Pandora: A Different Time
Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar or the terms and subjects in the Avatar world, all rights go to James Cameron (The Genius). This is my first Fanfiction ever so bear with me. A big shout out to Kateofallpeople for helping me with the grammer, spelling and random sentences I couldnt find homes for :D
Chapter One
Anna Marie Quaritch looked through the window of the air-traffic control tower, dancing on the balls of her feet. Beyond the safety of the high voltage fence that ran the perimeter of Hell's Gate, towering trees twice the size of those on earth loomed. Colours that she hadn't known existed illuminated what could have been a simple spectrum of green foliage. But this was Pandora, there was nothing simple or blasé about this planet.
Anna had arrived a year ago after her father had begged her to come out and join him on Pandora. She had grown up knowing everything about the alien planet that sourced a highly profitable metal called unobtanium. However difficult it had been for her to leave Earth, she didn't miss the buzzing city, or the fact that there was nothing to hint towards what Earth had been hundreds of years ago. Anna could easily live without the reminder that her home planet was on the verge of death. But she did miss someone. Norman Spellman: geek extraordinaire, and her best friend in the whole entire world. Their mothers had been friends since childhood. Instilling the same relationship in their children. Norman made the unbearable bearable and the dismal a cacophony of colour.
"Valkryie Shuttle Alpha, this is air traffic control. You are cleared for landing." One of the officers said. Anna squinted into the sky her heart racing as she saw a black dot begin to enter the atmosphere, as it became a larger and more distinguishable vehicle, thrusters sent debris flying into the faces of the scientists, miners and marines on the ground below. A large smile erupted on her face as she ran towards the door. The hydraulics hissed as the doors swished open. Intel plastered themselves to the wall as the lithe sprite dashed down the corridor.
"Anna?" Dr Grace Augustine asked. Anna came to a stop, her momentum sending her into the metal wall. Chuckling she tucked a stray strand of black hair behind her ear and addressed the head of the Avatar Programme. The woman was in her fifties with short auburn hair her face marred with the creases of someone who was serious and dedicated to their job. She was taller than most men Anna knew and in comparison to Grace's height Anna was a dwarf.
"Grace." Anna said with the familiarity of someone who was close to the doctor. Over the past twelve months the two had grown quite attached and Grave viewed the young woman as the daughter she never had.
"Where are you off to in such a hurry?" Grace asked lighting a cigarette. Anna scolded taking the offending stick from her mouth and crushing it against the wall.
"Hey, it's been stressful, that new anthropologist hasn't arrived yet." Grace cursed lifting another cigarette to her lips.
"That's why I'm in such a hurry. Norm is here!"
Norman Spellman checked that his exo-mask was on properly, not relishing drowning in his own blood before he had a chance to touch Pandora soil. The shuttle doors opened and Norman rushed to slip on his backpack, stumbling slightly as his body adjusted to hold the extra weight. He hadn't remembered packing so much…but then, he had been so excited when he was offered the chance to come to Pandora that his mind had swarmed with all the things he needed. Through the Plexiglas of the mask, the wonders beyond the wall astounded him so much so that he stopped suddenly taking in the majesty that was Pandora.
"Hey, watch it nerd!" A gruff voice boomed. It belonged to an overly-muscled marine with a five o'clock shadow that seemed to be verging into a bonafide beard. Norman mumbled an apology. taking thought out steps down the ramp onto the compound. Six years in cryo was very disorientating and Norman didn't relish having to go through that process again. From the corner of his eye he noticed a large metal crate being pulled by small vehicles. They were the Avatars. His palm began to sweat with anticipation, soon he would be controlling his very own Na'vi.
The Avatar Programme was what had hooked him into joining. The thought of being able to be inside the body of the indigenous people of Pandora was so far beyond exciting that he didn't even think a word to describe what he was feeling was in the English or Na'vi dictionary. Continuing on his path to the induction building, an enormous tractor rolled pass him. The ground vibrated beneath his feet, and the feeling of disorientation hit him again. On the large wheels numerous feathered arrows protruded from the thick plastic. As soon as the truck had trundled out of his sphere of sight, something caught his attention. There was loud whooping and rooting and everyone had turned in the direction of the main building.
"Whoo-wee, if I had known there'd be ass like that I would have come out here a long time ago!" A dirtied miner exclaimed. Norman raised his eyebrow at his comment as more and more men began to cheer. A small figure dashed through the compound, weaving through the group of quickly congregating men, pushing and sliding between them as they tried to grab some part of her. Although she wore an exo-pack she was dressed in tattered denim shorts and a halter neck, black ringlets flying behind her like serene fingers.
"Norm, Norm." The figure cried. Norman was left speechless as the woman leapt onto him, wrapping her arms and legs around him. The added weight sent him falling onto his backpack. The small body wriggled against him and began kissing him all over his face.
"Normy I've missed you." She said rubbing her face against his neck.
"Wish someone would greet me like that." Said the marine who had bumped into him. Norman saw a look of grudging respect.
Anna Marie Quaritch was lying on top of him and kissing him. He had never thought he'd see the day. Lowering his face he made to kiss her back but she had already sprung up and was dragging him by the hand.
"Come on Norm." She huffed, dragging him behind her. Many of the ground crew gave envious growls and encouraging winks towards the two of them. Norman blushed at what must have been an outrageous scene. Then again, this was Anna, and she was anything but bashful. They had been friends since childhood, and while her father had worked in the military hopping from post to post. Anna and her mother had stayed with his family. They had grown up as siblings and were closer than best friends. They knew everything about each other. Norman usually treasured that relationship, although some days… Norman cleared his thoughts and returned Anna's wide smile. There was never a day he had seen her frown, but over the last seven years he had missed that smile. In cryo, you don't think or dream. To Norman, it was as though he had left earth only yesterday but that didn't stop him from missing her for the entire year she'd left him.
While Anna led Norman to god-knew-where, he drank in her appearance, noticing that she'd lost a little weight while she had been in Pandora. When they entered the bio-lab Anna removed her exo-mask, running her hand through her tight black ringlets. Norman could barely breathe. He hadn't thought it was possible for to change so much, but her Carmel skin inherited from her African mother glowed ethereally. Her large grey eyes showed more innocence than he could ever remember and her lips…her lips were the same plump shape that begged to nipped, licked and suckled.
"Look at her Norm, isn't she beautiful." Anna said running hands over the amino tank which held her Avatar. The empty shell floated in the liquid, her muscles twitching involuntarily. The being was a large, blue female with darker stripes all over her body. It was similar in external anatomy to humans, except for cat-like ears and a long feline nose. A tail with a dark tuft of hair limply swayed from side to side. Bioluminescent dots glowed around her slumbering face and body. The hair on the Avatar's hair was curly and long just like Anna's and Norman could see the similarities in facial features.
"Gorgeous." He whispered copying her motions of running his hand along the acrylic tank.
"Norman Spellman." Norm jumped at the unfamiliar voice but he knew instinctively who it was. Grace Augustine was a god - or should he say goddess - in his eyes, and he aspired to be just like her. Shaking with uncontrollable nerves, Norman took her hand and shook it.
"Umm Norm, you can let go now." Anna said. Norman realised he had been shaking her hand for some time now. Blushing, he let go, stumbling backwards and hitting his back against tank.
"Lovely, another bumbling idiot." Grace said sourly. "I need a cigarette." The harried scientist flipped open a packet, lighting one as soon as it touched her lips. Norman slumped his shoulders in defeat, already he had pissed off his idol. He couldn't see this getting any worse.
Anna sat in the mess hall picking at the food on her plate. Though it was hot and smelled nice, the gooey concoction was highly inedible. It was meant to be burger and chips but Selfridge, the administrator of the Pandora operation, said that using real meat and vegetables was a waste of money, so everyone was stuck eating synthetic crap.
"I still don't think this is a good idea." Anna smiled watching her father as he came towards her. He was a tall butch man, with white hair cropped closely to his scalp. He was handsome, even with the evenly spaced out scars running from his scalp to his jaw. Their eyes were identical, except that Anna's were large and almond shaped where his were small. Colonel Miles Quaritch was not a happy man. He had wanted his daughter by his side ever since he had arrived on Pandora. Since her mother had died he couldn't bear being apart, from her and if he couldn't be on earth with her then he wanted her on Pandora with him.
There was only one problem. Anna refused to make the six year journey unless she could participate in Dr. Augustine's research. Anything for his little girl, even if it meant taking over one of those savages bodies and rummaging around in that godforsaken forest hugging trees. Quaritch was pulled from his thoughts as he felt her small warm hands encompass his. They were so tiny compared to his big bear paws, but that didn't make the moment any less heart wrenching. It reminded him of a time and place where she would never have let go, but even now she was pulling away. Her eyes lit up for a second time and he smiled back.
"Norm!" She called and Quaritch growled. He had thought that smile had been for him, but it was for the scrawny, geeky kid Melissa had begged him to call 'son'. Norman waved over, though when his eyes met Quaritch's his exuberance became muted and he saluted the Colonel, to Anna's amusement.
"How are you, sir?" Norman asked as Quaritch pointed out the empty chair. Quaritch watched as the boy sat down, his knees shaking so badly he could have sworn he heard bones knocking.
"As well as anyone could be in this sh…" Glancing at Anna he quickly corrected himself "Place."
Anna rolled her eyes as her father censured his language. It wasn't as though she hadn't heard it all before. She had grown up in a military household after all and when her mother had died she had permanently moved in with the Spellman's. Though Norman acted the shy and quiet introvert, he could be as blue mouthed as the next marine.
"You going on this walk in the park tomorrow." It wasn't a question but a demand for an answer. Anna pinched her father playfully a teasing way to remind him to talk like a civilised being and not a beast.
"Yes sir." Norm said.
"Take care of my baby you hear? If I find even one hair missing from her head I'll hold you responsible." Quaritch said with a deathly calm.
"What if it catches on a tree branch, or is loosened in the wind? To be fair Colonel I can't control all the factors that may result in your daughter losing her hair." Norman rambled. Quaritch couldn't help but grin at the Norman's antics, deep down he held affection towards the boy but he would never let him know that.
"Just do it." Quaritch growled leaving the two to their meal.
Anna tried her best to hide her smile after her father had left, but Norman's presence made her all the more happier. She hadn't realised just how much she missed his company until he was sitting beside her. His brown hair was damp from the obvious shower he had taken, and had been spiked with his fingers. He was gangly and had a long face, but to her he was perfect. The best brother any girl could ask for, and she found herself wrapping her arm around his pulling it to her bosom and resting her head against his shoulder.
"Can you imagine all the fun we'll have Normy, running through the wilds of Pandora with all the flora and creatures waiting for us to discover?" She felt his palm on her face her eyes smiling when he ran his finger along her jaw line.
"With you anything would be fun." He said his voice suddenly husky. Anna laughed pushing him with both palms sending him deep into the chair.
"You're such a joker Norm. You didn't enjoy bungee jumping."
"That was because we were hundreds of feet above the interstate." He replied. His eyes held a sadness Anna couldn't name before clearing into his usual look of inquisitiveness.
"Come on Norm, we have to get as much sleep as possible. Tomorrow begins our adventure!" Norm braced himself, his fingers taunt on the side of the table as Anna jumped from her seat, her fist in the air, as the chair toppled behind her with a loud crash.