Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar or any of its characters.

I seem to be incapable of writing longer one-shots...sighs they always look longer on Word! Enjoy though!

-Ardala91

"Death is a challenge. It tells us not to waste time…It tells us to tell each other right now that we love each other."

-Leo F. Buscaglia

How cruel, that was the thought that occurred to him in that moment, Cruel and Unfair! It was not fair, and yet he accepted it, even though part of him wanted to dig his heels into the ground or stamp his foot like a small child. It was cruel, but that was the way war usually is, especially if it all boils down to you because you're important. You're supposed to be the leader, to lead your troops in with bravery and fight like the powerful Avatar you're supposed to be. He'd done that with all the stamina and glory that can come to an undertrained Avatar who's only a kid. A child burdened with responsibilities beyond his years who'd met them with honor and maturity seemingly ahead of him.

The Avatar. The Avatar who is supposed to beat the Fire Lord. The Avatar who is supposed to end the war that he should have been around to prevent. He'd never truly desired to be the Avatar, but eventually he had come to terms with who he was, who he would be…or could have been. His lungs were heavy as if Appa had crash landed on top of him, the idea of it made him giggle madly with confusion. Why was he thinking about that? Oh right, because he couldn't breathe. He attempted to lift his head, but his head felt just as heavy like the boulders he couldn't earthbend when he first started to learn.

That was when he remembered why he couldn't breathe because a pillar had fallen on top of him, thanks to that spiteful Fire Lord. He'd tried so hard to turn him peacefully….but the man had refused. He tried to smile knowing he'd done his duty, but he recalled he couldn't anyways. His body was numb, he could not feel anything at all.

His thoughts became more distorted as he tried to recall why he thought it was cruel. Unfair. So…forlorn…his thoughts halted as he thought he could hear a faint cry from a familiar voice. Ah, he thought bitterly, that is why….then everything became silent with a breathtaking oblivion.