Chapter 4 Shipwrecked

Zuko's dream sequence

Zuko slowly made his way through the burning rubble of the Fire Palace. The once great capitol of the Fire Nation and his beloved home now was nothing more than a burning heap of debris. He slowly knelt down and dipped his hand into the ashes letting it run through his fingers and disappear into the wind. Suddenly he felt a hand fall gently upon his shoulder. He turned slowly to see his uncle Iroh standing solemnly beside him. His clothes were torn and burned in some places and his pale white face was battered and bruised. Zuko's heart sank at the sight of his uncle. He reached up and attempted to grasp the hand that lay upon his shoulder but as he did so his hand passed through Iroh's never touching flesh. Zuko gazed up at his uncle, his eyes filling with tears.

"Time," Iroh sighed, his voice sounded as soft as the gentle breeze, "running out."

The old man slowly raised his arm and pointed past Zuko. Zuko quickly turned in the direction of Iroh's pointing hand. Suddenly he found himself on a cliff and Katara stood at the very edge with her back to him. Zuko's heart froze at the sight of her.

"Katara," he called out but she would not answer, "Katara!" A gentle breeze began to blow through her beautiful auburn hair she glanced back for a moment and then without warning she stepped forward disappearing from his sight.

"Noooo," Zuko screamed as he ran to the edge in an attempt to save her, "KATARA!" But as he got to the cliff's edge he was met by a pair of emotionless glowing eyes as the avatar slowly rose from out of thin air to meet him face to face.

End dream sequence

Zuko opened his eyes and gazed up at the clear blue sky. His body felt heavy and his head was throbbing. He reached up and rubbed his eyes and felt that his forehead was wet. He brought his hand back quickly only to find that his fingers were covered in blood. Zuko sat up quickly and crawled to the ocean's edge. He gazed into the clear water to see his reflection. His forehead was marred by a deep and ugly gash and he winced at the sight of it. He then tore a piece of cloth from his shirt sleeve and pressed it to the injury in order to stop the bleeding. As he gazed out into the ocean he could see the remnants of his ship, swaying to and fro with the tide. Zuko fell to his knees as the events of the night before flashed through his mind.

"Katara," he almost sobbed, "this is all my fault." As he clenched his fists smoke slowly began to rise from them.

"AHHHHHH, Avatar," he screamed as he leapt to his feet, "we came here to HELP YOU, if she's hurt I'll kill you myself!" With that Zuko shot flames into the air.

"Now, now general, is that how you speak about all your comrades."

Zuko turned too see Monk Basho approaching him. "What do you know old man?"

"What do I know, oh good general," the monk said slyly, "I know that all of this," he motioned abruptly to the shipwreck, "the destruction of your ship, the loss of your crew, the loss of your friends, all of it, is your fault! You underestimated him, I warned you this would happen, I told you that he couldn't be saved!"

Zuko turned from him angrily, "I don't need this from you right now monk." He began to walk away from Basho.

"Whatever hope you had left General, now lies with your friends at the bottom of the sea." Zuko's eyes widened at the monk's harsh words. He turned quickly, ran toward Basho and violently grabbed him by the throat.

"It might be in your best interest monk, to keep your comments to yourself." Zuko threw the old man to the ground coughing and gasping for air. Basho scrambled to his feet clutching his throat as he shot a hateful look in Zuko's direction.

"You are a fool Zuko, a worthless fool, and you are gravely mistaken if you still believe that this frivolous pursuit of the Avatar can result in anything but tragedy, is all of this not proof enough for you!" Zuko turned from the monk. All he could think about was Katara, her angelic face, her deep blue eyes. His heart ached at the thought of her being hurt or worse but even more so because he knew deep down that the monk's words were true, this was his fault. He brought her here, after all, in hopes that her presence would somehow save the Avatar. Had he been so wrong, had his judgment been so off? No, he had to think positive.

"She has to be here," Zuko muttered to himself. If he and Monk Basho had washed up on shore there was bound to be others.

"Monk," Zuko called out without turning around, "I'm going to search for survivors, stay here if you wish." With that Zuko began walking up the beach.

"Hey Momo, would you bring me the stupid coconut already," Sokka cried impatiently as he peered up at the little creature that was sitting upon the highest branches of a palm tree. The lemur ignored his cries and continued in his attempts to open the coconut by repeatedly bashing it against the trunk of the tree. Sokka sighed heavily in aggravation as he slumped down at the base of the tree.

"There is no way you can open that thing without my help Momo," he called up as he rolled his eyes. Suddenly without warning Momo dropped the coconut to the ground, hitting Sokka in the head and inadvertently splitting it wide open to expose the fruit inside. The lemur glided down from the tree and picked up the halves of the freshly split fruit, he then offered one half to Sokka. "Gee thanks," Sokka said sarcastically as he rubbed the fresh bruise that now graced the crown of his head. He took the coconut half from Momo and began drinking its juice. As he ate, he sat silently gazing out to sea.

"Come on Momo," Sokka said suddenly as he stood up preparing to leave, "we can't hang around here forever; Katara and Zuko are stranded around here somewhere we should start looking for them." Momo squeaked in response and immediately began trying with all his might to drag his coconut half along with him. "Momo," Sokka chuckled as he watched the little lemur struggle, "there are plenty of other coconuts around just leave it here, when we are hungry we'll get another one." Momo sighed looking at the coconut sadly. "Oh brother," Sokka sighed.

Suddenly out of the corner of his eye Sokka caught a glimpse of something floating in the water not too far away from where he was standing. He turned and gazed out to sea in the direction of the unknown object.

"What is that," he muttered to himself as he began to walk toward the object. As he got closer he could see that it was a wooden chest. "This must be from the ship," he exclaimed excitedly, "hey Momo, forget the coconuts we're about to eat like kings." Sokka pulled the heavy chest ashore as Momo excitedly danced and jumped around him. "Yeah, you're a real big help let me tell ya Momo," Sokka said sarcastically as he pulled the case forward with all his might. As soon as Sokka had it on shore he knelt down in front of it as if it were an alter and began chanting, "imported cheeses, cured meats, dried fruits, sea biscuits." Sokka's eyes glazed over at the thought of all the delicious foods that the chest contained. He then reached down and yanked up on the lid of the chest, but to no avail, the lid did not budge. Sokka paused, "maybe if I just pull a little harder, URGH." Once again the lid did not move. Sokka sighed, "Okay let's try something else." Sokka got up, walked over to a group of bushes and broke off a long and narrow stick. "Let me see here," he muttered as he knelt in front of the chest once more. He gently wedged the stick in between the lid and the body of the chest. He then put all his weight on the opposite end of the stick in an attempt to pry the box open. "Come on," he yelled, "OPEN."

"SNAP," the stick suddenly broke right in half.

"Ah Man," Sokka said as he crossed his arms. He quickly looked around for something else he could use to open the chest, "Ah hah!" He reached for a large rock and began smashing the lid with it in an attempt to break it open, but all he managed to do was put a few scratches on it. "What the… what the heck is this thing made out of anyway." Momo came up next to the chest and began sniffing at it. "Sorry boy I tried, but there is just no way into that thing." Sokka said remorsefully.

"Sokka, is that you," a voice called in the distance. Sokka turned around and gazed down the beach in the direction of the voice. He could see Zuko heading towards him followed by Monk Basho.

"Zuko," Sokka answered, "I'm glad to see I'm not the only one here, I was starting to worry."

"My chest of books," cried Monk Basho joyfully running over to the box that Sokka had found, "you found my books!"

"Books," Sokka questioned, "you mean that's not food."

"Food," the monk laughed, "heavens no this is so much more important then food, this is my life's work."

Sokka just sighed rubbing the temples of his forehead in aggravation.

Zuko looked around carefully, "I take it Katara isn't with you."

"No," Sokka sighed remorsefully, "the last time I saw her she was trying to hold that wave off; obviously it didn't turn out that well," he said as he raised his arms to the island.

Zuko sighed heavily, "she went overboard just before the ship capsized," he said softly as he gazed out into the distant horizon.

"Well she's gotta be on the island," Sokka stated confidently, "I mean if we survived Katara definitely survived." Zuko glanced at him with a disbelieving look.

"She's a master water bender Zuko," Sokka insisted, "I think she could handle a few waves."

"You don't understand Sokka," Zuko interrupted, "these weren't just any waves--these waves were being controlled; you saw how difficult it was for her to hold them off!"

"Controlled," Sokka questioned.

"Yes boy," the monk interrupted, "by the Avatar; you are an oaf aren't you!" Sokka just glared at him.

"Alright, just wait a minute," Sokka said annoyed and obviously confused, "you're telling me that Aang was responsible for the big gigantic waves, what did he conjure up the whole hurricane too?" Zuko and Basho just stared at him.

"Okay this is crazy," Sokka said, "This is all just crazy."

"Boy, were you even listening when I explained to you about this place?" Sokka shot the monk a look of contempt.

"Enough monk," Zuko ordered.

"Why," Sokka shouted, "explain it to me, why would Aang attack us with that storm; why would he intentionally try to hurt Katara like that, it just doesn't make any sense." Zuko only looked down and away from Sokka. All he could think about was Katara. If she was hurt it would be all his fault for bringing her in the first place. He should have known that this would happen. He should have tried harder to prevent it. Sokka noticed Zuko's guilt ridden expression immediately. He then turned from Zuko and started walking away. "Are you gonna help me find her or not," he yelled. Zuko looked up at Sokka who had turned to face him and was awaiting an answer. Zuko nodded and both young men began their search.

Katara woke up on the other side of the island. She squinted her eyes as she strained to focus her eyesight in the bright sunlight. Her head ached. She could vaguely hear the waves crashing on the beach and birds calling overhead. She closed her eyes again and reached her hands to her aching head. Suddenly she felt the sun become blocked. She opened her eyes once more. She could just make out the outline of a shadowy figure that was standing over her. "Sokka," she moaned. She slowly began to sit up but as soon as she did so her head began to spin and she passed out.

Katara's Dream Sequence

Katara stood on the deck of the ship looking out at the violent sea. High above in the stormy clouds she could see a bright ball of light with Aang at its center. He gracefully moved the dark clouds into perfect alignment around the ship, sending them forth like soldiers to a battle. Then with fluid like motion he raised his arms, commanding the waves to rise to awesome heights. They violently struck the ship tossing it about like a lotus petal upon the sea. The men of the ship scurried about to and fro trying desperately to avoid them and holding on for dear life when they couldn't. All Katara could focus on was Aang; lost behind those emotionless glowing eyes. She stumbled to the edge of the ship crying out his name, "Aang….Aang," but her voice was drowned out by the wind and waves. "Aang, please, don't do this, let me help you!" Suddenly a wave came forth striking her from behind, "AANG!"

End Dream Sequence.

Katara awoke with a start. She quickly sat up. She was out of breath, her forehead drenched in sweat and the horrible dream was still fresh in her mind. She quickly collected her thoughts, vaguely remembering the events of the night before. She silently gazed around at her surroundings to get an idea of where she was. She found herself in a beautiful forest. She noticed the remnants of a campfire that were left nearby. It had long been left burnt out with only a few ashes and pieces of charred drift wood that remained. She was covered with a blanket but no one was in sight. As she removed the blanket she realized that her arm was neatly wrapped in bandages.

"Where is everyone," she thought to herself assuming that Sokka and Zuko must have found her and taken care of her. "Why didn't they wake me?" Suddenly she felt her stomach begin to rumble. "Oh," she groaned as she grasped her stomach with her hand, "I'm so hungry." She quickly glanced around the campsite for something to eat. Not to far from the campfire she discovered a small cloth laid out with an assortment of freshly picked nuts and fruits. Her eyes lit up at the site of it. She quickly made her way over to the collection of food and ate a fair amount of it. "I'm surprised Sokka even left me any at all," she thought to herself, "usually if I sleep in later than him I'm out of luck. She got the strange feeling as she ate that she was being watched. She sat up and looked around as a light breeze began to blow through her hair. "It's too quiet in these woods," she muttered to herself getting a little uncomfortable, "I really wish that Zuko and Sokka didn't leave me here alone."

She stood up and looked around. "Well I don't want to just sit here." She began walking. "Sokka," she called, "Zuko." No answer. "Maybe they're down by the beach looking for the rest of the crew," she thought to herself. She paused for a moment looking around in confusion, "wait...which way is the beach?" Katara sighed in frustration, "great, now what am I supposed to do!" Suddenly Katara's thoughts were interrupted by a rustling in the brush just behind her. She quickly turned to see the leaves of the bushes moving.

"Sokka," she questioned, but once again there was no answer. She slowly walked over to the bushes. She paused when she distinctly heard the sound of breaking twigs just on the other side. Her heart beat furiously as she cautiously moved forward. Slowly she reached up and moved the branches out of the way to peak through the wall of leaves. As she peered through the branches she came face to face with a giant set of teeth that seemed to be coming straight for her. Katara screamed and jumped backward out of the way just as the giant creature devoured the entire bush that was in front of her and began munching away at it. Katara sighed in relief. She then looked up and to her astonishment she immediately recognized the great monster. She stared at the beast in amazement.

"Oh my gosh!….Appa?" She got up and ran over to him. "Appa, boy is that really you?" The bison sniffed at her curiously and then knocked her over and began licking her face. "Appa stop," she laughed pushing him away. She got up and petted the old beast on the head. "Well you haven't changed a bit have you boy," she smiled. It almost seemed like old times again. The only difference was Aang was missing. Katara frowned as she remembered, "Aang," she sighed, "Appa, you know where he is don't you boy?" Appa groaned in response and snorted. He then leaned down allowing her to climb atop his back. "Alright boy," she said patting him on the head as she took the reigns, "you know the way, lets go."

Zuko and Sokka walked the beach, carefully searching for any signs of Katara. Monk Basho slithered along behind them dragging with him is wooden chest filled with books. Zuko was quiet, all the while thinking of Katara. He thought back to their brief moment together on the deck of the ship, holding her in his arms, kissing her sweet lips. He sighed heavily, she had to be alright, she just had to be. He didn't know what he would do if any harm had come to her. Zuko glanced over at Sokka. He had a determined look upon his face, but he could see in his eyes that he was truly worried for his sister.

"Excuse me," cried the old man from behind them, "I don't mean to be a bother, but seeing as how I am being forced to such unbearable labor, do you think we might take a small break." Zuko and Sokka turned to the monk who was struggling with his chest of books.

Zuko looked at him annoyed, "you're still carrying those books around!"

Sokka nudged Zuko in the elbow, "It looks like you owe me lunch when we get off this island eh fire boy."

Zuko rolled his eyes, "a bet's a bet."

"It would be rather helpful," the monk interrupted, "if someone could perhaps carry my things for me." Zuko glanced at Sokka.

"Uh-uh, don't look at me," Sokka replied.

Zuko turned back to Monk Basho, "why don't you just stay here while we look for Katara, you're only slowing us down anyway."

The monk flopped down on the sand underneath a palm tree and opened up one of his books, "A fine idea General." Zuko and Sokka turned away and continued on down the beach.

"Finally," Sokka exclaimed, "If I had to hear him complain one more time, I swear."

Zuko just stared at his friend, "Sokka are you serious?"

"Hey," Sokka said defensively, "I don't complain……I'm just very open about how I feel about things…………mostly when they annoy me." Zuko just shook his head. Momo was far ahead of them and was stopped, seemingly sniffing at something in the sand. Zuko strained his eyes to see what the lemur was up to. As they got closer they realized that Momo was sitting in an indentation in the sand. "Look," Zuko pointed out. Sokka kneeled down to get a closer look. "Someone was laying here," he said.

"There are some footprints," Zuko said, "at least we know she's able to walk." Sokka studied the prints closer, seemingly growing worried.

"No." he said shaking his head, "these prints are too large to be Katara's, and look here Zuko, this print here is from someone kneeling." Sokka paused for a moment as if pondering his findings, "I think someone might have picked her up and carried her off, by the looks of it I'd say they went off into the woods," he pointed along the path that the footprints followed.

Zuko stared off into the trees. He knelt down and placed his hand over one of the footprints. "Too large to be Katara's," Sokka's words echoed in his head.

"What are you thinking about Zuko," Sokka asked curiously as he stood up. Zuko turned and looked up towards Sokka.

"I'm thinking that the Avatar has found Katara already." Sokka sighed running his hand over his head as he looked off into the woods. A serious expression covered his face.

"In spite of everything that's happened Zuko, I really don't think that Aang would hurt Katara," Sokka paused glancing over at Zuko, "I mean if I'm right and he did carry her off, obviously he was trying to help her."

"Sokka, I'm not sure that you…."

"You don't understand," Sokka interrupted before Zuko even had the chance to finish, "Aang cares about Katara, he always has, the two of them share some kind of a bond that's stronger than anything; a connection like that doesn't just disappear no matter what goes wrong. And if there is anyone who can get Aang to remember who he is, it's Katara." Zuko was taken aback by the determination in Sokka's voice and the serious look that he now displayed.

"You really do believe that," Zuko asked.

"Without a doubt", Sokka replied. He paused glancing at his old friend, "don't get me wrong Zuko," he said, "I get what you witnessed with Aang and I'm not saying that I don't believe you but I also know what I witnessed in the four years that I traveled with Aang and Katara." Sokka sighed heavily as he thought of his lost friend, "in all that time Aang went through hell but Katara was always right there to get him through it," he paused, "the only difference between then and now is that Katara just took a little longer to get here." Zuko turned away from Sokka and gazed out to sea.

"Katara", he thought to himself. He loved her so much that he almost found it hard to breath and yet somehow, he knew, she was slipping away from him and his heart was breaking.

"Come on," Sokka called as he disappeared behind the trees, "time's running out, it's not gonna be daylight forever." Zuko slowly turned and followed Sokka.

To be continued...