Chapter 6, The meeting.
Finally the meeting, a moment we have been waiting for? I hope you guys have recovered from the insane cliffhanger in the previous chapter… (Joke, it was really far from a cliffhanger.) I was not extremely happy with the previous chapter and hopes this is an improvement. Read, review and enjoy the story, find yourself a glass of milk or something.
This is it. The whole reason he was in the spirit world in the first place, why he had to leave her, leave Katara. She had Sokka, Suki and the air acolytes, but that wasn't the same. Who knows how long he had been gone, could be years by now. He just has to go through with this and then return to his wife.
They walked in. The tree was hollow inside and was lit up by an unknown source. The root doors closed behind him. He turned around before he looked at Yue with a confident look before looking back at the room. In the middle there was a large round table surrounded with chairs. The room was empty. None of the spirits had arrived yet, only himself and Yue was there. No surprise really, as time really does not pass in the spirit world.
Out of thin air Avatar Yangchen appeared. She walked over to him gracefully and stood by his side. She placed a light hand up on his shoulder giving him a reassuring smile.
"Let's get this over with young Avatar. Then it'll all be over and you can resume your life with your water bender. Speak out of your heart, only trust yourself and I'll stand by your side supporting every decision you make. Many of these spirits are very understanding. The spirit of air and the moon spirit Yue will understand and care about your feelings. The spirit you have to worry about is Shí jiān Sǐ wáng, the spirit of time and death, a very powerful spirit with major influence on the world. I am aware that Avatar Kyoshi was not to attend this meeting, but she is now to attend. She was summoned by Shíjiān Sǐ wáng, he is aware of her opinion on the matter and will use her against you." She was trying to lecture him and give him the best advice she had before the other spirits made their way in.
"Remember what Roku told you." She walked over to the table and took a seat at one of the chairs surrounding the table. She sat herself down beside the chair that was to be Aang's. They waited for a moment
A rock formation appeared in the room and was soon demolished and crumbled. Avatar Kyoshi walked out of the crumbling stone and stood tall over the Avatar. She gave him a motionless look, the look she always wore on her face.
"Remember this Avatar Aang, I am not against you. We are one. I just want you to understand and do the right thing for the world. There have to be airbenders. Or the Avatar will cease to exist."
"There will be air benders Kyoshi." He gave her a warning look. She knew exactly what he meant there. She bowed in respect before walking towards the table and sat herself down at the opposite side of the where Yangchen was sitting. He understood her thoughts and intentions, he did not blame her, but for him it was still the wrong choice. He could not betray Katara or himself. Yue had seated herself at the table leaving a seat between her and Yangchen for Aang.
A lot of spirits had arrived and seated themselves down immediately. The air spirit, ocean spirit, sun spirit and many more. The room went dark and shadows overtook the room. Black smoke spread and a cloaked man with a mask appeared. The mask was white with a red dot on the forehead contrasting everything else that was black. He looked over at Aang. You could barely see his eyes peering through the mask. He reached out one of his hands.
"I… Am Shí jiān Sǐ wáng. The spirit of time and death." Was all he said before moving to the table seating himself down at a random spot. He looked terrifying. The spirit did not walk at all; he floated making him even creepier. Everyone was now looking at Aang who was the only one still remaining standing. "Here we go." Aang thought to himself before taking the seat between Avatar Yangchen and Yue.
Katara lit the candles in the sanctuary room once again. Sat herself down next to Aang taking his hand into her lap. She had a troubled look on her face. Now only days away from labor, the baby could really arrive at any time. "I wish you were here Aang, with me." She said to herself. Suki was also in the room seated at a pillow further away outside the circle where Aang and Katara was seated. Suki never really left Katara alone now that she was highly pregnant.
"I'm sure he'll be back before the birth of your daughter Katara." She put on a reassuring smile in an attempt to cheer her pregnant sister in law up.
"You sound so sure Suki, but I don't know. And how do you know that it's a she? Last I checked it's inside me and not you, it might be a boy." Katara snapped back with a hint of amusement.
"It has been kicking a lot, seems like the child got a temper, like her mother. Gotta to be a girl!" She snapped back with pride from her small comeback.
Amused by her comment Katara wandered into deep thought, "Wish you were here Aang, I don't want you to miss the birth for anything. The meeting of yours is about the future of the air nomads. Well this is the future." She placed her hands on her belly. She looked over at Aang who sat there with his eyes closed and one of his hands in Katara's lap.
A man in yellow and white robes sat himself up. He had a long white beard and his white hair was up in a knot in the royal style. He wore a sun emblem on his robes.
"I am Tai Yang, spirit of the sun and life. You are all summoned here to attend the meeting regarding the air nomads. As everyone knows, the air nomads was wiped out in the genocide caused by firelord Sozin over a hundred years ago. As you all know, in a few hundred years the Avatar will reincarnate into an air nomads once again." He said as he looked over at Aang. "However, Avatar Aang is the last airbender at this time. If there are no air benders at the time, the cycle will be broken and the Avatar will cease to exist. We are attending this meeting to discuss how we will proceed. Avatar Aang, if you will stand up and tell us your thoughts on the matter." He motioned for Aang to stand up. He felt confident. He was used to speak for himself in the countless of meetings he had attended to previously. He knew what to say. He closed his eyes breathed out and stood up. Shí jiān eyed him very closely.
"Yes, I am the last airbender. As everyone of you i'm sure is well aware of I am married to a woman from the southern water tribe. We are very happy and we want to have children, which means that it's very likely that one or more of my children is an airbender. We only need time." Shíjiān stood up.
"Young Avatar, time is very limited. You only have a few hundred years. How can you possibly build up a lost nation with only one woman? And besides she's also a waterbender. This thins out the chances of air benders immensely." Aang was of course prepared for that kind of statement. He looked back at the spirit.
"What are you suggesting? Spirit of time and death?" He already knew what he was saying, but he had to hear it with his own ears. He was prepared to defend Katara in every way.
"I think you already know the answer to that Avatar. You would of course have to bed as many non-bending woman preferably from each of the different nations. It is your duty." His voice sounded cold but in the same time charismatic in a creepy way.
"As the spirit of time you of all should know that with time wonders can happen, if the air nomads are meant to reemerge and survive, they will. With time, and when the time comes we will have children. And if they are water benders, fine, if they are airbenders, fine, if they are nonbenders then fine. Leave it to fate and time." He placed a firm look at the spirit when mentioning time. The spirit also smiled when Aang mentioned the time for children.
"Be reasonable Aang. It is your duty to restore balance to the world. Your duty is first and foremost to the world and to your wife second. She knew marrying the Avatar would be hard right? She knew what she was risking?" Avatar Kyoshi said as she stood up towering most of the spirits in the room.
"The air nomads would never be restored through one generation, no matter how many children he has with how many woman he's with. Balance will be restored over time, you cannot ask this of Aang and Katara whom have accomplished more than most Avatar's ever have, they deserve more. And besides, their love is too strong." Yangchen was in way in a defensive position. She understood Aang's feelings, where he was coming from. She had herself experienced the same kind of love. Not enough for her liking though.
"I agree with Aang, I have felt their love, it is one of the strongest energies I have ever felt. Stronger than death itself." She looked over at Shí jiān Sǐ wáng with a small smirk on her face. The ocean spirit could do nothing but smile at that comment himself.
"The avatar needs to be free like the wind. We cannot force him into actions that do not please him and his loved ones. As the spirit of air I am confident that the element will live on through Aang's future family." The air spirit said softly. Her opinion on this matter was highly valued by the rest of the spirits.
"There is no guarantee that his children would even be air benders, we do know his first born would not." They could not see it but everyone could feel a smile forming under the mask of the spirit of time and death. Aang jolted his head up, "what did he just say?"
"What do you mean?" for the first time during this meeting he sounded uncertain, nervous.
"We could not tell you this would happen. You would never have come. It was for the best, and as I said we know your first born is not an air bender. She's a waterbender in fact." Had Katara already had his child? His daughter?
"But how could I possibly know right? Maybe the child's not even born, maybe there is no child at all?" everyone could feel the spirit smiling through the mask. Aang looked down at his feet clenching his fists.
"How… how long have I been here?" He looked over at Yue whom had a worried look, the same as Avatar Yangchen.
"Aang, you have been here for about nine months..." He looked back down on his feet realizing why Katara was in need of him, more than ever.
"I… I have to go." He got up from his chair and marched over to the where the branch doors would be.
"It's not possible for you to leave now Avatar. The doors will not open until I commands them to." Aang closed his eyes breathed in and out. He got in his firebending stance and doing the moves for a fireblast. Nothing happened. "You cannot bend in the spirit world Avatar. I am sure you are aware of this?" the spirits voice echoed in his head. He got back into his stance and tried again. Nothing…
"Aang stop, it's not working, there is nothing you can do." Yue tries to calm him. Aang tries again, still nothing happens. "You cannot leave until this meeting is over; we have not come to any conclusion about the future of the air nomads. " The sun spirit got up from his seat where he sat since the beginning of this meeting. "The future of the air nomads is back home, with my family, they are the future." He got back into his stance and tried again, he did this five more times.
"Fool, you are leading your race down into the grave. You and your water tribe wife are too weak to build a race together. You will fail, and I will gladly accept the final examples of your race into my realms in the spirit world." The spirit of death howled at him. That did it. Aang turned around opened his eyes. He span around and did the unthinkable, he unleashed a massive air blast knocking the spirit right into the wall. Everyone in the room was in shock. No one could bend in the spirit world. Not even the Avatar. He got back into his stance and unleashed a massive fireball and broke up the branches covering the exit. He looked back at the assembly. And then at Shí jiān Sǐ wáng, whose mask was blown of, he had a black scorched and sickly face, almost like a skeleton face, he looked scary and Aang wanted to throw up, but he kept his stern and serious face.
"Fool! You have chosen your own demise! There is no way out of the inner sanctum without our help!" Aang looked back at him before turning around and started to walk out. The spirit looked back at Tai Yang the sun spirit, clearly wanting him to do something.
"I guess the meetings closed." He said with a smirk as he watched the Avatar leave. The branches regrow and closed behind Aang as he walked out.
There it was. Chapter 6! I hope it was good, I liked the idea, just hope it came out well on paper. I made the ocean spirit a man, felt that the ocean and moon spirit are balancing each other out, therefore, since Yue is female it would make sense having the ocean spirit as male right? Tell me what you think of this chapter. If I scored, or if I balls'd it up. Stay tuned, and as always. To be continued.