It was cold.
So terribly, bitterly cold.
A young girl of age six peered worriedly out of her window, the splintery wooden shutters opened slightly. A sliver of a shadow streaked across the golden sun. In the bay that was so close to the city, a whole fleet of army boats sailed closer, readying their attack.
She was so, so scared.
"Mama," she whispered, frightened. "Why are the other Nations here?"
A frail, young woman glanced sadly at her young daughter and pulled her into a tight embrace. "Because it's war."
"Why do we have war?" whispered a young boy about the age of seven. He wiped his gold eyes with his bare arm.
Another girl, about the age of fourteen, wrapped her spindly arms around her legs. The tight hideout in their small hut could barely fit three people. Everyone in the whole Fire Nation had a hideout in case of this. In case of war.
"But why, Mama?" The little girl's lip quivered. "Why do they hate us? What did we do wrong?"
The mother said nothing, only shaking her head and let pearly tears stream down her cheeks. The teenage girl gave a stony stare at the opposite wall.
"Because we're Fire Nation," she hissed. "They hate us for being alive."
"Leng!" whispered the mother loudly. "Don't scare your siblings."
"It's the truth," Leng mumbled.
The two children's bottom lip trembled. Their eyes sparkled with silver tears. "Will Daddy be okay?"
The mother remained silent, only tightening her grip on her youngest daughter. Her husband had to fight against the invaders, even if he was stripped from his firebending because of the solar eclipse.
"He'll be okay, Nuan," the mother reassured.
Leng spared a glance at her mother. She was astounded that her mother would fib like that. She knew deep in her heart that there would be no way that her father could survive. The enemy had weapons and bending, and the Avatar.
Avatar. The word shivered her spine. For all her life, she wanted this dastardly war over, to have the four nations to live together peacefully again, and knew that the Avatar would help them, save them, free them from hatred. She didn't expect the Avatar to be the ones to kill them.
"Will we die, Mama?" the little boy sobbed.
"No, we won't, Ri," whispered the mother. "We'll be strong and stay together, understand?"
Ri nodded and wiped the remaining tears out of his eyes. Leng remained silent. They weren't going to survive. The enemies would make sure of that. Just like how the Fire Nation army killed the Air Nomads.
Crash! The mother gasped. Earthbenders from the army ships bended chunks of the earth under the sea and pummeled them to the city, crushing small homes of innocent peasants. Screams of children echoed in the darkening air. Leng felt cold sweat dot her forehead. They weren't safe here anymore.
"Children! Hurry and get out!" screamed the mother. Nuan, Ri, and Leng bolted out of their refuge and scrambled out of their small hut. Just as their mother climbed out of the door, earth crashed down onto their flimsy home. Splintered wood scattered in the air as the adobe was crushed into fine dust. Nuan screamed pitifully as her only home was destroyed.
"What should we do?" yelled Leng, her heart racing. The sun's light gradually faded to a sickening gray. She could see puffs of frigid smoke as she exhaled.
"Look out!" a local villager shrieked. He pointed a crooked finger to a towering wave that shadowed the small village. Leng stared baffled at the deathly killer. A menacing wall of icy, salty ocean water hovered over their heads. Mothers swept their screaming children into their arms and rushed for refuge, but not many could make it. Waterbenders swept their arms in swift motion and the whole wave slammed down onto the lower half of the city, where all the poor peasants lived.
Leng screamed as the water swirled around her. She couldn't see; her eyes burned from the salt. She felt as if hot burning daggers slashed every inch of skin on her body. She gulped a mouthful of bitter water as she struggled for air.
Suddenly, a hand clutched the collar of her dress and hulled her out of the watery dungeon. She coughed and spat out ocean water as her mother threw her on a floating piece of wood. Leng clambered on, gasping for air.
"Where's Nuan and Ri?" she screamed.
"Mama!" The mother's head whipped toward the direction of the voice, her wet strands of black hair sticking to her face. There was Nuan and Ri, their arms beat the water, struggling to survive. "Mama! Help me! Please!"
Mother didn't hesitate for a millisecond. She dove in to the water as a brave warrior would. Leng watched fearfully as the waved thrashed the drowning village.
Were the enemies deaf? thought Leng angrily as she balanced on the small raft. Couldn't they hear the cries of children and pleads for mercy from families? How could they call the Fire Nation heartless and ruthless when they were committing the exact crime? Leng wiped angry tears away for the millionth time as she gazed at everything around her. Remains of homes floated eerily in the thrashing waves. Small saplings that the people planted were uprooted and battered. People screamed in the water, their arms beating the surface for breath. Leng felt her heart tighten and her shame build up; she wanted to help those people so bad but she was too scared and cowardly to do so.
Finally, what seemed to have been ages, Nuan and Ri pulled themselves onto the little wood that could barely fit all of them. Mother gripped tightly onto the sides, breathing heavily.
"My darlings, listen to me," breathed Mother. "You must get to the higher parts of the city! You have to save yourselves. If I ever tell you to leave, you must do so immediately and not turn back. Leng, you must protect your sister and brother at all times. Do you understand me?"
Leng hesitated, her eyes widening. Abandon her mother to save herself? No! There was no possible way. Her thoughts were interrupted by a volley of boulders.
"Please promise me!" Mother pleaded.
The children were speechless and nodded. Mother closed her eyes and rested her head on the board, sobbing. Leng felt her own tears released from their cages. She didn't want to die, no matter how better the afterlife was. That is, if 'evil, ruthless firebenders' deserved one.
Suddenly, the waterbenders from the enemy's ship swept their arms again to deliver the final blow to the poorer part of the village. A typhoon swirled in the water and pummeled itself onto the peasants. Leng screamed and gripped tightly on her siblings. A cold rush of water buried the three.
Will I die? thought Leng, sobbing in her mind.
"Leng!" Ri's voice screamed in her ear. Leng lifted her head and gasped. She felt all the air from her lungs disappear. Their mother was no longer grasping on the side of their little raft. Fear crept through Leng's veins.
"Mama! MAMA!" screamed Ri. "Where are you?"
"Leng, where is she?" whimpered Nuan. Leng didn't answer.
"We have to go!" yelled Leng.
Nuan was sobbing, letting her tears freely run. "What about Mama? What about Mama?"
"She told us to save ourselves!" Leng said, ocean water mixing with salty tears. Numbly, she grasped on a nearby plank of wood and vainly tried to row them back. The raft only spun and bobbed with the waves.
"We have to swim to the higher levels!" yelled Leng. Before she could grab her siblings and take off, another chunk of earth dived into the water, the displaced water shoving them off the raft. Nuan and Ri screamed as they plunged into the cold water. Leng felt as if she were in hell. Her skin was icy cold, yet it burned, and her heart was pierced with a hole when her mother was gone.
I should just let myself die, she thought miserably, swirling in the dark oblivion. What was the point of living when everything else I knew are gone?
Leng, you must protect your sister and brother at all times. Do you understand me?"
Leng's eyes snapped open, burning with salt water. She had promised her mother to save her siblings. Without further ado, she grabbed her sibling and kicked up for safety, not stopping to remember what was happening.
The trio finally crawled onto muddy land. Leng heaved for breath and rose on unsteady feet. Grabbing her sibling's hands, they rushed as far as their tired legs could take them.
Screams and sobs were heard at every corner, yet the source was unseen. Earth fell to the ground, crushing homes and families. Leng felt as if she were in a terrible nightmare. She couldn't feel anything, not the ground under her or the sweaty hands in her own. The sun was now completely shadowed…
"In here!" she screamed to her brother and sister. They rushed inside a large adobe building to catch a breath. Ri collapsed onto the ground and cried, cried until even his heart ran out of tears. Leng dropped to her knees and scrunched her eyes tight.
"Leng, why did they take Mama away?" whispered Nuan.
Leng just shook her head, unable to say anything or make up an excuse.
It's all a bad dream, she thought to herself wildly. Nothing is real, war isn't real, hate isn't real…
"LENG!" Leng's eyes snapped open. The enemy shot fiery fireballs towards the city, burning the cities. Leng whirled around. They were using their own sources against them.
Children cried for their mothers and received no reply. Nuan and Ri clutched her arms tightly and bawled, unsure what to do. Leng felt dazed and unreal…until a fireball shot to the building they were in.
The wood that supported the roof blazed with flames and collapsed. The whole room filled with smoke and the fire that caught on the wood floor. Leng gasped and grasped Nuan, pushing the flames away so they could escape. Embers shot towards them and burned their flesh. But even with the fire around them, Leng still felt cold and frozen. They dashed to the small exit and threw themselves onto the wet ground.
"Where's Ri?" gasped Nuan. Leng felt as if her lungs were wrung together. Ri was left behind.
"Stay here!" Leng ordered. "I'll get him back!" She turned to face the fiery entrance, took a breath, and raced in.
"Ri!" she screamed, her mind praying for him to respond. She would kill herself if he even got a scratch. She wandered around, screaming his name and crawling deeper into the building, the flames scarring her body.
"Leng!" Ri ran into her arms. Leng felt tears of pain and joy fill her eyes as she tightly embraced her little brother.
"We have to get out!" she yelled. "Hurry!"
The two fought their way through burning fire and collapsed wood for the exit. Fire licked their arms and burned them, but still left an icy cold sensation from the eclipse.
"Go on straight!" Leng hollered, pointing to the dark little hole ahead of them. Whoever knew that a dark, unknown passageway was your route to safety?
Ri nodded and hastened to it. Leng followed until the roof suddenly collapsed on her leg. She hissed in pain as a block of hardened clay hurtled onto her leg. She heard a sickening crack and moaned. Blood stained her ankle and her bone was slightly showing through her torn skin.
I must go on, she thought wildly to herself. Fists clenched, she hobbled towards the exit, but her leg collapsed under her, begging not to move. She clenched her teeth, the pain shooting through her foot. She couldn't move it at all.
I have to, Leng thought. I promised mother.
Mother…
Her mother's image hovered in her mind. Smiling, reassuring, supporting…Leng felt her eyes and nose run again, until her broken leg shot another jolt of agony.
Leng felt her own breath crackle. Her whole body was in pain with burns. She tried to crawl, her arms shaking at every movement, but collapse. It hurt too much. It hurt too much to be alive. She rested her head onto the burning wood, her cheeks consumed by the fire. Above her, the wood and adobe stone crackled and threatened to fall.
I'm sorry Mother, Ri, Nuan…Leng thought to herself. A last tear slid down the bridge of her nose as roof above her finally gave in and plummeted to the ground.
My oneshot for the war against the Fire Nation. A bit gory, I know. If you want to know, Leng in Chinese means 'cold', Nuan means 'warm', and Ri means 'hot'. I was going to end this story in a happier note, but I changed my mind.