Seriously, everybody, thank you! I really appreciate all the hits and watches and favorites that this story is getting. It really means something when you put a story out there and there are so many people who like it and think it's worth reading. Thank you all from the bottom of my heart because you are just awesome!
Note: I hope you guys didn't notice the mix up between chapters 8 and 9, and if you did, um it's fixed now. I added a chapter into this version of the story, so my chapter numbers are off by one and I haven't updated my outline to reflect that. I'm going to spend more time paying attention to that kind of stuff instead of just trying to rush the chapter out.
"And that is how we'll capture the Avatar," Yu Lee finished with a smirk.
"You are so smart," Ty Lee told her sister. "So so sooooo smart."
Azula had to agree. Yu Lee had a knack of coming up with intelligent plans and she had outdone herself with this one. There was no possible way she could fail.
"I don't know about this Yuta," Wei said seriously. "There are too many things we don't know. And I don't like the idea of you being off by yourself."
"I am fifteen years old," Yu Lee said. "I'm practically an adult."
"You're almost fifteen," Wei retorted. "It's a good plan, a really good plan, but you can't be alone. There are pirates, con-men and slave traders roaming the seas, you know that. They'll jump at the chance to get you. You'd fetch a high price." Yu Lee furrowed her brow and crossed her arms.
"What else can we do?" Ty Lee asked. "We've lost the Avatar twice and now we have Zhao to deal with."
"And we need to hurry," Yu Lee snapped. "Zuko's fiancée is turning seventeen next year. If we don't find the Avatar soon, then Azula will never become Fire Lord."
"Unless something bad happens," Ty Lee said innocently.
Wei was not amused. "I think we have more important things to worry about," Wei said dryly. "Sozin's Comet is a little more important than your crush getting married." Yu Lee turned pink and scowled. "And you could get thrown into prison for talking like that, Ty Lee."
Ty Lee widened her eyes innocently and then she turned to Azula. "You've been quiet Princess. What's on your mind?"
"I'm just a little apprehensive," Azula said haltingly. "It's been three years since we've been apart. Will you be okay by yourself?"
"I'll be fine," Yu Lee smiled. "Contrary to what Wei thinks, I can handle myself. And if some slave traders or pirates try to steal me away, I'll sink their ships." Azula's apprehension must have still shown on her face, because Yu Lee gave her friend a big hug.
"Stop hugging me," Azula mumbled.
"No. My hugs make everything better."
Ty Lee grinned and wrapped her arms around her sister and Azula. "Come on Wei!" Ty Lee said. "Join the hug!" Wei gave a crooked smile and joined the group hug. Azula ducked her head to hide the smile threatening to overtake her mouth. She couldn't let these people think that she actually liked them, especially after Ty Lee's cruel words on Kyoshi Island. The day after they left, Ty Lee cartwheeled her way into Azula's meditation room and acted like nothing had happened. Azula didn't bring anything up and Ty Lee didn't and things felt almost normal.
"Alright, that's enough," Azula said, untangling herself from the mass of limbs that wrapped around her. "I don't do hugs."
Ty Lee rolled her eyes and stifled a giggle. "Yeah right," Ty Lee snorted. Azula gave Ty Lee a scowl, but the girl ignored it.
"As heartwarming as our hug was, we still have things to discuss," Wei said. "Why don't you—"
"Wei, it'll only work if I'm alone," Yu Lee sighed. "If I bring a bunch of Fire Nation soldiers, there goes my cover."
Wei sighed and rubbed his temples. Azula could see Wei's mind working furiously and the rising frustration when he couldn't think of any alternatives. "Don't suppose you could sneak a messenger hawk with you?" Wei asked. Yu Lee shook her head. "Thought not," he sighed. "When are you leaving?"
"Tomorrow morning," Yu Lee said.
"So soon?" Azula asked, frowning. Yu Lee nodded.
"It's a long voyage and I need to arrive before you or else I look suspicious," she said. "Don't look so glum. Before you know it, we'll have the Avatar in our hands and the Fire Lord will have to name you his heir."
Azula nodded, but a strange feeling still gripped her chest, like she was forgetting something and it was very important. "We better start getting ready then," Ty Lee said. "I'll help you pack," she said to her sister. They walked off into the belly of the ship, likely to their room, leaving Azula and Wei in their wake.
"I'm not happy about this," Wei said. "But I guess we'll see what happens, right?"
"It'll work," Azula said. "Yu Lee's plans always work."
"Right." Wei still seemed worried. "I just hope you appreciate this Azula. She's doing this for you. She should be at home, learning to take over the family estate."
"I know that," Azula muttered. "I do appreciate it."
"No you don't," he said bluntly. "You don't realize how lucky you are. If your father or brother were in the position you are now, they wouldn't have half of the support that you do. Don't take those girls for granted, Princess. They're all you have."
"You aren't in my corner Wei?"
"We have to think long term princess," Wei said. "I'm twice your age." And with a wan smile, Wei descended into the bowels of the ship, leaving Azula with only the sea breeze as her company.
"Those clouds look so soft," Touya said, peering over Appa's saddle. "Like you could just jump down and land on a big soft cottony heap."
"I swear to Tui, Touya, if you try to jump off Appa, I will kill you," Sokka said, using a whetstone to sharpen his machete.
"You can't catch me if I'm on a fluffy cloud Sokka!" Touya said, getting on his knees. Sokka looked up from his machete and gave Touya a blank look. Touya sat back down sheepishly.
"I'll try it!" Aang said, grabbing his staff and jumping off Appa's head.
"How come you let Aang do dangerous things and I can't?" Touya pouted as he watched Aang disappear within the depths of the cottony white clouds.
"Aang is a master airbender that can fly," Sokka said, not looking up from his machete. "And I can't really tell the Avatar what to do. I'm pretty sure that's some sort of cosmic crime."
"Well if we would just go to the North Pole, I would be a master waterbender by now," Touya muttered. Sokka gave a big sigh and rubbed the bridge of his nose. Ever since they left Omashu, Touya had been bemoaning their slow journey to the North Pole. Touya had complained so much, that Aang even bypassed Appa's quarter-hourly break and Sokka watched sadly as they flew over a small village. A small pile of coins burned in Sokka's pocket, just begging to be spent.
A breeze ruffled Sokka's wolf tail and he turned to see Aang gently descending onto Appa's saddle. "Turns out that clouds are made of water," Aang said as he dripped all over Appa's saddle.
"You hear that Sokka? They're made out of water," Touya said petulantly. "If I knew how to waterbend, I could bend the clouds because they're made of water."
Aang blinked at Touya owlishly, but shrugged and airbended himself dry. Sokka sighed and shook his head. He started to resume sharpening his machete when something caught his attention. The green and thriving forest they were flying over had a streak of black going through it.
"Hey, what is that?" Sokka asked, leaning over to get a better look of the forest. Sokka still didn't know much about plants and plant life, but black seemed to be a universally bad color. "It looks like a scar."
"Let's check it out," Aang said, jumping onto Appa's head and steering the bison. As they gently descended, Sokka felt Momo climb onto his shoulder and chatter worriedly in his ear. He rubbed behind Momo's ear in an attempt to calm the lemur down. They landed and Sokka could see that the streak of black he saw from the air was scorched land. Jagged remains of trees shot out of the ground like grave markers and the air sat heavily on their chests. The three climbed off Appa and looked at the destruction around them. Sokka shuffled his feet and saw puffs of ashy soil rise into the air.
"Listen," Sokka said. "Do you hear that?"
"Hear what?" Touya asked. "It's so quiet."
"Exactly," Sokka said. "There's no life anywhere." Sokka turned and saw Aang further ahead. The boy's back was to him, but Sokka could see the sadness weighing down on the young airbender. "Aang, are you okay?"
"Fire Nation!" Touya yelled. Sokka cursed leaving his machete on Appa's saddle as he whipped around with his boomerang ready. But Touya wasn't getting attacked by any soldiers. Instead Touya was squatted in front of several pointy-looking footprints. "They've been here! I bet they were the ones who—"
"Touya hush," Sokka said, pointing to Aang. Touya pouted and opened his mouth to say something, but deflated when he saw Aang.
"Why would anyone do this?" Aang asked sadly. He kneeled down and grabbed a handful of ash. He mournfully watched it slip through his fingers. "How could I let this happen?"
"You didn't let this happen, Aang," Sokka said. "You couldn't do anything to stop this."
"I did! This is all my fault," Aang cried. "It's the Avatar's job to protect nature, but I don't know how to do that."
"That's why we're going to the North Pole," Touya said brightly. "We're going to find you a teacher!"
"A waterbending teacher," Aang clarified. "But there's no one who can teach me how to be the Avatar. Monk Gyasto said Avatar Roku would help me."
"But he died a hundred years ago," Touya said. "How are you supposed to talk to him?"
"I don't know," Aang mumbled. Sokka settled next to Aang and put his arm around the younger boy's shoulder. He saw Touya do the same thing and together they offered Aang comfort. They sat like that for a while, Appa behind them, Momo on Sokka's shoulder and Aang in-between Touya and Sokka. While they sat there, Sokka's mind was whirring. First, he wondered about Suki. He knew she would be okay, but that didn't stop him from worrying about her. Then his thoughts turned to Nulia, his mother and Gran-Gran. He only told Gran-Gran that they were leaving to travel with Aang, but he knew Nulia would connect the dots. He was more worried about his mother. Like him, she was a worrier and he was afraid how she could cope with both of her sons gone. Maybe Gran-Gran would take care of her.
Next, he thought about how Aang could talk to Avatar Roku. Sokka didn't know much about the Spirit World, but he knew he had more experience than Touya and Aang combined. But the moon spirit only visited Sokka in his dreams and only on her terms. Sokka didn't know when she would visit him and it only seemed that the lady appeared when something she deemed important was about to happen. First, it was when Sokka was little and he was about to die in the middle of the ocean. Second, it was right after he found Aang and started their journey. Maybe those events had some sort of cosmic spiritual importance. Or maybe he was just special and the moon spirit liked him a lot.
"How about we find a way to get you into the Spirit World?" Sokka said after a long silence.
"How do we do that?" Touya asked.
"I don't know, that's why I said we have to find a way," Sokka replied. "Maybe we can find like a spirit portal or something."
"Do those even exist?" Aang asked. Touya shrugged, and then jumped up suddenly. He looked around, grabbed Momo and ran off.
"I'll be right back!" he yelled over Momo's loud squeals. "Me and Momo have to do something!"
"Stay close!" Sokka yelled back, as he and Aang watched confusedly as Momo tried to claw his way out of Touya's grip. Soon Touya disappeared into the forest of burnt trees. Sokka wanted to run after Touya, but he had the feeling that Aang needed him more. "Cheer up Aang, you'll see Avatar Roku soon," Sokka said.
"But how? What kind of Avatar can't even visit the Spirit World?" Aang muttered dejectedly.
"One that's twelve, untrained and entirely too hard on himself," Sokka said bluntly. "It's been a month and a half since we've left the South Pole and you woke up from the iceberg. You're just going to need time. The war's gone on for a hundred years, a few more won't hurt."
Aang nodded slowly, but his face was still set in a deep frown. Sokka squeezed Aang closer to give the younger boy comfort. Aang leaned his bald head on Sokka's shoulder and sniffed pathetically.
"Hey Aang, you ready to be cheered up?" Touya said as he ran back towards his brother and friend. Aang shook his head no, but Touya ignored that. Instead, an acorn found its way out of Touya's hand and bouncing off Aang's head.
"Ow!" Aang exclaimed, rubbing his head. "How is that cheering me up?"
"Cheered me up," Sokka chuckled. Then an acorn smacked his forehead. "Okay, I deserved that."
"These acorns are everywhere!" Touya said, pulling handfuls out of his parka pockets. "That means the forest will grow back! …Right Sokka?"
Sokka nodded, understanding Touya's point immediately. "Every one of those acorns will be a tall tree one day," Sokka said. "And all the birds and animals that lived here will come back." Aang picked up an acorn and gave a small smile. Footsteps crunching on the ashy ground stopped the tender moment in its tracks. Sokka jumped into a squatting position, brandishing his boomerang while pushing Aang and Touya behind him.
"Who are you?" Sokka asked neutrally. The person approaching was a man with a long grey beard that seemed to feed into his hair and a shiny bald head.
"When I saw the flying bison, I thought it was my eyes playing tricks on me," the man said while he hobbled past Sokka and towards Aang. Touya shot Appa a glaring pout at giving away their position. Appa started back impassively. Sokka frowned, they would have to find a way to conceal Appa from wandering eyes. "But those markings…" the man continued. "Are you the Avatar?"
Aang nodded. The man's wrinkled face broke into a big smile. "Thank goodness," he said. "My village desperately needs your help!"
"With what?" Touya asked.
"The village leader will explain, just come with me," the man said, turning and starting to hobble back the way he came. Touya and Aang looked at Sokka, who just shrugged.
"It is the Avatar's duty to help those in need," he said, looking pointedly at Aang. The airbender broke into a big smile and he rushed after the old man. Touya ran back to grab Appa's reins and led the bison after Aang and the old man.
"We're supposed to be undercover, Appa," Sokka heard Touya say. "You can't be so noticeable every time we fly." Appa groaned in response and snorted. Touya rolled his eyes. "I know you're a ten ton bison. But that's no reason to be flashy."
Sokka sighed and approached Momo, who was busy digging into the ground and stuffing acorns into his mouth. "When did you jump off my shoulder?" he asked. Momo tried to look innocent and twittered sweetly. Sokka grabbed the lemur and followed his brother and Aang. The walk to the man's village took the entire afternoon. Touya tried to get everyone to ride on Appa because that would have been much faster, but Sokka shot him down. If an old man with bad eyesight could spot Appa, then that crazy princess with the penchant for burning things could find them in no time. Sokka was actually starting to suspect that the reason she kept finding them was because of Appa sightings.
"Just a little bit farther," the man said as they entered the village. Sokka looked around and saw the sorry state of the man's village. Houses were torn down to the beams and many buildings had holes torn into them. The village was just as quiet as the burnt forest had been and Sokka wondered if the Fire Nation had made it here too.
Finally, the old man led them into a large building at the far end of the village. Unlike the others, the building was untouched and full of families milling about. Some were huddled in blankets on the floor, and others were holed away into corners. "This young person is the Avatar," the old man said to a younger and authoritative man who seemed like the village elder.
"So the rumors of your return are true," the younger man said. He gave Aang a deep bow. "It's the greatest honor of a lifetime to be in your presence."
"Nice to meet you too," Aang returned the bow and gave the man a sweet smile. "So, is there something I can help you with?"
"I'm…not sure," the village elder said hesitantly.
"The village is in crisis! He's our only hope!" the old man insisted. The younger man held his head sadly while the old man continued. "For the last few days at sunset, a spirit monster comes and attacks our village. He is Hei Bai, the black and white spirit."
"Why is a spirit attacking you?" Sokka asked. As far as he knew, spirits didn't attack humans and villages unless they were wronged greatly. According to his Gran-Gran's stories, at least.
"We don't know," the village elder sighed. "But each of the past three nights, Hei Bai has abducted one of our own. We're especially fearful because the winter solstice is almost here."
A pang went through Sokka's heart. It was the winter solstice already? Where did the time go? "I don't get it," Touya asked. "What happens on the solstice?"
"Our world and the Spirit World merge," Sokka explained.
"Right," the old man said. "As the solstice approaches, the two worlds grow closer and closer until the line between them is blurred completely."
"Hei Bai is already causing devastation and destruction," the village elder said. "There's no telling what will happen once the solstice is here."
"So what do you want Aang to do?" Sokka asked pointedly.
"The Avatar is the great bridge between man and spirit," the old man said with a smile. "Who better to resolve a crisis between the two worlds?"
"Right…that's me," Aang said unconvincingly.
Sokka rolled his eyes. "Hey 'Great Bridge' guy, can I talk to you over here for a second?" Sokka asked, pulling Aang by a window out of earshot. "Aang, you can't do this."
"Why not?" Aang asked with a hurt look in his eyes.
"You don't know anything about the Spirit World!" Sokka retorted. "And you said so yourself, there isn't anyone to teach you this stuff. We should just politely decline and head towards the Northern Water Tribe. There's bound to be someone there who knows about the spirits and Avatar Roku."
"I can't leave these people," Aang said. "They need me. I couldn't help the forest, but maybe I can help these people." At Sokka's unconvinced look, Aang gave a smile. "I'm sure whatever I have to do will just come to me, like that time on the ship."
Sokka sighed as Aang walked away to give his agreement to the two men. "We're all going to eaten by a spirit monster."
"Don't think like that," Touya said, magically popping up next to Sokka. "Aang can do it, I believe in him. You should too, Sokka."
"I do believe in Aang," Sokka said. "But I know that there are some things he doesn't know how to do. Like talk to spirits."
Touya didn't say anything, but he frowned. "It's just about sunset," the village elder said. "We need to prepare." By preparing, the elder meant throwing Aang out of the large building and shutting the door behind him. Sokka peeked out of a window and saw Aang calling out for the spirit to appear.
"This isn't right," Sokka said. "We can't just sit here cowering while Aang waits for a monster to show up."
"If anyone can save us, he can," the old man said confidently.
"He's just a kid," Sokka muttered as he watched Aang wander around the deserted village. The sun slowly set, making it harder to see. Sokka could barely make out Aang twirling his staff and then heading back. Despite the relieved look on Aang's face, Sokka was still on edge. Something was whispering in his ears, something that sounded like a warning. Sokka looked up and saw a terrifying black and white creature following Aang. He heard Touya yelp behind him and the collective gasp of the villagers behind him. Aang seemed to sense everyone's apprehension, because he turned around and came face to face with Hei Bai.
Sokka couldn't hear what Aang was telling the creature, but Sokka guessed that wasn't what Hei Bai wanted to hear because the creature screeched in Aang's face and proceeded to destroy the rest of the village. Aang ran after the spirit, yelling helplessly as it continued to smash anything in its path.
"The Avatar's methods are…unusual," the village elder said while dodging some debris that had flown into the window.
"It's not listening to him," Sokka said. "Maybe we should go help him."
"No!" the old man said sternly. "Only the Avatar stands a chance against Hei Bai."
"Yeah," Touya agreed. "Aang will figure out the right thing to do. Calm down."
Sokka tried to calm down and let Aang handle it, but when Hei Bai threw Aang into a building, his resolve snapped. "That's it, he needs help," Sokka said, running out of the door.
"Sokka wait!" Touya cried, but Sokka continued running. He saw the dark figure of Hei Bai loom before him and for the first time, Sokka thought that maybe he should have stayed inside.p
"Hei Bai!" Sokka yelled. "Over here!" He grabbed a broken beam from a ruined house and threw it at Hei Bai. It didn't budge.
"Sokka, get out of here!" Aang cried.
"I have more Spirit World experience than you do Aang!" Sokka retorted. "What were you going to do, reason with it? Cause that's not working!"
"What else can I do? I don't want to fight him unless—" Unless what, Sokka would never know. Before Sokka could blink, he was grabbed by Hei Bai and rushing through the forest. He tried to hit the creature, but nothing was slowing it down. He couldn't reach his boomerang and Sokka cursed because his machete was still on Appa's saddle. "Hold on Sokka!" He heard Aang say and saw a flash of orange through the thick trees.
"Aang!" Sokka yelled back. "I'm over here!" The trees thinned until they disappeared and they were in the scorched clearing they landed in. Aang held out his hand and Sokka pulled his arm out of Hei Bai's grip.
"Almost there!" Aang cried as their fingers brushed. With a final push, Sokka felt Aang's warm hand in his own and for a moment, everything was going to be okay. Until the warmth fell away.
When the world faded back, Sokka found himself in a familiar place. He noticed the icy walls hadn't changed a bit as he looked around the small room he shared with Touya. Strangely, the only cot in the room was his. Normally, Touya left his furs in a big pile on his cot and it was up to Sokka to put it away, but the only cot in the room was his. Maybe Touya had already put his away, or maybe their mother or Gran-Gran did it. He climbed out of his cot and headed towards the dining room. He saw the wizened form of his Grandmother in front of something bubbling. "Gran-Gran?" Sokka said in a small voice. She didn't say anything, but she tilted her head. "Where's Touya?"
Gran-Gran turned and gave Sokka a quizzical look. "Who?"
"Touya Water Tribe, of the Southern Water Tribe, little brother, kind of chubby with a messed up warrior's wolf tail."
Kanna raised an eyebrow. "Haven't seen him," she said and Sokka got the strangest feeling that she was being sarcastic.
"Fine, I'll find him myself," Sokka grumbled, shrugging to his parka.
"Good luck," Gran-Gran said as she turned back to her mindless stirring. Sokka hmph'd and stalked out of the hut. Everything outside looked… white. Sokka was an intelligent boy, especially considering his lack of formal education. He knew the Southern Water Tribe had an abundance of ice and ice happened to be white, but the sky… The sky was white as well. It was supposed to be blue, maybe a murky grey depending on the clouds, but there was little distinction between the ice and the sky. He couldn't see Touya anywhere. Sokka picked a direction and walked and walked and walked. He trudged through the snow and ice while trying to yell, "Touya!" but he couldn't hear his voice. The snow, ice and sky eventually melted together into nothingness, a sort of white fog, but Sokka continued to drag his feet against the ground.
"Touya!" he cried. "Touya, where are you?" A strange feeling of forgetting someone settled over Sokka, but it was quickly pushed away by a sense of foreboding. Suddenly, Sokka saw a dark speck on the horizon and Sokka tried to run, but his legs were too heavy. As he got closer, Sokka saw that the figure was huddled over and in a worn blue parka. "Touya?" Sokka asked as he lightly tapped the figure on the shoulder. The figure turned and Sokka saw himself looking at familiar blue-grey eyes.
"Touya! I looked everywhere for you!" Sokka said. He threw his arms around his little brother and clung tight. "Don't ever scare me like that again." With a tight squeeze, Sokka let go of his brother and looked around. "Let's get out of here," he said. "As soon as we figure out where's here..."
Sokka grabbed Touya's hand and started walking the way he came. "I think Gran-Gran is cooking some sea prune stew," Sokka said lightly, unnerved by Touya's unusual silence. "It's your favorite and I still have some jerky left over from when Aang burned yours." Sokka stopped abruptly. That feeling of forgetting someone returned tenfold as he tried to decipher what he said.
Aang.
Aang.
"AANG! Where is he!?" Sokka looked around wildly for a familiar bald head and blue arrows. All he saw was white mist. "Where's that black and white spirit and the villagers?" Sokka remembered. "Huh Touya?" Sokka asked desperately but when he looked down, he saw he wasn't holding Touya's hand. Light and slender, that was the hand he had dropped, one unlike the short and soft hand of his little brother.
He looked up and looked into the brightest blue eyes he had ever seen. Her soft face broke into a smile when their eyes met and she rejoined their hands. Her beautiful hair was tied up into intricate braids with dangling blue beads. Whoever this was, this was not Touya.
"The Avatar is in the Spirit World," she said in a dainty voice.
"What about Touya?" Sokka said, but he could barely hear his own words. The voice of this girl filled the air around them, leaving no room for Sokka to even breathe. "You were Touya, then you weren't."
The girl only smiled and gripped his hand tighter. "Maybe we should go," she said serenely and pulled his hand.
"I don't want to go anywhere with you. I don't know you."
"No," the girl said, slowly pulling him forward. "You know me, Sokka. You've always known me."
Sokka looked closely at the girl, at her beautiful eyes and silky hair. Something about her was comforting and familiar, but he couldn't place her.
"What's your name?" He asked. The girl looked back at him with an unreadable look and stayed silent. "Why aren't you answering me?" Sokka asked.
"You're not ready for the answers I have," she said, and Sokka felt something like a sigh surround his body. "But someday you will be. Until then, the Avatar and your brother need you." They both fell silent and Sokka let the girl lead him into the mist.
The mist became thicker and thicker, so thick that the girl's form was obscured from sight. As he continued to walk, the bleak whiteness darkened and Sokka started to feel something soft and fleeting caress his face. Soft sounds reached his ears, like the wind rustling the leaves and he smelled the sharp fresh scent of a forest. He continued to walk and the first thing he saw was the bright face of Touya.
"Sokka!" Touya cried, running towards his older brother. "You were trapped in the spirit world for twenty four whole hours!" He wrapped his arms around Sokka tightly. "I thought you weren't ever going to come back."
Sokka looked around and saw that many villagers were also embracing their lost ones, but he didn't see the girl who had led him to the outside world. "Really?" Sokka asked in a raspy voice. "A whole day? It didn't feel that long…"
"Avatar," the village elder said, approaching Aang. "Thank you. If only there were some way to repay you for what you've done."
"Some supplies would be nice," Sokka offered.
"And some money!" Touya said.
"Touya, we already have money," Sokka said.
"So? We need more."
The village elder chuckled. "It would be an honor to help you prepare for your journey." The elder bowed and headed back inside the large building to look for supplies. Sokka turned to Aang and gave the younger boy a smile.
"I'm really proud of you Aang," he said. "You figured out what to do on your own."
"Actually, I had a little help," Aang said a little sheepishly before becoming solemn. "But there's something else I need to tell you."
"What?" Touya asked.
"I need to talk to Roku and I think I found a way to contact his spirit," Aang responded.
"That's great," Sokka said. "But I sense a 'but' approaching."
"There's a temple on a crescent-shaped island and if I go there on the solstice, I can speak to Roku."
"But the solstice is tomorrow!" Touya said.
"I know," Aang agreed. "But that's not the worst part."
"Here we go," Sokka sighed.
"The island is in the Fire Nation."
"Aw, geez," Wei muttered. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. Actually he could, but he'd never thought he'd see the day. He supposed it was Yuta's absence. He knew that she was the glue that held them together, but he didn't think she was literally keeping them from falling apart. "Um, Azula are you alright?"
"Yes!" the princess said in a watery voice. "I'm fine." Wei looked at Azula's shiny red rimmed eyes, her rumpled clothes and her ruffled hair. He highly doubted her fineness, but he'll let that one slide.
"What are you doing here?" He asked instead. "Shouldn't you be resting until we get to the village where the Avatar was sighted?"
"I am resting," Azula said petulantly.
"You look like you've been crying," Wei said bluntly as he looked around. "And you're hunched over in the middle of a long and dark hall where anyone can see you."
Azula furiously wiped her eyes. "There, now I'm okay." Wei gave a big sigh. He wasn't here for the banished princess, he didn't like her family, but he couldn't leave her hunched on the floor.
"You miss Yuta?"
"No!" Azula said quickly. "What makes you think that?"
"She's your friend isn't she?" Wei asked. "How long have you guys known each other?"
For a moment, Azula didn't say anything. She just peered at Wei suspiciously. "Why are you asking me this? I thought you weren't on my side."
"I didn't say that," Wei placated. "I just said I was old."
Azula's eyes narrowed slightly, and she let out a loud sniff. "Nine years," she answered after a slight hesitation.
"And you're fifteen right?" Wei asked. Azula nodded. "Wow, that's over half your life. No wonder you're so upset."
Azula didn't reply, but she wiped at her watering eyes. "She's doing this to help you. I don't like it, but it is a sound plan for capturing the Avatar," Wei said.
"I know, it's just…"
"Just what? Yuta wants you to go home, that's why she's doing all this!"
"It just feels like she's abandoned me," Azula said in a small voice. "We're supposed to be together."
Wei immediately felt sheepish and rubbed the back of his head. He mentally kicked himself. Of course she'd take Yuta's departure as abandonment, considering what happened to her, it was obvious. "Sometimes people leave the people they love, but it's to help them," Wei said. "She's not abandoning you."
"You don't have to treat me like I'm seven," Azula huffed. "I know that."
"But did you really?" Wei asked. "Knowing something with your mind is different than knowing something with your heart."
"Maybe you should have gone into philosophy," Azula muttered.
"Once I retire," Wei said cheerfully. "I just want you to be okay Azula, with or without Yu Lee."
"You didn't seem to care before."
"Ah, that's not true," Wei lied. "I just have a reputation to uphold as your strict and aloof firebending teacher."
"You've got bangs like a shih tzu," Azula said dryly. "You sure look aloof."
Wei chuckled and flipped his fringe. "You're just jealous cause that guy cut off yours."
Azula scowled and crossed her arms. "I'll get him back, just you see! Sokka the filthy peasant will rue the day he ever cut my bangs! He will rue the day!" She stood up suddenly and pumped her arms.
Wei flinched back before he started to laugh. "Wow, you sure are passionate about this Sokka guy."
"He will pay," Azula said solemnly. "Once we catch up with the Avatar, Sokka will pay for the wrongs he has committed."
"Okay," Wei chuckled. "I'm glad you're in better spirits."
"Hmph," Azula said. "Just don't tell anyone I had…succumbed to tears in the middle of the hallway."
"I make no promises," Wei said cheekily. He was about to make another cheeky comment but the ship suddenly lurched. "I guess we're there. We need to help Zhu-Qiang nail his dockings." He stretched and started towards the deck without checking if Azula was following him.
"Who's Zhu-Qiang?" Azula asked. Wei blinked, he didn't even realize she was following him. He'd made her feel better, that was enough interaction until their firebending lesson tomorrow.
"The navigator. Big head, glasses, squirrely body, talks too much," Wei answered.
"Oh," Azula said as she wrinkled her nose. "I remember him."
Wei raised an eyebrow. He had no idea Azula even stepped into the cockpit. "He's a little eccentric, but he's really good at what he does."
Azula hmmed. Wei raised his other eyebrow, a skill his father had detested, but Azula didn't elaborate on her mysterious hum. Wei mentally shrugged and continued on his merry way. He wondered if Azula knew that her crew consisted of disgraced naval officers, those who were too cowardly on the battlefield and the decent ones who owed Linh Wairen a favor and couldn't resist the beguiling eyes of his youngest daughter. He couldn't ponder that thought for long because once they arrived on the deck, he was bombarded by the crew.
"Who traded away my fish!?" Chao screeched, waving a soup ladle around wildly. Zhu-Qiang's eyes blinked owlishly behind his glasses and he shrunk away from the heavyset cook.
"So I think I'm dying and would like to be sent home," a soldier covered in red hives said over his thick tongue.
"I actually have a formal complaint!" another soldier said. He pointed at his shorter companion with disgust. "Rong can't control his bodily fluids!"
Rong looked bashful and scuffed his feet against the metal ground. "I…I have really bad motion sickness and the ship makes me queasy," Rong said softly.
Wei sighed and rubbed his temples. He didn't sign up to be the babysitter to two dozen grown men. "Chao, there's only so many days we can eat fish pudding in a row before we have a mutiny on our hands," Wei said to the disgruntled cook. "Ping…let me write you a note telling your mother why you're going home, okay?" Ping nodded and leaned against the railings with a heaving wheeze.
"Rong, Zhou," Wei addressed the two soldiers. "I don't care. Zhu-Qiang, where are we?"
"Well," Zhu-Qiang twittered as he pushed his glasses up on his face. "We're off the shore of Omashu. The Avatar has been sighted near Senlin village, which is about a few hours march on komodo rhino. At a brisk pace."
"Then let's get some Komodo rhinos and go!" Azula said. "We don't have time to worry about seasickness and fish!"
Wei rolled his eyes and sighed. He wasn't going to give her a lecture about valuing the crew. As much as he loathed to admit it, she was right, they didn't have much time to find the Avatar.
"How old is this information?" Wei asked Zhu-Qiang.
"Maybe a day or two," the navigator replied. "A soldier based in one of those mining villages reported it. They saw the bison fly over and pass their village."
Wei nodded. "Alright, ready the rhinos. The princess is right, we're short on time and the Avatar has a huge head start. We can't let Zhao find the Avatar before us."
"Finally," he heard Azula mutter as she stalked off. Wei looked around and noticed the distinct lack of pink in his vicinity. "Where's Ty Lee?" He asked.
"Haven't seen her since Yu Lee left," Ping said thickly. "I just want to say goodbye before I leave..."
"Son," Wei said as he put a hand on Ping's shoulder. "She's out of your league."
"He's where?" Azula asked flatly.
"Well he said—"
"I heard what you said!" Azula snapped. "But why? That doesn't make any sense." She turned to Wei so he'd explain, but the man shrugged his shoulders. "Beats me," he said. "Maybe this is a part of his master evasion plan. Go someplace we can't follow."
"He said something about going to see Avatar Roku and having until the Winter Solstice to do so."
Azula watched Wei rub his chin thoughtfully and looked at him expectantly.
"Nope I got nothing," Wei said flippantly. "But we should go now if we want to catch up to the Avatar before he gets to the Fire Nation. Azula put the old man down."
Azula glared at the balding man she held in her grip. "If I find out that you've given me the wrong information, I will come back and destroy everything you love." She dropped him unceremoniously and sneered as the old man paled at her threat. "Let's go," she said as she mounted her Komodo dragon. She watched Wei do the same and lead her beast back towards the ship. She wanted to ask Wei about the significance of Avatar Roku and the Winter Solstice but he seemed too lost in his own thoughts to pay her any mind. They rushed towards the ship and made it in record time.
"Start the engines!" Azula yelled as she and Wei urged their tired rhinos onto the ship. "They're headed towards the Fire Nation and we're hours behind them! Full speed ahead!" Azula jumped off the rhino and ran towards the navigation room. "Set a course for—"
"The Fire Nation, I heard," Zhu-Qiang said dryly.
"Put the ship in high gear and hurry then," Azula growled. Zhu-Qiang pushed his glasses up on his face and grumbled as he pulled dials and pushed buttons.
"I can't work with you breathing down my shoulder. I need at least three feet between myself and another person at all times. Four and a half feet if that person is a firebender due to the oppressive heat that constantly radiates off their bodies. You can tell who a firebender is based on their body temperature and the—"
"What did I say about talking to me?" Azula interrupted. Zhu-Qiang scowled and turned back to his dials. Azula huffed and stalked out of the navigation room. She went back onto the deck and saw Ty Lee, looking less exuberant than usual, talking to Wei, who looked confused.
"But he's been dead for a hundred years, how is he supposed to talk to him?" Wei asked.
"It's the solstice!"
"What are you two talking about?" Azula asked. Ty Lee turned to Azula and the princess saw the dullness in the other girl's face. Maybe she was taking Yu Lee's departure harder than everyone thought.
"The Avatar is heading towards the Fire Nation to see Avatar Roku right?" Ty Lee asked. Azula and Wei nodded. "Then he's probably heading towards Crescent Moon Island."
"Crescent Moon Island?" Wei asked.
"Didn't you pay attention in school?" Azula scoffed.
"I had tutors," Wei said smoothly.
"Crescent Moon Island is where Avatar Roku learned fire bending or something like that. There's a temple dedicated to Roku that the Fire Sages maintain. I'm betting that's where the Avatar is headed."
"But Roku has been dead for a hundred years. How is a dusty old temple going to help the Avatar?" Azula asked.
"Today is the winter solstice," Ty Lee explained. She blinked at Azula's and Wei's blank looks. "You know, the day when the Spirit World and our world are super overlapped and people and spirits can cross over?"
"That sounds like something Mother would believe in," Azula scoffed. "Silly superstitious mumbo-jumbo."
Ty Lee rolled her eyes. "Whether it's true or not, the Avatar is headed towards Crescent Island and that's where we need to go." Ty Lee locked eyes with Azula. "But shouldn't you stay here?"
Azula scowled. "Finding the Avatar is my duty. I can't let that fall onto anyone else."
Ty Lee shrugged. "If you say so," she muttered. "Just don't get into trouble. Yu can't help you if you're in jail."
"I will be fine," Azula said. "We're moving as fast as this hunk of iron will go. We'll make it."
"In several more hours," Wei said. He looked into the starry sky and furrowed his brow at the full moon. "We should get some rest. I don't think we'll make it until mid-morning at the very least. We've been barreling through since yesterday. We got a lot done."
"We don't have time to rest!" Azula cried. "We need—"
"To find the Avatar, yes we know Azula," Ty Lee said. "But there's nothing we can do until we get to the Fire Nation so get some sleep." Ty Lee stomped off the deck and descended into the bowels of the ship.
"What crawled up her poofy pants and died?" Azula muttered as she crossed her arms.
"She's probably upset because Yu Lee is gone," Wei shrugged. "But I'm going to take Ty Lee's advice and take a nap." He gave Azula a half-hearted wave and went deeper into the ship. Azula sighed and followed Wei off the deck. She'd find some way to fill up her time. She went into her mediation room and lit all of the candles. Sitting cross legged, she took a deep breath and exhaled. She repeated the motion again and again and again, until she felt her mind lighten and her conscious fill with blissful emptiness.
"The bison has been sighted! I repeat; THE BISON HAS BEEN SIGHTED!"
Azula shot up and hit her head on the low desk that held all her candles. She turned around wildly and saw Rong's round face flushed with excitement. "I wasn't asleep," Azula said threateningly, as if daring Rong to say otherwise.
Rong blinked in confusion before furrowing his brow. "The Avatar's bison is in the sky right now!" Rong said before he scrambled off in the direction of the deck. Azula's scowl melted off her face as she got to her feet and ran after Rong. As soon as she ran onto the deck, someone handed her a telescope and she peered into it. The silhouette of the Avatar's flying bison greeted her. "Finally," she said. "I have you in my grasp."
"Of all the foolish things you've done, I think this takes the cake Azula," Wei muttered as he sauntered behind her. Azula shot him a glare, but quickly turned back to the telescope.
"I have no choice," she said.
"You always have a choice," Ty Lee said darkly. Azula briefly wondered where the girl came from, but her attention was drawn back to the bison.
"Once we explain to my uncle that I was chasing the Avatar, he'll understand why I came back," Azula said.
"You don't know your uncle as well as you think you do," Ty Lee said cryptically.
"Can't this thing go any faster?" Azula cried. Almost immediately, the ship lurched forwards and the wind was whipping Azula's bangs back. "Get the catapults! Somebody get the catapults!" A few soldiers ran towards the back of the deck and pulled the catapults from within their storage area.
"I want you to fire on my mark," she said as she saw the catapults out of the corner of her eyes.
"One." Wei shook his head and shrugged at Ty Lee.
"Two." Ty Lee crossed her arms with a dark look on her face.
"Fire!" Azula watched the flaming ball of tar sail through the air and narrowly miss the flying bison. "Fire another one!" she spat.
"Um, we have a problem," Wei said. Azula looked at where he was pointing and her eyes widened.
"A blockade?" Azula asked. "A freaking blockade!?"
"Technically, we're still in Earth Kingdom waters," Ty Lee said. "If we turn back now, we won't be arrested!"
"Maybe the Avatar will go around the blockade," Azula hoped. "If we sail north fast enough, I bet we can avoid the blockade. There's no way he'll run the blockade."
"Azula, he's running the blockade."
She bit back a sullen sigh and fought the urge to hang her head in defeat. Of course the Avatar would run the blockade. He clearly was a master of evasive maneuvering, no matter what Yu Lee said. "We'll run the blockade too!"
"Are you insane!?" Ty Lee screeched. "Even if by some miracle you aren't arrested, there's no way we'd make it past those ships!"
"Azula, we need to turn around," Wei stressed. "If the Fire Nation captures you, there's nothing I can do. I've just about exhausted my favors with the Fire Lord."
"Run. The. Blockade." Azula said stubbornly. Wei shook his head as the ship continued to speed towards the blockade. He muttered something darkly and kept running his hands through his hair. Instead of paying attention to him, Azula turned back towards the blockade and her jaw dropped. The sky was on fire and the stink of burning tar filled the air. "You have got to be kidding me," she said softly. She glanced up and saw the bison deftly avoid the multitude of fireballs flung across the sky. Many of the fireballs then fell into the water, except for one. The ship shook on impact, sending Ty Lee, Wei and some soldiers to the ground. Azula stumbled, then grabbed a catapult to keep herself upright.
"Princess Azula!" Zhou cried. "The engines are damaged! We need to stop and make repairs!"
"If you stop this ship, I'll throw you overboard!" Azula yelled back. "Don't stop this ship!"
"YOU'RE GONNA KILL US!" Ty Lee cried.
Azula saw her engine room burst into barely containable flames. "We'll be fine," she said simply. She turned back towards the blockade and watched as the ships slowly widened the gap between them. The blockade had stopped firing and the Avatar was smoothly sailing past the row of ships. As her ship passed the closest cruiser, she locked eyes with an impassive Zhao. She scowled at him, but he didn't meet her gaze for long. He turned to Wei, who had righted himself and stood regally, and Ty Lee, who glowered from the ground. A ghost of a smirk settled on his face as they passed safely.
"Curiouser and curiouser," Wei muttered thoughtfully. Azula ignored him.
"Are we there yet?" Touya asked.
"NO TOUYA WE AREN'T THERE!" Aang snapped.
An uncomfortable silence filled the air for a second before Touya replied, "No need to get all snippy…"
Sokka sighed and gazed at the orange sky. They had been flying since late last night and everyone was tired and on edge. Momo had sprawled across the saddle, Touya dangled his legs off the side of Appa and every so often, Appa dropped a few feet. Although he was on edge for the first few hours after they flew through the blockade, Sokka felt his eyes droop with boredom. He almost wished that crazy princess was still behind them.
"There it is!" Aang said suddenly. Touya and Sokka shot up and peered over Appa's saddle. "That's the island where Roku's dragon took me." It was a long thin island, in the shape of a crescent and riddled with volcanic rock. At the widest part of the island, a smoking volcano spewed slow moving lava down its sides. A small black-stoned temple stood on a ridge next to the volcano. They gently descended on a rocky shore free of lava. As soon as the trio had jumped off of Appa, the bison groaned and rolled onto his back. "Aww," Touya giggled. "You must be tired." He rubbed soothing circles on Appa's belly. p
"Good job buddy!" Aang said. "Nice flying!"
"You really came through when we needed you Appa," Sokka agreed. Momo scrambled onto Sokka's shirt and chattered insistently. "You did good too Momo. Thanks…for the emotional support." Appeased, Momo climbed into Sokka's shirt and settled there. Sokka turned towards the shrine and narrowed his eyes. "I don't see any guards."
"Maybe they all left because there's lava everywhere," Touya shrugged.
"It's almost sundown!" Aang stressed. "We need to hurry!" He grabbed his staff from Appa's saddle and ran towards the temple. Up close, the temple was decorated with golden flames darkened with soot and a fine layer of ash covered everything. They tip toed into the temple and arrived at a large chamber with pillars stylized as flames. "You know, I'm sensing a theme here," Sokka said.
"Hush!" Touya whispered loudly. "I think I heard something. I think it came from over—" Touya's sentence ended with a loud squeak and Sokka whirled around. He saw a group of old Fire Nation men with ridiculously tall red hats.
"We are the Fire Sages," said a very wrinkly and sour old man. "Guardians of the temple of the Avatar."
"That's great!" Aang said brightly. "I am the Avatar!"
"We know," the same sage said. He took a deep breath before throwing a blast of fire in their direction. Aang deflected it with his staff. With a nimbleness only a master airbender could pull off, Aang sent an airbending slice at the sages' legs and turned to his friends. "Run!" Aang turned to run and Sokka grabbed Touya's arm as they fled deeper into the temple. "If the airbender contacts Roku, there's no telling how powerful he'll become!" Sokka heard the sour sage say. "Split up and find him!"
"Follow me," Aang said as he passed his friends and made a sharp turn.
"How do you know where you're going?" Touya asked. Aang sped back towards the siblings and gave them a worried look. "I don't," he admitted and Sokka slapped his forehead. Despite not knowing where to go, Aang rounded another turn, only to quickly dash back. "Wrong way!"
"Come back!" said a sage who was right on Aang's heels. Sokka dragged Touya after Aang, only to realize that the airbender had led them to a dead end. With a steel resolve, Sokka brandished his machete and turned to face the sage. p
"Hold on!" the sage said fearfully. "I don't want to fight! I'm a friend!"
"Firebenders aren't our friends!" Touya cried. Sokka pushed his younger brother behind him.
The sage dropped to his knees and pressed his forehead to the floor. "Please, I'm not here to fight," he repeated. "I know why you're here Avatar."
"You do?" Aang asked, surprised.
"You wish to speak to Avatar Roku," the sage said as he rose from the floor. "I can take you to him."
"But he's been dead for a hundred years," Touya pointed out. In response, the sage grabbed a wall-mounted light and slid it back to reveal a small square. He sent a stream of flame into the hole and a door leading to a descending staircase appeared. "This way," the sage said.
"Are you really going to trust this guy?" Sokka asked as Aang stepped towards the door.
"This is our best chance," Aang said. "It's almost sunset and I need to speak to Avatar Roku." Sokka scowled for a few seconds, before he sheathed his weapon and followed Aang and the sage into the passage. He heard the door slide shut after Touya's entrance and the sage led them down a rocky passageway.
"My name is Shyu," the sage said. "I am one of a long line of Fire Sages, guardians of the Avatar's temple."
"Did you know Avatar Roku?" Touya asked. Sokka elbowed his brother sharply. "Ow! He looks old enough," Touya muttered.
"No," Shyu chuckled. "But my grandfather knew him. Avatar Roku once called this temple home. He was actually the one to form these secret passages."
"How did you know I was coming?" Aang asked.
Shyu sighed. "A few weeks ago, an amazing thing occurred. The eyes of Avatar Roku's statue began to glow!"
"A few weeks ago?" Sokka wondered. "That was when we were at the Air Temple. When Aang—um, I mean the statues' eyes glowed there too." Shyu looked at Sokka with a confused look, but the boy only gave a stony gaze in return. Shyu looked away embarrassedly and turned back to Aang.
"It was at that moment, we knew you had returned," Shyu said, regaining his composure.
"I don't get it," Touya said while he crossed his arms. "If this is the Avatar's temple, why did the sages attack Aang?"
Shyu looked down and gave a heavy sigh. "Once, the sages were only loyal to the Avatar. When Roku died, the sages eagerly waited for the next Avatar to appear. But he never did."
Aang's shoulders slumped and it was his turn to look down. "They were waiting for me." A heavy, still silence settled over the four at Aang's comment. Although Shyu didn't voice it, upset accusation was clearly written on his face, and Aang knew it.
"Hey, you're only a hundred years late," Sokka said in a sarcastic attempt to lighten the mood. Touya and Aang whipped around and gave Sokka matching scowls. Sokka inwardly groaned, they were becoming more and more alike by the day.
"Eventually they lost hope," Shyu continued softly. "When Fire Lord Sozin began the war, he forced my grandfather and the other sages to follow him. Azulon and Iroh only continued the tradtion." Shyu stopped and for a moment, the wrinkles on his face were deeper and drawn with a great sadness. "I never wanted to serve the Fire Lord, but when I learned you were coming, I knew I would betray the other sages."
"Thank you," Aang said sincerely. Shyu gave Aang a soft smile. "Serving the Avatar was always my dream," he said. "Thank you for making it come true." This time, a companionable silence settled between the four as they hiked up the steep stairs. To their immediate rights, flowed a sluggish river of lava. The heat was nearly overbearing, but Sokka marveled at the slowly bubbling flow of molten rock. The stairs continued to descend for a few more feet, until they sharply lead up a spiraling staircase. "We'll follow these stairs to the sanctuary," Shyu said. Touya groaned loudly and Aang looked like he wanted to join in. Sokka took a deep breath and took the first step.
"Once you're inside, wait for the light to hit Avatar Roku's statue," Shyu said as they neared the top of the stairs. "Only then will you be able to speak to him."
"Oh great, I can't wait," Sokka said dryly and breathlessly.
"We're almost there," Shyu said with a smile. Sokka glared back. How could the sage stand all of these stairs? Sokka was a quarter of Shyu's age, fit and relatively handsome and he felt like his legs were going to fall off. Shyu reached the top before them and pushed away a tile. The tile slid against the celling easily and the sage climbed onto the top floor of the temple. "No!"
Aang ran the rest of the way and jumped over the edge. "What's wrong?" Aang asked.
"The sanctuary doors are closed!" Shyu cried in distress. Sokka looked at the door and scrunched his nose at it. Not only did the Fire Nation utterly obsessed with fire, it was also obsessed with snakes. "Only a fully realized Avatar can open this door alone!"
"As you can see, we don't have a fully realized Avatar here," Sokka said bitterly.
"Five simultaneous fire blasts will open the door," Shyu said.
"Right, because two Water Tribe boys and an airbending Avatar are master firebenders," Sokka muttered.
"Your friend has a very negative attitude," Shyu snapped to Aang.
"No, it's okay," Aang said. "He gets cranky and sarcastic when he's tired."
"He's going to have a good idea soon," Touya said as Sokka scowled. "Just watch."
"Stop talking about me," Sokka grumbled. He walked over to the large door and peered into the snake heads. "Five simultaneous fire blasts huh…? Shyu, I need some oil, some bags and some twine!"
Shyu blinked. "Why do you think we'd have those things lying around a temple?"
"Do you have it or not?" Sokka spat. "Come on, the fate of the world depends on it!"
"Yes, they'd be in the storage closet," Shyu said with only the slightest hint of irritation. "Follow me." Shyu led them around a corner to a small door. "We have one of these on every floor. Usually it's for—"
"I don't care," Sokka said. He pushed past Shyu and grabbed several small tarps, bits of twine and a few canisters of oil. "So here's what I'm thinking," Sokka said as he walked back towards the doors. "We soak the twine in the oil, pour the rest of it into the tarps, tie them up, put them in the snake mouths and light them on fire. Then volia! Fake firebending!"
"Wow, that's really smart," Touya said in awe. "I knew you'd come up with an idea!"
"You've really outdone yourself this time, Sulkka," Aang snickered. Sokka shot Aang a glare, but the airbender gave Sokka a wide grin in return.
"This…just might work," Shyu said. "I'm sorry I doubted you Sulkka."
"That's not my—" Sokka gave an exasperated sigh. "Let's just do this before the other sages find out we're up here." The other three nodded and helped Sokka create the miniature bombs. One by one, they each put a bomb into the mouths of the five snakes.
"The sages will hear the explosion, so as soon as they go off, you rush in," Shyu said to Aang. He nodded and ran behind a large pillar. Sokka helped Touya push his bomb into the snake mouth and dragged the boy behind another pillar. Momo glided above Touya's head and Sokka grabbed the lemur and stuffed him down his tunic. "Don't give away our position, Momo," Sokka said. Momo trilled and scrambled to poke his head out of Sokka's shirt.
"Are you ready Aang," Touya asked, peeking over Sokka to look at Aang. "It's almost sunset."
"Definitely!" Aang replied. With that as affirmation, Shyu sent a small blast of fire across the oil-soaked twine. They caught flame immediately and Shyu rushed to find cover. As the sage said, the bombs caused a deafening explosion and a lot of noxious smoke. Touya covered his mouth to muffle his coughs and Momo ducked his head. Aang ran towards the doors and pulled at the handle.
"They're still locked!" Aang cried.
A heavy sigh settled on the group. "It didn't work…" Shyu said sadly. They all turned to Sokka with expectant looks in their eyes. Sokka faltered. He didn't expect for his plan to fail. Maybe there was something Shyu wasn't telling them. "Um," Sokka said. He went to the door and examined the soot left behind by the bombs. Touya trailed behind and put his finger on the soot.
"I don't get it," Touya said. "The explosions looked pretty strong to me."
"As strong as any firebending we've seen," Aang agreed morosely.
"You two are geniuses!" Sokka exclaimed.
"I don't think we should trust your judgement," Aang said glumly. "Your plan didn't work."
"What!?" Sokka spluttered. "Plans aren't fool-proof you know. I did the best with the knowledge I had." Sokka looked pointedly at Shyu. "Anyway, you're right. My plan didn't work, but it looks like it did."
"How does that make us geniuses?" Touya asked. "I'm confused." Sokka slapped his forehead. He wasn't going to try to explain anything to these two. At least not now, when they possibly had four other sages on their tail and a rapidly approaching sunset to deal with.
"I'll explain later Touya," Sokka said. "Right now, I have another plan. Shyu, go find the other sages and bring them here. The door needs five simultaneous fire blasts to open right? We'll get the sages to do it for us!"
Shyu gave a big smile. "You are very intelligent Sulkka. You would be one of the Fire Nation's greatest tacticians."
He knew Shyu was trying to give him a compliment, but Sokka still felt a disgusting pit at bottom of his stomach. "I'd rather not," Sokka muttered. "We'll go hide behind these pillars. Hurry and go Shyu!"
The older man nodded and ran out of the chamber. "Hey Sokka?" Touya asked after a short pause. "Why don't we put Momo through the pipes so he'll be in the room? Then they'll see Momo's shadow and think it's Aang."
"That's a great idea Touya," Sokka said. Touya brightened and yanked Momo out of Sokka's shirt. With a fluidness Sokka could only attribute to waterbenders, Touya pushed Momo into a snake mouth. Momo gave a distressed trill as Touya pushed. "Suck in your gut Momo!" Touya said. "Suck it in like a man!"
"He's a lemur," Aang whispered loudly, but Touya didn't let that stop him. With a giant heave, Touya pushed Momo into the snake head and with a few more distressing whimpers, Momo was scrambling at the other side of the door.
"Come quickly!" came Shyu's distant voice. Touya jumped and scrambled back to the pillar, just as Shyu lead the other Fire Sages into the chamber. "The Avatar has entered the sanctuary!"
"How did he get in?" asked the old wrinkly sage.
"I don't know," Shyu said. "But look at the scorch marks!" The sages looked intently at the soot and scowled. One of the younger sages gasped and pointed to the bottom of the door. "Look at that shadow! It's the Avatar!" the young sage said. Shyu's eyes widened and he looked at the other sages in disbelief.
"He's inside!" The wrinkly sage said. "Open the doors before he contacts Roku!" The men fell into a firebending stance and out of the corner of his eye, Sokka saw Aang move into position. Their eyes met and Sokka nodded. Aang gave a determined smile and focused his attention back on the door. The sages punched a stream of fire into the snakes and with a groaning creak, the doors unlocked. They opened theatrically, only to reveal a soot covered and downcast Momo.
"It's a lemur," the young sage said in disbelief.
"It must have crawled from the pipes!" The wrinkly sage said. "We've been tricked!" With a mighty chirp, Momo leaped onto the sage's head and Sokka ran out to subdue the young sage. Touya jumped on the back of another sage and they both crumpled to the ground. Shyu grabbed another sage and put him in an arm hold. "Aang, go!" Shyu cried. They all looked to the pillar Aang was behind and blinked.
"Aang, we're giving you a golden opportunity," Sokka said after a moment of silence. Then, as if he were in a terrible dream, Aang slowly stepped away from the pillar, with a strange man holding his arms.
"The Avatar is coming with me," the man said with a cruel smirk. Sokka gasped and felt his captive try to struggle free. With a scowl, Sokka grabbed his boomerang and whacked it upside the young sage's head. The man fell with a thud.
"I don't think so!" Sokka cried as he rushed the man. The man didn't anticipate the attack and in his haste to defend himself, he dropped Aang's arms. That didn't escape Sokka's notice. "Aang go!" Sokka yelled as he raised his boomerang. The man scowled and sent a blast of flame towards Sokka's head. Sokka dodged and struck the man. "No!" the man cried and Sokka knew that Aang had went inside the doors. A heavy clank reached Sokka's ears and a bright light filled his vision, but for only a moment. Sokka looked up and saw the man snarling and sending another fire blast towards him. Sokka dodged yet again and settled into a fighting pose. They circled each other slowly.
"I didn't expect to be stopped by a Water Tribe rube," the man said nastily. "Though judging by your rags, you're from the Southern Tribe. Tell me, how are the waterbenders doing?"
Sokka growled and lunged at the man again. "I wouldn't do that if I were you," the man smirked. "Look behind you."
Sokka turned around and saw something that stopped his heart. Touya's eyes tear-filled eyes reflected the flame held inches from his face. Two skull faced soldiers held Shyu and Touya and more were filling into the room by the second. "Stand down before I have his face melted off." The man smirked as Sokka exhaled sharply from his nose.
"This is between me and you," Sokka said through clenched teeth. "Leave him out of this."
"Burn the boy," Zhao said flippantly.
"No! Stop!" Sokka cried over Touya's anguished yelp. "I'm done," Sokka said with resignation as he stuffed his boomerang away.
"Good," Zhao said with a cold smile. Sokka didn't resist as the soldiers grabbed him and pushed him roughly towards a pillar. With chains supplied from somewhere, the soldiers tied Sokka, Touya and Shyu to the pillar. "Now let's—"
"I have you now Avatar!" yelled a high pitched voice. Princess Azula ran to the top of the stairs in a breathless tizzy only to look at the scene before her in shock. She looked at Sokka as if she couldn't believe he was in chains, before turning to the man with angry accusation in her golden eyes. "How did you get here before I did Zhao? Wei was supposed to confuse you with the smoke!"
The man, Zhao, chuckled and waved his hand towards Azula. "As if your silly little smokescreen could fool me. But you're in serious trouble, aren't you Princess Azula?" The angry look on her face shifted into something Sokka could only call terrified. Zhao saw it too. "Get her!" Zhao said. "I'm certain the Fire Lord will understand why you betrayed him."
The soldiers grabbed Azula's arms arms and yanked them behind her. "Two traitors in one day," Zhao said. "How extraordinary." Zhao turned to Shyu with slight confusion on his face. "I understand Azula's betrayal, but why did you help the Avatar?"
"It was once the sages' duty to serve the Avatar," Shyu said sadly. "It is still our duty."
Sokka glanced at the princess and he saw her gaze at Shyu thoughtfully. Zhao scoffed. "How moving, truly," Zhao drawled. "But it won't do you much good. Once the Avatar leaves that room, we'll capture him and you all will be taken to the Fire Lord in chains."
"How are we gonna get out of this one Sokka?" Touya asked with a sniffle. Sokka shook his head and Touya sniffed again. He wanted to comfort his little brother, but Sokka was still shaken from seeing that fire next to Touya's face. He didn't know how he was going to get out of the chains, but he knew that he was going to make Zhao pay. Sokka felt the chains rustle and turned to see Azula being fastened to the pole. "Don't say anything," she muttered to Sokka.
"Who's he?" Sokka asked, tilting his head to Zhao. Azula stayed silent, clearly torn between talking to her worse enemy and silently sulking.
"Commander Zhao," Azula finally said. "He's a stupid hot shot who managed to sleep his way to being a commander."
"Really?" Sokka asked, doubting Azula's story.
"He had to! There's no way the Fire Lord would promote Zhao unless he su—"
The door started to creak again and a bright light filled the room. Sokka closed his eyes against the light and he heard coughing as smoke filled the chamber. "Get to the door!" Sokka heard Zhao yell. "Unleash all your firepower when I say!" The soldiers rushed towards the door and settled into firebending poses.
"No, Aang!" Touya cried between coughs. The light begun to fade and more smoke wafted in the room. "Fire!" Zhao yelled. Concentrated streams of fire headed towards the doors and Sokka had to close his eyes. He had failed. He had lost Katara, he had almost lost Touya and now he had lost Aang. The only hope for the world had fallen in a fiery inferno. And he didn't even know how to waterbend yet.
A still hush fell over the chamber and on his left, he heard Princess Azula mutter, "You have got to be kidding me." Sokka opened his eyes and saw something that dropped his jaw. Standing just as majestic as his statue, was a faintly glowing Avatar Roku. He held a swirling mass of fire and with a hard gaze from his glowing eyes, he sent the fire out in a loose ring. Zhao, the sages and the skull faced soldiers got the brunt of Avatar Roku's powers and were blasted back. When the ring approached Sokka, he felt a stifling heat that stole all the air from his lungs, but he was mysteriously unhurt. The same couldn't be said for his bonds, which melted and freed himself, Touya, Shyu and Azula.
An ominous rumbling filled the air. "Avatar Roku is going to destroy the temple!" Shyu said worriedly. Sokka looked around and saw the pillars and wall start to crumble. "We have to get out of here!"
"Not without Aang!" Sokka said. He started to approach Avatar Roku when Roku melted the ground with a sweep of his arms. Lava burst from the walls and seeped through the holes on the floor. Roku took a deep breath, pulling in the smoke and ash from the air, and disappeared, leaving a very exhausted Aang. Sokka leaped over a hole and lifted Aang into his arms. "Don't worry Aang," Sokka said as he ran towards the stairs. Everyone had already left, except for a frightened looking Touya.
Sokka grabbed Touya's hand and dragged his brother and friend down the crumbling temple stairs. Still figures decked in military uniforms lay on the stairs, serving as morbid obstacles. "Sokka..." Touya said worriedly.
"Let's go," Sokka replied stonily as he stepped over another body. Touya didn't say another word and Aang was too out of it to pay much attention to his surroundings. Touya's apprehension was palpable, but Sokka just clutched his brother's hand tighter and made sure they reached the first floor. They left the temple in one piece, although the same couldn't be said for the temple. As the trio was halfway to the beach, the temple crumbled on itself in a fiery mass of lava. "I did that…" Aang muttered softly, and Sokka couldn't help but think that a temple had no place in the Fire Nation. Luckily for them, there were no soldiers in sight, making Sokka think that they had docked on the other side of the island. When Appa came into view, he was staring at the ruins of the temple with an almost sad look on his face. He let out a relieved groan when he saw Sokka, Aang and Touya run down the beach.
"Appa!" Touya cried, breaking from the formation and rushing to the large bison. "I missed you," he muttered while giving Appa a big hug. "Were you going to come save us if we didn't get out in time?" Appa let out an affirmative bellow. Sokka gave Appa a quick smile and pushed Aang into Appa's saddle.
"Sorry to cut the reunion short, but we need to go now," Sokka said insistently. Touya nodded and climbed onto Appa's saddle with Aang. "Get ready Appa!" Touya said.
"Not so fast," a deep voice snarled. Sokka whipped around and saw a disheveled Zhao storming towards them. "I will not accept this failure," Zhao said. "You won't escape me!" He sent out a large fireball right at Appa, Touya and Aang. Time seemed to slow down as a boiling hot rage strummed though Sokka's body and he clenched his fists. After everything this terrible man had done, compounded with the ordeals he'd been put through during the past few days, Sokka was in no mood to entertain Zhao.
A strange tranquility filled Sokka, complimenting the rage and he loosened. He didn't know what he was doing, but it felt right. His legs were firmly in the sand and his arms were wide and loose. With a heavy push, Sokka threw his arms towards the fireball. A large stream of water followed his arms and doused the flames immediately. Zhao's eyes widened almost comically as the water hit him and pushed him back. Sokka gasped and looked at his hands in shock. He whipped to look at Touya, who looked just as surprised.
"We were supposed to get them all!" Zhao screamed from the ground. "This isn't possible!" Zhao slipped on the wet sand as he tried to get up.
"Come on!" Touya yelled. Sokka snapped into action and heaved himself up onto Appa's head. "Yip-yip!" Touya cried from the saddle and Appa lifted into the air with a sweep of his broad tail. Sokka grabbed onto the reigns tightly as they soared above the clouds and away from the Fire Nation. Zhao's scream of rage was small and insignificant to the revelation that the trio faced.
"Since when could you waterbend?" Aang asked in a soft voice.
"I don't know," Sokka replied, looking at his hands again. "I don't know. I had no idea."
"Well that's okay!" Touya chirped. "Now all three of us can learn waterbending together!" Touya grinned at Aang, who grinned back, and Sokka, who gave a weak smile back.
"Now we have to go to the North Pole!" Touya said cheerfully. Sokka almost giggled before he realized something.
"Where did Momo go!?" Sokka yelled. Touya and Aang wildly looked around for their lemur friend. "Did we leave him in the temple!?" Aang cried. He dug into their packs, calling for Momo.
"Nooooo, Momo's gone!" Touya wailed as he burst into tears. Sokka reached over to give Touya a hug, but white furry ears stopped him. Momo popped out from within Sokka's shirt and trilled confusingly.
"Ah-" Sokka stuttered. "How did you get in there without me noticing?" Sokka asked Momo. Momo blinked large green eyes and climbed out to jump onto Touya's lap. Touya blubbered for a few more moments before he huddled Momo to his chest.
"I thought you were dead!" Touya cried. Momo squawked and squeezed out of Touya's grip. He jumped back to Sokka and dug into his shirt. With a triumphant purr, Momo brandished the hat that the wrinkly sage was wearing. Momo plunked it on Touya's head and jumped into Aang's lap.
"I think that hat looks really good on you Touya," Sokka joked.
"Yeah, it really brings out your eyes," Aang snickered as he scratched behind Momo's ears. Touya pouted and crossed his arms. He opened his mouth to say something, but settled for pouting and scooting into his own little corner of Appa's saddle.
"Let's just get to the North Pole," he muttered.