A/N: Yay! I finally get to post Book 2! This is when things start to get good.

Response from chapter 21:

Vapor23: Hello, friend! Yes, the finales are very all over the place. It's trying to fit all of the characters in one episode, so it's pretty understandable. I'm glad you think I did a good job explaining the emotions. I know that chapter was definitely a step down from the one before it, but I promise, quality like that and original stories will come back soon! Thanks for the idea for a chapter! Enjoy!


I awoke to the sound of my brother's heavy panting. My eyes slightly fluttered as I picked up my head, and I watched as Aang climbed up the ladder that led to the deck of the boat. Apparently, this had woken Katara up, too, because I noticed her sitting up in the bed next to mine.

"Should we follow him?" I asked, my voice still weak with sleep.

"I think we should," Katara replied.

We quietly went up the ladder, seeing Aang standing near the edge of the boat. His eyes looked as if he were in a trance, glued to the sight of the water below.

"Hey," I said, making him snap back to reality, "What's going on?"

"Just a nightmare," He replied, his eyes returning to being glued to the water, "You can go back to bed, it wasn't that big of a deal,"

"Aang, you've been having these nightmares ever since we left the North Pole," Katara stated, walking up to him, "We just want to know what's going on,"

Aang stood there in silence, looking as though his thoughts were taking over all other senses. I got closer to him, standing on his other side.

"Do you wanna talk about it?" I asked, my voice soft and soothing. Aang sighed before responding.

"I was in the Avatar State, but I was outside of my body watching myself," He explained, "It was scary, I was scary,"

I frowned, a concerned look coming to my face.

"Is that all?" I asked quietly.

"Yeah," Aang replied, "You can go back to bed now,"

My heart broke at the revelation of my brother's reclusive behavior, the sadness and concern in my expression intensifying

"Are you gonna come in?" Katara asked, her voice cutting through the silence.

"At some point," Aang replied.

Katara nodded and we went back down the ladder.

"I'm worried about him," I stated, my voice breaking with the pain I felt for Aang.

"Me too," Katara replied, "These nightmares really seem to be affecting him,"

I sighed before speaking.

"Well, for now we should get some sleep," I said, "I'm pretty sure we're arriving at General Fung's base tomorrow,"

Katara nodded and I closed my eyes, drifting off into an uneasy sleep.


The next morning, I awoke to see Aang in his bed. A smile tugged at the corners of my lips as I hopped down from my bed. I looked around, seeing that Katara nor Sokka were there. Figuring that we had overslept and that they were probably on the deck, I walked over to Aang's bed to wake him.

"Hey," I whispered, lightly shaking his arm, "Wake up, we've gotta leave for General Fung's base soon,"

Aang's eyes fluttered as he turned over to face me.

"Morning, Kiri," He said, sitting up.

"We're leaving today," I stated.

Aang nodded and hopped off his bed. When we made our way to the deck, we were met with the sight of Katara, Sokka, Pakku, and Appa. We had decided to go with Pakku on his boat until we got closer to the base, just for quicker transportation.

"Look who's finally awake," Sokka teased, "We thought you guys would sleep forever,"

I chuckled, a slight blush coming to my cheeks. I noticed that Pakku had a sack.

"Hey, what's in there?" I asked.

"I have gifts for you," Pakku replied before pulling some sort of necklace out of the sack, "Katara, I want you to have this, it contains water from the spirit oasis,"

"The water has unique properties, don't lose it,"

"Thank you, Master Pakku," Katara said, hugging him.

"Aang, these scrolls will help you master waterbending," Pakku continued, handing a box to my brother, "But remember, they're no substitute for a real master,"

Aang smiled and looked at Katara before bowing to Pakku.

"Akira, I give you a Water Tribe bracelet," He said, handing me a beautiful bracelet, "It represents bravery, which is what you showed when you were captured by the bandit,"

"Thank you," I said with a bow, a smile coming to my face.

I climbed up Appa's tail, crawling into the saddle.

"Head toward the Earth Kingdom, the base is east of here," Pakku stated, "General Fung will provide you with an escort to Omashu, there you'll be safe to begin your earthbending training with King Bumi,"

"It'll be nice to see Bumi again," I thought, a smile coming to my face.

"Appa, yip-yip!" Aang said quickly.

"Say hi to Gran Gran for me!" Katara called out.


As we flew through the air, Sokka looked bothered. I wanted to ask him what was wrong, but a part of me felt like I knew what it was. It had only been a week since the events of the Northern Water Tribe, and nobody had completely gotten over what had happened, especially not Sokka. Suddenly, his bothered look disappeared and he sat up excitedly.

"There it is!" He called out enthusiastically.

We landed near a man who I believed to be General Fung, a proud smile plastered across his face.

"Welcome, Avatar Aang!" He exclaimed, "I am General Fung, welcome all of you great heroes,"

"Appa, Momo, Brave Sokka, Mighty Katara, Admirable Akira,"

I felt kind of awkward being swooned over like this, but smiled nonetheless.

"Mighty Katara?" Katara repeated, "I like that,"

Suddenly, fireworks began blasting behind us, their beautiful bright colors flashing in the afternoon sky.

"Not bad, not bad," Sokka said contently.

"It's a little much, if you ask me," I stated quietly.


"Avatar Aang, we were all amazed at the stories of how you single-handedly wiped out an entire Fire Navy fleet at the North Pole," General Fung stated, "I can't imagine what it feels like to wield such devastating power, it's an awesome responsibility,"

"I try not to think about it too much," Aang replied humbly.

"Avatar, you're ready to face the Fire Lord now," Fung said.

My eyes went wide in shock. How could this guy possibly think Aang was ready to face the Fire Lord? He had only mastered air, was just beginning to get a grasp at water, and didn't even know how to control the Avatar State!

"What?!" Aang asked, confusion and concern in his tone, "No, I'm not!"

"Aang still needs to master all four elements," Katara stated.

"Why?" Fung asked, "With the kind of power he possesses, power enough to destroy hundreds of battleships in a matter of minutes, he could defeat the Fire Lord now,"

"No, he couldn't," I argued, "I don't know if you knew this, but Aang didn't exactly do all the North Pole action himself, he fused with a spirit,"

"Plus, he was in the Avatar State," Sokka added.

"See, it's this special state where-" Aang began.

"Yes, I'm well aware, your eyes and tattoos glow, and you're able to summon unbelievable power," Fung interrupted, "Without you, we'd be slaughtered before we even reach their shores, but with you leading the way, as the ultimate weapon, we could cut a swath right through to the heart of the Fire Nation,"

"Aang isn't your 'ultimate weapon,'" I thought, a scowl coming to my face.

"Right, but I don't know how to get in our out of the Avatar State, much less what to do once I'm there," Aang stated.

"So it's decided, then," Fung said, "I'll help you figure out how to get into the Avatar State, and then you'll face your destiny,"

"No," Katara said bitterly as she stood up, along with the rest of us, "Nothing's decided, we already have a plan,"

"Aang's pursuing his destiny his way," I chimed in.

"Well, while you take your time learning the elements, the war goes on," Fung said, "May I show you something?"

He then led Aang over to window, showing him all of the injured soldiers, making him feel guilty for something he couldn't control.


That night, we slept in the nicest room we had in a while. I flopped onto my bed, angry thoughts about the events that had just taken place swirling through my mind. I let out a loud groan before speaking.

"I can't believe General Fung wants to use Aang as a weapon," I grumbled.

"We're leaving here as soon as we can," Katara stated flatly.

"Oh, come on," Sokka moaned, "We just got the softest beds ever, and you guys wanna leave?"

Katara and I gave him a shared exasperated look. Sokka cleared his throat purposefully before speaking.

"I mean, yeah, it's bad that Fung is using Aang as a weapon, we should leave," He corrected seriously.

"I think I'm gonna do it," Aang stated, his voice quiet.

I looked at him, concern and confusion etched on my features.

"Aang, you don't have to do this," I stated, "Fung was just guilt tripping you earlier, trying to make you blame yourself for what happened to those soldiers,"

"But it worked," Aang sighed, "I do feel guilty, and I wanna make other's sufferings stop as soon as possible,"

"Aang, no, this is not the right way," Katara stated.

"Why not?" Sokka asked, "Remember when he took out the Fire Navy?"

"That's because he was fused with the spirit, Sokka," I replied.

"Besides, there's a right way to do this," Katara said, "Practice, study, and discipline,"

"Or just glow it up and stop that Fire Lord," Sokka stated.

"Sokka, you aren't helping!" I snapped, my frustrations boiling over.

I then turned to Aang, my face softening.

"You seriously wanna do this?" I asked.

"Yes," Aang replied.

"Whatever you say," I sighed, "But I think this is a bad idea,"

Aang sat up from his bed and walked away, his steps carrying a large amount of guilt with them.


The next morning, Aang and I were taking a walk outside. Neither of us had spoke a word, just taking in each other's company and our surroundings. My thoughts trailed back to our conversation the night before, worry seeping into my mind. I looked to my brother, staring at him intently with concern in my expression. His eyes were glued to his feet, each step mechanic and concentrated. It worried me to see him like this, so far removed from the rest of the world, like he was the only one there.

"Aang," I began softly, causing him to snap out of whatever trance he had been in.

He looked at me, something deeper hidden behind the usual sparkle of his storm gray eyes.

"Are you sure you want to try and bring on the Avatar State?" I asked, "What if Fung tries to bring it on by hurting you?"

Aang stayed silent for a beat, averting his gaze back to the ground.

"He wouldn't do that," He responded distantly, his voice laced with uncertainty.

"How do you know that?" I asked, my tone becoming more desperate, "The Avatar State can be triggered by strong emotions, what if he tries to do something with that?"

"What if he takes advantage of your anger issues?"

Aang paused, his eyes narrowing.

"Kiri, that's not gonna happen," He grumbled, frustration heavy in his tone, "Just stop worrying,"

"How can I stop worrying when I know you're purposefully trying to trigger a harmful state?" I asked, my own temper flaring, "What's gonna happen if Fung says or does something really messed up, you lose control, and suddenly you're glowing up the place?!"

"How are you going to explain that to Sokka and Katara?"

"I don't need to," Aang responded.

"What?" I asked, my eyebrows furrowing in confusion.

"I already told them," He explained, "While you were out,"

A look of surprise came to my face. Ever since he had been diagnosed, Aang always tried to keep his uncontrollable anger a secret, even from his closest friends. I was shocked to find out that he had told Katara and Sokka, especially because of how hesitant he was to reveal to them he was The Avatar.

"Why'd you have to tell them?" I asked, my tone softening with curiosity.

"I'd rather not talk about it right now," My brother replied frustratedly, turning his head to face away from me.

My face formed an empathetic look that hardened to a more serious one as I remembered what our conversation had originally been about.

"Just think about what I said," I instructed, "It's your desicion, I just want you to know my opinion,"


"This rare chi enhancing tea is a natural stimulant," General Fung stated, "In an ordinary warrior, it improve strength and energy tenfold,"

I had head of this "chi-enhancing tea" before. It was said to cause even the strongest of men heart attacks if they had too much, so I wasn't too keen on Fung giving it to my twelve year old brother.

"In you, it may induce the Avatar State," Fung finished.

"Tenfold energy, huh?" Aang asked before taking a sip. Suddenly, he began to get very hyper.

"Is it working, is it working?" He asked quickly as he circled around us on an air scooter, "I can't tell! Can someone tell me if I'm in the Avatar State because I don't have a good view of myself,"

"AM I TALKING TOO LOUD?" Aang asked loudly.

"I guess he could talk the Fire Lord to death," Sokka sighed.

Aang then knocked into a pole, and I struggled to not laugh.


"Maybe I can shock you into the Avatar State," Sokka stated.

"I love surprises," Aang replied, putting a thumb up.

Katara covered his eyes with her hands, and I watched as Sokka put Momo in his shirt, making it look like his head was replaced with the lemur's. Honestly, if I were Aang, I would've peed myself at the sight. When Katara uncovered his eyes, Aang was met with the sight of Sokka-Momo and screamed. He then checked his hands for any sign of glowing.

"Still not glowing," He stated, putting up his hands. Sokka, still having Momo on his head, began to fall.


The next idea was to get Aang into the Avatar State by having him put on the clothing of the Four Nations, as if to connect him to all of them at once.

"You are wearing a ceremonial piece of clothing from each of the bending nations," A man stated, "Now, I will join the four elements into one,"

"Water," He said, pouring water into a bowl, "Earth," He put mud in the bowl, "Fire," He grabbed a lit torch and put it in the bowl, "Air," He grabbed a duster and opened it above the bowl, letting the dust go inside.

"Four elements together as one," He said before flinging the contents of the bowl at Aang.

"This is just mud," My brother stated.

"So, do you feel anything?" The man asked.

Aang sneezed in response, flinging the mud toward Sokka, Katara, Fung, and I. Luckily, I reacted quickly, shielding myself with an air bubble to avoid the splatter.

"We have to find a way," Fung stated, his tone tinged with annoyance as he wiped the mud from his face.


That night, I awoke in the middle of my slumber to Aang gasping. I opened my eyes and was about to turn over, when I heard him speak.

"Sokka," He whispered, "Sokka, wake up,"

"Huh?" Sokka asked groggily.

"I don't think we should be trying to bring on the avatar state," Aang stated.

I almost let out a sigh of relief, knowing that my brother wouldn't be going through with the stupid idea.

"You sure?" Sokka asked.

"Yes," Aang replied.

"Okay," Sokka said, his voice still groggy.

"Do you think the general will be mad?" Aang asked worriedly.

"What can he say?" Sokka replied, "You're the Avatar, who knows better than you?"

I closed my eyes again, knowing that their conversation was over. As I drifted off into sleep, my thoughts were clearer due to my worry for Aang dissipating.


The next morning, Aang walked up to me, taking a deep breath before he spoke.

"Kiri, I've decided I'm not going to try to bring on the avatar state," He stated.

I smiled, although I already knew this information from listening in on his conversation with Sokka the night before.

"Good," I said, "You don't deserve to be treated like some weapon, Aang,"

Aang frowned, looking down sadly.

"I know," He sighed, his tone somber, " I shouldn't have let him make me feel guilty for something I can't control,"

I smiled softly, a deep caring feeling warming my chest.

"Don't be so hard on yourself about it," I said, "We all give into pressure sometimes,"

Aang smiled, the sadness in his expression lifting.

"I'm going to talk to Fung," He stated, "Sokka's coming with me, can you?"

"Sure," I responded.


"The thing is, I don't think we'll ever be able to trigger it on purpose," Aang stated, "So, I guess that's it,"

"Sure I can't change your mind?" Fung asked.

"I'm sure," Aang replied, "I can only reach the Avatar State when I'm in genuine danger,"

"I see," Fung stated, his tone becoming more regretful, "I was afraid you'd say that,"

He then proceeded to earthbend his desk at my brother, and my eyes went wide in shock.

"Aang!" I exclaimed.

Suddenly, the soldiers behind Sokka and I restrained us, making it so we were unable to move.

"Get off of me!" I shouted, "GET OFF!"

I blasted the soldiers behind me away with airbending before quickly running to the hole Aang had gone through, jumping through without another thought. I cushioned my fall with airbending, landing safely on the ground. General Fung jumped down, and I quickly got out of the way.

"What are you doing?" Aang asked, concern in his tone.

"I believe we are about to get results," Fung said, his tone cold.

"What?!" I gasped angrily, "How crazy are you?!"

Fung looked at me, a malevolent smile curling from the corners of his lips.

"I'm not your enemy," Aang stated, "I won't fight you,"

I saw that the soldiers had begun to attack him with large earth plates.

"Fine then," Fung sighed, "I guess we'll just have to use your sister as bait,"

He then proceeded to encase me in earth. Although it wasn't that tight of an encasement and I had some wiggle room, it still felt uncomfortable.

"Kiri!" Aang exclaimed, his tone full of worry.

"The longer you resist, the tighter her encasement gets," Fung stated.

Aang narrowly dodged each earth plate that the soldiers bent toward him. Aang went up the wall on an air scooter, the soldiers following on their ostrich-horses close behind. He backflipped off the wall, and the soldiers quickly backtracked down it. Fung then made my encasement tighter, so I had less wiggle room.

"You can't run forever!" He exclaimed, trapping Aang in one of the earth plates.

"You can't fight forever," My brother stated.

Fung then jumped at him, breaking the coin thing and getting me out of my encasement. I ran as fast as I could, boosted by airbending, to get help. Knowing that the soldiers were all with General Fung, I knew who I had to go to.

"Katara!" I exclaimed, bursting the door open with such force that it almost fell off, "GeneralFungiscrazy!HeorderedhismentoattackAangbecausehedidn'twanttousetheavatarstate!"

Katara looked up, a puzzled but worried look on her face.

"Can you say that a little slower please?" She asked.

"GENERAL FUNG IS ATTACKING AANG!" I shouted. Katara's eyes went wide in shock.

"What?!" She gasped, disbelief evident in her tone, "We have to go help him!"


We dashed through the halls, worry heavy in our hearts as we ran to save Aang. When we got to the training grounds, Sokka was running down the stairs as well, seeming to have escaped the grip of the soldiers. Sokka chucked his boomerang at a soldier, who fell on impact. I ran down the rest of the stairs, Katara following close behind me, and we began to fight the soldiers back. I knocked one off of his ostrich horse using airbending, before smacking a spear out of the hands of another. Sokka went up to the ostrich horse of the guy that I knocked off, his tone shaky as he spoke.

"Good bird-horse thingy," He said, walking up to it.

He then proceeded to hop onto it. General Fung set his sights on Katara and I, and quickly began pointing the earth plates at us. I hopped into the air with great force, landing behind Fung. I blasted air at his back causing him to fall down. Suddenly, soldiers came up behind me, and I had to defend myself from them. General Fung had gotten up by the time I was done fending off all of his soldiers, and was now trapping Katara in some sort of quicksand, making her unable to move.

"Katara!" I gasped.

"I can't move!" She exclaimed, worry heavy in her voice.

"Don't hurt her!" Aang demanded, anger creeping in his tone.

He blasted air at Fung, who put up a rock wall to block it. My eyes darted back and forth as I stood there, frozen and not knowing what to do.

"Katara, no!" Sokka exclaimed. He began to prance up on the ostrich horse, but was tripped by Fung and landed in the whole of an earth plate. He then noticed me, and encased me in the rock again, leaving everyone who could help Aang out of the question.

"Stop this!" My brother shouted, "You have to let her go!"

"You could save her if you were in the Avatar State," Fung stated, his tone cold.

"I'm trying, I'm trying," Aang said, the strength in his voice wavering as it sounded like he was about to burst into tears.

"Aang, I'm sinking!" Katara exclaimed as she sunk further into the earth.

Now, just her head and hands were visible, and my fear for her safety grew immensely.

"I don't see glowing," Fung taunted.

"When you do, it might be the last thing you see," I thought.

Fung then sunk Katara even further, making her head the only part of her above ground.

"You don't need to do this!" Aang exclaimed, his voice so shaky and full of sadness that I could tell he was crying.

"Apparently, I do," Fung replied.

He then buried Katara completely, and the world became frozen for me. Had he seriously just killed Katara? Was she…dead? Thoughts of all kinds began to flood my head as tears ran down my cheeks. Even if I was able to move, I probably wouldn't. It seemed like time had stopped, the immense grief washing over me like a humongous wave, threatening to drag me away at any second. Suddenly, I snapped back to the cruel reality when I felt a gust of wind so powerful it broke my encasement. I looked up to see that Aang was in the Avatar State, and my eyes widened in fear. On top of the fact that Katara had just died, there was also my now ruthless, hostile brother to think about. I needed to get myself and Sokka to safety, and fast. The winds violently ripped at me as I kept myself from blowing away using a shield of air.

"Avatar Aang, can you hear me?" Fung called out.

This called me to look at him, my face a mixture of hatred, disgust, and surprise. Because of what he had done to Katara, I had figured he would be dead, or at least severely injured by that point. Despite my anger and confusion, I listened to his words, wondering what he could possibly say that would pull Aang out of his destructive state.

"Your friend is safe," Fung stated, pulling Katara up from the ground.

My eyes widened in shock as the sight of a living Katara came upon them. I smiled, laughing nervously in pure relief. Katara was okay, she was alive and okay. I just hoped that the message got through to Aang.

"It was just a trick to trigger the avatar state," Fung continued, "And it worked!"

Aang came down with a crash, his descent causing everyone and everything around us lift up and then down again, making many soldiers go flying. Luckily, the piece of earth I was on hadn't moved, and neither did the one Katara was on. He then sat there in a ball of air for a while, and I didn't know if it was safe to go up to him. Suddenly, the ball dissipated, and Aang dropped to the ground. I raced toward him, my heart beating fast as my mind spun, trying to take in the events that had just occurred.

"Aang!" I gasped. Katara had run up to my brother as well, pulling him into a hug. I joined them.

"I'm sorry, guys, I hope you never have to see me like that again," He said, his voice filled with sadness.

"Ha! Are you joking? That was almost perfect," Fung exclaimed, walking up to us, "We just have to find out a way to control you when you're like that,"

I glared at him, my anger about to boil ever and cause me to scream at him.

"You're out of your mind," Aang stated, the annoyance in his tone almost as heavy as General Fung.

"I guess we'll figure it out on the way to the Fire Nation," Fung said, ignoring Aang's little comment.

Sokka came up behind him on the ostrich horse, hitting him upside his thick skull with his club.

"Anybody got a problem with that?" He asked after Fung had dropped to the ground with a thud. The soldiers all shook their heads in reply.

"Do you still want an escort to Omashu?" One asked. Our group all looked at each other before Katara responded.

"I think we'll be okay on our own, thanks," She said.