Left you with quite a cliffhanger last chapter, didn't I? Sorry! Well, no worries–your patience is rewarded with a gigantanormous fight scene! Hell yeah! XD
Chapter 11: "A Crisis"
A cold chill ran through Zuko, and it had nothing to do with the rain pouring down on them. Instead of being greeted by his uncle, Zuko found himself suddenly faced with his hated nemesis, Admiral Zhao. He had only a split second to take in the shock before the men who had helped him aboard the ship grabbed him and Katara.
"What have you done with my uncle? And my crew?" Zuko shouted to Zhao as he struggled against his captors.
"Your crew and the old man are enjoying a little vacation on an deserted island some miles from here. They won't be here to help you, boy," Zhao sneered. "But I do think you should be more concerned about your own predicament than theirs, though..." Zhao took a deep, satisfied breath. "It looks as if my poor luck has finally turned around, now that I have the Avatar and this sniveling little traitor."
Katara and Zuko both started at the mention of the Avatar. "He's here?" Katara cried, "Aang is here? My brother too?" She glanced past Zhao, spotting an enormous bulk near the bow of Zuko's ship, covered in tarp and bound in rope. "Appa?" The bulk gave a muffled grunt at the sound of its name and shifted slightly.
Zhao's eyes settled malevolently on Katara's hopeful ones, the lines in his face deepening. That godforsaken blue, he snarled silently. "Take the prince below deck and have him shackled and put under guard," he growled, "Kill the girl. She's of no use to us."
Katara gasped and renewed her struggle, while Zuko's efforts to get free doubled. "Sir..." one of the men spoke up, "What about the Avatar? He might stop cooperating if–"
"Then throw the girl's body overboard," Zhao snapped impatiently, "What he doesn't know can't hurt us." As Katara was brought forward, Zhao nodded to Zuko and barked, "See to it he's gagged as well. We don't need him spilling any secrets while he's down in the brig."
Katara looked behind her, alarmed, as the soldiers attempted to bind and gag the struggling Prince Zuko. A jolt of fear raced through her as her chin was cupped roughly, and her head forced to turn back around to face Zhao. "Actually, I think I'll kill you myself, girl," he sneered, and formed a ball of fire in his hand. Puffs of steam hissed off the ball where the rain hit. Katara struggled harder than ever against the two men restraining her, her eyes wide with fear. Zhao paused a moment, staring intently into Katara's eyes. For an instant, Katara wondered why he was hesitating, before one of the soldiers holding her was blasted forward in a heated blaze of orange. The sudden movement knocked Katara to the ground, and she looked over her shoulder to see Zuko had partially managed to get free, and was the one behind the attack.
"Detain him!" Zhao bellowed. Without a moment's hesitation, Katara slapped her hand on the deck, freezing the rain-slicked surface around her and trapping the feet of the soldiers rushing to seize Zuko. She whirled around, summoning the rainwater from the air, and lashed Zhao across the face with a water-whip. The admiral's head snapped back and he clapped a hand to his face, blood trickling out between his fingers.
By this time, Zuko had managed to get free in a fury of flames, dispatching the last of the soldiers restraining him with a series of vicious kicks and punches. As more soldiers came in to apprehend him, Zuko spotted Zhao advancing on Katara, a large gash on his face and murder in his eyes. Zuko sent a fireball at Zhao, distracting the admiral long enough to give Katara a chance get away. She quickly took the opportunity and raced to his side. More soldiers filled the deck and those who had had their feet trapped in Katara's ice freed themselves. Zuko looked around warily. Shit. They're were greatly outnumbered, and many of Zhao's crew were skilled firebenders. Their situation looked hopeless–there was no chance they could fend them all off–
Unless...unless there was an attack they couldn't defend well against...one that could cripple them all at once...
"Katara," Zuko hissed quickly as Zhao and his men closed in, "when I tell you to, spray a long blast of water right into that group of soldiers."
"What?" she hissed back, "What is any water going to do to–"
"Just do it–NOW!"
Katara jumped a little and summoned a stream of water from the ocean and propelled it forcefully towards the group of firebenders approaching them. The moment before it hit the soldiers, Zuko blasted the water with a torrent of fire, steam exploding outwards from the point of contact. The soldiers before them screamed in agony as the scalding steam rushed past. Zhao was one of the few with presence of mind and reflexes to repel the steam with a burst of fire, evaporating it completely before it could burn him.
Before they could renew their attack, Zhao leapt forward and landed a brutal kick to Zuko's chest, sending the prince crashing to the floor. Zuko's head smacked hard against the deck, and he gasped, rainwater falling into his open mouth. The stars before his eyes barely had any time to clear before he saw Zhao's foot coming down on him in a savage axe-kick. Zuko managed to roll out of the way just before the admiral's heel slammed loudly against the deck. The firebender prince swung his legs around to preform a sweep-kick, knocking Zhao's feet out from under him.
Zhao landed with a thud and Zuko took the opportunity to get to his feet and attack. However, the deck was slick from the downpour of rain and Zuko's footing slipped, causing him to fall back to the floor. Zhao laughed nastily as he curled up into a tight ball and unloaded like a spring, sending a fireball hurtling out from his feet and straight towards Zuko.
The prince only barely managed to block the attack in time. Zuko sharply inhaled as he felt some of the skin on his arms burned. He looked up to find Zhao towering over him, water dripping down from his snarling face and loose strands of hair. The admiral raised his hand, preparing to finish Zuko where he was sprawled, when suddenly water streamed around Zhao's head and encased it completely! Zuko gaped as Zhao clawed uselessly at the water that had engulfed his head.
The prince turned and saw Katara standing with one arm outstretched, her fingers curled in as if holding an invisible ball in her hand. Her blue eyes blazed.
Zuko watched, stunned, as Katara held the ball of water surrounding the admiral's head, cutting off his air supply. Zhao's hands grasped at the water, trying to free himself, but his fingers simply slipped through the liquid, useless. He could see the fear on Zhao's face even through the water's distortion. Some of Zhao's men rushed forward to apprehend Katara, but before they could reach her, she shouted, "One more step, and I'll force water down his throat and drown him for sure!"
The soldiers halted apprehensively. "Now," she said, "Drop your weapons and put your hands on the deck!" Zuko couldn't believe what he was hearing. She was using Zhao as a hostage! The soldiers hesitatingly complied, and Zuko staggered to his feet, incredulous. It had actually worked!
All that was left was Zhao.
Fear clutched at the admiral as he realized how completely at the mercy of this girl he was. There was too much water to attempt drinking it, and the liquid's intangibility rendered his hands useless. Zhao briefly considered using his fire to evaporate the water, before realizing he would probably boil his head in the process. And his men, it appeared, were being forced to stand down. The only way he could hope to escape from drowning was if the girl released him.
Zhao ordered himself to calm down. The pounding pulse in his head and chest slowed; though whether that was from his forced calm or the effects of slow suffocation, he was unsure. Through the water that surrounded his head, Zhao could make out the distorted image of the girl. Katara. Would the owner of those soft blue eyes from two years ago actually be able to kill him like this? He doubted it. But then again, he had murdered her mother... A burning sensation spread through his lungs. Who knew that water could make someone feel as though on fire?
Katara watched Zhao, the image of his face hard to see from the raindrops that spattered and splashed the surface of the water-sphere she maintained. Still, she could tell he was afraid. He would run out of air soon, and collapse. If she kept the water around his head long enough, he would die. She could kill the man that killed her mother. That burned her village. That caused her and those she loved so much pain. She could...
A long pause. Katara's hand wavered. She couldn't.
The water around Zhao's head quivered and fell to the deck with a splash. The admiral raggedly gasped for breath, barely able to stand for lack of air and the ship's rocking. He stared at her, uncertain for a moment, before a look of triumph spread across his face.
"Couldn't do it, could you?" Zhao gloated hoarsely, though he took a defensive stance. "That is what makes your people so weak!"
"My people are not weak!" Katara shouted, "My people are strong because they show mercy! Because they value life!"
Zhao gave a small signal with his hand, and the firebenders who had been forced to stand down before now rose. "Yes, well, because of your 'strength', you've lost your one trump card and your only chance to avenge your people. If it were me, girl, I wouldn't have hesitated."
"I'm not like you," Katara replied coldly.
Aang looked up as he heard a commotion on deck. He was sitting with Sokka in Zuko's small brig, under the careful watch of several guards. The noises above grew louder and shouting could be heard. A few of the guards shifted uncomfortably, wanting to know what was happening, but not daring to leave their post. The door to the brig suddenly burst open and a soldier from above barged in and shouted, "Quick! We need some of you on deck to help seize Prince Zuko and the waterbender!"
Sokka and Aang leapt to the bars of their cell, looking nearly hysterical with excitement and happiness. "KATARA?" they cried asked at the same time.
"Sit down!" shouted one of the guards, "Don't make any trouble, or–hey!"
The soldier was cut off as a streak of white fur flew past him, effectively snatching the keys off the belt of the guard standing next to him. Momo had finally found the right moment to strike. The lemur flew in between the bars of the prison, circling inside the cell once before coming to land on Aang's head, keys in paw.
"Momo! You're alright!" Aang cried with glee.
"HEY! Stop!"
Aang's attention immediately turned to the approaching guards. He quickly took the keys from Momo and tossed them to Sokka. Thrusting his hands forward, the Avatar sent the guards crashing into the back wall of the brig with a powerful wind blast. Sokka took the keys and unlocked the door, freeing them. Before the guards could recover, Sokka raced to the locked trunk which held their belongings. After trying out three keys, Sokka finally found the right one and opened the trunk. He tucked his knife and boomerang into his belt while tossing Aang his staff. By then, some of the guards had managed to stagger to their feet, only to be knocked down by another potent blast of Aang's wind.
Aang and Sokka practically flew up the stairs, powered by the need to see Katara. They burst out onto the deck, both their eyes racing across the scene until they spotted her surrounded by firebenders. Aang blinked several times against the rain, making sure what he was seeing before him was really Katara, and not some hopeful fantasy. But she was there. She was real. She was alive. The Avatar felt as though he could have flown to the moon and back he was so filled with happiness. His elation was dampened, however, upon seeing the dire situation Katara was in, as well as the pained expression on her face. He had to save her!
Aang and Sokka's loud entrance on deck, however, alerted nearly everyone to their presence. Katara's gaze turned in the direction of the noise they created and saw them. "SOKKA! AANG!" she cried. Her tears of joy were hidden by the rain that pelted down on them. Zuko saw her expression and wondered for a moment what it felt like to be that happy.
The reunion was ruined when Zhao roared, "They've escaped! SEIZE THEM!"
The firebenders that had been closing in on Katara and Zuko now turned their attention to Aang and Sokka. As the soldiers attempted to apprehend them, Katara cried to Zuko, "Come on, we have to help!" Before either of them could make a move, however, Zhao shot an intense blast of flame to cut them off.
"You aren't going anywhere either," he snarled.
"Sokka, get Appa uncovered and untied! I'll take care of these guys!" Aang shouted while deflecting a fireball with a flurry of wind.
"Right!" Sokka shouted back. Aang thrust forward with his hands, knocking several firebenders off their feet and creating an opening for Sokka. The Water Tribe warrior raced through, nimbly dodging the attacks the firebenders made to stop him. Sokka was tempted to come to the aid sister, who seemed to be facing off with Zhao alongside Zuko, but resisted it. Katara could take care of herself–and she had that crazy prince with her. They needed Appa now.
He rushed over to the shifting bison covered in tarp and bound in rope. Appa was squirming under the material, agitated by the loud noises and ship's rocking. Sokka whipped out his knife and cut the ropes. Once they were out of the way, he was pulled off the tarps, the last of them wrapped tightly around Appa's head. He tugged it off in one quick motion, asking, "How did you manage to breathe in that thing, big guy?" Appa gave a disgruntled snort. "Can you fly?" Sokka asked quickly. The bison rolled one eye up warily at the sky. It was hard enough flying in storms without wounds–and he had many. Seeing the chaos on deck, however, and his master battling a whole group of firebenders, Appa decided he would just have to do it. He gave an affirmative grunt. Sokka hopped on his back and grabbed the reins. "Thanks buddy, we owe you. Yip yip!"
With a pained effort, Appa launched himself into the air. The loss of his weight on deck rocked the ship violently, and nearly everyone fell to their feet. Zhao whirled and spotted them, then screamed to his men, "Bring that thing down!" The firebenders attacking Aang turned on Sokka and Appa and began shooting fireballs. The bison managed to dodge them, barely, before Aang came to the rescue and overwhelmed the firebenders with a fury of wind. When he had managed to knock most of them to the ground, Aang changed his staff into flight mode. Momo quickly jumped on his back, and with a giant leap, Aang propelled himself into the air and soared towards Appa.
When he landed on the bison's back, he yelled, "Appa! We have to get Katara! Fly down to that side of the ship!"
"Bring that thing down!" Zhao screamed. Zuko took up Zhao's moment of distraction to launch an assault on the admiral, blasting him with a blaze of fire. Zhao managed to dodge the attack at the last second, missing the fireball by inches. He glowered at Zuko before preforming a sweep-kick, sending a low-to-the-ground arc of flame racing towards the prince. Zuko leapt over the fire, but turned his attention to Katara when she yelped, having nearly been burned by the wide attack. He needed to get away from her, so she wouldn't get caught in the crossfire and–
A fireball connected with Zuko's chest and sent him smack into his ship's railing. Zuko gasped as the wind was knocked out of him. "You should pay more attention, Prince Zuko," Zhao smirked, "and not get so caught up in some little girl's troubles. What does some Water Tribe trash matter to you, anyway?"
"I could ask you the same question," Zuko retorted, and the admiral's face darkened. Zhao was about to land a crushing kick on Zuko when he was tripped with a spray of water. The admiral hit the deck hard and Zuko gave Katara quick look of thanks. Zhao didn't stay down long though, as he rolled off his back and swung his foot in Katara's direction, sending a fireball straight for her. Zuko leapt forward and took the brunt of the attack, using his forearms to fend off the blistering heat. Zhao didn't let up, however, and launched another fireball before Zuko was even finished dealing with the first one. The force of the second attack, coupled with the first one, was too much for Zuko to bear, and he stumbled backwards, past Katara...
...and right off his ship's railing.
"Prince Zuko!" Katara cried as Zuko plunged into the inky, raging waters below. Zhao looked slightly dismayed. Dammit! He had just wanted the boy knocked unconscious and out of the way–not thrown overboard!He should have known the prince was too weak to handle his attacks! Zhao's concerns, however, were interrupted by a much more pressing problem. The Avatar.
Appa lowered himself down to the edge of the ship where Katara was and hovered. Aang stretched out his hand to Katara, who was gripping the ship's railing tightly and looking into the sea. "Katara!" he cried, "Grab on! Let's go!" Katara hesitated. Zhao sent a fiery blast at Aang, who deflected it with a sweep of wind. "Come on, Katara!" Aang shouted, sounding desperate, "We gotta leave while we still can!"
Katara looked into the water below. She couldn't leave Zuko to drown down there! It wasn't right! "I'm sorry, guys," she said with a determined look on her face, "I'll catch up with you later." And with that, she jumped overboard.
"KATARA!"
The black water that surrounded Zuko was terrifying. He couldn't breath, couldn't see, couldn't hear. The water pressed all around him and threw him about at its will. Rarely in his life had he felt so helpless as this. Dimly, he was reminded of the time he had become and inadvertent victim of one of Katara's crushing waves. Of course, this was no waterbender's work, but the wrath of nature, making it all the more frightening. Zuko resisted the crushing feeling of the water and tried to determine which way was up, but couldn't...everything was moving and his brain was getting fuzzy...
Zuko vaguely felt a pressure around his waist, and jerked as he was yanked roughly in some direction. Suddenly, he heard a vast roaring noise and found he could breath again. He coughed several times as he cleared his air passageways, and was slapped hard on the back a few times. It took several moments for his brain to start working again, and realize the person who had come to his rescue was Katara. Zuko stared uncomprehending at Katara. She said something to him, but he couldn't make out the words, still too stunned from nearly drowning and discovering that Katara had saved him.
Katara looked about her frantically. She could see Zuko's ship, rocking amongst the storm's waves, as well a white blur that Katara knew was Appa. The blur grew smaller and smaller, meaning the Aang and Sokka were fleeing the scene. Good. They would be safe.
A violent crash in the water reminded Katara she needed to worry about her own safety too. She struggled against the ferocious, churning water, using her waterbending to help keep her and Zuko afloat. They needed to get out of this water, or they were done for. Either that, or Katara would have to bring them back to Zuko's ship...and into the hands of Zhao again. Mercifully, off in the distance, Katara spotted their fishing boat. It must have been carried off a ways in the storm. She thrust her hand in the water, jetting them towards the boat. She repeated the motion several times, dragging the groggy Prince Zuko along with her. When they close enough to the vessel, Katara thrust downwards with her palm, launching them out of the water and onto the deck of the boat.
The landed hard on the deck, Katara on top of Zuko. The prince gasped and coughed from the impact, and Katara quickly got off. She patted his cheek, trying to rouse him. Even on her hands and knees, she had a hard time balancing–their small boat was no match for the waves that lurched and crashed all around. "Zuko!" she cried, "Snap out of it! I need help piloting this boat! You know how to work boats like these better than me! Please, I need your help!"
The prince groaned and opened his eyes. Zuko had managed to make out what she had said, but he was so tired and sore all over... He looked up into her worried face, so close to his own. He could see himself in her eyes. Strange...were they always that blue? Zuko gave a grunt and rose unsteadily, Katara putting her hand along his back to help him up. They stood and shakily made their way to the boats wheel. Once Zuko had a steady grip on it, Katara said, "I'll go start the engine." She then wobbled down the stairs to start up the fires below deck.
Zuko shook his head, trying to clear it. They needed to get out of these dangerous waters. If these waves got any bigger, they would be in danger of capsizing. Through the rain, Zuko could make out a ghostly image of an island. Hopefully, they could find some shelter along the shore. If they could not...there was a very good chance this storm would tear their boat apart...
Aang clutched at Appa's fur, desperately looking down at the agitated sea. Katara was nowhere to be seen. "Sokka! We have to go back! Katara's down there!" he yelled, nearly sobbing.
"Aang, we can't do that! Appa can barely fly as it is! We need to find an island to take cover on until this storm blows over!"
"But Katara–"
"Katara's fine! She's gotten this far, hasn't she? She wouldn't have jumped into the water unless it was something important and she knew she could make it out!" Sokka shouted back, trying to keep the worry out of his voice.
Aang swallowed and nodded. He had finally got to see Katara again, after he had thought he had lost her, only to have her ripped away once more. Aang hoped Katara was okay. The Avatar wasn't sure he could handle losing her twice. But Sokka was right. They needed to find shelter. He searched the ocean, squinting against the rain, until he spotted the faint image of one in the distance. Aang pointed and called to Sokka, "Hey! There's an island!"
Sokka peered in the direction Aang pointed and yanked Appa's reins to the side. "Great! Think you can make it, Appa?" The bison groaned mightily and soared towards the island. The water tribe warrior looked back on Aang and called reassuringly, "Don't worry, Aang, I bet we'll find Katara sooner than you think."
That's a lot of action. Next chapter, we'll be switching gears a little, and finally see some romance! And we'll find out just what exactly happened to Zhao afterwards...