Book Four: Air

IC: Chan

The man, almost as large as Samanya, recovered from the blows. He was not only a former soldier, and well trained, but an earthbender. They were a sturdy, enduring breed. Chan stood and drew his own weapon.

He held the large hammer as if it were nothing.

"Come then, if you think you are man enough," he said, blandly.

Sokka's eyes closed as he lost consciousness. The last thing he saw before he blacked out was Toph's unconscious body.

IC: Azon

"I am not the Avatar," replied Azon.

"I do not play fair, and I do not assist people whenever they desire. Everyone follows a path, Maku. Assisting someone can change the direction of that path, and the future becomes even more uncertain. Besides, I do not believe they need help, they are quite capable on their own."

IC: Maku

"Then you overestimate yourself, and your buddies," said Maku. "And if you don't help people, why the hell are you here, anyway? This ain't your fight, and you can't be their friend. So just what's your deal, eh?"

***

IC: Kara

She smiled once she had managed to knock out Sokka. Using her bloodbending, she dragged him forward and towards her. Her eyes, however, remained on Katara.

"Like I said, you might want to stand down. Your brother is entirely expendable."

IC: Samanya

With primitive savagry, Samnaya crashed againest the man, violently striking at Chan with both club and shield, his face darkened by his focus on the destruction of this man. And it was easy to tell his intentions. Nothing short of utter anhilation would satisfy this rage that he had been so easily thrown into.

"I am no man." His club came crashing down at Chan's skull. "I am a warrior!"

IC: Azon

"Does is truely matter?" asked Azon.

"The reason I am here will not affect you, nor will the information change your perspective of events...give you a revelation of the world; shatter you to realization. If you wish to fight, Maku, then attack me."

IC: Chan

The former soldier swiped his hammer in the air. He knocked the club to the side and, when the larger man was still reeling, came in close her personal and rammed his shoulder into Samanya's gut.

It didn't matter how big he was. That would hurt anyone.

Chan backed away. A tight, rare, smile passed over his face.

"A warrior? I can understand. I was once a soldier. We have our honor. Why not stick to that honor, friend, and give yourself up? It might just save your friends from some trouble."

***

IC: Maku

"You're crazy! I'm a firebender," said Maku. "I won't do none of that on a wooden ship, you idiot."

But he would do this.

Without warning, Maku threw a canister to the ground. It exploded into a cloud of gas.

It was the same gas he had used on Toph. It would not affect him. He had immunity to it, but he was sure this stranger did not.

Katara

Katara's eyes grew wide and angry, and she let the water drop, but she didn't drop her stance. She felt the power of the moon, and attempted to seize control of the blood inside Kara. She hated this technique, but she had little choice, it was either blood bend her, or give up, and she wasn't going to give in so easily.

IC: Kara

She felt something alien, and cold, touch her. It wormed its way inside her. Kara's eyes widened, and then she smirked at Katara.

"So you know how to use this technique too, do you?" she said. She began to fight Katara's influence over her body, and doing it well. "Fascinating. It is a very rare ability. Only a select few learn... You have potential, Katara. But..."

She seized control over Katara's blood.

"You're still not strong enough." She squeezed at Katara's heart. "You would beat me in a usual waterbending fight, but here? This? I don't think so. Now, if you value your own life, as well as the life of your brother... Give up!"

Katara

Katara felt her own influence leave, and her own blood was being controlled. She felt the grip on her heart, and cried out in pain. She struggled hard against it, but she couldn't fight the grip. "You're right, I can't beat you here, but the full moon only lasts one night," she said.

IC: Kara

"That will be long enough, dearie," said Kara. "I've beaten you. It's over. You might as well get used to that fact."

She pulled her arm, and dragged Katara towards her.

"Play nice with us, and we'll play nice with you," she continued, as she brought out some rope to bind Katara and Sokka with. "We only need you for a little while."

IC: Azon

"So," said Azon, breathing in the gas.

"What will you do? Capture me? That would be foolish. I can track you whever you may go, I can escape from any imprisonment. It makes sense to kill me."

IC: Maku

He shook his head, sneering. "Nah. I don't think so. You're a little bit too dangerous, I think. We'll just put you in a little lifeboat, and send you off sailing. By the time you reach shore, or somebody finds you, we'll be long gone."

IC: Azon

"I see..."

Azon folded his hands behind his cloak; his chest was no longer rising and falling.

"The problem with those who keep their eyes open is that they refuse to realize they are truely closed."

Azon vanished from Maku's sight, as if dissapearing from existence.

IC: Maku

The stranger's disappearance startled Maku. He quickly searched for the man, but found no trace of him. It bothered the mercenary leader, but since the eerie one was no longer around, he had other things to attend to.

He stalked towards the brig. There he found Kara. She was wrapping tight bonds of rope around the Water Tribe sibling's wrists and ankles, effectively trussing them.

"Good work," he said. "Throw 'em in the brig, when you're finished."

"The girl will need the metal room," said Kara, in a matter of fact voice.

Maku waved an impatient hand. "Of course, of course. We'll put the barbarian in with her. Throw the boy in the regular cell."

"As you wish, sir."

"Good. I'll go help Chan, then."

Maku ran up to the deck, where Chan was facing off against the barbarian. He fired off a warning shot at Samanya. The fire licked the big man's shoulders.

"We have your friends. Give up, or they get hurt," he said.

***

IC: Kara

She used the last of her bloodbending strength to drag Katara and the unconscious Sokka to their holding cells. The sloop had a number of these. The mercenaries often played bounty hunters, after all.

Katara was thrown into a metal room and left alone.

Sokka, however, was taken further along and shoved into a regular cell. Kara made sure to take his weapons before locking the door behind her.

Katara

"You won't get away with this," Katara yelled after being thrown in the metal room. She sat up against the wall, and thought about the situation. These people were a tough group, they'd need something to give them an edge, at least until the full moon was gone, then Katara would have no problem against the waterbender.

As Jerrel neared the ship he sensed something was wrong and turn the engine to his tiny ship to about 75-80% power. The tiny ship crept up to the sloop, Jerrel could see the sky bison, but none of the passengers that had been riding it earlier. "Mistress Toph...." Jerrel said softly, worry filled his being. Finally he began to act, he grabbed a pair of clawed gloves from his satchel. "Guess its time for a little investigation."

IC: Maku and Kara

"The Water Tribe children are now in holding cells, Maku," said Kara, joining her leader.

The mercenary leader nodded. "Chan is handling the barbarian. It shouldn't take much longer. Push the sloop along, would you? I will drive off the beast." He thumbed his chin. "We have no means of holding it."

Kara nodded. She rushed to her position, at the bow of the ship's deck, and moved her arms. The sloop, powered by the water she was bending around it, picked up speed. It was soon zooming across the ocean.

Maku fired off round after round of fire at the sky bison. The large creature seemed afraid of the flames. Groaning, he backed away but would not leave without his friends. Maku took care of that by burning the bison on two of his legs. Appa roared, painfully, and was forced to fly off before he was injured again.

IC: Azon

The secret compartment opened and Toph's dark prison was filled with a shadow of a smiling, blindfolded man. Azon tilted his head slightly.

"Hello Lady Toph, doing well?"

He reached out and pulled the gag from her mouth.

"Please do not yell. Only you can see me, so it would be strange if someone saw you like this. How are you feeling?"

IC: Toph

The voice came to her ears as if through a fog. She moaned, head throbbing and entire body aching, and tried to turn around. She met only wood, tight and all around her, and Toph sucked in a breath. She fought for one wild second, but the chains kept her from moving around too much.

And then she remembered, and understood.

"You!" she hissed, through a parched throat and chapped lips. Here was her rescue, but Toph was much too disappointed to care. "What're you doing here!?"

IC: Azon

"I accompanied the Fool, Lady Katara, and your large friend here to rescue you. Unfortunately, each of them has been captured through force or through leverage. Here..."

He pressed a bottle to her lips and cold water poured into her mouth.

"None of them have been seriously harmed, so you can stop worrying. These mercenaries are decent people, even if their eyes are still closed. Any others and your friends might have been killed."

Sokka groaned as he woke up in a cell. He checked his body for any weapons but found none. He sighed. Some rescuer he was. He raised an eyebrow when he heard voices coming from the cell beside him. He knocked on the wall, "Anyone in there?"

Jerrel was on the outside hull of the sloop when it began to speed up. Whoa! something is definitely wrong. Jerrel thought as he began to ascend the side of the ship, as the ship speed.

IC: Samanya

Samanya growled angerily at the man, his eyes narrowed with his cold, uncaring fury. "Kidnappers have no honour. You lie." As his breath returned to him, Samanya dropped into a strange battle stance, his sheild raised high and his club down low.

"But an honourable death I will give you all the same."

Mai groaned as she heard her Father-in-law sit down a few feet from her. "So I guess this means that you're going to kill me now to teach Zuko some sort of lesson?" She asked as her voice went back to the tone that implied she didn't care what Ozai's plans were. "Or do you just want to talk like your obnoxious brother so you can get to know me?" She continued on as her mind went back to her first actual meeting with Iroh. It had been long, embarrassing and worst of all, boring.