𝐎𝐏𝐏𝐎𝐒𝐈𝐓𝐄𝐒; ₛₒₖₖₐ

Chapter 8 ~ Visions

The next morning, we ate a hasty breakfast, then flew away on Appa towards Bah Sing Se. Sokka was showing me how to sharpen the gold dagger I had gotten on my birthday. It had only been a week since my birthday, but Zuri and the others felt years away.

"See, you have to hold it more at an angle."

I adjusted the dagger in my hands.

"That's better. Now, move the whetstone against the edge of the dagger, like you're polishing it. No, less hard. Good, like that."

I sharpened the edge of the knife, wondering when I would get to use it. Suddenly, I felt a change in our movement.

"Hey, you taking us down for a reason?" I asked, earning no reply. "Aang, why are we going down?"

"What? I didn't even notice." He sighed. "I know this is going to sound weird, but I think the swamp is calling to me."

"Is it telling you where we can get something to eat?" Asked Sokka.

"No, I think it wants us to land there."

"No offense to the swamp, but I don't see any land there to land on."

"I don't know. Bumi said to learn earthbending I would have to wait and listen, and now I'm actually hearing the earth. Do you want me to ignore it?"

"Yup."

Appa groaned and Momo scurried around until he got to my skirt, where he cuddled up.

"See, even Appa and Momo don't like it here."

"Okay, since everyone feels so strongly about this." He said, casting one last glace at the swamp. "Yip, Yip!"

Appa rose and started to head upwards, when out of nowhere came a tornado, pulling us back at the swamp.

Sokka panicked. "You better throw in an extra 'yip'. We gotta move!"

Aang did his best to get us away from the tornado, but it was no use. As we got pulled into the tornado, Sokka started to fly. Luckily, I grabbed him in time and pulled him back. Aang made a air ball around Appa, protecting us from the winds. But the tornado still managed to throw us away. We all fell into muddy water except Appa and Momo. I don't know where they went.

"Where's Appa and Momo?" Aang was frantic. "Appa! Momo!"

"Sokka, you've got an elbow leech." Said Katara.

"What? Where?"

"Where do you think, genius?" I responded, earning a high-five from Katara.

"Why do things keep attaching to me?" He asked, pulling the leach off.

Aang came back. "You couldn't find them?" Asked Katara.

"No. And the tornado just disappeared."

"I guess we better start looking for them."

We pushed vines away, trying to find a path.

Sokka started to cut some vines. "We better speed things up."

"Maybe we should be a little nicer to the swamp."

"Aang, these are just plants. Do you want me to say 'please' and 'thank you' as I swing my machete back and forth?"

"Maybe you should listen to Aang. Something about this place feels alive..." Said Katara.

"I'm sure there are lots of things that are alive here and if we don't wanna wind up getting eaten by them, we need to find Appa as fast as we can."