Susie's eyes blinked open, gazing sullenly at the stone ceiling. With a yawn and a stretch, she rolled over - only to be met by the sight of an empty cot. It appeared that the boys had yet to return from their fishing trip.

ALLEGED fishing trip. She corrected. She doubted there was any way Sokka and Zuko could ever coerce Calvin into going fishing.

She trudged along the ancient corridors, until she reached the main plaza where the rest of Team Avatar was sitting down to a hot breakfast. Aang and Katara were chuckling heartily at something Toph had just said. Ty Lee, meanwhile, was seated a little further away from the others. And there she sat, quietly eating her rice. Occasionally, she would offer a comment or reply to what someone said; but for the most part, she just stayed still and quiet. She still had a ways to go before she ingratiated herself to them.

Katara glanced over as Susie approached. "Good morning!" she cheerfully greeted as she served up another bowl of rice and offered it to the Earth girl.

"Mor'ing." Susie mumbled, accepting the bowl. After a few mouthfuls, she asked "I don't suppose the boys might've gotten back really early this morning and just… passed out in a hallway, somewhere…"

"I haven't seen them." Aang supplied. The others gave similar responses.

Susie chewed, thoughtfully. "I'm getting a little concerned." She confessed. "Shouldn't they've come back by now?"

"... It would kind of depend on what body of water they went to…" said Aang.

"And how well the fish are biting." Ty Lee supplied.

Susie's lips curled downward. "That's assuming they actually went fishing." she said in a biting tone.

Setting her bowl aside, Katara said "I understand you have your misgivings, but we have to trust that they know what they're doing. After all, it's not like Sokka would lie about this sort of thing."

From off to the side, there came a sudden noise like a humph. Susie turned to see Hobbes seated by the edge of the cliff, still staring out toward the horizon. He had barely moved from that spot since Calvin had left.

Come to think of it, why was Hobbes still here in the first place?! If Calvin had really gone fishing, wouldn't he have brought his best friend along? And then there was the tiger's peculiar behavior. Ever since the boys left, he had simply sat there, continually looking out across the landscape - watching for even the slightest hint of movement against the horizon.

Could it possibly be?...

"HOBBES." Susie said in a firm, authoritative voice. The tiger winced at the sound of his name, and turned to look at the girl staring harshly back at him. "Do you know something about this?!" she asked.

The rest of Team Avatar looked on in confusion. Did Susie really think she could milk information out of an animal?! But, to their utter bewilderment, when Hobbes heard the question, he shook his head before giving what they could only describe as an animal's approximation of a shrug and sheepish grin. Hobbes then turned and quietly stalked away, down the corridor. He only made a few steps before the floor beneath him violently spun him around and shoved him back to where the humans were seated.

Susie stomped over to the huge cat, grabbing his face with both her hands. "Alright, Hobbes, out with it! WHERE did they GO?!"

Everyone watched on in amazement. Hobbes was easily twice Susie's size, yet he was completely cowed under her withering glare. Hobbes then ran a claw through the dusty floor, leaving a bare trail behind.

To the natives of the planet, it looked like an incomprehensible scribble - yet Susie could somehow discern words in the dusty scrawl. "'Boiling rock'?! What's that supposed to mean?!"

There was a sudden gasp. Everyone turned to look at Ty Lee. "They went to the Boiling Rock?!" the Fire Nation girl asked, eyes wide and fearful.

"I guess…" Susie said. "What is it?"

"It's where the Fire Nation sends their most dangerous prisoners!" Ty Lee answered.

All around the table, there were sounds of shock and dismay - even Toph's unseeing eyes widened at the news.

Katara remained calm and composed, but everyone present could feel a cold fury radiating from her as she rose to her feet. "Aang." she said in a forcibly calm voice. "Go get Appa ready to fly."

Aang, knowing better than to argue, simply nodded and rushed off to where the giant sky bison was staying.

"Ty Lee," Katara then turned her hard glare to the acrobat. "Do you still want to prove your loyalty to us?"

Ty Lee gulped, looking up in abject terror at the Water Tribe girl. All she could do was silently nod.

Leaning in close, Katara said "Then tell us how to get to the Boiling Rock!"


Sokka stood before the imposing iron door with trepidation. His heart was palpitating, his knees felt weak and his palms were strangely itchy. All of the anguish, all of the hardship he had endured over the past couple days had all led up to this moment.

"Staring at the door's not gonna make it open, y'know." Calvin irritably muttered beside him.

"... I know." Sokka breathed. "It's just… I haven't seen my dad since the invasion… my invasion…. I guess I'm a little nervous, is all…"

"Aw, c'mon! You had the gumption to infiltrate the toughest prison in the Fire Nation and orchestrate a jailbreak from within it's very walls - all for him! Now go on, rip that Band-Aid off and get in that cell!"

Sokka blinked at him. "What's a band-aid?"

"It's like a little bandage with an adhesive on it's - Oh, I don't have time to explain! Just get in there!"

Sokka exhaled a nervous breath. "Okay,... you're right!" he said, psyching himself up. "I can do this!" He then slid the door open and slipped inside.

Calvin took up a position beside the door, acting as lookout; a roll he was wary of assuming after what had happened to Zuko. Still, he stood straight and tall, looking as much like a guard on duty as he could.

From within the cell, Calvin heard Sokka's voice saying "Thank goodness you're okay."

"If you take one step closer, you'll see just how okay I am!" an older voice replied.

"Dad, it's me." said Sokka's voice, accompanied by the metallic squeal of a visor lifting up.

There was a slight pause before the older voice quietly cried "Sokka! My son!"

There followed the sound of moving bodies and a soft clunk - like a metal object (probably Sokka's helmet) being dropped on the floor. Calvin could only imagine that father and son were sharing a tender embrace.

After a moment, the southern chieftain said "You know, Sokka, you should be more careful with that guard outfit on. I almost punched you in the gut."

"Yeah, I ran into that problem, earlier." Sokka admitted.

Calvin could just imagine the lovestruck Water Tribe warrior going in for a smooch with Suki with his face still concealed. And he could imagine just how the Kyoshi warrior would've reacted to that. The thought of Suki tossing Sokka across the room caused Calvin to let out a short chortle - despite the dire circumstances.

"So, where's Bato?" Sokka continued. "Where's everyone else from the invasion?"

"The others are being held in a prison near the Fire Nation palace." Hakoda answered. "They singled me out as their leader and sent me here… But before I left, I met some young women who said they knew you… the… Oceanama fighters?"

"You mean the Kyoshi Warriors?" Sokka asked.

"That's right."

"Their leader, Suki, is here! And she's gonna escape with us!"

"Good. We'll need all the help we can get!"

"And you know Prince Zuko?"

"The son of the Fire Lord? I don't know him, but I know of him."

"Well, he's here too…. Plus, there's also this other guy who… well, it's kinda hard to explain."

Putting it mildly. Calvin thought to himself.

Hakoda hummed. "If the Fire Prince is here, that sounds like a major problem."

"Actually, he's on our side, now." Sokka refuted.

There was another pause. Calvin could picture Hakoda giving his son a skewed look.

"I know, I had the same reaction." Sokka continued. "After all he's done, it was hard to trust him. But he's really proven himself and I never would've found you without his help."

Another pause. Then Hakoda asked "So, do you have a plan?"

"We had one, but some of the other prisoners got involved and ruined it." Sokka dejectedly answered. "I dunno if there's another way off this island."

"Sokka, there's no prison in the world that can hold two Water Tribe geniuses!" Hakoda proudly declared.

"Then we better find two." Sokka retorted.

Hakoda let out a hearty chuckle - soon followed by a slightly more nervous sounding one from his son.

Calvin, meanwhile, continued his lonely vigil outside the cell. He listened carefully as the two Water Tribesmen brainstormed, concocting a daring escape. And as Calvin listened in on the plan taking shape, he began to think that they just might be able to get off this rock, afterall.


Once the two Water Tribe men had formed their plan, the next step was to inform their co-conspirators.

Sokka and Calvin opted to split up. Sokka (naturally) went to tell Suki - leaving Calvin to inform the Fire Prince. After locating Zuko's cell, Calvin rapped his knuckles against the iron door. "Hey, Z, ya in there?!"

From the viewing portal in the door, Zuko's eyes appeared. "Z?! What's that supposed to mean?!"

"It's a letter in Earth's alphabet - Well, one of 'em, anyway. Look, it's not important! Point is, Sokka and his dad just hatched a plan to get us outta here!"

"What're you doing here?" came a sudden voice from behind. Calvin whipped around to see two guards looking at him from a staircase.

"Exchanging recipes - what's it look like I'm doin?!" Calvin snarked back at them.

The two guards shared and odd glance. "Well, you'll have to do that later - he's coming with us!" the male guard said.

"... Why?" Calvin asked.

"Because we have orders straight from the Warden - that's why!" the female guard answered, testily.

"Fair enough." Calvin said. "Mind if I have a few more seconds to discuss the finer points of egg beating?!" he punched a fist into his palm, hoping it would convey the message he wanted.

Sharing another skewed glance, the guards both crossed their arms. "Fine, a few seconds." the woman said.

Calvin slid the door open and dashed in with a feral yell. Once inside, he got behind Zuko and wrapped his arms around his neck. "What're you doing?" the Fire Prince hissed. "Couldn't you punch into a pillow, or something?"

"Too risky, they could open the door any second!" Calvin answered. "Now listen! We have a new plan, but it's gonna need a big distraction! Meet us in the yard in an hour! Got that - one hour!" Just then, there was a metallic sliding noise as the door opened again. Thinking quickly, Calvin heaved Zuko up as high as he could and tossed him to the floor at the feet of the other guards. "And that's how you properly fold an omelette!" he snarled in finality.

The male guard hoisted Zuko to his feet. "Are you done?" he asked Calvin.

"Oh, yes." Calvin replied, cooly leaning against the cell wall. "Quite the invigorating discussion." After the guards led Zuko away, Calvin knocked his head against the wall. "'Exchanging recipes'... Man I have got to work on my improv!"


The guards led Zuko down the hallway. Despite the prince's demands to know where they were taking him, they remained stone-faced and silent.

At length, the guards shoved Zuko into a room that contained only a single chair - a rickety structure of wood and metal with restraining cuffs on the armrests.

Zuko realized what this was - an interrogation room.

Propping himself up with the chair, he called over his shoulder "I didn't do anything wrong!"

"Come on, Zuko, we all know that's a lie!"

Zuko startled at the sudden voice. He looked up to see he wasn't the only occupant of the room. Leaning against the wall was a girl with long black hair done up in two tails that trailed down her back. She looked down at him with her eyebrows knitted together, her thin lips bent in smoldering frown.

"MEI!" Zuko yelped at the sight of his irate girlfriend. He pulled himself into the chair and let his head slump forward with a defeated sigh. "How did you know I was here?" he asked.

"Because I know you so well." came the dry response.

"But… how -"

"The warden's my uncle, you idiot."

Zuko sunk his head into his hand - of course! The warden had said Mei was his niece. The warden also said that he intended to collect the reward for his capture in due time. Zuko should have realized that before anything was collected, he would let his niece have a crack at him - the traitor prince who had left her behind - with only a note as means of goodbye.

"The truth is, I guess I don't know you." Mei continued, brandishing a scroll - the very note he had left. "All I get is a letter?! You could've at least looked me in the eye when you ripped out my heart!"

Zuko stared at the floor - pondering over what he could possibly say to make things right. "I didn't mean to -"

"You didn't MEAN to?!" Mei seethed. She then started reading from the offensive scroll, circling 'round him as she did. "'Dear Mei, I'm sorry that you have to find out this way, but I'm leaving.'"

"STOP!" Zuko shouted. "This isn't about you, This is about the Fire Nation!"

"Thanks, Zuko. That makes me feel all better!" Mei quipped, tossing the paper at Zuko's head.

"Mei," Zuko breathed, rising out of the chair. "I never wanted to hurt you. But I have to do this to save my country."

"'Save' it?! You're betraying your country!" Mei countered.

"That's not how I see it." Zuko said. Then, after a quick thought, added "And it's not how Ty Lee sees it, either."

A quiet gasp escaped Mei's lips as her eyes snapped to Zuko, all her anger momentarily forgotten. "You… know where Ty Lee is?"

Zuko braced himself for the outrage he knew his answer would incite. "Yes… She's with the Avatar."

"WHAT?! Is she alright? How did they capture her?!" Mei demanded.

"She's fine." Zuko answered. "She joined them willingly."

At first, she could only stare at him. Zuko watched as emotions fought for dominance over her face. Part of her refused to believe it was true, but another part of her was afraid that it was.

After several seconds, she found her voice. "That's absurd!" she growled. "Ty Lee would never turn her back on her country!"

"She did run away from home and join a circus." Zuko noted.

"That's different and you know it!" Mei bit back. "Ty Lee hated the stifling conditions of her home life, but she wouldn't betray the Fire Nation!"

"Ty Lee has seen the truth - just as I have." Zuko countered. "Just as I hope you will."

Mei's only response was to cross her arms and turn to face the wall.


Suki was practicing her martial arts in the confines of her cell. She needed to keep herself in tip-top shape - ready to fulfil whatever would be required of her during the escape. She threw a furious onslaught of kicks and punches into the air, imagining all sorts Fire Nation faces to fuel her blows - the princess who had captured her, the warden who kept her prisoner, the Fire Lord who was the driving force behind the whole war.

Suddenly the cell door opened, and there was Sokka.

"What's going on?" she asked.

"I don't have much time." he said. "If I'm seen with you, the guards might think something's up." He looked out the viewing portal to see if any guards were nearby. Finding the coast clear, he turned back to Suki. "I just talked to my dad." he said.

"That's great!" she commented.

"Yeah! And we're escaping today - on the gondola!"

"What?"

"My dad and I came up with the plan together." Sokka said, placing his hands on Suki's shoulders. "We're gonna commandeer the gondola and we're gonna take a hostage with us, so they won't cut the lines."

"We'll never make it onto the gondola." Suki morosely replied, pulling Sokka's hands off of her. "There's too many guards!"

"My dad already thought of that." Sokka countered. "He said we'll need a distraction. That's why we're gonna start a prison riot!"

Suki looked at him, skeptically. "Okay, let's say by some miracle this all works and we make it onto the gondola - the warden will still just cut the lines… even if we have a captive."

Sokka leaned in, a predatory grin on his face. "Not if the warden is the captive!" he declared.

From outside the cell, there came a sudden creaking noise. Sokka took a cautious glance out of the portal. "I have to go." he said.

Suddenly, Suki flung herself into him, wrapping him in an affectionate embrace.

Sokka hugged her back, saying "I'll find you before we start the riot."

As Sokka left the cell, a voice called out "Hey you! The warden wants to see you!"

He turned to face the two guards staring him down and asked "Why?"

"I don't know, I didn't ask." one guard responded.

"Maybe I could schedule another time with him?" Sokka shrugged. He walked away, saying "How's tomorrow?"

"He wants to see you NOW!" the guard snapped as a second pair of guards grabbed him and they all marched off together.


Sokka was relieved of his helmet and marched outside where a line of guards stood at attention.

"Put him in the lineup." said a voice Sokka recognized as the warden's.

Sokka was roughly brought to the end of the line. Nervously, he did his best to look like he wasn't there - by sidling up close to the guard next to him - said guard did not appreciate the breach of his personal space.

"One of you is an imposter who thought he could fool me." the warden began. "But now, that person is going to be in a lot of trouble."

As the warden spoke, two guards stepped forward, carrying a prisoner between them. Sokka's blood ran cold when he saw that it was Chit Sang.

The warden turned to the prisoner and said three little words that Sokka instinctively knew would seal his fate. "Who is it?"

Chit Sang lifted his gaze and scanned the lineup. This was it, Chit Sang was about to rat Sokka out! The escape plan had failed and now the burly prisoner wanted payback against the one who thought it up! Sokka couldn't help hyperventilating as perspiration poured down his face.

"That's him, warden. He's the imposter!"

Sokka cringed at the declaration, bracing against the impending hands that would seize him and carry him off to be imprisoned... or interrogated… or tortured

Then it occurred to him, Chit Sang's voice sounded a bit too far away. Looking down the line, Sokka realized that Chit Sang was pointing at a completely different guard.

It was the very guard who had sent him to the cooler just yesterday.

The guard stared down at the accusing finger with a dumbfounded expression. "WHAT?! I am not!" he yelled, grabbing Chit Sang's tunic. Two guards came and escorted him away, while he yelled "He's lying! He's a liar!"

Chit Sang simply smirked as he watched his former tormentor get dragged away.

The guards who had brought Chit Sang out now stepped up to escort him back to his cell. As they passed Sokka by, the nearest guard flicked his eyes toward the Water Tribe boy. In a voice low enough that only Sokka could hear, he said "Well, that worked out."

Sokka did a double take, gawking after the retreating figure. "CALVIN?!" he breathed.


At long last, the time had come to enact the plan. Sokka, still shaken from his close call, entrusted Calvin with the task of getting the prisoners released into the yard. Calvin wasn't exactly sure how he was going to do that - he figured if it came down to it, he could always claim it was the warden's orders. From what he'd heard of the warden, Calvin surmised that the guards were accustomed to following his orders - even if they didn't understand them.

When Calvin arrived at the control centre, the guard on duty turned to him with a questioning "Yeah?"

Calvin did a double take. He recognized that voice - it was the same guard who just he'd had to convince had seen frolicking spirits and not a super advanced piece of alien technology.

Immediately, Calvin was struck with an idea. And after all, just because he was on an important mission, didn't mean he couldn't have some fun in the process.

"Oh hey!" he started. "I was just wondering…" he leaned in close to the guard and said in a conspiratorial whisper "Seen any more spirit activity, lately?"


Soon enough, every cell in the prison slid open. The concourses of prisoners were confused by this, but decided not to question it and made their way out to the yard.

Amid the mass of red clad bodies, only two strode into the yard with determined purpose.

Soon, Suki, Hakoda and Sokka all met up in the yard - with Calvin joining them moments later.

"Oh good, you're here!" Sokka said as the earthling trotted over to them. Then, turning to his father, he said "Dad, this is Calvin. He's the other member of our group I told you about."

Hakoda shook the blond boy's hand and said "'Calvin'? That's an… odd name."

"It's a perfectly normal name on my planet!" Calvin countered.

Hakoda blinked at the response. He turned to his son and asked "Is he alright… in the head?"

"Y'know,... that's a good question." Sokka shrugged. "Anyway, now that we're all here, we need to start a riot!"

"Okay, but how do we do that?" Suki asked.

Hakoda scanned through the amassed prisoners. He found one who looked just perfect for inciting a brawl. "I'll show you." he said with a smirk.

He then charged over to the man's turned back and plowed into him with both hands fully extended.

"HEY!" the man shouted after recovering from the sudden shove. He turned to face the Water Tribe chieftain, saying "What'd you do that for? That hurt my feelings."

Completely dumbfounded, Hakoda could only gawk at the man. "Aren't you mad at me?!" he demanded.

The man gave a feeble shrug. "Eh, normally I would be, but I've been learning to control my anger."

Hakoda turned and startled when he found Calvin standing directly behind him, glaring at him with narrowed eyes. "Is that the best you could do?!" he asked. Then with a disappointed shake of the head, he slapped his visor over his eyes and stalked away into the crowd of prisoners.

Sokka watched him go, keeping his eye on the earthling as long as he could. But all too soon, he was lost amid the vast sea of bodies. "This is not working out." he dejectedly mumbled.

"Hey you!" Sokka suddenly felt a heavy hand clap down on his shoulder. Looking around, he saw Chit Sang's massive frame looming above him. "You're lucky I didn't rat you out!" the burly prisoner growled. His face then turned into a fiendish smile. "But my generosity comes with a price! I know you're planning another escape attempt, and I want in!"

"... Actually, we're trying to escape right now." Sokka told him. "But we need -"

Suddenly, from somewhere deep within the mass of prisoners, an irate voice yelled out "What ABOUT my MOM?!" This was followed by the sounds of grunting and shoving ad indignant shouts. And those grunts and shoves and shouts kept spreading through the assembled bodies - growing louder and angrier by the second. Soon enough, the prisoners were at each other's throats. Prisoners grappled, punches were thrown, bodies were flung and fireballs were shot through the air.

And then, from out of the chaos Calvin strode - wiping his hands against each other and looking far too pleased with himself. "Well," he chirped. "Shall we go?"


From the tower overlooking the yard, the warden watched the unfolding bedlam, his eyebrows twitching in fury. "WHO let these prisoners into the yard?!" he demanded. "This is SUPPOSED to be a Lockdown!"

"I did, sir."

The warden turned his withering glare to the guard who had spoken. The guard was wearing a satisfied grin that quickly evaporated when the warden laid eyes on him. "And what - in Agni's name - would possess you to do something - like THAT?!"

"T-the spirits, o-of course…" came the guard's feeble reply.

"... 'Spirits'?!" the warden repeated, his face growing red.

"Y-y-yes, sir. One of the new recruits explained it." the guard elucidated, his voice becoming steadier as he spoke. "See, by letting the prisoners out into the yard, the spirits will go after them, and leave us alone! See? It works out for everyone - the spirits are placated and the Fire Nation has fewer criminals to worry about!"

The warden simply stared at the man with an expression that was one part incredulous and two parts outrage.

The guard's confident expression quickly dissolved after saying that all out loud and hearing how it actually sounded. Scratching the back of his head. He said "It, uh… it made more sense when he said it…"

"... You're FIRED." the warden seethed.


Zuko, meanwhile, was still in the interrogation chamber with Mei. The Fire Prince was anxious - and not just because he was alone in a cell with his furious girlfriend. He knew the hour was nearly up - whatever Sokka and his dad had planned was bound to start any time.

"Ma'am!" A guard suddenly appeared at the door. "There's a riot going on! I'm here to protect you!"

"I don't need any protection." Mei turned a withering glare toward him.

Zuko snickered. "Believe me, she doesn't."

Undeterred, the guard stepped into the cell. "I'm sorry, but I'm under direct orders from your uncle to make sure nothing happens."

Seeing an opportunity, Zuko blasted fire at the guards feet. Predictably, the guard moved to form a barricade between Mei and himself - leaving Zuko a clear shot at the open door.

Mei roughly shoved her unwanted meat-shield aside and chased after Zuko - but too late. He had made it out of the cell and slammed the door behind him. Mei glared out through the viewing portal, staring venomously at the man who had betrayed her. As Zuko peered back at her, she saw remorse in his eyes - a longing that things could be different, that he could stay with her and smooth things over. But he gave a weary sigh; he had a task to do and he was determined to see it through.

Zuko made his way out to the yard and found where the others had gathered.

Sokka smiled when he saw the prince approach. "Zuko! Good, we're all here. Now all we need to do is grab the warden and get to the gondolas!"

"And how do we do that?" Zuko asked.

"... I'm not sure!" Sokka turned to him, eyes wide and frantic.

Zuko growled. "I thought you thought this through!"

"I thought you told me it's okay not to think everything through!" Sokka countered.

"Maybe not everything, but this is kind of important!" Zuko put a fist to his head, astounded at how bone headed Sokka had been.

Sokka put a finger to his chin. His mind raced as he tried to think of something - anything - to get his plan back on track.

"Hey fellas." Chit Sang's voice broke into their bouts of worry. "I think your girlfriend's taking care of it."

Sokka peered around the burly man and blinked in astonishment as Suki ran over the heads of the brawling prisoners. When she reached the wall, she scaled it like a monkey, doing and impressive flip from a dangling bar onto the walkway above. She flipped again, dodging a swing from a guard in the process and knocking him out as she landed.

Then two more guards appeared on the scene. She avoided the first guard's attack easily and flipped him onto his back. The second guard then shot fire at her which she evaded by jumping onto the railing and onto the wall behind him - once again scaling the slick vertical surface. Finally, Suki arrived at the upper walkway where the warden stood with one last guard. She slid under the guard's attack and skidded to a halt right in front of the warden, grabbing his wrist in her hand.

"You wouldn't dare." he snarled at her. But before he could even process what was happening, she had spun him around, bound his hands behind his back and used his headband as a makeshift gag.

"Sorry, warden." she mewled. "You're my prisoner, now." she slammed him against the wall just as the rest of the group had caught up to her. "We've got the warden, now let's get out of here!" she jubilantly cried.

The five men simply stood there, panting heavily with perspiration speckling their brows.

"That's some girl." Hakoda commented.

"Tell me about it." Sokka agreed.

With the warden in their custody, the conspirators met little resistance getting onto the gondola. Soon enough, the metal box started rolling along the length of cable spanning the from the Boiling Rock to the rim of the crater. The stopping mechanism was dissabled and everyone on board watched as the cliff drew further and further away. It looked like smooth sailing from here on out - so naturally, something had to go wrong.

"LOOK!" Suki called, pointing back the way they had come. The others looked to see the small congregation of guards watching the gondola despondently. And standing amongst those guards was Princess Azula.

"What the - when did SHE get here?!" Sokka moaned.

"Probably the same time as Mei." Zuko reasoned.

"What do we do, now?" Suki asked.

"I wouldn't worry 'bout it." Calvin said. "There's six of us and only one of her! Even she couldn't take all of us on at once!"

Azula seemed to agree with this assessment. Rather than make some reckless attempt to attack the fleeing convicts, she simply turned to the guard nearest the cable and snapped out an order. Thought the gondola had traveled quite a distance, the order was loud enough that everyone on board could hear. "CUT THE LINE!"

"They wouldn't!" Suki gasped, placing a hand over her mouth.

"They WOULD." Chit Sang grimly muttered. "The warden said it, himself - he'd rather jump into the boiling lake than let any prisoner escape."

The others looked at the warden - and he glared back with a spiteful, vindictive smile forming behind his gag.

Everyone was suddenly violently jostled when the gondola came to an abrupt halt. Back on the cliff, the guards had wedged some metal object into the cable spool and had begun the slow process of cutting through the cable.

Seeing this, Calvin knew they had only one option. "Okay, everybody on TOP of the gondola! C'MON, move it!" he yelled, climbing out the window and scrambling up to the roof.

"What're you doing?!" Zuko yelled.

"No time to explain! Just get yer rears in gear!"

"What about the warden?!" Sokka asked.

"Oh… Yeah, him too, I guess."


Princess Azula smiled a self-satisfied smirk as she watched the guards frantically saw the cable in two. Soon her failure of a brother would be out of the picture permanently. And as an added bonus, the Avatar was about to lose some of his precious companions - surely such a loss would leave him... vulnerable.

Sudden movement out on the gondola caught her attention. It looked like the little fugitives were climbing onto the gondola's roof. Oh, how quaint, did they honestly think they could actually save themselves? Pitiful, really. She spared herself a quick chuckle at the thought.

Suddenly, a light flashed from the fugitive's position. Azula looked again and her eyes popped open from what she saw. It was like lightning! Yes, like some sort of cage of lightning had surrounded them - crackling with energy and shining dazzlingly.

A memory stirred within her. She had seen something like this before, hadn't she? Yes, it was the day Ba Sing Se had been conquered…

The day Ty Lee had disappeared.

"STOP!" she roared.

The guards startled at her sudden outburst. "Princess?" One of them started. "We've nearly cut through - is something wr-"

"Don't question my orders!" she snarled, seizing him by the neck and pulling him forward. "Stop cutting the line at once!"

The guards complied, warily backing away from the cable. Azula grabbed the manacles from the guard she held and dropped him to the floor in an indignant heap. She clamped one manacle around the cable and held tightly to the other one. Fire then erupted out of both her feet and free hand, propelling her along the cable.

Faster and faster she flew - surging ever closer to the gondola - closer to the answers! She drew close enough that she could make out the distinct figures within the snapping cage of energy. One of them, a boy in a guard's uniform with spiky hair - noticed her approach. And as she got nearer, his mouth spread into a wide, toothy grin. He raised his hand and began wriggling his fingers at her. Then, just as Azula reached the gondola, the electric cage flashed it's brightest intensity and then… it and everyone within it, was gone.


"Aaaaah, sweet terra firma! How good it feels to be soundly planted upon thy foundations once again!" Calvin knelt down and tenderly stroked his hand along the stony ground. He remained there for a moment, savoring the feeling of not dangling precariously over a lake of scalding hot water on a line that threatened to give way at any second.

Rising to his feet, he turned and said. "Well, c'mon guys. We better -" he stopped abruptly when he saw his companions. He couldn't help but chortle when he saw the looks on their faces. Their expressions were nearly identical - hair standing on end, mouths hanging open, eyes wide open, pupils constricted to pinpricks and various body parts involuntarily twitching.

For several pregnant seconds they just stood there, recuperating from their shock.

Finally, Chit Sang broke the silence. "WHAT WAS THAT?!" he screeched, unceremoniously dropping the warden onto his face. The warden was too shocked by the experience to even grunt in pain.

"Is… Is that teleport-t-tation?!" Sokka stammered. "I-I-I feel like m-my entire b-b-body's been torn to p-p-pieces and put ba-a-ack toget -get-gether!"

"Well, that's… more or less what happened…" Calvin sheepishly muttered.

"Hey!" Zuko suddenly shouted. "Why weren't you effected?" he asked, pointing to Calvin.

Calvin wasn't sure what he meant. Of course he had been effected, even now he felt like electricity was coursing through his veins. And there was a prickly tingling sensation running up and down his extremities.

Then again, as he thought about it, it did seem he was more readily able to move than his companions. "Huh… I dunno. I guess I just… kinda got used to it…"

"Alright, alright." Sokka said, his voice still a couple octaves higher than usual. "What matters is we're not about to fall into the boiling lake! Right now, we need to figure out where we are, and then -" As he spoke, Sokka's gaze swept across the landscape. His eyes were drawn from the crashing surf before them to the rising slope behind them. Up, up to where the stony edifice cut off, forming a great crater with a massive cloud of steam billowing out of it.

Sokka turned back to face Calvin. "Are we still on the Boiling Rock?" he asked through clenched teeth.

"Yes. Yes we are." Calvin answered.

"WHAT?!" Zuko irately snapped, getting into Calvin's face. "Some miraculous getaway! Your machine couldn't even get us off the island!"

"It could!" Calvin refuted. "But I was a little pressed for time!"

"It's not a big deal, right?" Suki asked. "I mean, you could just use it again, couldn't you?"

"You want to go through that again?!" Zuko snapped, incredulously.

"And anyway, the teleporter needs to recharge before it can be used again." Calvin glumly admitted.

"ALRIGHT!" Hakoda shouted in a voice exuding chiefly authority. "Like Sokka said, what matters is we're not in immediate danger. Still, it won't take them long to realized how close we are. We need a way to get off of this rock! Any ideas?"

Everyone fell silent, each thinking of ways to get off the forlorn island.

Suddenly, Zuko's head popped up. "My sister was in the prison!" he said.

"Yeah, and if we don't figure out a way outta here, she's gonna come after us!" Sokka countered.

"What I mean is, she must've had some means of getting here - a ship or a zeppelin…"

"... And if we find it, we can use it to escape!" Sokka's face lit up as he caught on to Zuko's idea.

"Um, that might not be necessary." Calvin suddenly spoke up.

The others looked up and followed his gaze - out to the open sky, where a large white spot bobbed about.

"Is that…" Suki squinted at the object, trying to make it out.

As they watched, the white spot grew larger as it came ever closer to the island. "It is!" Sokka ecstatically cried when it came close enough that they could see it clearly "It's Appa!"

Everyone rushed down to the surf waving their arms and calling out as loudly as they could. Within minutes, the enormous beast swooped low, coming to a landing on the volcanic shore. Aang looked the group over from his seat atop Appa's head. He smiled at everyone, glad to see they were alright.

And down from Appa's saddle, slid Katara.

Sokka's smile widened when he saw her. Jogging toward her, he called out "Katara! Great to see you, little sister!"

"What were you thinking?!" Katara roared, causing Sokka to flinch as he came to an abrupt halt. Eyes livid and seething, the Water Tribe girl stalked the rest of the way to her brother with all the viciousness of a ravenous wolf. "Sneaking off in the middle of the night! Going to the most dangerous prison in the Fire Nation! And with Zuko, of all people!"

"Hey." the Fire Prince indignantly moaned.

"What on earth would possess you to think this was a good idea?!" Katara continued. "What did you even think to accomplish by coming here?!"

"Now, now, don't be too hard on your brother, Katara." Hakoda said in a soothing voice.

"I'll be as hard on him as I -" Katara turned to snarl at the newcomer - only to stop short when she realized who was speaking. "... Dad?..."

"Katara." Hakoda opened his arms with a fatherly smile and Katara, tears spilling from her eyes, fell into his warm embrace.

After several silent heartbeats Katara managed to murmur "Is this why you came here?"

"Yeah." Sokka replied, his voice managing to convey both remorse and triumph.

Katara made a watery sniff. "It was still reckless and irresponsible."

"I thought it was very brave."

Katara turned to see who had spoken. When she saw who it was, her eyes lit up with joy. "Oh my gosh! Suki, you're here, too?!" she broke away from her father to embrace the other girl.

"Yeah, it's good to see you to, Katara." Suki said. "And you too, Aang and -" she stopped when she saw who else had come along. There, seated in Appa's saddle, looking very much like what earthlings would call a deer-in-the-headlights, was Ty Lee. The Kyoshi warrior locked eyes with the Fire Nation acrobat - one of the terrible trio that had captured her and her warriors. Suki stared at Ty Lee with shock and fury, Ty Lee stared back with apprehension and guilt.

Eventually,Ty Lee put on a sheepish smile and made a feeble little wave down to the scandalized warrior.

Suki turned back to Sokka, and through clenched teeth, asked "What is SHE doing here?!"

"Oh!" Sokka's eyes darted around, nervously. "Did I mention that Ty Lee joined the gang?"

"Nooo."

"Ty Lee joined the gang!"

Calvin, meanwhile, looked about the group that had arrived. After determining that the three of them were the only ones that had come, he said to Katara "Sooo,... erm, Susie didn't come with you?..."

"She wanted to, but we decided that a smaller group had a better chance of infiltrating." she turned to him, an edge seeping back into her voice. "She did ask me to give you something, though."

"Yeah? What?"

In response, Katara's palm swept through the air, slapping the earth boy with a loud clap that resounded across the entire shore.

What Calvin said next was very loud and very angry. The natives of the planet didn't know what the words meant, but they were pretty sure they got the gist of it.

"Y'know, it's probably for the best that no one else came." Sokka said. "Appa's gonna have a hard enough time flying all of us back to the temple."

"You can drop me off once you reach the mainland." Chit Sang said. "That'll relieve some of the burden."

Sokka turned to the burly man. "Thanks, Chit Sang. Y'know, for a Fire Nation criminal, you're not so bad."

"You're not so bad, yourself - for Water Tribe." Chit Sand responded with a small smile. "Now, if everyone's done snuggling, can we go?!"


When they finally made it back to the Western Air Temple, there was a great celebratory noise from those who had remained behind. They were all glad to see that everyone had returned safely; they also marveled at the arrival of Sokka and Katara's father. People clamored around the sky bison and his passengers, bombarding them with questions and excited chatter.

Calvin sidestepped around the anxious crowd. There were only two faces he was interested in seeing - and he found them, standing toward the back wall. Susie and Hobbes watched him approach with narrowed eyes and downturned mouths.

"I trust Katara gave you my greeting." Susie cooly said as Calvin came near.

"Oh, yeah." Calvin answered, rubbing his left cheek. "Almost hurt as much as one of yours."

"Well… I guess there's just one thing left, then…" Susie said as she tromped over to where Calvin stood.

Calvin watched her approach, his apprehension growing with each step she took. Finally she stood right in front of him - Calvin braced himself for whatever she was about to do.

He wasn't prepared for her to fling her arms around his neck, pressing herself against him. "Do you have any idea how worried I've been?!" he heard her sob into the crook of his neck. "What were you thinking going off to such a dangerous place?! You could've been killed!"

"If it makes you feel better, I didn't want to go." he told her. "I only offered to let them use the teleporter - but I ended up going along 'cause they couldn't figure out how to work it."

She pulled away enough to look him in the eye. "As a matter of fact, it doesn't make me feel better. Three teenage boys infiltrating the highest security prison in the Fire Nation with no back up - the fact that you got out of there alive is nothing short of miraculous!"

"Yeah, well how's it different from you trying to go along with the assault on the giant drill?!"

Susie gawked at him, confounded at the point he had made. Several times her mouth fell open as if to speak - only to realizes she had no compelling argument. "W-w-well… there were… extenuating circumstances, then!"

Calvin smirked down at her. "Don't give me that, it was the exact same situation, here! Only difference is you weren't around to knock me out!"

"I might, if you're not careful!" Susie growled. The two of them broke their embrace and turned to look at Sokka and Katara showing the newcomers around the temple. Susie sighed. "I guess an effect of the company we keep."

"... I suppose…" Calvin mumbled.

Susie leaned into Calvin, then. "Promise me something…" she said. "Next time one of us decides to go on some crazy dangerous mission, we do it together."

Calvin looked at Susie, seeing the determination burning behind her eyes. A slight smile tugged at his lips. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders while Hobbes rubbed up against his legs. "Together." he repeated. "I promise."