Chapter Twenty five
"Is that?" Katara uttered, looking up. "Aang?"
Illuminated by the soft light of the half moon, Appa descended towards the snowy ground. Katara raced towards the bison, reaching them just as Appa landed. Aang jumped off Appa's head and they met in a tight hug.
"Aang!"
"Katara!" Aang hummed, he leaned back, taking in the face he hadn't seen for weeks. "Can I kiss you?"
"Um... Maybe not in front of my dad?" She flushed, gesturing to the figure that was approaching them.
"Hello chief Hakoda!" Aang greeted, grabbing the man's forearm, he did the same.
"Avatar Aang, it's good to see you." He grinned.
"Likewise!"
"So, how did things go in the Fire Nation?" Katara peeped, getting her boyfriend to follow her.
"It wasn't spirits," Aang chuckled. "It was Azula."
"Did you catch her?"
"No, she got away..."
"I'm sure Zuko will handle it," Katara reassured him. "Speaking of which, I'm guessing he didn't come with you?"
"He had some stuff to take care of, he wanted to come though," Aang glanced back, noticing that Hakoda was out of earshot. "He seemed to miss him a lot."
"Yeah, Sokka looks like he's doing fine but I'm sure he's just distracting himself with work to keep his mind off of it..." Katara sighed.
"I'm sure he's got his plate full then," Aang noted, looking up at all the buildings. "Are you sure we're in the south?"
"I know, right? It's so different now... And also.."
Katara filled Aang in on all the details of their stay, including the shocking factor that was her Dad's new relationship.
"Oh and also, there's this guy Gilak who-"
"Aang?" Sokka uttered. "Aang!"
"Twinkletoes is here?" Toph asked, following after Sokka.
"Hey guys!" Aang greeted, accepting the tight hug Toph was giving him.
"Did...?" Sokka mumbled, looking around.
"Sorry Sokka, he couldn't come with me." Aang sighed.
Sokka nodded, his expression and his gaze sinking to the floor where he stared at the snow. Suddenly, the spot he was staring at cracked and the ground started to rumble. He looked up, noticing that the rest of his friends were paying attention to Malina who was talking about something to do with maps and future plans.
"What is that?" Toph uttered, touching the ground.
"Is it the shaking?" Sokka asked.
"Yeah it seems like there's something underground," She nodded before standing up. "Heads up team avatar."
"...Toph Beifong would you like to say a few words?" Malina asked from up on the platform.
"Yeah I'd like to say something," Toph exclaimed. "Everyone get out of here!"
Just then, a huge drill burst out of the ground, right next to the platform. The crowd dispersed in a panic. Meanwhile the three benders took stances, Sokka pulled out his club, his eyes glued to the machine. Gilak stood on the top of it, donned in the warrior outfit.
"My family!" He announced. "You know me, we have shared stories and have grown up together, so trust me when I say that the northerners are not to be trusted! They have discovered oil in our land, oil that they are going to claim for themselves!"
"Wait, what?" Toph uttered.
"That's not true!" Malina protested.
"I have proof!" Gilak stated, pulling out the briefcase. "The north is going to make us a colony!"
"That's not our plan!" Malina continued to respond desperately. Her expression fell. "...But it was," She almost whispered. "We never used the word colony, but we did think that the south wasn't ready for this big a responsibility... We were wrong."
"No! We weren't!" Maliq interrupted her. "I never got rid of those documents, I never cancelled that plan."
"What?!" She stammered, turning to her brother.
Their banter continued, Malina insisted that it wasn't their plan while Maliq confirmed that it was, Gilak interrupted at some point but Sokka was tuning it out at this point. There was so much going on.
Voices coming from everywhere; Malina, Maliq, Gilak, the crowd, Katara mumbling a plan to Aang and Toph uttering confused sentences about the situation at hand. Sokka looked towards the city. Would it be selfish to run and get his Dad?
His body started moving before he'd made up his mind. Katara uttered something to him as he raced off. I gotta find Dad, I have to find Dad.
He was halfway through the crowd when Gilak and his men went to attack. Sokka stopped running, a conflicted grunt escaping his lips.
Aang raced towards the troops while Katara bent herself an ice slide to protect Malina and Maliq. Sokka ran back towards them. Katara whacked a few soldiers down with her water arms but was knocked down herself by the trio of guys they'd met when they first docked.
"She was trying to save us!" Malina protested.
"We gotta make sure you're ok first, she'll be fine. They're used to that sorta brutality down here." The one guy waved her off.
They ran off, Katara started to get up and was met with the story telling guy from the resistance.
"Now do you understand my story? Now do you join our revolution?" He asked.
Katara looked to Aang who was fighting off soldiers.
"No." She stated.
"I really had hopes for you..." The guy sighed.
In a flash, he hit her in specific spots and she fell to the ground.
"You're a... Chi blocker?" She uttered.
Meanwhile Aang was being cornered. Two soldiers grabbed his arms and the drill rolled towards him. He quickly flipped back, shooting a gust of wind at the drill and sending it spiraling back. Getting himself out of the soldier's grip, he flew forwards, both of the guys stood shocked.
Toph and Sokka ran to fight as well, this time they were fighting both the resistance soldiers and the trio that had attacked Katara. Toph formed earth gauntlets, giving the one member of the trio a cheeky grin. With a quick movement, she sent all three flying.
"You've heard the northerners plan, join us brother." The soldiers turned to Sokka.
"And help you hunt down my Dad's girlfriend? No thanks!" Sokka retorted.
"Then you're just like them, you think you're better than us." The soldiers growled, preparing to fight.
"Better than you as a person? No. Better than you as a boomeranger though?" He beamed just as his boomerang whacked the soldiers. "Yeah! After all, there is only one Captain Boomerang!"
Katara froze the guy using her legs, her arms limp at her sides.
"I'll take him in." A soldier told her, running over.
"Have you seen my Dad?" Katara asked.
"I lost sight of him at the gates."
"Sweetie!" Aang called, landing next to her.
"I'll go find him," Katara addressed the guard. "Come on Aang!"
"Your arms!" He reasoned.
"I'm okay, they're already starting to tingle."
.
Just as the duo reached the outside of the city, they saw Hakoda with Gilak. Something happened and then Hakoda fell to the ground.
"Dad!" Katara screamed, bending a wall of ice between Gilak and her father. "What did you do to him?!"
The rest of Gilak's soldiers made a run for it. Aang stopped them before they could get too far, bending the snow down so that the soldiers could catch up with them. Meanwhile Katara kneeled next to her Dad, tears spilling down her face.
"Dad...?" She whispered meekly, bending some water over the wound, it began to glow. "Stay with me.. okay? I'm here."
.
Back in Pakku and Gran Gran's hut, Katara sat by her unconscious father with Sokka at her side. He rubbed her back comfortingly. Hakoda uttered something incoherent, barely opening his eyes, he smiled at her weakly.
"Katara..." He uttered.
"Dad!" Both her and Sokka exclaimed.
"You saved me..."
"I'm so glad you're okay!" Katara sobbed, hugging his waist, away from where Gilak had stabbed him.
"You had us worries there for a bit!" Sokka breathed.
"We will take care of him," Gran Gran reassured. "You two get some rest."
They nodded, saying their goodbyes and good nights to Gran Gran and their Dad. Walking out, they were met with Aang and Toph.
"Is he okay?" Aang asked worriedly, moving to hug Katara.
"Yes, he'll be okay." She nodded.
"Listen, Katara, if I'd known what they were really up to, I would have never helped them." Toph said, walking over to the waterbender.
"I know, Toph."
"Hey..." They turned to see Malina walking over.
"What are you doing here?" Katara seethed.
"I swear all those things my brother said we're not true." She noted.
"Anymore." Katara finished, scowling.
"What do you mean?" Malina asked softly.
"You didn't agree only until after you fell in love with my Dad. Well what happens when you fall out of love, Malina?" Katara explained. "I'm going to ask you again, what are you doing here, Malina?"
"I came to say goodbye to your father... We were released from custody on the terms that we'd leave tomorrow." She responded sadly.
"You don't deserve to say goodbye."
"Katara." Sokka piped up, touching her shoulder.
"No, no.. I get it." Malina nodded, starting to walk away.
"Malina." The door to the hut had opened and Gran Gran was standing there. "Hakoda wants to see you."
Katara let Malina go in to see her Dad, just deciding to go and rest for the time being. They'd decide on plans the next day.
.
Toph and her students went off to deconstruct the construction site. Sokka and Malina went off to supervise and Katara went to help Pakku with the waterbending students. Aang tagged along too for extra pazazz.
Southerners gathered at the gates of the construction site, protesting the northerners presence. Sokka did his best to ignore them but Malina was bothered by it.
They were at the site until dawn. Just as Sokka was getting relatively tired, a low hum echoed overhead.
Looking up, there were two blimps preparing to dock at the shores, one earth kingdom and one fire Nation. He gave them a quizzical look, watching as they descended.
"Announcing the arrival of earth king Kuuei and Firelord Zuko!" A soldier announced where the ship's had docked.
Sokka blinked a few times, running the sentence through his head. Immediately all of the stress and worry he'd been experiencing for the past few hours vanished and his gut wrenched with excitement.
Two parties walked out of their corresponding blimps, Sokka seeing Zuko walk out he seemed to talk to the earth king about something. He was getting clearer... Sokka hadn't even noticed that he was running towards him.