by The Tale of Aang; Azula; Toph; Sokka; Zuko; Katara (retail) (epub)
Inside, Sokka made an amazing discovery—Firebenders lose their power during a solar eclipse because the sun is covered up! Then we were able to calculate the date of the next solar eclipse using this incredible calendar.
“If we attack the Fire Nation on that date, they’ll be helpless,” cried Sokka. “We’ve got to get this info to the Earth King at Ba Sing Se!”
Unfortunately the spirit of the library overheard Sokka, and he was so angry that we were using his knowledge for our own purposes that he decided to sink the library into the desert to keep its knowledge from humans.
The professor decided to stay, surrounded by all the world’s knowledge, but thankfully Sokka, Katara, and I got out just as the library disappeared into the sand.
We’re finally outside. Phew! But the strange thing is, I can’t see Appa anywhere. There’s Toph. … Where could he have gone? And why does Toph look so serious?
“Where’s Appa?” She’s not responding. … That’s a bad sign.
“Toph, what happened?” Oh, no! I have this horrible sinking feeling rising from the pit of my stomach. “Where’s Appa?”
I listened in horror as Toph told me that when the library started sinking, she used all her Earthbending abilities to hold it up until we got out. While she was doing that, a group of Sandbenders kidnapped Appa and took him away.
I feel like a piece of my own body has just been ripped out. I can’t remember a time in my life when Appa wasn’t by my side. And now he’s gone! Gone!
“How could you let them take Appa!” I don’t care if she’s my Earthbending teacher. I just want Appa back! “Why didn’t you stop them?”
“I couldn’t,” she replied weakly. “The library was sinking, and you guys were still inside. I would have lost all of you if I stopped to save Appa. I can hardly feel any vibrations out here in the sand. The Sandbenders snuck up on me and I didn’t have time to—”
“You just didn’t care! You never liked Appa! You wanted him gone!”
Enough excuses! I can’t believe this—what if I never get him back?
Then Katara stepped between us. “Aang, stop it! You know Toph did all she could. She saved our lives!”
Now Katara’s turned against me! This is just too much. “That’s all any of you guys care about—yourselves! You don’t care if Appa is okay!”
I’ve never felt more alone. My lifelong buddy is gone. My friends have all turned on me. It’s obvious I’m not going to get any help. I’m going to have to find Appa myself.
“I’m going after Appa.” I whipped open my glider. Then I turned to Toph. “Which direction did they go?”
Toph shrugged and pointed. I looked at the ground and saw a trail left by the sand sailer the Sandbenders must have been riding.
“I’ll be back when I find him.” Then I leaped into the sky.
I’m so upset, I could cry. I don’t know what I’ll do if he’s really gone. How can your best friend in the whole world be there one second and then just be gone the next? It doesn’t make any sense. Come on, Aang. Keep looking. Find him!
I followed the tracks for a little while, but soon they were wiped away by the desert winds. I flew over the desert for hours, searching in every direction, but it was no use.
I glided to a landing back where the library was, and Katara came over and placed her hand on my shoulder. “I’m sorry, Aang. I know it’s hard for you right now, but we need to focus on getting out of here.”
I don’t feel like focusing on anything but Appa. Nothing matters at all. Not my friends, not being the Avatar, not saving the world. Not even getting out of this desert alive. “What’s the difference? We won’t survive without Appa. We all know it.”
Katara kept trying to cheer me up, but I was barely listening. People call me the last Airbender, but that’s not really true. Appa was—is—an Airbender too. Nobody, not even Katara, understands him the way I do. To everyone else he’s just a big furry animal. But I know that he’s a special being, as close to me as any of my human friends.
Suddenly Katara grabbed my hand and pulled me up to my feet.
“Aang, get up. We’re getting out of this desert.”
She seems really adamant about leaving. I really don’t care either way. Without Appa, nothing matters.
Katara decided that it would be better if we rested during the day and traveled at night, using the stars to navigate our way to Ba Sing Se. As we walked, Toph stubbed her toes on something in the sand. It turned out to be a sand sailer.
“It’s got a compass on it,” Katara said excitedly. “Aang, if you can bend a breeze, we can sail to Ba Sing Se. We’re going to make it!”
I felt a little better that we weren’t all going to die out there. But not much. I used my Airbending to power the sail and we glided across the desert until all of a sudden, we were attacked by buzzard-wasps. Then, out of nowhere, a huge sandstorm rose up, blowing the creatures away. When the storm died down, we saw that a group of Sandbenders had whipped up the storm to save us.
But I’m in no mood to say thanks. It was Sandbenders who took Appa. …
“What are you doing in our land with what looks like a stolen sand sailer?” the leader of the Sandbenders demanded.
“We’re traveling with the Avatar. Our bison was stolen and we have to get to Ba Sing Se,” Katara replied. “We found the sailer abandoned in the desert.”
“You dare accuse our people of theft when you ride in a stolen sand sailer?” yelled a younger Sandbender angrily.
“Quiet, Ghashiun!” an older man shouted. “No one accused our people of anything!”
“Sorry, Father,” Ghashiun said, stepping back.
Toph leaned in close to me. “I recognize the son’s voice, and I never forget a voice,” she whispered. “He’s the one who stole Appa.”
I rushed toward Ghashiun, my anger rising quickly. “You stole Appa!” I shouted, boiling with rage. “Where is he? What did you do to him?”
“They’re lying!” Ghashiun cried. “They’re the thieves!”
These people are going to tell me where Appa is or pay a heavy price! I’ll show them how serious I am with a massive Airbending blast to one of their sand sailers—
BAM!
It shattered into splinters. The Sandbenders backed away, stunned.
“Where is my bison?”
“It wasn’t me!” Ghashiun cried.
“You said to put a muzzle on him!” Toph shouted.
“You muzzled Appa?!” I can barely control myself. The thought of it makes me want to scream!
I fired an Airbending blast at another sand sailer, then turned my sights on the Sandbenders themselves. Usually the thought of fighting another person is against everything I believe in, against everything the monks taught me. I’m sorry, but I can’t control myself from using force against these people. …
“I’m sorry!” Ghashiun cried. “I didn’t know it belonged to the Avatar!”
“Tell me where Appa is!”
“I traded him to some nomads. He’s probably in Ba Sing Se by now. They were going to sell him there.”
Appa for sale, like some piece of meat? I can’t take it anymore. I’m so angry, I could … I could …
My anger overcame me and I slipped into the Avatar state. After a while, I felt a strange calm wash over me as I left my body and rose above the desert floor. Looking down, I could see that my wrath had stirred up vicious desert winds whipping everyone below. I saw Sokka grab Toph and pull her away from me. I saw the Sandbenders running from me in terror. Then I saw my body standing in the center of the whirlwind.
But Katara, fighting the wind with each step, slowly made her way toward me. She didn’t seem afraid of me this time. She just took hold of my body and hugged me. She didn’t say a word.
Gradually my anger subsided and I saw the winds die down. Then I felt myself returning to earth, to my body. Katara did something for me that words could not do. The simple act of hugging me told me that she was there for me comple
tely, without judgment, without lectures, without fear. It struck a chord deep inside me. I felt my heart open up to her. …
Then the wind stopped. But the pain I’d been keeping at bay rushed in with the force of a hurricane. I closed my eyes, gave myself over to Katara’s arms, and cried harder than I had ever cried in my life.
Chapter 7
I did my best to push Appa out of my mind. I tried to focus all my thoughts and energy on getting to Ba Sing Se to tell the Earth King about the solar eclipse.
We finally got out of the desert and arrived at a waterfall pond. We ended up traveling across this stretch of land called Serpent’s Pass, along with a refugee family that we met on the way. Serpent’s Pass was definitely scary, but we made it through safely.
Katara keeps asking me about Appa, and I want to talk about it, but after what happened back in the desert, I’m trying to stay as unemotional as possible. The Avatar state is really dangerous, and until I know how to control it, I’d rather not get angry or upset enough to go into it again. I guess it’s hard for Katara to understand that, though. She’s all about feelings, and stuff like that.
Did I mention that one of the members of the refugee family is pregnant? Well, she just went into labor. It’s pretty lucky we’re off Serpent’s Pass, huh? Katara has taken charge and is delivering the baby now; she used to help Gran Gran deliver babies back home. Wait, I just heard crying … it’s a boy!
Now I’m inside the tent. There are the mom and dad, cuddling their newborn son. The baby is the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen! It’s amazing to watch them celebrate in the midst of all this pain and fighting, but I think the new life came to remind us that life goes on no matter what. I guess this is what living is all about: loving and caring for your family.
Sometimes I forget that I have a family now too—Katara, Sokka, Momo, and Appa. Even Toph. Just because Appa is missing, that doesn’t mean I should stop caring about everyone else I love in my life. In fact, losing Appa has actually made me realize that I should show them how much I care about them, because we never know what might happen. It’s okay for me to miss Appa. It’s okay for me to feel sad, and to lean on Katara for help. That’s what family is for, right?
“I’ve been going through a really hard time lately,” I told the family. “But you’ve made me hopeful again.”
Katara took my hand and smiled sweetly. My heart is beating so fast I can hardly breathe! “I thought I was trying to be strong, Katara. But I was really just running away from my feelings. Seeing this family together, so full of happiness and love, reminded me of how I feel about Appa.”
Come on Aang, you can do it. …
“And how I feel about you.” That’s what I should have said in the Cave of Two Lovers. … Oh well, I hope I’ve at least redeemed myself from that!
Katara burst into tears. I guess I really do have a family. A pretty good one, too, if you ask me!
I said good-bye, then Momo and I took off to find Appa. “I promise, I’ll find Appa as fast as I can. I just really need to do this. I’ll see you all in Ba Sing Se.”
Chapter 8
We’re almost at the outer wall of Ba Sing Se. I can’t wait to find Appa! Wait, what’s that? Oh, no! A huge Fire Nation invasion force is marching toward the city! There must be thousands of tanks and troops advancing toward the outer wall. And what’s that? Some kind of huge metal drill? This can only mean one thing: They’re planning on drilling right through the outer wall of Ba Sing Se to invade the city. This is awful! I have to warn the others!
“Sorry, Momo. Appa’s going to have to wait.”
I met my friends right outside Ba Sing Se’s outer wall and told them about the drill. Toph and I Earthbended a ledge of rock up the side of the outer wall so that everyone could climb up and see the scary-looking drill moving closer and closer.
Once inside the gates, I marched up to the first guard I could find. I told him that I was the Avatar and he should take me to whoever was in charge. Then the three Firebenders who were following us showed up and attacked the Earth Kingdom soldiers. One of them, Ty Lee, actually takes people’s chi away, leaving them unable to bend. Pretty scary stuff.
Anyway, Sokka has a plan to stop the drill by hitting its pressure points. The drill is made up of an inner section and an outer one. We figure if we cut through the braces, the whole thing will collapse.
As we walked back toward the drill, Toph whipped up a dust storm so that we wouldn’t be seen. When the drill was directly above us, Sokka, Katara, Momo, and I jumped onto it. Toph stayed outside to slow the drill down from there with her Earthbending.
We’re making our way through the drill; it’s a twisting maze of pipes and valves. It’s turning out to be too hard to cut through them completely, so we’re just going to weaken them, and then I’ll go up to the top of the drill and deliver a final Airbending blow. Then the whole thing will collapse!
It sounds simple enough, but the thing is, everyone inside the city is depending on this plan succeeding. Once again, it’s all up to me, the Avatar. I just hope that I won’t let them down. …
One by one we hurried from brace to brace, slashing each one with our waterwhips until it was weakened. Just as we were finishing with the final brace, the three firebenders—Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee—launched an attack on us.
“Split up!” I cried. Katara tossed me her water pouch, then she and Sokka dashed down a corridor. Ty Lee and Mai followed them. Azula stayed behind.
“The Avatar’s mine!” she cried.
I don’t have time for this now—I have to complete our plan! Momo and I are dashing through the tank—we’re finally at the top. Oh, no! The drill is already boring into the outer wall—the last line of the Earth Kingdom’s defense!
I used Katara’s water to slash an X-shaped cut into the top of the drill’s armor in preparation for my final blow. That’s when Azula caught up with me and unleashed blast after blast of fire. I deflected what I could by Airbending, but when I tried to stop her with a water whip, she evaporated my supply! No matter what I did, she had me backing up.
Is Azula just too powerful for me to defeat? I actually feel sorry for Zuko now, having to deal with such a ruthless enemy, not to mention sister! Zuko is dangerous, but at least he has a decent reason for always trying to capture me: to get back into the good graces of his father, the Fire Lord. Azula is just plain crazy. It’s like she enjoys hurting people and destroying things—as if she finds that fun, not just a necessary part of war. That ruthlessness makes her a much more dangerous opponent than Zuko ever could be. I’d take Zuko over his cold-blooded sister any day.
Azula keeps firing at me. I just need to keep fighting. … Azula may be more powerful than me, but I have to be smarter. I HAVE to stop her so I can bring down the drill.
Yes! She stumbled. Now’s my chance …
While Azula struggled to regain her balance, I grabbed a big rock. I Earthbended the rock in half, sharpening one end into a point. Then I rested the point in the X-shaped cut. I just needed some momentum for this to work. …
Just as Azula got back to her feet, I dashed down the wall, leaped into the air, and came down with all my might. Using a powerful Earthbending blow, I slammed my hands into the top of the rock spike I had made and left on top of the X-shaped cut in the drill.
BOOM!
The spike dug into the hull with such force that the weakened braces split and the whole machine broke apart. A river of slurry shot from the hole I had created, knocking Azula off the machine. I hopped onto the slurry and rode the wave down, like a surfer.
Woohoo! This is so great! The drill has been destroyed, the Fire Nation attack has been stopped, and the city is safe.
I almost feel free again, like I used to feel all the time when I went penguin sledding, and riding giant porpoises just for fun—before this war started, before Azula. I kind of feel like I’m just Aang again, not Aang the Avatar.
Chapter 9
In order to travel from the oute
r wall into the city, we rode a train along a monorail. When we got off at the Ba Sing Se train station, we stepped out onto a busy platform. My thoughts drifted back to Appa. I’d been so caught up in getting to Ba Sing Se, then in stopping the Fire Nation attack and destroying the drill, that I didn’t allow myself time to think about my buddy. But we’re here now, where he’s been taken, and I promise I’m NOT going to leave this city without him.
At the station a woman came up to us and introduced herself as Joo Dee. She already knew who we were. She said it was her job to show us around the city, and so off we went in a fancy carriage pulled by a team of ostrich horses. As we rode, Sokka tried to explain to Joo Dee that we had important information for the king about the Fire Nation. But each time he brought it up, she changed the subject or ignored him.
“You’re in Ba Sing Se now,” she said. “Everyone is safe here.”
Actually, before I got here Ba Sing Se was about to be invaded by the Fire Nation and their giant drill, but she just won’t listen. Ba Sing Se is turning out to be a really strange city. There are three different sections: the lower, middle, and upper rings. They are divided by classes; the poorest people live in the lower ring and the richest live in the upper. I don’t think I’m comfortable with that. I mean, I grew up listening to the monks teaching about equality and sharing.
Anyway, Joo Dee brought us to the upper ring. She pointed out the king’s royal palace, and the Dai Li agents around it. Apparently the Dai Li is the cultural authority of the city. Then she showed us our new house. I wasn’t planning on staying here long, but she said we have to wait a month before our appointment with the king!
We decided we’d spend the time looking for Appa. We had hoped that Joo Dee would leave us alone, but she insisted on escorting us all over. It didn’t matter anyway; we didn’t get very far.