MAYA [Book 1 - Water]

Chapter 20 - The Great Escape

-Maya's Point of View-

I just couldn't shake off the fact that I really thought Sokka and Katara had a serious act when they said they were going to 'fight'. Well, it worked anyway, so now we just have to follow wherever the fire nation soldiers are taking Katara.

"We need to get on Appa quick!" Aang shouted as soon as Katara was out of sight. "Are my ears really that big?" Sokka asked. "Now's not the time Sokka, let's go!" I shouted at him. All three of us ran back to the barn and packed our stuff.

When we were about to leave the place, I saw Sonya outside the barn, waiting for us. "You guys are leaving?" she asked. I looked at her, and I can see that her eyes were still swollen— probably from crying. "Yes, I am really thankful for everything that you've done for us. That's why we will make sure to get Haru back." I answered.

"What are you planning to do?" she asked. I was about to answer her but then Sokka shouted at me, "Maya! Let's hurry before we miss Katara's trail!"

I looked at Sokka and then back to Sonya. "I'll make sure Haru will be back safely," I told her, and then I gave her one last hug before I ran back to Sokka and Aang. They were already on top of Appa and everything was ready for flight.

I hopped aboard on Appa and then we went flying into the sky. We passed by the town square and there we saw that Katara was being led by the soldiers towards the docks.

They took her into the ship and set sail somewhere far from the town. We made sure to have a safe distance from the ship while we were following it.

The trip was so long, that the sun is now about to set. I noticed Aang who was sadly looking at the ship where Katara was. I scooched in beside him and then I said, "Don't worry Aang, Katara will be fine. She knows what she's doing." I hope it would comfort him— at least even for a bit.

He looked at me and then he smiled at me. After that, he looked at the ship again but he seems determined this time.

After a few hours, we finally arrived at the destination the ship was heading to. The place was terrifying. It was an all-metal prison cell in the middle of the ocean! Just the perfect cage for earthbenders where they are miles away from any land or earth.

As expected of the fire nation. They aren't really called bad guys for nothing... They are taking away their prisoner's ability to bend. They are just really plain ruthless.

"The ship has docked," Sokka said. "So this is where they are hiding these earthbenders? Classic fire nation." I angrily said.

"What do we do now Sokka?" Aang asked. "For now we're on stake-out. We'll just keep on surveilling the perimeters until Katara's 12 hours are up." Sokka answered.

"But there's no land to land on. How are we gonna survey the area?" I asked. "Well, we'll just have to hope that Appa won't exhaust himself from flying. He's gonna have to fly from one cloud to another to keep us hidden." Sokka answered.

"Don't worry, Appa's a tough guy! He can handle it." Aang assured and then Appa let out a roar. After that, we stayed hidden behind the clouds waiting for Katara's 12-hour deadline.

After a few hours, Sokka and Aang switched places for the meantime in leading Appa. The sun has already set and the sky has turned into a deep dark blue color. Aang is now seating beside me on the saddle and he's still looking sad.

"Are you still worried about Katara?" I asked him. "No, It's not her I'm worried about," he answered. "Then what's wrong?" I asked again. Aang took a deep breath before speaking. "I just couldn't understand it. I had friends from the fire nation back then. Why are they doing this?" Aang asked back.