Chapter 8:
A small stream of smoke rose into the air for a dying fire. Appa stood beside it, Katara up on his back with Freya as Aang tied the reins back to Appa's horns. A bundle still lay on the floor also next the small fire.
"Wait 'til you see it, Katara. The Air Temple is one of the most beautiful places in the world." Aang said as he moved to the other horn, pulling on it.
"Aang, I know you're excited, but it's been a hundred years since you've been home." Katara reminded him cautiously
"That's why I'm so excited!" Aang grinned
"It's just that a lot can change in all that time."
"Aang, what if you find something… you don't want to see?" Freya muttered with a frown. "I mean, if everyone thinks they're extinct…"
"I know, but I need to see it for myself." Aang assured. Freya and Katara shared a worried look as Aang floated down to the ground and walked over to the bundle. It was Sokka sleeping still in his sleeping bag.
"Wake up, Sokka! Air Temple here we come!" Aang cheered. Sokka's snores stopped and he groaned
"Sleep now… temple later…" he decided, rolling over and rolling his sleeping bag more around his face. His snores started again. Aang stared surprised, which turned to annoyance. Within the second he was grinning mischievously.
Freya and Katara watched as Aang reached for a stick on the beach.
"Sokka! Wake up!" Aang ran the end of the stick up Sokka's sleeping bag. "There's a prickle snake in your sleeping bag!"
"Aaahhh!" Sokka screamed and jumped to his feet within the fabric, hopping around "Get it off! Get it off!" The sleeping bag caused Sokka to fall head first to the ground as Katara and Freya laughed.
"Great! You're awake. Let's go." Aang grinned.
"I can't wait to see the temple!" Freya grinned as Sokka removed himself from his sleeping bag.
"But Freya you've already seen it." Aang grinned
"Yeah but there's a difference between memories and forgotten memories you're remembering. It's like it's all distant and… I don't know, almost as if they're someone else memories I've stolen." Freya shrugged
"That's silly." Sokka said as he climbed up onto Appa's saddle.
"Maybe." Freya shrugged
"But Freya, after all the time you spent in the temple with me, just think of how many memories it could bring back." Aang grinned as Appa took off and into the air.
"What like beating you at bending matches?" Freya grinned and Aang held his chin proud.
"I let you win."
"Sure you did." Freya rolled her eyes smugly.
"I'd love to know more about Freya's past too!" Katara said "She never told us much,"
"Yeah well a few of your questions I didn't even know. I just hope I find out why I was in that storm in the first place." Freya admitted and Aang had turned away with a frown, looking slightly worried.
"Aang you wouldn't know would you?" Katara asked "I mean if it was the same storm then…?"
"I don't know, Freya wasn't with me before we went down." Aang admitted.
"So I didn't fall out of Appa's saddle and get separated." Freya counted the option on her finger "Was I at the temple when you left?" she asked Aang
"Y-Yeah." Aang answered
"So I wasn't thrown off a ship. Nor was I making the trip to the temple." she ticked two more. She sighed. "Why would I go out into a deadly storm anyway?" she mumbled
"I'm sure you'll remember when we get to the air temple. I mean if you and Aang knew each other so well, you really would have spent a lot of time there." Katara smiled
"I hope so." Freya nodded "One thing I am confused about, is why did I forget everything to do with Aang, our adventures and the air temple in the first place? I mean I remember every day I was in the South Pole before that. Except for why or how I was out in the ocean to find the Southern Air Temple…" she added.
"Maybe its because the storm and the temple are connected." Katara offered
"Maybe…" Freya mumbled
"Hey, stomach, be quiet, all right? I'm trying to find us some food." Katara and Freya glanced at Sokka who was going through their bags behind them in the saddle. He pulled a bag out and put his hand inside, before then tipping it upside down. A few crumbs fell into his hand.
"Hey! Who ate all my blubbered seal jerky?" Sokka demanded
"Oh, that was food? I used it to start the campfire last night. Sorry." Aang said sheepishly.
"You WHAT?" Sokka gasped "Awww, no wonder the flames smelled so good." he frowned.
"Don't worry Sokka, I'm sure there's food at the Air Temple." Freya smiled as Appa swooped and the mountain peaks grew sharper and taller.
"Hey…" Freya muttered as she looked around "I know this place…" Aang looked around and beamed
"Of course you do! It's the Batola mountain range! We're almost there!" he beamed
"Aang?" Katara stated uneasily, a frown on her face "Before we get to the temple, I want to talk to you about the airbenders."
"What about 'em?"
"Well, I just want you to be prepared for what you might see." Katara muttered "The Fire Nation is ruthless. They killed my mother and they could have done the same to your people." she warned. Aang frowned and then smiled
"Just because no one has seen an airbender doesn't mean the Fire Nation killed them all." he said but there was an uneasiness in his hopeful face. "They probably escaped."
"I know it's hard to accept…"
"You don't understand, Katara. The only way to get to an airbender temple is on a flying bison, and I doubt the Fire Nation has any flying bison. Right, Appa?" Aang patted Appa's forehead.
"Aang, I got there without a bison." Freya reminded him
"But you were waterbending the clouds," Aang said
"And you can do a few things with fire that could allow you to do something similar. Not to mention the Fire Nation was always more advanced in their mechanics than anyone else." Freya remembered, a slightly confused expression on her face before she shook it away. She was going to have to get used to random pieces of information coming from her mouth, especially when she didn't know how she knew it.
"Don't worry guys," Aang smiled and the girls shared a worried look. "Yip! Yip!" Aang encouraged the bison and Appa flew up the side of a mountain and through the clouds. The three waited in anticipation as Appa rounded the mountain peak and Freya, who hadn't closed her eyes from the sudden increase in wind, beamed as they came over some green foliage.
"There it is... the Southern Air Temple." Pathways and towers were built into the mountain, bridges linked the two as tunnels opened into the rock. The roofs on all the towers were a bright blue and the snow covered the lower parts of the mountain.
"Aang, it's amazing!" Katara beamed
"We're home, buddy. We're home." Aang smiled, talking to Appa.
"Come on Freya, once around the mountain." Aang said as he sat on his air scooter and moved around Freya who stood with her arms crossed.
"There's no point Aang, I know better than any other bender that racing an airbender is pointless. At least it is in his own domain." Freya rolled her eyes
"Yeah but you're not just any other bender!" Aang grinned
"You love reminding me I'm different don't you." Freya sighed
"That's because it's amazing!" Aang grinned
"It also makes me a freak." Freya shrugged with a grin
"Well you were already a freak." Aang grinned as his scooter vanished. Freya scowled at him.
"Ready, go!" she said and suddenly with a splash of water on Aang and a launchpad made of ice, Aang was frozen to the spot and Freya was flying through the air and up the mountain.
"Hey! That's cheating!" Aang called
"So's you using air bending to win!" Freya laughed before she was too high up for hear Aang's complaints anymore.
The boy struggled against his ice bonds before he took a deep breath and shot the air down at the ground. Aang went shooting into the air, slipping through the ice from the force before he turned and began to make his way after the laughing water bender.
Aang, Katara, Freya and Sokka walked up the snowy path as Appa stood on a landing pad below them. Aang was running ahead to the entrance of his temple as Freya looked around in awe.
"So where do I get something to eat?" Sokka complained
"You're lucky enough to be one of the first outsiders to ever visit an airbender temple and all you can think about is food?" Katara complained
"I'm just a simple guy with simple needs." Sokka replied as they reached Freya and Aang who were standing at the corner of the path and looking down at the land below.
"So that's where my friends and I would play airball!" there was a small field with two goals at each end and in the middle were a heap of uneven poles sticking up from the ground. "And... over there would be where the bison would sleep… and…" Aang trailed off and sighed
"What's wrong?" Katara asked
"This place used to be full of monks and lemurs and bison. Now there's just a bunch of weeds." he frowned "I can't believe how much things have changed."
"That's what happens when a place isn't looked after. After all Aang, even if the air benders did escape the last place they could return to would he their homes, they'd be discovered in no time." Freya believed with a frown.
"Freya! Play airball with us!" Aang grinned as she walked over to the uneven poles as Aang and one of his friends stood at either end.
"Note that it's called airball. Meaning you need to be an airbender to play." Freya said
"Come on, I'm sure you can work something out." Aang grinned.
"So, uh, this airball game? How do you play?" Sokka asked and Aang grinned at him.
The two stood on the opposite sides of the field, in front of their goals as Aang held the spinning ball in his hands. He grinned at Sokka who stood on guard ready before Aang threw the ball into the air and stood calmly with a smile on his face, Sokka looking confused.
Aang opened one of his eyes and then spun to kick the ball at Sokka. It bounced on the poles between them and crashed into Sokka, sending him flying through the gate and into the snow and bushes behind.
"Aang seven, Sokka zero!" Aang laughed as he held the two numbers up, making a round circle with his fingers to zero.
"Alright enough beating Sokka up, I want to have a go." Freya decided
"But I thought that because it's called airball you needed to be an airbender to play." Aang mocked
"I think I've got a trick up my sleeve." Freya laughed as she bended the snow to make stairs and she walked up to stand on one of the poles.
Aang had collected the ball which Katara had thrown towards him and the two faced one another.
Aang started and the ball was bounced through the poles towards Freya. She suddenly flicked her hand and a bunch of snow hit the ball, changing it's course and it went bouncing back to Aang. The airbender changed the course again but Freya flicked her hand and the ball doubled back much to Aang's surprise.
Freya grinned and as Aang went to strike, the ball dodged and before any of them knew it the ball was through Aang's goal.
"Aang zero. Freya one." Freya smiled
"How did you do that?" Aang questioned
"Simple, I wet the ball and controlled the water that was left on it." Freya grinned "You did say I could work something out."
"Only took you a hundred years." Aang grinned and Freya rolled her eyes.
"Aang, there's something you need to see." the two turned to Katara and Sokka who were standing by the cliff face behind Freya and her goal. Freya being the closest saw the red and white helmet and frowned.
"Okay!" Aang agreed as he ran over towards them, the ball back in his hands as he played with it. Katara watched him and then glanced at Freya before she moved her arms and the snow from the small ledge in the cliff flopped down over the Fire Nation helmet and Sokka.
"What is it?" Aang wondered as Freya jumped down and walked over to them as well.
"Uh... just a new waterbending move I learned." Katara lied as Sokka brushed off the snow.
"Nice one. But enough practicing. We have a whole temple to see!" Aang believed before he turned to lead the way.
"You know, you can't protect him forever." Sokka told Katara who frowned before the three followed Aang.
"Hey Freya! Remember this!" Freya jogged over to Aang and looked surprised. There was a cone of icicles with the top cut off, a hole in the middle.
"Oh my god, I made that." she remembered "When you tired to race me up to the tip of the temple."
"Yeah, you cheated." Aang smiled
"I can't believed it's still here, I thought I would have melted." Freya muttered
"You're ice must be denser than you thought." Aang said "Come on!" he took her arm and dragged her over to a statue which stood in the courtyard they were in. The entrance to the temple was behind them.
"Hey, that's Gyatso." Freya mumbled
"You remember him!" Aang beamed
"Course, he watched me beat you at a bending match." Freya grinned "It was part of your early training after you were told you were the avatar, to give you a sort of feel for the other elements and how they're used."
"Wow! This place really is helping you remember!" Aang grinned
"Actually I remembered that when you and I were running around the Southern Water Tribes' village throwing snow and air at one another." Freya chuckled.
"Hey guys!" Aang called to Katara and Sokka who was walking behind them. "I want you to meet somebody."
"Who's that?" Sokka questioned
"Monk Gyatso, the greatest airbender in the world. He taught me everything I know." Aang bowed to the statue as Freya looked up at it.
"But the true secret… is in the gooey centre!" Gyatso was standing next to an oven and held a tray with a cake on top. He raised his hand and used air bending to whip up the frosting on top.
"Hmm…" Aang said and Freya looked at him with a frown. Aang was sitting on the wall staring down at the temple below as Freya leaned against it, her neck craned back as she enjoyed the sun's rays.
"My ancient cake making technique isn't the only thing on your mind, is it, Aang?" Gyatso noticed as he put this cake beside three others on the ledge behind Aang.
"This whole Avatar thing… maybe the monks made a mistake." Aang offered
"The only mistake they made was telling you before you turned sixteen. But we can't concern ourselves with what was. We must act on what is." Gyatso indicated to the temple in which monks walked around and bison chewed on the trees around them.
"You've got quite a lot to appreciate Aang." Freya smiled at it all.
"But Gyatso, how do I know if I'm ready for this?" Aang wondered
"Your questions will be answered when you are old enough to enter the Air Temple sanctuary." Gyatso confessed as Freya looked at the monk confused
"The sanctuary?" she wondered
"Inside you will meet someone who will guide you on your journey." Aang looked at Gyatso and turned to face him with a grin.
"Who is it?" he wondered
"When you are ready he will reveal himself to you." Gyatso assured and Aang turned with a groan. Freya laughed.
"Now, are you going to help me with these cakes, or not?" Gyatso asked and Aang smiled
"All right." and Aang got up "Come on Freya, you too." Freya grinned and couldn't help but chuckle as the three stood in a line before the cakes.
"One…" the three held up their hands"two…" they formed a ball, Gyatso and Aang with air and Freya with water"Three!" they threw them at the cakes and the four cakes went flying through the air. They watched as the cakes began to fall and landed on four monks who were all sitting and meditating. The cakes slashed all over their heads, knocking one over as lemurs jumped all over the monks to eat the cakes.
Aang, Freya and Gyatso laughed at the sight before the two airbenders turned to one another.
"Your aim has improved greatly my young pupil." they bowed to one another "And Freya isn't too bad herself." Freya grinned and bowed to the monk as well before Gyatso patted Aang's head.
Freya looked at the statue with a frown as Aang straightened up.
"You must miss him." Katara said as she placed a hand on Aang's shoulder.
"Yeah." Aang said
"Him and his cakes." Freya smiled and Aang couldn't help but smile before he turned and began to walk into the temple. Freya easily caught on and followed.
"Where are you going?" Katara asked as Aang climbed the steps.
"The Air Temple Sanctuary. There's someone I'm ready to meet." Aang admitted
"According to Gyatso, they're supposed to help Aang through his avatar journey." Freya said when the siblings looked confused before the two began to follow them. "Seeing as it's unlikely anyone alive would know much about the avatar and how they work, it's probably best we get some sort of help." Freya believed.
They walked through the temple until they came to a very large door. On it was an enormous woodcut comprised of three blue air symbols protruding from its surface. They are arranged in a triangular pattern. The symbols are attached to tubes that ended in two horns near the bottom of the woodcut
"But Aang... no one could have survived in there for a hundred years." Katara believed
"It's not impossible. Freya and I survived in the icebergs for that long." Aang reminded her
"Good point."
"Katara, whoever's in there might help me figure out this Avatar thing!" Aang thought excited.
"And whoever's in there might have a medley of delicious, cured meats!" Sokka said from behind Aang. He rubbed his hands together and moved to the door, he didn't even stop before he got there, running straight into the wood. He quickly leaned on the door, beginning to push against it and try to force it to open. Sokka slid down to the floor with a sigh.
"I don't suppose you have a key?" he asked
"The key, Sokka, is airbending." Aang grinned. Sokka, Freya and Katara stood back as Aang took a deep breath. He raised his arms before pointing them to the door and two funnels of air left his hands and blew into the tubes on the door. Instantly it began to vibrate and the three blue shells wobbled in their places. One by one, they each turned revealing their other side to be purple and connecting the last pipe which allowed the door to unlock and then slide open.
The four stared in as Aang stared up at the doors.
"Hello? Anyone home?" he called before he was first to walk into the room, Freya, Katara and Sokka following.
Inside was dark and cold, their eyes taking a bit to adjust to the limited light. The door however let in enough light for them to see the main focus in the middle of the room.
Statues filled the floor and as her eyes adjusted Freya could see they lined the walls as well, all winding up towards the distant celling.
They walked among the statues in interest
"Statues?!" Sokka complained "That's it? Where's the meat?"
"Who are all these people?" Katara wondered, ignoring her brother
"I'm not sure, but it feels like I know them somehow." Aang muttered as Freya had walked around them all until she found the last one. She stared up at it before her eyes widened in surprise.
"Look!" Aang pointed to a statue "That one's an airbender!
"And this one's a waterbender." Katara pointed to the one next to it. "They're lined up in a pattern. Air, water, earth and fire." Katara noticed, pointing at them al.
"That's the Avatar cycle." Aang grinned.
"Of course! They're Avatars. All these people are your past lives, Aang." Katara realised
"Wow! There's so many!" Aang grinned looking around the entire room before he moved towards Freya who hadn't moved or spoken.
"Past lives? Katara, you really believe in that stuff?" Sokka questioned skeptically.
"It's true. When the Avatar dies he's reincarnated into the next nation in the cycle." Katara reminded him as Aang stood beside Freya, staring up at the Fire Nation statue. He had a topknot on his head, a Fire Nation decorative on top of it. His beard went down to his chest and his arms were calmly placed together before him.
Aang stared with his mouth open, almost as if he was in a hypnotic trance.
"Aang, snap out of it!" Katara shook Aang's shoulders.
"Huh?" Aang muttered, dazed as he blinked and then looked back at statue with a smile of fondness.
"Who is that?" Katara wondered looking at the statue.
"Avatar Roku." Freya answered and the two looked at her, Katara with surprise
"The Avatar before me." Aang added
"You were a firebender? No wonder I didn't trust you when we first met." Sokka realised as he came up beside them.
"There's no writing. How do you know his name?" Katara wondered as she looked up from the foot of the statue.
"I'm not sure… I just know it somehow." Aang admitted
"You just couldn't get any weirder!" Sokka growled
"My father told me about him." Freya admitted when they looked at her "Apparently he was really good friends with Firelord Sozin." she said looking back up.
"Firelord Sozin? As in the Firelord who started the war?" Sokka demanded
"He did?" Freya wondered but no one answered as a hum sounded from behind them and the four jumped. They turned to see a shadow begin to move towards the entrance. Quickly they hid behind the statues, Sokka with his club.
"Firebender. Nobody make a sound." Sokka whispered, but his voice held a slight echo to it within the empty room.
"You're making a sound!" Katara exasperated. Aang and Sokka both shushed her. They watched the floor as the shadow increased up beside them.
"That firebender won't know what hit 'em." Sokka whispered as he raised his club. He got to his feet, readying the weapon before a sort of roar sounded, vibrating. Sokka jumped out and stopped in surprise. Freya poked her head out from behind him as Aang and Katara looked too. Before them was a lemur. It had long white ears, wide green eyes, a black face and a curled long tail as it crouched down and looked at them.
"Lemur!" Aang shouted
"Dinner…" Sokka drooled
"Don't listen to him! You're going to be my new pet." Aang decided as the lemur blinked at them confused
"Not if I get him first!" Sokka ran out and Aang did too, both jumping for the animal which hissed and turned around to run away. Sokka hit the floor and Aang jumped up, standing on Sokka's back before leaving the room, the older boy quickly getting up and following.
"Wait come back!" Aang called
"I wanna eat you!" Sokka's voice sounded as the two girls looked surprised. They shared a look.
"Boys." they agreed before standing up and looking at the statues.
"So how did your dad know about Roku?" Katara asked
"He was alive at the same time, remember?" Freya answered
"Is that how you knew he was friends with Fire Lord Sozin?" Freya looked at her confused and Katara elaborated. "Well my father never knew about that, nor that the Firelord was friends with the avatar." Katara explained. Freya shrugged
"My dad and even his dad were both sailors, people talk I guess." she muttered as she looked up at Roku. Katara had been following the avatars spiral, looking at each face before she stopped beside Freya. The two girls looked up in time to suddenly see Roku's eyes glow. Beside him the earth bender's eyes glowed as well. Spiralling up in the motion of their order, all they way up the walls and into the celling, the avatars' eyes all began to glow.
The two girls gasped and turned to one another.
"Aang!" they understood before turning and running from the sanctuary.
Freya moved towards a balcony and she jumped over it as Katara found the stairs. As she did one of the buildings below her exploded and a tornado appeared. Her eyes widened as her landing was thwarted by the sudden wind currents and she waved her hand to have the snow harden to ice and grab her wrist before shrinking and releasing her once she was steady. She ran forwards in time to see Aang standing in the middle of a column of air. Freya could see the Fire Nation uniforms and beyond that she saw a skeleton lying in the snow. She recognised the talisman around his neck as she held an arm to shield her face.
"That's Gyatso!" she said and Sokka looked at her shocked from where he hid behind a broken bit of wall beside her.
"What happened!?" Katara came up behind them, crouching beside Sokka.
"He found out firebenders killed Gyatso."
"Oh no, it's his avatar spirit! He must have triggered it!" Katara thought
"That's why the statue's glowed." Freya understood
"I'm gonna try and calm him down." Katara decided
"Well, do it before he blows us off the mountain!" Sokka worried as he held onto his piece of broken wall. Freya turn her fists and ice held her feet to the floor as Katara tried to beat the fierce winds, ducking and being pushed back as Aang rose up into the sky.
"Aang, I know you're upset…" Katara shouted over the winds as she held to a broken piece of rubble, Sokka behind her "… and I know how hard it is to lose the people you love. I went through the same thing when I lost my mom." she frowned "Monk Gyatso and the other airbenders may be gone, but you still have a family. Freya, Sokka and I, we're your family now." Katara assured as the two glanced at her.
Aang began to lower down to the floor and the winds calmed down enough for the two siblings to release their rubbled pieces and for Freya to melt the ice on her feet. Aang landed on his feet and the wind all stopped.
"Katara and I aren't going to let anything happen to you. Promise." Sokka assured as the two stood on either side of Aang. Freya came up behind him and wrapped her arms around Aang's shoulders.
"We're not gonna leave you Aang, I promise." she said as the glowing tattoos stopped and Aang's eyes, saddened, stopped as well when Katara took his hand.
Aang stumbled sideways and Katara grabbed him.
"I'm sorry." Aang said
"It's okay. It wasn't your fault." Katara assured
"But you were right. And if firebenders found this temple that means they found the other ones, too. I really am the last airbender." Katara hugged Aang tightly as Sokka placed a hand on his shoulder. Freya frowned as she looked at Gyatso before them.
"However, the good thing about there still being one," she began "Is that it means there's still hope for the nation to be reborn again." the others glanced at her. "Because of you Aang, there's still hope for the airbenders." she smiled and Aang did too.
"Thanks Freya." she nodded.
"Should we get everything packed?" she asked, looking between them all. The two water tribe siblings nodded as Aang sighed.
Aang stood looking at Roku's statue in the sanctuary as Freya stood at the doorway. Katara came up behind her and the two shared a worried look as they glanced at Aang.
"Everything's packed. You ready to go?" Katara wondered as she walked towards him.
"How is Roku supposed to help me if I can't talk to him?" Aang wondered
"Maybe you'll find a way." Katara believed.
"He is your past life Aang, you have a connection to him. That's something Katara and I just witnessed, even his statue is connected to you." Freya believed "We just need to figure out how to access that connection." she smiled.
They turned round to see the lemur from before and it hopped over to Sokka who'd entered the sanctuary and was behind them. The animal suddenly placed a heap of fruits at Sokka's feet and the boy dropped to them and began to stuff his face with the food.
"Looks like you made a new friend, Sokka." Aang grinned
"Can't talk. Must eat." Sokka said with a mouthful of food. Aang looked surprised as the lemur suddenly slimmed up and wound around him to perch behind his head, the lemurs tail around his neck.
"Hey little guy." Aang grinned.
"Come on, let's not keep Appa waiting." Freya smiled. She lead the way out of the sanctuary and Aang closed the doors, locking them shut again. They walked through the temple, all of them bowed to Gyatso's statue and then walked down the mountain and to Appa who was waiting for them patiently.
Aang stared at the temple on the mountain as he stood beside Appa with the lemur sitting on his hand.
"You, me, and Appa." he said to the lemur, a hand on Appa's cheek. "We're all that's left of this place. We have to stick together. Freya, Katara, Sokka…" he turned to the three who were double checking their luggage and adding the new food supplies, of which Sokka was still munching on. "Say hello to the newest member of our family." Aang walked over to them
"What are you going to name him?" Katara wondered. The lemur suddenly darted forwards and then back onto Aang's arm with a fruit in his hands.
"Momo." Aang decided as they looked at Sokka who was holding his hand to his mouth of which was wide open ready to bite into the fruit. The three laughed as he looked annoyed.
"I think that's perfect." Freya grinned.
They all climbed onto Appa and Freya took the reins as Aang looked at his home on the mountain peak, the temple growing smaller and smaller as Momo purred from beside him. The clouds moved and blocked the temple off.
