Part: Two- Ice
Chapter: One- Danger
Author: Fritters-4-Psi
Disclaimer: I do not own the show Avatar: The Last Air Bender or the related characters. Nor do I profit from this fanfiction. The only things of my creation in this fanfiction are coming in later chapters.
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The sky was dark and not only from the oncoming night. A storm was approaching. It seemed like the rain would hold off until it was completely dark. Three people ran, hoping to reach some cover before the rain. They were closely followed by two animals. A small winged lemur, which took to the air. And a giant flying bison, which lumbered behind.
The five, the three human and the two animals, had been traveling together for quite some time. From the South Pole, they trekked to the North Pole. Encountering many difficult tasks along the way. The reason for their journey to the North Pole was to find a Water Bending Master to teach two of the companions Water Bending. From the North Pole, the decided to head to Omashu, where one of the two that had learned Water Bending, could learn Earth Bending from King Bumi.
How could one Bender learn two elements? He was the Avatar. It was his duty to learn all four and restore peace to a world being controlled by hate and war. His name was Aang. He was the last Air Bender. With two of the four elements already mastered, the trio headed for Omashu, where King Bumi, an old friend of Aang's could teach him Earth Bending.
The other of the companions to learn Water Bending, was Katara. She was a member of the dwindling South Pole Water Tribe. Under the vigilant eye of Master Pakku, she mastered Water Bending and taught Aang after they had left the North Pole. The third member of the party was a warrior from the Southern Water Tribe. Katara's brother, Sokka.
The two Water Tribe members hoped that they soon could return home. They had promised Aang that they would help him, though. The siblings would remain true to their word. Even if it meant tramping through miles of terrain for days without a decent place to rest.
A few weeks ago, Sokka had come across a girl while trying to find some food. She lived in the forest they had been in at the time. The trio had befriended her. They had stayed for only one night, when Prince Zuko of the Fire Nation had caught up with them. Fortunately, the girl, Risha, was Prince Zuko's cousin. She prevented her cousin from attacking her new friends. There was also something special about Risha. She was what, a long time ago, was known as a Lutdeo. She was a Fauna Bender. She was able to control and bend animals to her will. When the three left, Risha said that she would aide Aang when it was time for him to overthrow Fire Lord Ozai.
That was two and a half weeks ago. They hadn't eaten or slept decently since then. Unfortunately, it was about to rain. Thankfully, though, a village wasn't far off. Following a river bank, Aang, Katara, and Sokka ran. The village they were hoping to reach before it rained, was on the other side. They would have to cross a bridge to get there, but there wasn't a bridge in sight. So they ran further still. The river took a sharp bend and around the corner was a bridge.
At first, the bridge seemed to be made of pure white, almost transparent, stone. As they neared it, they realized it wasn't made of pure white stone. It was transparent, though. It was made of ice. "How could a bridge made of ice survive in the heat of the Earth Kingdom?" Sokka inquired, "It's just not possible."
Aang was silent. Sokka had a point. An ice bridge would have melted in the Earth Kingdom, unless . . . There was a sound of a few snapping twigs, deep in the forest. The Avatar peered through the dark branches of the trees. His eyes might have been playing tricks on him, but he was almost certain that he saw a cloaked figure dash even deeper into the woods. "Hey, guys. I think I saw something in the forest," Aang said.
"It was probably, just a hog-monkey," Sokka brushed it off, "This bridge still makes me wonder, though."
When Katara spoke up, Aang realized that she must have been thinking the same thing he had been. "Maybe there's a Water Bender around here," Katara suggested.
"Yeah, that's great, but we don't have time to stop and chat with them. It's about to rain. Besides, it's not like we have to find a Water Bender to teach you two Water Bending anymore," Sokka stated.
He stepped carefully, onto the ice bridge. It was slippery, but that didn't bother him. Sokka gingerly walked across the bridge. In a short matter of time, he was on the other side. Katara shrugged and walked across as well, with no trouble. The winged lemur, Momo, flew across the water, landing on Katara's head. Appa, the flying bison, trudged through the water, shaking off when he reached the other side. Aang was the last one to cross. He was in the middle of the bridge, when he felt wetness on his feet. He looked down. The bridge was melting. All at once, the ice turned to water. Aang disappeared beneath a sheet of ice that formed on the river's surface.
Katara ran forward to the river's bank. She concentrated on turning the ice into water once more. As hard as she tried, she sensed that someone was fighting her. Someone was trying to keep the water frozen. It seemed like hours that Katara fought the other presumed Water Bender, but it had really only been a few minutes. Finally, the ice broke and melted back into its liquid form.
Further down the river, Aang swam to the bank. Other than being wet, he was fine. He looked around to see if the Bender whom he had sensed fighting Katara was near. He saw no one, except his companions. "Are you okay, Aang?" Katara was worried.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just a little shaken. And, obviously, wet," Aang confirmed, "Did you happen to see who was trying to keep the ice frozen?"
"No, we didn't see anyone," Sokka shook his head, "Maybe it was a bounty hunter. There are wanted posters of you all around, Aang. The reward is really high, too."
"Let's just keep moving. We would be easy targets if we stay still," Aang suggested, "The village isn't far off now."
After Aang used Air Bending to dry himself, they continued on their way. Like Aang had said, the village they were hoping to reach wasn't far off. The sky darkened. They would have to travel quicker if they didn't want to get wet. Or in Aang's case, get wet again. Whoever it was that tried to drown him beneath the ice, if they were smart, would go to take shelter, too.
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