THE OTHER AIRBENDER (Book 1)

(IV) Air

I don't need my full vision to recognize that I have been tied up to a pole, and judging by how tight it feels, I'm guessing I'm tied up next to either Katara or Aang right now. We hear several voices around us, and I know we must have been brought to some kind of village.

"You four have some explaining to do," a man's voice starts.

"And if you don't answer all our questions, we're throwing you back in the water with Unagi!" A girl's voice adds. I have no idea of what an unagi is, but I don't like the sound of that at all.

"Please, we're not a threat..." I begin, but of course, Sokka feels the need to interrupt.

"Show yourselves, cowards!"

They seem to obey the command, and before I know it, the blindfolds are off and we're face-to-face with the same attackers from before, only this time, I take a better look at them. Indeed, all girls are wearing long, green gowns and face-paint, but they are also carrying armor over their dresses and one of them has a golden headpiece. I'm guessing she's the leader.

"Who are you? Where are the men who ambushed us?" Sokka continues, making me roll my eyes.

"You really don't know when to shut up, do you, Sokka?" I snap at him.

"There were no men. We ambushed you. Now tell us, who are you and what are you doing here?" The girl with the golden headpiece says, pretty much confirming that she's the leader.

"Wait a second, there's no way that a bunch of girls took us down," Sokka retorts.

"Katara, do something or you're about to become an only child!" I say, as the girl grabs Sokka by his shirt angrily and glares at him.

"A bunch of girls, huh? Unagi is gonna eat well tonight."

"No, don't hurt him! He didn't mean it. My brother is just an idiot sometimes," Katara pleads.

"Understatement of the century," I mutter. At this point, it's me who's getting warning looks from Aang.

"It's my fault. I'm sorry we came here. I wanted to ride the elephant koi," Aang says.

"How do we know you're not Fire Nation spies? Kyoshi stayed out of the war so far. And we intend to keep it that way!" The man, who I now realize must be another village leader, declares.

"This island is named for Kyoshi? I know Kyoshi!" Aang says cheerfully.

"Ha! How could you possibly know her?" The man retorts.

I suddenly get the urge to glance up at the pole I've been tied to, and sure enough, I see her there, standing proud with her signature fans in her hands: Avatar Kyoshi. She's probably one of the only Avatars I've ever heard of. Mom told me that she lived to be 230 years old. In my book, that makes her a legend.

"I know her because I'm the Avatar." Aang states, earning the expected surprised gasps from the crowd.

"That's impossible! The last Avatar was an airbender who disappeared a hundred years ago," the girl says suspiciously.

"Yeah, that'd be Aang," I reply with a sigh. "I know he and I look to be the same age, but really, he's a hundred years older than me."

"Well, technically, I'm ninety-nine years older than you," Aang replies, and I can't believe he seriously bothered to do the math right now. "Anyway, that's me!"

"Throw the impostor to Unagi!" The man commands, seemingly unconvinced.

"Aang... do some airbending!" Katara tells him.