A/N: So I had checked the Avatar Universe Map and realized I made an oops. When I hadn't been updating in a long time I forgot that the team was supposed to go find the Sun Warriors first, not Kyoshi Island (Not to mention Kyoshi Island is almost halfway across the map from the Fire Nation) Instead of trying to rewrite whole chapters, I'm just gonna get the plot to flow back on track, with the chapter following this one.
With as much force as he could muster, Zuko kicked behind him with both feet. It was a technique that his father could use, but he wasn't nearly as proficient in it yet. With the force of his kick, flames blasted behind him, launching him bodily into the water where Aang was hanging on for dear life up above. Zuko didn't have the knowledge or discipline to sustain the flames from the soles of his feet, so instead he forced swaths of flames outward in intervals, propelling him forward like an airborne boulder on a crash course.
Landing with a large splash, Zuko breached the water's surface with a sputter, immediately spotting Aang gripping one of the Unagi's whiskers. The great beast's tongue thrashed violently, as if trying to snatch him out of the air.
With no better plan than attack, Zuko punched at the Unagi, launching fireballs at its eyes, nose, and mouth, hoping to hit a sensitive target. Unfortunately, this seemed to do nothing but annoy it further, and it began to thrash around with even more energy.
"aaAaAaaaAAhH!" Aang yelled as his grip failed him and he went careening into the water.
"Aang!" Zuko shouted, swimming as fast as his arms would allow to where he saw Aang fall.
The Unagi wasn't content to wait around, however. The water began to shift around Zuko as the serpent's massive form began to bear down on him. Luckily, Aang resurfaced again, coughing and flailing in the water. Zuko surfed forward, grabbing him under the arms and kicking towards the serpent. Before his legs shot outward, Zuko took as big a breath he could, and exhaled forcefully.
The result was Zuko and Aang blasting through the water like a skipped stone. Water came crashing in every direction, and Zuko couldn't tell which way was up, as it seemed like the world was spinning, with water and seafoam flying everywhere. He heard the screech of the Unagi, but he wasn't sure if that meant it was still close by or if they were making food distance.
Suddenly the water changed to sand, and Zuko massaged his head, attempting to force down the hint of a headache. He got back to his feet on shaky legs and stretched his back, feeling unpleasant popping sensations. He grunted, shaking off the pain in his legs and picked up Aang again by the shoulders, and half carried him farther away from the shoreline.
"Can't believe you talked me into this," Zuko grumbled as he uncerimoniously dropped Aang onto the sound, eliciting a grunt from the Avatar.
Aang coughed, spitting out some water. "At least it wasn't boring, right?"
Zuko clicked his teeth. "Maybe you need to think of better past-times," Zuko said seriously. Aang still laughed and Zuko rolled his eyes.
"Thanks for the save, by the way," Aang said, now well enough to sit up on his own. Zuko grunted in reply. The both of them watched the serpent finally disappear into the waves of water, the Unagi apparently thinking them not worth the trouble for now.
Then another sight came to replace it. It was a large object, a boat probably, that seemed to be heading toward their general direction.
"Is that what I think it is?" Zuko asked aloud, crouching behind some large nearby rocks. Just ahead of them, still about the size of fitting in someone's hand at their current distance, was a sea vessel. Rather than the identifying make of a fire nation ship, it was instead a lustrous silver ship in the familiar shape of a knife. Aang poked his head out and leaned forward as if trying to get a better look.
"It must be Sokka," Aang realized. Zuko quickly pushed Aang's head down out of sight.
"Don't just stick your head out like that!" Zuko scolded. "We need to get back to the village and get Azula."
Aang's brows shot up. "To leave?" He glanced at the ship and then the line of trees leading back to the village. Butterflies began to fill his stomach and a wave of guilt threatened to overwhelm him. "But what about the villagers?"
"It may seem cowardly, but Sokka's after you, specifically," Zuko assured. "If we leave now, he'll chase after us." Aang looked unsure, but knew that Zuko's logic was sound.
If they tried to fight here and now, it would put the villagers in danger, when they had nothing to do with it. Aang remembered the village Chief's words about having stayed out of the war. He glanced again at the Ship that was slowly closing in.
It just felt like he was running away all over again. But he shook his head. This was different. This time he wasn't running away but to keep the village out of danger.
"Alright," Aang decided with an exhale. "Let's go."
Azula and Suki waited near the pier as the Water Clan ship began to dock. The two remained at a safe enough distance, while villagers rushed in the opposite direction closer to the other end of the settlement. The dock where the two two girls stood was now left abandoned. The Water Clan vesvesselme to a stop at the edge of the pier, its massive shape casting a shadow over the barrels and crates that lined the edges of the pier's wooden flooring.
The ramp descended, revealing three Water Clan Warriors, the Water Chief's son amongst them. As they stamped down the ramp in a horizontal line, they came to a stop where the pier's wooden floor met the solid earth of the village.
Sokka glanced around, positioning his hand above his eyes to afford him better shade than what his wolf helmet offered.
"We got the right place?" Sokka asked, surveying the seemingly abandoned town. There was a scattering of huts and other small structures that reminded him of the stories of his childhood village before it developed into what it currently was. He was brought out of his musings by the confirmation of one of his men.
"Yes, sir," the soldier to his right said, pointing at the statue of Kyoshi in the distance ahead. "They described that very landmark."
"Hopefully, we're not too late," Sokka replied, dropping his hand. "Alright, let's find the leader's house," he ordered, reminding them not to resort to violence.
"We're just here for the Avatar, try not to strong arm anyone if you don't need to."
His men nodded their acknowledgement but paused when they heard shuffling above them. Sokka squinted up at the roof of a nearby building, hovering his hand close to the handle of his bone club.
With a loud whistle of metal, a closed fan beamed toward him. Reacting quickly, Sokka drew his club in a diagonal arc, knocking the errant weapon off course. Otherwise it would have hit him right in the temple.
He looked down at the fan curiously before calling to his soldiers. "Everyone, spread out! We've got ambushers!"
Sokka and his men ran for the nearest cover. Some hid behind crates or made it under the overhang of a nearby building. Sokka peeked his head from under the overhang of his new cover, glancing at the roofs of buildings to his left and right. Green garbed warriors dashed across the raised surfaces, intent on incapacitating his men.
A brow raised in mild bemusement after getting a good look at them.
Lipstick? Dresses?
These were just a bunch of girls! They should be able to be taken care of no problem, he thought. Tightening his grip on his club, he twirled it by the handle once and dashed from cover. To his left, one of his soldiers was dropped by a descending Kyoshi Warrior. The soldier didn't have a chance to react, having been floored by the assailant. She immediately turned her attention to him, metal fan at the ready. Sokka sucked his teeth, crouching low in a ready stance. As the warrior closed in and took a swipe at him, he angled the flat end of his club towards her shoulder, intent on throwing off her aim. The fan went wide, sliding loudly off his weapon complete with a small shower of sparks. Her breath caught at the sudden flash of light it caused, and was caught off guard as he rushed at her, tackling her with his shoulder. The Kyoshi Warrior went flying, groaning.
"Now that's Water Tribe style!" Sokka declared with a smile. Before he could really appreciate his small victory, hairs on the back of his neck seemed to stand up. With a start, he jumped backwards, unintentionally losing his footing. Another metal fan had whizzed past the back of his head, cutting strands from his hair.
"My Warrior's Wolf Tail!" He whined, palming it for damage. Another of the warrior women had shown herself, hefting a small shield. Her headdress looked the slightest bit more ornate than the others, and he assumed she might be the leader.
"You're not welcome here, Water Clan!" she shouted in warning.
Sokka blinked as he stood up, readying his weapon in front of him before pausing. He wasn't sure if the makeup was supposed to be intimidating, but one thought did flit through his mind.
She was pretty.
He shook his head, clearing that random thought.
"What's your name," Sokka asked in a daze. He straightened up, in an attempt to look more imposing.
"Suki, of the Kyoshi Warriors," the painted warrior announced. With a flick of her open hand, a metal fan near instantly slid open with practiced ease. "And you're tresspassing," she declared with a threatening finality.
"Listen, we're not here to fight-"
Both he and Suki glanced around at the impromptu battlefield. Kyoshi Warriors and Water Clan soldiers were fighting in pockets near the pier. The soldiers were doing there best to minimize their own damage to the town, but the Kyoshi Warriors were definitely taking advantage.
Sokka cleared his throat. "We're just here for the Avatar!" Sokka declared, swearing internally. He thought he might have heard his voice just crack. "Anyway, you guys attacked first!" he felt the need to add.
"Even if the Avatar were here, we wouldn't sell them out!" Suki shot back, raising her fan parallel to her shield.
She hadn't commented on his voice cracking, which Sokka was immensely grateful for. He made a show of clearing his throat. "I'll give you girls one chance to stand down-"
"Girls?" Suki parroted with a tone of annoyance. She answered his ultimatum by dashing towards him, twirling her fan with purpose.
"Hey!-" Sokka ducked under a swing of Suki's shield before rolling forward, swiping at one of her legs. She jumped over it, landing without injury.
"I didn't mean anything by it!" Sokka tried to elaborate. His opponent didn't reply, instead spinning around, intent on kicking him in the face. Sokka dodged to the side, but recognized a second too late the feint that it was. He sucked his teeth, managing to deflect the swipe of her fan that seemed to come from nowhere.
A cry of surprise caught his attention momentarily, and he saw one of his men being launched out of a window, followed shortly after by the firebending girl who'd been hanging out with the Avatar.
"Oh, come on!" Sokka mentally facepalmed. He had nothing against warrior women, but this seemed a bit ridiculous in his opinion. Although, the soldiers were doing well, all things considered, seeing as how they were ambushed and all. But she couldn't be that good!
He exhaled, drawing the chi from his center and into the water in the satchel hanging off his belt.
Suki charged at him again, this time, intending to disarm him. Sokka readied himself, prepared to go for her shield arm, in the hopes of breaking her defense. The fan didn't collide at all with his club like he anticipated.
Another feint, Sokka realized. One of her booted feet slid past his nearest leg.
Suki sidestepped his weapon arm before grabbing hold of the back of his collar.
"What the-?"
His frame of reference shifted upward suddenly and he could vaguely tell that his arm was being wrapped by something.
Sokka may have not be the best warrior there is, yet, but he did receive some training from his father. In a panic, he quickly twisted his legs around, catching Suki off guard. Sokka was still on his back, but Suki was forced to backpedal. Next, he thrust his hand forward in a knife motion and water flew from his container and splashed onto Suki's shield before quickly solidifying into ice.
With a cry, Suki managed to toss the shield away before the ice reached her hand.
"Tch!" Suki used her now free hand to procure another fan, while Sokka used the breathing room to stand back up.
"Can we talk now?" Sokka queried.
"Maybe when you're in a cell," Suki retorted with narrowed eyes, slowly approaching him.
Sokka exhaled, a bit annoyed. He knew the Island probably wouldn't be too happy to see Water Clan soldiers, but he didn't think they'd be attacked on sight like this. All he wanted was to capture the Avatar and prove himself to his dad. Was that too much to ask?
Where was that kid hiding, anyway? He quickly glanced around, but he didn't see any other fighters except his own men, Suki, and the crazy firebender chick.
Sokka resisted the urge to facepalm. Of course this might have been a distraction! That airbending kid didn't seem like the type to really run from danger.
"Everyone, fall back!" Sokka shouted, quickly running towards the ship. He looked over his shoulder to see that Suki was surprised by his sudden retreat, but gave chase. Nice.
His men heard his call, and they slowly backed towards the ship. The Kyoshi Warriors that hadn't been knocked out were falling in step with Suki, while his own men began exchanging water whips with swords and fans.
Sokka reached the bottom of the ramp. Just a little further...
Crazy firebending girl had caught up with Suki, yelling for everyone to stop chasing Sokka and his men, but the trap was already set.
The soldiers were already in formation in front of the pier. Just as the girls realized their mistake, Sokka and his soldiers guided a large wave of water from under the pier, which whipped towards the Kyoshi Warriors, icing their feet to the ground.
Annoyed cries and grunts were heard as the warriors were attempting to break out of the ice, but it was too thick. They were stuck.
Azula had managed to avoid the ice attack, and stood next to an immobilized Suki.
"Next time, don't chase waterbenders to water," Azula scolded. Suki rolled her eyes, not really in the mood for her attitude.
"Just get me out of this."
Azula complied, managing to melt the ice around Suki's feet, and guided her a few feet away from where they were.
"If you tell us where the Avatar is, we'll be out of your hair," Sokka tried again.
"He's not here," Azula sneered. "Why don't you go back to your igloos and bother someone else?"
Some of Sokka's men took offense to her retort, but to Azula's annoyance, Sokka himself didn't react to it. "Oh, come on, we don't need to resort to name calling," he insisted, speaking conversationally. Something about his unconcerned tone really irked her, but she banished the thought from her mind.
"If it makes you feel any better, we won't arrest anyone for unprovoked assault," he added.
Azula internally rolled her eyes. They both knew full well that this region wasn't under Water Clan jurisdiction.
"But if you don't give him up, I kinda might have to," Sokka added, even sounding a bit apologetic. "So there's your two choices."
There was a pregnant pause before Suki spoke up. "How about a third option?"
Both Sokka and Azula looked at her questioningly.
"Wha-" Sokka sighed. "There is no third!"
"Unagi!" Suki simply said. Sokka looked to his men to see if they knew what she was referring to.
"What's a Unagi?" Sokka asked. One of the soldiers shrugged.
A loud metallic groan answered his question and he turned around to see his ship being jostled in the water. Then a massive shape burst from the water, with a person on top of it. The shadow of the behemoth easily covered the ship and a portion of the pier, reaching towards the first couple of houses.
Arriving with it from the air was the giant animal he remembered to be the Avatar's Bison. The crazy firebender's brother or boyfriend, or something, was at the reigns.
"Oh man..." Sokka whined, as the giant serpent screeched at them. He and his allies stepped back involuntarily. But what good would that do in this moment?
Sokka blinked. The Avatar could summon giant monsters now?
"Looking for me?!" Aang shouted. He made a pulling motion with one of his hands. It turned out he was holding the serpent's whiskers. Was that thing another pet of his?
Water, actual water blasted out of the Unagi's mouth. Sokka would have thought it was cool if he wasn't currently trying not to get pancaked by a living water cannon.
"Back on the ramp!" Sokka yelled. The soldiers didn't need to be told twice. They quickly filed into the ship, and it wasn't lost on Sokka that the Avatar was keeping the Unagi from blasting water at the sea vessel.
Without another word, the ship pulled off from the pier. Sokka stood in front of the door leading to both the lower and upper decks, and turned to one of the guards stationed near it.
"Tell the helmsman to drift just far enough out of sight," he instructed, voice low. "We'll still need to find out what direction they're going."
The soldier nodded his acknowledgment and dissapeared through the doorway.
The Island began to shrink as the ship gained distance and then it stopped.
Ok, Sokka said to himself. There was no way to account for a sudden giant monster. Once the Avatar leaves the island, he'll lead them to the next destination.
As Sokka pondered, footsteps from below deck increased in volume before coming to a stop beside him. Pakku sighed melodramatically. A cup of tea was cradled in his hands.
"Well, that was productive," he said evenly. "Even I could tell you that approaching a settlement not under our jurisdiction was a bad idea."
"Yeah, well, you might have forgotten to remind me," Sokka shot back with folded arms. His reply might have been snippy, but there was no venom in his words. He simply oozed sarcasm, and Pakku was well aware of that. He was a sarcastic fellow himself.
"Hm," Pakku replied noncomitally. "Well, there's good news," he added after a pause. Sokka turned his head to him curiously.
"The Avatar is a prepubescent kid, and his bodyguards are teenagers."
Pakku took a sip of his tea.
Sokka groaned, swiping a hand down his face.
A/N: Apologies, the dialogue got kinda stilted towards the end and I haven't been able to focus in on this like I've wanted to. We will be back to where I meant to go next chapter.
