Chapter 9
In the field just outside of the village of Harnuk, two figures appeared with a soft pop of displaced air. One of them, dressed in loose orange, yellow and tan clothes slumped against his companion who, wearing only his loincloth and silver pack, performed two rapid jabs on his sagging companions torso. The most striking difference between these two figures were the bright, burning points of light where the scarred man's eyes should be, one bright green, the other a baleful blood red.
"Thanks." Aang said in a small voice, although the chi release Daniel had performed on him alleviated the physical discomfort, he still felt miserable inside and out.
Aang looked up at Daniel and saw the scarred man staring into the distance away from the village and turning the same way, saw a distant speck in the air traveling toward them.
"Perfect timing." Daniel growled softly and turned back to the village, the scarred man took a deep breath and released a roar that rattled the town, "WARRIORS! ARMS, ARMOR! PREPARE FOR BATTLE! WE ARE GOING TO WAR!"
Within seconds, two streaks emerged from the village, one green, the other blue and as Suki and Sokka skidded to a halt before Daniel and Aang, husband and wife prepared in seconds in their warrior's armor, weapons sheathed and ready. A few heartbeats behind them, two more streaks emerged from the village gates, one dark green and the other far brighter. Sokka opened his mouth to question Daniel but he stopped as his eyes fell onto Aang, seeing the young Airbender's drawn and miserable face.
"Aang, what's happened?" Suki voiced the question they both wanted to ask.
"Sokka, Suki. I…it's," Aang began hesitantly, unsure how to express what he knew.
The other two streaking figures arrived, Gar dressed in traditional dark green Kyoshi warrior kimono and armor and while Ty Lee wore the same padded chest armor, forearm and shin guards her kimono was a eye watering bright pink.
"Ergh, it just doesn't look right with BROWN armor." Ty Lee was griping as she smoothed down her new kimono, "Danny, when are you going to make that armor you promised to,"
As she looked up from her clothes, Ty Lee fell silent too at the sight of Daniel and Aang, the scarred man's furious features and burning eyes in contrast with the obvious grief the young Airbender displayed. Behind them all, three more figures were making their way from the village at a slower pace. While Mai was capable of great speeds like the other warriors, she walked calmly with one hand resting on her lower stomach, the bulge of the baby she carried becoming more noticeable there every day. Either side of her, Zuko and Toph walked with their lover, each with a tender hand at her elbow. Behind Daniel and Aang, the speck in the sky they had seen on their arrival had resolved itself into a stone boat, Katara bringing it down into the field in a rush and then leaping from it with Azula at her side.
"We heard the shout." Katara began as she walked over to them. "Aang, honey, what's?"
But in only a few steps, Katara's mind met her husband's and in the space of a heartbeat she saw everything. The young Watertribe woman stumbled, her face crumpling in grief as Azula grabbed for her. In an instant, Aang was at her other side and helping Azula, they lowered Katara to the ground to sit as she began weeping bitterly.
"Gran Gran. Grandfather Pakku." Katara choked out, covering her face with her hands as Aang knelt beside her, wrapping his arms about his grieving wife as he had done with her father only minutes before. Azula looked up questioningly but remained kneeling by the sobbing woman's side.
"Daniel?" Sokka said in barely a whisper, his sister's reaction filling him with dread as he frowned at the scarred man, "What the hell's going on?"
Daniel faced the others, taking a long, deep breath as he fought to calm himself, the fires in his eyes dimming slightly as he looked at Sokka.
"The attack here. The Dai Li, Belial. It was all a feint, a trick. I should have realized it was too easy." Daniel spoke slowly, heaving a large sigh as he stepped up to Sokka and placed a hand on the man's shoulder, "A large group of demons headed by Koh himself launched an attack on your home. The Southern Watertribe has been…decimated. A great many died. Your Grandfather and Grandmother fought them. They…fought well."
As Daniel spoke, both Sokka and Suki's face went white, the young warrior woman burying her face in her husband's shoulder as tears flowed from her eyes. Sokka slipped a trembling arm about Suki's shoulders and looked past Daniel into the distance.
"No. No." Sokka breathed and then his eyes snapped back to Daniel, "My Dad?"
"Your father is fine. He was away when the attack began and told us what happened." Daniel said softly, "He said after the demons attack they took something you call a mothership. They took it and it's crew hostage and set sail a little over two hours ago."
"The mothership? Bato." Sokka breathed again and then said in a firmer voice, "We have to save them."
"Which is why I want you and the rest of our warriors to come with me now." Daniel said with a firm nod and then turned to look at Zuko, "I want you with us too. We'll need your skills as a fighter and a healer."
Reaching over his shoulder, Zuko wrapped one hand about the hilts of his twin broadswords, giving Daniel a nod of his own as he rested his other hand on Sokka's shoulder. Having listened to what was happening, Aang rose to his feet with an angry frown but did not move from Katara's side as she held onto his arm tightly.
"Me too. I can fight." Aang said firmly.
Shaking his head, Daniel turned from the others and walked over to Aang, their angry frowns eerily similar as he took the Young Airbender by his shoulders.
"Yes, Aang. You can fight and you are the most powerful Bender on the face of this earth but I cannot take you." Daniel growled. Aang opened his mouth to protest but Daniel frowned harder into his face and growled louder, "There is no peaceful solution this time, Aang. There are no alternatives, no reasoning where demons are concerned. We need to go in hard, go in fast and kill these demons before they kill us or anyone else."
"And how exactly are you supposed to face Koh with the way you are, Daniel?" Aand said insistently, "If he pushes you, if you lose control?"
"And what choice do I have?" Daniel growled in response, "Should I leave him wander the world unchecked?"
Do not fear, Avatar, we will have control. Aang heard the Wolf growl, We will not throw everything at Koh, only keep him busy so the others may work.
At first Aang looked as though he wanted to argue further but the soft sobbing of his wife at his side cut through the anger he felt and he looked down at her.
"She needs you now." Daniel added in a quieter voice, "I cannot risk Katara and Mai through the chi pathways, nor put them into battle. Not with the children they carry. You must be here for them and if trouble should come here, Toph and Azula will be with you too."
"No." Azula stated simply, rising to her feet beside Katara, "You need me."
"I won't risk," Daniel began.
But even the scarred man blinked in surprise as Azula flashed across to him, grabbing one of the straps to his silver pack and pulling him close.
"I am a damn good warrior." Azula snarled as she glared into Daniel's burning eyes then repeated, "You. Need. Me."
Daniel's frown deepened momentarily but Azula only hardened her glare and the fires in the scarred man's eyes faded a little as one side of his mouth twitched upward. Covering Azula's grasping hand with his own, Daniel gave her an imperceptible nod before he turned back to the others.
"My only plan so far is to get us there as quickly as possible. Our main priority will be to secure that ship and free the hostages." Daniel said, his glowing eyes resting on each person for a moment, "But be warned. Once I find Koh, once we begin to fight…and we will, I will try to lead him away from the ship but you must get as much distance between yourselves and me as you possibly can. Sokka, what can you tell us about this mothership?"
Sokka had been staring into the distance again, struggling with his own grief as the others had crowed around him and Suki. Blinking in surprise at being addressed, the big warrior began speaking in a distracted tone.
"Uh, it's an old Firenation frigate. We stripped the armaments and added winches to unload the fishing boats and, uh, it has a rear loading ramp." Sokka frowned, becoming thoughtful as he spoke and his voice more businesslike, "It's one of the larger frigates, just under five hundred feet in length, about fifty feet at it's widest point and the bridge tower is about the same in height. I've modified the engines and it has several cold chambers to keep the catches fresh. There's five main levels and a warren of connecting corridors below decks. The ship is made entirely of hardened steel. If we can push the demons inside, they'll be limited in what they can do. They'll do as much damage to themselves if they try using those energy blasts in the corridors."
As Sokka spoke with growing enthusiasm, Daniel began to grin and the fires burning in his eyes flared brighter.
"Excellent. When we get to the ship, I'll try to get Koh and as many demons as I can away from there." Daniel said, his predatory grin growing wider, "The rest of you, follow Sokka's lead."
"Wait. One more thing." Sokka added hastily. Then turning slightly he extracted his arm from Suki's grip, smiling warmly to her, "I'll be right back."
The warrior streaked away from the others and back to the village, in moments the blue streak that was Sokka flying back to them and skidding to a halt, holding out a large metal bucket to Daniel.
"I need you to crush this to powder." Sokka said eagerly as Daniel took the bucket with a raised eyebrow, "I've been busy studying the properties of different crystals. Those blue ones worked great on the kaboomerangs but I made a hybrid between them and some others."
The others took a peek into the bucket as Daniel held it, their eyes watering from a strong chemical smell but they were able to see a large blue, green crystal similar to those used for lighting in many earth kingdom cities and towns. At Sokka's excited nod, Daniel held one hand over the bucket, his fingers then curling into a fist followed by a loud tinkling crunch from within. Twice more Daniel flexed his fist and the crunching sounds from the bucket became softer. An even more excited Sokka grabbed the bucket back and dipped his hand in, extracting a handfull of fine white powder which he held up to show the others.
"Hold your breath while I coat you all and don't worry, it'll stick you your skin and your clothes." Sokka said, turning first to Suki and sprinkling the powder over her head, making sure she was coated all the way down to her feet, "These crystals will disperse an energy attack away from you and into the ship but I haven't worked out how to refine them properly yet. This will protect you from one, maybe two of those energy blasts so you'll still need to be careful."
Working quickly, Sokka coated the others with the powder, the white substance becoming clear once it came in contact with skin or clothes, only a faint sparkling in the sunshine showing it was there. Finishing at last with Azula, Sokka turned last to Daniel but paused as the scarred man held up a hand to stop him.
"Worry about yourself, Sokka." Daniel said with a grin. He raised his other hand, red and green light erupting about his upraised fists, dancing about like flames, "I have my own protection."
Nodding as the scarred man shook his fists to dispel the flames, Sokka tipped the remains of the bucket up over his own head, spreading the powder over himself as Daniel turned his glowing eyes onto the others.
"We are ready then. We go first to the Watertribe's capitol and we'll track the ship from there." Daniel growled, his expression softening as his eyes fell back onto Sokka and then Suki, "I'll take you two first. Your father could use your company right now and your people need to see that their hero's can take on any foe."
As Daniel placed a hand on Sokka's shoulder, the both of them vanishing with a soft pop, Mai and Toph pressed up against Zuko's sides as Daniel reappeared, slipping his hand into Suki's and both of them disappearing a moment later.
"You go kick ass, Sparky." Toph said grinning although her smile faltered after a moment, "And take care of yourself, ok?"
"Yes, our baby needs his Daddy." Mai added from his other side, patting her small bulge. Then she looked over at Toph and then back up to Zuko, "And we need you too."
"Hey, girls. Girls." Zuko said soothingly, Turning about her drew the two women together and stood facing them with a warm smile, "You don't need to worry about me. I might just have a few surprises for these demons."
As the trio spoke together, Daniel had returned to take Ty Lee and then Gar and seeing an opportunity, Azula stepped forward to take it.
"He's right. You don't need to worry, ladies." Azula said, reaching up to ruffle her brother's hair, "I'll look after sweet little Zuzu for you."
"Little Zu…Azula." Zuko griped in exasperation, turning to his sister with a frown and so did not see Daniel pop into existence at his other side and grab his arm before the pair vanished.
Azula folded her arms and smirked at Mai and Toph. She knew it was her turn next and she knew from experience that traveling the chi pathways was extremely uncomfortable, even painful. But Azula smirked at the little trick she'd played on her brother because she also knew from experience that the effects of traveling that way was a whole lot worse when you weren't expecting it.
Pandemonium broke out briefly at the devastated Southern Watertribe when the scarred man with glowing eyes had suddenly reappeared. Those nearest had tensed in fear of a new attack, a few even running for their lives but at the sight of the man who came with Daniel, the people crowded about their chieftain and cheered. Hakoda had taken one look at his son and broken into a sprint, slamming into Sokka and almost crushing the young man in his arms. Suki received much the same treatment when Daniel brought her a moment later but any excitement the young couple felt at returning to their home was squashed under their grief at the destruction they saw around them. Suki went to kneel at bodies of Pakku and Kanna beide all the others, her tears flowing freely as she looked upon the bodies of those who had grown to become her own beloved grandparents. Sokka had taken a moment to look but he forced his grief aside as he turned to talk to his father and a few other men about what had happened and the beginnings of the repair effort.
Ty Lee and Gar arrived shortly after, holding onto each other in part from the intense cold but also at the sight at what lay around them. A few more exclaimed when the Firelord came next, Zuko clutching at his head and vomiting noisily onto the snowy ground before Daniel could administer the chi release to him. Azula came last, still wearing her smirk but it quickly faded as she joined the others in looking around. Once everyone had arrived Daniel marched up to Sokka and Hakoda, the other men who had gathered around stepping quickly back at the sight of the scarred man.
"Hakoda, what direction did the ship take?" Daniel growled without preamble.
"A few messenger hawks have made it in." Hakoda answered, turning to point away from the town, "The ship is following the coast. They passed a lookout post first and our last sighting came from one of the new outlying villages to the east. over a hundred miles."
"So far?" Sokka breathed as Daniel looked thoughtful, "They're pushing the ship as hard as she'll go."
"I see them." Daniel growled, his eyes first flaring again before he looked around, "I can pull up a slab of ice to carry us or,"
The scarred man paused, walking over to the remains of Sokka's home he kicked at a pile of snow next to the ruined walls, revealing a large sled with long straps of leather attached to it's front. He turned with a questioning look to Sokka who shrugged with a small embarrassed smile.
"I had an idea to use penguin-seals for pulling heavy loads." Sokka explained as Daniel knelt to pick up the leather loops that served as the harness, "It, uh, didn't work out to well."
"Maybe not for penguins." Daniel growled, a wide grin forming on his face, "Grab some coats for the others, Sokka."
With that said, Daniel tore the loincloth from his waist and dropped forward, changing into the large grey Wolf who turned his shaggy head to look at Sokka with the same burning eyes as those gathered around exclaimed at the transformation.
Get everyone on. Hakoda blinked in surprise when he heard the animal's growling voice in his head but Sokka grinned as Daniel had moments before, Then strap Wolf in.
"Son." Hakoda said urgently as Sokka went to turn away, "These men…these demons,"
"Don't you worry about us, Dad." Sokka replied confidently then streaked away, reduced to a blue blur, he passed about the village and in less than a heartbeat returned to his opened mouthed father with an armload of thick coats, "Save your concern for the ones who did this to our home."
"Oh, man. My life sucks. I wish I'd never spoken to that stupid nob." A shivering man in black and red dyed skins said to his only companion, "I only pointed out some girl at a party that had a face like a firetoad, how was I to know it was his daughter?"
"You should have known better than to mouth off to anyone of noble blood." the other man in deep blue skins said with a chuckle, "Besides, what are you complaining about? This is the cushiest job in the world. We sit here with nothing to do but our duty. Report in whatever we see and out here that means pretty much nothing."
The man in blue, born and raised at the north pole, reclined on a pile of snow with his coat half unbuttoned, enjoying the sunshine as he picked lazily at his fingernails. His companion in red and black, once a guard to a prominent Firenation family until he had been…reassigned, stood shivering hard in front of the small shack that served both as their temporary home and as the lookout outpost. The Firenation man wearing his long black coat with the hood pulled so tight that only his eyes showed, turned from the vista of endless blue sea and icebergs and glared at the man sitting in the snow beside him.
"Yeah, well, I've learned my lesson about talking to the nobility." the man said bitterly, stamping his feet to get the feeling back into them, "So why are you out here? What are you being punished for?"
"Punished? I worked hard to get where I am, Cinderblock." the man in the blue coat said, looking up at his companion with bright blue eyes set in a heavily bearded face, "Long hours and dedication to duty, that's what got me where I am today. This," the man waved his hand before himself to indicate the white snow, icebergs and endless ocean, "This is my reward."
"You call this your reward?" the black dressed man said incredulously, "I can't feel my limbs. It's so cold I doubt I could even Firebend. And you think this is a reward? Are you totally,"
The man paused, reaching up to pull back his hood revealing pale features and ruddy cheeks as he stared into the distance along the coast.
"What the hell is that?" his shivering stopping as he forgot the cold, the Firenation guard pointed to the east.
His Watertribe companion rolled his eyes before he lazily rolled his head to look in the indicated direction and a moment later was on his feet as well. In the distance a white cloud rose from the white snow with a tiny dark speck at it's base and it was obvious to the two men that it was moving toward them, fast. But neither man could imagine just how fast as it grew with alarming speed, the speck resolving into a barely seen shape that in less then a heartbeat roared past them and disappeared into the distance in the east. A moment later, the huge white cloud of kicked up snow rolled over them. When it settled there was no sign of the outpost or the guards assigned to watch but after a few minutes two shapes arose from the snow, shaking the powder from themselves to reveal the two guards.
"I'm all for doing my duty." the Firenation guard said, blinking his eyes dazedly at his companion, "But how exactly do we report a blur dragging a blizzard behind it?"
"Report? I thought you'd learned your lesson about saying stupid things to your superiors? You want to end up on one of the floating outposts on some iceberg?" the water tribe man said angrily. Ducking down he disappeared under the snow again and his voice rose from below, "Now help me find a damn shovel so we can dig out the outpost and then you can go back to griping about the cold."
The small group were crammed into the angular shaped sled, although this wasn't a problem since it allowed them to share their body heat and hold onto one another in white knuckled terror. Even crammed together and wearing thick, fur lined coats what little body heat they managed to share was quickly carried away by the wind roaring past them. Only Sokka was slightly separate from the others, on his feet and standing on the narrow forward edge of the sled, his clothes whipped about by the wind, his short warrior's tail flapping about his head and his blue eyes set in a hard glare as he stared past Wolf toward their destination.
Sitting behind Sokka and before the others, Suki leaned over to look at the snowy ground flashing by beneath them.
"The skids haven't even touched the ground yet." half turning her head, Suki called out to Zuko behind her but her words were snatched away by the roaring wind, "How fast do you think we're going?"
Even if Zuko could have heard, he had no intention of opening his eyes to find out as he held onto Suki for dear life. Behind him, his sister's grip about his chest was almost as tight and holding onto Azula, Ty Lee whimpered in Gar's embrace.
"That's Pakku-sai. Our newest village." Sokka called out from the front. He knew no one would hear but he also knew Wolf didn't need to, "The ship won't be too far beyond there."
Then it's time to change our approach. Sokka heard Wolf's growling reply, We will come at them from the sea.
Ahead of the flying sled a small walled village could be seen in the distance, only the faint traces of smoke rising from cooking fires giving away the white buildings in the white landscape. Wolf's paws thundered over the snow, the thick leather harness attaching him to the sled singing in the strong wind as he accelerated. The sled changed course before it reached the village, Wolf bringing it down toward the water where the snow and ice merged with the sea. Even Sokka's vengeful anger faltered and he swallowed heavily as the distinct line of white meeting blue flew toward them but once they had passed over it, he relaxed once more. The only noticeable change was that Wolf's feet no longer thundered as he ran, instead he made a steady hiss as he raced over the surface of the water. Looking back once, Sokka blinked in surprise at the huge tail of water and foam kicked up by the wind of their passing.
Run fast enough and you can almost fly. Run faster and you'll go anywhere you want. Sokka heard Daniel growl in his head (although, sometimes he found it difficult to tell between man and animal this way), The ship isn't far ahead. Another minute.
And Sokka could see the telltale trail of smoke rising on the horizon, only the multitudes of floating icebergs blocking his view of the ship itself. Wolf tore over the surface of the water, the ride for the others becoming a little bumpy now as he twisted in and around the bergs but always following the coast and driving toward their objective. What they could see of the coast was becoming high cliffs of ice, compacted snow flowing out from the continent and giving birth to the huge islands of ice they raced through.
True to Daniel's word, as Wolf rounded a massive rolling iceberg, the ship came into sight. It's wide sides sat low in the water contrasted by the high control deck set far back on the ship but the long curved prow of the ship could not be seen. It had been driven into the high cliffs and the front of the ship sat lower in the water, weighted down with tons of ice and snow that had fallen onto it from above. The ship was coming up fast now and they were close enough to see tiny figures moving about on deck.
Sokka. Down.
Whether it was Wolf or Daniel giving the warning, Sokka reacted without hesitation, crouching down and grabbing the sides of the sled a moment before the wolf jinked to one side. Several cherry red beams of light speared out from the side of the ship, one only narrowly missing the side of the sled and tall geysers of water exploded up behind them as the beams spent their energy into the water. Again and again the beams flashed out, cries of alarm ringing out from those in the sled as Wolf zigzagged from side to side but still he bore down on the side of the ship.
I'll give them a target. Daniel growled to the others, You take them from the side.
With this said, Wolf suddenly jumped, rising the few feet the harness would allow before his shape shifted and changed in the air, the leather straps bursting from about Daniel's naked body. While the scarred man's momentum carried him along before the sled, he dropped one arm then brought it up in a sweeping motion causing a narrow wall of water to explode upward between the ship and the oncoming sled before Daniel himself shot up into the sky. While the red beams shooting out from the ship followed him into the sky, Daniel's Waterbending down below was revealed as the water began to fall back down, exposing a long curved ramp of slick ice leading up to the side of the ship. Everyone on the sled was rattled as it struck the base of the ramp and began it's slid to the top but at the front of the sled, Sokka could see the rail along the ship's side sticking up beyond the uppermost level of their ramp.
"Everybody jump." Sokka yelled, giving action to his words.
At the top of the ramp, the bone and leather sled exploded into pieces, the metal rail twisting and snapping from the impact but the others were quick to follow Sokka's lead. Before the fragments of the sled had even begun dropping, six figures rolled over the deck, flinging away their blue coats as they rolled to their feet, revealing the warriors ready with weapons in hand. Five men scattered over the deck in brown leather coats turned their faces from the sky where they had been hunting Daniel and blinked red glowing eyes in surprise at these newcomers, their momentary distraction giving the Gaang their opening.
Sokka and Suki flashed away first, their distinctive green and blue blurring figures arrowing straight for the nearest demon standing at the side of the ship. Bringing up his glowing fists, the demon fired twin beams of red over the deck but Suki jagged to one side as Sokka dropped to his back, sliding over the metal deck to kick the feet out from demon as he tried to adjust his aim. Surprise showed in the man's glowing eyes as he tipped forward but he was even more surprised as his forward momentum carried him right onto Suki's sword, Sokka's rising from below and the two blades scraped together as they passed through the demon's heart.
Ty Lee and Gar were only a heartbeat behind the other warriors, leaping and twisting through the air in a display of acrobatic mastery, the demon they raced toward fired beam after beam of destructive energy toward them, his motions becoming more and more desperate as their twisting and rolling forms proved impossible to hit. The demon manage one incoherent scream of fear and rage, his arms pistoning out before himself as he tried to block these pink and green dervish's sword strikes but almost at the same time as Sokka and Suki's foe, Gar and Ty Lee's met his end, their blades too meeting inside the demon's body.
While the warriors did their work, Azula and Zuko had rolled to their feet side by side near the ship's broken rail. Without hesitation, Azula faced two men across the ship and thrust out her hands, calling upon air and fire together she launched a jet of white hot flame that roared across the deck. One of the demons vanished into the horizontal column of flame while his companion dived to the side, pushing himself back up with his glowing hands and directing a hateful glare at Azula. As his sister broke off her attack, the white jet dissipating as she twisted about to face the other demon, Zuko called on his own Bending as well but unlike Azula, he did not call forth flame but reached to his element within the broken handrail nearby. As Azula launched another jet that the demon leapt desperately to avoid once more, the guard rail behind Zuko twisted and rose like a living thing, releasing a squeal and popping sounds of breaking welds. The broken end of the rail flew to Zuko's hand, fifty feet of the tubular steel breaking free from the side of the ship, coiling and twisting like a whip as he flung his arm forward. By the time his arm was at his side, the metal glowed dully along it's length and by the time the whip of steel coiled several times about the surprised demon, the metal shone white at it's edges. The man screamed as the burning metal sank into his flesh but with a flex of his wrist and his Bending, Zuko lifted the metal whip and the demon with it from the deck and flung him high, over Zuko and Azula and far out into the water, taking the rail and the demon to the bottom of the ocean.
After their own attacks, the warriors had watched with wide eyes as Zuko performed his Metalbending but no one's eyes were more impressed than Azula's.
"Zuzu." Azula breathed and grinned at her brother, "Even I have to admit, that was amazing."
"Hey what can I say?" Zuko replied, the eyebrow over his good eye jiggling up and down, "I told my girls I had a few surprises left in me."
As Azula listened to her brother's boast, her sensed detected something and her blood ran cold as she realized they had all forgotten something. There had been five demons on the deck. High up the side on the wide command tower, a man clung to the piping that he had climbed unseen at the beginning of the attack. As he glared down at his companion's destruction with baleful, glowing eyes, he lined up a glowing fist on the obviously powerful Bender who had taken the last of his demon brethren. Without having to turn her head, Azula sensed the build up of energy and without thinking, threw herself before her brother as a beam of red light shot down from the command tower.
The beam hit her in the shoulder, the force of it throwing her into her brother and sending Azula and Zuko crashing to the deck. But instead of exploding, the beam broke down into crackling red and white arcs of lighting, brother and sister twitching uncontrollably as it danced over them and into the metal deck of the ship. Sokka's crystalline powder had worked as promised although both Azula and Zuko moaned, shaking their heads dazedly as the energy drained away.
Twisting about to look up, Sokka had his boomerang in hand and ready to fly as Suki, Ty Lee and Gar drew forth their battle fans intending to use them the same way. But they paused before throwing as a dark streak shot down from the sky, striking the demon where he clung and tearing him from the side of the tower, Daniel driving the man down before himself to strike the deck with an impact that rattled the enormous vessel. Vanishing from the dented deck and the broken body of the demon, Daniel appeared at Azula and Zuko's side, pulling them both to their feet.
"Are you alright?" he asked Azula firstly with obvious concern then turned to Zuko. When they both nodded Daniel turned his glowing eyes onto Sokka, "Koh and about a dozen others were headed inland but they're on their way back here. You need to get the crew and yourselves out of here as quickly as possible. The ship's taking on water, Sokka."
"I see it." Zuko added with a faraway look as he sent his senses out into the ship, "The ship is holed in the bow and it looks like the crew have been locked up in a large chamber below decks." focusing on Daniel, Zuko frowned, "But Daniel, there's at least fifty people down there. I've gotten better but I don't think I can carry that many at once."
"Don't think about it, just do it." Daniel snapped, turning his glowing eyes up the cliffs of ice that towered over the ship, "Koh and the others will be back here soon. I have to,"
"DANIEL!" Sokka roared in a commanding tone, making the others jump in surprise. The warrior marched forward and glared with his ice blue eyes into Daniel's burning green and red, "We need this ship which means right now we need you here with us. Use your Bending, repair the damage to the ship and then get us freed from the ice. You're the only one who can. Can I count on you?"
The scarred man returned Sokka's furious glare at first, the flesh under his green glowing eye twitching slightly but after a moment he nodded.
"Good." Sokka said simply, still holding Daniel in his glare, "Now, what else is on this ship?"
Looking up from Sokka, Daniel raised his face to the command tower and then down to the deck at his feet.
"Two more demons and several crew up on the bridge." Daniel said briskly, "Another three below near the hostages."
"Alright. Me and Suki will take the bridge." Sokka said in the same commanding tone as he stepped back to look to the others, "Zuko, Ty and Gar head below, that'll give us one demon each to deal with. Azula, stay on deck and keep watch for these others that are coming. Back up Daniel anyway you can."
As they stepped apart, the three groups forming to carry out their missions, Daniel stepped up to Sokka once more.
"Sokka, I," Daniel began hesitantly, "I won't fail you."
"I know that, Danny." Sokka said warmly, offering his hand before the two men clasped forearms. Sokka stepped close so that their foreheads almost touched and finished quietly, "Once the ship is free and we're moving…go do what you gotta do…just come back to us, ok?"
The two men shared a silent heartbeat between them before they nodded to one another once more and Sokka turned, hurrying away with the others. He and Suki ran to one hatch set in the side of the high, command tower with the bridge at it's top while Zuko, Ty Lee and Gar disappeared into another. Azula watched them go and then blinked in surprise as Daniel slipped the silver pack from his shoulders, holding it out to her.
"Take it. Nothing can penetrate this in the hands of a true Avatar." Daniel said softly and as she reached out to take the pack, he placed one hand over Azula's, "Be safe."
With that, Daniel stepped back, releasing Azula and the bag before he vanished with a soft pop leaving the young woman standing and staring at her distorted reflection in the silvery material with awed eyes. She'd never even seen Daniel take the backpack off before and she knew what it meant to him, having heard of how it was somehow connected to him and Wolf. Sighing, she pushed one arm through the straps of the pack, wearing it on one arm as a shield and waited.
The warrior husband and wife flew through connecting corridors filled with pipes and cables attached to the walls, pausing only briefly before closed hatches to test the air with their heightened sense before moving on. Within a short time they had ascended the high tower, pausing outside of a final hatch with the scent and sounds of people clear from the other side. Knowing there were hostages as well as demons within, Sokka had prepared a plan as he and Suki approached and now, with hand signals and a quick diagram he scrawled on the wall with a finger, he let his wife know what he wanted. Suki frowned with worry but gave Sokka a brief kiss before she streaked away back the way they had come.
Once she had gone, Sokka pulled the pouch he wore from his waist and extracted what looked like a handful of small blue, green crystals tied together with copper wire. Working quickly, he slipped this over his left hand, arranging the crystals so that they covered his hand like a lumpy glove, next taking a thick roll of wire from the pouch and attaching one end to the glove. Sokka was glad his wife wasn't here to see what he was doing as he next pulled out his trusted boomerang and attached the wire to it as well. If Suki had guessed what he intended, she would probably kill him before the demons had a chance.
After the Watertribe had first purchased the old surplus Firenavy ship (Zuko giving his old friend a generous discount), Sokka and his best engineers had practically dismantled the thing and rebuilt it from the waterline up. So as he made his preparations, Sokka counted under his breath, knowing exactly how far Suki needed to go and how long it would take her to get into position.
A few moments after he was ready, Sokka slowly pulled the latches on the bridge hatch and then delivered a sound kick to it's edge causing the door to fly open. Two men standing at the back of the bridge jumped as the door crashed open but reacted with lightning speed as they thrust out blazing fists. Sokka's reaction was just as fast, his right hand flashing out, letting his boomerang fly as he brought up his oddly gloved left hand in a blocking gesture. The two men on the bridge, their eyes glowing with the same baleful fire as their fist, each launched twin beams of cherry red energy just as the boomerang struck harmlessly against the closest demon's chest. But as the beams struck Sokka's upraised hand, the energy transformed into crackling red and blue, white arcs of lightning that lit up the bridge. At the same moment, the demon whom the boomerang was touching began to jerk and dance where he stood while a door on the opposite side of the bridge crashed open. A green blur rushed through the doorway, flashing past the first demon who's head simply launched upward from his shoulders as Suki's sword passed through his neck. She paused before striking the second demon, looking confused as his smoking, still twitching body fell forward lifelessly to the floor. In the other doorway, Sokka was muttering and cursing under his breath as he struggled to fling the blue, green glove from his hand, the now dull and brittle crystals shattering on the floor when he at last succeeded. Holding up his burned and blistered hand, Sokka blew hastily on it for a moment before his eyes flicked over to see the silent, angry glare his wife was directing toward him and he gave Suki an embarrassed grin.
"Sokka?" came a weak groan.
Husband and wife turned, seeing three battered and bruised men laying on the floor under the forward windows, one of them using the large wheel there to pull himself up.
"Bato." Sokka breathed with concern, rushing over to help the man rise.
Suki checked the other men who were alive but unconscious as Sokka held up his father's old friend and the closest thing he had to an uncle. Bato was a thin man but tall and commanding, his long dark hair only showing a few signs of grey. He was nursing one arm that was obviously broken and his face showed the cuts and swelling that came from a heavy beating.
"Sokka." Bato whispered hoarsely again, smiling as his eyes focused on Sokka, "It is you."
"Don't worry, Bato. We've got you." Suki added warmly, the injured man's smile widening as he focused on her, "Everything's going to be alright now."
Suki was greeted with a similar smile on the older man's battered and bruised face but a moment later he turned back to Sokka with a horrified and remorseful look.
"They made us come out here, Sokka. They killed some of the crew. It was," Bato paused, coughing painfully before he continued, "Our home. What those monsters did to our home."
Standing either side of the older man, Sokka and Suki eased Bato down to the floor, helping him to sit with his back to the control panels on the wall.
"We know, Bato. We saw." Sokka said sadly as he knelt before the man and then added reassuringly, "Don't worry about the rest of the crew. They'll be free soon. We brought help and they're below decks taking care of those demons right now."
"Demons." Bato repeated and nodded. After what he had seen and experienced, the older man was not at all surprised, "Their leader is a true monster. A beast that laughed as he killed our people."
"We know about that worm, Koh." Sokka said angrily but with determination, "And we have a friend who can deal with him."
"Koh? Worm?" Bato said with confusion, "No, they called him fff," another coughing fit overtook the old Watertribe warrior and flecks of blood showed on his lips by the time he caught his breath, "Sokka…that beast…he's…he's,"
"Here." Suki finished.
Looking up and out the windows above where Bato rested, Suki saw them first. The high tower on the ship barely came a quarter of the way up the high cliffs of ice but clearly seen high above them, near a half dozen dark figures had spread themselves out along the cliff's edge. Even at that distance, they could easily see the blood red glows of the demon's eyes and fists as they looked down upon the stricken ship. Looking back down, Sokka and Suki could only see the lone figure of Azula standing upon the deck.
"Finish whatever you're doing, Daniel." Sokka said aloud, praying the man would hear, "We need you more than ever now, buddy."
As Sokka and Suki made their way to the bridge, Zuko, Gar and Ty Lee made their way into the body of the ship. They made their way a little slower than the warrior husband and wife but their route was more direct thanks to Zuko's unique senses. Coupled with his familiarity of Firenation navy ships, Zuko's ability to sense the living energies demons directly lead them straight to their quarry. Where they could, they sprinted along the corridors, Ty Lee and Gar slowing their pace to allow Zuko to keep up but when they neared the large chambers where the young Firelord sensed the crew being held, they slowed their pace.
As they cautiously approached an intersection, Zuko pulled the other pair up and indicated through hand signals the presence of two demons in the next corridor. Ty Lee and Gar sniffed at the air, their noses confirming Zuko's assessment and sharing a glance when they scented the strong stink of blood as well. Communicating silently together, Ty Lee and Gar hatched a plan between them and then turned, pushing Zuko back and putting their fingers to their lips. Zuko shot them an indignant look but Ty Lee only flashed him a bright smile before she and Gar streaked away and around the corner.
The corridor was long, with two men standing together halfway down it's length looking down at the bloodied remains of another man in a blue coat. The demons were sharing a laugh at the sport they had made of the dead Watertribe engineer at their feet, discussing whether or not to go fetch another to play with and so at first, they did not see the green and pink streaks flying down the corridor toward them. Bringing all of their training to the fore, not a whisper of sound escaped Gar or Ty Lee as they raced, not a flap of their kimonos nor a scrape of a soft shoe. Their plan for Gar to take the first demon from behind while Ty Lee used him as a pivot to launch herself at the other was sound but then one of the demons looked up and straight at them.
The surprised demon took two hasty steps back, his companion looking surprised as the first raised a hand, red flames bursting into life about his fist. Gar took his target as planned, the surprised demon dying instantly as the warrior's sword clove his heart in two from behind as Ty Lee grabbed her boyfriend's shoulder, leaping up with her legs kicked to the side. But as she flew over Gar, her sword extended in her other hand, Ty Lee saw the other demon, his eyes blazing at her in fury and his burning fist aimed at her heart. Committed now and unable to change her course, Ty Lee finished the leap and thrust out her sword, the first few inches of her blade piercing the demon's shoulder an instant before he fired. The beam from his fist caught her dead centre and with a scream of fear and pain, Ty Lee was blasted away.
Gar reacted on instinct, dropping deep into the moment he flung his own sword aside and reached to Ty Lee, snatching her tumbling form from the air as she hurtled toward him. Fueled by pure adrenaline, he then kicked the body of the demon he'd killed, launching it into the air toward it's companion before Gar flashed away back down the corridor with the woman he loved in his arms. The remaining demon cursed the burning pain in his shoulder but a moment later he saw Ty Lee's tumbling form flash away and his companion's coming toward him. Punching out with his remaining arm, he fired a beam of concentrated energy and the body exploded. If the demon had given a little thought to his surroundings he might have made different a choice.
A moment after Gar had come streaking back around the corner with Ty Lee in his arms, an explosion rolled out, a wave of pressure and heat washing down the corridor and knocking both Zuko and Gar from their feet. The instant it had past, Zuko and Gar scrambled to the young woman's side, seeing the large scorch mark in the centre of her chest armor before Zuko leaned over her. Placing his hands atop her head and over her heart, Zuko sent his senses out into Ty Lee but frowned a moment later.
"Not you, silly. Gar's supposed to wake me up with a kiss." Ty Lee whispered from where she lay, "Like in the fairytales."
The blissful look of relief on Gar's face was the opposite of the aggrieved glare Zuko was giving her but Ty Lee didn't see it anyway as her boyfriend lent over to awaken her as she wished.
"Time and place, Ty Lee. Time and place." Zuko grumped, rising to his feet and going to peek around the corner.
The metal corridor itself appeared unscathed but of the body and the two demons there was now no sign. Not counting the mess that was running down the walls and dripping from the ceiling. Looking back, Zuko watched as the two lovers finished their kiss before Gar helped Ty Lee to her feet, the young woman groaning as she rose.
"What kind of plan did you two call that anyway? There are so many ways that could have gone wrong." Zuko insisted but then sighed as he stepped back up to Ty Lee, "Let me check you properly anyway. Let's at least make sure you're not hurt."
"Hey, the plan worked…mostly." Ty Lee griped as Zuko placed a hand on her forehead. As a soft white glow formed under Zuko's hand, Ty Lee sighed as she felt her body relax, a feeling of vitality coursing through her, "It did hurt a bit but Sokka's sparkle powder did it's job."
"Hmm, well, you're going to be fine." Zuko told her and Gar grinned hugely as he wrapped his arms about her, "But we're running out of time and there's one demon left. I want you two to follow my lead this time."
This last added in his most commanding voice, Zuko then spun on his heel and marched off into the corridor, pausing before a thick steel hatch and resting a hand upon it. He stood there for a few moments with his eyes closed, Ty Lee sharing a glance with Gar who could only shrug before he moved off to gingerly retrieve his sword from where he had dropped it near the splattered remains of the demons.
"Err, what are you doing?" Ty Lee asked after a minute of silence.
"My element exists everywhere, even in cold steel. It's there in the connections between the other elements. Everywhere I look, I see…fire." Zuko explained slowly and as he finished speaking the pins within the hinges of the door shot up and out. Opening his eyes, Zuko grinned, "Now, in the words on my fiancé, let me show you how it's done."
The final demon aboard the ship was on edge. He'd heard the battle above him on deck and most recently an explosion nearby that rattled the corridor he stood in. One of the most dangerous beings in existence had ordered him to stand guard over the prisoners and so now he stood at the end of a long passage, the large doors beside him leading into a store room usually reserved for fish. The corridor was long and he stood with his back to the wall at it's end knowing no one could sneak up upon him. The last thing he expected was an oval door to come careening around the corner at the corridor's far end and come hurtling toward him, the steel hatch almost filling the passageway from floor to ceiling and side to side. Confused but confident, the demon lashed out with a fist, launching a cherry red beam which struck the steel door with an explosive retort that rattled the ship around him. He blinked, apart from a glowing spot of heat, the undamaged door kept coming. Three more times the demon tried to blast the door away with beams from both fists and a final scream was heard before the thick steel hatch slammed into the corridor's end with a clang as loud as the explosions of a moment before.
Zuko came striding around the far corner and marched down the passageway, Gar and Ty Lee's heads peeking around more cautiously before they hurried to catch up with him. Gar gave an impressed whistle but Ty Lee wrinkled her nose in disgust. The door remained standing against the wall, heat still radiating away from it from the demon's desperate attacks. Red sprayed out around it's sides, more dripping from the ceiling above.
"Eww, icky." Ty Lee said to him as Zuko paused before the large doors at the corridor's end, "You squished that guy flat."
"It got the job done." Zuko said with a shrug.
Working the locking mechanism before him, Zuko then slid the large doors apart, a wash of intense cold flooding from the room within as the doors clanged open.
"Oh, my." Ty Lee gasped, putting a hand to her mouth as the color drained from her face.
The large room, usually used for storing the catches of the fishing vessels that worked alongside the mothership, was packed with men. All of them huddled together for warmth and many displaying bruises and bloodied faces. As the men rose with excited faces, several more could be seen laid out on what skins the men could find, their injuries obviously severe. One of the men, recognizing who had opened the door, dropped to one knee and bowed his head.
"Firelord Zuko." and once it was said, most of the others followed suit.
"There's no time for that." Zuko said hastily, "Some of you help get these injured out of here and the rest of you who are able, get to your stations." as if to emphasis his words, a series of explosions rang out from above, the ship vibrating again from the force of them, "Let's move people. We need to get this ship mobile as soon as possible."
The crew scurried to comply, filing from the room in a rush, some helping to carry those unconscious and injured men. But a moment later, there came fresh explosions from above and everyone was suddenly thrown to the floor as the ship lurched.
Azula was growing anxious. Her concern for the scarred man who's silver backpack she held notwithstanding, soon after the others had left her there had come a bright flash from the bridge high above. Reaching out with her senses, Azula saw that Sokka and Suki had been successful and when sounds of explosions rang out from below, she watched her brother with Ty Lee and Gar complete their part of the mission. But as she watched the others with concern, part of Azula's attention was focused on another she could sense, Daniel down below the water at the bow of the ship, working to seal the breach there.
It was while her senses were focused down below that instinct once again saved Azula. A tingling sense of danger on the back of her neck that made her spin about, raising the silver pack up as she went. From high above on the edge of the ice cliffs, a cherry red beam speared down, striking the silver pack and exploding with enough force to drive the young woman to her knees. Another and another speared down from different directions, each exploding against the silver substance and although Azula was pushed back by the force of the attacks, Daniel's silver pack absorbed the destructive energy. The instant a break came in the attacks, Azula rolled back and lashed out with her free arm, then rolled onto that hand, kicking upward with her feet and launched four huge fireballs that soared up and exploded on the cliffs edge. Her attackers were driven back but Azula was forced to scurry back herself as huge chunks of ice rained down, most splashing into the ocean but the ship shook as some slammed onto the deck, increasing that which already covered the bow. The dark figures above were back moments later and Azula raised her silver shield as more beams of intense energy speared down at her, the young woman driven to her knees again as the barrage continued.
"Daniel." Azula moaned aloud, her voice tiny under the explosions ringing out above her head, "Where are you?"
HERE.
The attacks suddenly ceased as the water exploded beside the ship, Daniel rising into the air with his teeth barred in a feral snarl and his burning eyes locked onto those high above. With a sweep of his arms, a huge coiling serpent of water rose from beneath him, breaking up as it rose and freezing into long spikes of ice that flew up like immense arrows, striking the cliffs edge as Azula's fireballs had moments before and the impact generating explosions almost as large. Again Azula scrambled back as ice rained down but with another sweep of his arms, Daniel sent the falling ice splashing into the water beside the ship and then dropped back down to land at Azula's side.
"It's about time." Azula said with mock annoyance, eyeing the dripping naked man up and down, "Been having fun have we?"
"Hey, you try it sometime." Daniel answered with a crooked grin, his dark brown hair plastered to his head "I may be good at what I do but it isn't easy trying to Waterbend, Metalbend and keep warm at the same time. It's cold down there."
"I noticed." Azula said snidely, her golden eyes trailing down to the dripping man's naked waist before she held out the silver pack, "Perhaps you'd like a loincloth?"
Daniel's face darkened and his hands reflexively moved to cover himself before he grinned once more, suddenly shaking violently all over and Azula tried to shield herself with the pack as freezing droplets flew from him. She gave him an annoyed glare as he reached for the pack but Daniel's head snapped back up, the scarred man glaring up the cliffside once more.
"They're coming back." Daniel growled as he slipped the pack over his shoulders and then pointed up above, "Your fireballs made it wet up there, Azula. Cover me while I free the ship."
"Wet?" Azula asked as Daniel streaked away toward the bow and as realization set in, she turned her eyes upward and grinned, "Wet."
As Daniel skidded to a halt before the ice and snow piled on the bow, he dropped low and brought his hands back up in a wide sweeping gesture. The tons of frozen water simply lifted and flew to the sides, splashing into the ocean beside the ship. As Daniel performed this, Azula's eyes scanned the cliffs high above and the instant she saw dark figures looking down on them once more, she acted. Bringing her hands together, Azula then spread them apart and called on the purest form of her Bending, white energy crackling about her before she thrust both hands upwards. A searing white bolt of lightning shot up from the ship, ice and snow again exploding outwards as it struck but the most striking result was what it did to those ranged along the cliff's edge. Even far below, Azula could see her efforts had succeeded as the dark figures high above jumped about and fell twitching amidst the crackling release of her lightning, one of those figures slipping from the edge and tumbling toward the water far below. Azula grinned fiercely as she watched that figure drop, the demon striking the cliff wall once and tumbling wildly as he fell the rest of the way.
"Beautiful." said a soft voice beside her and Azula jumped to see Daniel at her side, "I have to go. Help the others with the ship and if…if I don't…I'll see you later, Azula."
Azula blinked again at the warmth that shone from the man's glowing eyes where only blazing fury had shone forth before and before she could answer, Daniel flashed away. The scarred man slammed into the cliffside two dozen yards above the bow of the ship, the white and blue ice cracking in a great web pattern around him. Then as the muscles in his body stood out starkly, Daniel raised his arms, the ocean below answering his call. Azula stumbled but kept her eyes fixed on Daniel as the water beneath the ship humped upwards, carrying the ship up with it. The great curve of the bow scraped against the ice as the ship rose, tipping up as it went and as the tip of the bow reach Daniel, he dropped his arms before slamming a fist against the wall under his feet. With a crackling boom that seemed to reverberate around the world, the cliff split, huge slabs of ice, some larger than the ship itself, broke away from the cliffs and slowly crashed down into the water below. Some of those impacts sending fountains of water into the air almost as high as the cliffs themselves and the surge of displaced water carried the ship, still riding on the wave Daniel had generated, away from the crumbling cliffs. Azula dropped to all fours as the ship swayed and spun on the wave that carried it, her last sight of Daniel as the cliffs receded was his glowing eyes looking back to her before he leapt, shooting up into the sky and away.
Daniel dropped from the sky a half mile inland from the destruction he'd caused at the cliffs, the ice crunching beneath him as he slammed into the ground in a crouch. Rising slowly he turned his blazing eyes onto the dozen figures who were ranged before him, each glaring back with red glowing eyes of their own. Silence reined at first, the demons spreading out to half encircle Daniel but the scarred man's eyes remained locked on two figures who remained before him, a man and woman standing between the other demons and the only two who's eyes did not blaze back at him. Sniffing the air cautiously, Daniel's angry frown showed a touch of confusion.
"You're not Koh even if you smell like him." Daniel growled low, his eyes narrowing, "Nor are you fooling anyone with that disguise. Show yourself."
The woman standing there remained half turned away, the hood of her brown coat pulled low but the large man grinned at Daniel and a low chuckle rose from him. Still grinning, the man began to expand, his face and body distorting, his clothing tearing before his skin itself split and fell away revealing a growing blackness from within. Still the black form rose and grew until a figure ten feet tall was revealed, a grinning human head atop an impossibly large and muscular form. The human head shook out long black hair over glossy black armored shoulders, lifting up huge clawed hands and flexing his long fingers.
"What's the matter, Nomad?" the hulking figure rumbled, waving a hand up before his face, "Don't you like my new face? I wear this one permanently now. You could say I'm somewhat attached to it."
"You…you're mortal." Daniel breathed, some of the color draining from his face, "Koh?"
"You're half right." the man said, grinning at Daniel again and exposing pointed teeth, "I'm something like you now, Nomad, only so much more."
The huge figure's eyes lit up at this, bright yellow that was reflected in the flames that burst to life about his massive, clawed fists. Daniel followed suit, dropping low as red and green burst about his own fists, his eyes darting between the huge creature before him and the demons ranged around. But the huge black figure only grinned again and cuffed the woman at his side with a glowing hand, making her cry out and cringe before she turned to face Daniel fully. Reaching up, she pulled back the hood of the coat she wore, revealing short auburn hair and deep blue eyes that gazed back at Daniel sadly.
Instantly the scarred man's face blanched white and the fires about his fists died as he fell to his knees on the ice.
"Reena." Daniel breathed, his breath hitching in his throat before he turned back to the figure at her side, "No, please, Koh,"
"Phoenix." the beast rumbled with a frown, "I am Phoenix now."
"Phoenix then." Daniel breathed, rising slowly back to his feet, "Let this be between us. Let her go."
"Release my favorite plaything?" Phoenix called out with a derisive laugh. Reena whimpered as one of the black beast's glowing hands dug it's claws into her shoulder and pulled her close, "Did you forget you rejected her, Nomad? She gave herself to Fate, mother gave her to me." a long, forked tongue slipped from between Phoenix's lips and licked at them hungrily, "She is mine now."
A growl arose from Daniel, the scarred man snarling as the fires relit about his hands, the tattoos on his skin following next, bright green, bordered by red.
Boy. Easy.
"YOU. WILL. RELEASE. HER." though Daniel seemed to speak normally, his grating tone reverberated about the icy plains, the demons standing around taking a step back as they looked nervously to their leader.
"Make me." Phoenix hissed with a sneer then four demons to one side and another five to his other, raised burning fists, all pointing at Daniel, "Kill him."
Daniel roared, the ice cracking all around him as the fires about his fists suddenly blazed from his entire body, an aura of red and green that extended out several feet around him. Steam and ice leapt into the air as the demons fired their beams, the red energy pushing in at the aura about Daniel but unable to penetrate it. Raising his fists high, Daniel dropped into a crouch, slamming those fists onto the tortured ice at his feet and the plains of white for over a mile around, all the way back to the broken cliffs behind, shattered.
On the bridge of the mothership, Sokka struggled madly with the wheel, working to keep the ship straight and level in the turbulent water around them. Adjusting levers and watching the dials, Sokka had already managed to put a little distance between themselves and the cliffs, all while keeping the ship away from the rolling icebergs Daniel had created in releasing the ship. Watching through the rear windows, Suki made a soft sound of dismay a moment before an enormous rumble passed over them. Sokka turned in time to see a huge cloud of white rising over the landscape behind and the ice cliffs as far as he could see in either direction crumbling into the ocean. Already he could see a wall of water, a surge released by the collapsing cliffs rolling toward them. Turning back with wide eyes, Sokka grabbed a curved tube from it's place next to the wheel.
"More pressure." Sokka yelled urgently into the tube, franticly pulling levers and adjusting smaller wheels, "Engine room. More power, now!"
Two demons died almost instantly. Crushed under rolling, sliding blocks of ice the size of small towns. All about the landscape heaved, huge sections of land collapsing down into deep chasms while in other areas long, crystalline spires of blue ice punching hundreds of feet into the air before breaking apart and raining down. Rising on one of these, Phoenix, laughing as he clutched Reena to himself, was launched high and away from the worst of the destruction.
The remaining demons were struggling to remain alive as the landscape moved and shifted about them and most forgot for a moment about their target. The first to remember was scrabbling at the surface of a huge block of white ice as it tipped slowly to it's side when he was suddenly lifted up and away and slammed into a wall of blue ice behind him. He grabbed at a burning pain about his throat and found himself looking into the furious face of Daniel, twin points of intense red and green blazing at him from inches away as an inhuman growl rose from the scarred man. Fifty yards away, another demon standing on a swaying platform of white, saw his comrade pinned by Daniel and raised his burning fists. Daniel's head half turned and with one hand about the throat of the man he had pinned, he slammed his other into the man's chest, fingers digging into flesh cruelly before, with a wrench, he tore the demon's head from his shoulders. Spinning about, the scarred man hurled the grisly missile just as the demon behind him fired, red beams meeting the head halfway and exploding into a grey cloud of smoke. The demon who had fired blinked in surprise, his eyes searching before a low growl from behind made him freeze in horror. Burning hands closed about the demon's upper arms and Daniel raised a foot, slamming it into the demon's back and launching him away. As the demon fell, flailing wildly, to the misty white abbys below, it was only then he realized he'd left his arms behind.
Of the remaining demons, most had been spread out and away from each other as they sought to escape the destruction around them but two had manage to find a stable perch near to each other. Staring first at one another across a wide, deep trench in the ice between them, the pair turned at the sound of an explosion, quickly followed by a fading scream. Both saw Daniel further into the shattered landscape, the man's tattoos still blazing brightly as he tossed a pair of severed arms away after their owner before his head snapped about, eyes of red and green glaring straight at them.
Down in the depths of the ship, even Ty Lee had taken up a shovel and joined in the effort to stoke the furnaces that heated the boilers. There was no pink or green or any other color to be seen in the huge chamber, only people as black as the fuel they frantically fed to the fires. Many worked about the machinery while most stood before the three open doors of the separate furnaces, as one man paused in exhaustion, another grabbed his shovel and took his place.
Into this chaos a light green figure streaked from one of the many entrances before stopping before the furnaces. Azula looked about for a way to help before she found herself confronted by a dark figure with bright grey eyes who flashed her a brilliantly white smile.
"Hi, Zula." Ty Lee said happily and danced away as she saw an exhausted engineer stumble over his work.
"Zuko?" Azula called hesitantly.
"Here." called a voice and she had to look twice before she spotted the shape of her brother amidst the other black figures.
"How can I help?" Azula asked as he came over but no sooner had she spoken when Sokka's urgent voiced boomed from the pipes lining the walls.
"MORE POWER!"
"My Lord." an engineer, as black as everyone else said as he hurried over, "The problem is, the coal takes time to catch light. Plus if we feed in too much, we'll smother the fires."
"So, Sokka needs more heat?" Azula asked and at the man's vigorous nod, she grabbed her brother, "We can help there, Zuzu."
Brother and sister ran to their positions, the crew scattering from before the boilers as Zuko warned them away. Then, mirroring each others movements, Zuko and Azula drew their hands in to their chests as they inhaled slowly then lashed out with a single fist each. Into two of the furnace doors, gold and azure flames roared, pouring from Zuko and Azula as they maintained the flow of fire. Within minutes, gauges all about the room began to climb and the pipes along the ceiling rattled, steam hissing from their joints.
Above the ship on the bridge, Sokka was reaching for the speaking tube again when the dials and gauges ranged before him suddenly climbed like he had never seen before. Slamming forward all the levers he could reach, Sokka opened as many steam valves to the engines as he could and the huge ship lurched as it accelerated. Behind him, Suki's nose bounced from the glass of the window she looked through but she did not even notice that nor the trickle of blood that ran down her nose as she watched what was happening in the distance with wide eyes.
The two demons immediately raised their fists, lining them up on the glowing figure of Daniel fifty yards away and firing their beams of destructive force. The ledge where Daniel stood vanished beneath a cloud of steam, chunks of ice flying away in every direction from the multiple explosions that rolled out. One of the demons punched the air in victory, turning to share his jubilation with his comrade on the other side of the trench. The man across from him was white faced, a large dark stain on his chest rapidly spreading over his coat when he jerked, a thick spike of ice pushing out from the center of his chest. Behind the impaled man, Daniel slowly rose, his blazing eyes locked onto the watching demon when he shoved the corpse he was holding up, sending it hurtling over the trench between them. With a scream, the demon fired from his fists again, his comrades body exploding in the air over the trench into a ball of dark smoke and gory shrapnel but flying through that airborne mess came Daniel. Hands and feet extended before him as he flew, the scarred man slammed into the demon, smashing him down onto the icy ground as Daniel crouched atop him. The possessed man, still screaming into Daniel's twisted features, fired twin beams from his fists held between them without a second thought. The red beams struck Daniel's shoulder, the scarred man roaring as he staggered upright but instantly he lunged back down, driving a fist into the demon's face with such force that flesh and bone shattered just like the ice beneath. Rising again, Daniel's breath came in grunts and growls, steam rising from the wound on his shoulder, strips of blackened skin hanging from his shoulder with the muscles beneath exposed to the cold air. But he ignored that, the man's burning eyes locked onto two dark figures half a mile away. Thrusting his arms back and his chest forward, Daniel tipped his head back roared at his prey.
Phoenix stood on the cracked and broken ice just beyond the worst of the devastation, grinning with expectation as that roar rolled through the air.
"Come now, Nomad." Phoenix rumbled softly to himself, "Spend yourself on the rest of those fools and bring yourself to me."
While the ebony creature chuckled to himself, beside him, Reena stared into the distance and trembled although it was not the cold which affected her. Her blue eyes stared out over the cracked and broken ice to Daniel in the distance, three other figures visible amidst the jumbled ice between her and him. Hope was something she had learned quickly to put aside, a luxury she could not afford while she was with the beast at her side. Even her thoughts had to be carefully controlled lest she anger him but deep down inside, in the most private part of her soul, Reena prayed for Daniel to hurry.
The scarred man's distant figure vanished, reappearing beside the furthest demon from Reena and Phoenix and from the others, red beams speared out without hesitation, blasting their own comrade to pieces in an effort to strike at him. But Daniel was already on the next, jumping the dozens of yards between them in an instant and driving the flailing demon to the ground. As the final demon adjusted his aim, Daniel lowered his face and tore the throat from the demon he held with his bare teeth. The last demon fired and Daniel leapt up, swatting the destructive beam from the air with glowing hands then dropped back to the ground and streaked away. The demon fired again and again at the blur that raced toward him, the beams doing nothing to slow Daniel's advance.
"Phoe," in desperation the demon called to his master, the word ending in a grunt as Daniel slammed into him. Without slowing, Daniel ran into the demon with his hands pressed together before himself, his extended fingers punching into the chest of the man before he flung his arms wide. With a sound like tearing cloth, the two halves of the demon flew away and Daniel vanished.
Phoenix's grin didn't change, even as he brought his hands up before himself an instant before Daniel appeared there, the scarred man lashing out with a punch that drove the huge creature away. Sliding back but keeping to his feet, Phoenix chuckled as he dug in the claws on his feet, stopping himself a dozen yards from Daniel. The scarred man, dripping with the blood of those he had killed and growling still, reached toward the woman nearby and Reena cringed back.
Run. While my thoughts are clear enough to keep him busy. the young woman blinked in surprise at the clear words filling her mind, recognizing instantly Daniel's voice, Please, go Reena. I'll save you.
But Reena only stood and starred back into his glowing eyes. All the hate and anger she'd once felt for him long forgotten and because she knew what was coming, because she knew she could do nothing to prevent it, Reena despaired.
"Oh, Danny." She breathed, "I'm so sorry."
Loud, deep and grating laughter filled the air as Phoenix raised a black, clawed hand and Reena's form became insubstantial, long streamers of blue streaking out from her and to the black beast. Daniel reached for her again but she faded from before him, at last only her saddened blue eyes gazing back at him before they too vanished.
"NO."
Boy. Ea...easy.
"I told you, Nomad. She is my plaything." Phoenix rumbled, grinning cruelly as yellow fires ignited in his eyes, "And when I have finished with you, I shall enjoy playing with her again."
"NO." Daniel growled again, dropping low into a crouch he slapped one hand to the ice below, leaning forward and snarling almost incoherently, "Give her back to me."
"Her soul is tied to my own." Phoenix returned, dropping into a low stance himself, "Come take her from me…if you can."
Con…trol…my boy…we must…we can…ca…cccc…KILL!
The growl from Daniel rose in volume, his entire body trembling as pure hatred flowed from his blazing eyes. The arrow tattoos on him flared again, a green and red aura of blazing energy once more bursting into life around him. Facing Daniel, Phoenix gave a derisive snort and yellow burst around him, an aura blazing away from his huge black form as energetically as Daniel's.
In a fraction of a heartbeat, the two raced together, the impact when they met shattering the frozen tundra in another mile wide circle of destruction.
Far away on the north western coast of the earthen kingdoms, Aang, Katara, Toph and Mai were waiting fretfully. Trying to avoid the locals they had sealed themselves in the hut the villagers had set aside for them, sitting in pairs across from each other. Katara still wept quietly as she thought of her grandmother and adopted grandfather, Aang remaining by his wife's side although he fidgeted with a small chip of blue crystal in one hand, growing impatient to hear news from the others. He'd attempted calling Sokka on the crystal a few times but so far had received no response from his brother-in-law.
It was after they had been sitting for awhile, the sunlight traveling slowly over the floor through the windows when Aang and Toph had grabbed at their heads at the same moment. Mai grabbed for Toph, fear stabbing through her at the sight of the young woman's naturally pale skin grow deathly white.
"Toph." Mai said in a trembling voice, "Baby? What's wrong."
"Chuckles. Danny, no." Toph moaned as she leaned into Mai, "Hold it together, Chuckles."
"Aang?" Katara asked, her pain pushed aside by the sight of her husband and Toph.
Aang had leaned forward, cradling his head in his hands but now he sat back up, turning to Katara. His face was ashen, sweat beginning to pour down his face as he turned fearful eyes to his wife.
"I can feel him, Babe. Even from here. He's…in such…rage. Pain." Aang groaned, reaching up to rub at his temples he noticed the crystal chip he still held and raised it to his lips, "Sokka? Sokka! If you can hear me, Sokka. Wherever you are, get away. Get as far away from Daniel as you can."
Faster than mortal eyes could see, two figures raged across the broken plains of ice. Blazing with energy, ice blasting to steam as they passed over it, Daniel and Phoenix fought savagely. Daniel's movements were wild, barely controlled and Phoenix blocked the man's attacks again and again. And yet though Daniel attacked wildly, he held his own, blocking the hulking black creature's attacks in return. The sneering grin never left Phoenix's face as he fought, the long dark hair atop his head flying about wildly while the two remained in constant motion.
Their feet barely touched the ground, only the occasional kick against the ice launching them about the broken plains. Fists and feet flew and where their blazing aura's met and merged, energy crackled, bolts of lightning arcing out into the ground.
After several minutes of stalemate, Daniel managed to block Phoenix and knock the beast's arms out wide, rolling once and delivering a sound kick with a sound like thunder to the creature's black armored chest. Phoenix flew back, smoke rising from the point of contact on his armor and as his sneer became a grimace of anger. Glaring at Daniel, from low on the beast's back his long, thick tail slid out from within the black armor. Shooting up over his shoulder, the hooked spike on it's thick end pointed at Daniel and Phoenix grinned again at the surprised look on the scarred man's face. Yellow, white energy crackled about the tail's tip an instant before a beam shot from it, a stream of pure energy so bright it cast shadows along the ground for miles around. Daniel blurred, reappearing to the side and behind him a section of the broken ice plain sixty yards around rose up, flames, chunks of ice and steam exploding into the sky.
But undeterred or perhaps uncaring, Daniel flew at Phoenix. Three more times he danced aside as beams of intense energy was fired at him, three more times immense sections of ice were reduced to steam in explosions that rocked the plains before the two blazing combatants came together once more. Daniel slammed into Phoenix, one hand closing about the beast's human throat, the other wrapping about the spiked tail, while Phoenix wrapped his hands about Daniel's chest, the scarred man's ribcage visibly collapsing as those black fingers squeezed. Both roaring in rage and pain, Daniel and Phoenix were knocked back by their coming together, hitting the ice in a roll that carried them over the edge of a mist filled ravine. Within one another's grip, the pair fell down, down, disappearing into the mist far below. After a moment the mist rose, expanding as it went until a geyser of steam burst from the ravine, shooting up a thousand feet into the sky and down below, where Daniel and Phoenix had vanished, a red glow could be seen growing steadily brighter.
On the deck of the southern water tribe's mothership, four figures emerged from below deck. With the engines working at full capacity and the crew in control of the machinery, Zuko, Azula, Ty Lee and Gar had come up to see what was happening. All of them were still black from their frantic efforts with the crew below, Ty Lee the most distressed by this as she tried to dust herself down once they had emerged into the open air.
"I'm going to need about twenty baths after this and my beautiful new kimo," Ty Lee was stopped as she ran into someone's back and she looked up with annoyance, "Zuko, watch where you're…hey, what happened to the land?"
As she spoke Ty Lee finally followed everyone else's open mouthed stares. They had managed to put more than a few miles between themselves and the coast but the coastline as they remembered it had changed drastically. Icebergs tossed and rolled in their thousands where once the cliffs had stood and the land beyond was a jumble of broken and shattered ice, even as far away as they were, they could see cracks miles long in what minutes before had been flat, unbroken tundra. They could see the column of steam rising from directly behind them, it's top reaching into the sky and flattened out by the higher, stronger winds and filling the sky with grey. At the column's base, great tongues and spurts of magma, molten rock was shooting hundreds of feet into the air.
"Are we…far enough away?" Ty Lee asked in a quiet voice as she grabbed hold of Gar, unable to turn away as she held him tightly.
"Daniel said he had power enough to destroy the world." Zuko answered in an equally quiet tone, "But he's the only one who can fight Koh. The two of them together,"
Zuko stopped there, not wanting to finish that statement although he believed they were about to see for themselves what it meant. He turned away though, when he felt fingers interlacing with his own, looking down to see Azula's hand firmly grasping his. When he looked back up, Zuko almost forgot all else as he looked to his sister at his side, her own eyes locked onto the conflagration far away behind them and her face fearful but filled with obvious concern.
A wide column of lava rushed from the ground, filling the ravine in moments as yet more ice reduced to steam gushed into the sky. Rising ahead of the glowing, liquid rock, two figures flew up into the sky. Continuing to rise, Daniel and Phoenix continued their fight. To those watching so far away, the pair were glowing yellow, red and green specks racing into the sky but even if they had been close enough, the spinning, twisting, snarling shapes that was Daniel and Phoenix moved far too fast to even see. Already hundreds of feet above the tortured plains of ice, the pair showed no signs of slowing, Daniel displaying four deep gouges running diagonally down his torso with his blood covering the lower half of his body. While Phoenix's black armor at his shoulder was cracked, a piece of it flapping loosly showing bloodied muscle and tendons working beneath. Both were locked hand to hand, each trying to subdue the other through brute strength as colored lightning spat from their bodies, the energies about their joined hands hissing and crackling loudly. At first glance, Daniel appeared at a disadvantage, the scarred man ducking his head from side to side or kicking his legs out behind as Phoenix's hooked tail struck out from behind.
"You can't beat me, Nomad." Phoenix sneered into Daniel's twisted, insane features, "I have as much power as you. More."
If Daniel heard he gave no sign as they continued into the sky, locked together but although Daniel's face was twisted and maddened by rage, his glowing eyes watched Phoenix's striking tail with intelligence. One last time the tail lashed over Phoenix's shoulder, aiming for Daniel's and the scarred man made his move. Relaxing one arm, Daniel was able to twist to the side but even over the constant thunderous retorts of their clashing energies, there came an audible crack of snapping bone. Ignoring his unnaturally twisted limb still in Phoenix's grip, Daniel was able to avoid the striking tail but it left him in position to lunge his head forward, clamping his teeth about the thick spike at it's end. If the breaking of Daniel's arm had been loud, the crunch and snap of Daniel biting through the black armor of Phoenix's tail, followed by the beast's bellow of pain, was a thousand times louder.
With a twist of his head, Daniel tore over ten inches of the long tail spike away, black and yellow ichor spurting from the wound. As the huge black creature experienced true agony for the first time in it's existence, his clawed hands loosed their grip for a fraction of an instant. Which was all Daniel needed to wrench his own hands free then raise them above his head, slamming both down onto Phoenix's head. The black armored beast was knocked forward, face down to the ground far below and Daniel grabbed the back of his neck, kicking his legs up above his head and hanging upside down above Phoenix.
Pushing Phoenix ahead of himself, Daniel accelerated back down toward the ground, the speed of their flight setting the air about them aflame. Phoenix flailed with his arms to reach to his back, the jagged end of his broken tail lacerating Daniel's exposed skin again and again but the scarred man only grinned, a twisted, lopsided smile as he drove them both into the ground below.
To those watching on the fleeing ship, the battling pair in the sky transformed into a perfectly straight bolt of lightning that speared down to the tortured ground below. When they struck, everything flashed white. Before the light faded a sound began, a crackling rumble that was felt in their bones more than heard and when their vision cleared, Ty Lee and Gar fell to their knees as Zuko and Azula held each other close. A cloud of fire, smoke, steam and shattered rock hundreds of yards wide rose into the air, visibly churning and rolling as it reached a thousand feet in a matter of heartbeats. A great column of smoke and fire connected it to the ground, making it look for all the world like a giant mushroom and down at it's base, a wall of white was racing away. High above the ship, tears filled Sokka's eyes as he looked to the destruction waged upon his homeland but he could also see that wall of white that was racing over the ocean's surface, a pulse racing before it that smashed the waves flat and he did not even have time to warn anyone before it washed over them. The ship lurched and a howl was heard as though it came straight from the depths of hell itself.
On the deck, Azula and Zuko were knocked backwards, still clinging to each other as they slid over the deck but once the initial pressure wave had passed, the force of the wind was greatly reduced. Only Gar and Ty Lee, already braced on their knees, had maintained their position but now Gar pulled Ty Lee to her feet and began leading her toward the open door on the command tower. Zuko was quick to follow their example, tugging at Azula's hand to draw her away and inside. For while a moment before the air had been biting cold, those on deck found sweat breaking out on their rapidly reddening skin and they fled the intense heat of the steam that now washed around them.
Down below the still rising cloud of fire and smoke, two figures struggled to rise at the base of a deep bowl smashed into black rock. The sky was a rapidly thickening grey lid, the ice of the plains now hanging in the air above their heads. Around them for miles in every direction, the great white plains had been reduced to black rocks, exposed to the air for the first time in millennia. Daniel pushed himself up, the skin of his hand sizzling against the hot stone where he lay but his glowing eyes remained locked on the black figure rising to his own feet a dozen yards away. The scarred man swayed on his feet, his left arm still dangling at an awkward angle while burns and deep gashed covered his body. Phoenix was in much the same state, his black armored body punctured all over while a great crack in his armor ran from his shoulder to his crotch, the crack widening and closing as he drew great, gasping breaths. Red blood trickled in a constant flow down Daniel's legs, hissing and bubbling where it came in contact with the ground and from Phoenix, black and yellow ichor oozed.
"You can't…destroy me." Phoenix rumbled, swaying himself as he faced Daniel, "I am…more powerful than you."
Daniel vanished, reappearing before Phoenix with the two locked together hand to hand and it seemed they would continue their struggle once more. But a calmness had fallen over Daniel's face and, ignoring the sickening grind of bone fragments in his broken arm, he pushed back against Phoenix, stretching up to bring their faces level.
"You want power?" Daniel asked softly.
The arrow tattoos upon him flashed brightly once more, green bordered with red while the aura of blazing energy burst to life around him, Phoenix answering with his own aura of yellow. But his time, Daniel's ever-present bright silver backpack…opened.
The bag split down it's middle and from within two great white arcs of pure energy emerged. Spreading out to a hundred feet either side of him, the white arcs arched forty feet into the air before they swept gracefully back down, white lighting crackling from the arcs down to the ground in a dancing curtain of shifting energy. The overall effect left Daniel looking for all the world as though he had an enormous pair of white, shimmering wings.
"I am power." Daniel said softly again into Phoenix's face.
The great white wings lifted almost straight up, sweeping back down and lifting Daniel and Phoenix high into the air. Where those wings of pure energy brushed the ground, rocks flashed white before they exploded into molten red fragments. The wings spread out wide and then began to sweep closed, encircling the pair in a sphere of white near fifty feet around.
"Power." Daniel said once more.
The red and green in his eyes was washed away by white, his tattoos following suit an instant later and the sphere of energy encircling them pulsed and grew, doubling in size. Down below where that energy touched the ground, the ground itself glowed white for a moment before it simply slumped into a pit of bright pink lava. Another pulse washed from Daniel, the sphere expanding out to near two hundred feet and the white, flowing energy begun to move down his arms, snapping and crackling as it passed into Phoenix, smoke rising from their joined hands. For the first time concern showed on Phoenix's face and he struggled to pull his hands free, the huge beast jerking uncontrollably and moaning in pain as fresh surges of power flowed into him from Daniel. The white light in Daniel's eyes grew brighter and the sphere about them surged again.
Ten miles away, the small village of Pakku-sai had heard the explosions, people running from the village when the great mushroom cloud had arisen far to the east. Now a few miles from their village they stopped to stare at this new sight, a great dome of white on the horizon, expanding even as they watched. None could guess what it meant but no one imagined it would be good. That feeling was confirmed when a young woman cried out, falling over in the snow. When someone helped her to her feet, her blue skins were wet all down one side. Everyone turned their eyes to their feet and watched with horrified eyes as water trickled over the ground toward the ocean. People held each other and trembled since there was nothing else they could do. There was no point in running now. Their land was melting.
The same despair was felt by those on the mothership. The Gaang members on board had gathered on the bridge to escape the boiling steam that had washed over them but even that now had gone. The white sphere of energy looked to be a mile across now, the huge dirty cloud from the explosion of minutes before had been blasted away and the grey clouds above were stretched out into long streamers pointing away from the almost beautiful dome of energy. Not a word was spoken as they watched, only loved ones holding onto one another in silence. Zuko groped at his side for his sister and was shocked to find she wasn't there.
Much further away, Toph lay on her side with her head resting in Mai's lap, her hands still clutched at her temples as she trembled sweating profusely. Stroking her fiancée's hair gently, Mai made soothing sounds and tried not to let the fear she felt show in her voice.
Aang appeared a little better, though still pale, he sat in a meditation position, his eyes closed and his mind focused far away.
"I can't get near him. His mind is like a blast furnace." Aang whispered to Katara who sat before him, "So much power…and as he releases more…it's shredding what little control he has left. But he's still there." Aang opened his eyes, his stormy grey gazing into Katara's deep blue, "He's still thinking of us."
Phoenix's head twisted from side to side, a grimace on his face as he struggled harder to pull his hands free of Daniel's grip. White fire flowed over his black carapace, smoke pouring from the holes and tears in Phoenix's armor but he narrowed his yellow eyes and sneered once more into Daniel's face.
"Go ahead, Nomad. Unleash it all." Phoenix snarled and laughed aloud, "Go ahead and burn it all, fry me, fry the world and your little whore too. Reena's soul is tied to mine. What you do to me, you do to HER."
But if Phoenix hoped this would get through to Daniel he was sorely disappointed, only the scarred man's impassive face and intense white eyes staring back at him.
Twisting his head from side to side, Phoenix struggled once more. All about him was white, only the ground showing color with a lake of lava boiling below and the lands beyond filled with glowing, softening rocks as that lake spread. Another groan escaped the black beast, in part from the burning pain of the energy boiling through him and for the first time, Phoenix was afraid.
Zuko stepped from the bridge onto a catwalk that ran outside and here, facing the growing dome of white, stood Azula. The air around had grown warmer, even the metal rails on the catwalk growing hot to the touch as Zuko stepped up to his sister's side and followed her gaze.
"What do you think will happen to us, Zuzu?" Azula asked softly without turning.
Zuko glanced at her and then turned back to the glowing dome, grown to over two miles around and at least a mile high, it half sat on land, half of it extending out over the ocean.
"We'll go find our mother in the next world." Zuko said quietly, wrapping an arm about Azula's waist, "Then we'll work things out from there."
"But what about him?" she asked, leaning into her brother, Azula rested her head on Zuko's shoulder and drew a deep breath, releasing it as a shuddering sigh, "What about Daniel?"
Daniel's head snapped up and turned to look over his shoulder, his eyes blinking rapidly as his breathing became unsteady. Turning back, Phoenix first saw twin sparks of red and green form before the white in Daniel's eyes washed away. Twisting his head about, Daniel looked around horrified.
"No." he moaned softly, then louder, "NO!"
Boy. Pull it back. Wolf's call in Daniel's mind was frantic, almost panicked, We must restore the balance now, boy. Pull it back.
Daniel's wide eyes locked onto Phoenix held in his own hands before himself. Pulling his legs up, Daniel planted his feet on the huge beast's chest and kicked out, breaking the connection between their hands and sending Phoenix tumbling away. Breathing hard and fast, Daniel raised his head as the color drained from his eyes, bottomless blackness taking the place of his green and red.
"Wolf?" Daniel said in a trembling voice, "What have I done?"
What WE have done, we can undo. Wolf growled, Prepare, boy. This will not be pleasant.
Daniel flung his arms out wide, his black eyes still locked to the glowing white dome above as he grit his teeth in expectation. Then swinging his arms back, he slammed his closed fists together and a new aura sprang to life about Daniel. An aura of pure darkness.
Phoenix, forgotten once he'd been pushed away, halted his tumbling fall a dozen feet from the lake of boiling rock below, turned his face up to the man above. He watched as the sphere of darkness formed about Daniel, feeling the pull of it and believing he'd gotten though to the madman, he flung out a black clawed hand, a sphere of softly glowing white forming at his side as wide as he was tall. Phoenix moved toward this white sphere but paused before entering and looked one last time up at Daniel.
"Sentimental fool." Phoenix spat with a final sneer and drifted into the white ball.
The white sphere shrank and vanished, taking Phoenix with it. Leaving Daniel alone high above as winds began to whip about the new sphere that enclosed him. Floating in the center of the massive white dome, immersed in darkness, Daniel thrashed and opened his mouth wide as the energy he'd poured out came flooding back.
Those on the ship noticed first that the dome of white had stopped growing and after a moment, Sokka exclaimed that it was shrinking. The others could not see it at first but soon it was confirmed. The white energy had spread from Daniel uniformly, the dome spreading about him in a circular shape but as it collapsed, from a distance the others could see it was not happening that way in reverse. Sections of the white dome collapsed inwards first, the enormous rounded shape becoming lumpy and out of shape. Moments after, movement could be seen. The remains of the dome appeared to be spinning about a central point, it's glow reducing revealing the white energy to be made up of a million, million lightning bolts dancing in and around each other. The dome shrank further, in fits and starts, the sides of the dome beginning to pinch inwards now and a spinning vortex of energy reaching inwards from it's top.
Suddenly the ship was plunged into semidarkness and as they looked up from out of the windows, they could see dark grey and black clouds racing across the sky, from one horizon to the next the clouds came, all rolling toward the shrinking dome.
It was less than a mile across now, shrinking faster as it went and what had been a dome was becoming a new shape. Red glowing magma was rising from the ground, dust, rocks and fire spinning itself into a great cone of molten rock while the massing clouds above began to reach down, a tornado from the sky reaching down to meet one rising from the earth. The glowing energy pinched in where these two opposites met, the white dome reduced to less then half a mile around, forming into two rotating cones of light, mirroring the tornados of rock and cloud. In the center, where all these met, a tiny point of darkness was revealed.
Far from there, Aang moaned as he concentrated, Katara leaning over to him with a cloth and wiping the rivers of sweat that ran from him with concern on her face.
"He's…how can he stand it?" Aang moaned softly, "But he's doing it…all that energy…he's pulling it back."
Toph had remained lying on Mai's lap, crying softly with her hands pressed to her mouth, her pale blind eyes staring widely around. Now she rose, before Mai could reach for her, Toph barged past Katara, almost knocking the water tribe woman aside and scrabble at Aang's unresisting hands. Her fingers finding the little blue chip of crystal he held, Toph raised it to her mouth and yelled.
The Gaang members on board the ship watched with a mix of confusion, awe and fear. The last of the white energy had gone but still the strange forces out over the land raged. White had returned but now it came from the clouds above, more rising from the ocean and the land was all but obscured from view as it whipped about, a blizzard miles around all circling a single point.
In the silence of the bridge, Sokka finally heard a buzzing sound from his waist and slipping a hand into his pouch, he felt one of the small communicator crystals he carried vibrating. He raised it to his ear before he pulled it away again with a pained look, the volume of Toph's voice emerging from the little blue chip loud enough for him to hear clearly a foot away.
"Snoozles, you jumped up, smart ass, ponytail wearing, purse carrying, egghead. Answer me. What's wrong with Danny? He's screaming, Sokka. I can hear him. He's screaming in my head and it won't stop."
Toph's voice dissolved into loud sobbing before it faded and Sokka stepped forward to stare hard out of the windows again, focusing on the tiny point of darkness that the storm circled around.
"Daniel?"
Outside the bridge on the catwalk, Azula and her brother remained together, Zuko with his arm about her and Azula resting her head on his shoulder. But now her head jerked up as she narrowed her eyes at the distant storm.
"It's slowing." she breathed and then turned to face her brother directly, her golden eyes locking onto his pleadingly, "I have to help him, Zuzu."
Before Zuko could open his mouth to answer, Azula simply vanished. Looking about he saw a telltale blur of green fly across the deck far below and an instant later a line of white water exploded into the air over the ocean, quickly extending out toward the coast.
"Zula." Zuko moaned in a voice that brought back memories of their childhood.
Turning about, Zuko cast about for something to use and his eyes locked onto the nearest thing. With a flex of his Bending, he ripped the pins from the hinges of the hatch leading onto the bridge and with another flex, sent it flying over his head and beyond the catwalk. Leaping over the rail himself, Zuko's feet dropped onto the heavy steel door and it took off, carrying him in pursuit of his sister, leaving a trail of golden fire as it went.
Azula hadn't given any thought to what she was doing, only getting to the man who needed her help, only thinking of helping her friend. Deep into the moment, her feet flashed over the water at such speed that the liquid may as well have been hard ground. The coastline ahead of her was coming into view as the storm abated as quickly as it had formed and the air cleared. The first thing Azula noticed was that she was headed straight for great cliffs of white, new ice and snow laid down in a matter of minutes by the enormous storm. The coastline looked almost the same as it had before they'd come but in the distance, Azula could see a new feature on the landscape. A spire of ice and black stone, at least a thousand feet high and tumbling down it's gradually thickening sides was a tiny dark figure. Daniel.
Zuko, half a mile behind his sister, saw the same thing and instantly saw Azula put on a fresh burst of speed. The line of erupting water he was following flashed to the new cliffs, snow and ice then exploding from it's side as she flew up it's face. As Zuko cleared the tops of the cliffs himself, he saw a line cut in the fresh snow, Azula's path leading all the way to the spire.
Azula skidded to a halt before that impossibly thin mountain, a telltale cloud of steam rising nearby pointing to her the way to go. She flashed over to it and gasped. The fresh snow had melted where Daniel had come to lay, the water bubbling and hissing against his flesh as he lay face down. But it was the sight of the man himself that gave her pause. All over his back and legs was a network of cuts, broken and burnt flesh but swallowing hard, Azula walked into the bubbling water, cringing herself from the heat of it and reached for him. She pulled her hands back with a pained hiss that first try, his skin as hot as fire before she firmed her resolve and grabbed the man by his shoulders, rolling him over in the water.
"Here." Zuko called.
Her brother had arrived, bringing the steel door down onto the snow beside the pool and leaping in next to her. Between them, they tugged Daniel up onto the door, pushing it a little away from the water before they climbed out themselves.
"Let me check him." Zuko said softly, pausing himself as he fully took in the sight of the man.
His front was far worse than his back, deep gashes cutting through skin and muscle on Daniel's chest, more on his arms and legs, one deep cut sliced across his face, passing over the left empty eye socket and his right was swollen almost completely shut. Reaching out to lay his hands on his hands on him, Zuko jumped in surprise as one of Daniel's hands flashed up and batted his away. He lurched, groaning loudly as he tried to sit up.
"No, lay back." Azula said softly, pushing him back down, "You're hurt."
"Must…warn." Daniel croaked through cracked lips, one of his hands coming up to rest on Azula's. She cringed at the sight of those stiff, blackened fingers before he tried to rise again, "Jax…army…must know…must warn them."
Crouching either side of the man, Azula and Zuko helped Daniel to rise and he cried out once as they got him into a sitting position. He tried to move his shoulders, shrugging to remove his silver pack but he groaned in pain again. Azula reached out, marveling that the silver pack remained unscathed while the man was so damaged, sliding it down and gently pulling his arms from the loops, she rested it in Daniel's lap. Lifting his arms painfully, he plunged both hands through it's silvery surface, withdrawing them a moment later with a small, earthen bowl clutched between his hands. Dropping this before the bag, he plunged his hands back in, this time coming out with something tiny, rounded and dark trapped between his wrists. Maneuvering carefully he tried to transfer it to the bowl but it slipped from between his trembling arms before he got it there. Reaching out, Zuko lifted the tiny sphere and looked at it before he dropped it into the bowl.
"That a totem." Zuko said, looking to Daniel who nodded slowly.
"Jax's." Daniel answered as he turned to Azula, holding up both his damaged hands, "Cut me."
"What?" Azula asked in a high voice, her eyes going wide.
"It needs…my blood." Daniel said, holding his hands up higher, "Please…Azula. I have to warn…them. Warn her."
Hesitantly, looking askance to her brother, Azula reached to the leather pack on her own back and drew forth one of her sai, holding the weapon up as she slowly reached for Daniel's hands. But before she could touch him, he dropped his hands, bringing them down either side of the sai and the weapon's honed edges bit deeply into his wrists. Azula jerked the sai back as blood ran freely from Daniel's wrists but he turned away quickly, holding his hands over the bowl. Blood soon pooled in the small bowl, filling it quickly to the point where the small dark sphere it contained was covered and Daniel dropped his hands to his sides.
"You're not healing." Zuko said with concern, noticing the blood still pumping from Daniel's wrists.
But he wasn't listening, a gutteral, grating chant beginning to rise from Daniel as he sat still, facing the bowl. Working quickly, Azula pulled her leather pack from her back, pulling a spare shirt from it and tearing it apart. Half she handed to Zuko and working together, they each bound one of Daniel wrists, the man seeming not to notice as he chanted. But when brother and sister finished working, they looked up to see dark smoke rising from the bowl of blood, swirling around in the air before Daniel it soon formed a ring a little over two feet around. Continuing his chant, the ring soon filled with more dark smoke and as he finally fell silent, the circle turned as black as midnight.
"Jax." Daniel said in a hoarse whisper, then louder, "Jax."
An image began to form in the black circle. First a swirling grey mist that slowly resolved into a shape. A green, scaled face with an elongated snout and bright, intelligent green eyes.
"Daniel? Why are you risking contact again when," the lizard man began in a deep baritone and then those bright green eyes went wide, "What has happened to you, boy?"
"He came here, Jax. Koh…but not Koh." Daniel spoke again, the man's head bowing as he swayed slightly, "Fate did something…to him. Jax, he's mortal."
"Mortal?" the lizard man hissed, the scales of his face blanching pale yellow, "This…this changes everything."
"Where's June." Daniel suddenly demanded with more force.
"June? On her quest, my friend." Jax answered, "She has proven to be one of our best trackers and,"
"Find her." Daniel insisted with force again but then he slumped, his strength rapidly draining. Azula and Zuko grabbed for him, helping Daniel to sit upright before he continued, "Find her, Jax. Stop June...They have her. Fate, this…Phoenix, Koh calls himself now. They have Reena."
"Oh." Jax answered, his snout dropping as he looked down, "I am so sorry, my friend. I will ask my wife to seek out June immediately."
Daniel slumped further, leaning up against Azula as his breathing grew shallow.
"Jax?" Daniel asked softly, "What did the Nomad do to me?"
The lizard man's face snapped back up, a cautious look in his green eyes as he looked to Daniel.
"I do not know, Daniel." Jax answered slowly.
"Please, Jax." Daniel asked again, his voice still soft but pleading, "There are memories Wolf and I can't touch…things the nomad hid from us. We have to know."
"My friend. All I can tell you is that the Nomad left us a little over a century ago, before he invaded the heavens." Jax said, "He told me that the plans needed to be altered…but he would not tell me why."
"Do you think," Daniel said, his voice becoming quieter, "Is it…the final solution?"
"Again my young friend, I do not know. I can tell you that the Nomad said that when the time was right, you would know." Jax said sadly, "And now, Daniel. You must rest. You have done well to have faced Koh but I can see you are gravely injured."
"I have strength enough for a little more." Daniel said quietly. His head tipped back, turning to Azula and she was surprised to see a faint smile on his lips, "Is your wife there, Jax? Can you transfer the totem bond to her? I believe there are two people here…she would be eager to talk to."
"So I see." Jax said, his scaled lips sliding back to expose small pointed teeth in an approximation of a smile, "Goodbye, my friend. Rest well and heal."
The green face in the floating image faded, leaving the swirling grey fog once more and Daniel slumped again against Azula's side, his eyelids fluttering over the empty sockets.
"Daniel?" Zuko asked from his other side, "You never mentioned your friend Jax was married."
"I didn't know." Daniel answer, his voice barely audible. Raising a trembling hand, he pointed to a figure forming in the floating disc before them, "Until I met her."
Azula and Zuko stared wide eyed as a woman's face appeared. They knew it instantly, Zuko noticing he could see so much of his sister in that face while Azula saw her brother's features mirrored there. Ursa raised her hands to her smiling mouth as tears sprang to her eyes.
"My babies."
"Mom?" they replied in unison.
Phew. I know, another BIG chapter but I wanted to show the extream side of Daniel's abilities as well as introduce the villian of the story. Not forgetting the Bending abilities the others are developing as well as Sokka's little inventions.
I hope the chapter was enjoyable to read and it would make my day if you reviewed and told me what you thought of it. Even if you'd like to point out my mistakes, I'm always happy to get a review.
Special mention to Snacks - I will be more careful with my spelling of loose or lose from now on. Thankyou for pointing it out, it's the only way I'll improve.
