Avatar Katara

The Winter Solstice

"Come on," Katara said. "Please, Sang."

The bison growled.

"Look, I know I'm not Rina, but she isn't coming with us. Neither is Sokka. If they got hurt, I'd never forgive myself. So please, get your big butt off the ground and let's go."

"I think his big butt is trying to tell you something," Rina said.

"Oh," Katara said. "Hi."

"We're not letting you go off to the Western Air Temple," Sokka said. "At least not without us."

"It's a long journey to the Western Air Temple," the village leader said. "You'll have to fly fast to avoid the Fire Nation. Good luck."

Katara bowed. "Thank you for your-"

"Go!"

The three friends sprinted towards Sang and climbed onto his back. The village watched them fly off into the sky.

The village leader smiled slightly. The Avatar had awoken. She had much to learn, but she had saved the village. Soon she would save the world.

He tried to sleep, but couldn't, too busy thinking about the events of the past days. He exited his hut in the hopes the night air would calm his mind.

And ran straight into a Fire Nation soldier.

"Having trouble sleeping?" Prince Zuko asked before pushing him aside. "Tell me, have you seen the Avatar lately?"

---

"Almost there!" Rina yelled. Katara saw a mountain range coming up ahead of them. She risked a look behind her and saw Zuko's familiar ship in hot pursuit.

"He's gaining on us!"

"They just couldn't have picked a place more inland to build their temple," Sokka muttered to himself. 

Just then, Katara spotted another Fire Navy ship. "Great, now there's two of them."

"This is getting better and better." Sokka pulled out his boomerang, as if it could somehow protect them.

A ball of fire came racing towards them, and Sang barely managed to evade it.

"Really, Prince Zuko, you couldn't shoot them down with something more fragrant?" Iroh asked on the deck of Zuko's ship.

Meanwhile, on the other ship, Commander Zhao was peering through his spyglass. "The Avatar and the banished prince," he noted. "This must be my lucky day."

"Commander Zhao, what are your orders?" asked the captain.

"Shoot the bison down."

"But sir, there is one of our own ships out there. We could hit-"

"So be it," Zhao snapped. "That ship belongs to an honorless traitor anyway."

"Gah!" Sang dodged most of the fireballs, but one managed to graze his fur. Katara, Tikaani and Sokka patted it out while Rina and Sang concentrated on evading the fireballs.

"Are you ok?" Rina called. Sang grunted, which she took as a yes.

"Launch!" Zhao ordered.

Sang dodged them, but two fireballs exploded in front of each other, creating a wave of heat that knocked Sokka off Sang's back.

"Sokka!" Katara cried. Sang swopped down to catch Sokka.

They were nearing the Western Air Temple. Sang flew higher and higher, above the cloud layer, and Katara saw it. The temple looked just like it had in her vision, hanging from the cliff face, probably so that the airbenders could point to it and say, 'see? We told you it was possible.'