A/N: The time… has come! My surprise is ready for you all, so be prepared to have your mind blown. Even if you're not totally shocked, you'll still be a little surprised and that's good enough for me. Now let's get it on!
Disclaimer- I do not own Dragon Ball Z or Avatar
Chapter 8-
After explaining that he was going to the fire temple to speak with his past life, Aang had decided that it would be best if he went alone. The Avatar struggled to get his bison to leave, but Appa stubbornly stayed in place. "Let's go, Appa! Come on, boy!" said Aang as he pulled on the bison's reins, but Appa roared in disagreement as he sat back down. "Look I'm sorry, but Katara, Sokka, and Gohan aren't coming to the Fire Nation with us," explained Aang, "If they got hurt, I'd never forgive myself. So get your big butt off the ground and let's go!"Aang tried once more to get Appa to move but he still resisted.
"I think his big butt is trying to tell you something," said Sokka.
Aang turned to see the villagers standing with his friends. "Going to the Fire Nation alone is a suicide mission, Aang," said Gohan. "By the time you get there, there'll already be an army of Fire Soldiers ready to attack you."
"Please don't go, Aang. The world can't afford to lose you to the Fire Nation. Neither can I," pleaded Katara.
Aang thought for a moment before he remembered his vision of the comet. "But I have to talk to Avatar Roku about what my vision means," urged Aang. "I need to get to the Fire Temple before the sun sets on the solstice! That's today!"The Avatar jumped onto his sky bison. He looked back to his friends before he motioned Appa to go. His friends suddenly ran in front of Appa, blocking his path.
"We're not gonna let you go into the Fire Nation, Aang," said Katara.
"At least, not without your friends," said Sokka. "We got your back."
Momo jumped onto Aang's shoulder, making him smile while Appa licked Sokka, making him angry. "Ew!" cried Sokka in disgust. "We'd better get going," said Gohan as he climbed onto Icarus. "It's a long journey to the Crescent Island," said the Village leader as he gave Aang. "You'll have to fly fast to have any chance at making it before sundown. Good luck."
"Thank you for your..." Aang had said before he was interrupted.
"Go!" ordered the village leader.
The gang took off into the night on their flying beasts. Early the next morning, the village leader came outside and was met with a blade at his throat. He looked to his right and saw Prince Trunks holding the sword and Prince Zuko waiting on his rhino with his still naked uncle. "Where's the Avatar?" asked Trunks.
The sun started to rise as the gang flew across the ocean. "Come on boy, we've got a long way to go! Faster!" said Aang to Appa; the bison growled as he started to flew faster. "Go faster, Icarus!" said Gohan, and his dragon zoomed up to Appa's head. Not too far behind, a Fire Navy ship sailed after them. Zuko was looking at the gang through a telescope and Trunks stood beside him while Iroh spoke. "Sailing into Fire Nation waters. Of all the foolish things you've done in your sixteen years, this is the most foolish!"
"I have to agree with Iroh on that one, Zuko," said Trunks. "This is a bad idea."
"I have no choice, guys," said Zuko as he looked through the telescope.
"Have you completely forgotten that the Fire Lord banished you?!" asked Iroh. "What if you're caught?!"
"I'm chasing the Avatar! My father will understand why we're coming home!" said Zuko.
"You give him too much credit. My brother is not the understanding type," said Iroh.
"Boy, that's for sure!" said Trunks, irritated.
"Trunks, I thought you'd be on my side on this one," said Zuko.
"Normally I would be, but now I'm not because I have no desire to get arrested and have Ozai give us an even greater punishment for coming back home!" said Trunks.
"I don't think I'll ever understand what you hate about my father," said Zuko.
"I don't expect you to," said Trunks.
Looking into the telescope, Prince Zuko managed to spot the gang in the sky. "There they are!" said Zuko before he ordered, "Helmsman, full steam ahead!" Zuko's ship started to move faster through the water. "Aang! We've got trouble!" said Katara when she saw the Fire navy ship. "Yeah! And it's gaining fast!" warned Sokka. Zuko's ship brought out its catapult with a smoking ball loaded into it. "Really Prince Zuko, couldn't you shoot them down with something more fragrant?" asked Iroh as he fanned himself. Zuko then lit the ball on fire while it was aimed at the Sky Bison. "On my mark," ordered Zuko. "Fire!" The fire soldier cut the rope for the catapult and launched the flaming projectile at the gang.
"Fireball!" cried Katara.
"I'm on it!" said Aang. He steered away from the fireball and it sailed passed them. They covered their noses and made faces as the smell of the fireball filled the air around them. "Man that stinks!" cried Gohan. "We have to get out of Zuko's range before he shoots another hot stinker at us!" said Katara. "Can't you make Appa go any faster?!" Sokka asked Aang. "Yeah. There's just one little problem," replied the Airbender as he looked ahead. "A blockade!" said Zuko with wide eyes.
Up ahead, there were lines of Fire Nation ships that stretched across the water. Each ship was fully equipped with three catapults and multiple fire soldiers. "Technically you are still in Earth Kingdom waters; turn back now and they cannot arrest you," Iroh advised his students.
"If we fly north, we can go around the Fire Nation ships and avoid the blockade. It's the only way," suggested Aang.
"There's no time!" said Katara.
"We'll have to go through it!" said Gohan.
"This is exactly why I didn't want you to come; it's too dangerous!" said Aang.
"And that's exactly why we're here," said Katara.
"Like I said, we're with you to the end, Aang!" said Gohan.
"Let's run this blockade!" said Sokka.
"Appa! Yip, yip!" said Aang. The bison swung its tail as it started to fly faster while Icarus speed up and flapped harder. On Zuko's ship, the fire Princes watched as their target flew towards the blockade. "He's not turning around!" said Zuko. "Please Prince Zuko. If the Fire Nation captures you and Trunks, there's nothing I can do. Do not follow the Avatar." begged Iroh. Zuko closed his eyes in regret and said "I'm sorry uncle." He then yelled "Run the Blockade!" to his men.
"The Avatar and the banished Princes," said Commander Zhao as he looked through the telescope. "This must be my lucky day." "Commander Zhao, what are your orders?" asked the fire captain who stood behind Zhao alongside lieutenant Brute. "Shoot the bison down Captain." said the Commander. "But there's a fire navy ship out there Commander. One of our own, what if it's hit?" asked the Captain. "So be it," replied the Commander which shocked the Captain. "It belongs to a traitor." "It would be quite a shame if Zuko's ship was show caught in the mid fire and damaged," said Brody. "If we hit them by accident, the whole crew could get stranded or drown in the ocean." "Yes that would be a shame." said Zhao."Ignite!" Each ship on Zhao's armada set three balls on fire. "Launch!" ordered the Commander.
A barrage of fireballs we're thrown into the air simultaneously, acting quickly Aang and Gohan steered their pets away from the flaming attacks. They swerved left and right as the out of the past the balls of fire, two somehow crashed into each other and exploded. Appa flew through the smoke and came out with some hot ash stuck to his fur. He growled in pain as his passengers started dusting the ash off him.
"Appa, are you ok?" Aang asked his bison who moaned in response.
"Guys, incoming!" said Gohan. He fired two ki blasts and destroyed the fireballs that were about hit his friends.
"Thanks." said Aang.
"No prob." replied Gohan.
Aang then directed Appa to fly above the clouds where they would be out of sight and Gohan followed him on Icarus. The fireballs that missed the gang came raining down around Zuko's ship. They splashed in the water creating waves that washed onto the ship. Prince Trunks fire multiple ki blasts, destroying any fireball that was headed towards the ship. "Great, now I have to worry about being caught by Brody and then Ozai," complained Trunks. One of the fireballs managed to hit the ship before Trunks could destroy it. "Prince Zuko! The engines are damaged! We need to stop and make repairs!" the Helmsman alerted Zuko. "Do not stop this ship!" ordered the son of Ozai.
"Launch!" Zhao ordered again. The ships threw three more fireballs each that flew above the clouds. The gang steered to avoid them as they screamed in panic. Each fire attack shot out of the clouds and came close to hitting Appa or Icarus. Once again, two fireballs smacked into each other and exploded in front of the bison. Appa stumbled bit but managed to continue flying. However, this caused Sokka to fly off the bison's saddle and fall through the clouds.
"SOKKA!" cried Aang as he steered Appa to dive after his friend.
"I got him!" said Gohan.
With great speed Icarus flew past Appa and dived for Sokka, the water tribesman screamed as his eyes grew watery. Gohan reached for Sokka, who reached him, he grabbed the non-bender who was grasping his heart as he was pulled onto Icarus. Gohan then steered his dragon towards Appa and placed his friend on the saddle. Appa splashed against the water, causing a fish to fly into Sokka's face before Momo caught it. More fireballs were launched at them, but the two flying beasts continued to dodge them as they fly towards the blockade. "Ready," said Zhao as his ship prepared to fire another attack at Appa. "Fire!"
Aang reacted by jumping off Appa towards the fireball, and with a mighty kick, he hit the fireball with an air blast that caused it to explode. Aang landed on Appa just before he flew past the Fire Nation blockade.
"We made it!" cried Aang.
"We got into the Fire Nation," said Sokka as he and his sister had terrified looks on their faces. "Great."
"Where do you think the Avatar is headed sir?" asked the Captain.
"I'm not sure," replied Zhao. "But I bet a certain banished prince knows."
"Well then, why don't we ask him?" asked Brody as he cracked his knuckles.
Zuko's ship closed in on the blockade, two of Zhao's ships were moving in to cut off the Fire Princes' path. "We're on a collision course!"Iroh warned his nephew. "We can make it!" said Zuko with confidence. As the ships got closer to each other, numerous Fire Soldiers were assembled on deck. "The boarding party is ready to apprehend Prince Zuko and Prince Trunks sir!" said the Captain. "Wait! Cut the engines and let them pass," ordered Zhao. "Sir?" asked the Captain in confusion. As the ships were about to collide, Zhao's ships suddenly stopped, allowing Zuko's ship to pass without delay.
Zhao and Brody glared at Zuko and Trunks as their ship crossed the blockade. The Fire Princes glared back at them when their ship passed the blockade Zuko and Trunks stared at Zhao's ship while Iroh stroked his beard in wonder.
"What game are they playing?" thought Prince Trunks.
Meanwhile, the hours passed by as the gang flew to their destination. As they continued to fly Appa and Icarus started to show signs of exhaustion. The longer they flew, the more tired the flying beasts became, Icarus was finding t very difficult to stay airborne. The gang was starting to get tired as well when Aang suddenly said "There it is!" alerting his friends as they approached the Crescent shaped island with a volcano on it. "The Island that Roku's dragon took us."
The gang landed on the island where Appa and Icarus would rest while the teens entered the temple. "You did it buddy, nice flying," said Aang as he hugged his bison. Appa moaned as he rolled onto his back.
"Aw, you must be tired," Katara said to Appa as he rubbed his belly.
"Nope! I'm good," said Sokka as he stretched. "Refreshed and ready to fight some Firebenders."
"I was talking to Appa." said Katara.
"Well…I was talking to Momo," replied Sokka as he gestured to the lemur hanging from tree branch before looking at Sokka in confusion.
Gohan laughed before he turned to his dragon and petted him while saying "Thanks for the lift Icarus. You and Appa get a good rest; we'll be back when we're done inside."
The four teens walked up the stairs towards the temple before hiding at the entrance. "I don't see any guards," said Sokka.
"The Fire Nation must've abandoned the temple when Avatar Roku died." suggested Katara.
"It's almost sun down, we'd better hurry!" said Aang.
The gang ran into the temple as the sun began to set. When they were inside, they quietly snuck around trying to find the room where Roku's statue was in. "Wait," said Sokka suddenly. "I think I heard something." "Uh, we're not alone here," said Gohan when he turned around. The rest of the gang turned and saw five old men in fire nation clothes The oldest stood in the front with two standing on his left and right side.
"We are the Fire Sages," said the oldest sage. "Guardians of the Temple of the Avatar.
"Great! I am the Avatar!" said Aang.
"We know!" replied the head sage before he took a deep breath and launched a fireball at the gang. Two other sages followed the Head Sage's lead and attacked the gang as well, but Aang quickly swung his arms around and deflected the fire blasts with airbending. "I'll hold them off, run!" yelled Aang. His friends ran off, leaving the Avatar on his own. Aang swung his leg, creating an air current that knocked all five Sages off their feet. When the sages stood back up, Aang was already gone. "If the Avatar contacts Roku, there's no telling how powerful the boy will become." said The Grand Sage. "Split up and find him!"
The five Sages separated and ran through five different halls. Gohan, Katara, and Sokka ran through a hallway when Aang suddenly ran in front of them and rushed into another hallway.
"Follow me!" said Aang.
"Do you know where you're going?!" asked Sokka.
"Nope!" replied Aang as he ran around a corner. A second later he came back and shouted "Wrong way!" as he ran past his friends. His friends stared in confusion until they saw one of the fire sages and ran away. "Come back!" cried the sage as he chased the gang. The teens ran into a dead end right before the Fire Sage caught up with them. Gohan and Aang turned around and took fighting stances as the sage approached them. "I don't want to fight you. I am a friend." said the Sage. "Firebenders aren't our friends!" said Sokka. The Fire Sage then walked up to the Avatar and bowed to him, which surprised the gang.
"I know why you're here Avatar." said the Sage.
"You do?" asked Aang.
"Yes. You wish to speak to Avatar Roku, I can take you to him." explained the Sage.
"How?" asked Aang.
The Fire Sage stood up and moved a lamp to the side revealing a small hole. He then placed his hand over the hole and shot fire into it. A secret door suddenly opened, leading to a tunnel within the volcano. "This way." said the sage. The gang hesitated to enter the tunnel when they heard "Find him!" coming from the voice of the Head Sage throughout the halls. Footsteps were heard and the Sage grew worried. "Time is running out! Quickly!" warned the Sage. Aang and Katara nodded to each other before walking down the tunnel followed by Gohan and Sokka. When the gang entered the tunnel, the Fire Sage quickly got in and closed the door.
Back outside, Zuko's ship was still trailing smoke from the damaged engine as it sailed towards the Avatar's location. Zuko gripped the rail on his ship as he spoke to his uncle. "What's he up to Uncle?" asked Zuko. "Why didn't Commander Zhao arrest us?!"
"Because he wants to follow you," replied the old General. "He knows you'll lead him to the prize you're both after, the Avatar!"
"And I though Zhao wasn't worried that we'd get to the Avatar first, and now he's using us to find him." said Trunks.
"If Zhao wants to follow our trail of smoke, then that's exactly what I'll let him do." said Zuko.
On the island, the sun was setting as the gang and the Fire Sage named Shyu walked down the tunnel. "Avatar Roku once called this temple his home," explained Shyu. "He formed these secret passages out of the magma."
"Did you know Avatar Roku?" asked Avatar Aang.
"No, but my grandfather knew him," replied Shyu. "Many generations of Fire Sages guarded this temple long before me; we all have a strong spiritual connection to this place."
"Is that how you knew I was coming?" asked Aang.
"A few weeks ago an amazing thing occurred," said Shyu. "The statue of Avatar Roku, its eyes began to glow."
"That's when we were at the air temple," said Katara. "Avatar Roku's eyes were glowing there too."
"At that moment, we knew you had returned to the world," said Shyu. The gang walked through another tunnel that was next to a river of magma.
"If this is the Avatar's temple, then shouldn't the Sages be trying to help Aang instead of attacking him?" asked Gohan.
"Things have changed," Shyu replied sadly. "In the past, the Sages were loyal only to the Avatar. When Roku died, the Sages eagerly waited for the next Avatar to return; but he never came."
"They were waiting for me." said Aang feeling guilty.
Sokka placed his hand on Aang's shoulder and said "Hey don't feel bad, you're only a hundred years late." which made Aang glare at him.
"They lost hope the Avatar would ever return." Shyu continued to explain. "When Fire Lord Sozin began the war, my grandfather and the other Sages were forced to follow him. I never wanted to serve the Fire Lord. When I learned you were coming, I knew I would have to betray the other Sages."
"Thank you for helping me." said Aang to which Shyu smiled.
The gang and Shyu began walking up some stairs towards the temple. "We'll follow these stairs to the sanctuary," Shyu instructed Aang. "Once you're inside, wait for the fight to hit Avatar Roku's statue. Only then will you be able to speak with him." Shyu then opened a ground door and walked towards the sanctuary, he gasped "No!" when saw two doors with five dragons on it closed shut.
"Shyu, what's wrong?" asked Aang as the gang joined the Sage.
"The sanctuary doors, they're closed!" said Shyu.
Aang and Gohan grabbed the handles on the doors and tried to open them manually. "Can't you just open them with Firebending, like you opened that other door?" asked Katara. "No." replied the Fire Sage. "Only a fully realized Avatar is powerful enough to open these doors alone or an Energy bender from the ancient times can force it open. Otherwise, the Sages must open the doors together with five simultaneous fire blasts." "Five fire blasts huh?" said Sokka while he was thinking. He then looked up at a lamp and said "I think I can help you out." as an idea came to him.
Meanwhile, on Zuko's ship, The Fire Princes were leaving the ship and entering the sea on a small boat. "Uncle, keep heading north," instructed Prince Zuko. "Zhao will follow the smoke trail while I use it as a cover." Iroh shook his head in doubt as his pupils' boat disappeared in the smoke. Commander Zhao stared at Zuko's ship through a telescope as he followed it, but his faced showed suspicion.
"Do they think we're as foolish as them?" asked Lieutenant Brute.
"Do you know where they're actually headed?" asked Zhao.
"Yes, I do." replied Brody as he pointed towards the smoke.
At the Sanctuary, Sokka was busy at work putting his idea into action. "This is a little trick I picked up from my father." explained the water Tribesman as he poured lamp oil into five bags. "I seal the lamp oil inside animal skin casing, Shyu lights the oil soaked twine and ta-da! Fake Firebending!"
"You've really outdone yourself this time Sokka." said Katara.
"This might actually work." said Shyu.
Sokka placed the five bombs into the five dragon mouths while Shyu stood behind him. "The Sages will hear the explosion, so as soon as the go off, you rush in!" Shyu instructed Aang. Sokka placed the last bomb in the last dragon mouth and took cover with his sister while Aang and Gohan took cover together. "It's almost sunset, are you ready?" Katara asked Aang. "Definitely!" replied Aang. Shyu shot out a stream of fire that lit the string for all the bombs, the spark trailed up the string as Shyu hid with the boys. Sokka clung to his sister's dress and closed his eyes. When the spark finally ignited the oil, the bombs exploded simultaneously. Aang rushed to the doors and tried to open it but to no avail.
"They're still locked!" cried Aang.
Shyu sighed sadly as he said "It didn't work." The gang held faces of disappointment as Aang fell on his knees.
The sun continued to set while the gang was still outside the Sanctuary doors. In a desperate attempt to get inside, Aang repeatedly beat the doors with multiple air blasts. "WHY WON'T IT OPEN?!" shouted Aang furiously, before he could hit the doors with another attack, Katara grabbed his wrist and said "Aang, stop! There's nothing else we can do!" "Yes there is!" said Gohan as he placed his hands above his head. He focused most of his ki into his palms and shouted "MASENKO…HA!" before firing giant yellow beam at the doors. The blast collided with the doors, creating a dent in them, but they remained shut. Gohan fell to his knees and started breathing hard. "Sorry Aang," said Gohan.
The Airbender placed his hand on the Energy bender's shoulder and said "No, I'm sorry I put you guys through all this for nothing."
"I guess we're both just not strong enough." said Gohan as he stood up.
Sokka walked over to the doors and inspected them. The doors were covered with ash as a result of the five bombs. "I don't get it," said Sokka as he rubbed his finger on the doors while Momo climbed up to the dragon head. "That blast was as strong as any Firebending I've ever seen."
"Sokka, you're a genius!" said Katara.
"Wait. How is Sokka a genius?" asked Aang. "His plan didn't even work."
"Come on Aang, let her dream." said Sokka.
"You're right. Sokka's plan didn't work, but it looks like it did," said Katara as she started thinking.
"Did the definition of genius change in the last hundred years?" asked a confused Aang.
A few minutes later the rest of the Fire Sages made it to the Sanctuary where they met Shyu at the doors without the gang. "Come quickly!" said Shyu to his fellow Sages. "The Avatar has entered the Sanctuary!" "How did he get in?!" asked the Head Sage. "I don't know, but look at the scorch marks!" said Shyu as he pointed to the doors. "And down there!" He then pointed towards the ground where a shadow could be seen from inside the Sanctuary. "He's inside! Open the doors immediately!" ordered the Grand Sage. "Before he contacts Avatar Roku!"
As the Sage spoke, Aang moved out from his hiding placed and prepared to rush into Sanctuary. The fives Sages took deep breaths and shot fire into the five heads. The heads started to turn as the doors unlocked and opened slowly. The Sages prepared to attack the Avatar when the doors were fully open but were surprised to see Momo inside the Sanctuary covered with ash. "It's the Avatar's lemur! He must've crawled through the pipes! We've been tricked!" said the Head Sage before Momo jumped onto his face.
Gohan suddenly jumped out and put the Head Sage in a strangle hold. The Water Tribe Siblings jumped out and restrained the second and third Sages. The fourth was about to aid the Head Sage but he was restrained by Shyu. "Now Aang!" shouted the Sage. When the Airbender didn't appear, Katara yelled "Aang! Now's your chance!" Aang soon stepped out from behind his hiding spot, struggling to free himself from the grip of Prince Trunks. "The Avatar's coming with us!" said Zuko as he revealed himself. The Sages reacted by restraining their restrainers while Momo flew away with the Head Sage's hat.
"Close the doors, now!" ordered Trunks as he started to leave with Aang.
Gohan suddenly broke free of the Head Sage's hold and jumped at the lavender-haired Prince. He fired a weak ki blast at the Fire Prince's face, forcing him to release Aang in order to defend himself. Trunks easily deflected the blast, but this left him open to Gohan's second attack which involved kicking the young Prince down the Sanctuary stairs. Gohan was about to attack Zuko but stopped himself when he saw the Sages closing the doors. Acting quickly, the young fighter jumped in between the doors and spread out his arms, creating a blue energy shield that forced the doors to stay open. The Sages pushed against the doors to close them but Gohan held onto the shield.
"Aang! Hurry up!" cried Gohan. "I can't keep this up for long when my energy's low!"
Zuko quickly grabbed Aang, preventing him from running towards the doors. The Head Sage attempted to force Gohan to drop the shield by Firebending at him. The fire attacks were deflected by the shield but Gohan was struggling to maintain it, his shield changed color from blue to red as the spiky haired teen fell to one knee. Zuko tried to take Aang down the Sanctuary stairs but after the Avatar looked over at his friends that were being chained up and his brother struggling to keep the doors open, quickly broke free of Zuko's grip and air kicked him down the Sanctuary stairs.
The Avatar ran towards his chained friends, Katara yelled "Go!" as she gestured to the Sanctuary doors. The Head Sage stopped attacking Gohan and turned to face Aang when he noticed him running towards the doors. The Head Sage shot a fireball at the Airbender but he jumped up to dodge it. He used his hand to jump off the Grand Sage's head and then jumped off the second Sage that tried to stop him. When Gohan saw Aang coming at him, he dropped his shield seconds before his brother tackled him into the Sanctuary and the doors closed shut. "He made it!" said Katara. "And he took Gohan with him!" said Sokka. A bright gold light shines from the doors, blinding everyone on the outside Sanctuary.
Inside the Sanctuary, the brothers were laid out on the floor in front of the statue of Roku. "Wow! Wasn't expecting that!" said Gohan. "Man, nice tackling." "Sorry bro, had to act quick," said Aang as he got up and helped his brother to his feet. "It's ok. Just really hurt since I'm low on ki," said Gohan. The boys then looked at the statue of the previous Avatar as the beam of light touched it. "The light hits the statue and I talk to Roku. So why isn't anything happening?" asked the young monk.
Outside the Sanctuary, Katara, and Sokka were chained up. Zuko and the Fire Sages attempted to open the Sanctuary doors by Firebending into the mouths of the dragons, but doors didn't open at all.
"Why isn't it working? It's sealed shut!" said Zuko.
"It must've been the light, Avatar Roku doesn't want us inside." said the Grand Sage.
The sun was now fully set and the light beam was pointed directly on Avatar Roku's statue. "Why isn't anything happening?" Aang asked no one. "I don't know what I'm doing! All I know is Airbending! Please Avatar Roku, talk me!" Right on cue, the eyes of the statue started to glow and smoke swirled around the boys. When the smoke cleared the boys were surrounded by mountains, and standing directly in front of them was Avatar Roku himself.
"It's good to see you Aang." Roku greeted his successor. "What took you so long?"
The boys bowed in respect to the previous master of the five elements. "I see you brought a friend with you," said Roku as he looked at Gohan. "My name is Gohan sir." said the young fighter. "I know who you are young Energybender; in fact, a friend was hoping to speak with you. He's told me all about you Gohan." "Really? Who?" asked Gohan. Just then, someone was seen walking towards them in the distance. It was a full grown man with black spiky hair like Gohan's except in the shape of a palm tree; he also had black eyes like Gohan's and wore the same Gi as he did. When he stopped next to Roku, he looked towards the young fighter and smiled.
"Hi Gohan, long time no see." said the man.
"Uh hi," said Gohan awkwardly. "I'm sorry, but how do you know my name and who are you?"
"I guess you don't remember me." said the man. "Before I tell you, I want to try something."
"Uh like what?" asked Gohan.
The man suddenly charged at Gohan and threw a punch at him; the young Energybender grabbed the man's fist on instinct. This scene confused Aang while Roku just watched. The man grinned as he backed away from Gohan. "Nice one. Though you're not as strong as you could be, you're still pretty strong." said the man. "Thanks. Now, who are you?" asked Gohan. "My name is Goku, I'm your father," replied Goku. Gohan could only stare at his dad after hearing his answer, Goku just grinned his famous son grin as he waited for his son to register what he said.
"DAD!" cried Gohan as he ran up to hug him.
Goku embraced his son as he petted his hair. Aang smiled at this as he felt happy for his brother. "I-I have so many questions," said Gohan. "I know you do," said Goku. "And I'd like to answer them all, but there's something I need to tell you."
Back outside the Sanctuary, Shyu had his hands behind his back while he was questioned by the Fire Princes. "Why did you help the Avatar?" asked Zuko. "Because it was once the Sages' duty. It is still our duty," replied Shyu. There was a sudden clapping heard by the stairs, everyone turned to see Commander Zhao and a battalion of six Firebenders. "What a moving and heartfelt performance. I'm certain the Fire Lord will understand when you explain why you betrayed him," said Zhao.
"Commander Zhao." greeted the Head Sage as he bowed.
"And Prince Zuko. It was a noble effort, but your little smoke screen didn't work," said Zhao which made Zuko scowl at him. A Fire Soldier suddenly came behind Zuko and grabbed his wrists, restraining him. Trunks tried to attack the Soldier holding Zuko, but he was suddenly knocked into the wall by a green energy blast. Everyone looked to see Brody with his hand extended towards the fallen Prince. "Hey Trunks, did you miss me?" mocked Brody. Trunks replied with a growl as he tried to get up before he was pinned to the wall by Brody.
"Three traitors in one day, the Fire Lord will be pleased." said Zhao.
"We're not traitors! We're hunting the Avatar for the Fire Nation!" exclaimed Trunks.
"And you're too late Zhao!" said Zuko. "The Avatar's inside and the doors are sealed!"
"No matter. Sooner or later, he has to come out," said Zhao. "And then we'll capture him along with his energy bending friend." This put worried looks on the faces of Katara and Sokka.
In the Spirit world, Goku and Roku continued to talk to the boys. "I have something very important to tell you Aang?" explained Roku. "That is why, when you were in the spirit world, I sent my dragon to find you." "Is it about that vision? The one about the Comet?" asked Aang. "Yes," answered Roku. "What does it mean?" asked Aang. "One hundred years ago, Fire Lord Sozin used that Comet to begin the war," said Roku. "He and his Firebending army harnessed its power and dealt a deadly first strike against the other nations. It was that very same Comet that collided with you Gohan, and hurled you into the spirit world."
"Really?" asked Gohan. "So that's what hit me."
"So the Comet made them stronger?" asked Aang.
"Yes, stronger than you could ever imagine." said Roku.
"But that happened a hundred years ago. What does the Comet have to do with the war now?" asked Aang.
"Listen carefully. Sozin's Comet will return by the end of the summer, and Fire Lord Ozai will use its power to finish the war, once and for all," said Roku. "If he succeeds, not even the Avatar will be able to restore balance to the world. Aang, you must defeat the Fire Lord, before the Comet arrives!"
"But I haven't even started learning waterbending, not to mention earth and fire." argued Aang.
"Mastering the elements takes years of discipline and practice, but if the world is to survive you must do it by summer's end." advised the past Avatar. Aang's face expressed shock as he realized how important his destiny was now. Gohan also couldn't hide the shock on his face as the person he viewed as his brother was now burdened with a huge responsibility.
Back outside the Sanctuary, all of Zhao's Fire Soldiers were lined up in front of the doors. They all took their stances as they waited for Aang and Gohan to exit the spirit world. Commander Zhao and Brody stood in the middle if that line. "When those doors open, unleash all your fire power!" Zhao ordered his men. Behind them were the water tribe siblings and Shyu chained to a pillar while Zuko and Trunks were chained to another pillar.
"How are Aang and Gohan gonna make it out of this?"Katara asked her brother.
"How are we gonna make it out of this?" Sokka asked Katara.
Back in the spirit world...
"What if I can't master all the elements in time? What if I fail?" Aang asked his predecessor.
"I know you can do it Aang, for you have done it before," said Roku as he smiled. Gohan placed his hand on the young monk's shoulder and said "Don't doubt yourself bro." said Gohan. "You can do it!" Aang smiled at the encouragement he got from his teacher and brother.
"Um Dad?" said Gohan nervously as he faced his father. "You said you had something important to tell me, what is it?"
Goku face suddenly became serious as he looked his son in the eyes. "Listen Gohan, what I'm about to tell you will seem far-fetched and impossible, but I can assure you that it's all true," said Goku. "So I need you to keep an open mind." The son of Goku nodded, his father took a deep breath and continued. "We are not from this world, this dimension, we come from another world that is a bit similar to this one but is different as well."
"What?!" asked Gohan. "What do you mean?"
"We were originally born in a world where there were no benders aside from Energy benders," explained Goku. "In our world ki was the only thing people trained to master, although some could bend the element to a certain point, it was ki that was commonly used in battle."
"Sounds like how our world started out." said Aang.
"That's because our world was eventually destroyed and reincarnated into this world." said Goku.
"What?!" asked the boys.
"I said that our world was…" repeated Goku before he was cut off.
"We heard you," said Gohan. "It's just a lot to take in."
"There's more. Thousands of years ago when our world still existed, darkness began to consume it, and a being who calmed to be a god blamed humanity for corrupting his precious creation," explained Goku. "He said this world was a failure and needed to be wiped out, and that's exactly what he did!" The more Goku spoke the more his son's face expressed shock. "He completely erased our dimension, no one was spared. The best fighters from our universe tried their best to stop the god's destructive judgment, but none of them stood a chance against this being. In the end, the only left to challenge him were me, you, Vegeta, and Trunks."
"Wait! Did you say Trunks?!" asked Gohan.
"That's right. Trunks is also from our world," replied Goku. "It was the teamwork of him and you that the superior deity was cut in half; his immortal spirit and his mortal body. His spirit was sealed away to prevent it from causing any more harm, but the body decided to take revenge by unleashing a powerful energy attack that wiped out our world entirely. But before the end came, something happened. Another god appeared and asked to grant us one wish for our efforts. However, this deity could not save our world or prevent the darkness that corrupted it from existing. In the end, I made the wish for our world to start over, and thus the end of our world became the beginning of this one."
"Does that mean I've been reincarnated into this world?" asked Gohan.
"Yes, and so have a few other people we used to know," replied Goku. "They were they lucky ones unlike me."
"So that vision I saw a younger version of myself was my past life." deduced the spiky haired teen.
"One of them." corrected the spiky haired man.
"How many do I have?" asked Gohan.
"Who knows?" shrugged Goku.
"Why are you telling me this?" asked Gohan.
"Because you need to get stronger. Some of our past enemies were reborn into this world along with you including the mortal half of the deity," replied Goku. "One day, his spirit half will escape and seek out its mortal half. If the two halves become whole again, he will judge this world, and if he sees it as a failure he will erase it forever. Gohan, you need to get stronger, stronger than you've ever dreamed, you must defeat the mortal half before it fuses with the spiritual half."
"What if I can't get strong enough?" asked Gohan with concern. "What if I don't have the power to save this world like the last one?"
"It's alright son," said Goku as he knelt down to look his son in the eyes while he placed his hand on his shoulder. "You said the same thing when I asked you to fight a monster for me, but you did have the power and you managed to save our world. And don't worry; you won't have to face this guy until after the war ends. So you've got plenty of time to train."
Gohan looked at his father in surprise; Goku simply flashed his favorite grin which filled Gohan with confidence. "I know you can do it Gohan because I believe in you." "Thanks, Dad," said Gohan as he mimicked his father's trademark grin. Goku the stood up and walked back to stand next to Avatar Roku. "The solstice is ending. We must go our separate ways, for now" said Roku. "But neither of us will be able to come back to this temple. What if we have questions? How can we talk to you guys?" asked Aang.
"I am a part of you Aang, and Goku spirit is linked to Gohan's. We both live in the two of you," said Roku. "So when you need to talk to us, you'll find a way." "One last thing Gohan," said Goku. "I'm proud of you son." "Thanks again, Dad," said Gohan. The previous Avatar then closed his eyes allowing the four benders to see a vision of Zhao's ships around the island. "A great danger awaits both of you outside the Temple," said Roku telepathically as the vision changed to Zhao and his Fire Soldiers waiting outside the temple doors. "We can help you face the threat, but only if you're ready."
Aang's tattoos suddenly started glowing along with his eyes; Gohan's black spiky hair stood on its end and changed to spiky gold. His eyes turned from black to emerald and his muscles grew slightly as his body was surrounded by a gold aura. "We're ready!" replied the boys.
The Sanctuary doors suddenly let out a blinding gold light while smoke flew out the doors and filled the temple. The doors began to open slowly, Katara, Sokka, Shyu, Zuko, and Trunks, turned away as the light grew brighter. "Ready…" said Zhao as the doors opened wider and the light died down, revealing two pairs of glowing eyes in a dark room. "Aang, Gohan! No!" cried Katara while her brother struggled against his chains. "Fire!" ordered Zhao. The Commander and his Fire Soldiers all shot fire into the Sanctuary. The fire suddenly swirled around the targets which weren't Aang and Gohan but were Goku and Roku; completely unharmed as the latter bended the fire blasts which shocked the Commander.
"Avatar Roku!" said Shyu in awe.
"And is that Gohan?!" asked Sokka.
Roku then shot the fire back at the Soldiers and knocked them down, at the same time the fire destroyed the chains and freed the prisoners. The Fire Princes quickly broke free and ran to exit the temple. Brody decided to attack the spirit of Goku and fire a green ki blast at him. Goku simply swatted it back at lieutenant Brute, which knocked him into the wall right before the ki blast exploded in his face through the side of the temple.
Goku then jumped up to the ceiling and cupped his hands together while chanting, "KA…ME…HA…ME…" a blue star of energy started to form in between his palms. "HAA!" shouted Goku as he fired a blue beam of energy into the ground, the beam broke through the floor and dug straight into the volcano where it detonated. Lava soon shot out of the ground to the top of the temple. Brody got up and tried to attack Goku once again, but the older fighter countered by punching him in the chest with a ki enhanced fist in the form of a dragon. Avatar Roku turned to the Sages who cowered away from his glare. The Sages and the Fire Soldiers ran to leave the temple as it started to crumble.
"Avatar Roku is destroying the temple! We have to get out of here!" said Shyu to the water tribe siblings.
"Not without our friends!" urged Katara.
Roku then waved his hand and split the ground apart. Multiple streams of lava shoot out of the ground as Roku lifts his hand. It reaches the top of the temple as Zhao and his Soldiers are escaping. The water tribe siblings were huddle up behind a pillar, the lava finally stopped as Goku landed beside Roku. The two exhaled deeply as the light beam moved off of Avatar Roku's statue. All the smoke then consumed the two spirits before disappearing and revealing Aang and Gohan. The boys fell to their knees before their friends help them up.
"We got your backs." said Sokka.
"Thanks guys." said Gohan.
"Where's Shyu?" asked Aang.
"I don't know." replied Katara.
Lava was now flowing all over the volcano and the temple was sinking into it. The stairs were flooded with lava, preventing the gang from leaving that way. A pillar crashed on the ground as the four teens ran to the hole in the temple wall. The building started to tip over as they stared out at the ocean in despair. The four gasped when they saw Momo flying their way with Appa and Icarus following him. The Bison flew right under the hole for the gang to jump onto his saddle and then flew away. The four gazed back at the temple's destruction before popped up wearing the Head Fire Sage's hat.
Commander Zhao watches the Sky Bison fly away looking very angry. "No Prince! No Avatar!" the Commander yelled. "Apparently the only thing I do have is five traitors!" The Fire Sages were placed on Zhao's ship with their hands behind their backs. "But Commander, only Shyu helped the Avatar." argued the Grand Fire Sage. "Save your stories for the Fire Lord! As far as I'm concerned, you are all guilty!" replied Zhao before he ordered "Take them to the prison hold!" He then noticed two soldiers carrying his injured lieutenant; the armor was damaged, blood dripped from his mouth and forehead along with a star-shaped wound on his chest. "Take him to the infirmary," said Zhao to the Soldiers.
Prince Zuko and Prince Trunks watched the gang fly away with telescopes as their boat sailed away from the Crescent shaped island.
Night time had fallen, the moon was full and everyone was riding on Appa's saddle. As they flew above the clouds, Aang and Gohan sat at the edge of the saddle looking mournful. The water tribe siblings soon approached their friends and sat by them in support. Katara put her hand on Aang's shoulder to comfort the Avatar. As they flew off into the night, Gohan thought about one thing. "Don't worry father, I won't let you down! But first, Aang needs me!"
A/N: So, how did you like the surprise? Goku and Roku together huh? Didn't see that one coming did ya? Sorry to say this but I'll be taking a short break from fanfics to focus on other things. If things go smoothly I should be able to resume as soon as two weeks from Sunday, if not then I'll try to continue this story in march or maybe I can multitask. Anyway thank you all for your reviews and suggestions, makes the story worth continuing. Until then, TTFN AntiHero out!
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