Just as they were considering whether to abandon this contact, Rei Ayanami suddenly opened her eyes, looking toward a rocky area tangled with massive vines in their rear flank.
"Over there—there are intense emotional fluctuations. It is Sutai. She... is highly anxious, as if she is hesitating."
They immediately and quietly moved in that direction.
Beneath the shadows of the rocks, they indeed spotted Sutai. She was not mourning; instead, she paced back and forth uneasily, the neural queue behind her head swaying restlessly.
When she saw Rei and the others emerge from the forest, she did not immediately warn them to leave as she had done last time. Instead, she stopped, staring at them with complex emotions—wary, but with a trace of... expectation?
"You... really came back," Sutai said softly, her voice carrying a tense undertone. "I can feel it... the forest is highly unsettled. Eywa is warning us—something bad is about to happen."
Rei stepped forward, gazing at Sutai, and cut straight to the chase while doing her best to project a wave of calm and earnest consciousness. "Yes. Something bad. The RDA—those tree-cutting Sky People—plan to attack your hunting grounds in the eastern valley. Very soon."
Sutai's body shuddered violently, her golden eyes contracting instantly.
"The eastern valley? How could you know this?!" Shock and disbelief filled her voice.
"We... have our ways," Rei replied as planned. "We are telling you because we... do not wish to see unnecessary death. This does not concern us directly."
Sutai stared intently at Rei, as if trying to find any trace of deception on her expressionless face.
"Why? You are Sky People too! Why would you help us?"
"We told you," Asuka couldn't help but chime in, her tone carrying her signature bluntness. "We aren't with those guys! They are backstabbing traitors, and we can't stand them! Believe it or not!"
Shinji Ikari also mustered his courage, looking at Sutai sincerely. "Please... please believe us. Preparing early can, at least... let the hunting party avoid them or minimize the losses."
Sutai's gaze swept back and forth across their three faces. She could feel the genuine calm radiating from Rei, see the unvarnished disgust in Asuka's eyes, and sense Shinji's clumsy yet earnest concern.
It was completely different from any image of the Sky People in her memory.
The sounds of the patrol echoed in the distance again, closer this time.
A flash of struggle crossed Sutai's face. Finally, as if making up her mind, she spoke urgently, "The message... I will deliver it. But you—leave! Now! No matter the outcome, do not contact me again! This is too dangerous!"
Before Rei could respond, she spun around and, with a few leaps, vanished into the shadows of the rocks and vines, moving faster than ever before.
The message had been delivered. Now, it was up to the Na'vi's reaction and the upcoming RDA operation to determine the outcome.
Delaying no further, Rei's team immediately slipped away along their pre-planned retreat route, quietly evacuating the hazardous zone.
Inside the tactical operations center at Hell's Gate, the atmosphere brimmed with a pre-battle solemnity.
Colonel Quaritch stood before the holographic map, a red assault arrow pointing directly at the vital Na'vi hunting grounds known as the "Eastern Valley." Standing beside him was Maine, along with Sergeant Reynolds, the commander of the Hellfire Squad who had just finished his pre-combat briefing.
"Intelligence confirms that the primary Omaticaya hunting party has been active in this area lately." Quaritch tapped the core sector of the valley on the map. "The terrain here is complex, and the foliage is dense—perfect for those blue monkeys to wage guerrilla warfare. But this time, we're going to flush them out, or... trap them inside and wipe them out."
He turned to Maine, a mix of trust and testing written on his face. "Maine, the new equipment and tactical training you provided are the keys to this operation. The Hellfire Squad will act as the tip of our spear, using sensors for early warning and deploying rapidly to conduct precision strikes."
Maine nodded calmly. "The tactical deployment is complete. The sensor network covers the primary entrances and potential escape routes. The Hellfire Squad is fully acquainted with the performance of the new weapons and has completed targeted training for woodland assaults."
He knew that this operation was a vital link in Osiris's master plan to apply strategic pressure. Yet, as a professional soldier, he maintained absolute focus on the execution of the mission itself.
"Excellent," Quaritch grunted with satisfaction. "Get the troops ready to move out. I want to show Parker what 'efficiency' really looks like."
Meanwhile, beneath the colossal canopy of Hometree, the atmosphere was equally tense.
After receiving Rei's warning, Sutai underwent a fierce internal struggle before ultimately choosing to pass the information to her partner, a highly respected hunter in the clan. Through him, the message eventually found its way to the clan chief, Eytukan.
Inside the council circle, where giant woodsprites drifted in the gentle breeze, Eytukan listened to the account from Sutai's partner. His golden eyes flared with suspicion and anger.
"A warning from the Sky People?" His voice rumbled like low thunder. "Why should we trust the words of another Sky Person? This could be their latest trick, designed to lure us elsewhere or strike us from another direction when our guard is down!"
Tsu'tey, a young warrior famed for his valor and intense hatred of the Sky People, retorted sharply: "Retreat? Give up our hunting grounds just because of a warning from an unknown source? That is the act of a coward! If the Sky People dare to come, let them taste our spears and arrows! Eywa will protect her warriors!"
Sutai stood on the periphery of the crowd, feeling the distrustful and scrutinizing glares of her peers. She summoned her courage to step forward, the neural queue behind her head trembling slightly from tension. "Eytukan, the Sky Person girl who brought the warning... she is different. She can... she can commune directly with the whispers of Eywa. I believe her warning is real. The Eastern Valley—our hunting party is there, and our young hunters are learning to stalk prey. We cannot afford the risk."
The council fell into a deadlock. Eytukan was caught in a dilemma. Believing the Sky People's warning completely would appear weak, but ignoring a potential risk could lead to the needless sacrifice of his people.
Ultimately, he reached a compromised and far more aggressive decision.
"We will not abandon our hunting grounds, but we will not be unprepared either," Eytukan's voice rose over the arguments. "Tsu'tey, dispatch riders immediately to contact the neighboring Kame'tire clan. Tell them the Sky People are about to invade our shared hunting grounds. We will set an ambush in the valley and make those invaders pay!"
He chose not to evade, but to launch a coordinated counter-attack.
This decision won the cheers of most of the warriors, especially the hot-blooded Tsu'tey and his followers. However, it cast an even darker shadow over Sutai's heart.
She foretold that far more blood would be spilled.