Flames of Kyoshi: Part 2

Part 2: Eruptions

The beach came into view through the trees and the two friends could see the Water Tribe ship bustling with activity. A great pile of crates and barrels had been brought up on deck from the hold and a winch and tackle had been set up to lower them carefully over the side to a waiting longboat. A scattering of containers had already been deposited on the shoreline. Water tribe warriors were hurrying about organising the supplies and erecting tents under the scrupulous instruction of Master Bato.

Katara stopped halfway down the beach then called to the soldiers on the deck to stand back. Guessing what she was about to do, they leapt away from the pile of boxes. Katara deepened her stance, took a deep breath and circled her arms through an elegant crescent, feeling the swirl and flow of energy in her body mirrored in the currents of the calm sea. The sea answered her will and a column of water rose and bent in gentle curve over the prow of the ship. The wave delicately swept up the gathered supplies and rushed them to the shore, dropping them just as deftly on the damp sand.

The other workers applauded, but Bato jerked his head toward her with a scowl.
"Where were you five minutes ago when we were heaving those damn things over the side?" He growled.
Katara crossed her arms over her chest and raised her chin haughtily.
"I was doing my duty as Water Tribe envoy and reporting our arrival to the leaders of Kyoshi," she announced.
Bato stared her down for a moment then broke into a sudden smile. He gave a throaty chuckle and clapped her good-naturedly on the back. Katara laughed too.
"Good work Master Katara. Now we can get on with the job of helping these people." He turned to face Suki and grasped her arm in a warrior's welcome.

"Greetings Commander Suki, please, tell me how I and my men can best be of assistance."
Suki gripped his arm in return and smiled, her teeth showing very white against the red lips of her traditional war paint.
"I'm flattered Master Bato but I hold no such title. Please call me Suki."
Bato acknowledged this with a bow of his head. "It is an honour to fighting at your side again, even if this time we're battling nature rather than a human enemy."
Suki nodded and grimaced as her gaze involuntarily drifted northward to take in the mountain glowering there.
"Sokka has plans for damage control around the village," she said, refocussing her attention on the seasoned fighter before her. "We've already gathered our most sacred relics inside the town so that they can be better defended. And most of our people have been moved to safety under the protection of the Earthbenders. Sokka's now organising fire fighting details and cleanup crews. I think the Water Tribe warriors would be of greatest help there."

Bato turned away and with a sweep of his arm indicated that the soldiers behind them should follow him to the village.

Katara joined him and had taken one step towards the path when the whole world convulsed beneath her. She pitched forward onto the sand as a subsonic boom shuddered through the ground. Birds screamed and took off in a flurry from the trees. Huge waves threw themselves with a crash onto the beach and the ship on the bay groaned in protest. The warriors around her cried out in shock and tried to push themselves upright as the earth bucked under their hands and knees. Katara finally wrenched her head up to look at the volcano and her heart in her throat threatened to choke her with fear. An enormous black cloud spewed upwards from the mountain's zenith. Part of the peak seemed to have been torn away and huge stones streaked, flaming, into the sky and began to rain down towards their side of the island. Katara stared, her mouth hanging open at the raw destructive power of the explosion.

Ash started to patter down around them in a soft choking mist that found its way into their eyes and mouths. Katara began to cough, her eyes streamed and stung. The tremor of the earth began to subside and Bato staggered to his feet beside her. He reached down and pulled Katara up with strong arms. Suki stood up too; her face was twisted in shock, ash greying her white makeup.
Katara reached into her pocket and pulled out the handkerchief that she'd put there during her preparations. She tied the white cloth over her mouth and nose. Bato and the other warriors followed suit and someone dug out a spare kerchief for Suki. Barely able to speak for coughing, Katara pointed towards the path to indicate they should head up to the village. They huddled close and moved forward as one into the forest. The trees afforded some measure of protection from the hail of ash and they were all able to breathe a little more easily. They began to jog and were soon entering the wood-walled square that surrounded the statue of Avatar Kyoshi.

Sokka and Oyaji stood beneath the monument bellowing orders to the scurrying villagers. They had divided into groups and were forming lines and passing buckets of water to douse fires that had already sprung up amongst the wooden houses. Others were trying to sweep up chunks of red hot stone that were landing all around them and move them away from the buildings.
Sokka took a brief moment to welcome Bato and the other Water Tribe warriors then started pointing and filling them in on his plans. The group broke up and moved out in different directions to join the groups of firefighters.
"Are you okay?" Sokka yelled to Katara over the roar of flames and the shouts of the people. She nodded in reassurance.
"I'm gonna go look in on the healing hall then help with the fires!" she cried back.
Sokka pulled her into a quick hug, "Take care!" he said into her ear.
"You too!" she called as she drew back and turned to run to the long timber building at the edge of the village.

Katara hurried up the steps to the hall and took a few paces inside before looking around. A Kyoshi warrior knelt on the edge of a bed beside another woman with bloody gash over her forehead. Katara moved forward to offer her help but the Kyoshi warrior held up a hand to stop her.
"We're okay here Lady Katara, please; there is greatest need for you fighting the fires. We can handle this. There have been very few injuries so far."

Katara understood and without another word she made her way outside again striding through the falling cinders into the heart of the smouldering village. She located the nearest cluster of water barrels and turned her attention to her work. Katara concentrated her energy on the roof fires. She twisted a rope of water from the nearest urn and with a graceful flick of her wrists she directed it upwards in an arc onto the blazing shingles. Steam rose with a hiss and the fire sputtered out. Breathing a sigh of relief she gathered another armful of liquid and turned away from the mountain to aim a jet at the next house in the row that was starting to smoke.

"Katara!" she heard Suki scream from some distance away, "Look out!"

She pivoted just in time to see a cart-sized, burning boulder plummeting through the air towards her. Desperately she tried to redirect her flow of water to intercept the stone but it moved too slowly and too weakly and the rock was too close. She cowered, momentarily frozen by terror when a blast of wind whisked past her head, ruffling her hair and blowing the mask from her face. An unseen force appeared to strike the boulder and it careened away towards the forest fringing the village.

Katara stood up, open mouthed. Her breath caught as a familiar, massive, white and brown creature soared over the village. Standing astride the great beast was a man. Bare-chested but clad in ochre breeches, his body and arms were marked with flowing blue tattoos that radiated unworldly light. He swung his wooden staff in a rapid sweep and another wave of air knocked some smaller smouldering chunks away from the vulnerable wooden buildings. A ragged cheer rose from the group of weary fighters.

The Avatar suddenly leapt from his perch on the bison's neck, floating gracefully through the air to land nimbly in front of Katara. He smiled at her, a little disconcertingly as his eyes and tattoos still shone with light. Katara could only stare at him, speechless. After all this time, he was here, standing mere inches from her. She realised with a start that she had to tilt her head up to look at him, he stood half a head taller than her now.
He reached out swiftly and gripped her upper arm then bounded from the ground. There was a sharp jerk on her shoulder and suddenly she was being propelled through the air beside him.
"Aang!" she yelped in shock, grabbing at his waist to steady herself.

They sailed briefly through the air before alighting on the roof of Chief Oyaji's residence. Aang's glider closed with a snap and he held her against him until she found her feet on the shingles. Katara found herself staring at him again. He gazed at her in return, the glow faded from his crystalline grey eyes and he spoke spoke with a gentle tenor voice that belied the power of his body and spirit:

"Come on Katara, we'll fight this together."