Al-Lat Daughter of Eywa

Chapter One - Panora

Luanne stood in front of her sink. She washed the dishes of her supper. Around her neck was a feather necklace with the ashes of her husband. Her scared hands reached into the water. She couldn't feel it. Couldn't feel the warmth of the water though it steeped, couldn't even feel the liquid. She couldn't feel anything anymore. Not since the war. Her eyes closed as she fell into the memory.

The fire.

The smoke.

The explosion.

She remembered running threw land mines. Dodging explosions barely. She remembered personally shooting down her enemies.

She remembered running out of bullets and moving onto a sword. The blood running down her right side.

The smell of blood and ash and burning hair filling her nose as she cut down man after man after man.

She remembered losing her blade.

She remembered resorting to hand to hand combat.

She remembered being shot.

Stabbed.

Kicked.

Punched.

She remembered again being burned as she rolled away from another explosion.

The screams.

The cries.

The explosions.

The ringing.

She remembered the wedding ring on her finger. The one thing she refused to take of. Her words as her counter when they tried to take it off of her. 'My husbands love will stay with me as I fight. If you wish to take this ring from me it'll have to be off of my cold dead body.' The words rung in her head like a bell. Repeating.

She remembered returning home.

Laying in the hospital.

The burn from right above her hair line. Down her eye. Around her arm. And to her hip bone.

She remembered the burn from right beside her left eye. To her ear. To her shoulder and back. Around her arm. And then. Down to her mid thigh.

She remember meeting the kind blue eyes of her lover. His blond hair pulled back into a pony as he stared at her.

A nock brought Luanne from her thoughts. She moved to the side and pulled out her hands. Then she looked to her wet hands. Only to see blood. She cussed. Losing her ability to feel was a big down for her. Her nerves had been damaged beyond repair as the doctors had said.

She wasn't surprise.

As a result she was let go from the military. She'd join ever branch. Worked there for a while then would move on. She wanted to protect. To serve. At moments she'd swell up with pride. At others with shame. Pride for the lives she'd saved. Shame for what they did with those lives.

Shame. Because the world. Earth. Her home. Mother Nature was dying. Her animals as well. Including her cattle. Her horses. Her cats. Her dogs. Her birds. Her rabbits. Her sheep. Her goats. Her ducks. Her chickens. Everything. She found new poisins. New gases. Out there. More dead trees more unhealthy water with every day that passed. Now she had only the meat in her freezer. Milk in her fridge along with her crops and meat from the government. Her home was dying. Hurting. Begging for her children to stop. She felt it. With every step.