Chapter 9: The Blue Spirit
In the training ground outside an Earth Kingdom village, Aang and Haru were practicing earthbending together. They would take turns throwing boulders of various shapes and sizes, while the other would create an appropriate wall to block with. Tyro watched from the side, pleased with their progress.
"I think that's enough for today," Tyro said. "You're doing very well, both of you."
"Thank you Sifu Tyro," Aang said.
Then Katara and Suki ran entered the training ground and ran up to Aang. Both were out of breath, having been in a hurry to get back to the others. "Aang, we found something you're going to want to see," Katara said.
"We were checking out another town when we found this," Suki said and held up a Fire Nation wanted poster. On it was a drawing of a girl in clothing similar to Aang's.
"Malu the Ghost Witch?" Aang read aloud. "What kind of silly name is that?"
"Keep reading," Katara said.
"Wanted for disrupting several caravans, destroying military property, and improper treatment of cabbages. Weapon of choice is a staff." Aang wondered why this mattered to him for a moment. "Why is this person important?" Aang asked.
"We asked around town about this person," Suki said. "Rumor has it that she's an airbender."
"That's impossible," Haru said. "If any airbenders survived the massacre they would have been noticed a long time ago."
"Maybe not," Aang said. "They could have gone into hiding until now. Maybe I'm not the last airbender?"
"I wouldn't get your hopes up," Haru said.
"Well I can't ignore this," Aang said. "Are there any clues to where this person is?"
"She was last spotted north of here," Suki said. "We saw some bounty hunters interested in her, so we can follow them from the air."
"Let's go then," Aang said.
"I need to go back to the village," Tyro said. "Go with them Haru, you're more than skilled enough now."
From the air on Appa it didn't take long to find the bounty hunters Suki mentioned. There were five of them riding Kimono Rhinos, clearly siding with the Fire Nation. In the evening the bounty hunters made camp near some mountains, and Appa landed far enough away to not be seen.
Once they were on the ground Aang and Suki quietly walked towards the bounty hunters while Katara and Haru watched over Appa. At the edge of the camp Aang And Suki listened in on the bounty hunters' conversation over a campfire.
"Why are we doing this job again?" the man with a bow and face tattoos said. "It just doesn't seem like something you would do Mongke."
"Because we'll be getting a bonus in addition to the bounty on this one," Mongke said. "So we just do it."
"Where is this girl anyway?" a dark skinned man asked.
"My informant tells me she's hiding out in a cave along the next mountain," Mongke said. "We're going there first thing in the morning."
Having heard enough, Aang and Suki returned to the others and got back on Appa. As the sun set they flew towards the next mountain, and when they arrived they searched for a cave. One was found on the north side of the mountain and Appa landed outside it.
"I think it might be best if I go in alone," Aang said.
"Why?" Suki asked.
"I don't want her scared," Aang admitted.
"Alright," Katara said.
Aang walked inside the cave, which went deep into the mountain. There were small torches on the walls every few dozen feet, dimly lighting the cave. After walking for half an hour Aang found a campsite in the cave.
"Hello, is anyone there?" Aang asked.
Suddenly Aang heard an arrow fly through the air and impale his right shoe, just barely missing his foot but pinning the shoe to the ground. He heard more arrows being fired and airbended a shield to deflect the arrows, scattering them into the walls and ceiling. Aang pulled out the arrow in his shoe to free himself.
"I think you dropped this," Aang said with the arrow in his hand. He saw several archers step into the light of a torch deeper in the cave, each with tattoos on their faces. They fired more arrows at Aang, who earthbended a wall to block them. Dozens of arrows impacted the rock and the cumulative force broke through it.
Aang ran from the campsite and headed for the entrance of the cave. Dozens of arrows were fired at him, which Aang blocked with air and earthbending. One arrow slipped through Aang's defenses and struck his left shoe, making him trip. When he hit the floor more arrows pierced the edges of his clothing, just barely missing his skin but pinning him to the ground. For good measure a group of archers fired a net, keeping Aang immobilized.
With their prize captured, the archers bound Aang's hands and feet and blindfolded him. Then they carried him deeper in the cave, which had an exit on the other side of the mountain. From there they tossed him inside a cart and took him to a fortress further north. Inside the fortress Aang was taken to the deepest levels and placed in a metal cell, his wrists and ankles chained to prevent any movement to bend with.
The blindfold was removed by one of the archers who left the cell afterward. After being left alone for an hour the cell door opened and Azula walked inside, her left arm in a cast. "Seeing you like this really makes me wish I used the Yu Yan sooner" she said.
"What have you done with Malu?" Aang demanded.
Azula laughed at Aang's demand. "There is no Malu, there never was one," Azula said. "A false bounty about a new airbender was the perfect bait for the last of your kind. And you fell right into my trap."
Aang lowered his head, conceding the point. "So what happens to me now?" he asked.
"Don't worry, you're not going to die today," Azula said. "See if you die you'll just be reborn into the Water Tribe and I'd have to hunt you down all over again. Of course that's only if containment remains an option. If you try to escape I will kill you."
Azula turned to leave the cell. As she walked away Aang inhaled as much air as he could and then blew it all at once, hitting Azula and slamming her into the door. "Blow all the wind you want," Azula said as she got up. "It won't help you here, and your friends have no idea where you are to rescue you." She opened the door to walk out and slammed it shut behind her.
Refusing to give up Aang struggled against the chains, but they held against him. Hours passed with nothing happening in the cell. Then Aang heard something going on just outside the door, several large objects hitting the floor. The door opened and the first thing Aang saw was a blue oni mask, then noticed the person wearing it. It was a short, muscular man wearing a full black outfit, leaving none of his skin or hair visible.
The Blue Spirit walked up to Aang, the mask giving nothing away about his intentions. Then he took a key out of his pocket and unlocked the chains holding Aang. As Aang stretched his limbs The Blue Spirit walked back towards the door.
"Who are you?" Aang asked. "What's going on? Are you here to rescue me?" The Blue Spirit didn't say anything, but motioned for Aang to follow him. "I guess that's a yes."
Walking outside the cell, Aang found several guards knocked out. He could see that some of them had been beaten with their own weapons, spears laying next the unconscious bodies. Aang couldn't tell if The Blue Spirit was a bender or just really good at hand to hand combat.
The Blue Spirit led Aang through the hallways, stopping near a room with three guards. He took a small black sphere out of his pocket and threw it at the guards. It exploded and released a smokescreen, allowing him to move in and ambush them. When the smoke cleared the guards were down and The Blue Spirit was opening the door.
Inside the room were various weapons and armor, including Aang's staff. The Blue Spirit grabbed the staff and tossed it to Aang. "Thanks," Aang said. He saw The Blue Spirit place a finger over the mouth of his mask, telling Aang to be quiet. "Sorry," Aang whispered.
Together they walked through the hallways, avoiding patrolling guards and wandering officers. The Blue Spirit found an unguarded route to the inner courtyard of the fortress. Once there they stuck to the shadows, reaching the first of three walls in their way to freedom. Hanging on the wall was a rope The Blue Spirit had placed earlier, and they started climbing it.
As they climbed an alarm went off throughout the fortress. Guards that were supposed to relieve the ones guarding Aang had noticed the breakout and alerted their superiors. With the alarm sounded everyone in the fortress searched for escaping prisoners. One guard on the inner wall spotted Aang climbing a rope and cut it off, sending him and The Blue Spirit falling to the ground.
Aang created a cushion of air to soften the impact, allowing them to immediately ready themselves for a fight. He saw the gates start to close, so he earthbended a large stone brick out of the ground and threw it in the first gate and jammed it open. Soldiers moved in to remove the brick to close the gate, but were blown away by a large windblast from Aang.
With the first gate jammed open Aang and The Blue Spirit jumped over the brick and entered the middle courtyard. The next gate was already closed, and soldiers armed with spears moved into fight. Aang earthbended a few boulders out of the ground and threw them at the soldiers, hitting a few of them. The Blue Spirit let one of the soldiers get close and wrestled the spear away from the soldier and hit him with it, then struck other soldiers until the spear broke. One soldier remained nearby, which The Blue Spirit punched in the gut and then in the face to knock him out.
At the second wall Aang earthbended a column of rock, lifting himself and The Blue Spirit up to the top of the wall. There more soldiers moved in, armed with swords this time. Aang avoided the sword strikes, then used gusts of wind to blow the soldiers off the wall. The Blue Spirit also dodged attacks, kicking the guards and then throwing them off the wall.
In the outer courtyard soldiers carried ladders to the middle wall, positioning them to climb up the wall and reach the fight. Aang saw them and unfolded his glider and prepared to take off. "Grab my legs!" Aang yelled and took off. The Blue Spirit jumped and grabbed onto Aang's legs, letting him try to fly them across. Aang was barely able to keep them both in the air, and the slowly dropped and landed in the middle of the outer courtyard.
Immediately they were surrounded by soldiers, this time firebenders. Dozens of them circled around Aang and The Blue Spirit, trapping them. Aang was about to earthbend when he heard The Blue Spirit take a deep breath. Then fire emerged from the mouth of the oni mask, taking the firebenders by surprise and pushing them back.
From the top of the fortress, Azula saw The Blue Spirit breathe fire. They've gone far enough she thought. With her right arm she charged a lightning blast, only getting a third of the energy that both arms normally provide. She fired it at Aang, aiming for his chest. However she saw The Blue Spirit get in the way of the lighting, and caught it in his right hand. The lighting went up his arm, down to his stomach, and up his left arm which was aimed at the ground in front of a group of firebenders. The lightning hit the patch of ground and exploded, sending debris towards the firebenders and disabling them.
Aang was shocked by what The Blue Spirit was capable of, hesitating long enough for The Blue Spirit to get impatient and grab Aang's shirt to drag him towards the gate. Escape first, ask questions later Aang thought and then earthbended a column of rock beneath himself and The Blue Spirit. They reached the top of the outer wall, finding archers lined up to fire arrows at them.
The Blue Spirit grabbed Aang and threw him across the wall, sending him past the other side. As Aang fell he unfolded his glider and took to the air. He turned in the air to help The Blue Spirit, finding him dodging arrows. Then The Blue Spirit saw Aang flying towards him and blew fire into Aang's path, telling him to leave.
Alright I'm going Aang thought as he turned back around.
While Aang flew away from the wall he didn't see an arrow strike The Blue Spirit's mask. The mask prevented the arrow from reaching his face, but the impact was enough to knock him out. Being cautious, the archers pinned down The Blue Spirit with more arrows, and then stood guard over him until Azula arrived at the wall.
When Azula reached the outer wall she looked down on The Blue Spirit, still pinned to the floor. Let's see who's under that mask she thought. Azula reached down and removed the mask, and recognized the face beneath it. "Well if it isn't his royal tea-loving kookiness himself," she said. Uncle's lost a lot of weight.
A/N: If your Mary Sue alarms were going off during this chapter, that was completely intentional.