= Toph and Meira =
12:40 PM
Toph felt...leathery hands gripping her face.
"AAAH!" Toph screamed.
Her face was lifted up, its hands grasping it as she began to hover off the floor, her neck being pulled from her weight.
"AAAH!" she screamed again, the feeling of these hands coming from this confusing anomaly that actually surprised her. So much so, that she dropped the metal dagger in her hand in shock. She didn't know what this thing was, but it had her in its grip, lifting her off the ground as she tried to pry the hands off of her head.
With Toph away from the ground, she felt like she was truly blind at this point...
And the truly horrifying part...was that she didn't even know what was attacking her.
"TOPH!" she heard Meira yell out.
The woman acted. With her crude metal sword in her right hand, she went forward, maneuvering around the lifted Toph and thrusting the sword onto the creature's top body, right in the thing's supposed chest.
Thankfully it was sharp enough to cut through the skin, the sword piercing its flesh. Blood was pouring out of the monster, as it let out a muffled cry of agony. Its grip on Toph lessened, letting both of its hands lose their strength. Toph pried the monster's hands off her head, which it soon released after being stabbed.
"ACK!" Toph landed on her butt and scooted back away from the bed monster.
The muffled yells of pain rang through the air, as Meira pulled the blade back away from the creature, getting away from its flailing arms after her attack. Meira, with the candle holder in her left hand and the sword in her other, turned to Toph and went over to her.
"Kid, are you okay!?" Meira said to her, worried for the girl. She also looked back to see if the bed monster (she might as well call it the Bed Bug) was going to do anything.
Toph breathed heavily in shock. "Y-Yeah! Wh-Where's my dagger!?"
Meira looked back at the dagger that was a little ways away from them and close to the Bed Bug.
"Near the creature! But we should just go, come on!" Meira told her.
"No! It's a gift!" Toph exclaimed as she got on her knees and crawled around Meira to get her metal dagger.
"K-Kid! Toph!" Meira exclaimed back at her.
But Toph kept going and reached for the dagger, grabbing it by the handle. However, when she was close to the Bed Bug...
...it grabbed the top of her skull with its large webbed hands!
"AAAH!" Toph then thrust the blade upward to the arm of the Bed Bug, the blade striking something as she heard blade on flesh.
STAB!
The Bed Bug yelled out in muffled pain and released its grip on Toph's head. The blind earthbender scooted back on the floor again and got up on her feet and away from the Bed Bug, which she told Meira, "Okay! Come on!"
Meira, glad that the girl was okay, followed suit as she got up as well and ran out of the room with Toph. They kept hearing the Bed Bug hollering in muffled agony.
As they escaped the room, Toph closed the door to the room, just so the creature wouldn't somehow escape. They ran straight down the hall they were on, away from the monster. They passed the hall they went through and soon went up to another door. Toph opened the door and once they both entered the hall, she closed the door on them again.
They both took some heaving breaths, letting the adrenaline go away from their systems.
After they calmed themselves down, Toph shuddered at the thought of that weird and gross feeling of those hands grabbing her face.
Meira, after recovering from that, turned to Toph and asked her, "You alright, Kid?"
Toph sighed, "Yeah...it was just...different, is all. I mean, what was that? A...A Spirit?"
"I don't know of any Spirit looking like a bed..." Meira muttered, and couldn't help but think about...her experiences...
The little blind girl turned her attention to the young woman, sensing her posture, her heartbeat, and her breathing...
"...Question: Do you have something against beds?" Toph asked right out.
Meira looked at Toph with a surprised blink. "What?"
"I sensed you being a little...uneasy around the bed that we encountered...which turned out to be some kind of monster instead," Toph explained, "Even then, whenever you said bed, it sounded kind of...disdainful?"
"..." Meira sighed, "You really are an interesting girl, Kid."
Toph shrugged, "I'm just good with sensing emotions...literally."
Chuckling at that, Meira just said, "Well...I guess you can't tell by how I look, but..." she hesitated, not knowing if she could tell this girl about what she does for a living...but seeing that this girl might be mature enough to know what's what, maybe she can tell her. She'll be subtle though, just in case. "...I'm in a business where I make guys...happy, I'll just say."
Toph blinked at that, "Oh...so you're a prostitute?"
...Wow, this kid is really well-educated.
"...Yeah..." Meira admitted, looking down at the floor in shame.
"...So...you do these...things to guys, but you really don't want to? Just so you can get paid?" Toph asked her in morbid curiosity.
"...It's not a proud profession, I admit...but it feels like that's all I can do..." Meira muttered.
"...You mean...you haven't like...had any dreams of growing up to be...someone?" Toph asked, hoping she was not stepping on eggshells.
Meira chuckled, "I wasn't a very smart kid back then. I wasn't good at anything, really..." she frowned, "...You must have parents who...who really cared...they gave you an education, even though you're blind...I wish I had that..." she shook her head, and muttered, "So, yeah, I wasn't really good at anything."
Toph stood there, sightless eyes 'looking' at Meira.
My...parents...
"...You know, it's okay if you want to like...talk about stuff. Just to get it off your chest," Toph reassured her.
Meira stood silent...until she chuckled and said, "You really want to listen to a hooker's problems?"
"Hey, just so you know, I lived in a mansion where I sensed some servants making out in a closet. I think they went further than that, I don't know...and I don't think I want to, but I never told my folks about it. So if it's something sex-related, I won't be grossed out or anything."
Turning her head to the little girl, Meira looked at her, almost as if she was wondering if Toph would judge her on some of the stuff she was about to say...
Toph sighed, "Believe me, I fight underground earthbending battles. My folks...don't know too much about that."
Once again, lie so you won't have to talk about your friends, and she won't ask too many questions about them.
Blinking at that, Meira just stared at her, "...You know, I really wish you were my younger sister in another life."
Smirking at that, Toph said, "I appreciate that," she stood there for a moment, "But seriously, I feel like I...well, 'seen' it all at this point, so no need to hold back or anything."
"...I'll hold you up to that," Meira said with a smirk.
So with that, they decided to walk down the hall to try and find their way out...
As they walked, Toph began to 'see' that...no one was inside this inn…
In fact...everything around them felt...
Meira said that it was dark outside...but...the surroundings around here...they all feel...empty? Like...there's no defined outline of the area, just...it's all...solid? Like we're...trapped in a huge building?
Once they went to an intersection of the hall, there being a left hall, a right hall, and the hall forward, they stopped to observe their options.
Meira looked at the paths ahead of them and commented, "Wow. How big is this inn? It feels like a maze."
"...Yeah..." Toph narrowed her eyes to think. "...Meira. Something's not right."
"Huh? What do you mean?" Meira asked her, a little confused. "I mean, from that bed monster we saw, yeah, something doesn't seem to be right with that at all, but...why? Do you sense something?"
"...This whole place...it feels...massive..."
Meira blinked, "Massive?"
"Yeah, like...this has to be one huge inn..." Toph 'looked' around the paths laid out in front of them and pounded her foot to the floor to see if she could see where they were.
...Toph's eyes widened.
"...Okay, something is definitely not right," she said.
"What...do you sense?" Meira asked her warily.
"...It felt like...some of the paths...changed?" Toph said puzzled.
"The paths changed?" Meira's eyes widened in shock, "What...How does that work? What kind of place are we if that's the case?"
"...I don't know. But we need to pick a path..." Toph 'looked' ahead at the front path and she pointed at it, "Let's just try going forward."
"Uh...okay..." Meira said, a little worried about the discovery that this blind girl made.
So they walked forward...passing room doors...doors that they hoped weren't open or had anyone inside of them if anything were to come out of the rooms to try and attack them for whatever reason...
...They kept walking...and walking...and walking...with Meira holding onto the candle holder with the lit candle on it, and Toph just guiding her through with her seismic senses...
...It was then they walked for about three minutes...
...And gotten a little tired of walking.
Toph stopped and sighed exasperatedly and sat on the floor. "Okay. This is obviously getting us nowhere."
Meira looked behind her and turned back to look forward, the light from the candle illuminating the halls from each path forward and back.
"Um...yeah. You might be right...this place feels like a maze...well, actually, we're just walking straight at this point, but it does feel like...yeah, it feels like we should be in something way larger than an inn."
"Exactly," Toph nodded and sighed. "Man, I wish I could bend wood..."
Meira looked at the little girl sitting on the floor and wondered what she could possibly do to lighten up this situation.
She decided to take a seat next to the blind earthbender.
"Hm?" Toph turned her head to Meira.
The woman placed the candle holder next to her as she sat.
"...Well, maybe if we just sit here for a while to rest, we could go back to the way we came and pick a different path?" Meira suggested.
"...Eh, sure, why not?" Toph shrugged.
Meira nodded with a soft smile.
They sat there for a while...
...Until Meira asked her, "So, you said that piece of metal was a gift?"
"Oh. Yeah, one of my friends who came with us. It's just some guy," Toph gently caressed the metal dagger.
"Oooh, really?" Meira smirked.
"Calm down, he's older than me, and he already has a girlfriend..." Toph frowned, "I really hope they're okay...as well as my other friends."
Raising an eyebrow, Meira asked her, "How many people came with you?"
"...Around six more. Seven, including me."
"Wow. You guys must be thinking of throwing a party or something here."
Toph snickered, "Yeah, you can say that."
"Hm...but yeah, I...kind of hope my, um...friends are okay too," Meira said, "...Well still, that's a nice gift."
"Thanks..."
...Meira also said, "Do you happen to like any guys back at home?"
Toph just sat there, "...I don't know. Not back at my home at least. I mean...the friend that gave me this, his name being Sokka, I had a crush on one time, but...kind of grew out of it."
"Kind of?"
"Well, yeah. I'm not gonna be some lovesick puppy. Besides, he has his girlfriend, Suki, and he's happy with her, so I'm good with that."
"...Wow. That's...mature."
"I grew up pretty fast back at my home..." Toph 'glanced' at the floor, "...Speaking of home, when you said I must have great parents...I...I do."
Meira raised an eyebrow at that comment. "...Is there going to be a 'but', or...?"
"...I mean...well, I mean it. They're great parents...parents that I probably disappoint," Toph said with a frown.
"Disappoint? Why would they be disappointed in a talented young girl like you? Especially a blind girl?"
"...It's...It's a long story..."
"Well, we are trying to rest, so I think we got all the time in the world."
"...They...They shelter me. All because I was blind since I was born. They're afraid that I'll hurt myself accidentally, or I'll break like a fragile flower or something. Hence why I want to get out and just...do things. Like sneak out and participate in an Earth Rumble match, or just hang out with badgermoles, or...you know, be free..."
"...Oh..." Meira looked down at the floor as well, "...Well, at least you have parents that...cared..." she muttered, "...and didn't do things to you," she said in a low and quiet tone.
Toph turned her head to 'look' at Meira, "Do things to you?"
Meira turned her head at Toph with wide eyes and mouth agape, "I...you weren't supposed to hear that."
"...What...What did your parents do to you?" Toph asked her in morbid curiosity.
"..." Meira looked away and winced, "...I...I never knew my mother...so...I just have my...my father around..."
...Toph can sense the disgust in her voice when she says her father...
"...It was tough...living with that man...he would...whenever he...when he was...bored..." Meira cringed and grunted, shaking her head.
...Toph then realized what she had to deal with.
Her sightless eyes widened and her mouth was partly open.
"...He didn't like...a-abuse you or anything...did he?" Toph asked, not wanting to say the dreaded word before 'abuse'.
"...Just know that even though your parents sheltered you...be very happy they aren't like my father," Meira puts it lightly.
"...How...How did you escape him?"
"...I just ran away...not looking back...I went to the next town in the Fire Nation, and then, my pimp basically got me working at a betrothal, and...the rest is history."
"...I'm really sorry to hear that happen to you..."
"..." Meira looked at Toph and smiled sadly, "Thanks...it's nice to know someone cares."
...They sat there for a while...
"...So," Meira began, "I think that's enough depressing talk for one day. How about we talk about something else? Like..." she smirked at Toph, "What's your taste in boys?"
"...You really want to talk about that? After what you explained to me?"
"Hey, even though I wanted a change of pace, there were some guys who were good to me...paid me well too."
"..." Toph 'looked' down at her lap, "...I don't really know. I guess...well, I guess he has to make me laugh, I suppose. Maybe a little dorky...soft...someone I can argue with...but someone who can be 'wowed' by me" she smiled, "...he has to be an earthbender too..."
"Is the guy you had a crush on, Sokka, an earthbender?"
"Pfft. Nah, he's Water Tribe. Not even a bender...there is one guy in our group though..."
Meira now looked interested, "Oh? Really? Who's he?"
"...I mean...he's kind of stuck on this one girl, but...he's basically the reason why I decided to free myself from my parents' sheltered lifestyle...he's...yeah, he's a very good friend...his name is Aang..."
Meira smirked, "Sounds like you like him."
"Pfft! Nah. I mean, I do like him, but...I mean, again, he's stuck on this girl, and they're kind of together, so...I mean, he's not interested in me in that way, and I...well, maybe I did have some kind of attraction to him, but he was so hooked on this girl, that...I just let him have it."
Meira then frowned at that, "You mean, you didn't like...tell him how you feel?"
"Nope. Not even to Sokka," Toph said, "With Aang, I just...well, he was really into my other friend, an older gal named Katara. She's also Sokka's younger sister. Either way, I just didn't want to be in the way of Aang and Katara's relationship...besides, I guess I'm not really pretty or anything, or they just don't want a blind girlfriend or anything."
Meira blinked, "Kid, I'm being one hundred percent honest, but you are a strikingly beautiful young girl."
Toph froze and had a little blush on her face. "Um...okay...thanks..."
"I mean it."
"I know, I just...'strikingly'? Really?"
"Absolutely. And your hair is so long, it frames your whole body nicely. Speaking of, I see your chest is developing."
Toph sat up straight, now blushing tenfold, "Whoa, okay, let's not go that far!"
Meira chuckled, "Well, just to let you know, my breasts weren't developed when I was fifteen. Late bloomer. How old are you?"
"Uh...I turned thirteen around four months ago."
"Wow, very early bloomer. Something about you Earth Kingdom girls..."
Toph made a face at Meira, "What about us?"
Now Meira laughed, "Hahaha! Don't worry, it's a good compliment!"
"...Katara's chest is like mine, and she's like two years older than me."
"Heh, nice. You seem to like older guys, don't you?"
"Huh? Oh, well, uh, Aang is..."
Well, technically, Aang is 113, but I won't tell her that.
"...Well, yeah. I mean, Aang is like thirteen. He was twelve when I met him."
"Ah..." Meira thought about something, "...So, wait, is Katara like...fifteen?"
"Oh, yeah...a little age gap there, but...they're...making it work..." Now Toph looked thoughtful, "...You know, I think Katara might like someone else."
"Really?" Meira raised an eyebrow, "Do tell. Is it someone you know?"
"Oh yeah, he's...well, he lives in the Fire Nation."
"Oh wow. ...Wait a minute, then that means...Katara is a Water Tribe girl that likes a Fire Nation guy?"
"Um...I mean, I guess," Toph shrugged, "Why? Is that strange?"
"Well, we never have too many interracial relationships in the Fire Nation...at least, from when I was...out and around town. Ever since Ozai's rule, we weren't supposed to go to the other nations, so we all stayed here, basically isolated."
"Oh...wow...that, uh, that sucks."
"Yeah...so how did you guys meet each other?"
"...Um...I...it's kind of a...um, destiny...thing...?" Toph said almost nervously, a little cornered.
Meira blinked. "A...destiny thing?"
"...I-I don't know, the uncle of the guy that Katara likes says stuff like this."
"Um...okay..." Meira looked at Toph a little oddly, "Well, it seems you don't want to tell me how you all met...so...I'll respect that."
"Wait, really?" Toph turned her head to Meira in surprise. "You will?"
"Yeah. I mean...my situation, as well as my, uh, friends, weren't the most ideal, so...yeah, I guess it's fine that...I won't tell you how me and my friends met? As well as how we got here?"
"Uh...okay, sure."
Meira nodded with a smile. "So, Katara is dating a younger guy. A guy you like?"
"Okay, look, I don't know for certain if I actually like the guy. I mean, I admire him, but that's all. He's just my friend...and yeah, she's dating a thirteen-year-old...although, I think she might like my other friend, the Fire Nation guy...however, again, she's...in a relationship with Aang."
"Wait, so...Katara is in a relationship with Aang, but...she doesn't want to be? Is that what I'm getting?"
"...I mean, maybe...she's...kind of in a tough spot, I...would think." Toph 'glanced' at the floor.
"...Is Aang aware of Katara's...crush on this guy?"
"...Yeah..." Toph pushed back a lock of hair behind her ear, "I mean, he sees the signs a bit...I talked to him about it one time, and I don't really know if Katara will like...ever advance on the guy I mentioned and cheat on Aang or anything, but..."
"...You know, you never said the other guy's name. What is his name?"
"...Um, Lee."
"Lee? Hm. Sounds like an Earth Kingdom name."
"Uh, he's half...Earth and half Fire. He's a firebender, though."
"Ah, okay...hmm...well, if you ask me, even though you said you move on from those two guys, I feel like you should at least confess to one of them that you like them."
"Hm?" Toph turned her head to Meira.
"I mean, holding back your emotions and feelings for someone would just make things a lot harder for you to move on, and it kind of lets everyone suffer a bit, I would think. You should try to at least confess to one of them."
"...I...I mean, look, I..." Toph sighed, "...I don't know what they'll say. I know I'll be rejected, but..."
"Well, hey, if they don't somehow return your feelings, then that's their loss. I think you're a pretty cool and cute gal, and it seems you have a lot of independence for a blind girl, so I would think any guy would be happy to have ya."
"...Wow...thanks..." Toph smiled up at her, "Thanks, Meira."
"No problem, Kid," Meira smiled back,
Toph nodded with a smile back, but then she smirked, "Okay, now you got my preferences in boys out of the way, what kind of guy do you like?"
"...I mean, if you want the short answer...just someone that...that knows me, I guess...and maybe fight for me...I don't really care what they look like, just...someone who's there for me...and will cherish me..."
Looking thoughtful about that, Toph stayed silent. "...Yeah...that's the kind of guy every woman should have."
"Mmm..." Meira hummed in agreement.
...They sat there for a while...
"...Well, ready to head back to where we were?" Meira asked Toph.
Toph shrugged, "Yeah, I guess-"
THUNK!
...The two young women froze.
Toph got up first and stomped her foot on the floor. Meira got up cautiously, grabbing the candle holder in her left hand again.
...It was silent...
THUNK!
"...There's...something ahead..." Toph spoke slowly, her tone wary, "...Something that wasn't here before."
"What?" Meira turned to Toph, "What do you mean?"
"...Follow me and stay close," Toph told her.
THUNK!
The sound kept going.
Curious about what she meant by that statement back there, but doing what she said either way, Meira got close to Toph as she led the way.
They went forward...
THUNK!
...They were getting closer to the sound.
THUNK!
...It kept going methodically
Soon...they reached the end of the hallway...
THUNK!
At the end, was another door...not like the ordinary-looking doors that lined the walls to the left and right.
The door looked...somewhat regal...like it belonged to either a nice establishment, such as a hotel room, or a...noble's home...
...They stood there in front of the door.
...The sound wasn't being emitted anymore...it was all silent.
"...This...wasn't here before," Toph said, her tone sounding a little...uneasy.
Meira stared at the door...looking at the intricate designs of it...
...Something about that door...looks...familiar...
"...Should we...try to open it?" she asked, the hesitation apparent in her voice.
THUNK!
Startled by the sound, Meira and Toph stood guarded as they prepared themselves for whatever could come out of the room.
...Silence...
...Toph stomped her foot again.
"...There's someone there...behind the door," she stated.
Meira looked at the door once more...
...Why does this door look…
...
...Wait.
...Meira knows exactly what this door is...where it was...where it leads...
Who it belongs to.
"...Hey...your heartbeat is going up," said Toph, "Are you okay?"
"...Toph. Stay there. I'll check the door," Meira told her.
Confused by her attitude, but lets her walk around her, Toph stands in her spot to hear and 'observe' what Meira will do.
The woman stopped in front of the door...just staring at it...
...It...It can't be...
...
THUNK!
She gasped, startled.
Toph got her metal dagger ready.
Meira, meanwhile, stands a little grounded.
She decided she couldn't open the sliding door with the stuff she had in her hands, so she placed the candle holder on the floor next to her. Now having the crude metal sword in her right hand, she reached for the door handle with her left to grab it.
...She let go of it for a moment.
...Staring at the door in slight dread, Meira stands there...
...
...
THUNK THUNK THUNK THUNK THUNK THUNK!
Meira flinched back at the rapid and loud sound.
Toph was starting to get a little antsy...
The door stood there in place...
...
...
...It was until she heard a voice, deep and low.
Bleed for me.
Meira froze upon hearing that voice.
Bleed...for me.
"...Toph? We...We should go."
"Huh?" Toph uttered, "What happened?"
"I...y-you didn't hear that?" Meira asked, turning her head slightly at the girl.
"Hear...what?"
CLICK!
Toph straightened up at the sound, while Meira turned her attention to the door again.
...The door slid open...slowly.
Bleed...
The voice sounded a lot clearer...
Meira could hear it...and so did Toph.
The door kept sliding ever so slowly...
...for...
...Then the door stopped sliding, just for it to have a slim opening, wide enough for someone to squeeze through.
...Then a large meaty hand grasped the edge of the sliding door, the light from the candle shining on what was being shown of the hand. It looked like its fingers were...encrusted with metal rings.
…ME!
Toph, while disturbed by what was happening, got into a battle stance either way, waiting for what was about to come out.
Meira though...stood petrified.
The door then opened harshly, revealing...
...A huge, monstrous, and obese-looking monster!
The monster, while obese, looked like a large man, tall enough to be six feet tall. It was strong-looking in its own way, having thick arms but an overly fat belly and sagging man breasts. It was wearing just a loincloth, which the cloth was long, surrounding its waist and the upper part of its thighs. Its legs were also thick-looking, making his whole appearance look like a huge morbid baby. The monster also had other features that Meira was quick to note.
Its face...wasn't a face at all. It was just a faceless canvas that looked like it had stab marks on its entire face, each looking like they were caked with dry blood. In fact, its whole head looked to have been wrapped up and covered up by some kind of...flesh bag. The monster's neck was tied by some barbwire, making it look like the flesh bag was on his head to suffocate the monster by tying the barbwire around its neck. The wounds from the barbwire pierced its neck, letting the blood seep down from his collar and onto his flabby chest. Lastly, its hands were wearing certain accessories onto them. The right hand had hard metal rings wrapped around its fingers, while its left hand had some kind of metal spiked brass knuckles on its fingers and knuckles.
Meira just looked at the monster with wide horrified eyes.
It was then Toph shouted out to Meira.
"MEIRA!"
Toph grabbed the older woman's hand and dragged her away from the monster.
They ran. Far away from it. They left the candle on the floor, whereas Toph and Meira were soon drowned in the darkness of the hall as they ran.
Toph didn't know what kind of beast they encountered, but it was enough to make Meira stop dead in her tracks. And she couldn't bend anything in her environment, everything being made of wood. She could only bend the metal that was in her hand, the makeshift dagger.
She could hear the somewhat gargled moans from behind them, and the heavy footsteps that were coming to them in the narrow hallway.
They kept running away from this monster...
...until Toph briefly stopped, making Meira stop as well.
"Wh-What!?" Meira exclaimed in confusion, the feeling of fear in her tone as they stood in the dark.
"...The path changed," Toph breathed out in shock, almost as if she couldn't believe it herself.
"What!?" Meira exclaimed again.
"H-Hold on, maybe these doors to these rooms are...I don't know, maybe they lead somewhere!" Toph said, now getting a little frantic.
"A-Are you sure we can't go straight!?"
"There's just a wall here now!"
"A wall!?"
"Yeah! Just trust me, I don't know what the hell is going on with this place!"
The girls heard the monster man moan louder, and thanks to Toph's seismic senses and hearing, she felt that the man was rushing over to where they were.
Toph had to know where they needed to go, now.
"Try the room to your right!" Toph told Meira. "We can confuse it!"
"Uh, r-right!" Meira agreed, letting go of Toph's hand and going over to the room door to her right. When she placed her hands frantically on the door in the dark, she found the handle and slid it open.
Toph also went to her left to a room door, and thankfully, when she grabbed the handle, it was open.
They both went inside the rooms, closing the doors behind them.
= Meira =
Inside the room, conveniently enough, was a lit candle on the bedside next to the normal-looking bed, much to Meira's relief. She didn't want to face a Bed Bug anytime soon. And call it a small blessing, since she has some light here in this room, no matter how it happened or who might've lit it.
She quickly surveyed the room, seeing that it was just an ordinary room for an inn, but soon saw that there was a closet to her right.
Deciding that hiding in the closet was an option, she ran over to it, opened the door, and closed it behind her as she entered the space.
She could see the outside of the closet thanks to the door's multiple shutter openings on it. Gripping her crude metal sword and breathing frantically, she now had to play the waiting game...
"Huff, huff, huff." Meira breathed deeply, "Oh man...I hope Toph will be okay..."
...She waited...
...and waited...
...and waited...
...She really hoped that...that thing didn't decide to go after Toph...
...Then, the door to the room slid open.
Meira held her breath.
...The monster from before came into the room.
She could see the grotesque thing through the shutter openings of the closet door. It walked forward into the room, trying to find whoever it was trying to find...
It turned its head to 'see' around the room...it directed its 'gaze' to the bed. Taking short waddling steps, it approached the bed...reaching out to the sheets, it roughly grabbed them and tossed them aside, probably seeing if anyone was behind the covers. Groaning through the bag on its head, it then started to get really aggressive, now grabbing the whole mattress, picking it up, and tossing it to the other side of the room.
...It turned its head to the closet Meira was in.
Meira's heart was pounding...
...The monster began to walk over to the closet.
Shit!
Meira grasped her sword, took a deep breath, and got ready...
When it came close...
She quickly opened the closet door and rushed out of it, giving out a battle cry with the sword's blade pointing at the monster, striking and puncturing it in its belly!
The monster (Meira decided to call it the Fat Man) gave out a muffled and pained cry through the sack on its head. Meira plunged the sword into the belly of the beast, making it lodged in there, the blood seeping and pouring out of the wound. When she felt like that was good enough, she tried to get the sword out of the Fat Man, but it proved difficult. What's even worse, the Fat Man, in its anger, was about to strike Meira with a left hook, but she ducked just in time and rolled out of the way from the monster.
She got up quickly and exited the room, while the Fat Man let out angry and pained yells. Once Meira ran out of the room, she went to the room door where Toph went in. She tried to open the door...but it wouldn't budge.
"What!?" Meira exclaimed. She pounded on the door, "Toph!? Kid, are you in there!?"
Then, a cry of pure rage came from behind her.
Turning around quickly from what little light she saw, which was back in the room, she saw that Fat Man was charging towards her with the sword still in its stomach!
Oh shit!
Meira ran to her left, back to the path where they met this thing, which the whole area was encased in darkness.
She could hear the shouts of anger and pain come down the hall she was running through...
...Then...
...it became silent...
Meira faltered in her running as she realized...
...she couldn't hear anything else...no pounding footsteps, no yells, no screams...
It was truly silent...
...She was in the quiet darkness...
The only sounds she could hear were her footsteps...
She stopped...
"...H-Hello?" she called out to anyone.
...No answer...
"...Hello!?" she called out louder.
...Still no answer...
...She was truly alone...
"...T-Toph!?"
...She decided to go back to where she came from, walking back...
...But everything was pitch black...
It was almost like everything around her...changed...it wasn't a hall anymore, it was just a huge area of dark space...
She couldn't see, she couldn't hear...
...This really terrified her.
"Toph!? Kid, where are you!? ...A-Anyone!? Anybody!?"
...Just silence...
...
...Meira was starting to panic.
"A-ANYONE!? TOPH!?"
...
...
...
BLEED FOR ME.
Then, something grabbed her face, muffling her scream.
...
...
...
And then, she woke up.
= Toph =
When Toph entered the room...
...It was a vast and empty space.
"W-What?" Toph uttered in confusion.
Everything around her...changed...suddenly...
"...H-Hello!?"
...No one answered...
...When she planted a foot down on the floor...all she could see...
...was a field.
A flat...empty field...
"...What the...What the hell...?" Toph said, her tone sounding more and more...afraid...
She turned around and stomped her foot on the floor again.
...The door that she came into...wasn't there anymore.
"...But...I..." Toph stood there, a little speechless. She never, ever experienced anything like this before...
Was she going crazy? Is her senses failing her? What happened to Meira?
"...Hello?" Toph spoke out in a weaker tone.
...It was all quiet...
What...What is happening? Where's Meira? Where...just where am I?!
...
...
...
Disgrace.
Toph perked up from the quiet voice.
"Hello!?" she called out to anyone in the darkness in a panic.
...Disgrace...
"..." Toph backed away from the voice.
...Dis...grace...
"...D-...Dad?" she softly said, her lips quivering.
...You are nothing...but a disgrace...
"...Dad? You...You don't mean that...do you?"
...
...
...
(...Boom...boom...boom...)
Toph heard...pounding footsteps...
They weren't the footsteps of the last monster...
...She stomped her foot down to 'see'.
It was...something bigger...
...Something larger.
Something that made Toph feel...small...
And the scary thing about it...she can't tell what these footsteps are connected to.
All she knows is that whatever was walking...it was gigantic.
And the worst part is...her feet feel like they're on wooden ground...meaning she can't earthbend.
She's basically just a small girl...a small blind girl...completely confused as to what's happening...
If she's being honest, she's now starting to feel...a little scared.
"...Who's there?" Toph asked the person with the thundering footsteps.
(...Boom...boom...boom!)
...It sounded like it was getting closer.
(...Boom! ...Boom! ...BOOM!)
...I was then Toph decided to turn around and run as far away from that sound as quickly as possible.
So she did. She turned around and ran.
(BOOM! …BOOM! …BOOM!)
She ran...unsure where she was going, but she continued to run. She needed to run.
The footsteps were coming closer, their thundering sounds getting louder.
(BOOM! ...BOOM! ...BOOM! ...BOOM!)
He kept running...running...running away from the supposed danger.
(BOOM! ...BOOM! ...BOOM! ...BOOM!)
Toph ran as fast as her legs would carry her, the adrenaline fueling her as she was now starting to feel completely afraid, scared, just absolutely frightened of what could be behind her.
(BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!)
It remind her briefly about a story her mother used to tell when she was younger.
"And if they trespassed on their land, the giant spirits would scoop them up and gobble them! So no one would go to where the giant spirits roam. However, the ore in that land was quite grand, sparkling like the finest diamonds. Some were trying to take some of those minerals to gain infinite wealth, but the giants didn't take too lightly to thieves stealing their ore."
"How did they get all the ore then?"
"Well, that's where the earthbending comes in. They hide in the ground and stay in there until the coast is clear."
"Kind of like a badgermole, right?"
"Hm-hm. Yes, quite like the badgermole."
It was an earthbender tale of some kind, about people living with giant spirits in ancient times. It was a fascinating story...even though she got scared at the part where the spirits were coming to the ore thieves. Her mother would always do the 'booming' sounds...to indicate they were coming.
Except in this instance...she has no earth to bend and hide in...she was just blind...blindly running...a blind girl who was running for her life.
(BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!)
She breathed fast, gasping for air as she ran, trying to fuel her run.
(BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!)
"G-GET AWAY FROM ME!" she screamed.
But it kept going.
(BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!)
She ran...feeling the vibrations getting closer.
(BOOM! BOOM!)
It was then, that Toph felt something come up in her path.
A door.
Oh spirits, anything! I'll take anything!
She approached the door...
(BOOM!)
Grabbed the handle to the sliding door...
(BOOOOM!)
Opened it...
(BOOOOOOM!)
And exited wherever the hell she was.
1:15 PM
She tripped over something. A step going down from what it felt like.
"AACK!" Toph felt her whole self fall forward as she let go of her metal dagger, landing on her knees and placing her hands on the...hard ground...
...The hard stone ground.
Gasping at this, Toph felt the ground, the feeling of bricks through her fingers. The ground felt like a bricked street! Meaning...
...She's on solid earth again!
Another thing that she noticed, was that the thundering footsteps were gone...and she could feel the cool and damp air around her...
...Fog...
...She was outside...
...While this was a relief in itself, the fact that she was even now outside, had really...confused her.
"...What?" Toph said breathlessly.
While kneeling, she picked up her metal dagger and shakily formed it around her right bicep again. She soon got up on her feet...and turned around to face the building that she came out of.
She stomped her foot.
...It felt like...a moderate-sized building.
Toph walked up to the building cautiously, up the step she tripped over...
...and went up to the entrance of the building.
Stomping her foot down again, she saw that the building had multiple rooms in the establishment. It was all quiet from any activity...
She then realized...that this place was an inn.
"...Hello?" Toph called out to anyone who could be in the inn.
Wait...
"...Meira?" she called out to the woman that she had met inside this building...
...There was no answer...
"...Meira!?" she called out louder.
...When she couldn't hear anyone inside the inn, Toph began to really feel disturbed.
"But...I met someone in...here...?" she said out loud, unsure if what she witnessed was even real...
...She stood there, almost in awe at what had transpired...
Toph is usually the type of person that doesn't get bothered by anything. Something happens, she picks herself up, and then she moves on.
But...this is something that she never experienced before.
She just literally went through some kind of...other realm?
What was that place?
...What...was this place?
This place...it felt...a lot different...
When she felt the earth, it really did feel like some kind of...pulse was going through the ground...
...But it wasn't a pulse at all...
It was...something else...
...Toph backed away from the building slowly, taking careful steps as she did so.
She backed further away...
...and stopped.
...Someone was coming to her at her left.
They were just...walking...walking without a care in the world.
...Toph turned her head to the person walking up to her.
The person felt like they were carrying something on their back...
They also felt...a little elderly...
"Hm? Oh! Hello there! My, I can't seem to see in this fog!" said the person, who sounded like an older man.
Toph stood her ground and got ready to fight just in case.
"Who are you!?" she asked the man.
"Oh, no worries! I'm just a mailman!" said the man.
Toph raised an eyebrow, "A mailman?"
"Yep!" the man walked up to Toph. She sees that he's in no way attacking her and that he's telling the truth.
"...What's a mailman doing in an abandoned town?" Toph asked him curiously.
"Abandoned?" the man questioned, "Well, I don't know about that. There are some people here, they're just out doing their things."
"They?" Toph asked, relaxing her posture as she saw this man seemed to be honest. Also, this bit of information was interesting. "Who are 'they'?"
"Why, the residents of this town!"
"...Okay...who are they, then?" Toph asked him again, "Like, this town feels empty, who else would live here?"
"Well, that would be some of the townsfolk! Four young people, a doctor, and a priestess!"
"...Uh...those are the residents of the town?"
"Yep! Pretty scarce number, I know, but there were more people here at a time...those days are long gone by now, though."
She felt the sorrow in his voice...
"...Well," Toph said, "We, uh...well, I'm actually looking for my friends. We came here to...find someone," she said as subtle as possible, "I mean, me and my friends got separated, and I'm kind of...lost?"
"Lost?" the man said in surprise, "Oh dear...this town is pretty big to get lost in. I hope you'll find your friends."
"Well...did you see anyone around here? I can't really describe to you what they look like since I'm...well, blind here."
"Blind?" the man got a little closer to gaze at the young girl, "...Oh. You are blind...well, my word, how can ya find your friends then?"
"Oh, that's not really an issue. I can find them by their voices and footsteps if they're near me enough. I can sense people's vibrations through my feet and hear really well," Toph explained.
"Oh my...well, that's pretty nifty."
Hearing the impressed tone of his voice, Toph smirked. "Yep! I'm an earthbender, and I'm known as the best earthbender there is!"
"Oh wow, you're an earthbender, too? Goodness...that's mighty amazing!"
"Thanks!" Toph smiled fully. "You must've heard about the Avatar and his friends, with yours truly, in stopping the Fire Lord, did you?"
"The Fire Lord? You mean, Fire Lord Sozin?"
"...Wha?" Toph blinked, "Um...no. Your last Fire Lord that was gonna burn down the whole Earth Kingdom, Fire Lord Ozai."
"Ozai?" the man sounded confused. "Is that his son?"
"...Uh...he's Sozin's...grandson?"
"Oh...hmm…" the man stayed silent for a second, "Well, I have to say, little lady, I'm sorry if I sounded ignorant. I'm not really up to date with history. All I do is just deliver the mail."
Toph raised a brow, "Wait, so...you don't keep up with the news? I mean, you're a mailman, so...yeah, isn't that your thing? Like, do you happen to get any information about what's happening around the world, or...something?"
"Oh, well, this whole island has been isolated, including me and the residents...although there was one of the residents, the doctor I mentioned, who left on an air balloon to travel off to the world, but he came back just to say what was happening around it."
"Huh? Uh...why? When was this?" Toph asked him, confused.
"I think around...hm...twenty years ago, maybe?" the man answered, "As for why, well...it was something the priestess was spreading to the townsfolk, something about this God spirit and wanting to cleanse the world with fire or...something. I don't know, she's kind of a nutjob. I think she wanted to give some intel about the world from the guy or something."
Toph once again blinked, "Wait...what?"
"Yeah, I know, it sounds like some mumbo jumbo if you ask me."
"N-No-I mean, yeah, it does, but..." Toph shook her head, "Hold up, are you saying this priestess is like...leading whoever is in this town into some kind of...cult?"
"Hmm...it's kind of scary sounding when you put it like that."
"...Wait a minute...the prisoners...Meira...Ozai and Azula..." she lowered her head to think, "...Can I ask you something, um..."
"Oh! Why yes, you can! My name is Zhong, by the way!"
"Okay. The name's Toph. So...have you ever heard about these townsfolk like...going off the island recently? Like say...maybe three days ago?"
"Hmm...I think I heard something like that...oh, hey, yeah, they were saying something about an Ozai! I thought that name sounded familiar! Three of them went out, the people being the only men in the town, and went on an airship about three days ago to get this guy named Ozai, as well as whoever was going to follow him!"
"Really?" Toph's sightless eyes widened, "Can you tell me why they want to bust him and his daughter out?"
"His daughter?"
"Yeah, Azula. She's pretty nasty, so don't get on her bad side. And these people that are on your island now, along with Ozai and Azula, are prisoners that escaped!"
"Oh! Huh...well, that ain't good."
"No, it really isn't!"
"My goodness...well, okay then. Honestly, from what I heard and why they busted them out, it was something about a...ritual, maybe? Something about six deaths, and this God spirit must be bred, which seven more deaths are to awaken it or something of the such."
"What? That's...That's crazy!" Toph said with a disbelieving expression.
Really!? These townspeople that saved Ozai and Azula, and all the other prisoners are nothing but cultists!?
"I mean...yeah, that is a little loopy."
"But...wait, why? What does that accomplish?"
"Hmm...I think it was something about birthing their spirit called God and letting it be born to grant a wish or something...goodness, that does sound complicated."
Wish? Wait...Ozai...wanted a wish? To...get his firebending back? …What?
Toph shook her head again, letting her long hair swish. "Hold on a moment. We're trying to stop Ozai from…making a wish?"
"Hm? Ozai making a wish? What could that be?"
"Maybe...it's to get his firebending back...but that's...again, that's crazy! He can't be that desperate, can he?"
Wait...if that's the case, then...my friends...even Meira...they're in danger! ...Wait a second, Meira!
"Meira! Sh-She's still in there!" Toph turned back to the inn, "I got to-"
"She's fine."
Toph quickly turned to Zhong and looked confused.
"What?"
...Zhong then said, also in a confused tone, "Meira? Who's she?"
"...Uh...she's...I think she's one of the prisoners...she...she sounded like...a nice woman...I mean..." shaking her head, Toph asked Zhong, "Are you sure you didn't say anything else?"
"Anything else? What do you mean?"
...Toph 'looked' at Zhong curiously.
...He...doesn't seem to be...hiding anything...nor is he lying...but...
"...You said...she was fine. Like she was going to be alright."
"Did I? I mean...I don't really know. I don't even know who this Meira gal is."
...He's...not lying...
"...Wait a minute..." Toph stood there to think about something that was related to this town, "...Zhong. What's...wrong with this town? I was in this inn for a while and things were...pretty insane in there..." her eyes widened as she remembered what she experienced a while back before they entered the town, "...Wait...now that I think about it...there is something wrong with this town. I-I experienced it myself! I was with Meira, and...she seemed to...disappear when I came out of the inn! There was a monster, some huge guy, and...some kind of...giant? A-And the whole place felt like a maze in there, when, it shouldn't have been! Even before then, when we got here, we saw someone basically mutilate himself on the way here because of something traumatic happening to him! And then there was this sound, like...sirens or something, and that's when we got knocked out, and...just...what is this town?"
"...Can I ask you a question, little lady?"
Toph blinked, perplexed, but answered nonetheless, "Uh...I-um, sure, I guess?"
"...Is something...weighing you down?"
"...Huh?"
"You seem to be a little bothered by something. I'm just asking as a concerned citizen."
"...I..." feeling like she was not being taken seriously, she frowned and said, "No, nothing's weighing me down! If you think I'm some drug addict, I'm not! I just need to find my friends before this cult and whatever this town is gets to them!"
"...Alright then. Well, I did see some kids going their way, one being a kid with tattoos and-...oh, sorry, that's right. You can't see."
"Wait, tattoos?" Toph perked up, "Is...did he look like a thirteen-year-old guy?"
"Hmm...I think he was."
"That's-I think that's one of my friends, Aang! Who else did you see?"
"Oh, well, one a teenage girl who was a waterbender and the other an older teenage boy that looked Fire Nation."
"That's Katara and maybe Zuko! Did he have a scar on his face?"
"I think he did, yes."
"Okay then, that's great! I just need to find my other two friends and this older guy and we can be back on this whole mission!"
"Mission?"
"Yeah! We're...well, I guess I can say this, but we're trying to get these people back to the Fire Nation mainland, since, you know, they escaped from prison!"
"Oh..."
"Yeah, and we're separated by something in this town and..." Toph glanced at the ground...and 'looked' back up at Zhong, "Are you sure there's nothing wrong with this town?"
"...To be perfectly honest, there has been some shady stuff lately..." he paused for a moment, almost as if he was checking something, and then said to Toph, "Oh my! I think I need to mosey on along! A mailman's work is never done!" he began to walk away from Toph.
Toph felt like he was trying to get away from telling her what this town was, so she said, "You didn't answer my question!"
Zhong stopped.
"...I really don't know, little lady. Sometimes this town can be a happy place...sometimes it can be a sad place...all I can say is, is that I've been here as long as I can remember..."
...Something about what he said...ran a slight shiver down Toph's spine.
"Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to get to mailin'. However, it was nice meeting you, little lady. I hope you'll find your friends! I'm certain they'll come up sometime soon!"
And with that, Toph felt Zhong leave...into the fog...
...She could still hear his footsteps...until she couldn't hear them anymore, most likely far away by now...
"...That Zhong guy...he's...a little strange..." Toph muttered to herself.
...Toph stood there all alone...
"...What do I do now?"
Should I go back to find Meira? ...I thought I heard Zhong say she was fine, but... it felt like there was no one in the inn...
...It was then, she felt not one, but two footsteps...coming over her way.
...She recognized one of those footsteps!
"Huh?" Toph blinked and focused on those particular footsteps, "...Twinkletoes!?"
= Aang =
1:25 PM
"Um...my name is Aang," Aang hesitantly said to the girl known as Kara.
"Aang, huh?" Kara said with a little smirk, "Cute name."
"Uh...thanks..." Aang then remembered that he had to find his friends, "Oh, uh, sorry, I, uh, got to go. I'm looking for my friends," he said as he began to walk on the bridge.
"Really? Well, I can be your friend!" Kara said, looking at Aang with doe eyes as she blocked his path.
"Huh? Uh...I mean, okay, but-"
"Great!" Kara said as she grabbed his left arm and pulled it, dragging him across the bridge.
"Ack! Hey!"
"Come on, I know a place where we can just hang!" Kara told him as she dragged him through the fog after stepping off the bridge.
"W-Wait! I got to find my friends!" Aang told her as he stopped them from going anywhere else, getting his arm back from him.
Kara pouted but smirked as she remarked, "Well, maybe I can help you find your friends?"
"Uh...I-I guess you can. I don't know who you are, though." Aang said cautiously.
"I just told you, silly. My name is Kara!" Kara said with a giggle, "So, what do these friends of yours look like? Are they your age? How old are you if you don't mind me asking?"
"Uh...I just recently turned thirteen," Aang answered her.
"Thirteen? Oooh, I'm thirteen too!"
"You are?" Aang blinked and (quickly) looked over at Kara, "Uh...o-okay..."
Kara snickered, "Yeah, I got some great genes, don't I?"
Aang panicked when he was found out that he was eyeing Kara's body a bit, "Ack! I-I'm sorry! I wasn't, I mean, I-I wasn't trying to-uh-y-you know, ogle you o-or anything! I mean, no, wait, I, w-well, no, I was just saying, I mean, I was-"
Giving out a good laugh, Kara guffawed as she said, "Oh man! You are too adorable!" she gave him a sultry look, "You know, I can let you touch them if you want~?"
Eyes bulging wide, Aang backed away from her, "What!?"
"Yeah. I mean, it's better than just jerking off thinking whoever you want to do it with."
...Aang blinked and looked at Kara in surprise. "What?" he repeated.
"Yeah. I saw you with your wang out giving it a good jiggle." Kara smirked, "Not bad-looking, if I say so myself."
...Aang felt mortified.
"Wait, you...you weren't supposed to see-"
"So who's the lucky gal?" Kara asked teasingly.
"...I-I got to find my friends," Aang said in a slight panic as he tried to pass Kara, but she blocked his way again.
"Is it one of your friends? Come on~, tell me!" Kara pleaded.
"L-Look, you-you weren't-!" Aang tried to calm himself down, "You...You weren't supposed to see me there doing...that. That was...it-it was a bad thing I did! I wasn't supposed to-!"
"Is it really? I mean, you were just having a fantasy, I would think," Kara said with a nonchalant smile and a shrug.
"B-But, doing that without...I mean, without my love partner, I...I'm basically desecrating a union!"
Kara snickered, "What are you, a monk?"
"Wha-y-yeah, I am a monk! An Air Nomad monk!" Aang said frantically. However, he lowered his head and muttered, "Well...I'm the last Air Nomad...as well as the last airbender..."
"Well, all bets are off then now, huh?" Kara said with a cheeky grin.
"Huh?" Aang looked back up at Kara, "Uh..." he shook his head and said, "L-Look, I mean it, I need to find my friends."
"Okay, okay, ya big baby," Kara said with a wave of her hand flippantly. She smirked at him, "Doesn't mean you'll get rid of me, though."
Aang looked surprised as he blinked, "What?"
"Yeah!" Kara then looked a little uncomfortable, letting her foot trace the ground, "And besides, I might need someone to protect me from any kind of trouble. Maybe even protecting me from these monsters that keep popping out of nowhere."
Raising an eyebrow, Aang asked, "Wait...you're saying you saw some monsters?"
"Well, yeah!" Kara nodded, "Something is up with this town, and I don't know what. But I would really like for someone to look after me and keep me safe."
...Aang just sighed in defeat, "O-Okay, I'll...I'll look after you..."
"Great!" Kara clapped her hands together, "Well, let's go, lover boy!"
"Um...please don't call me that," Aang said a little nervously.
"Alright, whatever."
Aang and Kara then began to walk into the fog...
Kara was walking ahead of Aang and he couldn't help but catch little glances at her.
...She...kind of looks like Katara, except for the green eyes...but she also sounds like...she sounds a lot like Toph almost...I mean, the only thing that looks like Toph is Kara's eyes looking like hers, but...
...He glanced down at her bottom...and then at her legs...and back up at her back, where her long hair was loosely hanging...
...She's...She's really pretty...
"Take a picture, it'll last longer," Kara joked as they walked.
"Ah!" Aang stopped and freaked out, "I-I was-uh, I mean-"
"Hey, no worries!" Kara stopped as well, turning to face Aang with a mischievous smile, "And hey, the offer is always on the table~."
"Offer? Wh-What offer?" Aang asked with a blink.
"You know~...if you want a free touch," Kara winked with a smirk.
...Aang's face and ears went red.
Chuckling, Kara turned back to walk in the fog.
The boy felt...a little confused...
...D-Don't dwell on that right now! You HAVE to find your friends!
Nodding to that, Aang rushed over to Kara to catch up.
As they kept walking...Aang heard something.
"...Twinkletoes!?" said a voice. A voice that sounded like...
Aang blinked and stood straight. "Toph!?"
"Hm?" Kara turned her head to Aang, "Who?"
"I-I think I heard one of my friends! It's-"
"Twinkletoes!?"
"Yeah! It's me! Toph, it's me!" Aang called out to her.
"Twinkletoes!" the voice of Toph rang out and soon, the fog showed a silhouette of a young girl with her hair down coming over to Aang. Once the person got closer and became visible, the girl was indeed Toph!
Oh...her hair is down...
Shaking his head, Aang called out, "Toph!" and went over to her.
Toph rushed up to Aang and gave him a big hug, which he returned back.
"Oh man, Toph, I'm so glad to see you!" Aang said in relief.
"Me too, Twinkles!" Toph said as she let go of the hug, smiling at the boy. "Where have you been this whole time?"
"I...don't really know, actually," Aang sheepishly answered.
"You don't?" Toph raised an eyebrow, "You mean..." She remembered all the weird happenings in the town, and asked him, "Have you been seeing some crazy stuff also?"
"Huh? Uh, y-yeah!" Aang said in surprise, "How did you know?"
"I...experienced some crazy stuff as well," she muttered, frowning.
"You did?" Aang's eyes widened.
"Ahem!"
Aang and Toph turned to Kara, who looked a little...jealous, maybe?
"So...who's this?" Kara asked, putting her hands on her hips as she looked over Toph.
"Oh, uh...Kara, this is Toph. One of my friends," Aang told her as he motioned to Toph.
Toph just turned to Kara...she stomped her foot and examined her. "...Hm. Hey."
"Hey." Kara nodded to her. She squinted her eyes as she noticed something about Toph. "...Huh. You're blind."
Raising an eyebrow, Toph replied, "Yeah? That a problem?"
"Nah. Just wondering how a blind girl like you can find her way around here."
Toph frowned, "I sense the vibrations through my feet. Seismic senses."
"Ah, okay..." Kara shrugged. "Well, try not to trip over your own feet then. Wouldn't want you to be a liability."
The blind earthbender's frown went deeper.
Who is this bitch?
Aang also didn't like how she addressed Toph, "Hey, Toph can see even without eyesight. She's good at what she does. Also, along with seeing through her feet, she's an earthbender, the best earthbender I know, so I think she'll be fine."
Toph turned to Aang and smiled at him.
Thanks, Twinkletoes.
Kara glanced at Aang, quiet for a moment. "...Hmph," turning her head away from him with a pout.
Confused by her behavior, Aang just scratched his head and shrugged. "Okay, so, uh...since we found each other, Toph, what should we do now?"
"Well, for one thing, we need to find the rest of our friends. But in the meantime, we should think of a plan to get Ozai, Azula, and the-...the prisoners back to the Fire Nation mainland."
Aang noticed that she paused when she said 'the prisoners', but thought nothing of it. He nodded to what she said, "Right. So, do you have some kind of plan we can use?"
"Are you kiddin'? That's more of Snoozles expertise," Toph then remembered, and her eyes widened, "Oh! Twinkles, there's also something else I have to mention! I met this mailman guy, and-"
"Wait, Zhong?" Aang blinked at that news.
"Huh? Yeah, that's his name...you met him?"
"Yeah! Maybe around...thirty minutes ago?"
"Oh. Well...either way, he gave me some info about this island and the people around here."
As both Aang and Toph discussed their findings, Kara just stood there bored. She looked to her right and decided to walk away from them for a while and into the fog just a bit.
"Whoa...so there's like...a cult here?" Aang looked shocked.
"From what I heard, yeah," Toph nodded. "Really, it's crazy, and I wouldn't think Zuko's dad would be desperate enough to pull something like this, but hey...this place is pretty strange."
"...Man...and, they're trying to kill people here? On this island?" Aang asked, horrified by the concept.
"I don't know if the people of the island are killing people, but...something else is," Toph affirmed.
"Wow...we got to find our friends and make sure no one dies here! Also, we got to stop this cult from doing what they're doing!" Aang said in dread, "Man, that's...that's really nuts!"
"You know, I would usually say this kind of stuff is hogwash, but...from what I experienced, and from what you probably experienced also in this town, I feel like..." Toph shook her head roughly, "We just got to find everyone!"
"Yeah, definitely!" Aang nodded. He turned to where Kara should've been, "Okay, Kara we're..."
...She was gone...
Aang blinked. "Kara?"
Toph stomped her foot down and checked her surroundings. "...She went that way!" she pointed to the way forward.
Before they even took a few steps...
"AAAAHH!"
...There was a scream...from Kara.
End of Chapter 19
Whew! Okay, here's a long chapter for you all! I hope it's all good! My brain is fried to write more, so I hope everyone enjoys this chapter! XD
We'll continue where we left off with Aang and Toph! And who is Kara? Well, you'll have to see in the next chapter! XD Either way, tell me how I did with a review! Or give me a fave and a follow, either one! :D
Thank you all for reading this so far, and keep on rocking everybody! 8D
-TSP