Avatar The Last Airbender Fan Fiction ❯ Prophesied ❯ The Island of Misu ( Chapter 5 )

Chapter 5: The Island of Misu

 

Zuko woke from his injured sleep to the concerned face of his uncle.

“What happened, Uncle?” Iroh sighed.

“The ship capsized, and Agni took you from the waves, but you weren't breathing. Shasa revived you, and Agni brought you in here. Then he left.”

Zuko stared at the sheets that covered his form, his armor hung up carefully nearby.

“So the encounter before was real.” Iroh nodded.

“I think we should stop following the Avatar.”

Zuko sat straight up, nearly hitting his uncle in the process.

“We will not stop following the Avatar! I don't care what the Fire God says, I will not give up my only chance at returning home.”

Tossing back the sheets, Zuko stood and began putting on his armor. Iroh looked at him.

“Tea Zuko?”

Zuko glanced at him while fastening the plates at his waist. “I don`t want any tea Uncle.”

Iroh's eyes widened slightly, and he grinned. “As you wish.” (I knew it.)

Iroh poured himself some tea and then sighed as Zuko walked out, presumably to reassume his place as head of the ship, but who cared? Then his eyes darkened once more. He still didn't know what Agni's plan was, and this frustrated him. Fire God or no, he wouldn't harm his nephew, blood or not.

Zuko hadn't realized that it was still the middle of the night, and his thoughts were now penetrated by this 'Daughter of Nen.' Who was she? Did she know of their union, if you could call it that at least? He sighed, frustrated. Well, he'd ask whoever he met until he found out who the Daughter of Nen was and when he did find out who she was, he'd run as far and as fast as he could in the opposite direction.

Sleep eons away, Zuko decided to take a walk out on the deck. At the bow, he watched the stars for a little while. The moon had always fascinated him, a realm he'd never been able to explore. He stared at it until he started to feel sleep weigh down his eyelids, and turned to go inside, only to find his way block by an immense golden dragon.

"...Agni..." he breathed.

"Sleep." The Fire God commanded, his voice ringing in Zuko's thoughts. Zuko shook as his eyes met the fire red orbs the Fire God possessed, moments before he collapsed senseless to the deck.

Katara was standing on a balcony of the Water Temple, looking at the moon when Aang came out and took her hand.

“Take a walk with me Katara?”

She nodded and together they walked down to the shore and sat down on the beach. For a while there was nothing but silence, and then Aang sighed and took Katara's hand.

“I've tried to tell you this for a while Katara but I…I…I really like you…as more than a friend.”

Katara was shocked for a moment, and then her whole face brightened.

“Oh Aang, I like you too!”

They shared a very brief kiss, and when they pulled away, something made both of them turn their heads to the ocean.

It was Shasa, in her true form. Her body was an opaque blue, no details or features visible, and she was hovering a few inches above the rolling waves. A strange wind blew her hair and clothes, a wind that touched nothing but her.

Aang leapt up with a yelp, pushing Katara behind him, for he did not recognize the Water Goddess. Katara gently stepped in front of him.

“It's all right Aang, it's just Shasa.”

Aang grinned. “Really? Maybe she's come to help me or give me advice on how to defeat the Fire Lord!”

Katara stared at the goddess.

“Perhaps.” She whispered.

Shasa reached out her hand to Katara.

“COME TO ME DAUGHTER OF NEN.”

Instantly, Katara began to walk out into the waves. Aang cried out and tried to pull her back, but she pushed him away.

“It's just Shasa Aang. She won't hurt me.”

Aang turned to Shasa when he could follow Katara no further into the waves. Katara had bended the water around her so that she could keep walking into ever deeper water.

“WHAT DO YOU WANT WITH HER SHASA!?”

Shasa said nothing to him, calling ever to Katara. When Katara touched the goddess's hand, she fainted. Shasa gather the water-bender into her arms and Katara took on the same form as Shasa.

Tears ran down the Avatar's face.

“I won't let you hurt her! I'll protect her from you!”

Shasa glared at him. “She is not yours to protect. She does not love you and you do not love her.”

Aang glared right back. “She does love me! And I love her more than anything! I won't let you take her from me!”

“YOU HAVE NO CHOICE IN THE MATTER!”

Aang's Avatar spirit activated, and he reached into the sands beneath the waves, and encased Shasa and Katara in earth. The Avatar smirked.

“I will only release you if you promise to give Katara back to me!”

“FOOLISH BOY!”

Blue light erupted from the cage of earth and Shasa burst from it, her eyes beginning to glow a deeper shade of blue than the rest of her body.

“The Daughter of Nen belongs to the Son of Agni and no other! You shall not touch her again!”

There was a bright flash of blue light, Aang's Avatar spirit faded, and Shasa and Katara were gone. Aang lay unconscious on the beach.

It was midnight, and a hooded figure slipped into a dark shop in the Fire Capital City, Sozun. A soft voice was heard from the back of the shop.

“Never thought I'd see you in here, Fire Lord.”

The Fire Lord pushed back his hood and walked back into the main shop. He was surrounded by skulls, bubbling cauldrons, and illicit potions. In the center of the room was a strangely beautiful woman who was, drop by drop, adding a green liquid to a black mixture in a gold cauldron.

“What can I do for you?”

“I need something to kill a god.” She chuckled, her voice strangely seductive.

“Not satisfied with being Fire Lord, now you must join the immortal.”

The Fire Lord was silent, so she continued, her focus never wavering from the mixture before her.

“You shouldn't mess with the spirits Fire Lord.”

He grabbed her by the throat and pulled her within an inch of his face. Her calm expression only succeeded in infuriating him more.

“I didn't come here for advice Keilantra!”

She calmly pried his fingers from her throat and stepped away from him, capping the green vial and replacing it on the shelf behind her. Slowly, silently, she pored over the shelves until her hand landed on a black vial, which she took down and walked back towards the cauldron.

The Fire Lord reached for the vile and she slapped his hand.

“Not for you!”

And then she began adding drops of the black liquid to her cauldron. The Fire Lord hissed and Keilantra sighed.

“Come back in a week, same time. I will have something for you then.”

The Fire Lord opened his mouth to retort, but knew it was no use to fight with the witch, and so left.

Keilantra looked up after he left, and grinned. She turned and began poring over her vials once more.

“Something to kill a god Fire Lord? All right. I'll give you a weapon that can be used against only a god, isn't that what you want? What you asked for? You always get what you ask for, but this time that will be your undoing. I know of your dreams Fire Lord, but it isn't Agni you need to worry about.”

Morning came, and dawn broke over a small island in the eastern Earth Kingdom waters. Katara turned from the sun to bury her face in her pillow, hiding her face from the bright rays. Then her pillow wrapped an arm around her. Come to think of it, her pillow was unnaturally warm…

Zuko and Katara both screamed and pushed away from each other, falling into battle poses as they regained their footing. Katara gritted her teeth, for the sun had risen, and that meant Zuko was stronger. From the way he was smirking, he knew it too.

“Oh stop it you two.”

They both spun to see Agni and Shasa in human form, standing arm in arm. Flames began to lick Zuko's clenched fist and Katara glared at them.

“WHAT IS GOING ON?” They yelled simultaneously, causing Shasa to laugh and Agni to grin. The Fire God turned to meet the angry gaze of the Fire Prince.

“Zuko, meet the Daughter of Nen.”

Zuko turned and stared at Katara, open-mouthed. “You? You're the Daughter of Nen?”

It only took one look at Katara's face to know the truth. “Do…Do you know?”

Katara nodded. “Shasa told me.”

Zuko spun back around to yell at Agni. “THERE IS NO WAY I'M DOING THAT WITH HER!”

“THAT GOES TRIPLE FOR ME!”

Shasa smiled. “That's very similar to what we said when Alem brought us here.” Agni nodded his agreement and turned his gaze to his unknown son.

“This is the island of Misu. You two must work together to survive here, and we will return when we feel you have gained something from learning to work together.”

Katara looked shocked. “You can't leave us here!”

“We can and we will.”

Then they were gone. Zuko hissed his anger, and the two were left alone.

Katara crossed her arms across her chest and looked at Zuko. The prince looked like he was fuming, but Katara could look in his eyes and tell he was trying to figure things out. He'd already accepted their position, so Katara would have to drop that aspect of her fight.

“So what are we going to do?”

That snapped Zuko out of his trance.

“We are going to do nothing. I am going to explore the island and then set-up a shelter for me. You can do whatever your little heart desires.”

And immediately he began to walk off. Katara stared.

“They said we have to work together to get off this island!”

“Not my problem. My uncle will find me soon enough and then I'll be off this god-forsaken spit of land.”

“And you'll just leave me here?”

“You mean now or when my uncle gets here or both? Yes to all.”

“Oh come on! Nobody's that heartless!”

Zuko didn't even turn around. “I beg to differ.”

But he was not thinking of himself when he said that.

“Zuko you can't leave!”

Zuko spun around. “That's Prince Zuko to you and girl, if you continue the way you are, I'll begin to believe you actually need my help!”

Katara froze, her mouth working silently in anger, and then she sat down on the sand and refused to look at the damned Fire Prince. When she did look up again, he was gone.