As we rode atop the eel hound, Sokka steered it through the water, with Toph and me by his side, heading towards the edge of the Earth Kingdom.
"It's strange to say, but the comet looks beautiful," I remarked.
"Too bad the Fire Lord's about to use it to destroy the world," Toph said solemnly.
Upon arriving at the airship base, we realized that the fleet had just taken off.
"We're too late!" Sokka exclaimed. "The fleet's already taking off!"
"Then we're taking off, too! Where's the closest airship?" Toph asked as she wrapped her arms around my waist.
Sokka pointed to the nearest airship, but before he could finish, Toph used earthbending to launch the three of us towards it. With a swift ascension, we landed on a nearby ship and made our way across the enormous vessel.
On the airship, Sokka, Toph and I had made our way to the main control room.
Sokka backed against the wall. "Shhh..."
Toph approached the metal door and knocked a lovely tune several times before breaking it down. Using metalbending, she created a suit of armor from the door and assaults the astonished crew members. The Fire Nation soldiers launched firebending attacks at her, but she merely dodged them and metalbends various parts of the ship's interior to imprison the crew members. With all the men defeated, Sokka and I peered into the room.
Toph took off her suit of armor, proudly saying, "That's how it's done!"
"Good work, Toph! Time to take control of the ship, take the wheel." Sokka praised.
Sarcastically, Toph replied, "That's a great idea! Let the blind girl steer the giant airship!"
"I was talking to Venus." Sokka clarified.
"That would make a lot more sense." Toph agreed.
Approaching the steering wheel, I asked, "What are we going to do about the rest of the crew?"
"Take us down closer to the water. I've got an idea," Sokka said, grabbing a tube-like speaker. "Attention, crew, this is your captain speaking. Everyone, please report to the bomb bay immediately for hot cakes and sweet cream. We have a very special birthday to celebrate."
I began to steer the ship close to the water, and after a few minutes, we reckoned that the crew members were all probably gathered at the bomb bay.
Holding the lever on the control panel, I waited for a couple more minutes before pulling it, causing all the crew members of the ship to scream and plop into the water below.
Looking through a broken window at Ozai's airship, Sokka said with determination, "Fire Lord Ozai, here we come," as he grabbed the throttle and pushed it forward.
As we chased Fire Lord Ozai's airship, it became clear that catching up to him in time was nearly impossible.
"We're not gonna catch up to him in time," Sokka said sadly.
My heart sank, realizing the dire situation we were in. "No,"
Suddenly, an intense flame erupted from Ozai's airship, creating an enormous fire blast that set the earth below ablaze. I was in awe and fear, witnessing the immense display of fire.
Ozai's airship started to smoke and then crashed after another blast of fire struck it from a rock pillar.
"What just happened?" I questioned, bewildered by the unexpected turn of events.
Excitedly, Sokka shouted, "It's Aang! He's back!"
I immediately grabbed the spyglass from Sokka to confirm his claim, and indeed, it was Aang.
Sokka snatched the spyglass back, "Focus on the wheel, Venus!"
As we approached the scene, we witnessed the epic battle between Aang and the Fire Lord. Aang's airbending collided with Ozai's firebending, resulting in a fiery explosion.
Through the broken window of the airship cabin, Sokka, Toph and I watched in awe.
"Go, Aang! Airbending slice!" Sokka cheered, mimicking the movement with his hand.
"Shouldn't we be helping him?" I asked, concerned for Aang's well-being.
"The Fire Lord is Aang's fight." Sokka replied. "We need to stay focused on stopping that fleet from burning down the Earth Kingdom."
"And how do we do that, Captain Boomerang?" Toph retorted sarcastically. "I can't see outside of this floating hunk of metal."
Sokka grinned, coming up with an idea. He took control of the wheel and pulled some levers, steering the airship.
"Airship slice!" Sokka exclaimed, excitingly sharing his plan with Toph and me.
Toph blankly stared as I rose my eyebrow at Sokka.
Sokka spun the wheel, banking the airship towards the left end of the airship fleet behind it. The firebenders on the platforms began to firebend in unison, causing chaos and flames below.
Toph stared down at the chaos through the cabin's shattered window. "Whoa. That's a lot of fire, isn't it."
Sokka steadied the airship, pulling another lever that caused the engine to rupture and explode.
"It's gonna be a rough ride! We need to get to the top of this thing, fast," Sokka gritted his teeth in determination.
Sokka grabbed Toph's hand, and they ran to the exit. I followed not too far behind. Sokka and I stopped at the doorway, as Toph continued running on.
Responding to Sokka's last comment, I asked. "Then what?"
"Watch each other's backs, and if we make it that far, I'll let you know."
Sokka and I shared a quick kiss before going on, catching up with Toph, we climbed up a ladder, racing to reach the top of the airship.
Suddenly, the floor beneath us destroyed just as Sokka reached the top, but we managed to make it out safely. With adrenaline pumping through our veins, we emerged onto the top of the airship through a hatch, Sokka held Toph's hand guiding her.
The airship was still flying through the fleet, but slowly demolishing itself in process. Toph, Sokka and I raced toward the front of the airship. Suddenly, just as we were getting to our destination, part of the airship fell off, separating me from Toph and Sokka.
My heart pounded as I reached out to them desperately, but Sokka acted quickly, lunging forward and grabbing my arm. With sheer strength, he pulled me up, and I landed safely on top of him.
"Venus-" Sokka whispered, I could feel his heart and body pounding, beneath me.
"Sokka, Venus," Toph interrupted, joining in to help us get back on our feet. "I think we've gotta..."
"Jump!" We all shouted in unison.
As we leaped off the airship, it collided violently with another enemy airship. Landing on a different airship below, Sokka shielded Toph and me from falling debris, showing his protectiveness and care.
Regaining our balance, we held hands as we ran on the deck of one of the airships.
"Toph, metalbend the rudder so it's jammed in a turning position. The ship will spiral and slam into the others." Sokka said.
"Got it!" With determination in her eyes, Toph moved Sokka out of the way, spat into her hands, and rubbed them together. She gripped and metalbended the rudder while grunting in effort, and due to the action, the airship crashed into the others.
Sokka turned to Toph and said, "Have I ever mentioned how sweet it is that you invented metalbending?"
Toph grinned with satisfaction. "You could stand to mention it more."
I smiled, adding, "You're pretty cool, Toph."
Toph happily smiled, but the situation turned dire as a firebender emerged from the ship, aiming their attack at Sokka, Toph and me. In a daring move, Sokka leaped off the ship, planting his sword in the side of vessel the stop our descent. He managed to slow us down, though we still fell off, Sokka roughly landed on a platform below; he screamed in pain. However, Toph and I fell off the platform, but Sokka managed to catch Toph's hand and at the last moment, held onto mine.
Sokka cried out in agony, "My leg! V, Toph, hang on!"
"Aye, aye, Captain," Toph responded, her voice shaking.
I held onto Sokka tightly, tears welling up as I realized he was supporting both Toph and me with a hurt leg.
Two firebenders emerge on the platforms beside us, posing a threat from two sides. As one of the soldiers is about to firebend at us, Sokka called out to me, "Venus, hold onto Toph for a second!"
With deep breaths, I swung my body, trying to gain momentum while clinging to Toph, as Sokka supported both of us with his one hand.
Using his available hand, Sokka threw his boomerang at one soldier, knocking him out. He then kicked his sword into his hand and hurled it at the remaining soldier's platform, slicing through the metal and sending him plummeting to the forest below.
Sadly, Sokka whispered, "Bye, space sword."
I climbed over Toph, holding onto Sokka's other hand as he held both of us. However, my grip slowly began to slip.
More imperial firebenders emerged, ready to attack. Sokka struggled to maintain his hold on Toph.
"I don't think that boomerang's coming back, Toph. It looks like this is the end," Sokka said.
I turned to look at Toph as tears streamed down her cheeks.
I whimpered softly, "Sokka, let me go."
"Venus, are you crazy?" Sokka shouted. "What do you mean, let you go?"
"Sokka, I know it sounds crazy, but your leg is hurt, and you're holding onto both Toph and me. We're surrounded. Just let me go."
Tears welled up in my eyes as I faced the reality of falling from the air.
Sokka cried and tried to calculate any possible solution.
"Sokka, there's no other way," I pleaded. "You have to let me go!"
Toph was confused and asked, "What is she saying, Sokka? What's going on?"
"Don't worry about it, Toph," I murmured. "Sokka please just let me go, I'll be okay."
"Venus, you won't be okay; you'll be gone. I can't live without you," Sokka cried.
Hyperventilating, I said, "Sokka, I know, but I'm heavier than Toph, and she's just a child. She has a lot more life to see and experience. She's a good kid, Sokka."
"Venus! Why are you doing this to me?" Sokka screamed. "I physically can't and won't let you go! I love you too much."
"Sokka, if you love me, you'll let me go."
I reached into my pocket and pulled out my war fans. I threw them up at Sokka, and they landed on his chest.
"Sokka, please, just release me," I pleaded. "If not, we'll all die."
"Ve-"
"Sokka, please."
As my grip weakened, I looked up at Sokka, saying, "I love you so much. Tell the others I love them too." With that, I yanked my grip away from him, and I began to fall to my death.
"Venus!"
Blocking out Sokka's voice, tears streaming down my face, I tried my best to remain calm as I felt like I was falling in slow motion.
In that moment, my life flashed before my eyes - memories of loss, heartbreak, love, friendship, and all the unforgettable adventures with the team. My heart held onto the cherished love I had with Sokka, finding comfort in the memories we created together, even as I felt myself slipping away. Our love remained a warm light in the midst of uncertainty, and it would forever live on in my heart.
And then....darkness.
A/n: ......YALL, I think I just killed off Venus... It was such a tough decision to say goodbye to her. The thought had been on my mind since the beginning of this book, and there were tiny hints of foreshadowing throughout her fate, though I don't think if anyone noticed. For the sake of her character development and the depth of the story, I felt it was a necessary path to take. Besides, I've always wanted to kill off one of my Ocs, but it's heartbreaking that it had to be Venus bc she's truly one of my favorite OCs, and it pains me to see her journey end this way. Poor girl. It just goes to show that not every story is destined for a happy ending
:(( Thank you for being part of this journey with me.