Collide

by FoxBlitz

Katara had been so sure of her plan to liberate the prison rig. How was she to know how efficiently the guards would respond to an uprising? Zuko had been positive that his best course of action was to travel separate from his Uncle. What else was he supposed to do when he came across a person from his past? Sometimes, through all the doubt, two people collide. Eventual Zutara.

33. Ch 33 - The Puppet Master

Chapter 33 - The Puppet Master

Zuko wasn't in the shared room with the rest of the team when Katara awoke. Not all that surprising, truth be told. The firebender had a tendency to wake first, without rousing the others, in order to spend the early morning meditating or training.

The Water Tribe girl went around her regular morning routine, brushing her teeth, washing her face, and essentially getting ready for the day. Jin was the next one to wake up, joining the waterbender in the washroom.

Katara was about to head downstairs, when Jin tapped her friend on the shoulder and gave the waterbender a signal to stay quiet. Katara watched as Jin tip-toed over to a dresser drawer and pulled out a tube of toothpaste and a feather. Smirking at the Water Tribe girl, Jin then slowly crept over to where Sokka was still snoring away contently.

Katara watched in gleeful suspense as Jin poured a healthy dose of toothpaste onto Sokka's open palm. Then, the Earth Kingdom girl made her way over to the opposite side of the bed and stretched her hand over to softly tickle the dozing Water Tribe boy's nose with the edge of the bird feather.

At first, Sokka's nose crinkled in response to the initial couple of brushes with the feather. Then, without warning, Sokka slapped his face with his open palm, smashing toothpaste completely across his nose and forehead.

"W-What?!" exclaimed the Water Warrior as he sat up quickly in bed, still dazed from waking up so abruptly. "What's going on?!" Only the sounds of Jin's and Katara's laughter filled the air as Sokka attempted to wipe the toothpaste away from his face. "Oh, ha, ha," muttered the Water Tribe boy dryly. "What was that for?"

"That, was for causing the fortune teller to get mad at us yesterday," retorted Jin. "That strange augury he told us freaked me out more than all the scary stories we told. So, just take your punishment like a man."

Thinking her Brother was going to get upset and complain to the Earth Kingdom girl, Katara was unexpectedly surprised when Sokka instead simply grumbled to himself and focused on just cleaning up the toothpaste with a spare towel. It was a bit unusual for her Brother to just let a prank go so easily without raising a big stink about it.

Jin and Katara both left the shared room to allow Sokka to get ready for the day as the two girls proceeded downstairs. "You all saw a fortune teller the other day?" asked the waterbender.

"Ugh, I'm trying to forget. And it had been my idea to check the place out in the first place too," replied Jin with a sigh. "It wasn't your normal kind of fortunes either. I had been expecting something lighthearted, like love predictions or spirit animal signs. You know, normal teenager stuff, instead of all this doom and gloom that we're dealing with right now. But nope! Even the fortune teller was all doom and gloom."

"It was that bad? What kind of fortunes did you all get?" pressed Katara with interest. Fortunes had always been a bit of guilty pleasure for Katara and her Gran-Gran. Kanna spent a lot of time making up interesting predictions about the future when it was just Katara and her Gran-Gran doing chores together. Katara knew it was mostly to pass the time, but it was still fun to watch at least some of her Gran-Gran's conjectures turn out to be true on occasion.

"Well, the first couple of divinations weren't all that bad," answered Jin. "Mostly stuff about personal growth and such. The weird stuff happened after Sokka acted like a bonehead and tried to take the deck of cards. Then, whoosh! Flickering candles and prophecies about doom and gloom."

The two girls reached the bottom of the steps. Jin turned towards Katara. "I don't know, hopefully Sokka's right about it being a bunch of mumbo jumbo and the fortune teller was just trying to scare us. But he still deserves more pranks for being an idiot."

"And I bet you're just the one to put him in his place," laughed Katara as the two of them entered the kitchen.

"Good morning!" greeted Hama cheerfully as her guests sat down at the dining room table. "Did everyone have a pleasant sleep?" The innkeeper poured some orange juice into the empty glasses at each place setting.

"Yes, it was very restful," thanked Katara as she accepted the juice and took a sip. Hot griddlecakes and scrambled eggs followed shortly thereafter as Hama added to each plate.

"Excellent. Eat up. You'll need your strength for today's training. I have some special exercises planned," smiled Hama as she proceeded to make more hotcakes for a hungry Water Tribe boy as Sokka bounded down the stairs and took up a spot at the table as well.

Looking around the room, Katara frowned as she realized a certain firebender had yet to make an appearance. Pausing in her morning meal, the waterbender asked, "Have you seen Zuko this morning? He usually meets up with us by the time breakfast is ready."

"I'm sure that he'll turn up," replied Sokka with little concern for the wayward Fire Prince as he poured a copious amount of sugary syrup onto his breakfast with much gusto. "If not, I get his portion of bacon." Katara balked at the fact that her Brother had not even spared the scrambled eggs from being coated in a layer of syrup.

"Maybe his morning training is just running long," suggested Jin helpfully.

"Maybe," echoed Katara.

Hama sat down at the table with her own plate of breakfast. "If you're talking about your other friend, he's not here."

"Huh?" noted Katara with surprise. "Where is he?"

Without missing a beat, the innkeeper launched into her fabricated explanation for the missing firebender's whereabouts. "A search party from town came by the inn this morning. They were asking if the local delivery boy had stopped by the inn last night. It seems the lad has gone missing, like so many others. Your friend volunteered to join the search for the missing boy. I don't expect the search party to return until late tonight, or perhaps tomorrow, if they venture to the next town over."

"Zuko left without telling any of us?" probed Katara with concern. "That's not like him."

"Actually, it kind of is," retorted Jin as she finished chewing on a piece of toast. "There was that time in Ba Sing Se, when he sidelined us at my parent's house so that he could go scouting without letting us know. And you've complained to me before about that time when you had to chase him down because he tried to ditch you before he went to challenge his Sister alone."

Katara sent Jin a nasty look. "That's the old Zuko. The new Zuko promised to always let us know before he goes off on his own."

"Someone's got him on a short-leash," teased Jin. The Earth Kingdom girl promptly dodged a short burst of water. "I'm just kidding! But we both know that Zuko can handle himself in a fight. And he clearly told Hama before he left."

"Yes," piped up Hama brightly. "Your friend asked me to let you know that he didn't want to interrupt your sleep or your training. He wants you at your best. So he asked me to relay what was going on once you all woke up. He says that he'll be cheering for you and that he knows that you'll master all the techniques that I'm going to teach you, because you always do great."

"See? Now that sounds like Zuko," reassured Jin, in support of Hama's explanation. "Zuko probably just wanted to get the search party moving quickly to find that delivery boy. There's a lot of forest to search after all."

Speaking up in-between shoveling food into his face, Sokka interjected with, "I just can't believe that those merchants actually sent the delivery boy out for ash bananas and other produce. Zuko and I overheard them talking in town the other day. The fruit merchant had been so adamant about not sending the delivery boy over to the next town until after the next full moon." Then, as he promised earlier, the Water Tribe boy reached over and took an extra portion of bacon since the Fire Prince wasn't going to be around to challenge him for it.

"Perhaps the merchant simply changed his mind," stated Hama smoothly. "His customers probably offered to pay extra. You know how merchants will do anything for more profits."

"That's true," commented Sokka as he continued to eat heartily.

Mulling over what everyone said, Katara eventually sighed. It did make sense. Zuko definitely would prioritize saving the lives of people in danger. And he did let Hama know what he was up too. That had to count for something, right? "I don't like the idea of Zuko running off into danger without us, but at least he has the other villagers in the search party to help him," relented the Water Tribe girl.

"Your friend will be fine," comforted Hama as she finished putting the young waterbender's mind at ease. "Now finish your breakfast and we'll get started on your training."

"See? Everything worked out," commented Sokka as he sat back in his chair with a full belly. "Zuko's out playing in the woods, Jin and I will scope things out in town, and you get to learn some cool magic water tricks. We all get to have something productive to do today."

"Excellent!" beamed Hama warmly as she clasped her hands together.

---

The rich amber hued fire lilies swayed gently in the breeze as the warm glow of the mid-morning sun bathed them in a gentle light. It was picturesque scene, one worthy of capturing by any artist.

Then, one flower went rigid, and another and another, each losing their shimmer and swiftly deteriorating into a shriveled, dark husk of their former glory. Katara was getting quicker and more agile at pulling the water from the nearby plant life under Hama's strict guidance. The young waterbender's canteens lay discarded off to the side, as Hama stressed that it was vital that Katara learn how to fight using only the water she attained from the local flora.

The Water Tribe girl welcomed the challenge of learning to pull water from flowers. She felt like she was really learning something of value. And each time Katara succeeded, Hama would have another trial ready for her. It made the young waterbender feel like she was really getting stronger as she strove to meet her master's expectations.

Currently, Katara was still attempting to master the task of drawing water from the moisture in the air and condensing that water on her fingertips. The amount of concentration that type of bending took was immensely more demanding than attempting to pull existing water from the local flora. Likely because there was a greater source of water in the plants than in the arid Fire Nation climate.

Finishing up her latest attempt, Katara let out an exhausted breath as she surveyed her surroundings. "I wish that the flowers didn't shrivel up whenever I take water from them," observed Katara with a frown as she noticed the decayed foliage around her as she practiced. "I kind of feels like I'm taking their life force and ruining the environment."

"Oh nonsense," dismissed Hama with little concern as she mentored her protégé. "I have already told you, they are just plants. Think of them simply as water containers just waiting for you to use. Sometimes plants are the only sources of water around to utilize. As you no doubt are realizing, dry air can be a struggle to pull water from."

Katara looked down upon the sickly looking plants with pity. She hoped that the shriveled flora could still recover, given time and rain. "I guess." The young waterbender focused as she slowly weaved water from the air into ice claws. Then, with a flick of the wrist, the ice claws were embedded into the standing wooden target that Hama had set-up earlier. Katara smiled with excitement as Hama nodded in approval at her protégé's rapid progress. Then, Katara added, "At least I'll never take water from people and animals. That would just be horrific."

"Hmm... with thoughts like that, you're finally starting to think like a true master," petitioned Hama in support of the gruesome thought. Before Katara could say anything else, Hama sighed. "However, it is truly regrettable that waterbenders cannot pull water directly from living people and animals."

"You've tried?!" distressed Katara in alarm.

Ignoring her student's shock, Hama continued to list off why waterbending didn't work that way. "I suspect it has something to do with a living creature's soul. If I had to venture a guess, I believe the Spirit World itself prevents waterbenders from drawing water directly from a living creature. In my experiments, I only ever managed to draw water from the recently deceased, after the spirit had left the body."

Katara looked exceedingly appalled at her master's explanation. "To experiment with something like that..." she trailed off.

Hama glared firmly at her student as Katara shrank back a bit from the focused scrutiny. "Katara, make no mistake. Our Tribe is at war. We are in a foreign land, surrounded by enemies who would take great satisfaction in tormenting us and killing us. We must seek out every possible advantage we can, if we are to survive. If our Tribe is to survive," declared the old waterbending master sharply.

Turning around so that her back was to the young Water Tribe girl, Hama continued, "Although it is regrettable that we can not directly take water from an enemy's body, I have discovered another ability available to expert waterbenders. One that allows us to take advantage of the strength of the full moon, the time when waterbenders are nigh unstoppable. If you are able to learn this technique tonight, then we could still turn this war on its head! We could venture to the North Pole and instruct other waterbenders! We could pay back to the Fire Nation what they did to us, a hundred fold!"

"But then we would merely be escalating the conflict," argued Katara in disagreement. "And even if we are stronger during the full moon, waterbenders would still vulnerable during the rest of the day."

"The world is a cruel place, Katara. Surely you have seen the darkness in people's hearts, the acts of cruelty others can inflict. Imagine a situation where a firebender was posed to kill your Brother or your friend Jin. Would you allow your loved one to die because you refused to eliminate your enemy by any means you had at your disposal?"

"That's..." Katara wasn't sure what to say. The memory of being powerless to prevent her Mother's death in the exact scenario that Hama was describing refused to leave the young waterbender's thoughts.

"Still..." relented Hama. It seemed her protégé would require more convincing. "I apologize if I pushed to far. It's just that sometimes, when I recall what I had to endure in that prison cell, my blood boils and I get carried away."

Katara grew sympathetic. "I understand. After I was freed from prison, I still carried all these dark thoughts. If it wasn't for Zuko's support when I was at my lowest, then I think I might have broke under the immense weight myself." The young Water Tribe girl looked up to Hama with admiration. "The fact that you've been able to endure for so long all by yourself just proves to me how strong you really are. You truly are a hero of the Southern Water Tribes."

Hama smiled back at the young waterbender. "You have the makings to be truly great as well, Katara. Even greater than I, in fact. And truly terrifying to your enemies. Enough to make anyone fear the very thought of threatening our Southern Water Tribes ever again," boasted Hama. "You simply have to reach out and make that power your own."

The young waterbender student felt a whirlpool of emotions: pride, exhilaration, accomplishment. Her ever diligent hard work had finally been acknowledged by an actual waterbending master. She had reached the milestone that she had set for herself so long ago, back when she had first left her South Pole village.

But there was more than that. Trepidation and unrest mixed in with the Water Tribe girl's otherwise positive emotions. The waterbending techniques that Hama had been teaching her, while truly powerful and undoubtedly versatile, left Katara at a crossroads. This waterbending path was quite different than the one she had always envisioned for herself.

Still, Hama was her Gran-Gran's old friend and the last true waterbending master from the Southern Water Tribe. Whatever Hama was willing to teach, Katara would listen and learn. These had to be lost waterbending arts of the Southern Water Tribe, right?

Hama started to walk back towards the direction of the inn. "You keep practicing out here. I'll have a meal waiting for you back at the inn when you get hungry. Make sure you leave some time to rest before this evening. Tonight, I will demonstrate for you the ultimate waterbending technique."

Katara nodded as she watched Hama leave. As the young waterbender reached to bend more water from the nearby flora, Katara paused. She still held onto some reservations on if this was truly the right way to use waterbending.

A memory flashed across the Water Tribe girl's mind. One of Azula unleashing a firestorm of bending at Katara and her friends. Then, that firebending transforming into lightning that struck Zuko back in that tavern weeks ago.

The negative thoughts shifted to the possibility of Fire Nation ships threatening her Father at sea as fiery catapult shots rained down onto the combined resistance forces. And lastly, the recollection of Yon Rha, looming menacing over her Mother, dressed in his imposing heavy firebending armor. A monster who was still living free despite the harm he had caused to Katara's family.

The Water Tribe girl ripped water from a wide arc of fire lilies as she condensed the liquid into an ice sickle that she used to sever a fair-sized tree trunk cleanly in half. Yes, she needed to get stronger. A lot stronger. Too protect the people she wanted to protect.

Further down the road, Hama smiled darkly to herself as she listened to the creaking timber of the fallen tree crashing to the forest floor.

---

"You know, if not for people trying to hide their unease about all the disappearances, then this village would actually be pretty peaceful," observed Jin as she walked around the marketplace with Sokka. "The upcoming full moon is making people nervous."

"Yeah, and what bugs me is that despite everyone being anxious, no one is exactly certain about what they are actually anxious of," pondered Sokka out loud. "Some say its a deranged murderer causing the disappearances, others claim its a vicious beast, while there are a couple who swear it's the work of evil spirits. And there was that one guy who thought aliens were abducting people."

The Earth Kingdom girl appeared hesitant to speak a thought that popped into her head, because she knew that Sokka wasn't going to like it. However, they were trying to figure out what was going on. So reluctantly, Jin theorized, "I didn't know Yue that well, but she became a part of the Moon Spirit, correct? I know that this might sound harsh, but is there any chance that Yue or the Moon Spirit might have had some kind of grudge against this particular village?"

"What?! No! Of course not!" instantly denied Sokka. "Yue is a gentle and loving lady, full of compassion and... lunar goodness!"

"Whoa, easy there, Sokka," calmed Jin. "I'm just trying to figure things out, same as you. And it's not just Yue. Maybe there's some history about Tui that we don't know about. Maybe the Moon Spirit's getting back at the Fire Nation for the invasion of the North Pole."

Composing himself, Sokka shook his head adamantly. "Yue would never allow that." Then, the young detective started thinking critically. "And even if Tui was seeking revenge against the Fire Nation, why this town? What makes it so special? Everywhere we look, it's just a regular, old hillside village."

Noticing another village walking by, the Water Tribe boy halted the passerby, hoping to get some more information. They had been asking everyone that they came across today. "Excuse me, sir. Can you tell us anything about the spirit that's been stealing people away at night?"

The villager thought for a moment. "Only one man has ever seen that spirit and lived to tell the tale. And that's Old Man Ding." The man pointed down the road. "Lives at the edge of town, at the bottom of the hill, can't miss it. He's house is the one with the caved in roof."

"Thanks!" returned Sokka. As the local villager nodded and continued on his way, the Water Tribe boy turned to Jin. "That was the first helpful piece of information we've gotten all day." With that, both of them proceeded in the direction indicated by the villager.

As they walked, Jin slowly apologized. "Sorry if I touched a nerve with the comment about Yue. I was just asking since you knew her better than I did."

Sokka breathed out with regret. "I shouldn't have blown up like that. It's just that I can't imagine Yue doing anything bad to anyone, or allowing the Moon Spirit to do anything bad either. Yue was always so gentle and kind from the time that I knew her. Whatever is going on, I refuse to believe that Yue is at fault. Something else is plaguing this town. I just need to find out what that is."

"We just need to find out what going on," corrected Jin with a smile. "I'm here too. And maybe when Zuko gets back tonight, he'll have learned something helpful from the other search party members." Then, feeling a bit playful, the Earth Kingdom girl added, "Besides, if we leave you to your own devices, then you'd probably just end up getting yourself in trouble again."

"I was wrong one time," grumbled Sokka. "How was I supposed to know that Hama came from my village." As they walked a little further, the Water Tribe boy commented, "Still, you've got to admit, Hama was a little creepy at first."

"Anyone who's had to endure as much as she has, would probably be a tad strange too," deduced Jin. "Hama deserves our compassion."

"You're right," replied Sokka as he noticed the town butcher waving the two of them over. "What do you think he wants?"

The meat vendor leaned over the shop counter as the two teenagers approached his store window. "Hey, you kids know Hama, right? I saw you with her the other day."

Thinking for a moment as she recalled the name, Jin astutely remembered, "You're Mr. Yao, I think? Did you need some help with something?"

The town meat merchant was a bit nervous, but he found his courage as he hefted a bundle of wrapped cuts of meat and a bouquet of fire lilies onto the counter. "Well, if it's not too much trouble, I was hoping you could deliver these to Hama for me. You're staying with her at her inn, right?"

"Katara was right! You do have a thing for Hama!" exclaimed Jin with a wide faced grin.

"Shh! Not so loud!" quieted Mr. Yao. He rubbed the back of his head shyly. "I've liked for a long time now, but I just haven't been able to build up the courage to express my feelings to her. But with this crazy spirit or whatever it is running around and snatching people up, well, I might not get the chance if I wait much longer."

"We can deliver these!" cheered Jin excitedly as she accepted the flowers. "But, I think Hama will like it even more if you tell her yourself how you feel. We can open the door for you, but you'll need to take the leap yourself, if you know what I mean."

"You're right, you're right," acknowledged Mr. Yao timidly. Then, mustering up the nerve, he stoutly proclaimed, "I'll make time to come by this evening and confess my feelings. Even if she doesn't feel the same, then at least I'll know where I stand after finally telling her how I feel." A moment later, Mr. Yao sighed. "A man my age, and here I am getting love advice from a teenager who clearly understands it better."

"Yeah, yeah, good luck. We're rooting for you!" affirmed Sokka as he greedily scooped up the wrapped bundles of meat from the counter. "We'll make sure that these get delivered to the inn."

Mr. Yao waved to the two teenagers as they continued on their way. After the pair was out of sight, Sokka leaned over to Jin. "Should we really be trying to set Hama up with a man from the Fire Nation? After everything that she's been though? Wouldn't that upset her or something?"

Jin thought for a minute. "I think it will be alright," assessed the Earth Kingdom girl after some reflection. "I mean, Hama's been living in the Fire Nation for a long time, hasn't she? Don't you think she would have left by now if she absolutely couldn't stand living here? Besides, Katara and Zuko prove that a Water Tribe and Fire Nation relationship can work."

Electing to ignore the part about his Sister and Zuko, Sokka instead focused on the obvious point that Jin had accidently made. There was something about that logic that was bugging him, even if he couldn't exactly put his finger on it. "Yeah... Hama has been living here a long time..."

Unfortunately the Water Tribe boy's attention was diverted as the pair reached their destination. They had arrived at the bottom of the hill on the edge of town.

An old man was bracing himself against a piece of wood as he urgently hammered away in an effort to board up his windows. "Old Man Ding?" greeted Jin questioningly.

The sound of a hammer connecting with a thumb and a howl of pain answered the earthbender's question as both Sokka and Jin winced in sympathy for Old Man Ding. "Ah, blast it all. What?! Can't you see I'm busy? Got a full moon rising." The elderly man paused as he recalled what Jin had called him. "And I'm not that old! Why does everyone keep calling me that?"

Ding attempted to lift up another wooden board but it fell back to the ground with a crash. "Well, I'm young at heart at least." Sokka helped the old man lift up the board and hold it to the window. "And I'm not ready to get snapped up by some moon monster yet either."

Sokka held his tongue about the moon monster bit. Instead, he stated, "We wanted to ask you about that. Did you get a good look at whatever spirit it was that tried to steal you away?"

Old Man Ding shook his head. "Didn't see no spirit. Just felt something come over me, like I was possessed. Forced me to start walking towards the mountain." He pointed towards the mountain outside of town. "I tried to fight whatever it was that was controlling my body, but my limbs were not my own anymore. I looked up at the moon for what I thought was going to be my last glimpse of light, but just before I reached a cave entrance, the sun rose. When that happened, I got control of myself again! High-tailed it out of there as quick as I could and never looked back!" The old man shivered at the memory. "I'd just as soon forget, but I can still feel my limbs aching on nights with a full moon, almost like something might grab me again."

"Why would a spirit want to take people to a mountain?" questioned Jin after the two of them thanked Old Man Ding for his assistance in answering their questions and left the elderly man to continue his frantic work to secure his house.

"I think we have our next clue," determined Sokka. "Let's go drop this food off at Hama's inn and then, we're going spelunking." Off in the distance, loomed a large solitary mountaintop.

---

The Fire Prince couldn't be sure if he had his eyes open or closed as he slowly regained consciousness. Either way, the storm cellar was awash in a sea of absolute darkness. Underground, with no light source, the entire place was pitch black.

Attempting to shift his wrists, the Fire Prince recalled that his hands were restrained behind his back with a pair of iron shackles. With monumental effort, the likes of which set his head ringing with dizziness, Zuko somehow managed to sit himself up and lean his back against his cage.

Carefully, and with measured focus, the firebender sparked a tiny flame onto his fingertip. With his eyes so adjusted to the eternal night within the storm cellar, that minuscule ember might as well have been the surface of the sun for all the light it cast and how Zuko had to shift his gaze away for a moment. Acclimating to the light of his firebending, Zuko twisted sightly to take measure of his confinements.

The cage itself was small. He might be able to stand up, if he dared to trust his legs not to buckle underneath him from the lightheadedness. Hama had really done a number on him with that barrage of waterbending columns the previous night. In addition to his wrists, his ankles were shackles together as well. Maybe he could attempt to melt the metal away, you know, if he didn't mind covering his limbs in molten iron. So yeah, in short, Zuko wasn't going anywhere in a hurry.

What dismayed him the most, however, was the fact that Zuko had just started to, well maybe not trust but, accept of Hama as a possible ally. She had been a prisoner of the Fire Nation, another victim of this war. The Fire Prince sympathized with her plight. Plus, Hama was training Katara to strengthen her waterbending.

The firebender's mind zeroed in that fact. Katara. She didn't know that Hama was dangerous. She didn't know Hama had some kind of weird bending power. Katara could be in trouble.

Zuko attempted to stand, only for his knees to predictable shake and force the Fire Prince to settle back down into a seated position. 'I can't help Katara and the others if I'm locked up here,' rallied the firebender inwardly. Then, outwardly, "I need to get out of here somehow."

As if in challenge to the burden the Fire Prince had just placed on himself, the heavy storm door to the cellar creaked open with protest. Zuko glared up at the silhouette of Hama in the faint colors of the setting evening light. At least that was a good indicator of the time. It was evidence that he had been out of it for the better part of the day. "What have you done to Katara and the others?" Zuko demanded through clenched teeth.

"Nothing," replied Hama calmly. "I can't fault misguided Water Tribe children for being tricked by unscrupulous fire demons. I can only seek to rid them of the evils that led them astray in the first place."

"I didn't lead Katara and Sokka astray," argued Zuko. "If anything, I attempted to distance myself from both of them as first."

Hama snorted. "So you would put the blame on others. Typical Fire Nation."

Zuko didn't respond. It wasn't like he was going to say anything that changed Hama's mind. The old waterbending master finished walking down the stairs into the storm cellar as she approached the cage.

Glaring down at the Fire Prince, Hama mocked, "Did you really think filthy scum from the Fire Nation could ever truly be loved by someone from the Water Tribes? After everything your people have done to ours?" When Zuko returned the innkeeper's glare, Hama gave him a taunting sneer. "Allow me to put it in words your kind can understand. You don't deserve such an honor."

"I don't give a damn what you think I deserve," shot back Zuko angrily, unable to take Hama's trash talking quietly any further. "But if you harm Katara or my other friends, then I'll make sure that you regret it."

Hama started to laugh cruelly. "You'll make me regret it? Your people have made me suffer for the last sixty years. Ever since I was stolen away from my home and trapped here in this evil land." She leaned closer as her voice dropped to a menacing pitch. "There isn't a single thing a whelp like you could do to me that could hurt me anymore than I have already been."

"So why haven't you returned?" demanded Zuko. "You escaped from prison. You are free. You could have gone anywhere, far away from here. But you chose to remain. Why?"

"Why? Why?!" shouted Hama as she kicked the cage. "Because someone needs to make your people suffer! Just like they did to mine. Just like how they terrorized my Tribe season after season."

Zuko's eyes grew wide with understanding. "The disappearances. That was you. You've been taking the villagers away." Then, his eyes narrowed. "But why here? What did this village do?"

"This village?" parroted Hama casually. "Why, this village hasn't done a thing." At Zuko's stunned expression, the old innkeeper stressed, "That's what they've done, nothing. The prison my fellow waterbenders and I were trapped in wasn't that far from here. There is no way that this village did not know of its existence. And they did nothing to protest the cruel and inhumane treatment that we waterbenders suffered, locked away and forgotten!"

Incredulously, Zuko asked, "You expected simple villagers to know what occurs in a prison?"

Hama shook her head. "I expect them to suffer. Even if they did not know exactly what occurred, they still supplied the prison. Kept it stocked with provisions. Kept it going day after day, year after year."

The waterbending master paused as she recollected the bitter memory. "I killed all the guards when I escaped. Each. And every. Last. One. Twisted and warped them beyond recognition when I controlled their blood. Oh, the looks of sheer terror on their faces. It had been shocking, even to me, back then."

Hama leveled a glare on the Fire Prince. "You'd think that would have been the end of it, wouldn't you? I slew all the people responsible for the sadistic and barbaric treatment the waterbender prisoners received."

Zuko didn't have a response. He was carefully listening to Hama's actual story. The one that she didn't tell everyone back around the dinner table.

"I did go the port. I was standing there. On the pier, ticket in hand, set to depart to the Fire Colonies. From there, it would have been a journey to the Southern reaches of the Earth Kingdom until I found a willing merchant to take me home to the South Pole," admitted Hama, longing in her voice.

The innkeeper broke from her reminiscing as she kicked the firebender's cage again. "But then, I realized, there was no story in the papers. No news of the prison I had just broken out from. The Fire Nation had swept its atrocities under the rug. No one would know of the suffering of the waterbenders in the prison or of the crushing defeat of the guards stationed there. No one would pay for the sins that occurred in that hideous place. All the citizens would go on with their pointless, daily lives, oblivious to the wickedness that engulfs the hearts of all firebenders."

Hama shook her head. "And we couldn't have that."

"Your tribe would have accepted you back," reasoned Zuko as he cut to the heart of the matter. "You claim you hold a grudge against the Fire Nation, and you have that right. But I think that's an excuse. You were just afraid to return home. Katara was the same way after I helped her escape. I think-"

The firebender was interrupted when Hama waterbent a column of water into him. "I don't care what a firebender thinks!"

Coughing as he spat out the water from his mouth, Zuko laughed dryly as he sat back up. "And I guess I'm just a liability at this point. That's why you are telling me all this, aren't you? Who better to attempt to justify your actions too, then someone you're about to kill? You probably already have a convenient excuse to explain away my death, just like you undoubtedly lied away my disappearance this morning."

"You're not as stupid as you look," sneered Hama.

"I grew up surrounded by liars," proclaimed the Fire Prince.

"I bet you did. The Fire Nation is full of liars," mocked Hama fiendishly. "But you're wrong. My conscience is clean. My mission is just. I have no need to justify myself to a firebender. You all started this war. I am merely returning the same treatment upon the Fire Nation that my Southern Water Tribes were forced to endure for decades."

Opening the door to the cage, Hama shoved a cloth into Zuko's mouth as she gagged the Fire Prince. Then, covering Zuko's head with a dusty potato sack, Hama whispered into the firebender's ear, "And you have one last role to play, before you exit the stage, permanently."

As Hama left the cellar, relocking both the cage and cellar doors behind her, Zuko flailed about for a minute, until he realized that he was not going to be able to remove the sack or the gag from his head, not with his hands still tied behind his back. The Fire Prince cursed himself for removing the Earth Kingdom dagger he usually kept in his boot.

Last night, he had left it back in the team's shared room within his travel pack. He hadn't thought that he would have needed the dagger on him when he was making a necklace in what he had thought was a safe and secure location. If he had his Earth Kingdom dagger on him, then perhaps he could have picked any of the numerous locks and maybe, just maybe, he could have found a way out of this mess he had found himself in.

---

"Why does this mountain have to be so huge?" complained Sokka as the two of them continued to walk around the base of the lonely mountain. There didn't seem to be an obvious way to climb up the sharp slope that lead to the high plateau above. "Should we be trying to figure out how to climb it? Or is there a cave somewhere?"

"I don't know. Let's just keep circling the mountain for now. Maybe we'll come across something," replied Jin as she concentrated on her earth sense with her eyes closed and her hands on the ground.

"Are you sensing anything?" probed the Water Tribe boy as he scanned the area.

"It's hard to narrow anything down. There's a lot of open area around here," stated Jin as she kept focusing with her eyes closed. "Toph may have taught me this technique, but she's way better at this than me. I keep getting some kind of intermittent noise, but whatever these vibrations are, they keep bouncing around all the tree roots." The Earth Kingdom girl opened her eyes as she stood back up and clapped her hands together to knock off the dust. "But there's definitely something weird around here. Let's keep going."

"I'm sure you're doing the best you can," reassured Sokka as he cut through some bushes blocking their way with his meteorite blade. "We'll figure out whatever secrets this mountain is hiding." Another couple of hacks on another bush in their way. "Besides, I'd much rather have you out here with me instead of Toph. You don't punch me nearly as often as she does."

"Oh really?" laughed Jin. She playfully jabbed the Water Tribe boy on the shoulder. "Thanks for letting me know. My teacher might get upset with me if I don't increase the quota then."

Sokka batted the next couple of light-hearted jabs harmlessly off to the side to avoid getting hit again. "Hey now, that wasn't an invitation to start."

"Ah, that's right," deduced Jin, slapping her closed right fist into her empty left palm as she came to a brilliant revelation. "You usually mess up spectacularly or you put your foot in your mouth before you deserve a punch to the shoulder." She smirked at the Water Tribe boy. "It shouldn't be that long of a wait."

"Oh, ha, ha," replied Sokka in an annoyed tone. "Everyone just always has to get on my case. I'll have you know that-"

"Shh!" quieted Jin abruptly as she concentrated again on another spot on the ground. "I think... I think I feel something this time."

"What is it?" asked Sokka as he stopped walking as to not add unnecessary vibrations to the ground.

"I think I feel... screaming, like several people are calling out for help," determined Jin. "But it's faint. The screams are pretty weak."

They looked at each other. "The villagers!" Sokka and Jin exclaimed together. Then, Jin pointed further down the route they were already taking. "There! They're this way!"

Jogging a short distance ahead, the pair came up to the mouth of a cave into the mountain. The opening wasn't all that large and it was actually well hidden by foliage from the forest. Sokka examined the camouflage. Picking up some of the tree moss, he muttered, "This cover was placed here deliberately. Someone was concealing this entrance from anyone searching for it."

Ripping down the camouflage, Sokka turned towards Jin. "Without your earth sense, we might have very well walked right by it without ever knowing." Seeing as how the cave itself was pretty dark n the inside, he pulled out a torch from his pack and knock some flint together to light it. Drawing his sword with his free hand, Sokka took the first step inside. "Let's see what's down here."

Walking a fair distance into the mountain, they arrived at a heavy, locked metal door barring their way. "I don't think that a spirit put this here," doubted Sokka as he knocked on the sturdy barrier.

Jin gestured for him to move aside. After a couple of light punches on the heavy metal door to determine exactly where the earth within resided, Jin grabbed the metal plating and pulled, then pushed as the metal door collapsed and caved in, dropping uselessly off to the side.

Sokka gave a low whistle. "I forget sometimes just how impressive that metalbending of yours is."

"Ah thanks!" replied Jin with a slight blush. "It's Toph's technique though."

"True," commented Sokka. "But you're pretty strong too."

Then, the smell hit them both. The smell of death. Sokka and Jin each fought to not immediately throw up as the foul odor invaded their senses. The source was flooding out from behind the now opened doorway.

With a grim expression on his face, Sokka narrowed his eyes as he nodded at Jin. Both readied their sword and earthbending as they walked into the next chamber.

Entering, the Water Tribe boy and the Earth Kingdom girl gasped as Sokka raised his torch. Everywhere the light touched, as they saw the people chained to the walls. Rows upon rows of villagers, either half-starved or half dehydrated, barely alive as they attempted to shield their eyes from the light of the Water Tribe boy's torch. There were flies buzzing around more unmoving prisoners than they dared to count.

Unruly hacking off to their side drew the teenagers' attention as one of the prisoners couldn't stop coughing. "Are you... are you here... to free us?" rasped the dry mouth of a male villager.

Jin returned to the broken metal door and ripped a piece of it off, carefully bending it into a crude key. Returning to the imprisoned male villager, she knelt down next to his chains and took some time to adjust the size and shape of her key with metalbending to get the tool to fit the lock. "Yes, we're here to help."

"What happened? Who brought you all here?" demanded Sokka as he lit a couple of sparse torches on the walls to brighten the previously pitch black room.

"It was a witch!" exclaimed a frantic female prisoner as she noticed Jin finally unlocking the bonds on the male villager. She held up her shackles to Jin to be freed next.

Jin handed the key to the now free male villager. "Here, keep freeing the others." Then, Jin simply used her metalbending to tear off the iron shackles on several nearby prisoners, to include the female prisoner with her outstretched limbs. The Earth Kingdom girl tried not to dwell on how many of the now freed villagers simply slumped to the ground, unmoving, when their bonds were removed. However, the total was much greater than those who did move after being freed.

Sokka frowned. "A witch? What do you mean?" He used the hilt of his sword to smash free the iron nail holding the shackles of a couple of prisoners chained to the wall as Jin moved on to metalbend free more inmates.

Another female villager spoke up. "She seems like a normal, kind old woman on the outside, but she controls people like some kind of evil, dark puppet master!"

Sokka and Jin paused as stared at each other, stunned. "Hama!" they jointly called out again.

"Yes!" agreed another male prisoner. "The innkeeper from that inn just outside of town. That was her!"

"I knew there was something off about her! I should have trusted my instincts more!" cursed Sokka. "We've got to warn the others! Katara's with her right now!" He quickly cleaved the shackles of the remaining prisoners bound to the wall with his meteorite sword. The dense space earth crushed the inferiorly crafted metal chains without much effort. "Jin, let's go!"

Focusing heavily, Jin grasped and pulled with all her strength as she shattered the metal shackles of all the nearby prisoners to her. Turning to the man that she had given the key to in the first place, she asked, "Can you finish freeing everyone else?" Not waiting for the man to respond, Jin took off after Sokka, who was already back at the doorway leading out of the chamber. "Keep going! We've got to hurry!"

---

Rotting possum chicken eggs. That was the distinct odor wafting through the prison sewer system as Suki led the way through the muck. Aang followed closely, while Jet brought up the rear a couple of steps behind Mai so that he could watch her for any trickery.

The Kyoshi Warrior held a miniature lantern in her hands, the only modest light source in the dreary halls of crumbling brick and sludge. Suki appeared to be focused on the way ahead, her ears strained for the slightest possible noise, which could indicate the presence of a Fire Nation guard.

Aang wasn't completely sure why none of his traveling companions weren't complaining about the smell. More than once, the young airbender gagged in disgust when his sensitive nose picked up a rush of foul scents permeating the corridor.

Damp. That was another issue that Aang had with this place. Aang could hear their faint footsteps as they stepped through the light coating of water spread across the ground. "Should we be worried about someone down here hearing our footsteps?" asked the airbender.

"I'd welcome it," boasted the Freedom Fighter in the back confidently. "I'm in the middle of enemy territory and it's open season on fireheads."

Mai rolled her eyes. "The guards rarely patrol down here. Unless some imbecile is being punished for dereliction or negligence in their duties, then I'd doubt that we'll see anyone else down here."

"Or so you say," muttered Jet.

Suki held up her fist, indicating for the group to stop. "Gate," came her simple statement of why she had halted the formation. "I'll need a minute to pick the lock. Watch the corridor."

"Don't give me orders," grumbled Jet, who after a moment of glaring at the de facto leader of the team, relented and began to monitor the area behind the four teenagers.

"I could pick the lock faster," offered Mai as she took a step forward.

"I've got it," asserted Suki as she blocked the weapon mistress from approaching the gate. "Watch the corridor with Jet." With narrowed eyes, Mai appeared to consider challenging Suki for a moment, before also walking back and standing along the opposite wall from Jet.

As Suki knelt down next to the lock mechanism and began her work with a set of picks, Aang leaned against the nearby wall as he slid down and took a seat to rest. Massaging the slow-healing wound on his sore foot, Aang was grateful for the brief respite. All this walking around was utterly exhausting.

"All comfortable there, your Majesty?" mocked Jet as he leaned against a cobblestone wall with his arms crossed. "Is there anything else we could do for you? You know, besides doing all the work while you just lounge about?"

"What? I, uh... No, that's not what I was doing," attempted to deflect Aang.

"Uh... No, Uh... I, Uh... Yes, it kind of exactly is," interjected Jet snidely as he talked over Aang while making fun of the younger boy's excuses. "Looky-here everyone, the great and powerful Avatar, master of all the elements, king of the benders, just lazes around like an entitled aristocrat. Meanwhile, we, his non-bending minions are busy at work, picking locks and keeping an eye out for the enemy."

"Jet, shut up," ordered Suki harshly, her back still to the crass Freedom Fighter and her focus on the crusted over, decaying gate lock. "You're distracting me from this lock. Take Mai and keep watching our backs."

Giving a fake and overly exaggerated bow, one clearly full of disrespect, Jet stated, "Oh, of course boss. Whatever you say, boss. We wouldn't want the Kid Avatar to ever feel any sort of discomfort or shame now, would we?" With that, the Freedom Fighter turned and proceed a little further down the corridor to keep watch from the nearby intersection.

"Don't mind him," reassured Suki, still without looking back at the airbender. "He's just a spiteful person. There's no end to his sort."

Aang only somewhat heard the Kyoshi Warrior's comforting words. Staring down dejectedly, Aang admitted, "He's right though. I'm worthless. I was just thinking about how I was tired. You all aren't taking a break. And you're probably more tired than I am."

There was a clicking sound as Suki managed to turn one of the tumblers in the lock. As she proceeded to the next one, Suki replied, "I've trained to operate in these kind of conditions. Don't underestimate a Kyoshi Warrior."

Shaking his head, Aang stated, "I'm not. It's just... it's just, I'm thinking about how jealous I was when I found out that Hakoda allowed Sokka, Katara, and Zuko to go on missions."

"Oh?" solicited Suki with interest. "Where did they go?"

"Down to the South Pole," continued Aang gloomily. "Katara's and Sokka's home was in danger and they went to save it. And they did."

Glancing over her shoulder, Suki interrogated, "You don't sound too happy about that."

Immediately on the defensive, Aang waved his arms back and forth, "What?! No, I mean, of course I'm happy that they saved their village. That's amazing news. It's just that..." the airbender trailed off.

"It's just that you weren't around to help out," finished Suki as she turned around back to the gate lock.

"Yeah," agreed Aang. Then, more solemnly, "I didn't get a chance to help. They did it on their own. I wasn't needed."

"So, what did this Hakoda person tell you to do?" asked Suki as she filed some rust off a portion of the lock.

"He told me to keep training with Toph. To get ready for the next fight. My earthbending and waterbending still need a lot of work," revealed Aang with a sigh.

"What about your firebending?" pressed the Kyoshi Warrior.

"It's, uh... it's not great," muttered the airbender. "Last time I used firebending, I burned Appa's fur. I don't like that element."

Suki didn't respond to Aang as she continued to work on the locked gate. Only the intermittent sounds of a metal pin scraping against the weathered and warped mechanism rang out through the silence.

After another minute, the airbender continued to speak his thoughts. "At first, I thought Hakoda didn't trust me. I had just lost to Azula in Ba Sing Se and allowed the city to fall to the Fire Nation." Aang shook his head. "Not the greatest first impression when meeting the leader of the Southern Water Tribes."

Aang glanced over at the Freedom Fighter and the weapon mistress, both of whom were still standing watch at the far intersection a ways back down the sewer corridor. "Everyone's always expecting me to be some mighty and amazing Avatar." Aang gave a disheartened laugh. "I don't know how to be that. Each one of my past selves overcame the challenges of their time. But I don't have my connection to hear their advice anymore."

"Why not? What happened?" inquired Suki with interest.

"Azula's lightning happened. She struck me when I was vulnerable, and I think my link to my past selves got blocked because of it," elaborated Aang. "Now I don't know how I can ever catch up to my friends."

"What do you mean?" asked Suki.

"Sokka's becoming a great fighter. He always has a plan and he can outthink anybody," replied the airbender as he started to list off his friends' strong points. "Toph's unstoppable when it comes to earthbending. Even if I train for the next one hundred years, I don't think I could beat her in a straightforward earthbending fight. And there's Katara. It's been months since I last saw her, but in that time, she's become an incredible waterbender. She even healed me when no one else could. And..." Aang trailed off once more as he thought about the next person.

"And...?" pressed the Kyoshi warrior as a second tumbler on the old lock finally gave way.

A sour expression seemed to spread on the airbender's face, almost as if the next name was a bitter one to say. "And... Zuko," he finally admitted. "Everyone back on the ship says that Zuko's changed. That he's fighting on our side now. Zuko pursued me and Sokka for weeks, all the way to the North Pole. I don't understand how he's changed to the point that he's fighting on our side now."

"Is Zuko down in the South Pole with Sokka and Katara?" singled out Suki, filing off some more rust on the lock pins.

Shaking his head, Aang replied, "No, all of them are in the Fire Nation. I was looking for them when Mai captured me. I think they were trying to rescue Zuko's Uncle from a prison. I talked to Iroh for a little bit in Ba Sing Se. He's a kind, old man. I can at least see why they would want to rescue him."

"What about after they rescue Zuko's Uncle? Where would they go?" implored the Kyoshi Warrior, her back still to the airbender as she worked.

"It don't know the exact location. But it's somewhere that Hakoda and Sokka picked out. So, Sokka would know where to go. We just need to find him and then we can all work together to take down the Fire Lord," replied Aang.

Another silence hung over the group for a minute. Then, Aang spoke up once more. "I'm just worried how I'll tell everyone that I almost messed up and got captured. First, I failed in the North Pole and got the Moon Spirit killed. It was only because of Yue's sacrifice that the Moon Spirt was restored. Then, I failed in Ba Sing Se and left all those innocent refugees to suffer under the Fire Nation. I only escaped because my friends got me out of there. Now, I ran away from Toph, who had stayed behind to help me, only to wander around looking for my other friends who are on an important mission. Plus, I couldn't find them and I almost got myself captured again. If you and Jet didn't save me, then I really would have messed up."

"We're here to support you, Avatar," assured Suki with a head nod.

Continuing, Aang spoke again, "I wanted to help so that I could make everyone proud of me. So that they would know that I'm not some screwup who keeps losing things."

"Maybe it's not too late," offered Suki.

Shaking his head, Aang sighed heavily. "It is. Toph's going to earthbend me into next week when I see her again. And Sokka and Katara are going to be disappointed that I skipped out on my training again. I made a choice, and I chose wrong. And now I've ruined everything."

There was echo in the sewer corridor as the final tumbler gave way and the lock fell to the ground. Pushing the protesting gate open with a casual wave of her arm, Suki looked back at Aang and smiled. "Not everything, Avatar."

The sound of the gate opening caused Jet and Mai to quickly return from the intersection. With a nod of understanding, the group proceeded deeper into the underbelly of the prison.

Mai guided the group silently through the twisting corridors of similarly walled cobblestone. Eventually, the team approached a wooden door. Mai and Suki lined up against the frame to be the first into the breach. With a nod to the Freedom Fighter, Jet kicked open the frail barrier as all three of the hand-to-hand fighters rushed inside.

There were no sounds of fighting or shuffling inside. Poking his head thrught the doorframe, Aang saw Suki, Jet, and Mai all standing back-to-back, weapons at the ready, but there were no guards to confront them.

"Well, this will be easier than I thought," scoffed Jet as he relaxed his form, but still held his hooked blades at the ready.

"Avatar, bring the torch you're holding closer. There's a brazier right here next to us. Could you light it?" asked Suki.

"Yeah, I can do that," replied Aang as he walked into the room. As the airbender lowered the torch in his hands to the coals in the unlit brazier, the enthralling chime of a silver bell echoed rhythmically three times in the dark room as the shutters on several concealed orange lanterns flickered open and closed, repeatedly, casting a mesmerizing glow throughout the room. Then, as the last ring of the bell ceased, so too did the lantern lights.

The torch in Aang's hands touched the ashen coals in the metal brazier. A few moments later, the centralized firepit lit up the entire chamber. Rubbing away the dazzling sparkles in his eyes from the weird lanterns, Aang looked up to see a very similar set of X-shaped crossbeams looming directly in front of him. The discarded foot clamp laying forgotten nearby signaled that this was the exact same room that the airbender had been tortured in just the other day.

Taking an involuntary step back, Aang bumped into Suki as the Kyoshi Warrior restrained him. "W-What? Suki! What are you doing?" Before Aang could even consider using his airbending to shake his former friend off of him, Jet reinforced the Kyoshi Warrior by further restraining Aang's limbs.

There was a sharp prick in his neck as Aang gave a loud, "Ow!" Then, almost immediately, he started to feel extremely woozy as his vision swirled and his head swayed. The last thing that Aang remembered, as he hit the floor, was the horizontal image of Azula staring down at him with a triumph grin.

---

Night had settled upon the local inn as Katara walked with Hama towards the clearing behind the building. The older lady had been quite secretive this evening, especially when she told Katara to wait inside the inn while she set up the training field. When the young Water Tribe girl offered to help, Hama had told her that she really wanted this to be a surprise. The old waterbending master had never had a chance to teach anyone this technique of hers before and she wanted to make sure everything was prepared just right.

"Can you feel the power the full moon brings?" asked Hama as she glanced up at the celestial body high in the cloudless night sky.

Katara looked up too. The moon was indeed bright, nearly glowing in fact. But there was a tug at Katara's heart. The Water Tribe girl couldn't put her finger exactly on it, but it was almost like she felt a twinge of sadness coming from the moon above. 'Is Yue trying to convoy something?' pondered Katara to herself. She hadn't seen the moon priestess again, not since their last meeting with the lion turtle back in the Spirit World.

Hama inhaled deeply, like she was breathing in the power of the moonlight, flexing her tired limbs as they appeared to reinvigorate with a strength of days long past. "For generations, the moon has blessed waterbenders with its shimmer, allowing us to do incredible things!" The innkeeper finished stretching. "Oh, I've never felt more alive than when I am under its brilliant radiance."

The young waterbender had to admit that her master was right. The moon's power was real; tangible almost. Katara could practically feel a newfound boost of energy coursing through her, filling her with strength and power.

This much wasn't anything new. Katara had learned a while ago that her bending was stronger at night. However, she had never really focused on just how much more powerful she actually felt.

The full moon tonight was intoxicating. Equal parts exciting and frightening at the same time. If the young waterbender had to put it into words, then it was a similar feeling as to when she had first admitted her feelings to Zuko back on Camila's ranch.

The two waterbenders reached the clearing and Katara was surprised to see two figures, each encased in a block of ice up to their necks, their wrists and ankles bound with shackles, and their heads each covered with a burlap sack.

"Who are-" Katara started as her master held up a hand for her to be quiet.

"What I am about to show you, I discovered in that wretched Fire Nation prison," began Hama. "The guards were always very careful to keep any water away from us. They piped in dry air and had us suspended away from the ground. Before giving us any water, they would bind our hands and feet so that we couldn't bend."

Katara nodded in understanding. She had experienced similar conditions back on the prison rig, though not as harsh. She had been inexperienced at waterbending and the guards on the rig clearly couldn't have been bothered to go through all the similar precautions that the guards at Hama's prison did for veteran waterbenders. The young Water Tribe girl felt a twinge of guilt. If she had been a better waterbender at the time, then she could have freed herself under her prison's lax conditions.

Hama frowned as she recounted her story. "Any sign of trouble was met with swift and cruel retribution. And yet, each month, I felt the full moon enriching me with its energy. There had to be something I could do to escape. It was then that I realized that where there was life, there was water. The rats that scurried across the floor of my cage were nothing more than skins filled with liquid."

The young Water Tribe girl listened as her mentor started to reach the topic of their conversation from earlier that day during morning training. "I spent years developing and refining this skill in secret. A skill that would lead to my escape." Hama grinned as she turned, illuminated by the light of the full moon. "Bloodbending. Controlling the blood in another living creature's body. Enforcing your will over their own."

Katara was stunned at the knowledge. Waterbenders were capable of controlling other people? It seemed unbelievable, but Hama's words were spoken with the confidence of someone who had complete faith in their technique.

"Once I mastered the rats, I was ready for the men," continued Hama. "And during the next full moon, I walked free for the first time in decades. My cell unlocked by the very guards assigned to keep me in." Hama scowled. "Of course, I couldn't just allow those men to live. By the time I had mastered my ability, I was the only waterbender left alive. My desire for revenge was the only thing keeping me going. And I achieved that revenge when I eroded the side of the mountain housing that prison. I brought the entire structure crashing into the sea with all the guards still in it."

Hama gestured towards her protégé. "Once you perfect this technique, you too can control anything or..." she narrowed her eyes sadistically, "Anyone."

Katara took a step back. A step that did not go unnoticed by Hama. "But... to reach inside someone and control them?" The young Water Tribe girl cradled her arms to her chest and looked off to the side. "I don't know if I want that kind of power."

Hama raised a dominant fist. "The power already exists! Whether you want it or not, that is irrelevant. All waterbenders have the innate ability to bloodbend lying dominant within them. We simply must draw it out. It is our duty! Just as it is our duty to the Southern Water Tribes to use the gifts we have been blessed with from the Moon Spirit to win this accursed war." Hama pleaded to her student. "Katara, they tried to wipe us out, our entire culture, my Brothers and Sisters, your Mother!"

The young waterbender shut her eyes as she recalled that horrible day once more. "I know."

Hama implored further. "Then, you must understand what I'm talking about! We are the last two waterbenders of the Southern Water Tribe! We have a responsibility to fight the Fire Nation and its evil wherever they are, whenever we can, and with any means necessary!"

Katara stammered her next couple of words. "I... Bloodbending..." The Water Tribe girl took a deep breath to calm her nerves. "I think I've used bloodbending once before, back when my friends and I fought off the Southern Raiders from attacking our village. Zuko was hurt badly. He was bleeding out. I don't know how I did it, but I managed to bend his blood back into him. I saved his life. But that power didn't feel natural. It felt strange to be in control of a person's blood like that."

"But you felt the power, did you not?" tempted Hama as she pressed the issue once again. "Even if involuntarily, you experienced the exhilaration of bending someone else to your will, of making their actions, your actions. You controlled life and death. With your own hands! That, is the ultimate technique of the waterbenders!"

As Katara remained hesitant, Hama walked closer to the two figures still encased in ice. "Allow me to begin your next lesson. I have a gift for you. Yon Rha and one of his associates!"

"Yon Rha?! How?!" gasped Katara as the restrained figures next to Hama suddenly started to look a whole lot less like helpless captives and more like appropriately bound enemies. "He was supposed to be in the Northern territories of the Fire Nation." The reluctancy to try bloodbending in the Water Tribe girl's voice wavered for a moment as it threatened to give way completely.

"I have lived in the Fire Nation for a long time, Katara," explained Hama before she launched into another fabricated tale. "I didn't do that without making allies along the way. Like-minded people who despise the evil of the Fire Nation."

Picking up the head of one of the hooded figures by the burlap sack, Hama continued, "When you told me about how this Yon Rha killed your Mother, I reached out to my contacts to discover his exact whereabouts. I was hoping to aid you on your search." Hama let the head drop as she released her hold on the burlap sack. "Imagine my surprise, when my contacts informed me that Yon Rha was visiting a nearby town. No doubt looking to stir up trouble."

Honestly, Hama probably could have made-up any kind of tall tale to explain Yon Rha's presence in this field, as Katara was only half-listening to her mentor at this point. Anger and hate bubbled up within the Water Tribe girl as she glared at the supposed Yon Rha tied up before her. Katara only saw her Mother's killer. And the predecessor and mentor to Ro Kai, the attempted murderer who had plunged a knife into Zuko. And now this evil man was right in front of her. Bound and unable to defend himself. At her mercy this time. "Yon Rha," Katara hissed through clenched teeth.

"Good, good," coaxed Hama. "Strong emotions can strengthen our waterbending even further. Your hate can make you powerful." The old waterbending master dropped into a bending stance. "Observe." The ice around Yon Rha's associate returned to water as the man crumbled to the ground, shivering. Then, the associate jerked upright, standing awkwardly, as if possessed by an unseen force.

Katara watched carefully as her mentor bloodbent the man around with very little effort. She watched the motions of the waterbending master's hands and arms. She watched the circular, rhythmic steps of her master's feet. She watched the power the full moon granted to Hama as this power was on full display for all to bear witness.

The bloodbent associate attempted to resist at first, but he had no power. His every limb belonged to Hama. He was her plaything. Walking and waving his arms in whichever manner she desired him too. She ran him into a tree, had him punch himself over and over in the face, and pulled at his limbs until he looked like his arms and legs were about to be ripped off. The old waterbending master was drunk on her power and lavishing in the man's torture.

But Katara didn't dwell on any of that. No, her focus was singularly focused on Yon Rha, the man who had stolen her Mother away from her, stolen the happiness of her family. Gradually, the young waterbender raised her arms in a mirror of the form Hama had illustrated.

"You came to the South Pole." Katara's eyes hardened. "You and your raiders." The hesitation flickered. "You attacked my home." There was a shift in her wrists as Katara sharpened their motions. "You burned those that I loved." The ice encasing Yon Rha shifted into water and the firebender's right arm was raised into the air like a puppet. "You killed my Mother!" The left arm this time. "And then you ran away like the coward you are!" The figure bent and shifted into unnatural positions as his entire body jerked.

Hama observed her protégé with a wicked grin on her face. Katara's anger and rage had been unleashed. It was as if Hama was watching her younger self on the same day of her escape from the Fire Nation prison all those many years ago. A new bloodbender had been born. Hama's legacy would persist.

Katara dropped Yon Rha to the ground as she dragged him along the rocky terrain, cutting his exposed skin and bruising his limbs. Then, she picked him high up into the air before dropping him harshly to the ground multiple times, watching him bounce like a limp doll with each consecutive drop.

Tears formed in the waterbender's eyes. "Why? Why did you have to come to our village?" Katara lifted Yon Rha by his legs this time, before she dropped him onto his head roughly. "We never attacked anyone. We were never a danger to anyone. We were living in peace." The Water Tribe girl started to pull at Yon Rha's limbs in four separate directions. Yon Rha's muffled scream echoed in pain against the gag in his mouth from under the burlap sack. "If you had never showed up, then my Mother would still be alive right now. My Father would have never left to go fight in the war."

Katara could feel the limbs of the man she was bloodbending about to break. "Why don't you say anything?!" she demanded loudly in anger. She flung Yon Rha away as he folded into a heap, his back against a small boulder and his burlap sack covered head slumped against his left shoulder.

The young waterbender summoned a magnitude of ice needles as she liquified the air moisture in an instant. Even Hama was surprised at the speed in which Katara had done so. The young waterbender hadn't displayed that much of an aptitude for that technique during the training earlier today. Each blade was suspended to form a deadly half arced dome around the silent, hooded man. "Tell me why my Mother had to die!" demanded an enraged Katara.

The young Water Tribe girl heard the neck of Yon Rha's associate snap as Hama casually broke the other man's neck with her bloodbending. Leaving her victim in an unceremonious heap at her feet, Hama stepped over him as she walked next to her protégé. "You're not going to get an answer from a sniveling coward. The Fire Nation only knows how to spread violence and destruction, wherever they go." Hama whispered darkly into Katara's ear. "Finish him. End it now. Avenge your Mother."

She almost did it. She wanted to do it. Yon Rha deserved death for the cruelty he had inflicted on the Southern Water Tribes. Katara's raised hand shook as she struggled with her choice.

"This war, it will make monsters of us all, if we let it." An unbidden memory flashed in Katara's mind. She heard Jin's words once more as she recalled their conversation while riding on Edel down to the South Pole. "Murder under the cloak of war, is still murder."

"What are you waiting for? He's right there! The man who killed your Mother!" beseeched Hama from Katara's shoulder. "Show me the waterbending skills you have mastered."

In addition to Jin's face, Katara saw the images of Sokka and Zuko huddled around the Earth Kingdom girl in her mind as she heard their words. "We'll support you, regardless of what you choose. We're on your side Katara. Just don't shatter your soul along the way."

Katara dropped the ice needles as they melted back into water that splashed harmlessly onto the ground. "No," the waterbender protested. "I need to look this man in the eye first. I need to hear the words from his mouth. I need to know why." She marched forward and ripped the hood off the severely wounded Yon Rha before Hama could stop her.

Any words that Katara had, all her rage, all her fury, all of it left her in the blink of an eye as she backed up and collapsed to the ground as the strength in her legs failed her. The Water Tribe girl gripped the empty burlap sack in her hands tighter. In front of her, battered and bleeding, sat Zuko as he slipped in and out of consciousness against the small boulder he was leaning against. The firebender was gagged with a cloth firmly wrapped around his lower face to hold another ball of cloth within his mouth.

"Z-Zuko?" Katara whispered weakly in disbelief. This wasn't real. This couldn't be real. There was absolutely no way this was real. She slowly looked up at Hama, the young waterbender's face full of confusion. The anger and fury had completely drained from her system, but a turbulent range of emotions raced inside her, muddling Katara's ability to think clearly, to put the pieces together properly.

"But you said he was Yon Rha?" the Water Tribe girl claimed feebly. Nothing was making sense to her right now. One moment, she had been full of rage, about to finally get revenge for her Mother, about to finally learn why her family had to suffer. Then the next moment, she was staring at the severely damaged form of her boyfriend. A person that she had injured to this extent with her own hand.

"Truth be told, I don't know where Yon Rha is at this moment. And it doesn't matter. We'll find him eventually and make him pay," confessed Hama honestly. "But I needed you to focus, needed you to learn. Overcoming the reluctancy to bloodbend is the hardest step, but you broke through that barrier. You learned to steel your heart and master bloodbending to its fullest potential. I'm so proud of you, Katara! You're a true waterbending master now!"

Standing once more, Katara distanced herself from Hama in disgust. "What are you talking about? I almost killed Zuko! You almost had me kill Zuko!" Her righteous anger was returning, but with a new target.

"He is Fire Nation. He is an enemy," countered Hama without emotion or concern in her voice. "You had been charmed by a cunning firebender. You and your Brother. The trickster had to go. I was simply putting you back on the correct path. Back on the path of your Tribe. Or have you forgotten your own people?" demanded Hama.

"I haven't forgotten anything!" shouted Katara in return. "And Zuko's not an enemy! He helped to defend the Southern Water Tribes from the Southern Raiders. We all did! Together! We stopped them from ever harming the people of the South Pole ever again!"

"Lies!" yelled Hama in frustration. "A firebender would never help the Water Tribes. It goes against their very nature. They only know how to cause suffering and mayhem. They started this war! Firebenders burn homes! Burn families! There are an evil that must be torn out by the roots!"

"It's not a lie! Even Gran-Gran accepted Zuko! She didn't judge him based on the actions of other firebenders," pleaded Katara. "Gran-Gran saw that there is good in Zuko and she trusted in my faith in him."

"Another lie!" screamed Hama with bitterness. "Kanna would never accept a firebender into her household! She suffered at their hands! Just like I did! Kanna knows better than to trust someone from the Fire Nation."

"We're going to end this war, Zuko and I, both of us, together," proclaimed Katara resolutely. "And once we do, Zuko's going to change the Fire Nation for the better."

"And how is he going to do that?" mocked Hama.

Pride sparked to life in the young waterbender's eyes. "He is the Son of Ursa and Fire Lord Ozai. Prince of the Fire Nation, and heir to the throne."

Fresh outrage poured into Hama's features. "You mean to tell me that the Son of the Firelord is right here?! Then, that is even more reason why he should die. We can send a message to the Firelord! Strike a blow directly at the heart of the Fire Nation royalty!"

Hama pointed at the collapsed Fire Prince still fading in and out of consciousness as he leaned against a fair-sized rock on the edge of the clearing. "I'll give you another chance. Use your bloodbending to prove yourself a loyal waterbender. End this plague on the world, once and for all."

"This is wrong! Bloodbending, it's not natural! It's dark. It twists your own soul just as much as the people you are bending," argued Katara.

"That is not the expression you had on your face just a couple of moments ago," pointed out Hama. "You reveled in the power just as much as I. You felt the strength. You know you can use it to carry out the justice that is desperately needed within the Fire Nation."

Katara stomped on the ground in defiance. "No! I won't use bloodbending anymore! I'm nothing like you!" The Water Tribe girl started to finally connect the dots in her mind. "Not like... the villagers... it was you! You're the one who's been making people disappear during the full moons." Katara settled into a bending stance. "I won't let you terrorize this town any longer! And I won't let you get to Zuko!"

The Water Tribe girl's arm immediately twisted and contorted as Hama effortlessly locked her within the confines of the older woman's bloodbending. "I did not wish to have to do this, Katara. But you're lashing out, trying to justify your own actions by condemning mine. Admit it, you were ready to kill when you thought the man before you was Yon Rha. You wanted to avenge your Mother."

The young waterbender tried to resist, but Hama was keeping her pinned down firmly with bloodbending. "It is impossible to fight your way out of my grip! I control every muscle, every vein in your body!" With deft, swift motions, Hama disoriented her former protégé further as she threw the girl from side to side before positioning the young girl on her knees in submission.

Tears filled Katara's eyes again. "Stop! Please..." The situation had long since spiraled completely out of hand. And the realization that she had very nearly killed Zuko was compounding every additional emotion even further. Her fears, her anger, her convictions, her resentment, her focus, her wrath.

The grass beneath Katara shifted as it decayed, shriveled and wasted away into nothing, as water swirled to life defensively around the Water Tribe girl. The young waterbender clenched her fists as she inhaled deeply and centered herself. She rose to her feet steadily, breaking free of Hama's control with a desperate cry of exertion. Her face harden with determination. "You're not the only one who draws power from the moon!" Katara resumed a bending stance once more. "I know that my bending is more powerful than yours, Hama. All of your techniques are useless on me!"

Taking the initiative, Katara lashed out with the ring of water around her waist. The water plume rocketed directly at Hama, who in turn caught and wrapped the water into a ring around herself before redirecting it back at her former student. With her own spin, Katara caught the returned projectile and sent it back yet again, but with greater force.

This stalemate continued twice more, until Hama disrupted the deadly game of catch by drawing more water from two trees, splintering the aged flora as the master literally ripped the liquid from the solid trunks. Hama deflected Katara's attack with one column of water while sending the other highly pressurized water jet at her former protégé.

As the new attack barreled down upon her, Katara was done playing by her former master's rules. Instead of redirecting or deflecting the attack like a normal waterbender would have, Katara took a page out of Zuko's book.

Clasping her hands together with all her fingers pointed out, she wedged through the water column, dividing it in half as either side flew by her harmlessly, crashing into the ground. It was the same technique she had seen Zuko use in the past to break through someone else's firebending with his own.

Shock at the unexpected technique, especially one that sullied the pristine elegance of waterbending with the crude mannerisms of defensive firebending, Hama was not at all prepared for when Katara imitated her former master by ripping water from two additional trees on either side of the old innkeeper. Katara waterbent one water surge into Hama's head and the other into her former master's legs from opposite directions. The result was a flailing Hama, who spun horizontally through the air as she was knocked off her feet with a shout of pain.

"Give it up Hama, you cannot beat me," declared Katara with dominance. "Just surrender, and let it end."

From behind the old waterbending master, Sokka and Jin came running into the moonlit clearing. "We know what you've been doing Hama!" exclaimed Sokka fiercely as he drew his sword defiantly.

"We found the villagers! How could you leave them to waste away like that?!" declared Jin furiously as she assumed a horse stance.

Rising to her feet, Hama gave a cruel laugh towards her former protégé. "Maybe I cannot defeat you, but are you so quick to harm your own friends?"

Realization sparked in Katara's eyes as she shouted to Sokka and Jin, "No! Get out of here!"

Lifting both her arms, the water witch grasped both Sokka and Jin within her bloodbending. Both the Water Tribe boy and the Earth Kingdom girl seized as they lost control of their bodies. A moment later, Hama sent both of them flying directly at Katara.

Without missing a beat, Katara pulled a ring of water from the nearby flora as she redirected both her Brother and her friend away.

Sokka was freaking out. "Katara! Look out!" His sword hand was swinging around every which way erratically. "It's like my arm has a mind of its own! I can't control it! Stop it arm! Stop it!"

The waterbender pushed her Brother away again and froze him to a tree. "Sorry Sokka!"

"It's okay!" the Water Tribe boy shouted back in relief. At least he wasn't swinging his sword around at his Sister anymore.

"Katara! Watch out!" warned Jin as she flew at the waterbender again.

The Water Tribe girl deftly dodged underneath the Earth Kingdom girl before spinning back up and freezing her friend to a separate tree.

Hama's voice took a sinister tone. "Don't hurt your friends Katara." The water witch moved her arms in another series of bloodbending arcs. "And don't let them hurt each other!"

In an instant, the ice restricting both the Water Tribe boy and Earth Kingdom girl shattered as they flew at each other, Sokka's sword extended directly at Jin's heart.

Sokka's eyes were wide as paradoxically time seemed to slow to a standstill for him while the distance between him and Jin closed faster than he could think. The Water Tribe boy tugged uselessly at his bloodbent arm. He had to break this curse. He had to move his sword even a fraction of an inch. He had to do something. Anything. He couldn't let this happen. He wasn't about to lose another friend. He wasn't about to watch another person die. Not like how Yue had died before his eyes.

Jin's expression was one of fright as well as she watched the meteorite sword speed unimpeded towards her heart. She could feel the cold embrace of death caress her cheek as she fruitlessly attempted to shift her body to the side. If she allowed this to happen, then Sokka would tear himself apart with blame for being the cause of yet another friend's death.

A horrified "No!" halted both the Water Tribe boy and the Earth Kingdom girl in their tracks, the meteorite blade lightly brushing against Jin's chest as the faintest trickles of blood emerged. Both Sokka and Jin had control of their bodies once more as they dropped to the ground. Sokka immediately released his meteorite blade from his hands as he checked on Jin, who repeatedly reassured a frantic Water Tribe boy that she was alright.

Behind them, Hama struggled to move, her arms pinned to her side as her whole body spasmed in discomfort. Sokka and Jin looked in the opposite direction to see Katara, her arms extended outward with a tear in her eye as the young waterbender bloodbent Hama into a submissive kneeling position on the ground. "Jin, bind her arms and legs with metal. Don't allow her to move or bend," ordered Katara with sorrow in her voice.

Jin proceeded over to one of the training dummies littering the field and pulled some metal from the construct. Fashioning some makeshift restraints, Jin shackled the old innkeeper's wrists and ankles together. When the Earth Kingdom girl signaled that she was done, Katara dropped the bloodbending and walked over to Hama.

Standing over her former master, Katara's face was unreadable. Then, the Water Tribe girl ripped a large amount of water from yet another tree as she condensed an exceedingly sharp icicle that she floated over Hama's head.

"Katara, what are you..." started Sokka, only to be silenced as his Sister glowered at him with a glare that clearly meant for the Water Tribe boy to be quiet.

Hama didn't say anything as she looked up at her former protégé. As Katara hesitated, the icicle looming ominously overhead, Hama sneered. "Do it." The water witch stared the young waterbender directly in the eyes. "Do it!"

A range of emotions flared across Katara's face. Anger at Hama for tricking her. Humiliation for allowing herself to be tricked. Betrayal from trusting someone from her own Southern Water Tribe. Concern for friends. Distress for Zuko's condition. Terror for just how badly everything could have ended up. Disgust for the style of waterbending she had, up until just this evening, been proud to learn. Unsettlement from the deranged look in Hama's eye.

Screaming with fury, Katara thrust her arm forward as the frozen icicle pike darted forward, making a sickening, dull thud as it impacted its target.

Both Sokka and Jin had turned away from the sight as they saw Katara execute her waterbending move. Only the heavy breathing pants of a conflicted Water Tribe girl echoed across the open field.

A moment later, Hama opened her eyes as she recovered from her involuntary recoil. Inches away to her right side, lay an impact crater from Katara's final waterbending attack. As Hama turned to look at her former protégé, Katara grabbed the innkeeper by the neck cuff of the old lady's tunic.

"The only reason why I'm not finishing you, is because I'm not the one who has the right," declared Katara. The Water Tribe girl's eyes flickered over to Jin for a moment as the two girls locked stares, before Katara's focus returned to Hama. "A friend of mine taught me the difference between justice and revenge. I'm only sorry that you never had anyone to teach you."

Hama's eyes narrowed as she spoke harshly to her former protégé. "I'm the same as you. The only difference is; I don't lie about what I am. So imprison me or kill me, but don't call me a monster; while you stand there, on your supposed moral high ground, telling each other that you aren't just as guilty. You hear me?"

The water witch nodded her head towards the unconscious Zuko slumped against the nearby rock. "You did that. You enjoyed the power your waterbending brought you. You relished in the sensation of having your opponent helpless and begging for your mercy. Don't deny it. I saw the look in your eyes." Hama smirked sinisterly as she continued to pierce into Katara's very soul with her baleful gaze. "We're more alike than you want to admit."

Katara took an involuntary step back, clearly distressed as tears threatened to fall again.

Hama began to laugh, lowly at first, but soon her voice rose to a booming shrill.

"What are you so happy about!" demanded Sokka as he stormed at the restrained waterbending master. "You're done! Finished!"

"You're right! You're absolutely right! My work is done!" cheered Hama, reveling with delight as she stared directly at her student. "Congratulations, Katara. You're a true bloodbender. One more powerful than me. Why wouldn't I be proud?"

Katara dropped to her knees a short distance away from Hama, shaking slightly from the implications of Hama's concluding words. She had trusted Hama because of the bond they had shared as waterbenders from the same Southern Water Tribe. And Hama had twisted that kinship into something ugly.

Sokka moved to comfort his Sister as Jin waved down the approaching lanterns of the villagers in the distance; an arresting posse no doubt. The prisoners from the mountain must have returned to the village by now and revealed what had happened.

All the while, Hama's ominous cackling only continued to fill the somber cloudless night sky as the full moon cast a solemn pale glow upon the disastrous situation below.