"Wake up" a voice called to me. "Wake up, my little Firebender".
I slowly opened my eyes, covering them with a hand as they were flooded with light. Once they became adjusted, I re-opened them and appraised my surroundings.
The room felt strangely familiar, with its crimson and yellow colouring and Fire Nation and Dragon motifs. I sat up, taking a moment to feel the familiar fabric of my covers. I then looked to my right, and saw the writing desk beside my bed. Suddenly, as if struck by a wave of realization, I knew where I was.
"That's right" the voice said. "This was your room back in our home in the Fire Nation".
That voice… it couldn't be her, could it? Looking around my room, I saw no one as I pulled the covers off of me and stood up.
"Where are you?" I asked, walking to the centre of the room.
"I'm right here" the voice replied, and I turned to see the last person I ever expected to see. She was fairly short, looking to be about a head shorter than me, with lustrous black hair that ran down to the small of her back. She was dressed in fairly rich crimson robes, and she wore ivory rings around her fingers.
"Mother?" I asked, feeling the breath getting sucked out of my lungs.
She smiled at me with that warm, comforting smile that I remembered from my childhood. "It's good to see you again, Shan We".
I ran up to her, enveloping her in my arms. "I've missed you so much" I said, feeling tears run down my face.
"Shh, it's alright" she soothed, placing a hand on the back of my head. "I'm here now".
Everything then came back to me: the Siege, the Oasis, the Moon spirit, the ferocious duel with my father and Prince Zuko. "Wait" I said, looking around the room once more. "I remember the battle, the Moon, the wave!" I then turned to look at my mother; she was exactly as I remembered her, voice and all. "Am I dead?"
She gave me another comforting smile, placing a hand on my cheek. "No, my love" she replied. "You are still living. I'm here to comfort you; you've been through so much".
Whether I was merely hallucinating or dead, I didn't care. I placed a hand on top of hers, feeling the warmth of it on my skin. The tears started flowing as everything came back to me. "I tried, mother" I croaked. "I tried, but father, he…"
"Your father chose his own path" she said, looking at me with her rich amber eyes. "You did nothing wrong".
"I still could've done something!" I protested. "I could've saved him, I could've stopped him from killing the Moon spirit. Maybe then, he wouldn't have…" I then allowed myself to break down, falling onto my knees and sobbing.
I felt my mother's hands on my back as she crouched down beside me. "You did everything you could, my love. You have never given up on family; even when your father turned his back on you, you never gave up on him". She then gently turned my face so that I was looking at her. "Your story is not yet over, my love. Your destiny is to go on and help end this war".
I looked down at the floor bitterly, clenching my teeth. "I already tried that" I said. "I tried to help father end the war by conquering those who still opposed the Fire Nation, and what did that bring? Nothing but death and suffering, and the war is no closer to ending!"
"Hope comes from places least expected" my mother told me. After a moment, she said "It's time for me to go now".
I frantically turned to look at her. "No!" I cried, getting back on my feet. "You can't leave!"
"I love you" she told me, smiling. "And I'll always be with you, my little Firebender. You just have to look in here". She then pointed to my heart, and as I reached out to touch her cheek, she disappeared, and my hand passed through air.
I then fell to my knees before lifting my head high and shouting in despair.
My eyes bolted open as I felt myself lurching. I turned to my side and proceeded to cough up water, clearing my lungs. I then rolled onto my back, gasping as I felt fresh air filling my lungs once more.
"It's good to see that you're still with us" a familiar voice said. I craned my neck and saw General Iroh sitting on the other side of what we were floating on, presumably a raft of some kind.
"General Iroh" I croaked, pausing to clear my throat. "How did I get here?"
"We found you drifting on the water" the older man explained. "Your companion here helped carry you onto this raft".
I turned to where he gestured, and saw Takara sitting beside me. "You're alive?" I asked, propping myself up on my elbows.
The Kyoshi Warrior nodded. "When you chased after your father, I followed you. I saw you fighting him, and I was about to come to your aid when this great wave swept me away. The next thing I knew, I was floating on the water, and you were unconscious beside me. I helped carry you onto this raft and helped to revive you".
"She breathed air into your lungs" General Iroh added with a smile, causing Takara to blush furiously as she looked away from me.
"Thank you" I told her. Just then, I remembered General Iroh saying that he hadn't been alone when he'd found us. I looked to my left, and my eyes widened upon seeing a very familiar scarred face. "You!" I shouted as I lunged at the teenager. I suddenly felt a strong pair of arms holding me back, and belatedly realized that they belonged to General Iroh.
Apparently, he was stronger than he looked.
"That is enough!" he said as I finally gave up. "We're all stuck with each other, so we might as well learn to get along".
I crossed my legs, gazing out at the endless ocean that lay before us.
After a moment, the older man said "I'm sorry about your father".
Prince Zuko snorted, crossing his arms as he said "I'm not".
"Prince Zuko…" General Iroh started to say.
"No, it's alright" I said, cutting him off. I looked down somberly at the planks of the raft as the events of the North Pole replayed in my mind. "My father was a selfish narcissist, who loved his own legend more than he ever loved me". Everyone was silent, and I continued. "I tried. Spirits know I tried. I tried to curb his anger and aggression, to have him abandon his pursuit of power and glory, but he wasn't capable of change. I always thought that he was better, once. I didn't see it for a long time; maybe I knew all along, but simply refused to acknowledge it".
"What happened wasn't your fault" Takara said, placing a hand on my knee.
"He called me a traitor" I said quietly, gazing down at the wooden planks.
"Look at me" General Iroh said firmly. I looked up at his wizened face, and he said "Zhao was the traitor. He sealed his own fate when he slew the Moon spirit".
Suddenly, a flash of realization struck me. "Where are Jin and Li?" I asked, frantically looking around for them. They were nowhere to be seen.
"The Earthbending twins?" General Iroh asked.
I hastily stood up, slightly rocking the raft. "Jin! Li!" I shouted, gazing out at the endless water. I looked down at Takara. "Where are they?"
"I don't know" she replied. "We got separated when the wave struck".
I then turned back to the ocean, cupping my hands around my mouth. "Jin! Li!" I shouted once more. "Jin! Li!"
Where could they be?
Jin slowly opened his eyes, feeling quite shaken. He was relieved to see his brother beside him, and proceeded to lift his head.
They were lying on a piece of metal left over from one of the ships in the invasion fleet. Back at the North Pole, they had seen everything: the Avatar inside the giant, glowing Koi fish-like water creature as it wiped out the Fire Nation army and armada as easily as one might swat gnats. After that, they had both been struck by a glowing wave, and now they were here.
Jin placed a hand on his brother's shoulder and shook him, hoping desperately that he was still alive. Thankfully, Li's eyes shot open a moment later, and the two brothers nodded at one another as they held hands.
The sun was shining down on them, meaning that at least some time had passed since the battle. Jin rolled onto his back, gazing up at the clear sky.
Suddenly, a large wave rushed towards them, and the two brothers tensed in fear, thinking that whatever had wiped out the fleet was now back to finish them off. The wave reached them, but instead of drowning them, it carried them off of the piece of wreckage and high into the air. They then came crashing down, and as the wave dissipated, they found themselves on the deck of a ship.
Not a moment later, they found themselves surrounded by Waterbenders and Water Tribe warriors. The twins backed up against the side of the ship, their bodies tense.
"I recognize those two!" a voice said. "They were at the Oasis. They're Fire Nation!" The twins looked to see a younger Water Tribe boy, probably only a few years older than they were. Beside him were a girl who bore a certain resemblance to him and a young bald boy with blue arrow tattoos.
The Avatar.
"What are your names?" an old man asked them.
Jin and Li glanced nervously at the spears leveled at them, and with good reason; with no earth to Bend, they were completely helpless.
"Well?" the Water Tribe boy demanded. "Can't you talk?"
Li shook his head, and the Water Tribe girl said "I don't think they can, Sokka". Jin made writing motions on his palm, and she said "I think they want something to write with".
As she started walking away, the boy said "You can't give them something to write! What if they try to send a message to the Fire Nation?!"
"Sokka, how are they going to send a message? We're in the middle of the ocean, and they have no way to send it anywhere" the girl countered before going below deck. She returned a moment later with a piece of parchment, a brush, and an inkwell.
Jin graciously took the brush, and after dipping it in some ink, began writing on the parchment. After a moment, he handed it to the Water Tribe girl.
"He says that his name's Jin, and his brother's name is Li". The twins both bowed their heads.
"Wait, which one's Jin?" the Water Tribe boy asked.
"I think that one's Jin" the Avatar said, pointing to Li.
"I think that he's Li" the Water Tribe boy said, pointing to Jin.
"ANYWAY", the Water Tribe girl said, continuing to read from the parchment. "He says that they're not Firebenders; they're Earthbenders".
"Hah! Right!" the boy, Sokka, said, laughing sarcastically. "And I'm the Master of All Bending".
"Why don't we give them a chance to prove it?" The Avatar asked. He then took off one of his shoes and shook it over his other hand. A few tiny rocks fell onto his palm, and he held his hand out to the twins.
The pebbles suddenly floated from the Avatar's hand and over to Jin's. He used his Bending to make the pebbles move in specific patterns before they floated over to Li, who clenched his hand into a fist. As he did so, the pebbles all grouped together and formed a small rock that promptly fell into his palm.
"Well, I'm convinced" the Avatar said.
"Yeah, but they're still with the Fire Nation!" Sokka said. "They were there during the siege!"
Jin gestured to the parchment, and the Water Tribe girl handed it over to him. The Earthbender wrote a few more lines on the parchment before handing it back. Her expression became sullen as she read "He says that they were taken from their homes when they were little. They were stolen by a Firebender named Shan We and forced to serve him".
"Hey, I know that guy!" The Avatar spoke up. "He's the one who captured me when you guys were sick, and he was there at the Spirit Oasis; he was Zhao's son".
The twins looked down at the planks despondently as the Water Tribe girl kept reading. "They've been his prisoners for five years now, and they haven't seen their families in all that time".
After a moment, the Avatar said to the Water Tribe warriors and Waterbenders "It's alright; they're just victims like the rest of us".
The warriors raised their spears, and the Waterbenders eased their stances. "What should we do with them?" the old man asked.
The Avatar glanced at his companions before looking back at Jin and Li. "Do you know where your family is? Maybe we can take you to them".
Jin shared a neutral glance with Li before gesturing to the parchment. He wrote a few more lines before handing it to the Water Tribe girl. "He says that their village is probably abandoned by now, but they have relatives in Omashu".
"Hey, that's where we're going!" the Avatar said, looking as if he were seized by inspiration. "Why don't you come with us?"
"Wait! Hold on!" Sokka protested. "These guys worked for the Fire Nation for the last five years. How do we know that we can trust them?"
The Water Tribe girl put her hands on her hips, looking at him indignantly. "Sokka, these boys have been prisoners for five years! They were taken from their homes and family! We have to help them". She then crouched down so that she was eye-level with the twins. "My name's Katara" she introduced herself. "The loud-mouthed one is my brother, Sokka".
"And I'm Aang!" the Avatar introduced himself.
Jin and Li bowed their heads and proceeded to stand up. "We should get you some new clothes" Katara said. "You won't get a warm reception with those Fire Nation uniforms".
She then led the twins below deck, and they exchanged a glance; for now, their little fiction had fooled the Avatar and his companions, and they could only hope that it would last long enough for them to find their father.
A few days later, Jin and Li were ready to leave along with Aang, Katara, and Sokka. They all gathered on the ship's deck as the sun shone down. Jin ran a hand through his head of scruffy black hair; he'd gotten used to having it tied into a ponytail for over five years now, and letting it just be… loose was very strange. Based on the look he got from his brother, Li was feeling the same.
The old Waterbending Master, whom the others referred to as 'Master Pakku', stood before them. "Katara, I want you to have this" he said, pulling out a small vial on the end of a necklace. "This amulet contains water from the Spirit Oasis. The water has unique properties. Don't lose it".
Katara took the vial humbly before hugging the old man. "Thank you, Master Pakku".
"Aang" he said, turning to the Avatar and handing him a wooden box, "these scrolls will help you master Waterbending. But remember, they're no substitute for a real Master".
Aang glanced at Katara, who was packing the supplies on the saddle of Appa, Aang's giant flying Bison, before bowing to the old Master.
As he climbed onto the Bison's saddle, the massive creature lowered its nose to the twins, sniffing them. Jin flinched, turning to look at the white-furred animal's large, imposing face. Glancing at his brother, he had to admit: the Avatar certainly knew how to travel. Small wonder how he had been able to evade them and their father for so long.
Master Pakku then said "Sokka…", prompting the aspiring warrior to step closer to him, "take care, son".
Sokka hung his head low, and the twins smirked at each other as they joined him and the others on the saddle.
Once they were settled, Master Pakku said "Fly straight to the Earth Kingdom base to the ease of here. General Fong will provide you with an escort to Omashu. There you'll be safe to begin your Earthbending training with King Bumi".
Aang then took the Bison's reins before saying "Appa, yip yip!"
"Say hi to Gran Gran for me!" Katara called as the giant white creature flew off of the ship and into the air.
Jin and Li held onto the edges of the saddle for dear life, feeling every muscle in their body tensing as they soared over the ocean waters. They exchanged similarly frightened glances and proceeded to hold hands, gripping them tightly.
"First time flying, huh?" Sokka asked, a smug grin on his face. He then sat back and brought his hands to the back of his head. "I can see how it would be a little scary for first-timers".
Scary didn't cover the half of it, Jin thought to himself as they flew.
After spending nearly a week on that raft with Prince Zuko, I was just about ready to throw myself into the ocean. I got along splendidly with General Iroh and Takara, but the banished Prince and I could barely stand being on the same craft with one another.
His problems with me stemmed from the fact that I had interfered with his hunt for the Avatar on multiple occasions. The fact that I looked almost exactly like my father didn't help matters, either, as it only reminded him of how my father had tried to stop him from claiming the Avatar on multiple occasions. My problems with him were centred on the fact that I considered him to be a petulant teenager who could neither control his emotions nor hold onto the Avatar when he'd had the chance.
Eventually, though, we reached land, and we were all glad to be done with floating on a raft all the way from the North Pole.
As fortune would have it, we landed near a Fire Nation spa resort in the colonies, so General Iroh used his name, and a little sweet-talking, in order to get us in. None of it mattered to me, though; my mind was still focused on Jin and Li, and whether they were safe or not. My initial hysteria upon noticing their absence had given way to despair and self-loathing.
I eventually found myself sitting against a wooden post, opposite Prince Zuko, while General Iroh and Takara got massages from the staff. The Kyoshi Warrior's eagerness to get a massage from the male staff rubbed me the wrong way. I couldn't see why she was so eager; these men were only marginally handsome, so I shouldn't have had anything to worry about.
"Oh, this feels so good!" Takara moaned as the bright sunlight shone down through the cherry blossoms.
"Ahh", General Iroh breathed, echoing her sentiments, "this is what I've been missing. Who knew floating on a piece of driftwood for three weeks with no food or water and sea vultures waiting to pluck out your liver could make one so tense?"
Eventually, he and Takara finished their massages, and as he sat down next to Prince Zuko, who was brooding just as much as I was, he said "I see. It's the anniversary, isn't it?"
"Three years ago today, I was banished" the teenager said bitterly. I looked up at him, and I could see the longing in his eyes. "I lost it all. I want it back. I want the Avatar. I want my honour, my throne. I want my father to not think I'm worthless".
I felt a familiar ache in my heart, seeing an image of my own father's hateful gaze flash unbidden before my eyes.
"I'm sure he doesn't" General Iroh said, trying to be encouraging. "Why would he banish you if he didn't care?" Prince Zuko glared at his uncle before walking away, and I could see Takara wincing. "Uh, that came out wrong, didn't it?" the older man asked us.
"You probably could have phrased it better, yes" Takara said.
General Iroh nodded, and I could feel his eyes on me. "It seems that my nephew is not the only one sulking".
"He's not the only one with an unpleasant anniversary hanging over his head" I replied bitterly, staring down at the floor. "Three weeks ago was the anniversary of my mother's death. Twenty years ago, I lost her, and that was when my father and I started taking different paths. Now, it's also the anniversary of my father's death after he called me a traitor and a disgrace, not to mention the day when I lost Jin and Li".
Takara put a comforting hand on my shoulder, saying "I'm sure they're fine".
"Those boys are powerful Earthbenders, from what I recall" General Iroh added. "They struck me as the type who would not succumb to anything easily".
I continued to stare down at the floor of the spa. After taking a deep breath, I said "Before I found them, they were orphans living on the street. They looked like they had seen enough suffering. When I took those boys in, I promised myself that I would be a better father to them than my father was to me. Now, I've failed them".
"There it is!" Sokka cried, pointing ahead.
Jin and Li gazed out at the fort in the distance, ecstatic at the prospect of being surrounded by earth after weeks of being in the North Pole and the ocean. The fort itself was very impressive: it was in the centre of four thin walls, and it consisted of a tall tower overlooking several courtyards in the centre of a circular defensive wall.
Most of all, the twins were overjoyed at just being on the ground; while they had more or less gotten used to flying on a ten-ton flying creature, they very much preferred to be landlocked. The Bison landed a short time later, and the twins practically leaped onto the carved stone, resting on their backs and luxuriating in the feel of the earth.
"Welcome, Avatar Aang!" someone said from nearby. The twins hastily stood up as Aang, Katara, and Sokka stood in front of the white Bison. They looked and saw a man in an Earth Kingdom uniform with a full, black beard standing in front of a row of soldiers. They all bowed, and the man said "I am General Fong, and welcome to all of you great heroes: Appa, Momo, Brave Sokka, the Mighty Katara".
"Mighty Katara? I like that".
The General paused upon taking notice of the twins. "And who might these two be?"
Aang turned to look at the twins before saying "This is Jin and Li. They're traveling with us to Omashu".
"I see" the older man said, stroking his beard. Jin sensed something curious in his tone, but the General eventually shrugged and let the matter drop. The twins exchanged a glance just as fireworks started exploding high in the sky.
"Not bad. Not bad" Sokka said, sounding quite pleased that he was being received in such a manner.
Eventually, they were all gathered in the General's war room, a rather grand space, with two rows of pillars running down the centre, large square windows along the entirety of the walls, and an Earth Kingdom banner hanging on the wall behind the General himself, who was sitting on a raised platform.
"Avatar Aang, we were all amazed at the stories of how you single-handedly wiped out an entire Fire Navy fleet at the North Pole. I can't imagine what it feels like to wield such devastating power. It's an awesome responsibility".
Jin and Li exchanged a surreptitious glance; they had witnessed the Avatar's power first hand at the Northern Water Tribe city. It had been awe-inspiring, seeing the entire fleet their father had assembled almost instantly annihilated.
"I try not to think about it too much" Aang said, sounding like the power he possessed scared him.
General Fong smiled encouragingly. "Avatar, you're ready to face the Fire Lord now".
Jin felt his mouth drop open in shock, while Aang replied in a panicked tone "What?! No, I'm not". The twins saw that the bald boy looked about ready to faint.
"Aang still needs to master all four elements" Katara objected, coming to Aang's rescue.
"Why?" General Fong countered. "With the kind of power he possesses, power enough to destroy hundreds of battleships in a matter of minutes, he could defeat the Fire Lord now".
"Uh, sir", Sokka spoke up, "the thing is, Aang can only do those things when he's in the Avatar State". Jin and Li glanced over at Aang; so that was what happened whenever his eyes and tattoos started glowing.
"See, it's this special state where…" Aang started to explain.
"I'm well aware" General Fong cut him off. The twins narrowed their eyes as they looked up at him; he was starting to sound a lot like Admiral Zhao, and that was something they did not care for. "Your eyes and tattoos glow, and you're able to summon unbelievable power". He clasped his hands behind his back as he walked up to a map of the world. "Without you, we'd be slaughtered before we even reached their shores. But with you leading the way, as the ultimate weapon, we could cut a swath right through to the heart of the Fire Nation".
"Right", Aang said, sounding hesitant, "but I don't know how to get in or out of the Avatar State, much less what to do once I'm there". Jin could sense that this was a delicate subject for him; thinking back to the events at the North Pole, he could see how such awesome power would be such a heavy burden.
"So it's decided, then" General Fong said, his tone sounding as if all parties had reached an agreement. I'll help you figure out how to get into the Avatar State, and then you'll face your destiny".
"No, nothing's decided!" Katara protested as she, Aang, and Sokka stood up. The twins did the same, and General Fong glared down at the two of them for a moment. "We already have a plan. Aang's pursuing his destiny his way".
"Well, while you take your time learning the elements, the war goes on. May I show you something?" The bearded man led Aang over to a window, pointing to a building on the other side of one of the courtyards. "That's the infirmary. And those soldiers are the lucky ones. They came back. Every day the Fire Nation takes lives. People are dying, Aang! You could end it now. Think about it".
Jin and Li looked at each other with somber expressions; they had seen first-hand what the Fire Nation was capable of, and while their father was an honourable man who only fought people he had to, he was one of few.
A few hours later, they were all in the room General Fong had provided. Sokka, Katara, and Aang slept on bunks, while the twins were satisfied with sleeping on the floor, so as to be closer to earth.
Aang left to take a walk, and when he returned, he sat down on his bunk and said "I told the General I'd help him by going into the Avatar State".
Katara sat upright, the concern evident in her eyes. "Aang, no. This is not the right way".
"Why not?" Sokka asked nonchalantly from his bunk. "Remember when he took out the Fire Navy? He was incredible!"
"There's a right way to do this: practice, study, and discipline".
"Or just glow it up and stop that Fire Lord".
Katara stood up, her fists clenched as she turned to the twins. "Well, what do you two think?"
Jin exchanged a glance at Li before the latter used his finger to write into the stone with his Earthbending.
Katara's eyes widened upon reading what he wrote. "It's his decision?!" she demanded, her voice becoming higher and higher in pitch. Li recoiled from the intensity of her reaction, and she proceeded to say "If you meatheads want to throw away everything we've worked for, fine. Go ahead and glow it up".
As she walked out of the room, Aang stood up and said "Katara, I'm just being realistic! I don't have time to do this the right way".
Jin and Li glanced at each other and sighed; tomorrow was going to be an interesting day.
Now, we have the difficult task of picking up the pieces after the seriously emotional stuff at the North Pole. This stage of the journey should prove interesting.
Please review and favourite! Constructive criticism is always welcome.