The Na'vi mother instantly stood up in alert, her right hand instinctively moving to the bone dagger at her waist.
Despite being immersed in the grief of losing her child, the instincts honed from years of dealing with invaders kept her highly vigilant. Her eyes, sharp as a hawk's, locked onto the glowing cluster of mushrooms where Rei and the others were hiding. Her muscles tensed, ready to respond to any threat at a moment's notice.
Rei Ayanami stopped her humming, which had been mimicking the forest's rhythm, but she continued to radiate that peaceful and understanding wave of consciousness through her unique perception. She understood that any sudden movement now could trigger a violent reaction from the other party.
She began to step slowly out from the shadow of the mushrooms, her movements deliberate and extremely gentle, as if afraid of startling the most timid creature in the woods. Her hands were completely spread open, palms facing upward, clearly demonstrating she carried no weapons. Every step carried a clear non-aggressive intent, attempting to convey her lack of malice in the most direct way possible.
Meanwhile, Asuka, Shinji Ikari, David, and Lucy remained hidden in their original positions, observing the development of the situation with bated breath. They gripped their respective gear, nerves tightly wound, ready to take necessary action should things take a sudden turn for the worse to protect Rei and the team.
When the Na'vi mother saw that the one stepping out was not one of the cold, metal-clad RDA soldiers she expected—who always reeked of gunpowder and machine oil—a look of clear surprise flashed in her eyes.
This slender Sky Person girl with strange silver-blue short hair and deep red eyes gave her a completely different feeling. The girl seemed to lack the scent of industrial creations that disgusted her, instead faintly radiating a strange, quiet peace that felt somewhat familiar. That feeling... actually bore some resemblance to the peace she experienced when linking neurally with her clan members, or even with the great Eywa.
This contradictory sense of familiarity and strangeness caused her tensed nerves to loosen slightly. However, the deep distrust accumulated from long-term conflicts with the Sky People could not be wiped away in an instant. Her hand remained on the hilt of her bone blade, and the scrutiny in her eyes did not diminish, though the sharp, extreme hostility softened slightly.
"Who are you?" the Na'vi mother asked in the Na'vi language, her voice still raspy from crying.
Rei could not understand the Na'vi tongue, but she sensed the question and the residual grief in her words. She didn't try to answer with words. Instead, she raised her hand again, gently tapped her own temple with her finger, then pointed to the Na'vi mother, then to the small grave, and finally pressed her palm against her own heart.
This was a physical gesture that crossed the boundaries of language to express, "I feel your sorrow."
This simple and direct gesture seemed to touch the softest part of the Na'vi mother's heart. Her eyes welled with tears once more, and her defenses lowered a bit further. She could feel that this strange Sky Person girl had not come for plunder or destruction.
Just then, Shinji summoned his courage and stepped out from hiding as well. Mimicking Rei's posture, he spread his hands, his face showing obvious nervousness and sincere sympathy. He clumsily imitated Rei's earlier gestures, pointing to the grave and then covering his own chest. His nervousness and clumsiness actually made his sincerity feel genuine, entirely without pretense.
The Na'vi mother stared at these two young Sky People, whose behaviors were peculiar but seemingly free of malice. Their raw, somewhat awkward expression of understanding for the pain of her lost child still touched her frozen defenses.
She fell silent for a moment, seemingly weighing something, before slowly asking in stiff, heavily accented English: "You... not... with... those... who cut trees?"
She knew the human language! This discovery undoubtedly marked a major breakthrough.
Rei nodded, responding with her rarely used and somewhat broken English vocabulary: "Not... with them. We... seek... understanding."
"Understanding?" the Na'vi mother repeated, her eyes reflecting complex emotions. Her gaze lingered on Rei and Shinji, then swept over Asuka and the others who were cautiously emerging from their hiding places. "Understand... what?"
"Understand... you. Understand... Eywa." Rei struggled to assemble her limited words, while pointing toward the glowing forest and the towering Hometree.
When the word "Eywa" was mentioned, the Na'vi mother's gaze visibly softened. Eywa was the bedrock of their faith, the invisible bond that maintained all things. To her, anyone who showed respect, or at least a desire to understand Eywa, was fundamentally different from the loggers who only knew wanton destruction.
She hesitated slightly, pointing to herself, and said: "I am... Sutai."
This sounded like an alias, or perhaps just a name she was willing to share at this moment.
Then, she pointed in the direction of the Hometree, her voice steeped in deep helplessness and grief: "There... is my home. But... no longer safe." She paused, adding in a tone of unspeakable pain, "The Sky People's machines... sound... too loud. The forest... is crying."
Through Sutai's broken English description and emotional resonance, combined with Rei's perception of her feelings, the five-person squad pieced together her situation. She was a member of the Omaticaya clan. Her child had likely died prematurely due to the immense noise, environmental pollution, or other indirect factors caused by the RDA's mining operations—though she was reluctant to discuss the specific details.
This tragedy had deepened her hatred for all Sky People, but it had also thrown her into a massive personal grief, causing her to temporarily withdraw from the clan's collective activities to mourn her lost child alone.
Rei listened quietly, occasionally responding with simple words or nods. She did not try to offer empty comfort; she was simply a listener. This non-judgmental listening was a form of solace in itself for someone in grief.
The exchange didn't last long before the voices of other Na'vi calling out echoed from afar, seemingly a patrol or her family looking for her.
Sutai glanced warily in the direction of the sound, then said to Rei and the others: "You... leave quickly. If others... see you... they will kill you." She paused, looking at Rei with a complex gaze: "You... are different. But... do not come here again. Very dangerous."
With that, she quickly turned and vanished into the shadows of the Hometree's massive buttress roots.
The first contact was brief and rushed, but highly significant. They had not only found a Na'vi individual who spoke English, was not entirely hostile toward Sky People, and was in a vulnerable emotional state. More importantly, they had verified the feasibility of Rei's communication through consciousness waves, successfully initiating a preliminary exchange of information without triggering a conflict.
Carrying the valuable information they had acquired and the extremely fragile initial connection they had established, the five-person squad silently withdrew from the Hometree area, preparing to return to the outpost to report to Osiris.
The secrets of the Pandora forest seemed to have opened a tiny crack to them.