Chapter 28: The Library

Hey guys! Yes, I'm finally back! It's been over a year I knoowww, and I have no good excuse besides 'life' and lack of muse. But I am not dead! And neither is this story, so hope you guys enjoy!


"There's…nothing here." Sokka observed bluntly as he looked around us. Aang had set us down near the desert because he said he wanted to show us something. So far, all he did was sit down and pull out a flute.

"Actually, there's a lot under here. There's hundreds of-."

"Sh! I know you can see underground but don't ruin the surprise." Aang insisted, interrupting Toph with a wide smile. I crossed my arms.

"I'm assuming this has to do with all the little holes in the ground." I pointed out. He just shushed once again before beginning to play single notes with his flute. My eyes widened in surprise as a little prairie dog rose up with each note to sing its little heart out. Okay, I had to admit that was pretty cute.

"Hah, I'm putting together an orchestra!" Aang cheered. Katara giggled behind her hand while Sokka scoffed.

"Orchestra huh? Well, la dee da." He offered sarcastically. I elbowed his side.

"Let the boy dream. I feel like singing animals would be a big hit." I said with a shrug. For some reason it just sounded like something that would work. At least for a little bit. Just as Aang went to blow another note Sokka walked up and plugged the instrument with his finger.

"This is great and all, but don't we have more important things to think about? We should be making plans." He insisted. I groaned. What a downer.

"We did make plans. We're all choosing mini vacations!" Toph reminded with a smirk. It was mostly Katara's idea. She didn't want to overwork Aang. Toph and I were just always up for a fun time. I don't know if stopping to see prairie dogs was really a 'vacation', but I'll take what I can get.

"We don't have time for vacations!"

"I'm working as fast as I can to master the elements! I'm training with Toph and Katara every day. I'm working my arrow off!" Aang countered with a surprisingly effective pout. His childish face works in his favor.

"Yeah, what's wrong with having a little fun in our downtime?" Katara added as she walked up to put her hand on Aang's shoulder.

"Nobody likes a try hard Sokka. Sometimes you just have to relax for a little bit and smell the impending doom." I said, putting my hands on my hips. For some reason he didn't seem to like my little pep talk.

"Oh ha ha, you're so hilarious. But even if Aang does master the four elements, what are we supposed to do next?! Just walk up to the fire lord's house and knock? We need a map. We need more intelligence!" Sokka shouted as he glared at all of us.

"I think you're the only one who needs to worry about 'finding more intelligence'." I laughed out. He made it too easy. I dodged a playful nudge from Katara in her attempt to be the responsible older sister.

"He said it not me. I'm just agreeing." I could practically feel the burns Sokka was trying to inflict with his glares. Someday he would learn to appreciate my support. Ignoring him, Aang walked up to Katara with a map of the nearby areas.

"It's your turn Katara! Where do you want to go on your mini-vacation?" He unfolded the map in front of her. I looked over her shoulder as she considered her options. There weren't a whole lot of places nearby considering it was a desert.

"How about the Misty Palms Oasis? That sounds refreshing." She said, pointing at the little ice image on the map. It sounded pretty cool. Pun not intended. Aang grinned as he looked down at the parchment.

"Oh yeah, I've been there. It's a pristine natural ice spring, and I usually don't use the word 'pristine'. It's one of nature's wonders."


"Must've…changed ownership since I was here…heh." Aang chuckled nervously as we stared at the sad little area. It was basically barren except for a couple sand huts and the main ice block in the center. It was smaller than Appa and obviously in the process of melting down.

I flinched as the sign to the 'oasis' crashed to the ground behind us. Okay, the place was a bit more run down than I expected. Well I suppose that's to be expected after over a hundred years.

As we walked through the center I glanced over at a wild dog that was licking the centerpiece of ice. I was pretty sure that wasn't helping the whole melting situation.

At the back of the oasis stood a larger sand hut with a cloth curtain in front of it. It seemed to be the main hub. We walked over there and as we approached I examined the three figures standing off to the side of the building. They were sand benders it seemed.

They didn't exactly have the best reputation in other parts of the world, known as bandits and a clan of thugs. Of course they weren't all like that, but a large percentage was. I cautiously passed them while watching in the corner of my eye.

Toph and Aang both entered the hut but just as Sokka was about to, one of the sand benders spat at his feet. My face skewed up in disgust as Sokka glared heatedly at the offender who just smirked widely with missing teeth. Katara quickly pulled our brother inside before anything bad could really happen. I just gave the sand men a pointed glare before following the others inside.

Inside was basically just as dead as the outside. A few patrons lay sleeping around tables. There was a bar of sorts that a man with long swords stood behind. Another man wearing a large, straw hat stood in front of the counter.

"One mango please." He ordered. With a few swipes that impressed me, the bartender slipped a bowl made of ice onto the counter and finely chopped up a mango before scooping it into the bowl. He grabbed a nearby pitcher and poured some juice of sorts into the bowl as well before plopping a straw and a tiny umbrella into the now finished drink.

He did all this with his swords might I add. Cool, but pretty unnecessarily complicated.

The hat guy grabbed the drink, tossing a copper coin onto the counter. Sokka smiled slightly as he stared at the drink.

"I don't see anything wrong with enjoying one of those fruity beverages as we plan our strategy." With that he pushed through us before rushing to the bar. I rolled my eyes before following the others further into the room.

"Oof!" Aang grunted as the hat guy suddenly ran into him, spilling the mango drink down the front of his shirt. The man went to apologize but Aang just waved him off.

"Don't worry, I clean up easy." And proceeded to air bend the juice off of him. If there were any fire nation nearby we would be dead. I glanced around nervously, but nobody stood to attack us so I assumed we could continue on peacefully for once.

The man gasped in awe, "You're a living relic." He stared at Aang with a wide grin. Huh, weird way to refer to someone.

"Thanks, I try." Aang shrugged. I don't think he really understood the statement either.

"An air nomad, right in front of me. I'm Professor Zei, head of anthropology in Ba Sing Sei University. Now tell me, which of the Air temples do you hail from?" Zei grabbed Aang's arm, examining it closely as he began to question him. He even pulled out some weird metal contraption and began measuring his head.

"The southern temple."

"Oh splendid! Now what was the primary agricultural product of your people?"

"Uh, are fruit pies an agricultural product?"

"Oh truly fascinating, that's one for the journal." He hummed, pulling out said journal and beginning to write in it. This guy was a bit off. Or obsessed, take your pick.

"So…professor, you're obviously a well-traveled guy. Do you have a more current map? Ours seems to be a little dated." Sokka interjected in curiosity with his fruity beverage in hand. The professor pulled himself away from his notes with a smile.

"Certainly, here let me get it." He reached around his bag and pulled out the rolled up map before handing it to Sokka. Grabbing it, Sokka quickly lay it on the nearest table and spread it out and examining it.

"What no fire nation? Doesn't anybody have a good map of that place?" He groaned out in exasperation. I shrugged.

"It's not like it's a widely spread thing. Most fire nation aren't going to be selling maps of their home base to other nations." I sighed out. It would be way easier if they did though.

"Wow, you've made a lot of journeys out into the desert." Katara observed as she pointed at all the lines drawn out. The spread far into the desert, but they didn't seem to have the goal.

"All in vain I'm afraid. I've found lost civilizations all over the earth kingdom, but I haven't managed to find the crown jewel, Wan Shi Tong's Library." He waved his hands in a grand gesture. Toph and I shared a look of disbelief before she turned to him.

"You've spent years walking into the desert looking for some guy's library?" She questioned with a smirk. Books were obviously not one of her favorite things.

"This library is more valuable than gold little lady. It is said to contain a vast amount of knowledge, and knowledge is priceless." He explained sagely. While I agreed that knowledge is important, this guy spent years trying to find a library in a desert to answer his questions instead of I don't know, actually exploring and trying to answer them himself.

Sure libraries make it easier, but I think it would've been more fun to explore things yourself. Toph's smirk faded to an unimpressed look of boredom.

"Mm, sounds like good times." The professor, oblivious to her sarcasm continued on.

"Oh it is! According to legend the library was formed by the great spirit Wan Shi Tong and his foxy assistants." At that, Sokka zoned in with a smirk.

"Oh, so he has some attractive helpers huh?" He asked. Ew, men. Katara rolled her eyes and pushed Sokka's head away.

"I think he means that they actually look like foxes Sokka." She glared. Zei nodded to the both of them.

"You're both right, they're handsome little creatures. Wan Shi Tong and his helpers collected knowledge from all over the world and compiled it into this library for mankind, so that we might better ourselves." He stated, pulling out a sketch of the grand library. It looked huge.

"So if this place has books all over the world do you think they have info on the fire nation? A map perhaps?" Sokka questioned with a grin.

"I wouldn't know, but if such a thing exists it will be in this library." Zei nodded. I raised a brow at this.

"Um, I'm pretty sure there are other places we could find a map. Less…hidden places." I suggested. While the fire nation probably did keep their maps more under lock and key, there had to be some leaks to be found. These would at least be easier to find than an ancient library that was hidden very purposefully it seemed.

Obviously if people couldn't find the library currently, that had to mean it was hidden by this Wan Shi Tong guy. It was originally made for mankind to access after all. Though with all that's happening in the world it's no wonder a spirit would want to cut human access off from it.

"But, we don't know for sure we'd find a map or even if it would be accurate. Aang, I believe it's my turn to choose a vacation. I wish to spend my vacation at the library!" Sokka struck a ridiculous pose, pointing his right hand up into the sky.

"Uh hey! What about me and Kai? When do we get to pick our vacation spots?" Toph huffed. I nodded in agreement.

"Toph, you gotta work here a little longer before you qualify for vacation time. And Kai…well, you're the youngest so I get to pick before you." He responded as he placed his hands on his hips. I glared at him as Toph mumbled at the unfairness of it all.

"Of course there's the matter of finding it. I've made several trips into the Si Wong desert and almost died each time. I'm afraid that desert is impossible to cross." Professor Zei sighed in defeat. Aang and Sokka shared a smile before turning to the man.

"Professor, how would you like to see our sky bison?"
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
After hearing the good news the professor basically skipped out of the oasis to see Appa. When I exited I glared as I saw the figures standing near Appa. The sand benders were approaching the bison with obviously bad intentions.

Quickly running up I thrust my fist forward, sending a wave of white fire at the sand benders and making them back off. A thin sheet of glass had formed on the sand to my surprise. Science.

"Sand benders, away from the bison!" Zei shouted out angrily. The sand benders slowly backed up reluctantly before filing onto their sand boat and sailing away with their bending. One of them locked eyes with me, glaring until the last possible second as they disappeared into the desert. I hoped they wouldn't cause us any issues later…

As I walked over to Appa, Zei suddenly appeared right in front of my face giving me a scrutinizing look. I felt as if I were some delicate piece in an art museum.

"A white fire bender, how intriguing. Your complexion isn't that of one who grew up in the fire nation however, it's darker though still could be considered fair. Tell me, were you raised elsewhere?" He questioned me, grabbing my hands and examining them closely as if they'd tell him why my fire was white.

"Um…yeah in the south pole." I replied hesitantly. I was honestly a little creeped out. Noticing my expression the professor backed up.

"Ah, I apologize I was a bit overzealous. White fire bending has never been seen before after all. At least, not documented." He explained with an apologetic smile.

"Yeah, there's some explanation for that I can give on the ride. But, you seem completely fine with me being a fire bender." I tilted my head in confusion. The professor just shrugged.

"I'm a scientist at heart. Observation is a key factor and obviously you bare no ill will. I'm more interested in the color of your fire than the fact that you can use it." I grinned at that, glad I was meeting more people who were okay around me than not. Though there's also the downside of him wanting to pick me apart. I guess there are all kinds of people in the world.

"Well, thank you. I should probably explain the fire I suppose now. What do you know about the spirits?"


After explaining the whole situation to the professor he became extremely interested in my story having never heard of something like this before. After loading up on Appa he spent most of the ride questioning me and drawing some of his own theories. I honestly couldn't answer all his questions, but I did my best. Annoyance was slowly on the rise however so hopefully we found the stupid library soon.

"Wow, it shouldn't be too hard to find something like this out here." Aang mentioned as he examined the sketch of the library. Sokka was looking over the desert with a telescope in hand. At some point he had used his shirt to fashion a sort of covering over his head.

The desert seemed endless underneath us, just waves and waves of shifting sand. The sun overhead, while not bothering me, was definitely getting to the others.

After what felt like forever, and after countless rock paper scissors games, Toph let out a groan. "Ugh, does this place even exist?!"

"Some say it doesn't." Zei mentioned cheerily. I turned to him with wide eyes.

"Um, that's kind of an important detail." I glared heatedly. If we were out here searching for nothing I was going to be very upset. That guy better keep his precious notes close to him unless he wanted them burnt to crisps instead.

"You couldn't have mentioned that before we left?" Toph plopped backwards onto the saddle with a huff. A few more hours passed of silence. Zei was writing his newfound knowledge of Azrita Zuras down and the rest sat around dying of heat. I leaned over to take a sip of water from Katara's pouch, my one saving grace.

As I went to set it down Toph's voice suddenly rang out. "There it is!" She exclaimed. I rolled my eyes and didn't even move from my spot. The rest all immediately turned to where she was pointing with excited expressions only to see nothing but endless sand. They turned back to her with unimpressed glares as I giggled in the back.

"That's what it will sound like when one of you spots it." She proceeded to wave her hand in front of her face with a mocking grin.

"I can't believe you guys fell for that."

"Shut up Kai."


"It shouldn't be this hard to find a large, ornate building from the sky." Katara sighed out as she stared out into the desert. I turned my head to her from where I was lying down.

"Like I said before, this was obviously hidden on purpose." I mumbled out. No one responded to that as Sokka suddenly pointed down to the right. I feel like I'm being ignored, rude.

"Down there! I see something." He announced in excitement. Aang brought Appa down to land next to some stone tower that stuck up out of the sand. It was a tall, white marble structure with absolutely no doorway to speak of near its base.

"This obviously isn't what we're looking for, the library is huge." Katara observed as she held up the sketch next to the tower. I looked at it with narrowed eyes. But, then what was it? I doubt large stone towers were just a normal occurrence in the desert.

A glint in the corner of my eye drew my attention and I turned to see what it was. A brown fox stood with a scroll in its mouth staring at me. We locked eyes and it almost seemed to bow its head to me before beginning to defy physics and run up the side of the tower and into a window at the top.

"That must've been one of the knowledge seekers! We must be close to the library." Zei announced gleefully. I shot him a look.

"Really? This is obviously the library. Why else would the little guy run inside instead of somewhere else?" I offered as I waved in the general direction the magic, and quite adorable, fox had disappeared in.

"She's right, this is the library. It's completely buried in sand except for this top point." Sokka agreed as he pointed at the said top on the sketch.

"The library is buried?! My life's work is now completely filled with sand!...Well, time to start excavating." Wasting no time, the professor pulled out a tiny hand shovel and began scooping sand away. I shot him a deadpan look. What type of professor was he again?

I watched as each scoop he dug was steadily filled by the sand around the holes. Does he not understand the workings of sand?

Toph walked up to the tower and slapped her hand against it. "Actually, I don't think that will be necessary. The inside of the library is completely intact and huge." She explained, pulling her hand away.

"That little fox thing ran in through a window. I say we climb this thing and see what's inside." Sokka insisted, but Toph just glanced away with a bored look.

"I say you guys go ahead without me." She added as she crossed her arms. I nodded in understanding. It wouldn't be the most fun experience for her after all.

"You got something against libraries?" Katara asked with a confused look. I looked around at them in exasperation. Okay, why did everyone keep forgetting Toph was blind? Is it that hard to remember?

"I've held books before, and let me say they don't exactly do it for me." Toph replied bluntly. Katara rubbed the back of her head in embarrassment as she shot the girl a small apology. Moving on, Sokka tied a long rope to his boomerang before throwing it into the top window and giving it an experimental tug.

Do I trust all our body weights on the rope? Heck no. Am I going to go anyways? Of course. I think we all need better senses of self-preservation.

He began the climb up with the professor closely following. Aang patted Appa's head.

"Don't worry buddy, I won't make you go underground ever again. You can stay out here with Toph." He said with a smile.

"I don't think he would fit through the window anyways." I added with a shrug before we followed the others up and through the window. As we began rappelling down into it I looked around in awe at the huge place. It was bigger than any mansion I had seen before and had an unearthly glow to it. Seriously how was there so much light in a place completely buried in the sand?

"Oh it's magnificent! The spirit spent no expense in designing it, just look at those beautiful buttresses!" He gaped. Sokka and Aang immediately began laughing. I locked eyes with Katara as we both sighed at them. So mature. Not that I'm much better, but I'm at least past the kindergarten phase of laughing at 'buttress'.

I decided just to take the expressway down. Jumping away from the rope, I carefully aimed myself at the passageway beneath and slowed myself with fire just as I neared the floor. I landed gently and waited at the bottom for the rest to join. Aang followed my example and just jumped down as well.

As soon as he touched the ground Zei began to go off about the 'beauty of the mosaic' designs and all that. I just zoned out as he went on and on about the imagery and 'symbolic genius' of it all. A rustling noise registered behind me drawing my attention to a moving shadow in the corner.

Quickly I grabbed the professor's arm and dragged him behind a pillar at the other end of the walkway. The others followed and similarly hid behind other pillars. Footsteps slowly approached the area we had been in before slowing to a stop in the middle. I cautioned a glance around the pillar and had to hold back a gasp.

Standing there was a giant owl. What the heck? He looked at the rope we entered on before doing a 360 head turn to examine the room. Okay…that was super creepy, never do it again. But cool party trick I suppose. His head stopped as he faced our direction.

"I know you're back there." His voice rang out, echoing off the library walls. Aang hid further, but Zei held no reservations as he just ran out there and introduced himself.

"Hello, you must be the great spirit Wan Shi Tong! I am professor Zei, head of anthropology in Ba Sing Sei University." He grinned widely, showing no fear. The rest of us trickled out from behind the pillars to join.

"You should leave the way you came, unless you want to become the stuffed head of anthropology." He gestured to the stuffed animal heads on the wall nearby. The professor rubbed his neck nervously. This owl was seriously messed up. Though he might be getting revenge for all the stuffed owls in the world.

"Are you the spirit who brought this library to the physical world?" Sokka questioned as we stopped in front of the owl. If it was possible, the creature shot us the most unimpressed look ever. It's pretty hard to read the beady black eyes and pointed beak face.

"Indeed, I am Wan Shi Tong, He who knows ten thousand things. You are obviously humans, who by the way are no longer permitted in my study." He announced with a glare.

"What do you have against humans?" Aang asked meekly from the back. Considering this guy was the wisdom spirit I figured he had the right to have a lot against humans. We weren't always the most intelligent beings that's for sure.

"Hmph, humans only ever use knowledge to gain the edge against other humans. Like that fire nation fellow who came years ago, looking to destroy his enemy. So, who have you come here to destroy?" Wan Shi Tong leaned closely into Sokka's face, staring him down.

"Uh, what? No, we're…we're not here to destroy anyone! That's not our thing." Sokka chuckled nervously. I furrowed my brows. Was it really smart to lie to the wisdom spirit?

"Then why are you here?"

"Uh, knowledge for…knowledge's sake?" Sokka shrugged very unconvincingly. I almost groaned and smacked my face.

"If you're going to lie to an all knowing spirit, you could at least put some effort into it." The owl stared unblinkingly at us.

"What?! No I'm not lying, I'm here with the Avatar! He'll vouch for me." Sokka proceeded to throw Aang under the bus, pushing him in front of the spirit.

"Uh, yeah I'll vouch. We will not abuse your knowledge good spirit." Aang and the others bowed in promise, but I just stood in the back with my arms crossed. It felt wrong to promise something I knew we were going to break. We were planning to abuse his knowledge after all to get an edge on the fire nation.

Having spirits in me made it feel even more wrong to lie to one of their own.

"Hm…very well I will let you peruse my vast collection. On one condition, prove yourself as scholars. You have to contribute some knowledge." He insisted. I was doubting his 'all knowingness' if he fell for that measly lie.

Zei approached first with a large book in his hands. "Please accept this tome as a donation to your library." He bowed.

"First edition, very nice." The owl actually looked impressed. With a wave of his arm…uh wing, he took the tome as Katara approached.

"I have an authentic water bending scroll." She displayed it as I glanced over. Was that the one she stole a while back? Does the owl want stolen goods?

"Oh, these illustrations are quite stylish." He accepted with another wave. Aang hesitated for a second before snapping.

"Oo, I know! Ta da!" He presented the wanted poster of himself proudly. The spirit stared for a second before accepting the parchment.

"I suppose it counts." He said hesitantly. Sokka approached next with…a piece of string?

"Oh great spirit, check this out!" He then proceeded to tie it into a very loopy knot. We all stared in silence for a second.

"It's a special knot! That counts as knowledge." Sokka insisted proudly. He looked like a child wanting a piece of candy.

"You're not very bright are you." Wan Shi Tong deadpanned. Oof, get burned by an owl Sokka. Still, the owl took the knot reluctantly. Next I approached as Sokka moved to the side to pout. The owl glanced down at me as I stood empty handed.

"Hm…I sense spirits about you child. A stronger presence than I feel from the Avatar." The owl observed as he looked intrigued. I shrugged.

"I suppose the knowledge I have to offer is an update to any tomes you might have on Azrita zuras. I'm currently the vessel of the spirits Agni and Vayu." At that the owl's eyes widened slightly.

"Truly? It has been some time since I heard of the last attempt to merge directly in a human, unlike the connection the Avatar holds. I believe the last one died before the merge could fully be established, but you live. I'll have to add that. Vayu has always been a friend of mine, you will always be welcome here child." He nodded his head to me before turning to fly down to through the darkness below us.

I looked down to where he had disappeared before turning to the others. "Guess Vayu got me the VIP pass."


We spent the next hour perusing and going through the large collection of scrolls and books. Zei had quite the little book fort around himself while Aang was examining an image of an ancient lion turtle.

I had managed to find a small section holding the available information on past Azrita zuras, or spirit warriors as some scrolls referred to them. I was the first really successful merge, but since Wan Shi Tong was a spirit himself the information also gave me insight into the point of view from other spirits during this whole situation and the information they had on it.

"Huh, I guess the spirits tried to make a spirit warrior during Kyoshi's time too. The person they had chosen got really sick and died though before they could really attempt it. Apparently that's why they merged with me when I was a baby instead of later. It's also easier on the human body rather than having the shock of a spirit suddenly merging later. Having spirits in me enforce my immune system." I informed Katara who was listening with intrigue.

"That's pretty cool. It also explains why you only got sick a couple times growing up and only when you fell through the ice." She hummed before reaching to grab another scroll. I saw the label on this one and instantly grabbed it before she could, hugging it to my chest. She shot me a confused expression.

"Uh sorry, I just…wanted to read it first." I shrugged, trying to give her my best reassuring smile. She seemed slightly suspicious but chose to let it go and grabbed a different scroll. She walked a little further away to read it and I let out a sigh of relief before pulling the scroll up.

Life Force of Azrita Zuras.

I opened it up to reveal exactly what I had expected. It was full of information explaining the short life expectancies of spirit warriors and some early deaths caused by the spirit merging. The one in Kyoshi's time didn't just die because of the merge, that just played a part in it. I considered burning the scroll before merely shaking my head and hiding it in the very back, behind other books where it wouldn't be easily found. It wasn't time to dig into that issue quite yet.

Walking around a corner I stopped as I saw the others running down a hallway. I hurried to catch up to them, falling in step with Katara.

"Where I we going?" I shot her a confused look as we turned down another path.

"Sokka found something about the fire nation's 'darkest day'. We're gonna check it out." She explained with an excited grin. I just nodded, a slight frown on my face. Well, I suppose this is why we came here. I just hope Wan Shi Tong will forgive us later.

"The stuff on the fire nation should be through here!" Sokka announced as we approached a doorway with the nation's flag above the threshold. The powerful smell of ash reached my nose as we walked through and I stared in dismay at the burnt remnants that lay there.

"So this is what the big owl was talking about. It's probably why he doesn't let humans in here anymore." I stated as I crossed my arms.

"Fire nation…" Aang sighed out, his head hanging. Sokka took in the scene slowly before collapsing to his knees.

"No, that's so unfair! Just when I think we're about to discover something turns out they beat us here a long time ago…I need to know what happened on the fire nation's darkest day." We all stood around in silence before a little chirp drew our attention back to the doorway. Standing there, on two legs might I add, was one of the spirit foxes.

"Uh…hi little fox thingy?" Sokka greeted hesitantly. I wonder if this fox guy is going to rat us out. The creature whined at us a little before turning and doing a little point stance with his body.

"I think he's trying to help? Either that or he's kicking us out." I said with a raised brow. The fox almost seemed to roll it's eyes at me for that before slowly beginning to walk away, whining at us once more.

"Okay, okay. C'mon guys let's go." We ran after the fox as it led us back towards the main atrium and through a different set of hallways. There was so much stuff in the library. It would take someone four lifetimes before they could even scratch the surface. We slowed to a stop in front of the biggest door I've ever seen in my life. It was gold and had a flower design etched into the front.

Our little fox friend disappeared into a small hole near the doorway. There was a second of silence before the entire thing let out a groan as the door slid away to reveal the fox standing in a large, dark room with a circular table in the center and a lever beside it. We all walked in as the fox run up and lifted its paws onto the lever, leaning forward to trigger it. Wow this was the smartest fox ever. I wanted one.

Instantly the entire room shifted. The ceiling shifted as a moving frame of the night sky slid into the place. The stars constantly moved as a bar with the moon slid over the sky.

"This room is a true marvel, a mechanical wonder! It's a planetarium that shows the heavens moving!" Zei exclaimed in excitement as he grasped his head. As he spoke the ceiling shifted again, turning to day with a metal bar with the sun in place.

"Uh, this is beautiful, but how is it helpful?" Sokka questioned as he stared up. Katara grabbed her chin in thought as she walked up to the circular table. Multiple circular dials lay on top with dates.

"Maybe we can use these dates to find something. Sokka enter in the date that was on the parchment you took." She pointed at his bag. Oh great, now we're knowledge thieves from the owl guy.

"Shh! Katara, not in front of the fox he's with the owl!" Sokka loudly whispered, holding his bag protectively. The fox just whined. I walked over and pat his head.

"It's okay boy, I like you." I smiled down at him. He was honestly so cute. Sokka pulled the parchment from his bag, glancing at the date before proceeding to adjust the dials accordingly. He walked over to the lever once he was finished and pulled. The ceiling shifted once more, turning to night then day.

"Wow, I gotta hand it to you Sokka. You picked the best mini vacation for sure." Aang said as he smiled appreciatively at the sky. It was pretty cool. Suddenly the room darkened, though it was still on 'day'.

"Hey wait, what happened to the sun?" Katara questioned as we all looked up. The sun dial was hidden behind the moon dial, completely covered.

"Great, you must've broken it." Aang grumbled out, frowning at it.

"Lying, theft, now vandalism? Not a good track record with the owl in the past hours." I sighed out.

"No, it's not broken. The sun is completely behind the moon…it's a solar eclipse! It's literally the darkest day in fire nation history. Now I get it! Something awful happened on that day, I don't know what but I do know why. Fire benders lose their bending on the solar eclipse!" Sokka yelled out excitedly, turning to grasp Aang's shoulders and shake him enthusiastically.

I caught Aang as he fell back from Sokka's abuse. He smiled at me gratefully as Katara stepped forward.

"That makes sense! I mean think about what happened to the water benders on the lunar eclipse. This is huge." She whispered in awe. I nodded, though less excitedly.

"Yup, sooo excited to lose my bending. But, it would be a good time to hit the fire nation." I sighed out. Maybe Agni could give me a boost or something for that day, I'd ask her later. The fox who led us here whined at us, walking up and leaning on its back paws with its arms up in a begging motion.

"Fine, you've earned it." Sokka smiled as he reached into his bag and tossed out a small treat we usually reserved for Momo. The fox chomped it out of the air before running away contentedly. I just hoped he wouldn't rat us out now that he was fed.

"We've got to get this information to the earth king in Ba Sing Se. We'll wait for the next eclipse then we'll invade the fire nation when they're totally helpless. Fire lord is going down!" It was a rousing speech and all that, but it was hard to focus on Sokka's words when I noticed the very large and very scary figure standing right behind him. I totally called it.

"Mortals are so predictable and such terrible liars." The big owl himself ground out as he glared down at us. I felt it would be a bad time to point out that he was the one who bought those 'terrible lies'.

"You've betrayed my trust, from the beginning you intended to misuse this knowledge for evil purposes." How does someone sound so monotone but also sound like a screaming mother.

"You don't understand, if anyone's evil it's the fire nation! They're evil and destructive. You saw what they did to your library! We need this information." Sokka announced with determination.

"You believe you're the first person to believe their war is justified? Countless others have come here seeking weapons, weaknesses, or battle strategies." Wan Shi Tong stated. It was pretty accurate, but some wars are necessary.

"We had no choice! Please, we're just desperate to protect the ones we love." Aang stared up at him with wide eyes. The owl just glared before turning towards me.

"And you, vessel of Agni and Vayu, I thought you would understand my desire to protect my knowledge from the hands of those who would use it for violence. Agni shares a similar dilemma." He stared down his beak at me.

"I do understand, but that's why we need this information, to stop the fire nation and end the cycle of needless battles. Otherwise the war will continue forever and countless people will die!" I stood my ground. This wasn't something I wanted to do, but it was something we needed to do.

"Hmph, you want to protect the ones you love? Well now I am going to protect what I love." He opened up his ginormous wings and began flapping. I covered my face with my arm as gusts of wind began pushing against all of us.

"What are you doing?!" Aang yelled over the winds. The flapping grew more vigorous.

"I'm taking my knowledge back. No one will ever abuse it again." He stated with finality. Sand began leaking through the ceiling as the whole building began to shake.

"He's sinking the building! We need to get out of here!" Katara announced as we all turned towards the exit.

"I'm afraid I cannot allow that. You already know too much." Wan Shi Tong proceeded to turn into the weirdest owl/dragon thing that was also the scariest thing I've ever seen. His neck elongated and points formed atop his feathered head. He sprouted a long tail and with his wings opened we now had a lovely look at his very sharp talons.

He suddenly snapped at us with his beak, his long neck allowing him to easily reach us. I screamed as I dove to the side. His beak cracked into the ground I had just been standing on.

"C'mon c'mon we gotta go!" Katara yelled at everyone as she grabbed my arm and we all booked it towards the rope we had entered on. Oh god now I wish I had paid more attention to where we turned in the hallways!

We ran back through the library searching for the exit to the surface with the demon owl on our tails. Honestly if the hallways weren't so narrow I'm pretty sure we'd already be dead. Glancing behind me I gaped as I saw Professor Zei standing in the middle of a bridge behind us holding a stack of books and staring the owl down.

"Oh great knowledge spirit! Please don't destroy your countless tomes!" Really?! He was pleading for the lives of some books?! Aang quickly stepped in, manipulating the air around the professor and pulling him back towards the group just as the owl's beak struck and missed. With a grunt Aang swept his staff back at the owl, sending a wave of wind that knocked him off balance and sent him hurtling down deeper into the library.

"Cry about books later, run now!" I pulled the man to his feet before turning to continue the run. This time Sokka stood still. I groaned.

"Sokka, we need to go before we end up like the stuffed animals on his wall!" I growled out. He just shook his head.

"No, if we leave now we'll never know when the next eclipse will be." He stood his ground.

"We can figure it out later!" Katara argued. I nodded in agreement. What point would having the knowledge be if we were just dead anyways?

"I'm sure there'll be a book or something we can find." I added with a shrug. He just shook his head again.

"But what if there's not? I can't waste this chance. Aang come with me, I'll need some cover. Katara get Kai out of here!" He ordered as Aang hesitantly walked over to join his side. Great that's cheating. He's using her protective older sister instincts against us. She glanced at me before turning back to nod at Sokka. Oh look, it worked.

Both groups turned away from each other before running away. "Good luck! Don't die!" I shouted over my shoulder. Suddenly the bookshelf next to us exploded as Wan Shi Tong screeched at us. I yelped and dodged the stones before increasing running speed. The professor dove to the side, separating from us as the owl dove at top speeds after me and my sister.

We jumped apart as a black tail suddenly slammed between us and locked eyes for a second before running in opposite directions. I glanced behind me as I rounded a bookshelf and saw that he was pursuing Katara instead. Uh oh.

The crashing noises died down as I quietly ran behind him and he slowed to a walk, looking around for my sister and Momo. I peeked through an adjacent bookshelf as his eyes darted around before suddenly locking onto a little striped tail. I smacked my forehead, quietly. Really Momo?

"At least I'll have one specimen to add to my collection." Shi Tong stated before launching himself at them. I pushed fire from my limbs, sending me up and over the bookshelf.

"Not so fast!" Spinning in the air I sent a fire powered kick at the owl face, connecting and sending him sprawling backwards and into more bookshelves. That wouldn't keep him down for long. Katara and I ran as fast as we could away from the fallen creature. Just as I expected he was quickly back on our heels and doing a terrifying serpentine motion through the bookshelves.

"Katara, there!" I gasped, pointing at the rope that was dangling from the ceiling. Our exit! We skid on the floor as we quickly changed our route and ran up to the rope just as the owl caught up to us. There was no way we could climb up with him right there. We turned around to face him.

"Your water bending won't do you any good here. I've studied southern style, northern style, and even swamp style. And your tricks won't work twice on me now, vessel." He growled out, slowly approaching us. Suddenly Sokka descended from the sky, dropped by Aang, and slammed a book on the top of Wan Shi Tong's head knocking him out instantly.

"That's called Sokka style, learn it!" He gloated victoriously staring at the fallen spirit. I followed my siblings as they ran up and used the spirit as a staircase to grab onto the rope. Katara pushed me to climb ahead of her and I followed Sokka's example, grabbing on tightly and beginning to ascend.

Suddenly Sokka stopped moving and I quickly stopped too so I didn't ram into his butt. See? This was a very tense situation. I would not laugh at 'butt'.

"Wait, Professor! Let's go!" He yelled looking at the man. I looked down below and saw him just sitting calmly surrounded by books as sand began to pile up beside him.

"I'm not leaving. I can't! I've spent too long searching for this place. There's not another collection of knowledge like it on earth. I could spend an eternity in here." He smiled peacefully. I glared at him.

"You'll die in here! What good is knowledge if you die before you can even learn anything?!" I yelled at him. What was the point? He just smiled at me and it made me even more upset. Katara shoved me from below.

"Just go! We can't convince him." She said regretfully, urging me forward. I gave the professor one last look before beginning to continue upwards. I don't think I'd ever be able to understand his choice, but I couldn't stop him. The rope suddenly shook around violently. I looked below and saw that Wan Shi Tong had woken up and grabbed the rope with his beak, whipping it around.

I held on tightly as the rope dislodged and we all began to fall. Even if I could get us to land safely there would be no point, we'd be killed.

"Aang!" I screamed out as the ground approached. Just as I had shouted I felt a tug on the rope and my arms nearly ripped out of their sockets as Aang began to carry us up and out of the tower with his glider.

Katara yelped as the owl nipped below her and I grimaced as a rock slapped me in the face from above. The exit window grew closer and closer before finally we were launched from the building. Aang landed roughly into the sand, which meant crash landings for me and my siblings.

I grunted as I slammed into Sokka's stomach and he just let out a whine. "Sorry…" I muttered out. A big crash sounded behind us and a gust of sand blew by my face as the library suddenly finished its descent and Toph fell onto her backside.

I slowly rose, rubbing my head as we all stood. Where the library once stood was a circular crater in the sand. Toph sat right by it, huffing and shaking her hands out. It was obvious the delayed sinking was thanks to her.

"We got it! There's a solar eclipse coming! The fire nation's in trouble now!" Sokka grabbed Katara and I and pulled us into a group hug while jumping excitedly. I smiled and hugged him back. It did feel like we came out on top for once. I turned back towards Toph, running up and kneeling next to her.

"Thanks for the assist Toph, pretty sure we'd be buried alive if it weren't for you." I smiled as I pat her shoulder. She just stared into the sand in front of her, holding her head between her hands and leaning her elbows on her knees. She looked miserable. I stared at her in confusion before glancing around. Where was Appa? He was waiting out here with…Toph.

My head whipped back towards her. Oh no. Aang's footsteps began to approach, he looked around in confusion.

"Hey…where's Appa?" He questioned and turned towards Toph. She didn't even turn around to face him. She just closed her eyes and shook her head sadly. I placed my hand on her shoulder before turning with a concerned face to look at Aang.

His eyes widened in horror, tears beginning to form in his eyes as his staff dropped into the sand. He just lost his best friend, the only remainder of his home. I walked over to him as he collapsed onto his knees into the sand with his eyes still wide and tears dripping off his face. I wrapped my arms around him and held him close as I locked eyes with my siblings over his shoulder. This wasn't good, but not only had we lost our friend.

We lost our only way out of the desert.


And that's a wrap on chapter 28! Again sorry for the extremely long delay. I'll try to be better next time!


Review Responses: Sorry if I miss any of your reviews, some of them for past chapters come in later so I get all mixed up. If you want me to respond to your reviews make sure they're on the most recent chapter! On another note, thanks for all the reviews in general!

Djmegamouth: Thanks glad you enjoyed the chapter! I'm excited to write more instances with them later. I've got a lot of ideas about how to run things out. Hope you enjoyed this chapter too!

Mogor: Um, well here's another chapter! Not quite as soon as I had hoped but hey at least it's still alive. I'm glad you're enjoying the story!

Onyx: Yeah, I would not have wanted to be on that bison ride with them together. And I agree many people wouldn't have hesitated to remove a threat like Azula, but I believe she deserves some redemption I suppose. Anyways, glad you enjoyed the way that turned out! Sadly Kai did not get to kick their asses this chapter but don't you worry, retribution is coming.

Guest: Yes I do agree, the title worked well for both situations that were happening. Her encounter with Azula definitely wasn't a walk in the park. I have some ideas on Kai's future, but I don't want to spoil anything prematurely ;). You'll just have to wait and see, though I will say that no she will not be going back to live at the South Pole.

Watertribegirl: Well, now you know what happens this chapter. Sorry the update wasn't that soon though. Also sorry if Kai wasn't as funny in this chapter, there were some heavier things happening in the background. Anyways, hope you still enjoyed the chapter!

017: Well I won't say no to any shipping, tho I'm sorry to say those two will not be ending up together. I like the strong friendship between them and I think Aang needs a more sister figure than a girlfriend. I hope you still enjoy the story though!

Avengersbleach lover101: Thank you, I'm glad you're loving everything! I'm trying to stay on canon while also trying to incorporate Kai as a character. I'm glad you're enjoying it!

Idon'tknow: I knowwww I'm sorry that it's been 84 years I will try to do better!


Next Chapter: The Desert