Part 2 – The Connection
Katara awoke seeing blank emptiness all around her. She wasn't even sure what she was standing on. It felt like floating through air and standing on solid ground at the same time. She wasn't sure what that old woman had done to her, all she wanted to do was find Aang. So, she did the only thing she could, she called his name.
"Aang!"
Her voice echoed through the emptiness. It bounced around and came back to her. She called again, louder this time.
"Aang!"
Kiyomi heard the cries in Katara's mind. It hurt her to see that the separation was causing Katara pain. The only solution was to link their minds together so she could read them more easily and they could be together. She created a path from one to the other.
All of a sudden Katara felt as if she was moving. An unseen force was carrying her forward. Then she started to make out a shape in the distance. The bright colours stood out against the blank white. Katara knew immediately who it was.
"Aang!" she cried out but this time not in distress but in relief.
The two minds came crashing together at that moment and, for a second, Katara swore that she could see his memories and feel his emotions. Ask Aang, and he would have told you the exact same thing.
The lovers' embrace lasted a few more seconds before they finally pulled apart. Katara was crying. Aang took her face in his hands gently, starring right into her azure eyes.
"Katara, what happened?" he asked desperately, "What's going on?"
"That old woman," Katara answered. "She put you under a spell."
"Did she talk to you? What did she say?"
"She said she was going to make all of our dreams come true," Katara said. Aang's hands dropped from her face and his face fell. The temperature also dropped drastically in the emptiness. "What's wrong?" Katara asked knowing the look on the boy's face meant something terrible. "What's going on, Aang?" She grabbed the front of his robes and held on tight. Aang became tense and started turning around in circles. Katara lost her bravery and let fear move in and cloud her heart. Aang stopped moving. Katara held her breath.
There was a far away creaking sound, like an old house against a howling wind. However, Katara did not feel any wind.
Aang listened carefully into the emptiness, just like Toph taught him to. What he was listening for, he was not sure of. Anything that seemed it did not belong.
"Aang," Katara spoke softly, frightened. She moved closer to him taking more of his cloak into her hands.
Aang looked at the trembling girl. "It's okay," he assured. "Probably nothing."
From above a great beast dropped down. It swooped over the couple.
"Aang!" Katara yelled, as he brought her to the ground. Without any water, how was she supposed to defend herself?
Aang gathered up as much air as he could, in a few seconds, and threw an attack to the beast. The blast hit it's target and the thing went sprawling backward. It screamed opened up it's wings and off into the distance.
"What was that?" Katara asked as Aang helped her back to her feet.
"Katara, where there are dreams there are also nightmares," Aang said wisely.
Katara shook her head, "I didn't even think of that, and now I have us trapped in here where things could come after us at any moment!"
"Don't think like that," Aang said strongly. "There has to be a way out of here, and we'll find it."
"Aang, I don't have any water. I'm completely defenseless."
"As long as we can breathe there's air, and if we need to keep warm I can use my firebending," Aang assured.
"I wouldn't trust it. You have no idea how much air is in... here."
The old empty whiteness was gone and replaced by a watery swamp. The trees blocked the sun from touching the water, that came up around Katara's ankles, and the vines grew think covering the revealed roots of the old trees. The light, that came in, bounced around casting a green glow around the shadows. Aang took hold of Katara's hand securely and pulled her closer to him.
"At least you have your water now," he said. She laughed, a little.
They walked through the muddy water trying to find a way out of the bog. They kept wandering, before they finally came to rest on a root coming out of the water, that, at least, looked dry. The bottom of their clothes were soggy and had rips and tears from catching on branches. Aang sent up a little tee pee of sticks and lit a fire underneath them.
"Any idea what time it is?" Katara asked playing with the water by her feet.
"I haven't been able to see the sun through all these trees but I imagine: late," Aang said.
There was a silent pause then Katara asked, "Why us?"
Aang raised his head at the question. "What do you mean?" he asked.
"I mean why did this freaky old lady decide to send us to this horrible place."
"I don't know, Katara-"
"I mean, she must have a good reason right?" Aang shrugged. Katara sighed, defeated.
"Why don't we go to sleep?" Aang suggested. He helped her onto the root and they both lay down beside each other and fell asleep.
Through the shadows of the trees a glow appeared. It raced from tree limb to tree limb. It did not have any arms or legs, eyes, or mouth. The glow stopped just inches from where Aang and Katara lay. More orbs appeared lighting up the area around the fire. Then, suddenly, the glowing orbs changed from a pure white, to a blood red, then black and slowly disappeared into the trees. All but one. This orb stayed it's blood red colour and screamed loudly, startling Aang and Katara out of sleep. The orb kept screaming, a high pitch, curdling scream.
Katara covered her ears with her hands, hoping to block out the noise. Aang jumped from the root and raised a colom of water from the swamp floor, drowning the orb and it's screams. Katara removed her hands and looked at the frozen orb.
"What was that?" she asked Aang.
Aang shook his head, "I don't know." Suddenly they were ambushed by more screaming red orbs. Aang and Katara both used the swamp water to freeze the orbs but there were too many. Then, one of the orbs touched Katara. She screamed, for the place it had touched was now burnt and bleeding. Aang saw this.
"Let's go!" he yelled and took Katara's hand, jumped over the orbs and ran deep into the swamp. The orbs started to chase after them. Aang slowed his run but urged Katara forward. She looked back at him, "Just go!" he yelled. She kept running.
Aang breathed deeply and activated the Avatar Spirit. He used the power of his past lives to create a wall of water that separated himself and Katara from the pursuing blood red orbs. He held the water up while the orbs got caught in the watery web. Then, Aang froze the wall and shattered it, breaking whatever force was in the orbs to make them scream. The glow left Aang's eyes and tattoos and he ran to go find Katara.
He found her just around the corner. She had healed the burn and only a scar was left, still Aang insisted on seeing it.
"You're sure you're all right, you don't feel dizzy?" He put a hand to her forehead but she batted it away.
"I'm fine," she giggled. "How about you?" Aang nodded to assure her that he was fine too.
Among the children young and old
there is a fear that has been
foretold
Katara sighed and threw her arms around his neck. He, too, was craving the close comfort and wrapped his arms around her waist holding her even closer to him. They started to sway back and forth and that is when the humming started again. Aang looked up in surprise and pulled Katara back.
"Were you humming?" he asked.
Katara shook her head. "No, why do you ask?"
"You don't hear it?"
"Hear what?"
"The humming!" Aang exclaimed.
Katara stopped to listen for a moment. "I don't hear– "
"It just stopped," Aang said suspiciously. There was silence and the only noise the two could hear was the whistling of the wind in the trees. It blew Katara's hair slightly. She covered her mouth with her hand. Aang knew this was scaring her and he took her in his arms again and they stood there silently.
"Aang," Katara whispered after a moment, "I think something bad is going to happen."
"What do you mean?" Aang asked just as quietly.
Katara didn't say anything for a minute, then she whispered, "I'm scared."
"Me too," Aang whispered back.
"I feel like we're here, while something is going on outside, and plus, the landscape doesn't help much."
Aang laughed. "We'll find a way out, I promise."
"I know. I trust you," Katara said pulling away from the hug to kiss Aang's cheek.
"Well, we'd better make the most of this," Aang said, pulling Katara to his side, wrapping an arm around her waste. They trunged through the muddy water, talking and even laughing. It hurt Kiyomi's ears to hear such things, for she was a restless spirit, but her powers were weakened thanks to that childish boy. Unknown to Aang and Katara, but this old woman`s dreams had just begun.
