SMST: The Ethereal Path of the Avatar! - By DS Wynne

Disclaimer: "SM", "R1/2", "ST" and other properties belong to their respective owner

Note: This is a multi-genre story

Part 7

"Gah!" Aang says, as he struggles through the net. "Who did this?"

Before anyone could do anything, eight girls, dressed in green, feminine armor, and were wearing some sort of kabuki paint, jumped from the trees.

"Hold it!" says the leader, as she scans the group. "You should not be on Kyoshi Island."

Ranma-onna tilts her slightly.

"We didn't see sign or anything."

The lead girl turns to look at Ranma-onna...then at her appearance.

"You got some nerve talking like that...'girlie'."

"So says the clown."

"'Clown'?"

"People who put on face paint to amuse children."

The girl growls.

"Don't mind Ranma," Usagi says. "All of us do not like to be captured like we are criminals"

"The elders will have to decide that," the girl says.

"Say, what is your name?" Katara asked.

"If the elders approve you being here, then you'll know."

"Great," Sokka says sarcastically. "Captured for no reason."

"Oh, there IS reason, stranger...there always is."

"Pa?" Goku says to Ranma-onna. "What are we going to do?"

"Actually, we're going to get these girls to lead us to their village or whatever."

The lead girl folds her arms.

"Ha, I would like to see THAT!"

"Sure. Usagi?"

Suddenly, Usagi seemingly drops through the ground, and appears behind the squad leader with a well-placed choke-hold.

"Now, you will let us go, so we talk about this...peacefully," Usagi says.

"No!" the girl yells, as she threw Usagi overhand.

Usagi sailed over, and pulls the net off of her family and friends.

"Suki-!" one the girls yelled.

"I know!" Suki says, realizing that it was feint to allow her opponents to free her companions.

"Alright!" Aang yelled, as he recovred his glider-staff.

"Goku, strike the ground," Ranma-onna says.

"Okay!" Goku says, as he struck the ground.

BAM!

The sudden dust allowed the Avatar to create a a gust of wind, allowing the dust to blind the warriors.

"Hey!" Suki yelled. "Fan the dust out of your face!"

But when the dust clears, everyone was gone.

"Where did they go?" says one of the girls.

"I don't know, but we better inform the elders of this," says Suki, as they immediately leap and hoof back to their village.

Meanwhile, above, a cloud is following the band.

"This is pretty neat," Aang says, as he sat on Nimbus.

"Yeah, Nimbus can be AWESOME," Goku says.

"Sokka, stop struggling!" Ranma-onna says, as she held Sokka on her shoulders while gliding on wind currents, thanks to the

Olympian god of the Western Winds "Zephyrus". Years earlier, Ranma and Usagi took a fantastic journey during Earth's ancient past, and picked up boons along the way. One of them was the ability to glide on wind currents...the same ability that the fabled Amazons on "Paradise Island" had learned.

"I can't help it if you're smaller than me!"

"Well, you're going to be flatter than me if you don't hold still. And watch the hands!"

"How come you and Usagi can't use Nimbus?" Katara says, as she sits on the cloud while looking up. "I know that my brother can be a creep, but still..."

"Hey, I recent that remark!" Sokka complained.

"Simple," Usagi began, as she flew. Unlike Ranma and Goku, Usagi was the first to actually learn to fly on her own power.

"Only those of pure of heart can ride on Nimbus. Ranma and I have...done things that would disqualify us."

"Ohhhh..."

"I think I see the village ahead," Aang says, as he stands. He then turns to Momo.

"Momo, go get Appa."

"Chirp!" the flying lemur says, as it nods...before leaping off of Aang's shoulders.

"So what's the plan?" Sokka says.

"Simple," Ranma-onna says. "We drop in."

A few minutes later, Suki and her band stop in front of some sort of hall, where an older man and the rest of the village waits.

"Elder, the strangers got away," says Suki.

"Oh, dear," the Elder says, as he sighs. "We should expect trouble then."

"If so, it's not from US," says a voice from above.

Everyone from the ground looks up to see...a cloud.

"Where is that voice coming from?" The elder asked.

"Elder, stay close," Suki says.

And then, Aang and the gang drops down from the skies.

"Ah!" Suki yelled in surpirse.

"You're not going to hurt my friends!" Goku yelled, as he got his staff ready.

"But we only want to talk," Katara says. "We really mean you no harm."

"Ahh!" Ranma-onna yelled, as she and Sokka come crashing down onto the ground.

THUMP!

"Well, mostly..."

"We come in peace," Usagi says.

"Oh, yeah?" Suki says. "With your...magic, you do?"

"It's a training method that I learned called 'The Weirding Way'," Usagi says. "It allows me to move like quicksilver for short durations."

"Oh, really?"

"Yeah," Ranma-onna says, she slaps the dirt off of herself. "Look, we only wanted to stop by here long enough to get some rest, and then we're off to the North Pole to get my friend Aang to learn 'waterbending'."

"The boy is a waterbender?" the elder asked.

"No, I'm an airbender...and the Avatar," Aang says.

"YOU...the Avatar?" the elder scoffed. "The Avatar hasn't been seen in a hundred years!"

"I know," Aang says sadly. "Somehow...I got trapped in suspended animation, after I left my home at the Southern Air Temple."

"If you ARE the Avatar, then you know while this place is named 'Kyoshi Island'," Suki says, as she points to a statue of a female warrior dressed similarly like Suki and her band.

Everyone turns to look.

"That's right," Aang says enthusiastically. "Avatar Kyoshi formed this island in order to allow her village to escape the tyranny of an Earth king."

And with that, Aang, leaps high into the air, and lands on Kyoshi's head.

"Let me show a trick," Aang says, as he takes out some marbles and uses his abilities to spin them.

"Oh, wow!" says one of the spectators. "He really IS the Avatar!"

"Ahhhh!" says another villager, as he foams at the mouth...and feints.

KLUMP!

"Uh-huh," Ranma-onna says. She then turns her attention to the situation at hand. "Look, we don't have much, but we would

like to stay here for a few days."

"What do you have that can be of worth to us?" Suki says.

Usagi thinks for a moment.

"We can...trade knowledge," Usagi says. "You give us food and shelter, and Ranma and I will teach you the Weirding Way."

"Really?"

"Really."

Suki turns to the Village Elder.

"Can they stay?"

"Hmmm...I do not see why not."

"Thank you, elder."

"Well, that's that," Ranma-onna says. "It looks like we can stay guys."

"Good, because I'm still hungry," Sokka says.

"Me, too!" Goku says.

"Boys and their stomachs," Katara says, as she shook her head.

Tbc.