Sorry it took me so long to update. I had a whole chapter written and ready to post, when I ran into some computer troubles. I lost the whole chapter in the process of repairing my computer. It took me a while to remember all that this chapter had consisted of.

Chapter 6

Eona
Somewhere in the Earth Kingdom

When Eona woke, it was to light streaming through a gap in the tent, shining directly on her face. Unable to sleep with the glare, she shifted uncomfortably and fought her way into a sitting position. Her arms ached from being bound all night, and the arm she had laid on was numb. She stretched as best she could, wincing as her stiff muscles complained. "Well, I've definitely slept better before," Charan muttered as he sat up next to her.

"No kidding," Eona grumbled.

"So what's our plan?" Charan asked.

Eona shrugged. "We can't wait around and let them take us back to my father, that's for sure."

"I take it he's not the nicest man in the world?" Charan ventured.

"Nope," Eona replied simply. She knew there were more questions coming, so she quickly changed the subject. "Got any ideas?"

Charan thought for a minute, shaking his head slowly. "Nothing's coming to me." He sighed. "Want to know what would be really convenient right now?"

"A knife?" Eona guessed.

"That would be, but I was thinking it would be way convenient if one of us could bend," Charan replied, his words strangely neutral. He met her gaze, and wouldn't turn away, as if saying, I know who you are. Just admit it.

Should I tell him? Eona wondered, meeting his unwavering gaze. Can I trust him? She was tempted to. Bending would be convenient right now. Tell him Eona. Say I am a bender… say it... "Yeah, that would be nice," she replied, her tone matching his. She immediately felt disappointed with herself. She had gone so long hiding her bending, when she had finally found somebody she could share the truth with, she chose to keep it hidden again. She saw a flicker of disappointment in his pale eyes, and then she dropped his gaze, feeling uncomfortable under his intense scrutiny.

Silence fell over the two, and with it came a tension between them that made Eona jittery. Suddenly breaking the silence, Charan started to say, "Hikari I—" but he cut himself off, as if deciding against what he was about to say.

"What?" she asked, looking to him again.

He shook his head. "Nothing," he murmured, staring intently at the tent entrance.

"You started to say something," she pressed, stating the obvious. She couldn't help but feel that his sudden reluctance to talk had something to do with her reaction to his previous comment.

"Why should I tell you when you refuse to tell me anything?" Charan suddenly snapped. He blinked in surprise, as if he hadn't meant to say it.

"What does that have anything to do with this?" Eona demanded, immediately feeling defensive.

"I brought up the bending thing because I already know you can bend," he stated, his tone flat. "I just wanted you to have the chance to tell me."

She stared at him, confused. "How did you find out?" she asked, her voice reserved.

"I always suspected. I know it's very common for noble born Fire Nation citizens to be able to bend. And then this morning, when you had that nightmare, before I woke you up I noticed little flames on your fingertips," Charan admitted. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Can you blame me for not? Bending is practically illegal in the Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom. I didn't know how you would react," Eona defended. After a pause, she added, "I'm sorry I lied, but I didn't know what to do. I'm not used to being able to talk about it."

"Because of your father?" Charan guessed.

"Yeah." Eona stared at her feet, not wanting to meet his gaze. She didn't want him to pry any further as he often did, because she was afraid she would lie again. She honestly wasn't sure she could trust herself to tell the truth.

Once again silence enveloped them, and Eona began thinking of more pressing matters, like escaping. She tested her bonds, wondering if she could possibly slip a hand out. She discovered they were very secure, just as they had been the night before. They were so tight, they cut the circulation off to her hands, making them tingle uncomfortably. "If I could just get my hands at a better angle, I could burn through these ropes," she grumbled, "but I can't even bend my fingers up to reach the rope."

"Could you get to mine easier?" Charan wondered.

"Maybe… scoot closer." After a few moments of awkward reaching and a lot of scooting around, Eona ended up back to back with Charan, his hands just in reach. Her fingertips brushed his hands, and then found the ropes binding his wrists together. "Sorry if I burn you, I can't really see," she apologized, before creating a small flame on a fingertip. The flame quickly ate through the binds, freeing him. As the ropes fell away he quickly flipped around and got to work on hers.

She felt the ropes loosen a bit, and then finally give away. She sighed in relief as she stretched, the sore muscles in her shoulders finally able to relax. Looking down at her hands, she discovered her wrists were red, made raw by the rough, too tight rope.

"Let's go," Charan said, moving for the tent entrance.

"Wait, they're probably out there," she said, laying a hand on his shoulder to stop him. "We need a plan." He ducked back into the tent, nodding. "We need weapons. I might be able to bend, but you can't. We should also try and get out without fighting; we've already seen that there's enough of them to overpower us."

Charan nodded. Glancing through the gap in the tent doors, he glanced around, studying the camp outside. "There's a bunch of tents set up in a circle. It looks like most of the men are gone. There's a handful sitting around a fire in the center…" He paused, seeking something specific. "There! Near the edge of camp. The guy that took your sword is sleeping. The sword's on the ground next to him."

Eona smiled. "Alright. Here's the plan. We sneak out when no one's looking. You head for the sword. If you can get to it without anyone noticing, great. Once you have it, or if you get spotted, I'll distract everyone, and we can run for the forest."

Charan nodded. "How?"

"How what?" Eona asked, one eyebrow raised.

"How are you going to distract them?" he clarified.

Eona smiled slightly. "You'll see." He shrugged, and then peered out of the tent again.

After a few seconds, he muttered, "They're all turned away. Let's go." The both slipped out of the tent, and made their way towards the edge of the camp, where the man was sleeping. Sure enough, Eona's sword was laying haphazardly next to the man. It was in its sheath, and discarded as if he hand found it uncomfortable to wear while sleeping.

Charan moved towards the man, staying silent. Eona kept her eyes on the others. Just as Charan picked up the sword, a man near the fire glanced over his shoulder and noticed Eona. He cried out, gesturing towards them. The others turned too, reaching for weapons. "Charan!" Eona called, and then reached out a hand, taking control of the flames in the center of the camp. She gestured upward, and the flames responded, erupting into a large column. The group scattered, fearing the flames, as Eona backed away, Charan moving to her side. More flames erupted on her hands as she prepared to defend herself, but she quickly realized that wouldn't be necessary. The fire had caught onto the trees above, and they were quickly burning. The men weren't paying any attention to their two fleeing captives; they were more focused on saving their own lives.

"Come on," Charan called, and Eona realized as she had watched, he had moved away, heading for the forest behind them. She turned and ran, following him.

They left the quickly burning camp behind, and ran for a little longer. After a while, they slowed from a full sprint to a light jog, keeping an eye out for pursuers. It didn't take them long to find the road where they had been ambushed. Surprisingly, they found their packs still lying on the side of the road, partially concealed by the thick bushes that had hid the ambush earlier. Reclaiming the bags, they quickly headed down to the town below, not wanting to stay on the open roads and risk another ambush.

Once in the town, Charan finally stopped. "I told you we'd get out," he told her, grinning lopsidedly at their own success.

Eona allowed a small smile. "Yeah, you were right."

Charan unstrapped the sword, handing it over to her. "Here. This is yours."

"Keep it, until you can replace your own. You need it more than I do," Eona said, pushing the sword back towards him.

"You sure?" he questioned. "I know you like this sword a lot."

She shrugged. "It's just a sword. And I do want it back, but not until you can give it back without leaving yourself unarmed," she confirmed.

He strapped the sword back on, and then glanced around the town. "Well, I suggest we do that soon; I don't know how effective I'll be with this sword. It's nothing like the weapons I trained with."

"No problem, we'll just buy you a new one when we come across a shop," Eona decided. Just then, Charan's stomach growled awkwardly loud. Glancing at him with a smirk, she added, "First, let's find something to eat."

Avani
The northern shore of the Earth Kingdom

Another day of walking brought Avani and Arrkun into view of the shore. As they came to the crest of a hill, they looked down onto the sandy beaches below. The sky above was the slate gray of winter, making the ocean look deep and dark. It was colder here, close to the sea and so far north. Avani didn't mind it; the colder weather was a nice change from the hot, dry sand of the desert.

In the small town below, small shacks were scattered about, intermingling with more permanent, earth-made structures. Long, wooden docks stretched out into the ocean beyond. Avani quickly noticed the tall, blue sailed mast of a ship docked at one port, it's long, sleek body made of a sturdy, dark wood. "A watertribe ship," she muttered.

"That's my dad's," Arrkun said as he joined her. He was obviously surprised when he saw the ship. "I guess the meetings were over." Noticing Avani's confusion, he explained further, "My dad and I originally came here together. We split up though about a week ago when he and some other tribseman headed to the North Pole for the annual meeting between the two tribes. He hated leaving the search, but he had no choice. I offered to stay, and join him a week later in the pole if I didn't find you by then. It ended up being a good thing that I stayed behind; I ran into you not a day after he left." He shifted the pack on his back as he explained, looking a bit uncomfortable. Avani knew his shoulder was still sore, but he didn't complain, and she tried not to nag him about it. She had discovered over the past day and a half that he quickly became cranky if she pestered him about it too much. "I wonder how long he's been waiting."

"Who knows? Let's go find him. The sooner we get down there, the sooner we can rest," Avani said as she started down the hill. He followed.

In the town below, the shacks were mostly supply shops and places for traded goods between the Earth Kingdom and Water tribes to be stored. The more solid buildings were dwellings, and one inn. They ran into Arrkun's father on the way to the port as they neared the inn. Arrkun spotted him leaving the building, and waived to him. "Arrkun!" the man exclaimed, a broad smile spreading across his tan face. He hugged his son, Arrkun only protesting slightly. Then the man turned to Avani. "This must be Avani. You look like your parents."

Arrkun nodded. "Yup. And Avani, this is my father, Iluq."

"Hello sir," Avani said politely.

"Your timing is perfect, Arrkun. I wasn't expecting you for another few days," Iluq stated.

"I got lucky and found Avani not long after you left for the North Pole," Arrkun explained.

"Makes sense. Come, then. There are plenty of people to meet, and a lot to discuss," Iluq said, waiving them into the inn. Arrkun followed, Avani close behind. Iluq lead them to a room near the back of the inn. Inside, several people sat around a large, low table. They chatted quietly, but when Iluq entered the room, they immediately fell silent. Avani could see their respect for the watertribe man in the way they looked at him and the way they acted when he entered the room.

Iluq gestured to two empty seats at the table, and then claimed his own at the head of the table. Avani sunk onto one of the soft pillows on his left, Arrkun next to her. She studied the many faces of the people surrounding her, seeing a mix of Earth kingdom and Water tribe natives.

"Welcome everyone, and thank you for meeting me here on such short notice," Iluq started. "As you know, at the end of the war, the water tribes made it their duty to search the world for the next Avatar, feeling that they were the only hope for fixing the mess of a world we had created. Most of the other nations, when invited, denied us their assistance, saying the Avatar cycle had long ago been broken. Most did not want more benders, much less a bender with power over all four elements. Then, bending was made illegal in the Earth kingdom, and our reach was suddenly limited. Still, we continued the search for the next Avatar among the Earth King's people in secret, despite his disapproval. Those of you among us that are Earthbenders, I thank you for your loyalty despite the risk to your lives." Avani glanced around the room, wondering who else shared her earthen powers.

"Now, after several years of searching, I think our quest may finally be coming to a close," Iluq continued. He turned his intense blue gaze on Avani. "This young woman is Avani Nomura. I have watched her grow in her abilities since she was very young, and since the days of the war I have never seen such power in such a young person. I am confident Avani is the Earthbender we are looking for."

Avani felt the eyes of the whole room shift to her. She stared back stubbornly, trying to hide her nervousness. After a moment of uncomfortable silence that seemed to stretch on forever, one man turned back to Iluq and said, "Forgive me, chief, for questioning you, but how do you know this girl is the Avatar?"

Avani glanced at Arrkun, caught off guard by part of the man's comment. Not once had Arrkun mentioned that his father was chief of one of the two tribes. So what does that make him, a prince? She wondered. When Iluq began to reply, she turned her attention back to the conversation. "I have no proof yet, other than her knack for the bending arts. I was hoping, with the right questions, Avani would be able to confirm or deny my suspicions." He turned to her, staring at her expectantly.

Avani swallowed hard, feeling as if they were all waiting for her to do something spectacular. "I think… you may be right," she said softly, looking to Iluq.

He seemed pleasantly surprised. "What makes you say that?" he questioned. He didn't sound like he doubted her, more like he simply wanted more information.

"Well…" Avani started, not sure how to explain the events of the past few days, or where to begin. She started explaining her and Arrkun's trek across the desert in a small voice, the events—and all of the trauma that went with it—still fresh on her mind. As she explained the storm, and how Arrkun had been injured, she watched Iluq's expression change from curiosity to worry, and then to parental concern. He glanced at Arrkun, who gave him a reassuring smile as if to say, it's alright dad, I'm fine. As Avani explained the events leading up to the creation of the cave they had spent the night in, Iluq's eyes widened in surprise. Avani heard a few surprised gasps from around the table, but kept her focus on Arrkun's father.

As she finished her story, the room fell into a shocked silence. After a moment, Iluq said softly, "I couldn't have asked for more explicit proof. My dear, what you experienced—the sudden increase of abilities and control—that is what we call the Avatar State. I'm guessing the pain and anger you felt, plus the dangerous situation you were in brought it on."

"So… I am the Avatar?" Avani muttered. Since Arrkun had first told her of his father's suspicions, she had mulled the idea over, but now that it was beginning to sink in that it was true, she suddenly felt overwhelmed. She thought back to when she and Arrkun had stood on the wall overlooking the flooded city of Ba Sing Se. She remembered joking about how she was supposed to fix the world because she was the avatar. Suddenly that little joke wasn't funny anymore.

"Yes child, it would seem that you are," said an elderly voice from across the table. Avani glanced across the table and met the gaze of a wizened old man sitting across from her. He was smiling, his green eyes sparkling with hope. "Finally," he added, almost to himself, "We can began to repair what we did to this world."

"That is, if Avani's willing. Avatar or not, we cannot force her," another man stated from farther down the table.

Once again, they all turned to Avani. She was quickly beginning to wish they wouldn't do that. "I'm willing to help, but… I have no idea how I'm supposed to even begin."

Iluq smiled at her, clearly happy to hear she would help. "First, like all the Avatars before you, you must learn all four elements. Following the cycle, fire would be next."

"So… how am I supposed to learn firebending?" Avani asked. "I don't think any of you are firebenders."

Iluq shook his head slightly. "Sadly, no. We couldn't get any firebenders to join our cause. Most started disappearing soon after the current Fire Lord came into power. It's been impossible to get in contact with any… but we may have found one here in the Earth Kingdom."

"Really? Where? Who?" Avani questioned.

"We've been tracking her for quite some time. It hasn't been easy. She's currently along the southwest shoreline. Now that we know you're willing to help us, we plan to approach her. Hopefully, she'll be willing. She's… not the kindest person, but we think she'll want to do what she can to help her country. Things are rough there now," Iluq explained.

Just then, the door swung open and in walked a man carrying a letter. "Chief Iluq?" he asked.

"Yes?" Iluq answered

The man walked to the head of the table, and presented the letter. "A letter for you, sir."

"Thank you," Iluq said as he accepted the letter and handed the man a few octagonal, blue tinted coins. The man left, and Iluq proceeded to open the message and read it. Avani watched, hoping to discern the letter's contents from his facial expression, but he remained unreadable. After a minute, he sighed. "There's been a problem… our scouts report that the firebender has been captured by thugs from her home kingdom. They plan to take her back to the capitol."

Avani's brow furrowed in confusion. "Why is this bad?" she asked.

"Because the Fire Lord has killed almost all benders. It's illegal there now. If she returns home, she wouldn't survive long… especially since the Fire Lord has a personal agenda against her," Iluq explained.

"Why? Who is this firebender, anyway?" Arrkun asked, speaking up for the first time.

"Oh, just the former crown princess of the Fire Nation. Her name is Eona," Iluq replied with a small, bittersweet smile.

Avani blinked in surprise. She hadn't expected anyone of importance. "I thought she was dead," Arrkun stated.

"She was supposed to be. That's what the previous Fire Lord and his replacement told the world; she was supposed to have been murdered in her sleep by firebending assassins. Apparently, it was a lie. The current Fire Lord must have tried to remove her sister so she could be Fire Lord instead, and now wants Eona dead to make sure she stays out of the way. We suspected as much, but couldn't confirm it," Iluq told his son.

"We cannot allow Eona to be killed. We need a firebender on our side. Her being the rightful leader of the Fire Nation could also be used to our advantage. We must find a way to free her from the bandits," one man stated.

"Maybe in her gratitude, she'll help us," another mused.

The first man nodded. "She'll have to, weather she wants to or not. She'd owe us, at that point."

Iluq raised a hand, silencing the men surrounding the table. "I agree, saving Eona must be our newest priority. How should we go about doing it?"

"I want to help," Avani spoke up.

Iluq nodded. "What do we know about these bandits?" a man asked.

Glancing back at the letter, Iluq remained silent for a minute, reading over it again. "They are well trained in swordsmanship and hand to hand combat, but none are benders. They seem unwilling to kill Eona, but their hesitation may be because of orders, and might not extend to anyone else. There are at least twenty of them," he informed the group.

"We have an advantage if none are benders," Arrkun said.

"A small one, yes, but we mustn't rely on that. According to the scouts, it won't make much of a difference," Iluq replied.

"I say we send our best fighters and equip them for stealth, have them sneak into the camp at night and free Eona. If they cannot get to her without conflict, they must be prepared to fight," the man across the table from Avani suggested.

"That may work, Ratna," Iluq mused. "They must leave soon; the scouts believe that the bandits intend on returning to the Fire Nation."

Ratna frowned. "How do we expect to get our fighters down there before the bandits have moved on? That is quite a distance to cover by land," he pointed out.

"They will not be traveling by land, at least for the whole distance. There is a river south from here. Traveling by boat with the assistance of waterbenders, they will reach the coast in time to stop the bandits," Iluq explained.

"You hope, at least. The journey on land will be slow, and through mountain passages, and they will have to carry the boats with them," another man stated.

Iluq sighed. "It is our best option. Either that, or they leave the harbor here and travel around the country, and that would add several days onto the trip, or they take the whole thing by land and have no chance of stopping the bandits before they reach the ports."

"Then why don't we let them take her? Once she's on the ship, we could attack and rescue her from there," someone suggested.

"I'm not sure that would be the wisest plan…" Iluq muttered, mostly thinking out loud. "The Fire Nation's ships are the best built in the world. They would be hard to catch, and even harder still to win in a fight."

"What if we let them take her to the Fire Nation?" Avani muttered, an idea slowly forming.

"How would that help us? That's exactly where we don't want her to be," someone argued, but Ratna raised a hand to silence him.

"Let the young avatar speak," he said, and everyone fell silent, turning to her.

Avani could feel herself blushing, but she continued anyway. "Once they get back, they won't be expecting an attack. They'll think they made it home clear. I doubt they'd kill her right away. If we can't catch them on land, why risk it? Go by water, the fastest way possible, and catch them on the open water. If we can't overpower them, then let them get to port. After they've docked, we'll ambush them. Take them by surprise."

Everyone remained silent. "You know what… that just might work," Iluq muttered after a minute, breaking the silence. He smiled at Avani. "Seems like you have your father's brilliance."

"This is our best idea," Ratna agreed.

"It's settled then. Anyone willing to help should be ready to leave by dawn tomorrow. We will gather outside the inn. Final numbers will be decided then," Iluq instructed.

After discussing a few more things, the meeting ended, and the members scattered. As Avani walked out of the room, Ratna approached her. "Avani? May I have a word?" he asked.

"Uh… sure," Avani replied.

"Long have I awaited the return of the Avatar, and now you are here. We are all very grateful for your willingness to help our cause. I just wanted to tell you I hope that you can live up to your title, and I wish you the best of luck in your travels." With that, he bowed deeply in respect, and slipped away, surprisingly agile for his age. Avani watched him leave, both unnerved and comforted by his words. She shivered, amazed that somebody like Ratna—a wizened old man who obviously knew much more than her—could show her, a girl barely sixteen, such respect.