The Red Reaper

1 - Willow Tree

"Don't feel too bad, kid, this is the consequences of your mom's actions"

They dragged Alice into a helicopter that would take her to the forest of Pandora, where they'd leave her and no one would find out. They would tell Grace and the others, she was sent back to Earth.

Alice was a brave and quite a stubborn girl. She had already accepted and came to terms with her death which would surely happen in the dangerous forest since she would have limited oxygen. She was worried for her mom, who loved the school, the children and her, more than anything. Her thoughts kept swirling around Grace and the kids until she was pulled out of her mind by the helicopter's landing. The engine shut down and there was a deafening silence for a few seconds before the creatures of the forest went on about their day again.

Their walk through the forest was short-lived as the mecha suits weren't enough to ward off fear of the forest the soldiers had, making them want to walk no further. They stopped below a beautiful glowing willow-like tree.

"Goodbye"

They knocked her out and laid her body under the tree. Her body was taken over by small creeping vines and all sorts of glowing flowers adorning her.

When she opened her eyes, yawning slowly, she was laying comfortably on soft wet grass in a small forest clearing, not realising her mask wasn't on. If this was the afterlife on Pandora, then she had absolutely nothing to complain about, it was refreshing and peaceful. She laid there for a bit while making a survival plan. Shelter would be her number one priority and she decided it would be best to make it near a river to mask her scent and provide herself with an easily accessible water source. Satisfied with her train of thought, she got up, ready to start her fight against the odds of nature. Her legs were wobbly from the lack of exercise and soon she realised she not only had more legs than before but also no arms.

Then it hit her even harder, how was she breathing without a mask?

She tumbled down a small hill towards the sound of water running until she was met with a stream. 

She jumped back, horrified by what she had seen. In the reflection was a beast, a wolf-like predator with no fur and red glowing eyes. She was frightened at first, thinking the creature was behind her, however after turning around and seeing nothing, she leaned over the water once more. Her head swayed left and right in an attempt to disprove the inevitable reality. She kept on making gestures and movements for a little longer before she was able to accept what happened calmly. Eywa has given her a second chance at life, as something native to Pandora. She cried, grateful for this chance, the chance to see her mom again. But first, she needed to get used to her new body and self. 

As was obvious from her 3 sets of black long fangs protruding through her muzzle, she was a carnivore. Her features resembled an earth's wolf, without fur, however. She had red eyes and two antennae-like things above her two sets of ears. Some of her parts of the body were glowing in the dark. She had a very long tail with a dolphin-like fin at the end. Below her ears on each side were whips containing queues. She was growing amazed and excited by herself with every new discovery. She was reborn as an apex predator similar to a Thanathor.

Her stomach reminded her of her physical needs and so she quenched her thirst first, since she had water right in front of her, before running off into the forest at full speed. Not used to having four legs to run on, she tripped and fell many times, making herself laugh at her own clumsiness. Hunger couldn't wait however and so she chose the easiest prey for her at the moment which had a good chance of being in her diet.

Fish 

She couldn't explain it in words as she found a bigger river with ease, as if she knew exactly where it was, despite having no prior knowledge. It must have been her connection to Eywa causing it. She plunged into the water, quickly adjusting her sight and using her tail to swim faster. After many successful and unsuccessful attempts to catch a fish, she was full and had a better grasp of her abilities. She was suited for both running and water, which was odd as usually nature chooses to focus a creature in one or rarely two directions only on Pandora. To confirm or debunk her theory, she got up and went to a tree.

Sinking her claws into its bark, she muttered apologies to the tree, which translated to quiet yelps and barks. Surprisingly, her body pulled itself up with ease and so she climbed all the way to the top, speechless by her adaptability. Except for the skies, this world was now her playground. She could run, jump, climb and swim anywhere she wanted.

One question plagued her mind now though. 

Where was she?

She wanted to go back to Grace and nothing was going to stop her, not even being lost. She waited and watched as the sun got blocked by Polythemus, the gas giant that orbits it. The eclipse began and she made her through the forest, believing Eywa will take her where she wants to go.

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A/N: Hey guys! It's a favourite style of mine to have an animal protagonist, hence why I made this story. I think what I've written so far is pretty good hehehe. Hope you like it. I like this story already so much I've drawn Laip'xi twice! The concept art will be in this chapter and in the next one will be the full art.

Love you

Author-chan