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Hoshiko took in the appearance of the bounty hunter, and looked over at Zuko, "So, you hired this girl way back when to attack Aang?"
"Yep." Zuko replied, "Back in the good old days." He walked over to her, the others following him, and she glanced up, scowling when he made an appearance.
"Oh great, it's Prince Pouty." She muttered upon seeing him, she picked up her drink, "Where's your creepy grandpa?"
"He's my uncle." Zuko corrected, "And he's not here." June looked over at Katara and smirked.
"I see you worked things out with your girlfriend." She said.
The response from the two was immediate, both Zuko and Katara speaking at once.
"She's not my girlfriend!"
"I'm not his girlfriend!"
"Okay, okay." June relented, "Sheesh. I was only teasing. So what do you want?"
"I need your help finding the avatar." Zuko said. June paused, pretending to think for a moment.
"No thanks. Doesn't sound too fun." She replied, taking a sip of her drink. Zuko scowled angrily at her.
"Does the end of the world sound like more fun?!" He snapped. June stopped, looking over at Zuko, raising one eyebrow at him.
"It's very important that we find the avatar as soon as possible." Kotaro said, getting her attention, "The world really is at stake here."
"Alright." June said, getting up from her seat, "My shirshu's outside, come on." She walked out the door and the others followed her. When they exited, they saw Appa and the shirshu growling at each other, looking ready to attack. It stopped once Appa licked the huge beast, and it fell to the ground, seeming to be quite comfortable. It turned its head towards them as June approached, holding out a piece of meat, calling out to it sweetly, "Nyla~." She tossed the food to the creature, who easily caught it and chowed down as June approached, petting the head of the eyeless creature, "Who's my little snuffly wuffly? Whoa!" Nyla shot out her tongue and June narrowly avoided it before clamping the creature's mouth shut. "Careful!" She turned to the group, "Okay, so who's got something with the avatar's scent on it?"
Katara, who had already climbed up to Appa's saddle, held out Aang's glider, "I have Aang's staff." June took it and presented it to her shirshu, who sniffed it for a minute. Then, it lifted up its head, sniffing around in the air. It moved its head left and right, walking around them in a circle, before lying down and covering its nose with a whimper.
"Well, what does that mean?" Zuko asked, not very pleased with the reaction.
"It means your friend's gone." June replied, coming over and petting the head of her pet comfortingly.
"We know he's gone, that's why we're trying to find him." Toph said.
"No, I mean he's gone gone." June said, standing up, "He doesn't exist."
Everyone exchanged uneasy glances with each other.
"What do you mean Aang doesn't exist?!" Sokka asked, "Do you mean he's… y'know, dead?"
"Nope. We could find him if he were dead." June said. "It's a real head-scratcher. See ya." She started to head back into the tavern to finish her drink.
"Helpful. Real helpful." Toph sighed, crossing her arms.
"Wait!" Zuko called, stopping her. He turned to the others, "I have another idea. There's only one other person in this world who can help us face the Fire Lord." He turned back to June, "I'll be right back with a smell sample." He headed up to the saddle and went through his bag, pulling something out. Once it was free, Kotaro grimaced, putting his hand to his nose once he caught a whiff of the scent, groaning.
"What is that?" He asked as Zuko came down, holding a sandal in his hands. Everyone else, not wanting to smell the item in question, covered their noses as well, except for Toph and Hoshiko, who found that the sandal's scent wasn't very strong and they couldn't really smell it.
"It's my uncle's sandal." Zuko said.
"You saved your uncle's sweaty sandal?!" Sokka asked, before letting out a groan of disgust.
"I think it's kinda sweet of him." Hoshiko said.
June mounted her shirshu and brought it over to the sandal. She sniffed it, getting whatever scent was on it, which was probably a lot. She let out a few snorts once she was done.
"Let's do this." June said, yanking on Nyla's reigns, and they went bounding off, following the scent.
"Hey! Wait up!" Zuko cried, everyone quickly climbing onto Appa and following them. They flew up into the air, carefully keeping up with the surprisingly fast shirshu as it moved across the terrain. Zuko sat at Appa's head, keeping a good hold on his reigns.
Kotaro moved over to the front of saddle, looking down at Zuko, "You really think your uncle can help us defeat the Fire Lord?"
"He taught me everything I know." Zuko said, "He's the best fire bender I know of, and on top of that, he was a general in the Fire Nation army. He has experience in battle, and he knows how the Fire Nation strategies work. I can't think of anyone better to help us bring Ozai down."
Kotaro nodded, taking Zuko's word for it and turning back into the saddle. Hoshiko came by his side and he smiled, putting his arm around her shoulders. She rested her head on his shoulder.
"Do you guys have to be mushy in front of us?" Sokka complained. Hoshiko stuck out her tongue at him immaturely, and he made an equally immature face back at her.
"We never complain when you get mushy with Suki." Kotaro said.
"Yeah, but we're not obnoxious about it." Sokka said.
"Uh, yes you are." Katara said.
"Yeah, you're just as bad as them." Toph agreed.
"We are not!" Sokka cried indignantly.
"Then explain why you and Suki are in the same position we are." Hoshiko said, seeing that his arm was around Suki's shoulders and she was resting her head on his shoulder. Sokka compared his position to theirs and sighed, relenting.
"Fine." He muttered, his shoulders slumping. Hoshiko laughed when she saw him pouting.
Hoshiko's eyes slowly opened and she found she was still lying on Kotaro's shoulder. She looked up to see the sun had risen high in the sky. She had gotten so tired on their little venture in following June, she must have fallen asleep. She looked out over the side of the saddle and saw that the shirshu was still running along the terrain as they went further into the Earth Kingdom.
"We're still going?" She asked.
"Iroh's probably a lot farther away than we originally anticipated." Kotaro said, he moved his arm from her, rotating his shoulder, "You were on me so long my arm fell asleep."
"Sorry." She said, Kotaro smiled at her.
"It's fine. I'm not upset or anything." He said, "I just need a second for blood to flow back into my arm."
"Want some breakfast?" Katara offered her, and Hoshiko nodded, taking the small piece of bread from her, "It's a little stale, sorry."
"Hey, it's better than nothing." Hoshiko said, biting into the bread. "What time is it?"
"About noon." Toph said, "You slept in." Hoshiko huffed out a breath, looking at the piece of bread. Kotaro sensed something was wrong and he looked at her.
"What is it?" He asked, she shook her head.
"It's just… Sozin's Comet comes tomorrow." She said, she reached up and rubbed the back of her neck, "I don't know it just… it seems so strange to think that the world could end tomorrow."
"It won't end." Katara said firmly.
"But it could." Hoshiko said, just as firm.
"That's only if Aang doesn't show up." Toph said.
"Or we can't find Uncle." Zuko said. Hoshiko noticed for the first time that he was up in the saddle with them. She turned to see Sokka was the one flying Appa before turning back to the others.
"Either way, it just seems like it's too soon." She said.
"Well, it's happening, no matter how much we don't want it to." Zuko said, "The best thing we can do now is be prepared." Hoshiko nodded in agreement, taking another bite out of the bread. While she did agree with him, she still couldn't help the weight on her shoulders. She felt as if she were Atlas, and she carried the entire world on her shoulders. She knew that kind of responsibility wasn't supposed to be there, but it felt like it was. If Aang didn't come, then they would need to rely on Iroh to help them. Even then, there was still this part of her that was afraid and unsure of what was to come, and she didn't know what they would do if Aang couldn't find them.
They traveled on into the night, heading straight for what was once the impenetrable wall of Ba-Sing-Se, only now there was a huge hole in it from where the Fire Nation army had invaded.
"We're going to Ba-Sing-Se?" Zuko asked upon seeing the wall. June stopped her shirshu at the wall's boundary.
"Your uncle's somewhere beyond the wall." June said, turning her shirshu around, "Nyla's getting twitchy, so he can't be too far." She gave them a small salute, "Good luck." She whipped Nyla's reigns and she sped off, presumably going back to the tavern where June resided.
Zuko sighed, looking up at the wall. "It's been a long day. Let's camp and start our search again at dawn." Everyone agreed to this and came down from Appa's saddle, stretching their legs as they got their camping equipment. They didn't bother to start a fire for two reasons: one, it was summer and it was plenty warm so they didn't need it, and two, they didn't want any on-patrol Fire Nation soldiers to see them. They probably wouldn't be on patrol on the outer wall, but they probably had lookouts somewhere in the inner rings. In the night, they had a better chance of not being spotted or bothered by them.
As Kotaro went about getting his and Hoshiko's sleeping bags, he saw her looking out towards the northern side of the wall. He tucked both sleeping bags under his arms before going over to her.
"Something wrong?" He asked.
"I'm just worried about my mother." Hoshiko said, she turned to him, "She was probably still in the encampment when the Fire Nation took over Ba-Sing-Se. What do you think they did with it?" Kotaro looked out at the wall, and shook his head.
"I don't know." He replied honestly, "When Xana came with us on the invasion, I didn't think to ask her how things were back at the encampment." He looked over at Hoshiko and saw how concerned she looked, "I'm sure they're fine. We can think about this later. Come on, let's just get ready to sleep." Hoshiko nodded, although she still looked worried.
Sleep was going peacefully for everyone, until Toph sensed movement on the ground, and she jumped up just as flames encircled the small camp they had made. Everyone was instantly awake and jumped up, ready to fight some fire benders, but found that fire benders weren't the ones that had made the flames. They looked up towards the wall and saw four elderly men dressed in blue and white robes, all of them faces that were recognized by the people in the group.
"Well, look who's here!" An old man with a hunched back and a crazy look in his eyes said with a snorting laugh. Katara and Sokka relaxed when they saw it was Bumi. Hoshiko relaxed when she recognized the face of Pakku among the men, and Kotaro did the same at the sight of Pian-Dao.
A white-haired man with a scar over his eye lowered the flames around the camp as they all came down from the wall to greet them.
"What's going on?" Toph asked, "We're surrounded by old people!"
"Not just any old people," Katara said, "These are great masters and friends of ours." She went up to Pakku and bowed in greeting, "Pakku." He returned the greeting.
"It is respectful to bow to an old master," He began, "But how about a hug for your new grandfather?"
Sokka's jaw dropped and he let out an effeminate noise of shock while Katara grinned widely.
"That's so exciting!" Katara exclaimed, she ran up and embraced the man, "You and Gran Gran must be so happy to have found each other again!"
"I made her a new betrothal necklace and everything." Pakku said. Sokka ran up to the water bending master and embraced him as well.
"Welcome to the family, Gramp Gramp!" He said.
"You can still just call me Pakku." He said, pushing him away with a frown.
"How about… Gramppakku?" Sokka suggested.
"No." He said firmly.
Hoshiko smiled, "I see you're still the same old man I saw last." He smiled at the sight of her and they both bowed to one another in greeting. "You haven't changed a bit."
"And I see that you have found what you were searching for." Pakku commented, looking at Kotaro. Hoshiko smiled at the mention of him. "I can see you've changed since we last met."
"In more ways than you can know." Hoshiko said, her mind reeling at all the experiences she had gone through since she last saw him. She smirked and put her hands on her hips, "Although, I think it's safe to say that Katara and Sokka won't be expecting any new aunts or uncles anytime soon." Pakku frowned at her words.
"I see you still retained your sense of humor." He said dryly.
"Yeah, can't seem to get rid of it." Hoshiko said with a shrug.
Katara pulled Zuko over to the man with the scar over his eye, "And this was Aang's first fire bending teacher." They exchanged bows in greeting.
"Jeong Jeong." He said, introducing himself.
"Master Pian-Dao." Sokka said, bowing to his sword master, who did the same.
"Hello, Sokka." He greeted. He looked up when Kotaro approached him, and they exchanged another bow. "It's good to see you, Kotaro."
"The same for you, sir." He said.
"So, wait," Suki began, "How do you all know each other?"
"All old people know each other," Bumi said, "Don't you know that?" He let out a snorting laugh again.
"We're all part of the same ancient secret society." Pian-Dao said, "A group that transcends the divisions of the four nations."
"The Order of the White Lotus." Zuko said.
"That's the one!" Bumi said.
"The White Lotus has always been about philosophy, and beauty, and truth," Jeong Jeong began, "But about a month ago, a call went out that we were needed for something important."
"It came from a Grand Lotus." Pakku said, he looked to Zuko, "Your uncle, Iroh of the Fire Nation." Zuko smiled.
"Well that's who we're looking for!" Toph said.
"Then we'll take you to him." Pian-Dao said. Bumi pushed between him and Jeong Jeong, his wide green eyes looking around.
"Wait! Someone's missing from your group." He said, "Someone very important." He walked right up to Sokka, getting in his face, "Where's Momo?" Sokka stared at the old man, unnerved by the intensity of his stare.
"He's gone…" He told him, "And so is Aang."
"Oh well," Bumi stepped back with a pleased smile, "As long as they have each other, I'm sure we have nothing to worry about. Let's go!" He slammed his foot down into the earth and shot himself up into the air with a cackle.
"And to think he was Aang's first choice for an earth bending teacher." Hoshiko said, shaking her head at the sight of the old man as he walked past the wall.
"That old looney guy was going to take my job?" Toph asked incredulously.
"From what I understand, he was a friend of Aang's from a hundred years ago." She said with a shrug. They all followed the old masters past the wall and went with them to wherever they were camped.
"So, Bumi," Sokka began, walking behind the old man, "How did you escape your imprisonment in Omashu?"
"Escape?" Bumi asked, bending back a little to look at Sokka upside down, "I didn't escape. Everybody else escaped! There I was back in Omashu, waiting for just the right moment. I didn't know what or when, but I knew I'd know it when I knew it! When I saw the eclipse, I thought, 'An eclipse! That'll do it!' So I busted out of the metal coffin. With no fire power, there was nothing they could do to stop me from taking back my city and enjoying a little payback time!" He cackled at the memory of it.
"Wow, you took back your whole city all by yourself!" Suki exclaimed in awe. Bumi nodded.
"So what about you guys?" Bumi asked, "Did you do anything interesting on the day of the eclipse?" Kotaro and Sokka glanced at each other at the mention, and then shrugged their shoulders.
"Nope." Kotaro said.
"No, not really." Sokka said.
Hoshiko quickly walked up to be in-pace with Pakku, "The day that Ba-Sing-Se was taken… there was a Shinjun encampment on the outskirts of the city. Do you know what happened to it?"
He shook his head, "I'm afraid it was destroyed upon their arrival. All of the tents and homes have been turned to ashes." Hoshiko's expression dropped greatly and she looked down at the ground, "But the Shinjuns themselves seemed to survive." She perked up.
"You mean they're okay?" She asked eagerly, "Everyone survived?"
Again, Pakku shook his head, "Some were captured by the Fire Nation and made into slaves, and there were some casualties, but on the whole, they did survive, and they were the ones who offered us shelter here along the outer wall."
Hoshiko sighed in relief at hearing that most of those who were in the encampment had made it out alright. Although, the idea of casualties didn't make her feel much better than she did before.
The group came up to an earth wall, and Bumi bended it away to reveal a gathering of tents where elderly human men were mixing and mingling with the few Shinjuns who were awake this early in the morning.
"Well, here we are." Bumi said, "Welcome to Old People Camp." The area was densely packed with tents, but there seemed to be enough room for everyone.
"Where… Where is he?" Zuko asked quietly.
"Your uncle's in there, Prince Zuko." Pian-Dao said, pointing to a tent that had been erected in the center of the camp. Zuko walked towards it, then stopped, and sat down a few yards away from the entrance. Hoshiko saw this and went over to him.
"Zuko? Is something wrong?" She asked him.
"My uncle hates me, I know it." Zuko said, looking at the entrance, "He loved me and supported me in every way he could, and I still turned against him. How can I even face him?" Hoshiko sat down beside the fire bender.
"You're sorry for what you did, aren't you?" She asked
"More sorry than I've ever been about anything in my entire life." Zuko said.
"Then he'll forgive you." Hoshiko said, "From what I've seen about your uncle, he's a good man. He's not your father. He won't scar you for life for talking out of turn." Zuko's hand went up to his scar at the mention of it, "He loves you. A lot. If you're as sorry as you say, I know he'll forgive you." Zuko stood back up and went to the entrance, taking a deep breath before going inside. Hoshiko stood back up and looked back at the others, who were being directed towards extra tents for them to sleep in for the rest of the night. She recognized one of the avian Shinjuns directing them.
"Chief Iguru!" She said upon seeing him. She went up to greet him, and Kotaro came up beside her. "I'm glad to see you're okay."
"As I am to see you." He said, "How have you fared since we last met?"
"Well enough." Hoshiko said with a shrug. "I was wondering… you were in the encampment the day it was destroyed, right?" He nodded solemnly, "Could you tell me what happened to my mother?" Iguru's eyes widened at the question, "She was one of the victims in your infirmary. She had bad burns over most of her body."
"Ah… yes, Hikari…" He murmured, he shook his head, "I'm afraid your mother is no longer with us." Hoshiko's eyes widened, "Her life was lost as we attempted to escape. I'm very sorry." Hoshiko's shoulders slumped and her ears dropped. Kotaro came by her side, putting his arm around her shoulders.
"Thank you for telling us, Iguru." He said, "How many died?"
"I'm afraid it was mostly invalids who lost their lives." Iguru said, "About twelve or thirteen."
"Any children?" Kotaro asked.
"By Shinjuko's will, they all survived." Iguru said, "I'm sorry about your loss, Hoshiko."
She only nodded in response.
Kotaro bid the chief goodbye and walked by Hoshiko's side to the tent they had been given. She was silent the entire time, and when they arrived, she just put out her sleeping bag and lay down. Kotaro lay down next to her, putting his arm around her waist and kissing the back of her shoulder. When he saw her shoulders shaking, he turned her towards her toward him and let her cry in his arms, keeping her close. He didn't offer her any words of comfort, because he knew they would just be empty words to her. All he did was be silent as she cried, staying up as long as she was awake until she tired herself out and fell asleep. Kotaro wiped away some lingering tears from her cheek before he pressed a soft kiss to it, falling asleep with her in his arms.
The next morning, the couple was awoken by the sound of a horn, signaling that now was the time to get up. Kotaro looked worriedly at Hoshiko, who rubbed her eyes tiredly as she sat up.
"Are you going to be okay?" Kotaro asked her.
She nodded, "I've… dealt with the idea of losing my mother before. I'll be okay." She turned to him, "Besides, today isn't exactly the best day to mourn my mother."
Kotaro's mouth set into a grim line at the idea. Sozin's Comet was today. This was the day they were going to go to war. He took her hand in his.
"No matter what happens today," He began, "I won't leave your side." She smiled and linked her fingers through his.
"I won't leave yours either." She promised, "Our souls are entwined, remember? As long as we both live, we'll always be together." Kotaro smiled and kissed her cheek.
"When this has passed, we'll hold a proper ceremony for your mother." Kotaro said, Hoshiko smiled gently and nodded, kissing him.
They walked out of the tent to join the others for breakfast. Now that the camp was awake, they could see a great mix of men from the Order of the White Lotus and the Shinjuns going about their days. Kids were running around, playing happily, and families were enjoying each other's company. Some of them were talking casually with the humans, and Hoshiko couldn't help but notice how well Jeong Jeong, the fire bender, got along with them so well. It made her happy to know that the people of the Order were willing to look past differences to be with those they care about. When they came to Sokka, Suki, Katara, and Toph, they noticed that Sokka had changed into a suit of Water Tribe armor in preparation of the comet.
They were soon joined by Zuko and Iroh, both of them looking content. Hoshiko smiled when she saw that they had reconciled and everyone went to greet the man.
"It's good to see you again, Iroh." Hoshiko said, coming over to him. "You look great."
"I've worked off a little weight." He chuckled, patting his stomach, "But I intend to put it back on once this is over." Hoshiko laughed a little, "And I see that you have regained control." She nodded.
"Yes, as well as attained the power she had." She said. She held up a small ball of shadow to demonstrate, "It wasn't easy, but I got the hang of it after a while." She got rid of it as Iroh nodded knowingly.
"There is much to be done today, and we will need all of our strength." He said.
Hoshiko grimaced, "Yes… today…"
"Don't worry about it." Sokka said, putting his hand on her shoulder, raising his fist with a grin, "We kick ass!"
An old man shuffling by them "ahem"ed at him.
"Oh, sorry. We kick butt!" Sokka said. He smelled food and grinned widely, "Ooh, breakfast!" He dashed over to where the food, which was just porridge, was being served to everyone. They all got their share and sat in a circle on the grass.
"Uncle, you're the only person other than the avatar who could possibly defeat the Father Lord." Zuko said as they ate.
Everyone looked at him oddly when they heard him speak.
"You mean the Fire Lord." Toph corrected.
"That's what I just said!" Zuko snapped.
Iroh let out a thoughtful hum.
"We need you to come with us!" Zuko insisted.
"No, Zuko." Iroh said, "It won't turn out well."
"You can beat him." Zuko said, "And we'll be there to help."
"Even if I did defeat Ozai," Iroh began gently, "And I don't know if I could, it would be the wrong way to end the war. History would just see it as more senseless violence. A brother killing a brother to grab power. The only way for this war to end peacefully is for the avatar to defeat the Fire Lord."
"And then… Then would you come and take your rightful place on the throne?" Zuko asked.
"No. Someone new must take the throne." Iroh said, "An idealist with a pure heart and unquestionable honor. It has to be you, Prince Zuko." Zuko's eyes widened.
"Unquestionable honor?" He repeated, "But I've made so many mistakes."
"Yes, you have." Iroh agreed, "You struggled, you suffered, but you have always followed your own path. You restored your own honor, and only you can restore the honor of the Fire Nation."
"…I'll try, Uncle." Zuko murmured.
"But what if Aang doesn't return?" Kotaro asked.
"Sozin's Comet is arriving, and our destinies are upon us." Iroh said, "Aang will face the Fire Lord. When I was a boy, I had a vision that I would one day take Ba-Sing-Se. Only now do I see that my destiny is to take it back from the Fire Nation so the Earth Kingdom can be free again."
"That's why you gathered the members of the White Lotus." Suki said.
"Yes." Iroh nodded, "I could not face them alone, so I called for friends."
"Who's 'them'?" Katara asked.
"Colonel Mongke and the Rough Rhino brigade." Iroh said. Hoshiko instantly put all of her attention on the man, "They were sent to the Earth Kingdom to watch over the conquered land. We will fight against them, and the army that they have gathered."
"And I'll go, too." Hoshiko said, making everyone turn to her with wide eyes. "I'm going with you to Ba-Sing-Se."
"It's not safe." Iroh said.
"The colonel and I have a score to settle." Hoshiko growled, her eyes darkening at the memory of him, "At the very least I can take part in putting his army down." Iroh stared at her for a moment, seeing the determination in her eyes, and nodded once, giving consent for her to join them.
"If she goes, I go." Kotaro said, "I made the mistake of leaving her to fight on her own in Ba-Sing-Se. I won't make that mistake again." Again Iroh nodded his consent.
He turned to his nephew, "Zuko, you must return to the Fire Nation so that when the Fire Lord falls, you can assume the throne and restore peace and order. But Azula will be there, waiting for you."
Zuko scowled at the mention of his sister, "I can handle Azula."
"Not alone." Iroh said firmly, "You'll need help."
"You're right." Zuko turned to look at his water bending friend, "Katara, how would you like to help me put Azula in her place?"
"It would be my pleasure." She replied.
"What about us?" Sokka asked, "What's our destiny today?"
"What do you think it is?" Iroh asked him, a wise smile on his face.
Sokka thought for a moment, "I think that… Even though we don't know where Aang is, we need to do everything we can to stop the airship fleet."
"And that means when Aang does face the Fire Lord, we'll be right there if he needs us." Toph said, smacking her fist in her hand. Iroh smiled at her answer.
Immediately, everyone started making plans to leave. Kotaro changed into his dark armor that he had worn the day of the eclipse. Hoshiko was provided leather armor from Chief Iguru to wear when she went to war. It reminded her a little of the armor that Suki had worn when she was in her Kyoshi warrior uniform, only she wasn't wearing a skirt, and it was worn over her normal clothing. They joined the group of White Lotus members, as well as some adult Shinjun warriors, who were going to fight for Ba-Sing-Se.
As Pian-Dao was getting their mode of transportation Hoshiko went over to Sokka, tapping his shoulder to get his attention. When he turned around, she gave him a hug. He was surprised by the sudden gesture, but he returned it nonetheless.
"Good luck." Hoshiko bid.
"You too." Sokka said, they pulled apart, "Come back as you this time, okay?" Hoshiko grinned at him.
"And you come back in one piece." She said. He grinned back at her. Hoshiko gave Suki a similar embrace, wishing her luck as well. For Toph, she simply gave a playful punch to the shoulder.
"Take care of the little warrior for us?" She asked, Toph grinned.
"If you take care of Wolfy." She said. Hoshiko grinned as well.
Pian-Dao returned with a giant eel hound, which kneeled and let Suki and Toph mount it.
"Nothing runs faster over land, or swims quicker than a giant eel hound." Pian-Dao said, he handed Sokka a map, "The airship base is on a small island just off the Earth Kingdom shore. You should be able to intercept the fleet within a day's journey." Sokka put away the map and smiled at his master.
"Thank you Master." He said, they bowed to each other, before Sokka went to hug him. Pian-Dao returned the gesture and Sokka mounted the eel hound as Hoshiko and Kotaro went over to join the group bidding goodbye to Zuko and Katara as they sat on Appa.
Zuko turned to his uncle from where he sat at Appa's head, "So if I'm going to be Fire Lord after the war is over, what are you going to do?"
"After I reconquer Ba-Sing-Se, I'm going to reconquer my tea shop." Iroh said, flipping a lotus tile in his fingers, "And I'm going to play pai-sho every day!" Zuko smiled at him and shook his head, as if he should have known better. He and Katara looked over at the others, and they all bid each other good luck.
"Goodbye General Iroh." Katara said.
"Goodbye everyone." Iroh said, "Today, destiny is our friend. I know it."
And with that, they took off, going to where they believed their destiny was going to be, Kotaro and Hoshiko remaining with the members of the White Lotus. Hoshiko looked out at the horizon, gazing at the blue sky. Destiny, the word echoed in her mind. This was the day they had been waiting for. This was the day everything would come together and the fate of the world would be decided.
Ta-da! The next chapter!
Seriously. I don't really want this to end after the series' episodes end. I want to put in that comic, but that all depends if you guys want it or not. Let me know in a review, please?