Disclaimer: None of the characters depicted in the following stories belong to the Author, and no money is being made from this work.

AN: Welcome readers, to what is hopefully going to be one hell of a wild ride. This is the prologue to the novel I'm writing for the event NaNoWriMo. Once it's over at the end of November I'm going to be posting the rest as I my Beta's fix my horrible spelling and grammar.

As for the OC haters out there, sorry. There are going to be a few OC's though trust me when I say they are going to be relatively few and far between, this story is generally speaking, going to be Sokka-centric with little (or a lot depending on how much you bribe me) bit of romance for the various ships I support.

Sorry Zutara shippers, it isn't happening.

For all Kataang, Maiko, Toko, SokkaSuki, and SokkaYue shippers, you'll find a little bit of everything here. Eventually. I'm not going to stick characters together and have them fall madly in love with each other either. I have every intention of making it a long and painful process, just like real life.

WARNING: The first part of this prologue has what could be considered graphic content by some parties. If this bothers you and you still wish to read it, you can skip down to the first line break and start reading from there.

-Jonnoda

Prologue: The End of Days

He watched with as sort of grim pleasure as the life faded from Azula's eyes. This event, this moment had been a long time coming, and he felt relief now having finally fulfilled the revenge he had sworn himself too all those long years ago.

Sokka could die in peace now; just as well, he estimated he had only a few more minutes in this world at best anyway. Releasing his grip on the pommel of the blade he had pierced her lungs and heart with, he staggered backwards, unbalanced, eliciting a groan as the burnt and cracked skin on his back made contact with the stone wall. The pain was enough to buckle his knees causing him to black out for a moment as the wall scraped away what skin he had left and slid down into a sitting position. Breathing heavily he couldn't help but wonder at what would happen once he passed to the spirit world. Would he see Aang and Katara again? Suki? Yue?

His musings where interrupted as another man slowly dragged himself into the room. Sokka watched in silence as the he struggled with what was left of his left leg, a charcoaled stump from a blast of flame he had been one instant to slow to dodge, slowly pulling his body through the open doorway. After few seconds of struggling he propped himself against the wall and released his breathe slowly.

"That looks painful old man."

He glanced up at the water tribe warrior, a wry smile fighting through his grimace of pain.

"You aren't looking too good yourself Sokka."

Sokka reached up and touched the side of his face gently, the left side of his head was essentially one giant burn, the skin cracked and bleeding from a particularly evil fire blast that had somehow come out of the back of Azula's palm. He let his hand drop. There was a silence as both contemplated the ending that was upon them, before it was again interrupted by the older man.

"In the end at least we won this one victory." He hacked for a moment as a gurgling noise came from him, before spitting out a considerable amount of blood. "One of the bastards got a good blow in, my lung's punctured."

"I don't think I have much time myself." Sokka clutched his stomach as pain wracked his body, the slow burning feeling spiking for a moment; he made no attempt to stop the bleeding knowing it was futile. "How's this for a glorious way to die; slow, painful and in a pool of our own blood."

"Don't complain," a pause, "at least we were able to take her down with us, and with that you fulfilled your revenge, and I finally finished my mission." A cough and a soft gurgling came from his throat, and after a moment he continued on in a strained whisper. "At least the back of the Fire Nation is broken, with the royal line ended."

Sokka said nothing, the fatal wound on his side continued to leak blood; a blade of flame that had gone through his waist and pierced his stomach ensured that he would die painfully. The black was beginning to cloud his vision, coming in from the edges of his remaining eye. As everything faded into the darkness he noticed that his partner and friend had stopped breathing, and a dribble of blood was leaking from the corner of his mouth.

He opened his eyes to pure white. Wincing, he rubbed them as he slowly stood, feeling strangely limber. He frowned and shook his head as vision started to come back to him, only to find himself staring at walls covered in blood and scorch marks. Looking around he noticed that he was standing where his body still lay, before glancing at his friend and seeing him lying there unmoving as well.

Sokka blinked before opening his mouth and letting his first thought out.

"So this is what happens when you die, you get to see your body rot? That just sucks, don't I get to go somewhere else and enjoy myself?"

Soft laughter flowed into the room, and he spun, instantly reaching for his weapon before he froze, unable to move. A vision of beauty stood before him, one he hadn't seen in years, one that he had worshiped for many years as his guiding hand.

Standing before him, Yue laughed softly, before smiling, "Always straight to the point Sokka, I am glad the years, and death, haven't changed you enough to curb your sarcastic tongue."

Yue

Her name whispered from his lips, and suddenly he found himself unfrozen, stepping forward in three quick strides to engulf her frame in a fierce hug. She felt like air in his arms, weightless and insubstantial, and he let her go and stepped back at her light push on his chest.

"Yue…" He was silenced by an ethereal finger on his lips. She smiled at him sadly before stepping back and speaking once again.

"Please, I am unable to hold you here from entering the spirit realm for very long, you must let me speak without interruption." She took a deep breath before continuing.
"Sokka, my love, you have suffered, you have lost those precious to you, and now I am going to give you an offer. One you must not refuse." She paused a moment, seemingly regaining her breathe, while Sokka stood there silently, his mind a whirling mass of confusion. "Ozai, in his arrogance and rush at having the power of Sozin's comet coursing through him, slew Aang when he was within the Avatar state, thus ending the line of the Avatar." She stopped again, meeting his eyes for the first time. "This cannot happen, without the Avatar your world is doomed to destruction within a few centuries, and with it the spirit world as well. I… we… are giving you a chance. A chance to go back and make sure Aang lives, to make sure Katara lives, to help save this fallen world."

It was then that Sokka finally broke out of his reverie, thoughts and words pouring out of his mouth as his dead look in his eyes lifted. "If that happened I could save everyone, Katara, Toph, Suki," his eyes met hers and his mouth whispered the end of his sentence, "you."

She looked away. "You cannot save me."

"What? Of course I'm going to save you, I'm not going to sit back and let you die again!"

"You CAN'T!" Yue yelled, tears coming to her eyes, "You mustn't, it was my destiny to become the moon spirit, to try and change that would simply lead to your own destruction." She was sobbing now. "Please Sokka, my love, please listen, it is a requirement of the agreement to send you back. You must not save me."

She found herself in his arms again, his soul still warm from the life he had left only a few short minutes before, and for the first time she allowed herself to be comforted as his hand stroked her hair. "I'm sorry" he murmured into her hair, "I'm sorry Yue, please don't cry."

She recovered slowly, enjoying what would likely be the last time in eternity she would have the joy of feeling her loves arms around her, holding her close. "Sokka, we cannot live in what could have been, we must both live in what is." She smiled wanly. "This time my love, give Suki a chance, do not push her away, she is a wonderful person. Survive, win, live long, live happy, and have many children, when it is your time I will be waiting." Slowly, unwillingly she stepped back out of his arms.

He was silent as he looked at her, eyes drinking every detail and etching it into his memory as she traced her tears with her finger. She reached forward and drew a short symbol in the air in front of him. As the she finished the symbol began to glow, and Yue leaned in and slowly kissed him on his forehead. The insistent tugging he had been feeling, pulling him towards the spirit realm disappeared leaving him with a vague sense of growing dread, "Remember Sokka, I am always with you, watching, waiting, guiding." She seemed to be getting farther away even as she stood there before him, and he was struck by an overwhelming sense of loss at her sorrowful expression. He stepped forward, reaching for her wanting to hold her again one last time. Without warning the white overtook him again, the sense of movement, then silence and the fleeting sound of a whispered farewell.

Goodbye.

She stared at the place where her love had mere moments before been standing. Remembering every detail, from how he felt with his arms around her, to the tense stance that spoke of a seasoned veteran of war. The silence was broken when a new spirit stood from his respective corpse. Clearly disoriented, he squatted down as he waited for his eyes to clear. After a short moment he stood, once more surveying the room, until his eyes came upon the figure of Yue. Without a thought, he moved forward and knelt at her feet, completely deferential, eyes clearly displaying the worship, love and respect he had for the spirit before him.

"Lady Yue, it is an honor."

She turned to him slowly, taking the opportunity to wipe away her tears and focus on the task at hand as she surveyed the man standing before her.

"Rise Menzo, I do not ask for you to supplant yourself to me." He stood slowly, eyes curious as he looked around himself once more.

"So this is what it is like to be dead, I would have thought it would be... different."

"I have stopped your soul from entering the spirit world because I needed to speak with you and Sokka." He turned towards her, eyes clearly asking questions he was too respectful to voice. "I have sent him on a mission to the past; to ensure certain things that must not happen do not come to pass." He frowned a moment, before realization came to him.

"The Avatar's death."

Yue nodded. "Yes, with the Avatar line ended, the world will fall to chaos and eventually destroy itself. With the power of nearly all of the great spirits I sent him back." She took a breath. "Ever since you were enlightened to me when, you have served me loyally and without fail, helping Sokka and ensuring that he grew strong to the end of his life. I ask you now, if you can aid me one last…" She trailed off as the man kneeled before her again, speaking in a quiet words.

"Lady Yue, every since my enlightenment when you saved my from the darkness of my own mind, I have sworn myself to you, my life, my body and my soul. The blood oath I took has not dissipated, even in death. Ask what you will, whatever it is, I will do it without fail."

The silence stretched, before she continued in a soft voice, "What I ask of you will destroy your soul. You will never be reincarnated." Despite her words the silence continued, and Yue saw in his soul that his conviction had not faltered in the slightest at her words even before he spoke.

"If it is what you require of me, I will do it willingly."

Yue paused for a moment, feeling that she at the very least owed the man before her an explanation.

"As things are, Sokka will fail his mission. I know this and I sent him anyway. In order to give him a chance of winning against Ozai I must change one thing, one event that will eventually tip the balance in favor of the avatar. In order to do that I must reach into the past and affect one fate. But I cannot do it; sending Sokka has drained me of all my power. But at the same time I cannot wait, as the rift he made on his exit is quickly fixing itself and eventually I won't be able to do it even at the height of my ability. This is why I need your soul, as both a source of power, and a guide to the fate I wish to change." She said nothing as he slowly raised his face to look at her. She did not mention the fact that the act would also eat at her, destroying her as she traversed the planes of time and played with strings of fate. She only hoped she would have enough time to fulfill everything that needed to be done.

"It is nothing to me, if my soul is the price you need to save this damned world and ensure that brats' success, it's a small price to pay."

She stared at him, and he looked back, his eyes and conviction unwavering, before finally nodding. Runes began to appear on his body, glowing brightly in the fading daylight. The light began to bleed out of the runes, inching over more and more of him before enveloping him entirely. Shock flickered across his visage, before settling down into a calm acceptance, and as the light enveloped him, creeping over his face, he was content in his final death, knowing he had served the goddess he worshipped to the best of his ability. Yue reached forward and taking what was once a human soul into her hands, molding the light into a ball. She strained to hold the immense power, before drawing it to her chest. The light disappeared into her, and silence reigned for a moment as she took a deep breath, and then, she was gone.