Hello, beloved readers. I present you with another chapter of The Avatar Rebels. Are you guys just dying to know what happens? Well, you are soon to find out! Also, here's a question for you guys. When I finish this story, which is I'm not even close to, what would you guys think if I did a prequel to this? It would be about the time Aang spent with the Rebels before they brainwashed him, and what all he went through. Just tell me in a review if you'd like to see that!
KingRock980: Oh, um, did you think that Feng is Long Feng? Honestly, the relationship between the two names was a pure coincidence. When I finally did notice the similarity, I figured I would just keep it. About Aang knowing about Zuko, we'll just have to wait and see, won't we? (Insert evil laughter) :)
Jokermask18: Thanks for the compliment about Feng. I wanted him to add depth to the Dai-Li. I've always imagined Feng as a sort of third side, really. Khon wants Aang to be a Rebel. Team Avatar wants the old Aang back, but Feng doesn't care which side Aang ends up on. He just wants Aang to stay sane, and the best thing for that is to keep trying to turn Aang into a Rebel. Thanks for reviewing!
prettyshon10: Your sister sounds like the kind of sibling who constantly does everything in their power to mess with you, just for being her sibling. Believe me, I know how that feels. Hm, psycho Aang does sound neat to write about, but then again, should I really try to torture the poor boy even more? Also, about the AMVs, I don't mind. Alas, I don't know how to make AMVs, but I swear I've seen videos about how to make them before. Try checking those out. Bye now! :)
Ahlysha: Yay, more Stitch fans! It's great to find some more ohana! Also, are you suggesting that I psychologically mess with all of the Gaang's minds? I would never! *acts completely offended* Or would I? :)
Fire Lord Mowse: Aang hating Katara? Now that's a scary thought, especially for all the Kataangers! Well, I guess that would mean more Aang for me...Oh, um, sorry, that was a daydream! Thanks for the review, and bye!
Disclaimer: I do not own A:TLA! I'm too lazy to make this a witty disclaimer, lol.
"Well, here we are. Welcome to the Boiling Rock!" Aang smiled at "Lee," expecting the teenager to be just as excited as he was. However, he did not get the reaction he was expecting.
"Lee's" face was as pale as a sky-bison's fur. Well, that's an odd way to put it, as I've never seen a sky-bison, Aang thought fleetingly before going back to taking in the teen's nervous appearance. He looked like he was about to have a nervous meltdown. Aang felt bad for the guy. He must be worried that he'd mess up his first mission.
"You know, Lee," Aang began, trying to comfort his friend, "In the Rebel camp, we try to start off our missions with a more upbeat attitude!"
Zuko couldn't help but laugh at the boy's all too familiar statement. Aang sent him a confused look.
"What?" Aang asked, his voice getting high and his cheeks reddening. What had he done to get laughed at? The sight of an embarrassed Aang only made Zuko laugh even harder. Aang's face was the shade of a tomato by this point.
"C-come on! What's so funny?!" Aang stuttered.
"Uh, i-it's, um, n-nothing," Zuko gasped out, still recovering from his little fit of laughter, 'I-i just, uh, have a friend who's said the same thing to me. In fact, you kind of remind me of him."
Aang smiled, relieved that he had nothing to be embarrassed about. Sure, he was training to be a soldier in a war, but he was twelve, and embarrassment to a twelve year old is the equivalent of death.
"Well, maybe I'll meet your friend and get to talk him one day," said Aang.
"Er, yeah, maybe you will," Zuko responded uncomfortably. I just hope I'll get to talk to him again one day too.
"Alright, how are we gonna get in the Boiling Rock?"
Feng paced around in his room. All he could think about was if his plan would work or not. He was fairly certain Azula wouldn't be able to do what he had asked of her, but what if she could? What if she managed to somehow succeed? Then Feng's whole plot would come crashing down. Then, there would be no turning back. He'd have to obey Azula.
Feng could only hope that Azula failed. If she didn't, then they might just have an insane Avatar with the power to bend all four elements on their hands. Now that wasn't a pleasant thought. Who knew what a mentally ill Aang would do with that kind of power? What would happen if Aang figured out how to control the Avatar State?
There was another, altogether different reason for Feng's worry. He had gotten to know Aang over the past few months, and seeing such a bright, happy-go-lucky child lose his sanity was a terrible thought to the hypnotist. After seeing other people go mad from Dai-Li hypnotism, Feng knew Aang was definitely someone who would go insane. People had pulled through before, but considering Aang's age, and the fact that if he did what Azula ask, Aang would have more than just his non-Rebel side to fight off, Feng knew the boy would crack. It would be overwhelming even for a grown man.
So, Feng knew for certain that Aang would go mad if he did as Azula asked, and he knew for certain that if Azula did succeed, he would do it. That meant that Aang's only hope for sanity was Azula's failure. Hopefully, the Fire Nation princess' mental predicament would hold her back, but what if she could still do what Feng had required? If that were the case, then that was it for the Avatar. He'd lose his sanity, probably forever.
Zuko found that he could not think of a logical answer to this logical question. The only answer he could think of was an, "I don't know. Any ideas?" and that's exactly what he said.
"I, uh, was hoping you'd have some," Aang answered. He honestly hadn't thought ahead this far. Normally, he was used to someone from the higher up division taking charge and giving the orders, which is what he'd expected "Lee" to do. It was then that he realized that even though his companion was older, he was still new to the Rebels, and Aang was fairly certain that this was his first mission. That meant that Aang might just have to step up and take charge of this mission.
"Aren't you Khon's apprentice?" Zuko asked the boy sarcastically, getting a distinct reminder of when he had said, "Aren't you the idea guy?" to Sokka.
"Yeah, and that's it. I'm just an apprentice! An apprentice is there to learn, and that's why I'm still an apprentice. I'm still learning," Aang grumbled. He shouldn't be expected to do everything now, should he?
"Relax. Don't throw a fit. I say we just check out the area and go home. I know a little bit about the Boiling Rock, so I don't need to learn much else," Zuko said. This was true. The only reason he had come on this trip was to see if he could get something out of Aang. Speaking of which, shouldn't he be doing that now? Deciding to try and talk to Aang on the way back, Zuko began to form a plan with Aang.
"Why don't we just sail around the island in the submarine, then leave?" he suggested.
"I don't know. Do you think Admiral Khon would be happy if that's all we did?" Aang asked unsurely.
"It'll be fine. Remember, I know quite a bit about the Boiling Rock. I can just tell the admiral that," Zuko assured the boy. He wanted to get this over with soon so he could talk to Aang.
"Fine, I'll trust you on that. Let's get started."
Azula growled as she pondered over what Feng had asked of her. Why did he have to makes things so difficult for her? Now she had to sit here and plot things out even more. If he had just complied, Aang would be hers by now! Then she would've gotten that admiral back for demoting her! But no, she had to do what Feng said, or there would be no revenge at all.
Still, she would do as the hypnotist said, since apparently if she didn't, there would be no Avatar left for her. Now all she had to do was fulfill Feng's requirements. Azula calmed herself and continued plotting everything out, all the while muttering, "The Avatar will be mine."
Zuko and Aang had nearly sailed around the entire island four times. Aang had forced Zuko to memorize all of the watchtower positions, and by now Zuko was ready to leave. Of course, it was never that simple. Something always had to happen.
"INTRUDERS! INTRUDERS!" the voice came from a watchtower that Zuko had completely forgotten about.
"Come on, Lee! We have to go!" Aang yelled, but the guards were already flocking to the shore. Several of the guards threw ropes with small metal objects that looked like little claws at the end of them. The claws dug their way into the submarine, and the guards holding the ropes tied their ends around boulders which jutted out from the ground.
"I guess that means it's time to fight!" Zuko growled. He didn't want to fight the people who were only being loyal to him, but he didn't have a choice. Right now, getting through to Aang was the more important than even the safety of his soldiers. He had to fight them. Feeling very happy that he had a helmet to hide his identity, he sprung into action, Aang at his side.
The two Rebel recruits fought in perfect sync, as if they knew and expected what the other would do. Aang nimbly dodged blow after blow, managing to tire out a good many of the guards. With lightning fast speed, the Avatar managed to block every single fireball sent his and Zuko's way, even managing to send quite a few fireballs back at the guards.
With Aang covering him, Zuko found it ridiculously easy to aim and fire at the guards. There was no need to be worried about getting hit. Aang had that under control. Zuko shot one guard after another down. He then created a large fire-whip and brought it down, aiming straight for the ropes that were attached to the submarine. His attack collided, and the submarine was freed. Aang and Zuko immediately hopped back into the submarine, and Aang brought it back into the safe haven that was underwater. Together, Aang and Zuko had made a clean getaway.
"Wow, we're a pretty good team!" Aang stated merrily once they were far enough away from the island to slow down.
"Yeah, I guess we are," Zuko grinned at the former monk. It was nice to be able to be friends with Aang again.
"Who knows? Maybe one day, we'll fight Firelord Zuko together," Aang said, and once more, Zuko saw a look spread across Aang's face. It was the cold fire again, back with a vengeance. That was when Zuko realized something. Even if Lee and Aang became friends, that didn't necessarily mean Zuko and Aang could ever be friends.
Well, what are you waiting for? Review and let me know what you think!