you again."
"Not to sound ungrateful, but what are you doing here?" Entu asks as the three settle into the small boat.
"I ran away."
"What?" The two Na'vi exclaim in unison.
"And I brought this here, I think you will appreciate it." Tsayl continues as if nothing is happening while holding up the Tawkami seed.
What starts as a nervous laugh from Ralu ends with all three of them laughing with joy as they drift down the river.
Ralu takes control of the oar while Tsayl sits on the edge of the boat, enjoying the view.
Entu sits a little further back and watches the girl in front of him with curiosity. They had known each other for less than a day, but she was willing to venture out with them even knowing all the risks they might face.
As the night wore on, the three began to think of a place where they could stop to rest that would be safe enough until the next morning.
“Look, there seems to be a campfire up ahead.” Tsayl says, standing up to try to make out the faint light shining behind some trees.
Taking his cue, Ralu steers the boat to the shore, where the three help pull it out of the water to use later if needed. Stealthily, the young na’vi approach the campfire and find a large Palulukan skeleton in the center next to the fire, with some Na’vi dancing excitedly around it to the beat of the drums.
Entu stops in his tracks and takes a step back as he stares at the bones before him. It was as if his nightmares had come to life, and he was facing a real Palulukan right in front of him. Since childhood, his nightmares of being devoured by these creatures had haunted him. The boy feared meeting the same fate as his parents.
"I think they are Anurai. I have heard stories about them." Tsyal speaks, still unaware of Entu's expression.
“Ma Entu. We can wait here until tomorrow. We do not need to walk there tonight.” Ralu’s hands rest on Entu’s shoulders.
These words caught Tsyal’s attention, and for the first time, he noticed the expression on Entu’s face.
“Are you okay? What happened?” Tsyal rests her arms, mirroring Ralu’s movements.
Embarrassed, Entu wriggles free from her grasp and walks away awkwardly. How could he explain to a stranger the fear that a mere skeleton had instilled in him? Especially since this stranger was brave enough to flee her clan to help them on a dangerous mission.
“It is nothing. We can wait here a little further away and introduce ourselves to the clan tomorrow. They are clearly busy right now.” Entu tried to distract Tsyal from the situation, but to no avail.
“You really are not going to tell me?” Tsyal said with a slightly disappointed tone. She was curious and intrigued by the situation.
“Maybe another day.”
Realizing she wouldn’t get much out of it, she accepted defeat for the night, as she was too tired to argue. The three found the best spot nearby where they could sleep with a modicum of safety and settled in for the night.
When Ralu realized that Entu had fallen asleep, he whispered to Tsyal before turning over to sleep.
"Entu has lost his parents to a Palulukan."
Tsyal stares at Ralu’s back in shock at what he’d heard and turns his attention to the boy sleeping beside him. That thought is still in her mind when she finally falls asleep.
At dawn, Entu wakes up only to find the skeleton next to him. Now he could see the creature’s terrifying bone structure more clearly. He would surely have new images for his nightmares.
There was no sign of any Anurai there, but they had noticed them at night. A small piece of palulukan bone was positioned like a totem beside them. A possible form of protection, perhaps. Entu couldn’t say.
Ralu and Tsyal stood up and found Entu staring at the small bone totem left by the Anurai. It was like a piece of twisted horn, but hollow inside with an opening on both sides.
“That is it?” Ralu approached Entu, who was staring at the object. “That is our totem to move forward.”
“I think so.” Entu replied, turning to his friend.
Ralu removes the object from the spot where the Anurai had previously left it as a protective amulet and then touches his Toruk talisman. Closer and closer. Out of curiosity or instinct, his lips blow into one of the holes in the bone, and a guttural sound is emitted.
The call of Toruk.
Almost as if by agreement, a shadow covers the ground, flying toward the young men. Frightened, the three run desperately into the forest, trying to escape the deadly shadow, hoping it won’t be the last thing they see.
Between fear and terror, Entu, Ralu, and Tsyal entered a dense forest where they had no idea where they were. They stopped to catch their breath when they realized that the forest had blocked Toruk’s path and he was no longer chasing them. Too soon to face it.
But luck was not on their side, and in the midst of the silence, the sound of Aynantang (Viperwolves) began to emerge from all directions, as if they were circling them.
“Aynantang,” Tsyal and Entu murmured at the same time, while only one word came out of Ralu’s mouth.
"Run!"
The three began to run again without looking back. Branches and leaves whipped against their faces, but they didn’t slow down. Amid the tree trunks and branches, the Na’vi leaped and climbed as fast as they could.
They were in unfamiliar territory and had no way of knowing that the hill they had just climbed led to the peak of a small mountain, and that ahead of them lay only a cliff. Turning their bodies in the direction they had come from, they could hear the viperwolves approaching.
Entu and Ralu grabbed their bows, preparing to fight. Tsyal took her small dagger and gripped it as firmly as she could. She wasn’t very skilled in combat; she spent most of her time studying and mixing all kinds of plants she found. Now she didn’t see that as a particularly useful skill.
In front of them, more than six viperwolves appeared, ready to attack. Just as they were about to launch their assault, an arrow coming from the side stopped them. From the left, a group of Na’vi warriors stood ready to strike. With the hunters’ presence, the viperwolves fled back into the forest from whence they came.
“You.” A far from friendly voice caught their attention.
“What are you doing in our territory?” continued the older Na’vi, who looked like the Olo’eyketan of that clan they hadn’t been able to identify.
“We are searching for Toruk. The Tree of Souls is in danger.” Ralu spoke the phrase that was now beginning to sound normal.
“Do not talk nonsense. Now leave.” The chief of the Tipani clan said.
"It is not nonsense. We have come following Eywa’s commands," Entu protested.
“We cannot leave.” Tsyal’s voice joined Entu’s.
The three young people’s protests continued, alternating between pleas and demands for help. The further they advanced, the less time they had, and they needed to act before it was too late.
"I do not want to hear any more about this." Olo’eyketan cuts them off again. "I will make sure to send guards to escort you out of our territory."
"But…" Ralu’s protest was in vain.
Two Tipani warriors accompanied the young men out of the clan, instructed to take them back to their clans. The Olo'eyketan hadn’t believed Ralu’s story, and now the three saw no way to continue their journey with the Tipani escorting them back to their clans.
"What do we do?" Tsyal whispered as he walked quietly behind Entu and Ralu.
“We need to find a way to get them to stop following us,” Entu said in the same tone as Tsyal.
“Or convince them to join us,” Ralu suggested.
The three turned their faces toward the two warriors accompanying them.
“I do not think that is going to happen,” Entu finally said.
Feeling hopeless, the five Na’vi continued their journey until they reached a rocky gorge. There they encountered the Kekunan clan. The two adults leading the return journey decided that this would be a safe place to spend the night so they could continue their trek the following day.
Flying above them in the night sky, one could see the bioluminescent lights of the ikrans soaring overhead. The Kekunan were among the finest ikran riders in those lands, and their home was built in symbiosis with the ikrans.
The flapping of wings grew closer, and four ikrans landed around the three young people and the two warriors.
“Oel ngati kameie.” Ralu greeted the Na’vi in front of him. He didn’t know the clan, but he knew that the one he was addressing was Olo’eyketan.
"Oel ngati kameie," he replied. "What brings this unusual group to the Kekunan?"
Before the adults accompanying them could say anything, Ralu hurried to tell the story he had been repeating for days.
"The Tree of Souls is in danger. We are searching for the Toruk to save it."
The Kekunan chief had already received the Omatikaya’s request for help and knew what the young man was talking about. The clan lived in the skies; they knew the legends and prophecies about the Toruk better than anyone, and observing the group before him, he couldn’t help but notice the Toruk talisman hanging from Ralu’s neck, or the palulukan bone hanging from Entu’s clothing. The seed of Tsyal was fastened alongside the adornments on his chest. And finally, he observed the Tipani warriors with their shields and spears.
The prophecy was real. The five objects to assemble Toruk together in one place. The Omatikaya’s Toruk talisman to recognize. The Anurai’s Palulukan bone to attract. The Tawkami’s seed to calm. The Tipani’s shields to protect. And finally, the Kekunan’s visor to guide.
“The prophecy…” Another clan member exclaimed beside the chief. “The prophecy is real.”
Approaching Ralu, the Olo’eyketan removed his visor and handed it to him. Made of small bones and pearls, it was a visor to be worn for assembling Toruk.
This surprised Ralu. After all the failed encounters with the previous clans, being received this way by the Kekunan was not something he had expected. Entu and Tsyal exchange glances and smile at the turn of events. The two warriors accompanying them are confused and intrigued by the clan before them.
"Come, we can show you the best place to try, young one."
The group was guided to the branches and trunks woven together like a bridge, connecting the rocks they stood on to the floating mountains. A climb for those who couldn’t fly.
"Here you will find Toruk. But finding them is not the problem. Riding them is… Well, madness." The chief warns them as they climb the first mountain. The vines that were attached to the rock above would be their mission, and the Kekunan couldn’t accompany them on this journey.
"Good luck. Oel ngati kameie." He bids them farewell and walks away from the group, heading back the way they came.
"You can do it." Entu places his hands on his friend’s shoulders and looks him in the face. "I trust you. I always have." He takes the bone and places it in Ralu’s hands.
Tsyal approaches and hands him her seed. Ralu adjusts the visor on his face and takes one of Tipani’s shields. He was ready—terrified, but ready. Eywa had guided them this far, and Eywa would protect them.
As he blew on the bone, just as he had done before, the creature’s cry cut through the air. Soaring above them, between the two stone mountains, was the Toruk, as menacing as ever.
“Ma Toruk,” Entu whispered from a short distance away.
As they tried to approach, the flapping of the toruk’s wings was enough to send Ralu flying, and not even the Tipani shield was enough to block it. Ralu fell awkwardly, and Entu rushed to his friend’s side. Tsyal joined Ralu, using her knowledge to assess his injuries.
"I cannot, my arm hurts too much." Ralu tries to sit up, holding his arm with his other hand.
Summoning all his strength in that moment, Ralu removed the visor from his face and held it out toward Entu.
“It has to be you,” Ralu asks Entu. “Now it is my turn to speak. I trust you, Entu.”
"No. I did not even manage to finish the rite of passage. I cannot do it," Entu replies in shock to Ralu’s request. "You are the one who received Toruk’s vision. Toruk is your spirit animal."
"And you are my spirit brother. Toruk is supposed to be by my side in times of distress, but you are always by my side, Entu." Ralu says, placing the visor in Entu’s hands and closing his fingers around it. "I need you."
Accepting his friend’s request, Entu stands up, puts on the visor, and sets off toward Toruk. He wasn’t the fastest. He wasn’t the most skilled. But he was persistent and a planner. He would tame the beast and save the Na’vi. He would do it for his friend.
Entu stared at the Toruk’s cry and ran toward it. As he ran beneath the beams, Entu took a breath and leaped. The impact nearly sent him tumbling off the creature, but he steadied himself just in time to perform the Tsaheylu. He was one with the Toruk.
As he flew over where his friends were, Entu could see Ralu still sitting there, shouting proudly about his friend. Tsyal joined in the shouting, gazing in wonder at what had just happened. From a distance, he could make out the Kekunan shouting from the top of the gorge.
Now he had to return to the Tree of Souls and save it, no matter what it took.
Entu helped Ralu and Tsyal set up the Toruk so they could reach the ancestral heart of the Na’vi as quickly as possible. But it was too late. The closer they got, the more lava they could see.
What the young people didn’t know was that after they left, the Omatikaya went to seek help from the other clans, and not even all that help was enough to stop the lava. They diverted rivers with rocks, but not all the water was enough to stop that fiery destruction that was approaching imminently.
When they reached the Tree of Souls, it was already almost entirely engulfed by lava. Ralu and Tsyal climbed down a little earlier, joining the desperate Na’vi as they watched their lives being destroyed. The crying could not be contained, but murmurs were growing louder.
"Toruk. Toruk. Toruk makto."
Entu noticed a single vine from the tree still intact at the top, and even though it was too hot to approach, Entu tried to save the last remnant of their connection to Eywa. After several failed attempts, the flapping of Toruk’s wings created a gap in the heat, giving Entu just enough time to pull the remaining life from the tree before it was engulfed by the lava.
Toruk staggers backward, and that’s when Entu realizes that one of Toruk’s wings has been struck by the lava. Finding a spot not engulfed by fire, Entu lands with Toruk while hearing groans of pain coming from the beast.
Crouching beside his new mount, still clutching the vine in his hands, Entu strokes Toruk’s head as the beast takes its final breath. Through his tears, Entu calls out to the Great Mother.
And Eywa heard him.
From the small branch of the tree, seeds began to float down, and from beneath Toruk and Entu, points of light began to emerge, gradually illuminating the area that had previously been completely destroyed by the lava.
Branches of light began to envelop the charred trunk of the Tree of Souls, causing it to begin to revive through the power of Eywa.
The Omatikaya members present there drew closer, along with Olo'eyketan and Tsarik.
"Oel ngati kameie, Toruk Makto!" says the Olo'eyketan, bowing before the young man.
A chorus follows, cheering for Toruk Makto. Celebrating his victory and the rebirth of the connection with Eywa.
"Entu was an Omatikaya orphan and became the first Toruk Makto." Neytiri finishes the story as she watches the sparkle in the children’s eyes.
"What happened next?" Kiri asked curiously.
"Entu and Ralu discovered a new life on that journey. They were Omatikaya, but now they were something more. They would always carry a little of every clan they passed through. And that is what they would do from then on. Nomads traveling from clan to clan, uniting everyone through stories, learning a little from each one." Neytiri replies, "Together with Tsyal, they formed their own clan. Composed of a few and many. Storytellers and bearers of the ancestral knowledge of each clan. From Entu came the Sarentu."