I don't see why I have to do this (it seems a little obvious, considering I'm posting on Fanfiction), but just in case: Disclaimer: I don't own the characters. I don't own Avatar. I do own your souls, but that's not relevant here.
Right, well. Here's the third chapter. Updates will probably slow to every Saturday from here on so that I can work on other stories. (Ie. visit my dA for original work. You know you want to. Link is in my profile.)
Anywho, enjoy! I demands it! :D
Toph ran. Sweat beaded on her forehead, and her chest tightened from the exertion, but she didn't slow. Fear gripped her, shattering her wits in it's cold hands. Dark surrounded her - not the ever-present darkness that accompanied her blindness. Something greater. Heavier.
Reverberations returned to her feet, showing her the topography around her. There was nothing - no hills, no rocks. The only reason she knew it was earth beneath her was because of her earthbending. She was surrounded by nothing. And it was slowly pressing in.
A sudden cold chill swept across Toph and she stopped, letting her knees buckle beneath her. She planted her hands on the ground, gulping in air, filling her lungs with life. It felt like she was breathing death. Curling in on herself to defend against the growing cold, she let a tear fall from her face. She was going to go insane.
A whisper carried on the wind. Faint, hearable only by her toned ears. She sat up, straining. "Toph..." the voice repeated. Toph blinked, turning to face the direction of the sound.
"Mother?" Toph whispered under her breath, then louder, "Mother!" Toph leapt to her feet. Her mother was alive! She knew it!
"Toph!" Her mother's screamed. The sound shattered the silence in her mind. The agony it carried shook Toph to her core. "Toph! Help!"
"Mother! I'm coming!" Gods, what was happening? Toph ran harder that she'd ever done so in her life. She wanted to collapse, to weep for her mother. But she pushed forward. She had to help. She had to get to her mother's side.
Something slammed into Toph, flinging her back. Instinctively she rolled, jumping back to her feet. She stomped the ground, bending part of the earth up. Nothing happened. She tried again, grunting in frustration. Nothing.
With a howl she shot forward once more, and suddenly something was before her. She could visualize the vibrations sharper than anything before. Two people stood before her, so clear, so detailed. Somehow, she recognized one of them to be her mother.
"Toph, please!" her mother cried, tears spilling down a disheveled face. The second woman, tall and beautiful, pressed a palm against her mother's breast. Her mother screamed the pain of a thousand dieing souls.
"Mother!" Toph shouted, sharing in her mother's agony. The sound wrenched her heart from her chest. Toph charged forward, but the taller woman extended a hand. Toph was thrown back a second time. The woman laughed, and Toph knew all sanity had left the woman.
"You think you can really save your poor, pathetic mother?" the woman sneered. She removed her hand from her mother's chest. Her mother fell limp. Chains appeared above her head, clasping her wrists and holding her upright.
"You sick bastard," Toph spat at the woman. A sudden realization hit her. It was Azula, Zuko's deranged sister. "I'll kill-"
Blood soaked Toph, dragging her down into the unearthen ground. She was pulled into the depths of a red pool. It consumed Toph, drawing from her own blood, slowly draining her sanity.
Azula laughed, the sound ringing through the darkness. "Death shall prevail. All must fall below the glory of the BloodQueen!" Azula drew a knife, and Toph watched in horror as she punched the knife into her mother's side. Her mother's screams drowned out all coherent thought. The knife retracted. Toph screamed. The blade slid across throat, across wrist. Pain pressed down. Death wailed it's cry. All was-
Toph sat bolt-right up, drenched in a cold sweat. Staring into the blind darkness, she shivered, trying to reattach her mind to reality. She swayed with the movements of the wooden cage, breathing heavily the cold night air. What a nightmare. The memories of it were already fading from her mind, but the fear still clutched to her breast. She couldn't remember ever feeling so terrified, so helpless.
I shouldn't be surprised, Toph sighed, wiping her brow. She'd discovered both her parents dead only... Toph glanced at the sky. Not that it did her much good. She could tell from the air though that it was night, which meant she'd slept for quite a time. It had hardly been past noon when she'd arrived at the Bei Fong mansion.
The thought of her parents stung Toph's eyes, tears threatening to turn to sobs. She still hadn't let herself dwell on their death - whether she should mourn their loss or deny their death, she didn't know. She didn't doubt that Azula would have killed her parents, but some part of her - a large part - hoped fervently that they were still alive somewhere. Tears rolled down Toph's cheeks. She pulled her legs up to her chest, letting the sobs come freely. Her head pounded from the crying, but she didn't care. She needed to let this out, allow herself to cope with the possible death of her parents. She would need to hold together in the future.
Time passed slowly. After a few minutes of uncontrollable mourning, Toph pushed herself back, leaning against the wooden railings. From the motions of the cage, Toph guessed she was being transported somewhere. Hopefully a rescue party could follow the trail and save her. But how long would it be until someone found I was missing? Toph thought sadly. No one would have a reason to "check up" on me while I was at my parents... Crap... Something told her that her escape would have to be by her hand alone.
Sighing, Toph tried to calm herself by listening to the night. The only sounds to split the crisp air were the creaking of the cage and the common night sounds. No sounds of people, or whatever creature was bearing her cage. Toph relaxed a little, breathing the crisp air deeply. Her body still felt weak from the dream.
The clatter of a plate echoed in the relative silence, jolting Toph back to her situation. She felt the wood bump against her hand. She smiled mirthlessly - she had almost hoped for clay plates. Her captor had already gone to great lengths to keep Toph from any means of escape. Obviously Azula had thought out all the details Oh well, it was more interesting this way.
Toph picked up the plate and sniffed its contents curiously. It reeked, like something she'd find buried deep in old Iroh's dirty laundry. Her nose protested the smell, but Toph plunged a hand into the goo anyway. She would need to keep up her strength. Besides, had Azula wanted her dead, she wouldn't have gone to such lengths just to poison her.
The food tasted like something dug up from between a city's cobblestones. In the poor districts. It nearly made Toph gag. Capture and torment she could handle, but her stomach wasn't very forgiving.
She ate quickly, the sludge sliding down her throat as fast as she could make it. As soon as she dropped the empty plate, she heard it get whisked away. Seconds later a hand grasped the back of her collar, pulling her against the wooden bars. Toph gasped, startled.
"Let me go!" Toph shouted, pulling against the grip. The sound of her top ripping rent the night air, and she felt the fabric fall down one shoulder. A palm pressed against the bare skin, and heat seared the flesh. Toph let out a cry of terror.
"Hurts, doesn't it?" Azula's cold voice said. Toph was released, and she clambered back to the center of the cage. She felt the cool air against the fresh burns on her shoulder, and moved a hand to protect them. The touch made her wince in pain.
"What do you want, Azula?" Toph growled. She dropped her hand, glaring in the direction she thought Azula was. She couldn't show weakness. Not in front of her captor. Not in front of Azula.
"What do I want?" Azula laughed heartily. "I want what my brother took from me. I want what's rightfully mine."
"And how is my capture supposed to help with that?" Toph asked, crossing her arms. The last time she had met Azula - over a year ago now - the woman had been completely insane. Toph couldn't tell if she had been able to reign in that sanity or not.
There was a moment's pause, and then: "Is that really information you need?"
"Aren't you supposed to gloat or something? What am I going to do, tell all your plans to the Squirrelowls?"
"Yes, well, if you must know. You're bait. And a... needed ingredient. I'll have all the power that I need to take back the throne of the Fire Nation. And finish what my father failed so miserably at." Azula started mumbling something under her breath.
Toph, having understood nothing of Azula's explanation, strained to hear what the woman was saying. It sounded incoherent. She shook her head. "Aang will stop you. He'll be on his way by now."
"Isn't that kind of cliche for the captive to say. Anyway I intend on it. He's the fish I want to catch with you." Azula chuckled.
"He's beaten you before. He can do it again."
"Four benders, sworn by blood. Together powers unimaginable told. Tales brought upon the shore," Azula recited, her voice resonating oddly. "Four benders, drawn by light. Cast beneath the ancient wrotes. Together shall the BloodQueen born." With those last words Azula's voice rose, and in it Toph heard the rage of many long-dead emperors. A shiver went down her spine.
"That's not a very good poem," Toph said mockingly. "I've done better." It certainly made no sense. Perhaps Azula hadn't grasped her sanity yet.
Azula chuckled. Toph waited for her retort, but none came. Once again she was alone in her captivity, left to stare patiently into her blind abyss.
When Aang awoke it was still dark, the predawn stillness gripping the city. Not one to lie in bed, he pushed the furs off himself, jumped into his clothes, and decided to take a short stroll. He would leave as soon as dawn rose, but he wanted to say his farewells to Katara first.
The streets were empty, silent in the crisp morning air. Small fires hung from poles, lighting up the streets enough for Aang to see by. He wandered without any real destination, letting his mind clear. The monks had always said there was nothing like an early morning walk to calm the mind.
Aang glanced up, the moon large in the sky. Stars dotted the black canvas, and Aang could spot a number of constellations. It reminded him of home, of the Air Nomads, before he had frozen himself in ice. Gyatso and he used to spend hours staring at the night sky, learning about the different star patterns. A tinge of nostalgia pressed down on his heart.
"Beautiful, isn't it?" an elderly voice said behind him. Aang turned to find Katara's grandmother standing there, watching the sky.
"Yeah..." Aang sighed.
They stood there for a few minutes, mesmerized by the twinkling sky, before Gram-Gram moved to stand beside Aang. She placed a motherly hand on his shoulder. Since the end of the war, Aang had come to know Gram-Gram, viewed her as the grandmother he'd never had. She always had a comforting smile or good advice to share.
"How is she, really?" Aang asked, shifting his gaze to the elder. The person in question was clear. Underneath the smiles, Aang had seen a weariness in Katara. So much responsibility for someone still in her mid-teens must be wearing.
Katara's grandmother frowned. "She's doing well enough," she replied. Aang could hear the worry in her voice. "She takes a lot of things on herself."
Aang nodded. A glimmer of pride leapt into the woman's eyes as she continued, "She's strong though. She always has been." Gram-Gram paused for a moment before asking, "How are you coping?"
Aang frowned at the question. He often felt his duties pressing down on him. But they had to be done - he was the Avatar, after all. After a moment's thought, he simply shrugged. "I'm coping." At that moment, he was more concerned for the others than himself.
The elderly woman nodded. Aang knew she understood his position well. "We'll keep her safe," Gram-Gram said, reading Aang's thoughts. "Her grandfather won't let anything happen to her. And I'm sure the others are safe as well." It didn't surprise Aang that Katara had confided in her grandmother about the current events. Aang was glad there were people to watch over Katara.
The horizon was beginning to glow with an faint orange light. Saying farewell to Katara's grandmother, he began to head back towards Katara's house. She would be waking soon - unlike her brother, she'd always woken at first light.
Katara was indeed awake when Aang returned. She was outside, leaning against the wall by the door. She rose a hand in greeting as Aang approached.
"Nice walk?" she asked, smiling.
"Yeah," Aang replied. "Saw your grandmother, too."
Katara chuckled. "She's always up and about this early. You'd think she never slept." Katara reached into her tunic and drew out a small, wrapped package. "Something for your trip. I wish I could go..."
Aang accepted the package gratefully. "Thanks," he said. "You have your duties here." He smiled broadly. "What would poor Katcha and Niabi do without you?"
Katara gave him a grateful smile. "Anyway," Aang continued. "I should be going, if I want to reach Kyoshi Island by tomorrow."
With a last, farewell embrace, Aang said goodbye and began to head toward the large, open-roofed stables near the city wall. Appa had been moved there the evening before, and there Aang found the Sky Bison now, munching on a pile of hay. Aang patted Appa's soft head gently. Airbending, he leapt up onto Appa's head and grabbed the reins. "Yip yip."
Hopefully the first scene isn't too over the top in it's weirdness and violence. I debated it, and decided to leave it. Hopefully it'll become apparent why later.
Anyway, obligatory R&R!