They cleared their camp quickly. She doused the fire thoroughly and he covered it with dirt before they set off. The morning was warm, but pleasantly so, and they finished the trek with ease.
"We made it, but now how are we supposed to get down there?" Katara inquired. She peered cautiously over the edge of the ravine to catch a glimpse of the odd, upside-down temple. She tried not to think about what had happened the last time she was here.
They had hiked along the river all morning and had now reached a spot which Zuko claimed was as good a place as any to make their way down to the temple. It was now mid-afternoon and the sun was beating down on them mercilessly. The sheer cliff edge stared at them tauntingly. Katara planted her hands on her hips and searched for a way to climb down.
"I already thought about that, so I asked Jee for a rope and hook." Zuko produced it from his bag along with two pairs of gloves. "I've just got to secure it up here, then we'll be able to climb right down. You're gonna want to wear these, though. The rope's a little rough on your hands."
"Nice of you to tell me that." Katara eyed the rope nervously. "I hope you're right, Zuko."
"I am." He smirked at her confidently. "It's how I got down there last time. When I asked to join you guys."
"Oh. Right."
Zuko searched for a place to secure the hook. He wrapped it around the thick bough of a nearby tree and tugged hard. He nodded in satisfaction when it didn't give.
"That'll do," Zuko said.
He tossed the length of rope down into the ravine. With no hesitation Zuko took hold of the rope and planted his feet on the cliff edge. With a mock salute to Katara, he began his descent down to the temple and tried not to think about how deadly of a fall it would be if the rope broke or if he lost his grip. Zuko used the side of the ravine to brace himself until he couldn't anymore, and then he relied on the strength of his upper body to lower himself down onto a marble promenade.
Zuko finally landed lightly on his feet, chest heaving. He was not a fan of heights, and under the heat of the day, it wasn't an easy descent.
He looked around and saw a familiar sight: the fountain, now cracked, and the large hole Toph had bended into the wall for an escape route when Azula had attacked them there with Fire Nation airships.
He collected himself before he cupped his hands around his mouth and called out, "Come on down!"
Zuko peered up at the ravine's ledge far above him. He held his breath as he watched Katara swing her legs over the edge and began to scale down to him. She was a small dark dot far above him, and he tried not to think about what would happen if she fell. He had briefly entertained the thought of them going down together, with her in front of him, so he could catch her if she fell, but Zuko knew Katara wouldn't go for it. She was too independent, and didn't like when others acted like she wasn't able to do something on her own just because she was a woman. So, he had compromised with himself and thought he would only do that if she asked.
She didn't.
Katara lowered herself quickly until she ran out of cliff-face to use as a support. The muscles in her arms and chest burned as she lowered herself, hand-over-hand, toward the ground and Zuko. She could feel the rope biting into the gloves and was grateful Zuko had come prepared.
I better not lose my grip, she thought. Maybe I should have asked Zuko for some help. She risked a glance over her shoulder. She was almost there.
By the time she reached the promenade her face was red and damp with sweat. Katara kneeled over, hands on her knees, panting.
"Man, I miss Appa," she said breathlessly. She wiped the perspiration from her brow and straightened to look around. An uncertain frown creased her face. "Oh wow. I didn't expect to end up here."
Zuko shrugged as he offered her a waterskin, which she drank from gratefully. "Let's get moving. We've only got a few hours of daylight left and we've got a whole lot of temple to cover."
She couldn't argue with that.
Together they wandered up and down the dim, dusty hallways, checking high and low in each room they came across. It was clear they were the last occupants to have been there, and the knowledge made Katara sad. Aang had talked about eventually moving the Air Acolytes to one of the old temples, but he would most likely go to the Southern Air Temple, where he had been raised. The Western Air Temple would remain abandoned.
Much of the temple was empty with only odd bits of broken or decayed furniture here and there. They didn't let that deter them, and still made sure to thoroughly check each space for any hidden passages, false walls, or secret rooms. Throughout the temple, water still trickled through the channels and pipes that had once supplied the Air Nomads with bathing and drinking water. Wasp-moth eaten blankets and rugs were littered about. They found the kitchen, with a broken fireplace and shattered clay pottery. A brief search turned up nothing.
After they had been searching for a few hours, Katara suggested splitting up to cover more ground. But Zuko insisted that four eyes in each room would be more thorough than just two. "One of us might catch something the other missed," he'd argued, and Katara couldn't deny the logic there. And maybe it was safer that way too. What if they weren't the only ones there?
As they went deeper into the temple, signs of battle were more prominent. Ancient scorch marks that hadn't been weathered away could be seen—evidence of the Fire Nation's deadly massacre against the pacifist Air Nomads.
Zuko hung his head in shame, and was surprised when Katara took his hand and gave it a comforting squeeze. He was grateful she was with him.
At last they came to the giant Pai Sho table in one of the upper tiers of the temple. It was the lone structure left in a room that must have once been a popular place for the airbenders to spend leisure time in. There were tall windows on three of the four walls that gave a magnificent view of the ravine and waterfall below. The sun's red-orange light was shining in through those windows now. Katara could almost imagine clusters of airbenders there, drinking tea and playing the game in the sun's warm glow.
She and Zuko walked up to the Pai Sho table. It was gigantic, at least ten feet across, with large spaces. The box of wooden tiles had miraculously been spared in the destruction. Each piece was as big as the palm of her hand. She absently brushed her fingers across the dusty surface of the Pai Sho tiles. When they had first sought refuge there, Aang had been excited to show them the table. But they had never had time for him to take her.
"You would not believe how happy Uncle was when he first found this." Zuko plucked out a tile, turning it over in his hand. He was smiling. "While I spent all my time searching this place high and low for the Avatar, he was playing Pai Sho with the cook the whole time."
Katara chuckled. That definitely sounded like Iroh. Then she grew serious and looked around the room before her gaze settled on him. "This is the last room, Zuko. We've looked everywhere else. Either there's nothing here, or we missed it somehow."
"I already searched every inch of the temple when I first came here. Honestly, I didn't expect anything different this time." He didn't sound defeated. In fact, he wasn't disappointed at all.
Katara frowned. With no rooms left, that meant the answer wasn't here...they would have to try the Northern Air Temple next. It was the closest. But what if nothing is there either? We don't have time to waste going to all of the temples, Katara thought. And Zuko has already been to all of them...is this just a dead end?
She fisted her hands and looked at Zuko resolutely. "I refuse to give up! We had to have missed something, somewhere." Katara considered the Pai Sho table thoughtfully. The box of tiles, each painted with exquisite detail, sat on one of the two stone seats. She picked one up and turned it over; it was the white lotus tile. She gasped. "Zuko, this might sound crazy but...will you play Pai Sho with me?"
Zuko quirked a brow at her. "Katara, that does sound crazy. Why the heck do you want to play Pai Sho?"
"Why would the Air Nomads build a giant Pai Sho table?" Katara peered at him inquisitively.
Zuko shrugged. "They were bored? And they probably used airbending for fun. You know, they wouldn't actually touch the tiles. They most likely used airbending to move the pieces around." He made a gesture with his arms to emulate it. "I've seen earthbenders use earthbending to move tiles in the Earth Kingdom."
She snapped her fingers, a grin spreading across her face. "Zuko, that's it! If the airbenders built a game table where they could use airbending for them to play, is it so crazy to think that maybe...maybe it's also a way to open a secret room?"
He looked at her doubtfully. It seemed like a reach. "I don't know, Katara…"
"Think about it! We didn't find anything that even resembled a record room in this whole temple. Doesn't that seem odd to you?"
"Maybe. Or maybe it's just all gone now." He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. What did they have to lose if they tried? "But maybe it's not so crazy. The firebenders hide secret passages behind doors that can only be opened with firebending. The airbenders did that, too."
Katara dropped to her knees at the edge of the table and ran her hands along its base. Her fingers caught on a gap between the table and the floor. "Here! Zuko, can you give me some light?" Obediently he conjured flames to his palm and squatted down beside her. Katara pointed. "Look! There's a crack running along the base of the table. It's a small gap between the table and the floor. I bet if we play the game, we'll open it."
"But how are we supposed to play the game like airbenders if we can't airbend?"
She gave him a pointed look. Katara stood up and dusted off her knees as she considered the dilemma. She snapped her fingers. "Sokka imitated firebending with explosives. Do you remember, at Avatar Roku's temple on Crescent Isle?"
"That's right. He tricked Zhao." Zuko looked down at the table with a frown. "But it didn't actually unlock the door. The Fire Sages had to."
Katara pursed her lips. She wasn't going to give up on this. It was probably their only chance. "Maybe it'll work this time."
"But how are we going to pretend to airbend?"
She stared at the table as if hoping the idea would be written on its surface. She turned to him with a triumphant smile. "Firebending."
Zuko looked at her as if she had sprouted a second head. "Come again?"
"Firebending can produce a wind current. It's not exactly airbending, but it might be close enough." Katara turned to him. "It's worth a try."
He considered this. She could almost see the wheels turning in his head as he puzzled over it "Yeah, I can try it. But how do we know which strategy to play to open the door? Are we supposed to try them all until we get it?"
"I guess so." She shrugged helplessly, hands spread at her sides. "What else can we do?"
Zuko picked up a tile. "I guess it's a good thing Uncle loves this game so much. I know all of the strategies out there." He glanced at her. "You probably want to get all of this stuff wet before I give it a try, though. I don't want to burn down our only chance of finding something here."
"Good idea."
Zuko set all of the tiles on the table and she uncapped her waterskin. She bended the water over the table and tiles until they were damp.
"I don't want to ruin it," Katara said when he gave her a questioning look. "This is one of the last remaining pieces of Air Nomad culture." She didn't add the rest of her thought: Aang would be so hurt if he found out we ruined it.
"Fair enough."
He started to set the game up. Katara sat on one of the stone seats to watch him play. She knew how the game worked, but she hadn't spent much time playing it and only had a basic idea of the different rules and strategies. She was glad Zuko knew what he was doing. Katara watched as Zuko divided the tiles into two piles. He took a deep breath and looked up at her. Katara nodded encouragingly.
Zuko brought up his hand. He lined it up with the first tile. With an exhale, he punched at the air. A thin jet of fire exploded from his fist. It grazed over the tile and the tile slid across the surface of the table. Zuko and Katara locked eyes, a victorious grin on their faces.
"You did it!" Katara clapped her hands enthusiastically.
His smile fell. "Let's not get too excited yet. If I can't get the strategy right, we could be here for a while."
Katara watched him play. Zuko sent the tiles moving across the board with his small bursts of fire. She couldn't name the strategy he was using, but it was fascinating to watch him. Every so often she had to soak the table and pieces again as the heat of the fire evaporated her water.
"Not that strategy," Zuko muttered as he slid the final tile into place. His eyes flickered to her. "I guess we'll try again."
"How many strategies are there in Pai Sho?"
"There's eighteen well-known strategies." He huffed out a breath. "Like I said, we might be here for a while."
She helped him collect the tiles into two separate piles again, dampening the flame-warmed wood. Then Zuko started again.
As the sun's light faded, the pops of fire flashed orange in the darkening room. Zuko worked through two more strategies, his scowl deepening with each unsuccessful attempt. Katara pushed back the feelings of disappointment. She wouldn't give up, not until they had tried each and every known strategy.
When it became too dim to see, he lit a fire in the palm of his other hand and continued to play.
"What strategy is this?" Katara asked after a while.
"The White Lotus. It's Uncle's favorite." They exchanged a knowing smile. Then Zuko focused on his game. "When I was younger, he would always make me play Pai Sho with him. As I said, there's a lot of different strategies. Each piece has its own rules for what it can and can't do. Of course, the end goal is to have the most harmonies. Everyone plays their own way, but Uncle always favored the White Lotus gambit."
Katara smirked at him. "Do you think it's because he's a Grandmaster of the Order of the White Lotus?"
Zuko returned the look as he moved another tile into place. "Probably, yeah. He always told me that Pai Sho was more than just a game...it's how the Order communicates in secret. I guess I never had the patience for it."
"I never did, either. Aang always tried to get me to play, but I thought it was boring." She shrugged.
He moved another tile with a gout of fire. "He says people underestimate the importance of the White Lotus, so it made me think that maybe the airbenders thought that too. I probably should've tried this one first."
"Do you think it'll work?" Katara asked earnestly.
His gold eyes flashed in the yellow-orange light. "We're about to find out. This is the last move."
Katara looked down at the Pai Sho table, unconsciously holding her breath. Zuko's harmonies had formed a star-like shape along the borders of the game. She raised her eyebrows and waited expectantly. Her fingers gripping the edge of her seat until it hurt.
Zuko exhaled and threw his fist out one last time. The final tile slid into place. They waited with bated breath for something to happen. But for several seconds, there was nothing.
"Maybe I was wrong," Zuko mused.
"Nothing?" Katara exclaimed. She jumped to her feet and flung her hands wide in frustration. "How did that not work?"
Suddenly the table shuddered. Before their eyes the Pai Sho game began to rotate with a dusty groan. The table rose upward, spitting a hundred years' worth of dust into the air as it went. Zuko and Katara coughed and sneezed on the thick, choking cloud as they pulled the collars of their shirts over their mouths and noses..
Katara rubbed the grit from her eyes and looked at the table. She gasped. "Zuko, look!" As the dust settled, they pulled the cloth from their faces.
The table had risen until it formed a giant, cylindrical pillar. A doorway was exposed on its side. It was pitch-black beyond the dull orange glow of the Pai Sho room.
"Katara, you were right." He was awestricken. Zuko looked at her, a grin splitting his face. "Come on. Let's see where it goes."
He raised one flame-filled palm and disappeared into the darkness.
They walked down a stone corridor. Torches hung sporadically from brackets along the walls and Zuko lit them as they went. It was cool in the corridor but the air was still. Katara suspected they were underground.
"Where do you think this goes?" she asked Zuko. Her voice echoed off the walls and sounded entirely too loud in the hushed corridor.
He shrugged. "I don't know. Hopefully to a secret room full of information about the Conduit. That would be nice."
"We better hope so." Katara paused and chewed her bottom lip. She peeked at him from the corner of her eye. "You...don't think the Fire Nation found this place too, do you?"
The dull orange flames cast his face into shadows. His expression was undecipherable. "I don't know. We figured it out. So maybe they did too."
"But probably not, right?"
"Yeah. Seeking out Air Nomad history wasn't exactly a top priority, so probably not." He didn't sound very convincing.
They walked on.
Katara became aware that the ground had started to slope downward. They were moving deeper underground. Overhead, the ceiling had been impacted by tree roots that had broken through the stonework. She hoped it was stable. No one has been down here for a hundred years. This place has been empty all this time. Katara could hardly fathom it.
Zuko's voice pulled her from her thoughts. "There's a door up there."
Katara looked up. Sure enough, a wooden door stood at the end of the hallway. With renewed energy, they hurried down to it.
"At least it doesn't require airbending to unlock it," Katara remarked. She tried the doorknob and sighed in exasperation. "It's still locked, though."
"Allow me."
Katara moved back. Zuko stepped back and executed a powerful kick that sent the door flying inward. In its wake a cloud of dust and soot came floating out that stung their eyes and clogged their throats. Zuko and Katara coughed and waved away the debris before peering into the dark secret room. Zuko produced a small flame in the palm of his hand and cast aside the shadows.
"Oh no," Katara gasped in horror. Her hand flew up to cover her mouth.
Stone shelf upon stone shelf lined the room, many of them broken and crumbling. All that was left were piles of ashes and black scorch marks. A statue of the last airbender Avatar sat on a pedestal. Yangchen, Katara remembered her name. Her head was crumbled rock at its base. Everything had been razed to nothing.
"The Fire Nation burned all of the records." Zuko's voice was tense with barely-contained rage.
Katara looked up at him, blue eyes wide. "What are we going to do now, Zuko? Go to another temple?" There was a deep hopelessness in her voice. She could feel the panic mounting in her—they didn't have time for this! But she clamped down on it and pushed it back.
"I don't know." Zuko ran a hand down his face in frustration. He wouldn't quite meet her eyes. "Maybe the Fire Nation took some of the records when they invaded the temple. They wouldn't burn everything. They would save the important stuff."
"Do you think it would still be around after a hundred years?" Katara inquired.
"I don't know!" Zuko yelled, losing his temper. His hand lashed out and sent a wave of flame through the destroyed record room. He turned away and drew a shaky breath, trying to collect himself.
"Zuko—"
"I hate this!" Zuko shouted. His voice echoed in the empty temple. His hands were clenched into tight fists at his side as he struggled to reign in his temper. "My forefathers...my father…unleashed so much devastation on the world. Even after a hundred years, we all still suffer from their conquests." His fist slammed into the wall. The stone cracked beneath his hand.
"It's not your fault, Zuko," Katara said gently. She put a hand on his shoulder. He tensed up beneath her touch but she didn't shy away. "We can't change the past. All we can do is change the future."
He looked into her earnest eyes as a deep and persistent wave of sadness overcame him, strong enough to douse the heat of anger. He wanted to lean into her, to take refuge in her soft blue eyes. Katara was so gentle and kind; cool where he was hot.
Katara seemed to sense what he wouldn't act on, and she wrapped her arms around his waist to pull him into a tight embrace. For a moment Zuko hesitated, but then he returned the gesture. He pressed his face into her hair and breathed in her soothing rain scent. She could feel his heart beating wildly in his chest and she pulled him closer, wishing she could hug away all of the pain and anger and hurt.
After several long, quiet moments Zuko stepped back and turned away from her. He blinked back unshed tears.
"We should find a place to sleep for the night," he said quietly, his voice thick. "We need to get back to the ship before sundown tomorrow." He let out a breath. "The Fire Sages have a sacred temple on a small island near Ember Island. It's like a vast library of knowledge for the Fire Nation. We should try there."
"Okay," Katara said softly. His anger had left him, but she didn't like the melancholy that had taken its place.
They walked back up to the Pai Sho room in somber silence. They couldn't figure out how to close it down again, so they left it ajar. It wasn't like there was anything left to protect, anyway. They ventured back down into the lower tiers of the upside-down temple and found an empty room that looked out over the river near the wrecked promenade. They laid out their bedrolls side by side, but a safe distance apart. Night had fully fallen, but they had nothing to burn to make a fire.
Zuko reheated the leftover fish they had brought, and they ate that and ash bananas for dinner in silence, feeling dejected. Each of them were lost in their own thoughts. Katara stole glances at him, but in the dark it was nearly impossible to see him.
A cool breeze was coming from the north. It was going to be a chilly night. Katara almost asked Zuko if he would provide some warmth, but his expression was stony and she decided against it. Very few words had passed between the two of them when they turned into their bedrolls. Zuko rolled away from her and she lay staring up at the ceiling, unable to shut her mind off.
"Zuko?" Katara whispered into the darkness. She wondered if he had fallen asleep.
"Yeah?" came the muffled reply.
"It's going to be okay," she murmured. "We're going to find the Conduit. I know we will."
He didn't respond.
She propped herself up on her elbows, looking at his dark form. A deep sadness tugged at her as she looked at him. "Zuko, you can talk to me. You know that. About anything. I think we've been through enough together to be able to do that."
His response was soft, forlorn. "I know."
Katara laid back down on her bedroll, staring at the ceiling as she worried her bottom lip between her teeth.
Her heart ached for him. He carried the weight of the Fire Nation's dark history on his shoulders, as if he alone were responsible for its carnage. Zuko had always been that way, for as long as Katara had known him. Even way back then, when he was hunting down her and her friends, he alone felt like it was his duty to capture the Avatar to restore his honor. When was the last time he let someone else carry some of his load? Katara wondered sadly.
She rolled over and curled up on her side, hugging herself against the chill and the loneliness. Katara wanted to hold him again, to offer comfort to Zuko and tell him everything would be okay, as she had done for Aang countless times.
But Zuko wasn't Aang. He didn't need her motherly comfort. What did he need? He needed someone who could help shoulder some of his load, who could quench the flames when his tensions ran high. Was that why he and Mai didn't work out? Because Mai only added fuel to the fire with her impassive ways? Katara didn't know.
After a long while, she fell asleep.
I have to thank my amazing beta, LadyFaePhillips, for the idea about the Pai Sho table. Neither of us have read another fic that mentioned the giant Pai Sho table at TWA, so we (aka, she) thought it would be fun to incorporate it here. Honestly, this chapter would've been so bland without her.