Book Four:
Metal
Chapter Two:
Sokka, The Waterbender
The reflection of a flying bison's grey belly displayed itself on the surface of the calm ocean as Appa flew casually toward and nearing Ember Island, carrying the Gaang on his back, minus Zuko, who was still at the Fire Nation's capitol, attending extremely important (but boring) Peace Council meetings. Or Toph, who was currently in Gaoling attending extremely boring (but irrelevant) dinner parties.
"I can't believe we're flying right into Fire Nation territory and there are no flaming hunks of stone hurtling towards us!" began Sokka.
"Sokka, it's been almost three months since we made peace with the Fire Nation," Suki lamented,"Shouldn't you be used to it by now?"
"I am, but it's still kind of amazing when ya think about it. I mean, pretty much everybody on Earth was born into The War; in fact, I bet most people thought it would never end, let alone on the night of Sozin's Comet. I'm sure alot o' old people would agree with me, right, Aang?" Sokka explained, addressing to the chronologically hundred-and-twelve-year-old manning the reigns on Appa's head.
The Avatar was pulled out of his thoughts." Hm?...d'oh, sure...really unbelievable," he mumbled in a somewhat deflated tone, sinking back into contemplation. It's been two whole days, and the airbender still couldn't get his mind off the meteor. Just what did it mean? And why has nothing else happened since then? Or maybe things have been happening but on different parts of the planet?
The Water Tribe warrior picked up his reluctance."You aren't still thinking about the eruption, are you? If anything, that meteor was a good thing. If Mount Makapu had that much energy just now, think what would have happened three years later! And I doubt you would've been there then. Now, all the volcano's energy's been expelled, which means it won't go off again for like, ever."
"So, you are admitting the possibility that Mount Makapu would have erupted three years from now?" Katara inquired her brother sharply.
Sokka also heard this."Oh, come on, Katara, I'm not even going to justify this. It was only a matter of time before Aunt Wu slipped up, I'm just glad we both finally got to see it for ourselves."
"Do you know what you've done?!" Katara yelled, spinning her head to her brother,"Because of you, no one believes her anymore! Maybe you should think about what happens when Aunt Wu actually does foresee something terrible, and everybody ignores her all because of one little fluke!
Sokka sighed."Suki, back me up here."
The Kyoshi Warrior shrugged."I don't know what to tell you, Sokka, That meteor was way too inconvenient for a coincidence. Maybe there actually is something wrong with the universe?" She proposed.
Sokka was flabbergasted by his girlfriend's sudden betrayal. He turned to his best friend."Aang?"
"That wasn't supposed to happen," the Avatar replied flatly.
The warrior was now desperate"...m...Momo?"
The bat lemur immediately crawled off of Sokka's shoulder and curled into Katara's lap.
The waterbender stroked his back, making sure her brother saw it.
"...Well, who cares what a lemur thinks?" Sokka mumbled, crossing his arms. He would have asked Appa for support, but he preferred not to swim the rest of the way.
Later that day...
Sokka found himself wandering aimlessly around the shopping district of Ember Island, hoping to find something of interest for Suki, though he knew it was pointless, apparently since she and all of his friends - including Momo - held malice toward him for doing what was a good thing in his eyes, but he shrugged it off. The young warrior thought he might as well purchase something while he was out. He saw a cabbage cart not too far away.
"One cabbage please," he requested indifferently, looking the other way.
"Here ya go," replied a deep, shady voice, followed by a large muscular hand holding a cabbage.
"Thanks," Sokka said, taking the cabbage and reaching into his pocket money, when suddenly the boy froze as his brain fully registered the familiar voice.
"CHIT SANG?!" he screamed, spinning his whole body in the direction of the large man wearing an apron.
Chit Sang also paused as he recalled the voice."Hey, it's you, from the Boiling Rock! Soka, right?"
"...It's Sokka, actually..." he replied; he always found it irritating someone mispronounced his name,"Anyway, I can't believe they gave you a full pardon! Even after we helped you escape!"
"...Uh, yeah, a full pardon, that's it..." the ex-con sheepishly confirmed, looking in multiple directions, "And I got a job, too! Some old merchant hired me to sell his cabbages for him, figured my luck would be better than his," he explained, "So, I heard your dad took out a whole bunch o' airships during the Comet, crashed 'em all into each other."
Sokka attained a quizzical expression."Wait a second, that was me!" he cried, "I mean, sure, I couldn't have done it without Toph or Suki, but it was still my idea!"
Chit Sang seemed surprised to hear this." Seriously? Huh, well, I guess ya can't believe everything they tell ya. So, does that mean it was your dad that smeared that fortune-teller?" he inquired.
Sokka's jaw unhinged."Oh, COME. ON! Is that the only thing I'm known for? Being a jerk?!" he whaled, flinging his arms in the air, though this somehow seemed to cause a deep look of surprise on Chit Sang's face."I do all the brain work and come up with all the plans that almost always work, just so they can push me aside show off!" he continued to flail his arms around. Chit Sang was still focused on the tendrils of water in the fountain behind Sokka copying his every hand movement."I wouldn't have such a problem with it if they thanked me for all the chores I'm stuck with, but all I get is giggles and a buncha' condescending jokes about the guy who doesn't have any special powers! I used to have a sword, ya know? It was made from a meteorite! It could cut through solid steel and everything! But, of course, I lost it in a forest during the assault on the airship fleet, which was my idea, my I remind you! I tried to get somebody to help me look for it, but really, who gives a batwolves' tail about a sword that can cut through solid steel; as long as it's something of mine, right?... ARE YOU EVEN PAYING ATTENTION?!"
Chit Sang was brought out of focus."Huh? Oh, sorry, I just never took you for a bender."
Sokka cocked his eyebrow."You really weren't listening, were you? I'M NOT A BENDER! WHY DO YOU THINK NO ONE APPRICIATES ME?!"
The ex-con pointed behind him. Sokka turned to see a pair of liquid tentacles rising out of the fountain behind him. Naturally, this perplexed the young warrior; he waved his right arm rapidly, and the right tentacle followed. This just irritated him further.
"Very funny, Katara," Sokka dismissed it, however, his sister did not appear." Aang?" he tried again, still no answer."...GranPakku?" one last time. That usually got to the old master, but there was still no one there. Sokka dashed around the fountain, dropping the cabbage; definitely no one. The young warrior could only turn back to the water in the fountain. Still in disbelief, he raised one hand; a mass of water immediately rose up and mirrored it. Sokka made a series of random finger poses which the water mimicked. He then let his arm go limp, and still to his shock, the water plopped back into the fountain. Could it be? Was Sokka actually... special?
At this point, only one thought penetrated the Water Tribe boy's lips."...I'm...a waterbender..." he whispered,"I'm a WATERBENDER!" he yelled, throwing his arm in the air, causing the water to splash everywhere. He ran back over to Chit Sang and hugged him."Thank you, Chit Sang! I don't know what you did, but it helped me to find my inner bender! I got to go tell Katara!" he resolution, darting off for the beach.
While Chit Sang hadn't the faintest idea of what occurred, he still felt as though he actually did something good for once as he leaned against the cabbage cart, tilting the other way under his own weight. He quickly stopped the cart before it fell over."Whew! That was a close one!" he noted,"I was one wrong move away gettin' fired! I gotta be more careful next time," he thought aloud as he pushed the cart to a different spot. Little did he know, the ex-con was getting a raise.
Meanwhile, at the beach...
The rest of the Gaang, along with many other residents, were taking advantage of a sudden heatwave for some beachtime fun. Katara was surfing the waves on an ice board, Suki was helping children construct a proper sand statue of Avatar Kyoshi, and Aang and his animal guide Appa were reclining on the sun-warmed sand, not disturbing anyone.
Katara whoo-hoo'ed and laughed as she skidded to a halt before the young nomad."Aang, come on! The water's not even cold!" she chimed, calling for him, but as the Water Tribe girl got closer, her smile faded. A closer inspection of the Avatar's reclining displayed that it was one of anxiety, not contentment. He was staring at the sky, awaiting a disaster to present itself.
"Aang..." she sighed, walking over to and sitting down next to him.
"I can't help it, Katara," Aang replied,"The cosmic order has been compromised. Even if it's nothing bad, I just know this isn't the end of it..."
"Just because something happened to the universe, doesn't mean that it's broken," Katara comforted him, but Aang was engrossed in his own thoughts.
"Maybe it's because you brought me back to life after the fight at Ba Sing Se..." he considered, right before springing to his feet,"Quick! Katara! Kill me!"
"AANG, CALM DOWN!"Katara cried, grabbing a hold of his cheeks,"I am not going to kill you. You're just stressed, like before the eclipse!"
"How can you even be saying this?!" Aang inquired,"Aunt Wu said it herself, and you agreed with her!"
"I know, but you're losing your head over something that could be good! What I'm saying is, is that sometimes..." she swallowed,"Aunt Wu can be wrong too," she choked, a small part of herself perishing in the process.
Aang noted her sacrifice."You know, you're right," he smiled,"That thing in space probably won't do anything for a long time. I guess as long as nothing else weird happens, the universe should be just fine."
Suddenly, Sokka slid to a halt behind Aang."Guys! You're not gonna believe it! I'm...a waterbender!"
The young Avatar blinked, then plopped back to the sand."The universe is broken...We're all gonna die...All hail the Phoenix King..." he chanted, curling into a fedal position.
"Sokka, don't you think you've ruined enough reputations for one week?" the waterbender inquired angrily, despite the fact that she had just contradicted herself.
"Now Katara, I know this is the fourth time I've claimed to be a bender, but I am completely, without doubt, certain this time!" Sokka began.
"...thus marking this moment as the second time you claimed that you were 'absolutely certain this time," his sister mocked, quoting him from last time.
The self-proclaimed waterbender's eyelids lowered; he sighed."Fine, I knew I was gonna have to prove it anyway," he accepted, walking close enough to the ocean as the tide grazed his feet. He then assumed a mock waterbender pose."Let us see how well you can look down on me when you're sopping wet." Sokka pulled his hands back, facing the ocean, and with a loud "Whappaaaa!" that caught everyone's attention including Suki's, thrust his palms forward, hoping to pummel his skeptical sister with a huge palm of water. Alas, the only result accompanying this action was silence and the shaking of said sister's head. Sokka seemed more taken than at the fountain."What?! That's impossible! It worked before!" He whined, attempting it again.
"Did Sokka just try to waterbend?" asked Suki to Katara.
"Yeah, I wish he would just give it up," the real waterbender explained, with her brother in the background displaying his stubbornness,"It's not the first time, though; in fact, last week, he 'could have sworn he was a firebender. The reason behind that is best-left a-" she was interrupted by a wave of water, rendering her, Suki, and Aang saturated."...mystery?"
Their heads turn to Sokka, the only logical source."Oh yeah! 'Only waterbender in the Southern Water Tribe' my foot!" he cried, initiating a victory dance.
"I'm glad he's not a firebender," noted Suki. Aang, however, had a different take.
"Sokka, this isn't a time for victory dancing," he tried,"the laws of the universe have shifted out of phase. Next thing you know, Suki will start earthbending, Momo will be crowned Lemur Lord, Appa will be able to talk!" he announced, clearly over-reacting,"I've already seen what that's like. And I can assure you, it's not pretty." Even Appa stared at his master quizzically.
"Yeah, that does seem evident. Unless..." Suki thought,"Could it really be? I thought it was just myth but..."
"What? What's a myth? I demand that you tell me!" commanded Aang of the Kyoshi Warrior.
"Well, this is just a theory, but Sokka might have what is called Temporary Non-Bender Syndrom," she explained,"The theory is that a select few benders are born mentally unable to bend, which leads most to believe that they can't bend. But, around the age of fifteen and/or sixteen, their psychological handicap is grown out of, and they can bend."
"I'm around the age of fifteen and/or sixteen!" Sokka remembered, then attempted and succeeded to pull out from the vast ocean a tailed ball of water, similar to the basic waterbending exercise."Of course! That explains how you could bend even though you were born after me! Science prevails once again! That's two-for-two, counting previous events."
Katara's brow twitched; she wasn't letting this hit the ground without a fight, or rather, a duel.
"Well, it looks like you were special after all, big brother of mine," she congratulated, feigning her usual upbeat attitude,"And it looks like you're pretty good, too. But, one can only wonder, just how good are you?"
The newly-realized waterbender let the large drip splatter on the sand as he heard this."Ugh, I dunno, pretty good, I guess. What are you getting at, Katara?" he slowly asked her.
An edgy smile spread across the girl's face."Sokka of the Southern Water Tribe, I challenge you...to an AGNI KAI!" She announced, pointing in a dramatic fashion.
"Ugh...We're waterbenders..."
The sound of the splashing tides seemed to increase in volume during this moment of silence.
"...oh... Well, then I challenge you to an...erm... an Aqua Kai!"
"I accept your challenge!" Sokka announced with equal enthusiasm.
They walked off preparing for combat.
"Well this is an interesting turn of events," observed Suki,"I guess we should make an arena or something..." she ran off to gather supplies for a fence, leaving the young Avatar alone.
"But what if it's not some syndrome?" Aang inquired,"What if somewhere right now, Momo is assembling an army of primates to conquer the world?!" he tried one last time, but it was too late. Aang sighed, hoping it really was just Temporary Non-Bender Syndrom.
A moment later, Momo crawled onto the scene wearing the hat he stole from a Fire Sage and a beach towel tied around his neck like a cape. Aang noticed this, causing him to balk in fear.
Later that afternoon...
Sokka and Katara each stood on an offshore rock separated twenty feet by ocean. Suki and Aang had erected a fence on the beach to serve as a boundary for the on-lookers witnessing the duel. The Fire Nation people of Ember Island were excited to witness a duel between two practitioners of a form bending they'd only read and heard of before.
The siblings were fixated on each other, paying little mind to even the waves that splashed against the rocks, sprinkling them with droplets.
It begins. . .
Katara punches straight forward, sending a spear of water blasting towards Sokka. Sokka shoots out his left hand, swings left, blocking Katara's attack, re-directing the water around him, swings his hip; and with the same motion, launches a savage back kick with his left leg. A massive water missile flies towards Katara, and rather than block, she counters' swinging her right arm into a brutal downward slice, sending the water searing past her, back into the seas. She regains momentum, spins back a step with her hand folded over into a circular pattern, a whirlpool of water forming in the gap; she spun forward a step sending an orb of water tearing through the air with the brutality of a cannonball, and the curiosity of a shark orca. The beast races towards its prey; but somehow, this "prey" is feelin' lucky today. . .
Sokka sprints on the ocean surface towards Katara with unnatural speed, knocks the liquid canon ball aside with a bit too much ease, grabs water missile, spins in mid dash, and hurls the now water-spear with the might of a javelin thrower. Katara claps her hands together to form a water shield that blocked the water spear, but not dense enough to block the flying stomp kick which narrowly misses Katara as she leaps to the right; Sokka lands on the rock with enough force to shake the algae off. . .
"Wow, that didn't even hurt!" Sokka exlaimed, momentarily suprise at both his new found physical strength and aggressive tactics; and his mistake: his back was turned. He sees a suggestion of a quick movement on his right...
He just barely misses Katara's counter attack: a water whip narrowly missing the top of his head as he leaps within her attack. Too fast. He shoots out his right fist, aimed for the nose, which Katara blocks and knocks aside with her left hand, preparing to counter with a right jab. . .which never even comes close to landing. . .
With unnatural speed, his left palm in a brutal upper arch, a geyser of ocean water following and sending Katara flying into the air and then landing into the ocean. . .
The spectators are speechless. . .Sokka is too. The power in the attack was like nothing he had ever seen, let alone anything he could ever hope to accomplish against the fight art of the north. Then his thoughts went back to his sister. Was she alright? It was just a duel. He didn't want to attack with that kind of force. . .Sokka's concern for Katara intensified and when he saw the bubbles in the water. . ."Katara!" Sokka shouted, but there was no answer. Well, no peaceful one anyway. . .Suddenly, Katara pounced out of the surface and tackled her brother, knocking them both back underwater.
The audience remained silent, waiting for something to cut through the haze of tension... Their patience payed off when a hump of water burst open, blasting out a screaming Katara over their heads, and into the sand Kyoshi that Suki built.
"Aww..." The Kyoshi Warrior moaned, along with the children whom she had helped.
A moment later, Sokka popped to the surface as well. He dragged himself out of the ocean, leaned on the fence and took deep breaths, indicating that he was just drowning a moment before. The boy was welcomed by a thunderous applaud from the spectators."SOO-KKA!...SOO-KKA!" they chanted.
He looked up in confusion."Wait, I won?" Sokka asked with emphasis on "won".
" 'Won' ? You blew her away; literally!" Suki confirmed, gesturing to the destroyed sand statue.
"Can I freak out now?" Aang asked, hoping it was okay.
Katara forced herself up, spitting some sand out." He what?" she inquired as she got up and stomped over to Suki."That's impossible! I was choking you, and then you were unconscious, and I was gonna save you but... I don't know, the water just came to life and threw me onto the shore!"
"Pfft', suuure, the ocean spirit just felt sorry for me and decided to come to my rescue..." Sokka mused, ever sarcastic. He hopped over the fence."You just can't take the fact that you were just out-bended by someone other than an old master..." he told his sister off to her face, then walked away.
The Water Tribe girl tried to contain her rage, though it was still seeping out, similar to Iroh's teapot."Oh, well, seeing as how you're so awesome and all, I guess I don't have to teach you a stinkin' thing about waterbending!" she announced.
"As if I was going to ask..." Sokka replied," Which reminds me...Aang, do you think you could show me a few pointers?" he requested.
The Avatar raised finger in protest, but it went limp as he was aware it was pointless. He knew it best if he'd simply let it flow down the river like that guru said."Sure, come on," he said, motioning for his new student to follow.
Later that evening...
The two were performing the basic waterbending exercise, manipulating a large drip back and forth in an outline an ellipse.
"Very good, Sokka, I'm not going to lie, you're really excelling at this," complemented Aang to his pupil.
They bent the drip back into the pot.
"Yep, I guess I'm just a natural; like Azula, only...less crazy," Sokka responded while stretching.
Aang frowned."You know this is only temporary, Sokka. After the universal balance is restored, everything's going to be the way it was before, with you being normal and all..." he reminded.
Sokka stopped stretching, and looked down."Yeah..." he blinked and looked at his master,"But if it means we get to save the world again, I'm totally okay with that."
"Really? You'd make that sacrifice? I thought you hated not being able to blow stuff up."
" I was never really a blow-stuff-up-kinda' guy," he assured Aang, "Besides, once I finally get Zuko to send a search party for my boomerang, I won't need to."
"What about your space sword?" Aang inquired.
Sokka shrugged."Eh, that was just a faze."
"Right, well, it's getting late. We should probably head home," Aang said.
"Yeah, we should go now. It's best if this whole bending thing doesn't get to my head," Sokka agreed, following the Avatar back inside.
Later that night...
The new-found waterbender slithered throughout the town, making sure no one saw or heard him in the dead of night. He had his back against an ally wall, poking his head around the corner, scanning the empty plaza; there was no sign of movement other than the ripples in the fountain. He grinned. For Sokka, this was truly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity; he wasn't sure when the universe was going to fix itself so he resolved to make the most of it. He crawled to the edge of the fountain, slowly raised above, and looked at the water. He turned in all directions before carrying out his resolution.
"Alright, Water, prepare to be bendafied" he whispered, wiggling his fingers. Sokka slowly pushed his hands forward, and to his relief the water obeyed. "Yeah, that's the ticket, Water, push and pull, push and..." Suddenly, the water came higher than Sokka meant for it to. "Whoah there, Water, not too fast, we don't want to make a lot o' noise..."
In a striking display of disobedience, the water quickly rose to eye level, prompting Sokka to fall on his behind.
"Uhh, okay, Water, time to stop moving now; I'm not bending you anymore," Sokka reminded nervously, backing further as the water crawled out of the fountain on its own and toward the terrified warrior. To Sokka's horror, the blob of liquid began to assume a solid shape, forming a pair of clawed hands, along with a pair of clawed feet about the same size. Afterward, what resembled a brain materialized at the peak of the now semi-humanoid form.
"Water?" Sokka squeaked as he stared into the green glowing eyes of the god of destruction himself: Chaos 0.
. . .
A shrill, girly shriek penetrated the peacful barrier of the island.
The wannabe waterbender found himself running for his survival, screaming almost inhumanly loud for any sort of savior.
"AAAAANG! KATAAARAAAA! SUUUKIII! MOOOMOOOOO! SWEET MOTHER OF SEAL JERKY, SOMEBODY HELP MEEEE!
Out of nowhere, Sokka's predator landed right in his path, causing him to slide to a stop, almost falling down, and speed off to the creature's left, still screaming.
"WHAAAAAHH!"
Sokka didn't care where he was running, or what exactly he was running from, his only thought was to get as far away from it as possible; but that was his second mistake...
It was too late before the young warrior realized he had just stopped at the edge of a narrow cliff, with sharp rocks at the bottom ready to impale anyone stupid enough come too close.
As he turned, he saw the beast standing a mere twenty feet away, his lifeless green eyes illuminating the darkness.
"Alright, the universe, I get it!" Sokka announced, looking at the sky and backing further from the monster, "I promise I won't tamper with you anymore if you spare my life! Besides, I'm the Avatar's best friend; think about it! If you kill me, then Aang will never try to fix-" his pleading was cut short as his backing heel rested on nothing, causing him to slip off the cliff and plunge to his death.
Or so he thought, before a liquid arm extended over the edge and caught the screaming warrior by the shin and pulled him back above the cliffside.
"What the..." Sokka observed as the silent creature dropped him onto his back. Sokka was simply stared up in awe. Wasn't this the monster that chased him around the island? And, on an equally important note, Sokka also observed the creature's concerned expression as it cocked its head to the right.
"Sokka!" called several faint voices.
Sokka and Chaos turned in the direction of the voices.
Suddenly, Chaos melted into the dirt, completely gone by the time Sokka's sister, girlfriend, and best friend showed up, panting.
"Sokka! Are you hurt!?"Suki asked, helping her boyfriend up.
"Suki! Well, no, but you're not gonna believe what..."
"Why were you screaming?" Aang interrupted,"There's probably not a single person on this island who's still asleep because of you!"
"Well, I was kinda about to explain before you..."
"Lemme' guess:" Katara interjected,"You were out here practicing some more waterbending techniques, when suddenly you slipped off the edge of the cliff, hanging on for dear life while screeching like a swamp owl."
"Not exactly; see, there was this..."
"How could you be so stupid!?" Aang inquired,"Do you know how many fountains we passed on the way here!?"
"Look, I'll be more than happy to tell you if you just..."
"I can't believe you made us run halfway across town in our underwear!" Katara groaned, stomping off.
"Thanks, Sokka, now I'm going to wake up tomorrow with dark circles under my eyes! unbelievable..." Aang muttered as he followed Katara.
Suki sighed, laying her hand on Sokka's shoulder."Look, Sokka, I'm really happy that you've found something significant about yourself. But please, don't scare me like that again," the Kyoshi Warrior voiced, then she walked away, leaving the baffled male warrior to himself.
"GUUUYS! You didn't even give me a chance! There was this...and then he...dah whatever..." Sokka himself grumbled, too tired to even speak. After all, who wouldn't be out of breath after screaming the way he did?
He followed his friends back to the royal cottage. He'd figure this out in the morning...
The Next Day...
It was almost noon, and he still couldn't figure it out as he made his way across the street, thinking the route he took while fleeing might jogg his memory of anything specific; though this process only hoped to augment his wonder. The "former" waterbender was still confused as to what just happened in summarized form.
Why did that what-ever-it-was save his life shortly after chasing him all over the town? Why didn't it eat Sokka when it first saw him? Or better yet, why would such a creature lead everyone to believe that Sokka in particular was a born waterbending prodigy, even helping him defeat his sister in an unfair fight, save him from drowning, and then try to eat Sokka, only to save him a second time, and disappear just before his friends could see it and realize the truth?! It's as if the thing was doing this on purpose!
There was little doubt in the teen's mind that this must have been a result of the "destructive entity" that Aunt Wu was babbling about, But why me?!, Sokka thought, Why not someone who deserves it, like Ozai or Hahn?! I mean I did date the Moon once, but just once!
It was just a second or two later before Sokka heard, or rather felt, a strange ringing in his ear. He turn in multiple directions for a source; no one seemed to detect it but him.
There it was again, this time from an actual direction: this was chance.
He dashed in path of the noise, intent on finding the what-ever-it-was on the other side.
. . .
It was a minute or two before Sokka grew tired of all the running. When he did, he realized he was at the front yard of Zuko's royal summer home - the one he came out of this morning - with the pulsating ringing persisting somewhere behind it.
His eyes bugged out."Of ALL the places...!" he resented before scrambling in frustration into the house.
Sokka zipped from room to room, opening every door, blowing down every hall, hoping to see some kind of something in every unchecked area; but sadly, every single division of the massive so-called "cottage" retained one characteristic in common: they were all empty.
The warrior, finally exasperated by all the recent physical activity, eventually rationalized that his was currently the only living thing that resided within the complex of a house as he limped into the kitchen (coherently the last room for the search), got a glass of water, and sat down at the table.
As he took a sip, he could only reflect on what an astonishing turn of events this was for him. One minute, Sokka is mopping the sand with his sister's face in a duel; the next, he's at the bottom of the bending chain once more, and he's hopping all over the island like an idiot, struggling to decipher a supernatural enigma that should be the Avatar's business. But alas, Sokka had to face facts: he wasn't the one who defeated or even took on Katara in the first place; that thing was. And Sokka could only wonder, just what was that thing? It was then that the teen warrior had an epiphany: Aang was troubled because reality was supposedly tearing apart or something like that. What if somehow, Bending itself has gained a life of its own? And that this creature was born within his subconsciousness, his immortal desire to become significant over his own baby sister? Sokka then considered the possibility of some sort of metal fire bending monster, with long bird-like legs, glowing yellow eyes, and a strange metal tube for a right arm, probably for shooting fireballs...kind of like the one in the reflection of his water, standing right behind him.
"Where is the Chaos Emerald?"
Meanwhile...
Aang, Katara, and Suki were out having lunch with Fire Lord Zuko and Mai, with Katara telling them about there weekend.
"...and I blow out the candle, right? And all of a sudden, I open my eyes to this inhuman schreech that sounded almost like..."
The entire island echoed with another high-pitch shriek.
"...Like that?" Mai inquiried.
Sokka had his back to the wall as the alien monster inched toward him, the miniature cannon pointed at his head."Oh, come on! Shouldn't you be chasing Mai around or something?!" he protested in a less than masculine tone.
"Where is the Chaos Emerald?" The monster repeated, unnatural and monotone.
The teen began to sweat heavily."Look, I'd be more than cooperative enough to help you find this special emerald you're talking about; but, here's the thing, I kinda don't know what that is. I did, however, happen to pass a jewelry store on the way here; they might have what you're looking for in stock. I could give you directions if you like..."
A pink light replaced the darkness within the monster's tube-hand. Although, unbeknownst to them both, the kitchen faucet mysteriously pumped itself to life.
"I agree, directions are overrated; I was always more of a map person myself..." Sokka stalled, though he knew this was his final hour whether Aang made it in time or not. The young warrior knew it best to simply close his eyes so he wouldn't see it coming...
The noise that followed however was not one that he prepared for: what he assumed would sound like an explosion preceding an abrupt silence sounded more akin to the puncturing of a metallic object, followed by a bizarre buzzing. Overcome by pure curiosity, Sokka opened his eyes and paled at the sight.
The monster's head hung downward, and the last thing it saw was a liquid but contradicting solid tip of a claw jutting out from its chest, the wound crackling with electricity.
Chaos 1 held a lifeless hunk of metal in his paw, and turned his attention to Sokka.
After a brief pause between the two, the former waterbender's eyelids drooped."I ask again:...WHAT THEE?!" he demanded.
Physically unable to answer, the creature merely walked out of the kitchen, dragging the motionless machine with it, leaving moist footprints behind him.
"Wait! Where you going?!" Sokka inquired, following the footprints.
The teen pursued his "bending" out into the backyard, where he witnessed the thing leap up high in the air and down onto the royal private beach.
"Oh no, ya don't!" he declared.
Chaos 1 touched down on the soft, grey sand, and trekked just at the edge of the tides. It winded back and flung the red machine into the sea.
Rather than run, Sokka decided to take his time down the steps to the beach, where he caught sight of the creature, staring deeply and contemplatively into the horizon, his larger right arm lifted slightly. He sighed.
"Look," he panted,"I already know you can't talk, but could you at least gimme some hand signs as to what's going on?" he pleaded, though the silent creature paid no mind to him. Sokka took advantage of the silence to observe his "bending's" more specific physical features. The boy got a better look of the creature's brain, which to him was more uncanny to the likeness of a potato - Sokka wondered if everyone's brain looked like that - not to mention that unevenly large right arm - the only appendage that seemed to have bones - which the beast had elevated to around the height of Sokka's mid-section, slowly flexing his fingers open and closed. Now that he noticed it, there did appear to be a strange white phosphorescence that resided within the palm. Sokka walked cautiously and went in for a closer inspection, and that's when he saw it: a luminous ivory jewel partially encased inside the bone.
"Whoah...that's what that thing was looking for, wasn't it?...the Chaos Emerald..." Sokka realized, gaining the creature's attention.
The entity's pure green eyes were locked on to the young warrior's blue irises for a moment, but they soon reunited with the sea. Why Chaos had befriended this random human he couldn't quite explain, even if he did have the capacity to speak. It may have been, Chaos supposed, that the boy reminded him of his Chao brethren, given that like a Chao, he was very small and even more so helpless; also, the boy's voice was on a noticeably higher level of pitch than most humans he had encountered so far. But that was of little importance as of now. As the mutated Chao gazed upon the nonexistent point between sky and ocean, the truth was unshakable: he would come looking for this emerald, Chaos's escape was the only thing that rented limitless power from his grip. Chaos had only managed to steal one, but one out of seven made all the difference, and he was going to make sure it stayed that way, even if the sacred jewel is lost forever.
Suddenly, the jewel's glow intensified, prompting Sokka to shield his eyes. Just when he thought things could get weirder, the creature began to shrink in stature, the bone in his arm dissolving. by the time Sokka could see clearly, the creature retained all his characteristics, aside from the fact that his arms were evenly proportioned, and he was now only as tall as Sokka was (minus the horn).
Chaos 0 then pulled his arm back, and hurled the emerald far out into the ocean, where it sank to the depths, hopefully never to be found again.
As Sokka witnessed this, one core question hummed within his cerebrum; it was a question he'd been wanting to get off his chest for a while now: "I...was never a waterbender to begin with, was I?" he asked timidly.
Chaos turned back to his new acquaintance, now wishing he was able to vocalize an apology for mentally labeling him as small, though he was still very helpless.
Sokka took that as a yes, looking down at the sand; he figured as much. Though soon after, he smiled."...Well, thanks for making me feel special for a day," he said, holding out his hand to shake.
Chaos simply nodded.
"Sokka, You better not be crying wolfbat again...!" cried the angry tone of Sokka's sister.
Chaos immediately dissolved into a puddle in the sand.
Sokka whipped around as his friends ran again to his aid, only to see nothing but Sokka.
"I knew it, I knew it! He did it again!" Katara raved, swinging her fists downward and stomping.
"Wha-what? But-" Sokka would have pointed to the liquid monster to his right...if it were still there...which he just noticed wasn't."Oh come on! This again!?"
"Well, how do you expect us to react!?" Aang asked, "First, you scare half to death in the middle of the night, and then, you interrupt Brunch! Why Brunch of all times, Sokka!? What did brunch ever do to you!?"
"No, no-wait, lemme expla-" Sokka tried.
"Well, the kitchen table was flipped over, so maybe it fell on his foot and that's why he screamed?" Suki asked.
"How did he flip over an entire table on his own foot by accident?" Mai inquired.
"Guys, could you plea-"
"Oh, believe me, he finds a way..." Katara slouched with a dreary expression.
"GUUUYYSSS!" Sokka thundered, finally gaining their attention. "It wasn't the table, it was another metal monster!"
The group gasped together.
Sokka, sighed happily, as he was relieved that they were finally done cutting off-
"WHAT!?" Aang bugged out.
"Another one!?" Mai asked.
"How are you still alive!?" Katara demanded.
"Are you sure it wasn't the same one!?" Zuko blurted.
"OHMYGOSHOHMYGOSHOHMYGOSH-ARE YOU OKAY!?" Suki freaked out.
"WILL YOU SHUT UP!?" Sokka roared, the veins of his face pulsating. "Yes, another one, and yes, this one was definitely different - it was red, more bird-like, and had a cannon for a hand! And YES, I'm OK! I was just in the kitchen drinking a glass of water when that thing came out of nowhere and nearly blew my head off before-!" Sokka then froze, fully aware of the implications of telling them the rest.
The group was held in suspense.
"...'before'...?" Mai rolled her hand, expecting him elaborate.
"Before you totally destroyed it with your awesome bending!" Suki finished for him, pumping her fist high."Right, Sokka?"
"dwahuh?" Sokka stumbled, staring at his girlfriend.
At this, Zuko turned to Sokka with deep curiosity."Is it true, Sokka? Are you really more powerful than Katara?"
"Just shove it up my nose, why don't you!?" Katara barked with her arms crossed, acting almost like Sokka herself.
The teen warrior's brain squeaked with tension. Now that he knew for sure he wasn't a waterbender, what was he supposed to do now? Was he really going to maintain the lie of him being some late-blooming prodigy just so he could feel more useful to the team?
"uuuummmmmm...yeah, so about the bending..." he raised his finger to explain.
Just then, the puddle to his side suddenly arose from the ground, in the exact instant Sokka lift his finger.
Zuko and Mai were both stunned.
"Woah, did you do that without even trying?" Mai had to ask, genuinely taken off guard.
Sokka's mouth gaped at the liquid testicle - was this thing still keeping up the act!?
"See, what did I tell you? He's amazing!" Suki beamed.
Sokka waved his hand to and fro, the creature mirroring it. Yeah, it was still doing it. But why? Why does it keep hiding from his friends? Just then, a thought occurred on Sokka's mind: maybe it was actually trying to hide from those two metal things. Could there be more of them? Were they coming from that round pointy thing Aang saw in his dreams? (Sokka still couldn't wrap his mind around the concept). If that's the case, it makes sense for the creature to keep a low profile. Maybe that ringing noise was to lure the creature out, and Sokka got in the way. It would definitely attract more attention to itself if others knew about it, so maybe disguising itself as someone's water bending would throw the pursuers off.
"...Umm, Sokka...you did destroy the machine, right...?" Aang wanted to clarify.
Yeeep, if his reaction last night was anything, his friends definitely aren't ready to meet Sokka's new water buddy. He would just have to play along until the creature itself was ready to come out in the open.
"duh...did I destroy the machine...?" Sokka repeated.
His friends looked rather anxious.
Sokka's confused expression instantly shifted into the cockiest of smirks." 'Destroy' doesn't even describe what I did to that thing!"
His friends smiled excitedly (but his sister could only grow more annoyed).
"You could not believe the immeasurable amount of carnage that took place on this very beach! I mean, it was a total water-on-metal massacre! That thing thought it had 'poor helpless Sokka' right where it wanted him; well, I guess he forgot to check the local news this mornin', cause boy-oh-boy he found out the hard way that Sokka ain't so helpless no more! WAPPAAA!" he cried, as he performed a perfect water whip.
His friends laughed and clapped for him as he went on.
"And when I say 'hard', I mean Hard. As. Nails! I got him so hard, even Toph would've told me to stop...!
What none of them were aware of, was that they were being watched from a window to another world - the Spirit World. It was a dark, dry, dead cave of silk webs and bones. A black elongated slinked closer to the window.
"Hyah! Woosh! Ka-Snap! Kung Pow chicken!" it watched the boy prattled on about its false victory against the unknown being.
"Foolish humans...your reckless ways have doomed us all..." its massive single pair of eyelids blinked as it stared.
*FLASH*
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