Disclaimer: I do not own the characters of Avatar the Last Airbender or the Avengers (MCU), only the story. Avatar the Last Airbender and its characters belongs to Nickelodeon and Avengers belongs to Marvel. I apologize for any errors in grammar and/or if I was not accurate in reference to something.
A/N: Well, here is one of the harshest episodes. Like in the last chapter and for a while after, we're going to be switching between the three groups. Also, I have a big surprise planned.
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Katara: Water, Soldier, Mechanist, God, Earth, Fire, Spy, Archer, Monster, Air
(One by one, eight figures do something to show off their skills: the Waterbender weaves a stream of water from the ground, around him and then thrusts it towards the side, the soldier blocks an attack with his shield before throwing it, the mechanist has armor envelope him and then uses the repulsor on his hand to blast something on the side, the god holds a powerful hammer high to summon a bolt of lightning, the Earthbender kicks the ground bringing up a large rock before he kicks it away, the Firebender twists around as she summons fire from her foot before doing a high kick to the ground and makes the flames spread, the spy drops down from above and displays a few moves, the archer rolls across the ground and fires a few arrows, and finally the monster comes down from a jump and smashes his huge fists on the ground, the Airbender drops down and then with a circle of his arms he creates a blast of wind.)
Katara: Long ago, the four nations lived together in harmony. Then everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked.
(Docked on a shore, five Fire Nation ships with the Hydra insignia released their soldiers. With a jump forward and a palm thrust, the firebenders released a wave of fire as the Hydra soldiers used their advanced technology.)
Katara: Only the Avatar, master of all four elements could stop them. But when the world needed him most, he vanished.
(The Avatar, a man with a crown on his head and dressed in robes stands on a pillar of stone as he bent the four elements of water, earth, fire and air to show his skill in the arts of bending. After releasing a powerful disk of wind, he disappears from eXinstence.)
Katara: A hundred years passed and my brother and I discovered the new Avatar: an Airbender named Aang and met the team called the Avengers.
(The water tribe siblings find a young Airbender frozen in block of ice. After freeing him, they are then joined by heroes called Captain America, Ironman, Thor, Hulk, Clint, and Natasha.)
Katara: And although with the teams help and his airbending skills are great, hehas a lot to learn before he's ready to save anyone.
(At an Air Nomad path, Aang creates an air scooter and starts to have fun with it. But when he expands his circle a little bit, he runs right into a statue. He rolls over onto his back as all six of the Avengers then poke their heads from behind the statue to check on him.)
Katara: But I believe the Avengers and Aang can save the world.
(Aang, Steve, Katara, Tony, Thor, Bruce, Sokka, Clint, Toph and Natasha stand side by side, looking down at the world on a mountain's peak for a moment as the reader's view is turned upwards to the sun.)
Nickelodeon and Marvel
The Avenging Avatar
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Avatar Roku: Previously, on Avenging Avatar…
In the Bei Fong Estate, Toph's father was currently meeting with Master Yu ad Xin Fu. Before the two was a box of gold sitting in front of them. He looked to them and said, "The Avatar ad the Avengers have kidnapped my daughter.
"I want you two to do whatever it takes to bring her home." He said, wanting to have her back.
Later in the burning village where Zuko, Iroh and the team confronted Azula and Abomination. Iroh glanced between everyone before a smirking Azula made her move and fired a burst of flames at him. Iroh cried out when it hit his left shoulder. Everyone watched in horror as he fell to the ground.
"Sandbenders, shoo! Away from the bison!" Professor Zei, a scholar from Ba Sing Se, shouted a group of people when the ganged up around a wary Appa.
After a bit more traveling, a smirk grew on Iroh's face when he said, "It's an old oasis that I once visited in my youth.
"We'll be pretty safe there." Iroh assured them. Then he threw in, "Plus, maybe we can find some assistance there."
"The library's sinking. Library is sinking!" A worried Toph shouted as she ran for the sinking tower. She tried to use her earthbending to stop it. Her fists created growing cracks as she strained to keep it from going down any further.
Gesturing to him and his friends he said, "I'm Jet. And these are my friends.
"Smellerbee." The warrior with the knives gave a wave as she put away her weapons. The archer nodded when Jet said, "And this is Longshot.
"We were part of a group called the Freedom Fighters." Jet said.
The sandbenders from earlier soon came to capture Appa again. Both Thor and the Hulk fought to protect the bison. But they were defeated as the Sandbenders were able to knock both of them away with their bending. Appa growled when he was apprehended by the Sandbender's ropes. Feeling helpless, Toph shook her head, "NO!
"I'm sorry, Appa." A disappointed Toph said as she shut her eyes, knowing that she had let a friend down.
When the others had managed to escape from the library, Aang looked around before walking to the three. Toph was sitting in the sand with her hands on her head. Aang looked between the three and asked, "Where's Appa?"
Toph's only response was a moaning shake of her head while Bruce said, "Aang, we have some bad news-"
Aang's eyes teared up when he realized that Appa had been taken.
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Chapter Twelve: The Si Wong Desert
Team Avatar…
A strong wind blew through the desert and kicked up a little sand as the group stood on one of the many dunes of the Si Wong Desert. Momo chittered as he and everyone looked about for any signs of their missing friend. Bruce kept a grip on his pants to prevent them from falling after having been the Hulk once again. But as they were all looking separate directions, one in the group was still trying to handle the loss of his best friend. His anger getting the better of him, Aang turned to the three that had been with Appa and questioned, "How could you guys just let them take Appa?!"
"It's not like we did it by choice." Bruce defended them as he and Thor were standing with Toph. Thor agreed by saying, "We tried to fight them off. But we were on their homelands so they had the advantage."
"And I was the only one to keep the library from sinking while they were fighting and you guys were inside and..." Toph said, thinking that it was the most logical. Aang angrily shouted, "One of you could have come down to get us! I could have saved him!"
"There wasn't any time." Thor shook his head. Remembering how it went he said, "And it was all happening so quickly."
"And to be fair, we were dealing with an angry spirit." Natasha reminded the Airbender. Toph then said, "I can hardly feel vibrations out here. The Sandbenders snuck up on us-"
"You just didn't care!" Aang angrily lashed out. Not thinking about what he would say he shouted, "You never liked Appa. You wanted him gone."
"Aang! That's enough." Steve said and moved between the two. Aang glared up at the super soldier and Steve said, "We know that what happened is greatly tragic. But we can't afford to be taking out our anger on each other."
"He's right." Katara agreed and placed a comforting hand on her friend's shoulder. She pointed out, "You know that they did all that they could. They saved our lives."
It didn't make Aang feel any better as he glared at the three who could only look more guilty. Clint came over and said, "And we will get Appa back."
"Clint's right." Steve nodded in agreement. They all looked to the teen when Sokka asked, "Yeah, but how exactly are we going to do that?
"We'll never make it out of here." He gestured to the vast desert around them. It seemed to make Aang's mood much fouler when he walked away, "That's all any of you seem to care about; yourselves!
"You don't care whether Appa's okay or not!" He bitterly said and kneeled down in the sand. Steve shook his head, "Aang you know that isn't true."
"We're all concerned, but right now we need to clear our heads and come up with a plan." Katara agreed with him. But Aang seemed to have a plan of his own when he declared, "I'm going after Appa."
"But we don't even know which way they went." Bruce pointed out. Aang glanced back when the gamma scientist said, "They could have gone any way when they left."
"That doesn't mean that I can't try." Aang said before opening his glider. Katara ran to try and stop him, "Aang, wait!"
But she was too late as he took to the air. They watched him fly off into the desert. Steve looked to Thor and asked, "Thor, follow after Aang. Watch his back."
"Uh, you sure that's such a good idea?" Sokka asked and they looked to the teen. Sokka then pointed out, "Aang's not going to like someone following after him at the moment, and I don't think having it be Thor would make it better."
"We don't have much of a choice, Sokka." Steve shook his head. He looked to the Asgardian and asked, "Thor?"
"I'm on it." Thor nodded and twirled Mjolnir before shooting off after Aang. They watched him go before Natasha suggested, "We should start walking."
"Right, we'll follow on foot." Steve agreed, "We have a friend to find and an objective to complete."
"You're right. We're the only people who knows about the solar eclipse. We need to get the information to Ba Sing Se." Katara remembered. They all started walking after Thor and Aang away from the crater of where the Library used to be. But not within a full minute of walking did Sokka ask, "You think if we can dig out the giant owl, then he'll give us a ride?"
"Sure, if you want to become a stuffed head afterwards." Natasha commented and it earned a groan from Sokka. Momo chittered when he took to the air and flew above the group.
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Zuko's Group…
In a less sandy part of the Earth Kingdom, the trio were moving through a trench. Both Zuko and Iroh were riding on the back of the ostrich-horse while Tony walked on the side. They were still following Iroh's directions, but someone was wanting to take a rest from the sound of the loud pained grunts he was making. With each step they took he made another sound. Zuko looked back to his uncle and suggested, "Maybe we should make camp here."
"Yeah, give us all a rest." Tony deadpanned. Zuko glanced to the inventor and silently agreed with him. But Iroh wanted to play it out a longer by saying, "No, please, don't stop just for me."
"Are you sure?" Tony asked, giving the older man a questioning look. Iroh only nodded and they continued on their way. But not ten steps in and the injured man started making pained moans and it made the other two look to him annoyed looks. Zuko took a deep breath before pulling on the reins to make the ostrich-horse stop. It gave a squawking bray before stopping in its tracks. Zuko hopped down from their mounts back while Tony helped a groaning Iroh off.
When his feet touched the ground, Iroh walked over to a boulder to sit down. Tony and Zuko sighed in relief when the noises stopped. But distant new noises came to them and the ostrich-horse squealed with unease. Zuko took a firebending stance while Tony prepared a piece of his suit for combat. Iroh looked about as he rubbed his shoulder, "What is it now?"
"I'm not sure." Tony said as a repulsor blast charged up. In the foliage around them, five shapes were quickly moving. The five shapes soon revealed themselves to be Rough Rhinos.
While Tony and Zuko remained on the defensive with their stances, Iroh stood up and looked to their adversaries. A smile formed on his face when he greeted, "Colonel Mongke, what a pleasant surprise."
"If you're surprised that we're here, then the Dragon of the West has lost a few steps." The colonel commented before readying the bands on his wrists. The others followed suit and raised their weapons. Without taking their eyes off the five, Zuko asked, "Uncle, you know these guys?"
"Sure do." Iroh nodded and rubbed his sore shoulder. Tony then asked, "Don't suppose that you'd give us a lesson about these guys then, huh?"
"But of course." Iroh agreed with a grin, "Colonel Mongke and the Rough Rhinos are a legendary group. Each one of them is a different kind of weapons specialist.
"They also happen to be a very capable singing group." He added, and it made a few of them scowl at Iroh. Tony chuckled before asking, "Any of you guys know anything from the Beatles?"
"Enough of this! We're not here to give a concert." Mongke said with narrowed eyes. He explained their true objective, "We're here to apprehend any fugitives that we come across."
"So, you're on thug duty then." Tony commented with a smug shrug. It only seemed to make the five angry. Zuko looked to his friend and questioned, "What are you doing?"
"Getting them riled up." Tony answered before turning his attention back to the Rough Rhinos. Then he asked, "I don't suppose that this would be mostly because of your blunder in a town called Chin, would it?"
This surprised all five of them and Mongke questioned, "How do you know about that?"
"Let's just say, I tend to pick up things when I'm on the road. It also kind of explains why it's just the five of you." Tony said before some of his suit came over his hands. Everyone became tensed to see who would make the first move. Iroh quickly tried to defuse the situation by asking, "How about we all just calm down. Would you all like some tea?
"I know I would love a cup or two." He said while rubbing his shoulder. He glanced back to one of the other riders and said with a knowing look, "How about you, Kachee? I think that'd you'd be a bit of a jasmine man.
"Am I right?" Iroh asked him. While the man the spear, or Kachee, looked to be stoic, inside he was secretly wanting some. But a look from his leader made him snap out of it. Colonel Mongke became tired with this, "Enough stalling.
"Round them all up!" He ordered. The man with the ball and chain gave a yell as he threw his weapon at them. Iroh quickly turned and deflected the weapon with a swift kick. The ball and chain ended up wrapping around the leg of another Komodo Rhino. Tony fired a repulsor blast at Kachee and it knocked the man off his mount. Iroh ducked and rolled under a flaming arrow from the archer and a blast of fire from Mongke. He was able to reach Kachee's mount and proceeded to give it a firm smack on the rear. Tony managed to deflect an arrow with his covered hands before looking to the man as the mount ran off. He gave a wave and said, "Bye-bye."
"Ah!" The guy screamed when he was yanked off of his own mount. He continued screaming as he was dragged along the Komodo Rhino.
Zuko had spun while ducking underneath another blast from the Colonel before turning to the archer. With a stretch of his right arm he sent a small stream of fire. The attack shot right through the guy's bow and snapped the string as well. The three became defensive when Colonel Mongke's mount came from behind. The leader of the Rough Rhinos fired blast after blast that Iroh was able to deflect with his own firebending.
The bomber of the Rough Rhinos threw a few into the air. Tony acted quickly and one repulsor blast that caused all three to detonate when it hit. He fired another at the bomber, but his foe was able to use another bomb to stop the blast before it could reach him.
Zuko was able to slip around Colonel Mongke and jumped up onto back of the Komodo Rhino. The colonel tried to defend himself with a blast of fire, but Zuko was able to knock it away before spinning around and kicking Mongke off of the Komodo Rhino.
"I think it's time to leave." Tony suggested to Iroh while moving out of the way of a few bombs. Iroh nodded in agreement and asked, "Give me some cover."
"Okay." Tony said before giving a whistle. The rest of the armor enveloped the man and he fired multiple blasts to distract the remaining Rough Rhinos. The remaining Rough Rhinos moved to get away from the blasts while Iroh ran for their ostrich-horse. He was able to quickly climb on and with a snap of the reins he shot forward.
The ostrich-horse quicky passed by Zuko who proceeded to jump with a spin onto the mount's back. Tony fired another shot before taking off after them. The bomber of the Rough Rhinos tried one last play by lighting a fuse on one of the bombs on his belt before chucking it after the fleeing trio. The bomb landed on the path before them. But before it went off, Tony shot forward and cupped his hands over the explosive and it went off under his hands. Looking back he challenged, "Oh, you want to play that game, huh?"
Turning around he raised his arm and fired a small rocket. It landed in front of the two Rough Rhinos and created a smokescreen. As soon as he was sure that they could get away, Iron Man quickly took off after the two.
From up ahead, Iroh looked back and said with a smile while clutching his injured shoulder, "It's nice to see old friends again."
"Seems to me that you need some new friends." Tony commented as he flew by. Zuko was in agreement when he added, "Especially the kind that don't want to attack you."
"Hm." Iroh pondered as what they were saying rang with truth. He looked ahead while Zuko gave him a not so friendly look. Iroh continued to think about it as they continued on, "Old friends who don't want to attack me."
The trio continued speeding away from the defeated Rough Rhinos as they managed to regroup themselves.
"This isn't going to end well." Mongke shook his head. Looking to the other four he reminded, "Neither the Fire Lord nor the Red Skull will take kindly to our failure.
"We need to keep searching for any fugitives that might be in the area." He suggested. Glancing the way that the three escaped he said, "Perhaps we'll run into them again. Or someone else worth capturing."
Getting back up onto his mount he ordered, "Rough Rhinos! Ride out!"
All five Komodo Rhinos charged in a different direction from the fleeing three.
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Rescue Group…
It had only been a few hours since the defeat of the Fire Nation and Hydra. Sam, Rhodey were currently sitting with Jet going over some details about their respective worlds. Sam was leaning in his seat and said, "So, to recap, your world is in a world war where the Fire Nation is against the other three."
"Well, mostly the Earth Kingdom and the Water Tribes." Jet clarified. He shook his head, "If I remember correctly, the Air Nomads were mostly wiped out, save for Aang."
"And Hydra's involvement?" Rhodey asked, still unsure. Even Jet felt the same when he said, "They hadn't been too involved with the war until a short time ago.
"The Earth Kingdom's holding strong, and there's been a little assistance from the Northern Water Tribe from what I've heard." Jet informed. Sam then asked, "What about your Freedom Fighters? What about their involvement?"
"We were able to keep the Fire Nation at bay during the majority of the winter months." Jet explained, his head hanging when he remembered the events leading to those fateful days. He seemed ashamed when he said, "But after the incident, we kind of just broke up. They may be keeping up the fight. Maybe they're in hiding for the time being."
"So, Jet, where are you heading to now?" Sam asked him. Jet then said, "If we hadn't stopped to help out the village, we'd still be on our way to the capital of Ba Sing Se.
"It's where a lot of people are going to escape from the war." Jet told them. He looked down when he added, "To make a fresh start for themselves."
"So, it's like a safe haven then?" Rhodey guessed and was pretty accurate. Jet nodded to confirm this. Jet seemed to have an idea before saying, "Perhaps you could come with us.
"After all, we made a pretty effective team earlier." He remembered from the battle. Rhodey and Sam looked to each other before the former said, "Look, we'd be more than willing to tag along with you guys. But we're in the middle of looking for our friends."
"And even if we did agree to go, it'll just put a larger target on everyone's backs." Sam pointed out to the teen. Jet nodded in understanding and then said, "I get it. But I've been hearing some things about your friends here and there."
"Like what, exactly?" Sam asked, willing to hear him out. Jet then said, "In the last few weeks, I've heard stories of how Aang, Sokka, Katara and the Avengers are helping people. Like in the city Omashu, the town of Chin and other places.
"I heard that the battle in the North Pole was really crazy." Jet said, trying to remember what was said. Then he added, "But the point is, I think I know where they could potentially be heading."
"And how would you know this?" Rhodey asked, feeling a little skeptical. Jet looked about before saying, "It's mostly from a guy that lives near the Bei Fong estate. It was said that their daughter's bodyguard was an archer that came from Ba Sing Se and that his time with them just expired.
"He might be going back to the city. And if he's met up with the rest of your friends by now…" He said, and it made the gears in their heads click. The two looked to each other again before Sam looked to Jet and said, "We'll check with the others and see what they say."
"Okay. Me, Smellerbee and Longshot are planning to leave in the morning." Jet told them. He got up from his seat and said, "You can give us your answer then."
The two Avengers watched him go before looking down at the table. Sam didn't look up when he pointed out, "You know, this little side trip could be taking us further from the guys in the odd chance that he's wrong."
"I know." Rhodey nodded, knowing that there's a chance of that happening. He looked to Sam and said, "But it could also be the best chance that we have."
"Fair point." Sam nodded. He looked amongst the village and asked, "Do you think that the others will go for it?"
"We only need to talk to them about it." Rhodey said and he too looked out to the villagers.
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Majority of Team Avatar…
Steve, Katara, Natasha, Clint, Sokka, Momo, Bruce and Toph had been walking through the desert for over an hour and every one of them was feeling the intense heat. Near the back of the group Sokka was wondering how to keep the sun off of him. An idea came to him when he thought of the clinging lemur to his back. He stopped walking to reach behind him and placed Momo on his head before extending the lemur's wings. But the shade didn't last long for him when both Toph and Bruce bumped into him. Momo chittered as he fell to the ground. An annoyed Sokka turned to the two and questioned, "Can't the two of you watch where you're…?"
His eyes widened when he remembered who he was talking to. Bruce was doing his best to keep his anger in check while Toph reminded, "No."
"Right sorry." Sokka said as he rubbed the back of his neck in awkwardness. Then looking to Bruce he offered, "And I'm really sorry."
"Forget about it." Bruce shook his head, too hot and too tired to complain about it. Katara looked back and said, "Come on, you guys. We need to stick together."
"If we sweat anymore…" Sokka said when he noticed that his shirt was stuck to Toph's and Bruce's, "I don't think that stickin' together is going to be a problem."
He tried to pull himself away but seemed to be having a little difficulty. Bruce and Toph seemed to have the same idea as they both pushed Sokka away to separate them. The teen screamed as he fell to the sand.
Toph turned her head in Katara's direction and asked, "Katara, could I please have some water?"
"Okay. But we've got to try and conserve it." Katara agreed and assumed her waterbending stance. She opened the pouch before creating enough balls of water for each of them. With a gentle flick of her wrist she distributed them the burbling water spheres.
When Sokka received his, he relished the cool feeling his mouth. But as he swished the water around, the taste felt off to him. He swallowed it and pondered the taste when he questioned, "We're drinking your bending water?"
He smacked his lips to think of the taste before his eyes widened from a not-so-distant memory. He seemed horrified when he said, "You used this on the swamp guy!"
He, Natasha and Clint all gagged from the thought. Even Toph had her own thoughts about it, "It does taste kind of swampy."
"Alright, that's enough." Steve said to calm them down. He placed a hand on Katara's shoulder and he said, "Katara's just trying to help where she can."
"And I do apologize. It's all the water we have at the moment." Katara told them. Bruce then said, "While we should try to conserve what water we have, between getting out of the desert or trying to find some more water should be our top priority."
"The second isn't anymore." Sokka said when he saw something and pointed out into the desert. Just a few yards from them was a cactus. The cactus looked like someone had already cut into it as there were a few pieces laying on the ground. Crossing her arms, Natasha didn't look away when she asked, "Anyone else thinking that this is too good to be true?"
"Well, the cactus is really there." Bruce clarified. But he started scratching his chin when he looked back to the cactus, "But you do have a point that something feels off about this."
"Not enough for me." Sokka said before rushing up to the desert plant and removing his machete. He sliced through a top part and carefully grabbed it. He was about to drink it when a nervous Katara said, "Sokka, wait a moment."
"She's right. We don't know enough of what the Si Wong desert holds." Bruce agreed, thinking that it wasn't worth the risk. Sokka looked to him before looking down at the cactus bowl in his hand. An idea came to him and he challenged, "Well, who better to meet those challenges than the two toughest people on this team?"
"Bruce and Thor?" Toph asked with a shrug. Natasha followed up by asking, "Steve and Aang?"
"I meant me and Bruce." Sokka said as he pointed to himself and the curly haired Avenger, acting like it was so obvious. This was met with a few stares and a whole lot of crossed arms. It got Natasha snickering and Bruce said, "Sokka, that cactus could be filled with anything. From some kind of poison to a hallucinogenic agent."
Sokka held out the bowl to the gamma scientist and said, "I'm sure that the powers of the Hulk will cancel out anything bad."
"That doesn't make the situation any better." Bruce shook his head. Sokka then said, "Look, we'll both take a sip, okay."
That just made Bruce furrow his brow. But he still took the cactus bowl before both of them took a sip. Katara and Natasha both facepalmed from the sheer stupidity of what they were doing. Sokka was the first to finish when he downed the entire thing. He seemed to enjoy it as he sliced open another and gave one half to a pleading Momo. The lemur took to the water while Sokka guzzled down his second. When he finished, Sokka looked to Bruce and asked, "How do you feel?"
"Uh, not bad at the moment." Bruce said, feeling honestly fine. Looking to the others Sokka asked, "Anyone else want to try any?"
"I don't know." Katara shook her head. The other three Avengers followed suit and shook their heads. It didn't seem to dissuade Sokka as he rose off the sandy ground. He shrugged, "Suit yourselves, guys. It's very thirst-quenching, though."
Suddenly, Sokka, Bruce and Momo's eyes widened when the effects of the cactus juice kicked in. Their pupils grew and their bodies started vibrating. Everything seemed to get brighter around them and Sokka held the cup as if advertising it with a distorted sounding voice, "Drink cactus juice." He looked to the others when he added, "It'll quench ya."
Bruce suddenly transformed into the Hulk again and started striking poses to show off his muscles, "And it'll keep you regular."
"And remember that nothing's quenchier." Sokka said and dropped to the ground and started doing the worm. When he stood up again, Sokka and the Hulk wrapped an arm around each other and said at the same time with a cactus bowl in their hands, "It's the qunchiest!"
However, the others had been watching the whole thing. They looked at a slightly crazed Bruce and Sokka who just stood there. While Katara and Natasha had skeptical looks, Steve and Clints jaws were hanging from the odd display. The only one who didn't have an expression on her face was Toph, but still thought what she had heard was odd. Katara took Sokka's cactus bowl and said, "Okay, I think you guys have had enough."
"Agreed." Steve said when he took the one from Bruce. They dropped the plant pieces to the ground. Clint shook his head to Bruce, "I can't believe that you were pulling poses like that."
"What can I say, I'm a model." Bruce said and admired his body. He raised his arms and complimented himself, "Especially with these big green muscles."
"Uh, green?" Natasha asked, wondering if he thought that he had transformed. After kissing a bicep, Bruce nodded and said, "Yeah, I'm the Hulk right now." He got a little narcissistic when he said, "Or should I call myself the Hunk."
Just about everyone's jaws dropped when he had said that. Sokka walked over to the Earthbender of the group and asked, "Who lit Toph on fire?"
Everyone looked up when Momo took to the air and started flying around in circles. He seemed to be going faster and faster before dropping down to the ground headfirst and landed with a thud. Toph shook her head, "I was going to ask for some, but after all that, I think I'll pass."
"That's probably a good idea." Katara agreed as she picked Momo off the ground. Turning to the direction that they were heading she said, "Come on; we need to go and find Aang and Thor."
Clint placed a hand on Toph's shoulder and they started walking after the Waterbender. But before they could get very far, Steve looked back and saw that Sokka was still standing there, looking up into the sky. An annoyed Steve walked back over the teen and grabbed his arm. Sokka didn't lower his head as he walked and then asked, "How did we all get out here in the middle of the ocean?"
"And why is the water all brown?" Bruce asked in wonder. Their questions just made those who weren't in a drunk like state sigh. Natasha looked to Clint and Toph and said, "I hope that Aang and Thor are having better luck than us."
…
Aang and Thor…
In another part of the desert, Aang was currently flying over the dunes as he hadn't stopped searching for over an hour. Thor was flying right behind him. The Asgardian could feel nothing but guilt about how he had let Aang and Appa. He vowed to help Aang recover his beloved bison. He suddenly heard the shrill sound of the bison whistle coming from the Airbender. Aang then shouted, "Appa!"
Aang tilted his glider down and landed on one of the many dunes of the desert. With a twirl of his hands and his glider became his staff again. Thor landed on a dune not too far from him and Aang glanced back at him with a glare. But he didn't worry about having back up as he looked out and shouted again, "Appa!"
But neither one of them saw nor heard anything nearby. Tears welled up in Aang's eyes again when he felt that he had lost his friend forever. He shook his head as he couldn't believe this was happening, "No."
His glare deepened when he opened his eyes. His anger came to a tipping point as he did a spin jump and slammed his staff into the ground, "NO!"
With a powerful blast of his airbending, Aang created a large explosion of sand. Thor had to brace himself to avoid being blown away. The explosion created a large mushroom cloud that could be seen for many miles.
…
Majority of Team Avatar…
The group had just walked up another dune when they felt the explosion go off. They turned around just as a strong wind blew over them. Everyone had to shield themselves until it died down. When the wind stopped, Katara asked, "What was that?"
"What? What is what?" Toph asked as she had no idea what was happening. While a drunken Momo clung to Sokka's back Sokka as he raised his arms, "It's a giant mushroom.
"Maybe it's friendly!" Sokka excitedly shouted, still under the effects of the cactus juice. That just made Katara and Natasha shake their heads. Clint then guessed, "Seems like Aang's having a meltdown over what happened."
"Easy, Clint." Steve said and looked to the archer. The super soldier then said, "Aang's going through a lot. And losing Appa just adds on to it."
"I totally get what he's going through." A still drunken Bruce said, though he looked a bit more tired than earlier. He seemed a little depressed when he fell on his butt and said, "I lost just about everything when I get this beautiful body of Adonis."
That just earned him some odd looks. Katara then suggested, "Let's just keep moving."
"I think it would be best." Steve agreed while the still sane Avengers nodded as well. Katara grabbed a hold of Toph's arm and led her away while Steve, Nat and Clint followed behind. Sokka, Bruce and Momo remained behind as the Water Tribe teen started waving around and said with a distorted voice, "Friendly giant mushroom.
"Mushy giant friend." Sokka said as he waved from side to side with a swaying lemur on his back. Bruce looked to the waving teen and said, "Boy, you are trippin'."
…
Aang and Thor…
The giant mushroom cloud started to dissipate as Aang walked away from ground zero. He looked about to see that the explosion had changed the area around him. His glare fell when he couldn't see any sign of Thor anywhere. He called out, "Thor! Thor, where are you!"
One of the sand dunes exploded when Mjolnir was launched from one. Aang ran to it and saw the Asgardian dig himself out. Aang helped a little with a wave of his hand. The move created a small blast of air that blew the sand off of Thor. When he was free, Thor dusted himself off and gave a small glance to Aang when he said, "My thanks."
"Yeah." Aang said, feeling a little conflicted. Thor then suggested, "Perhaps we should continue the search. We may find something."
"Yeah, let's." Aang said and opened his glider again. He took off again with Thor following after him.
\_|_/
Zuko's Group…
The trio had come a long way from their battle with the Rough Rhinos. Tony's armor was once again hidden from sight as he walked along side the ostrich-horse. Zuko walked ahead of the ostrich-horse while holding the reins. Iroh, from on the avian-equine's back, kept a lookout for where they were going. When he saw something in the distance he pointed, "There!"
"Hm?" Both Tony and Zuko said when they looked. They could see a small settlement not too far from them and started to pick up the pace.
\_|_/
Misty Palms Oasis…
Things had hardly changed for the crumbling oasis. The glacier was still melting from the intense heat and the buildings still crumbled a bit. The only thing that did change was the people that came through, mainly two individuals who had been walking about the place and asking questions. They had come across a man who seemed to have the answers. The man nodded, "Yeah, there was a little barefoot, blind girl and a whole lot of her friends passed through here not too long ago."
"Did they give you any indication as to where they were heading?" Master Yu asked him. Feeling that this was worth a bit, the man said while rubbing his fingers together, "Maybe you could give me a little incentive?"
"You suggesting that I break your fingers?" Xin Fu questioned when he leaned forward, thinking it was incentive enough. The man placed one hand behind his back and pointed with the other as he revealed, "They went out into the desert.
"It's too bad that there's almost no chance that they didn't survive." The man added, knowing that the desert was a very harsh place. Xin Fu seemed to hardly care when he said, "That's okay. Because she's wanted dead or alive."
"No, she's not." Master Fu argued, knowing what their employer was wanting. The man quickly stepped away to avoid being caught up in some kind of drama. With a glare he reminded, "I'm greatly certain that her father wants her home alive."
"If you say so." Xin Fu shrugged and turned his head away. Something caught his eye and he walked over, "Hey, look over here."
"What?" Master Yu said, thinking that he might have had an idea. They walked over to a board that was full of wanted posters. Xin Fu seemed intrigued, "Fire Nation and Hydra wanted posters."
"So what?" Yu said, not seeing how it was helping with their mission. Xin Fu happened to look to his right and saw three of the faces from the board. A smirk grew on his face, "So, look who's here?"
Master Yu looked to where his business partner was looking and saw the same faces. Tony, Zuko and Iroh were all walking to the main establishment, unaware that they were being watched. Xin Fu and Yu looked to each other and figured that this would pass the time before hunting for Toph again.
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Rescue Group…
The sun was just about to touch the horizon on the village that the rescue team and the three Freedom Fighters had saved. Smellerbee, Longshot, Wade, Logan, Johnny and Eddie were all sitting on the edge of a wall looking into the village. Smellerbee looked to the four and asked, "So, each of you have their own powers?"
"Pretty much, my angry little friend." Wade happily said. This made both Smellerbee and Longshot look to him with odd looks. Logan huffed, "Ignore Wade. He mostly spews nonsense more than wisdom."
"And sometimes, its wisdom that'll come from that nonsense." Wade countered and wrapped an arm around the mutant. Logan didn't seem too thrilled by this and reminded, "What did say about you touching me?"
"Only if I want to wind up with your Adamantium claws in my backside." Wade recited like a child would. Logan then said, "Not exactly as I said it. I said in your-"
"Ah, ah." Wade wagged his finger. Pointing to the readers he reminded yet again, "Remember the viewers, my metal endoskeletal friend."
"Anyway," Smellerbee said to dispel a potential argument. She then asked, "And you're all friends with Steve and Natasha?"
"Eh, not really." Eddie shook his head. That seemed to confuse the two and she asked, "So, why are you here then?"
"We're mostly here to help find the Avengers. Then I guess we're gonna help them stop Hydra." Johnny told them. Then thinking to their other enemies he said, "And I guess that means by extension the Fire Nation as well."
"Which brings up a question." Rhodey said as he and Sam joined them all on the wall. The six looked to them and Logan asked, "What's going on?"
"Jet's just offered us to go with you guys to Ba Sing Se." Sam informed them. Smellerbee seemed a little ticked off that Jet didn't run it by her and Longshot, but decided to talk about it with him later. Rhodey looked to the four and asked, "What do you all think?"
"I'm not entirely sure." Johnny shook his head. He tried to make it not sound too hasty by saying, "It's not that I have a problem with any of you three. But the Rider feels like there's something there."
"I think it could be beneficial." Logan brought up. He gestured between the two groups he said, "We could offer protection for each other and be able to work well together."
"That's about what Jet said." Sam remembered with a look. Eddie glanced to his side and seemed to be talking to no one, "It's just until we find the Avengers."
"But I sense something amiss. And I don't like it." Venom said when he appeared from Eddie's shoulder. It still seemed to weird just about everyone out. Well, almost everyone, evident by how fascinated Wade was looking behind the mask. Venom shook his head, "We need-"
"What we are needing is Peter." Wade cut in with a raised finger. He looked about and asked, "Speaking of which, where is that kid?"
"I haven't seen him since the battle." Smellerbee shook her head. Johnny then said, "Last I saw him, he was trying to fix his suit."
"By the way, what's with that suit?" She laughed a little. A shake of her head she added, "It kind of looked a little ridiculous to me."
"Well, it was designed by a teenager in high school." Sam shrugged, thinking that it could have been worse. Getting up, Johnny said, "I'll go run it by him.
"He should be done repairing it by now." With that, he turned and walked down the stairs of the wall. When he was gone, Sam looked to Wade and asked, "What's your feelings on this?"
"Well, while I'm not one for a team player…" Wade started and it earned him some looks from the others. He shrugged, "But, I am in the mood with making new friends and causing a little mayhem wherever we go."
"We're not doing the second thing." Sam shook his head. Logan chuckled before saying, "Believe it or not, but mayhem tends to follow us wherever we go, Bub."
"Fair point." Sam acknowledged when he thought about it.
…
Peter Parker…
Peter quietly sat in the corner of the old woman's shop. She was still going over a few measurements as she worked on the repairs for his suit. The high school teen didn't want to be rude or anything, but he knew that he wouldn't be in town for much longer. But he kept himself from saying anything. The door to the shop opened and Peter looked to see Johnny walking in. Getting up he said, "Hey, what's up?"
"Sam and Rhodey say that Jet wants us to travel to the capital together." Johnny told them. It seemed to bring the old woman out of her thoughts when she glanced back, "Oh, Ba Sing Se? I haven't been to the capital in years.
"It was always so festive." She smiled before returning to work. Johnny and Peter looked to her for a moment before the former asked the latter, "So, how's the repairs to your suit going?"
"Uh, funny thing." Peter nervously laughed. Pointing to where his ruined suit was he said, "I was about to start on it." Then gesturing to the old woman sitting at the table he said, "But then she offered to make me a new suit."
"Peter, we don't have time to wait." Johnny shook his head. Peter agreed and walked up to him, "I know. I know. But she wasn't taking no for an answer."
"Still not going to." She shook her head and they looked to her. Peter smiled and said, "She's a pretty determined woman."
"I'll say." Johnny somewhat agreed. Johnny then asked, "Sam and Rhodey were wanting your opinion on the whole going with the Freedom Fighters thing."
"I think it might be a smart choice for us." Peter agreed with it. Then he said, "We'll get a perspective of how things are progressing as we travel. We might be able to help a lot of folks on the way. And we'll still be able to look for the Avengers as well."
"Okay, then. You're on board." Johnny nodded before he turned to leave. When he had walked out of the building, the woman glanced back and said, "It shouldn't be too much longer, dear."
"Uh, thank you." Peter said with a grateful look. He took a look at his web cartridges and noticed that he only had a few left. To himself he said, "I'm starting to run low on web fluid. That battle must have made me use a good deal of it.
"I need a place to make some more." Peter tried to think. He knew that he could scrounge up the necessary ingredients and all that, but without a lab of sorts, it was going to make it difficult. He knew that he would need to make more and soon.
\_|_/
Team Avatar…
The majority of the team had walked for many miles and the sun started to set. They trudged through the sand as they were all miserable and exhausted from walking. The sound of whooshing made Katara and the Avengers with them look up to see Aang descending from the sky. Katara, Steve and Bruce all ran over to check on him. They had to brace themselves when a small sand cloud had been kicked up by the Airbender's landing. From the way that Aang was crouching in the sand, the group had guessed that his search hadn't been successful. Katara walked up to him and said, "I'm really sorry, Aang."
"Say, where's Thor?" Bruce asked, starting to feel a little better from the cactus juice. They quickly got their answer when something suddenly crashed into the dune behind them and sent a wave of sand over Sokka, Clint, Toph, Momo and Natasha. While Sokka and Momo just made giggling noises, the other two looked to the Asgardian with glares as he stepped out of the crater while Toph just had her head turned to him. He saw the looks on their faces and offered quick, "Apologies."
"Oh, don't worry about it, Thor Odinson." Sokka said when he raised a fist. Then he started snickering before breaking out in laughter. Thor found it odd before asking, "Uh, what happened to him?"
"We think it was some kind of effect from drinking water from one of the desert cacti." Bruce said and rubbed the side of his head. A grin formed on Thor's face when he pointed to asked, "Uh, did you happen to drink from it as well."
"I did." Bruce grimaced at the memory. He shook his head, "But I learned never to listen to Sokka's reasoning without good measure."
"Well, that's good to hear." Thor agreed while Sokka just laughed and plopped down into the sand. Natasha looked to Bruce and asked, "I guess Sokka was right that the Hulk would burn the high-inducing cactus water out of your system."
"Sure is taking a while though." Bruce sighed. Katara then said, "Look, not that I'm glad that we're back together and almost sane again, but we need to focus on getting ourselves out of here."
"What's the difference?" Aang questioned, starting to sink into a world of despair. His hope practically gone when he said, "We won't survive without Appa. We all know it."
"No, we are going to survive." Steve disagreed with a shake of his head. Katara agreed with him by saying, "He's right, Aang. We can do this if we all work together.
"Right, Toph?" Katara asked when she looked to the Earthbender. But Toph didn't share the same sentiments when she said, "As far as I can feel around us, we're trapped in a gigantic bowl of sand pudding." She kicked the ground for emphasis before shaking her head, "I've got nothing."
"What do you think, Sokka? Any ideas for getting to Ba Sing Se?" Katara asked and looked to her brother. Natasha looked to the older teen and said, "I don't think he's going to be of much help at the moment."
"I beg to differ." Sokka said with a grin. Pointing to the sky he suggested, "Why don't we go and ask the circle birds?"
Katara and the Avengers all looked up to see large insectoid-avian hybrids flying over their heads. Clint observed them for a moment and said, "Seems they've seen a potential meal with us. But they won't come until, you know."
"Thor?" Steve asked his friend. The Asgardian nodded before spinning Mjolnir at buzzard-bees. It created a gust of wind that blew the scavengers away. Natasha saw how far they went before saying, "It may not keep them away for long."
Katara looked between each of her friends, and she saw out of sorts that those of her world were. And even though the Avengers were trying to stay strong, she could tell that there was a little uncertainty among them. Deciding to step up for the time being, Katara made a decision. Turning to each of them she said, "We're getting out of this desert and we're going to do it together.
"Steve, grab Aang." Katara instructed and it impressed the super soldier. The Waterbender looked to the others, "Thor help Bruce, just in case. Clint, you grab Toph's hand and Natasha…"
"Don't worry, I've got the drunks of our little group." Natasha nodded before walking to Sokka and Momo who were still lying on the ground. Thor offered a hand to Bruce which he took. Natasha helped Sokka to his feet while gently grabbing one of Momo's paws. Clint took Toph's hand into his own and Steve gently pulled Aang to his feet. When everyone was up, Katara led with Aang and Steve behind her. Following after them was Clint and Toph, Thor and Bruce and finally with Natasha and a giggling Sokka. Sokka was holding on to Momo as the lemur chittered while flapping his wings while being pulled along.
The friends once again made their trek through the desert. Those who still had faith that they could get out could only hope for a miracle sometime soon. It didn't help with the buzzard-bees came back over them.
\_|_/
Rescue Group…
The sun had nearly disappeared over the horizon over the village, but anything was but calm. Everyone was currently celebrating the defeat as there was food, games and happiness abound. Sitting at a table in the middle of everything was the Rescue group and the Freedom Fighters. From his spot, Peter had a grin when he said, "Man, I can't believe that they got this all together so quickly."
"I know. It seems like a bit of lazy writing from a fanfiction author." Wade nodded. But with a shrug he said, "But I wouldn't be complaining about it."
"I have to say that this is some really good food." Johnny complimented as he continued to eat. A black tendril shot out and snatched a piece of his dish from him. Johnny looked to the host of the symbiote and gave a questioning look, "Really?"
"I do offer an apology." Eddie quickly said. But Venom said, "I'm not."
"Of course you're not." Eddie shook his head. Eddie rolled his eyes when it seemed that he was starting to get into an argument with the symbiote. Logan looked to the leaders of the team and asked, "So, what is our game plan now?"
"I think we should head for Ba Sing Se." Rhodey voiced his opinion. Logan and Sam looked to him when he said, "If Jet's right, and that's where they're headed, it'll make our mission a whole lot easier."
"And if he's wrong?" Sam asked his friend. Rhodey sighed and Sam said, "I get it, Sam. I miss Steve as much as you miss Tony.
"And it's not like we can't exactly go on a wild goose chase." He pointed out. Wade interjected with a question, "Then is there a chance of someone having to play Gandalf in order to get your Bilbo to nudge you out the door?"
"For once, I got to agree with the question." Logan shrugged as it had made a little sense to him. Sam looked between them and the Freedom Fighters as they were waiting for his answer. He sighed before nodding that he agreed, "Fine. I guess we'll just have to take a chance."
"Then I guess that we have an agreement." Rhodey said to Jet. All seven of the rescue team nodded when he said, "We'll go with you to Ba Sing Se."
"That's good news." Jet grinned and looked to Smellerbee and Longshot. Peter then asked, "But, uh, you said that you weren't leaving until morning, right?"
"Yeah, why?" Jet asked the teen. Peter then said, "Well, right before the party started, the old woman told me that she was almost done.
"And I gotta say, she must have been working fast and hard to get it done so quickly." Peter wondered in amazement. Smellerbee then asked him, "So, how long did it take you to finish your first suit?"
"About a few weeks." Peter shrugged. Then he said, "I know that it's not the best thing that a superhero can make. But I was mostly working with what I had."
"Enough jibber-jabber about hero stuff!" Wade pounded the table. Raising his glass of tea he said, "I know that Venom's thinking the same thing as me when I say…"
"Let's PARTY!" Venom shouted when he had waved a black tendril. Jet laughed and said, "That's going to take some getting used to."
Some in the group started laughing as they continued to enjoy themselves.
\_|_/
Team Avenging Avatar…
The sun had just disappeared from the desert as the group climbed up another dune. A dust cloud was kicked up with each step that they took. Everyone seemed a bit weary as they had let go of each other a little while ago. When they made it to the top, Katara then suggested, "I think that we should stop for the night."
Just about everyone groaned as they fell to the ground. Katara looked back to see that while only Sokka had fallen onto his face, the others had landed on a knee. Toph lifted her head up and requested, "Is there any more water?"
"This is the last of what I have." Katara said as she opened her pouch. She looked to each of them and said, "I'll be sure to give everyone a little drink."
"Thank you, Katara." Steve and the others nodded. Sokka crawled his way over while Katara bent the water out of her pouch. But as she was about to distribute it between them, a still high Momo jumped through the water and it startled just about all of them.
A crazed Sokka shouted, "Momo, no!
"You've just killed us all!" He frantically screamed while clawing up to the puddle in the sand. Just about everyone gave him odd looks while Katara leaned down and reminded, "No, he hasn't."
"Oh, right." Sokka remembered as she started to bend the water from the sand. His goofy grin returned when he said, "Bending."
With a slight movement of her wrist, she distributed the water again. Everyone was able to get a drink. When he had his fill, Aang turned away again. While some wanted to say something to him, others decided to let him have some space. Katara focused on her brother when she remembered, "Sokka, let me see the things that you got from the library."
"What?" A delirious Sokka questioned when he backed away with his bag in arms. He held them close when he shook his head, "I didn't go and steal anything?
"Who told you any of that?" He questioned as Momo scampered up to him. Delusions still taking hold of him, a hysterical Sokka pointed at the lemur and accused, "It was you! You ratted me out!"
"Sokka, we were all there." Katara reminded her brother with a deadpanned look. She was able to take his bag from him without opposition and ruffled through it while walking back to those who could help her. Aang didn't think that it would help when he said, "It doesn't matter. None of that stuff will tell us where Appa is."
"Aang, we promised you that we would find him." Steve reminded and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. But Aang didn't seem to respond to it as he hung his head. While there were those that sympathized with him, there were those who were beginning to become annoyed by Aang's downcast attitude. Natasha looked to Katara and asked, "You think that there's something that could lead us out of here?"
"I think that we can use this to guide us with the stars." Katara said as she unrolled a scroll to reveal a star chart. Katara asked Steve, Thor, Natasha and Clint, "Think that you could help me understand this thing?"
"We can try." Thor promised and placed a supporting hand against her shoulder. Katara then suggested, "Perhaps we could travel during the night when it's cooler and rest during the day."
"That's a pretty good plan." Natasha commended with a nod. Steve agreed, "It's the best one we have so far."
"But I don't think that we're in much of a traveling mood right now." Clint said when he looked back to their friends. Natasha then decided to ask, "How you feeling Bruce?"
"Other than a splitting headache…" Bruce said as he turned onto his back. He gave a thumbs up when he said, "Just peachy."
"How much longer until Sokka and Momo's all better?" Steve asked and looked to the Water Tribe teen. Natasha shook her head, "Could be a few hours or at least a couple of days. I have no way of telling."
"But we should go ahead and get some rest." Katara told them. She took another look at the charts and said, "We'll start again in a few hours."
"Sounds like a plan to me." Clint said as he moved to lay down in the sand. The other three Avengers followed suit and Katara was the last to lay her head down.
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Zuko's Group…
Back at the Misty Palms Oasis, Zuko, Iroh and Tony were all sitting at one of the many tables in the main establishment. It had been a few hours since they had arrived and they hadn't moved since. Zuko looked to the other two and said, "No one here is going to come to our aid. The people here just look like filthy wanderers."
"So do we." Iroh pointed out with a grin. Tony then said, "And at least we can enjoy a nice meal for a change. We've been on the road for a few days now. Our luck is bound to change about some point."
"Ah, and I think that it already has." Iroh said when he spotted something behind Zuko. Both Zuko and Tony looked to see an elderly man wearing Earth Kingdom robes. Iroh's grin didn't falter when he said, "What an interesting development. I think I found us a friend."
"You brought us here just to gamble on a game of Pai Sho?" Zuko questioned his uncle. But Iroh shook his head when he stood up, "I don't think that this is a gamble."
"But what exactly does this mean for us?" Tony asked as he too rose from his seat. Iroh looked to him with the same grin and said, "I guess we'll just have to find out, won't we?"
Tony looked to Zuko before shrugging. Zuko could only sigh as he too got up and walked after the other two.
As they walked across the room, they were being watched by Master Fu and Xin Fu. While one was fine with waiting for the right moment, the other was starting to get irritated as he stood up, "Let's take them now."
"This entire place is full of desperate characters. If they were to find out that we're collecting a bounty, then we may have to fight them all just to keep our prize." Master Yu said when he stopped his companion with a hand to Xin Fu's shoulder. He gently pulled the brash man back and advised, "Just a little more patience is all that I ask."
Xin Fu just grumbled and crossed his arm. The two watched as the three men walked over to the older gentleman.
The three walked up to the table and could see him a lot better. The old man had a small, white mustache on his lip and in front of his eyes sat a pair of orange-colored glasses. The older gentleman looked up when Iroh asked, "May I have this game, please?"
"Of course." The man nodded. He gestured to the board, "And since you're a guest, I'll allow you the first move."
"Kindly appreciated." Iroh said as he sat down. The gentleman looked to the other two and asked, "Care to play as well?"
"No." Zuko bluntly said and turned his head away. Tony was a lot more nicer when he said, "Uh, I'll just watch the experts play if that's all the same to you."
"Very well then." The man nodded wile Iroh removed a tile from the stack in front of him. He placed it in the middle of the board and they saw it was a white flower. Iroh's opponent for the game seemed surprised by the move and looked to Iroh when he said, "I see that you favor the White Lotus gambit. Not many still cling to the ancient ways of the world."
"Those who do can always find a friend." Iroh said as he and the other man bowed to each other. The other man nodded, "Then let us play."
The two players started placing tiles down on the board and seemed to be fashioning them into a pattern. Tony pulled up a chair for both him and Zuko each. They sat on opposite sides of the boards and watched as Iroh and the man continued placing tiles down. When they had finished, they had formed a large flower made of tiles on the board. The man extended his arms and said, "Welcome, brother. The White Lotus opens wide to those who know of her secrets."
"Uh, you are talking about the game, right?" Tony asked, feeling that he was missing a few context clues here. Even Zuko didn't understand it when he questioned, "What are you old gasbags even talking about?"
"You'll have to forgive him." Tony nervously laughed when he looked to the old man. He gave the former prince a slight glare when he said, "Sometimes he just control what he says."
"And it's like I've always tried to tell you, my dear nephew." Iroh said and raised his right hand with a grin. He moved a tile along his fingers when he said, "That Pai Sho is much more than just a game."
"Uh, we've got a couple of rangers watching us from the corner." Tony warned when he caught the two potential bounty hunters watching them. Zuko glanced back as well and his scarred eye narrowed a bit.
"I'm not waiting all night for these geezers to finish yapping about their game." Xin Fu angrily said and got up. Yu tried to stop him, but was too late when he walked away. Yu sighed before getting up, dusting himself up and walking after his companion.
"It's over for you!" Xin Fu shouted at the three as he marched right over. It caused them and every patron in the place to look to them. Xin Fu then blurted out, "You three fugitives are coming with me!"
That made the old man get up from his chair and he moved between both groups. He seemed to have an angry look on his face when he said, "I knew it! You lot are wanted criminals that have a large bounty on your heads."
"I thought that you said that he would help us?" Both Zuko and Tony questioned Iroh with annoyed looks. Iroh placed a hand on their shoulders and assured, "He is. Just watch him work."
"You think that you're going to just capture them and collect all of that gold?" The old man questioned Xin Fu and Master Yu when he turned to them. The word gold caught the ear of everyone in the bar as they looked to the two.
Just about everyone in the bar had some form of weapon in their hands. They mostly handled blades as swords and knives were what was seen. They all started surrounding the two Earthbenders. Master Yu looked to his companion and suggested with a shake of his head, "Um, maybe we shouldn't."
But when Xin Fu turned away with a grin and Master Yu covered his eyes as knew that it was going to get messy, the other mercenaries sprung into action. Two leapt between the Xin Fu and the four and took a fighting stance. But Xin Fu was able to knock them away by raising some earth with a spin kick. Master Yu defended himself when a mercenary came at him. With a downward motion of his hand, Master Yu sent a guy sinking into the ground. The man struggled to free himself.
Xin Fu held off three guys wrappings by kicking one away while holding two others back with his hands. When two others came at him he kicked them away with the same foot. Then with a twist of his body he threw the two away. The shop keep had to duck when of the guys flew at him. The man grunted when his back hit the shelves of the bar.
While the two Earthbenders were dealing with all the mercenaries, Iroh, Zuko, Tony and the old man started to make their escape. They snuck around the fighting men and ran through the flaps of the building. When they were in the clear, all four vanished into the night.
With a punch with one last guy each, Master Yu and Xin Fu finished defeating all the mercenaries. But they became shocked to see that their quarry had disappeared. In a fit of rage, Xin Fu jumped up before slamming both fists into the ground. It created a pillar of earth and it sent the guy he had just beaten into the air. The man screamed as he flew out a window and crashed int a palm tree outside. He slipped from the top and grunted when he hit the ground below. Xin Fu and Master Fu walked to the door of the establishment and looked outside for any sign of the fugitives. While Master Yu had a worried look on his face, Xin Fu seemed to be seething with fury that the three had been able to get away.
\_|_/
Team Avatar…
A few hours had passed for the group and they hadn't had any complications. On a nearby rock formation a scorpion scuttled about. While most of them were sleeping peacefully, Momo was awake and burying Sokka in the sand while he snored. Katara was the first to wake and said, "I think we need to get going again."
"Then let's get going." Steve said and got up to his feet. The others followed suit and rose off the sand. The sand fell off of Sokka when he sat up. When Toph sat up she smacked her lips and said, "Yesterday my mouth tasted like mud. And now it just tastes like sand.
"Never thought I'd miss the taste of mud so much." She sighed while Sokka just gave a big goofy grin. Katara walked over to Aang and was about to wake him. He stopped her when he said, "I'm awake. I couldn't sleep."
"Well, we need to get moving again if we want to get ourselves out of this sand pit." Katara reminded and rose to her feet. Steve walked up to the Waterbender and said, "I'm impressed with how you're handling all of this."
"It isn't easy." Katara shook her head. Steve placed a comforting hand and said, "Don't worry. We will get through this."
"How are you feeling, Bruce?" Nat asked him when she came closer. Bruce blinked a few times and said, "Much better actually. I think the last of the cactus juice was burned from my system."
A shape moved over all of them and they all looked up to see something flying in front of the moon. It looked to be familiar shape and everyone was a little hopeful when Aang shouted, "Appa!"
"Appa? But why would Princess Yue need him?" A confused Sokka asked. He was still in a crazed state when he rubbed Momo's tail against his cheek, "She's the moon. She flies just fine all by herself."
But when everyone took a much closer look at it, everyone was disappointed to see that it was just a cloud. Katara hung her head, "It's just a desert cloud."
She perked up when she realized, "Wait, a cloud?"
"Aang, could you fly up their and bend the water from it into here." Katara said when she removed her pouch. Aang glared at her before taking the pouch and throwing it over his shoulder. He opened up his glider and took off into the sky.
They watched as Aang zipped towards the cloud. The cloud was cut through when Aang flew through it. It completely disappeared when he flew through it again. Aang descended from the sky and tossed Katara the pouch before landing. She caught it with both hands as he touched down and spun his glider into a staff again. Katara looked into the pouch and saw that there wasn't more than there had been earlier, "Wow, there's hardly any in here."
"I'm sorry, okay?!" Aang shouted and it startled just about everyone. Aang then pointed out, "It's a desert cloud! I did all that I could!"
"Aang, you need to calm down." Steve urged, trying to prevent the Airbender from doing something he would regret. Aang pointed to himself and said, "At least I was doing something!" Pointing his staff at each of them he questioned, "What are all of you doing?!"
"Well, to be fair, we're trying to stick together." Natasha said, now tired of Aang's attitude. Then she reminded, "And while you were out flying with Thor, we've been getting charbroiled here on the ground.
"Now, you can get out of your sour mood or-" She was cut off when Clint put a hand on her shoulder. Katara then suggested, "Let's just get moving again.
"We need to head in this direction." She said when she took a look at the scroll again. Everyone followed after and started walking through the desert again.
They hadn't gone a full ten minutes when Toph tripped over something, "Ow!"
"You okay, kid?" Clint asked and kneeled down. Toph rubbed her sore foot and said, "No. I'm so sick of not being able to feel where I'm going.
"And what kind of an idiot buried a boat all the way out here in the middle of the desert?" She questioned and gestured to something in the sand. They saw that there was something made of wood sticking out of the sand. Katara asked, "What is a boat doing out here?"
"Maybe it's not entirely a boat." Natasha shook her head while Sokka shuddered when he turned to face them. Even Bruce and Thor had an idea of what it was. They all moved back a little when Aang stepped forward with both hands holding his staff. With a swing of his staff, Aang was able to use his airbending to move the sand away to reveal a sand sailor in pretty perfect condition. Everyone inspected it as Katara climbed onto the main deck, "It's one of the gliders that the Sandbenders use to get around."
"And it looks like everything's in working order." Natasha said as she inspected the sail. Katara then noticed something on the top and took a look, "And it's got some kind of a compass on it. I bet that it can point us out of here."
"Well, we have a ride now." Clint said as he climbed aboard. Katara smiled when she said, "And if Aang and Thor work together, we'll have enough power to get us through the desert.
"This is it, our ticket out of here." Katara excitedly said, feeling hopeful again. Katara looked to Aang and Thor to ask, "Think you guys can make a strong enough breeze to get us out of here."
"Aye." Thor said while Aang just nodded. Everyone looked back to see that Sokka had buried Momo in the sand this time. The teen gave a crazed laugh before turning to the others with a couple of thumbs up and a big goofy grin. Natasha then suggested, "Someone might want to hold onto him."
"Not it." Katara and the other boys said at the same time. Natasha saw what had happened and slumped her shoulders, "Dang it."
She walked back over to the drunk teen and lemur before grabbing one of their arms. She pulled them to the sand sailor as the others climbed on.
\_|_/
Zuko's Group…
The trio had followed the old man to a small town a few miles from the oasis. They walked towards a building that had a large dome at the back. The old man held the door open for them and kept a quick look out before shutting the door. The man turned to his guests and bowed when he said, "It is quite an honor to welcome such a high-ranking member of the Order of the White Lotus.
"And an Avenger to boot." He added when he looked to Tony. This surprised the group and Tony asked, "How exactly did you know?"
"Given what I've been hearing lately." The old man said as he remembered. He looked to Tony when he said, "I've been on the lookout for you and your friends.
"And I saw a whole bunch of them going out into the desert." He informed. The old man shook his head, "I haven't seen them since they left."
"Hm." Tony said as he looked down. Zuko crossed his arms and said, "Now that you two have played some Pai Sho and have gotten to know each other, are you all going to do some flower arranging or is someone in this little club going to offer us some real help?"
"Maybe if you start asking nicely." Tony commented as they started walking through the building. Iroh agreed with the Avenger and said to their host, "You must forgive my nephew.
"He is not an initiate. And has very little appreciation for the cryptic arts." He informed when they reached a door at the back. The old man then knocked a few times on the door. A slot on the door opened up and a man on the other side asks, "Who knocks at the guarded gate?"
"One who has eaten the fruit and has tasted its mysteries." Iroh responded to a code. The door opened up to a smiling Iroh and he was allowed in. When Tony and Zuko tried to follow after Iroh and the old man, the door slammed shut on them both. It confused Tony while annoying Zuko when the latter stepped up. The slot opened up again and Iroh said, "I'm afraid that it's members only. Wait for me out here."
The slot closed again and Zuko leaned against a column of the building. He looked to a potted plant next to him and took a small sniff. Tony sat down on a box as the two waited for Iroh to come back out.
…
Inside the room, Iroh stood with the two men. Iroh looked between the two of them and said, "I'm afraid that we're in need of some help. My nephew, Tony and I must find a place to hide from the Fire Nation and Hydra."
"Hardly any place is safe from the likes of them." The old man reminded with a shake of his head. Iroh couldn't help but agree to that. Iroh then asked, "Where would you recommend that we go?"
"I'm afraid that your answer is to go to a place that you never thought that you'd return to." A feminine voice said from behind Iroh. Iroh gave a small smile before turning around. Standing before the door was a bald woman in orange robes. Iroh bowed to her and said, "Sorceress Supreme. It has been a long time."
"Indeed it has." She agreed. The Ancient One became a little playful when she said, "You seem to still find trouble after all these years."
"Not willingly of course." Iroh lightly defended himself. But his smile dropped when he asked, "But am I really fated to return there?"
"I'm afraid that that's where all the paths are leading for the moment." The Sorceress Supreme said as she took a few steps forward. She then reminded, "You know as well as I that Ba Sing Se is the one place where you will need to find peace.
"And to answer your one the purpose granted to you." She added. Iroh nodded as he knew that the Ancient One was correct.
\_|_/
Team Avatar…
Between Aang's airbending and the spinning of Mjolnir, the sand sailor was cutting across the desert in record speeds. While Aang and Thor both stood on two sides, Toph, Steve, Bruce and Clint sat on either side of the ride. On the upper deck, Katara stood at the compass with Nat standing right next to her. Behind them was Sokka as he was holding onto Momo's tail while the lemur was drifting with the wind.
"I don't get it." Katara shook her head. Natasha looked to her and asked, "What is it?"
"The needle on this compass doesn't seem to be facing north, according to the charts that we have." Katara said while looking to the scroll in her hands. Natasha then suggested, "Well, it's got to be drawn to something."
"Take it easy, little ladies." Sokka casually said when he looked back. The two gave him odd looks when he said, "I'm sure that the sand folks who built this baby knew how to get their way around here."
"Even though he's still drunk, he's got a point." Nat shrugged in agreement. While Katara thought it debatable, she suddenly noticed something in the distance. A large rock formation was coming up. Pointing ahead she said, "That's what the compass is pointing to. That giant rock! It must be the magnetic center of the desrt."
"A rock?" A happy Toph asked. She pumped her fist when she urged, "Yes! Let's go there!"
"Easy there, kid." Clint laughed when he saw how happy she was looking. Katara too became hopeful when she said, "Maybe there's some water there we'll find."
"Maybe we'll find some Sandbenders." An angry Aang added and unleashed another wave of air into the sail. Steve happened to notice this and said, "Aang. I know that you're harboring a grudge against the Sandbenders that took Appa.
"But you can't let it cloud your judgement with any of the other tribes out here." He warned. But it seemed to fall on deaf ears as Aang just kept sending wave after wave of air forward.
The sand sailor continued speeding across the desert towards the large rock.
\_|_/
Rescue Group…
The celebration had ended hours ago and everyone had turned in for the night. But the rest of the night had passed on for the village as dawn soon came upon them. The combined groups had gotten up a few minutes ahead of time and were gathered before the gate. Some were getting restless when Logan questioned, "How much longer is the kid gonna make us wait?"
"He said that he was getting his suit from the old woman." Johnny reminded. He shrugged, "It may be taking a little longer than expected."
"Well, he kind of needs to hurry." Jet calmly warned. Pointing outside of the town he said, "We need to get a move on if we're going to reach Ba Sing Se."
"I'm coming! I'm coming, you guys!" Peter shouted and came running down the street. He wasn't wearing the new suit at the moment as he was donning Earth Kingdom attire. Sam then asked, "Where's your suit, kid?"
"Uh, in my bag here." Peter patted the bag on his side. Wade whined a little and said, "Aw, man. I was kind of hoping to see you in your new suit."
"Don't worry, there are plenty of chances." Peter chuckled. Then he said, "Come on. Let's go!"
Everyone seemed to grin before they all walked out of the main gate.
\_|_/
Team Avenging Avatar…
Dawn had come to the desert when the group had finally made it to the rock formation. It was a long climb, but everyone had made it up to the top. Everyone else stared out to the vast desert as Katara and Toph were the last two to make it up. Toph was greatly enjoying the feel of the hard ground under her feet when she said with a grin, "Ah, finally.
"Solid ground beneath my feet." She swooned before turning and falling onto her back. Everyone looked and watched in amazement as she made a rock angel when she moved her arms up and down. Steve commended, "Okay, I have to admit. That was pretty amazing."
"She will surprise you." Clint nodded in agreement. Thor glanced to his left and said, "Perhaps we can take shelter in there for a bit."
Everyone looked to see large holes that went into the rock formation. When they walked in, they saw that there was something sticky and yellow clinging to the walls. Steve looked to them and said, "Step lightly everyone. We don't know what we're dealing with here."
No one argued with him as they walked further in. Sokka took a deep breath and said, "I think that my head is finally starting to clear out the cactus juice."
"Well, that's a relief." Clint said as they didn't have to worry about the teen being high anymore. Sokka seemed to slow down when he took notice of the yellow stuff. Getting an idea he said, "And look!"
He placed his hand in the yellow stuff before feeding Momo and himself some of it. But after a split second they both gagged and it made them all look to the teen with questioning looks. Sokka shuddered when he said, "This stuff tastes like rotten penguin meat.
"Oh, now I feel woozy." He groaned and hunch over. Katara walked up to her brother and scolded, "You've been hallucinating on cactus juice all day yesterday, and then you just go and lick something you find stuck to a cave wall?!"
"And after I said to step lightly." Steve added, wanting to smack the teen. Sokka looked to the both of them and said, "I have a natural curiosity."
"There is hardly anything natural about you." Natasha shook her head. It made Sokka glare at her before he became woozy again. But Toph had some off feelings about the cave when she voiced them, "Uh, guys. I don't think that this is a normal cave.
"It feels like it was carved by something." Toph said as she could feel the ground beneath her feet. They all started to notice it when Aang agreed, "Yeah, look at the shape of it."
"Kind of like an octagon." Bruce observed. Just about everyone's eyes widened when they started to get an idea of what was in here. Steve then suggested, "We better get out of here."
"Agreed." Everyone said before they turned around. But they hadn't gone a single step when suddenly the floor gave out from underneath them. Everyone screamed as they fell into a lower level of the cave and landed in a heap.
"Is everyone all right?" Steve asked as they sat up. Everyone answered with a, "Yeah. I think so."
The sound of buzzing made them all lift their heads to see that they were completely surrounded by the buzzard-bees. The avian-insectoids didn't seem to keen on intruders to their hives from the way that they were buzzing about. Steve looked to Toph and quietly asked, "Toph, is there a way out?"
"Other than they way that we came in, there are a few." Toph nodded as she was a little nervous. Then she said, "The closest one is right behind the-"
A loud screech made them all look to see a much bigger buzzard-bee in the middle of the room. They stood up and Natasha said, "I think we just landed in the queen's chambers."
"Then let's leave and not disturb her any further." Thor suggested and they turned for another door. But they couldn't get anywhere when multiple drones moved in front of them.
"Looks like we're going to have to fight our way out." Steve said before pulling his helmet over his head. Everyone else readied what weapons or bending that they had at their disposal.
Both Aang and Thor started blowing away a buzzard-bee away with a blast of air from their staff or hammer. Natasha jumped over one before spinning and kicking another incoming in the face. Captain America blocked the stinger of a buzzard-bee with his shield before throwing his shield at another. Bruce let out a roar and quickly transformed into the Hulk, for real this time. With a growl he ran for the queen who prepared to defend herself. Katara used what water she had to keep her winged attackers at bay. Sokka hacked and slashed at any that were daring to come at him. Thanks to the acoustics of the chamber, Toph was able to tell when one was coming at her and created a barrier to protect herself before throwing a rock forward and knocking a few back.
The Hulk was currently wrestling with the queen. She tried sticking him with her stinger, but it only made the Gamma Beast angrier before he lifted her over his head and tossed the large buzzard-bee to the side. With a clap of his hands, the Hulk sent many more flying back with a shockwave. The Hulk looked back with a growl to get the others' attention. Cap looked and said, "Hulk's got us an eXint."
"Then let's be like busy bees and get out of here." Sokka quipped with a slight chuckle. It made everyone groan as they made a run for it. Natasha got and idea and shouted, "Toph, Aang, block the eXint!"
The two Earthbenders nodded as they ran. When they and the rest of the group made it through, both Aang and Toph jumped up before slamming their palms to the ground. They managed to cause a cave in that blocked the tunnel with a boom. When they were sure that they had bought themselves some time to escape, the two ran to catch up back with the others. The group had to run through twisting and narrowing tunnels. And when they came to a fork in the road, Toph was the one to lead them down the right path. It wasn't long until they could see daylight up ahead and doubled their pace.
The group emerged from the hive just as the rest of the buzzard-bees came swarming out of the many other tunnels. Everyone turned to keep fighting off their attackers. A shriek made them jump to see the queen the buzzard-bees emerging from one of the tunnels from the top. She screeched down at the Hulk who only roared back at her. Both combatants charged for the other and the Hulk slammed into the queen. The two slammed into the wall of the hive and it seemed to make the rock formation shake a little. The queen was able to shove the Hulk off of her before she flew at him and latched on before trying to sting him again.
While the Hulk was busy fighting the matriarch, everyone else contended with the drones of the hive. With a swing of his staff, Aang blew on away while Thor threw his hammer forward. Mjolnir smacked into a few that sent them falling over the edge. Before the hammer could join them, Thor recalled it back into his hand. One landed on a rock close to Toph and when she sensed it she raised a fist to make a pillar of rock launch the avian-insectoid screaming through the air. Sokka was waiting for his moment to strike when one flew past him and Toph. She reacted by raising both fists and launching another rock into the air. But instead of hitting a bird bug, she nearly crushed Sokka when it fell right beside him. He looked to her and questioned, "What are you doing? That big rock almost crushed me."
"Sorry!" Toph quickly apologized. It was difficult for her when she explained, "But I can't tell where they are in the air."
"Then let's bring a few down, shall we." Clint suggested and shot an arrow at one. The arrow sliced through one of the scavenger's wings and it fell to the ground with a shriek. It hit the side of the hive before tumbling down the side.
Another flew past them and Sokka ran to fight it, "I got this one."
But the bird bug had moved when Sokka started slashing at it with a yell. His mind still a little off he didn't stop slashing at it. Katara whipped one away before looking to her brother. She shouted to him, "Sokka, there's nothing there!"
That made Sokka stop and he looked around in confusion. The buzzard-bee was indeed gone. With a shrug he admitted, "I guess my head's not as clear as I thought."
"For it to be clear, it needs to have stuff in it." Natasha said when she fired a Widow's Bite at one. The giant bird bug shrieked as it was electrocuted.
But the battle didn't seem to be going well as the Queen Buzzard-bee launched the Hulk back to the others. He hit the ground with a boom while the other drones continued to swarm around everyone. Katara was becoming worried when she said, "We have to get out of here. I'm completely out of water to bend."
"We need a distraction." Cap said as he bashed one in the face with his shield. It had a goofy looking grin on its face before falling to the ground. The queen buzzed around before spotting Momo a good distance from the others. She flew down and picked the lemur up in one fell swoop. The lemur shrieked and everyone looked to see him being carried off. Aang cried out, "Momo!
"I am not losing anyone else out here!" Aang said before opening his glider again. Cap nodded to him, "Go! We'll be fine until you get back."
Aang nodded before taking off after the lemur and his captor. Cap looked to the others and said, "Thor, make a path for us back to the ledge. We'll try to climb back down to the sand sailor."
"Aye." Thor said and raised Mjolnir. With a yell he threw his hammer forward and it ended up knocking some of the buzzard-bees out of the way. Hulk followed up with another clap of his hands and the shockwave knocked the rest of them back. Seeing that they had an opening, Katara said, "Let's make a run for it!"
No one argued with her as they started running for the ledge. Cap threw his shield when one of the scavengers came at them. The vibranium projectile smacked into the creature's chest and sent it falling while the shield returned back to the super soldier's hand. The Avengers let the three go down first before following after them. A few buzzard-bees came flying at them and Katara said, "Toph, I need you to shoot a rock right where I'm pointing."
Thanks to her senses, she could kind of feel that Katara was pointing. She raised a rock from the path and Katara commanded, "Fire!"
The rock smacked into the scavenger and it fell with another shriek. Sokka pumped a fist, "Yes, she got it!
"She got it, right?" Sokka asked when he looked to the others. While some just gave him deadpanned looks, Katara nodded, "Yes. Now let's keep moving."
Everyone started down the path again while keeping a look out for more of the buzzard-bees.
…
Out over the desert, an angry Aang continued flying after Momo and his captor. The lemur chittered as he struggled to get out of the queen's hold. With a maneuver of his glider, Aang came down beneath the queen. With a kick turn and kicking his leg out, he created a gust of wind that knocked Momo from the queen's grip. She shrieked but continued to fly onward. Aang righted himself and looked at the queen with a glare. But his glare lightened when he saw Momo suddenly flying next to him. But the glare returned when he looked back to the queen flying towards the rising sun. The glare darkened as his anger was greatly rising. He descended to the ground and it created a groove in the sand as he went along. Then raising his glider as it turned into the staff again, he slammed it against the ground and sent a large vertical air wave at the buzzard-bee queen. The attack flew across the desert before striking the queen in the back. Aang could hear her give one final shriek before dropped to the sand below her.
Seeing the job done, Aang turned back to the rock formation and started to walk as his glare didn't go away. Momo, sensing the anger in Aang, chittered and lowered himself as he followed after the Airbender. As Aang climbed to the top of a dune, he saw something approaching the rock formation. Getting an idea of what it could be, Aang opened up his glider again before taking off again with Momo following after him.
…
Back at the rock formation, things were starting to look pretty bad again for the group as the buzzard-bees started swarming around them again. Hulk punched one away while Thor swatted another. Katara stood behind Toph as she instructed again, "On your left.
"Fire." She said when one came up at them. She raised another rock before throwing it. The rock smacked into another scavenger and it fell back with a shriek.
But more and more drones came to attack. The entire group seemed to be outnumbered when suddenly the desert started to shake. Everyone watched in amazement when large quantities of sand rose up and knocked the buzzard-bees away. The survivors of the hive retreated back to the top of the rock formation.
The group looked down to the desert floor to see three new sand sailors parked a few yards from the rock formation. And between them was a good deal of Sandbenders. Everyone seemed to enter a bit of a stand off as no one made a move. But everyone looked up to see Aang drop down from the sky. But the look on his face didn't look too happy even with the rescue.
\_|_/
White Lotus meeting…
The small council of the White Lotus was nearing its end. Iroh bowed, "Thank you for meeting with us, Ancient One."
"You are most welcome, Iroh." The Sorceress Supreme nodded back. She placed a hand on the Firebender's shoulder and said, "Our orders have been great allies since we first crossed paths. If you are ever in need, you know that we will come running to your aid."
Iroh smiled in appreciation to this. The Ancient One then said, "May your journey to the capital be a safe one."
"Farewell, my friend." Iroh bowed again. He turned to leave the room.
…
Outside the back room, both Tony and Zuko had dozed off while waiting for Iroh. They comically jumped when the door opened and Zuko assumed a fighting stance and questioned, "What's going on? Is the club meeting over?"
"Yeah, you were in there for a good while." Tony said as he rubbed the back of his neck. Iroh reassured them, "Everything has been taken care of."
"So, we know where we're going?" Tony asked him while he bowed to the old man from the oasis. Iroh nodded, "We're heading to Ba Sing Se."
"Ba Sing Se?" Zuko asked in surprise, feeling that it was a crazy plan. He couldn't understand when he asked, "Why would the three of us go to the Earth Kingdom capital?"
"The city is filled with refugees of the war." The old man told them. He was sure of it when he said, "No one's going to notice a couple more of them."
"We can hide in plain sight there." Iroh said, as he thought it was best. He sounded sure that it was a safe place, "And it's the safest place in the world from the Fire Nation and Hydra.
"Even I couldn't break through to the city." He added with a shrug. Tony snapped his fingers, "Oh, yeah. I had heard that you were involved with that somehow."
Iroh laughed a little and everyone looked when the front door opened. A much younger man walked in and was holding some papers in his hands. He informed, "I have the passports ready for our guests.
"But there are a couple of guys outside on the street looking for them." He informed after having shut the door. This made Tony, Iroh and Zuko look to each other. They hurried over to the door to peek out the slot. Their eyes widened when they saw Xin Fu and Master Yu standing outside. When a man walked by, Xin Fu raised the wanted posters of the three and questioned, "You seen any these guys around?"
Knowing that this could be problem, the three looked to each other again, very worried. The old man reassured them, "Don't worry. I have a plan."
They looked to him and knew that they would just have to trust him.
\_|_/
Team Avatar…
The rest of the team had come down from the rock formation and was standing around Aang. Some of the Sandbenders removed the wrappings from their heads. An older looking man looked over each of the team and questioned, "What are you all doing in our lands with a Sandbender sailor?
"And from the looks of it, you stole it from the Hami tribe." He noticed when he looked over it. Thor then explained by saying, "We knew nothing of where the Sand sailor had come from."
"We found it abandoned in the desert." Katara added. Then gesturing to Aang at the back she said, "We're traveling with the Avatar."
This surprised the head of the Sandbenders, but kept silent about it for the time being. Looking to the Avengers of the group he asked, "And them?"
"They're heroes from a different dimension." Toph said when she turned her head to Clint, who was conveniently standing next to her. The Sandbenders gave them all skeptical looks as they had a hard time believing her. Katara then explained, "We had come to desert with a professor, but soon after our bison had been stolen and we really need to get to Ba Sing Se."
"You dare accuse our people of theft, while you ride in on a stolen sand sailor?" A young man next to the leader angrily accused. Toph's eyes narrowed when she thought of the young man's voice. Natasha shook her head, "Okay, first off, none of us said anything about the Sandbenders.
"We only said that we found the sand sailor abandoned." Clint added when he crossed his arms. The young Sandbender looked as if he were about to say something when the leader snapped, "Quiet, Ghashiun. They are correct that no one has accused our people of anything.
"And if they speak the truth, then it is our job to give them hospitality." He added. Ghashuin hung his head and apologized, "I'm sorry, Father."
Suddenly, Thor and Toph's eyes widened when she suddenly recognized Ghashiun's voice. Her eyes narrowed again when she quietly said, "You guys, I recognize the son's voice."
"As do I." Thor gave a small nod. They said at the same time, "He's the one who stole Appa from us."
"Are the two of you sure?" Katara asked Toph. The Earthbender was sure when she said, "I never forget a voice."
"I remember it when he taunted me." Thor said before spinning Mjolnir in his hand. It seemed to be enough for one as a gust of wind was kicked up by Aang's rage. He walked forward and angrily said, "You stole Appa.
"Where is he? What did you do to him?" He questioned and pointed his staff at Ghashiun. Feeling a little nervous, Ghashiun looked to his father and pointed at the group, "They're lying. They are the thieves!"
"Uh, I wouldn't recommend doing that." Bruce shook his head. It seemed to be true as Aang wasn't in the mood for games. With a yell, Aang swung his staff and sent an air wave at one of the other sand sailors. Everyone watched in surprise and fear as the air wave struck and completely obliterated the sand sailor. Everyone on Team Avatar looked to each other with worry that Aang was starting to take it too far. Aang turned to the Sandbenders and his eye brows twitched with fury when he questioned, "Where is my bison?"
\_|_/
Zuko's Group…
The streets were hardly crowded as the door to the flower shop opened up. The young man who had gotten the passports for the three came walking out with a large cart that had three tall potted plants. He seemed to be straining a bit from how heavy they were, but managed to pull it through the door and down the street. The other young man closed the door behind him. Xin Fu and Master Yu walked past the man with the cart and walked right up to the door to the flower shop. With a single hand, Xin Fu forced the door open and the force of slam caused a potted plant to fall from its hanging point. Xin Fu saw the man sweeping and said, "Hey, you!
"Where are these men?" He questioned when he raised the wanted posters. He knew it to be true when he added, "I got a tip that all three of them are in your shop."
"As far as you can see." The man said, acting innocent. He gestured to the rest of the room and said, "No one is here but us three."
"We know all about your secret back room." Master Yu disagreed. Looking to his companion he said, "Kick the door down."
Xin Fu smirked as he thought it fun and rushed forward to do just that. The young man protested, "Hey! That room is for flowers only."
Xin Fu gave a flying kick to the door and knocked it off of its hinges, and out of the wall. The two were surprised to see that there was no one in the room. When he walked in, Master Yu happened to notice something on the floor and seemed distressed, "Some unlucky soul has an incomplete Pai Sho set."
Master Yu picked up the tile on the floor and inspected it. He saw that it was a white lotus tile. When he turned to his companion, Xin Fu knocked it out of his hand with a growl. The tile clacked against the floor as it bounced to the side. Deciding to let it go he said, "Let's just go back to finding the girl."
"Perhaps that would be wise." A voice from behind said. They looked to the broken door to see the old man from the oasis tavern standing there. And in his hands he was holding a broom. He didn't seem too happy when he said, "I want you two hooligans out of here right now."
"And if we don't?" Xin Fu questioned with a smug grin. The old man surprised them by rushing at them with the broom raised. He swatted at the two Earthbenders and they yelled as they tried to get away from him. The old man managed to run them out of the building before standing at the man door. Setting the broom head on the ground he said, "That ought to teach them some manners."
He spit on the ground before walking back inside.
…
Outside of the town, the man had climbed over a few dunes. The flowers of the potted plants lifted up to reveal that Iroh, Zuko and Tony were all hiding within the vases. Iroh and Tony looked to each other with grins while Zuko remained silent. Deciding to keep up the disguise for a little longer, they ducked back down into the vases.
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Team Avenging Avatar…
No one had moved as they continued to watch Aang's destructive behavior. Aang demanded of them, "You tell me where he is right now!"
When no one said anything, he swung his staff again and it sent out another air wave. Everyone watched in fear as it flew right by them. The air wave hit another of the other sand sailors and completely destroyed it as well. Seeing that it was getting out of hand, Steve ran ahead of Aang and said, "Okay, I think that you've made your point. But it isn't helping."
"I won't rest until they tell me where Appa is." Aang said and started to move around Steve. But the super soldier moved to stand in his way and said, "Aang. I don't want to fight you. But I won't let you hurt these people."
"Get out of my way, Steve." Aang glared as his grip on his staff tightened a bit. The other Avengers looked to each other before nodding in agreement. They all quickly moved to stand beside Steve. Aang looked between them all in disbelief and anger before shouting, "GET OUT OF MY WAY!"
With a twirl and then a swing, he created a wave of air to trip them up. But a bash from Thor's hammer against the ground caused sand to fly up and stop the attack. The other Avengers started to fan around Aang to cover him from all sides.
From the back, Ghashiun's father looked to him and questioned, "What did you go and do?"
"It wasn't me, I swear." Ghashiun shook his head. Bruce's head suddenly lifted up when he said, "You know, I think I'm a little tired of your lies.
"How about you start telling the truth." He suggested as his skin started to turn green. Steve looked to his friend and said, "Easy, Bruce."
"Why should I take it easy?" Bruce angrily questioned as he transformed into the Hulk. Steve looked to Thor and said, "Be prepared to keep him from hurting anyone."
"Aye." Thor nodded. Bruce then said, "And whose to say that it isn't the Hulk voicing his say in the matter."
With a stomp he turned and roared at the Sandbenders. They all cried out in fear. Toph, still feeling bad that she had let Aang down, remembered when she revealed, "And Ghashiun said to put a muzzle on him."
"You muzzled Appa?" Aang angrily questioned to the Sandbender. Suddenly, he couldn't take it anymore as his eyes and tattoos started glowing. Ghashiun became very afraid when Aang took a stance. But instead of attacking the young man, Aang sent another destructive wave of air towards the final sand sailor. It destroyed the vehicle in one go. Steve, really worried, looked to Aang and said, "Aang! You need to stop, now!"
"MOVE!" Aang said with a distorted voice before sending out a wave of air that knocked all five Avengers away from him. They all lifted their heads to see Aang point his staff at Ghashiun again and the Sandbender tried to apologize, "I'm sorry! I didn't know that he belonged to the Avatar!"
"TELL ME WHERE APPA IS!" Aang shouted with the distorted voices of the Avatars. Clint looked to the Sandbender and urged, "Make if fast, man!"
"I traded him to some merchants. He's probably in Ba Sing Se by now." Ghashiun explained to Aang. But the Airbender's eyes narrowed as he didn't like the sound of what he was hearing, "They were planning on selling him there.
Seeing that it wasn't appeasing him, all the Sandbenders became fearful. Ghashiun then tried to appease Aang by saying, "Please, we'll escort you all out of the desert. We'll help however we can."
But it didn't seem to work as the air started to get much stronger from Aang. Sokka grabbed a shocked Toph's arm and shouted to everyone, "Just get out of here! Run!"
He, Toph and the Sandbenders started running as a dome of air formed around Aang. The Avengers rose to their feet and Steve shouted, "Aang! You need to stop!"
"While your anger is reasonable, it isn't helping you or anyone!" Clint added. But it fell on deaf ears as a large sand cloud formed around the dome and both started to expand. Steve looked between everyone, but didn't know exactly how to handle the situation. They knew that they had to stop Aang, but they didn't know what to do without hurting the Airbender. The large sand cloud started covering everything as it grew. Inside the dome, Aang started to rise off the ground and Katara raced to stop him. Aang looked as if he were ready to fully release his fury on the world. But before he could do anything, a hand reached up and grabbed his right arm. Aang sharply turned with a glare to see a sympathetic looking Katara looking back up at him. She was able to reach up and grab his other arm before gently pulling him back down to the ground. When his feet touched the ground again, Katara pulled Aang into an embrace to comfort him.
Everyone lowered their arms from bracing themselves and looked to the two. Tears flowed from Aang's eyes as he was greatly hurting on the inside. Tears started flowing from Katara's eyes too when she could only imagine the pain that he was going through. Everyone of the group watched as the sand storm was starting to die down. When the sand settled and the dome disappeared, Aang's Avatar State faded. He moaned in sorrow as his glare finally dropped.
The others came up to them and placed a comforting hand on either Aang or Katara's shoulders to show that they were there for the young Airbender.
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Somewhere in deep space…
A ship flew the vast cosmos. It was orange and blue in color and it had been newly rebuilt for the umpteenth time. Inside the ship, a man in a red coat, a woman with a green skin, a man with green skin, a little baby tree that looked like a toddler, a raccoon in an orange jumpsuit and a girl in a green jumpsuit with antennae on her head sat in the cockpit. The human man looked to the green alien warrior sitting next to him and asked, "What's on your mind, Gamora?"
"Hm?" Gamora said when she looked up. The man said, "You looked to be in deep thought about something."
"Even though I'm not using my powers, you seem to be uncertain about something." The woman with the antennae on her head put in. Gamora looked to her friends and said, "I suppose you're right."
"Well?" The raccoon said, feeling a little impatient about it when she didn't say anything out right. He gestured for her to say it, "Spit it out."
"I am Groot." The little tree said, making the raccoon look to him. The raccoon said, "I know that I've got to give her some time to talk, Groot, but we can't help her if she doesn't say anything."
"Just take it easy, Rocket." The man driving said. Looking to Gamora he said, "Okay, Gamora. What's on your mind?"
"It's about a planetoid that Thanos was once interested in." Gamora said and gazed out the window. She got up from her seat and Rocket asked, "So, what's so special about this planet that would warrant the attention of one the biggest homicidal maniacs of the universe?"
"Mostly because there are the kind of people who are kind of like him." Gamora answered. The man flying the ship put it on autopilot before getting up to follow after her. Rocket, Groot, the girl with the antennae and the man with green skin also got up and followed after her.
In another part of the ship, Gamora was looking on a screen. She scrolled through planet after planet after planet before coming on one that seemed to be what she was looking for. She turned to the others and pointed, "This is the planet."
"There aren't that many continents on it." The man observed as he walked over to the screen. He looked to Gamora and asked, "So, what exactly is the problem?"
"All I know Peter, is that this planet is engulfed in war that began a hundred years ago." Gamora said as she stared at the planet. She didn't look away when she said, "And I know that Thanos had a hand in it, somehow."
"If Thanos' influence is a part of the conflict, then we should go to help resolve it." The man with a green skin urged. Gamora looked back to him and shook her head, "It's not that simple, Drax.
"The war could be over by now." She thought. Rocket leapt up onto the table and said, "So what? You've started having a bad feeling about this place and now you're not even going to go?"
"That's not what she said." Peter shook his head. The girl with the antennae interjected, "That's how it was sounding."
"Mantis." Peter sighed. Gamora seemed to be thinking and Groot said, "I am Groot."
"Wait, what?" Rocket asked the little tree boy. He helped Groot onto the table and translated, "You think it wouldn't hurt to go there?"
"I am Groot." Groot nodded and looked to Gamora. Peter looked to her and asked, "What do you think, Gamora?"
"Maybe it wouldn't hurt to go." Gamora thought aloud. But then she looked to them and said, "But I haven't been to the planet. Only read about in files from Thanos' archives."
"Eh, then it'll be a new experience." Peter shrugged with a grin. Rocket gave a skeptical look when he said, "Usually when we get new experiences, we're either getting shot at or dying."
"But that's just how we are." Drax pointed out. Rocket sighed and shrugged that he was willing to go along with it. Peter smiled and said, "Looks like we have ourselves a heading."
With that in mind, he quickly made his way to the cockpit of the Milano to get them going.
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This story's dedication to:
Stan Lee: 1922 – 2018
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Author's Note: Not as long as the last chapter, but still a big part of the story. I do apologize that I didn't show Spider-man's new suit. Don't worry, that will come later in the story. And yes, I am adding the Guardians of the Galaxy to this story. However, they will the be the last additions for Book 2. And they won't be seen until we're deep in the Ba Sing Se part of the story. Well, they're the last heroes to come in for Book 2. I am thinking of adding some more villains to the story. But don't worry, there are a few more heroes that will come later in the series and I'll explain when I get there. I look forward to reading your reviews. Be sure to leave a comment either about if I've done something wrong or if you want something specifically to happen. See you next time.
