(Author's Note, Part II) Well, I didn't want to post another one of these notes, but I did anyway. If any of you, my faithful readers, read the reviews as well, you saw that a person called 'graybear' has decided to stop reading my story. Once again, I take no offense. I'm just a little disappointed that, after sixteen chapters, he/she gave up what I wanted to be a great tale.

I believe I touched on humor in my last note when I mentioned that this is a 'dark future.' And as for my mysterious original characters, I tried to show that it was the characters around Sano and Kari who didn't know. Trust me, if I wanted it to be a shocking secret, parts of this story would be completely different.

Now, you all may wonder why I posted all of these new chapters at once. (Or you may not.) This is a Christmas gift, and I hope you enjoy. I won't be posting any new chapters until January '08.

Now, JustJos16 hit on a companion project I will soon be working on. I'm thinking of calling it "Tales of the Black Sun" or "Season of the Black Sun." It will essentially be a chronicle of the major, minor, and my own original characters during the time between the Day of Black Sun and ATBS. It should, hopefully, answer any questions about why certain characters have changed, and who my originals are in full depth.

Adversus solem ne loquitor.

Eighteen

Ryu was fighting, but he couldn't see his opponent's face. Whoever she was, she was incredible.

Ryu threw himself to the ground to avoid a savage burst that would have slit his throat, and kicked out, a flash of fire driving the figure back.

He rose, and began bending the way Sano had shown him, relentlessly attacking. "Who are you?" He shouted. The woman laughed harshly, and from the darkness, a dagger flew, pinning Ryu to the wall.

His mother stepped out of the darkness, and Ryu realized he was seeing her the way she once was.

Ryu screamed…

The prince sat up, and found himself staring into Sano's face. "C-cousin?" He asked.

Sano smiled. Alone, Ryu had been calling him and Kari that for days, glad to have them as his family.

"Get up, Ryu." Sano said. "There is no time to teach you to bend lightning, but there is a skill I can teach you that may be useful."

Ryu followed Sano onto to wide-open deck. The night shift greeted both of them before returning to their rounds.

"What I'm going to teach you is a way to redirect the lightning." Sano explained. "You have to feel the power flow into your body, but rather than let it destroy you, you must learn to guide it into a path through your stomach, and toward your target."

"Did you create this technique?" Ryu asked.

Sano laughed. "No. My father taught it to me. He learned it from his uncle."

"Iroh." Ryu said. "My mother has only mentioned him once before."

Sano knelt next to the prince. "Well, from everything I ever heard of him, he would be proud if the future Fire Lord was able to use his technique."

"Ozai!" Aang stepped through the door to the throne room, dropping his shattered staff.

"Avatar." The Fire Lord rose from the throne.

"The sun is covered, Ozai." Aang said. "You're powerless. Give up, and end this war."

Ozai laughed. "Hardly. Already the sun is beginning to return. You should have moved faster, Avatar."

He stepped forward, his hands burning, and Aang

Screamed, waking up. The Avatar shook, and left his room, walking out onto the deck. Sano and Ryu were there, meditating, and Mei was sitting on a cushion away from them, watching.

"Are you all right?" Ryu asked when he noticed the Avatar's presence. "You look pale."

"I'm fine." Aang replied. "Bad dreams."

Ryu nodded. "I had a dream last night. My grandfather was hurting my mother."

"I'm sorry." Aang said.

Ryu smiled. "Its all right. Yue told me that my Mom is all right."

"Yue?" Aang looked at the boy. "You…you speak with Yue?"

Sano opened his eyes. "Most nights. She's been guiding us to you. Now that you're here, it's our job to help you finally end this war."

Ryu looked at Sano, and the older bender nodded, continuing. "Its not common knowledge who I am, Avatar. It would cause problems if everyone learned that I'm the oldest."

"Why would that…" Aang stopped himself. Sano is older than Ryu, and many people would want him as Fire Lord. There would be in fighting, and anything they've planned would fall apart. "The secret is safe with me."

Sano smiled. "Thank you. Mother told me that you never learned Firebending. The best way to begin would be to learn how to meditate."

"Is that an invitation?" Aang asked. "I would be honored." He sat between them, and closed his eyes, trying to clear his mind.

"We've been here for three weeks." Sokka said, scanning the horizon. "We should have heard something by now."

"Oh please." Toph replied, lounging in the sun. "Who knows how long it will take to find Aang? Those kids could be searching for months."

"But the plan was for them to come here if they didn't find anything." Sokka grumbled. He spotted a man approaching. "Admiral?"

The man bowed slightly. "Sokka, we've finally finished all repairs to the fourth ship. We've got enough warriors trained as crew, and we've dried enough fruits to keep us going all the way to the Fire Nation."

"Thank you, Hayate." Sokka said. "Is everyone getting along well enough?"

"There have been a few squabbles, but nothing out of the ordinary." Admiral Hayate replied. "When do you think Sanosuke and the others will return?"

"Hopefully soon." Toph replied. "Before Snoozles goes nuts."

Sokka turned away from the sea, frowning, and watched the camp. Benders and soldiers were gathered all over, training. Fortunately the island was uncharted, so their explosive practice was safe.

A glint caught his eye, and he turned back to the sea. He picked up his telescope, and hunted nervously. He saw two ships approaching, but couldn't make them out. "We've got company!" He shouted. "Admiral, have the crews bring the ships farther into the bay. Toph, get everyone ready to fight if we have to."

Toph jumped up. "I liked the clumsy old Sokka better." She muttered.

"Spirit Island." Sano called out, pointing toward the distant shore.

Aang looked up at the crow's nest. "Why is it called that?"

"This is where I first dreamed about Yue." Sano replied. "I don't see anyone."

"Could they have left?" Ryu asked.

Kari shook her head. "Captain Syaron wouldn't do that. Maybe they never arrived."

Mei walked forward next to Ryu. "They are there. Likely, a lookout saw us coming, and everyone is hiding until they see who we are."

"Right." The prince said. "I'm worried. What if they won't help us?"

Kari hugged him slightly. "That's nothing to worry about. Sano can sway anyone. People love him."

"He would make a great ruler." Ryu said, looking up at his oldest cousin.

"Nah. He's too gullible." Yaeko commented, leaning on the rail. "I can't wait for some actual dirt under my feet."