I find my voice first, stepping between the girl-creature and my family.
"And where is that?" She smiles at me again, but I am wary, reserving judgement.
"It is far from here, beyond the Southern Pole. Deep in the glacial wilds, beneath the Frozen Sea." I frown.
"That's not possible. The land beyond the South Pole nothing but ice and cliffs. Nothing lives there- it's too cold. Even the elephant-seals and rhino-yakks don't go there." I glance over at Sokka, nodding my head in agreement with his words.
But the girl-creature, Twila, shakes her head.
"To humans, yes, it is very dangerous. But my people have lived there for thousands of years, watching the world and its struggles. We are descendents of the first Spirits, before Avatar Wan banished them to the Spirit World. Our Great Mother, Aquila, had fallen in love with a human man whose life she saved. When the other Spirits left your world, she remained, hidden from Avatar Wan and his 'bridge'. She made a home beneath the Sea of Ice, and for all these millenia we have watched humans progress."
We can only stare at her. Finally, it's Sokka who speaks, again.
"Avatar who-now? Aqi-what? Come again?" She eyes him.
"You are what is called 'simple', yes?"
Sokka glares, and I step between them, putting a hand on his chest.
"Say, for argument's sake, that we believe you. That still doesn't explain what you're doing here." She nods, smiling again. It's beginning to scare me, what with the fangs and all.
"Our elders have Seen a Prophecy that threatens to destroy both our worlds. They wish to speak to the Avatar at once, and sent me to find him."
"And we can help you... how?"
"We know of your connections to the current Avatar. Coming to you seems to be the simplest way of contacting him."
"And you want us to bring Aang here, on your say- with you saying you're some sort of Spirit- what?" Now it's my dad who speaks.
"We are called Aradens- but the title you are looking for is Spirit-Blooded. We have great mind powers, like the Spirits of Old." Dad nods.
"And you expect us to believe this, with no proof, and bring our friend here, even though it could be a trap?"
"There is no trap, Chief Hakoda of the South. If you truly desire proof, I will provide it." Dad nods, crossing his arms. I can tell he isn't buying this. But I'm not so sure.
I've been around Spirits, and this girl... there is something about her.
Suddenly, her pale blue eyes begin to glow a bright white, reminding me of Aang, and I hear a voice inside my head. It's not my voice- it's hers. I gasp, and I know I'm not the only one.
"Relax. Let your mind rest."
I am tumbled into a world the likes of which I have never seen before. It is all ice and cliffs and snow and barren, harsh landscape. There is nothing but glaring white for miles and miles in any direction. The ice beneath my feet is curiously raised, like little waves on a sea.
A Frozen Sea.
I hear a chuckle. "Yes. The Sea of Ice."
We sink below the surface of the Sea of Ice, floating easily through miles of frozen water, until we're suddenly beneath the entire thing, and I see a city stretched out below me.
It is nothing like its outside appearance. It is beautiful- delicate rock buildings and spires, bridges that sweep elegantly across rushing rivers, paths and homes carved into the stone itself, as if they've grown there. There are rock gardens and little pools with fish, and I can see it all as clearly as if I am standing next to each building, each bridge, each river, even though I am hundreds of feet above it all. A curious blue glow permeates the entire landscape, and I know that it is from the Sea, above us, and the little bit of sunlight that filters through. But the city itself is lit with blue-glowing orbs, adding to the ethereal, otherworldly feeling of this undersea city. There are people everywhere, all with colored hair- some some blue, some red, some green- but mostly white, like Twila's. They wear white clothing and walk softly, and some sing as they go.
At one end of the city is a massive building, circled all around with pillars, and the tallest spire belongs to it. It, too, is beautiful.
And then suddenly the image, which felt so incredibly real, is gone. And I am back in the Southern Water Tribe, standing between my father and brother, staring at the Araden whose eyes are slowly fading back to blue.
My family and I look at each other, the same shock on all our faces. We turn as one to Fekar, my father's secretary.
"Send for Aang. Tell him it's urgent."
_______
Yaaaaaay an update at long last whooohoo go me! Sorry guyz but I've had some MAJOR write'rs block. It still hasn't gone away completely but I"m hoping it will soon! :)
COMMENT AND VOTE!! Five commentz and ten votez if you want me to update when I finally write a chappie. :)
-Eon
YOU ARE READING
The Sea of Ice (Sun and Moon Book 2)
FanfictionEver since Katara got her memory back, she's hated Zuko. And who wouldn't? After all, he lied to her and used her, or so she thinks... But now a new element has arrived, in the form of Twila, a girl from a place that shouldn't exist: a sea of ice be...