Chapter Thirteen: Into the Mountains

She was in the water- deep, calm, and blue. It was familiar and cool, and shifted around her at her will. She allowed herself to sink, to drift away.

The world seemed far away. Small. She could see the sky, shifting with the movements of the waves above her.

The sunlight filtered in, catching the movements of fish and the waving seaweed, growing on the sides of large mounds of coral.

It reached for her, warming her in the cold depths. Even as she sank lower into darkness, she could see the sun. It was always there, and even when she couldn't see it, she could feel it.

Her eyes drifted shut, the rays caressing her cheeks like familiar hands…

It was calling her name. The sun.

Her hand floated up, towards the sun, as if she could touch it in turn…

He was there- her beloved. He was always so far away. She could see his golden presence, just as he sought her in the darkness.

And as they reached for each other, they drifted further apart…

Katara opened her eyes.

Another dream, she thought, her brow furrowing. She lifted a hand to her throat. It felt constricted, as if she were about to cry.

A deep sense of longing, of love, resonated inside her.

Rolling to her side, she stared at the scene before her. Gone were the familiar walls of the Fire Nation Palace, which were now replaced by wide skies and a dying campfire.

The group had left the night before, leaving the Fire Nation under Iroh and Ursa's watchful eyes. They had travelled with Appa, with Sokka, Toph, and Zuko trailing behind in a small airship.

They had landed on the shore of the Earth Kingdom in the middle of the night. Zuko said they were close to the Fire Nation colonies. They had set up camp next to a cliffside, which allowed them partial cover from anyone sailing by on ships.

Katara sat up, stretching her arms above her head. She ran a hand through her hair before twisting it back into a long braid.

As she worked on stoking the fire, then getting breakfast ready, the rest of the group woke up. Zuko was the first, waking up shortly after Katara.

When they all sat in a circle, at various degrees of wakefulness, it was Suki who asked the question that had crossed all of their minds. "So if we manage to track them down, Ozai and Azula, what then?"

Zuko, Aang, and Sokka exchanged looks. The three men had discussed this together and separately.

"The question is do we kill them," Toph said bluntly. "And I don't have to see Twinkletoes's expression to know his thoughts about that."

"I couldn't kill him before," Aang reminded them. "And I didn't have to. There's always another way."

"Last time was different," Katara stated, shaking her head. "The lion turtle taught you how to take away the source of Ozai's power, therefore taking his power over the Fire Nation."

Zuko nodded. "A Fire Lord without his bending is no leader. Our bending symbolizes our connection to our nations."

"We can take them to different prisons," Aang plowed forward, frowning. "Then track down the loyalists."

"Then what? Wait until they escape again?" Toph challenged. "Ozai might not have his power anymore, but his control is like a disease."

"So that's it? Eliminate the issue? Kill Ozai and Azula?" Aang looked Zuko in the eye. "Could you forgive me if I killed your father and sister? Could you forgive yourself for standing by?"

Zuko looked away. "I know what has to be done."

"We don't have to decide anything yet," Sokka interjected. "Let's not send the wrong message to the world. If we kill Ozai and Azula, we're saying we're just as bad as them."

"Then what? We have to have a plan. Last time we confronted them, Aang and Zuko nearly died," Toph said, folding her arms in front of her. "Plus, we know Azula is… unhinged, and Ozai will kill us if he gets the chance, starting with Aang."

Aang grimaced. "I can take her bending too," he said slowly. "But even without it, we know they can fight."

"So can we," Katara said firmly. "We have the stone cuffs that take away bending. If we are close to the water, I can freeze both of them, make them weak."

The back and forth went on for some time before they agreed that they needed to find the escapees first. They kept on their journey, heading towards the lesser known villages in the depths of the Earth Kingdom.

Ooo0ooO

Dispatch Message

My Lord,

We have received news that the Avatar and his allies have departed from the Fire Nation. Our spies indicate that they are travelling the Earth Kingdom, in hopes of discovering your whereabouts.

Those who are loyal are aware and await the Avatar's arrival. They will be dealt with swiftly and discreetly.

We eagerly await your return to the throne, Fire Lord.

The message was read, then burned into ashes.

A soft, cruel chuckle trickled through the air as the recipient watched the ashes float away with the breeze.

Ooo0ooO

An Unknown Village, The Earth Kingdom

The first village they found was several hundred miles away from Omashu, hidden in a mountain pass that had broken off from the ones that held the larger Earth Kingdom city.

There were hardly any inhabitants and fewer huts. Sokka and Katara managed to find one stand that had food- which turned out to be a few berries and nuts that Katara traded for a copper piece.

Zuko studied the few people mulling about. They reminded him of the refugees in the Lower Ring of Ba Sing Se- dirty, skinny, and sick.

Katara seemed to notice the same thing and set her things down next to the food stand. She withdrew a jug of water she had collected early this morning. With a gentle voice, she encouraged some people to come over, so she could heal superficial wounds and broken limbs.

Word spread quickly about her healing abilities, then the sick were getting treatment. While the others spread out, asking questions, Katara focused on the task before her with a single-minded intensity.

When those who could be healed were healed, Katara joined the others in asking around about any strange travellers that had come to the village recently.

An elderly woman hobbled forward, peering up at Katara with suspicious eyes. "If you are looking for the man and a younger woman who passed through here, you're out of luck. They left weeks ago."

As Zuko described his father and sister to her, Sokka and Aang exchanged a look. It had taken some time for them to gather the Kyoshi Warriors and the other earthbenders. The members of the White Lotus had arrived first, all of them travelling by air or sea.

All of the warriors and benders had been divided into groups, sent out to help the group with locating loyalists, or to see if they heard of any news pertaining to Ozai and Azula.

"I saw them one night," the older woman was telling Zuko. "They kept to themselves, like most of us do, but there was something off about them. The man threatened the woman with a sword and she just smiled at him."

Zuko nearly winced. "Do you know which way they went?"

The woman shrugged. They kept going deeper into the mountains. Nothing out there but wild animals for miles. The next village is a week away if you're on foot."

Toph, who had been walking around the village, searching for any hidden paths in the undergrowth, appeared at Zuko's side. "There's a small path over there," she said, pointing east. "No underground tunnels."

"An earthbender, hmm?" the woman asked, turning her faded eyes to Toph. "Might come in handy in these parts. People have died going into those mountains. Rock slides."

"I think I've got them covered," Toph stated, smirking.

Ooo0ooO

An Unknown Seaside Village, The Earth Kingdom

Azula studied the waves crashing against the shore with vague disinterest. The noise irritated her and the salt air reddened her eyes.

She was bored. Again.

Ozai and Azula had found this tiny village a few days ago after leaving the mountain pass. Ozai claimed that this part of the Earth Kingdom was close to the Eastern Air Temple. He had pointed out towards the horizon, out past where the land curved like a crescent moon.

Azula had stopped listening to him after that. She had no interest in the Air Temples. With the air nomads all but gone, the land that had once been theirs was nothing but barren rock, the temples themselves standing hollow.

She idly picked at her nails. She knew that her brother and his little group of friends were tracking her and Ozai.

Smiling at the thought of that confrontation, Azula walked back towards the village.

Ooo0ooO

Dispatch Message

Zuko-

We have arrived at the Earth Kingdom Palace. A few of us will keep watch here while the rest scout the rest of the city.

No news of Ozai here, except for some rumors about his escape.

Zuko read Haru's brief message and sighed deeply. He burned the message, flicking the ashes away in annoyance.

He was grateful for Haru and the other earthbender's help- he only wished that the message had carried better news.

When he walked back over to where the group was, he saw that Suki was reading another message. The messenger hawk was perched on Sokka's shoulder, nibbling on a spare piece of jerky.

"Ty Lee says that her and the Kyoshi Warriors have split into two groups- one is heading for Omashu and the other is going to old refugee points, starting with the one by the Serpent's Pass."

Suki then looked up, her dark blue eyes reading Zuko's expression. "Nothing from Haru?"

"Nothing that we can use," he told her, taking Ty Lee's message so he could burn that one as well.

"We'll have to keep moving at dawn," Katara said, eyeing the setting sun. "We don't want to fall behind, and lose their trail."

Zuko frowned, but nodded. "Aang, did you see anything in the air?"

Aang folded his gilder, then shook his head. "No. The old woman is right, there's nothing else for miles. The mountain pass seems dangerous."

"It's nothing we can't handle," Sokka said confidently.

"Dangerous how?" Suki wanted to know.

"It's… quiet. Like something is waiting. I don't know," Aang admitted, rubbing the back of his head. "Maybe all we'll have to worry about is rock slides."

"Let's hope," Katara said. "For now, everyone get some rest. We have a lot of ground to cover tomorrow."

Ooo0ooO

Mountain Pass, The Earth Kingdom

The rest of the group understood Aang's concern hours after travelling through the pass. It was eerily quiet, even the birds weren't flying overhead.

Toph kept a hand on the cliff side, listening for vibrations that would tell her that something was coming. She was glad to know there was nothing but earth around them- unlike their trip through the Serpent's Pass. She still shuddered a little at that memory.

But even then, the earth itself seemed to be holding its breath. She couldn't sense any tunnels in the cliffside or nearby, so chances were there were no large cave-dwelling animals nearby.

So why was the hair on the back of her neck standing up?

"Get down!"

Toph sensed something huge sweep by her, causing her hair to fly into her face as she ducked instinctively. "What is it?" she shouted, still not sensing anything on the ground.

The air grew hot and Zuko's body shifted in front of her. She pressed herself against the cliffside, bending earth around her hands so she was ready to strike.

There was a whoosh of hot air, which Toph recognized as Zuko firebending, then something let out a shriek of pain.

"Katara!" Zuko shouted.

Another pained cry sounded out- Katara. Toph grabbed the back of Zuko's tunic. "Tell me where to aim!" she yelled.

Zuko moved to her side, adjusting her stance. "Wait… straight ahead...now!"

Toph ripped a heavy chunk of earth from the cliff, sending it through the air with a grunt of effort. There was a sickening crunch, then something slammed into the earth far below them.

Zuko's presence was gone as he ran over to Katara. Toph could sense that she was kneeling on the ground and when she got closer, she could hear the waterbender hissing in pain.

"What was that?" Toph asked, unable to decipher what she was sensing down at the bottom of the pass.

Katara hissed again, then sighed, indicating she was healing herself. "It was… I don't know what it was. It looked like a huge hawk."

"Like Super Hawky!" Sokka exclaimed in agreement.

Toph heaved a breath, sitting down next to Katara. "You okay, Sugar Queen?"

"Yeah, I'm okay," Katara said, bending the clean water back into her waterskin. "Let's keep moving."

"Before more show up," Suki agreed, looking around warily. "Something will come for...that."

Toph had a feeling the Kyoshi Warrior was looking down at the mangled thing lying dead half a mile down from where they stood.

Ooo0ooO

Disclaimer: I do not own ATLA or any of its characters.

Author's Note: Please review!