Avenging Avatar: Book 1- Water

by TheWriterForGod42

Join Aang, Katara and Sokka with the help of some of the Avengers as they journey to the Northern Water Tribe, where Aang must master the element of Water.

17. Chapter 17: Northern Air Temple

Disclaimer: I do not own the characters of Avatar the Last Airbender or the Avengers (MCU), only the story. Avatar the Last Airbender and its characters belongs to Nickelodeon and Avengers belongs to Marvel. I apologize for any errors in grammar and/or if I was not accurate in reference to something.

A/N: I'm going to try and give Stan Lee's cameo more of a role in this one. Wish me luck.

x

Katara: Water, Soldier, Mechanist, God, Earth, Fire, Spy, Archer, Monster, Air

(One by one, eight figures do something to show off their skills: the waterbender weaves a stream of water from the ground, around him and then thrusts it towards the side, the soldier blocks an attack with his shield before throwing it, the mechanist has armor envelope him and then uses the repulsor on his hand to blast something on the side, the god holds a powerful hammer high to summon a bolt of lightning, the earthbender kicks the ground bringing up a large rock before he kicks it away, the firebender twists around as she summons fire from her foot before doing a high kick to the ground and makes the flames spread, the spy drops down from above and displays a few moves, the archer rolls across the ground and fires a few arrows, and finally the monster comes down from a jump and smashes his huge fists on the ground, the airbender drops down and then with a circle of his arms he creates a blast of wind.)

Katara: Long ago, the four nations lived together in harmony. Then everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked.

(Docked on a shore, five Fire Nation ships with the Hydra insignia released their soldiers. With a jump forward and a palm thrust, the firebenders released a wave of fire as the Hydra soldiers used their advanced technology.)

Katara: Only the Avatar, master of all four elements could stop them. But when the world needed him most, he vanished.

(The Avatar, a man with a crown on his head and dressed in robes stands on a pillar of stone as he bent the four elements of water, earth, fire and air to show his skill in the arts of bending. After releasing a powerful disk of wind, he disappears from existence.)

Katara: A hundred years passed and my brother and I discovered the new Avatar: an Airbender named Aang and met the team called the Avengers.

(The water tribe siblings find a young Airbender frozen in block of ice. After freeing him, they are then joined by heroes called Captain America, Ironman, Thor, Hulk, Clint, and Natasha.)

Katara: And although with the teams help and his airbending skills are great, hehas a lot to learn before he's ready to save anyone.

(At an Air Nomad path, Aang creates an air scooter and starts to have fun with it. But when he expands his circle a little bit, he runs right into a statue. He rolls over onto his back as all six of the Avengers then poke their heads from behind the statue to check on him.)

Katara: But I believe the Avengers and Aang can save the world.

(Aang, Steve, Katara, Tony, Thor, Bruce, Sokka, Clint and Natasha stand side by side, looking down at the world on a mountain's peak for a moment as the reader's view is turned upwards to the sun.)

Nickelodeon and Marvel

The Avenging Avatar

x

Avatar Roku: Previously, on Avenging Avatar…

"No one has seen an Airbender in a hundred years." Gran-Gran told Aang, "We thought they were extinct."

"Extinct?" Aang asked in disbelief and worry.

"Aang, how long were you in that iceberg?" Katara asked in confusion since he didn't know about the war. Aang glanced back as he said, "I don't know. A few days maybe?"

Aang's face turned to horror when she said, "you were in there the whole time."

Aang made a point of his own about the Airbenders, "Just because no one has seen an Airbender doesn't mean the Fire Nation killed them all. They probably escaped."

"Firebenders? They were here?" Aang asked in horror when he came across the bodies.

After letting his anger out, Aang looked distressed as he realized, "If Firebenders found this temple, that means they found the other ones too." He sounded truly heartbroken as he said, "I really am the last Airbender."

As they flew away on Appa, both Aang and Momo continued to look back to the Southern Air Temple as the clouds started to hide it.

Then Zhao looked to the leader of Hydra and said, "I plan to hold a meeting in a week or two, I ask that you join us. I have something big planned to not only help us capture the Avatar and the two Avengers with him, but to also further our victory in the war."

"I will see what I can do." The Red Skull said as he turned away. But before he could open the return portal, Zhao said, "We may need to have a talk about Hydra's greatest weapon."

The Red Skull looked back with narrowed eyes to the admiral's words.

x

Book One: Water

Chapter Seventeen: The Northern Air Temple

It was early one night as the group was amongst others as they sat around a campfire in front of a gazebo. Some folks were sitting on benches while others sat on the ground with their hands in their sleeves. The kids sat on a bench while Steve and Natasha stood behind them. Katara and Sokka had once again put their heavy coats as the air was getting colder the closer they got to the North Pole. And Momo sat on Aang's shoulder as they listened. While most of the audience listened to the story with interest, Sokka was the only one looking bored. The man said, "So, travelers, the next time you think you hear a strange, large bird talking, take a closer look. It might not be a giant parrot, but a flying man, a member of a secret group of airwalkers, who laugh at gravity," Then he sounded dramatic as he pointed and said, "and laugh at those bound to the earth by it."

Aang smiled as he thought that it was a great story about Airbenders. The man went around the campfire to collect money from telling the story. Momo chittered as Aang looked to his friend and asked, "Aren't Airbender stories the best?"

"Was it realistic? Is that how it was back then?" Katara asked, truly curious about what Airbenders did. Aang then said, "I laugh at gravity all the time."

"Even when you hit the ground?" Natasha teasingly asked. Though Aang shot her a slight glare, he couldn't hold it long and started laughing, "Gravity."

"Jingle, jingle." The man said as he came up to Sokka with his hat. The teen looked nervous about having to pay with money. He looked up to the man with a nervous frown as he began to feel through his pockets. When he thought he had something, the teen held closed hands and lifted them. When he uncurled them, he revealed to only have a few crumbs and a twitching bug that chirped as it moved. Then he offered a, "Sorry."

"Aw… cheapskates." The man said as he turned and walked away. Steve sighed and said, "Wait."

The man stopped as Steve walked around the bench and dropped a couple of coppers into the hat. Natasha looked to him with a questioning look and asked, "Steve, where'd you get that money?"

"I've been saving it since Omashu." Steve said with a shrug. All four of his friends' jaws dropped as Sokka then asked, "So you could have paid for something that actually mattered, like new supplies and stuff?"

Steve shrugged again as the man said, "Much appreciated."

Sokka breathed a sigh of relief as he put his stuff back. He glanced back when Nat gave him a questioning look.

"Hey!" Aang said as he got up and ran after the man. When he came up to the man who was with an older man, Aang said, "Thanks for the story."

"Tell it to the cap." The story teller said as he showed Aang the cap without looking to him. He jingled the cap and the coins inside and one fell out. Aang rifled over himself as he searched while Momo was quick to jump off of Aang's shoulder and pick it up. The man turned just when Momo dropped it into the hat and said while petting the lemur, "Aw, much obliged, little bat thing."

Aang, having stopped looking for money, looked to the man and said, "It means a lot to hear Airbender stories." The man stood up as he said, "It must have been a hundred years ago your great-grandpa met them."

"What are you prattling about, child?" The man asked with a comical face. Then pointing to the man behind him he said, "Great grandpappy saw the airwalkers last week."

"Yeah." The old man said as he raised a hand. Hope filling in his heart, Aang suddenly hoped and believed that he wasn't the only Airbender. He walked back over to the others. With a huge smile he said, "Guys, you'll never believe what I just learned."

"What is it, Aang?" Steve asked as the boy was looking really excited. Aang then said, "I just learned that there might be more Airbenders!"

All four of their faces became shocked to this. Aang then asked, "If I'm able to ask the man if he spotted them near the Northern Air Temple, could we maybe go and see if it's true."

The four looked to themselves as they thought about it. They began to talk amongst themselves about it. On the one hand, they knew how important this would be to Aang. And it wouldn't take too much time out of their journey to the North Pole. Steve looked between them and they all nodded. Turning to Aang he said, "As long as we're not there for too long, I don't see a problem with it."

"But, on two conditions." Natasha said as she held up two fingers. Katara then said, "Number One, let's not get our hopes up about the Airbenders." Then she kindly reminded, "Most of us aren't wanting a repeat of what happened at the Southern Temple."

"And two," Sokka added, "that it doesn't turn out like our trip to Omashu. I'd rather not have another crazy adventure like that."

"Deal." Aang said with a nod. Sokka then said, "Well, go and see about the directions and then we can head out in the morning."

x

The next day after getting confirmation the previous night, Appa flew high over the clouds as they headed towards the Northern Air Temple. Aang sat at the reins while the others looked around the area. Though Sokka was currently whittling something with his knife while Momo watched from behind the teen. As they continued flying, Aang recognized the area and said with a smile, "Hey, we're almost to the Northern Air Temple." Then he looked back to the passengers in the saddle and told them, "This is where they had the championships for sky bison polo."

"Huh, sounds like a neat sport." Natasha said with a shrug. Sokka shook his head and stopped whittling for a moment as he said, "Well, you can count me out of this one."

"Still sore about you and Aang's Air Ball game?" Steve lightly teased. The others giggled while Sokka gave the super soldier a deadpanned glance. Katara moved over to Sokka while he worked and she curiously asked while smiling, "Do you think we'll really find Airbenders?"

"Do you want me to be like you, or totally honest?" Sokka asked while not looking up. Katara's smile dropped as she crossed her arms and questioned, "Are you saying I'm a liar?"

"I'm saying you're an optimist." Sokka said as he looked up from his work. Then a small smirk formed on his face as he looked down and continued, "Same thing, basically."

"Hey, guys!" Aang called from the front. Steve, Sokka, Katara and Natasha all moved to the front of the saddle. They all looked in amazement as Aang said, "Look at this!"

Appa flew a little higher as they came upon the Northern Air Temple. It was almost like the Southern Air Temple except the design of the place was much different and the roof tiles were a different color. Natasha noticed something flying around the temple and said, "Look! Something's flying!"

Aang's face fell while Katara gasped in excitement, "They really are Airbenders!"

A dejected Aang bowed his head as he thought different. Then leaning against Appa he said with his arms crossed, "No, they're not."

"Aang?" Steve asked as he looked down at the boy from the saddle. Sokka then questioned, "What do you mean they're not?" Then he pointed to the people in the air and stated, "Those guys are flying!"

"But not like how real Airbenders, huh?" Natasha deduced as she guessed Aang's distress. Katara and Steve's faces fell they look between the flying people and Aang nodded and he said, "Gliding, maybe, but not flying." Then he pointed out, "You can tell by the way they move."

"So, real Airbenders, do it differently?" Steve asks before remembering when he saw Aang flying the first time. Aang nodded again and said, "They're not airbending." He looked at the flying people with an incredulous look and said, "Those people have no spirit."

"I'm sorry, Aang." Natasha offered as she slid down next to him. He looked to her as she said, "I know how much this was meaning to you, and I was really hoping for it too."

She would have continued but Aang leaned forward and looked up into the sky. One of the flying people was coming at them really quick. Steve, Sokka and Katara, who were all standing up for some reason, ducked and shouted in a panic as the person passed over their heads. They looked to the person as he laughed while he flew over them. Aang took up his staff as they watched the kid fly. Katara then said, "I don't know, Aang." She pointed to him as she stated, "That kid seemed pretty spirited."

They continue to watch as the kid flew right past them and back to the Temple. The boy looked back to them with a smile. Aang looked to him before a grin grew on his face. Aang then jumped off of Appa's head and spun his staff really fast over his own head. Then opening the glider he took off after the boy. Steve then looked to the others and asked, "What does he think he's doing?"

"Probably gonna show that kid how it's really done." Nat said with a smirk. Everyone looked to see that the people gliding had them and Appa completely surrounded. Two of them flew in front of Appa and made him jerk back with a startled groan, resulting in the four of them nearly falling off. Natasha leaned against the bison's back while Steve held on to the saddle. Katara stumbled back and crashed into her brother and they both grunted. Momo peeked around the Waterbender while she looked to her brother as Sokka said, "We better find some solid ground before it finds us."

"No arguments here." Natasha said as she took the reins of a groaning Appa. She began to guide him to what looked like a landing platform. Appa growled as he turned and landed on the temple grounds.

The boy continued to laugh as he soared through the skies ahead of Aang and flew a little higher. Soon, Aang caught up to him and moved up higher into the sky behind the kid. Aang had a serious look as he was beginning to catch up to the boy.

"Go, Teo!" One of the children on the landing platform shouted as they watched. Another then shouted, "Show that bald kid how it's done!"

The boy, Teo, and Aang flew high in the air before doing a couple of loops. They then glided over a cloud before Teo maneuvered his special glider for another loop and then flew close to the temple with Aang right behind him. The two then flew towards the ground while facing each other, more or less. They continued to fall in a winding pattern. As they continued to fall and were now side by side, Teo looked to Aang and said, "Hey, there. You're pretty good."

"Yeah, I know." Aang said with a neutral expression. But then he stated, "But I can do more than fancy gliding."

To emphasize his point as they came around each other in a crisscross Aang looped around before heading towards the temple. He flew underneath a bridge while Teo watched from above. As he came around a curved wall, Aang let go of his glider and ran along the wall with his glider not too far out of reach. As he continued to run, Aang quickly jumped into the air and formed an Air Scooter before using his airbending to stay on. Aang rode it until reaching the end of the wall and jumping back to his glider. As he climbed higher into the sky with a smirk on his face, Teo was impressed as he said to the Airbender when Aang came up behind him, "Wow, I don't think I can do that," but then the boy smiled before saying, "but here's a good one."

Then pulling on a string, a small ball of gas opened and a stream of fog blasted out of it. Teo then began moving through the sky as the stream poured out. Then rotating his special glider he passed over and around some clouds as he formed a shape with his smoke. He did a few loopty loops before turning skyward again. When Teo started falling towards the ground again, he then started to fly over another cloud. Then he swerved through the air before going up again. Then he put a finishing touch by making an image of a cut-eyed looking Aang. The kids on the ground started cheering while the real Aang looks exactly like his sky portrait. He quirked a brow when Teo came up next to him and asked, "What do you think?"

"It's great." Aang said as he looked away. His friends down on the ground looked to each other before making their way to where the other kids were. The two then began to land where everyone else was and Aang touched down first. He landed in front of the siblings and the Avengers before spinning his staff closed. Nat walked up to the Airbender and said, "If it helps, I thought you did great."

Aang slightly smiled to this, but it dropped when they looked up to see Teo coming in for a landing. The wheels of his glider raced across the platform before the boy pulled on a brake, making his glider come skidding to a stop and a turn. The other children walked up to their friend while three helped remove the glider from his wheelchair. When they walked off, Teo lifted his goggles and rolled himself over to the group. As he stopped in front of them, "Hey…" then something about Aang clicked and he said, "you're a real Airbender." His eyes went wide as he excitedly said, "You must be the Avatar."

He placed his left hand against his head as he shouted, "That's amazing! I-I've heard stories about you!"

"Thanks." Aang said as he sheepishly rubbed his head. Teo then looked to the other four and asked, "And you must be his friends, Sokka, Katara, Steve Rogers and Natasha Romanoff."

"Nice to meet you, kid." Steve said with a salute. Teo chuckled as he repeated the captain's action. Sokka then became excited as he said, "Wow! This glider chair is incredible."

He walked over as the kids brought the glider piece back and examined it. Teo turned his chair as he said, "If you think this is good. Wait until you see the other stuff my dad designed."

Rolling towards the temple entrance he looked back to the group and gestured, "Follow me."

The five of them then followed the boy inside. As they walked through the corridor, they looked up to see large metal pipes protruding from the walls. One of the pipes even went into the floor. But as they came to the room on the other side of the hall, Aang's face fell as he saw what happened to the temple. Metal pipes and machinery ran all over the place, and it somewhat overshadowed the rooms original design. Steam hissed as an elevator of sorts lifted higher into the room. Aang looked around to see that so much has change in his people's absence. He looked over to an Air Nomad statue to see that pipes ran around and behind it. Then he glanced up at all the machinery as a giant wheel turned. Steve, Natasha and Katara could all tell that this was having a major effect on their friend. The only one who didn't seemed to be bothered with it was Sokka as he said, "Wow!"

"Yeah, my dad is the mastermind behind this whole place." Teo said with pride for his father. Then he explained the machinery, "Everything is powered by hot air." They looked to see a woman boarding an elevator as he said, "It even pumps hot air currents outside to give us a lift when we're gliding."

When the elevator brought the woman to her designated floor, she got off and walked along a catwalk. A wide-eyed yet distraught Aang then said, "This place is unbelievable."

"Yeah, it's great, isn't it?" Teo said as he looked to Aang.

"No," Aang said as he glanced to a confused Teo and walked away, "just unbelievable."

"Aang used to come here a long time ago." Katara explained to Teo while coming up beside him. Then she tried to make it sound as if it weren't Teo and his people's fault, "I think he's a little shocked that it's so… different."

"So better." Sokka said from where he stood, not really seeing that it made Aang feel a little worse. Steve crossed his arms at Sokka's insecurity and sarcastically said, "Nice one."

Katara and Nat walked over to Aang as he looked at another section of the wall that was covered in pipes. Inserting the pipes had caused the cracks that were already there to grow. As they looked upon the ruined murals Aang dejectedly said, "This is supposed to be the history of my people."

"Hey," Natasha said as Katara walked up to him and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. The spy of S.H.I.E.L.D. then said, "At least the outside is mostly the same, plus there are other spots around the temple that probably have been altered."

If Aang had heard her, he didn't hear her as he walked away and towards a fountain in the middle of the room. The statue at the top was of a bison that held something and green water flowed through it. Aang walked up to the bubbling water with a grimace before looking up to the bison statue. Smoke erupted from the bison's mouth and Aang jumped back with a yell. Katara walked up to him and placed her hand on his back as she said, "Nat's right, Aang. Maybe not everything in the temple changed and is still the same."

A little while later, the group walked across an arched bridge to another section of the temple. When they made it to the other end, they could see many doors aligning the walls. Steve then asked, "What's this part of the temple, Aang?"

"This was the dorm rooms for the Airbenders." Aang said with a smile, seeing as this part hadn't been touched. While Sokka and Teo stood back the other four moved towards a statue. Then Aang added, "It's nice to see at least one part of the temple that isn't ruined."

"And there are probably more too." Natasha said with a shrug. Aang looked to her and agreed with a smile. They continued to admire the statue when someone shouted, "Look out!"

They all shielded themselves when something bashed through both the wall and the statue's head. Everyone coughed from the dust before looking at the newly made hole with wide eyes. They saw a makeshift wrecking ball dangling in the air while five people walked out from the rubble. They were led by a man with a bald spot and two pointy sides of his hair. When the man saw them he said, "What the doodle?" Then he placed a hand behind his back while wagging a finger as he scolded, "Don't you know enough to stay away from construction sites?"

"To be fair," Nat shrugged while crossing her arms, "there wasn't a sign for a warning."

"True." The man said as he stroked his beard. Then he said, "Still, we have to make room for the bathhouse."

"Do you know what you did?" Aang angrily questioned as he held his staff with both hands. Then he angrily accused, "You just destroyed something sacred," Then he got even more angry for the reason behind it, "for a stupid bathhouse."

"Well, people around here are starting to stink." The man said in his defense while fanning his hand in front of his nose. A really ticked off Aang then shouted, "This whole place stinks!"

Then with a shout he jumped in the air with his staff raised. Then bringing it down hard he sent an airwave that knocked the wrecking ball off its support. The machine fell down the mountain side. A giant dust cloud drifted from the dorm room as Aang then angrily said, "This is a sacred temple."

"Aang! Calm down." Steve said as he moved in front of the boy. Natasha then said from behind, "We know you're upset about it, but going into a rage isn't going to help."

"I guess." Aang said as he calmed down a little. Then pointing a finger to the man he said, "You can't treat it this way." He walked up and said, "I've seen it when the monks were here I know what it's supposed to be like."

"The monks?" The man in front of Aang asked, confused about what he was talking about. Steve then said, "Sir, this is an Airbender temple. Aang's only looking out for what his people held dear."

"But he's only twelve." The man said gesturing to Aang. Teo came up to him and said, "Dad, he's the Avatar."

"And he knows a lot about this temple." Natasha added with a smirk. Aang smiled in appreciation to this while Teo said, "Not to mention that he used to come here a hundred years ago."

"What are you doing?" Aang asked as he was still a little upset. Then he was calm as he asked, "Why did you come here?"

"Hmm…" Teo's father said as he thought of how to answer this. Then he put both questions together as he said, "Doing here…" Then he explained, "A long time ago-" He looked back as he clarified, "not a hundred years, I assure you,

"My people had become refugees after a terrible flood." Then slightly running to his son he said, "My infant son, Teo, was badly hurt and lost his mother." Teo looked down in sadness to this, as did the five of them. Teo's father then sniffled before continuing, "I needed somewhere to rebuild," Then gesturing to the temple he sounded hopeful as he said, "and then I stumbled across this place. Couldn't believe it. Everywhere, pictures of flying people, but empty, nobody home." He jumped up as he spread his arms to mimic the portraits and ran around, "Then I came across these fan-like contraptions."

Aang moved in the man's path as he said, "Our gliders."

"Yes, little light flying machines." Teo's father said as he flapped his hands up and down. Then pointing to his son and said, "They gave me an idea. Build a new life for my son in the air." He turned and walked to the wreckage done both by him and Aang as he said, "Then everyone would be on equal ground." He placed his hands behind his back as he said, "So to speak."

"That's actually insightful." Steve admitted. Teo's father then said, "We're just in the process of improving," Then he turned to Aang and said, "or better yet, renovating the place of what's already here, making necessary changes."

Most of the group was moved by his speech as Natasha and Steve hung on to every word. Aang was still a little on the fence while Katara used the Airbender's overshirt to wipe her eyes and Sokka fought to keep from crying. The Mechanist then said, "After all, isn't that what nature does?"

"Nature, however, knows where to stop." Aang said as he walked up to the man. Teo's father looked to the wreckage and admitted, "I suppose that's true. Unfortunately, progress does have a way of getting away from us."

He looked to another spot in the courtyard and said, "Look at the time."

Everyone looked as he checked a trio of candles and a hammer. Teo's father looked to his men as they were standing around or taking notes and said, "Come, the pulley system must be oiled before dark."

"Wait," Sokka said as he walked up to the candles and asked, "how can you tell the time from that thing?" Then he pointed to them and pointed out, "The notches all look the same."

"The candle will be able to tell us." The Mechanist assured as he walked up next to the skeptical Sokka. Then turning to the candles he said, "Watch."

Both he and Sokka kept watching until the flame popped four times. Impressed, Sokka then deduced as he turned to the Mechanist, "You put spark powder in the candle."

"Four flashes." The Mechanist said, "So it's exactly four hours past midday," Then he turned to Sokka and made a funny by saying, "Or as I call it, four o'candle."

This caused Sokka to start laughing at it. The Mechanist then said, "If you like that, wait till you see my finger-safe knife sharpener." He held up his left hand which revealed that three of his fingers had been cut off, "Only took it three tries to get it right."

The five from the sidelines winced at the sight of the man's missing fingers. The Mechanist then removed the fake fingers and casually tossed them to Sokka. The Water Tribe teen caught them before screaming at the sight while the Mechanist walked past him. He then tapped Sokka's shoulder and said, "Follow me."

"Hey, Aang," Teo said and looked to the Airbender, "I want to show you something."

"I'll go with Sokka to make sure that he doesn't get into any trouble." Steve said before he followed the Mechanist and the others out. Nat then shrugged and said, "I guess that it's just us four."

Teo then began to wheel out of the dorms with Aang, Katara and Natasha following behind.

They came through a dark corridor that had pipes in it as well. Nat then said, "I'll say this, your dad really knows how to expand."

"Yeah, he might overdo it a little." Teo said, "But it's mostly to provide us with what we need."

"Eh, I can't argue with that." Natasha said as they kept walking. Aang then said, "I just can't get over it. There's not a single thing that's the same."

"I don't know about that." Teo said as he stopped and looked back. Reaching down he picked up a small black and white crab before saying, "The temple might be different," Nat and Katara looked to the little crab in his hands as he continued while handing it to Katara, "but the creatures that live here are probably direct descendants of the ones that lived here a long time ago."

Aang moved to get a closer look as they all watched as the crab moved from side to side in Katara's hands. As she lightly touched the shell making the crab hide for a moment, Katara then said, "You're right. They're kind of keepers of the temple's origins."

She turned and allowed Aang to hold the little crab in his own hands. He smiled as the crab curled up in his left palm before allowing Natasha to hold the crab. She laughed as the crab repeated its motions of moving side to side in her hands. They looked to the boy when he said, "Besides, there is one part of the temple that hasn't changed at all."

The three had followed Teo down another corridor to a familiar looking door. Katara then said, "Hey. It's just like the one at the other Air Temple."

Natasha looked about and said, "And it looks like you were right, Teo. Your father and his guys haven't been down here yet."

"And only an Airbender can open the door." Teo said as he turned his wheelchair to turn to them. Aang's fears were slightly relieved as he said, "So inside it's completely untouched," the Airbender looked to the door as Teo finished, "just the way the monks left it."

Then he had a personal wish as he said, "I've always wondered what it was like in there."

"Aang?" Katara asked as she looked to her friend. Aang lowered his head and shut his eyes as he remained firm, "I'm sorry. This is the last part of the temple that's the same as it was." He looked back to it as he said, "I want it to stay that way."

"I completely understand." Teo said, though he was disappointed. Nat then said, "We'll respect your wishes, Aang."

"I just wanted you to know it was here." Teo then added with a smile. Aang then respectfully said, "Thanks."

All four of them turned to walk back down the hall. Natasha let the children go first as she looked about the hall. She looked back to the door and when she looked up she saw a small hole above the door. Keeping up with the kids, she made a mental note to return soon.

x

In another section of the temple, the Mechanist, Sokka and Steve walked down a flight of stairs underground. They had just finished oiling the pulley systems. All three of them held a lantern to see where they were going. Steve then noticed that a few things were in holes that had been cut out of the walls. Steve looked to the Mechanist and asked, "Do you think that Earthbenders did those."

"Mm. Perhaps." The Mechanist said as they kept descending. They stopped at a few of the holes and Sokka said, "These lanterns are terrible. I can't see."

"And yet you haven't tripped." Steve pointed out as they continued on. Sokka lightly glared at him before looking down at their light source. Sokka removed the lid and saw that it was filled with fireflies and asked, "Why would you want to use fireflies for light?"

One of the fireflies flew out as the Mechanist looked back and shouted, "Hey, close that up. They'll get loose." He walked up to the teen and said, "Fireflies are a nonflammable light source."

"What's down here that you can't use torches or anything like that?" Steve asked as he turned to the two. They kept walking down the stairs as the Mechanist explained, "You'll see in a moment."

They walked up to a heavily fortified wooden door. Steve noticed that there was also some kind of sealant on it as well. The Mechanist then tested to see if the sealant was still in place. Then he told Steve and Sokka, "Both of you, cover your noses and hold your breath."

All three of them pinched their noses and took a deep breath. Then turning back to the door, he slid the little window on the door open and they were all able to look in. Sokka glanced to the Mechanist and questioned, "Okay, so you brought us all the way down here to see an empty room."

"It's not empty, Sokka. Otherwise a door wouldn't be this secured." Steve said. Then he glanced to the Mechanist and said, "Right?"

"He's right, Sokka." The Mechanist said as he slid the window closed again. He then revealed, "It's filled to the brim with natural gas. Came across it my first time here." Then he revealed, "Unfortunately, I was carrying a torch at the time." He raised the lantern to his brows as he said, "Nearly blew myself and the whole place even more sky-high. Thought my eyebrows would never grow back."

"And this is the reason you use fireflies when you come down here." Steve guessed. The Mechanist nodded and then said, "Anyway, there's a vital problem that needs solving. From time to time, we've gas leaks."

Then all three checked the sealant from every angle as the Mechanist continued, "And they're nearly impossible to find."

"So this place is an explosion waiting to happen." Sokka deduced as he stopped inspecting the sealant. The Mechanist nodded and said, "Yes. Until I figure out how to locate something I can't see, hear, smell or touch."

"The Airbenders who lived here probably knew of the problem and how to do it." Steve said as he finished inspecting his spot. Then he looked between them and said, "It's too bad I don't have a way to contact my world. Then we'd be able to find your leaks easily with the machines that we have. Or if I had two of my friends here…"

"It would be beneficial." The Mechanist admitted. But then he said, "But no sense in wishing on what we don't have."

x

Back up top, the group had come back to platform to glide. Katara had asked Teo to teach her how to use their gliders. Some of the other kids were already flying. Teo's glider stood at the ready while Aang and Natasha stood off to the side. Katara held her glider as she stood at the edge of the landing platform. Teo then told her, "The wind will carry you. It supports something inside you, something lighter than air." He rolled closer as he said, "And that something takes over when you fly."

Katara set her glider to the side as she looked to those already gliding. Her nerves got the better of her and she said, "I've changed my mind. I think I was born without that something."

"Oh, come on, Katara." Natasha chuckled before saying, "Just give it a try."

"Oh yeah." The Waterbender argued as she glanced back at the spy, "Then why don't you have a glider too. Why don't you try gliding with the rest of us."

"I have business elsewhere." Nat said with her arms crossed, knowing that it wasn't exactly a lie. Teo then said to Katara, "And everyone has it."

"Spirit." Aang said. They all looked to him and Teo asked, "What?"

Aang came closer and said, "That's the something you're talking about."

"Yeah." Teo said as he thought about it, "I suppose it is."

"Well, go and let your spirits soar." Nat said with a smile. Pointing to the temple she said, "I'll be inside if you need me."

She walked in as they prepared themselves to glide.

x

Natasha had just walked in when she saw Steve, Sokka and the Mechanist walking through another corridor. She quickly ran up to them and tapped on Steve's shoulder. All three of them looked to find her standing there with a smile. Then she asked, "Could I borrow Steve, please?"

"Uh…" Sokka said. Steve then shrugged and said, "I guess."

"Great. Follow me." Natasha said as she turned down another corridor. Steve looked to Sokka and the Mechanist before following after Natasha. When he had caught up to her, he then asked, "Mind telling me what this is about?"

"You'll see." Was all she said as they continued walking.

x

It didn't take them very long to reach the hall that lead to the giant door. Steve then said, "So you brought me here to see the door that can be opened only by Airbenders." He looked to her and said, "And this is important, how exactly?"

"What do you notice about this particular hall?" Natasha asked as she walked over to the door. Steve looked about and noticed that there was a huge lack of pipes. And the door practically looked untouched as well. Steve then said, "It's almost like they skipped the entire hall for a reason."

"But for what reason?" Natasha said as she looked along the door and up to the hole in the ceiling. Looking back to the super soldier she said, "Quick, give me a boost."

Steve walked over and removed his shield from his back before placing it on the ground. Nat stepped on it and fought to keep her balance as Steve lifted the shield to where she could see through the hole. As she started looking he asked, "See anything."

"Mostly a red light." Natasha said as she could barely see. Steve found it odd because there were no lights in the Southern Air Temple. Nat then noticed something coming out of the hole. It looked to be a piece of string. She looked down and said, "There's a string coming out of the hole. Most likely a trip where of some kind," she looked to see that the wire moved from above the door and along the wall with the windows, "and it goes to somewhere else in the temple."

"Are you sure the light's all you can see?" Steve asked. Nat then looked again and saw something, "I do see something, but I can barely tell what it is, even with the light."

Steve then lowered his shield so Natasha could come down. Placing a hand to his chin he questioned, "What could be so important in that room where it would need a trip wire?"

"I'm not sure." Nat shook her head. The two began to move Then she said, "I'll go talk to the Mechanist, you go and check on the kids."

Steve nodded and the two parted ways.

x

Meanwhile, Aang, Katara and Teo stood at the edge before Teo said, "Are you ready?"

"No!" A really frightened Katara said as she kept a tight grip on the glider's handle bars. Then taking a deep breath, she jumped off the edge with a scream. Aang and Teo were quick to follow after her. Katara's screams turned into laughter as she continued to glide on the air currents. All three of them glided higher into the air as Katara happily said, "I can't believe I'm flying."

"Just make sure you keep your mouth closed so you don't swallow a bug." Aang advised as he flew up next to her. It wasn't a problem for a certain flying lemur as he caught a bug as it flew into his mouth. He flew off as he was being watched by Aang and Katara. Katara then said, "Teo was right about the air." She looked to him, "All I had to do was trust it. Let it carry me."

"Even though Teo's not an Airbender," Aang said with a smile, his thoughts about him starting to brighten, "he really does have the spirit of one."

Aang turned on his glider to descend from the air. He joined Teo back on the landing platform. He used his airbending to land and closed his glider. Thinking about what he had just said and how he felt about Teo's people and the temple, he figured that it wouldn't hurt to let him see a little more about Airbender culture. He smiled as he said to Teo, "I've been thinking. If you want to see what's in that room, I'd be happy to open the door for you."

"Great." Teo said with a smile. Steve stepped up and said, "I'm glad that you are, too."

Aang looked to his friend and asked, "Why?"

"Me and Nat had just checked the door out again and found it a little odd." Steve explained. Then he said, "We think there's something odd behind that door."

"Well, we're about to go there now." Aang said, thinking it was serious if he and Nat thought so. They all looked up when Katara shouted, "Wait!" She kept flying by as she asked, "How do I land this thing? What if I land over an…"

She started gagging on something before shouting, "Blech!" She continued flying back and forth as she shouted, "Bug! Bug!" The three boys grimaced at the thought of swallowing a bug. She gagged really hard before shouting, "That was a definitely bug!"

x

Sokka was currently with the Mechanist in his own quarters as the man went over a blueprint of some kind. Sokka himself was looking over a few things on a shelf when he caused something to fall off with a crash while catching a few of them. Teo's father looked back and said, "I said don't touch anything."

Sokka lifted up one of the projects before a few more things fell onto his head, making him drop a small balloon model among a few other things. The stuff clattered on the floor while an egg rolled off somewhere. He and the Mechanist started to pick the stuff up as Teo's father said, "Don't worry, that experiment's old." He looked off to see where the egg went and added, "And that egg was just part of last week's lunch."

Sokka took a few sniffs before smelling something foul and gagged, "Ugh! Week-old egg smell."

"Quick, find that egg." The Mechanist said as he set the balloon project down. Sokka followed suit and dropped what he had. They crawled about the floor to look for the rotten egg.

x

Back with Aang's group, they were currently walking down the hall as Aang asked, "So what was so weird that you and Natasha had to come back to see."

"She said she saw both a wire running from that hole to somewhere else in the temple," Steve pointed. Then he added, "Then she saw a red light from the room but couldn't make out what was in there."

"Well, we're about to find out." Katara said as they neared the door. When they all stopped before it, Teo was excited and said, "I can't believe I'm finally going to see what's inside."

He, Steve and Katara took a step, or rolled, back as Aang took a deep breath and spread his arms out in front and behind him. Then turning two circles, he had a determined look on his face as he sent two air blasts from his palms into the pipes. Like in the Southern Air Temple, the mechanisms moved as one of the blue swirls turned over and caused the first lock to spin. Then the second swirl turned and made the lock turn as well. Then the final swirl shook a little before turning over. Steve had a firm look on his face as he waited for the doors to open.

x

Meanwhile, back in the Mechanist's office a few minutes earlier, he and Sokka were still searching for the rotten egg that had gotten away from them. Seeing as how frustrating it was, Sokka then questioned, "How could something that's so small you can't even see it make such a big stink?"

Sokka's words rung in the Mechanist's mind as he stopped searching. Looking back to the Water Tribe teen he said, "That's the solution to our problem!"

Sokka then realized what he was talking about and said, "Yeah!

"If we put a whole mess of rotten eggs in the cellar where the gas seeps up…" Sokka said as the two turned to face each other. The Mechanist then filled in the gaps by saying, "The gas will mix with the smell of rotten eggs."

"Then if there's a leak…" Sokka hypothesized. The Mechanist then said, "You smell rotten eggs." Then planning out their next move he said, "Then you'd just follow your nose to the place where the smell is coming from…"

"And plug up the hole where the gas is escaping." Sokka finished. Both he and the Mechanist exclaimed at the same time with their arms raised, "You're a genius!"

The door to the office opened and Natasha walked in. She saw that they both looked very excited and said with a smirk, "Looks like you two are getting along well."

"You could say that." Sokka shrugged. Nat's face became serious as she turned to the Mechanist and said, "I need to ask you some questions."

"Great, I do love questions when someone wants to learn." The Mechanist said as he stood up. Placing his hands together he said, "What would you like to learn, Ms. Natasha?"

"There's a hallway in the temple that's completely untouched. And yet the rest of the temple has been remodeled." Natasha said as she came closer to the Mechanist. The Mechanist himself looked a little nervous as she asked, "Why would you leave one part of the temple untouched while renovating the rest?"

"Uh, why would you ask that, Nat?" Sokka asked from the side as he had his arms crossed. Nat looked to her friend and said, "Because you've seen how Aang was upset to the changes, and when he finds a part of the temple that's not altered, there's something suspicious going on here." Turning back to the Mechanist she demanded, "And for Aang's sake, I want to know what."

But before the Mechanist could answer her question, a little bell started to ring. The Mechanist then said, "Something's wrong." Quickly heading for the door he said, "I've got to go."

Figuring that that was what the trip was connected to and she ran after him with Sokka not too far behind.

x

Back with Aang, Steve, Katara and Teo the doors creaked open. While they all went inside, their eyes went wide at the sight. They gasped at the sight of weapons of different kinds lay about the room. Some had been assembled while others were still being worked on. In the middle of the room was a war balloon with the Fire Nation Insignia that lay in the forehead of Hydra's covered by a tarp. Aang's face fell as he said, "This is a nightmare."

"Just a living one." Steve added as he looked about the room. The Mechanist, Sokka and Natasha came up behind them. The other two looked in shock while Teo's father looked to the four in front and said, "You don't understand."

Aang glanced back with a glare as he shouted and pointed at the man, "You're making weapons for the Fire Nation and Hydra!"

The Mechanist looked truly worried as he looked between them all. Sokka looked to the man and questioned, "You've been making weapons for the Fire Nation and Hydra?"

"Thank you, for restating the obvious, Captain." Natasha said as she looked to him. Then she turned to the super soldier and said, "No offense, Steve."

Steve slightly groaned to it, but knew that it wasn't important. Everyone glared at the Mechanist, but while Aang was upset that the Mechanist defiled the temple for this purpose, Teo then demanded from his father, "Explain all this, now!"

"It was about a year after we moved here." Teo's father started from the beginning, "At that time, I truly didn't know anything about the Hydra organization, but Fire Nation soldiers had found our settlement." Shrugging as he said, "You were too young to remember this, Teo. They were going to destroy everything, burn it to the ground. I pleaded with them. I begged them to spare us." Then he looked truly shameful and he said, "They asked what I had to offer." He looked down as he said, "I offered my services."

They all looked either away or glared at him. Teo's father then looked to his son and said, "You must understand. I did this for you."

Teo looked away from his own father as tears welled in the boy's eyes. He then turned his wheelchair away from his father as the man tried to find his words. Steve then asked, "When did Hydra become involved in this deal?"

"A few weeks ago." The Mechanist said, "They took the more complex looking projects for someone else to work on." He shrugged as he said, "Even I don't know what they're doing with them at this point."

Teo's father then looked down in shame before turning and walking away from the room. Most of the group continued to glare after him as he walked.

x

A few minutes later, the Mechanist was currently fiddling with his balloon project. He had just given the word to fill the cellar with rotten eggs and it wouldn't be long until they could find the leak. Placing a candle in the basket with two eggs he released the balloon. He didn't even look up as the balloon floated up to the ceiling. The door behind him opened and he looked back. Aang, Teo and Steve walked into the room as the Airbender asks, "When are they coming?"

"Soon." The Mechanist said. He looked to a candle on the side and a it sparked as he said, "Very soon."

"You can't give them anymore weapons." Aang said in defiance. Steve then added, "You'd only be helping them achieve victory in the war."

"If I don't give them what they want," The Mechanist argued, "they will destroy this place."

The small balloon project burst into flames and fell to the floor in the middle of them. Steve quickly moved to is and placed his shield over it in an attempt to smother the flames. Teo looked to his father and said, "How can I be proud of you when your inventions are being used for murder?"

"I need some time to think." The Mechanist said as Steve removed his shield from the invention. The man picked it up off the floor when a bell rang on the side. Looking to the three he said, "You need to leave." Then ordering, "Go!"

"We're not leaving." Teo defiantly said while he, Steve and Aang had determined looks. His father looked between the three of them and said, "Then hide. Quickly."

He pushed Teo behind a giant paper prototype while Aang and Steve hid with the boy. The Mechanist then pulled on a rope, a wheel next to the rope turned and a trap door in the middle of the room opened up. Steam hissed as an Emissary in Fire Nation robes was raised into the room by a platform. He was angry as he said, "You know better than to keep me waiting." Walking off the platform he said, "Give me what you owe us so I can be on my way."

The Mechanist looked down as he thought while Steve, Aang and Teo watched from their hiding place. The Emissary then said, "Well…" He marched up to the Mechanist and questioned, "is there a problem?"

"No." The Mechanist said. Then gesturing to the door he said, "Right this way."

But before they could leave the room, Aang used a kick to blow a table in front of the door while spinning through the air on top of the table. Looking to the Fire Nation Emissary he said with a glare, "The deal's off."

"The Avatar." The Emissary said as he was completely surprised. He felt a presence behind him and looked back to see Steve standing at the ready with his shield. The Emissary then said, "And Captain America."

"Aang, Steve, don't get involved." The Mechanist said as he stepped between Aang and the Fire Nation Emissary. The Emissary stepped away from Steve while pointing a finger at the Mechanist while threatening, "If I don't get what I came for, the Fire Nation and our allies from Hydra will burn this place to rubble."

"You really want to be making threats when we're in here?" Steve asks as he reaches for his shield. Not waiting for an answer, Aang shot a slash of air at them Emissary while shouting, "Get out of here!"

The Fire Nation Emissary grunted when the blast hit him. The blast had knocked a few hairs out of place. He looked back to the Airbender as Aang declared, "You're leaving empty-handed."

"Then the destruction of this temple will be on your head." The Emissary said as he pointed at the Avatar. Steve then moved in front of him with his shield at the ready. The Fire Nation Emissary, knowing better to pick a fight with the two of them, walked back to the trap door and stepped on it. The platform lowered itself back down and Aang twisted before using his airbending to close the trap door.

x

Later Aang, Steve and Teo rejoined their friends in another part of the temple. They stood on a bridge as the trio told them what had happened. When they had finished, Sokka then said, "This is bad, very bad."

"You guys, what are we gonna do?" Katara asked between them. Natasha then said, "Well, Steve and I have been in a situation like this before."

"Really?" Teo asked. Steve nodded and said, "When the Avengers had first come together, we were defending a city from an invasion from an alien army." He shook his head as he admitted, "It wasn't easy, but we were able to come through in the end."

"And we can do it again." Natasha said. Looking between her, Steve and the kids she said, "This isn't our first battle with these hot heads, and why should it be any different?"

"Mostly because of the weapons they have on their side." Sokka reminded. Natasha gave him a deadpanned look before saying, "What I mean is, we've faced armies before. Whether it be Fire Nation, Hydra, even pirates."

"But how can we possibly keep them all away?" Katara asked, really worried about the impending invasion. An idea came to Aang and he said, "I'll tell you guys how. We have something they don't." Then pointing to the people on gliders he said, "Air power."

They looked up as a few gliders flew overhead. They began to see what he was saying as Aang continued, "We control the sky. That's something the Fire Nation and Hydra can't do.

"We can win." Aang said as smile came on all of their faces. Their faces became surprised as a voice said, "I want to help out too."

They looked to see the Mechanist walking up to them. Aang nodded and he said, "Good." They looked to the Airbender as he said, "We'll need it."

"We are going to need a genius in this battle." Steve said. Natasha then smiled and said, "And who better to help us than a genius from this world."

The Mechanist smiled to their kind words. They all smiled to one another before they went inside to think of a plan.

x

After gathering everyone in the temple into the Mechanist's office, Sokka and then Mechanist had a plan for dealing with the enemy troops. The Mechanist had some good news, "We finally got the war balloon working thanks to Sokka."

He then complemented the boy, "This boy's a genius."

"Thank you." Sokka pridefully accepted. Then he said to the Mechanist, "You're a genius."

"Thank you." The Mechanist returned. Aang, Katara, Steve and Natasha all looked to each other with questioning looks. But then they focused on what the two had to say as Sokka started, "See, the problem with the old war balloon was you could get it airborne," Then placing a candle in the basket and the top half of the balloon over the candle, he released it and then continued, "but once you did, it just kept going." They all watched as the balloon went into the air before being stopped with Sokka's hand on the string attached. Then he pulled it back down as he suggested, "You could put a hole in the top, but then all the hot air would escape." Then he asked, "So the question became: How do you keep a lid on hot air?"

"Ugh." Katara scoffed as she looked to her friends and asked, "If only we knew."

All five of them started giggling at this, knowing that she was joking about Sokka. Sokka, not having heard the jab, then said, "A lid is actually the answer." He tugged on the string connected to the lid while saying, "If you control the hot air, you can control the war balloon."

"Hmm, that's actually pretty smart." Katara admitted, surprised by her brother's genius. Even Aang, Steve, Nat and Teo were surprised by this as well, as evident by their wide eyes. Sokka then discussed the other part of the plan, "Okay, we've got four kinds of bombs- smoke, slime, fire and…"

"Stink." The Mechanist said, "Never underestimate the power of stink."

"Nat and I can also deal with the troops on the ground that the bombers can't get to." Steve offered. Then he said to the Mechanist, "You also need to be careful of the weapons that Hydra is carrying."

"And we will." Teo promised.

x

It was later that day when everyone had gathered outside of the landing platform. The Mechanist and Teo's friends readied their gliders while Appa stood at the back. Those without gliders stood at the edge of the platform and looked about for the enemy soldiers. Soon the sounds of marching feet could be heard and a little girl looked back and alerted, "They're coming!"

"Are we ready?" Teo asked. Katara nodded, but she looked worried as she said, "Yes, but where's Sokka with the war balloon?"

"We can't wait on them forever." Steve said as the sounds of the marching soldiers drew closer. Aang leapt off of Appa's head and decided, "We'll have to start without it."

"They'll be sorry they're late for the party." Natasha said as he landed next to them and opened his glider. Momo landed at the top of the glider with a chitter.

Teo had a smirk as he lowered his goggles as a few friends of his readied his glider. Each of the Mechanist's gliders had been outfitted with a few of the bombs and stood in a two row formation right behind Aang. They all looked to each other while giving the one next to them a thumbs up. Aang too had a smirk on his face as he was ready. Steve and Natasha were both on Appa and stood at the back of the group. Katara stood behind Teo ready to give him a push Aang then ran forward and jumped off the edge of the landing platform. It didn't take long for everyone else to join as Katara pushed Teo close to the edge before running out of the way as the others followed suit. Those unable to fly with them cheered their friends on while the gliders took off. The gliders flew off to meet the enemy soldiers as they came marching up the mountain path. Fire Nation soldiers carried spears while the soldiers of Hydra carried rifles.

Legions of soldiers continued marching up the pass, unaware of Aang and his friends soaring above them. Aang and Teo looked down to see the location of the soldiers before looking to each and nodded to the other. Then turning their gliders to descend, all of the gliders went down to engage the enemy. Each of the gliders dive bombed into the cloud bank surrounding the mountain. The soldiers looked up as the gliders descended on them. Both Hydra and Fire Nation alike grunted when they had a slime bomb dropped onto them. The Hydra soldiers that didn't get hit raised their weapons and fired upon the gliders. The gliders were able to swerve out of the shots way before dropping their own attack at the enemy forces. A Fire Nation soldier grunted as he was struck in the face by a slime bomb. Another glider let loose a smoke bomb that engulfed a section of the path and snow dropped down the mountain. The gliders circled in the air before coming around for another run.

"Take them out of the sky, now!" A Fire Nation soldier yelled to his comrades. One Hydra soldier raised his weapon, aimed for one of the gliders and fired at them. A bolt of energy tore through the fabric of a glider and caused them to fall. Aang was quick to drop under the glider and had to struggle to use one hand to use his airbending to lift them higher into the air. He and the glider went back above the cloud bank and up to the temple. When they were in range of the landing platform, he allowed the glider to land. The glider was able to land safely and Aang shouted, "There almost here! Get ready just in case!"

Steve, Natasha and Katara nodded and prepared themselves to fight. Aang turned back and headed for the cloud bank again. When he had joined back he joined another formation of another bombing run. When they had come close to the soldiers, they released a series of smoke bombs onto the soldiers. While the Fire Nation soldiers coughed from the smoke, a few Hydra soldiers had on a gas mask and looked up to the gliders before firing at them again. The gliders swerved to get out of the way of the energy shots. But as they continued to fire, the Fire Nation soldiers were so distracted by the smoke that they backed up into a few Hydra soldiers. The gliders continued to pelt the soldiers with slime and smoke bombs before retreating.

As they had the soldiers distracted, Aang flew over the cloud bank. Jumping off his glider, he formed an Air Scooter and rode it across the snow covered ground. His actions caused an avalanche of snow to fall onto the soldiers. When he approached the end of the cliff Aang jumped off and grabbed his glider to fly off. The Fire Nation and Hydra all cried out as the avalanche fell onto them. The other gliders looked to check on their progress when Aang came up behind Teo. The soldiers who weren't buried under the snow retreated back down the path. Aang then shouted, "We've got them on the run!" To make sure that they were getting rid of them he shouted, "We need more slime!"

As one Hydra soldier ran down the path, he pulled out a radio and shouted, "We can't get in close! Send them up!"

Two gliders emerged from the cloud bank where Appa floated and turned to fly over the saddle. From in the saddle, Katara and a chirping Momo handed them another bomb to take with them. As the two gliders flew off, suddenly a giant grappling hook burst from the clouds and startled Appa. More grappling hooks followed soon after. Katara screamed as she and Momo hung for dear life. The hooks landed in the snow and fell back a little before latching onto the rocks.

Steve and Natasha waited a few yards from where the hooks landed and wondered what was coming up. More hooks shot out of the clouds and latched onto the rocky surface. Natasha looked to Steve and wondered, "I'm willing to bet that Teo's father is responsible for whatever those are."

"I wouldn't doubt it." Steve said as he pulled his helmet on and removed his shield from his back. Natasha and Cap readied themselves before running to the hooks. Aang and Teo were quick to fly by a passing Appa to the hooks as well. Captain America threw his shield at a hook and caused it to loosen. Catching his shield as it came back he threw it once more at the same hook and the hook completely disconnected from the rock and fell back down the side of them mountain. When he and Natasha reached the edge, they looked down and gasped at what they saw. Giant tanks, not like the ones from their world, but still just as dangerous looking. Instead of treads like a tank from their world would have, these tanks had large wheels to move around and had a slidable window to allow projectiles to be fired. Even Aang was surprised by the arrival of the tanks. The fliers on the gliders threw the bombs at the ascending tanks, but they were ineffective as they continued to climb.

"Well, these things are certainly gonna hard to beat." Natasha said as they continued to watch them climb. Cap then said, "Maybe we shouldn't stand so close to the edge when they get here."

"Good idea." She agreed and they both turned and ran to get a little space. Those on gliders weaved around the chains of the tanks as they knew that their attacks were useless. Though it was futile, one threw a smoke bomb at the tank. Teo watched from the side as the tanks continued climbing. Aang came in from the side, move to where his glider closed up behind him, and stuck the end where he could dislodge one of the hooks. He grunted as he jiggled the staff until the hook completely released. Aang fell through the air before opening his glider again and taking off. The tank that the chain was connected to dropped a little with a spin before another grappling hook shot out. Aang shouted in a panic before moving out of the hook's way. Like the other hooks, the new on latched onto the cliffside and the tank slammed into cliff before starting to climb again.

The gliders returned above the mountains as the tanks reached more a level ground. As the tanks neared closer to the temple as Steve and Nat stopped running and faced the tanks. The team on the gliders came flying towards the tanks opened up their windows and Firebenders shot fire balls at them. The gliders moved out of the way of the shots while still approaching the tanks. One of the tanks shot at the two Avengers, but Cap moved in front of Natasha and blocked the fireball with his shield. An idea formed in Nat's head as soldiers joined the tanks. Running out from behind the cover of the shield, she made for one of the tanks. Captain America then called out, "Natasha, come back!"

The spy didn't turn back as she jumped out of the way of one Firebender's blast and then jumped again when a Hydra soldier shot at her. When she came close to a tank Natasha jumped up onto the vehicle and jumped to dodge another fire blast. Landing on the hood of the tank she quickly opened the hatch and forced it open. Then jumping down she slammed her foot into the driver while driving elbow into the face of the Firebender. Both men fell to the floor unconscious while Natasha took the wheel. She found it a little hard as to never have driven something like this before and slightly yelled when the tank jolted. The spy quickly discovered how to operate the tank and was able to make it swerve to the left. Cap watched as the stolen tank crashed into another, backed up and slammed into it again. The stolen tank then turned and charged towards a group of soldiers.

Both Fire Nation and Hydra yelled as they jumped out of the way of the incoming tank. Captain America then took the initiative and ran at the soldiers that weren't in a tank. They saw him coming and raised their spears or guns at him. Cap held his shield by the edge before flinging it at them and ducking and rolling out of the blasters fire. The shield bounced off of one soldier to another before the third used his spear to block it. The vibranium shield was sent into the air and turned in an arch before coming back down. But before it touched the ground, Captain America came in with a kick to the Fire Nation soldier's chest before catching his trademark shield and putting it back over his left arm. When it was nice and secure he blocked a soldier jabbing his spear with the shield and dropping down. He sweep kicked the soldier's legs from underneath him and noticed a Hydra blaster lying on the ground. Picking it up, Cap then noticed that it had a stun setting and switched it to that. He yelled as he charged at another group of soldiers.

From above, the gliders continued to evade the blasts of both fire and energy weapons. Some gliders weren't lucky as the blasts blew holes or caught the edges of their gliders and they were forced to land. Firebenders and Hydra soldiers continued firing at them while the gliders still in the air dropped whatever bombs they had. Some dropped a few more slime bombs while others dropped actual explosives. As the tanks continued moving towards the temple, some of the gliders released a slime bomb right on top of the cabin of a few tanks. The slime broke on the tank and gushed inside and on the soldiers.

Aang landed in the middle of five tanks and closed up his glider. With a grim frown he raised his staff and yelled when he used his staff to send an air wave at the tank to his left before sending another to the one on his right. Then turning around he repeated by knocking over those two. Then he sent an air wave behind him. The five tanks landed hard in the snow with the cabins on the underside. But then Aang was surprised when the middle of the all of the tanks turned themselves upright and continued treading towards the mountain. He readied himself as Firebenders began to blast at him from inside the tanks and batted away and fire balls that came in his direction. One Firebender opened his window and unleashed a large one at Aang. But the Airbender quickly jumped over it and landed on the cabin. He dodged a fire blast from behind and one from the other side before sending an air wave at him. From above, Katara said, "Even with one of us in one, those things are unstoppable!"

"I think I know how they work." Teo said as he remembered something. Then he thought of something when he said, "I remember my dad tinkering with the counterbalancing system. Something to do with water." He smirked as he glanced to Katara, "Works great, huh?"

"Water?" Katara asked, knowing that she could maybe help. Then she asked, "Can you get me close to one?"

"No problem." Teo said and moved closer to Appa. Katara petted the bison's head before hopping onto Teo's glider. They both then descended to the ground.

Aang continued to swat away incoming fire balls as the tanks drew closer. Nat was currently running into another tank nearby while Steve blasted at a few soldiers with his confiscated blaster on some of the soldiers and blocked with his shield. Teo's glider came in low beside Aang and Katara jumped off. Landing front of Aang while he shielded her, Katara assumed her waterbending stance, slowly turned her arms before crouching down and using her breath to create ice that slowly approached an approaching tank. The tank rolled right into the ice before Katara raised her arms. Two bolts flew from the chassis of the tank and all four wheels fell from the tank. They were slightly surprised when a chain suddenly came at them. Aang caught it with his staff and twisted it out of the way. Katara then raised her arms and turned them in a few circles before using her waterbending to lift the tank in the air. It stopped before the ice broke off and the tank crashed down onto the ground. Aang spun his staff while Katara prepared herself. But they were surprised when a multitude of tanks and soldiers still came at them.

Captain America and Natasha looked back to see that the two kids were surrounded. Natasha then swerved her tank towards the kids to help out and Cap was able to hitch a ride by jumping onto the tank. The super soldier opened fire on the soldiers he was able to hit. Aang then jumped in front of Katara and grunted as he swung his staff to knock away any incoming fire blasts. He repeated the action several times before noticing how close the tanks were. Appa then landed in front of both Aang and Katara and used his head to knock the two tanks over with a growl. The tanks tumbled along the ground, but when they stopped the cabins just rotated again and came back. Aang and Katara then ran up Appa's tail to take off. The bison slammed his tail against the ground before taking off. Aang and Katara looked down to see that they were able to take out a few tanks, but the conjoined army was still coming.

Captain America and Nat were still fighting with Natasha driving and Cap shooting. Suddenly, another tank rammed right into them and sent them sliding close to the edge. Looking to the tank he saw the hatch for the grappling hooks and removed it. Looking to the window he shouted, "Get out! I've got an idea.!"

Trusting her friend, Natasha quickly abandoned the controls and climbed out of the tank right as Cap threw his hook onto the other incoming tank. The tank had just rammed into theirs when the grappling hook twisted around the gear-like wheel. Their tank started sliding off the edge and dragged the other with it. Cap jumped off and out of the way of the sliding tanks. He looked back to see Natasha about to make the jump but stumbled as their tank went over the edge. She yelled as she jumped off. Captain America rushed forward and reached his hand out as she flew out of the way of the tanks. The soldiers inside both tanks screamed as they fell off the side of the mountain. The two fell forward as she slightly pulled him off the cliff. The super soldier kept a firm grip on his friend before pulling the spy back up to the cliff. Cap then asked, "You all right?"

"Yeah. Just fine." Nat said while they both took deep breaths. They looked up to see that the army was starting to get closer to the Air Temple. With a motion of his head he said, "Let's get back to the others."

"Mind if I take that for a spin?" Natasha asked about the blaster in his hand. Cap smirked before tossing it to her. She caught it before priming it to be ready. The two Avengers then charged for the army.

Back on the landing platform, Teo then told Aang, "We're out of bombs!"

"Come on, Sokka." Katara pleaded while Momo scurried over. She then hoped for a miracle as she said, "Where's that war balloon?"

Her prayers were answered when she sensed something on her left. Everyone on the landing platform turned to see the war balloon floating past them. Cap and Nat both looked up with smiles at the sight of reinforcements. The war balloon passed over the invading army, but the enemy soldiers didn't do anything to them. This confused both of its passengers. Sokka then asked, "Hey, why aren't they shooting at us?"

"The insignia." The Mechanist said, pointing to the only reason that was keeping them safe, "They think we're on their side."

"Then I guess they won't see this coming." Sokka said with a smirk while taking his knife out. Then cutting the ropes to their bombs, he was able to drop one of the slimy ones on the soldiers and the Mechanist shouted, "Bombs away!"

Some of the soldiers on the ground looked up before screaming at the dropping cargo. The bomb splattered against the ground, soldiers and a few tanks. The soldiers caught in the substance yelled as they were pushed back. Sokka then dropped another bomb on a few other soldiers and they were instantly covered in the goo. Sokka then released the other two bombs and they splattered over the enemy soldiers as well. While they were distracted, Captain America and Natasha came in with a shield toss and a blast from her weapon. They continued to fight off what soldiers they could. The bombs weren't able to stop the tanks, however, as the machines were able to keep going.

"Oh, no," Sokka said as he realized that they were out of ammo, "that was the last one!"

The tanks neared another cliff before firing the grappling hooks up the side. They began the climb up towards the temple. Something whiffed by the Mechanist's nose and he said, "Wait a second." Then sniffing deeply, he then asked Sokka, "You smell that?"

Sokka sniffed too before he recognized it too, "Rotten eggs!"

They passed by a crevice where the smell was coming from and Sokka pointed, "There, that's where the gas is escaping."

An idea began forming in Sokka's mind, one that could get rid of both the gas problem and keep the Fire Nation from touching them. The Mechanist's people tried to use picks to dislodge the hooks from the mountain side. Moving to the engine, Sokka began working on dislodging it as well. The Mechanist, thinking he was crazy, questioned, 'What are you doing? That's our fuel source!"

"It's the only bomb we've got." Sokka said as he looked to him. The Mechanist, now knowing what Sokka was talking about, helped to remove the engine out of position. The two then moved to push it over the side. Aang, able to see what they were doing, quickly jumped onto Appa's head and shouted, "Yip! Yip!"

With a flap of his tail, Appa lifted off the ground. Once they were airborne, Aang steered Appa to where Cap and Natasha were battling it out with the soldiers. Captain America blocked a shot from one soldier while Natasha kicked a jabbing spear from the side before they switched opponents. Cap bashed the shield against the Fire Nation soldier's face while Nat opened fire on the Hydra soldier's face. While their opponents fell down and others started surround them, a wave of snow blinded both Fire Nation and Hydra soldiers alike. Both Avengers looked up when Appa groaned and Aang shouted down to them, "Quick! Hop on!"

Both Captain America and Natasha jumped to grab onto one of Appa's feet. They clung to bison as Aang then steered Appa to ascend. They made it back to the landing platform just as Sokka and the Mechanist pushed the engine out of the basket. The metal hardware clanged as it bounced off the sides of the crevice walls and down into the abyss. While the enemy soldiers continued to advance towards the temple, Aang and everyone watched to see what would happen next. An explosion went off around the bottom of the temple, followed by a series of two more when a massive explosion created a massive blast. Everyone had braced themselves as smoke covered the entire mountaintop.

When the smoke had cleared, it revealed that the temple still stood, though much of the surrounding mountain had been destroyed. But most of the soldiers that had been in the perimeter of the blast had perished in the explosions. The ones started to run back down the mountain as a victorious Aang shouted, "Look! They're retreating!"

Everyone started to cheer for their victory when the balloon passed them. A scared Sokka shouted, "We're going down!"

"No! Sokka, hold on!" Katara shouted, worried for her brother. Aang picked up his staff before opening his glider and taking off after them. Aang quickly gained on the falling war balloon while Sokka had tied a rope to his boomerang. He prepared it while telling the Mechanist, "Get ready!"

He started to spin the boomerang as Aang came closer. When Aang started to circle around the balloon Sokka then threw the line to him. The boomerang was able to tie itself to the bottom of Aang's glider and Aang was able to pull on the rope. The Mechanist hung onto Sokka as they were both pulled out of the basket with a scream. Aang carried them both to safety while the war balloon continued to fall beneath the cloud bank.

x

Later that evening, Aang, Steve, Katara, Natasha and Sokka were gathered with Teo, his father and a few others of their people. They stood at one of the many gates. Aang had a smile as he said, "You know what? I'm really glad you guys all live here now." Then he picked up a crab and said as an example, "I realize it's like the hermit crab." He stroked the shell, making the little creature come out as he said, "Maybe you weren't born here, but you've found this empty shell and made it your home. And now you protect each other."

"That means a lot," Teo said as Aang lowered his hand, "coming from you."

Steve then walked up and said, "I hate to be buzz kill about this, but you remember what we talked about, right, sir."

"I do." The Mechanist said with an eager nod, "Any weapons of Fire Nation or Hydra origins are to be safely taken care of. No one here will use them. I promise you."

"That's a good." Natasha said with a smirk. Sokka then said, "Aang, you were right about air power." He pointed to the sky as he said, "As long as we've got the skies, we'll have the Fire Nation on the run."

Everyone living at the temple cheered to Sokka's inspirational words. However, Teo's father looked away as he thought about the war balloon as it went down. He sincerely hoped that the Fire Nation wouldn't find it.

x

The sun was about to set when Aang and his friends were about to leave. They had just finished packing up and loading the supplies the people of the Temple had given them when Teo and his father pulled up. The Mechanist then said, "Are you sure that you can't stay for the night? We have more than enough room for all of you."

"Thanks." Aang said with a gracious smile, but he declined by saying, "But we need to get back on the road again."

"Yep, it's still a long way to the North Pole." Sokka added as he took a pack from Natasha and placing it in the saddle. Katara then said, "But maybe when we're done up there, we'll come back."

"We'd love that." Teo said with a smile. The Mechanist then said, "We can't thank any of you enough for all you've done for us." He placed a hand on Teo's shoulder as he listed, "You've given us a home and a new purpose in life." He placed his hand to his chest and said, "Especially for me."

Then he offered, "If there is anything I can do for you, all you have to do is ask."

"Well," Steve said and then asked, "Maybe if you meet a few people that don't seem like they're from any of the four nations…"

"You could send them our way." Natasha finished. Teo's father nodded and said, "Consider it done. And I'll be more than likely to tell if they're your friends." Then turning to Aang he said, "And Avatar Aang, I will ease up on the renovations to the temple and apply them were they are needed, but also leave enough of its history intact."

"Thank you, sir." Aang said with a humble bow.

When they had all sat in Appa's saddle, Aang gave flick of the reins and said, "Yip! Yip!"

Appa groaned before flapping his tail against the ground and taking off. The five looked back to see that the entire temple's residence had come out to see them off. The group waved goodbye while heading north again.

x

Down at the bottom of the mountain, the Emissary who had come to collect the weapons that Teo's father had promised stood by a few soldiers while two Firebenders used their bending to inflate the balloon. While not getting all of the weapons, the Emissary gave a satisfied yet malicious smile as he said, "This defeat is the gateway to many victories."

As the balloon inflated even more, the combined insignia of both the Fire Nation and Hydra looked ominous as it smoothed out.

x

Later that evening, the Mechanist was hunched over his table as he was working really hard on a new project when a knock came to his door. Without turning away from his project he said, "Come in."

The door opened to reveal a man with combed back hair, a small moustache and orange tinted glasses walking in. The man then said, "I hate to bother you sir, but it appears that we have visitor. And it looks to be one of the special kind, if you know what I mean."

The Mechanist stood up straight in surprise to this and looked to the man. He then genuinely asked, "Where is this visitor?"

"He's in the main garden." The man said while pointing in the direction with his thumb. He shook his head before saying, "And I've gotta tell ya, the way he dropped out of the sky, woof."

The Mechanist then quickly walked past the man and headed towards the platform.

When he walked out into the garden and said, "Hello! Is anyone there?"

"Why yes, my good sir." A voice said from underneath a tree. The Mechanist squinted his eyes at the person as they then asked, "I was wondering if you had seen some friends of mine."

x

This story's dedication to:

Stan Lee: 1922 – 2018

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Author's Note: And with that only three more chapters to Book One. Like I said in the last chapter, there'll be a small trailer to let you know of the upcoming battle and the reveal of the next Avenger to join Team Avenging Avatar. I look forward to reading your reviews. Be sure to leave a comment either about if I've done something wrong or if you want something specifically to happen. See you next time.