Brawl 1 Water: Chapter 19; The Siege of the Ocean & Moon; Part 1

It had been two weeks since Aang and his friends had reached the North Pole, and right now Katara was facing Hoshi without Centipod. Both were showing great Waterbending skills, but Katara was better than him. After trapping Hoshi in an ice wall, Pakku said to Katara. "Nice try, Pupil Hoshi. A couple more years, and you might be ready to fight a sea sponge."

"Thanks." Hoshi said before Pakku freed him from the ice wall. Pakku then said to the other students. "Would anyone care for a rematch with Katara?" None of the other students said anything. "I would." Hoshi said getting up and then Centipod said jumping onto his shoulder. "Hoshi, I think that you have faced Katara enough for one day."

"No, I can do more." Hoshi said and then Pakku said to him. "Your Bakugan is right. Take a break, and recover your strength." Pakku then turned to him and Katara and said. "Katara, Hoshi, you two have advanced more quickly than any student I've ever trained. You both have proven that with fierce determination, passion, and hard work, you can accomplish anything. Raw talent alone is not enough…" Pakku said that last part looking at Aang, who was playing with Phaedrus and Momo. Pakku sighed and said to Aang. "Pupil Aang!"

"Yes, Master Pakku?" Aang said as they stopped playing around. Pakku then said to Aang. "Care to step into the sparring circle? I figure since you've found time to play with house pets, and Bakugan, you must have already mastered Waterbending."

"I wouldn't say mastered, but check this out!" Aang said before getting up and wrapping snow around him, making it look like he is a snowman. No one was impressed. Meanwhile Sokka was with Yue and she said to Sokka. "So, they don't have palaces in the Southern Tribe?"

"Are you kidding? I grew up in a block of ice… It's not exactly a cultural hub." Sokka said and Yue laughed, Then she said to him. "Sokka, this is wrong."

"What's wrong? We're taking a walk!"

"I'm engaged. It just feels…"

"I know what you need… You need to meet my good friend Appa."

"Who?" Yue said and they went to the stable that Appa was staying in. "Appa and I go way back, don't we, boy?" Sokka said as they entered the stable. Appa then jumped onto Sokka and started to lick him. As Sokka was trying to get Appa off of him, Yue said to Sokka. "Looks like you haven't been giving enough attention." After Appa let go of Sokka, and cleaned up. He and Yue got onto Appa and Yue said to Sokka. "So, how does this work?"

"Are you hanging on tight?"

"Mm-hmm."

"Yip, yip." Sokka said and then Appa took off. Yue was surprised at first, but was soon amazed with the view. Yue then said to Sokka. "I can't believe you do this every day."

"Yeah, we pretty much live up here."

"Is it always this cold in the sky?"

"Not when you're with someone." Sokka said as they got closer. "It's beautiful up here." Yue said to Sokka and their eyes met. They were going to kiss, but they both stopped themselves before they kissed. They both turned away from one another and then black snow started to fall all across the North Pole, creating a bad omen. "What's happening?" Yue said and Sokka knew what was going on. Sokka landed Appa on the ground and got off. He picked up some of the black snow and said to Yue. "Soot."

"What?"

"I've seen it before… right before my village was attacked. It's soot mixed with snow."

"But why?"

"It's the Fire Nation. They've closed in on the North Pole. And from the looks of this stuff, I'd say there's a lot of them." Sokka said and they quickly returned to the city. As the Fire Nation invasion force was getting very close to the North Pole, Zhao said to Iroh. "This will truly be one for the history books, General Iroh. Just think: centuries from now, people will study the Great Admiral Zhao, who destroyed the last of the Water Tribe Civilization. You're lucky you're here to see it."

"Be careful what you wish for, Admiral. History is not always kind to its subjects."

"I suppose you speak from experience. But, rest assured, this will be nothing like your legendary failure at Ba Sing Se."

"I hope not, for your sake."

"Tell the captains to prepare for first strike." Zhao said and Iroh left him. Iroh meet with Zuko, Alex, and Ryerazu deep inside the command ship. Once they were alone, Iroh said to them. "We'll be landing soon. Do you have a plan?"

"More or less, Master." Alex said as they got ready and Iroh went to talk to captains. Back at the North Pole, the drums of war sounded. So while the civilians were going into their homes, and the leaders were heading to the palace. As Sokka was helping Yue to the palace, but just as they were climbing the steps, Yue stopped. "What's wrong? We have to go!" Sokka said to Yue and Yue said to him. "No, Sokka… Wait. I can't see you anymore… Not at all."

"What? We're just friends."

"I wish we could just be friends… But I like you too much, and it's too confusing to be around you. I'm marrying someone else." Yue said before turning away from Sokka. Sokka then said to Yue. "You don't love him, do you? You don't even seem to like him."

"But I do love my people."

"You're not marrying them!"

"You don't understand. I have duties to my father, to my Tribe. I have to do this. Good-bye." Yue said before running to the palace, leaving a heart broken Sokka. Once everyone was inside the palace, Arnook said to everyone. "The day we have feared for so long has arrived… The Fire Nation is on our doorstep. It is with great sadness I call my family here before me, knowing well that some of these faces are about to vanish from our Tribe… They will never vanish from our hearts. Now, as we approach the battle for our existence, I call upon the Great Spirits… Spirit of the Ocean, Spirit of the Moon, be with us! I'm going to need volunteers for a dangerous mission…"

"Count me in." Sokka said getting up. It worried the others and then Miguel said getting up too. "Don't worry, Eenoch and I will keep him safe."

"Be warned: many of you will not return. Come forward to receive my mark if you accept the task." Arnook said and even after the warning Sokka, Miguel and a few male warriors went to Arnook and received his mark. After Sokka and Miguel received their marks, Sokka and Yue looked at one another with sad looks. "Is something wrong with you and Princess Yue?" Miguel said, but Sokka didn't say anything. Once Miguel followed Sokka, and they were both gone. Yue closed her eyes and started to cry. Because while it was her choice to cut ties, it didn't stop her from feeling sadness for making that choice.

Once the meeting was over, Aang was outside and sitting on an ice pillar, with his friends below him. "The stillness before battle is unbearable. Such a quiet dread." Arnook said as he joined them. Aang then said to Arnook. "I wasn't there when the Fire Nation attacked my people. I'm gonna make a difference this time." Aang got up, and everyone got ready to fight. Soon Aang and his friends minus Sokka and Miguel got ready on the wall to the city, with some soldiers armed, Waterbenders, and Bakugan rolled out. Then the invasion started with a Fire Nation ship firing a fireball at the wall. "Current Reflection! Water Shield! Light Barrier!" Phaedrus, Centipod, and Pyravian said, trying to block the fire ball. It did stop the fire ball, but this wasn't over. The Fire Nation ship kept firing fireballs, and while the Bakugan blocked some, other fire balls started to hit the wall and the city.

"Phaedrus, with me! Yip Yip." Aang said before he took off with Phaedrus and Appa. "Saida, you, Katara, and Pyravian, keep those fireballs from hitting anymore." Hoshi said before Waterbending onto Centipod's head. Saida then said to Hoshi. "Where are you going?"

"I'm going to help Aang." Hoshi said as he and Centipod jumped off the wall and went into the water. In the air, Aang and Phaedrus reached the ship, and they started to fire at them. Aang and Phaedrus used their Airbending and powers to push them out of the way. "We'll take it from here, boy." Aang said as he jumped off Appa and both he and Phaedrus dive bombed onto the ship. On the ship, as Aang dealt with the Fire Nation soldiers and Phaedrus was breaking the catapults, or knocking them them over with her power. It was going well, and after Aang and Phaedrus broke all of the catapults, they got off as the Waterbender trapped the ship in ice. "Look." Phaedrus said to Aang riding her and pointing at Hoshi and Centipod. Phaedrus got close to them and Phaedrus said to Hoshi and Centipod. "Did you see that? We got this."

"It's way too soon to say that." Hoshi said before Aang said. "What do you mean?" Hoshi pointed ahead and they saw more ships. Aang and Phaedrus flew up high and saw that they had some many ships that counting them would be a major waste of time. "You've gotta be kidding me." Aang said before Phaedrus said. "This is going to be a long day." Then they started to attack more ships.

In the city, Arnook was talking to the men going to the mission, which included Sokka, Miguel and Eenoch, in a Water Tribe barracks. "Men, you'll be infiltrating the Fire Nation Navy. That means you'll all need one of these uniforms…" Then the leader of the mission came out with a Fire Nation uniform, but the uniform was different. The uniform had spike soldier shoulder pads and Sokka could hold back his laughter. Everyone looked at Sokka and the leader said. "What's your problem?"

"Fire Navy uniforms don't look like that." Sokka said and then the leader said. "Of course they do. These are real uniforms captured from actual Fire Navy soldiers."

"When, like, 100 years ago?" Sokka said before Arnook said. "85."

"That explains why they are weird, they are seriously out of date." Miguel said before the leader said. "How would you know Hex?"

"Brawler, and we have seen Fire Navy soldiers. And they updated the uniform. Right, Sokka?" Miguel said to Sokka and Sokka said getting close to the leader. "Miguel is right. The Fire Nation doesn't wear shoulder spikes anymore. The newer uniforms are more streamlined."

"How do we know we can trust these guys? One has such bold talk for a new recruit and a Hex." The leader said and Arnook said to him. "Sokka and Miguel are from our sister Tribe, Hahn. They are capable warriors, and I value they're input." Arnook then said to everyone. "Now, our first objective is to determine the identity of their commanding officer."

"It must be Admiral Zhao leading this invasion." Miguel said before Hahn said. "Admiral Zcow?"

"No, Admiral Zhao. Middle-age, big sideburns, bigger temper…" Sokka said before Arnook said to them. "Sokka, Miguel, I want you to tell everything you two know about the Fire Nation to Hahn, he's leading this mission." Arnook then said to Hahn. "Hahn, show Sokka and Miguel your respect. I expect nothing less from my future son-in-law." Arnook then left and Sokka said to Hahn. "Princess Yue's marrying you?"

"Yeah. What of it?"

"Nothing. Congratulations." Sokka said before the warriors started to get ready for their mission.

Back on the battlefield. The Fire Navy did lose many ships, but their sheer numbers made that irrelevant. As for the North Water Tribe, they were doing their best, but even with the home field advantage and the Bakugan on their side, they couldn't stop all the fireballs from hitting the wall and a few buildings in town. As the Fire Navy fleet reached the location of the first ship destroyed in this battle and as the sun started to set, Iroh said to Zhao. "It's almost twilight, Admiral. As your military consultant, I must advise you to halt your attack. The Waterbenders draw their power from the moon, and it is nearly full tonight. You should wait and resume the attack at daybreak."

"Oh, I am well aware of the moon problem. And I'm working on a solution. But for now, daybreak it is." Zhao said and Iroh wondered what plan Zhao was talking about. Zhao then gave the order and all of the ships stopped firing and moving. Once the ships stopped moving, Hoshi said to Aang, as he Waterbend onto Phaedrus and returned Centipod to his ball form. "I think they're done. Let's head back and get some rest."

"Ok." Aang said as Phaedrus flew back to the city. Once they returned to the city, they found Katara, Saida, and Pyravian with Yue. Once they landed close to them, Aang returned Phaedrus to ball form after they got off of her. Then they heard Aang say as he and Hoshi took a seat. "I can't do it. I can't do it…"

"What happened?!" Katara said to Aang and Hoshi said to her. "We must have taken out a dozen Fire Navy ships, but there's just too many of them. We need a new game plan, or we are all going to die."

"I'm sure the Avatar knows what to do." Yue said before Aang said. "I don't have an idea. I can't even fight them all."

"But you have to. You're the Avatar." Yue said before Aang said. "I'm just one kid." Aang then input his head down and Katara consoled him.

That night on the Fire Navy flag ship, Zuko and Alex were now in white arctic clothes and were preparing a small boat. Iroh walked in on them and he said to them. "If you are fishing for an octopus, my nephew, you need a tightly woven net, or he will squeeze through the tiniest hole and escape."

"I don't need your wisdom right now, Uncle." Zuko said then Iroh said to Zuko. "I'm sorry, I just nag you because… Well, ever since I lost my son…"

"Uncle, you don't have to say it."

"I think of you as my own."

"I know, Uncle. We'll meet again…" Zuko said before bowing. Iroh then hugged Zuko. Alex, who was in the boat, felt a pain in his chest and Zuko said to Iroh as he broke the hug. "After I have the Avatar." After Zuko entered the boat, and Alex lowered it, Iroh said to them. "Remember your breath of fire, it could save your lives out there. And put your hood up, keep your ears warm."

"We'll be fine." Alex said before the boat reached the water. They then detached and got away from the flag ship. Iroh looked at them, and was worried necause he didn't know if this would be the last time he saw them.

Back in the Water Tribe barracks, Hahn said to Sokka, as they were sharpening their weapons. "Let me tell you, Sokka, I've courted a lot of girls, but Yue is the finest… And she comes with the most perks."

"Perks?! What does that mean?"

"I mean, Yue's nice and everything, but the points I'll gain with the chief aren't bad either."

"Princess Yue is wasted on a self-absorbed weasel like you!"

"Whoa, hang on! What do you care? You're just a simple rube from the Southern Tribe. What would you know of the political complexities of our life? No offense." Hahn said as he stopped sharpening his weapon. Sokka then attacked Hahn, because he was mad that Hahn was treating him like an idiot, but the main reason was that Yue was going to marry that guy. Sokka then said to Hahn. "You're just a jerk without a soul! No offense!"

"Sokka! Stop!" Miguel said as he pulled Sokka off Hahn. "Yeah, listen to your Hex friend, even if he had the brain the size of an ice cube." Sokka then looked at Miguel and then Miguel let go of Sokka, who then attacked Hahn again. "That's enough!" Arnook said as he entered the barracks and pulled Sokka and Hahn away. Arnook then said to Sokka and Miguel. "Sokka, Miguel, you're off the mission." Then Hahn said to everyone. "All right, fall in, men! Everybody listen to what I say, and we'll take out Admiral Cho in no time!"

"It's Admiral Zhao!" Sokka said as Hahn and everyone left.

Back outside, Zuko and Alex had successfully sneaked to an area close to the wall. The wall was heavily guarded, so they had to find another way inside. Zuko noticed a pack of sea lion turtles entering a hole close to the wall and it was flooded. Zuko had a feeling that they had to come up for sir somewhere, so he made the choice to follow them. Alex shortly followed Zuko, hoping this was a good idea.

Back at the palace, everyone had gained some rest and Saida said to Yue. "Princess Yue? Do you know why the Fire Navy stopped their attack? They were winning that battle."

"It's because of the moon." Yue said before Hoshi said. "The moon?"

"The legends say the moon was the first Waterbender. Our ancestors saw how it pushed and pulled the tides, and learned how to do it themselves. Our strength comes from the spirit of the moon, our life comes from the spirit of the ocean. They work together to keep balance." Yue said before Katara said. "I've always noticed my Waterbending is stronger at night."

"And that means a night with a full moon, or nearly full like tonight, makes Waterbenders very strong." Saida said and then Hoshi said. "Well that was a nice lore drop on Waterbenders history. I don't think the Moon and Ocean Spirits are going to help us stop the Fire Navy."

"Hoshi, that's it!" Aang said spring to life. Hoshi then said to Aang. "What's it?"

"Maybe I can find the Moon and Ocean Spirits and get their help." Aang said and then Yue said. "How can you do that?"

"The Avatar is the bridge between all of our worlds. Aang can talk to the Moon and Ocean Spirits." Phaedrus said to Yue. Yue then said to Aang. "Maybe they'll give you the wisdom to win this battle."

"Or maybe they'll unleash a crazy-amazing spirit attack on the Fire Nation!" Aang said excitedly and everyone looked at him. Aang calmed down and said. "Or wisdom, that's good, too."

"The only problem is, the last time you got to the spirit world by accident. How are you going to get there this time?" Katara said to Aang. Then Saida said. "I have a theory, when Aang followed Hei Bai and talked to Avatar Roku, he went to a spot where spirit energy was entering this world."

"So if we want Aang to enter the spirit world, we need a spot that has spirit energy." Hoshi said before Yue said. "I know a spot. Follow me." They then followed Yue to the back of the palace. At the back of the palace was a wooden door, and Aang said to Yue. "So, is this the way to the spirit world?"

"Ha ha ha. No. You'll have to get there on your own. But I can take you to one of the most spiritual places in the entire North Pole." Yue said before opening the door. Everyone was surprised to see what was behind the door. The area was warm, it had a grassy island with trees, a Water Tribe gate, a waterfall, and a pond in the center. Aang ran to the island and said to everyone. "I never thought I'd miss grass this much!"

"It's so warm here! How is that possible?" Katara said as they reached the island. As everyone took off their coats, Yue said to them. "Water from the center of the North Pole, which is the center of all spiritual energy in our lands, comes here and fills this place with a lot of energy."

"Wait, if the center North Pole is the most spiritual place in the North Pole, then why do we go there?" Saida said and then Yue said. "This time of year, there are constant snow storms above us. Traveling to the center would be all too dangerous."

"Ok, then this will do." Hoshi said before he noticed that Centipod wasn't active, nor was Pyravian. "Are you guys ok?" Hoshi said to them and Centipod said. "I don't know why, but this area makes me feel weird."

"Yeah, it's like the moment we go big we'll get some much energy, we'll shrink back to ball form." Pyravian said before Phaedrus said. "Really? I don't feel that at all." Then they noticed that Momo was trying to take out one of two koi fish that were swimming around one another, one black with a white spot on its head and a white one with a black spot on its head. The girls stopped him and Aang said to Yue. "You're right, Yue. I can feel… something. It's so… tranquil." Aang said as he took a seat and started to meditate between the Water Tribe gate. Phaedrus landed on Aang's head and started to meditate with him.

Back with Zuko and Alex, they had reached the den for the sea lion turtles, and after they recovered from the ice cold water. Zuko found a stream and started to climb through it. Alex sighted before following Zuko. The steam led them to another air pocket, and after each of them took a breath and Zuko found a way forward, they started to swim again. The path they found had a thin piece of ice, and just as they were about to run out of air. Zuko and Alex used their Firebender to melt the ice and broke through. Zuko and Alex were inside the city and in a storm drain. Zuko and Alex choose to recover some of their strength before hunting for Aang.

Back at the barracks, as Sokka was sharpening his boomerang, Miguel said to him. "Sokka I know you aren't happy to be off the mission, but let's go find Hoshi and the others."

"No." Sokka said and before Miguel could say anything, Arnook walked in and said to Sokka. "Is something wrong, Sokka?"

"Oh, no. Hahn's out there on the top-secret mission, while I'm here sharpening my boomerang. Everything is fine." Sokka said before walking away. Miguel then said to Arnook. "Uh, Chief? I got to ask. This Hahn guy, sounds like someone that treats Yue like a prize not a person. Why would you allow him to marry your daughter?"

"Tradition is that if the first born of the Water Tribe Chieftain is a daughter, she must marry a strong warrior, proven by a winning a torment. And Hahn won that torment." Arnook said to Miguel. Then Arnook said to Sokka. "Listen to me. I took you off the mission for selfish reasons… I have a special task in mind for you."
"What, you want me to scrub the barracks?"

"I want you to guard my daughter… Princess Yue." Arnook said and that surprised them both. Eenoch then said to him. "Don't you have guards for that?"

"My guards have to guard my wife and my young son. Plus I know you will keep Yue safe, Sokka." Arnook said and Sokka agreed. Arnook then left the barracks, and soon Sokka and Miguel left too. "Come on, Yue should be with the others in the palace." Miguel said to Sokka, but they didn't know that they had walked past Zuko and Alex, who were hiding. Zuko and Alex knocked Sokka and Miguel out, and trapped Eenoch in a bag, then threw them in a alleyway. Zuko and Alex then sneaked their way to the palace.

Back at the island, Aang was trying to enter the spirit world, and Yue said to the others. "Why is he sitting like that?"

"He's meditating… trying to cross over into the spirit world." Katara said before Saida said. "But Aang has never entered the spirit world on his own."

"Is there any way we can help?" Yue said before Aang said. "How about some quiet?! Come on, guys, I can hear every word you're saying." Aang then noticed the koi fish. Something about them was mesmerizing to him and Phaedrus. And the moment they saw that the koi fish had turned into the Yin Yang symbol, Aang and Phaedrus spirits were transported to the spirit world. As their eyes and Aang's tattoos started to glow, Yue said to everyone. "Are they ok?"

"They're crossing into the spirit world. They'll be fine as long as we don't move their bodies. That's his way back to the physical world." Katara said to Yue just as Zuko and found them. "Maybe we should get some help?" Yue said to the others, as Zuko and Alex got close. Katara then said to Yue. "No. He's my friend. I'm perfectly capable of protecting him."

"So can I." Hoshi said before Alex said. "Did you heard that Zuko? They think they're big and powerful now." Everyone turned to them and Zuko said to them. "Hand him over and I won't have to hurt you." Then as Saida and Pyravian got Yue to safety, Katara faced Zuko and Hoshi faced Alex.

Zuko and Alex fired fireballs at them. Katara and Hoshi quickly countered by making a wall of water. Hoshi then made a wave and fired it at Zuko and Alex. Zuko and Alex dodged the wave, but they didn't know that Katara rode that wave. Once she was behind them, she started to shoot icicles at them. Zuko and Alex turned around and fired fireballs at Katara's icicles. But because they turned around, Hoshi was able to water tentacles and grabbed their back legs. Hoshi then pulled the tentacles and knocked Zuko and Alex down. Katara then trapped them in an ice dome.

"Looks like they found a master." Alex said as they both got up. "I didn't come this far to lose." Zuko said before he used his Firebending to break free from the ice, and then they fought one another again. Zuko and Alex separated and attacked Katara and Hoshi. Zuko and Alex tried so hard, but with the moon giving them more power and that they were now properly trained, Zuko and Alex were no match for them. So Alex used most of his fire to fire a stream of fire at them. As Katara and Hoshi blocked those streams, Zuko made a play to grab Aang. Katara and Hoshi saw that play, so together they made a wave to hit Alex. Alex was knocked down again, and then he and Zuko were hit by a water stream by Katara and Hoshi. Their attack forced Zuko and Alex into the water. Then Hoshi made a big wave that got a hold on them and Katara froze that wave. Zuko and Alex were now trapped in ice and while they were still alive, they didn't have the strength to break free from the ice.

Katara and Hoshi then turned away from Zuko and Alex and walked to Aang and Phaedrus. It was just then that the sun started to rise. With the heat from the sun, Zuko and Alex gained enough strength to break free from the ice. Katara and Hoshi heard them breaking the ice and turned around. But before Katara or Hoshi could do anything, Zuko and Alex attacked them with such fury that all they could do was block their fire. Then after a powerful blast hit Katara and Hoshi, they were sent them flying. Katara and Hoshi then hit their heads on the poles from the Water Tribe Gate. "You rise with the moon, I rise with the sun." Zuko said as he grabbed Aang and Alex grabbed Phaedrus. Then Katara and Hoshi lost consciousness.

The battle for the Avatar may have been over, but the invasion wasn't over. "It's daybreak at last. Let's write history." Zhao said before he commanded his ship to attack again. Zhao forward ships ramped into the wall, breaking the wall and sending Fire Nation ground forces inside. "The Water Tribe can try to resist the inevitable, but their city will fall today." Zhao said, know that his secret plan would give him victory.

Back at the island, Sokka and Miguel, who both recovered from their attack, appeared with Yue, Saida, and Appa. As Saida checked on them, Katara and Hoshi started to wake up. "What happened?! Where's Zuko and Alex?!" Sokka said to them. Katara then said to them. "They took Aang and Phaedrus…"

"Where did they go?" Sokka said and unknown to them, Zuko and Alex used Ryerazu, who was able to reach the top of the waterfall with Zuko, Alex, Aang, and Phaedrus before the energy of the pond forced him into ball form, and now they were traveling above them. The plan was go around the city and avoided capture, but a snow storm caused them to get lost and know who knows where they are going.

And done, sorry for the long post, but I was out of my home country for a while, and am starting a new job. I am still going to do my Fanfiction, but it will just take longer, so please be patient and don't ask me to post soon. I'll post them when they are ready. See you next time.