Burn Me *Prince Zuko Fanfiction*

The Swamp

Yawning, I rolled over on Appa's saddle. We were coasting through the sky, heading to Ba-Sing-Se once again. Appa was drifting through the sky lazily as we passed over some vastly wooded area. Slowly, I felt Appa's body dropping lower and lower to the ground. Katara looked at her scrolls with a bored expression, while Sokka lazed on the back of the saddle. Rolling onto my stomach, I peered over the edge and noticed Aang was heading into the heart of the woods.

"Hey, you takin' us down for a reason?" Sokka called to Aang who kept his gaze forward. "Aang!" The arrowheaded boy jumped out of his daze. "Why are we going down?"

"What?" Aang wiped his forehead with the palm of his hand. "I didn't even notice."

"Are you noticing now?" Sokka cried, gesturing to the trees just below.

Aang gazed down toward the ground below, an expression crossing his features as he did.

"I know this is gonna sound weird, but... I think the swamp is... calling me," Aang hummed.

"Is it telling ya where we can get something to eat?" Sokka rubbed his tummy.

"No, I... I think it wants us to land there."

"No offense to the swamp, but I don't see any land there to land on," Sokka pointed out.

I rolled my eyes at my twin and turned to Aang as he spoke. He seemed to really want to land in the swamp. Gazing back over the side, I peered down to the density below, a pit dropped in my stomach. The place seemed ominous. The caws of birds sounded below. It was like it was alive like it was breathing.

Aang shook the reigns on Appa. The animal groaned and began to accelerate through the air, away from the swamp. The wind picked up in my ears. It was whirring more than usual. Gasping as I turned around, my eyes landed on a large tornado heading our way. Aang tried desperately to evade the tornado. Sokka yelled as he was blown off the saddle. My fingers caught his wrists just in time. Sokka fell back into the saddle with a thud. My siblings and I huddled together, gripping the mesh to save our lives.

Squinting in the wind, the current began to subside enough for me to view Aang. The boy was standing in the center of the saddle as he forced an air bubble around us. The boy looked constipated as he tried to force us into safety, but his attempt failed. The bubble broke and I was shoved back into the sky.

Our screams mixed into the wind around us as we were spun through the sky. The wind shoved me in every which direction as my body tumbled through the air. My body slammed into Katara's, and I instantly grabbed hold of her. The tornado flipped my body around my sister's, then suddenly we were free-falling through the air. A high-pitched scream escaped my lips as a plummeted to through the air.

Branches pulled at my body as I slammed into them, trying to catch myself, but it was no use. My body sank through the air like a fireball and slammed into the murky water below. The water submerged my body, throwing my body forward, I gasped for a breath of air. The water sloshed around me as I twirled around looking for my family, but I didn't see anyone.

The sounds of the swamp filled my ears. Insects whizzed, frogs croaked, birds squawked and something growled. I shivered at the thought it could be, but I brushed the thought away as I made my way through the muck and guck. Loose vines rested on my shoulder as I sludged through the water. I scrunched my face up in disgust as I brushed them off me.

I looked around at my siblings. They seemed fine for the time being, but we had no idea where Appa and Momo were. Aang flew up to the top of a tree to survey the land, looking for any signs of the creatures. Katara pointed out that Sokka had an elbow leech, causing Sokka to overreact and flail his arms around.