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Embers

Ch 4 – Kyoshi

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The piercing glare of sunlight awoke me. Judging by it's position in the sky, it had to be around mid-morning, and thankfully, the crew was still asleep. Even my guards were nowhere to be found. Getting up, I walked around the deck. Katara had disappeared too, but the faint sound of swooshing water gave her away.

I came closer to the bow of the ship, closer to the whooshing waterbending noise. However, a new sound soon joined it. Her sobs erratically broke up the still morning air. I immediately felt guilt and remorse for what occurred last night. I thought of Mai, how I betrayed her for a fleeting moment's pleasure, and the familiar knot in my chest returned.

I couldn't go nearer to her, not like this. I couldn't stand to look Katara in the eyes in my guilt. However, I knew it was my fault. I could have stopped this before it started, and now I have to end it before it gets worse.

"Katara… I…"

"No. Don't talk about it, Zuko. It should never have happened. We… We can't do this. It's wrong, and its unfair to Aang and Mai."

"I know. Thats why I am getting off at the next port. I'm sorry Katara, I couldn't stop myself last night." I stared at the ocean. It looked unusually choppy, and I began to suspect that Katara was at fault.

"Strange thing is, neither could I. I wanted it too, so don't think it's all your fault. I had the power to stop, but I… I didn't."

I smiled. She got up, wiped her tears, and tried to smile back. Even in a situation like this she was compassionate and level headed. All I knew was that I needed to forget all of this, to cast it out from my memory. But I knew I couldn't. It was too nice to forget, and I'm sure that Katara wouldn't be so quick to forget it either. Maybe there was a chance for-

The piercing scream of a messenger hawk broke my concentration. A black ribbon trailed behind it, meaning it was meant for one person only; The Fire Lord himself.

It alighted on my shoulder, and exposed the message scroll on it's back. I opened up the letter, and quickly scanned past the formalities. What I then saw felt like a dream. It read;

… Reports of a villager with exceptional knife-throwing skills have appeared in the Gaoling region. This female sports looks similar if not identical to the missing nobleman's daughter, Mai. It is with interest that we….

I couldn't speak. This was big news, huge news at that. Mai… She was still alive! But what was she doing all the way in Gaoling? It is easily a few thousand miles away from the Fire Nation, and nobody has seen her since the day she disappeared.

I had to go and see if the rumors were true. Our position right now must have been near Whaletail Island, near Kyoshi Island and the mainland. Perhaps it was time for a visit with Ty Lee…

"Zuko? What is it?"

"Its Mai! She's been sighted near Gaoling."

"Hey that's where Toph lives. I haven't seen her in ages! I'll go with you."

"Katara, I think it's best if we split up. I have to visit Kyoshi Island first anyways. Ty Lee might be able to fix my chi without the spirit water."

"Oh… yeah, I guess it's better that way." She turned away, looking at some stowaway crabmantis.

"Yeah… well, we'd better wake the crew up."

Soon enough, the bay of Kyoshi appeared on the horizon. With the waterbenders it only took a few minutes to reach the land, where a few villagers greeted the crew with smiling faces. Then, the painted faces arrived. There was Sokka's girl, the leader of the warriors. Then there was Sokka himself, as well as Ty Lee, who looked extremely happy in the baggy dress. We walked up to them, Katara hugging her brother and Ty Lee cartwheeling towards me.

"Hi Zuko! Its been a long time since we've seen each other, not since your coronation!"

"Uhh, hi Ty Lee. Listen, I have to talk to you about something. It's about Mai, I think we've found her."

"Oh Zuko thats wonderful news! Im so happy for you!" She then gave me an overjoyed hug. At least she understood how important this was to me, especially now after… after what happened yesterday.

"Yeah, so am I. But that's not all. Something attacked me in this village the other day, and Uncle said it completely blocked my chi. You know something about chi, right? Won't it come back?"

"Oh no thats horrible! I can look at you if you want, but no promises. I've never stunned anyone for over a day."

She backflipped her way back to the village, and after quite a large meal, she led me to their dojo. There were all sorts of mats set up, and dummies with targets around various points of the body. Ty Lee must have been teaching them well.

"Hey Zuko, over here!" She led me to a padded massage table. "I'm going to give you a massage, to see what the problem is."

She started working at my back, squeezing, kneading, and rubbing muscles I didn't even know I had.

"Ooh! Your love line's all twisted. Must be because of Mai being gone…"

"Yeah, that's why…" She didn't know what caused that twist, and I hoped it would stay that way.

Moving her hand around my lower spine, she gasped. "Your center, its gone! I mean, its physically here and all, but your center of chi is completely gone!"

"Are you sure? Maybe you're wrong, maybe it's just hard to find or something."

"No no, its really gone. All your chi paths are straight, but they lead to nothing, like its been punched out!"

That was the reason my bending was gone. My sea of chi, as Uncle called it, was completely missing. That would explain why my wound hasn't healed as well. It was starting to make sense, something that I hoped wouldn't happen. But now panic started to rise, and I couldn't think anymore.

"I… I have to go, Ty Lee. Thank you for telling me this."

Maybe finding Mai would fix all this. Maybe this hole in my chi was just from missing her. I left the dojo and headed back to the city. Ty Lee got a small boat for me, and packed some supplies for me and my guards. She looked kind of let down that I didn't stay, but she perked up when she remembered something.

"Oh Zuko, tell Mai that her aura is not gray anymore, more of a dark purple. It will help her choose her makeup for special occasions."

Was she serious?

"Bye Zuko! Don't forget to visit next time too!"

I set off for the mainland, not looking back. But I could feel the stare of those ocean blue eyes on my head, that gaze that pierces right through my soul. A few minutes later beyond the horizon line, that gaze disappeared, and the seas became rougher and choppier once more.

Seriously, Action begins next chapter. Be excited. Reviews really welcomed. Enjoy!