Chapter 21 return to Omashu
"I can't believe it. I know the war has spread far, but Omashu seemed untouchable." Aang said, as they looked at the city.
"Up until now, it was. Now Ba-Sing-Se is the only great Earth Kingdom stronghold left." Sokka said.
"This is horrible, but we have to move on." Katara said.
"No. I'm going to find Bumi." Aang said.
"Aang, stop. We don't know if Bumi's still…" Sokka started.
"What? If he's still alive?" Aang asked, turning to face Sokka, his face hardened.
"…around." Sokka said, not meeting Aang's eyes.
I know you had your heart set on Bumi, but Lin can teach you earthbending." Katara said.
"This isn't about finding a teacher. This is about finding my friend." Aang said.
Appa takes the group towards a lower part of the city, and Aang works to break open a sewage door.
"A secret passageway? Why didn't use it last time we were here?" Sokka asked.
Aang breaks the door off, and the sewage falls out and covers Sokka.
"Does that answer your question?" Aang asked, before he walked into the pipe. Lin follows closely behind him, then Katara, then Sokka.
Exiting the pipeway thru a manhole in the streets, everyone but Sokka escapes with little or no sludge on them. Sokka comes out, and is covered head to toe.
"Holy shit." Lin muttered, earning a strange look from Katara.
Katara bends some water from a nearby water well onto Sokka, clearing the sludge from him. Dripping wet, Sokka is then hit by a gust of air and quickly dried.
"Purple pentapus." Lin said, taking them off of Sokka's cheek.
Lin hears something, and pulls everyone into the shadows. They watch as two fire nation soldiers walk by on their patrol. When they leave, the group walks out of cover and continues to find Bumi. Katara grabs a red cap and puts it on Aang's head, to hide his tattoos.
The group ducked behind some cover, and observed the city.
"Let's find Bumi and get out of here." Katara said.
"Where would they be keeping him?" Sokka asked.
"Somewhere where he can't earthbend. Someplace made of metal." Aang said.
Walking thru the city, they come across a large chute, and see debris falling down it. Seeing people walking into the way of the debris, Aang and Lin destroy the debris, and look at the family they just saved.
"The resistance!" the mother shouts, pointing at Aang.
Mai then throws a hail of arrows at the duo, but Lin stops them with her metalbending, and fires them back at Mai, nailing her in the arms.
Mai ceases pursuit, as she's unable to fight. The gang flees and is soon captured by earth kingdom soldiers.
A torch is lit, and Aang sees a room filled with soldiers and family members.
"So, is King Bumi with you guys? Is he leading the resistance?" Aang asked.
"Of course not! The day of the invasion, we readied ourselves for battle. We were prepared to defend our city...to fight for our lives and for our freedom. But before we even had a chance, King Bumi surrendered." The resistance leader said.
"It doesn't matter now. Fighting the Fire Nation is the only path to freedom. And freedom is worth dying for." The leader said.
"Actually there's another path to freedom. You could leave Omashu. You're directing all your energy to fight the Fire Nation. But you're outnumbered. You can't win. Now's the time to retreat, so you can live to fight another day." Aang said.
"You don't understand. They've taken everything from us. We have to fight them at any costs!" the resistance leader said.
"I don't know. Living to fight another day seems like a good idea." A soldier said.
Others agreed with him.
"Fine. But there are thousands of citizens who need to leave. How are we going to get them out?" the leader asked.
"Suckers." Sokka said, coming up with an idea.
"You're all about to come down with a bad case of pentapox." Sokka said.
Everyone was covered with bruises from the purple pantapi found in good numbers. By the morning, the entire population is marked as 'sick.'
Walking towards the gate of the city, they walked as if they were zombies. Some fell over, pretending to die from the disease.
"Plague! Plague!" a fire nation soldier shouted.
Being herded out of the city, they make camp and wait for Aang to return. Aang does return with Floopsie, but no Bumi.
"We searched all over the place. We didn't find him." Aang said to his friends.
"We did a head count, and we have a problem." The resistance leader says.
"Did someone get left behind?" Katara asked.
"No. We have an additional person." The leader says, as Momo appears, dragging the baby child of the governor.
"Great." Lin muttered, and walked to see the city. Aang joined her, and the two sat in silence, but were interrupted when a messenger hawk appeared. Taking the message back to the camp, Aang reads it.
"It's from the Fire Nation governor. He thinks we kidnapped his son. So...he wants to make a trade. His son for king Bumi." Aang said.
The next morning, the gang makes final preperations to go back into the city.
"You realize we're walking into a trap." Sokka said.
"I don't think so. I'm sure the Governor wants his son back, just as much as we want Bumi. I have a good feeling about today." Aang said.
On a scaffolding, they faced Mai, Ty Lee, and Azula.
"Listen to me. If it turns into a fight, you guys run. Don't wait for anyone. Including me." Lin said to her friends.
"Are you going to fight them by yourself?" Aang asked.
"Yes." Lin said, squeezing Aang's hand.
Aang stepped forward, as Bumi was raised up by a crane. He was imprisoned inside a metal box, his face appearing.
"Hi, everyone!" Bumi said, appearing oblivious to his situation.
"You brought my brother?" Mai asked.
"We're ready to trade." Aang said.
"Wait a second. We're trading a two-year-old baby, for a power earthbending king. Doesn't seem like a fair trade." Azula said.
"Shit." Lin muttered, and readied herself for battle.
"You're right. The deal is off." Mai said, and Bumi was hoisted away.
Aang jumps high up the scaffolding to recue Bumi, and Azula follows. Meanwhile, Mai and Ty Lee face down Lin, Sokka, and Katara.
"We got to get the baby out of here!" Katara says.
"Way ahead of you." Sokka says, blowing on the bison whistle.
Mai throws her knives at the group, spreading them far so Lin won't stop them. Lin stops the blades aimed at her friends, but a knife grazes her neck, drawing some blood. In a state of alert, Lin fails to register the pain, her adrenaline flowing.
Sokka is knocked to the ground, as Ty Lee ambushes him from below.
"You take the one with the knifes." Lin told Katara, as she fired her cables at Ty Lee. The cable wrapped around Ty Lee's ankle. Ty Lee looks in surprise at Lin, never seeing her before.
Lin pulls the cable taunt and tosses Ty Lee around like a rag doll. Recognzing her as the greater threat between the pair, Lin pulls the acrobat closer and cuts her stomach open with her wrist knives.
"One to go." Lin said, as she and Katara face Mai.
"Get out of here. This won't take too long." Lin told Katara.
Mai throws another barrage of knives at Lin, and this time, several make it through. Lin gritts her teeth in pain, as she pulls a stiletto knife out of her left hand, drawing blood.
As the two face each other, Appa appears out of nowhere and blasts Mai back with a swipe of his tail. Getting on board, Lin spots Aang and Bumi.
"There's Aang!" Katara shouts.
Getting closer, Aang launches the coffin out of the chute. Unfortunately, they're moving too fast for Appa to catch, and Bumi lands on another chute, with Azula in pursuit.
"Fuck!" Lin shouts, as she watches the pursuit happen.
"Lin, can't you do something?" Sokka asked.
"And be shot at by her? Good luck with that." Lin said, knowing that any attempt to help Aang would be suicidal.
Azula is stopped, as Bumi raises a pillar of earth in front of Azula's path.
Bumi and Aang reach the bottom of the chute, away from prying eyes.
"Down there." Lin said, pointing to their location.
Descending to pick up the both of them, they saw only Aang and Momo. With a depressed face, Aang walked onto Appa, and they flew away from the city.
"It's okay, Aang." Katara said.
"No. It's not. Who knows if we'll see him again?" Aang asked.
"Aang, let this be fuel for your training. The sooner you end the war, the sooner you'll see Bumi again." Lin said.
"Hey, what's with the blood?" Sokka asked, seeing blood smeers on the saddle.
"Oh. Look at that." Lin said, holding her bleeding hand.
"Look at that?! Lin, you're bleeding from your neck and hand!" Katara exclaimed.
"Calm down, sugar queen." Lin said.
"Sugar queen?" Katara asked.
"Yes. Sugar queen. Besides, you and Aang are waterbenders, so I got nothing to worry about." Lin said.
"I want to try my hand at healing." Aang said, forming two blobs of water around his hands. Putting his left on Lin's neck and his right hand holding Lin's injured hand, he breathed in and out, and concentrated on healing Lin's wounds.
"Okay, I think she's healed." Katara said.
"Thanks you, Aang." Lin said.
"Before we leave, there's one more thing I need to do." Aang said.
That night, Aang snuck back into the city, and returned the mayor's baby child.