The deafening sound of the darkness encompasses Crystal’s mind. Her eyes slowly open to nothingness. Where was she? How did she get here?
A swirl of color gathers in front of her into the form of a circular image of hazy images. As they clear Crystal feels as if she has seen the images playing out before. Images of sneaking to visit Talula, hiding in the closet when Page knocks on the door, the talk they had after that, trying to get back to their room, being stopped by Steven when Crystal saw the blue blob swirling around him frantically then taking off, following it to the rainbow pond, seeing the shadowy ninja-like pursuer, convincing Page to jump into the pond, and finally jumping. All of the events of what happened right before Crystal blacked out bring back the true memories to Crystal’s mind. But the images didn’t stop there.
This silent film continues on showing a shadowy figure at a phone booth late at night. The image splits to show a male sitting at a desk with a mini Chinese flag sitting in the corner listening to the call. The image shifts and shows what must be the same shadowy figure from before sending an email this time. Most of the words are hazy in the image except for one sentence: Too many powerful benders here to take the Camp on head on.
With that final “happy” note, the colors disperse leaving Crystal back in the floating blackness with her head filled with burning questions. What did that last image mean? Is that person someone from Camp? If they are, that means there is a traitor, right? And while I’m on the topic of people, where is Page?!
As if to answer her silent call, the space around her shifts again and a figure is moving towards her. Before Crystal can comprehend what is taking place, Page grabs her hand and pulls her towards the surface. Had they always been underwater? It didn’t feel like it a moment ago.
An orange light moving light suddenly appears above them. Crystal’s lungs begin to hurt as she and Page swim frantically to what they hope is a friendly beacon. They finally break the surface and pulls themselves onto solid ground.
“Its land! I thought I would never see it again!” Page exclaims in relief.
Crystal looks around to make sure that whoever followed them is gone. She takes in a few more breaths before attempting to speak, “What happened down there?”
“Darkness, and a whole lot of it,” Page answers back in disgust, “that place is huge beneath the surface. I thought I would never find you!”
“How did you?” she asks curiously. How come Page didn’t see those images as well?
“At first I couldn’t, but then I saw this flash of light and I swam towards it. When I did, I found you floating there. I thought you drowned!” Crystal thought she sees Page’s eyes brim with tears, “Don’t you ever scare me like that again!”
Crystal can feel her own eyes fill with tears, “Okay, I’ll try not to.”
They hug each other, grateful to be alive. Grateful to have escaped their brush with death and whoever it was that was after them.
“Thank God!” someone exclaims.
They jump and look towards the end of the grove. Sonya is standing at the end with two other higher level waterbending students. They run to the girls’ side and check to make sure they are ok. Sonya hugs them both tight when they are cleared by the two students.
“Do either of you two realize how worried we were? You too have been gone entire night,” She asks them once she releases them, “We thought they had gotten you too.”
Crystal looks up to be greeted by a pastel pink and orange sky. How is that possible? They couldn’t have been underwater that long…could they?
“Who’s they and what do you mean get?” Page inquires.
The three students exchange grave glances before Sonya decides to speak, “Last night we were attacked and in their attack, these foes took Steven and a few other promising students from our Camp.”
“What?!” the two exclaim in surprise.
Crystal looks at Page, “The ninja.”
“What did you say?” Sonya asks.
Crystal sits up and looks at Sonya, “Last night Page and I went to see Talula because we were worried about her. On our way there we noticed we were being followed. We got scared and took off running towards the grove where we jumped into the pond to escape them.”
“You jumped into the rainbow pond?” One of the students asks, “But no one even knows if that thing has a bottom!”
“Well, it was either death by water or death by what looked like a ninja assassin,” Page responds with a smirk, “Me? I preferred death by water.”
The other student shakes their head and smiles, “A befitting and ironic end to a young waterbender.”
“But we didn’t die,” Page points out.
“Right you are,” Sonya says with what Crystal can tell is forced enthusiasm. “So let’s get you two into some dry clothes and off to breakfast soon.”
“Can I take a nap first?” Page asks with a yawn, “I feel like I need to hibernate.”
“Sure, we can take you to the camp’s infirmary. They have spare clothes there too,” she replies.
The school infirmary is much larger than any infirmary Crystal has ever seen, but it makes sense with all the bending mistakes a person can make. The room must have been as wide as two camp Squares put together. Medical beds lined the room on both sides and a medical area full of all sorts of things was at the end of the room with a frantic middle aged nurse scurrying within its contents.
“Why do you have so much medical stuff if a waterbender could heal an injury?” Crystal wonders out loud.
“Because it is only through learning to deal with our wounds that we can learn to deal with the mistakes that brought them about,” The nurse replies as she walks up to them, “Two more I see? And you both are soaking wet! What happened?”
“Long story,” Sonya answers before Crystal or Page can. “Can you get them some a change of clothes and get them warmed up for me please?”
“Of course,” she responds. She takes them to the back and hands them a change of clothes each. She guides them to the back where changing stations, like the ones from clothing stores, have been set up. Crystal wonders why they would need changing stations. She thinks of firebending mishaps, shivers at the thought, and quickly thinks of something else.
When they leave the changing station, the nurse offers them each a heated blanket and a cup of hot chocolate.
“How do you have all of this?” Crystal wonders as she enjoys the heat that rushes throughout her body with a drink of the delicious cocoa.
“You think you two are the only ones to drench themselves with icy cold water?” The nurse asks with a smile, “Now take a seat on two beds and stay there till you are warmed up, I’ll run a few tests and then you two can be on your way.”
“Thank you.” Crystal and Page sit on two beds, the room is strangely empty. How did those ninja people manage to take people but not injure anyone in the process?
“This place is really empty,” Page says simply.
“Definitely,” Crystal agrees. They both take a drink of their hot chocolates.
Suddenly the doors burst open, “Crystal! Page!”
Talula, Mahoney, and Demetri come running into the room. Crystal and Page quickly place their cups on the stands next to the beds before they are pulled into a hug by Talula. “I thought they had taken you guys! I would never have forgiven myself if they took you two because you wanted to comfort me!”
“We’re okay Talula, I think it was visiting you is what saved us from being taken.” Crystal manages to get out from Talula’s crushing hug.
She releases them after Crystal says this, “What do you mean?”
Crystal takes in a breath, “Page said last night that she saw the door open when she left to follow me, but I know I closed the door. That means that the ninja people who could have taken us were in the waterbending dorms when Page left. Since we weren’t there they didn’t have a chance to take us until we were stopped by Steven who was also on their list of people to snag. And that was when Page and I started being pursued by the ninja person, who we were able to get away from. Sonya said they took ‘promising students’ so it was possible that they could have at least been targeting Page, because next to you, she was deemed the most promising bender in our group. Long story short, if we didn’t leave to see you, we would have been taken when we were sleeping and unable to properly defend ourselves.”
“That’s incredible,” comments Demetri.
Mahoney nods in agreement, “Yeah, it’s a good thing you two like to break the rules so much.”
Talula slaps him in the arm, “You bet it’s a good thing, they broke the rules so that they could comfort me in my time of need. If helping out a friend is against the rules then you bet that they are the best rule breakers around!”
“Ow!” he exclaims, “I wasn’t criticizing them, I was agreeing with Demetri.”
“You better be,” she warns him.
Something nags at Crystal’s mind, “Who else was taken last night.”
Mahoney and Talula instantly stop bickering. Talula runs her hand through her hair, “A firebender from our freshman level, two earth benders from the highest level, a junior airbender, and we thought you two. They tried to take me too, but security was too tight around my room after you two left.”
Crystal thinks about this, “They were all considered powerful and promising weren’t they?”
“Yeah,” Talula answers slowly as she tries to put the pieces together.
“Don’t you get it?” Crystal asks. When no one responds she continues, “They took all of the most promising and exceptional benders except for Page and you - she wasn't ready to call attention to herself - because they want to increase the chances of them winning an attack on our Camp. And with the powerful benders out of the way they might just be able to.”
The others gasp.
“B-B-But,” Page tries to argue against Crystal’s logic but it is hard to argue against it. Talula looks as if she wants to argue as well, tell them there is nothing to worry about because they still have her, the Avatar, but if that’s they don’t even know if that’s the truth. They did have one good thing going for them, neither Talula nor Crystal was taken and that means they hopefully still have a chance to figure out who truly is the Avatar.