Thank you so much for all the love and support you all gave me. Thanks to all your well-wishes, I'm much better now. There's much happening in this chapter. This is where you will know why I had Sokka with the Nomads. Jet is going to up his creep factor further.
A lot of you asked why Haru and Vamik have been silent about what is happening to Zuko. Let me just say that there is a good reason for it that you will learn soon, when I show you Haru's POV.

In closing, all I'll say is read and review.
Trigger Warning: Some spooky imagery. Sexual abuse.

Chapter 20

Sokka turned a full circle, feeling panic clawing up his throat. What the fuck was happening? How, in the name of everything that was holy, had he landed here? Where was here anyway? Where had Chong, Moku, and Lily had gone off to? They had been on their way to Omashu when the wind made them turn. And now he was here, in the middle of a Tuiforesaken swamp, separated from his traveling companions. Under other circumstances, he might have celebrated being separated from them. But as things were at that moment, Sokka wanted nothing more than to find his companions again and get moving.

Sokka chopped off a bunch of the vines, swearing a blue streak. His wife was rotting in some Fire Nation prison. His sister was lost somewhere in the Earth Kingdom. And he was here, stuck in the middle of nowhere, doing what? Cutting vines. What the actual fuck? He had a bloody war to fight. With Fire Benders. Not with creepers. Part of Sokka knew he was hacking away at them to vent the frustrations that were building up in him, but by tui and la he was at the end of his tether.

Somewhere off in the distance, something let out an earsplitting, inhuman shriek. Startled he spun around.

"What the hell was that?" Sokka said, holding his machete aloft.

The answer came in the form of a laugh. A voice he would recognize anywhere. "Katara!" he breathed and ran to the direction the sound had come from. His foot stuck on something and Sokka tripped, landing face-first into the wet mud. A tree branch cut a deep gash in his leg, making it bleed. But he barely felt it. He scrambled to his feet, wiped his face on his sleeve, and continued. His leg bled, his feet slapped on the mud, his eyes were stinging from the mud that had gotten into it. But Sokka ran. He could still hear his sister's laugh, cutting through the darkness of his mind.

"Katara, I'm coming," he screamed, hoping she would hear him.

After cutting through what felt like a million vines, Sokka heard the laugh again, this time just beyond the curtain of vines in front of him. One more swish of his machete and he saw her. Yet, it was not her. Not really.

Katara was decked in a red halter-neck top and a red flowing skirt, which was very unlike her. In addition, her hair was piled up in a top-knot and she was adorned with intricate gold jewelry, the likes of which they could not even dream to afford. His eyes moved to the man who was holding her from behind, in what was clearly a lover's embrace. The two of them paid no heed to him as they laughed about something known only to them. He could not make out who the man was, for his face was burrowed into her hair, but the one thing that Sokka knew for certain was that this man was not Aang.

"Katara?"

Sokka stumbled over to her. The sheer joy on her face as she melted into the arms of the man made his heart swell with happiness. He was seeing her again, and from the looks of it, she was happy, and for Sokka, that was worth more than all the money in the world. But at the heels of the thought came the fear of what would happen if Aang came to know about this… whatever this was.

But this wasn't real, was it?

The rational part of him countered. It couldn't be! For starters, Katara and the man were suspended three feet in the air. And secondly, they seemed more like a worn-out painting than real people, with the way their edges were slightly worn out.

Soooookkaaaaaa!

He whirled around as Katara's laugh echoed around him. "Who's there?"

Sooookkkaaaaa!

"Who's there?"

Slowly his vision clouded with a thick mist swirling around him. Katara's laugh continued to chime in the background, while his leg throbbed painfully. The mist swirled around him a couple of times before it began to coalesce into a solid shape. Sokka rubbed his eyes, wondering if he had hit his head when he tripped back there. As he looked on, in utter disbelief, the mist solidified into a familiar shape – one that twisted his heart painfully.

"Yue?"

Sokka, she said in a voice that sounded as though it was coming from everywhere. I'm not Yue.

"Huh? Who are you then?"

Yue flickered a little before solidifying again, as though the mist was having a tough time staying solid, 'I have taken the form of a dearly departed, so you would feel at ease.'

"Oookay," Sokka said taking a wary step backward, holding his machete up. "Freaky as fuck. Look, whoever you are, I appreciate the intent, but you failed in execution. This isn't putting me at ease. Far from it."

Would it benefit if I looked like this? The voice said and the shape morphed into Suki. Behind him, Katara laughed. "It doesn't," Sokka replied through gritted teeth, fighting back the tears. "But can we stop this… whatever it is that you're doing. What do you want?"

'I called you here,' mist Suki said, flickering in and out of focus. 'The Avatar is losing his way. Help him find it.'

Sokka raised his brows, "Shouldn't you be telling that to him?"

'He isn't paying heed to my calls, the mist roiled slightly as Katara laughed again.

Sokka raised his brows, "I have no idea where Aang is. I intend to find Katara."

'She is where she is supposed to be,' the mist replied.

"Is she safe?"

'As safe as she can be.'

"And Suki? Do you know where she is?"

'Soon, Sokka, you will meet someone who will aid you in putting your family back together.' Mist Suki said. But for that, you must do as the Spirits will you to.

"What do I have to do? Convince Aang? That didn't work too well back in the North Pole."

'No. The Avatar will not listen to reason. You would know your path when you see it.'

"So what do I do now?"

'Go to Master Piandao and learn the way of the sword.'

"What? I know how to fight with a sword. Where do I find this Master?"

The mist dissipated, leaving him with the laughing image of Katara and the man, suspended in mid-air.

Ozai read through letter twice, not because he did not understand what he was reading. But because he could not believe what he was reading. Alone in his chamber, Ozai read the letter a third time, chuckling as he reached the end.

"Would you look at that," he muttered under his breath. Still holding the parchment in his hand, Ozai walked over to the portrait of Ursa that hung in his room. "Did you know that your useless son has gotten himself abducted? And this rebel group thinks I will stop the war to get him back."

Even as he finished the sentence, Ozai chuckled. He ran a thumb along his lower lip, his brows furrowed in deep thought. "How do you suggest I respond, Ursa?"

The portrait, of course, didn't respond. Not that it mattered to Ozai. He did this sometimes. Pretending that she was around helped him think. The idea of seeing her squirm was a big motivator. She had been a disappointment too, just like her beloved son was turning out to be. When Zuko had killed Fa, Ozai had thought that he would finally live up to his family name and legacy. But no, his complete and utter failure at Ba Sing Se only further cemented the fact that he was the black sheep of the family. To make matters worse, Zuko had gotten himself abducted by a bunch of savages who had the temerity to make demands of him. Ozai. The Fire Lord.

Suddenly, his eyes lit up as an idea struck him, and his lips curled in a small smile.

Hakoda licked his lips, not knowing what to say. What could he possibly say to his Northern counterpart who was now sitting in front of him, with his head in his hands? Arnook had already lost his daughter but now, the message of losing the boy he thought of as his son had devastated the man. To make matters worse, Hahn's death had been caused by Aang, the boy Hakoda thought of as his son. Suddenly, Arnook looked up, his eyes rimmed red.

"Your children!" He said in a quivering voice. "Your children have caused me endless misery."

"I'm sorry," Hakoda said, figuring that was the least he could do. "Aang cannot always control his Avatar state –"

"I don't give a fuck about the Avatar State!" Arnook screamed. "Sokka tempted Yue, dissuading her from her wifely duties. That is why the spirits punished her. For being unfaithful. Katara took the chance of glory from Hahn, and now Aang has killed Hahn."

"Arnook, please… just think…"

"Oh, I have been thinking, Hakoda! Me and mine have bled and died, because of your family. Today, with the spirits as my witness, I swear upon the dead bodies of Yue and Hahn, I will make your children shed tears of blood."

Katara kneeled on the floor, with her head on her knees, hugging herself. Her mind kept playing the scene where Zuko was attacked by the ten men, them kicking and punching him. The minutes passed like eons, as she tried to tune out the unmistakable sound of someone being hit. Like last time, Zuko remained quiet, save for a few grunts. He was not showing them any weakness and she would not do so either. Like she had promised, she would not look. But it was easier said than done. It was taking every ounce of her willpower to not scream.

Suddenly the wall dropped and as she had expected, Jet sauntered in. Then, to her dismay, the wall was raised back. Jet hooked his finger, beckoning her over. Katara grit her teeth and walked over to him, stopping two arm's length away from him. She stared at him coldly, swallowing the bile that was rising in her throat.

"You know the deal," he said.

Katara stayed where she was, unmoving. With slow, deliberate moves, he began circling her, his eyes roving over her body. "How far will you go for the Prince, I wonder."

She remained quiet and unflinching. Suddenly, he pushed her against the wall and pushed himself against her. Katara scrunched her eyes shut, biting down hard enough that she tasted blood. Jet, in the meantime, began grinding against her while his hands traveled all over her. Katara's hands gathered into fists, but she remained unmoving. Her resolve, however, was deeply tested, when his hands covered her breasts and squeezed them to the point that her eyes watered.

"I don't understand your loyalty to the Prince," he whispered into her ears. "Is he that good in bed?"

"Fuck you," Katara spat.

"Oh, you will, baby," Jet said, pinching her nipples hard. "Soon. For now, I'm having fun."

After what felt like an eon, Jet spun her around and claimed her lips in a painful kiss. Katara felt her lip split before he withdrew. "Open the wall," he called out. Instantly the wall dropped. As before, Zuko was brought in by Pipsqueak while Vamik followed with a can of water. The Earth Bender refused to meet Katara's eyes as he walked out of the prison. The rest of the captors walked out, and the wall was back up.

Katara waited until they were out of earshot before she allowed her emotions to overwhelm her. A sob broke her lips and she collapsed on the floor, with a hand over her eyes. She could still feel his touch on her body, as though a million worms crawled over her. Bile rose in her throat as she recalled the way he had ground his member against her while squeezing her breasts to the point that it hurt. Then, he had shoved his tongue into her mouth. If his touch was churning her stomach, his words had started a mini storm in her mind.

How far will you go for the Prince, I wonder.

I don't understand your loyalty to the Prince.

Katara was asking herself the same thing. How far was she willing to go for him? Had it been anyone else in Zuko's place, would she have allowed Jet to abuse her like this? Why were the wounds on his body hurting her so much? Why was she so afraid when Haru had shown up suddenly and was facing Zuko? Why did the thought of the two talking to each other make her so scared? It wasn't like Haru had any dirt on her. It was rather irrational on her part to be so fearful. Speaking of fear, why had the prospect of Zuko getting beaten up again terrify her so much? Why had she not objected when Zuko had kissed her? Why was she…

Wait, what? Zuko kissed me?

She thought back to the moment where she had clung on to him, their lips brushing against each other and she realized, indeed, he had kissed her.

Tui and La! As if things weren't confusing enough!

This was Zuko. The man who was her prey. The one she was sent to seduce. She was meant to use him, and then discard him, but somehow, somewhere down the lane, he had wormed his way into her mind. Thus far, she had been under the notion that her attraction had been strictly physical. But at that moment, she had to wonder if her feelings ran deeper than just lust.

"No, no, no, no, Katara, it can't. It's doesn't," she muttered. "That's not possible. That's not possible."

"What's not possible?" Zuko's voice startled her.