Aang decides to lead the way to a place he knows in the spirit world where the avatar from the past have been known to gather. "I came here once to meet with Avatar Ruko but I was meditating at the time and I was at the shrine in the crescent isle." He glances at the dog Zuko. "I'm not sure if we'll be able to set you right again."
You frown. "this is just fucking great..." you pout.
"you think you have problems?" Zuko says with his ear back. "I'm a dog!?"
"love and loyalty." The puma chuckles.
"yeah well at least your whole kingdom isn't a war crazed people who bath in blood of innocent people." You grumble.
Zuko's ears fold all the way back and he looks at the ground. "no not everyone but... they did it if my father told them to." He glances at you again. "your people are small in numbers I'm sure they're only set in this way because they have secluded themselves from the outside world. They just need a good leader to change their direction."
"you think so?" you say looking at Zuko.
Zuko nods. "that's why I thought you were going to choose them over me."
"we're you an option?" you question.
"don't play dumb with me." Zuko grumbles. "I've known about your crush on me for years it is painfully obvious. But I was too damn stubborn to admit..." he sighs and trails off not finishing his sentence.
"to admit what?" you press.
"to admit I like you too..." Zuko sighs. "doesn't matter now... I'm a dog, and unless we can find a way to get back out of the spirit world I won't be human again."
"Avatar Ruko might know a way to change you back to a human if he doesn't know how to leave this place."
"that's true." Zuko smiles a little. "maybe this won't turn out to be a wasted trip after all."
-later-
"I can't help you." Ruko says firmly.
"but why!?" Aang huffs. "we came all this way!?"
"she shouldn't be wondering around this place. It's dangerous." Ruko glances at you. "she could destroy all we have worked to build."
"no offence but that's the reason I want to leave!?" you grumble. "your acting likei came here on purpose."
Ruko frowns. "well how is that not offensive?!"
"what is your problem?" Zuko growls.
"my problem is your still here." Ruko pouts. "the only way to leave is through the spirit gate which I am not telling you how to open because it'll wreak havoc on the entire world."
"what about just re-opening the portal we came through?" Aang asks.
"that could probably work." Ruko shrugs. "but I think you would need to go into the avatar state to do something like that."
"yeah well let's do it then!?" Aang says excitedly.
"we can't." you frown. "we're in the spirit world."
"that's only true if you meditated in." Ruko points out. "you all walked in but those who became animals can't bend in that form. You and Aang should be able to still bend."
"alright so how do I open the portal?" Aang questions.
"this land is what the world was like before mankind received the gift of bending. A place where spirits run free and live in peace. It's like being in a frozen past. To find the portal you entered and travel back to the other side you only need to find the place where the doorway lurks."
"what?" Aang frowns.
"find the doorway." Ruko replies and then disappears.
"just give me a real answer?!" Aang whines.
"he did." You reply puzzling. "it's like a riddle... this place is a frozen past, like the land before it was changed... we have to find the place in the past where the portal exists in the other world."
"try English." Zuko mumbles.
"well if I'm right then it means we need to find the shadow dwellers temple and pass back through the portal." You reply. "luckily I have the map from the library so we have a good idea of which way we need to go." You take out the map and look at it. "if we can figure out where we are we'll know... hey... what's this mark?" you ask pointing at a glowing spot on your map. "that wasn't there before."
"well I wish I knew what it meant." Aang shrugs. "look there is another one not far from that..." he points at the map at another faint glowing spot. "if the ink mark is the temple and this map is from the real world then... why does it have stops that glow in the spirit world?"
One little mark looks like an arrow and the other little mark appears to be some sort of symbol you've never seen. You turn to look around and then glance at the map as you notice the arrow has switched direction when you turned. "the arrow... it moves when I move... that must be where we are relative to these other things."
"but then what is the other mark?" Aang questions. "it can't be the temple because that's right here." He points to the ink spot. "so the other spot could be something else entirely."
"well let's check it out." Zuko says. "we don't have anything better to do."
"I don't know." You frown. "we shouldn't be here poking around."
"but Zuko s right." Aang says. "it might be this is our only chance to see whatever that is. Maybe it's a secret place the knowledge keeper as here and that's why he had the map in his dusty old book locked away. Or it could have something to do with your clan."
"you both just really want to see what it is don't you?" you pout.
Both Zuko and Aang nod.
You roll your eyes. "fine but only a quick peek. Then we leave."
Your group heads toward the mark on the map. You find you've entered a forest and if you hadn't had a map you'd be worried right now. When you get near the mark on the map the forest seems to die and everything that was overrun with life and green is now charred black and dead.
"I don't like this place..." Zuko mumbles with his ears back. "let's leave now."
"but we're here now!?" you grumble. "this is what the mark on the map was pointing to." You look around as it appears the entire area is destroyed. "what happened here?" before you can step onto the dead patch of earth you are stopped by a barrier. "we can't go this way?" you question trying again to step on the dead ground.
"no of course you wouldn't be able to step there." A voice hisses. "because this area is my prison. I can't leave and none can enter." A tall thin man with pale silver hair steps forward with his eyes closed. "believe me I've been trying for thousands of years."
(i made a picture to show what he looks like.)
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