"How could you let them take Appa?" Aang demanded as the dust cloud blew past. "Why didn't you stop them?"
It had only been a few minutes since the Bison had been taken by Sandbenders, and the bald boy was clearly on edge. They had ventured into the Great Spirit Library of Wan Shi Tong in an effort to learn information that would help them defeat the Fire Lord before the arrival of Sozin's Comet. Jin had volunteered to remain outside with Toph and Appa, while Li and the others had gone into the library itself.
Unfortunately, while the two Earthbenders had been occupied with keeping the only entrance to the library from sinking, Sandbenders had suddenly arrived and stolen Appa. Now, as the group traversed the great Si Wong Desert, the Airbender's anger was becoming known. "We couldn't!" Toph defended. "The library was sinking, you guys were still inside, and…"
"You could've come to get us" Aang retorted as he walked over to the blind girl. "I could've saved him!"
"I can hardly feel any vibrations out here" Toph countered. "The Sandbenders snuck up on us, and there wasn't enough time for…"
"You just didn't care!" Aang shouted. "You never liked Appa! You wanted him gone!" Jin angrily walked over to the Airbender, forcing himself in between him and the blind girl. The Earthbending boy gave his companion a steely gaze and silently warned him to calm down.
"Aang, stop it" Katara said as she placed a hand on his shoulder. "You know Toph and Jin did all they could. They saved our lives".
"Who's gonna save our lives now?" Sokka asked as he gazed out and the endless desert. "We'll never make it out of here".
Li placed a comforting hand on his brother's back, sensing that Jin felt guilty about losing Appa.
"That's all any of you guys care about, yourselves" Aang growled. "You don't care whether Appa is okay or not!"
"We're all concerned, but we can't afford to be fighting now" Katara replied. She was obviously trying to defuse the situation, but the twins could sense that Aang was simply too angry to listen to reason at the moment.
"I'm going after Appa" he said at last before launching himself into the air on his glider.
"We'd better start walking" Katara said. "We're the only people who know about the solar eclipse. We have to get that information to Ba Sing Se".
The group then started walking, and Sokka asked "You think if we dig out the giant owl, he'll give us a ride?" Jin and Li placed a hand on Toph's shoulders, letting her know that they were there for her. The blind girl smiled at them, and they proceeded to follow after the others.
"Maybe we should make camp" Zuko suggested as Iroh gagged from behind him. I glanced up at the two of them from the ground as they rode the ostrich horse, and I knew that we could use a break.
"No, please, don't stop just for me" Iroh said meekly. He proceeded to moan dramatically, and I smirked as Zuko brought his mount to a stop. Iroh sat down on a nearby rock, and we suddenly heard noises coming from nearby. Zuko entered into a fighting stance, clearly ready for a fight as Iroh asked "What now?"
A group of five Komodo Rhinos then emerged from the forest before surrounding us. Their riders were a unique group, consisting of warriors with diverse sets of armour and weapons. I recognized them immediately: the Rough Rhinos.
"Colonel Mongke, what a pleasant surprise" Iroh greeted.
"If you're surprised we're here, then the Dragon of the West has lost a few steps" Colonel Mongke retorted. He then looked over at me as the rest of his men brandished their weapons. "Shan We, now this is a surprise".
"Mongke, Yeh-Lu" I replied evenly, looking at the Firebender and the man whose face was covered by a mask.
"You know these guys?" Zuko asked, glancing at me and Iroh.
"Sure" the older man replied. "Colonel Mongke and the Rough Rhinos are legendary. Each one is a different kind of weapon specialist. They are also a very capable singing group!"
"Mongke and I served together under General Iroh years ago" I explained, glancing at each one of the mounted men. "I graciously offered to teach him what I knew about Firebending. He wasn't a very good student. Also, Yeh-Lu was once a soldier under my command who ingeniously developed explosive bombs that were the size of apples".
"We're not here to reminisce about the past!" Colonel Mongke said derisively. "We're here to apprehend fugitives".
"Would you like some tea first?" Iroh asked calmly as he stroked his beard. "I'd love some. How about you, Kachi?" he asked, referring to the bearded man with the large pole weapon. "I make you as a Jasmine man. Am I right?"
"Enough stalling!" Colonel Mongke shouted. "Round 'em up!"
The man with the iron bolas proceeded to throw them at Iroh, who deftly blocked them and redirected them so that they wrapped around Kachi's Komodo Rhino. The older man slapped it on the rear, and the animal charged away, dragging the other man with it. Vachir then fired a flaming arrow at me, but my reflexes were fast enough for me to catch it. I then hurled it back at the former Yuyan Archer, severing the drawstring of his bow.
Zuko then kicked Colonel Mongke off of his mount, and he and Iroh proceeded to get on the ostrich horse and ride away. I leaped onto my former student's three-horned mount and urged it forward. The mighty beast quickly caught up with Zuko and Iroh as one of Yeh-Lu's bombs exploded in front of us.
We emerged unharmed through the black smoke, and Iroh said "It's nice to see old friends".
"Too bad you don't have any old friends that don't want to attack you" Zuko countered.
The older man furrowed his brow in thought. "Hmm… old friends that don't want to attack me?"
Zuko then looked over at me riding on Mongke's Komodo Rhino. I smirked and said "I thought it was about time that I get a mount of my own".
Jin and Li slowly walked forward as the sun continued to mercilessly beat down on them. They panted, watching as Sokka attempted to use Momo in order to cover his head with shade. Toph then bumped into him, and he started to say "Can't you watch where you're…"
His eyes widened upon realized his mistake, and Toph said "No".
"Right. Sorry" he apologized, smiling awkwardly.
"Come on, guys, we've gotta stick together" Katara said, turning to face them.
Jin and Li wiped the sweat from their foreheads, cursing the scruffy hair on their heads. "If I sweat anymore, I don't think sticking together will be a problem" Sokka dryly commented.
"Katara, can I have some water?" Toph asked.
"Okay, but we've gotta try to conserve it" the Water Tribe girl replied. She then drew small balls of water from her pouch that floated into their mouths. The twins swallowed, sighing in contentment.
"We're drinking your Bending water?" Sokka asked. He proceeded to smack his lips before saying "You used this on the swamp guy!"
"It does taste swampy" Toph agreed, and the twins scrunched up their faces as they shivered from the thought.
"I'm sorry, it's all we have" Katara said apologetically. Jin and Li's shoulders slumped in defeat, wondering if they were ever going to get out of this desert. Having suffered through the arctic cold of the North Pole, and now suffering through the searing heat of the largest desert in the world, the Earthbending boys would be willing to give anything in order to go somewhere nice that wouldn't kill them.
"Not anymore, look!" Sokka cried. The twins followed his gaze, and beheld a cactus. They exchanged smiles before walking over to it. The Water Tribe boy used his machete in order to cut a few pieces off, and the twins eagerly lapped up the quenching juices.
"Guys, wait!" Katara cried. "You shouldn't be eating strange plants!"
"There's water trapped inside these" Sokka said eagerly, disregarding his sister's warning. He held a piece out to her, but she shook her head. He shrugged, saying "Alright, suit yourself. It's very thirst-quenching, though".
Suddenly, Jin and Li's pupils dilated as far as they could go, and the boys dropped the pieces of cactus they were sucking on as everything suddenly became a tropical paradise. They leaped into the edges of the water on the shore, luxuriating in the feel of fresh water.
"Who lit Toph on fire?" Sokka asked, and the twins craned their necks. Their mouths fell open in shock as they beheld the blind girl being enveloped in purple flames.
They wasted no time, rushing over to her side and throwing water on her in an effort to douse the flames. "Hey!" she exclaimed, causing the two of them to stop. Jin and Li then looked at each other, forgetting that they were brothers in their drug-addled haze. The two of them winded up their fists, each thinking that the other was some sort of mirage or illusion. They then punched each other in the face, knocking them both onto their backs.
"Okay, we need to keep moving" Katara's voice echoed across the tropical paradise. The twins suddenly found themselves being lifted onto the backs of giants made entirely out of water.
Suddenly, a gust of wind blew past, and they heard Katara asking "What was that?"
Jin and Li looked off in the distance, and saw a massive mushroom sprouting at the very edges of the ocean. "It's a giant mushroom" Sokka's voice breathlessly declared. "Maybe it's friendly!"
A short time later, as the twins continued to view the world through their hallucinations, they found themselves lying on their backs next to Sokka, who inexplicably appeared beside them on solid ground. "Guys, any ideas on how to get to Ba Sing Se?" Katara's voice asked.
Jin and Li pointed up at a group of circling birds as Sokka said "Maybe we should ask the circle-birds".
Suddenly, the twins felt every muscle in their body aching as they shuffled forward. They gripped their heads in an effort to stave off the spinning, and after a moment, they noticed that the sun had almost set. They also took notice of everyone around them as Katara said "I think we should stop for the night". Jin and Li surrendered to the will of gravity and collapsed onto the hard ground along with everyone else.
"Is there any more water?" Toph asked, her voice sounded hoarse and dry.
"This is the last of it" Katara replied. She drew the water from her pouch, but Momo suddenly flew through it, bursting it and causing it to fall into the sand.
"MOMO, NO!" Sokka cried. "You've killed us all!"
"No, he hasn't" Katara replied, proceeding to draw the water from the sand.
"Oh, right, Bending".
"Sokka, let me see the things you got from the library" Katara said, motioning to Sokka's pack.
The Water Tribe boy suddenly leaned back. "What?! I didn't steal anything! Who told you that?" He then pointed an accusatory finger at Momo. "It was you! You ratted me out!"
The lemur began crying, and Katara said "Sokka, I was there".
As she began looking over the scrolls and books, Aang despondently said "It doesn't matter. None of those will tell us where Appa is". The twins suddenly looked over at the Airbender; when did he get here?"
"No, but we can find out which way Ba Sing Se is. We can use the stars to guide us. That way, we can travel at night when it's cool, and…" Jin and Li didn't hear the rest of what Katara was saying, as they allowed sleep to wrap them in its comforting embrace.
I took a sip of my mango juice with Zuko and Iroh sitting beside me. We had lost the Rough Rhinos, and had found our way to the Misty Palms Oasis, one of the wonders of the world. As it turned out, that information was very misleading. Zuko cast a wary glance around the seedy tavern, saying "No one here is gonna help us. These people just look like filthy wanderers".
"So do we" I reminded him.
Iroh then looked behind Zuko. "Ah, this is interesting. I think I've found our friend". I followed his gaze to an old man sitting in front of a Pai Sho board.
"You brought us here to gamble on Pai Sho?" the scarred teenager asked incredulously.
I gathered our cups and smirked. "I'll get us some refills". I then made my way over to the bar, where the sword-wielding bartender appraised me. "Three mangos" I told him. As he went about refilling our cups, I turned around and looked over at Iroh, who spoke some words to the old man as the two of them engaged in a game of Pai Sho. They rapidly placed their tiles in a specific configuration, and my eyes widened as I realized what they were doing.
Taking the filled cups in hand, I walked over to them just as they were making to leave. "May I have the next match?" I asked, bowing to the old man.
He and Iroh exchanged a glance before nodding. I handed the three cups to Zuko before kneeling down in front of the board. "The guest has the first move" the old man said, gesturing to my tiles.
I picked up the White Lotus tile, and proceeded to place it in the very centre of the board.
"I see you favour the White Lotus gambit" the old man said, sounding somewhat surprised. Beside me, I could feel Iroh's gaze falling on me in surprise, as well. "Not many still cling to the ancient ways".
"Those who do can always find a friend" I replied. We then rapidly placed our tiles on the board in a very specific configuration, just like Iroh had done earlier. When we were done, the tiles formed a lotus flower.
"Welcome, brother" the old man greeted, bowing his head. "The White Lotus opens wide to those who know her secrets".
"You, too?" Zuko asked incredulously. "What is it with you people?"
"Pai Sho is much more than a game" I told my scarred companion. "If you ever bothered to pay attention to something other than your suffering, you would know that".
"It's over!" a voice suddenly cried. We turned to see a greasy-haired man with well-developed muscles and a much cleaner-looking man in fine clothes approaching. "You three fugitives are coming with me" the greasy-haired one said.
The old man suddenly pointed a finger at us. "I knew it! You three are wanted criminals with a giant bounty on your heads!"
I smirked as Zuko growled "I thought you said he could help!" He started to get up, but I held him down, motioning that he should observe what was about to unfold.
The old man then turned to the two men, who were clearly dressed in Earth Kingdom clothing. "You think you're going to capture them and collect all that gold?" he asked, drawing the gaze of every single patron in the tavern.
The cleaner man nervously said "Uh, maybe we shouldn't…"
Suddenly, a brawl erupted, and as people were thrown about like ragdolls by the two men's Earthbending, the old man led us out of the tavern.
"Come on guys, wake up" Katara said, and Jin and Li tried to hold onto the last vestiges of sleep. Unfortunately, the Water Tribe girl's gentle shaking proved to be stronger, and the twins opened their eyes.
As they rubbed the crust from their eyes, they heard Toph say "Yesterday, my mouth tasted like mud. Now, it just tastes like sand. I never thought I'd miss the taste of mud so much".
As the twins stood up, Katara walked over to Aang, but before she could touch him, he said "I'm awake. I couldn't sleep".
"Well, we need to get moving if we want to get out of this sand pit".
Jin and Li started stretching their muscles and cracking their knuckles, and suddenly, Aang cried "Appa!" The Earthbending boys looked up to see something that could have been Appa against the backdrop of the moon.
"Appa?" Sokka asked. "But why would Princess Yue need him? She's the moon! She flies by herself!" Clearly, he still hadn't come down from the effects of the cactus juice.
"It's just a cloud" Katara said, and the twins could see that it was so. "Wait, a cloud!" Turning to Aang, she handed her water pouch over to him. "Here, fly up and Bend the water from that cloud into my pouch". The Airbender didn't say a word as he took the pouch and flew into the sky. They could see him flying through the cloud, and soon it disappeared completely. He landed a few moments later, and upon examining the pouch, Katara said "Wow, there's hardly any in here".
"I'm sorry, okay!" Aang shouted, and the twins instinctively recoiled. He had never shouted like that before. "It's a desert cloud! I did all I could! What's anyone else doing? What are you doing?"
"Trying to keep everyone together" Katara said quietly. "Let's just get moving. We need to head this direction".
The group then resumed walking across the darkened desert, making their way over the dunes. Suddenly, Toph cried out as she tripped on something. She rubbed her feet and growled "Crud, I am so sick of not feeling where I'm going! And what idiot buried a boat in the middle of the desert?"
Jin and Li perked up as Katara asked "A boat?"
"Believe me, I kicked it hard enough to feel plenty of vibrations" the blind girl assured. Aang proceeded to summon a powerful gust of air that cleared the sand away. When the sand cloud cleared, they beheld a Sandbender glider in almost perfect condition.
"It's one of the gliders the Sandbenders use" Katara noted. "And look, it's got some kind of compass on it! I bet it can point us out of here. Aang, you can Bend a breeze so we can sail it. We're gonna make it!"
The old man led us into a building at the edge of town, closing and locking the door behind us. He then turned to Iroh and bowed, saying "It is an honour to welcome such a high-ranking member of the Order of the White Lotus. Being a Grandmaster, you must know so many secrets". He then turned to me and said "It is also a rare honour to meet a member of the Order that is your age. The young do not often keep to the ancient ways".
I bowed my head, and as the old man started walking towards the back of the flower shop, Zuko asked "Now that you've played Pai Sho, are you gonna do some flower arranging? Or is someone in this club gonna offer some real help?"
"You must forgive my nephew" Iroh said. "He is not an initiate, and has little appreciation for the cryptic arts".
The old man proceeded to knock at the back door twice, and a slit opened to reveal a man standing on the other side. "Who knocks at the guarded gate?"
"One who has eaten the fruit and tasted its mysteries" Iroh and I answered in unison. We were then shown in, and the door closed in front of Zuko. The older man opened the slit and said "I'm afraid it's members only. Wait out here". I couldn't help but smirk as he closed the slit, and the two of us proceeded to sit down on cushions arranged in a circle around the image of a lotus in the centre of the circular room. In addition to myself, Iroh, and the old man, there were three men and two women present, all around middle age or older.
"It is an honour to meet you, Grandmaster Iroh" one of the women greeted, bowing her head. "It has been some time since one of your rank has called a meeting together".
"The honour is mine" Iroh replied. Turning to me, he said "Do you mind if I ask you about how you came to be a part of the Order? I was a little surprised".
I smiled a little. "When I was a boy, my grandfather taught me how to play Pai Sho. I didn't know it, then, but he was also imparting the central tenets of the White Lotus to me. Several years later, as I knelt at his deathbed, he inducted me into the Order. I must admit: this is only my second official meeting, but I have been a member since I was seventeen".
Iroh nodded, stroking his beard. Turning to the others, he said "Shan We is travelling with my nephew and me. We are no longer citizens of the Fire Nation".
"I hear that Princess Azula has concerned herself with hunting the Avatar since labeling you as fugitives" one of the men said.
"We had an unfortunate run-in with her a few days ago" I said. "We ran into her and the Avatar in an abandoned village. She used a sneak attack in order to wound Iroh".
"It's not a pleasant memory" Iroh said sarcastically.
"Speaking of which", the other woman said, "the Avatar and his companions passed through this town a few days ago".
I perked up a little. "Were there twin boys with him?" I asked eagerly.
"I believe so, yes" she replied. "They met with a professor from Ba Sing Se before journeying into the Si Wong Desert".
Iroh placed a hand on my shoulder. "Then, I am afraid there is nothing we can do. We cannot go into the desert searching for them. We must focus on what the future holds for us. Besides, something tells me that we'll probably run into them sooner or later".
I nodded solemnly. He was right; the three of us couldn't venture into one of the most inhospitable places in the world in search of Jin and Li. Just then, a thought occurred to me. "What about Ba Sing Se? I'm certain that thousands of refugees enter the city every day in order to avoid the war".
The older man stroked his beard in thought. "It would be the best place for us to blend in. But first, we must get out of town while avoiding those two men that want to collect on our bounty".
"I think we can arrange that" one of the other men said. "It would be an honour to assist you in this way".
Jin and Li looked down at the sand as their glider zoomed over it. Aang was propelling the craft forward by blowing wind into the sail, while Katara took it upon herself to navigate. "The needle on this compass doesn't seem to be pointing north", she said, "according to my charts".
"Take it easy, little lady" Sokka replied, sounding quite relaxed. "I'm sure the sand folks who built this baby know how to get around here".
The twins then saw that they were approaching a massive rock, and Katara said "That's what the compass is pointing to: that giant rock. It must be the magnetic centre of the desert".
"A rock?" Toph asked excitedly from beside Jin. "Yes! Let's go!"
"Maybe we can find some water there" Katara theorized, and the twins licked their dry and cracking lips. Water would be a welcome change to their present plight.
"Maybe we can find some Sandbenders" Aang grumbled.
A few minutes later, they arrived, leaving the glider on the sand as they ascended the giant rock. Once they were on top of it, Toph groaned in pleasure as the twins got on their backs. "Ah, finally. Solid ground". She then fell onto her back, and the three Earthbenders proceeded to make rock angels.
"Hey, look" Katara said, drawing everyone's gaze. There were several tunnels that appeared to go deep into the rock, and as the group walked into one, they saw that it was lined with some kind of yellow substance.
Sokka took a deep breath. "I think my head is starting to clear out the cactus juice. And look!" He proceeded to scoop up some of the yellow substance and taste it along with Momo. The two of them then started spitting it out in disgust, prompting smirks from Jin and Li. "Tastes like rotten penguin meat! Oh, I feel woozy".
"You've been hallucinating on cactus juice all day, and then you just lick something you find stuck to the wall of a cave?" Katara angrily demanded.
"I have a natural curiosity" Sokka replied.
"I don't think this is a normal cave" Toph said. "This was carved by something".
Jin and Li looked around at the cave, noticing that it was almost perfectly circular in shape. "Yeah, look at the shape" Aang agreed.
"There's something buzzing in here" the blind girl noted. The twins concentrated on sensing vibrations through the ground like she had taught them, and they could just make out buzzing noises. "Something that's coming for us!"
The group then bid a hasty retreat outside as the buzzing grew closer and closer. Just as they came to the edge, a swarm of buzzard wasps emerged from the various cave openings. Aang blew one back with a gust of air, while Toph struck another with a rock column. The twins kicked spiked rocks from the ground with their feet before punching them up towards the wasps that were hovering above them. Amidst the battle, they heard Sokka cry out "Hey! That rock almost crushed me!"
"Sorry, I can't tell where they are in the air" Toph apologized.
"I got this one!" the Water Tribe boy said before charging towards the edge. He then started violently swinging his machete back and forth.
Jin and Li exchanged a glance as Toph said "Sokka, there's nothing there!"
After a moment, he replied "I guess my head's not as clear as I thought.
"We have to get out of here" Katara said. "I'm completely out of water to Bend!" Suddenly, a wasp shot towards the twins, aiming its stinger at them. They leaped out of the way, and when Jin landed, he struck his foot against the ground, summoning a rock column that shot the wasp into the air. At the same time, Li ripped a chunk of rock from nearby and hurled it at the wasp. The rock slammed into it, throwing it over the edge.
"Momo!" Aang cried, and the twins turned to see the lemur being carried off by a wasp. "I'm not losing anyone else out here". With that, the Airbender got on his glider and pursued after the wasp, while everyone else made their way down the giant rock. Katara helped Toph overcome her inability to see things in the air by directing her attacks, and the twins provided general protection at the same time.
Just when it looked like they were about to be overtaken by the swarm, great columns of sand shot upwards into the wasps, causing them to retreat back into their caves.
The twins looked ahead, and saw a group of Sandbenders.
Eventually, once we and the other members of the White Lotus were done meeting, Iroh and I walked out the door. Zuko looked like he had been sleeping, and upon hearing us, he instinctively entered into a fighting stance. "What's going on?" he asked. "Is the club meeting over?"
"Everything is taken care of" Iroh replied.
He and I bowed to the old man who had taken us here, and I told the scarred teenager "We're heading to Ba Sing Se".
"Ba Sing Se?" Zuko asked incredulously. "Why would we go to the Earth Kingdom capital?"
"The city is filled with refugees" the old man explained. "No one will notice three more".
"We can hide in plain sight there" Iroh added. "And it's the safest place in the world from the Fire Nation. Even I couldn't break through to the city".
Just then, the front door opened, and a man around my age came in. "I have the passports for our guests, but there are two men out on the street looking for them".
"What are you doing in our land with a Sandbender sailer?" one of the men asked. "From the looks of it, you stole it from the Hami tribe".
"We found the sailer abandoned in the desert" Katara explained. "We're traveling with the Avatar. Our Bison was stolen, and we have to get to Ba Sing Se".
"You dare accuse our people of theft", a younger-looking Sandbender said, "while you ride in a stolen sand sailer?"
"Quiet, Ghashiun!" the older one said. "No one accused our people of anything. If what they say is true, we must give them hospitality".
"Sorry, father" the younger one apologized.
Jin thought that he sounded familiar, and Toph said "I recognize the son's voice. He's the one whole stole Appa".
"Are you sure?" Katara asked, and the twins could sense that Aang was becoming tense.
"I never forget a voice" the blind girl assured.
Suddenly, the Airbender walked towards the son, his staff pointed threateningly. "You stole Appa. Where is he? What did you do to him?"
"They're lying!" the son cried. "They're the thieves!"
Aang responded by firing an Airbending slice at one of the sailers, demolishing it as he glared at the son. "Where is my Bison?"
"Are you sure this is the best way?" Zuko asked, looking down at the three flowerpots on a cart.
I crossed my arms. "Do you have a better idea as to how we should avoid those bounty hunters? Last time I checked, the power of invisibility was beyond us". I then climbed into one of the pots as Zuko glared at me. It was a little… claustrophobic, but other than that, I was able to fit into the flower pot with no difficulty.
"Our man will take you to where you need to go" the flower shop's owner told me. "Good luck, brother". He then placed the covering of flowers and dirt on the pot, and we were on our way. There was some kind of commotion behind us, and I could only assume that it was those two Earth Kingdom bounty hunters looking for us. The only thing they would find would be a White Lotus tile on the floor of the back room. With a long journey ahead of me, I got into a position that was as likely comfortable as I was going to get and closed my eyes, thinking of Takara and the twins.
"You tell me where he is, now" Aang said menacingly. He thrust his staff forward, and another gust of air shot towards a sand sailer, demolishing it. The twins had never seen the Airbender this angry, and it was honestly terrifying.
"What did you do?" the older Sandbender asked his son.
"It… it wasn't me!" he said meekly.
"You said to put a muzzle on him" Toph countered, pointing a finger at him.
"You muzzled Appa?" Aang demanded. His eyes and tattoos began to glow, and Jin and Li fell onto their backs in fear.
The bald boy demolished a third sailer, and the son cried "I'm sorry! I didn't know it belonged to the Avatar!"
"Tell me where Appa is!" Aang said. His voice sounded different, like there were many other voices speaking at the exact same time, and it only added to his terrifying demeanor.
"I traded him to some merchants" the son explained. "He's probably in Ba Sing Se by now. They were gonna sell him there. Please, we'll escort you out of the desert! We'll help however we can!"
"Just get outta here, run!" Sokka cried, and the twins stood up before running away from Aang as fast as they could. The Airbender became enveloped in a ball of air as the sand around him became a raging storm. A powerful gust of air blew into them, and the Earthbending boys fell onto the ground, hugging each other close as the sand storm raged around them.
Suddenly, the storm dissipated, and Jin and Li hesitantly looked back. They saw Katara holding Aang close, and the Airbender's eyes were scrunched shut as tears ran down his cheeks.
That moment when Katara calms him down was always one of my favourite scenes from TLA. It's just so epic and awesome and heartbreaking at the same time.
My apologies for the change in my posting schedule. I started a new full-time job yesterday, and as a result, I don't have nearly as much time to write as I have in the past. Luckily, I have prepared for such a scenario, as I have already written several chapters ahead, which will help, since I'm going to be only writing on weekends. So, expect to see new chapters on a Tuesday-Thursday schedule, as opposed to the now former Monday-Wednesday-Friday schedule.
Please review and favourite/follow!