The Butterfly Effect
"And that was how I ended up on Crescent Island," Aang said, finishing up his summary of events since he ran away from the Fire Nation ship.
"Wait," Katara said, "you rode on a tidal wave here?"
Aang nodded. "I had some help, though. The Moon Spirit had to give me a boost."
Sokka almost jumped on top of Aang with surprise. "Yuehelped you? How is she? Did you talk with her? Did she mention me?"
Aang shook his head. "Sorry, Sokka; Yue just helped me get here with the tidal wave."
Sokka slumped on the ground, his face sulky.
"It must have been something to see," Katara said, a hint of jealousy in her voice.
Aang smiled. "It waspretty amazing."
"Did it smash you on the rocks here?" Toph asked eagerly.
"No," Aang replied. "I rode off of it to land here and it kept moving on. For all I know the tidal wave is still out there on the ocean."
All four of them looked out onto the waves then. The water lapped gently, evidence of the previous night's storm nowhere to be seen.
"I hope no gets hurt from it," Katara worried.
Aang shrugged. "It should be fine. The ocean spirit will make sure it hits somewhere safe."
(Some time later…)
"She was right, of course, but it still hurt."
The tension at the campfire visibly lessened with Azula's words. Zuko and Mai shook from their heads actual feelings of pity for the Fire Nation princess and returned to making out with each other. Ty Lee smiled at her friends, happy to see them return to their normal selves.
"What Lo and Li said came true," she said, and the others turned to her. "The beach did help us learn about ourselves."
She smiled happily and picked up a stone from the sand. "I feel all smoothed. I'll always remember this."
Azula opened her mouth to comment when a loud hissing noise sounded across the beach. The group of teenagers stood up quickly and turned to face the ocean.
"What was that?" Mai asked.
The tide suddenly dropped out, like water draining through a sieve. Ty Lee gasped and unconsciously took a step back. Zuko walked closer to the ocean, straining his eyes to stare into its inky blackness. There was something in the water so big it blocked out the stars.
"What isthat?" he said.
Azula came up next to him, her eyes narrowing. She stared hard at the rapidly approaching monstrosity.
"Well?" Zuko asked his sister.
"I…" Azula's eyes suddenly widened. Zuko felt the pit of his stomach drop when he realised he saw fear in her eyes. Nothing had ever frightened Azula.
"Mother of Agni!" Azula yelled. "Run!"
Zuko whipped his head back to the ocean and felt his mouth drop. There was a wall of water, higher than he had ever seen a wave get and it was beginning to curl and crash itself onto the beach. Zuko opened his mouth to scream but the sound of his voice died out when the tidal wave hit him.
It was day after the Great Desolation of Ember Island. The majority of it had been destroyed in a huge tidal wave, the biggest anyone had seen in years. It had washed away the beach huts and the homes of great officials and general and even swept through Ember Island's playhouse. The survivors – what few there were – all spoke of the terror of the water, how quickly it came and how it destroyed indiscriminately. They also told how especially eerie it was when the wave finally drew back and, for a moment, the seam foam had made a shape uncannily like a smiling face.