Imperial Island

They had been found out.

The shackles cut into his wrists and his legs were sore. His knees had ailed him the most, having been forced to rest upon them for what seemed like hours now. He silent and humorlessly snickered to himself. He was sure that what he was doing would be far from considered rest. He stared at the iron boards beneath him, the chill wind biting at his skin.

He was chained to a podium, which was centered upon a stage that was quickly put together, apparent by the cylindrical nails that protruded from certain spots in the wood. He had avoided staring at the crowd that had gathered from all corners of the nation to witness the end of his life. His weary eyes tentatively followed the stripes in the wood before landing on his friends. The boy, visibly no older than 13, gave them an apologetic glance, his resolve shattered and broken from the mere peek he had managed.

But he could take it no more and quickly turned away, the expressions portrayed upon their faces proving to be too much for his psyche to handle.

"Avatar Aang…" a feminine voice hissed. Aang, the boy had been recognized as, snapped his head up, perhaps a bit too quickly as the faces of the civilians had become blurs to him. He glared at the owner of the voice, his teeth clenched in an uncharacteristic snarl. He had had much to say, but no words were uttered.

Azula smirked. It had been all too easy to get him angry and she hadn't even said three words. Just the way she liked it. She circled him, hands on her hips, eyes set in a scrutinizing stare. She could feel the glares that came from his friends who, at this point, she could call off by name, and relished in them. It was just too bad that her brother and her two ex-friends couldn't be there to join in the fun.

But she shook the thoughts away. They would only infuriate her, and she would need to stay as calm and collected as possible. She returned to her position in front of the crowd and turned to Aang.

"Avatar Aang, the last Airbender in existence. How does it feel to know that not only have you failed your people", she continued, occasionally glancing at the prisoners she held captive next to the stage, "but you've failed the entire planet as well?!" She was shouting now, although it was near unnoticeable due to the boisterous laughter that had erupted from the audience.

But no sooner had she spoken these words than an enraged Katara broke free from her ropes and bound onto the stage, waving her arms around twitchily. Azula scoffed.

"And just what is that supposed to…" But it didn't take long to realize the severity of the situation when her arms moved on their own accord, placing her palms just in front of her face. Blue fire crackled at the tips.

A shrill scream rang in the air. But it wasn't Azula it belonged to.

Katara struggled against the stone bindings the contained her. A handcuff-like slab of rock constrained her arms behind her back and her legs to each other. Her mouth was also covered with earth. 2 green clad warriors stood on either side of her downed body.

Toph struggled against the ropes that held her above the ground. She didn't need to see to guess at what had occurred. Sokka was simply frozen in place.

"Katara!" Aang screeched. Azula smoothly, yet harshly wrapped her fingers around his chin and forced him to look at her.

"So you do have a voice?" She had gotten so close that he could feel the cool breath on his face. It smelled like peppermints. "Well then…I wonder how much I can get out of you?" She snapped her fingers before flipping back 7 feet, leaving room for the 3 Fire Nation soldiers that walked onto the stage and positioned themselves on the left, right, and back of Aang. She gave the signal, waving her arms in a circular motion across her chest. The men nodded respectfully and threw out their arms, palms forward, and unleashed waves of flame that engulfed his body.

She smirked triumphantly as her arms swirled. There was no way he would survive her lightning, let alone the flames that swelled around him. She had kept him in specialized captivity; chains so tight on his wrists and ankles he wouldn't be able to touch them if he was Ty Lee. She shook her head again before turning back her prisoner. She scowled.

It wasn't as obvious to those without her keen eyes, but he wasn't being hurt at all. A tiny strip of air was spinning around his body like a shield, dispelling the flames as they made contact. It seemed she hadn't locked him up well enough.

"Stop!" She commanded. The soldiers complied immediately, bowing and leaving the stage. She swung her arms one last time.

She was ready.

Katara thrashed about, all in an attempt to save at least one of them, most preferably Aang, but it was to no avail. She was beyond angry at this point. She was fuming, blood pumping with adrenaline. But she knew all was lost. Aang would be burned to a crisp then have his internal organs disintegrated from the outside. She retched as she realized how truly sinister the method truly was.

She noticed that Azula had stopped and her men were gone. Her eyes widened in glee. Aang was okay! He was completely unmarred. But then Azula fired, and time seemed to slow.

He turned ever so slowly to her and their eyes locked in a passionate stare. But it wasn't one of love, or kindness, or respect. It was neutral, depressed even. She had never seen such grief in the young Avatar's eyes before. Her glee evaporated. She recognized the look. It was the same look Jet had given her…right before he…

But he couldn't do this! The world needed him. Sokka and Toph needed him. She needed him!

However, all such thoughts were quelled as instantaneously as they had appeared. She would trust him. Even now, at his gruesome execution. And he must have realized this, because he smiled, and turned to the crowd. He was staring at a specific point in the audience, and when she attempted to follow, she could only see the electricity that sailed mere feet from his body and she quickly turned back. His mouth was moving, but no sound came out. Then he winked and smiled again.

Suddenly, his arrows glowed blue, reminiscent of the Avatar State, and he was struck down.

Her breath caught in her throat, escaping only after the sensation passed. He had looked at her. Kuzonhad looked at her.

'No' she corrected herself, 'He's Aang…' She hadn't recognized him at first, as he was without his adorably messy brown hair and academy uniform. But she could tell it was him, the way he looked at her told it all. Her mind was spinning with realizations and the blanks were filled. It all made sense now…

Her mind snapped back when she remembered who was staring at her, who it was that caused her heart to flutter and the hair on the back of her pony tailed head to stand on end.

But how could he see her? She was one in a million, a tiny blue speck in a sea of black. Suddenly she found herself in a trance, staring at his pure, pallid face as his lips moved and formed an unreadable set of words. 'The hair of Rukia?' 'Ensnare the tunia?' 'Take care of Mumia…?' But before she could even attempt to question him, he winked at her. And as his body glowed a faint blue, a feat that, in itself, was a natural wonder, his body fell, limp and roasted to the ground.

And the crowd cheered.

I promise the chapters will get longer, I just felt that this was a good stopping point.

Btw, this uses 'Sukka' as a starter.