This task was highly challenging. Getting two bloodthirsty enemies to sit down and talk was nothing short of a fantasy.
Through covert channels, Rei Ayanami managed to convey the message to Su Tai with great difficulty. Su Tai was entirely incredulous at first. However, after Rei repeatedly emphasized that the RDA soldiers had been killed using the exact same methodology, pointing out that such a cruel ritual was alien to the customs of either faction, Su Tai wavered. She brought this intelligence to Eytukan, who was on the verge of absolute rage, and to the incensed tribal council.
"This is another lie from the Sky People!" Tsu'tey refused to believe it. "They want to trick us into lowering our guard!"
"But... what if?" Su Tai countered against the pressure. "If there truly is another enemy, wouldn't it serve them perfectly if we and the RDA fight to mutual destruction?"
A fierce debate erupted within the tribe.
On the other side of the conflict, Maine and Valerie went straight to Colonel Quaritch, who was in the middle of marshaling his forces.
"Colonel, suspend your operations," Maine said, getting straight to the point. "We have reason to believe that the ones who attacked your outpost and the Na'vi are the same unknown force."
"An unknown force?" Quaritch scoffed. "Who else could it be but those blue-skinned savages? Is there a third group of intelligent life on this godforsaken planet that peels skin and extracts spines?"
Valerie opened her data pad, displaying processed images of the Na'vi crime scene captured from a distance by the exploration team's drones.
"Colonel, examine the attack methodology. This precise dissection and the exhibitionist arrangement of the corpses—does it not match your outpost's situation with high precision? This looks more like a signature, a provocation, rather than mere slaughter. The Na'vi also believe it was your doing and are equally enraged. Does that make logical sense?"
Staring at the brutal scene in the image, which was identical to what his own soldiers had suffered, the rage on Quaritch's face stiffened for a moment. Yet, he remained skeptical. "This could be forged! Or they copy-catted it!"
"We have no reason to forge this," Maine said steadily. "The highest probability is that an enemy we know nothing about is lurking on Pandora. It wants to see a bloodbath between both sides. Launching an attack now plays right into its hands."
Following an arduous persuasion session, backed by unforgeable technical metrics provided by Osiris, and coupled with Quaritch's own internal doubts about the highly unconventional attack style, the Colonel finally, reluctantly agreed to temporarily halt large-scale military actions. However, he demanded that the Na'vi send an envoy of sufficient stature to a neutral location chosen by the exploration team to confront the evidence.
Similarly, within the Omatikaya clan, under Eytukan's authority and the persistence of Su Tai's small faction, they ultimately decided to take the risk. Eytukan resolved to go personally, with Tsu'tey leading a detachment of elite warriors for protection. Jake Sully, as a Dreamwalker capable of communicating with both factions, was also required to accompany them.
A critical confrontation, forced into existence by the exploration team under a tense atmosphere of drawn swords and bent bows, was about to unfold.
The location selected for the confrontation was a relatively open river valley situated between the RDA-controlled sector and the Na'vi migration route. The terrain offered a wide field of vision, making ambushes difficult, and a moderately wide river split the valley in two.
The exploration team's Pioneer mobile base parked on one side of the river, serving as a neutral buffer zone and meeting platform. The entirety of Maine's squad maintained a solemn vigil on the outer perimeter. Rei Ayanami, Asuka, and Shinji Ikari stood at the entrance of the base, prepared to assist with communications.
Across the river, Colonel Quaritch arrived in person leading a detachment in several armored vehicles. He was accompanied by Sergeant Reynolds, several core members of the Hellfire squad, and a platoon of fully armed soldiers. AMP suits provided heavy deterrence from the rear. The atmosphere was incredibly heavy; the soldiers kept their fingers strictly outside the trigger guards, ready to fire at a split-second notice.
On the opposite side, Eytukan, Tsu'tey, Neytiri, Jake Sully, and a dozen of the Omatikaya's most elite warriors appeared at the edge of the river valley on Direhorses, resembling a blue cloud. They gripped longbows and bone spears tightly, their golden eyes filled with vigilance and undisguised hostility.
The two sides glared at each other across the river and open ground, the air thick with almost tangible hatred and distrust.
Osiris, maintaining his guise as Dr. Chen, stood on the observation platform of the Pioneer, calmly overlooking the entire scene. He issued directives to Maine and Rei through the comms: "Control the situation. Guide them to present their evidence. Focus on the identical nature of the attack methods."
Maine took a few steps forward to the edge of the river, his voice projecting clearly to both banks through a megaphone: "Chieftain Eytukan, Colonel Quaritch. We have gathered here to clarify a misunderstanding that could cost countless lives. Please present your evidence regarding the recent attacks."
Colonel Quaritch scoffed, gesturing for his soldiers to bring forward a stretcher covered with a tarp. The tarp was pulled back, exposing the corpse of an RDA soldier. Though it had undergone preliminary handling, the gruesome state—stripped of skin, skull, and spine—was still shocking. Rage and grief washed over the soldiers' faces.
"Look! Look at what you savages did!" Quaritch pointed at the corpse, roaring across the river.
The Na'vi stirred in a chaotic commotion upon seeing the body. Tsu'tey fiercely countered: "That is exactly what we want to ask you! Look at what you did to our warriors!"
He gestured, and several Na'vi warriors stepped to the front, carrying the brutally desecrated remains of their kinsmen wrapped in massive leaves.
As the nearly identical mutilated corpses of the victims from both factions were exposed to the daylight, the angry accusations that had filled the air suddenly hung in a brief, frozen silence.
Su Tai stepped forward from the Na'vi ranks. Her gaze swept over the horrific remains of the RDA soldier, then back to the identical state of her own people. Her voice trembled slightly with shock, yet it carried clearly into everyone's ears:
"Look! Look closely, all of you! This technique... this cruel method... it is exactly the same!" She pointed to both sides. "How could this be the work of either side? What warrior would treat his own people like this? What clan would defile their own brave in this manner?"
Neytiri also looked at the RDA soldier's corpse in shock, then at her own people, her eyes filling with confusion and doubt. She instinctively drew closer to Jake for support.
Eytukan spoke, his voice like muffled thunder: "This... is indeed not the way of our people. We hunt, we fight, but we do not desecrate the dead."
Colonel Quaritch's brow furrowed deeply. He carefully examined the corpses displayed by the Na'vi, then looked back at his own soldier's remains, the rage on his face gradually replaced by gravity. He was no fool; this highly consistent method of brutal slaughter, transcending racial differences, was undeniably bizarre.
"Then who the hell was it?" Quaritch's voice dropped, carrying a hint of confusion and provoked fury. "Is there something... else on this godforsaken planet?"
Right then, Rei Ayanami, who had been quietly sensing the surroundings, suddenly raised her head. Her red eyes locked onto a steep cliff face upstream of the river valley. Her calm voice rang out through the amplification system, echoing clearly in everyone's ears:
"It is right there."