"Sir, I know it sounds crazy, but you have to believe me. This is huge!"
Grace was pacing back and forth outside of the tight-knit clump of tarp tents outside their excavating location on the mountains. The sun had set minutes ago and the temperature had dropped significantly, but the young woman was determined to end this conversation well. Keeping one hand over her ear to prevent the gushing wind from breaking any connection, she babbled on into her cell phone, hoping that her sleep-deprived supervisor all the way in California could understand what his funding had found.
"I– I understand that we initially requested the grant in pursuit of OmaShu... but I'm asking you to give us permission to further investigate the artifacts within Dr. Kiely's – – sir?"
Grace shook the cell phone, the reception clearly not working in her favor. The man's voice came in muffled sounds, but she sadly caught the words 'shouldn't' and 'expertise' and 'suspension of project.'
Her voice began to quiver over the phone.
"Sir... Dr. Kiely is not scheduled to finish his documentary in India for another twelve days. Please. If I promised you that Excavation Point G-C-121 would be a great asset to my research for OmaShu, would you give me those twelve days? I'll even send you j-pegs so I can prove to you that it isn't a lost cause. Twelve days. That's all we need."
Another bit of that murmuring, sleepy voice came from the other end of her call, and Grace held her breath the entire time. It soon came that she was nodding her head in response, with a smile in her eyes and with absolute agreement.
"Yes. Yes, Doctor, I understand. And I'll forward everything to Kiely as usual." Grace nodded again, laughing. "If we don't find anything, I'm buying you dinner at Saint Micheal's the moment I land in California. Yes, thank you Good night, sir."
She triumphantly flipped the phone closed. Once again, Grace Chen felt like the universe was merciful, letting her arm drop back to her side. She promptly looked over to the tents that limply held themselves against the spring winds of the northern Beijing mountains. Inserting the phone back into her cargo pants' pockets, Grace hiked back down to the small clump of tents to rejoin her crew with the update.
Michel was too busy re-wiring one of his computers to get a higher-definition image of Syl's footage from within the caves, reading the coordinates of each piece as the sepia-toned screens on his handful of laptops zoomed in and out like a visual orchestra. Grace passed his dim tent in a smile, saying "keep working, Dragon. I've given us twelve days here."
Syl and Andrea and a handful of the interns were not wasting any time inside their residential lab - a small trailer with so many open compartments, it looked like the exoskeleton of a giant beige-colored insect. Thanks to Syl's brilliance and his inexplicable flare for multi-pocketed cargo pants, he and Grace had managed to zip-lock bag a few of the hand-sized bits of rubble back from the discovered tomb. The interns were practically salivating over each of the pieces Andrea assigned to them in their stations, cleaning them lightly with horse-tail brushes and rinsing them on individual pans delicately with ethyl alcohol drawn from a dental rinsing hose. To Grace, the half-dozen interns looked like kindergartners poking into dead insects, their curiosity beaming with every peep of the microscope.
"You B-S-ed him again, didn't you," muttered Syl just as Grace approached his work station at the very end of the lab.
The girl snorted and looked elsewhere, then crossed her arms in defeat. "It got us twelve days."
"That's my girl," Syl said proudly while Grace muttered a 'shut up' back to him.
"I figured since we're nowhere near finding OmaShu by this point, we might as well finish off our excavation with a bang," Grace then said disheartened. "Who knows? Maybe by the time Kiely gets here, we'll find more evidence to back up another research initiative for the Cave of Two Lovers once I get back to California."
Syl started twisting one of the lens a bit tighter. "According to the written accounts, Avatar Aang stumbled into that underground cave with Katara and her brother and some nomadic hippie minstrels back in the day when they were fleeing the Fire Nation."
"Ugh... not that love triangle cheese-fest again..."
"This was waaaay before it actually happened, thank you." Syl held his voice boldly. "Don't you remember Kadel's pop quiz back in '99? Avatar Aang and Katara fell into the Cave of Two Lovers. Zuko was kind of MIA at the time, being on the run from his crazy sister - but the point is... nobody could blame those two from having a thing for each other after coming out of the OmaShu tomb. The inscription in the tomb even inspired it: Love is brightest in the Dark."
"That wasn't a metaphor, Syl; it was a riddle they just happened to solve correctly." Grace threw back at him, cheeky. "And it was a trick question Kadel put on the quiz, genius."
"Yeah, but it just goes to show... sometimes believing in something is enough to get people to move forward."
"Whatever you say, loverboy," Grace teased, punching her friend on the shoulder to give her some space in his research station. "But I have a pretty good feeling this tomb of Fire Lord Zuko was hidden in the Earth Kingdom for good reason, and we just need to figure out why."
"You just want that big fat check from headquarters, don'cha," Syl didn't even bother to look at Grace as he muttered it bluntly.
"Hey, that's not fair." Grace shot back at him with bite, sitting herself down at the nearest stool. "I worked too damned hard to find the Cave of Two Lovers, Syl, and we both know it's near one of these mountains. Kiely may have dibs on G-C-121, since technically it houses a Fire Nation monarchy, but my theory is that The Cave of Two Lovers somehow inspired that couple."
"You mean, the love triangle." Syl pointed out.
"Right, whatever," Grace lowered her eyelids. "I have a feeling that cave has spiritual aura of some sort that brought Fire Lord Zuko and Katara to be buried there without realizing its significance. Avatar Aang - being from the Spirit World and all - he may've found a way to track them down on his dying days and romantically chosen to stay there. This could be ground-breaking for my book!"
Syl took out a scissor-protractor from the side-drawer next to his stool, and worked on the measurements of Avatar Aang's necklace quietly, swallowing his harsh criticism on Grace. He hated the fact that she was brushing over this wonderful love story so lightly, looking over mere facts as if these people were already half-dead as they'd been living in the Golden Age of Bending.
Syl never understood why it had been lost, just as Biblical miracles had been lost or the ancient workings of Buddha had been left behind. He wanted to assume this Age of Bending had been nothing more than folklore between the pages of his history books, but being the all-around romantic, Sylvester Matsko knew there must've been something else, there.
"I still can't believe you didn't let me grab that necklace," Syl then sulked like a little boy, as Grace readjusted the lens on another set of magnifying glasses.
"You mean Artifact A-01? That skeleton would've crumbled, Syl, you know that," she rolled her eyes, now looking into the intricate detail of the photograph her partner was analyzing. "Besides, you seem to be getting quite a good read of the thing right here. Kiely would yell at us if we touched it."
"Since when do you take orders from Kiely?" Syl made a sly smile at Grace as he took out a pencil from one of his pockets.
"Look, I may not like the guy," Grace scoffed in her own defense, "but considering he's the head archaeologist of the Fire Nation's Brykean era right now, we need to pay his respects. His findings might actually take our research into the Earth Kingdom somewhere. And if we kiss his butt enough... he might support our cause on finding The Cave once we get back to California."
"Touche, boss," Syl laughed, almost amused at how his research partner was slowly turning into the Dark side of archeological digging. It certainly took her long enough.
"So what does it say?" Grace then asked, putting on her lens helmet and writing 'Artifact A-01' on a small notepad she took from her coat pocket.
The image was a zoomed-in result of Avatar Aang's central medallion on the necklace, by which the three swirls of the Air symbol seemed to be intricately marked by minuscule Chinese kanji characters... all hand-written.
Syl followed along the swirl markings on the image with his hand, deciphering the tiny characters word-for-word as he did so.
"As a remembrance to the loved ones I left behind... This medallion is my first step towards a new beginning... To prove our traditions shall never be lost as I dedicate my life to the World."
Grace blinked, confused for the moment as she looked up from the table.
"Are you sure that's what it says?" Grace rose a questioning brow. "The books described Air-Temple medallions as holding ancient, poetic messages about the spirit world. That inscription doesn't sound authentic at all. It sounds fake!"
Syl just gulped, showing a sense of fluster as he kept his eyes on the table. "Oh, it's authentic all right," he said softly. "Actually... it's one-of-a-kind."
Grace stared at her research partner, perplexed, and Syl continued in absolute astonishment.
"Avatar Aang made this medallion himself."
Thousands of years earlier, the Earth Kingdom saw daylight over the walls of Ba Sing Se, as if the people had forgotten what it was like to be outside for the sunrise. Shades of deep maroon and auburn began to unfold across the blanket of thin cloud, and children in both ragged and silk clothes played outside their homes... chasing each other for games of tag with the abandoned Fire Nation tanks that had been left behind.
The tankmen had retreated outside the walls days ago, some of them resisting arrest and taken into the underground prisons for further questioning. Trials had been made by the re-established Council of Four, and the bold King Bumi led the city for the time-being, seeing to it that these Fire Nation soldiers would meet their consequences as the days passed. That sunrise, however, he snorted his way out into the Earth King's courtyards... where as planned... he would meet his childhood friend for another lesson on Earthbending.
Funny... how in spite of the boy's recent victory over the Fire Lord and his restoration of peace over a hundred-year long war... there were still many arts he had to learn.
Apparently, one of them involved bead-making.
"Remember the time you said you wanted to get into the jewelry business?"
Aang laughed, hearing the limping sound of Sokka's crutch come in from one of the corners of the courtyard, as the boy meditated in a sitting position to wait for his former master to arrive.
The Fire Lord was long gone... taken back to his homelands by order of the new Avatar and with absolute support from the Order of the White Lotus... and yet Aang still felt like such a boy as he looked over his shoulder to Sokka.
"I brought you some nuts, buddy." Sokka then tossed him a small paper bag. "You need to eat more if you wanna get this thing started right."
Aang caught the bag effortlessly, laughing again but still saying nothing. A deep orange sunrise was all over the sky, then, and Momo had been chasing the native birds around the open courtyard to let the time pass. He could tell by Momo's restlessness that early in the morning that being without Appa just didn't feel the same, like a piece of that little creature's mind felt lost. Aang felt it too.
As much as he felt proud about what he had done those last few days, something was missing from him. He looked up at the sky, waiting to find any sign of a giant bison soaring through the clouds... any sign that the Fire Nation would have the young, rightful man to their throne... and his ears waited patiently, for the sound of the lovely waterbender's voice welcoming his name with open arms.
"You think they'll make it back safely?"
It had been three days, and they still had not returned from the Fire Nation palace.
"The Fire Sages sent us the message yesterday; Zuko won! He's probably filling out the necessary paperwork now, or something," Sokka coughed, feeling his voice crack embarrassingly. "I mean okay... I have a feeling Zuko may've gotten the daylights kicked out of him, so Katara's nursing him back on his feet They'll make it back for this."
The boy closed his eyes, smiling at how that girl's maternal instincts never seemed to take a break from anything. He knew it was stupid to think about them... together... as they had never shared a conversation without cynicism, and that Ember Island play exhausted that idea to the point of utter ridicule.
Aang never questioned his instincts, since usually he would know when Katara would be in any sort of danger, but it was difficult then not to think about her. Not to be able to tell her in person that he had defeated the Fire Lord... and that... maybe... that would be enough for to stop being confused. For her to not be afraid of a war, or anything that could possibly get in the way of saying how she really felt for him, once and for all.
The Avatar presented himself strong those last few days... but deep down, he still felt like such a boy with his heart dangling from a thread. Sokka could see that. Toph noticed it, too, but chose to take a break from her brash thoughts on love for the sake of helping a friend through this.
"You're right," Aang said quietly, smiling to the sky and getting up. "If I wanna be a great jewelry-maker, I need to focus."
He untied the bag of nuts and took the liberty of tossing one to Sokka, watching as the lanky boy cracked it on the ground with the base of his crutch. They laughed, noticing how the sounds of birds were now orchestrating themselves to the morning sunlight. It wasn't long before Toph and Bumi joined the boys out in the Earth Kingdom courtyard, laughing and snorting as they kicked gravel out of the way.
"Pian Dao!" Sokka limpy turned, and noticed his former master and White Lotus member straggling behind the others towards the courtyard. "Why are you--"
"Jewelry-making is just as much a martial art as it is a skill, kids." The middle-aged man explained in his philosophical voice. "Bumi invited me to come along."
"Ready for to learn the complexities of clay, glass, and crystal-Bending, boy?" Bumi jumped in and punched Aang playfully on the shoulder.
Aang laughed nervously, not hesitating to give him another hug.
"Wait a second... Bending?" Sokka then interrupted, a bit of disappointment brewing in his eyes as he turned at Pian Dao. "I thought this jewelry-making workshop was gonna be... um, Non-bending "
"No, idiot," Toph snorted. "Why would Aang want to learn to make beads the old-fashioned way if he can easily blow glass and sculpt clay double time? I'm here to teach him about the coolness of metal-molding."
Pian Dao and Bumi rose curious eyebrows at Sokka, who despite the growing facial hair looked suddenly like a disheartened five-year-old.
"But I..." Sokka poked at his crutch on the ground in different places. "I was hoping I could learn a lesson, or two... on carving mechanisms..."
Toph snorted almost too loudly for her own good. "Since when did you get so interested in jewelry?"
Interestingly enough, Aang caught the young warrior's hesitation to explain further, remembering a certain girl's necklace... and the fact that Suki had gone off the day before to gather the imprisoned Kyoshi warriors from the island colonies of the Fire Nation. The boy smirked.
"Sokka loves jewelry!" Aang pointed out in meek amusement. "We were actually just talking about putting together a jewelry business... after, um... we got the Earth Kingdom back up and running again."
"Really?" Bumi pursed his wrinkled lips, looking down at Toph as if to get some sort of confirmation. The little girl shook the bangs over her eyes.
"Don't look at me; I'm more manly than those two combined in a sandwich."
"Alright," Pian Dao sighed, gathering the scrolls that were laying on one of the courtyard's benches, "well I suppose we can change our lesson plans to suit Sokka's needs as well. What do you think, sir?"
Bumi made a muffled 'meh' sound and began to EarthBend the courtyard into a rumble, ignoring the yelping sounds Sokka was making from his injured leg. He opened a small pit into the courtyard, deep enough for the small group of kids to be hip-deep from the surface.
"Lesson number one in bead-making... only the deepest core of the rock will make the smoothest beads. Aang, I need you to Bend a dozen fist fulls of the rock below your feet and hover it over to the basket topside. Toph, show the kid how it's done."
"Right, Captain!" The little girl shouted enthusiastically, promptly digging her hands onto the hard rock as if it were as soft as sand... and threw pieces over the pit... just barely missing Sokka's head a few times.
"Here, Sokka, you can chisel some of that rock out yourself," Piandao handed him a silver sharp chisel point and a hammer, taking a pair for himself to demonstrate to the boy.
Aang concentrated fully, biting his tongue at times to bring out a solid fist full of stone from the deep ground, realizing how the deeper the rock was derived... the more stubborn its element would be. As he felt the sweat drip from his eyes, he imagined certain designs he would need to re-create as an Avatar of the Air Temples.
It was the reason to why Bumi insisted he learn this craft before anything further, as it would help the boy bring back his own customs and realize that he couldn't move forward without looking back at what he left behind. He visualized the medallion that Monk Gyatso had always worn at the Southern Temple, how the old man wore it so proudly from dawn until dusk, as the first assignment he had been given the moment he had become a councillor to the Temple.
Each medallion was unique... chiseled, carved and polished by the same person who wore it... which was why Aang had utterly refused to follow Sokka's suggestion to just wear Monk Gyatso's own necklace. The boy couldn't bear to wear such a commemorative, valuable piece. No... Aang decided that when he had the time... he would give Monk Gyatso the proper burial he deserved, letting the man wear his necklace to the very end.
He also remembered the handful of old sayings that were passed on within each medallion of the Air Temple council, some repeating famous lines from the Spirits, others from the Air-borne Avatars themselves. Aang wondered what his own medallion would say, calculating how much space he would have within each of the three iconic swirls of the Air symbol. He wanted it to be special, to have it bring meaning to everything he had gone through and what his people meant to him now as he would represent them in a new World.
Perhaps in time, an inscription would come to him.
And as he heard the distant grumbling noise of a flying bison overhead, and the cheerful yelling of his name by a very familiar voice, Aang then remembered another custom to the Airbender's medallion. Aang smiled and let his silver eyes glisten against the morning sun to see the arrival.
He would ask her, the one who had supported his cause from the very beginning, to place the medallion around his neck.