Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar
Recap Age: Nianzu: 15, Tau: 15, Sorin: 14, Ryu: 16, Aang: 21, Katara: 23, Sokka: 24, and so on.
Quick Author's Note: I will not be updating as frequently as I have been soon, due to the fact that I start my freshman year of High School this coming Thursday.
Chapter 10:
The Chosen One
Nianzu began packing his bag. It was time for them to leave Omashu, especially since now they had raised the library. Nianzu now knew that the gemstone was no normal gemstone...it held something that gave it the ability to do many things. So far, it raised had raised the Ancient Library of the Spirit World. Second, it glowed when it's power was being used. Now that they had everything they needed to complete their mission, it was time to move on.
Nianzu couldn't help but think about what had happened last night. He didn't even realize was he was doing until he had the upper-hand. True, the man was trying to mug him, but it was as though he knew when and where to strike. Of course he knew he couldn't let the man live, if the world knew there was another airbender living amongst them, they would be tracked around the world. As far as Judi knew, he was also an earthbender.
Nianzu was brought out of his thoughts when a knock came to the door.
"Yes?" He said gently.
Tau opened the door, leaning his free hand against the door frame, "Hey, you almost ready to go? We got a long walk."
Nianzu nodded, "Yea. First I gotta tell Judi something." Nianzu said.
"Alright, we'll wait for you outside." Tau said before closing the door. Nianzu smiled, in the last twenty-four hours he had grown to like Judi. He saw her as a good friend, someone who always wanted to listen to your story, and someone who likes to help you. Nianzu quirked his lip up in a half smile before leaving his room.
Judi lifted her head up and looked at Nianzu, "So, you think you might be coming back to Omashu soon?"
"I don't know." He shrugged. "I do promise we'll visit Omashu again though." he assured her.
She smiled, "Good, I hope you guys have a safe journey." she said, walking over to him.
He thanked her before heading towards the door. He opened the door and sent her a quick smile before walking out.
"We should get to the airship, let's just hope that no one found it." Ryu said, nudging Nianzu gently in the shoulder.
"We don't need hope. Something tells me that we have someone, or something helping us complete our mission." Nianzu said, his expression turning serious once again, the same way it had been before they reached Omashu. Ryu and Sorin exchanged questionable looks.
Aang found himself in the Spirit World, and as usual he was in the Swampy region of the strange world. He looked around curiously, now realizing that something was happening to the Spirit World. It's color had begun to fade, and Aang was clueless of what could be causing this. At first, he figured it had something to do with Nianzu. But Aang knew Nianzu couldn't have done anything to make this happen. This had something to do with the Spirit World's energy.
Aang began roaming around the strange world,trying to find any spirit that may be able to help him. Aang looked up to notice some kind of animal in a tree. It glanced at Aang began running away.
"Wait!" Aang called after it. Aang seemed to forget he couldn't bend when he tried jumping up into the tree, landing face down in the water. He planted his hands on the ground as he lifted himself up. He stared up into the tree to notice a man, but from his current spot he couldn't make out who it was.
"Who are you?" Aang asked the figure. The figure turned around and suddenly disappeared. Aang became very worried, the spirit world was bleak, and empty. No one nor nothing could be seen. Aang sighed and began walking, when he bumped into a man.
Aang looked at the man, "GYATSO!" Aang exclaimed, hugging the man.
Gyatso smiled, "Hello Aang. It's been a long time hasn't it."
Aang nodded, "A hundred and eight years. It's so good to see you!"
"Likewise...but Aang, there is something I have to tell you." Gyatso said, his smile now turning to a frown."Aang, you must leave now, before they-" Gyatso was cut off when a sudden burst of black light exploded next to him. Gyatso turned around, his expression full of fear. There were these black shadows flying in the air, their eyes glowing a deep red.
"Aang, RUN!" Gyatso ordered, before turning away and running.
Aang looked at the sky, ":Gyatso, what are those things?" he asked, pointing up at the sky.
Gyatso stopped running and turned to face Aang, "Those are the-" but before he could finish answering, the black light shot into his back. He screamed in agonizing pain, before simply turning into black smoke.
"GYATSO!" Aang shouted, his eyes bursting in tears. Gyatso's spirit was destroyed, and Aang felt like he just lost a part of who he was. He dropped to his knees, burying his head in his hands. His heart dropped into his stomach. It felt as if he was just stabbed in a million places.
"NO!" Aang exclaimed. He had shot up from his sleeping bag, his head dripping in sweat. He gripped the top of his head, trying to calm himself down. He took in a deep breath to try to control his rapid breathing. He felt like he had just lost someone close, just the way he did when he found out Hakoda had been murdered. Aang knew instantly that it was a dream, but it had felt so real. His own eyes were filling with water as he noticed Katara staring at him. She was worried, every time she found him this way she knew it was something that had happened in a dream. But he never told her what happened in the dream, mainly because he didn't want her to carry his own burden.
"Aang, what's wrong?" she asked, placing her arm around him as she pulled him closer.
"Nothing...it-it was just a bad dream." he told her, pulling away from her. He laid back down, facing the opposite direction of his true love. Katara looked away briefly, she was hurt that he didn't want her to be with him. She scooted closer to him, attempting to comfort him.
"Aang...tell me." She whispered gently in his ear. He shut his eyes, before turning over to face her.
"Gyatso. I dreamed about Gyatso." He told her simply. He didn't want to give her the whole truth. He had never had a dream like this one, and he was certain it couldn't have been a vision.
"What happened?" she asked him gently, placing an arm on his shoulder as she scooted closer to him.
"There were these...shadows. They were flying around the Spirit World, destroying everything they saw with these black lights. It was like everything they hit vanished into black smoke." He said, his eyes ceased watering.
"So the Spirit World was being attacked?" Katara asked, raising an eyebrow. She never thought that anything could harm the Spirit World. The Spirit World is the most peaceful place in the Universe, and no one ever thought that something could harm it.
Aang nodded slightly, "They had these, glowing red eyes and just when Gyatso was gonna tell me what they were..." Aang stopped, and even the thought of that ever happening to Gyatso made Aang tear up. He had already lost Gyatso once. If he had to lose him again, Aang would feel complete hatred of himself.
Aang looked away from her, "They destroyed his Spirit..." he told her, avoiding eye contact.
Katara's eyes widened slightly. She couldn't help but feel sorry for Aang. Even though it was a dream, it must of really hurt him on the inside. He had already last Gyatso once to the Fire Nation, and if he lost him again, Katara was sure he would do something he would regret.
He looked up at her, quirking his lip up in a half smile, "Goodnight." He said gently before giving her a gentle kiss on the lips. He wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her closer to him so that their foreheads touched. She smiled as she scooted closer to him, resting her head on top of his.
"Hurry up." Nianzu ordered. He crossed his arms, "If we keep going at this speed we won't make it to the Library before sundown." he said bitterly.
"Alright, Alright. These things aren't built for speed." Sorin said, turning a small valve next to the steering wheel.
"I know, but they go faster than this." Nianzu stated. It had been a week since they left Omashu. Ever since Nianzu woke up this morning, he had been focused on one thing: Reaching the Library. Today was the day of the Summer Solstice, the day that they would release the Sunachi, the day they would rid this world of Avatar Aang, and most of all it was the day that Nianzu and his companions would fulfill their destiny.
Nianzu gazed out the window,and they were now flying over the Serpent's Pass. "Can't this thing go any faster?" Nianzu growled.
"Sure," Sorin began before casting Nianzu a dark look, "If you want this thing to fall from the SKY!" he snapped.
Nianzu growled silently, "Lemme me see if I can 'enhance' this ship's speed." Nianzu said, motioning for Sorin to move away as he knelt down beside the steering wheel.
Sorin moved away, sending a dark look at Nianzu from behind, "Bastard." Sorin murmured under his breath.
Nianzu suddenly turned to look at Sorin, "What did you call me?" he asked questionably.
Sorin crossed his arms, "I called you a bastard." Sorin said calmly, "You've been like this ever since we passed Whale Tail Island. You've been bossy, and you act like you control us!" Sorin exclaimed.
Nianzu stood up and turned to face Sorin, "Say that again...I dare you!" Nianzu said, angrily.
"You're a bastard, alright! You do nothing but boss us around and tell us what to do! And I know why." Sorin explained.
Nianzu smiled sinisterly, "Oh do you?" He asked, crossing his arms.
"Yea, and it's all cause of your parents! When they found out you were an airbender...they hated you! They were non-benders and they expected you to be too. And when you were old enough they kicked you out of their lives! And now I know that that wasn't the only reason they didn't want you. They didn't want you because your a bossy, selfish, stuck-up little teenager who's obsessed with killing the Avatar!" Sorin exclaimed.
Nianzu growled loudly as he sent a strong, sharp current of air at Sorin, slamming him into the wall. Sorin groaned softly before getting up and taking a bending stance.
"So you wanna fight huh?" Sorin asked, wiping the small cut of blood that laid on his upper-lip.
Nianzu smiled before sending another blast of air at Sorin. Sorin quickly jumped into the air, sending multiple fire jabs at Nianzu. Nianzu waved his arms out in front of him, creating a wind shield that took out the fire. Sorin landed behind Nianzu as he attempted to round-house kick him, but hit nothing but air. Nianzu ducked as Sorin attempted to round-house kick him and grabbed his collar. Nianzu then flung Sorin using airbending into the control panels of the Air Ship.
Sorin groaned softly as he fell to the ground. He lifted his head up slightly to see Nianzu standing over him, "Nianzu, I-I'm sorry. I-I didn't mean it!" Sorin pleaded. Nianzu smiled at this as he picked Sorin up by his collar.
He dragged Sorin over to the wall, pushing his against it, "If you ever, and I mean EVER say anything like that again, I swear I will finish you off! Got it!" Nianzu threatened. Sorin nodded in fear. He figured he'd rather live in fear of Nianzu than to not live at all. He clearly couldn't take out Nianzu, not without help.
Nianzu smiled evilly, "Good...now get back to controlling the Air Ship." Nianzu ordered, letting go of Sorin's collar and pushing him over to the steering wheel. Sorin nodded and gripped the wheel of the ship.
A few moments later Ryu came into the room, "Hey, what was that racket?" he asked curiously.
"Nothing, we just had a malfunction." Nianzu said, acting like nothing had happened.
"Yea...I was trying to make the ship go faster and we had a malfunction." Sorin agreed. He was afraid that if he told the truth he would be killed anyway.
Ryu shrugged, "Alright, if you need me to take over I'd be happy to do so at any time." he offered.
Nianzu shrugged, "It's alright. But thanks for offering." Nianzu said. He couldn't risk having Sorin out of his sights at the moment. If Sorin were to tell anyone what he had just done, his entire plan could be destroyed. Or worse, he could be killed.
"Come on Appa, faster. We got to get there by sundown." Aang told his bison. Both him and Nianzu were going to the same place: Wan Shi Tong's Library. And Aang was determined to get there before Nianzu was able to, and after his dream last night, he wasn't sure what to expect when they got there.
"Aang, he's going as fast as he can." Katara assured him. She was leaning over to side of Appa's saddle, looking down at him.
Aang sighed, "I know. But we have to get there before Nianzu. If he gets there before us, there's no telling what he could do." Aang stated.
"Calm down, Aang. It's gonna be alright." Suki assured.
"We can only hope." Aang murmured under his breath. Ever since his dream last night he had been very superstitious. He would notice every little thing that could be linked to his dream. Katara climbed over to Aang, wrapping her arm around him. He smiled gently before wrapping his arm around her waist. She rested her head on his shoulder, trying to take his mind off of Nianzu.
"Aang?" she asked questionable, lifting her head up from his shoulder to meet the curious gaze he was giving her, "What were those things in your dream?" she asked.
Aang sighed, "They were like shadows. They had these, glowing red eyes. It's like everything they touched turned to some kind of black smoke." He told her.
She looked away briefly before saying, "Did they have fangs?" she asked simply.
Aang thought about it for a moment, trying to remember the creatures in his dream. In fact he was able to remember the creatures quite easily, which made his ponder in the fact that it might have been a vision. But he couldn't believe it was a vision, certainly Roku would have told him if something like that had happened.
"Yea, yea they did. They used these, black lights to destroy everything. It shot out of their hands like they were airbending." Aang explained.
Katara raised her eyebrows slightly, "Aang...those were the same things that were in my dream a few weeks ago." she told him simply. Now they were both worried, they had the same dream about the same things. She dreamed of Aang dying and her home being destroyed, and Aang dreamed of Gyatso being destroyed along with the Spirit World.
"Y-you don't think-"
"Yes...it's the only logical explanation." Aang interrupted her, "I don't know how, but those things are getting inside our heads. I don't know exactly what or who they are." Katara rested her head on Aang's shoulder, thinking about what had happened last week. His tattoos had been glowing a deep red, just like the creatures in their dreams.
She lifted her head up from his shoulder to meet his gaze, "Aang, remember last week when we we were making out at the pond?"
He didn't break eye contact, he only nodded her her to go on.
"You-I didn't take you out there so we could be alone." she told him simply, her gaze shifting down to her lap.
He gazed at her questionably, "Then why did you take me out there?" he asked curiously.
She brought her head up to meet his gaze, "I-I didn't. I followed you there, you took yourself there." She told him, seeing his expression change to where he looked very confused.
"I followed you...you seemed to be running away from me. And when I finally reached you, you looked like you were crossing into the Spirit World." she explained, pulling him closer to her so that his head rested against hers.
"What happened next?" he asked, gently.
"I walked over to you. But when I placed my hand on your shoulder, your tattoos began glowing a deep red, along with your eyes." she explained, stopped herself before she continued. She didn't want to believe what happened next. Nor did she even want to tell him.
"What happened next?" he asked curiously. He wanted to know, the way she was refusing to continue told him that something happened that he wouldn't want to here. Already he was feeling hatred against himself.
She shook her head slightly, "You began walking towards me. You seemed angry, and then you began gripping my arm. It was like you were trying to stop me from bending." she explained.
Aang looked away from her, "I-you know I would never do anything like that right?" he asked.
She placed a hand on his cheek, making his gaze meet hers, "I know." smiled slightly before hugging him tightly.
Sokka leaned over the side of the Saddle, "Um Aang, I think we found the library." he said simply. Aang and Katara suddenly broke away from their hug and looked over the side. And there it was: Wan Shi Tong's Library, completely raised. It was no longer buried. It seemed larger on the inside when they were last here, but it looked as big as it did inside as it did outside.
"That's my Air Ship!" Zuko exclaimed, pointing at the Air Ship that was parked right outside the Library.
"We gotta get in there, Fast. Before Nianzu is able to find the Planetarium." Aang stated.
Alright, I hope you all liked this chapter because it was very difficult to write. I also hope I showed you more about our new characters, Nianzu and Sorin. Anyway, I have a little announcement to make.
This story is coming to an end soon and it looks like the final chapter count is 16. Also, this is the end of the Saga. This story completes the saga, but don't worry. I am writing a new story that basically combines Long Lost Bender and A Love That Never Dies into one big plot. But to make thing's interesting the entire plot is going to be semi-different. I won't get into details yet, so please continue to read and review.