Staring up at the clear blue sky, Toph held up her hand as she then waved it around lazily.
"Is she okay?" Prof. Zei asked
"She is fine that just how she is. Though she has gotten better at dealing with flying though" Aang said from where he was on Appa.
Hearing this she shot up but doing so too fast and too suddenly caused her to get airsick and then she ran off to hurl over the side of the saddle
"Seriously Toph what if that hit something down there," Katara said
"It's just sand...sand...and more sand. It unlikely that would happen" Sokka replied
They all than hear a loud yelp and look over to see that it did hit something as down there on the ground was a fox. It was rolling around in the sand trying to get Toph's throw up off of their body for a while. Landing to help the fox out they then figure out this one of Wan Shi Tong's knowledge seekers. In return for helping it, they lead them directly to the Spirit Library itself.
Covered in sand up to almost the top of the highest point they are still able to get in through there, however.
"Appa *pointing towards him* here," Toph says
''Makes sense as I would not really want you to come down with us anyway. Who knows how much dust is down there since it an ancient library after all" Aang says
Thus everyone else leaves Toph alone to watch Appa and Momo. A job someone probably should have had to do anyway, as to why leave the two of them in the middle of the desert alone after all.
Messing around with the sand as she was bored and playing with the earth was just what she did when she was bored. Even back when she was living with her badgermole family. Though that stopped when she felt the Spirit Library was sinking and fast.
"Aang" Toph yelled as she grabbed hold of the tower she lying against to attempt holding it up to prevent it from sinking.
She did not care about holding back at the moment she rammed her hands into the tower burying them within it to a degree as she was able to slow the sinking of the library even if for only a little. However, it was at this moment that raiders came having noticed Appa from a distance.
"Interesting creature let capture it for selling," one of them said
A decision they would soon regret as Toph was not holding back as her attack on the group of raiders was merciless. Appa was very important to Aang who was important to her, thus with her mind not fully in the right place. She resorted to how she used to deal with threats before she meant Aang and the others.
As the trio just barely made it out of the spirit library at all.
"What were you thinking" Sokka Katara yelled at him
"Trying to win the war with the Fire Nation as we were lucky that area of the library had not been fully burned down," he said
"Though was it really worth betraying Wan Shi Tong's trust as we could have been stuck down there. He would not have gone easy on us" Aang said
"Prof Zei still there" Sokka said
"He did not break his promise though" Katara pointed out
"Toph what's going on here," Aang asked
She perked up straight like a rod as if she had been caught doing something she was not supposed to.
"Why are those ropes on Appa. There was something or someone here was not there, they tried to steal Appa" he asked.
"Aang..." Toph started before they all noticed a hand bursting out to sand before falling limp on the desert floor.
"Don't" Sokka told him.
"Seriously Aang this is not a good idea," he said realizing what must have happened here while they were gone.
Not listening to him Aang slammed his foot on the ground hard so hard that briefly entered the Avatar State. Which causes for something that he indeed could be considered a bad idea. That because it started raining men...and sand sailers.
Toph then looks at him as she had a reason for this a good reason he would understand right was her thought process.
"What did you do," Aang asked
Toph tried explaining in her way about what happened while they were gone.
Those that attack Appa looking to steal him were literally buried alive. Toph's rage cause to make the desert to sallow them and their sand drifters whole. Appa was spared because he was off the ground and Toph came to her senses in time. Protecting her friends was her goal after all so she quickly went back to holding up the library as best she could.
While Sokka just sighed and Katara turned away in horror.
"Looks difficult to explain but they reaped what they sowed to a certain extent," Sokka said
"Are you saying these people deserved to die?" Katara asked
"Are you saying Toph and by extension we deserved to die instead" Sokka countered
"We are in the middle of the largest desert on the planet. I know this because I double checked it for myself earlier. Those guys seemed like natives from around here but what about Toph, Appa, and us. If they were successful in stealing Appa then would not we be the one facing death right now. I do not think they would have left us a sand sailer or anything as 'we might be stealing your ride but here is something to replace it. Do not want you to die because of us directly' gift" he said
"How would they know Appa is our ride," Katara asked
"How could they not realize it as there were only him, Toph, and Momo out here at the time. They might have even seen us and him back when we first met Prof. Zei. They knew what they were doing and what it meant to succeed if they did. Since they were so eager to leave us to possibly die is all that wrong that the table was turned and they ended up dying instead" Sokka said.
"That does not make it right though," Aang said finally.
"Of course it does not but I never said it did though," he said
Taking Toph back to Appa with him as Team Avatar left the desert
They managed to gain some knowledge to use against the Fire Nation on this mini vacation however the cost was:
Prof Zei
A spirit having fully lost its trust in humanity
Several raider's lives in an ill attempt to steal Appa from them