This is it guys, we're finally here. The finale has arrived. Okay even though this is the finale I'm going to be posting another chapter after this with links to Celina's character designs. But after that, it's onto Book Two. I might take a small break before I start Book Two just to recharge and rewatch the season. But don't fret because Celina's story is continuing. Anyway, I don't own Avatar the Last Airbender, that belongs to Nick. Enjoy the Finale!
The Siege of the North
A couple weeks had passed and the gang was doing well at the North Pole. Celina finished her training with Yugoda, mastering healing within three weeks. Sokka was still going through warrior training and hanging out with Princess Yue, which was still complicated. Celina tried to convince Yue to take a chance with Sokka and forget about her fiancé, that her father would understand if she was truly in love, but Yue said she couldn't and that it was her duty to her people to go through with her arranged marriage. It was ridiculous but Celina didn't say anything afterward, just hoping that Sokka and Yue enjoyed their time together. Katara quickly rose up in her training with Master Pakku, exceeded past his top-tier students.
Celina was currently watching Katara as she sparred with another student. With her training done she was able to help Master Pakku which he greatly appreciated. Of course, she had to keep her cheering to a minimum when it came to her sister, she couldn't show favoritism until they got back to the house. The boy Katara was sparing against, Sangok, looked nervous as he took up a stance against her. Katara herself looked completely calm and collected. Sangok raised a ball of water, which he turned to ice, and sent it at Katara. She fluidly liquefied it and sent a huge stream of water at Sangok. It washed him up into the air before Katara froze that water, trapping him in ice.
"Nice try, Pupil Sangok. A couple more years and you might be ready to fight a sea sponge," Pakku commented as him and Celina walked up to Katara.
"That ice ball you threw was pretty weak and it's no surprise as to why. You need to be swifter in your movements and make sure your nerves don't get the best of you when up against someone. They'll affect your bending capabilities and allow for your opponent to have the upper hand," Celina explained as she unfroze the ice Sangok was trapped in. He dropped to the ground and rubbed his sore rear.
"Yes, Master Celina," Sangok replied.
"Would anyone care for a rematch with Katara?" Pakku asked his students who were sitting slumped against the ground. The boys groaned in response. Celina had to restrain a giggle remembering how Katara wiped the floor with all of them. "Katara, you have advanced more quickly than any student I have ever trained. You have proven that with fierce determination, passion, and hard work you can accomplish anything. Raw talent alone is not enough." Pakku, Celina, and Katara looked over to see Aang lounging around, floating Momo around on an air ball. "Pupil Aang!"
"Yes, Master Pakku?" Aang replied, quickly dissipating the air ball which caused Momo to land on Aang's head.
"Care to step into the sparring circle? I figure since you've found time to play with house pets you must have already mastered waterbending," Pakku said.
"I wouldn't say 'mastered', but check this out!" Aang told him as he got up. Aang spun around, collecting snow around him as he went until he made himself a snowman. Pakku, Celina, and Katara looked at him unimpressed as Momo jumped on Aang, knocking him down. Pakku shook his head in disgust.
"Must I end lessons early?" Pakku said to himself.
"Actually, I have an idea," Celina told Pakku before turning to Katara. "So you've sparred against one Master already. How does sparring against another Master sound?"
"You mean it?" Katara asked excited. She'd been begging Celina to spar with her ever since Celina completed her healing training.
"Yeah, I mean you took out all of the students so it would make sense to see how you fair against a master," Celina explained. The defeated students perked up, hearing that there was going to be a sparring match between Master Celina and Katara. A fight between the sisters would be interesting to watch. "Wouldn't you say so Master Pakku?"
"Hmm, I suppose. Katara has advanced tremendously," Pakku somewhat agreed.
"Woohoo! Uh, I mean. It would be an honor to spar with you, Master Celina," Katara said and then bowed at her sister out of respect. Celina found it strange when Katara referred to her as Master Celina but understood why. She had to show her the same respect that the other students did, well… at least during lessons.
Celina chuckled at Katara's excitement. "Just so you know I won't be going easy on you," she told Katara as she got into position.
"Neither will I," Katara replied and threw a quick water whip at Celina.
The older girl used the water whip's momentum to turn it into an ice dagger and fling it back at Katara. Katara split the dagger in to and sent the pieces into the ground on either side of her. Grabbing water from the pools near them Katara sent two large bursts of water at Celina. Seeing them coming at her Celina twirled around, grabbing both bursts and turned them into a ramp which she rode up. Once at the top Celina used the ramp to flip over Katara, landing behind her sister. With Katara trying to catch up with her movement Celina was about to loosen the ground underneath her sister so that she'd sink into the ground but stopped when she noticed a falling black snowflake. The icy ramp she created before turned back into water, crashing to the ground, when Celina realized what she was looking at.
"Katara, look," Celina pointed out worried, stopping the sparring session and bringing the black snow to her sister's attention. Katara's eyes widened upon seeing more fall down upon the white landscape.
"Oh no," Katara muttered.
Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked around them, confused about what was happening. From the Northern people's reactions Celina could only assume that they hadn't dealt with the Fire Nation attacking in decades. She watched as the soot caused the water to turn black. Celina, Katara, and Aang shared a look before looking up at the sky.
"What's going on?" one of the students asked
"The Fire Nation is coming. The black snow is a result of soot. We've seen it before when they invaded our village. From the amount, it looks like there's a lot of them coming," Celina explained.
"We must inform Chief Arnook. Everyone into the citadel," Pakku told his students.
Everyone around rushed into the citadel and Pakku and Celina were quick to explain what was going on. Men went and banged drums announcing a tribal meeting. Pakku went and took up his spot in the council section with Chief Arnook while Celina went back and sat with Katara and Aang nearby a wall. People continued to enter the citadel. Celina noticed when Yue ran in and took her place next to her father. Sokka trudged in a bit later, joining his sisters and Aang. He looked tense and Celina could tell that something happened between him and Yue. Everyone hushed when Chief Arnook began to speak.
"The day we have feared for so long has arrived. The Fire Nation is on our doorstep. It is with great sadness I call my family here before me, knowing well that some of these faces are about to vanish from our tribe. But they will never vanish from our hearts. Now, as we approach the battle for our existence I call upon the great spirits! Spirit of the Ocean! Spirit of the Moon! Be with us! I'm going to need volunteers for a dangerous mission," Arnook said.
"Count me in," Sokka stood up.
"Sokka!" Katara exclaimed. Celina, Katara, and Aang were shocked as Sokka went forward to receive Chief Arnook's mark. Yue teared up once Sokka got his mark and left to go prepare for the upcoming mission. She really cared about him.
After the tribal meeting Celina, Katara, and Aang stood outside on the citadel steps with Chief Arnook. There was a tense stillness in the air as the Northern Water Tribe waited for the Fire Nation to make their appearance.
"The stillness before battle is unbearable. Such a quiet dread," Chief Arnook observed.
"I wasn't there when the Fire Nation attacked my people. I'm gonna make a difference this time," Aang told them. Celina and Katara put a comforting hand on Aang's shoulders, letting him know that they were there to help.
o
Celina, Sokka, and Katara stood next to Aang and Appa on the wall overlooking the ocean. Water Tribe warriors lined the top of the wall, face painted, as everyone waited. In the distance, a single ship appeared on the horizon. From the ship, a fireball was launched, hurtling directly towards the center of the wall, blowing a massive hole in the water symbol. Several people were thrown back from the blast, including the Southern Water Tribe siblings. Celina bended the snow around her in order to cushion the landing, essentially putting herself into a snow bubble. Once she landed Celina boosted herself out from her snow bubble and looked around for her siblings.
"Katara!? Celina!?" Sokka called out.
"Right here, Sokka," Celina shouted to her brother. Katara quickly made her appearance, bending a mound of snow off her. Celina and Sokka helped her back on to her feet just as two more fireballs came over the city wall. Appa roared as him and Aang took off towards the Fire Nation ship. "You head over to the other warriors for your mission. Katara and I will handle the fireballs." Sokka nodded and ran off.
"Stop those fireballs!" Pakku shouted to the waterbenders.
"So how are we going to do this?" Katara asked Celina.
"I'm sure a big enough water wall will do the trick, or at least put out the fire," Celina explained. "Think we can do it?"
Katara smiled. "You bet. After all, we are the ultimate waterbending sisters," she answered.
Nodded the girls took up their waterbending stance and reached for the water below them. Concentrating the two lifted a large wall of water that extinguished a fireball that was thrown. The water wall didn't stretch that wide but it got the attention of the other waterbenders who copied Celina and Katara's actions. Soon there was a large water wall trying to stop the fireballs. They continued on with this until Pakku dismissed Celina and Katara so that another round of waterbenders could take over. He didn't want everyone getting tired.
The girls headed off to the citadel to rest up, taking in the smoking sections of the city that had been bombed. Once at the citadel the girls met up with Princess Yue to go over what had happened. That was when twilight arrived and the fireballs stopped.
"They've stopped firing," Yue observed.
"Probably because the moon is rising, and a full one at that. They'd know better than to attack when we're at our most powerful," Celina replied.
It was then Aang swooped down with Appa, landing at the base of the citadel. The girls ran down to talk to them as Appa flopped down on his belly, too tired from the day. Aang slid own from the saddle looking dejected.
"I can't do it. I can't do it," Aang said to himself.
"What happened?" Katara asked.
"I must have taken out a dozen Fire Navy ships, but there's just too many of them. I can't fight them all," Aang explained tired.
"But, you have to! You're the Avatar!" Yue insisted.
"I'm just one kid," Aang broke, burying his head in his arms.
"Come on, let's get you inside the citadel," Celina urged, helping Aang up onto his feet. The girls lead him into the citadel where they could take a breath from everything. Aang stuck to himself while the girls gather together to look at the full moon.
"The legends say the moon was the first waterbender," Yue explained to them. "Our ancestors saw how it pushed and pulled the tides and learned how to do it themselves."
"That's how I learned back home. I was able to figure out my waterbending more so during night in the beginning. There was such a wonderful energy when the moon came out and mixed with the ocean. It was comforting," Celina told them.
"Our strength comes from the Spirit of the Moon, our life comes from the Spirit of the Ocean. They work together to keep balance," Yue continued.
"The Spirits! Maybe I can find them and get their help!" Aang exclaimed getting an idea.
"How can you do that?" Yue asked.
"The Avatar is the bridge between our world and the Spirit World," Katara explained. "Aang or Celina can talk to them. My sister's able to see and talk to spirits."
"Maybe they'll give us the wisdom to win this battle!" Yue smiled hopeful.
"Or, maybe they'll unleash a crazy amazing spirit attack on the Fire Nation!" Aang said hyped up. The look he got from the girls told him that was a silly thing to want. "Or wisdom. That's good too."
"The only problem is, last time you got to the Spirit World by accident. How are you going to get there this time?" Katara asked.
"I have an idea, follow me," Yue said.
Celina, Katara, and Aang followed after Yue as she led them through the citadel. They walked through a courtyard behind the citadel and came upon a wooden door. "So is this the way to the Spirit World?" Aang asked.
"No," Yue laughed. "You'll have to get there on your own. But I can take you to the most spiritual place in the entire North Pole."
Yue opened the door and the four of them walked inside. Celina, Katara, and Aang's eyes widened when they saw what was beyond the door. At the back of the chamber, there was a waterfall that split around an island of land covered in grass. A small pond sat in the middle in front of a gate. The island was connected to where they stood by two wooden bridges. Aang ran over one of the bridges in excitement, laughing as he landed on the soft grass of the island.
"I never thought I'd miss grass this much," Aang laughed. The girls walked over the bridges and to the island.
"It's so warm in here! How is that possible?" Katara asked as she and Celina pulled off their overcoats, tossing them aside.
"It's the center of all spiritual energy in our land," Yue explained.
"I can feel it. There such a strong, tranquil hum of energy here. It feels really familiar," Celina told them.
"You're right. I can feel… something… it's so… tranquil," Aang agreed and sat down cross-legged in front of the pond. He closed his eyes and tried to mediate his way into the spirit world. Katara and Yue stood behind Aang and waited while Celina stood on the side of the pond, hoping that the spirits would come and talk to her.
"Why is he sitting like that?" Yue whispered to Katara.
"He's meditating, trying to cross over into the Spirit World. It takes all his concentration," Katara whispered back.
"Is there any way we can help?" Yue whisper asked.
"How 'bout some quiet!? C'mon guys! I can hear every word you're saying!" Aang complained. "Uh, how are you doing, Celina? Gotten anything?"
"Not yet. It feels like spirits might be here but they're not coming out," Celina told him.
Aang nodded and the two of them looked down at the pool, watching the two koi fish that circled one another. They both stared that the fish intently, noticing that the fish closely resemble a yin-yang before finding them blur into one. Aang's eyes and arrow glowed white while Celina passed out, falling into the pond with the fish. The koi fish continued to swim around Celina's body as her braid became undone, her hair spreading out like a halo.
"Celina! Aang! Are they okay?" Yue asked concerned.
"It looks like both of them crossed over into the Spirit World. They'll be fine as long as we don't move their bodies. That's their way back to the physical world," Katara explained.
"But shouldn't we get Celina out of the water?" Yue questioned.
"I don't wanna risk moving her and Celina not being able to find her way back. I don't like that she's floating there but I don't wanna take any chances," Katara admitted. "As long as I'm here to protect them everything should be fine."
"Well, aren't you a big girl now?" Zuko's voice echoed slightly through the chamber.
Katara looked over to see that he was walking over the footbridge towards them. "No!" Katara exclaimed.
"Yes! Hand him over and I won't have to hurt you," Zuko demanded.
Katara got into waterbending stance while Yue ran off to go get help. Celina and Aang remained in their spirit trances. Zuko launched forward, firing several blasts of fire at Katara. She blocked all of them using water from the pond. He continued to fire blasts at her but Katara used the water to hurl him backward, causing him to fall flat on the ground.
"I see you've learned a new trick. But I didn't come this far to lose to you," Zuko said as he got up.
Zuko fired another blast which Katara blocked. She launched another stream of water at him which hurled him back again. Just as Zuko regained his balance Katara froze his feet to the ground and proceeded to bend a sphere around Zuko just like Celina taught her. Once he was fully encased Katara froze the water, trapping him in the ice. Katara was extremely satisfied with this.
"You little peasant. You've found a master, haven't you?" Zuko growled.
"I found two. Turns out I've been traveling with one all along," Katara smirked.
The smirk didn't last as the sphere of ice began to glow yellow and orange before exploding. Shards of ice were sent everywhere as Zuko was released and charged at Katara. They exchanged shots which missed. Zuko managed to get passed Katara and almost grabbed Aang's collar. He unintentionally paused when he noticed Celina floating in the pond. This allowed Katara to blast him out of the way with a jet of water, sending him away from Aang. Zuko fell over the edge of the island and into the water. Before he had time to recover Katara raised him up ten or more feet with water and froze him in place.
Zuko's face dropped in defeat for a moment before sunlight came into the Spirit Oasis. His head snapped up and had a fierce look of determination. He breathed steam, melting the ice that was holding him, and charged at Katara. She was not expected him and was caught off guard when Zuko threw a fire blast at him. Katara was thrown back into the post of the gate and was knocked out. Zuko walked over and grabbed Aang's collar before looking over at the girl he just knocked out.
"You rise with the moon. I rise with the sun," Zuko said.
He hoisted Aang up over his shoulder and was about to leave when he looked back at Celina. Zuko wondered why she was passed out in the water but quickly moved on before anyone could come and stop him. He couldn't let wondering about the girl stop him from achieving his goal. Still, when he climbed up the cliff of the Spirit Oasis he couldn't help but think that he was lucky he fought Katara instead of her sister. If what Katara had said was right then if he went up against Celina he would have definitely lost. But luckily it looked like things were turning up in his favor. Zuko just needed to escape.
o
Katara opened her eyes and snapped back to attention remembering her fight with Zuko. She got up on her knees and noticed that Aang and Zuko were gone.
"Aang!" Katara shouted. She failed. Appa landed on the island next to her, Sokka and Yue in the saddle. Both of them hopped down and rushed over to Katara.
"What happened? Where's Zuko?" Sokka questioned.
"He took Aang. He took him right out from under me," Katara answered sadly. She looked over at Celina in the pool. The koi fished swam around her tightly, almost as if they were protecting her. Katara felt even more disappointed in herself. A few fish could protect her sister and she couldn't protect Aang. "I can't believe I lost him."
"You did everything you could and now we need to do everything we can to get him back," Sokka said, trying to comfort her. "Zuko couldn't have gotten far. They must have gone somewhere into the tundra, otherwise, we would have seen them when flying over. We'll find him. Aang will be fine."
"Okay," Katara agreed. "Help me get Celina out of the water. I don't want to leave her along her while we look for Aang."
Sokka nodded as the two got Celina out of the water and carried her onto Appa's saddle. Katara bended the water from her body so that she wouldn't get sick while Yue wrapped her in a blanket to keep her warm as Celina's coat managed to get burned during Katara and Zuko's battle. With everyone on, Sokka flew Appa off into the tundra happening above the Spirit Oasis. Katara looked over at her sister. She hoped that she and Aang were having luck in the Spirit World.
o
Celina freaked out when she found herself in a dark forest. She could only assume that she was in the Spirit World but Aang was nowhere to be seen. They entered into their spirit trance together so why wouldn't they be together now?
"Aang! Aang!" Celina shouted only to have no one answer.
She began to worry. Why was she in the Spirit World? How was she in the Spirit World? Celina thought that she was only able to see spirits, not travel into their world like the Avatar could. But now that she was here she knew she had to look for Aang and find out where the Moon and Ocean spirits were. So Celina wandered through the forest, following a trail of colorful glowing mushrooms. She didn't know where she was going but decided to stay in the lit area, not wanting to literally wander blind in the dark forest.
"Hello? Is anyone there? Aang? I need some help," Celina called out as she went along, hoping a friendly spirit would come and help her.
Celina continued to get no response until she came to an open clearing. The clearing was lit by a warm yellow light as autumn leaves covered the ground. What she was surprised to see, however, was a familiar red dragon curled comfortably amongst the leaves.
"Fang?" she spoke, remembering the name of Roku's dragon. The dragon in question looked up at her. He didn't make her feel uncomfortable like last time. Instead, he looked at her as an old friend. "Oh, is it good to see someone familiar. Look, Fang, I'm trying to find the Ocean and Moon spirits. Can you help me?" Fang nodded and then motioned for her to get on his back. Celina did as the dragon instructed and climbed up onto Fang's back. He made sure that Celina was secure before taking off.
Fang rose above the trees, allowing Celina to get a better look around the Spirit World. The forest was large and neighbored a swamp that Celina was happy she didn't end up in. Towards the end of the swamp, the trees died down to reveal a large black tree handing off a cliff. Celina tensed when she saw the tree. She needed to stay as far away from that tree as possible. Fang roared, causing Celina to look at what they were approaching. The forest ended when it met the ocean. An island sat in the middle of the water which housed an intricate temple. Fang landed in front of the entrance and Celina dismounted.
"Thank you, Fang," Celina thanked. The dragon nodded in response and flew off. Celina turned to the entrance of the temple and wandered in, searching for the Ocean and Moon spirits and hopefully Aang. "Hello? Is anyone there? I'm looking for the Ocean and Moon spirits," she called out into the halls. Celina received no response but when she got further into the temple she heard people talking. She followed the voices outside into a garden where she saw a woman with flowing yellow hair, scantily clad in a golden robe which barely covered her breasts. The woman was surrounded by people who wore little clothes as well, all of them in different conversations.
Blush stained Celina's face but she needed to push past her discomfort if she was going to find out where the Ocean and Moon spirits were. "Excuse me. I'm looking for the Ocean and Moon spirits. Can one of you tell me where to find them?" she asked. The conversations stopped as everyone looked over at Celina. The girl stood there awkwardly, shifting her weight from one foot to the other. The woman in the golden robe stepped towards Celina looking completely awestruck.
"Celina, my darling," the woman spoke.
"Um, I'm sorry, do I know you?" Celina asked confused. She didn't think she knew any human spirits. The ones she always interacted with were animal-like creatures. So how would this woman know her? The woman saddened hearing Celina's question.
"No, I guess you wouldn't. We haven't been together since the day you were born. But oh, you're here now. You finally made your way back to me. My daughter is able to communicate with us!" the woman exclaimed with joy. The people behind her cheered hearing the woman's declaration. Celina stood there in confusion.
"What?" The woman grabbed hold of Celina and pulled her into her, hugging the girl close to her.
"Oh, it's been so long. I was beginning to think that I would never get to see you again. My how much you've grown. How beautiful you've become. You certainly inherited my good looks," the woman cooed.
Celina pulled herself out of the woman's grasped and backed away from her, afraid and confused. "What are you talking about? You can't be my mother. My… my parents died in a blizzard. Besides, you're a spirit! How could a spirit have a child in the normal world? It's not possible," Celina rambled. The woman looked at Celina in shock and concern before turning back to the people behind them.
"Leave us, we have much to discuss," the woman told them. They nodded and then filed out of the garden and back into the temple. Only Celina and the woman remained. Celina had a strong feeling to run but found herself frozen in place. The woman tightened her robe around her and turned back to Celina. "Sit down, we have a lot to talk about."
Hesitant Celina nodded and followed the woman over to a small table and chairs where they sat down. She knew that it wasn't a good idea to anger the spirits and running away from this one might do just take. Celina shifted uncomfortably in her chair, waiting to hear what the woman was going to tell her.
"I guess I should introduce myself. My name is Ai and I am the Spirit of Love. The spirits you saw earlier are my devote followers. There are more spirits around the temple, followers of my husband, Bishamon: the Spirit of War," she explained.
"Wait, you can't be saying that the two of you are my parents. That's insane. You can't expect me to believe that," Celina interrupted, seeing where she was going with this already. The look she received from Ai told her otherwise. "Spirits, you actually expect me to believe that."
"What do you think happened to your birth parents?" Ai questioned.
"They died in a blizzard," Celina answered instantly. That was what she was told whenever she asked Hadoka and her mom about her birth parents.
"And you survived? An infant survived a blizzard but the parents didn't? Sounds a bit ridiculous to me," Ai said.
"I… uh…" Celina muttered, struggling to find a response to what she was saying.
"And what of their bodies? Did no one bother to look for them after the blizzard passed?" Ai continued to question.
"Well they tried to but… but… you seriously can't think that I'm going to believe that you're my mother and that my father is a spirit as well," Celina replied.
"Look, honey, I know that this is a lot to take in," Ai tried to comfort her.
"I just don't understand. Okay, say that you were my mother and that I was the daughter of spirits. Wouldn't that make me a spirit as well? And if… IF that was the case then why would I be in the physical world?" Celina asked, hoping that Ai didn't have an answer.
"Perhaps to answer that we should head back inside the temple," Ai replied and got up. Celina followed after, trailing behind as Ai led her through the temple. The spirit began to explain things as they went. "As you know, this war has been going on for a hundred years. In the beginning, things were fine for the spirit world. War has happened many times before this one and they'll still occur in the future. So we didn't freight as we knew the Avatar would bring the balance back before anything became too serious for us. But the Avatar disappeared and as a result, us spirits have been affected, mainly your father."
The two of them came upon a room guarded by two spirits. They bowed slightly for Ai and Celina before opening the chamber door for them. As she entered Celina noticed that the room was dimly lit by orbs of light. A large bed was the focal point of the room but the man in the bed was the one drawing attention. He was naked, his lower half covered by a sheet which Celina was grateful for, as sweat covered his tanned skin. His long black hair was tangled in some places and his breathing was ragged. The man looked extremely ill.
"This is your father," Ai told Celina.
"This is Bishamon? This is the Spirit of War? Why on earth would the war cause him to become ill? I thought that he'd get stronger from the constant fighting," Celina asked.
"Ever since the war started your father has received thousands of prayers for strength and courage in battle. Usually, that's not an issue but humans have forgotten offerings in return. In fulling a prayer we give up a bit of our energy and the offerings help us to rejuvenate. Your father has been fulling prayers without receiving anything in return and because of that, it's drained him of his energy. I don't know how much longer he can take of the constant pleas," Ai answered worried.
"Come now, my lily, I can hold on for a few more decades," a weak masculine voice somewhat chuckled.
"Oh, Bish," Ai sighed, giving her husband a small, but concerned smile. Celina had to admit that they were a cute pairing. She could practically feel the love for each other radiating off of them.
Noticing another presence in the room Bishamon looked over and was shocked to see Celina standing next to his wife. "I hope this isn't a fever dream. Is my little girl actually here?" he asked.
"Yes, she finally made it to the Spirit World," Ai confirmed, dragging Celina over to his bedside. Celina felt obligated to kneel down so that the ill spirit could see her better. What surprised her is when he reached up and cupped her face, stroking her cheek with his thumb.
"My oh my, you're as beautiful as your mother," Bishamon said to Celina. Looking into his eyes Celina couldn't help but feel an instant connection to the man. The way he cradled her face and the way he looked at her with such loving eyes just screamed father to her. It started to sink in that perhaps Ai was right. Perhaps she was the daughter of Love and War.
"So… you two are my parents," Celina admitted. Ai couldn't help but smile widely hearing that Celina accepted her heritage. "It's nice to finally meet you both but I'm still confused. If I'm your daughter then why did you abandon me? Why am I living in the physical world?"
Ai and Bishamon's faces dropped when she asked this. "Celina, my little turtle duck, please understand that we didn't want to leave you," Bishamon told her. She found it calming that he was already using a pet name for her but still didn't understand.
Ai sighed. "We decided to send you to the physical world so that you could stop the war," Ai informed her.
"What?" Celina questioned confused.
"The war needs to stop and with the Avatar having been gone for such a long time we thought it best to take into our own hands. So we sent you there to grow up and learn to fight and end this war," she explained.
"But then why couldn't I learn to fight in the Spirit World and when I was ready, go stop the war?" Celina asked.
"Spirits traveling to the physical world takes a lot of energy and unless someone is there on the other side to pull us through we are not fully present. We would become ghosts, only able to appear every so often or through reflective surfaces. The only reason you were able to get completely pulled through was because of a slight tear in the Southern Spirit Portal that used to connect the worlds together. A high energy, spiritual storm was passing by that briefly tore open a bridge," Bishamon explained.
"The blizzard," Celina muttered.
"Yes. The opening was too small for an adult to fit through but a baby could pass just fine," Ai added. "We placed you close so that someone would find you and adopt you into their home. We've been trying to contact you through your dreams for years but there was always another presence that blocked us from doing so." Celina couldn't help but feel like she knew the presence they were referring to.
"At least the spirits we got to teach you waterbending were able to relay back information," Bishamon commented.
"What spirits? I learned waterbending by myself," Celina asked confused.
"No, sweetie, we asked the Ocean and Moon spirits to teach you waterbending. They would send out a type of learning energy, encouraging you to perform certain types of bending moves," Ai explained.
"The Ocean and Moon spirits! I can't believe I almost forgot. The whole reason Aang and I traveled to the Spirit World was to find the Ocean and Moon spirit," Celina remembered.
"If that is the case then why isn't the Avatar with you. There aren't that many spirits who know where the Moon and Ocean are?" Bishamon asked.
"Maybe Roku sent him to someone else," Celina wondered.
Hearing this Ai became angry. "Are those past lives so petty that they'd send him to that demon's lair," she growled.
"What is she talking about?" Celina asked Bishamon.
"It seems that Roku sent your friend to talk to Koh the Face Stealer," Bishamon answered. Celina tensed upon hearing the name and began to shake in terror.
"Celina, what's wrong?" Ai asked her concerned, placing her hand on Celina's forehead to see if she was coming down with something.
"Koh… he's the one that's been haunting me. Ever since I was little he comes into my dreams and hurts me. He said he wants my face." Celina told them, trying to hold in tears.
"That bastard! I'll kill him!" Bishamon roared and tried to get up from the bed.
"Bish, careful. You need to conserve your energy," Ai scolded, pushing him back down.
"Why would Roku send Aang to Koh?" Celina asked confused.
Ai sighed. "I'm afraid that's a subject for another day. You should go back to the Ocean and Moon spirits now. If the Fire Nation is attacking the Northern Water Tribe then the spirits might be in trouble."
"What do you mean? I haven't found the Ocean and Moon spirits yet?" Celina questioned.
"Yes, you have. The Ocean and Moon spirits, Tui and La, are living in the Spirit Oasis," Bishamon informed her.
"The koi fish! If the spirts are in trouble then I have to get back to the physical world!" Celina told her parents. "But how do I get back?"
"Just concentrate. Close your eyes and will yourself to wake up. We'll see each other again in your dreams. Now that you've made your way to the Spirit World yourself we'll be able to find each other more easily," Ai answered.
"Goodbye, my little turtle duck, and good luck," Bishamon wished. Celina nodded a goodbye and closed her eyes, urging herself to wake up back.
o
Opening her eyes Celina saw that she was back in the Spirit Oasis but began to panic when she saw that her body was missing. She was going to circle around the area to try and find it when suddenly her ghostly body was pulled away from the Spirit Oasis and into the storm above. She was relieved to see her body was with Appa, Yue, and her siblings and woke up suddenly once her spirit returned to her body. Celina let out a gasp and sat up, causing the blankets wrapped around her to fall.
"Celina!" Sokka and Katara exclaimed, excited that their sister was back in the world of the living.
"Why aren't we in the Spirit Oasis?" Celina asked confused, wrapping the blankets around her body. The storm was harsh and she was without her overcoat.
"Zuko took Aang. We've been trying to look for them," Sokka explained to her.
"Look!" Katara explained, pointing out a glowing comet in the sky. Celina felt a familiar presence with it.
"That's gotta be Aang! Follow after him. We have to get him and get back to the Spirit Oasis the Ocean and Moon spirits are in trouble," Celina told them.
Everyone nodded and Appa followed after the glowing comet. They landed when they noticed Aang trying to crawl out of a cave with Zuko following close behind him. They could see the joy on the monk's face when Appa landed next to him.
"Think you can handle this one?" Celina asked her sister, fighting wouldn't be the smartest idea without a coat in this storm. Katara nodded and then jumped down from Appa to confront Zuko.
"Here for a rematch?" Zuko asked getting in stance.
"Trust me, Zuko, it's not going to be much of a match," Katara responded.
Zuko threw a fireball at her which she easily blocked. Katara sent a shockwave of ice hurtling towards Zuko and encased him in a pillar of ice. She proceeded to raise Zuko up high and then drop him, knocking Zuko unconscious and quickly ending the fight. Sokka jumped down from Appa and cut the rope that bound Aang.
"Hey! This is some quality rope!" Sokka discovered and pocketed the cut rope.
"We need to get to the oasis! The spirits are in trouble!" Aang exclaimed.
"We know, Celina told us," Katara told him. Aang looked up to see Celina looking over the side of Appa's saddle.
"Where were you? You disappeared when I got to the Spirit World," Aang asked her.
"It's a long story. Come on, we need to get back to the oasis," Celina answered and motioned for him to get on Appa. Sokka, Katara, and Aang got onto Appa, Aang taking Appa's reigns and was about to fly off when he paused to look over at the unconscious Prince Zuko.
"Wait, we can't just leave him here," Aang said.
"Sure we can. Let's go," Sokka dismissed, not caring if Zuko froze to death or not.
"No, if we leave him, he'll die," Aang protested and jumped down. He grabbed Zuko and brought him back into Appa's saddle.
"Yeah, this makes a lot of sense. Let's bring the guy who's constantly trying to kill us!" Sokka said sarcastically.
"Just tie him up. We can't waste any more time here," Celina told her brother. Sokka grumbled while he tied up Zuko.
Aang in the meantime turned Appa around and began to fly Appa back to the Spirit Oasis. While they were flying, however, the moon turned red causing a red light to fall over the white snow. Celina, Yue, and Aang held their heads in pain.
"Ugh…" Yue breathed.
"Are you okay?" Sokka asked the princess.
"I feel faint," she answered.
"We feel it too. The Moon spirit is in trouble," Celina said, looking up at the crimson moon. She couldn't help but feel pained for her waterbending master.
"I owe the Moon spirit my life," Yue told them.
"What do you mean?" Sokka asked, hoping that she'd elaborate.
"When I was born I was very sick and very weak. Most babies cry when they're born but I was born as if I were asleep. My eyes closed," Yue explained. "Our healers did everything they could. They told my mother and father I was going to die. My father pleaded with the spirits to save me. That night, beneath the full moon, he brought me to the oasis and placed me in the pond. My dark hair turned white, I opened my eyes and began to cry and they knew I would live. That's why my mother named me Yue, for the moon."
"That's intense," Katara said.
"And I thought it was weird that the Ocean and Moon spirits were my waterbending masters," Celina commented.
"What?!" everyone exclaimed and looked over at her, causing Celina to shrink down into her blanket.
"It's… it's been an interesting day," Celina muttered. "But that doesn't matter. We have to get back to the Spirit Oasis."
They arrived back to the Spirit Oasis to see Zhao holding a bag with the Moon spirit in it. He held a knife to the bag, ready to stab the fish. Momo jumped on his head before he had the time to do so and ended up alerting Zhao that the gang arrived. They were about to square off against Zhao and his men but Zhao caused them to pause.
"Don't bother," he said, pointing the knife at the Moon spirit again.
"Zhao! Don't!" Aang cried out.
"It's my destiny… to destroy the Moon… and the Water Tribe," Zhao told them.
"You do that and I promise you'll regret it," Celina growled, feeling protective over her teacher and fellow spirit.
"Destroying the moon won't just hurt the Water Tribe. It will hurt everyone, including you. Without the moon, everything would fall out of balance. You have no idea what kind of chaos that would unleash on the world," Aang explained.
"He is right, Zhao!" Everyone looked over to see Iroh walk up next to the pond.
"General Iroh, why am I not surprised to discover your treachery?" Zhao lectured bored.
"I'm no traitor, Zhao, the Fire Nation needs the moon too. We all depend on the balance," Iroh told him. "Whatever you do to that spirit I'll unleash on you tenfold! LET IT GO, NOW!"
Celina suddenly felt a ton of respect for Iroh and was surprised to see Zhao lower the bag. He kneeled down next to the pond and released the fish back into the water. The red color vanished from the moon allowing for the natural glow of light to return. Upon seeing this, however, Zhao was overcome with a look of madness and desperation and with a cry of rage blasted the water with fire. Everyone recoiled in horror as the moon blacked out.
Iroh sprang into action, firing blast after blast at Zhao who blocked one and backed away. His guards came to take care of Iroh but ended up being easily dispatched by Iroh. Zhao looked on at Iroh in horror before fleeing from the Spirit Oasis. Everyone walked over to the pond to see the black koi fish swimming frantically around the white koi fish that had a terrible gash in its side. Iroh gently lifted the white fish out from the water with an expression of sadness.
"There's no hope now. It's over," Yue said on the verge of tears.
The sad expressions on Celina and Aang's faces turned into ones of determination. Aang's eyes and tattoo's glowed white as he entered into the avatar state while Celina's irises glowed a bright blue.
"No, it's not over," they both said in otherworldly voices.
Aang walked into the pond while Celina headed out the doors of the Spirit Oasis. Sokka and Katara went to stop them but Iroh held them back, seeing the work of spirits taking matters into their own hands. While the four of them watched Aang disappear in the water and come up as a giant glowing water monster they couldn't help but wonder what was about to happen with him and where their sister went off to. None of them bothered to notice that Zuko had escaped and left the area.
o
Zhao ran. There was no way that he would go up against General Iroh, that would be an instant defeat. He was running over a footbridge somewhere in the city and turned onto a parapet when he was almost hit by a blast of fire. Zhao turned to where the blast came from and saw Zuko standing above him.
"You're alive?" Zhao said shocked.
"You tried to have me killed!" Zuko exclaimed and launched several more fire blasts at Zhao who dodged.
"Yes, I did. You're the Blue Spirit, an enemy of the Fire Nation!" Zhao said, his voice dripping with venom. "You freed the Avatar!"
"I had no choice!" Zuko replied. Zuko continued on, firing blast after blast at Zhao. He blocked the blasts with his hands.
"You should have chosen to accept your failure, your disgrace! Then, at least you could have lived!" Zhao told Zuko.
Zhao began to return fire as the two of them shot blast after blast at each other. Zuko got a hit in however when Zhao left his chest unguarded causing the older man to fall off the parapet and onto the tier below them. Zuko jumped down to continue with his attacks but was taken off guard by Zhao who recovered faster than he expected. Zhao knocked Zuko off his feet and was about to go in for the kill when a wall of water came up and protected him. Both firebenders were confused.
"Zhao!" an angered voice shouted. The man shivered in fear when they looked over to see Celina coming towards them with angry glowing eyes. A static feeling filled the air as she approached. Zhao went to run from her but Celina used her waterbending to pick up water and grab Zhao, keeping him in place. Zuko crawled out of Celina's way, not wanting to make her angry.
"What? How?" Zhao stuttered confused.
"You killed my waterbending master," Celina growled.
"You're waterbending master? The Moon spirit taught you?" Zhao asked in disbelief.
"I was taught by both the Moon and Ocean and you killed the Moon. So now I must get vengeance for my teacher," Celina replied just as the moon returned to its normal state in the sky.
"Wait! Wait! The moon is back. Your teacher is back!" Zhao said, begging for his life.
Celina looked up at the moon and became angrier when she saw Yue's spirit flying up to the moon. The princess must have given up her life in order to bring the Moon Spirit back to life. Celina turned back to Zhao enraged. "Your actions have caused two deaths today and that will soon turn to three. It's time you felt the Ocean's wrath."
Using her waterbending she bended water from the canal and forced it down Zhao's throat. Celina's hand extended as her bending reached inside Zhao's body and felt the water fill his lungs. Feeling that the Ocean Spirit was still not satisfied Celina located Zhao's heart and with the tightening of her hand, crushed it. His body went limp and the water holding Zhao dragged his body into the water, causing him to sink into its depths.
o
Zuko watched as the glowing in Celina's eyes disappeared along with the static feeling in the air. Celina grabbed her head in pain and then passed out. Zuko stared at her unconscious body in shock. What did he just witness? He had no idea that the girl contained that much power. He guessed learning from spirits would be the cause of that. Zuko couldn't help but feel a bit bad for Zhao. But he had to move on. He was in no shape to try and kidnap the Avatar again and with the Fire Nation still attacking the Water Tribe now would be a great time to escape without either side noticing.
Zuko got up to leave but paused after a couple steps. He looked back at Celina. With the fighting going on and her being unconscious the girl would end up freezing to death from the arctic temperatures and something about that rubbed Zuko the wrong way. Perhaps it was because she healed him in the past. Perhaps it was because she stopped Zhao from killing him earlier. Or maybe it was because he didn't want to get on the spirits bad side by just abandoning their student. Not after what he saw.
Sighing, Zuko walked over to Celina and lifted her into his arms, carrying her bridal style. He looked around for a little while before finding an empty house that hadn't been destroyed. Once inside Zuko placed Celina down on the house's fur rug. She looked peaceful and almost innocent. Zuko couldn't help but think that Celina looked beautiful with her hair down. Shaking the thought from his head, Zuko headed out of the house and began to make his way out of the city. He did the right thing in making sure she didn't freeze, now he needed to leave before he was captured by the Water Tribe or the Fire Nation. Hopefully, his uncle would be around with an escape plan.
o
Celina didn't know where she was when she woke up. Morning had come and everything was peaceful. It was clear that the Water Tribe managed to win thanks to Aang and to Yue's sacrifice. Heaviness hit her as Celina realized what she'd done. Things where a bit blurry in her mind but what was crystal clear was what she did to Zhao. Celina hung her head. The number of emotions that had built up from the night's events was overwhelming and she was exhausted. She didn't know what she'd say to Aang and her siblings. They'd have questions and Celina didn't know if she had any answers. She didn't know what to think after what happened. She looked out the window. Morning had arrived and everyone was probably looking for her. Part of her really wished that she could go back to sleep but that would have to wait. Right now she just needed to show them that she was alive.
o
Sokka, Katara, and Aang all rushed to hug her when Celina made her way back to the citadel, happy to see that she was well and good. Pakku even made an appearance, handing Celina an overcoat so that she would be warm. She almost forgot she wasn't wearing one. After putting on the coat she joined Pakku in looking over the city, hoping to avoid an onslaught of questions from her siblings and Aang.
"I've decided to go to the South Pole. Some other benders and healers want to join me. It's time we help rebuild our sister tribe," he told her.
"That's great. They could use the reinforcement," Celina said, though her mind was still on other things.
"Is there something wrong, Master Celina?" he asked.
"It's just that… a lot of things happened last night and I… Master Pakku… have you ever killed somebody with your waterbending?" she asked.
Pakku's eyes widened upon realizing the reason for her question but kept calm for the sake of Celina. "Yes. My first kill was a Fire Nation soldier," he answered.
"I killed Admiral Zhao," Celina whispered. Pakku pulled the girl into his side. He was impressed that someone so young could take out an Admiral. But right now she needed comfort and he was the one she chose to tell.
"It will be alright, Celina. I know what your experiencing right now is hard but you'll move on," Pakku told her. Celina accepted the comfort from Pakku. The two stayed like that for a minute before Celina regained her composure as Katara walked up to them.
"Master Pakku! I heard that you were leaving for the South Pole. What's going to happen with Aang? He still needs to learn waterbending.
"Well, it's a good thing that he'll have two master waterbenders traveling with him," Pakku answered.
A large smile appeared on Katara's face hearing that she'd become a master waterbender. Celina gave her sister a small smile, she was proud of her sister. Her attention turned to Aang however when she noticed the airbender looking out over the city.
She walked up to him and the two exchanged a look, the both of them having a burdened look in their eyes. The two of them came together in a tight hug as if telling each other that it will be alright and that they'd get through it. Sokka, Katara, and Momo joined in soon after with Appa floating next to them, trying to be apart of the hug as best as he could.
Celina looked out over the city, uncertain of what the future held for her, for Aang, and for the world.
o
THE STORY CONTINUES IN BOOK TWO: EARTH & DISCOVERY
Check out my profile for the link to Celina's character design or go to DeviantArt and look up "BOWB: Finale" by DrawMeLikeYourOC.
Thanks for reading. Be sure to leave me a review and a crazy "So Tell Me About Yourself" answer.
"So Tell Me About Yourself" is an inside joke between me and my friends which started from my one friend's hatred for the typical getting-to-know-you question "So tell me about yourself". She, being so annoyed with the phrase, gave a silly answer that she murdered people in their sleep. When she brought it back to me and my other friend we both gave a silly answer. That is where the idea for my account name came from.
