Chapter One: Into the Fire Nation
Makki |~|
A lot has happened in the past few weeks. Almost too much to comprehend... To be honest, everything's felt like one big dream. Because most of it, I still can't believe. To begin my journey, after reuniting with my siblings for good, Sokka had us fly to Chameleon Bay where we met up with Dad and his fleet.
After we arrived, the bay was overrun with some Fire Navy ships. We were able to board one and capture it with no problem. For three weeks we've used the ship as a disguise to help us sail through the Earth Kingdom without any suspicion. Once we were comfortable, Sokka helped explain to everyone his plan to invade the Fire Nation on the day of an eclipse; The Day of Black Sun. Because, much like when the moon was gone for the water benders, when the sun is blocked out, fire benders lose their bending, making it the perfect time to attack.
But ever since we got Aang out of Ba Sing Se, the Earth Kingdom has been falling to the Fire Nation. Luckily, we've still been running into people who can help us with the envision since the Earth Kingdom has lost a lot of its troops. We're still traveling west, searching for more help. Aang is still unconscious but Katara has been healing him. Since that day in the crystal catacombs, the world believes that the Avatar has fallen and that Aang is dead. Though, Sokka is happy about it because he believes it's our greatest weapon in surprising the Fire Nation.
It was currently the evening and I was spacing out at the ocean in front of me, thinking about everything that I've been through. Sometimes I even think back to the very beginning, meeting Aang and getting captured with him. And then I quickly run through my whole experience of traveling with the Fire Nation prince and ending with him– My eyes started to well up at the thought.
As much as I want to forget him... I can't. After all that I've been through with– After all that we've been through... forgetting him is...
I slowly reached into my pocket and pulled out my crescent moon necklace. I took it off after we met up with Dad at the bay and have been keeping it in my pocket since. I looked down at it as it rested in my hands. Small tears stained the light blue ribbon around the moon, turning the color a bit darker. I wiped my eyes as I softly sniffled. I slowly brought the necklace up to my chest and stretched out one of my hands, dangling the necklace over the edge of the boat. My hand trembled as I hesitated to release the ribbon.
I have to get rid of it. He told me to forget it all, so I should just let it go and forget... I need to forget him!
Slow tears painted my cheeks as I stared at the necklace that slightly swayed from the wind. I clenched my eyes shut as I brought the necklace back to me and held it against my chest. After a few seconds, I placed the necklace back in my pocket before putting my hands on the edge of the ship and looking at the dark sky. Suddenly, a hand was placed on my shoulder and I slightly flinched as I shot my head to the side to see the owner of the hand.
"Whoa, didn't mean to scare you," my dad smiled.
I did my best to smile back at him before pulling him into a soft hug.
"Are you all right?" he asked.
"...I've just missed you so much. I want to cherish this reunion," I told him.
I felt my dad relax as he tightened his arms around me.
[~][~][~]
Deeper into the night, more people came out onto the deck since it was one of the few times that we could socialize without being easily spotted by other Fire Navy ships. Katara and Toph soon joined me in staring out at the ocean, the three of us sharing some moments of small talk until a soft bang erupted from the stairs that led below deck. Katara, Toph, and I turned to see a bandaged Aang lying on the deck.
"Twinkle-toes, that's gotta be you," Toph said as we approached him.
"Aang, you're awake," Katara smiled.
"Are you sure? I feel like I'm dreaming," Aang rubbed his eyes, groggily.
"You're not dreaming. You're finally awake," Katara hugged him.
"Honestly, your wake is actually a dream come true," I said.
"Aang! Good to see you back with the living, buddy," Sokka exclaimed inside of his Fire Nation soldier uniform as he also hugged Aang.
"Sokka?" Aang questioned.
Aang slowly exhaled as his eyes started to close and he swayed a bit.
"Uh-oh, somebody catch him, he's gonna...!" Toph said as Aang fainted onto the deck.
Katara quickly knelt down and had him lean on her.
"He'll wake up again soon," said Katara.
Everyone nodded in understanding before they returned to their positions on the deck. Katara, Sokka, Toph, and I all stayed put, waiting for Aang to wake up; which didn't take long. When Aang had his second awakening, he sat up on his own with Katara across from him, and the rest of us still standing by them.
"Why are we on a Fire Nation ship?" Aang asked as Bato placed a blanket around his shoulders. "Why is everyone dressed this way? And why am I the only one who's completely out of it?"
Sokka, Toph, and I all looked at each other. We all had the same thought that we should leave them alone and let Katara explain everything to Aang, who needed some space.
[~][~][~]
The following day, during lunch, Sokka decided that he should go into detail with Aang about what exactly happened after we left Ba Sing Se. He set up his own chair using a wooden crate while the rest of us sat in front of him.
"After what happened in Ba Sing Se, we had to get you to safety," Sokka began. "We flew back to Chameleon Bay, where we found my father and the other Water Tribe men. The Earth King decided he wanted to travel the world in disguise, so he set off alone. Well, not completely alone. Soon, the bay was overrun with Fire Nation ships. Rather than fight them all, we captured a single ship and made it our disguise. Since then, we've been traveling west. We crossed through the Serpent's Pass a few days ago. We've seen a few Fire Nation ships, but none have bothered us."
"...So, what now?" Aang asked.
"We've been working on a modified version of the invasion plan," Dad informed.
"It's Sokka's invasion plan," Katara corrected.
She's been very fierce towards Dad lately. It's really out of character for her...
"...Yes, Sokka's plan," Dad sort of sunk down before looking back at Aang. "We won't be able to mount a massive invasion without the Earth King's armies, but the solar eclipse will still leave the Fire Nation vulnerable."
"So we're planning a smaller invasion," Sokka explained. "Just a ragtag team of our friends and allies from around the Earth Kingdom. We already ran into Pipsqueak and The Duke."
Sokka motioned to the two boys next to us eating dumplings.
"Good to see you again, Aang," said Pipsqueak.
"And the best part is, the eclipse isn't even our biggest advantage. We have a secret..." Sokka whispered the last part. "You."
"Me?" Aang asked.
"Yep. The whole world thinks you're dead. Isn't that great?"
Sokka stood in excitement as Aang looked at him in shock. Aang soon rushed to the edge of the ship to process the information he was given before turning back to Sokka.
"The world thinks I'm dead? How is that good news? That's terrible," said Aang.
"No, it's great," Sokka smiled. "It means the Fire Nation won't be hunting us anymore. And even better, they won't be expecting you on The Day of Black Sun."
"No, no, no, no, no. You have no idea," Aang ran his hands through his newly grown hair. "This is so messed up."
To interrupt Aang, the horn of a different Fire Navy ship sounded, making everyone turn their heads to see the ship heading our way.
"I'll handle this. The Avatar is back," Aang said as he grabbed his glider before doubling over in pain.
"Aang, wait," Katara stopped him from taking off. "Remember, they don't know we're not Fire Nation."
Aang avoided eye contact as he put his glider down.
"Everyone, just stay calm," Dad said as he put his Fire Nation soldier helmet on. "Bato and I will take care of this."
Everyone quickly got into position as the ship drew closer. Katara, Toph, Aang, Sokka, and I were all crouching on the stairs that led below deck as we waited for the other ship to leave.
"I hate not being able to do anything," Aang whispered.
"It's for the best, Aang," I said. "You're still hurt. We can't risk you getting any more injuries."
Everything went quiet as the other ship stopped next to us, extended a bridge to our ship, and had a few soldiers walk on board. Dad and Bato stood side by side as the soldiers approached them.
"Commander, why are you off course?" the captain of the other ship asked. "All western fleet ships are supposed to be moving toward Ba Sing Se to support the occupation."
"Actually, we're from the eastern fleet," my dad lied. "We have orders to deliver some cargo."
"Ah, eastern fleet... Well, nice of Admiral Chan to let us know he was sending one of his ships our way," the captain responded sarcastically.
"I'm sure Admiral Chan meant no disrespect, sir," said Bato.
"I mean, how hard is it to write a quick note and send a hawk our way?"
"Next time, we'll send two hawks, to be sure you get the message," Dad said before he bowed goodbye to the captain.
The captain and his soldiers paused as they whispered to each other. I couldn't hear anything they said as they started to walk back across the bridge.
"They know!" Toph exclaimed before metal bending the deck to break the bridge between the ships.
Katara and I ran to where the bridge used to connect us and together we bended a large wave in between the ships and pushed the other ship away. We quickly started to sail away but the other ship was able to keep on our tail. They began to hurl fireballs our way, which scraped the side of the ship, but Pipsqueak helped Toph aim and fire some rocks back at the ship as a counter.
When the ship gained some distance on us, they shot a ballista at the bottom of our ship and retracted it to cause a big hole that filled the body of the ship with water. Quickly, I brought my hands up and took a deep breath before looking down at the hole and slowly exhaling to freeze the water all the way down to the hole and block it.
"I'm gonna give us some cover!" Katara exclaimed before she created a large whirlpool which created a wall of smoke around us and the other ship.
Fireballs continued to launch through the smoke and hit our ship. Once out of the smoke, we could see that the other ship was still able to follow us. They fired more fireballs that set our ship on fire. Katara and I had to bend some water onto the deck to put out the flames.
"How we doing?" Toph asked.
"Things couldn't get much worse," said Sokka.
Almost as if on cue, a large serpent emerged from the water.
"The universe just loves proving me wrong, doesn't it?" Sokka exclaimed.
"You make it too easy!" said Toph.
The serpent shrieked at us as it prepared to attack, but was interrupted by a fireball. The serpent shook the blow off before glaring at the other ship. The serpent dove back under the water before wrapping itself around the other ship, stopping it from following us.
"Thank you, the universe," Sokka smiled.
[~][~][~]
We soon found a Fire Nation port that we could dock our ship on. And it couldn't have been a better time. The sun was close to setting and our rations were running thin, but now we could run onto the port and search for some dinner.
"Hey, Aang," Toph greeted as her, Sokka, Katara, and I entered his room. "We're going into town to find some dinner."
Aang placed a hand on his bandaged stomach, "Well, I am pretty hungry. Maybe dinner's a good idea."
"Here, tie this around your head. It'll cover your arrow," Sokka held a Fire Nation headband in front of Aang.
"I'm not going out if I can't wear my arrow proudly," Aang glared.
"Aang, come on," Sokka said as Aang lied down. "Be practical."
"You guys go ahead without us. We'll catch up with you," Katara said as she placed a hand on Sokka's shoulder.
Sokka glanced back at her before leading me and Toph out of the room.
"...What was that about?" Sokka asked as we made it to the deck.
"I'm sure Aang is just upset about being... 'dead'," I explained. "His job is to bring balance to the world and the world thinks he's gone. I'm sure he's troubled knowing that the whole world thinks that there isn't any hope left..."
"Well, I just asked him to put on a headband," Sokka shrugged.
I don't understand how you're my twin sometimes...
[~][~][~]
"Aang's gone!" Katara came running to me, Toph, and Sokka just as we were finishing dinner.
"What?" Sokka asked as all of us stood up.
"Aang said that he wanted to fight alone and that he didn't want anyone to get hurt because it's his responsibility to end the war..." Katara explained. "But... we need to get him."
Sokka nodded, "There's a small volcanic island on the map. Because of Aang's injuries, I'm sure he'd land there to rest."
All of us ran to the deck of the ship and mounted Appa. Together, we rode Appa through the night towards the secluded island. Once we found the island, we landed and saw Aang washed up onto its shore. All of us dismounted and ran towards Aang as he slowly awoke.
"You're okay!" Katara hugged him.
Katara looked at him with tears in her eyes before all of us joined the hug, including Momo and Appa.
"I have so much to do," said Aang.
"I know, but you'll have our help," said Katara.
"You didn't think you could get out of training just by coming to the Fire Nation, did you?" Toph joked.
Aang smiled at her before turning to Sokka, "What about the invasion?"
"We'll join up with my dad and the invasion force on the day of the eclipse," Sokka explained.
Suddenly, something hit both me and Toph on our feet as we were kneeling on the shore. The item came from the ocean and when I looked at what it was, my face fell a bit.
"Oh, I'm sorry Aang," I said as I handed him his mangled glider.
Aang grabbed it as we all stood up, "That's okay... If someone saw it, it would give away my identity. It's better for now that no one knows I'm alive."
Aang turned towards the island before jumping onto a large rock that had small rivers of magma decorating it. Aang stuck his glider into the rock and jumped down back to the shore. We all watched as Aang's glider lit on fire and burned to nothing.