The Mysterious Traveler
Alright guys, lets continue the insaneness of this fanfic with Chapter 9! Please enjoy!
Chapter Nine:
Hope
The moment the warship approached the rig and docked, Severus and Katara were forced to change from their original clothes to prisoner outfits.
Once dressed, they were led to the docking platform, where other new arrival prisoners were waiting. Pushed into line with them, they stared at the metal ground beneath their feet, listening to the waves below and the whispering of the guards. Despite knowing that Aang and Sokka would be waiting for them by midnight, there was a sense of dread to the place they had come to. Almost as if it was the one place where hope itself came to die.
A man in a fancy Fire Nation outfit approached them, smiling from ear to ear as he spoke, "Earthbenders, it is my pleasure to welcome you aboard my modest shipyard. I am your warden. I prefer to think of you not as prisoners, but as honored guests."
Severus made a mental scoff at the man's accent and choice of words, annoyed at how he insulted their intelligence.
"And I hope you come to think of me as your humble and caring host," he continued, walking around, proudly. You will succeed here if you simply abide-"
One of the prisoners coughed, interrupting the man's honest speech. Whether if the prisoner intended to do it or not, Severus couldn't tell.
The Warden growled and sent a wave of fire towards the prisoner, purposely missing as he made him back away, afraid. Approaching the man, he glared at him with anger in his eyes, placing his hands on his hips as he scowled, "What kind of guest dishonors his host by interrupting him?"
Nodding towards one of his soldiers, the prisoner was met with the bottom of a spear that made contact with his stomach. Groaning in pain and holding his stomach, the man fell to the ground.
Sensing that Katara was able to protest, Severus touched her hand and looked into her blue eyes, sending a silent look that told her not to do anything. Though she felt the need to do something, she nodded and drew a breath, struggling to control her anger.
"Take him below!" the Warden ordered, watching as the prisoner was picked up off the ground and led away. "One week in solitary will improve his manners. Anyway, back to what I was saying, simply treat me with the courtesy I give you and we'll get along famously."
Not daring to look up, Severus could feel the presence of the Warden right next to him. He could tell that he was giving Katara a stare down, one that she was most likely returning. The act made him worried, knowing that she was now on his radar.
As the Warden walked ahead of them, the guards lined them all up and made them begin walking through the rig, passing other prisoners who are working along the way. Much to their dismay, the Warden began speaking again.
"You will notice, Earthbenders, that this rig is made entirely of metal. You are miles away from any rock or Earth. So, if you have any illusions about employing that brutish savagery that passes for bending among you people, forget them."
Though he was able to remain in control, Severus felt a surprisingly large amount of anger towards the man. The way how he talked about the prisoners' ability to perform Earthbending and also how he addressed them just pressed all the wrong buttons. Though, to be fair, that wasn't a hard task when it came to him. But this was different. It felt personal. Almost as if it was he who was being addressed.
He hated how these people were being treated as monsters, just because of their ability to bend the Earth to their will. From what he had witnessed, they were nothing more than common people who were just living their lives. And the Fire Nation saw fit to make their lives miserable for not being like them.
Soon, they were led to a giant, metal door.
"So, as you can see, escape is not an opinion for you," the Warden stood in front of them, smiling. "Try to escape, you will be caught or killed. Even if you made it to the water, you'll never make it to land without a boat. It is impossible."
Surprising himself, Severus looked up and met the eyes of the Warden, glaring at him.
Taking notice of him, the Warden took note of the prisoner and glared back, "Good day."
Turning to leave, he signaled the tower guards on the wall above them, walking away as a series of large metal doors opened up.
Being led through the passage way, they all found themselves in a prison yard of some kind, turning to see the metal gates lower and close with a clanking sound from each one.
Walking through the crowds of prisoners, Severus and Katara searched for Haru.
"We have a couple hours before midnight, so lets hope he's even here to begin with," he said to her.
"We'll find him," the Waterbender replied, her voice filled with hope and determination. "He has to be here."
Though skeptical, Severus hoped that she was right about that. The last thing he needed was for her to plan another prison break-in somewhere else if they came up dry.
A shocked voice caught their attention.
"Katara?"
Turning towards the owner of the voice, they saw Haru, who got up from where he was sitting.
"Haru!" Katara cried out and ran forward, embracing him.
"What are you doing here?" he asked, even more surprised when he saw Severus approaching.
"We came to rescue you," she explained. "It's my fault that you were captured. I should have been more careful when I told you to save that old man. So, I convinced Alex to attempt a rescue mission."
Haru stared at her with wide eyes, "So you got yourselves arrested?"
"A little bit of Earthbending trickery did the trick. It was the only way to find you," Katara smiled. "We had no idea where they had taken you. So, I thought that if they arrested us for Earthbending, then they would take us directly to you."
"You two definitely got guts, I'll give you guys that," Haru smiled at them. He began walking away, waving them to follow. "Come on, there's someone I want you to meet."
Leading them to a small group of prisoners who were sitting in a circle, Haru presented them to an elderly man.
"Katara, Alex, this is my father, Tyro," he then turned his attention to his father. "Dad, this is Katara, the Waterbender I told you about. And this is, Alex. Him, I did not tell you about yet."
Katara did a small bow, "It's an honor to meet you."
The old man looked the two of them over, before reaching over for a bowl of soup.
"Pleasure to meet you both," he replied. "Here, have some dinner, Katara."
Taking the bowl, Katara made an 'ew' sound at the sight of the soup.
"It's not as bad as it looks," Tyro weakly smiled.
Sitting down right next to him, she took a taste and swallowed, immediately making a louder 'ew' sound as she her cheeks lit up red.
Tyro chuckled, "It's still pretty bad, though."
After a prisoner came to talk to Tyro about a blanket complaint problem, Katara made her move, despite knowing that Severus would disagree with her actions.
"If you don't mind me asking, what's your escape plan?"
Severus frowned at her, "Don't!"
"Excuse me?" Tyro raised an eyebrow.
"You know, the plan to get everyone off the rig?"
"Stop-" he was cut off as she pressed on.
"What is it? Mutiny, sabotage?"
"The plan?" Tyro's expression hardened a little. "The plan is to survive, wait out this war, hope that one day some of us can get back home and forget this ever happened."
"How can you sat that?" demanded a horrified Katara. "You sound like you've already given up!"
"Katara!" Severus raised his voice a little bit, hoping to get her attention. "You need to stop this. Now!"
"No, Alex, I won't stop!" she glared at him. "I can't just sit by and watch these people be treated like this!"
"Katara, I admire your courage, and I envy your youth," Tyro replied, his voice gentler now. "But you should listen to your friend. What you're asking is not possible, not with the state we are in. People's lives are at stake here, real lives. The Warden is a ruthless man, and he won't stand for any rebellion." He lowered his head. "I'm sorry, but we're powerless."
Severus looked down at Katara, seeing the anger and shock within her eyes, but also that same determination he's come to know. It was all too familiar. He watched as she rose from where she sat with Tyro and Haru.
"We'll see about that!" she declared.
As she walked away, grabbing a pot lid and a spoon, Severus shook his head and followed her.
"Katara, wait!"
She ignored him at first, until he grabbed her arm and made her stop. As their eyes met, they stared each other down. Both refusing to let the other win.
"You need to stop this," he whispered to her. "We came for Haru and we've found him. We did not come for the rest of them. If you think that a simple speech will get them to turn against their captors, you're wrong."
The Waterbender scoffed and chuckled a little, "And once again, you resort to abandoning when things get too hard. Is that how things work where you come from?"
"And you obviously don't think things through, do you!" his voice hardened, anger rising within. "Last time you did something like this, it resulted in Haru getting arrested and imprisoned here. You think you can save everyone, but you don't realize that you can't always do that. Look at them, Katara! They've given up hope a long time ago." He paused. "You don't think things through! Like Aang didn't think things through when he attempted to rescue you and your Water Tribe from Zuko."
"Well, at least we don't abandon people like you do!" she fought back. "In fact, you always seem to push anyone or anything away that comes too close to you."
"It's called survival, Katara."
"Well, from where I'm standing, it looks like an awful lot like fear to me."
Continuing to hold his firm stare against her, Severus sighed and let go of her arm, knowing that nothing he said could stop her.
Katara got on top of a metal table and began using the spoon to hit the pot lid, getting every prisoners' attention.
"Earthbenders!" she cried out. "You don't know me, but I know of you. Every child in my Water Tribe village was rocked to sleep with stories of the brave Earth Kingdom and the courageous Earthbenders who guard its borders."
Severus looked up to the walls and saw guards rushing across the balconies, only to be stopped by the Warden, who was listening to the speech.
"Some of you may think that the Fire Nation has made you powerless. Yes, they have taken away your ability to bend. But they can't take away your courage. And it is your courage they should truly fear, because it runs deeper than any mine you've been forced to dig, any ocean that keeps you far from home. It is the strength of your hearts that make you who you are, hearts that will remain unbroken when all rock and stone has eroded away."
She raised her arm into the air.
"The time to fight back is now! I can tell you that the Avatar has returned! And not only has our long lost protector come back to save us, but there is also a new foe against Fire Nation who just might be as powerful as he is! I've met this mysterious traveler and I believe that he can help us end this terrible war with the Avatar's help!"
Severus's face lit up red as he realized what she was doing.
You smart, manipulative, little-
"So remember your courage, Earthbenders! Let us fight for our freedom!"
However, despite such an inspiring speech, all the prisoners turned away and diverted their eyes to the cold steel beneath them. A quiet silence filled the air as the Waterbender stood on top of the table, heartbroken.
Severus closed his eyes and sighed.
By the time night came, all the prisoners were ordered into their quarters, which were just large, very thin buildings. As Severus laid awake on his very small blanket of a bed, he thought back to the events of that day. There was a part of him that felt bad for Katara, but he pushed those feeling to the back of his mind. He hoped that maybe she had learned something from this.
Sensing the presence of someone else, he leaned up to find Aang standing over him, a finger between his lips. Nodding at the Airbender, he silently got up and followed him outside, heading towards the edge of the rig, where Katara was waiting. Looking over the edge, they saw Sokka and Momo on the saddle of a flying Appa.
As Aang jumped on the head of the flying bison, Sokka whispered to them, "Okay, you're twelve hours are up and we need to get going. Where's Haru?"
Katara shook her head, "He won't come, not without his father. And he won't leave because of the other prisoners."
Aang and Sokka sighed.
"Alright, then lets leave," Sokka declared. "We tried to free Haru and it didn't work out. Now lets go before one of the guards finds us. We're running out of time."
Katara shook her head, "I'm sorry, but I can't. I'm not leaving."
Severus silently groaned to himself as he shook his head, having figured she would do this.
"I'm not giving up on these people," Katara declared.
"What do you mean, you're not leaving?" Sokka demanded, shocked by her answer.
"We can't abandon these people!" she answered. "There has to be a way to help them."
Aang and Sokka got off of Appa and got to their knees, along with Katara and Severus.
"Guys, please," she pleaded. "I know we can save them."
"Say that we do save them, what happens afterwards?" Severus tried to reason with her. "Even if they make it off of this rig, they'll be hunted by the Fire Nation for the rest of their lives. It'll be nothing but all out war for them."
"Look around you, Alex! There's already a war going on as we speak. One that has been going for over a hundred years now. I can't stand by and let the Fire Nation destroy them like this. At least this way, they'll be fighting for something more than just survival."
"I think she's right!" Aang agreed, making Severus roll his eyes at the boy. "What do you two say?"
"Well, I think you're both crazy!" Sokka shook his head, only for his eyes to widen at the sight of lights coming near them. "Alright, fine! What do you have in mind?!"
The Waterbender's face lit up as she embraced him, whispering, "Thank you."
"Oh, I hate it when you get like this," Sokka whined.
Severus sneered and rolled his eyes.
As everyone silently made their way back to the prison yard, Aang whispered to Appa to fly away and wait for him, while Momo flew onto his shoulder. Just as the search lights were about to find them, Aang disappeared from sight, while Appa flew off just in time.
As the four of them hid behind crates and Momo kept a look out, they got straight to planning their attempt to free the Earthbenders. After some lame ideas from Aang, ones that made Severus want to hit him over the head for, they finally came to a plan that felt promising.
Realizing that the rig was burning coal, an Earth material, they came to the conclusion that the large deposit of coal at the base of the facility can be transported to the prisoners' platform by vents. Aang would shut all the vents, with the exception of one, which would allow for coal to only go in one direction... right towards the location of the prisoners.
As the sun rose in the horizon, they put their plan into effect, waiting for Aang to journey through the ventilation system and shut all the vents that needed to be closed.
Preparing for the coming battle, Severus got his wand back from Sokka.
However, before they realized it, the prison security had discovered them.
"Intruders! Intruders in the prison yard!" shouted a guard from the top of the wall, signaling the alarm.
Within seconds, the large metal gates rose and a group of Fire Nation guards rushed out, quickly surrounding them. The Warden himself followed from behind.
Getting into a battle stance with Katara and Sokka by his side, the three of them prepared for a fight. Despite hearing the pleas of Tyro, who tried to defuse the situation by begging them to stand down, they remained as they were.
Just as the Warden gave his ultimatum for them to surrender, the coal from the vent that they were standing next to suddenly came erupting up and spilt all over the place. The vent cover itself was torn right off and sent flying into the air. And from the vent came Aang, landing on top of the coal as Momo settled on his shoulder.
Taking her chance, Katara climbed up the small mountain of coal and picked up a piece, holding it high into the air for everyone to see, "Here's your chance, Earthbenders! Take it! Your fate is in your own hands!"
Haru tried to rush forward to join her, only to be stopped by his father. In response to this, a few Earthebending prisoners backed away, afraid to take action.
During their moment of surprise and shock, they all heard hysterical laughing, turning to see the Warden as he smiled, triumphantly.
"Foolish girl!" he declared. "You thought a few inspirational words and some coal would change these people? Look at these blank hopeless faces. Their spirits were broken a long time ago. Oh, but you still believe in them. How sweet." He paused, letting his words sink in. "They're a waste of your energy, little girl. They're nothing more than just a big mistake in life. The very fact that they exist proves it."
All the prisoners lowered their gaze in defeat and shame, unable to face the people who had come to rescue them or their tormentors. Even Katara had a look of defeat as well, her hand lowing as tears began to form.
Severus glared at the Warden with an expression of anger and deep hatred. His eyes were trained on the man, like a predator about to attack its prey. He kept hearing what the Warden had said at the end of his speech, replying the words over and over in his head. With each passing second, his hatred and anger grew. His face lit up, his vision filled with a mist of red, and his heart racing at a hundred miles an hour. Everything around him became none-existent to him, except for his target.
A big mistake!
The very fact that they exist!
Mistake!
Exist!
'It's more of the fact that he exists-'
Without warning, without realizing what he was doing, Severus aimed his wand and sent a stunning charm directly at the Warden, putting all of his effort into the spell. The Warden was hit in the chest and sent backwards, falling hard against the ground. Almost as if he was on autopilot, he began sending spells at the guards next, taking each one down with seconds of each other. He was moving so fast that he didn't even realize it. He was under the control of his anger so much and so concentrated on what he was doing that he didn't even notice that Aang, Katara, Sokka, Haru and even Momo had joined the fight as well.
Soon enough, the entire platform had turned into a battlefield as every single Earthbender began using the coal to fight back. It started the moment Haru had joined the fight, which led to Tyro and his friends taking a stand as well. And since Tyro was well respected by the prisoners, it motivated them to do the same. Within seconds, the only ones who weren't participating were the guards who were unconscious.
But none of this was noticed by Severus, who was so fueled by his rage and anger that he had become an unstoppable force for the moment. His entire face was red and hard, making everyone else who was at the pointy end of his wand afraid. Some even ran in fear of him, only to be taken down seconds later. His only mission was to make every single Fire Nation guard pay for their actions against the very people they deemed mistakes.
By the time his anger started to cool, he could hear Aang yelling for him.
"Alex! Make way towards the warships!"
Despite not knowing entirely knowing where he was, he managed to head straight for ships and board. After finding Katara, Haru and Tyro, the ships that held all of the prisoners set sail, leaving the rig behind. Everyone cheered as they witnessed the smoke rise from the destruction of the prison, although that it still managed to stay afloat.
The moment they were far enough away, Severus allowed for himself to relax and let down his guard, sitting on the floor to take a rest. As his senses started to return, he could feel eyes on him, looking up to see the Earthbending prisoners staring at him. Some were amazed, some were scared, and others were unsure. It took him a few minutes to realize that he had just revealed his magical abilities in front of them. While he was upset at himself for being so reckless, he was so tired from the ordeal that he couldn't muster the strength to be mad at the moment.
Once he had his rest, he found his old Hogwarts robes in the holding cells of the ship, surprised that they so happened to be on the first warship he choose to board. After dressing, he went to meet with Katara, Aang and Sokka, convincing them that they needed to get a move on. While Aang called for Appa and boarded the bison with both Sokka and Severus, Katara stayed on the warship for the time being, saying her goodbyes to Haru and Tyro.
As the three of them took a final look at the prison, Haru approached her.
"I want to thank you for saving me. For saving us."
Katara blushed and rubbed her neck, "All it took was a little coal."
"It wasn't the coal, Katara," Haru smiled. "It was you... and them." He turned his attention towards Aang, Sokka and Severus. "If it wasn't for you four, I would have never gotten my father back."
"Yes," Tyro agreed, stepping forward as he placed a hand on Katara's shoulder. "Thank you for reuniting me with my son, Katara of the Southern Water Tribe. And thank you for helping me find my courage once more. My family, and everyone here, owes you and your friends so much."
"So, I'm guessing you guys will be returning home, to take it back from the Fire Nation."
"Yes, we will. But not only just my village," he rose his arm into the air and began shouting out towards the now-free Earthbenders. "We shall take back all of our villages! The Fire Nation will regret the day they set foot on our land!"
A series of cheering and battle-cries could be heard from all of the ships.
"Come with us," Haru begged.
"I can't," Katara shook her head. "Your mission is to take back your home, and you already have an army to do so now. But our mission is to get Aang to the North Pole."
As they looked towards the Airbender, who was playing with Momo on top of Appa's head, Haru came to a realization.
"That's him, isn't it?" he asked, though it sounded more of a statement. "He's the Avatar."
Katara nodded.
Haru's attention then turned to Severus, "And him... he's the one you spoke of as well. The Mysterious Traveler."
Katara smiled, "He can be a real odd one sometimes, and he definitely has his problems. But I like to think that with the right push and the right motivation, he's not all that bad. Just... misunderstood."
"I'm just happy he's on our side. It gives me hope that with him and the Avatar fighting the Fire Nation, this war may finally come to an end. We will spread the word about those two with each village we take back. We will give hope back to the world through them."
Katara nodded as she embraced him, "Goodbye, Haru. Good luck."
"Goodbye, Katara. And good luck to you as well."
Once boarding Appa, the gang took flight and waved goodbye to the Earthbenders, getting back to their journey for the Northern Water Tribe once again.
Feeling tired from the whole ordeal, Severus decided to take nap and fell asleep with the air blowing peacefully against his face.
He sure does sleep a lot, Katara reached up to touch her necklace, only for her eyes to widen when she felt only the coldness of her neck. Oh no, it's gone!
On the platform of the heavily damaged prison rig, a figured reached down into the rubble and pulled out a Southern Water Tribe necklace, holding it in the palm of his hand as he studied it.
Standing straight up, the light from the setting sun on the horizon revealed the scarred face of Fire Prince Zuko, standing among the ruins of the now former prison as the smoke rose behind him. He stared out towards the ocean and beyond, a determination within his eyes.
I'm coming for you!
So, what did you think?
Oh, I should mention that for those of you who are wondering what kind of story and tone I'm going for in terms of Severus's story-arc, I highly recommend checking out the "Logan Trailer 2". My story isn't gong to be exactly like the trailer, but my inspiration is coming from directly of that. Though only in terms of Severus's story and direction.
Once again, thank you guys for the amazing support and I'll see you in Chapter 10! :)