Book: Air
Ch.51 Over the Edge, Over and Over Again
The full moon reflected over the ocean that separated the Earth Kingdom from the Fire Nation. A fleet of ships were cutting into the thick tides that were influenced by the moon. The ships hung their flags representing the Earth and Water Tribe armies. Cannons were set on either side of each ships. Soldiers were sitting below deck with their armor strapped on and their adrenaline was pumping with each nervous heartbeat.
Standing on the deck with her blue combat outfit on, Katara was trying to calm her racing heart. She rested her arms on the banister on the deck staring up at the moon. She breathed in the power of the full moon, hoping that the moon will give her some strength tonight.
She looked down from the moon to her extended abdomen. Slowly she caressed the life inside her. Usually a mother would feel proud and overjoyed to have children, but for Katara it doesn't didn't feel right. She felt terrible right now, like a disgusting being who was forcing her life and her unborn children on the line for a battle that was going to be murderous. She knew they were coming out soon. Her contractions were getting worse and they were occurring more frequently. She feared that the next contraction she would have would send her into labor. But she gravely feared about the timing. These children were very important and dear to her. They were not only important to the world, but important to her heart. She dreamt about having children with Aang before, but not at this one point of time. She would give anything to get these children out of her right now to take away her fear. But if she did that, she would be left too weak to survive in battle. And she would rather know that her children were with her than be separated from them. Katara would give anything not to be apart of this battle.
A soft hand startled her grieving. Aang weakly smiled at her. His smile looked like a mask, he was hiding an apologetic look and sadness. He wrapped his warm arms around her and nuzzled his head into her hair.
"Sokka said he can spot the island in his telescope. We have to go." Aang whispered.
"I know." Katara whispered.
"But I don't want to leave just let. I can't imagine what must be running in your head right now." Aang rubbed her back.
Katara tried to smile, "Trust you don't want to know."
"There was one thing that I promised I would do with you, and I want to do it before we leave." Aang pulled away from her and smiled.
Katara was a bit confused but she followed Aang as he took her hand towards the other end of the ship. She tried to suppress her worried thoughts. Aang's smile always had a warming affect on her.
At the other end of the ship, Hakoda, Sokka, Zuko, Iroh, and another water tribal man was there. All of them had pleasant smiles on their faces. Hakoda walked up to Katara, Aang left her and stood next to the other tribal man.
Katara gasped. The other man had spiritual robes on and everyone was set up just they would be at a water tribe wedding. This was her wedding, her water tribe wedding to Aang. Just as he promised.
She took her father's arm and he brought her towards Aang and the water tribe priest. She leaned against her father's side and couldn't help but beam up at him. He smiled back. When he brought her in front of Aang, he kissed her on the forehead and stepped aside.
"Let the moon and ocean spirits watch over us as we bind the union of two souls into one heart. Let them bless this heart and let it grow and change into greater love that will bloom into a bright future." The priest began. "Take each other's hands." He instructed.
Facing each other and never dropping their gaze, they took each other's hands. Their smiles grew.
A shout came from the watchman in the crow's nest on the main mast. Everyone looked up to the watchman except Katara and Aang. They were too wrapped up in their eyes that everything else was a blur. Sokka left the wedding ceremony as did Zuko, Mai and Iroh. Hakoda began barking out orders.
The priest nervously shouted over the roar of hurdling fireballs that were coming right for the ships. "Avatar Aang do you take Katara of the Southern Water Tribe to be your loving wife, and will you promise to love, to hold, to cherish her soul and physical body. And will you love her until death shall you part?"
Aang smiled, his eyes never left Katara's to observe the catastrophe that was occurring around them, "I do, but even in death I will always love her eternity."
The priest spoke louder as the fire balls bombarded the ocean and caused huge waves. The soldiers on the ship yelled and took their defenses on the ships. "Now Katara of the Southern Water Tribe do you take Avatar Aang as your loving husband, and will you promise to love, to honor, and to cherish his soul and physical body. And will you love him until death shall take you?"
Katara's eyes twinkled as she became enriched in the passion that was beaming in Aang's eyes. She couldn't help but reflect her own. She placed her right finger tips on the face of her betrothal necklace and recited, "I do, but even in death I forever be his love."
"By the power vested in me, the Water and Ocean Spirits now pronounce you…." The priest wasn't able to finish because a fiery cannonball was coming right at him. Aang and Katara bended a shield of water to protect the three of them. They did it so smoothly like it was a reflex.
"Katara, Aang get into position! We're starting early!" Sokka shouted over to them as he mounted on Appa who was floating next to the ship. Zuko and Mai joined him.
Together they joined hands and mounted on Appa's head. Their smiles never broke. They took one look at the priest who smiled back at them. As Appa took off into the skies, the priest made a motion with his hands signaling the end of the marriage ceremony.
He placed his hand on his forehead and then pulled it down on his heart, "….Husband and wife. May you be blessed and watched by all spirits of compassion and may your love never die." He murmured to them as he watched them shrink in the sky.
When Katara and Aang could see the priest no longer from the shrinking ship, they looked back at each other. Aang let go of the reins and wrapped his arms around Katara. Katara caressed her hands around Aang's face. With eager breath, they pulled their faces towards their own and enveloped themselves into their wedding kiss.
Sokka sighed a bit half-heartedly, Zuko and Mai cracked a smile. But the newly wedded couple continued to kiss each other passionately. The air grew thick and Sokka was pulsing a vein in his forehead.
"Alright that's enough of that." He yelled at them. A strange sound made him change his mood however, he went from irritated to alert. The strange sound was coming from the island which was appearing on the horizon. Everyone became alert. Sokka pulled out his telescope. "Their ships are on the move towards us. And there's some strange machine on the shoreline." Sokka leaned forward in the saddle, "It looks like a cannon, but its very different. Its bigger but…wait their loading something in it." Sokka gasped.
"What what is it?" Aang shouted taking the reins.
"They are aiming it at us! They've opened fire!"
The huge cannon fired with a puff of smoke and a flash of red light. The huge cannonball was coming straight at them but while in mid-flight the ball exploded to reveal a chain net. It was large enough to take down Appa.
Katara grabbed hold of the ocean water several stories below them and cut the lines of chains in front of them. Appa escaped through the whole in the netting. Aang smiled.
"Crap, no wonder that cannon so big! They designed a multiple round cannon, here comes more ammo!" Sokka shouted while gazing through the telescope.
The gang gasped as five more round of chain netting were coming at them.
Katara took hold of a huge chunk of water and brought it up near Appa's head. "Aang I'm gonna need your help."
Together Aang and Katara cut through the netting of chains. "Appa try to move out of the line of fire." Aang shouted. Appa swerved to the right, but the cannon was on a fast moving excel. It was following them. More chain netting was coming at them.
"Damn we have got to get one of those!" Sokka stared in awe at the contraction. Everyone gave him an icy glare. Sokka cleared his throat, "Zuko can you take out that cannon."
Zuko shoved Sokka out of the way, "Was that even a question? I'll be able to stop it but we have to get closer."
"No problem." Aang replied as a drop of sweat was forming on his forehead. The chain netting kept coming. Katara was keeping up better than Aang thought, the moon was helping her greatly.
They were coming up to the island, it was becoming apparent just how many Loyalists soldiers were on the island. There were thousands of them. All of them were armed with heavy artillery and had thick armor on. And the kinds of machines that they had did not look humbling in the least. Some of the machines they had were unrecognizable and fearful looking.
Appa swopped down close to the huge cannon, Zuko fired a huge fireball inside the barrel and the cannon exploded. But the surrounding Loyalists were ready for their confrontation. Most opened fire with their firebending, some fired their weapons which were shooting out barbed netting.
The armor Appa had on protected him against the barbed netting, but Zuko was able to deflect the fire blasts with one huge wave of fire in front of the massive beast.
Aang tugged on the reins and Appa pulled up. Fire blasts came after them but eventually they were falling out of range.
"Well that was surprisingly easy." Mai said.
"Yea." Sokka rubbed his chin, "There's no way Ozai would let us out that easily. We better be on our toes from here on out."
"He was never one to be easy to deal with." Zuko mumbled.
Momo, who was perched on the tail end of saddle, started squawking and jumping frantically. Everyone looked back. The Loyalists gathered at the shoreline weren't even trying to advance to get to Appa, they had completely ignored them. But now their attention was focused on the Water Tribe and Earth Kingdom ships in the air and the ocean. They were opening up their cannon fire and sailing out in vase numbers. It looked like it was going to be a bloody fight out there.
"I guess Ozai wants to fight us instead of his armies." Zuko pointed out.
"No," Sokka slammed his fist in his hand, "This is a trap, the Loyalist army is not just fighting off our army but they are trying to keep us in. Notice how they stationed themselves, they are not gonna let anyone in or out. Ozai wants us all to himself. But its gonna be hard to get any aid from our army, and its gonna be hard for us to aid them."
"Well then we'll just have to stop Ozai and then it will stop everything." Aang focused his attention back on steering. The island's volcano was fast approaching. Inside the dormant volcano would be the Temple of the Ancient Fire Spirit. Aang could feel a rush of energy flowing in him from the spiritual essences of this island. It felt like harmony here. This was such a sacred island and Ozai was planning on using it as his base. It made Aang sick.
As they approached the mouth of the volcano, a powerful gunfire was heard followed by the sound of Appa groaning in pain. Appa fought uncontrollably.
"What happened?" Sokka asked as he held on to the saddle as Appa wiped around.
"I don't know." Aang tugged on Appa's reins, trying to calm him down.
"Look." Mai pointed out and noticed a spear stuck in Appa's back left thigh. The spear was connected to a chain that led inside the forest. The chain started to rise and a giant air ship appeared out of the thick trees. Another gunfire was heard and another spear gouged into Appa's backside. The ship began to reel in Appa. Appa screamed in pain. Blood was coming out of his armor.
Tempered in fuming anger, Aang launched his glider out, jumped on it and flew over to the giant airship. He was being attacked with fireballs from firebenders stationed on the deck of the ship. Aang spun and swerved out of the fire's path. He tossed his feet in front of him and sent an air gush across the deck. All the firebenders fell off of the deck and into the forest.
"Quick cut the chains." Sokka shouted. Zuko severed the massive chains with a fire whip. Appa landed on the side of the volcano, shaking in pain. Katara jumped out to aid Appa, her hands full of water.
"The spears are still stuck in there pretty good, I can't heal him." Katara panicked.
Appa groaned and began nodding off. "Wait something's wrong with Appa!" Katara rushed to Appa's massive head. Appa's eyes were fluttering and his breathing was growing deep. "Oh no!"
Sokka and Zuko gathered around the spear gorged in Appa's leg. With a hard pull, they manage to yank the spear out. A strange green residue was coated on the spear. Sokka examined it further, rubbing it between his fingers. "Its poison, it won't kill him. Its similar to a Shirshu's venom. Its just going to numb him." Katara sighed and then looked back at the giant air ship. Aang was still destroying the ship, he was damaging the engine while dodging fireballs.
The earth began to rumble, soon tanks were coming up the side of the volcano, coming right for them. Sokka pulled out his sword, and Mai drew her daggers. But then another roaring engine thundered through the night air. Another air ship took the place of the damaged one that Aang was on. But this time the air ship wasn't alone, 3 more were accompanying it.
"You gonna be kidding me." Zuko mumbled.
Aang was flying back to the gang. He ran up to Katara who was healing Appa's wounds, "How is he?"
"He can't fly, Aang. He's been poison, his whole body is going numb." Katara reported.
"This isn't good." Aang rubbed the back of his head and brought his attention to the tanks and the air ships coming right at them. Aang was about to charge forward, but Sokka stopped him with his arm. "Aang don't worry about this, we got it covered. This is part of Ozai's plan. He wants you to fight his machines so it would make you tired. Then he'll strike when you are weak and out of energy. He's staling you until the sun rises."
"But I can't leave you guys against all this." Aang whined.
Abruptly the ground began to shake in front of them and then imploded, sending an avalanche of rocks down on the tanks. Some were pushed off the mountain side. A head popped out of the hole, "Relax Twinkletoes, go do your thing. We can handle this crap heap of metal." Casually emerging from the hole was Toph. She stomped her foot in the ground and send an even bigger avalanche down the mountain side. All the tanks went flying off into the forest.
Everyone was stunned to see her return. The Duke popped his head out of the hole, "Sorry we're late."
"How did you get here so fast?" Katara asked.
"I said I didn't wanna miss any of the action. Mayra and Ursa are safe in Ba Sin Sai. They are in the trusting hands of the Earth King." Toph replied. "Now go take care of Ozai, we'll be right behind you."
Aang looked back at Katara, she nodded and that was all he needed. "Alright, just be caref…"
"Will you go already?" Zuko smiled and gave Aang a shove. Next thing Aang saw was Zuko blasting at the air ships while Sokka and Toph charged down the mountain side at more tanks. Meanwhile Mai was protecting the Duke as he was putting together so kind of homemade super bomb.
Aang and Katara took each other hands and walked over to the mouth of the volcano. They passed by Appa, Momo was perched on his front paw comforting him. Aang rubbed his flying buddy on the nose, Katara gave him a kiss there as well.
"We'll come back, you stay strong for these guys." Aang said to Appa.
Momo squawked and hopped on to Aang's shoulder. "Are you sure you want to come Momo?"
"Let him Aang, he was with you when you faced Ozai then. Besides Momo is a regular fighter." Katara patted his head.
"Alright let's go, all five of us." Aang squeezed Katara hand. She nodded. She gave her belly a gentle rub.
They walked over to the edge of the volcano. The inside was dark and it was difficult to see anything because of the night sky. Without any further hesitation, Aang and Katara jumped off the edge and dove into the dark depths of the volcano.
