"No, you can't play Aang!" one of the children yelled. Ando turned around and saw a group of children surrounding Aang.
"Why not?" Aang fought back.
Ando pushed himself through, "What's going on?" The children quickly gave a bow.
"I wanna play air-ball but they won't let me." Aang explained.
Ando raised an eyebrow and looked at the children. "Why not?"
"Because he's the Avatar!" cried one boy.
"He'll easily defeat us!" said another.
"Yeah!" the rest agreed.
"He may be the Avatar, but he hasn't gone through any of the training. Only through the basics like the rest of you." Ando glanced around. They all seemed unconvinced.
"Come on guys, let's play something else." The leader of the group walked away with the rest of children muttering something to one another.
Ando frowned and looked at Aang. He stood there looking away. "Hey, how about you and I go at it? I use to be pretty good you know!" Ando chuckled for a bit.
"Nah, I'm going to find Monk Giatso." Aang swirled the air under his feet and pushed him high into the sky. "Poor boy."
A couple of hours later, Ando sat by the balcony. The children headed back to their rooms. Night was falling upon the sky. Ando liked the twilight. It helped him clear his mind a little.
"How can they do this to me!" Ando turned around and saw Aang balancing on top of a roof.
"Aang! You heading home?" Ando did the air jump and landed by the young Avatar.
"Monk Ando!" Aang bowed.
"Heh, I should be the one bowing to you, young Avatar." Ando bowed back. "Are you okay? You seem distressed."
Aang sighed and turned away, "They're going to move me to the eastern temple." Ando sighed. He knew the reason why. He would've spoke out, but it wasn't his place. "I don't want to leave. I want to stay with Monk Giatso. I wish…" Aang curled himself up. "I wish I wasn't the Avatar…"
Ando sighed, "I know it's a great responsibility and you are still young. They're expecting too much from you right now. But at the end I know you'll be a great Avatar."
"No I won't." Aang muttered.
"What do you mean?" Ando reached for him. Aang quickly took off, air jumping away. "Poor boy… Wish there was something I could do."
That night, Monk Giatso ran through the hallways. "He's gone!" He knocked on all the walls of the temple and continued to yell, "He's gone! Aang is gone!"
Ando quickly jumped out of his bed. "What do you mean he's gone?" asked one of the Monks.
"He ran away. Look." Giastso handed over a scroll. Ando read over the shoulders of the other Monks. Before any of them finished Giastso pulled it away. "We need to find him before this storm gets any worse!"
"He's right. I'll take some of the others and search for him by using our air bison." Ando quickly turned around and grabbed some of his students.
"Monk Ando! The storm is getting worse!" the boy pulled on the reins commanding his bison to follow Ando.
"Find the others and head back. I'll continue to search for him!" Ando whipped the reins. His bison flew forward. Thunder continued to crackle. Ando's eyes tried to adjust to the dark night, but the continues lightning made it difficult.
"WHAAAAAA!" Ando quickly turned around.
"Aang!" He waited for an answer, but only the thunder answered. "Come on Geyo!" Ando turned his bison around aiming towards the sea. There was a sudden flash and bright light sunk down into the dark seas. Geyo bellowed and shook his head about. "It's okay Geyo! Call down!" The bison continued to toss and turn. "Fine, we'll head back!" The bison quickly followed the command.
"I heard him and I think he went into the sea." Ando explained.
"While glowing you say?" The leading monk asked. Ando nodded.
"He must've gone into the Avatar State!" Giastso quickly jumped in.
Before the meeting went on, a young boy burst through the door. "The fire nation! They're attacking!" Without hesitation, the Monks ran outside and yelled out orders.
"Sound the alarm!"
"Protect the children!"
"Don't fight unless you have to!"
Giastso grabbed Ando's arm, "Take the children to the sanctuary! It'll be safe there!" Ando nodded and did so.
He gathered as many as the children he could, running for the sanctuary. As they went, they heard the screams and yelling coming from both Fire-Benders and Air-Benders. Fireballs flew over them and crushed more of their homes.
"There's too many!"
"We can't fight them off!"
"Come children!" Ando commanded. They made in front of the door, but several Fire-Benders blocked it.
"Which one of you is the Avatar?" asked the commanding officer. With a battle cry, Ando created and air sphere around him and the children. He lifted them up into the air over the sanctuary. The Fire-Benders threw out there flames, but the windshield negated their attacks.
Once they landed, Ando fell from exhaustion. "Children go with out me!"
"Where do we go?"
"We need you!"
"Don't worry, I'll take care of them!" Ando and the children turned around and stared into the eyes of Sozin the Fire Lord, himself. "Just tell me which one is the Avatar?"
Ando struggled to stand, "I am!"
"You?" Sozin raised his eyebrow. "You are the Great Avatar? You don't seem great at all!"
"That's where you are wrong!" Ando spun around and lashed out an air whip. He struck the Lord. Sozin quickly shot out a lightning bolt from his fingertips. Ando put up an air shield, but the attack was too strong and he was too weak. The blast broke his shield and he fell back. Some of the children went to his aid.
"So, Great Avatar! This is your end!" He created a small blue orb at the tips of his fingers and pointed at Ando.
"He's not the Avatar! I am!" A boy yelled out. The tyrant glared at him.
"No, I'm the Avatar!" Another boy yelled out.
"No, he's a liar! I am!"
"No, I am!"
"They're lying! I am!" One by one, the children stood forward claiming they were the Avatar.
Ando stood up with new strength, "You'll never find the Avatar!"
"My Lord! What are your orders?" asked one of his officers.
Sozin grinned evilly, "They think by putting this charade, they'll be able to protect the Avatar." He turned to the commander. "Kill them all…"
That was the end of the Air-Benders. They never revealed Aang's disappearance. Hope was lost, but little did the world know, the Avatar waits to be awakened, to save the world…