THE OTHER AIRBENDER (Book 3)

(II) Air

"You have to tell me the truth, Iroh. Who was my father? What was his connection to you, to King Bumi, to the Fire Lord?" I ask the old man, once I am locked inside my cell once again. "Please, Iroh. I can't take the silence anymore. I need answers."

"I cannot give you the answers you seek," Iroh replies simply. "You must find them on your own. The path is there in front of you; you just have to be willing to walk it."

"But... I don't know how. I need answers! I can't keep going with only a fraction of the story. I need to know what is really going on. Who I really am."

"Then look for the answer that lays inside you already."

Clearly, I'm getting nowhere with this.

I barely get any sleep that night. The Fire Lord's mocking words are still echoing inside my head. It annoys me that he knows more about myself than I know about me, but it annoys me more that a part of me, small as it may be, is starting to believe what he is saying.

Could it be that Aang and the others have truly decided to leave me here? It would make sense, if they had their hands full with the invasion plans. However... They must be also plotting how to get me, right? They couldn't have forgotten about me.

At this point, I'm really trying to reassure myself. I have to believe in them, as much as they have believed in me over the past few months. The four of them have truly become like my family, and I have to trust that they will never give up on me, as I will never give up on them.

I can't let the Fire Lord get in my head.

I shut my eyes, trying to push away all self-doubt. I have to focus on my bonds with them, the confidence and the strength of our friendship. I have to remember everything we've gone through together; from saving me from Zuko's ship to going to the North Pole, from visiting Kyoshi Island to everything that went down in Ba Sing Se. We've been through so much together, it's impossible for me to even conceive that they don't feel the same way. Maybe because I just truly believe in them so much, or maybe because considering that they don't is too painful.

"Alya," I hear a voice in my head, soft and familiar in a way. However, I try my hardest to remain focused so as to not completely lose my mind on what the Fire Lord said. "Alya."

For some reason, however, I feel the urge to open my eyes, slowly. The minute I do, I immediately gasp as I see the pair of blue eyes staring back at me, her pale white hair and warm smile immediately revealing her identity.

"I don't believe it. It can't be," I say, gulping loudly. "Yue?"

"Hello, my friend. I am really glad to see you again," Yue replies with a smile. Even though it's clearly her, her appearance is really different from what I remember. She's transparent, almost like a ghost, and her eyes aren't as bright of a blue as what I remember.

"But... How... How are you here? I thought you became the Moon Spirit," I reply, still feeling completely in awe at what is happening.

"I'm not really here."

"But how can I see you then, if you're in the Spirit World?"

"Because you're here with me, too," Yue replies, and suddenly, I glance back, only to see my very own body, in a cross-legged position, eyes closed, and limp. I immediately let out a surprised squeal. "It's alright, your body is fine. Your spirit is simply projecting itself out of it."

"I thought only the Avatar was able to do this."

"Out of the four nations, the Air Nomads were always the most connected to the Spirit World. That's why they were all born benders. You once told me that you were the first airbender born in a very long time, and you even thought you were the last one before meeting Avatar Aang."