Yo, How's it going. Welcome back.
"Okay, so how about this. You guys let me go, and I'll teach you how to make a stink bomb." Trinity's voice jumped as the rhino ran at top speed through the woods.
"Oh, that sounds intriguing! What does that do?" Iroh mused.
"It's a bomb that smells like wet diaper and skunk. It can clear a building if you make it right."
"Hmm, I see, and what is the purpose of these bombs?"
"I used them as a prank. Put them in people's bags and whatnot. It ruins clothing and cars apparently."
"Would you two keep quiet!? I've heard enough of your babbling!" Zuko snapped.
The three of them had been riding through the bamboo forest for thirty minutes. During that time, Trinity tried talking her way out of the situation more times than she could count. Unfortunately for her, there was no Allen to help her bailout, and running wasn't an option at the moment. At the very least, the man in front of her was only bad-tempered, not outwardly violent. She wasn't ignored the entire time with Iroh entertaining her crazy ideas. Zuko, on the other hand, was none too happy.
"Well, I wouldn't be babbling if you didn't tie my hands together and capture me!"
"We will let you go if you have no use to us. If you can help us capture the Avatar, then…"
"I told you for the umpteenth time; I don't know what an Avatar is!" Trinity lightly bumped his shoulder with her head. The momentum caused Zuko to slide forward on the rhino. She hissed due to her previous injury.
"Your lies will not fool me," Zuko snapped, turning his head to her scooting back up on the rhino.
"I promise you I'm not lying. I don't even see a benefit to lying to you at this point," Trinity groaned, her head slightly ringing.
"Maybe we should hold on the hostility, for now, the ship is just ahead of us," Iroh interrupted as the rhino slowed.
They approached a large black pointed ship docked on the ocean shore. The group came to a stop at the front of the ship opened up, steam leaking from the corners. Two soldiers in red and black armor and white masks ran down the ramp grabbing the rains of the rhino, walking it forward.
"Never mind about the stink bombs." Trinity frowned, waving her head back and forth, trying not to smell the steam.
"You get used to it," Iroh chuckled.
The rhino made its way up the ramp reaching the top. A soldier in the same armor ran up to greet them, "Prince Zuko, General Iroh, you've returned."
"Yes, and I want this ship, full steam ahead to Roku's Island. The Avatar is headed there," Zuko ordered, hopping off the rhino.
"Hey, what are you going to do with me, huh? Have I proven that I'm completely useless yet?" Trinity slightly struggled with the rope around her wrists. Zuko turned and glared at her, "And throw her in a cell!"
"Yes, sir," the soldier responded, grabbing Trinity off of the rhino.
"Hey, C'mon! You're not going to question him at all! No, who is she? Where did she come from? Why did you capture this poor unwilling girl who has nothing to do with anything!?" Trinity shouted as she was carried away. She was roughly thrown into a dark red room with a metal bench chained to the wall, the only light being two torches on either side of the wall. Trinity started pacing the small room. "Okay, okay, I'm locked in a cell on a ship. I'm about to go sailing most likely thousands of miles away from where I need to be." Sucking in a big gulp of air before letting out in one big groan, she flopped on the floor. "Fuck me. I need to get out of here." She looked around the metal room. There were no windows to break nor cracks or holes to breakthrough. The only thing she had to work with was the barred door. Breaking doors wasn't hard though she had never had to deal with a large metal one before. Never the less, all of them had one weakness; the hinges. Looking at the pins, they weren't welded, which meant she could very effortlessly bring down this door. She just needed the right tools; some kind of blunt object and screwdriver. First things first, though, the ropes around her wrists needed to go. She looked at the metal bench on the wall. The edges seemed just sharp enough to work.
Iroh quickly made his way to his room to change into some clothes. He hoped that he could free the mysterious girl from the cell she was thrown in before she became too scared or angry to corporate. After dressing in his clothes, he hurried down to the cells of the ship at the same pace as the soldiers running around doing various things. Just as he reached the cells, one of the doors fell with a loud crash startling him. Trinity poked her head out the open doorway to the blinking Iroh. She slowly stepped out of the room. "Sorry about that. It was a bit more dramatic than I thought."
"You took down the door?" Iroh stammered, still a bit shocked.
"I-I can fix it," she stammered in a small voice expecting to be yelled at and thrown in another cell.
"That is quite extraordinary!" Iroh walked around the doorway, looking up and down. "How did you do it?"
Trinity walked into the cell and pointed at the hinges, "Well, every hinge on a door is relatively the same. If you can remove the pins from the knuckles, then the door has nothing to hold on to so…wait, you're not mad?"
"In all my years, I have never seen someone break down a door like this without bending. I cannot be anything but amazed." Iroh circled around the door looking inside the room. The ropes that restrained her were cut, the metal bench was broken off its restraints. One of the long sharp metal bolts holding the chain to the wall was on the ground. This time it was Trinity's turn to be slightly shocked. "Oh…well um…okay." She wasn't used to being complimented on destroying things. In fact, she wasn't used to being complimented at all. It was all a bit awkward, to say the least.
"Well, you certainly can't say here any longer," he chuckled, turning back to her, "come with me." Trinity silently followed behind, still a little enamored that Iroh was amazed at her destruction.
"How are you fairing?"
Trinity's face flattened, "Doing as well as anybody who's been captured against their will."
"I am sorry for my nephew's hostility. He is not very good at asking permission."
"I noticed."
"How about your head? Do you wish to see a medic?"
"No, I'm fine. I've got a pretty thick skull." All the times of being teleported to the forest headfirst flashed through her mind. The flying rock wasn't so bad.
"Well, I hope we haven't upset you too much. I would like the opportunity to explain if you'll allow me the honor."
"Uh, sure."
The duo passed narrow metal halls with steam leaking through every corner. Trinity was already starting to sweat. They made their way up to the control room, where at least ten people were running around fiddling with different knobs and levers. Zuko was marching around the small room, barking orders to every living thing that entered his sight. Iroh walked in and pulled out a small table and a tea set while Trinity stepped in and off to the side.
"Uncle, what are you doing? This is no time for tea!"
"If Trinity is going to help us find the Avatar, she must at least understand what he is."
"We don't have time for that Uncle we have too..."
"The Avatar is miles ahead of us, Prince Zuko. I'm sure you can direct the crew until he is spotted."
Zuko let out a frustrated growl smoke leaking from between his teeth. Never the less he marched out of the room, yelling at the unfortunate soul who happened to pass by at the same time. "Please take a seat. Would you like some tea?" Iroh pointed to the other side of a table. Trinity sat on a pillow next to the table with a confused look, "I don't really like tea, but thanks."
Iroh looked up in shock. Trinity gave a confused look then looked around her to see what he was so shocked about. "You okay?" she asked, still perplexed. Iroh shook his head and sighed, walking over to the other side of the table, sitting down. "It is a shame you have the same opinion about tea as my nephew."
"I-I'm sorry?" It came out more like a confusing question than a genuine apology. "No, no. There is no need to apologize," he said, pouring himself some tea. "Tell me, what do you know about bending?"
"You mean making a straight thing into a curved thing."
"No."
"Bending over?"
Iroh responded by making a fireball in his hand and putting it under his cup, causing the tea to boil. "This is bending."
Trinity didn't know how long she stared at the old man. This was the kind of thing she'd only seen in movies and TV shows. Her mind tried to come up with a reasonable explanation for the magic fire, something up his sleeve, or maybe a powder. Then she thought when they were captured only yesterday. The man had produced flames from his bare feet with nothing hidden. Come to think of it, the guys in green made rocks move on their own as well. Her head began to throb when basic logic wasn't answering her questions.
"Wha? How?"
Iroh held up his hand with a gentle smile, "Before I go into explaining, I would like to apologize to you." Iroh looked around the room before speaking again. "I do not truly know if you have a connection to the Avatar or not, but it was the only way I could get my nephew to bring you on the ship." He put his left fist against his open right palm and bowed. "I do hope you accept my apology."
Trinity started blinking for a second before responding, "Uh, it's fine, really. As long as I can get home, but why did you want me on this ship, to begin with?"
"There are a couple of reasons." Iroh set his cup down and reached over for a scroll sitting on a nearby shelf. He rolled out the parchment to reveal a map that had one colossal landmass surrounded by smaller islands. Individual landmasses had different colors that matched the colors of four symbols on each corner of the scroll.
"Well, this is very different." The map looked nothing of the world she was from at all. There was always the suspicion that she was no longer in the world she grew up in, but it was never confirmed. Trinity never left the forest. Hell, she barely would let the temple get out of sight. In her mind, this place was a dream state. A place to go when she blacked out in the real world. That forest expanding into an entire world with people and places caused her stomach to twist.
"So you truly are lost," he stated, staring at Trinity stare blankly at the map. He recognized the misplaced look in her eyes.
"I have no reason to lie to you," she mumbled, still staring at the map.
Iroh sipped his tea again before responding, "When we were captured by the Earth Kingdom soldiers, you seemed confused by familiar landmarks and basic knowledge. For example, Ba-Sing-Se."
"I still don't know what that is."
Iroh pointed to a large circle to the north-east on the map. "It is the capital of the Earth Kingdom."
"And the Earth Kindom is?"
"One of the four nations. There are four nations in the world, the water tribes," Iroh pointed at the north and South Pole. "The earth kingdom," he traced to the vast continent and three smaller islands to the south of that. "The air nomads," he pointed to clusters of mountainous islands at the north, south, east, and west. "And the fire nation," he led to more massive isles of the west.
Trinity rubbed her temples to appease the oncoming headache. It was simple enough to understand, but the fact that she was no longer in her own world was still hammering her skull. "So, you picked me up because I don't know common knowledge? I don't mean to be rude, but I feel like that's not a good enough reason."
"You are correct, but there was one other thing that solidified my decision. You also saw the spirit fly above our head when we were captured by those soldiers."
"Spirit?" She thought for a minute then looked up at him, "That long snake thing flying through the air?"
"They can't be seen by most people. You seeing one is quite rare."
Trinity couldn't find the words to respond. Not only was she in a new world, but she was able to see spirits. Thinking about it now, seeing apparitions wasn't too shocking. The purple lady had always been a ghost that only she could see. It made sense that in this place, where she assumed the purple woman was from, that there would be others. Though it wasn't shocking, it didn't bring any comfort. Having more than one spirit following her around, potentially knocking her out, was trouble. The only solution she could think of was getting further away, the more this ship sailed. Trinity looked back down at the map. There was no way she could get back to the temple if she didn't even know where she was. "Where are we now?"
Iroh pointed to a small forest near a mountain range and led to a crescent island. "This is where we are headed. The Avatar should be headed in the same direction."
There was another term used regularly, that had no meaning in her dictionary. She remembered the angry guy saying she could help them find it. "Is that another spirit, like that snake thing?" It was the only logical explanation of why they would want her.
"Not necessarily. He is greatly connected to spirits and the spirit world. Which is why..."
"You think I can help you find him."
Iroh nodded, sipping his tea again. If her head weren't hurting from the previous discoveries, it would have started ten fold then. Too many questions ran through her head.
"So, you guys are trying to capture him?"
"Yes."
"Because he's important?"
"His capture would put an end to this war."
"There's a war too!?" Trinity smacked her palms against her temples several times before continuing. "So you guys are going to use him to end a war. I'm assuming the other nations, kingdoms, and tribes are trying to capture him as well. Like a power struggle thing?"
"The fire nation is fighting against the other three. We are the only ones trying to capture the Avatar." Iroh took a sip of his tea before explaining, "The only way to end the war is to capture him. Prince Zuko has been tasked with the important duty of capturing him and bringing him back to the fire nation. It seems that you have a connection to the spirit world. The Avatar is the bridge between the spirit world and the mortal world. You may be able to connect with him somehow and help us find him."
Trinity's eye twitched as she stared at Iroh, mouth agape. "So let me this get this straight." She leaned over the table, "You fire guys are at war with three other nations based on elements?"
"Correct."
"And the only way you guys can win is if you capture this Avatar person?"
Iroh nodded.
"And you think I can find him somehow?"
"Among other things, yes, that is what I believe."
Trinity stared blankly at Iroh, "Are you freakin' nuts!" She stared at Iroh with utter shock. There was no way she could help them capture this guy. She could barely do day to day tasks without passing out. "I don't even know what this guy looks like. Even if I can see spirits, you obviously can to so I don't see the reason why I'm needed. Not to mention that you and apparently everyone else can somehow manipulate elements. Can this Avatar guy do the same?"
"He will be capable of bending all four."
"Great, so if I do get close to this dude, won't he just blast me with fire? Or maybe he'll crush me with a rock-like those green guys."
"The Avatar has not learned the other elements yet. He only knows air bending for now."
"Well, I guess that's better than being blasted with fire, but I still don't see how I can help you guys capture him." Trinity threw her hands up in protest. Iroh began to roll the map back up, "Well..." The two were interrupted when the door behind them busted open,
"General Iroh, you've been summoned to the front of the deck, the Avatar has been spotted."
"Ah, yes, follow me."
Trinity tentatively stood, following Iroh down some stairs. A blast of cold air and the smell of ocean water hit her when the door to outside opened. The ship was charging forward at full speed through the open ocean while Zuko looked through a spyglass in front of them. Trinity stayed behind Iroh, squinting to see what Zuko was looking at but didn't see anything. The two men began to talk when she felt something, almost like a pulse coming from the sky. She rubbed the side of her head with her hand. Though the feeling wasn't enough to worsen her headache, it did make her try to find the source of this weird feeling. She squinted at the sky and saw something flying around up there.
"What is that? The big fluffy thing in the sky?" Trinity asked, her voice slightly strained.
Zuko moved the spyglass back and forth until he found what he was looking for. "There they are! Helmsman, full steam ahead!"
The strange feeling got stronger as they got closer. Now the sensation was starting to worsen the headache. The pulsing was going in rhythm with the mild pounding in Trinity's head. She slowly backed up to the wall next to the door and slid down, rubbing her head. Iroh, who was fanning away the stench of the fireballs, turned to see Trinity hunkered down in the corner. He trotted over to her, "Are you alright?" he said, putting a hand on her shoulder. Trinity's head shot up, glanced at Iroh, then the up at the sky. "Y-yeah, just a bit of a headache. Probably from the hit yesterday."
"Hmm…" Iroh looked up at Zuko, who was gawking at a blockade dead ahead of them. "Technically, you are still in Earth Kingdom waters. Turn back now, and they cannot arrest you." Zuko glared at Iroh then turned to look back.
"He's not turning around," Zuko growled.
"Please, Prince Zuko, if the Fire Nation captures you, there is nothing I can do. Do not follow the Avatar!" Zuko lowered his head. "I'm sorry, Uncle," he whispered to himself. He turned to the helmsman, pointing forward, "Run the blockade!" Iroh let out a disappointed sigh then turned back to Trinity. She was now standing, rubbing her temples with her fingers. He walked over to her, "Are you feeling any better now?"
"Little bit, I'm kinda getting over it."
"Maybe you have more of a connection than previously believed?"
"I don't have any connecting power thing. It's from the rock that hit me yesterday. I'll be fine."
"That is also possible. Would you like to see the doctor on the ship?"
"Nah, it will go away. I think the info dump and the speeding ship made it worse."
The ship suddenly shook violently along with a loud boom and explosion. Billows of black smoke poured from the top of the vessel and up in the air. "Prince Zuko, the engines are damaged! We need to stop and make repairs," an engine worker shouted.
"Do not stop this ship," he ordered. The ships causing the blockage continued to launch fireballs in the Avatar's direction and just barely missing Zuko's ship. The boat approached the Fire Navy's blockade. As Zuko's vessel gets closer, the ships of the blockade move towards each other to bar his way.
Iroh's eyes widened, "We're on a collision course!"
"We can make it!" Zuko shouted back.
"Well, this isn't exactly how I imagined I would die," Trinity grumbled. Hell, maybe she'd wake up in the real world after impact, like a dream.
"Me neither," Iroh quipped back, making Trinity snort out a laugh.
The blocking ships suddenly started moving, opening a path for Zuko's boat to pass through. Iroh looked at the blockade, fading into the distance, looking pensive as he strokes his beard. "What is he thinking?"
"Well that was anticlimactic, was getting ready to blow up. Had my will ready and everything." Trinity leaned over the rail, watching the ships disappear.
"Are you feeling any better?" Iroh placed a hand on her back, his face riddled with concern. She gave a small smile,
"There's still a little bit of a buzz there, but it's starting to go away. When the ship was hit, we slowed down. I think that helped." Trinity turned, watching the billows of smoke escape from the ship. Several of the crew were running around in a panic, trying to correct the problem.
Zuko leaned on the rail of the ship, his hands clenched tight. "What's he up to, Uncle? Why didn't Commander Zhao arrest me?"
"Because he wants to follow you. He knows you'll lead him to the prize you're both after...the Avatar."
"I can't let him catch the Avatar."
Trinity listened to the duo while watching the crew run around with different tools, buckets of water, and fans attempting to fix the engine fire. Each wave of a fan or splash of water caused more smoke to pour out of the ship. "Uh, hey, I know I'm new and everything, but if someone's following you, they'll be able to find you pretty quick with all that smoke."
"I know that!" Zuko shouted back.
"Okay, geez, calm down. Just attempting to help," Trinity stated, holding her hands in the air, looking away. All three went silent before Zuko spoke again.
"Well then, If Zhao wants to follow our trail of smoke, then that's exactly what I'll let him do." He turned to the crew still on the deck
"Open the back hatch and lower a small boat," he yelled, marching back into the ship, Iroh followed after him.
Trinity stood there for a second, looking around to see no one there anymore. "Oh, I guess I should follow then." Before Trinity reached them, the pulse in her head began again, and it was getting stronger. She rubbed her head, "It's just the head injury from yesterday. I can't sense anything. I'm a normal pers…well, slightly normal person." She ran into Iroh and Zuko halfway down the hall, following them down to the bottom of the ship. A smaller ship was being lowered into the ocean with Zuko on it.
"Uncle, keep heading north. Zhao will follow the smoke trail while I use it as a cover." Iroh let out a grunt as he stroked his beard. "And you, you're coming with me," he pointed at Trinity.
"Why in the seven hell's would I go with you?"
"I know the Avatar is headed to temple, but I don't know where in the temple. That's where you will help," Zuko growled, walking back up the ramp.
"Oh my god, I have told you I cannot find this dude. What is wrong with you people?" Zuko marched behind her and began to tie her hand together.
"Are you seriously tying me up again? This is completely unnecessary! I'll go with you, okay."
"Maybe this is a bit excessive, Prince Zuko."
"She's our prisoner, Uncle, I'm not going to give her the chance to escape." Zuko began to push her down the ramp.
"Who said I'm trying to escape?" They both got onto the ship, and Zuko set sail for the island only a few miles away. The closer they sailed, the stronger the pulse in Trinity's got. Her skin started to pull again as she closed her eyes tight, shook her head.
"You can feel him, can't you?" Zuko grumbled, focusing on the controls for the boat.
"Why do you guys keep thinking that?"
"Uncle told me about your headache on the ship when we spotted the Avatar, and now it's happening again as we sail closer to him."
"I told your Uncle, it was the head injury from yesterday."
"You didn't get hit that hard!" He snapped.
"What? I was knocked unconscious. How is that not that hard?" Zuko refused to answer, only grumbling to himself. The ship went silent as they both glared in opposite directions.
"Hey, can you untie me?" she groaned, pulling at the ropes around her wrists. They were still a little sore from the last two times she was tied up, and these ropes weren't helping the mild irritation.
"No."
"Why not?"
"I don't trust you."
"Okay, I get that, but what could I possibly do to you? You have fire powers, and even if you didn't, it's not like I could beat you up. You're covered in armor."
"We're getting close." Zuko started messing with some controls on the small ship.
"Please?"
Zuko stayed silent.
"C'mon, man, this is unnecessary. I won't run. I don't even know where I would go if I did."
"Keep quiet!" Zuko yelled.
Trinity huffed and looked away. As soon as she stopped talking, she felt the pulse in her head. Her skin felt hot and cold at the same time. The closer they got to the island, the more heat barreled down on them. The increased temperature didn't help the throbbing headache that was getting worse. She shook her head again, trying to get it to go away. It was getting harder to breathe. Trinity had to concentrate on making sure air got into her lungs.
As he docked the ship on the shore. He pulled down the ramp, and both of them walked down. "You couldn't park this thing any closer?"
"We'll have to run. C'mon," Zuko said, taking off in a sprint.
"What hey, I can't run very well with my arms tied up. Get back here!" They both began to sprint to the building only for Trinity to stop halfway. With her head pounding, hands tied behind her back, and the ever-increasing heat making it hard to breathe, there was no way she could run any further.
"Hey, listen, man," she said, panting and out of breath. "I'm a runner, but this," she paused to try and catch her breath again. "This is too much. Can we take five or something?"
Zuko stopped and glared back at her, "We don't have time for this. Stop complaining and climb," he snapped, staring his trek back up the mountain.
Trinity followed behind. This guy was impossible. She'd die of heatstroke before they could get anywhere near this tower. Maybe if she could find a way to untie herself, but how? She thought for a second. Zuko tied her up because he didn't trust her, and the only thing he wants is this Avatar person. A light bulb went off in her head almost instantly. "Okay, so how about we make a deal?"
Zuko didn't stop trudging up the mountain but turned toward her, "What are you talking about?"
"Well, if, and I do mean if, I can track this guy and I help you catch him, you have to bring me back to the stone building."
"How do I know you won't just run away?" This time he did stop his march still looking over to her.
"You have my word I won't try to run or anything until you catch him, alright?"
Zuko didn't answer just grumbled under his breath, beginning to walk up again. Her eyes looked genuine enough, but there was still no way of knowing. To be honest, he didn't even know if this girl could help him find the Avatar or not. His uncle seemed to believe so. The only way to know was to bring her along until she proved otherwise.
"Well, is it a deal or not!?" Trinity yelled at him, stopping where she was ripping Zuko out of his thoughts. Usually, she could deal with hotheads like him, but it was burning, her head hurt, her body felt like it was ripping in two. This guy's attitude was the last thing she wanted to deal with.
"Fine, but only when I have the Avatar in my hands will I bring you back. Now keep moving."
The pulsing in her head was getting hard to ignore as they got closer to the building. The conversation was doing an excellent job of distracting her. She pulled against the ropes again, "And no more tying me up."
"What?"
"I don't wanna be tied up like a dog every time we go to look for this guy. I feel like that's reasonable."
"Fine, I won't tie you up anymore. Only if you're useful and if you don't run."
"And I don't want to stay in that cell either. If you got rooms on that stinky metal ship, I want one."
Zuko didn't answer again.
"Well, I guess I can't help if I can't get a room. I'll be way too uncomfortable sleeping on the cold metal floor..."
"Fine! You'll get what you want now would you shut up!"
She only nodded in response. Unfortunately, the silence caused her headache to come back only ten times worse. Her body almost felt like it was being pulled out of her skin. She tried counting the rocks below her feet, the clouds in the sky. She even tried counting how many beads of sweat that fell off of her face as they walked. Anything to take her mind off of her pounding head but to no avail. This was far worse than the headache on the ship. Something was wrong. Her vision started to flash white. As soon as they came to the front step of the temple, a pressure hit her like a rock. Falling to her knees, she found it hard to breathe. Her head felt like it was being crushed. It felt like her soul was being pulled from her body toward the top of the building. Zuko heard her hit the ground and turned quickly to her.
"What's wrong?" he asked, kneeling down on her level.
"U-up there. There's something up there," she gasped, looking toward the top of the temple. Zuko stood, immediately heading for the temple entrance, but stopped after a few steps. He looked back to see Trinity still on her knees, gasping for air. He growled out in frustration, turning around to untie her hands.
"Go back to the ship and wait there," he growled quickly, running inside. Trinity tried to brace herself with her arms, but they gave out, causing her head to hit the hot rock. The pressure coming from the top of the temple barreled down on her like a boulder. She couldn't move; she couldn't breathe, the world around her began to fade. Flashing images passed through her blinking eyes. An old man's voice echoed in her head as she lost consciousness.
Nathan parked his gray car at Trinity's school a little later than what he was supposed to. He got a bit sidetracked with visiting friends, completely forgetting he had to pick up his sister. Her class must have run later than usual, though, because she never called him at seven when it was done. Pulling out his phone, dialed Trinity's number, waiting for an answer. There was none. He tried a few more times to get the same result each time.
"Damn it, I keep telling her to pay attention to her phone," he grumbled to himself, exiting the car.
He straightened up his plaid button-up shirt and dusted off his blue jeans before walking up to the school building to find a young female teacher exiting through the front doors. "Uh, excuse me."
The young teacher jumped slightly, looking back at Nathan.
"Hello, sir, what can I do for you?" She was a bit frazzled straightening out her short hair, gripping her keys tight in her hands. It wasn't every day that a strange young man came up to her in the middle of the night right as she was leaving. Hopefully, this wasn't some crazy weirdo who had a thing for teachers.
"Do you know where the math tutoring class for seniors would be?" Nathan almost felt the need to put his hands up in submission. This woman looked like she was ready to attack at any wrong move.
Wolfe visibly relaxed, "Oh. Well, I guess it's my lucky day. That's my class. What can I help you with?"
"My sister, Trinity, is in your class. I'm here to pick her up, but she's not answering her phone. Is she still in the building?"
"Trinity never... Oh, you're her 'stick in the mud' brother she talks about?"
Nathan's face flattened. She was so dead after this. "Y-yeah, I'm the stick in the mud brother," he grumbled, rubbing the back of his head.
The teacher chuckled, "Well, she was supposed to meet me for a private lesson, but she never showed. I tried looking around, but I couldn't find her."
"Oh, she probably skipped out. She's really not a fan of the subject." Nathan imagined his sister was currently curled up in bed, snickering at his misfortune as he wasted his time.
"Yeah, I know all about her 'allergy to math' as she calls it, but she usually doesn't skip out on class." Wolfe was getting the small sinking feeling that Trinity's older brother wasn't a fan of his little sister. Maybe he just didn't understand her illness very well. Whenever she and Trinity spoke about her older brother, she never said much about him other than he was a bit of a bummer. Judging by his reactions, he thought the same in the opposite spectrum. "She really is a good kid," Wolfe added. She wanted to see how he would respond.
"Well, she is known for being unpredictable."
Wolfe raised an eyebrow. "Hmm, this might be a lot to ask, but can I give you my cell phone number? I'd like to know she's alright when you find her. If you're not comfortable with it, can you give it to your parents?"
"U-uh, sure, I can take it," Nathan sputtered, pulling his phone from his pocket, handing it to her. This was weird. Why would her teacher want to know about her whereabouts so bad? He had no doubt that she was at home.
"Please call me whether you find her or not. If I don't pick up just leave a message," Wolfe said as she entered her number into his phone.
Nathan nodded, "Yeah, will do. Thanks for the help." He glanced at his phone, seeing the name Stacy Wolfe with Trinity's teacher in parentheses. Giving a small wave, Nathan turned to leave for his car.
"And, young man," Wolfe called out to him.
Nathan looked up at the teacher, "Please go easy on your sister. Her life isn't easy, but she is trying.
He stared at the teacher for a second before nodding and turning entirely around to go to his car. As soon as he got in, he tried her number again to get no answer. "She is so dead," he mumbled to himself, pulling out of the parking lot.
Pulling into the driveway of his parents' house, he hopped out of the car and into the home. He couldn't make too much noise because his father was asleep upstairs, but he wanted nothing more than to sneak into her room and scare her awake. Although she did deserve it after making him drive all the way out there for nothing that would have to wait until next time. He quietly walked down the hall to her room, the same one they had when they were kids.
The door creaked as he pushed it open to a dark room. "Trinity. Hey, wake up," he whispered into the room. When he got no response, he slowly crept up to the bed then slammed his hands down on the sheets letting out a hushed yell. He, once again, got no response.
"What the?" He leaned over and turned on the lamp, sitting on the end table next to the bed. There was no one else in the room. He took a quick glance around the room before walking back out.
"Trin? Trinity, you in the house?" he shouted, making no effort to keep his voice quiet. He did a quick run around the house while calling her phone and her name several more times to get no answer. Panic started to set in like a dagger to the heart as he ran out to the backyard. "Trinity!?" He yelled, running around the yard to see if she was there. His heart sped up when her teacher swords echoed in his head. Call her whether he finds her or not. What did that mean exactly? With no luck outside, Nathan ran back inside and upstairs to his father's room and banged on the door.
"Dad! Dad, wake up, it's an emergency." He continued to bang on the door until it opened with a creak.
"What? What is it," Victor groaned.
"Was Trinity home when you got here?"
Victor let out a yawn, "No, you were supposed to pick her up from tutoring class, remember?"
"I know I went over there. Trinity's teacher said that she never showed up."
"What?"
"I came back here thinking she just went home, and I can't find her anywhere."
Victor pushed past Nathan and made his way downstairs, "And she's not answering her phone?"
"No, I've called her like twenty times," Nathan answered, following down the stairs.
Victor marched around the house, turning on lights and calling Trinity's name over and over again.
"Dad, I've already done this. She's not here."
Victor stopped in the middle of the hall and let out a frustrated sigh. "She must have blacked out somewhere," he huffed, walking over to the home phone and dialing a number. After a few rings, Ella picked up the phone, "Vic, I really can't take personal calls at work. You know this."
"Trinity's missing," he interrupted.
"What!? What happened!?"
"I'll give you the story later, but Nathan and I are going to the school to search the grounds. Is there any way you can come home?"
"I-I can ask, but you know how my boss is. Even in emergencies, he's kind of iffy."
"Listen, don't panic, okay. If you can get off work, that would be great; if not, then we'll meet up when you get off, alright."
"Yeah, that will work." He could tell her voice was shaking on the other end. It was always a double-edged sword by calling his wife about problems. She tended to panic when he told her things but yell at him if he didn't. This particular issue was severe enough to call her.
"Okay, I'll see you in a few hours, and don't worry, this isn't the first time this has happened. We'll find her just like last time." Victor kept his voice calm, trying to ease Ella's worries.
"Yeah, your right, I'll talk to you later."
"Bye, hon." Victor hung up the phone and flew past Nathan to go back upstairs.
"Let me throw something on, and we can leave." Nathan stood in the living room in shock. How could this happen? How did this go from scare his sister awake to Trinity is missing? Did his father say this has happened before? Why didn't he know about this? Victor's heavy footsteps down the stairs stopped the questions flying through his head.
"Let's go."
Within minutes the two men were speeding toward the school. Though the questions started back up in Nathan's head one minute after the car started, one continued to circulate. "So, this has happened before, her going missing like this?"
Victor sighed, "Yeah, last year. We went to a fair, and she went off to buy something; she didn't come back. Turns out, she blacked out in a closed part of the park where no one could see her."
Nathan didn't respond immediately. The thought of his sister being lost on a dirty fairground slightly enraged him. "And you guys never told me this because…"
"Because we know how much your sister's illness upsets you and you had just left for college. The last thing we wanted to do was burden you with all that."
Nathan stayed quiet then looked out the window. He was never one for questioning why people did things unless they affected him directly. This revelation, though, he struggled not to yell at his father. How could they not tell him about this? He had never imagined that his sister would get so bad to the point of disappearance.
"I'm sorry for not telling you," Victor added after a moment of silence. Nathan stayed quiet, still looking out the window. He tried to keep his breathing smooth. This was maddening. No wonder her teacher was so worried.
The two men pulled into the school driveway and climbed out of the car. "There are flashlights in the trunk. You go look around the building. I'll see if I can find a janitor or something to get inside. I have my phone if you find her."
Nathan nodded, grabbed a flashlight, and set on his way. He marched around the open schoolyard calling Trinity's name every few minutes in hopes that he might hear a response. After ten minutes of searching the front and the back of the school, Nathan came back around to see if his father had gone back to the car.
"He must have been able to get inside," he mumbled to himself, not seeing his father anywhere. Nathan stood by the car for a minute, not knowing what to do. Should he call his dad, maybe the police, or should he just stay at the car and wait.
Waiting seemed like the best option at the time. If Trinity wasn't outside, then she must be inside. Nathan leaned against the car with a sigh. He pulled out his phone. Maybe calling the police was the best option. A search party would do better in the dark than just him and his father. He slowly started to type in the numbers when a flash the woods. Nathan froze then shined the flashlight in the direction to see if anyone was there but saw nothing. Cautiously, he put the light back down and tried to go back to his phone, but then he saw it again. He slowly made his way over to the thicket of trees, shining the flashlight in front of him. The purple flicker of light grew as approached the woods. Nathan stepped into the woods following the glow. It was calling him as he walked almost in a daze. He followed the light until he found a clearing in the woods where it was coming from. Right in the dead center, his sister laid there still as stone, and right above her was the purple lady. She stood there in bright light, staring right at him. Nathan didn't know what to do. He hadn't seen the woman since he was a kid, and now there she was right in front of him. Was she real or his stressed mind playing tricks on him? What should he do? Should he charge for his sister? Should he call his father? Should he question her? Was this even real? All these thoughts ran through his head, but before he could do anything, she nodded at him and disappeared. Nathan stood, mouth agape for a minute, then made a dash for his sister.
He fell to the ground, scooping his limp sister into his arms, "Trinity? Hey, wake up. C'mon." She felt so cold. Laying her down on the ground, Nathan pressed his ear to her chest. A small amount of panic resided when he heard the slight sound of a heartbeat and air moving through her lungs. He readjusted her in his arms so he could pull out his phone. Victor answered, "Did you find her?"
"Yeah, I found her in the woods. She's not waking up."
"Shit. I'll call an ambulance. Can you get her to the car?"
"Y-yeah, I can carry her back." Nathan put his phone away, lifting his sister in her arms. He carried her to the car and set her into the passenger seat. Letting out a large puff of air, he looked at his sister. She was practically dead in the chair with leaves in her hair, mud smeared across the left side of her face and clothes. Nathan started to pick the leaves out of her hair.
"What happened to you?" He said to himself. After the leaves were out, he began to wipe the dirt away with his hand. "I wish I could help," he said softly. God, she was freezing. Nathan climbed in the seat with Trinity raping his arms around her. Her head rolled on to his shoulder like a lifeless doll placing her neck in an unnatural position. He adjusted her again, hoping to ease any strain when he heard his father trotting up behind him.
"Hey, how is she?" Victor panted, looking into the car.
"She's just..." Nathan let out another huff of air, rubbing his face with his hands. "She's just lying there, I mean...I don't know." He gently moved Trinity's body, so she was in the seat again and stepped to the side so his father could take a look at her.
He ran his hands through the short hair on his head, feeling weak and useless. It had been a long time since he'd seen his sister like this. Was this the point they were at? Finding her in the middle of the woods passed out. Worst of all, he felt like it was all his fault. If he had left when he was supposed to, she might not have been in this situation. Nathan turned back to the car he heard sirens in the background. Red and white lights filled the area as EMT's loaded up his sister and carted her off to the nearest hospital, Nathan just watched.
Victor trotted over to him, "Hey, your mom was able to take off work, we'll meet her at the hospital." The older man placed a hand on his son's shoulder, "You okay, bud?" Nathan didn't look at him, he just nodded and walked to the car.
Trinity's eyes shot open what seemed like seconds after losing conciseness. All the pain she was feeling was gone, but so was everything around her. A deep fog covered the terrain as well as the air she breathed. As she stood, the ground began to clear. A pointed mountain range started to make itself apparent to her surroundings. Just before she was about to call out for help, she heard a voice in the distance. Slowly Trinity walked toward the sound. They became more evident as she got closer. An old man and a kid, maybe? As she came closer to a clearing in the fog, she could see them. A boy in yellow and orange was speaking to an old man in deep red robes. She could only make out a small portion of their conversation.
"What if I have questions? How will I talk to you?" The boy seemed desperate for information.
"I am a part of you. When you need to talk to me again, you will find a way. A great danger awaits you at the temple. We can help you face the threat, but only if you are ready."
"We?"
"An ancient friend has found us. She will help." The man turned to her, looking directly into her hiding place. Trinity ducked, feeling her heart skip a beat. How did he know she was there? The boy turned to face her as well, looking equally confused.
"Of course," Trinity said unwillingly. She immediately put her hands to her mouth. That wasn't her. The voice that came out was different and unfamiliar. Her body began to feel weird again, like her skin was being pulled from her body. A purple light surrounded her as the old man spoke again.
"Are you ready, Aang."
The boy stared at her for a few moments longer before turning back to the old man, "I'm ready."
The fog around them swirled and thicken. Once Trinity could no longer see her own hands, her vision changed to a door opening with waves of fire heading directly toward her.
Zuko struggled against the chains around his body. This was not how this was supposed to go. How could he allow Zhao to catch him? Now his prize was about to be captured by his enemy, which made it worse. The giant doors began to open with a groan and a hiss. A blinding purple and blue light started to spill from the cracks. Zuko struggled again, turning away from the bright beams.
"Ready. Fire," Zhao ordered to his men!
He felt his heart sink when Zhao's men fired into the doorway. He had failed. Suddenly the fire sucked in, forming into a large ball. Zuko stopped struggling mouth agape. The boy he knew did not emerge from the door but Avatar Roku himself. The man glowed in blue and purple light, grabbing the fire and shooting it back at them. Heat flew at his face creating a familiar feeling of burning against his skin. The chains around his body loosed, turning to ash. Zuko wasted no time, breaking through the weak chains and running out of the building.
Though he was unable to capture the Avatar, getting caught by Zhao could not happen. Being killed by Avatar Roku wasn't on the agenda, either. He would lose all chances of getting honor back, getting his home again. He made his way through the entrance door only to find something that stopped him dead in his tracks. The girl, whom he couldn't remember the name of, was still lying on the ground, but she was glowing purple. He took a step closer to find there where swirly lines and different character markings all over her body that was emitting the purple glow. A loud boom from the building caused Zuko to snap back into action. He quickly scooped up the girl, running to the small ship. After the boat was on the waters, he turned to the limp girl. He first made sure she was still alive, listening for breath sounds and checking her pulse. After feeling a pulse, he then started to inspect the strange symbols littered all over her body.
The symbols were grouped in a way that almost looked like a giant tattoo similar to the Avatars. It started at her forehead down her head, branched out at the base of both ears, and created swirls on her cheeks. Going down the back, it branched again at her shoulder blades swirled her arms and to her fingertips. The stripes swirled down her legs to her toes as well. The characters inside the tattoo, Zuko couldn't read. They were ancient, he could make out a few words: fire, water, earth, air, and spirit.
He looked to see his ship close by, the front already open for him to dock, Iroh standing right at the opening. As his crew latched the small boat to the larger one pulling it in while Zuko scooped up Trinity and climbed off the vessel. "Get me the medic!" Zuko yelled at a random crew member. Iroh ran up to both of them. "What happened? I saw the temple fall."
"Zhao caught up with me somehow. He tried to turn me in, but the Avatar destroyed the temple allowing me to escape."
"I'm glad you are not hurt," Iroh said with a smile. "Though the same does not seem to be true with our new member here. What happened to her?"
"I don't know." Zuko set her down on the floor, her back against the wall. "She had some sort of attack right outside the doors of the temple. I told her to go back to the ship and wait for me there, but when I came out, she was passed out glowing like this."
"Hmm," Iroh knelt down, looking at the characters glowing on her body.
"What do they mean, Uncle?"
"These characters are ancient. It would take an expert to decipher what it means, though I do recognize some of them."
"Fire, water, earth, air, and spirit," Zuko said.
"Correct, it repeats quite a few times."
"Do you think it's connected to the Avatar?"
"That is hard to say. It very well could be, but I think it might be more complicated than that."
They both went silent, staring at Trinity. Slowly the glowing tattoo began to disappear, and she started to stir awake. She fluttered her eyes open to find the two men staring at her with wide eyes.
"Gah! What? What is it!?" She screamed, staring back with one eyebrow raised. Iroh placed a warm smile on his face while Zuko did the opposite, standing up.
"You're awake. How are you doing?"
"Fine, mostly." She turned her head side to side, looking around, "Though I don't remember how I got here."
"You don't remember what happened at the temple?" Zuko questioned.
Trinity shook her head, "Nope, I remember us walking up that huge hill, and then it felt like someone put a wooden stake through my head for like a split second, and now I'm here."
Iroh stroked his beard, "Hmm. That is very odd."
"Don't worry about it. It was probably just another blackout."
"Another? What does that mean?" Zuko spat.
"I've had frequent blackouts since I was like five. Like I said, no big deal. By the way, did you catch your guy?"
"No," Zuko growled out and started to walk away. "I'm going to my room, the medic should be here shortly. Uncle, get the crew to start heading north as soon as possible, then meet me in my room," he demanded, stalking off.
"Aw man, I was hoping he would get the dude," Trinity pouted.
"So, you are okay with helping Prince Zuko find the Avatar?"
"Well, we sort of made a deal. Zuko catches his guy, I go back home. It seemed easy enough at the time. Of course, my head was also exploding at the same time, so maybe not the best idea."
"General Iroh!" They both looked up to see a young skinny man with pale skin in red cloth clothing and a buzzed haircut. "Ah, Tao, over here." The thin man trotted over to the two of them.
"It's nice to see you, General," he bowed to him, "Is this the patient?" he asked, looking at Trinity.
"Yes, she was unresponsive a few minutes ago."
"I see." Tao knelt down to her level and placing the back of his hand on her forehead.
"Well, this is new. I usually get old farts for doctors." Trinity pushed off the wall sitting her back up straight. The world might be different, but she imagined the doctors were the same.
Tao chuckled. "My father was a doctor, and I liked the idea of helping people. Excuse me for a second." He placed a hand on her chest and back and counted her heartbeat and respiration rate.
"That's what all doctors say. Admit it; you did it for the money, didn't you?"
He laughed again, "The pay is nice too, I'll admit. Now I'm going light a fire next to your face to check your eye dilation so it might be a bit warm." He lit a fire in his palm and held it close to each side of her face. "I've never seen anyone with two different colored eyes before. It's quite interesting."
"Believe me, they're more trouble than they're worth." It took everything in her no to roll her eyes. Every new doctor thought they were interesting. Apparently, grey wasn't a typical color for heterochromia.
He smiled at her then stood up, "General, I believe that she is in full health. Though I do recommend rest for a few days just as a precaution."
"Thank you, Tao."
"I'll be in my quarters if you need me." He bowed at Iroh then did the same at Trinity, giving her another smile and walked off.
"He's rather good looking, isn't he?"
Trinity's face scrunched into a scowl, "What? No! You weird old man," she said, standing from the floor and walking away. Iroh watched as she turned the corner only to pop her head out, "I don't know where I'm going," she mumbled, Iroh chucked and followed after her.
Setting the strange girl into a new room was easy enough. She didn't have any belongings with her, not even some extra clothes. Iroh stroked his beard as he made his way to his nephew's room. Maybe they should stop at a market to get her some new clothes. She also didn't have anything to entertain herself, either. The past few days have been extremely eventful, so she should be pretty tired, but that won't last. Iroh knocked on Zuko's door while wondering if Trinity would be interested in Pai Sho. Zuko opened the door with the same amount of vigor he did with everything. "You wanted to see me?"
"I wanted to tell you what happened on the island." Zuko walked back into his room, sitting on his bed.
"I was wondering how the tower fell. It seemed to me that the volcano erupted."
"Avatar Roku destroyed the tower."
Iroh's eyes widened. How was that possible? Roku died years ago. Now that he thought about it, the Avatar was making a mad dash to the island. Was that the reason? To somehow connect with Avatar Roku.
"That's not the only thing," Zuko continued when his uncle didn't respond. "There was a really bright light emitting from his body. It was blinding, the color burned into my eyes."
Iroh once again didn't respond, though he could tell his nephew was eluding to something.
"The light was purple, Uncle. The same color that the girl was glowing when I found her."
Zheng sat cross-legged on the ground of the crescent island, tapping her finger against the dirt while Shen paced behind her. "Would you stop pacing! What's done is done," Zheng grumbled.
"I just can't believe you lost the ship. How in the hell do you lose a ship!?" Shen yelled, throwing his arms up in the air.
"There was a lot of smoke. Anyone could have missed it," Zheng shrugged.
"I can't believe this. It's going to take days for us to catch up with her. And you know how long it will take for me to bend us all the way back to the Earth Kingdom!?"
"We'd be there sooner if you'd stop griping."
"Are you kidding me?"
"Hey c'mon, let's just get a raft and get over there. Yelling won't solve anything," Zheng sighed, getting up.
"Says the person with the shortest temper in the history of short tempers," Shen growled.
"Your one to talk!" Zheng snapped back.
They were both mask to mask growling at each other until the loud explosion of the volcano behind them snapped them out of it. Zheng turned away from Shen. "Damn, I forgot the volcano was erupting," she laughed, scratching the back of her head.
Shen let out a frustrated sigh, "Why do I put you in charge of anything. You'd forget a platypus bear was gnawing on your leg if you turned away from it."
"Would not." Zheng walked over to a slow flow of lava a few feet away. "Here's a good patch." She stuck her fist out, up and over, causing the lava to follow her movements into the water. The lava's impact caused an influx of steam to fly in the air. After the steam cleared, an awkward shaped black rock remained for them to get on.
"Remember, it'll sink as soon as we get on so you'll have to bend it up and out," Zheng said.
"Yeah, yeah. I got it. You ready?"
Zheng nodded.
"One, two, three!"
On three, both of them jumped onto the rock slab, causing it to sink just slightly. Shen used his water bending to hold the raft up and used the rest of the force to push them away from the island and out into the night sky.
Yo! Alright, I got this out before the new year, which was my goal (๑˃̵ᴗ˂̵)ﻭ. Happy holidays and new year if you're reading this at the end of 2019. I'll be back next year, (She said hopefully (｡ŏ﹏ŏ)) though updates are gonna slow down quite a bit. Next year I'm going to be focusing on my art a lot more, which means less writing. Hopefully, I can still do this in my spare time because I really do enjoy it. Thanks for reading ʕ•ᴥ•ʔ