Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender

Out of Mind

This is re-written and I want to thank Stingmon for pointing out the major errors. Note to self: never post a story at 11 PM again.

Wake Up Questions

Zuko was angry. Zhao had put a major wrench in his search for the Avatar and was now taking his ship! His Uncle had left him alone to stew since he knew it was a lost cause to get him to lighten up. Suddenly he jolted upright at the sound of footsteps on deck. Quietly he got up and walked to the helm. He heard a hissing noise and looked out the window to see a familiar reptile-bird. Pirates! Was his last thought before the ship exploded. As he hit the water he quickly shed his armor and grabbed a piece of wood nearby. He tried to kick back to the dock but the current had taken him out to sea. His head throbbed and felt heavy and the last thing he remembered before passing out was a large ship approaching with an Earth Kingdom insignia on the side.

******

I woke up with a groan. As I slowly began to gain consciousness I heard a masculine voice say "he's awake get the Captain!" then a shuffling noise and retreating footsteps. I cracked open my eyes and groaned again at the pain from the light. I saw the man who spoke turn to me and say "its OK son. I'm sure you're confused. You've been asleep for a while now. My name is Kirin. I'm the head healer on the ship" he smiled at me and I saw he was missing some teeth. He had tan skin and a bushy gray beard that reminded me of someone.

I was just about to ask him what happened when I heard footsteps approaching. A man in ornate green robes entered and Kirin stood up and saluted him. The man (whom I now assumed to be the Captain) said "finally he's awake! I have some questions for you. Who are you? How did you end up out at sea? What happened to cause your injuries?"

I frowned and furrowed my eyebrows then finally responded "I don't remember. I don't remember anything." It was true and it scared me.

"He had a big bump on his head Sir so I wouldn't be surprised that he has amnesia" Kirin said. The Captain grunted in response. Reflexively I reached behind my head and felt a large lump there.

Amnesia? How did I get amnesia? Why me?! Some instinct inside me told me I needed answers to get a feel for my surroundings fast. "Where am I? Where did you find me? What was wrong with me?" I snapped.

Kirin made a soothing gesture with his hands and spoke in a tone one would use to gentle a raging ostrichhorse "you were found holding a piece of driftwood in the middle of the sea. You have burns, scratches, and bruises everywhere. You have a HUGE scar on your-" he was cut off with a sharp throat-clearing from the Captain. "I mean you have a few old injuries as well."

Once again my eyebrows furrowed. I noticed I had trouble opening one eye and my skin felt tighter there. Huge old scar? Could it be on my-? "Do you have a mirror?" I demanded.

The men exchanged wary glances but Kirin handed me a small mirror. Hesitantly I looked inside. I had sharp almost feminine features, golden eyes, cropped black hair that seemed new and milky skin except for the large ugly scar on half of my face. Suddenly I saw something:

A pale arm with a fist full of flames grew quickly closer to my eye. It connected with a white-hot pain.

"What was that?" I whispered in a daze.

"Did you remember something?" the Captain asked.

"A flaming fist punching me then pain."

"Firebender." The Captain spat. "You're just a child what monster would do that?"

For some reason I felt an urge to defend the unknown owner of the arm but squashed it since it made no sense.

"Do you have any skill on a ship boy?" the Captain asked.

"Battle strategizing and navigation" I answered automatically.

"Heh sounds to me like you used to spend a lot of time with your Captain if you were on a ship" the man who had fetched the Captain said.

I gritted my teeth and was about to snap at him when the Captain beat me to it with "quiet Ching! The boy has been through enough without you saying anything!"

Ching looked ashamed and mumbled "sorry Sir." I noticed he didn't apologize to me which made me ball my fist in anger. Before I could do anything the Captain sharply dismissed him.

"How good are you at fighting?" the Captain asked, ignoring Ching's comment as if he was never here.

"I'm pretty good I think." I vaguely remembered fighting someone with tattoos but I had no idea whom.

"Is he good enough to move?" the Captain asked Kirin.

"He still needs rest but if he doesn't work too strenuously he should be fine for now. He needs to have his bandages changed still."

"Alright then. Boy you're on swabbing duty. You'll have to pull your weight until we reach the next port on out way to Ba Sing Se."

"Yes Sir" I replied but hated doing it for some reason.

I know I mentioned Zuko furrowing his eyebrowS a few times but remember he didn't know he only had one then.