Zuko dropped onto his knees next to her. He couldn't hear the sounds of battle around him as he stared at her face. She looked like she was sleeping. Her hair fanned out from her head, but blood was seeping through the gaps between the black strands.
Gently, he lifted her in his arms, careful to keep her head level. He had been right there. She had been within in his reach. And now she was gone. He had been right there.
"No… No, no, no! Why? Why, Seiya?" He looked at one of his hands. It was smeared with blood. Everything was surreal. This had to be a dream. It had to be.
The chamber began to rumble. Zuko looked up as streams of dirt and rocks rained down. The ceiling was starting to crumble. Kang was trying to bring the chamber down on them. His madness had peaked. He was trying to kill them along with himself.
With both arms, Aang was holding the chamber up. He kicked a boulder at Kang, knocking him off of his feet. Then he gave a final push and sealed the ceiling back into place. But as he lowered his arms, Zuko could see from the way his shoulders sagged that he was wearing thin. Even as the avatar, the fight was too much. Their enemy never seemed to tire despite his wounds, and the air was slowly choking them.
"Zuko, we have to get out of here!" Aang called to him. "There isn't enough time to—." He cut off as a boulder slammed into him, but quickly flipped back onto his feet.
Zuko didn't want to leave Seiya, but he knew what Aang said was right. He laid her gently back on the ground. Resting a hand against Seiya's forehead, he whispered, "I'll get Kani out of here. I'm… I'm sorry." He stood up and turned towards the door. Kani was waiting behind the threshold. He headed for her. Suddenly, he heard a cough behind him.
She heard their voices. They whispered to her, comforting her. Telling her she wasn't alone. She wasn't scared anymore.
There was a blurry figure looming above her. She heard his voice. "Seiya! Can you hear me?"
"Zu…" She could hardly make a sound. "… ko?"
"I'm right here. Let's get you out of here." She felt his arms lift her up. The pain in her neck was unbearable.
"No," she gasped, gripping his arm tightly. "Just go. Take Kani out of here."
"Are you crazy? I'm not leaving you!" Zuko argued.
"Zuko…" Her voice cracked. A tear rolled out of the corner of her eye. "It's okay. I'm already dead. Go, and live." She looked up at his face and could finally see it. "Tell Kani and Koru," she pleaded. "Tell Arlei and Iroh. Tell them that I love them all so much." She placed a shaky hand on his cheek. "And I love you too. You are the greatest friend I could have ever asked for. It wasn't your fault. Please remember, it was never your fault."
Seiya closed her eyes. She could hear them all. She wasn't alone. "Avatar," she whispered, hearing the voices of the others speak with her, "you know what has to be done. Protect them. And the living ones on the surface; get them away from the inn." She knew the avatar would hear them. He'd understand.
And Zuko did too. He hugged her tightly, pressing his face against hers. "Good bye, Seiya," he murmured. "I won't ever forget you." She was lowered onto the ground. Zuko ran, and Seiya felt the ground shaking with his every step.
"Kani, we need to go! Aang!" she heard him shout. Slowly, she rolled over onto her stomach and propped herself up. Her head felt heavy. It hurt so much.
"We're here with you," they whispered. The other girls. They would help her.
The chamber shook as Aang collapsed the tunnel over the door, blocking the entrance with rubble. Kang blasted some of the rock away. They gave away to more debris. Before he could blast the rest away, a thin hand grabbed his ankle. One of the corpses had latched herself onto him. Kang kicked the hand off and destroyed the body with a burst of rock.
Suddenly, multiple hands grabbed him. All of the girls had converged to him. Though their bodies and limbs were weak, there were enough of them to hold him back.
"What is this? Get off!" Kang tried to earthbend them away, but they held his limbs still.
"Be our savior. Be his doom," they whispered to Seiya. She was pulling herself up, defying the beckoning of death within her waning body. For her whole life, she had defied death out of fear. But she was no longer afraid. "End this monstrosity."
Finally, she teetered onto her feet. She felt her hair brush against her neck. The corpses pulled Kang around to face Seiya. When their eyes met, he looked horrified. She glared at him, anger from years and years of abuse burning in her eyes. But she refused to let him be the last thing she saw. Closing her eyes, she conjured up their faces.
Kani and Koru, their eyes bright and full of love. Arlei, with her rare, gentle smile. Iroh, speaking kind words and finding ways to make her laugh. And Zuko, in the days that shouldn't have ended.
Then Seiya heard his voice. He spoke softly to her, like he had the day he taught her to firebend.
"Take a deep breath. Feel the heat of your breath warming in the pit of your stomach? That's your inner energy building up. Now, when you exhale, try to direct that energy through your arm and out of your hand. Don't be afraid, Seiya. When it's all over, I'll be here for you."
She opened her hand and felt the warmth.
Zuko glanced back at the now-empty inn. All of the serving girls had been evacuated to a few blocks away. He and the avatar were clearing out the streets around the inn when it happened.
There was a boom and the earth quaked. Silent Falls Inn folded in on itself as the ground underneath it collapsed. A thick ring of dust puffed out from the building as it crumbled into the crater. Zuko grabbed Kani and shielded her as the cloud passed through them. When it all settled, he looked towards the crater. He knew it was over. She was gone.
Just like in that moment seven years ago, he couldn't believe it. He didn't want to believe it. The reality of it all suddenly came rushing to Zuko. She didn't have to die. She didn't deserve to. She had just been an innocent girl who was forced into the darkest corners of life. Then, just as life was cruel to her, death came and seized her too soon. And like seven years ago, he missed her.
Zuko looked down when Kani broke away from him. The little girl walked slowly over to the crater. Zuko hurried after her. She stopped at the edge, looking silently down at the sunken earth.
This little girl had lost her mother, just as Zuko had. But this was different. He realized that Kani knew that from her wordless gaze into the crater. She knew exactly where her mother was. There was no need for any searching. Zuko didn't know what to say to her. He crouched down next to her.
"Mama was a hero, wasn't she?" Kani said softly.
Her words resonated within him, triggering a rush of emotion. "Yeah." His voice shook as his eyes became glassy with tears. "She was." Zuko closed his eyes, the tears spilling down his face.
He felt Kani's hand on his shoulder. "Mister?" she asked. "What's wrong?"
"She told me it wasn't my fault," Zuko said, dropping his head into his hands. "But it is! I made her a promise and I broke it! It was always my fault, and I'll never be able to tell her how sorry I am!"
Kani gently shook Zuko. "Don't cry, Mister. She doesn't want to see you sad before she goes." Zuko looked up at her. Kani was smiling at something off in the distance. The little girl lifted her arm and waved. Zuko looked, but saw nobody.
"What are you looking at?" he asked.
"It's Mama," Kani answered, "and she's standing with another Fire Nation man on the other side of the crater. He looks nice. They both seem really happy to see each other." She looked back down at Zuko. "Arlei says I can see things that grown ups can't. But she's really there. And she wants to see you smile before they leave."
Zuko wasn't quite sure if he was being fooled by a child's wild imagination or not. It didn't matter. "I'm sorry," he mumbled. "But now isn't the time to smile."
"If it helps, I could tickle you," Kani offered, wiggling a finger under Zuko's chin and giggling. Zuko swatted her hand away. But as he listened to the child's giggle, he thought he heard another soft laugh. No one else had that gentle, musical laugh but Seiya. Zuko looked out again to the other side of the crater. Whether Kani had made everything or not didn't matter anymore. He pictured her there, her hair down against her back and her neck bare and free. And if Lu Ten was there, Zuko knew he would make sure she never knew suffering again. He smiled.
"Bye, Seiya."
A strong gust of wind blew against him. It pushed back his hair and caressed his face like a pair of hands. As the wind whistled past his ears, he could have sworn he heard her.
"Bye, Zuko."
All our times have come
Here but now they're gone
Seasons don't fear the reaper
Nor do the wind, the sun, or the rain
We can be like they are
Come on baby; don't fear the reaper
Baby, take my hand; don't fear the reaper
We'll be able to fly; don't fear the reaper
"(Don't Fear) The Reaper" by Blue Oyster Cult
Addendum: Moving corpses grabbing onto you. That's pretty horrifying. Oh well, reap what you sow.