Book One: Sand

Chapter Twenty: The Battle at Ba Sing Se

"You thought you could stop me, didn't you? You thought you were going to save the day, but unfortunately, this time the bad guys win." Vaunon had his hand around Keana's neck. The other sandbenders all held the gang and the soldiers to prevent them from attacking. It took a few of them, but they finally had Luna tied up.

"I waited for this moment for a while now and I finally get the chance to have Ba Sing Se, and soon the entire Earth Kingdom." Keana looked directly into his eyes as she struggled to breathe.

"Let her go, you're killing her!" Tenkuu yelled out as he struggled to break from the sandbender's grip.

"Let us go and we'll have a real fight," Qwuan shouted, trying to break free.

"Any last words, Avatar?" Keana's eyes began to close as her vision started to blur. "Of course you don't have anything to say." Vaunon began to laugh as he tightened his grip.

"But I do." Everyone turned their attention toward the archer standing not to far from them, aiming his arrow at Vaunon directly. Some of the sandbenders went to attack, but stopped immediately as Shasyu spoke out. "Take one more step, and this arrow goes clean through your leader's head."

"You don't have the guts," said Vaunon, loosening his grip on Keana.

"No? Try me." Shasyu pulled the arrow back further. "Get away from her." Vaunon hesitated, but took a few steps away from Keana.

"Hey, what about us?" yelled Qwuan.

"Shush!" said Jing.

"What if you miss? It would be a shame that you thought you could save the day, wouldn't it?"

"Trust me, I'm a pretty good shot," said Shasyu.

"Then do it," said Vaunon with an evil grin on his face. Before he knew it, Shasyu let go of his bow string as it flew directly toward Vaunon. Quickly moving out the way, the arrow hit a sandbender through the chest.

"Ah!" he shouted in pain and surprise, collapsing to the ground.

Vaunon sent a sand wave at Shasyu, who jumped out the way. Jing took this distraction as an opportunity to earthbend the sandbender away from her. The other sandbenders came for Jing, but she stomped the ground and levitated a platform of earth and tossed the sandbenders from the wall. Jing freed the others from the sandbenders' grip.

From there, the Earth Kingdom soldiers engaged in battle with the sandbenders.

Tenkuu blasted an air wave at a sandbender who built up a sand wall to block. Qwuan bended a column at them, but they shattered the earth. The sandbenders sent a small sandstorm at the gang. Tenkuu twirled his nunchaku at the sand, stopping it and Qwuan jumped from behind him and bended the sand into a boulder, sending it toward the sandbenders. The sandbenders converted the boulder back into sand and attacked again.

Vaunon ran toward Shasyu with a blade of sand covering his hand, and swung at him. Shasyu dodged Vaunon's attacks one by one. Shasyu then moved back far enough to shoot his bow. Vaunon blocked the arrow with his sand blade and ran in for another attack.

"Keana, get up." Jing held her up as her she began to regain consciousness.

"What?" Keana quickly got up and looked around, noticing her friends battling the sandbenders. Keana looked over to Vaunon and saw Shasyu struggling to keep him back. "Shasyu, he came after all!" Keana's eyes lit up with joy.

"Are you ready to fight, Keana?" Jing asked. Keana bended herself a sword made of earth, and looked at Jing with determination in her eyes. "I'm ready."

Shasyu leapt out the way as Vaunon stabbed the ground with his sand blade. Landing on his back, Shasyu looked up at him as he held his blade over him. Just as he went to stab Shasyu, Keana blocked his attack with her sword. Keana then swung the sword at him as he jumped backward. Jing helped Shasyu up from the ground, as they all turned to face Vaunon at once.

"Well this hardly seems fair," Vaunon said, pointing his constantly rotating blade at them.

"Since when do you care about fairness?" asked Keana.

"Hm, true." Vaunon admitted, extending his sand blade to swat at them. Keana sliced the sand in half as it approached them. Shasyu launched an arrow at him, but it was blocked with a sand shield. Jing sent a column his way, as did Vaunon to her. The two columns collided, creating a dust cloud. By the time Jing cleared the dust cloud, Vaunon was gone.

"Push them back men, do not let them back to the walls," yelled the general. The soldiers had managed to fight the sandbenders down the walls and away from Ba Sing Se. The soldiers were putting up a good fight, but how long could they hold out against the relentless sandbenders? No matter how hard the soldiers threw them back, they kept coming. It was like they were fighting restless warriors.

"Okay, we've taken care of these guys, let's join the others." Qwuan and Tenkuu had just fought of a dozens sandbenders who were preventing them from assisting Keana.

"Yeah let's go catch up," Tenkuu agreed.

"Not so fast." The two boys turned to face the opponents behind them.

"Not you two again," Qwuan said, getting into a fighting stance.

"Who are these guys?" asked Tenkuu, pulling out his nunchaku.

"No one important," Qwuan replied.

"Aw, that hurts my feelings," said Arba dramatically.

"This is gonna hurt even more!" Qwuan punched the earth, sending a fissure at the sandbenders, Arba and Peigu. Peigu took the hit, but Arba jumped out of the way. Tenkuu blew a tornado at Arba right before he landed from his jump. Arba fell backward, hitting his back on the ground. Peigu sent sand columns as Qwuan guided them out of the way easily. Tenkuu used his nunchaku to slice the air, sending an air blade at the two. Arba whipped up a sand shield, but the air penetrated right through and blew him backward. Peigu bended some sand spikes and shot them toward Qwuan. Tenkuu blasted the spikes as Qwuan launched two boulders at Peigu. The sandbenders converted the boulders into sand and sent it back at them. Tenkuu created an air barrier as Qwuan tunneled underground. As Arba and Peigu went to strike Tenkuu, Qwuan grabbed their feet from underneath them and pulled them down till only their heads were sticking out from the ground.

"Where did he go?" shouted Shasyu. The gang checked their surroundings, but he was gone.

"No, we lost him again." Keana stomped the ground in anger, causing a small quake.

"Oh, I wouldn't leave just yet." Vaunon appeared behind them sending a full blast of sand at them. The gang got knocked backward, hitting the ground hard.

Vaunon whistled loudly as the gang picked themselves up. Suddenly a vulture griffin flew from behind the walls. Vaunon hopped on it and looked back at the gang. "Try and keep up." The vulture griffin took off into the air.

"Luna, quick, get over here!" Luna swiftly ran toward Keana. "Hold still, girl." Keana bended earth around Luna from her chest to her back. This way, Keana could magnetize her feet to Luna's back. Keana jumped on Luna and bended water from her pouches as tentacles, and Luna took off into the air.

"What should we do?" Shasyu asked, watching Keana fly away.

Jing looked over to Shasyu, smiling. She was relieved that he had returned and kept his promise. "Let's help out the others."

Shasyu turned his attention toward her. "Right, let's go." Jing bended a platform and Shasyu jumped on as the two slid down the wall of Ba Sing Se. As they approached the ground they noticed Qwuan and Tenkuu helping the soldiers fight off the sandbenders. Shasyu and Jing ran past Arba and Peigu, who still had their heads sticking out of the ground.

"Hey let us out!" Arba yelled.

"Yeah, we're sorry!" shouted Peigu. Shasyu and Jing stopped and turned back to face them. Shasyu ran up to them and looked down at them with a smirk on his face. "That's it, now all you have to do is get us out." Arba and Peigu wiggled their heads, struggling to move their bodies. Shasyu bent down and blew sand in their faces.

"Ow, my eyes!" Peigu yelled in pain. Jing and Shasyu laughed as they ran off to battle.

"Stay steady Luna," said Keana as she focused her attention on Vaunon. As Keana slowly caught up, she whipped water toward him, but the vulture griffin dodged the attack. Vaunon shot sand from a pouch he was carrying. Keana absorbed the sand in her water tentacle and sent the mud at him in a rush, the wind blowing her hair loose and wild. Vaunon took a full turn backward toward Keana. Surprised, she flew head-on toward him. Keana froze her tentacle into an ice blade as Vaunon's sand blade made contact with hers. The two flew through the air, exchanging blade swings.

Vaunon began heading back toward the walls. He only seemed to be playing with Keana, rather than trying to fight her full-on.

"Why won't you stay still?" Keana thought to herself. "Luna, full speed ahead!" Keana pointed her finger forward as Luna quickly moved toward Ba Sing Se.

Shasyu was shooting at the sandbenders as they blocked his every shot. He was finally out of arrows. Jing slowly lifted her hands upward as the ground below a group of sandbenders began to rumble. The ground began to crack as they panicked. Jing's hands were now fully up in the air and so were the sandbenders. Jing had levitated a huge platform of earth below the sandbenders. She had left a huge creator in the earth as she tossed the platform and it crashed back into the dirt.

As both Keana and Vaunon approached the wall, Keana became impatient. She jumped from Luna, using the earth around Luna's back, to launch herself further. Vaunon looked back to notice Keana flying through the air. He tried to steer his vulture griffin, but Keana used her last water tentacle to wrap around him and pull herself in. Vaunon panicked and decided to jump. Because Keana was attached to him, they both fell together, falling toward the walls. Keana let go of Vaunon to use her water to catch herself from falling. Vaunon also did the same with sand. The two landed safely on the wall as their giant birds landed next to them. Although Luna was twice the size of the vulture griffin, the other bird was as ruthless as its master, and it had way more fighting experience.

"This is it Vaunon, I'm finishing this off right here." Keana glared into his eyes with hatred, as he stared back.

"You know, I never expected such strength from a young girl."

"That's what everyone keeps saying, until they're flat on their face." Keana grinned as she took a fighting stance.

"Even if you take me down here, I'm just a small piece to a big puzzle," Vaunon said as he readied himself to fight.

"What do you mean?"

"There are many of us. Not just sandbenders, but firebenders, waterbenders, and even a few warriors."

"What do you all want? You can't all rule the nations at once." Keana began to grit her teeth.

"Keana, we have a much bigger plan than that." Vaunon's smiled grew wider as that same maniacal look entered his face again. "But you'll have to defeat me to find out what." Vaunon covered his legs in sand so that he resembled a snake.

Keana bended on her rock armor and ran toward Vaunon. His vulture griffin ran on ahead to attack Keana, but Luna tackled the vulture griffin. Luna and the vulture griffin began falling toward the ground. The vulture griffin caught itself and flew upward. Luna followed after it. The arctic falcon tried grabbing hold of him, but he smacked her with his beak. Luna screeched in pain as she clamped onto to his wing. She flew in a circle and tossed the vulture griffin. The smaller bird caught balance in the air again and rushed toward Luna. The two grabbed each other's talons and were flying toward the ground. Just as they approached the ground, Luna turned so that they were flying along side the earth. The vulture griffin pushed down on Luna, scratching her against the rocky ground. Luna smacked the other bird with her giant wings to get him off. They were now lying on the ground, trying to get up. They looked directly at each other as they raised their wings in the air. Suddenly they both charged toward each other, bumping heads, as the vulture griffin fell unconscious. Luna stood straight up in pride as she let out a mighty screech. Even though she was victorious, Luna had damaged her left wing very badly.

"Sir, we can't hold them back any longer. They're too strong!" yelled a soldier.

"We won't back down until the last man standing!" The general hurled a wave of earth, pushing the sandbenders back.

"We have to defend our home!"

"For the Earth Kingdom!"

"Charge!"

Various soldiers shouted out with pride and determination. The general smiled as his soldiers fought valiantly.

Vaunon threw himself at Keana, as she attached her feet to the ground as the sand wave collapsed over her. She jumped out from it as Vaunon formed the sand into a blade again. He ran for Keana, as she created an earth sword and a wrist shield. Vaunon swung at her, but she blocked his attack. She swung back as he dodged her. Their blades collided repeatedly, showing that they were a match for each other. If someone didn't do something different, the battle would never end.

Keana slid backward as her sword and shield shattered. Vaunon grinned as he came for her with his blade high in the air. Keana sent a boulder at him as he sliced it in half, but what came next he didn't expect. Keana removed her rock armor and wrapped it around Vaunon's body, tightening his arms by his side and his feet together, so that he could not bend.

Keana stood above, creating a sand blade of her own. Vaunon watched in fear. He would be defeated by his own weapon. "I'm going to finally end this, and you'll never have to hurt anyone again." Keana raised the blade high in the air, hesitating to finish him off.

"Well? What are you waiting for?!" Vaunon didn't want to stall his end. If was going to be done, then he wanted it over quickly.

Just then, Shasyu and Jing arrived on the wall. "Wait!" Shasyu shouted. Keana turned to face him.

"Shasyu, what are you doing up here?"

"Keana, I know he's done so many unforgivable things, but killing him is not the way to end this. It's not in you character to do this."

"But, he'll keep going. He won't stop until everyone is destroyed." The sand blade around her arm and slowly fell to the ground.

"Why kill him when you can lock him away? This way he can suffer for everything that he's done, without you having to get blood on your hands," said Jing. Keana looked back at Vaunon, who seemed to be sweating and breathing heavy. She turned her attention back to her friends.

"I guess you're right. Besides, this battle is over anyway." Keana took a deep breath as she walked over to Shasyu and Jing for a hug. "Thanks, you guys."

While they turned around, Vaunon took slow calming breaths as the earth around his body converted into sand. He quickly stood up and faced them. "I'd hate to be the one to break up this touchy moment, but I have no intentions of going to prison." The gang quickly turned around to notice that Vaunon freed himself.

"That's it, you're not getting away this time." Keana and Shasyu ran for Vaunon. Vaunon bended the earth below them into sand as the section of the wall collapsed.

"Ahh!" Keana screamed as she fell from the wall.

"No!" Shasyu jumped after her, as Jing bended an earth pillar, knocking Vaunon unconscious.

Shasyu pulled his arms in, so that he would dive down quicker. Keana reached her hand out as Shasyu grabbed it. He pulled her in closer as the two fell from the 400 foot wall of Ba Sing Se.

"Shasyu, I'm so sorry it has to end this way," Keana cried out.

"I'm just glad it ends with you!" Keana looked into his eyes as he smiled back at her. Her eyes began to tear as they fell for what seemed like an eternity. Shasyu slowly leaned his head toward Keana as he placed his lips on hers. Keana took no hesitation on this one. She closed her eyes as they came closer and closer to the ground. She felt like her heart stopped completely and sank into her stomach. This warm feeling suddenly traveled through her body.

Heavy winds began picking up around them. Sand and earth started circling them as her eyes began to glow brighter than ever. As the two approached the ground they began to slow down. Soon they were levitating a few inches above the ground, as Shasyu pulled back. He opened his eyes to see hers glowing. "Oh, no." Shasyu stepped backward as Keana continued levitating. Sand formed around her and covered her entire body. The sand created a pillar that lifted high into the air. It eventually took form of a desert snake.

The snake reached higher than Ba Sing Se itself. Vaunon regained consciousness to find a 430 foot snake hovering over him. The reaction on his features was like he stared death in the face, and there was no escaping this one.

The soldiers below ran for cover in fear of the snake. Sandbenders deserted the mission and headed back into the desert. Qwuan and Tenkuu took cover with Luna. Jing watched in amazement to what looked to her to be the greatest form of earthbending she had ever seen. The snake glared Vaunon dead in the eye as he was too petrified to move. The snake quickly opened its mouth as it came down on Vaunon, swallowing him into the sand. The sand snake began to collapse slowly back down to the earth as Shasyu watched from a distance. He ran closer as the sand died down. The last thing he saw was the hand of Vaunon reaching out for assistance and slowly disappear underground, never to be seen again. Keana suddenly popped from underneath the sand as the glow of her eyes dimmed. She looked over to Shasyu and collapsed as he caught her in his arms.

Later that day, Keana and the gang were taken into the royal palace of Ba Sing Se, where King Shao had something to say to them.

"You're lucky we're even listening after what you did," Tenkuu said aggressively.

"About what happened... I wanted to apologize for what happened before." Everyone looked at each other confused. "All I wanted was for the nations to come together. I was sick of the wars and discrimination against each other, because of where you are from. I went about it all the wrong way, and I apologize for that." Shao walked up to Keana and bowed to her. "What you said before was right. I can't force the nations to live as one, but I have to do my best to help."

"I'm glad you understand that now, but you still tricked me into almost marrying you," Keana said, folding her arms.

"I apologize for that too." Shao stood up off his feet. Keana smiled as she forgave him.

"That reminds me, this belongs to you." Keana took off the Water Tribe necklace that he gave her and handed it back to him. "I don't think I'm ready for this yet." Keana looked back at Shasyu, who turned his head.

"I also called you here for something else," Shao added.

"What could it possibly be now?" Jing asked.

"I have information of your tribe." Keana's eyes shot wide open.

"My tribe? They...What do you know?" Keana asked anxiously.

"They stopped by here, in Ba Sing Se, before leaving to the North Pole."

"So they made it after all." Keana felt tears of joy, as she felt relief in her heart. "I have to go see them."

"But how are you going to get there? Luna's wing is damaged," asked Tenkuu.

"I guess we'll have to wait till she's healed," Keana said, slumping disappointedly.

"Also, since you already mastered earthbending, it's about time you go learn firebending now," suggested Jing.

"Right, I did promise to take Shasyu back to the Fire Nation, after all."

"It's okay, no rush," he said, leaning against the wall.

"Right then, first to the Water Tribe, and then we head to the Fire Nation, so that I can begin my firebending training." Keana began jumping for joy as she hugged her friends.

"You all can stay as long as you need, and I'll have someone check on Luna for you." Shao bowed his head and walked off.

Later that night, Shasyu was standing alone out on the balcony, staring into the night sky. He closed his eyes as he thought about the journey so far and how strange it would be returning to the Fire Nation. He also thought about how cold it must be in the North Pole.

"Hey, Shasyu." Keana walked onto the balcony. He looked back at her and smiled.

"Hey."

"We've come a long way, haven't we?" she asked.

"We sure have."

"It feels like the journey is over, but it's actually just begun." Keana said as she breathed in the cold night air. Shasyu looked away from the sky and turned his eyes at the ground below.

"Shasyu, about what happened earlier..." Keana felt her heart beat faster as she prepared her question.

"About what?" he looked over to her.

"You know, when we were about to...when Vaunon collapsed the wall." Keana eyes began to wander as she started to rub her neck.

"Keana, what happened back there only did because I thought we were going to die." Shasyu looked back up at the moon.

"So then you didn't..."

"No. It didn't mean anything," he said bluntly.

"Oh. Well, okay, I just had to ask." Keana walked away with a disappointed look on her face.

"Well it seems Vaunon has failed me for the last time," said the mysterious waterbender.

"Don't worry sir, I won't fail you." Another stranger walked from the shadows.

"The Avatar is heading toward the Fire Nation, to find a teacher. I want you to stop her and end her." The waterbender looked out into the ocean of the deserted island. No one could tell, but underneath his mask he had the scariest smile anyone had ever seen.

"Very well, sir. I'll take care of her." The stranger walked over to the shore as the waves crashed into his feet. He looked up at the stars and shot lightning that lit up the night sky.

I can't believe it's over :(
Anyway I'd like to thank everyone who read my story and for all the reviews.
I'd also like to give a special thanks to "AvatarAiris, Connor Kent, EndlessBlack, and Luiz4200 for giving the most reviews and for reading since the beginning.
And thank you Ogro for editing half my chapters and helping my writing improve.

BOOK TWO: LIGHTING...coming soon...

Edited By: Ogro