Responses to Reviews:

RonaldM40196867: I think Yue is more level-headed than Aang or Korra, at the beginning of their series' anyway, because they both grow into it (not always though; see a few chapters ago) and is good at using her words.

Zigzagdoublezee: Ozai will no doubt be furious when he hears about it, and Zhao may even catch some of the blame for failing to stop him.

As Always, Please Review!

"You want us to do what?" Sokka demanded.

"The Fire Nation will be looking for us," Jeong Jeong explained patiently. "Unless we prove we've already left the island, they'll tear it apart in the search. And that will put everyone here in danger."

"No, I get that," Sokka agreed. "I'm just struggling with the part where you want us to do a low flypast of the entire Fire Nation navy."

"It will make the point that we're leaving."

"It will also give them a chance to fire every catapult they have at us!" Sokka pointed out.

"It's a risk we've got to take," Yue said quietly. "For the sake of the people we're leaving behind."

Sokka looked over at Suki, who raised an eyebrow at him.

Then he nodded.

"Fine."

Rinzen didn't look happy about it, but he patted Gembul's nose and began climbing up into the saddle.

Suki came over to him.

"I talked to Yue," she said.

"What did she say?"

"A lot of things." Suki considered for a moment. "You know, you're unlike any Southerner I've ever met before."

"Thanks?" Sokka tried. "I guess I'll take that as a compliment."

"Don't worry, it was intended as one," Suki told him. "Good luck."

"Good luck to you too," Sokka said. "I think we'll both need it."

"I think we will," Suki agreed. Sokka was suddenly struck with an idea.

"If we win, I'll come back," he said. "With an army this time."

Suki looked at him sharply.

"Do you think you can win?"

But he just shrugged.

"I don't know, that's why I said 'if'.

Suki laughed.

"I hope you do," she said. "In the meantime, take care of the Avatar for me. She's kind of a big deal around here."

"She doesn't need taking care of," Sokka replied. "I'm sure you have nothing to worry about."

"I'm glad to hear it." Suki nodded with satisfaction. "It was an honour to meet you, Sokka. Now go. We both have battles to fight."

Then she surprised Sokka by leaning in to give him a hug. Taken aback, it took him a second to relax into it, but the moment he had she had disentangled herself and gone to speak to Yue.

He took a moment to compose himself, and then clambered up into the saddle next to Jeong Jeong. A moment later, Katara joined them.

"Ready?" She asked.

"As I'll ever be," Sokka frowned. "For the record, I still think this is a terrible plan, and if we get killed by a flying boulder I will be furious about it."

"Good luck!" Suki shouted up to them as Yue hopped on board. "And goodbye!"

The Kyoshi Warriors all chimed in to say their goodbyes, waving at them as Rinzen snapped the reins and Gembul groaned. A moment later, the bison lifted off the ground and ascended into the sky. Sokka watched Suki and her group get smaller and smaller until they vanished into the trees beneath them, and then they were away. As they rose, the ground fell away beneath them, exposing the horizon, the Fire Nation fleet, and then finally the village. Sokka could see the figures in red swarming through the town.

"Get ready guys!" Rinzen shouted back. "And scream if you want to go faster!"

He snapped the reins and Gembul went into a shallow dive, swooping over the roofs of the houses as people, both civilian and fire nation, pointed at them and shouted. For a moment, Gembul weaved through the streets, dodging around the large statue of Avatar Kyoshi in the centre of town, and then the ground below them was replaced by ocean.

Immediately, Sokka watched in horror as a a catapult mounted on one of the ships loosed, and a fiery projectile arced through the air towards them. A moment later, five more followed it.

"Look out!" Yue warned, before the first one narrowly missed them, passing Gembul with barely a metre to spare. Team Avatar looked at each other, and then began screaming.

"Aaaaaaaaaah!"

The fireballs continued raining down as Sokka, Katara and Yue grabbed on to the side of the saddle, and each other, and held on for dear life. Rinzen looked like he was concentrating hard, using all of the skills he had picked up over years of flying with Gembul, and all the fancy manoeuvres that he knew, to weave desperately, making them as small a target as possible. Jeong Jeong, meanwhile, sat impassively next to them, seemingly not reacting to anything happening around him.

By now, more Fire Nation artillery was being trained on them, and more fireballs raced through the sky. Sokka watched one narrowly miss them, and then saw it plummet down to explode on the deck of a Fire Nation warship. Elation and terror mingled as it seemed to rain fire, and the sky seemed to turn orange above them.

"There!" Jeong Jeong suddenly pointed. Sokka saw, ahead of them in the middle of the formation, a ship that was larger than the others and more heavily armed, decorated with gold.

"Zhao will be there," he said.

Gembul plunged towards it, twisting and turning to avoid fire, but as they neared it, the number of fireballs crashing down around them seemed to lessen.

"What's happening?" Yue asked.

"They're scared of accidentally hitting the flagship," Jeong Jeong said grimly. Below them, Sokka could see artillery crews desperately manning their catapults, loading their ammunition into the throwing arms and twisting levers to aim.

"Get me close to the bridge!" Jeong Jeong told Rinzen.

"Can't just do this the easy way, can we?" Rinzen grumbled, but he complied. Gembul soared towards the tower, so close now that the catapults could not aim at him, but fireblasts still shot up from the deck beneath. Sokka caught a glimpse through the glass, of a shocked-looking bridge crew including a familiar pair of sideburns.

Zhao gritted his teeth as he watched them fly past, Jeong Jeong giving him a sarcastic military salute as he passed. Sokka waved at him, and gave him a thumbs up.

It was not returned.

Then Gembul was past the tower, and gaining altitude again.

"That better have been worth it," Sokka scowled. "I think I nearly died..."

He began counting on his fingers."

"It doesn't matter now," Jeong Jeong said. "Thank you. Hopefully Zhao got the message."

"And if he didn't?"

"There's nothing we can really do if he didn't," the Admiral said darkly. "But Zhao has a certain cunning, I'm sure he knows where we're going."

The fleet, and the island, receded behind them as Sokka's thoughts turned to the future. He had promised Suki he would return, and he intended to keep that promise, but for now there were only two destinations left on their epic north to south adventure. First; the Southern Air Temple, and after that, the Southern Water Tribe.

Home. Sokka was pleased by the thought. He was finally going home.