The fire war renaissance

Chapter 51: Anti Progress

Not much to say other than this chapter gets pretty emotional.

You've been warned.

Chapter Fifty-One: Anti-Progress

Appa had never flown faster in his entire life.

Aang knew Appa was still tired from flying for a day straight to the tower, but there was no time to waste.

You must hurry…. Aang heard Roku's voice echoing throughout his head. Maybe the tsunami was the dangerous task Roku had told him about? But then again, Roku had mentioned that no other Avatar had dealt with what Aang was about to face before, so perhaps this wasn't it? Besides, Aang was sure other Avatars had to have dealt with natural disasters before.

He pushed Appa further, still seeing no sign of the wave. But, the water in the air was kicking up, and the moister atop Aang's brow was telling him that the fierce humidity and fresh sea breeze in his nostrils could only mean one thing.

The wave was close.

He closed his eyes and focused on his hearing, his ears filled with the cracking sound of a wave bent on destruction.

"We're close buddy." Aang told Appa. "Hopefully we can stop this thing before it gets close to the coast."

Appa groaned and lifted his head, whipping his tail to pick up the pace even more.

And with not a moment to lose, the wave was in sight. Both Aang and Appa's eyes narrowed as they saw their challenge before them. Aang inhaled, summoning the Avatar State closer to his range on consciousness just in case. It wasn't the first time he has used the Avatar State, of course, but it was only the second time he actually had to call it. He only hoped that the fact that he was actually controlling the Avatar State wouldn't make him any less powerful, especially since raw power was exactly what he needed at the moment.

Appa dived nearer to the tsunami wave, it was harder to see just how big it was in the darkness, but the noise it emitted was enough to confirm its size. He heard Appa gulp, the bison probably thinking the same thing.

"You ready?" He asked and Appa perked up, getting himself in gear and heading full-speed for the front of the wave.

The two swiftly made it towards the front, not sure if they were near the middle and not really taking that detail into account. At that moment, it was all about stopping the wave quickly. Aang ran through many different solutions in the few seconds before he made a move. He could try to split the wave apart himself, or he could just try and hold it back. He could freeze it and stop it in its tracks. But, as seconds began to get longer he knew he'd just have to be impulsive. They were rather close to land and he didn't want to have to deal with the wave at the last minute between saving people and watching them die.

Aang grabbed his staff, face serious and breath heavy. He didn't have a choice and didn't even want to take the chance of realizing he didn't have enough power on his own in the middle of it all…and so he summoned the Avatar State.

It took a great deal of concentration, letting his mind drift into the spirit world and finding the line of communication necessary to get all the power of his past lives.