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Description

Slowly and steadily, Aang, Ty Lee, and the others worked their way through the archives. Finding the method of sorting certainly helped the process, allowing them to prioritize what needed to be removed or copied first.

    “Going through all of this is a lot of work,” Hei-Won groaned.

            “Getting tired of it?” Xing Ying asked

            “Not in your life. But this is definitely going to require more time than any of us have available. Hmm…”

            “What is it?”

            “I don’t know. Hey, Aang?” she hollered, waving the airbender over.

            “What is it?” he asked.

    “What’s the Yangchen Festival?”

            “Hm? Oh, it’s an Air Nomad celebration, named after Avatar Yangchen. Every year, we would visit this coastal inlet. I only went a handful of times before…”

            Ying Xing rested a hand on Aang’s shoulder. “What was it for?” she asked.

            Aang scratched the back of his head, embarrassed. “Frankly, I never caught the reasoning. Too busy flying kites with Monk Gyatso. Does it say anything else about it, Hei-Won?”

            “It says something about keeping an old promise. Or it’s about keeping a monster at bay. The pictures and text are sending mixed messages.”

            Aang got up and went over to her, peering over her shoulder.

            “You’re right on both points, mostly.” The illustration depicted an armored giant standing among crashing tides and a tempest. “It’s a spirit…this could be bad.”

            “What is it?”

            “You see, there was this ritual that we performed every single time we went. If it was really something that kept a dangerous spirit at bay, then no one has kept up with it over the last century.”

            “Where is this place?”

            “Conveniently, not too far from Yu Dao. I’m not sure what else is there now. The cataloging can wait for a little while longer. We have to make sure we resolve this before anyone gets hurt.”

[-]



     “Not trying to tempt fate or anything,” said Sokka. “But it sure is quiet out there.”

    Zuko grunted. “Yeah. Like the world is holding its breath.”

    “I hate this waiting. We know they’re out there somewhere. Why can’t we go destroy their camp, or something?”

    “Because I’m not going to be at fault for restarting the war.”

    “You’ve harping on that a lot, lately.”

            “I wonder why?” Zuko asked, sarcasm dripping from every word.

            “Sheesh. You don’t have to bite my head off for it. You need to find some time to relax.”

            Zuko exhaled tiredly. “I’ll do that once this is all over.”

            The two stood quietly until Sokka broke the silence.

    “On the plus side, Toph’s keeping watch.”

    Bells began to toll from the center of town. Shouts carried down the streets, alerting them to imminent danger. Both men were on their feet, hands twitching to their weapons.

            “Did they finally decide to show up?” Sokka asked.

    Stones landed at the edge of town, mercifully evacuated.

    Zuko rolled his shoulders back and answered, “Does that answer your question?”

    “Yup.” Both of them ran to the staging area, where Sokka cupped his hands over his mouth and shoted. “Time to go to work, people!”

            Another salvo pounded the ground, falling a bit shorter than the first batch. Walls were erected to reinforce the original barriers. By the time the duo reached the observation center, the bombardment had ceased.

            “Any sign of another front opening up?” Zuko asked.

            “Not right now,” she replied.

            “Then we go with the first plan.”

            “I still think it’s kind of stupid sending you out by yourself.”

            “I already got the lecture from Mai. You can both tell me off for my stupidity once this is over. Besides, I need you guys here-”

            “In case we get attacked by some other schmucks. You don’t need to keep repeating yourself.”

            “Less talking, more fighting,” Sokka urged.

            “I’ll make this short,” Zuko said.

    The Avatar ran out towards the edge of the city, then launched himself into the air, then again, landing a short distance in front of the foremost group of hostiles, the suddenness of his appearance bringing the front ranks to a stuttering halt.

    “Forces of the Earth Kingdom, stand down!” Zuko ordered.

    When they proved hesitant to acknowledge him, he answered by raising a wall between them and the city, him standing at the top of the structure. On the inner side, the stone began to weep lava, forming a moat, driving the assault force back as the wall began to horseshoe around them.

            As the enclosure surrounded them, some of the soldiers on the ground organized the ruckus into proper formations and began chucking hunks of rock at the Avatar.

            Catching the first stone in one hand, Zuko spun around, carrying its momentum through the arc, then powdered the next one with his other hand, and chucked the missile back into a gap in the opposing lines, widening it further.

            The aggressors thoroughly disoriented, the Avatar jumped into their midst, sending out a shockwave from his landing.

            “Stand down,”            Zuko shouted, voice carrying over the battlefield as the soldiers reoriented to face him.

            “Under what authority?” the commanding officer demanded, pointing a sword at Zuko.

            “By my authority as the Avatar.”

            He could hear whispering among the ranks, so he took advantage of their silence.

            “Let’s make this simple. I don’t want to see anyone harmed, but if you fools really want to press this attack, I will make quick work of it.”

            Some looked at him and the walls that were boxing them in, then at the teen standing in their midst.

            “What is your answer?”

            Before any officers could order otherwise, weapons began clattering to the ground, the rank and file making the decision of them.

            “Thank you for you cooperation,” Zuko said, letting the walls fall and lava cool.

            Back in town, the Avatar saw to the transfer of prisoners. All of them looked ragged, weapons in poor repair and armor like tattered patchwork. Questioning a few revealed the truth of the matter.

    The attack had only been comprised of a single battalion, slightly inflated from collecting other diminished units picked up along the way, and had been isolated since the blitz. The attack had been mostly a desperation move guided by revenge. Now that they were dealt with, Zuko was largely content to leave the matter to local officials.

            “Was all of that really necessary?” Katara asked.

            “It did seem a bit dramatic,” Toph agreed. “Even for you.”

            Zuko sat down on a bench and breathed out quietly. “There’s an advantage for shocking any would-be belligerents,” he explained. “As of right now, there are no fatalities on either side, and we’ve convinced them to disband of their own will. I’d call that a win.”

            “I don’t know. It almost seems like a letdown after all that buildup we were doing.”

            “I’ll take a boring win over a costly siege. Besides, we’re not done with this yet, so our resources, for the most part, remain untouched.”

            A familiar groan rumbled overhead, drawing eyes skyward.

            Katara narrowed her eyes. “Is that…?”

            “Appa!” Toph shouted.

            The sky bison swooped in for a landing in town square. By the time the welcoming party arrived, the traveling party had already dismounted, stretching and walking around.

            “Looks like Aang picked up some friends,” Mai noted.

            “Are those… Air Nomads?”

            “Twinkle-Toes!” Toph hollered as she quickly ran up and punched him in the shoulder, nearly knocking him down. “Nice to see you finally visit us.”

            Zuko, Sokka, and Suki followed up closely behind the earthbender,

            “You look better than I last saw you,” Sokka said.

            “I think I feel better,” Aang replied, then froze when he saw Katara approach.

            The waterbender’s expression was impossible to read, but everyone cleared the way between her and Aang.

            “Katara…” the airbender began to say when she slapped him across the face. “Ow!”

            While he nursed his check, Katara pulled him into a crushing hug, tears dripping from her eyes.

            “Welcome back,” she said.

            The rest of the group watched on as the two continued to hug it out.

            “Should we do anything?” Zuko asked.

            “Eh…let’s let them talk it out,” answered Sokka.

            Mai watched from afar, only to approach when she saw another familiar face among the crowd.

            “Ty Lee?”

            Hearing her name, the girl frantically searched for threats, and when she saw Mai, she looked like she wanted to run, but the older girl quickly pulled her into a hug as well, shocking her still. Keeping the hug brief, she held the younger girl out at arms’ length and looked her over.

            “What happened to you?” Mai asked. “I thought you were dead.”

            “I kind of got lost.” She looked back to Aang and the rest of the fan club with a smile. “I think I found my way again. Looking back to Mai, Ty Lee visibly brightened. “We really need to catch up again.”

            Tension drained from Zuko’s shoulders as everyone chattered amongst each other. Sokka slid next to him, voice dropped to a near-whisper.

            “Hate to pull you away from this,” he said quietly, “but I think we need to update the mayor on our situation.”

            Zuko rolled his shoulders back. “Right. You can stay here.”

            “You sure?”

            “There’s not much that’s changed, and this is easily a one-man job.” Zuko turned and patted Sokka on the shoulder. “Keep an eye on things, will you?”

            Casting one last glance over his shoulder as he left, at that moment, even if it was only a moment, it seemed like everything would be fine in the universe.
            Zuko could only hope it would last.

Description

Slowly and steadily, Aang, Ty Lee, and the others worked their way through the archives. Finding the method of sorting certainly helped the process, allowing them to prioritize what needed to be removed or copied first.

    “Going through all of this is a lot of work,” Hei-Won groaned.

            “Getting tired of it?” Xing Ying asked

            “Not in your life. But this is definitely going to require more time than any of us have available. Hmm…”

            “What is it?”

            “I don’t know. Hey, Aang?” she hollered, waving the airbender over.

            “What is it?” he asked.

    “What’s the Yangchen Festival?”

            “Hm? Oh, it’s an Air Nomad celebration, named after Avatar Yangchen. Every year, we would visit this coastal inlet. I only went a handful of times before…”

            Ying Xing rested a hand on Aang’s shoulder. “What was it for?” she asked.

            Aang scratched the back of his head, embarrassed. “Frankly, I never caught the reasoning. Too busy flying kites with Monk Gyatso. Does it say anything else about it, Hei-Won?”

            “It says something about keeping an old promise. Or it’s about keeping a monster at bay. The pictures and text are sending mixed messages.”

            Aang got up and went over to her, peering over her shoulder.

            “You’re right on both points, mostly.” The illustration depicted an armored giant standing among crashing tides and a tempest. “It’s a spirit…this could be bad.”

            “What is it?”

            “You see, there was this ritual that we performed every single time we went. If it was really something that kept a dangerous spirit at bay, then no one has kept up with it over the last century.”

            “Where is this place?”

            “Conveniently, not too far from Yu Dao. I’m not sure what else is there now. The cataloging can wait for a little while longer. We have to make sure we resolve this before anyone gets hurt.”

[-]



     “Not trying to tempt fate or anything,” said Sokka. “But it sure is quiet out there.”

    Zuko grunted. “Yeah. Like the world is holding its breath.”

    “I hate this waiting. We know they’re out there somewhere. Why can’t we go destroy their camp, or something?”

    “Because I’m not going to be at fault for restarting the war.”

    “You’ve harping on that a lot, lately.”

            “I wonder why?” Zuko asked, sarcasm dripping from every word.

            “Sheesh. You don’t have to bite my head off for it. You need to find some time to relax.”

            Zuko exhaled tiredly. “I’ll do that once this is all over.”

            The two stood quietly until Sokka broke the silence.

    “On the plus side, Toph’s keeping watch.”

    Bells began to toll from the center of town. Shouts carried down the streets, alerting them to imminent danger. Both men were on their feet, hands twitching to their weapons.

            “Did they finally decide to show up?” Sokka asked.

    Stones landed at the edge of town, mercifully evacuated.

    Zuko rolled his shoulders back and answered, “Does that answer your question?”

    “Yup.” Both of them ran to the staging area, where Sokka cupped his hands over his mouth and shoted. “Time to go to work, people!”

            Another salvo pounded the ground, falling a bit shorter than the first batch. Walls were erected to reinforce the original barriers. By the time the duo reached the observation center, the bombardment had ceased.

            “Any sign of another front opening up?” Zuko asked.

            “Not right now,” she replied.

            “Then we go with the first plan.”

            “I still think it’s kind of stupid sending you out by yourself.”

            “I already got the lecture from Mai. You can both tell me off for my stupidity once this is over. Besides, I need you guys here-”

            “In case we get attacked by some other schmucks. You don’t need to keep repeating yourself.”

            “Less talking, more fighting,” Sokka urged.

            “I’ll make this short,” Zuko said.

    The Avatar ran out towards the edge of the city, then launched himself into the air, then again, landing a short distance in front of the foremost group of hostiles, the suddenness of his appearance bringing the front ranks to a stuttering halt.

    “Forces of the Earth Kingdom, stand down!” Zuko ordered.

    When they proved hesitant to acknowledge him, he answered by raising a wall between them and the city, him standing at the top of the structure. On the inner side, the stone began to weep lava, forming a moat, driving the assault force back as the wall began to horseshoe around them.

            As the enclosure surrounded them, some of the soldiers on the ground organized the ruckus into proper formations and began chucking hunks of rock at the Avatar.

            Catching the first stone in one hand, Zuko spun around, carrying its momentum through the arc, then powdered the next one with his other hand, and chucked the missile back into a gap in the opposing lines, widening it further.

            The aggressors thoroughly disoriented, the Avatar jumped into their midst, sending out a shockwave from his landing.

            “Stand down,”            Zuko shouted, voice carrying over the battlefield as the soldiers reoriented to face him.

            “Under what authority?” the commanding officer demanded, pointing a sword at Zuko.

            “By my authority as the Avatar.”

            He could hear whispering among the ranks, so he took advantage of their silence.

            “Let’s make this simple. I don’t want to see anyone harmed, but if you fools really want to press this attack, I will make quick work of it.”

            Some looked at him and the walls that were boxing them in, then at the teen standing in their midst.

            “What is your answer?”

            Before any officers could order otherwise, weapons began clattering to the ground, the rank and file making the decision of them.

            “Thank you for you cooperation,” Zuko said, letting the walls fall and lava cool.

            Back in town, the Avatar saw to the transfer of prisoners. All of them looked ragged, weapons in poor repair and armor like tattered patchwork. Questioning a few revealed the truth of the matter.

    The attack had only been comprised of a single battalion, slightly inflated from collecting other diminished units picked up along the way, and had been isolated since the blitz. The attack had been mostly a desperation move guided by revenge. Now that they were dealt with, Zuko was largely content to leave the matter to local officials.

            “Was all of that really necessary?” Katara asked.

            “It did seem a bit dramatic,” Toph agreed. “Even for you.”

            Zuko sat down on a bench and breathed out quietly. “There’s an advantage for shocking any would-be belligerents,” he explained. “As of right now, there are no fatalities on either side, and we’ve convinced them to disband of their own will. I’d call that a win.”

            “I don’t know. It almost seems like a letdown after all that buildup we were doing.”

            “I’ll take a boring win over a costly siege. Besides, we’re not done with this yet, so our resources, for the most part, remain untouched.”

            A familiar groan rumbled overhead, drawing eyes skyward.

            Katara narrowed her eyes. “Is that…?”

            “Appa!” Toph shouted.

            The sky bison swooped in for a landing in town square. By the time the welcoming party arrived, the traveling party had already dismounted, stretching and walking around.

            “Looks like Aang picked up some friends,” Mai noted.

            “Are those… Air Nomads?”

            “Twinkle-Toes!” Toph hollered as she quickly ran up and punched him in the shoulder, nearly knocking him down. “Nice to see you finally visit us.”

            Zuko, Sokka, and Suki followed up closely behind the earthbender,

            “You look better than I last saw you,” Sokka said.

            “I think I feel better,” Aang replied, then froze when he saw Katara approach.

            The waterbender’s expression was impossible to read, but everyone cleared the way between her and Aang.

            “Katara…” the airbender began to say when she slapped him across the face. “Ow!”

            While he nursed his check, Katara pulled him into a crushing hug, tears dripping from her eyes.

            “Welcome back,” she said.

            The rest of the group watched on as the two continued to hug it out.

            “Should we do anything?” Zuko asked.

            “Eh…let’s let them talk it out,” answered Sokka.

            Mai watched from afar, only to approach when she saw another familiar face among the crowd.

            “Ty Lee?”

            Hearing her name, the girl frantically searched for threats, and when she saw Mai, she looked like she wanted to run, but the older girl quickly pulled her into a hug as well, shocking her still. Keeping the hug brief, she held the younger girl out at arms’ length and looked her over.

            “What happened to you?” Mai asked. “I thought you were dead.”

            “I kind of got lost.” She looked back to Aang and the rest of the fan club with a smile. “I think I found my way again. Looking back to Mai, Ty Lee visibly brightened. “We really need to catch up again.”

            Tension drained from Zuko’s shoulders as everyone chattered amongst each other. Sokka slid next to him, voice dropped to a near-whisper.

            “Hate to pull you away from this,” he said quietly, “but I think we need to update the mayor on our situation.”

            Zuko rolled his shoulders back. “Right. You can stay here.”

            “You sure?”

            “There’s not much that’s changed, and this is easily a one-man job.” Zuko turned and patted Sokka on the shoulder. “Keep an eye on things, will you?”

            Casting one last glance over his shoulder as he left, at that moment, even if it was only a moment, it seemed like everything would be fine in the universe.
            Zuko could only hope it would last.