"Statues?" Sokka exclaimed in outrage, echoing Aang's own thoughts. "That's it? Where's the food?"
Light continue to spill into the dark room before them, piercing the fog of fine dust that almost blanketed the room. Aang He felt the weight of hundreds of pairs of eyes staring at him, judging him in perfect silence and stillness. Were they all airbenders, or were they just...
Katara looked up. "Who are all these people, Aang?"
Aang followed her gaze towards the statues along the upper levels, looking down at him from all directions. But Aang didn't feel threatened; in fact, he felt like should know these people, and his memory desperately searched itself for the name of each individual, unique stone carving. There was a pattern to it all: a firebender, then an airbender, then a waterbender, then an earthbender, then another firebender...
"The Avatar Cycle," he intoned, strolling up closer to that last statue, a bold-looking man with a well-trimmed beard and long hair.
"Of course," Katara whispered in delight. "These must be your past lives."
Sokka's scoff echoed across the room. Aang stared deeper into the statue. This was the Avatar before him. It was like staring at a distorted mirror. His name was...what?
"It's true!" Katara replied confidently. "When the Avatar dies, he's reincarnated into the next nation in the cycle."
The statue's eyes gleamed for a second, and Aang was suddenly far above the world, a star falling from the sky. The cold world below him was suddenly set aflame, and it rose back to life as a beautiful phoenix...
"Aang! Snap out of it!"
The vision ended, and Aang found himself back in the Southern Air Temple, still staring into Roku's eyes.
"Though I'd lost you there," said Katara. She looked at Roku. "Who's that?"
"He's Avatar Roku, the Avatar before me."
Sokka suddenly popped over Katara's shoulder. "You were a firebender?" He slightly grimaced. "That...explains a lot."
"There's no writing," Katara pointed out. "How'd you know his name?"
Aang shrugged.
Sokka crossed his arms. "You benders just couldn't get any weirder," he growled.
Aang scratched his head. "I have to say, this isn't what I expected," he said. "How is Roku supposed to help me if I can't talk to him?"
A chittering noise came from the open door behind them, and they all spun around, ready to strike. A lemur blinked back at the trio, tilting its head in curiosity.
A part of Aang's mind knew that there were more pressing issues at hand. The other parts knew that Aang didn't like thinking about being the Avatar, and Aang always wanted a flying lemur as a pet.
"Lemur!" he exclaimed, expunging Roku from his mind.
Sokka raised his club, and from the corner of his eyes Aang could see the older boy licking his lips. "Dinner..."
The lemur screeched in fear and took off. Aang allowed Sokka a five-second head start.
In hindsight, a five-minute head-start might have been more fair for Sokka.
Hopping down along the steep side of the mountain was treacherous and foolish. Unbelievably fun, and the only way for him to not lose sight of the flying lemur, but there was a reason why even Monk Gyatso just air scootered down the long way. Aang instinctively brushed the faint scar on his inner left thigh against his other leg, a reminder of the last time he went down these treacherous rocks.
Over a hundred years ago. Aang sighed a sad sigh. Everything was different now. He looked at the large tent in front of him, something he did not recall ever seeing before. Yet he couldn't bring himself to care, or even feel just a bit curious. For some reason he refused to even return to see his old room; why bother with a stupid tent? Even chasing the lemur was sounding less appealing by the second...
Out of the corner of his eyes, Aang saw something quick and wily slink into the tent. He stood up. Scratch that last part, he still wanted that lemur.
He entered the strange tent and began pushing away the pile of tattered and ripped drapes. They came in a rainbow of dull colors, mostly lifeless reds and muted yellows, with the occasional streaks of black. He blew aside an obstructing pile of snow with the wave of his hand and exited the other end of the tent, taking note of the large pit in front of him. The lemur had to be in there somewhere...
Aang took a sharp breath when he saw the first skull.
It stared at him with malicious glee, a smile frozen on to its bony visage. Aang looked around at the rest of the pit and suddenly became aware of the bones and skulls and decaying armor and tattered robes that surrounded him.
All of a sudden, there wasn't enough air for Aang to breathe, to keep the world around him balanced and upright. He knew all along, but it wasn't until now that he had come to accept the truth. The temple's stones felt different because they were different. Firebenders had destroyed the temple, and then they had rebuilt it. This pit was dug to hide all the dead from both sides.
And if they had reached this temple, then that meant none of them were safe.
But why dd they rebuild it?
To lure in the survivors, something inside of him answered. It was him, yet it...wasn't.
Who?
Aang felt something crunch under his footsteps. He hurriedly picked up the shattered, frozen pieces. To anyone else, they were frozen bits of a round necklace piece, just a piece of wood with some carved lines on it. But Aang instantly knew it was unique. In fact, he knew what it was, who it belonged to, and what it meant.
"Hey, Aang, where are you?" It was Sokka's voice, somewhere not too far away. "You find my dinner yet?"
"Gyatso." He began to bawl loudly, dropping to his knees.
Aang could hear Sokka carefully marching down the pit. "Aw, Aang, I wasn't really going to eat the lemur," he said. "Aang, calm do- Oh...shit."
"Gy...at...so," Aang moaned between sobs.
Aang felt Sokka's hand on his shoulder, as if that was what Aang needed. "Come on, Aang. Let's go."
Go where? Go why? Arrogant, ignorant Sokka, asking you to turn your back to...to this!
"Everything will be all right."
Between his sniffling and hot tears Aang realized Sokka's problem. He doesn't know my pain. No one else ever will. This burden is mine alone...
"Let's get out of he- Aang, your tattoos, they're -"
The Avatar looked over its shoulder, burning eyes searing Sokka with their sorrow, and the mortal boy wisely chose to run. Unless we share it with everyone.
The Avatar roared, and the earth shook, and the winds screeched, and their voice echoed across the world.
Katara carefully studied Avatar Roku's statue. She stared at his face, so calm and full of wisdom, and she knew it to be the face of the enemy.
She sighed in exasperation. She felt irritated about...something. Her not knowing just what that something was only made her more irritated. The whole sanctuary felt too cold, too stuffy, too bright. Actually, why was -
Roku's eyes were glowing. Ah, that explained it. But what explained that?
One by one, the light began to spread, the eyes of each statue suddenly lighting up with white-hot ferocity. Katara felt no sense of awe, no sense of hope. These eyes burned with anger, hatred, and fear. The entire building began to shake, groaning under the power of a terrible force.
She swore under her breath and sprinted out of the sanctuary in search of Aang.
Somewhere in the North Pole, two fishermen swore that a pool of water in the shrine they were praying in had briefly turned blood red. When they later brought their story to the Chief, he had them literally thrown out of his court.
Meekly walking along one of the many narrow alleyways of Ba Sing Se, a nervous woman checked her left, then her right, then her left again, eyeing every shifting shadow with suspicion. She had been sworn to secrecy, but she would also be lying to herself if she believed that she'd last more than a minute under torture. Or...worse.
She went over her message one more time: The north-pointing spoon had lost its way. And that meant the Ava-
The woman rounded a corner was never seen again.
The Fire Sage was sweeping the floor of one of the eight Sacred Rooms when the eternal fire burning in front of him suddenly erupted into fifty different colors. He rushed out of the room shouting, "The Avatar has returned! The Avatar has returned!"
A fellow sage came barreling down the hallway. "The Avatar?" he asked fearfully.
"Yes! Send word to the Fire Lord immediately!"
As the second sage ran off in search of a messenger hawk, the first sage's face drooped into a frown. Long ago, he had sworn a sacred oath. Was he ready to break it?
When Sokka finally regained consciousness, his first thought was that he was very hungry. His second thought was that the wind was unusually strong today.
He sat up, rubbing his eyes groggily. Part of him was confused why he wasn't dead, but exactly why he was confused about that was confusing in itself...
Then he saw Aang floating in the air, surrounded by swirling dirt and snow and bone and other stuff. He stood up in half-awe, half-terror, and everything made sense again.
He considered running, but it seemed like Aang had cut off all escape with an impenetrable screen of fast-moving ice and wind that rather neatly wrapped around the large pit where he and Aang had stumbled upon the bodies of a certain Monk Gyatso, as well as those of many, many Fire Nation soldiers. Sokka was actually very impressed that the airbending monk had killed so many firebenders, but Aang understandably didn't take his old teacher's death so well.
Katara suddenly appeared from the other side of the screen of ice and wind, which was apparently not so impenetrable. She dropped to her knees the moment she made it through, out of breath, and Sokka rushed to her side, carrying her away from the
"You okay, Katara?"
She nodded, quickly regaining her composure. "Yeah, I'm fine. What happened?"
Sokka pointed at the angry glowing ball of Avatar magic and raging wind hovering in the sky. "Aang found out about the firebenders. Also, they killed Gyatso."
Katara said something, but Sokka didn't catch it as a powerful gust knocked him into the snow. "It's his Avatar Spirit," she shouted over the raging winds.
"Wow, really?" Sokka rolled his eyes. "I'm not kidding. How?"
"I didn't," she said.. He's destroying the entire temple. I was just running away from the stronger winds. It's like Aang's...led me here."
A terrible thought was suddenly gnawing at Sokka. "You think he's trying to trap us?" he asked. "The Avatar? "
Katara seemed to consider the idea, but she shook her head. "No, I don't think so," she said. "I'm gonna go calm him down. Aang. The Avatar. I don't know."
Warning horns blared in Sokka's head, and he grabbed her arm as she stood up. "Katara..."
"I have to try," Katara insisted.
Sokka sighed and let her go. "Fine, I'll come too. Just do it before he blows us off the mountain!"
She nodded, and together they fought through the tides of air that smashed against them.
"Avatar!" Katara cried, but the ball in the sky did not move. "Aang?"
Sokka swore the winds were picking up even more speed.
"I know you're upset," she continued, "and I know how hard it is to lose the people you love. I went through the same thing when I lost my mo -"
Katara's feet were suddenly no longer touching the ground, but Sokka managed to pull catch her arm before she flew off. He pulled out his boomerang with his free hand and dug it into the snow.
"Please, Avatar...Aang!" pleaded Katara. It was becoming hard to breath. "Monk Gyatso and the other airbenders may be gone, but there's still people that need your help. There's a whole world that needs your help. And you can still have a family. No, you do have a family. Me. Sokka. We're your family now. We care about you!"
The winds began to die down, and the shell of air that Aang had wrapped himself vanished as he floated back to the ground in front of Sokka. His tattoos suddenly stopped glowing, and once again Katara managed to wrap him in her arms as he collapsed in exhaustion.
"I'm s-sorry I'm so sorry I didn't mean to hurt anything..." Aang rambled, "and I didn't...didn't mean to hurt you and Sokka..."
Katara stroked Aang's head, gently rocking him like a baby, and Sokka was convinced that she was enjoying herself far too much. "Shhhh it's okay," she said softly. "It wasn't your fault."
Sokka turned away from all the tears and comforting to see what remained of the Southern Air Temple.
Hm, not much.
Sokka heard a familar chitter behind him, and he turned to see that same damn furry creature he'd been hunting earlier rolling a colorfull ball at his feet. He picked up the strange offering, feeling it, sniffing it. He took a bite, his worries that he was going to get poisoned overruled by his stomach.
Sweet and crisp. So it was fruit. He quickly devoured the whole thing as the creature dropped a pile of fruits in front of him.
"Hey, little lemur." Aang cooed, apparently back to his usual cheerful self. He extended his arm, and the lemur scaled it before settling on Aang's bald head.
"So I guess you're part of our family now," he said.
"Are you going to name him?" Katara asked.
"How about...Momo!"
Sokka reached for one more fruit, a pink one he was saving for last, only to realize that the lemur was already nibbling on it, perched happily on Aang's shoulder. He gave a rueful sigh as Aang and Katara laughed in delight.
"Come on, Momo, let's go find Appa." Aang rubbed the little scoundrel under its chin. "
Katara stopped laughing. "Are you sure Appa's alright?"
Aang nodded confidently. "He's been through a lot worse." He turned his attention back to the lemur as they began their long walk back. "You, me, Appa, we're probably the only air nomads left. So we got to stick together. Ha, I hope Appa won't mind. Hey, do you wanna ride a koi fish? I know this great place..."
Sokka couldn't help but smile.
Zuko breathed in.
This was it. Agni Kai. The sun was already half-buried in the horizon, and night would mark a new beginning.
Zuko breathed out.
Agni Kai. A duel of fire. If either duelist was to capture the Avatar, the other had to die.
"Remember your basics," Uncle said, a hint of fear in his otherwise unwavering voice. "Your breath. Your chi. These are your greatest weapons."
"He won't win," Zuko said. "I won't allow it."
Uncle nodded. "Zhao is powerful, Zuko, but he is arrogant. Break the root."
Zuko stood up from his kneeling stance, throwing off the cape covering his shoulders. The cold air squeezed against his bare arms and chest, warring against the raging fire coming from within.
Zhao mirrored his actions, revealing hair and muscle that marked him as a true man. Zuko slightly shuddered.
Both combatants took their stances, and the sound of a large gong echoed across the arena.
Zuko's fireblast came just a hair of a moment late, and the explosion that was created as his attack met Zhao's was a bit too close for comfort. Nonetheless, Zuko took the time to prepare a stronger blast, drawing deep from his breath, bringing his arms back before launching a searing streak of flames. Unflinchingly, Zhao absorbed the blast head-on by crossing his arms in a block position and then dissipated it without trouble.
Zhao smirked, no doubt convinced that he had already demonstrated his superior bending skills, and Zuko angrily ground his teeth. Part of him agreed with Zhao, but he wasn't going to just roll over and wait to die. He let loose a flurry of spins and kicks that sent waves of fire surging towards Zhao. Zhao kneeled and clapped his hands together near the ground, parting the waves with a jet of fire.
Zuko suddenly realized how heavily he was breathing. Zhao, on the other hand, hadn't even broken a sweat.
"This will be over quickly," he heard the commander snarl.
Zhao threw a fire blast that forced Zuko back even as he split it in two with his arms. Zhao took a step forward and threw another blast of equal strength. Zuko slid back; Zhao stepped forward. The man was just toying with him at this point.
What was it that Uncle said? That the Agni Kai was a mistake? That Zuko no longer wished to live? That lunacy had passed on from father to son?
Zhao finally went for the kill, and a two-handed blast sent Zuko flying back several meters. Zuko could smell something burning, hopefully just his nails. He groaned and opened his eyes, only to see a pair of large, menacing feet. He couldn't bear to look up into the eyes of the man who would soon kill him. He had fought hard enough. He had done all that he could. There was no point in fighting anymore...
His eyes widened as he finally remembered what Uncle had said.
Break the root...
And the mightiest tree will fall.
"The Fire Nation will become stronger with your death," Zhao mocked, raising a fiery fist for the final blow.
Zuko's eyes widened, but not with fear. He breathed in.
His entire body moved in a blur, swiping Zhao's legs from underneath him before planting his own feet firmly on the ground. It was as if an untapped source of chi had suddenly burst open inside him. Now it was Zuko's turn to smirk, Zuko's turn to play with his food.
Zhao rolled back and recovered, but Zuko gave no respite, each step sending trails of fire that blackened the arena floor as they homed in on Zhao's feet. He slammed a kick into the commander's mid-section, the blow folding Zhao in half as he tumbled across the floor. Zuko closed the gap, flames dancing from both hands in anticipation of a killing blow.
"Do...it!" Zhao stared back at Zuko, his visage tainted by blood and bruises, yet his eyes were still full of hatred and prideful defiance. It made Zuko sick.
He kneeled down and latched on to both of Zhao's wrists, and the man yelped as Zuko's hands seared his arms. No, he screamed, curling himself off the ground in pain, sweat and tears trickling out from his face, mingling.
Zuko let go, and Zhao collapsed back on to the ground, panting heavily. "It's...that's...that's it?" he sputtered. "Where is your honor?"
"I have done worse than kill you, Zhao," Zuko said. "I have branded you as a failure. I have stripped you of your foolish pride. In keeping with the ancient laws of Agni Kai, for sparing your life I will take one of your frigates, as well as all the men on board."
"And...you think they'd follow you instead? The disgraced exile? The traitor...you bastard..."
Zuko stood up, and now Zhao looked so small and weak and pathetic. Zuko shot a sudden, small fire blast next to Zhao's face, and he smiled as his fallen foe slightly flinched.
"I am the rightful heir to the throne. My uncle is the most brilliant and successful general in Fire Nation history. You? You were always just another name on a list. And now you're not even worth your weight in grain." He turned his back on Zhao and started to walk away.
"Your father raised a coward..."
Zuko heard Zhao stealthily erect himself, heard the faint swish of a swinging foot. He felt the heat of flames aimed straight at the back of his head. Moving faster than what most men could even properly perceive, Zuko spun around, fists ready to send the lethal fan of fire right back at its sender.
But Uncle, apparently, was faster, and Zuko barely managed to stop himself mid-swing. One of the old man's hands had already caught Zhao's foot in a crushing grip, the flames dissipating into harmless smoke. Uncle gave a light shove, and Zhao was on the floor again.
"No, Prince Zuko," Uncle commanded. "Do not taint your victory."
He turned his old eyes towards Zhao. "So this is how the great Commander Zhao acts in defeat," he said, snorting with disgust. "Even in exile, my nephew is more honorable than you."
Zuko's eyes widened as Uncle, too, turned his back on the disgraced commander.
"Thanks for the tea. It was...delicious."
They had left port less than an hour after sunset. Zhao was, unsurprisingly, not very well-liked among the crew of the Bai Tao, which was currently sailing in parallel with Zuko's own ship. Back at sea, back on the hunt for the Avatar, but this time with two ships and, hopefully, Zhao out of the picture. Standing with Uncle, surrounded by only the splashes of gentle waves, it felt like...home.
No. He had spent too long surrounded by the ocean's foul stench; he wasn't going to forget his mission. He needed it back: his home, his honor...
"Did you really mean that, Uncle?" he asked. "What you said to Zhao?"
Uncle let out a hearty chuckle and looked up at the stars. "Of course," he said plainly. "I told you, ginseng tea is my favorite."
Zuko couldn't help but smile.