Avatar The Last Airbender Fan Fiction ❯ Duty Versus Love ❯ The Unbendable Soul ( Chapter 34 )
[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]
By: Light-Eco-Sage 
Avatar is owned by Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, not me!
Non Anime: Avatar The Last Airbender Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Hentai / Fantasy / Martial Arts / Romance / Supernatural / Angst | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 02.02.2013 | Pages: 2 | Words: 2.2K | Visits: 595 | Status: Work In Progress
Avatar is owned by Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, not me!
Non Anime: Avatar The Last Airbender Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Hentai / Fantasy / Martial Arts / Romance / Supernatural / Angst | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 02.02.2013 | Pages: 2 | Words: 2.2K | Visits: 595 | Status: Work In Progress
Chapter XIVL: The Unbendable Soul
Even though the Gaang had gathered on Kyoshi Island to have a party, due to Ammy’s sudden fainting spell, the party was put off for a day while she recovered from her sudden trip to the Spirit World.
Thankfully, Ammy still had strength in her own way, and she recovered after a decent night’s sleep, and thus the party was planned to begin full-swing that night.
The day was filled with the old friends greeting each other, catching up on news, and signs of affection between those who were related. It also included Michiko attempting to tempt Anil into drinking a bottle of Earth Kingdom wine with her, which he adamantly refused.
However, the real fun started that night. The local tavern had been rented for the night for their reunion. Liquor flowed freely among the adults, who all partook of the drink with the exception of Anil and Katara, which added to the boisterous atmosphere. Katara would have sampled the wine herself except for the fact that she knew that she and Aang were trying for another baby and also for the fact that Tenzin was attempting to sample the wine when no one was looking. The task of keeping her son away from the wine was all the reason that Katara felt she needed to be sober.
Some of the others were only moderate drinkers. Her husband only had one or two glasses, for he had never been one to over drink. Suki, Mai, Zuko, and The Duke were also ones who only drank enough to get a slight buzz. Most of their adult children also partook, but not excessively. There were those at the other end of the spectrum as well: Sokka and Toph drank until they were practically incoherent. After that, they provided the entertainment by leading everyone in a rousing Earth Kingdom drinking song with so many verses that it never seemed to end. However, after a while, their words began to slur together and each verse began to sound the same as the last one.
Aang laughed out loud when Sokka drunkenly jumped up on the bar, raised his arms to conduct the singers, and promptly fell over backwards; disappearing behind the bar. Soon, the entire bar was laughing uproariously when Sokka popped up from behind the bar with a drunken grin on his face like nothing had happened. Without missing a beat, he began to conduct the singers in their song.
Aang was so overcome with giggles that he was forced to sit down rather than face the embarrassment of toppling over without even having the excuse of being drunk. Thus he walked across the bar, still giggling, and joined some of his children sitting at a booth: Anil, Sho, Toshi, and Megumi.
“Having fun, Dad?” Anil asked playfully, content with the fact that he was not drunk and able to simply sit back and watch the show as it played out in front of him.
“Of course.” Aang said. “If there is one thing I hope I am able to teach you, it is that family and friends are where true power is. All the power in the world couldn’t make me happier than I am right now, surrounded by my loved ones.”
“We know, Dad.” Toshi said. “We’re all happy here too.”
“You could have fooled me.” Megumi commented. “You’ve been quiet all evening, and you keep glancing at the time and door when you think no one is looking. Do you have somewhere else to be?”
“Me? What? No! Of course not!” Toshi said, waving his hands.
“Methinks he doth protest too much.” Megumi said with a smile, causing the others to laugh while Toshi blushed.
“Ah, it’s probably just a girl.” Sho said. “You’ve got to admit the girls here are something to look at… easy on the eyes… willing to marry one of the Avatar’s sons at the drop of a hat.” He directed this last comment at Anil.
The eldest son groaned. “Will no one ever let me live that down?!?”
Sho, Toshi, and Megumi glanced at each other, smiled, and proclaimed in a loud voice: “Never!”
Aang joined in with his children’s laughter. But he was the only one who witnessed Toshi slip out of the booth while everyone else was distracted and mumble something about having to go.
Aang watched in confusion as Toshi dodged his way through the tavern and exited the building. Maybe he really is leaving to meet a girl. Aang thought to himself. So far, with the exception of Anil’s almost-marriage, none of his children had any serious prospects in the romance department. Most of them had tried their hand at romance at one time or another, but it so far had resulted in no engagements or marriages.
As far as Aang knew, Toshi had never had a girlfriend, and he figured it was about time Toshi started looking into finding himself a companion.
Seeing as Aang was a father and naturally curious about his son’s love life, he joined Toshi in slipping out of the bar, relatively unnoticed. Only Sokka noticed Aang leave, in an almost subconscious way.
It was dark outside, and most of the lights were extinguished inside the houses since most of the residences of Kyoshi Island had gone to sleep some time ago. Aang glanced around and barely caught sight of Toshi’s robes disappearing around a corner as he hurried away from the tavern.
Aang followed after him, making sure that he was not spotted. However, after several minutes of moving in between the buildings and eventually finding himself on the edge of the forest, Aang had to admit to himself that he had lost Toshi’s trail.
Aang shrugged in indifference. At least now he wouldn’t have to worry about Katara giving him a lecture about staying out of his children’s love lives, even though he caught her eavesdropping on every single conversation Tenzin and Kya started having with the opposite sex. But as he turned to go back to the others at the tavern, he stopped in his tracks.
Standing in his path back to the tavern was a single woman, hiding in the shadows. That, alone, put Aang’s nerves on edge because this woman could be two things: in danger of falling victim to a rapist or a prostitute looking for an illicit hookup.
“You shouldn’t be out alone tonight.” Aang told her. “You would have been in trouble if I were a sexual predator.”
“There is nothing in this world I fear: least of all, you.” The woman said coldly.
“Fear me? Why should you fear me? I have no desire to hurt you.”
“Really?” The woman asked, stepping out into the moonlight. Aang gasped as he recognized her. Sure, it had been many years since he had seen her, but it was the same woman who haunted his nightmares. “Do you still feel that way?”
“Azula!” Aang gasped, sinking slightly into a fighting stance. Even as he got ready for combat, he all ready did not like the looks of this. Even the thought of fighting Azula while sober terrified him; but the thought of fighting her while he was not thinking clearly froze his limbs with fear. Despite his almost crippling fear, Aang managed a weak grin. “I would ask how you managed to get out of your cage, but something tells me that you are not going to tell me.”
“Oh, but I shall tell you.” Azula said, smirking. “You see, there’s a secret movement that began in the Fire Nation years ago with a singular purpose: to kill the Avatar. They heard about my feat in killing you, so they broke me out to act as their assassin.”
“And the woman who has been in that cell for the last few years?”
“A fake.” Azula said simply.
“Am I to assume that the reason you are telling me all these things is because you don’t intend to let me walk away from here alive?”
“Ohhh! So close!” Azula said mockingly. “You see, Avatar, I have much bigger ambitions than your death. I admit: your death alone will not satisfy me. No, I will do something to you much worse than death; and only when you are left in a broken heap… I will gladly end your misery. The real reason I am telling you these things is because you will have no memory of encountering me this night.”
Aang glared at Azula, waiting for her to make a move, but it was not forthcoming. However, Aang managed to catch a tiny movement of her eyes, as she glanced at something behind him. At first, he thought it was a trick and tried to ignore it, but then he felt something land on the ground behind him.
Spinning around quickly, Aang found himself face-to-face with a strange Earth Kingdom man. As soon as Aang turned around, the stranger lashed out with lightning speed, pressing his right hand to Aang’s forehead and his left to Aang’s chest.
In an instant, Aang recognized the stance and copied it before he was suddenly engulfed in a Soulbending battle against another Soulbender!
Aang forced himself to empty his mind of the shock of finding someone else that was able to Soulbend and filled his mind with his determination to live.
Strangely, Aang did not feel the other Soulbender try to force his will upon him. Instead, the strange man’s soul sat in his body idly, taking neither offense nor defense in this battle.
He did not allow on himself to dwell on it, however, as he pressed his attack on the other Soulbender. For many minutes, he pressed against the other man’s soul, seeking even the slightest gap in his mental armor. But it was armor of the type that Aang had never seen before. The Avatar found himself unable to get a grip on the man’s soul. There was no fear or uncertainty in his soul at all… in fact; Aang could not find any evidence of emotions at all! He couldn’t even get a mental grip on this man’s soul, let alone Bend it.
Aang’s mind filled with horror as he realized: this was someone whose soul was truly Unbendable! He did not have to fight against Aang in a direct contest of strength because the Avatar could never win.
Aang’s fear at the inevitability of this lost battle put a gap in his mental defenses and the other Soulbender suddenly attacked, crushing Aang’s Spirit with ruthless efficiency and Bending him into helplessness.
As per his orders, the Soulbender concentrated on Aang’s mind rather than his soul, unlocking the gates of his memory so that anyone could come and alter them to their pleasure.
Without a word, the Soulbender backed away from the Avatar, who stood helplessly in the middle the clearing, unable to defend himself in even the smallest sense. He was physically and mentally open to any harm Azula wished to cause him.
Azula moved over to the prone Avatar, standing at his side, and leaning up to whisper in his ear. “Can you hear me?”
Aang nodded blankly. “Yes.” He spoke in a monotone.
“Good. Now, listen to me…” Azula leaned closer into the Avatar’s ear and whispered into his ear for several minutes. Nothing on Aang’s face betrayed what she spoke to him, but he seemed to calmly accept it for the most part. The only sign of disquiet he showed was a single moment when his fingers twitched.
When she finally stopped speaking, she pulled away from him slightly. “Do you remember all those things?”
“Yes.”
“Is it true that everything I said to you happened?”
“Yes.”
“Good boy.” Azula leaned up one final time, and kissed his cheek. “When I leave this clearing, you will forget ever meeting me and go back to your party like nothing happened. Remember, you will not remember the things I told you until the time is right.”
“As you wish.”
Without another word, Azula turned and walked out of the clearing, followed closely by the Soulbender.
As soon as Azula was gone from sight, Aang blinked and seemed to come to life, glancing around himself in confusion. He remembered coming out here after Toshi, but he suddenly had an urge to abandon his search for his son and head back to the party.
It was an urge he couldn’t ignore, so he turned and walked back to the tavern.
Even though the Gaang had gathered on Kyoshi Island to have a party, due to Ammy’s sudden fainting spell, the party was put off for a day while she recovered from her sudden trip to the Spirit World.
Thankfully, Ammy still had strength in her own way, and she recovered after a decent night’s sleep, and thus the party was planned to begin full-swing that night.
The day was filled with the old friends greeting each other, catching up on news, and signs of affection between those who were related. It also included Michiko attempting to tempt Anil into drinking a bottle of Earth Kingdom wine with her, which he adamantly refused.
However, the real fun started that night. The local tavern had been rented for the night for their reunion. Liquor flowed freely among the adults, who all partook of the drink with the exception of Anil and Katara, which added to the boisterous atmosphere. Katara would have sampled the wine herself except for the fact that she knew that she and Aang were trying for another baby and also for the fact that Tenzin was attempting to sample the wine when no one was looking. The task of keeping her son away from the wine was all the reason that Katara felt she needed to be sober.
Some of the others were only moderate drinkers. Her husband only had one or two glasses, for he had never been one to over drink. Suki, Mai, Zuko, and The Duke were also ones who only drank enough to get a slight buzz. Most of their adult children also partook, but not excessively. There were those at the other end of the spectrum as well: Sokka and Toph drank until they were practically incoherent. After that, they provided the entertainment by leading everyone in a rousing Earth Kingdom drinking song with so many verses that it never seemed to end. However, after a while, their words began to slur together and each verse began to sound the same as the last one.
Aang laughed out loud when Sokka drunkenly jumped up on the bar, raised his arms to conduct the singers, and promptly fell over backwards; disappearing behind the bar. Soon, the entire bar was laughing uproariously when Sokka popped up from behind the bar with a drunken grin on his face like nothing had happened. Without missing a beat, he began to conduct the singers in their song.
Aang was so overcome with giggles that he was forced to sit down rather than face the embarrassment of toppling over without even having the excuse of being drunk. Thus he walked across the bar, still giggling, and joined some of his children sitting at a booth: Anil, Sho, Toshi, and Megumi.
“Having fun, Dad?” Anil asked playfully, content with the fact that he was not drunk and able to simply sit back and watch the show as it played out in front of him.
“Of course.” Aang said. “If there is one thing I hope I am able to teach you, it is that family and friends are where true power is. All the power in the world couldn’t make me happier than I am right now, surrounded by my loved ones.”
“We know, Dad.” Toshi said. “We’re all happy here too.”
“You could have fooled me.” Megumi commented. “You’ve been quiet all evening, and you keep glancing at the time and door when you think no one is looking. Do you have somewhere else to be?”
“Me? What? No! Of course not!” Toshi said, waving his hands.
“Methinks he doth protest too much.” Megumi said with a smile, causing the others to laugh while Toshi blushed.
“Ah, it’s probably just a girl.” Sho said. “You’ve got to admit the girls here are something to look at… easy on the eyes… willing to marry one of the Avatar’s sons at the drop of a hat.” He directed this last comment at Anil.
The eldest son groaned. “Will no one ever let me live that down?!?”
Sho, Toshi, and Megumi glanced at each other, smiled, and proclaimed in a loud voice: “Never!”
Aang joined in with his children’s laughter. But he was the only one who witnessed Toshi slip out of the booth while everyone else was distracted and mumble something about having to go.
Aang watched in confusion as Toshi dodged his way through the tavern and exited the building. Maybe he really is leaving to meet a girl. Aang thought to himself. So far, with the exception of Anil’s almost-marriage, none of his children had any serious prospects in the romance department. Most of them had tried their hand at romance at one time or another, but it so far had resulted in no engagements or marriages.
As far as Aang knew, Toshi had never had a girlfriend, and he figured it was about time Toshi started looking into finding himself a companion.
Seeing as Aang was a father and naturally curious about his son’s love life, he joined Toshi in slipping out of the bar, relatively unnoticed. Only Sokka noticed Aang leave, in an almost subconscious way.
It was dark outside, and most of the lights were extinguished inside the houses since most of the residences of Kyoshi Island had gone to sleep some time ago. Aang glanced around and barely caught sight of Toshi’s robes disappearing around a corner as he hurried away from the tavern.
Aang followed after him, making sure that he was not spotted. However, after several minutes of moving in between the buildings and eventually finding himself on the edge of the forest, Aang had to admit to himself that he had lost Toshi’s trail.
Aang shrugged in indifference. At least now he wouldn’t have to worry about Katara giving him a lecture about staying out of his children’s love lives, even though he caught her eavesdropping on every single conversation Tenzin and Kya started having with the opposite sex. But as he turned to go back to the others at the tavern, he stopped in his tracks.
Standing in his path back to the tavern was a single woman, hiding in the shadows. That, alone, put Aang’s nerves on edge because this woman could be two things: in danger of falling victim to a rapist or a prostitute looking for an illicit hookup.
“You shouldn’t be out alone tonight.” Aang told her. “You would have been in trouble if I were a sexual predator.”
“There is nothing in this world I fear: least of all, you.” The woman said coldly.
“Fear me? Why should you fear me? I have no desire to hurt you.”
“Really?” The woman asked, stepping out into the moonlight. Aang gasped as he recognized her. Sure, it had been many years since he had seen her, but it was the same woman who haunted his nightmares. “Do you still feel that way?”
“Azula!” Aang gasped, sinking slightly into a fighting stance. Even as he got ready for combat, he all ready did not like the looks of this. Even the thought of fighting Azula while sober terrified him; but the thought of fighting her while he was not thinking clearly froze his limbs with fear. Despite his almost crippling fear, Aang managed a weak grin. “I would ask how you managed to get out of your cage, but something tells me that you are not going to tell me.”
“Oh, but I shall tell you.” Azula said, smirking. “You see, there’s a secret movement that began in the Fire Nation years ago with a singular purpose: to kill the Avatar. They heard about my feat in killing you, so they broke me out to act as their assassin.”
“And the woman who has been in that cell for the last few years?”
“A fake.” Azula said simply.
“Am I to assume that the reason you are telling me all these things is because you don’t intend to let me walk away from here alive?”
“Ohhh! So close!” Azula said mockingly. “You see, Avatar, I have much bigger ambitions than your death. I admit: your death alone will not satisfy me. No, I will do something to you much worse than death; and only when you are left in a broken heap… I will gladly end your misery. The real reason I am telling you these things is because you will have no memory of encountering me this night.”
Aang glared at Azula, waiting for her to make a move, but it was not forthcoming. However, Aang managed to catch a tiny movement of her eyes, as she glanced at something behind him. At first, he thought it was a trick and tried to ignore it, but then he felt something land on the ground behind him.
Spinning around quickly, Aang found himself face-to-face with a strange Earth Kingdom man. As soon as Aang turned around, the stranger lashed out with lightning speed, pressing his right hand to Aang’s forehead and his left to Aang’s chest.
In an instant, Aang recognized the stance and copied it before he was suddenly engulfed in a Soulbending battle against another Soulbender!
Aang forced himself to empty his mind of the shock of finding someone else that was able to Soulbend and filled his mind with his determination to live.
Strangely, Aang did not feel the other Soulbender try to force his will upon him. Instead, the strange man’s soul sat in his body idly, taking neither offense nor defense in this battle.
He did not allow on himself to dwell on it, however, as he pressed his attack on the other Soulbender. For many minutes, he pressed against the other man’s soul, seeking even the slightest gap in his mental armor. But it was armor of the type that Aang had never seen before. The Avatar found himself unable to get a grip on the man’s soul. There was no fear or uncertainty in his soul at all… in fact; Aang could not find any evidence of emotions at all! He couldn’t even get a mental grip on this man’s soul, let alone Bend it.
Aang’s mind filled with horror as he realized: this was someone whose soul was truly Unbendable! He did not have to fight against Aang in a direct contest of strength because the Avatar could never win.
Aang’s fear at the inevitability of this lost battle put a gap in his mental defenses and the other Soulbender suddenly attacked, crushing Aang’s Spirit with ruthless efficiency and Bending him into helplessness.
As per his orders, the Soulbender concentrated on Aang’s mind rather than his soul, unlocking the gates of his memory so that anyone could come and alter them to their pleasure.
Without a word, the Soulbender backed away from the Avatar, who stood helplessly in the middle the clearing, unable to defend himself in even the smallest sense. He was physically and mentally open to any harm Azula wished to cause him.
Azula moved over to the prone Avatar, standing at his side, and leaning up to whisper in his ear. “Can you hear me?”
Aang nodded blankly. “Yes.” He spoke in a monotone.
“Good. Now, listen to me…” Azula leaned closer into the Avatar’s ear and whispered into his ear for several minutes. Nothing on Aang’s face betrayed what she spoke to him, but he seemed to calmly accept it for the most part. The only sign of disquiet he showed was a single moment when his fingers twitched.
When she finally stopped speaking, she pulled away from him slightly. “Do you remember all those things?”
“Yes.”
“Is it true that everything I said to you happened?”
“Yes.”
“Good boy.” Azula leaned up one final time, and kissed his cheek. “When I leave this clearing, you will forget ever meeting me and go back to your party like nothing happened. Remember, you will not remember the things I told you until the time is right.”
“As you wish.”
Without another word, Azula turned and walked out of the clearing, followed closely by the Soulbender.
As soon as Azula was gone from sight, Aang blinked and seemed to come to life, glancing around himself in confusion. He remembered coming out here after Toshi, but he suddenly had an urge to abandon his search for his son and head back to the party.
It was an urge he couldn’t ignore, so he turned and walked back to the tavern.