Starting New

If you just stopped by to read my story, please leave a review. I do appreciate it!



Chapter 18



When we finally arrived at the cliff several more of the Leomatica warriors were hovered over someone on the ground. Ala’kan pushed his way through the small crowd and knelt next to a prone figure on the ground. It wasn’t Jake, thankfully. It was Telan.



I spotted Jake standing not too far away. He came quickly over to my side. I felt relief bloom in my chest, knowing that he was alright.



“What happened?”



“He was racing another warrior and I think his Toruk got spooked. He fell straight off of it and landed roughly on one of the lower mountains. We’re not sure what’s wrong with him, though. He’s awake, obvious if you can hear the screaming, but definitely injured.”



I nodded and scanned over Jake to be sure he was alright. He looked a bit alarmed, but otherwise was in good health. I reached out and rubbed his hand briefly. I then decided to take a few steps forward so I could at least try to assess Telan’s injuries. He was wide awake, gasping for breath and had a very pained look on his face. Ala’kan began trying to help him up.



I shook my head and put a hand out, “No, don’t move him. You might make it worse.”



The other Na’vi let me into the circle. Ala’kan was terrified and Telan was frantic. He was trying so hard to control his breathing that it became shallow and seemed to take a lot of effort. I knelt next to him and saw several wounds already forming. One was on his lower leg and one on his head. Ala’kan had held his hand firmly and was trying to talk to him in a calm voice. He started in their language, but ended up in Omaticayan.



“No! No, Ala…” Telan muttered and was trying to pull away from him.



“He is a shaman. He can help you. At least let him look at your injuries,” Ala’kan said soothingly, and leaned down to hold onto his shoulders.



Whatever self control Telan had before left quickly after. He released a gut wrenching scream and began to shake. Ala’kan jumped back and shook his head several times.



“I-I don’t know what to do for him,” He said, putting his hand to his chest and shaking his head several times, “I don’t know how to help.”



“Let me see him,” I said, “Maybe I can help.”



“He said he doesn’t want you to touch him. I told him your secret, Norm. He was the first to notice that you and Jake are…different. He is afraid of you, I think.”



“I n-no afraid!” Telan said, gasping, his brow furrowed in hurt.



“Let me just look at you, Telan. I won’t do anything without your permission. Let me just see what is wrong,” I insisted, looking into those pain wretched golden eyes.



“No!”



Ala’kan shook his head again and leaned forward, taking Telan’s hand in his and squeezing hard, “You listen to him, Telan. He will help you. I am your mate. I am your olo'eyktan. You listen to me.”



Telan looked back and forth between us, still squeezing his mate’s hand. He looked like we were attempting to gang up on him and was hard pressed to find an escape route. He looked into Ala’kan’s eyes and ended up closing his mouth firmly and looking away. I thought he was actually going to start crying at once from the pain, but he didn’t.



Telan nodded once, quickly, but did not say a word. Ala’kan looked at me and gave me approval to begin. He continued to squeeze his hand and I could hear him whispering softly to him words of support in their language. I took my place next to the pain ridden Navi and began looking over his wounds. The wound on his leg was minor. It was bleeding, but would only need a bandage. The one on his head was worse, but couldn’t possibly be causing him so much pain. I turned his face towards mine slightly and he looked at me.



“I don’t know…”



“No head! Arm!” He said suddenly.



I looked at the hand that was clasped in his mates. It seemed fine. I finally noticed the unusual angle his other shoulder was in. It was bent oddly out and every breath seemed to hurt and he looked like he could possibly die. I felt his arm briefly and he let out a strangled scream.



“What is wrong with him, Norm?” Ala’kan asked, also losing some of his composure and looking to me for answers.



“His shoulder is dislocated. It can be very painful, especially from such a rough fall. We should try to sit him up now. Slowly, very slowly. Be very careful. I need to see the other side.”



Ala’kan agreed and together we helped Telan into a sitting position. The excess gravity pressing on his dislocated shoulder must have made the pain twice as worse. It was a bad dislocation. There was also the possibility that the bone in his upper arm could have been broken. Telan’s breath quivered and I moved to look at the other side. The bone was pressed forward.



“It needs to be put back into place,” I told Ala’kan.



“Ughhh…No!” Telan argued immediately, trying to pull away.



Ala’kan looked caught between the two of us. He clearly wanted to help his injured mate, but didn’t want to cause him excess pain. I understood this.



“Please, Ala’kan…Telan. It needs to be done,” I looked over at Ala’kan and nodded, “He won’t get any relief until the bone is popped back into place.”



Ala’kan squared his jaw and nodded once, firmly, “You do what needs to be done, Norm.”



“Okay, hold him,” I said and leaned over Telan to hold him place, “It will only hurt for a second more. I promise.”



Ala’kan steadied him. Telan wanted nothing to do with either one of us and was yelling obscenities in his language and in my own. I looked at Ala’kan and put my hand on Telan’s shoulder. I pulled the bone out quickly and heard it pop into place. He had screamed loudly and ended up backed up against his mate, panting harshly.



“That’s it,” I said and looked at him, “Is it better?”



“Hurt,” He said, looking away from me, embarrassed.



“I’m sorry,” I said honestly and put my hand on his arm, “Do the bones in your upper arm hurt, too?”



He seemed to be a bit better and the immediate pain had passed. There was usually constant ache even days after a dislocated shoulder was put back into place. Yet, the pain would be less each day. His eyes looked around the rest of the Na’vi who were standing over us. Ala’kan looked up and waved his hand in a very dismissive gesture. They walked away, glad that their head warrior was going to be alright and maybe even a little downtrodden that they had been dismissed so easily. Jake stayed by me and Ala’kan nodded at him, inviting him to stay.



“This bone hurt, too,” He said, letting go of his mate’s hand and patting his upper arm.



“Is it okay if I look?” I asked, figuring it would probably be wise to ask.



He nodded. I leaned over and felt the bones in his arm. I did not feel any sticking out at any unusual angles and there didn’t seem to be any excess swelling.



“There might be a small fracture. It should be wrapped—the shoulder too,” I advised and looked over at my shoulder, “Jake, can you go get some wrappings for this? It should be wrapped before he gets up.”



Jake agreed and went back to the camp to find the first aide items.



“You’re smart, Norm,” Ala’kan said and exhaled, “I didn’t know if you could do it, but so far you seem to know what’s best.”



I blushed slightly at the comment and looked down shyly, “Well, he needed help and I was here.”



Telan looked at me as he lay back in Ala’kan’s arms, “I no trust you before, Norm. You different. But, You know medicine. You know Na’vi body. I no want your help, but you make pain go away.”



Jake came back a while later and Ala’kan and I held Telan still while we wrapped his shoulder. He wasn’t in half as much pain as before, but I still gave him a natural pain reliever that would work after about 15 minutes.



“It might make you tired,” I advised, helping him stand up. He swayed slightly for a second and it was probably a good thing Ala’kan had his arm around him, “But maybe sleep is a good thing for now.”



Ala’kan and I helped get Telan back to their sleeping quarters. We set up a small cot in the corner of their dwelling, so he could sleep on his back in a straight position, instead of on the hammock. Telan winced as he lay down on the bed and settled in. It was strange to see such a strong warrior take down their wall of self control and just let someone else take care of them for a change. I stood in the shadows while Ala’kan pulled a blanket down from a high shelf and cover him with it. He leaned forward to kiss his forehead and said something softly in their language.



Ala’kan turned toward me and nodded, “Thank you for your help today, Norm. I don’t know what we would have done without you. I hate seeing him in pain. I’ve never been so worried about him before.”



“It’s alright Ala’kan. I really didn’t even think twice about it,” I admitted.



H e just smiled softly and nodded, “It was difficult for me to see him like that today. He’s usually so strong. I just never thought he would be the one to get wounded. I guess you just never know.”



“That’s true.”



His golden eyes glanced over at me and he sighed, “Norm. Today you showed me that you can be trusted and you can help our people. When I took you and Jake in, it was on a whim. I didn’t know much about you. I try to be accommodating, especially after hearing your story. I decided that if you don’t feel like sharing your true story with us, you don’t have to.”



At first I was grateful for the words, but then guilt began to seep in.



“I was surprised that you knew so much,” I admitted, taking a look at their red and orange decorated walls and the beads that hung in the doorway, “I will tell you my story now.”