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Book 4

Air

Chapter twenty-five:

The Avatar Spirit

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Southern Air Nomad Territory, Approaching the central islands, (late evening)

"WHAT I WANT TO KNOW IS WHY'IN THE WORLD' DID THIS WHOLE THING TAKE SO LONG!"

The sudden outburst no longer made General Shu's subordinates jump. When their next meeting had begun, they knew something was wrong immediately—even without looking at General Shu's face. Orders had been sent out hours ago. These orders concerned themselves on a large organization of warships on the eastern front of the archipelago—the same place where the intruders had slipped in with their airplanes. Although these warships were concentrating themselves there, they moved far too slow for the general's taste. So, when a meeting was called by the general, they were already expecting the worst.

"I feel like I've been in this single meeting room for hours!" General Shu shouted, enraged. "How long does it take to assemble a fleet of ships anyway?"

A lieutenant boldly spoke forward. "Sir, despite the delay, everything's here. We have seven large ships already in formation, moving towards the Southern Air Temple with much haste. Other officers have already heard the call and are redirecting their attention to the eastern front of the armada. Everything has been going according to plan."

"Yes," followed another subordinate. "If anything else, we couldn't be in any better shape. The two ships that have attacked us as a diversion in the south have been captured and the enemy air fleet has been reduced to nothing. Furthermore, with the enemy in the very center of the archipelago, they are now trapped in the middle of our armada. Our enemies have no escape."

The general was willing to call the subordinate's bluff.

"Are you willing to bet everything on that claim, sergeant?" asked General Shu.

The subordinate hesitated and backed away.

"And suppose," added General Shu, "that somehow, our enemies might just win this battle."

"Unthinkable!" said the Lieutenant.

"Impossible!" said another.

"I don't see how."

"It's possible, but we've done everything we could do to stop them!"

"They're surrounded! They have no way out!"

It was on this note that General Shu sighed. He was being too hard on his comrades. Suppose they were right. It was time the man had some peace of mind. It was time that he took some confidence in his subordinates. The day was already a long one for him. He had worked his men to the bone and it was only right for him to recognize their efforts.

"Alright," General Shu conceded. "But this is no time to get cocky in battle. I want all of you to remember that. Secondly, I want to go back to that earlier problem I stated. Have we caught up with them? The Sky-Bison—are we still on its trail…?"

"We're tailing them as we speak, sir," spoke on officer. "They tried to outrun us earlier by flying over an island, but we managed to track them through this gorge. I've already ordered the men to prepare two catapults. The target's in our site, sir. All that's left are your orders."

General Shu stood up. And with this action, he had concluded the meeting. Everyone stood up along with him and bowed in respect. When the others were dismissed, the general walked over to the official.

"Tell the men to prepare for firing. Lead me to the bridge."

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~o0o~

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General Shu lowered the spyglass and set his vision for the night sky. Against the backdrop of stars and darkness, there was this large shadow that seemed misplaced among them. It was a creature that had somehow managed the ability to break gravity despite its size. The general turned to one of his subordinates. "Give me the altitude of the target?"

"There's no precise reading, sir," said one of the officers. "But we've estimated the creature to be flying fairly low—probably out of exhaustion. I would say the target's about thirty to forty feet high."

"What about alignments?" the general asked.

"We've set both the catapults to the right angles. Inclinations were hard to make due to the evening sky, but it's done."

General Shu nodded. "Hold your position and keep her steady." The general raised the spyglass back to his eyes and trained it at the animal. A tense feeling came over him. He didn't want to fail this time. "Can the target manage to escape us this time? Can they fly out of range?"

A navigator spoke up. "No, sir. Not this time. It seems that the animal's riders have stepped into their own trap. By passing through this gorge, they have imprisoned themselves in it. Also, the night has cloaked us for the moment. This also allows us the element of surprise."

General Shu understood what he was talking about. Using the spyglass, the general could see the high walls of the gorge at both sides. These high walls had been cut clean through by the water centuries ago, creating a deep and narrow slipway between islands. The pass was so narrow that the fleet of ships General Shu commandeered was forced to travel in tight pairs of twos as they sped towards the Southern Air Temple. The surrounding high walls of the gorge were so high that clouds blocked the view of the top. Their target would be forced to fly straight with no escape.

General Shu smiled. He was satisfied. He finally got them.

"Tell the soldiers to 'ignite'," said the general finally.

Below them, the general could see the two catapults that had been raised just for this very occasion. Two large boulders covered with a thick layer of tar had been mounted on the catapults. Firebenders for each catapult had heard the order and acted. A small flame ignited the tar. Near bystanders stepped back from the heat and light the fireballs were making.

"Sir," said a Lieutenant. "The target has noticed us. They're trying to gain speed."

General Shu nodded. But with nowhere to go and nowhere to hide, the creature was defenseless wherever it went. And its exhaustion would also get the better of it. Now, with the final decision on his hands, General Shu was ready to make the ultimate move. And after a few seconds thinking and a moment of dramatic tension between officers, the General gave the order.

"Fire!"

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~o0o~

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"They're back!" Katara shouted as she realized who was tailing them. "Those Fire Nation ships are right behind us! Haru, they just fired at us! We need to move faster!"

Haru was urging Ummi to move faster, but Ummi could no longer increase her speed. She was tired and sore from flying all over the place. And where could they possibly go? They were surrounded from the sides and going up would be futile. "Ummi can't take it! She's exhausted!"

"And I've got no water!" Katara reasoned. "I can't fight back!"

Haru decided to act. "Here! Help me up! I think I can stop it!"

Katara grabbed onto Haru's hands and pulled him up to the saddle from his sitting position on Ummi's neck. But Katara knew that deep in her heart, Haru would be too late to help anyone. It felt like those fireballs had taken too much time in trying to get here. By the time Haru would get into an Earthbending position, those three fireballs would have struck them.

And indeed Katara was right. The three fireballs were already by their tails.

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~o0o~

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General Shu narrowed his vision so he could see the strike from his viewpoint. "The fireballs are right on path. I'm expecting a large fire display in a few moments."

It was going to be a glorious hit. There was no doubt about that. The three fireballs were in perfect alignment. The first two were a lot more forward than the third. The third one was straggling behind them, but was right in the middle.

Then, one of the officers approached the general.

"Sir," said the officer. "Something's wrong…"

General Shu turned to the officer. "What is?"

"We only set up two catapults… Where did the third fireball come from?"

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~o0o~

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Zuko caught up to the two fireballs just in time. But his earlier intention was not to catch up to the fireballs, but rather, to catch up to his friends. But when he saw that Ummi was being targeted, he acted quickly but quietly. He hugged the cliff sides on his approach and made his way beside the leading ship. When the catapults fired, Zuko once again shot to the skies, using the night sky to cloak him for a moment.

And now that he was beside these two fireballs, Zuko could stop them.

The young Firebender extended his two fingers from both his hands in direction to the fireballs. With a strong and powerful white spurt, the fireballs broke apart by the sheer concussion of impact. The strength of the hit forced both fireballs to split ways and collide with the surrounding cliff-faces.

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~o0o~

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General Shu watched in horror as the two fireballs crashed on the surrounding cliff-faces. And that wasn't even the end of the impact. The fireballs hit the surrounding cliff-faces so hard that the mountain shook off any loose or fragmented pieces. A landslide was born from the collision and made its way down the cliff side.

And right in the way of that landslide was the general's ship.

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~o0o~

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Another impact was created.

This time, the hull of the lead ship was bombarded with all sorts of mountain debris. Soldiers and seamen were jumping overboard. The creaking noise of rock and metal echoed throughout the pass. Ships that followed behind them came to an abrupt halt.

And as the dust cleared, a monstrous form appeared before the approaching fleet.

In the place of an open, yet narrow, pass was now a low wall of rock. It could easily be walked over, but a ship was an entirely different story.

No one was going through.

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~o0o~

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The last thing General Shu saw of the target was that the third "fireball" had somehow caught up with it. It was then that the general realized that that was no fireball. It was something else.

Then, General Shu looked at the remains of his ship. The large warship he had been standing on had its front hull pounded with boulders of all shapes and sizes. A raging anger began to come over him again. He turned to his first officer and nearly screamed his head off.

"GIVE ME A STATUS REPORT IMMEDIATELY! I want to know who're hurt! I want to know the extensive damage to the ship! Give me data, now! Stop staring into space and move!" barked the general.

"Sir!" shouted an orderly who appeared from the deck. "The hull's been pierced in multiple areas. We've got water filling in the storage area! It won't be a while before the ship takes on too much water, but we need to move fast and evacuate the crew onto the rafts!"

"Can we clear the rubble and get the ship out?" General Shu asked, desperate to be on the move again.

"I'm afraid it's too late, sir!" said the orderly. "The ship's far too damaged for recovery! The best we can do is clear out and move as fast as we can!"

General Shu was far too desperate to look the other way. He looked forward and stared at the fallen debris that had sealed off the pass. "What about the rest of the ships? Can they pass through? Is there a way we can move straight ahead without compromising direction?"

The navigator answered this time. "I'm afraid not sir. It may look like the rubble didn't block much of the pass, but trust me… it's just the tip of the iceberg. Any ship that passes through will have its hull grazed. It's best if we find another route to the temple. Clearing the path would also take hours to do. We're not going through this way."

General Shu slammed his fist on a metal wall and cursed. And as he did so again, he stared out into the dark and starry night, at the large flying animal that had just escaped their clutches once again. They weren't going to get away so easily. Pretty soon, they would make their way around the pass and the enemy would have nowhere to run to.

All it took was a matter of time.

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Fire Nation, Royal Palace, (late evening)

"When I imagined your return…" Ozai spoke, "I imagined it to be less…brutal…"

The tip of Ursa's sword was inches from Ozai's chest as she swung and sliced methodically. She weaved her weapon around her opponent with so much grace and flow that the two appeared to look like they were in some form of dance. Ozai was taking serious precautions to steer clear of Ursa's blade. But in a way, he was mocking her too. Ozai had the reflexes to jump all the way back and avoid all of Ursa's attempts to kill him. Instead, he stayed close—choosing to be flighty and in doing so, teasing her for her seemingly futile efforts.

But Ozai had to admit that Ursa had changed a lot since he last met her. She was indeed putting up a fight. "I can see that you've learned to fight… You must have learned how to brandish a sword during your absence…"

Ursa slashed again. This time, she tore some loose cloth off of Ozai's sleeve. "Don't mock me," she said.

"Actually," interrupted a third party—Piandao to be precise. The man cut in between the two of them and tried to hit the man on the foot. As fate would have it, Piandao missed, but that didn't mean it didn't scare the wits out of the Fire Lord. "I helped her with that…" Piandao finished.

Ozai stepped back to take a good look at the man. "I'm sorry… Who are you again…?"

Piandao smiled and shrugged. "I'm a family friend…"

And then, Ursa swung again. This time, she used Piandao's distraction and made another step forward. Ozai was able to avoid the blade again, but not completely. This time, a sharp and almost minute sting shivered from his cheek. He had been scratched. And it wasn't even over. Piandao used his own broadsword to attack too—barely missing Ozai's right thigh.

"Give it up, Ozai," Ursa suggested. "You're clearly outnumbered…"

Ozai wouldn't have any of that, so he took on a short offensive, using a small fire blast to force Ursa to step aside. But Ursa had more than one guardian angel and Iroh was one of them. Iroh appeared beside her and blocked the attack with a fiery concoction of his own. The resulting clash of fiery forces created a stalemate and forced both sides back.

Iroh gave Ozai a stern brotherly look.

"Not only outnumbered, but outmatched as well…" said the wise veteran.

Ozai gritted his teeth and stared at the two other intruders. "Both of you stay out of this! This is between the two of us!"

And without warning, the Fire Lord unleashed a powerful and fatal blast of fire that shot out from both of the man's fists. Iroh didn't have any firepower that could much this one. The ensuing fireballs were aimed at Iroh and Piandao. Following the fireball was a large explosion that immediately forced the ceiling to collapse in of itself. Some support beams collapsed under both heat and pressure. The throne room had turned into a giant furnace.

Iroh and Piandao were quickly blown out of the way. They weren't dead or gravely injured. They were just out of the action.

And Ursa was physically shaken. She was there, standing between the two fireballs which were inches from her face. Ozai had spared her for some reason. And out of instinct, she had dropped her weapon and fallen to her knees, placing her hands over her head in protection.

And when the fireball dissipated and the heat disappeared, Ursa could do nothing but cower in fear as she stared into the manic eyes of Ozai.

The Fire Lord approached her with a nice little smile.

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~o0o~

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Ursa backed away, crawling in reverse. She couldn't get far due to the fire that was surrounding her from all sides. She couldn't defend herself either as the sword she had clumsily dropped wasn't anywhere near her. She could try and make a grab for it, but unfortunately, the Fire Lord was a lot closer to her than the sword…and she doubted the man would give her any chance of fighting back. She could tell from that look in his eyes.

Ozai saw the wild look of fear on Ursa's face and smiled even more.

"Oh no! You've got me all wrong…" Ozai consoled. "I'm not going to hurt you! Why would I do that? I'll only do so if you give me a reason or a need to do so… But right now, I just want to talk…"

Ursa backed away further. Her face masked desperation furiously. The woman was sweating furiously—and not just because of the raging flames that burned all around her.

"What I want to know is why…" Ozai intoned. "You were the one who came here looking for a fight… And you were the one who started it… But I can't understand why… This isn't like you at all…"

"I've changed!" Ursa spat. "I'm not the same woman you once knew!"

Ozai smiled that manic smile of his. "And that's where you'll have to forgive me because, in all fairness, I couldn't have imagined you being anything other than the same woman who pushed me up to the throne years ago. It's just so strange seeing you like this—seeing you as an exact opposite of the image you used to be before you left this palace. You're a completely different person!"

"You know why I'm doing this!" Ursa shouted as she backed away more. She tried her hardest to lift herself from this degrading crawling position, but her shaking bones would not let her. "I've come here because you're out of control! Look what you've done to our children!"

Ozai laughed.

"Of course," mused the man. "You're doing this for the children… But even that doesn't convince me… There's more to it…"

"The answer's simple enough!" Ursa shouted. "Haven't you seen the face of your son lately?—and your eldest at that! In my absence, you challenged him to an Agni Kai—all because he had an opinion! Iroh told me all of this! Can't you see what you've done? Is your pride so huge and your quest for power so blinding that you've forgotten to see the pain in his eyes? He's your son! And I entrusted his life to you!"

Ozai kneeled before Ursa and stared her in the eyes. "You can't just come home after a few years and start acting like you belonged here, like you have the right to question my authority! This isn't like you at all!"

"Then who am I supposed to be?" Ursa questioned angrily.

"No. no," Ozai contradicted. "You see, the woman I knew, the woman that stood by my side, the woman I had come to know as Princess Ursa… she wasn't one to question my authority… Princess Ursa understood my demands and met them head on. She was the extraordinary example of a diligent wife and a caring mother—someone every man wanted out of their spouse…

"And when you found out of my ambitions—of my plans to becoming Fire Lord—you understood me… In fact, you were the one who chose to act upon it. You were the one who proposed the plan to effectively take my father out of the way. You were always loyal to me—to the ways of the Fire Nation. And now, here you are, being the complete opposite of what you used to stand for. This isn't you at all! You used to see the world the same way I did!

"So tell me, what happened in all those years of your absence? Why the sudden change of heart?"

Ursa looked away, thinking of all the truth that Ozai had said. Ozai was indeed correct. She had developed compromises so she could spare her children but still be able to push her husband to the throne. So, why the sudden change of heart?

Ursa thought of her years of banishment—of the times spent when she was on the run. She thought of the time she found that hidden sanctuary in the western side of the Earth Kingdom. Then she remembered Khai, the boy she had taken in as her own. Her eyes were opened to the truth that day.

"Why the sudden change of heart?" Ozai demanded. "Tell me!"

"Because," Ursa answered, "there was a sudden change of world…"

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Southern Air Temple, lower mountainside, (late evening)

Sokka's heart was thumping in his ears. He was so tightly wound that a mere scare could have thrown him off Appa. But no one could blame Sokka for trying to slow down his heart. He tried, but it didn't work. Sweat trickled down his forehead and arms. The noisy blasts of winds that literally smacked his face were unending. They were traveling so fast and so high that even holding on was hard to do.

But there was this amazing ferocity despite his trembling. Suki could feel it through his hand. Despite the wounds and slices on his left hand, she could still feel Sokka deep beneath it. He was trembling, of course—so was she. But Sokka's nerves were fine-tuned—like steel. There was this glint of light that shined through his eyes.

"We can't let it come near the temple!" Sokka shouted, though his words could barely compete with the scalding thrashes of wind. "If it reaches there, Aang will have no chance against Azula!"

Suki understood completely but had reservations of their actions. "But we can't possibly stop them by ourselves! We don't have any explosives!"

"We'll improvise!"

Suki swallowed hard as she gave Sokka's face a full look. Suki knew that improvising was Sokka's last attempt at saving things. Though there were a number of times he did improvise instead of planning ahead, Suki was always there to pick up the slack and even sometimes, save his life. But she trusted Sokka. Now, Suki felt that Sokka needed to knew that she was going to support him all the way.

"You can feel it, can't you…?"

Sokka kept his eyes at the target. "What do you mean…?"

"Today! This day! The sound of drums and the adrenaline rushing! Our hearts are beating faster! Our minds are saying, 'this is it'! We know there's no going back now! And whatever happens, whatever comes next, we all know that this day would be life-changing. And we're all going to see this through!"

Sokka tightened his grip on Suki's hand. And the young warrior smiled.

Despite their fears and apprehensions, these two had a lot going for them. From both of their point of views, this task didn't seem so large. It was only the pace that made the ordeal heart-stopping. And even from the ground, an observer would see them as merely a speedy dot battling through devilish currents to approach their target.

But destiny often had a funny way of changing everyone's view of things—making these two appear larger than life.

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~o0o~

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The two had seen it approaching from the mountainside. How it had slipped through their measures didn't matter anymore. What they decided to do was take control of the situation and act. But how they were going to stop it and the soldiers from within was still unknown. That didn't stop them, of course. To secure Aang's one-on-one battle with Azula meant that neither had to be disturbed. Helping Aang was the important thing right now. They had to stop this thing.

"Can you make out its features?" Sokka shouted. "I can see it a lot clearly now! The airship looks heavily damaged!"

Suki couldn't agree more. Afar, it had been a menacing picture. The black steel and its size had intimidated them and the two thought that these large monsters wouldn't get through. But now that they were near it, they could see that it was heavily damaged and floating in some poor state. The ship's large bulk had a number of dents on them. This was also another reason why the ship was flying lower than one would expect. The largest one had gone all the way through and steam was released from its interior, allowing the ship to trail the sky with smoke. The metal platform of the airship was crumpled up and folded.

And the airship was absolutely abandoned.

"There's no one in it!" shouted Suki—her words barely made it to Sokka's ears due to the wind. "Looks like someone's did our work for us!"

Sokka shook his head and made Appa fly very close to the ship's hull. Then, he took out his space sword and sliced clean through the metal. The sparks that flew off the blade were wild and the rhythm of Sokka's cutting was so clear that it sounded like the blade was singing. This new opening released even more steam into the air.

"It's worse than you think!" Sokka explained. "This whole thing is carrying piles of bombs in its cargo hold! And it looks like this thing is headed for the Air Temple! If it reaches it and crashes, that whole stack could explode! We can't let it reach there!"

Suki nodded. "So, do you want me to get onboard and drop the bombs?"

Sokka shook his head. "Even if we drop the bombs, this whole thing's going to make it to the temple and crash there! Aang can't be distracted! What we have to do now is make sure the whole thing doesn't reach the temple! We'll have to make it go down!"

Suki nodded and they spoke of their plans. Sokka would continue slicing holes through the ship's hull and make it drop from the sky. Suki would get onboard the platform and maneuver the airship into a nosedive, making it crash slowly and into a place where it would cause nobody harm. Once Suki sabotaged the controls to make sure nothing would deter its path, the two would go back and resume plans to help Aang.

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~o0o~

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Suki got to the control room quickly. She had been on a ship like this before and that meant she knew her way around. Also, she had controlled an airship and that would make her job easy. Looking out the main view port, she could see that they were approaching the mountain.

Without taking another second, Suki began switching controls. By raising a nearby lever, Suki had angled the airship downwards, forcing it into a steep dive. Next, she lowered another lever. By lowering this one, Suki had stopped the engines of the airship, slowing the whole thing down. This way, the crash of the airship would be far gentler than had it crashed on its own. Finally, Suki moved the steering wheel to the left, aligning it with the mountain's beach—the landing spot.

Suki wiped her forehead. Now to leave this thing on its own…

Quickly, Suki broke all the controls and used some rope to hold the ship's steering wheel in place. After this job was done, she was ready to leave.

"Suki…?"

When the young Kyoshi warrior turned around, she realized that the airship wasn't as abandoned as she thought.

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~o0o~

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"You have no idea what it was like all alone," Toph rambled on. "I thought I was just crazy when I thought it was you! I hid in the bomb bay just to be safe and I would have attacked you if I didn't think it was you. But it was you! And you don't know how happy I am to see you—not literally, of course…"

Even if she seemed bored by this ranting, Suki couldn't help but stare at Toph's blackened face. "You had to burn your eyes…?"

Toph punched her on the arm. "Don't even start with that."

"Where is everybody?" Suki asked. "What happened here?"

"Toph happened," said the blind Earthbender. "After messing with my eyes, I knew that I had to find another way to get to the Southern Air Temple. But none of them wanted me to control the ship. I had to do something. Most of those soldiers jumped to another ship and the pilot I forced to take me to the temple jumped off a little while back because he couldn't stand me."

"He just threw himself off…?" asked Suki.

"Not really," said Toph. "He landed on the top of a nearby mountain, I think…"

Suddenly, Sokka ran up to them from out of nowhere. He had this ecstatic look on his face. The boy was just brimming with exciting news.

"GUESS WHO I—Toph…?" The surprise cut off his excitement completely. "What happened to your face? And how did you get on this ship?" Sokka turned to Suki. "What's going on here?"

"It's a long story," said Toph with a smile.

"Believe me," Suki said. "It is."

This earned another punch from Toph. The young girl just smiled at both of them. "So, what were you going to say?" Toph said to Sokka. Sokka just smiled at her and lead them both out of the ship. For some reason, Toph felt that nearly all her friends were here and that Sokka, by chance, found them.

"Guess who I found…?" Sokka asked again.

The trio stepped onto the platform to find that Katara, Haru, and Zuko, waving at them. (Except Toph, of course. She had to wait till any of the three spoke.)

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~o0o~

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The large airship slowly dropped from its height and careened towards the base of the mountain. And as this large behemoth fell out of the sky, two Sky Bison moved forward, gaining speed. The wind was beating their faces. They were almost complete. Zuko, Sokka, Katara, Toph, Suki, Haru—with Haru being the least included. They were almost complete.

There was only one left.

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Southern Air Temple, (late evening)

Zhao watched from his point of view. Things were getting complicated… Aang's survival from Azula's lightning strike had irreversibly setting his plans back. Aang had done come back from the dead just like he did. And now, Azula would fight him again. That would mean a longer battle—one Zhao could no longer stomach. He was so close. Azula would have gone too far by then.

Zhao's plans were in jeopardy.

He couldn't forget how many times he was close to victory. There was the time when he planned to take the world by storm by setting traitors in each of the enemy camps. The plan had been rendered useless by Zuko when he set a traitor within his own group and therefore had warned the other leaders early on. The ambush had been incomplete. The only consolation was Azula becoming the Avatar. Another time when he was close to victory was when he had the spirit of the moon in the palm of his hands. He remembered how high he had climbed that day and how far he had fallen in much the same manner.

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~o0o~

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I am a legend now! The Fire Nation will for generations tell stories about the great Admiral Zhao…who darkened the moon! They will call me, 'Zhao the Conqueror'! 'Zhao the Moon Slayer'! Zhao... the invincible!

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~o0o~

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Zhao placed a hand to his face and groaned. That was the moment of his greatest defeat—and his demise. He had embarrassed himself in front of the world. He had underestimated everyone. He had been betrayed by Iroh (though this was to be expected). And the Avatar used all its power to destroy a large amount of his naval fleet. In the end, his life had been taken away from him.

That was his single greatest regret.

A spurt of anger rocketed through Zhao's soul. This was the same anger that had been carried with him through death. This was the anger that drove him to find ways to return to the world and exact his revenge. He had sworn he would find ways or leverages to defeat the Avatar. That's what prompted him to search for Airbender clues in the first place. That's what prompted him to use Azula.

Because Zhao had always dreamed of becoming invincible.

And he had nearly succeeded. The attempt to claim the Moon Spirit's life was merely his first try at becoming a legend. Now, Zhao was about to try again. His second attempt was nearly complete. It would have worked too—but then, the complications arrived.

He would have to find another way for his plan to work.

And while thinking of a new plan, Zhao recalled one of the conversations he had with the former Fire Lord.

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"Azula's attack on Ba Sing Se disturbs me greatly," spoke Ozai. "I want you to investigate deep into it… But make sure you draw no attention to yourself… Azula will know when someone is sniffing around her… This may force a setback… Plans will have to be changed… My trust on her is beginning to falter…"

Zhao nodded. "It may be the pressure, sir…" Zhao suggested. "Having all that power must have forced her to crack…"

"I'm thinking of the same thing…" Ozai agreed. "This is very unfortunate… We are coming to the last stage of our plans… I cannot trouble myself with these matters… I'm thinking of placing Azula in your care…"

"I fully understand," Zhao spoke. "If you will let me, I will take this responsibility… After all, you and your people were the ones who brought me back from the grave… But suppose that my investigation confirms Azula's incapability to fight due to her deteriorating mental health, what shall I do…?"

Ozai looked Zhao in the eyes and placed both his hands on the spirit-man's shoulders. "I trust you will know what to do… I've trusted you well enough on countless occasions… I placed my faith in you than I did to my own son. That's why I promoted you to Admiral at the time and gave you priority to capture the Avatar even when my own son had been on his trail… I suspect the same thing from you now…"

Zhao smiled. This was everything he wanted to hear and more.

Ozai caught this smile. "Ah… I can see that you've been waiting for a chance like this to come by… And from that look in your eye, I can see that you've been determined to do it ever since you came back… Very well, I will grant you the responsibility… But what I'd like to know is 'how'… If Azula does fall short, how do you plan to fight for me when you cannot bend any element…? Even with your ability to give people the power to bend energy, you cannot possibly use it yourself…"

Zhao smiled. "That's true, but you see, sir, I've had this theory…"

.

.

.

.

.

Southern Air Temple, Upper mountainside, (late evening)

Argh! Stop! Control yourself and breathe! Think of a way out! Argh! My leg! I have to be careful not to move that… I have to keep moving down… That's the only way I'll escape… Azula can't find me yet… I'll need to regain my strength… I need to find a way down… She can't find me… Argh! My heart!

Aang clutched his chest and his eyes went wild. His vision was dizzying and a splotched mix of black and white. His tired body was drenched in a thick coating of sweat. The more he panicked, the more his heart jolted and stopped. He could still feel the lightning there, like it was trapped in his chest. The scar on his chest still seemed to be hot and searing. Aang couldn't cool it down.

And then, Aang slipped.

"Argh!"

Aang's hand grabbed a jutting rock out of instinct. The strain on his arm muscles felt like they were going to snap like tight pieces of string. That sudden strain also forced his heart on the edge. It was beating out of order now—like an animal thrashing in a cage. Aang grabbed his chest and tried to hold it all in.

"Was that you, Airbender…? I'm coming down…"

Aang squeezed his eyes shut, hoping all of this was just a nightmare. But every time he opened them, they were the same things. He was here, dangling with one hand on a rock, in the middle of the night, surrounded by bottomless clouds, on the upper mountainside of his home, trying to get away from Azula as she chased him down the mountain. Every time he opened his eyes, it was always the same nightmare.

"Be strong…" Aang whispered to himself.

"I can hear you, Airbender… You're thinking too loud…"

Aang felt his right foot catch on a good hold on the cliff side. He extended it further with some Earthbending and he made a small ledge. More sweat trickled down his forehead. Aang held two more rocks and he restarted his descent of the mountain.

Things had changed since he woke up. When he woke up, he didn't know exactly how strong he was. He did feel strong. But, of course, Azula had fatally wounded him with her lightning strike. Just because he was strong didn't mean there weren't any repercussions. The scar on his chest was one. And since most of the lightning was released through his body, he had to take a blow. His left leg took it for him as it was now limp and in pain.

And Aang knew that Azula would find out his return. He couldn't face her head-on in this condition. He had to hide somewhere and regain his strength. Climbing down the mountain would be his only way out.

"There you are!"

Even with the thick clouds surrounding the mountain and the darkness of night, it wasn't hard to make out Azula's silhouette a few feet above him. She was watching him like a person would to a prize—and she looked like she won it.

"I'm really surprised," Azula noted with a sinister smile. "You're not angry at all… After what I did, I thought you'd go into a mad rage or something."

Aang truly wasn't angry. He felt calm—like his old self again. "Revenge isn't going to help me win this battle between us. Just because you attempted to take my life doesn't mean I should hold a grudge…even if it is the second time… I'm the kind of person who forgives easily…"

"I wasn't talking about you," Azula laughed. "I was referring to Khai."

Aang fell quiet for a moment

"Revenge isn't going to help me," Aang repeated, though he did tighten his fists more. When he spoke, he kept his voice even. "All I want now is for you to stop what you're doing and fix things so that everything will be right again. I just want the balance restored… You're the only one who can do that… That's why I'm asking…no…begging you to help me set things right…"

"You have no idea how ridiculous you sound right now," Azula laughed. "You keep thinking that all people are like you—that people could actually change and turn away from their former lives… That you and your friends have the right way of doing things."

"It happened to Zuko…" Aang pointed out.

Azula laughed again. "If you noticed, I'm more like my father… We have our own set of standards and ideals… We know what needs to be done and what to do to get there… We have a vision for the world… And Zuko didn't see it all the way through. He followed father out of admiration and not respect… That's why father had to teach him a lesson. That's why Zuko got burned."

"I've talked with your father," Aang remarked. "And trust me... You're making the same mistakes he did."

"A man like my father doesn't make any mistakes," Azula defended. "In fact, he planned all these things from the beginning… In case he failed, he appointed me to stay behind and take his place… He used Zhao to give me the power to take away the Avatar Spirit. It was a brilliant plan and all of you fell for it."

Azula then took the moment to shoot a giant blast of blue fire from her wrist. Aang was able enough to limp to another part of the mountainside, albeit lower and less steep. He did it while barely missing the attack.

"And what does that make you in his plan?" Aang questioned as he caught his breath. "You're just his pawn then… You're nothing but a tool to him."

Azula attacked again, but she missed once more. "Don't twist things with me, Airbender… I acknowledged my role here and I did my part as was instructed… I learned all four elements and mastered them to some degree… And now, I'm tasked with the mission of removing you—no matter how many times I have to shoot you with lightning…"

"You've got to look beyond your 'precious vision' here!" Aang shouted. "You're father is using you!"

Another blast of blue fire missed Aang by the inches.

"And does it even matter?" Azula laughed. "So what? I did the same thing for my father on the day of the eclipse. I took the blunt of your attacks and allowed the Fire Lord to remain untouched. I'm not looking for my father's admiration. I am like my father, after all. And I agree with him completely. You have to be out of the way…

"And I guess Khai was very useful after all. The boy did me a favor by teaching me Airbending. Now I know everything there is to know about controlling the air. And my last lightning strike did help me with taking you down… Look at you! You can barely walk with one leg—much less fight me!"

And with that, Azula finished her point with a small circular sweeping maneuver and aimed her two fingers at Aang.

ZRAAACK!

Aang evaded this attack once again with Airbending—jumping from this side to another. But the damage of Azula's attack was great. Her lightning blast shaved right through a large bump on the mountain—a spot where Aang had been. All the boulders along the way were pulverized and turned into dust and rubble.

"Argh!" Aang cried out in pain. He clutched his chest once more, trying his hardest to soothe it.

"Ha!" Azula mocked. "You can't walk, can't run… You've got one hand on your chest, which means that you'll only have one hand left to fight with… You're perfectly in the wrong position!"

And a large, screaming fireball came rushing towards Aang.

.

~o0o~

.

Aang was still struggling to keep up with his heart. If his heart was beating faster, he had to slow down. When it was beating at a much lesser pace, Aang had to speed up to avoid wasting precious time. Every attack Azula sent him, forced Aang to counter it with as little effort as he could. Airbending was his common ground, so he used that. But Azula was right. She knew every trick he threw at her.

But not all skills could be learned.

And suddenly, Aang found a way to escape quickly without hurting his left leg. And, Azula could not possibly relate to what he was going to do.

Aang shouted at her. "You may think you know me so well, Azula, but you don't… You may think you know everything about Airbending, but there's more to it too… Airbending isn't just a piece of knowledge that can be exploited. There are some things you'll have to learn for yourself—!"

ZRAAACK!!!

The lightning blast struck the space in front of Aang. A large cloud of dust appeared as an effect. To Azula, it seemed like the lightning struck him. But there was no cry of pain or no falling sound. There was just the sound of the wind and the howling of the mountain. No. There was the sound of moving wind.

There was the sound of speeding wind.

.

~o0o~

.

And then, something like a torpedo shot right out of the dust cloud. The Airbender was moving faster than he could have moved with two legs. But how was that possible? How was it possible that he moved as fast as the wind? How was it possible that he was moving without using any of his feet?

Azula couldn't understand because she had never been taught the Air Scooter.

And as Aang sped down the mountain on his little ball of air, he couldn't help but life like he used to at how a genius he really was.

~o0o~

.

BOOOM!

.

~o0o~

.

A pulse of concentrated energy nearly knocked Aang out of concentration and he swept wildly to the right. The blast landed almost next to him and would have blown him off the mountain had not Aang paid attention. Behind him, Azula was screaming for him to come back. Already, he could hear her jumping down, using Airbending to cling to the mountainside and advance her speed.

Agh! Control! Breathe! Concentrate!

A large ledge suddenly rose up from the mountainside. Aang crashed right into it as he sped down the mountain. He had suppressed the impact by Earthbending, making the impact softer. This also broke the ledge apart and Aang continued his run down the mountain.

Another ledge popped up.

Aang placed his forearms in front of him. He crashed and plowed right through the ledge. But the impact completely knocked him off and the sphere of air around Aang's right foot was gone. He, once again, grabbed onto a protruding rock and clung to it for dear life.

Agh! My arm!

Azula jumped further down and launched another blue fire blast onto Aang. After blocking it, Azula tried again. She kept spouting streams of bluish fire that were directed at Aang. Airbending was Aang's main defense, but his body was tiring out. The shocks from his chest have been increasing recently and Aang has been covering them with mere winces and gasps.

"THIS TIME!" Azula shouted as she laughed with her teeth catching the starlight. "THIS TIME, I WANT YOU TO BURN!"

Azula landed right on top of Aang, raised her fist into the sky, and shot it straight at Aang's face.

.

~o0o~

.

Though her teeth were shining wildly in Aang's face and her smile was disturbing, her body was trembling. The fist she had used to throw at Aang didn't touch Aang's skin, but hovered above it. Her fist was shaking and large gusts of wind appeared to circle around it. Though a spurt of fire had appeared from her fist, it was immediately extinguished by some unknown force.

"What…?" Azula gasped as she tried Firebending through that particular fist. "What's going on…?"

A strange sensation came over her hand. Her hand felt all tingly and yet the rest of her body did not feel that way. Her hand felt nothing—not even the surrounding air.

Aang backed away as Azula trembled at the sight of her hand.

"What have you done?!" she screamed.

"You won't be Firebending with that hand," said Aang calmly.

Azula turned to him with that violent look. "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?"

Then, Azula noticed that Aang was in some form of position. He was bending something, but that was unclear. Azula shook her head, trying to wash of the feeling. Then, she turned back at Aang and used her other fist to shoot at him. Aang moved into another position at the same time. When Azula shot at him the same thing happened.

Azula couldn't Firebend.

"Fire needs air," Aang explained as he twisted his fingers. "And without air, fire cannot exist. So, I simply took it away."

And that's exactly what Aang did. Using the same sphere of air technique he had made, Aang had focused to balls of air around Azula's hands. Then, using the technique he had learned from Ummi, he focused to remove the air from the inside the sphere, creating a vacuum. As long as that vacuum was wrapped around Azula's hands, she won't be able to Firebend.

But Azula was desperate.

"YOU SHOULD HAVE STAYED DOWN!" she screamed.

VRAAAAAIIIIEEEEEEEEEEE!!!

A burst of blue flame erupted from Azula's throat and out her mouth. The searing heat boiled any nearby droplets of water vapor. But Aang stopped her completely. The bursting fire came midway to incinerating him. Aang had stopped bending the vacuums around Azula's hands. He had to concentrate on what he was going to do next.

Suddenly, Azula dropped on both knees, clutching her throat. Her tongue was sticking out of her wide mouth and drops of saliva dripped from the side of her lip. Her pupils were terribly small.

"Ack—! Hck—! Krk—!"

Azula couldn't breathe.

Aang was shaking violently. He had no choice. Azula had forced his hand. He just stood there, holding that sphere of vacuum on her head; his hands in position—like they were strangling some invisible neck.

Aang couldn't take it.

"Azula!" He shouted, tears streaming out of his eyes. "Give up now! Please!"

Azula's eyes turned to Aang and realized something: this boy could not kill. Even when every gulp of air proved useless, Azula couldn't help at laugh at this predicament. Despite the vacuum around Azula's head, she knew that it was Aang who was suffering from the inside.

So Azula just waited there.

"Give up!" Aang screamed as his body rocked in a spasm.

The Fire Princess was going to go into a shock if she didn't take a gulp of air within the next few seconds. But Azula just smiled at him silently.

"GIVE UP!"

Azula sounded like she was laughing and she gave him a full look on the face. She was maniacal now. She smiled wildly him. At the same time, she was scratching her throat with her long nails as she gasped for air. Aang was sweating at the mere sight of this person. More tears flowed from his eyes.

"GIVE UP!" Aang pleaded."Please…"

"Ack—!" Azula gasped. "Ne—ver…"

Aang could take it no longer. This act of cruelty went against his character. He didn't want to do it. But he was so close to it too. Yet, Aang had not killed her. He would never take a life. Never. Though, his joints ached. His body was weakened. His bones felt soft. His nerves trembled.

And so, Aang released his grip and both of them fell for a second.

Azula was the first one up.

She turned and aimed her hand at him, ready to deal him the final blow.

.

~o0o~

.

Once again, Aang bent a small sphere of air around Azula's attacking hand. But something was different. Azula should have known he would do this. So, why then would she repeat the same mistakes?

Azula laughed and said, "You are so foolish… You could have ended the battle! It would have all been over, but you didn't take it away out of pity—out of some stupid belief that life is precious… But it's not! Let me show you how it isn't by once again taking your life… And secondly, you are foolish because not all Firebending techniques use fire…."

ZRAAACK!!!

.

~o0o~

.

"There!" Katara shouted. "The lightning! It has to be them!!"

Everyone heard Katara and they directed the animals in that direction. All of them were just in time to see the streak of lightning brighten up the night sky. All their eyes darted around in search for Aang and possibly Azula. There! On the mountain slope! Two people—one smaller than the other, seemed to have stopped in place. No one could understand what that meant but everyone was ready to jump in and assist.

"Somebody has to break them apart!" Katara ordered. "We have to split them up and help Aang!"

Zuko was the first to move. The Firebender jumped into the air and rocketed in Aang's direction. Suki and Harry pulled on the reigns on each of the Sky Bison and directed them there. But it was Sokka who struck first. He lifted his space sword above his head and spun it towards the two on the mountain slope.

.

~o0o~

.

That was too close…

Aang had escaped Azula's lightning blast by doing the simplest defensive maneuver. He had simply evaded it. By tilting his body left, the lightning blast had completely missed him—despite Azula being in front of him. But being this close to Azula also its disadvantages. Stray sparks of lightning that were never directed anywhere had come in contact with Aang's skin. Though they were merely sparks, the effect on his heart was too much.

Argh!

Aang grabbed his chest and cringed.

Azula switched position and was ready to attack Aang a second time.

Swish—CHUK!

The large black sword struck the ground that was between them, stunning them for a second. It had gone so deep that half of its blade was sticking out of the ground. Then, the two realized that they weren't alone. Both looked towards the sky to see two Sky Bison flying in the air and headed their way. One was flying under his own power.

Aang gritted his teeth and knitted his eyebrows.

"Stay away!" Aang shouted. "Don't come any closer!"

.

~o0o~

.

Zuko landed in front of Aang and forced Azula back with a ferocious display of his classic orange fire. Azula jumped higher with Airbending but Zuko caught up with her as he flew up. Aang climbed after them, protesting against Zuko's actions.

"Zuko!" Aang shouted. "Go back and make sure the others get out of here! This fight is mine and mine alone!"

Zuko kept his eyes straight on Azula and attacked. "This is my fight too! It's you who really needs to go with the others. Look at you! You're beaten down and you can barely stand! I'll take things from here!"

Aang grabbed Zuko's shoulder out of anger and pushed him back while pushing himself forward. Aang shot forward with the Air Scooter on his foot and kicked that same sphere of air at Azula. The sphere hit Azula dead-on, like the form itself had been solid. Azula was thrown pushed back, but stopped herself by scraping her nails on the mountainside.

"Zuko!" Aang warned. "I don't need your help right now! Just go back and stay safe! Azula will get me by going through you."

"You can't force me, Aang," said Zuko. "Azula and I have never actually finished our battles."

Azula stood up and rolled her eyes and made the decision for them. "Just so both of you can stop bickering, I've decided that both of you can have me. Does that sound fair to either of you…?"

.

~o0o~

.

"Just bring me near the mountain," said Sokka.

"Why?" Suki asked. "I don't think you want to be caught in the middle of all that shouting—or worse, bending."

Sokka kept looking at the mountainside, but not at Zuko, Aang, or Azula, but at something else. His eyes were transfixed at whatever it was. Sokka made all the signs of an anxious person—the licking of lips, the dripping sweat, the drumming of fingers on the saddle—it was all there.

"Once I get on the mountain, you guys clear out of the way immediately," Sokka ordered. "If Azula sees us all bunched up together, she could use this against Aang. She could threaten him. Never give Azula the upper hand. I'll just take a second, after all."

"Hey!" Toph exclaimed. "I'm coming with you!"

This time, it was Sokka's turn to punch Toph on the arm. "You're staying here with Suki, you got that?" Sokka turned to Suki. "Did you hear that, Suki? I want you to make sure that Toph doesn't follow me down. What I'm about to do is personal and I don't want anyone getting in the way or anyone using it against me."

"What are you going to do?" Toph and Suki demanded in unison.

Sokka smiled.

"I'm going to get my sword back."

.

~o0o~

.

ZRAAACK!!!

"Azula's gone mad!" Zuko exclaimed. The lightning blast had almost hit him in the chest. But this time, Zuko could see that she was more aggressive than ever. He had seen her like this. When she had struck him down during the day of Sozin's Comet, Azula had gone mad. There was bloodlust in her eyes that time. And here it was again, staring him down.

Aang pushed Zuko to the side. "If you're going to fight, then stop standing still, acting all surprised!"

Zuko shook his head and removed himself from his memories. He was in the battlefield fighting the world's most powerful person—the Avatar. He had to keep his mind in the "here" and "now".

ZRAAACK!!!

Zuko dodged the attack once again. "Give it up, Azula! You can't handle both of us! We're stronger than any of your attacks!"

Azula smiled. "But what about the third guy?"

Zuko was unfazed. "What third guy—?"

Azula laughed and shot a bolt of lightning, past the two of them, heading down the mountain. Zuko turned to see Sokka climbing the mountain for some reason. It was Sozin's Comet all over again. Zuko knew he had to throw himself in the way to prevent it from reaching Sokka. But the problem was that Azula had already fired and the bolt of energy had already sped past them.

.

~o0o~

.

Sokka felt completely stupid.

The young warrior had almost reached his sword. If the ground had been flat, it would have taken him two jumps and the job would be done. The sword was just a few meters above his head! But seeing the lightning come towards him made him realize that this task was far from easy.

Sokka was totally defenseless.

ZRAAACK!—ZZZT!

The lightning blast did not hit him. Sokka opened his eyes just in time to see the last strays of energy get absorbed into his blade. The energy surged all around it, making the sword glow for awhile. Sokka had to squeeze his eyes shut the moment the light shone everywhere. But when it was gone and Sokka had opened his eyes, he realized that his ordeal was over and he could get his sword back.

Sokka took another step higher.

"You might get hurt."

Sokka turned around and was really annoyed to find that Toph, despite his warnings, had followed him down here. "I told you to stay on Appa!" he declared. "You were supposed to stay put! Didn't Suki do anything to stop you?"

Toph smiled. "Actually, she encouraged me."

Sokka groaned. "So…what were you going to say?"

Toph pointed at Sokka's space sword. "You might not want to go to that thing. It's hot. I mean really hot. The whole thing feels like it's alive. Whatever struck it is still in there. I can feel it with my own to feet."

Sokka raised a brow. "How can you possibly feel it? I thought you detect vibrations?"

Toph nodded. "But it's really hot. I can feel it."

It was then that Sokka noted that he could feel the heat of the ground too. The ground felt like it was burned—shocked. Grass and plants that surrounded his space sword seemed to have blackened. But that wasn't right either… How could the heat from the lightning have transferred from the sword to the ground and have reached so far too.

This didn't make sense. As far as Sokka knew, the metal in the sword and the earth in the ground were two equally different things. And yet, the lightning had somehow transferred from sword to earth just like that. If things had run normally, only direct portions of the ground would be scorched. But the heat had spread out so far that it didn't make sense.

Sokka rubbed his chin. "The sword…channeled the lightning into the ground…" he concluded.

"Channeled?" Toph asked. "You mean the same way Zuko redirects lightning from one part of his body and out the other…?"

Sokka nodded. "Amazing… Somehow, the metal exhibits the same properties Zuko uses to redirect lightning—"

"Oh no…" Toph gasped.

"What is it…?" Sokka asked.

"I can feel it… Aang…"

.

~o0o~

.

"Argh!" Aang gasped as he clutched his chest again. The jolt seized his whole body this time. He had strained himself too much. And with one hand on his chest, Aang realized that he was no longer holding on to anything. Only his right foot left him on the mountainside as he was standing on a small ledge. But even that was going as away. Without his left leg, he was going to fall off balance.

"Whoa—!" Aang shouted as he spun his arms in circles, trying to regain his balance.

Azula smiled. This was too easy.

"Let me help you…"

With one rapid move, Azula forced a compressed column of air at Aang. The young Airbender's eyes darted everywhere, trying to look for a solution as he fell back to the open space behind him. But the pain in him was stronger now. His chest still felt like it was on fire. He couldn't think probably, couldn't move properly, and couldn't fight properly. Therefore, the only option available to him was losing his balance.

Azula had Airbended Aang off the mountain—watching with content as his body plummeted through the clouds.

.

~o0o~

.

"AANG!" Katara cried. "AANG!"

Everyone saw it. There was this look of horror on their faces. For a moment, they froze like statues. But no one could remain still for long. Zuko, Katara, Suki, and Sokka quickly ordered everyone to catch Aang before he crashed at the base of the mountain. Sokka got his space sword (with some help from Toph). Zuko flew off and landed on Ummi's saddle. All of them dove in a vertical descent in hopes of saving Aang.

And just to slow Azula down, Katara bended the nearby clouds and forced them all to condense together and form a large veil that blocked her view of what was happening below—like the closing curtains that signify the end of a play.

"THIS WON'T STOP ME!" Azula laughed. "THE AIRBENDER IS GONE AND I'M COMING DOWN THERE TO PROVE IT!"

.

.

.

.

.

Fire Nation, Grand Plaza, Royal Palace, (late evening)

Hundreds of thundering footsteps began to echo outside the palace and the palace's walls didn't seem strong enough to buffer the intensity of these footsteps. Something was happening outside the palace and that 'something' seemed to be an army that had appeared out of nowhere. From the sound of it, this army had somehow stormed through the palace gates and entered through the main courtyard. The sudden uproar made Ozai feel uneasy.

"What's happening?" Ozai demanded.

Ursa had been cornered to a tall pillar, but even in this situation, she couldn't help but make some witty remarks. "You can't win this anymore… Your plan to overrun the world's cities has been completely disrupted… The Order of the White Lotus was the first to storm the palace and make the way for the next group of attackers… Those footsteps outside, well, they're Water Tribe warriors from the south… They'll stop at nothing until your reign is over…"

Ozai smiled. "That's certainly a bold statement coming from you… Hmmm… It seems that I can no longer trust anyone from the family… And I can't have those people running around and ruining this occasion. They will have to be dealt with shortly and swiftly… Tell me, Ursa… Do you want to see these people burn?"

"You're a horrible man!" Ursa spat.

"You should know by now that words will never hurt me," Ozai responded. "But I am deeply wounded by these slanderous claims of yours. You have me all wrong… The fact is that I do care… I let you live, didn't I? And Azula has been treated perfectly ever since childhood… That's why I've been keeping a close eye on her lately…"

"You mean you've been keeping a close eye on her by using that once-dead admiral, Zhao?" Ursa asked. "He's not her bodyguard… He's there to make sure that Azula doesn't slip up, isn't he?"

Ozai smiled. "Very good… I can see that you're still sharp as a knife…"

"I can't believe you would do this to her! I thought you favored her over Zuko!" Ursa screamed.

"I do not hand out favors," Ozai said seriously. "But let me explain things to you so you don't get any ideas of the contrary. You see, I've never been this close to my goal in my whole life… Being born under my father was not enough for me… Being the younger brother in the family was not enough… And during my time in prison, I realized that I should never ever put myself in such loss again… It is only when you are closer to your goal that things appear at their hardest and they may look unattainable… And it is at these moments when the chances are in favor of me losing everything I held dear…

"So, I can't allow this disturbance from you… I can't… It's just not at the right time… Because, as of this moment, nothing is more important than my goal… Nothing…"

Ursa was stunned. "Not even your followers? Not even Azula?"

"Azula is my most faithful subject and my most loyal one as well," Ozai began. "But she accepted the fact that there might come times that I could no longer trust her…that she would falter and turn into an obstacle instead of an accomplice. And she knew that when that time came, she would have to be replaced."

Ozai then turned his attention to his older brother and the swordsman. They were groaning as they rose back into consciousness. The two sat up and began scratching their heads. Ozai smiled upon the two without leaving his attention on Ursa. "Ah… It's so nice to see the two of you back with the living… Although, I must warn you… If any of you do anything stupid, Ursa dies…"

Iroh and Piandao cursed beneath their breaths.

"Anyway," Ozai continued, "I knew that I could trust Azula to the grave… But allowing her to become Avatar was something that really concerned me… At first, I had assigned Zhao to watch over her as protection… He would come by my prison cell to report any news that had happened so far. Also, Zhao was preparing Azula for the final battle with the world. Zhao was meant to find out if she was physically and mentally prepared to face the rebirth of the war… Weeks went by and Zhao's reports kept confirming Azula's preparedness… She was level-headed and had mastered most of the elements in a short span of time… One detailed report was that Azula even subjected herself through torture and lived through it… That was supposedly the final conclusion and there would have been no more reports after that…"

But Ozai's mood changed after that. His brows knitted together and a scowl appeared on his face. The man suddenly began to pace back and forth. Ozai seemed to be talking to himself now.

"But then," Ozai exclaimed to himself, "But then came the incident in Ba Sing Se…"

Ursa raised her brows and whispered, "Incident…?"

Ozai was very self-absorbed with his own thinking as he began to speak aloud. "As Azula finished her Earthbending in Ba Sing Se, she suddenly failed me… The details were sketchy but from the reports, Azula had finally succumbed to some sort of weakness…"

"What happened?" Ursa demanded.

"Ba Sing Se… large portions of the walls were obliterated… thousands of homes were uprooted… Out of impulse, Azula had activated the Avatar State and spontaneously attacked hundreds of Earth Kingdom citizens—without my say so… Destroying the Earth Kingdom capital had not been part of the plan… The plan was for Azula to stay hidden until she finished her Earthbending training… But she didn't…

"And it is because of this impulsive behavior that forced me to double check on Azula… I had to make compromises—just in case Azula would succumb to such animalistic and unstable behavior in these delicate times… Failure is unacceptable at these crucial stages… I couldn't just overlook that problem even if Azula was my most trusted follower."

"So," Ursa asked. "What would happen if Azula did fall out of line?"

"Simple," Ozai responded. "Azula would be replaced."

"Replaced?" asked Ursa, still in denial.

"If all else failed," Ozai spoke, "and somehow, Azula would uncontrollably step into the Avatar State just as she did in Ba Sing Se, she had to be replaced quickly to prevent the Avatar spirit from falling into the wrong hands… So, I decided that as a last-ditch effort, I would give the power of the planet to one person in particular—I would give the power of the whole world to a man who could not die…because he already did… Because no one could hurt a dead man, thus securing control over the Avatar—and ultimately, my victory…"

Ursa couldn't believe it. "And you would sacrifice Azula just like that?"

Ozai smiled. "All for the greater good, of course…"

.

~o0o~

.

Piandao, who was listening to the conversation, turned to Iroh. "Is the royal family really this mad?"

Iroh sighed knowingly. "You have no idea…"

.

.

.

.

.

Southern Air Temple, Base of the mountain, (late evening)

.

I don't want you or anyone else risking your lives to fix my mistakes!

.

~o0o~

.

Aang woke up seeing Katara smiling at him. He blinked a second time and she was still there, holding that wide smile. Then Aang remembered the words he had said to her when he woke up from his coma before. These people were suffering because of him. Aang felt so guilty deep down and only anger seemed to be the answer. But Aang felt more like himself than ever before. He could control his emotions.

"What happened…? Where are we…?"

"We caught you just in time," Katara answered. "We're in this cave Toph and Haru dug out at the bottom of the air temple mountain. Azula doesn't know where we are for the moment. As long as Toph and Haru keep the entrance sealed, Azula won't find us."

Aang rolled his head to the left and right, looking around. Zuko lit the cave with his Firebending while Toph and Haru placed their hands on one portion of the cave wall. Sokka and Suki were busy meddling with the space sword. But everyone could hear what they were saying. It was a terribly small cave.

And then, Aang realized that he felt strangely better. The burning sensation on his chest felt like it had disappeared. But in its place was something else. He felt strangely heavier.

Aang placed a hand to his chest, but realized that he couldn't touch his skin. A thick layer of ice had been frozen over his upper torso.

"It's all I could come up with in such short notice," Katara reasoned. "When I touched your chest, it felt like it was on fire. I decided to fashion this ice shell over your body to keep you cool. Healing also did the trick. The hardened ice will also prevent you from getting hurt in that area. But I couldn't say the same for your left leg. I tried healing it, but the only remedy is time."

Aang nodded, accepting his position.

"The scar really looks bad, Aang," Katara commented. "When I saw it, I really didn't know what to think… I had a strong feeling that you left us again… And I had to keep myself together until I found the truth… But I didn't want to believe my instincts… Because I was so stubborn… At least you're still okay, though, you won't be able to go near lightning anytime soon. I'm just glad that I decided not to believe…"

Aang acknowledged this again.

Zuko approached him with that firelight on his hand. He wanted to talk business.

"What happened up there?" Zuko questioned. "What happened to my sister? The last time she acted like that was when she shot me and thought I would die. But this is worse… What happened up there, Aang? What pushed her over the edge?"

Everyone turned to Aang. Everyone wanted to know.

"What happened up there, Aang…?" Katara questioned.

Aang looked at all of them, and after deliberating with himself on whether he should speak of this, he finally sighed and said, "Something's changed, alright… When I started fighting her again, I realized that Azula wasn't herself as well… I thought it was because I had died and came back that made her crazy… But no…

"That's because I didn't realize what she did… And when I realized it, I knew that it was my fault… I thought I couldn't live with myself… I didn't know what would have happened… I thought my plan would've worked…"

"What are you talking about…?" Katara asked.

Aang looked into Katara's eyes and the young Waterbender realized that the boy's eyes were beginning to water.

"Khai…"

.

~o0o~

.

"Everybody quiet down!" Toph hissed as she pressed her hand on the cave wall. "I'm sensing movement from the other side! I think it's Azula!"

All of them fell silent as they too tried to listen in to any outside noises. Everyone was uneasy. If they wanted things done, they had to do it the right way. The group huddled together and brainstormed on ideas. Zuko, being the oldest and a leader of an entire nation, was one of the first one to speak—and his suggestion was valued well.

"What we need is a plan…" Zuko spoke. "If we keep confronting Azula, nothing's going to happen but a mere exchanging of blows. The winner would be the person with the most firepower and the most skill. We can't leave things like that to dumb luck. We need to have a winning chance."

Katara couldn't have agreed more. "Zuko's right. To defeat Azula, brute strength just won't cut it. We need to be smart here. We need to have a plan."

A plan.

Everyone turned their heads at Sokka.

Sokka backed away, motioning them to step away and not to get any ideas. "No. No! Look, I'm completely out of it today. It's not like my ideas come into my head from out of nowhere. No! I need time to think things through—which we obviously do not have!"

"Come on, Sokka," Toph urged, stamping her foot on the ground to add effect. "Get that big brain of yours into thinking!"

"It's not that easy!" Sokka retorted. "Do you people honestly think that coming up with a fool-proof plan is that easy? I need an idea… a concept… something the bad guys would never figure out until the last second. Inspiring ideas don't come up like that so easily… It's just not going to happen."

Suddenly there was an explosion outside. The tremor rocked the cave and shook loose dust from the ceiling. Everyone fell silent again and started to sweat. The pressure was on now. How soon would Azula find them? It was not a question of "if" because she was going to find them... eventually. And none of them were prepared to face her again.

"Is that enough of an inspiration for you?" Toph remarked.

Meanwhile, Katara decided to leave them to their bickering as she was concerned for Aang. The young boy had huddled to one corner of the cave, his eyes looking sad. But there was also frustration deep within the sadness. Katara walked up to him. "Are you okay, Aang…? Why aren't you joining with the others? We could really use your help with this plan…"

"Stop this, Katara," Aang spoke, averting his eyes from hers. "This is dangerous for all of you. I want you guys to stop making these plans and leave this place before Azula catches you. I'm the only one ready to handle the Avatar. You have to give me a chance to stop her…"

"Ready?" Katara questioned. "Aang, you've been struck with lightning and your left leg is useless. You're in a great deal of pain. You're not ready for this, Aang. All of us stand a better chance at this than you going at it alone.

Aang growled. "I can't let my friends suffer for my mistakes! I can't—!"

"No, Aang," Katara interrupted. "I need to be here. I had my own battles… We each did our part to stop the Fire Lord and the Fire Nation during the arrival of Sozin's Comet. But I wasn't there when you saved the world… I should have been there… I've always burdened myself with the fact that you had to face the Fire Lord alone. But not this time… This time, I'll be here to see you. I'm here to help you. We're here to make sure that you've got some backup."

Aang sighed. For some reason, he was frustrated yet glad at the same time. "I can't get rid of you people…"

Katara maintained her seriousness. She touched the ice over the scar on Aang's chest. "Know your limitations, Aang…"

Aang bowed his head out of grief. "I know them, Katara… You should have seen me there… I was this close to ending the war… But I couldn't do it… I just believed it wasn't the right way to end things… Azula and all my enemies have known about my compassion and have exploited it. In the end, I couldn't do it and Azula slipped free, prepared to attack me again…"

"Kindness isn't a weakness," said Katara. "It's not a limitation."

"Whatever it is," Aang spoke, "Azula just used it against me. And if we think about it, since kindness and life-value had been at the very heart of our Airbending teachings, the Fire Nation had probably used it against my people. They used our one major weakness the day Sozin's Comet arrived a hundred years ago. And that's probably why they lost. That's probably why all the Air Nomads are gone."

"So what are you saying?" Katara asked, evidently angry. "Are you blaming them for this? Are you blaming them because if they didn't teach you to value life, then you would resort to killing? Then Aang, you have to ask yourself this: Do you want to kill…? Are you ready to take someone's life?"

Aang finally turned to face Katara. Under the light, Katara finally saw the tears sliding down his cheek and chin. He looked so still, so silent, but in peace…

"Never…" said Aang. "Not in a hundred years…"

"Then what are you saying?" Katara prodded. "You were proud of me when I confronted my mother's killer and didn't strike him. But you seem conflicted with your own teachings. You knew it was wrong to take the life of the Fire Lord. Even if everyone told you to do it, you never struck him down. So why now? Why do are you thinking of killing?"

Aang shook his head and smiled with the tears dripping down his chin. "I never said I wanted to kill… You've gotten me all wrong… I'm not upset that I didn't end the war there. I'm glad that I didn't kill Azula. I'm really, really happy I didn't do it."

Katara squinted. "I don't understand…"

"If I had killed Azula, if I had resorted to murder, if I had resorted to revenge, then all of my people's teachings would have gone to waste." Aang remarked. "The Air Nomads who have placed all their wisdom into me would have died completely the moment I took Azula's life. And once that was gone, who would I be? I would be like them—like Azula and my enemies. And if I'm just as bad as them, then there's no more hope.

"And without hope," Katara finished. "How can you save the world?"

"So you see," Aang concluded. "By taking value on life, we have turned our weaknesses into strengths. I can see now that my path is clear. It is only through love, kindness, and compassion that this war can finally rest. And it seems that I'm going to need my friends more then ever now…"

Aang stood up and walked back to the group circle, ready to contribute some of his ideas to the team.

Katara took a while to watch Aang walk over to them. She too was crying but there was pride in there too. "If only you could see yourself, Aang…" she whispered. "If only you knew how much you've grown… The world is on your shoulders…"

.

~o0o~

.

BOOOOOM!!!

.

~o0o~

.

"I have a plan," said Sokka casually. "Why don't we…RUN!"

"Nice plan," Toph agreed.

"Let's go with that," said Suki.

Azula had been blasting away through the mountains, crazed and demented. Despite the number of intellectual evidences that the Airbender couldn't have survived and that it would take an impossible amount of time for his friends to reach him, Azula believed him to be alive because he had to be. And sometimes, just to reinforce her desperation and need, Azula believed Aang to be alive because just she wanted him that way. And at last, her crazed efforts proved useful as she found their cave at the very base of the mountain.

"Follow me!" Toph shouted as she collected the earth from an opposite cave wall and forced it open to create a tunnel. "Everybody into the hole!"

Meanwhile, Azula had just entered through her small opening. Her teeth and fangs were showing. And despite the darkness of night, everybody could feel her presence.

"You were too easy to find…" she hissed. "Every breath gave you away…"

As the seven of them started to run in haste, Azula did not. She preferred walking, each step having more impact on the pursued. Though they would be getting farther from her, Azula knew there would be nowhere to run and nowhere to hide. She just wanted to preserve her energy until that moment came.

Toph and Haru blasted through the last layers of earth and fresh air from outside rushed in to fill in the space. Everyone ran out, their feet splashing on puddles of saltwater and stepping on dry sand. The evening sky lay overhead like a black blanket with sparkles scattered all over. Haru sealed in the opening by creating a rock slide.

Finally, when everyone was far enough, they stopped. Aang, who had placed his arm over Sokka's shoulder so he could run alongside them, was the second to look back and breathe. That rock slide would not stop Azula.

CRASH!

"Look what I can do!" Azula screamed as she popped out of the dust. She charged at them, this time, on full speed.

And as Azula ran towards them, she began collecting different kinds of elements from the surroundings. The rocks she had stepped on began to clump together on her feet until something that resembled a boot made of earth was created. With these earth shoes, Azula began to slide across the sand. And to move even quicker, plumes of blue fire rocketed out of her heels and propelled her forward. With her right arm, Azula drew water from the many puddles and coated her right arm with it, forming a sharp water tentacle. Finally, Azula used her left hand to collect fistfuls of air and pound them across the sand, battering her way through.

This was Azula bending all four elements at the same time.

"Retreat!" Zuko shouted. "Everybody down the beach!"

Everyone followed and ran down the slope of the beach. All the while, Azula was bombarding them with sudden sand upheavals created from the air on her left fist. But then, the group ran into a stumbling block and was completely trapped. At first, its features were unrecognizable due to the darkness of night and most of its form had been crumpled. But as they got closer, they all realized what had stopped them.

.

~o0o~

.

"So this was where it ended up…" Sokka mused as he caught sight of the large, black, airship.

"I guess that explains why this place looks like something crashed into it… That also explains the puddles of water all around," Toph noted.

The airship Sokka and Suki had forced to crash ended up right on this beach. The machine collided where the sea met with the beach. Underneath the airship was a large dugout crater that had filled with seawater. The puddles on the beach seemed to have been water from the sea that had been thrown up during impact. Meanwhile, the hull of the airship seemed to have been violently torn apart and most of the metal seams that kept it together had ripped open. This suggests that the impact had been violent as it had compressed most of the ship's form.

But Sokka immediately realized that the airship didn't crash as forceful as it looked. The lower platform seemed to be in order and since there was no large hole from any form of explosion, it was safe to say that the bombs were still intact and had not detonated upon the ship's crash. This suggests a much softer landing.

Zuko was sweating as he watched his sister catch up with them. "We don't have time for all this speculation! What we need is a plan, Sokka! Now is the time to get inspired!"

"I'm working on it!" Sokka shouted back.

"Give me a second," Aang spoke. "I'm coming back…"

Then, without warning, Aang limped forward, dragging his left leg on the sand. He was waddling as fast as his muscles could take him. Behind him, his friends were calling him back. Aang blocked them out. He was not tired of them, as one might think. Rather, Aang was taking the responsibility to defend them. He would give them enough time to make their plan.

Azula stopped a meter away from him.

"YOU'LL BE THE FIRST ONE TO GO!" she screamed.

With her right arm, Azula started to thrash around, using the water there like a whip. Aang would limp to the sides and the water tentacle would miss, slashing into the sand. The whiplash got to Aang a bit, stinging his skin.

Aang acted fast by molding a sphere of air around his hands and onto his right feet. Immediately, Azula's water attacks could not match up to his speed. At same moment, Aang seemed to be enjoying himself as he laughed while making circles around Azula.

"Stay still!" she shrieked.

Azula quickly changed tactics. With her left foot, she tossed some of the rocks that were on her foot into the air. Then, with her right foot, she kicked them in Aang's direction. These projectiles easily matched Aang's speed and even surpassed them. Those that had missed him caused serious repercussions to the ground. And those that managed to cross his path were another story.

Knowing that it took more than speed to outrun speeding shrapnel, Aang improvised. Using the thick ice coating his torso, Aang obtained a large quantity of it to form two water tentacles that sprung from his back. These variations were controlled by the minute contractions and extensions of Aang's arm. With great precision and dexterity, Aang caught all the speeding rocks and threw them casually aside.

Azula tore loose.

"VRAAAAAIIIIIEEEEEEEEE!!!"

Aang chose to face the blue blaze squarely. He jammed his forearms together, aligning them vertically and in front of Aang's body. This circular and "brute-like" motion attracted the pieces of rocks that Aang had thrown to the side. They collected all around his arms. When the blaze struck him, Aang remained unaffected as his block stopped it completely. Once finished, Aang placed his arms back to their original positions with pieces of earth still layered over his arms.

Now, it was Aang's turn to change tactic.

Dashing forward on his Air Scooter, Aang went for the offensive. Fireballs sprouted from his fingertips. He threw them at Azula, attacking decisively. Azula countered by Airbending Aang's attacks, swirling her arms in front of her to dissipate the flames. Azula was moving back now. She was falling into a corner.

Aang looked incredible.

With fireballs in his hands, earth armoring his arms, tentacles attached to his back while acting like an extra pair of limbs, and a sphere of air to ride on, Aang was bending all four elements simultaneously.

Azula's form barely held up against Aang's in their toe-to-toe battle with each other. She was pushed to a corner of the mountain with the walls completely surrounding her on all sides.

Azula appeared to be trapped.

.

~o0o~

.

Like a caged wild animal, Azula hated the enclosure and she desperately wanted to free herself from the situation. She moved to left, as if hoping Aang would be too slow enough to notice. Aang, of course, was not. She tried attacking him, but Aang was able to defend himself. It would almost seem that Aang had beaten her single-handedly.

Aang wiped his forehead.

Bending all four elements simultaneously was tiring enough.

Then, Katara and Zuko appeared on his left side. Zuko bended large swirls of bright orange fire while Katara made use of the water puddles to make a larger-than-normal water whip. Azula pressed herself to the mountainside.

"Hey!" Aang retorted. "I thought you guys would be busy making the plan…?"

Sokka, Suki, Toph, and Haru appeared Aang along his right side, all armed to the teeth. Sokka smiled at Aang and said, "We couldn't come up with anything, and since we saw you winning against Azula all on your own, we decided that since we didn't have a thing, this would be the plan for now…"

Azula didn't like listening to their conversation. They talked about her as if she wasn't there and that she "fitted" perfectly into their scheme like she was some measurable thing that could be fitted into a mechanism, strung-up, and functioned with everything else. She didn't like it. Too bad she didn't know that she treated people the same way. This was what it meant by tasting the bitterness of her own medicine. The irony was breaking her again.

"Don't move, princess!" Toph shouted. "There's no way out!"

Azula laughed. "You won't convince me!"

Azula tried to retreat through the most obvious choice aside from attacking. Since she was trapped against the side of the mountain, Azula would try to tunnel her way to another side by diving into the wall. But Azula didn't even have a chance as Toph sensed her first and used the wall itself as a weapon against her.

Her next option was smoke screen but that horribly failed as Katara had control over the water around her.

So Azula resorted back to fighting.

When she fell tired again, she was beaten badly. Soil and dirt covered most of her clothing and she looked like she had been swept by the wind. Aang, who had resorted back to one element, felt it better to conserve his energy. Everyone was working together now. Sokka's boomerang and one of Suki's fans struck the wall behind her and freaked Azula out. Azula had nothing left to pull. In every sense of the word, Azula was "beaten".

But she always kept smiling.

.

~o0o~

.

So Azula used the last weapon she had in her arsenal. Azula attacked with the mind.

The young Firebender smiled widely, revealing every white tooth that was there. Small amounts of saliva began to slip onto her lips. Her pupils were about the size of a small pebble. This disturbing picture of herself told the group that Azula was about to go crazy. She looked furious, but at the same time, deranged.

"It irritated me so much…" Azula began. "Khai irritated me so much…"

The six of her opponents suddenly had their mouths run dry. The tension was as thick as ice.

"What did you do with him?" Sokka questioned angrily, gripping his sword like he was going to crush it.

"He was needed at first…" Azula continued, smiling like there was something funny going about. "He had skills that were greatly rare… Skills I needed for myself… He taught them all to me as he was under pressure… And in turn, I fed information of myself to him… But he was so naïve… He believed in good and bad…in heroes and villains… For all his strength, he had the mind of a child…"

It took all their strength not to attack Azula right now. The group just stood there with clenched teeth and tightened muscles. No one could move. Azula's words had fixed them in place.

"But then, he became a nuisance…" Azula spoke, laughing. "At the near end of my Airbending training, Khai told me all about his family, how they died, and how he got a new mother… He was so innocently foolish… He kept asking me about joining his family—about sharing his mother…"

All of them were growing angier and angrier—except one: Zuko.

Azula laughed. "And in the end, he stupidly challenged me… I must admit… He fought well, but he—"

Zuko interrupted Azula's rant. "Why didn't you accept the offer…?"

Azula snapped her head and turned to Zuko. She never knew she was about to be interrupted. She thought everyone would be stuck listening, all thirsting to know what had happened to the young boy. And when they were so engrossed with the story, Azula would attack all of them with one strike. But Zuko had stupidly interrupted her.

She growled inwardly and turned to Zuko. "What offer…?"

"Khai didn't need you to tell him about yourself," Zuko spoke. "During the times we were together, we talked about you to mother and Khai. Mom didn't want to believe that you had ended up like this and Khai was one to agree with our mother…"

"What does our mother have anything to do with his offer of sharing his family?" Azula shrieked.

"Khai's family is our family," Zuko summarized. "Didn't he tell you about that? Our mother took him as her own son when they were both in hiding… And apparently he thought it would be best if you came back to our mother… He believed there was good in everyone… You apparently turned it down… Khai's offer was actually his way of giving you a second chance…"

.

~o0o~

.

The tables had turned now. Azula's intention was to have them shaking at the information she told about Khai. But Zuko had interrupted. And when she realized that Khai had been referring to their mother, something struck through her heart. It wasn't guilt, though. Never guilt. It was anger. It was fury. And all these emotions weighed heavily on Azula, forcing her to her knees.

Furious, tears of anger began to stream down her face.

She was trapped on all sides, with nowhere to go.

Her enemies blocked her escape.

Azula was overpowered.

She was on the edge of sanity once more.

Her life-line was thinning away.

And now, this new piece of information from Zuko.

.

~o0o~

.

"HOW DARE YOU INTERRUPT ME WHEN I'M SPEAKING!"

When Azula looked up to face them, her eyes were shining white. A violent sphere of air began to wrap itself around Azula and began to pick her up from the ground. The scathing wind forced the group back. All her energy was circling around her. This was the thing that they had all feared would happen if they would push Azula too far. But it was too late now. The worst was here.

The Avatar State had been triggered.

.

~o0o~

.

Zhao's eyes widened. He was waiting for exactly this moment. Azula entered the Avatar State—just as he predicted she would. The entire battle had finally pushed her over the edge and the 'complications' he thought would stop this moment from happening have actually helped it along. And because Azula had entered the Avatar State in such a dire state of mind, he was ordered to intervene.

All of Zhao's plans and theories were going to come together. It was do or die at this point—well, "do or die" again.

The game was about to change.

.

~o0o~

.

"EVERYBODY, RUN!" Katara shouted.

Azula's air sphere was causing so much wind that those that whipped out of the sphere tore through the mountain, creating small landslides. Boulders of all shapes and sizes began to fall off from cliffs. The beach began to shake under the very tremor of the Avatar State. Nowhere was safe now. When Azula attacks it would all be over. Everyone would be gone.

Everyone was making their escape on foot. Aang leaned on Katara, Zuko Firebended in the air, Toph and Haru slid through the sand, and Sokka and Suki ran like the wind.

Zuko suddenly shouted. "ZHAO!"

.

~o0o~

.

Zhao appeared right in front of Azula in his signature flash of green light. This was the deadly part. He waited for Azula to go into the Avatar State, but the Avatar State was very dangerous to any spirit. Zhao had felt its effects during the time Azula triggered it in the Western Air Temple. One touch and he felt like he was dying all over again. It was best to be careful and to talk things through.

"Azula!" Zhao shouted. "You have failed!"

Azula tilted her head slowly as she finally caught sight of Zhao. The spirit-man trembled. The white eyes were scary at times. He had to get through to her.

"Did you hear me, Azula?" Zhao shouted. "You have failed… You have failed me… You have failed your father… You have failed the Fire Nation… And you have failed yourself…"

It was only then did Zhao see some sort of recognition in her face. Yes. His words had registered to the Azula that was within. "Your father told me to watch over you… Do you remember what happened in Ba Sing Se…? That was never supposed to happen, but it did… It was due to your unstable behavior… Your father cannot trust you anymore with this kind of power and now, you have done it again… I'm afraid your father told me to intervene in cases like these…"

Those last words cut deeply to Azula and she was very enraged. Fire began to appear in her hands and the air sphere around her became even wilder. She was angry at Zhao. She would have to remove him. At the same time, she was afraid at what he might do.

Zhao took a step closer, unaffected by the wind it seemed.

"It's time I assumed control…"

This was the theoretical part now. What came after this was death or power. No need to look back. There was nothing left. Zhao took one last step forward and jumped.

Zhao jumped into Azula.

There was a bright flash of light.

Azula screamed in agony and fury.

.

~o0o~

.

Zhao knew that being brought back to earth was not enough for him. Though he was immortal, untouchable to ordinary people, and had all sorts of abilities, Zhao had missed his power to fight. His ability to bend energy was one of the things that had been stolen from him since death and he knew that as a spirit, he would not be able to do so, even on earth.

But Zhao had a theory. It was more than a theory, really. He had seen it happen twice. The first time was when Roku appeared in the Temple of Crescent Island during the Winter Solstice and the second time was during the Siege of the North Pole—right before his death. The Ocean Spirit, La, merged with the Airbender and took down his fleet—and even his life. That was Zhao's plan.

Zhao planned to spiritually merge with the Avatar, granting him full power of the Avatar State and the ability to bend the elements all over again.

And Zhao's theory had worked.

Zhao looked at himself. He was definitely himself, with no trace of Azula anywhere. White light poured out of his eyes and mouth. He could feel all the power of the world bubbling inside him.

"I am invincible…" Zhao breathed.

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.

Fire Nation, Grand Plaza, Royal Palace, (early morning)

"Stop!" Iroh ordered to the approaching Water Tribe warriors. The tone of his voice betrayed his tense feelings. "Hold your positions! The situation is delicate!"

Ozai, who had Ursa pressed to a pillar with his right hand on her neck, smiled sinisterly at these shocked warriors and said, "You better do as he says… Any stupid heroics your about to do will result to the ultimate end of the woman in my grasp. And I'm sure none of you want that…"

The Water Tribe warriors grew angry at Ozai's attempt to threaten someone's life. When the man spoke, the warriors stopped abruptly, holding their position by the throne room's entrance. When they arrived, they were quite eager to storm the palace and stop the madman who was desperate to regain control of the world. They had already stopped most of the Fire Nation soldiers outside the palace and all that was left was to stop the Fire Lord. They were so close…

"Give it up, Ozai…" Ursa struggled as she tried to speak and breathe. Ozai's hand was choking her to a degree. "You have nothing on these people… Your men have been defeated and you're the only one left… It's going to take more than my death to stop them from taking over…"

Ozai turned to her and smiled. "If I had nothing left, then they should have attacked me by now. But your life seems to be of some value to them. They will not try anything while you're in my possession."

Ursa snorted. "Stop clinging to this desperate cause… You're defeated, Ozai… Accept it…"

Ozai's smile was lost now and all that remained was a slight apprehension. Ursa could feel the man's cold sweat through the hand that held her neck to the pillar. She could see that the man who had been so sure of himself before was slowly losing himself to the intensity of the situation. It was so quiet now that the only sound was the crackling and snapping of the fires that lit the pillars, the throne, and the ones Ozai created that destroyed the place.

Ozai is accepting the situation… thought Ursa. He's counting his choices… Once he realizes that failure is inevitable, his spirit will crumble and he will admit defeat… If he's a reasonable man, that is… I highly doubt that…

Suddenly, Ursa felt the fingers around her neck tighten. She was beginning to choke as the passage of air in her throat tightened. "What…are…you…doing…?" she gasped. Her breaths were becoming raspy.

Ozai chuckled as if he had done some sort of mistake and was embarrassed. He loosened the grip immediately and smiled at her in apology. "I'm sorry," he said shakily. "I guess I don't know my own strength…"

That sly action tempted the others even more. Ursa wished they did take to their instinct. Her life for the world was an easily small price. But Iroh had plans of his own. He had smart plans. What he was looking for was that exact moment where he should slip in and reveal that plan.

Unfortunately, Ozai was still clinging to his choices. Failure and defeat were things no Fire Lord would ever accept in his lifetime.

"I will count to ten," Ozai announced. "As soon as I am finished, then Ursa dies. And once she's dead, I will raise an inferno that no one has ever seen—and inferno that will take all of you with me… The only way to save her all yourselves is if you surrender!"

Ursa swallowed, feeling the lump on her throat. Ozai was making things work for him. By setting a deadline, Ozai was forcing his opponents to pressure themselves. With pressure, there was bound to be mistakes in choosing. This was Ozai last chance to win. He placed all his bets here. This man was not considering surrender.

"One!" shouted the man. Everyone was inching closer. Every shout he made would startle them.

"Two!"

Iroh tapped Piandao's hand. The two masters deliberated with one another, speaking through actions so Ozai would not hear. Although Master Piandao could not actually understand what was being said, he knew Iroh had something planned. The only thing he was asking from him was to read his sword and aim for a sleeve. This obscure order would probably make sense when the time came.

Ozai caught his brother and the swordsman moving and flinching. He was too uneasy to rationalize what they were doing. "I can see you! Stop this! I'm jumping higher! Six!"

The only ones that seemed to care were the fires that lit the throne room.

"Seven!"

Ozai closed his eyes with his jaw jammed shut. He seemed to be the only one who paid attention to his threats. The warriors were on the tense side, but they stayed in place. His brother and the swordsman didn't seem to give in. Everyone was playing it to the last second.

"Eight!"

"Nine—!"

.

~o0o~

.

Iroh lowered his breathing and his hands. Within a second the effects of his exaggerated motions took place. Ozai had seen him move, but by the time he would react, it would be too late. By lowering his hands and breathing slowly, Iroh had control—and Ozai lost it. Instantly, the entire throne room fell dark.

Iroh controlled every bit of fire in the throne room—from the fires on the throne and the fires on the pillars, to the stray ones on the ground. He lowered their intensity like so. And like a man blowing out a candle, Iroh blew out the lights.

.

~o0o~

.

Out of the darkness were voices.

"NO!"

"EVERYBODY, MOVE!"

Swish—PANG!

"HEY!"

The last sound was going to come from Ozai. With all his senses robbed and a sudden pain in the gut, the man grew deranged. He was sure that Ursa had kicked him and that he had released her. But there was still gripping onto something. It didn't feel like a neck, but he didn't care anymore. He did the only thing he could do.

Although Ozai hoped it to be Ursa, whatever it was, he burned it alive.

.

~o0o~

.

The intense heated light from his attacks revealed exactly what it was. But he had been sure that his hand had not moved in place. And yet, it was clear what he had burned: a pillar. Ursa was not there. It was only then that Iroh relit the lights in the room.

Ozai was surrounded by four Water Tribe warriors, their spears almost touching his face.

Ursa was with his brother and the swordsman, clearly safe an unharmed.

And the reason why he didn't move from his place during the darkening was because something kept him there. That something sliced through the sleeve on his rob and pinned him to the pillar. An inch higher and it would have sliced his hand. The object had been the swordsman's sword.

Now, Ozai had nothing.

"Surrender!" shouted one of the warriors.

.

~o0o~

.

Instead, Ozai created a swirling sphere of fire that completely hid him. It raged on for half a second. The warriors poked their spears into it, but they struck nothing. Once the fires wafted away, there was nothing. Ozai had slipped away yet again. The man had cunningly escaped.

.

.

.

.

.

Southern Air Temple, Base of mountain, (early morning)

"Where's my sister?!" Zuko screeched.

Zhao turned to the boy, smiled, and spoke.

"Why she's here!" laughed Zhao. His voice was a mix with his, Azula's, and the rest of the Avatar Spirits. "She's struggling, of course… But it won't matter… I have control over the Avatar Spirit… The power of the whole world is now mine… With one strike, you and your friends would be blown clean across the earth…"

Everyone angrily stepped back, afraid of the monster that had appeared right before them.

"You're wrong, Zhao!" Zuko vehemently denied. "It was Azula who mastered the four elements—not you! Even with the Avatar Spirit, you don't have the skill to Waterbend, Earthbend, or Airbend! The only element you could possibly use is fire!"

Zhao smiled. "How observant of you… Yes… You are right… But even with fire alone, the combination of all the Avatars allows me to bend it at impossible scales… And there's something else I've learned… Watching Azula, I have mastered the motions and mindsets needed to perform this skill… I can generate lightning…"

And just to prove his point, Zhao rotated his left arm and extended his two fingers into the sky.

ZRAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!!!

.

~o0o~

.

Zhao chuckled to himself as soon as everyone got his message.

"With this much energy, I'm able to hold a lightning strike for an indefinite period of time… Imagine that… A continuous stream of lightning that never ended… And I can do it instantly, with no long rotating hand motions to complicate things…"

Zuko didn't care about this stupid rant. "Let her go, Zhao!"

"I'm afraid that the last battle we had was not quite finished…" Zhao spoke. "I remember it perfectly… We were in the North Pole and you had me at flame-point… I ordered you to strike me, but you were too weak to try… That was where we ended—right before the Ocean Spirit took my life… I'm afraid the game must continue… And since I gave you your chance to strike me the last time, I believe it is now my turn to strike you… And believe me… I will not be so weak…"

Zhao aimed two of his fingers at Zuko.

But Zuko was suddenly grabbed by the wind.

.

~o0o~

.

ZRAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!!!

Everyone was running as fast as they could. Katara used the surrounding puddles to do a water run. Toph and Sokka rode on one earth wave while Suki and Haru rode another. Zuko was flying on a plume of white fire. Aang was sped across the send on his ball of air. And behind them was Zhao's lightning that struck the ground behind them. The piercing sound could break the ears. The lightning itself was so controlled and maintained that Zhao drew dug-out scorch lines all over the ground.

Everyone could feel the heat of the lightning from the ground to their feet.

"Zuko!" Sokka suddenly shouted. "We know how to disrupt the connection with the Avatar Spirit! You have to shoot lightning at Zhao! It's the only way!"

Zuko and Aang were aghast.

"But my sister's still there!" Zuko shouted.

"And the last time that happened, I nearly lost the Avatar Spirit! If we do that, the Avatar dies!" Aang spoke.

Sokka knocked his head with his fist. They were right. He couldn't do that. They were all stuck with running around in circles and feeling the heat of Zhao's lightning through their feet.

Behind them, Zhao was laughing as he attacked.

"Ha! Ha!" he squealed.

ZRAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!!!

.

~o0o~

.

"I have a plan!" Sokka suddenly shouted. "I have a brilliant, genius, plan!"

For some reason they couldn't fathom, Sokka's words somehow lightened there hearts. Knowing that there was somehow a way to defeat this gave comfort to them and made all of them ready to commit to their last stand. Sokka had a way with making people smile.

.

~o0o~

.

The group had separated into two as per Sokka's plan. Zuko, Katara, and Aang would return and try to hold Zhao. Sokka had already given them instructions and their basic purpose was detainment until the final move. Sokka, Toph, Suki, and Haru would devise Sokka's "trap". Though Sokka had been sketchy about the details, he assured all of them that, if it worked, they would succeed in separating Zhao from Azula.

"What if it doesn't work?" Aang asked.

Sokka raised a brow. "Then you'll have to find another guy with a good plan."

There were no questions after that. Now was the time to move. Toph, Sokka, Suki, and Haru were sliding on their earth waves as they moved down the beach, towards the shoreline.

"How's your plan going to work exactly?" asked a very skeptic Toph.

Sokka answered simply. "We're going to shock Zhao."

Toph raised a doubtful brow. "With lightning? I though Aang and Zuko told you not to use lightning on Zhao? We could destroy the Avatar forever!"

Sokka nodded. "But we're not going to shock Zhao directly. We're only going to do enough damage to separate his connection with the Avatar Spirit. Once we do that, I guess we win."

This wasn't enough to satisfy their curiosity. "Sokka," Suki reasoned. "You have to let us in on this plan of yours. We need to know."

Sokka smiled. "What we're going to do is quite technical. Toph, if you remember, my sword got struck with lightning. We saw and felt the lightning get absorbed into it the ground. Metal has the ability to channel lightning energy the same way Zuko redirects it."

To Suki and Haru, understanding what Sokka was teaching them was too hard to swallow as they did not exactly see it happen. But Toph had felt it happen and knew that what Sokka was saying was the truth.

"So what?" Toph questioned. "So what if metal can channel lightning? I still don't see a plan in this. I still don't see a trap."

"Think about it first," said Sokka. "Metal has the ability to transfer lightning from one end to the other. We saw it happen to my sword as the lightning transferred to the ground. But what if instead of transferring the lightning into the ground, we send it back at Zhao."

Suki scratched her head. "I can believe the metal part, but how are you going to bring the lightning back at Zhao?"

"We're going to make a large metal platform," Sokka relayed. "We'll hide it under the sand so Zhao does not see it. Connected to the metal platform is a long series of metal pipes and tubes. These pipes end at a long rod sticking out of the ground. Aang, Katara, and Zuko lead Zhao onto the metal platform. And when Zhao's not looking, Zuko sends a charge of lightning into the metal rod. The lightning goes down the rod, through the pipes, and into the platform. Once it reaches the platform…"

"ZAP!" Toph exclaimed proudly, as she finished Sokka's plan. "Zhao becomes smoked chicken!"

Sokka smiled. "Exactly. And the best part is, since sand is covering the platform, Zhao doesn't feel the full force of the lightning. Zhao's separated, the Avatar Spirit is alive, and we all win—foolproof!"

Haru was still skeptical. "But where are we going to get all that metal?"

Toph and Haru suddenly stopped Earthbending as they could not move any further. A large metallic object was blocking their way. It was only when they arrived here that everything began to fall into place and that everything made so much sense. Sokka raised a finger and pointed at its bulk.

Sokka smiled and said, "That…"

.

~o0o~

.

When I give the signal, you are to shoot lightning at whatever I'm pointing at… For the meantime, you guys have to still until we can set up the trap…

Those were the only instructions Sokka had said to Zuko before the group split in two. Sokka had not given them a deadline on when they would finish the trap. Hopefully it would be soon. Zhao was having too much fun with them. And with Zhao having all the power, only Aang would be strong enough to cause a small scratch at least.

ZRAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!!!

Aang raised a thick column of earth from deep within the sand then quickly moved out of the way. The lightning struck it with tremendous force, obliterating it completely, leaving very little traces. Aang spun to the side and rolled on his air ball. Zuko was in the air, trying to match Zhao's firepower with his small bursts of white fire. Katara bended the nearby water puddles and blasted them at Zhao.

Zhao eradicated them all with a pulsed fireball.

An amazing display of bending was at work.

Aang and Katara siphoned large amounts of seawater from the sea, creating a large wave. The two dragged it across the land as they ran, holding its crest high in the night air. As soon as they were in proximity to Zhao, they dropped their entire load and watched as the towering water collapsed on itself, spreading across the beach, and onto Zhao's small form.

Zhao rooted his stance, took a firm step forward, and without breaking his root, punched his fist at the oncoming surge of water. A pulse of super-compressed energy ignited at the crown of his knuckles, expanding into an enormous blowtorch—smoking the water in the process.

Zuko shot forward.

Zuko hovered over the ground, swerving left and right to dodge Zhao's blasts. In his hands was a small kept fire that Zuko had been saving especially for Zhao. He cradled it in his hands as he moved. And just as he was about to fire, Aang jumped in beside him and Firebended alongside each other. Aang's Firebending augmented Zuko's concentrated blast, increasing the concussive properties of the fire.

Zhao leaped into the air and struck the ground with his bare fist.

The sand on the ground blew out of the way as fire from beneath it erupted out. The fire escalated from Zhao's position, rising higher and higher into the air, growing in size with each passing second. When it had collided with the blast of its enemies, it was unmatched. The blast appeared so big that it swallowed Zuko and Aang's fire blast.

Zhao rotated both of his arms.

ZRAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!!!

Zuko, Aang, and Katara regrouped. Both were panting heavily as their energies were being exhausted bit by bit. Aang glared at Zhao and said to his friends, "Guys, I'm going to need a lift! Katara! Help me up!"

Aang crouched and spun on his knees, collecting all the nearby water as it spiraled together. A water spout forced Aang into the air. Katara helped it along by increasing the size of the spout, adding more and more water into the mix. Aang looked like a cannon ball with water trailing behind it. When there wasn't anymore water to support the push, Katara stopped feeding the water and called it back. Aang was still traveling in the air with no hint of stopping.

Zuko came in next as he rocketed into the air, catching Aang on the shoulders. He tugged on his body and jetted even higher, clearing the ground below. It took a few seconds before Zuko's flame had reached its limited altitude. When this was reached, the fire on his heels reverted back to orange. Zuko pulled and threw Aang with his last ounce of strength before moving back down.

Aang left the last bit to himself.

With Zuko throwing him higher into the air, Aang was able to move into a spin. He used the corkscrewing motion to propel him even higher. Once he stopped Airbending, it took a few moments for Aang to shake off his velocity and for gravity to take control. He was so high up that Zhao thought he was scraping the stars.

Finally, Aang began to plummet.

With Airbending to help increase his downward speed, Aang descended rapidly. He was traveling so fast that the nearby mountainside ripped apart with each of Aang's passing. The air in front of him was beginning to compress. Zhao could already feel the effects from his side.

Zhao attacked the oncoming missile.

Aang crashed first.

The impact forced dust and debris to eject into the sky. The earth began to roll as the impact spread outwards. Zhao was thrown from center to the side, his back hitting a steep mountain wall. A sudden shock returned to Zhao. He screamed in agony. Pain. Zhao felt pain. Due to the attachment he had with Azula, he could feel pain again. He had not felt it in a long time. Reality sought ways to refresh him.

Zhao stood up, swearing he was going to take it all back.

.

~o0o~

.

Aang's actions were not without consequence. When Katara and Zuko found him, he was three feet in his crater, half buried in soil and sand. The ice shell that coated his upper torso and healed his scar had already shattered off. Aang was awake despite his pain. He was even strong enough to dig himself out. The only problem was his limp left leg that had been hard to control throughout his entire maneuver in the sky.

The three of them took their places, ready to confront Zhao once more.

"How long is Sokka's plan taking…?" Katara panicked as she whispered. "Aang can't hold on much longer…"

Aang growled beneath his breath. "You worry about Sokka… I can take care of myself…"

"Fight when this is over," Zuko remarked. "Zhao is getting up…"

Zhao walked towards them as he stared with those bright white eyes of his. He was visibly angry and scorned. The way he moved meant that the man, despite his fall and attacks, had not exhausted himself—while his enemies were tired to the bone. Zhao was going to make an attack, but this time, there would be little warning and little chance of fighting back. He stopped walking as soon as he stepped onto a puddle of water.

"All of you seem to be exhausted…" Zhao noticed. "You children kept throwing yourselves at me! Now, you've sacrificed first-strike with your recklessness and anger… You children are such fools… Now, you are all wasted…"

But Zhao also noticed that they didn't back down from their fight. These children were ready to put their lives on the line just to stop them. But why would they unless they were sure they could take him down. That was unlikely. The Waterbender was deprived of large quantities of water. Zuko was more or less tired from his Firebending. And the Airbender was too hurt to even deal a killing stroke. Then what other reason was there that would explain their reckless behavior?

There was only one.

Zhao laughed suddenly. "I understand your game now—and I'm glad I understood quickly…"

Aang, Zuko, and Katara tensed. Had Zhao guessed?

"For a moment, I wondered why your other friends would not help you… I figured that they were cowards… But I can see now that that isn't the case… You three have been distracting me all along, preventing me from understanding what your other friends were scheming…"

Aang was the first one to recover. "Stop trying to fool us with your words, Zhao! Fight us now!"

Zhao laughed even more. "Too late, Airbender… Once a secret is revealed, it can never be taken back… Your attempt to remedy the situation was poor… I can see now that to defeat you, I must defeat your 'plan'. And to do that, I have to take away the lives of your other friends… And I can also see them from my point of view… They seem to be working by the airship… Imagine the shock they're going to receive…"

Zuko, Katara, and Aang had no choice now. The three of them began to retreat away from Zhao, towards Sokka and the others. They had to warn them. Each one of them began riding on their elements. They would have made it too. In fact, they were a few meters away from them.

But lightning is always faster.

"Aang!" Katara screamed. "What are you doing?"

Aang had stopped running and turned around. He was readying his stance with two fingers extended forward. Katara was familiar with this stance. It was the stance both Zuko and Aang used to redirect lightning. "You guys keep running!" Aang ordered. "Make sure Sokka finishes the plan!"

"Aang, no!" Katara shouted. "Your body can't take any large amount of lightning! A lightning blast could kill you!

ZRAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!!!

.

~o0o~

.

The reason why Zhao waited until Zuko and his friends were close to the others was because he wanted to take all of them down with one shot. If one got hit, anyone close enough would get hit from stray bolts. All Zhao needed to do was repeat it again until all of them were down.

Zhao rotated his arms and aimed it at the children by the airship.

But the Airbender was blocking his line of sight.

Zhao shrugged nonchalantly.

If it took one Airbender to get to the rest of them, so be it. He was meant to disappear anyway. Zhao was so excited about the idea that he believed this was about to be his final act, his killing stroke. Zhao gathered all his energy, split them apart, and sent them out of his fingers. He was using two hands now. And this time, Zhao applied a continuous stream of energy to it so the lightning would never die.

ZRAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!!!

Zhao watched as lightning exploded from his fingertips. The Airbender was out of luck.

But somebody changed the target at the last second.

Zuko had pushed Aang to the side, knocking him away from Zhao's blast. Aang was just as surprised as Zhao to find out Zuko had toppled him over. Zuko quickly took the right stance and caught the lightning within his fingers. Zuko had saved Aang's life.

And Zuko gave out a horrible cry.

.

~o0o~

.

To his horror, Zuko could not completely contain the energy of lightning that surged down his fingers. The lightning was overwhelming. It seemed to have its own mission. The Zuko spent all of his effort trying to force the lightning into his sea of chi—but the lightning could not be forced so easily. Zhao applied so much force that it was directed to go straight. Zuko did everything in his power to bypass it around his heart. The effort itself should have killed him.

In the end, there was so much energy that Zuko could not redirect it back to Zhao. The lightning chose to go straight. And out it went, from his stomach, up his shoulder, and into his arms. The lightning left his body and traveled out.

Unknown to Zuko, he had redirected the energy directly behind him—to the airship.

.

~o0o~

.

"We've got the pipes and rods connected," said Haru. "Suki and I have placed them in the spot you told us to. I covered it with sand and it looks clean. The only thing seen is the metal rod sticking out of the sand. We're done with our half."

Sokka nodded as he heard this report. "That leaves the platform as the last missing part." Sokka then turned to Toph. "We're going to need you on this one. We'll need you to cut off a large flat metal panel from the ship. With Metalbending, this should be quite easy for you."

Toph rolled her eyes. "You're telling us to do stuff but you're doing nothing. This isn't 'teamwork'. This is you giving orders."

"Hey!" Sokka retorted, taking offense from that statement. "I'm an integral part of this plan! I'm the manager!"

Toph immediately set to work. Because the airship was sitting in water, Toph did not dare step on it. Instead, she decided to do remote Metalbending—the ability to bend metal without being in contact or without being near it. Toph had to exert more effort though and it was required that she "feel" her way around the metal without touching it.

Carefully, Toph extended her hand at the airship. Her hand seemed to be reaching for it. Then, she grasped for the air and pulled her fist back. Sokka, Suki, and Haru were amazed to see that bolts and seams began to pop off. A large, rectangular metal panel was being ripped part from the rest of the ship. The ripping noise Toph did made the entire airship groan.

Sokka was not happy about that groaning.

"Be gently," Sokka sarcastically suggested. "There are still some bombs in that airship. If we're not careful, we could force one of them to explode and all of us could be blown to smithereens."

Toph groaned as she pulled the panel even harder. "You're one to talk and yet you're doing nothing!"

Then, Suki was tapping on Sokka's shoulder. "Sokka… we might have a problem… Why is your sister, Aang, and Zuko running this way…?"

Sokka was startled. He told them to distract. He turned to face them and realized that Zhao was right behind them. No. This was definitely not part of the plan. They weren't ready yet! The platform wasn't even in place! This was the first of Sokka's plans to collapse in front of his eyes.

Sokka then saw the lightning. Aang was supposed to catch it, but Zuko pushed him aside and took the lightning instead. There was a struggle to hold the lightning, but Zuko eventually overcame that. But what horrified Sokka the most was the fact that Zuko had not redirected the lightning to a safe location. Instead, the lightning shot out of his fingers and struck a part of the airship.

The lightning precisely struck the metal panel Toph was trying to rip out.

ZRAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!!!

"Sokka!" Toph screamed. "I can feel the lightning in the metal!"

Sokka was more than frightened now. "Toph! You have to rip the metal panel out NOW!"

"What's the matter?" Haru asked.

"It's the airship!" Sokka answered. "The airship is made of metal! The lightning will move all around it! And once it enters the bomb bay, it'll detonate the bombs! We'll all die from the massive explosion!"

Everyone understood. The lightning would heat up the bombs and force them to detonate. But if Toph pulled off the metal panel, it would sever the connection between the lightning and the rest of the airship. The lightning will be contained within the metal panel and nowhere else.

"Toph!" Sokka shouted. "You have to break the connection!"

"I'M WORKING!" Toph shouted.

The metal gnashed against one another and the panel was suddenly ripped out, breaking the connection. The airship was no longer energized. The panel was floating above the ground only through Toph's will. But it wasn't over. The stream of lightning was continuous and Zhao had not stopped. The energy was erratically increasing, making sharp lightning sparks to shoot out of the super-charged metal panel. The metal panel could not contain the energy. It was best if they diverted the energy elsewhere.

"Toph!" Sokka ordered as the little blind Earthbender struggled to hold the metal panel in the air. "Toph! You have to bring the metal on the ground so the lightning can escape out of the metal!"

"I'll try!" she spoke.

Toph then lowered her position and fists. Slowly, the metal panel was being brought down from the air. There was a struggle, though. The lightning was an impossibly powerful one. Though its energies were being channeled through the metal, its force was still pushing the metal panel away. It was only by Toph's sheer Metalbending prowess that allowed her to control it in midair.

But Toph could not bring it all the way down.

"I can't lower it any further!" Toph shouted. "The lightning's too strong!"

This time, it was Sokka's turn to contribute. He quickly unsheathed his space sword. He took aim at the metal panel. Once he was sure it would hit, he twirled his sword into the air like a disk. Sokka gave it his all. So when the space sword perfectly pierced the metal panel, Sokka's throw forced the panel down. The final conclusion was that Sokka's space sword allowed the lightning to divert into it.

And the space sword, after piercing the metal panel, ended up striking a large saltwater puddle—where all the lightning was collected.

.

~o0o~

.

"Sokka!" Katara cried as she arrived by her brother's side. "Are you alright!"

Sokka was on his knees, staring at the pool of saltwater. He was greatly disappointed. His plan failed miserably. All that was lacking was the platform. But the lightning strike ruined it. And if Zhao had been looking their way, he would have noticed them scheming. Sokka's plan had been brought to an abrupt end. Now, they were plan-less.

"That was my only plan, Katara…" Sokka sulked. "And now, it's completely wasted."

Katara placed a motherly hand on Sokka's shoulders. "It'll be okay, Sokka… There's still hope… We can still improvise…"

Improvise…

As Katara said this, Sokka began noticing odd things happening on the saltwater puddle. As Zhao continued to apply lightning through the metal panel and down his sword, it appeared the lightning had somehow transferred into the water. Surges of energy began to appear on the water's surface. Arcs of lightning seemed to hop from one spot to the other. The water seemed to be charged. Impurities in the saltwater allowed this property to happen.

Sokka stood up, amazed. "The water is also acting like the metal! It's channeling lightning as well!"

And idea was beginning to form in Sokka's mind. "Katara! The water is channeling the water like metal—but appears to be at a lesser power. If you could strike Zhao with this water without breaking the connection of the puddle, then maybe we could break Zhao's hold on the Avatar Spirit!"

Katara nodded.

Slowly, a water tentacle began to rise out of the pool. It was sparking with lightning.

Katara thrashed and quickly threw it at Zhao.

.

~o0o~

.

To everyone's surprise, the stream of water did not reach Zhao. The stream of energized water stopped midway. Aang had seen and heard what they were doing and decided to pitch in. When Katara attacked Zhao with that elongated water tentacle, Aang went in the way of the stream's path. Aang extended his right arm out towards it and caught the water tentacle.

The water tentacle coated his right arm.

Aang felt the surge of energy travel within the water. There was lightning there and the energy from it made the water sting terribly. Already, Aang was getting electrocuted on his right arm. The lightning was beginning to affect his body in other ways too. Aang had experienced one too many lightning strikes and as soon as he touched this electrified water, Aang knew this was already his limitation.

Katara shouted out to him.

"Aang! What are you doing? The lightning will kill you!"

Instantly, Aang used his left two fingers to trace the path of the energy from his right arm, down to his stomach, up his left shoulder, and out his two fingers. The energy was converted back into pure, raw lightning.

ZRAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!!!

Aang had aimed for Zhao.

Well, not exactly.

Aang had aimed for the puddle of water Zhao was standing on.

.

~o0o~

.

ZRAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!!!

The lightning, which came from Zhao's unlimited reserves of universal power, shot out from his fingers and struck Zuko, who redirected it onto the crashed airship. The lightning was absorbed into the metal panel Toph had been Metalbending and was diverted into a puddle of water by Sokka's space sword. Katara used the water's ability to channel lightning and sent it to strike Zhao down. Aang, however, caught it and converted it back to pure electricity. Once this was done, he shot it at Zhao.

The lightning blast had now gone full circle.

Although none of them knew it at the time, Zhao, Zuko, Toph, Sokka, Katara, and Aang created the world's first open electric circuit without breaking their connections. Who knew?

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~o0o~

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And Zhao screamed in more agony.

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Fire Nation, Grand Plaza, Royal Palace, (early morning)

"He escaped…?" asked the Water Tribesman.

Iroh nodded. "He knew well that the Fire Nation was going to be recaptured. He decided to escape through the underground chambers… Even if we fought him, he was able to defeat us. At least none of us were hurt. But we couldn't find him. I want every one of your men to double check the ports and make sure everyone's names are listed down… My brother is still here… We will hunt him down…"

"Yes, General Iroh," saluted the Water Tribesman.

"There's also another thing," Iroh added. "I seem to have noticed that very little of your men have arrived at the capital. Also, you do not resemble Chief Hakkoda at all… He was the man we sent here…"

The Water Tribesman smiled. "I am his second-in-command, Bato. Chief Hakkoda is leading the other half of the troops in a mission of his own."

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Southern Air Temple, Base of the mountain, (early morning)

The moment Zhao saw through his eyes, he scrambled to get up and understand his bearings. He walked around, trying to understand what had happened. Out of rage, he began to punch things. But to his horror, nothing happened. There was no fire. Somehow, he had been separated.

No!

Zhao frantically looked around, searching for Azula's body. He needed that power back. He had to merge again!

And Zhao caught sight of Azula's body lying right beside him. He reached for her, but there was a slight problem. Azula had grabbed his hand.

When Azula looked up to face him, her eyes were open and they were shining white. Azula was still in the Avatar State. Zhao smiled. Yes! That meant that he could still merge with her.

But Azula didn't seem to let go of Zhao's hand.

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~o0o~

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Aang, Toph, Katara, Haru, Sokka, Suki and Zuko watched as the two struggled, hoping Azula would make the right decision and hoping that Zhao would not become Avatar once more. The battle didn't seem to be over, but they wanted it to be. Everyone was tired.

"Let go of my hand, Azula!" Zhao shouted. "Remember, you have failed! The only acceptable cause left is to allow me control over the Avatar Spirit!"

But Azula didn't look like she was in a mood. Her anger had been building up inside her body ever since Zhao took over her. Quickly, she placed a hand on Zhao's forehead.

Zhao trembled in his place as he felt the hand on his forehead. "Azula? What are you doing? Place that hand away! PLACE THAT HAND—AH! NO!"

Zhao screamed in agony once more. He was helpless now and he couldn't move. He couldn't get out of her grasp. Her touch had immobilized him. And then, Zhao watched as the color from his form begin to fade away. A charge went up his body. He was disappearing from this world and into the next.

And the last thing Zhao saw was those furious glowing eyes of Azula.

Then, just like that, Zhao was erased from the face of the world.

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~o0o~

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As soon as Zhao disappeared, so did the glow in Azula's eyes. The Avatar State subsided until finally, Azula was back to the way she was. The young Firebender lay there motionless on the sand. Azula was unconscious and appeared that way to all of them.

And in the end, Zhao's predictions were correct. He had indeed gained ultimate power, for however short the time. Also, someone's soul was indeed lost. Zhao just didn't expect the soul to be his.

"Did…" Toph spoke. "Did Azula just save us…?"

Zuko shook his head. "She didn't save us. She just wanted Zhao out of the way. She was angry. It was nothing more than revenge to her."

"But she did stop Zhao," Katara said.

"Yes."

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~o0o~

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Suddenly, Aang stood up from his fallen position since he redirected lightning. Everyone watched and grew silent as he slowly limped towards Azula. On the final step, Aang stumbled on the sand. For a moment, he was still. Then, he used his arms to push himself up. Carefully, Aang placed both his hands on Azula—one on her forehead and the other on her neckline.

The ground slowly began to shake. The world began to shake.

Aang and Azula's bodies glowed in the influence of their own spiritual nature.

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~o0o~

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The sky was half red and half blue-white…

Azula's spirit was completely broken…

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~o0o~

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When the lights faded and the dark night sky returned, everyone watched as Aang stood up from the ground, appearing stronger than ever. With his power, he had retrieved the Avatar Spirit and took away Azula's Firebending—so she could never use it again.

Aang turned around and faced all of them.

The Avatar returns.

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~o0o~

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Toph tapped her foot on the sand. "Well this is bitter-sweet. But is it really over…?"

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Southern Air Nomad Territory, Approaching the Southern Air Temple, (early morning)

General Shu spotted the enemies through his spyglass. He lowered it and began to sigh satisfyingly to himself. At last, he was here. It had taken a few trials before they found a route wide enough for the fleet of ships to pass through. But now that they had arrived, things would go smoothly now. He had already armed three catapults. The enemies wouldn't know what hit them until they saw the fireballs in the sky..

"How much further?" asked General Shu to the navigator. He was asking how much more to go before they were in firing range of their targets.

"Not long now," said the navigator. "A few more meters at most."

An officer approached him. "Sir, we have a problem with…uh…seaweeds…"

General Shu kept his concern at his targets as he raised and lowered his spyglass. Nonchalantly, he answered: "If you have problems with the food, take it up with the cook, not me…"

"I'm afraid that's not it, sir," said the officer. "There's seaweed in our propellers and engines… The seaweed…well… It's attacking us…"

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~o0o~

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General Shu ran out of the bridge and grabbed the ends of his hairs the moment he saw what he saw. A giant green seaweed monster was rampaging through his fleet. With its "hands" it took hold of some of the ship's catapults and ripped them off the deck. Some of the ships were already sunken in the shallow waters. Soldiers were floating all over the water.

Suddenly, the ship began to rock—as if something struck it.

An engineer appeared beside him, frantic. "Sir! We're taking on water! There's a huge hole in the bow of the ship! We've been hit! If we don't jump ship now, the ship could take us along with it!"

General Shu tried to make sense of the situation. "How is this happening?"

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Southern Air Temple, Base of the mountain, (early morning)

"DAD! DAD! OVER HERE!" Sokka shouted.

Three large whale-like submarines anchored itself on the shores of the island. Dozens of Water Tribe men and other assorted Foggy Swamp Tribe people got out of the machines and ran up to the children with arms wide and smiles wider. Above them, two airplanes from the remaining air fleet circled around the beach before making a hard landing. The pilots were then congratulated and everyone began to mix. A reunion was in order as Mai, Ty Lee, and General Shinu also appeared from within the submarines.

Sokka, Katara, Zuko, Aang, Suki, Toph, and Haru gathered around Chief Hakkoda.

"I'm glad we made it just in time," Hakkoda commented. "I thought for sure we would have been too late…"

"On time?" Sokka questioned. "But dad, you came in the moment the battle was over!"

"You may think that," Hakkoda said, "But it's not true. Our half of the Water Tribe troops rescued the two ships that you had used as a diversion. Most, if not all of them, are alive and well… And aside from that, Huu and the other Swampbenders stopped a small fleet of Fire Nation flagships that were headed this way. Huu clogged their propellers with seaweed to stop them from moving. We struck them with torpedoes and forced them to surrender…"

Sokka and Katara ran up to their father and hugged him tightly.

"Welcome back, dad…" said Katara and Sokka in unison. Chief Hakkoda smiled and patted his children on the shoulders. Then, he hugged them back, making sure there was love warm enough to share.

And then, Chief Hakkoda turned to Aang. He saw him for what he was—the Avatar. And he smiled at this. He reached out to Aang and shook his hand, silently thanking him for protecting his family. Aang only smiled back, but there was an acknowledgement between the two. Ideas were not hard to convey.

Hakkoda then asked, "Aang, I need to know… We need to know… Is the war over…? Is the war finally over…?"

Everyone quieted down and turned to Aang. They were all waiting for his answer. But instead of paying attention to the chieftain, Aang was looking beyond their faces and into the backdrop of mountains. A bright light appeared from behind them and the sky slowly turned blue. Aang pointed at the horizon with jubilance.

"Look!" he said. "The sun is rising… It's a new day…"

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The true mind can weather all the lies and illusions without being lost…

The true heart can touch the poison of hatred without being harmed…

Since beginning-less time, darkness thrives in the void…

But always yields to purifying light…

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Fire Nation, Capital City, Industrial Harbor, (three days later)

A small group of Fire Nation patrons gathered in front of the Empire-class Fire Navy ship. Its front ramp slowly slid down until it connected with the ground. Steam was the first to exit through its opening. Then, the royal procession appeared. Iroh watched the whole thing and found it quite monotonous and boring. But there was no mistaking the anxiety in the old man's heart. Iroh was excited. He was trying to peer through the shadows of the ship to see if he was there.

Then, the drums began to play.

Dum!

Dum!

Dum!

Dum!

Then, after a rising crescendo, Zuko—in full ceremonial robes—stepped out of the shadows and into the light, his face stern and powerful. Mai was by his side, holding his hand. Everyone on the ground began clapping as one. Iroh was unashamed to shed some tears of his own. And for some reason, Iroh thought Zuko would not see him among the crowd. But he was proven wrong after all.

The first person Zuko locked eyes with were Iroh's

Zuko smiled at his Uncle first. And once Zuko was off the ramp and onto the harbor, he unceremoniously abandoned all formal decorum and embraced Iroh, long and hard. The two shared a wonderful moment. Those that had gathered clapped even more when the two came together. They were clapping for them.

"Welcome home…" Iroh whispered warmly. "Welcome back…"

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~o0o~

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Zuko and Iroh stayed with some of the officers even if the crowd had gone away. Mai went ahead as she still had to greet her family. Zuko bid her a momentarily farewell before returning by Iroh's side. Nobody gathered around the last ship affairs as they were mainly logistics, like the dropping off of cargo, prisoners, armory, and fuel.

"I can understand why mother doesn't want to be here," Zuko spoke. But in a way, he was mostly disappointed. "I guess she took it hard, huh…?"

Iroh nodded. "Azula's actions have affected us all. But your mother was the most wounded. I believe she's waiting for you at the palace, so don't you worry. As soon as you're done overseeing this transfer, then, we can leave."

Zuko was rubbing his forehead. "But I still have problems… My father… Have there been any sightings from him…?"

Iroh shook his head. "Our men have searched the entire palace and the city itself. We believe that he has moved onto the other islands. Evidence and eye-witnesses say that they have seen your father, but most cases are conflicting. What I'm really worried about is if your father slips out of the Fire Nation and into the vast Earth Kingdom, where no one can find him for sure. Tightening the docks and harbors for security might help."

Zuko nodded. "I just hope my father can be found before he causes anymore chaos."

On another note, Iroh said, "Here comes our high priority prisoner now… Look alive, Zuko… And watch your men…"

"There have been surprising changes," Zuko noted to Iroh. "In her cell, she seemed quiet and tame, unlike her last behavior when she lost everything after the day Sozin's Comet arrived. And she was the one who stopped Zhao."

"Out of anger," corrected Iroh. "She saved herself and saved the world by accident. Don't consider anything else."

"Yes," Zuko admitted. "Azula is one of those irredeemable people… Some people are so negatively influenced that when they go against their own nature, they lose themselves completely… People have to be worthy of redemption before they can be saved… Azula has nothing yet to prove of this… But even though some people cannot be saved, at least all people can be stopped."

Iroh smiled. "But who knows? After all, I'm not the only great grandchild of Avatar Roku… Maybe something will happen that will change things for the better…"

The first prisoner to step onto the ramp had shackles on both feet and hands. Four Imperial Firebending guards flanked the prisoner on all sides. Her short hair dangled in front of her face. Azula's head bounced with each step, like she was some sort of doll. She wore the standard prisoner's outfit. And even in these conditions—what with her powerless and her bending taken away—everyone was ordered to treat her hostile in case she attacked.

Zuko approached her.

But someone blew past him and bumped him on the shoulders. She apologized, saying: "I'm sorry, Zuko!" It was his mother, Ursa. She appeared from out of nowhere and head walked ahead of him.

Ursa briskly walked ahead, taking great strides. She was angry and at the same time, determined. Her anger seemed to be directed at Azula. Her hands were in fists and she looked convincingly menacing. The Imperial Firebenders cautiously stepped aside. Azula stared at her approaching mother with wide eyes.

Azula was also smiling widely, her teeth showing.

"WHY?!" Ursa suddenly screamed as she reached her daughter and shook her angrily on the shoulders. "WHY DID YOU DO IT?!"

Azula did not answer, but instead, allowed her mother to shake her so violently. Her head just went side to side as she shook. She didn't seem to be in control of her movements. Her smile only grew wider and there was a small laugh that came from her clenched teeth. She seemed to be enjoying it.

"ANSWER ME, AZULA!" Ursa demanded. Tears were running down from her cheeks. Her shaking only grew worse. "WAS IT MY FAULT THAT FORCED YOU TO BECOME LIKE THIS? WAS IT I WHO INDIRECTLY MADE YOU ATTACK MY SON AND HIS FRIENDS?"

Azula just enjoyed the shaking more. She appeared to be holding in laughter.

That was until she opened her mouth to actually laugh.

Something rolled out of Azula's hand and landed on the ground. It was shiny and metallic. Azula's sweat covered the most of it, but everyone could see it in the morning sun. It was a small bar of metal with four holes in it. Somehow, Azula had managed to slip it past security and bring it along with her.

It was a brass knuckle.

Azula caught herself laughing and stopped. She stared at the object and suddenly sobbed. Small tears began to slide down her face. She cried noisily and caught everyone's attention. Then, from out of nowhere, Ursa reached out and hugged her. She too was crying, their foreheads on each other.

Their tears began to mix.

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Earth Kingdom, Ba Sing Se, Western Harbor, (three days later)

"Are you sure you guys don't want to come down for a second and spend a day in the city…?" Toph trembled as she stepped down the ramp and onto fresh soil. She felt like she was going to cry.

Sokka and Suki stayed on the boat, smiling down at her. "Sorry, Toph. You knew we'd never get off the boat once we reached the Earth Kingdom. And you knew how hard I had to convince my dad so I could accompany you here instead of flying with them home. Now, we still have to pass through the Southern Earth Kingdom and find a ferry there that'll take me to the South Pole. You should be happy we came along!"

"But what if my parents would be angry at me?" Toph reasoned. She was really delicate about this topic. "They didn't even answer any of my messages! I bet they're still angry at me for running away a second time! You guys have to be there to convince them! I haven't seen them for awhile! Who knows what their reactions would be?"

Suki laughed. "All the more reason to go home…"

All around, Ba Sing Se was rebuilding. The carved route Azula had done to the city's walls would be converted into a large highway that would allow pedestrian passing between walls and earth-trains. And it wasn't just here. All over the world, the nations were rebuilding. Omashu was being restored. The North Pole was being rebuilt. The South Pole was undergoing reconstruction with plans for an even bigger city. The whole world was getting better—with no disappearing land whatsoever.

Toph was crying now. "But what about you guys…? I have very little friends here in Ba Sing Se! Who am I going to talk to? When am I going to see you guys again? And how do I know you guys are coming back?"

Sokka threw something at Toph and she caught it through her ability to detect metal.

"This is your boomerang," Toph retorted. "But you love this thing… Why are you giving this to me?"

"That way," Sokka answered, "I have two reasons why I have to come back to Ba Sing Se ever so often…"

Toph pressed the boomerang into her chest. "But if I have the boomerang, then it won't come back to you anymore… And you always say that boomerang always comes back…"

Sokka smiled. "Think of it this way… Because boomerang is with you, now I'll always come back…"

The ship's horn blew. They were about to cast off again. Sokka and Suki waved their last goodbyes and Toph had no choice but to accept them. Of course, she did briefly consider destroying the boat and strand Sokka and Suki in Ba Sing Se, but her better judgment decided against it.

And Toph slowly turned around, making her way back home.

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South Pole, Southern Water Tribe, (three days later)

Aang watched quietly as Ummi lay quietly on the snow. Cold tears of loss started forming around her eyes again. Aang wished he knew what she was thinking, but he had a fairly good idea. The chills of winter winds were coming and even if the snow made everything appear beautiful, it also made people feel sad. The season intensified sadness somehow.

Then, on Aang's left peripheral vision, he caught sight of Appa, abashedly trying to approach Ummi. Appa was digging trough in the snow with its top right foot. He didn't know exactly how to approach the matter at hand.

Aang smiled, mentally cheering him on. Come on, buddy… You can do it…

Appa approached slowly, taking precautions and checking if Ummi did not want him in the territory at the moment. In another second, Appa decided that walking up to Ummi might probably make her feel uncomfortable. So, Appa hovered in the air as it slowly approached Ummi.

And just when the two were going to be beside each other, Appa landed on the snow—sending snow and ice flying into the air. One could say that the whole thing was a really bad move. Most of it landed on Ummi. Aang grimaced at the sight of Appa's mistake. Even Appa felt that it did some sort of wrong move.

Aang shook his head in dismay. Wrong move, buddy…

To try to remedy the mistake, Appa used its big nose to wipe the snow out of Ummi's fur, but Appa was also crossing personal boundaries. Ummi seemed irritated already. But Appa continued, this time, using his tongue to lick all over Ummi's face.

And Ummi liked it.

Aang smiled and was intrigued. This was a beautiful scene right here.

Appa and Ummi stared at each other with mutual interest. Appa had his tongue stuck out too.

And just when Aang thought something was going to happen between the two, something else did. With her nose, Ummi blew the nearby snow and covered Appa in a whole pile of it.

Aang couldn't help but laugh.

Then, a warm hand met his.

"Ah…" Katara smiled. "Watching animals in love, huh? Appa's going to have to work hard to get Ummi's attention…"

Aang smiled. "I think he's already doing it… And you know what? Seeing things like this makes me feel happy, feel safe, secure… When this whole thing began, I was worried about the air-taker and that it was me or something… But seeing Ummi, I realize that there's still hope for my people and our culture—that the Air Nomads haven't given up yet… Who knows? Maybe I'll find more of Ummi out there or flying lemurs. And maybe, I'll find an Airbender out there… I just have to keep looking…"

Katara smiled. "They're talking about you again, you know… But this time, it is to your credit not the Avatar's… You saved the world and no one can take that from you anymore."

Aang nodded.

"So what's going to happen now?" Katara asked. "I guess the world rebuilds. Hopefully, peace will last a lot longer this time. And you, Aang, where will you go?"

Aang scratched his head. "I guess the first thing I should do is rebuild each air temple from scratch. I might be away for some time. We'll still meet, of course, but I might come back during late spring. Hopefully, I'll be done by then."

Katara nodded. "And have you heard about Ozai."

Aang nodded. "We'll settle with that once he comes back. Zuko updates me on a regular basis. When he knows, I'll know."

For a moment, there was silence between the two. Only the falling snow made sounds.

"I don't really know if this is the end of the war," Katara spoke. "But it feels like one… And whenever I look back at the most meaningful moments in my life, they were all in the middle of this war. But to be there at its climax and end was truly something spectacular. But the most unforgettable moment of my life was there at the moment when the war turned for the better—when the Avatar returned. And I can see now that this was where it was headed.

"Now, the story has gone full circle. It began with the return of the Avatar and it ended with it too…"

Katara and Aang looked eyes and smiled. Blushes crept up their cheeks.

Then slowly, the two leaned forward and closed their eyes.

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Autumn is the season of my people…

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The serenity of the season reflects the state of the world. And the world is at peace with itself. There is the usual hustle and bustle here and there. The noise from the earth kingdom markets is perpetual. The South Pole is being rebuilt to its former glory. And hundreds of soldiers are coming home.

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Zuko arrived at his room and placed his crown down as he stared outside the window. He was about to shut the door to get some privacy, when he turned around to find his mother staring warmly at him from the doorway. She smiled at him and welcomed him into her arms. Zuko hugged back without any thoughts entering his mind.

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A wind blows through the naked trees. Heaps of snow are scattered throughout the land, making the ground appear white underneath the dimming sun.

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Children are laughing. Their joys are quickly strangled by the ever-watchful mothers who tell them to go inside for dinner. 'Cooked pig today', say the mothers.

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There was a sudden knock on the door of the estate of the Bei Fongs. Lau Bei Fong and his wife approached it together. The two opened the door to find Toph at their front steps. She seemed apprehensive. But the parents were not. Immediately, they both grabbed their daughter, cleaning flecks of dirt on her cheek. They bring her inside and there is a surprise party being held. Pipsqueak, the Duke, Longshot, and Smellerbee were there.

Toph couldn't find the words to speak.

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Just beyond the village is a long stretching line of people, carrying all their possessions. Smiles mark their faces and they greet one another with light hearts.

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No one is hiding in fear.

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Sokka and Suki watched as fireworks were being lit above the city of Ba Sing Se. These fireworks commemorated those that had given their lives to help in the war effort. Sokka stared at all their colors and Suki rested her head on his shoulder. Both of them were entranced by the colors. Everybody onboard watched with awe.

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I see the sun dimming out quickly, as if hurried by another entity. Autumn is finally leaving… Yes, autumn leaves… And the new season is setting in. Winter is setting in.

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But not all peace comes fully intact.

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There are rumors circulating around a particular Earth Kingdom village. It is disturbing news. A man has gotten himself lost in the wilderness while hunting for game. They search for him and when they find his body, it is a horrific sight. His skin is burned and blackened, as if placed in a furnace. And strangely enough, the young man, a proficient Earthbender, had lost his ability to bend. I know I have to do something about it, but I am tired. The Avatar is tired.

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But I will see into the matter immediately, if not sooner.

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I just hope it isn't a terrible problem. After all, what can be worse than stopping the end of the world?

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Aang and Katara held that kiss, savoring the moment, and listening to the world go by…

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To the average reader, this may just be the end of the story, but for every Avatard out there, that isn't true. Avatards know that the world of Avatar: the Last Airbender is too big to be finished, too amazing to be written by only one fanfic writer, and too diverse to be explained. To us, there are no happy endings, no conclusions and finales, no last paragraphs or chapters... The story goes on with or without us knowing.

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But, yeah... I've ended my story here.

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COMMENTS MEANT TO BE SAID BEFORE FINAL DISCUSSION

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First of all, my apologies... I've pissed a few people already. A lot of you must be wondering, "does he know the meaning of 'a lot sooner'? (for those readers who did not read my promise at the end of the last paragraph which I deleted, you can skip this rant) There were a lot of mishaps that went wrong. I did not start typing this chapter during december as I was sick and that's vacation time for me. January was a slow time for writing as assignments piled together. So I'm sorry for this. To kathir, if you are reading this, then I'm sorry for the lateness... I could see that you were thoroughly pissed at me. Sorry for that.

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Secondly, A SPECIAL MENTION TO MR. EDITDEATH for acting as a critic to my story and critiquing the final chapter of book 4 after sending him my rough draft. He cited many things I got vague on, plot holes, things that were necessary for ending the story, and some minor suggestions to enrich the story plot. I thank you a lot sir and your abilities. Also, the guy saved this chapter when I lost my copy after breaking my USB drive. By sending him my rough draft, he had indirectly saved this chapter. That is why this chapter is more or less a joint-project with me and EditDeath.

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Finally, why are people calling me Jacob? Yes, that is my name, but I prefer Kojab8890 if none of you people mind. Internet privacy and all that...

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A.F.D.P.

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The Avatar: Water

This chapter happened to be a preface to the finale. I had thought about writing this down way before the first chapter of this fanfic. One of the most exciting parts of writing the first part of the finale was rewriting the narration Katara gave during the first episode of the show. It was nice to bring that back to a story with no opening narration. This chapter also brought out Aang's intense loneliness being the last Airbender and bringing things back to the beginning where Aang was trapped in the iceberg.

~The chapter also gave away a glimpse on Aang's task, its importance, and how things rebooted Aang's self-esteem. Toph was intended to get fatally wounded and revived. But the one thing I didn't plan on was using Zuko's lightning to jumpstart her heart. That idea was so spontaneous that I'm very proud of it.

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The Avatar: Earth

~This chapter focused on preparation--on both the protagonists and antagonists sides. This chapter gave focus on the scale of the Fire Nation army, how they reverted back to their old ways, and how large the armada guarding Azula was. Reunions were also set here and most of it was derived from the Day of Black Sun: The Invasion.

~A thing I would like to clear up: When Aang was with the Order of the White Lotus, he did not become another Avatar. Aang just used energybending to take the Pakku, Jeong Jeong, and Bumi's bending. Guru Pathik said something about him being avatar, but that was just a turn of the phrase.

~The airplane had been one of the first initial ideas I had during the conception of this fanfic. After all, with tanks, jet skis, submarines, gliders, gigantic tunnel borers, and airships, it was not hard to believe that somehow, the Mechanist decided to attach an engine to a glider and make it fly on its own.

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The Avatar: Fire

~This chapter is where I played director. Everything about this chapter was specifically about point of views. This was also one of those, "can't-wait-till-I-type-this" chapter. One of the scenes I usually dream about is the fleet of airplanes appearing out of the clouds and attacking the fleet of ships from the skies. When typing, I would often imagine myself with a video camera taking a shot of this particular part from the ground, the sky, the backdrop, or the people. It was an exhilarating change of perspective. The charging scenes were also influenced from the Day of Black Sun: Invasion and an army tactic in world war II known as the "Blitzkrieg".

~Friends sacrificing their lives for Aang was also a common theme surrounding this chapter. Though Aang did affect them the most, it was his friends who gave it all back to him. Casualties were common here too. Bending on a gigantic scale was also common here. Basically, this whole chapter was my paint and canvas.

~Lastly, my favorite part in the whole chapter was definitely the last part. Aang and Azula meeting up for the final duel sounded so cool at the time.

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The Avatar: Air

~This chapter had been one of the most trickiest chapters to write. Most of the themes here ended up becoming too conflicting. And it was only when I started writing this chapter did I realize that I wasn't just ending my fanfic, I was ending the entire Avatar series from book 1 too! With this mindset, there was pressure and I didn't really understand how to summarize everything. One of the things I decided to do was insert relevant dialogues from previous books. I believe this helped.

~Blood was also something new added into the Avatar world. The addition of blood was a highly unnecessary but overly effective plot device in the story as it added a new level of drama. One example is the scene with Sokka gripping onto the blade of his sword. Readers may or may not feel the pain through the slicing, but the brutality is there and the pain is conveyed.

~Halfway through, I realized that the ideas and schemes I had planed for this chapter would not fit. It was then that I realized that a fifth chapter was in order.

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The Avatar Spirit

~At last, the last chapter. This whole entire chapter was practically handed to the villains. My main purpose for this chapter was to single out and find the villain in all of them. Ozai had been the first villain and he never did change. I realized that the man manipulated people just as much as Azula did. This was a man who could not accept defeat. His wingman, Zhao, was faithful to Ozai but had plans of his own. He hoped to gain ultimate power but also in the favor of Ozai. Azula, contrary to popular belief, had been the puppet in all of this.

~The ability for a spirit to merge with the Avatar Spirit was my final ace in the hole. My first was Azula becoming Avatar through energybending. My next was Ummi, the female Sky Bison. Zhao's link-up with the Avatar Spirit was my final and sent the trigger for my climax.

~Another favorite scene of mine was when all of Team Avatar redirected the lightning continuously using their respective elements (except Aang) and sent it back to Zhao. This was also one of the many scenes I waited to type. (Oh, and Zuko was still conducting lightning for him to do anything else. Plus, salt or impurities in sea water acts as a conductor to electricity. This is why a tub of murky water with a live wire sticking into it can get you electrocuted if touched.)

~Ending it was very confusing. I didn't want it too blanc (happy) or too noir (tragedy). Azula and her mother was one way of showing this. Though Azula was showing signs of stability, she was still a misfit and she broke into tears. As EditDeath put it, "Azula may be an irredeemable villain, but not an irredeemable monster..." Azula is still human and someone worth fighting for. She's just a really horrible bad guy. Toph coming home was also a sad thing to write.

~I love stories that go full circle so that's what I did with this. Maybe Ozai will get caught, but who knows? I'm not planning on writing a continuation to this continuation. Like the original writers, I'm also one to leave loose ends.

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MY BASIC THINKING OF AVATAR AND FANFICTION

As a fanfic writer for this category, I will tell you now that the story of Avatar is just too big for me.

Even with the power to do everything at my fingertips, I respect the creators enough to know that complex problems can't be solved with simple answers and coincidences. For those out there who wanted me to place in an Airbender (human) for the story, I'm sorry, but I just won't do it. Even if the title did not allude to Aang being the last Airbender, it would still cause problems. Where were the hints that the rest of the Airbenders would make their return? (I'm not bashing. This is an opinion). If some guy just happened to know where the rest of the Airbenders were, why didn't he appear in the previous books?

(He he... I'm one to talk, but I probably did the same thing myself.)

Anyway, I am currently suffering from a serious case of AWS (Avatar Withdrawal Syndrome). Watching past episodes isn't helping and even Sozin's Comet is starting to look redundant. I'm downloading Avatar Soundtracks and they seem to help (Listen to Avatar Theme Remake... I have a feeling they're going to put that in the live-action movie. The hairs on your skin will definitely stand). This fanfic was one of my lifebloods to the show and now that it's over, I'm running thin on Avatar stuff.

I also realized that I have more ideas to offer to the story. Already, I have plans for oneshot. I have already begun writing, but don't expect any promises. It'll deal with the legacy of the Airbenders. It's an epilogue of both the first three books and this one (although the latter being unnecessary).

I also hoped you liked this story. It is my first fanfic after all.

Finally, as a proud Filipino Avatard (Yes! Go Pinoy! Sarap maging pinoy ngayon!), I have a deep rooted feeling that someday, Avatar is going to make a return on the screens. And whether better than the original or a loose adaption of the story, you will know I'll be there...

I'll be waiting by the TV

A chocolate bar in my hand

Cold sweat and anticipation running through me

Waiting...

Waiting until the Avatar Returns