Happy Christmas Break! I'm not fond of this chapter. Bleh.

Chapter 21- OUTNUMBERED

"Well, Mr. Boomerang, I'm sure that they're here. I may be standing on ice, but I can feel some vibrations in there."

Aang froze, eyes widening in horror. How could they have forgotten that Toph and Sokka were coming over for dinner?! He sucked in a deep breath, praying that they would just go away. Of course, such hopes were usually dashed within the wishing moments.

"They know we were coming," Sokka reasoned, and another knock resounded down the empty hallway.

Katara pleaded silently, almost hysterical. Shen, holding a long dagger, crouched down low, poised in the perfect position to deliver a fatal blow.

"Something's not right, Sokka," Toph ventured, hesitating. Aang held his breath, willing them not to barge in.

Just go, He thought, go see Appa . . . anything . . .

And, by a lucky chance of fate, they heard Sokka say, "Lets' go see if Appa is here, okay? If he is, we'll come back. If not, we'll come back in a half hour."

"All right," Toph's muffled voice agreed.

Katara deflated in relief, letting out a sigh that had been hammering at her lungs. Aang sighed as well, silently thanking the Spirits.

But, the heart of their problems was still present and very much real. Shen stood, grunting heavily, and plodded back into the living room.

Katara, all too aware of the dire situation that they were in, twitched when a sharp contraction twisted her abdomen. A small squeak escaped her throat.

"What's wrong with this one?" the man holding her grunted.

Hamma grinned distantly. "I've sent her into an early labor. Since waterbenders are blessed with the power of the full moon, I had to ability . . ." she drifted off, raising her withered arms to the sky.

Katara's keeper groaned in disgust, noticing the slick moisture that speckled the toes of his shoes.

Aang cried out. "Early labor?! Katara, are you all right?!"

Unable to resist, Katara whimpered. "No . . . It hurts, Aang—" she cut short when another contraction forced a strangled scream from her throat.

Aang scrunched his eyes shut, trying to block out Katara's cry. He took a shuddering breath, feeling utterly hopeless.

Shen chuckled. "Don't even think about going into the Avatar State. You will be dead as soon as your tattoos begin to glow. Then, the Avatar cycle would be broken . . . such a pity." Picking his nails with the sickly dagger, he laughed to himself in a self-satisfied manner.

Aang couldn't resist this pain. His very life was being destroyed in front of his eyes . . . It was as if someone was slowly cutting his chest open, reaching in the rip out the breaking heart within. Unbeknownst to anybody in the room, a silent tear hit the cracked stone floor.

Katara bit her lip, attempting to hold back the obvious signs that she was suffering. Was this how her new life was going to end? Would Aang, the Last Airbender, truly BE the last? Would their unborn child really never see the light of day, doomed to die within her mother's womb?

At that precise moment, more pain announced its presence. Katara became increasingly fearful when she felt Kya kicking at her stomach.

"It's okay," the young mother attempted to croon, "it's okay . . ."

Her voice broke.

"Your situation is anything but okay, waterbender," Shen laughed. "You're trapped. The Avatar is indisposed at the moment, trapped and unable to move. Your baby is in danger of dying in childbirth-"

"DON'T say that!" Aang snarled, striking an elbow into the face of his captor. The ugly man cursed, throwing Aang's head into the wall.

Shen chuckled. "You cannot deny it. You are in danger. I have planned and predicted every move you have pulled out. I—"

Suddenly, there was a crack, a thud, and the sound of a large body hitting the stone floor.

"That's called Sokka style . . . Predict it!"

The men holding Aang and Katara whipped around, dragging their prisoners with them.

What a sight it was. Shen was on the ground, a large goose egg looming over the eye on his forehead. Standing over his body was Sokka, holding his boomerang over his shoulder smugly.

"Sokka!" Katara screeched, writhing in pain. "Thank goodness!"

Sokka turned to his sister, glaring at the burly man who held her.

At that moment, Toph dropped into the fray as well, falling from the skylight in the ceiling. Sokka touched her arm reassuringly, drawing in front of her protectively at the same time.

"What a surprise," Hamma laughed, speaking for the first time in a while, "it's the entire crew! I have a favor to repay . . ." Waving her arms, she brought Sokka and Toph into a rigid stance.

"No!" Katara screamed, throwing her head back. She struck the man right in the nose. A rather sickening crunch followed, almost making her gag. But, it was a success. He fell to the ground, crying out in agony. Katara almost fell over as well, swooning with the pain in her abdomen. However, she gathered her power from the full moon and stood up tall. Raising her arms, she used bloodbending to pull Aang's captor away from him. Aang leapt as soon as he was free, using waterbending to freeze the man to the wall.

Katara nodded, turning to Hamma. The decrepit woman grinned maliciously, beckoning to Katara, who responded with a vengeance.

Aang could only watch as the bloodbending ensued. Gritting his teeth, he rushed to Sokka and Toph, who were in a precarious situation. Sokka, who was trying to resist with all of his might, held his sword mere inches from Toph's heart. She could sense it.

However, Aang couldn't reach them in time. Hamma, who had gained a hold over a contraction-ridden Katara, threw her arm to the left. To Aang's horror, Sokka was forced to lunge forward.

The cry of pain that Toph emitted almost shattered Sokka's spirit right then and there.