When Worlds Collide: Book Two, Earth

UNEDITED

I sat on a rock, next to Sokka, looking over his shoulder to see the map in his hands. I tried to ignore the fact that I was right next to a giant pond, that seemed to be extremely deep.

I saw Aang plunge under the water, and come floating back up as a giant piece of ice. I shook my head at him, smiling.

"Water bending bomb!" Katara shouted from on top of a cliff, and cannon-balled into the water. My eyes widened at the wave of water rushing towards me, and I shrieked, ducking behind the huge boulder Sokka and I were sitting on.

"Sure," Sokka said sarcastically. "Five thousand year old maps from the spirit library. Just splashed some water on 'em."

"Sorry," Katara apologized, and used water bending to remove the water from the old parchment.

"So did you find out what route we're gonna take?" Aang asked, as we all crowded around Sokka, who lay the maps down for us to see.

"Okay," Sokka started, "we just got out of the desert, so we should be right around here." He pointed at the map, showing us. "And we need to go to Be Sing Se, which is here." He pointed again. "It looks like the only passage connecting the north is this little sliver of land called The Serpents Path."

"You're sure that's the best way to go?" Toph asked, crossing her arms.

"It's the only way," Sokka insisted. "I mean it's not like we have Appa to fly us there." He shrugged, and I thumped him on the head, and Katara shushed him.

"Shush up about Appa," Katara scolded. "Can't you at least try to be sympathetic?"

We all looked up to see Aang sitting on the ground quietly. "I'm alright, it's okay. I know I was upset for a while about loosing Appa before, but I just wanna focus on getting to Be Sing Se and telling the Earth King about the solar eclipse."

"O-okay," I stuttered, surprised.

Katara and I glanced at each other, and I bit my lip. "Well, we're glad you're doing better," Katara said, looking worried.

"Then to Be Sing Se we go," Sokka said suddenly, and stood up. "No more distractions."

"Hello there, fellow refugees!" a man called, and we all to turned to see a small party of three walking towards us. With the man, was a pregnant worman, and a younger looking girl.

Sokka immediatly got an annoyed look on his face, and I sighed.

"So are you guys headed to Be Sing Se too?" Aang asked.

"Sure are," the man said. "We're trying to get there before my wife, Ying, has her baby." He placed his hands on his wifes stomache, and I smiled.

"Great!" Katara said. "We can go through the Serpants Pass together."

The group got scared looks on their faces, and I shifted my weight, suddenly nervous.

"The Serpants Pass?" Ying gasped. "Only the truly desperate take that deadly route."

"Deadly route," Toph trailed, and punched Sokka in the arm. "Great pick, Sokka."

"Well, we are desperate," he defended himself.

"You should come with us to Full Moon Bay," the man offered. "Ferries take refugees across the lake. It's the fastest way to Be Sing Se."

"And it's hidden," Ying added, "so the Fire Nation can't find it."

"Hm," Katara wondered. "Peaceful ferry ride, or-"

"-deadly pass," I finished, and we gave Sokka a sarcastic look.

He glared and we chuckled.

/////\\\\\

The rock wall in front of us disappeared, and we were given a sight that I wish I could banish from my mind. People in old cloaks and robes either wandered in clumps, or sat on the ground. A lot of them looked really sick, or extremely tired. Many tents were set up all over the place, and I could hear a baby crying from far away.

"I can't believe how many peoples lives have been uprooted by the Fire Nation," Katara said.

"There all looking for a better life," the man, Fong, said. "Safe, behind the walls of Be Sing Se."

"It's terrible," I murmered. "I've never seen anything so horrible."

"It's how a lot things are now-a-days," Fong sighed.

To our left, we could see a line of people, waiting to get their tickets. We joined them, and I tried to ignore everything around me.

Soon, there was only one man in front of us, and the woman was yelling at him, something about vegitables not being allowed on the ferry. I watched a giant bear-like creature (did Aang say it was a platypus bear?) destroy a cart of the mans cabages, and the poor geezer had to be carried away.

"Next!" the woman screamed, and I jumped behind Sokka and Katara, while Aang went up to the lady.

"Um... four tickets to Be Sing Se, please," he stuttered.

"Passports?" the woman spat, not looking up.

"Um... no one told us we had to have passports," Aang admitted.

"Don't you know who this is?" Sokka asked, stepping up. "He's the avatar."

The woman only shrugged. "I see fifty avatars a day. And by the way, not a very impressive costume." She pointed off to the side, where a group of people dressed like Aang were hanging out. Only one of them looked similar to the real Aang, but he was still pretty far off. Momo popped his head to have a look too, and the woman sneered. "Besides," she added, "no animals allowed. Do I need to call security?"

Aang glanced at the platypus bear, and Momo shrunk back. "That won't be necisary," he said quikly, backing up.

"Next!" the woman hollered, and Toph stepped up.

"I'll take care of this," she promised, and slid a shiny green passport onto the crabby ladys desk. "My name is Toph Be Fong, and I need four tickets."

I saw the crabs eyes widen, and she gasped. "Ah! The golden seal of the flying boar! It is my pleasure to help anyone of the Be Fong family."

She gave an awkward bow, and I raised my eyebrows. Maybe she has a bottle under her desk, and took a swig when I wasn't looking....

"It is your pleasure," Toph said, slightly turning. "As you can see, I am blind, and these four embesils are my valleas."

"But... the animal-," the lady started, but was cut off by Toph.

"Is my seeing eye lemur."

"Well, normally, it is only one ticket per passport, but this document is so official, I... guess it's worth four tickets," the lady said, and stamped four times, before handing the tickets to Toph.

"Thank you very much," Toph said, and I smirked.

As we walked away, Sokka celebrated. "All right, we scammed that lady good!" he cheered.

It suddenly became quiet, and I laughed. "It's a mericle," I chuckled. "He can be quiet!"

I turned, and was shocked to see a girl guard kissing him on the cheek.

"Guys?" I called, and the others stopped.

"Sukki!" Sokka beamed, and the girl, Sukko grinned.

"It's great to see you again, Sokka!" Sukki led us to a little lookout area, where we could all talk.

"You look so different without your make up," Katara admitted. "And... that new outfit."

"That crazy lady makes all the security gaurds wear them," Sukki sighed, and shrugged. "And look at you, sleeveless guy," Sukki said, turning to Sokka. "Been working out?"

"Oh, I'll grab a tree brach, and do a few chin touches every now and then," Sokka bragged, trying to flex his muscles. "Nothing major."

I rolled my eyes, and pushed him off the seat. He landed on the ground with a thump, and I laughed.

"Are the other Kyoshi warriors around?" Aang asked.

"Yeah," Sukki told him. "After you left Kyioshi, we wanted to find a way to help people. We ended up escorting some refugees, and we've been here ever since."

"So, Jye-Lee is here?" I asked, remembering my old friend from when we stayed at their home.

Sukki smiled. "Yes, and she's missed you," she said, and I grinned.

"I have to see her before we leave then," I decided.

Sukki laughed, and a thoughtful look came over her features. "So why are you guys getting tickets for the ferry? Wouldn't you just fly across on Appa?"

Everyone looked down, and Aang looked really upset. "Appa's missing," I informed her. "We're hoping to find him in Be Sing Se."

"I'm so sorry to hear that," Sukki said softly. "Are you doing okay?"

We all looked at Aang, who was facing away from us. When he did turn to us, I saw sadness in his eyes, but they quickly hardened. "I'm doing fine. Would everyone stop worrying about me?"

"Avatar Aang," we heard, and Aang turned around to see the three people that we had come here with. "You have to help us. Someone took all of our belongings. Our passports, our tickets... Everythings gone." I heard Ying crying, and my heart broke at the sound.

"I'll talk to the lady for you," he said, and disappeared by jumping over the wall.

We all glanced at each other, and quickly followed, by taking the stairs.

We waited on the sidelines, and when Aang came back, he had a stamp on his forehead. "Don't worry," he said. "You'll get to the city safely. I'll lead you through the Serpants Pass."

/////\\\\\

"This is the Serpants Pass?" Sokka asked. "I thought it would be more whindy. Guess they mis-named it."

Sukki had decided to come with us, and now we stood in front of the gateway that led to the supposed death pass. She was all decked out in her makeup and warrior outfit, and it felt normal to me. In my gut, I felt that something bad was going to happen, but I just didn't know what. Maybe it had something to do with my world, and maybe I should remeber something. But I just couldn't, and it was driving me insane.

"Look at this writing," Ling said beside me,staring at the post. "How awful!"

I looked at the writing, but I saw was gibberish. "What does it say?" I asked, and Katara came over.

"It says 'Abandon Hope'," she read.

"How can we abandon hope?" Ling cried, and burried her head into her husbands shoulder. "It's all we have left!"

"I don't know," Aang said. "The monks used to say that hope was just a distraction. So maybe we do need to abandon it."

"What are you talking about?" Katara asked.

"Hope isn't going to get us to Be Sing Se, and it's not going to help us find Appa. We need to focus on what we're doing right now, and that's getting us across this pass.

"Okay," Katara said hesitantly. "If you say so."

"Oi," I muttered, afraid of the upcoming events.

/////\\\\\

"The Fire Nation has control over the western lake," Suki explained to us, as we walked along a cliff edge. "Rumor has it, they're planning something big on the other side, and don't want anyone to know what it is."

I was trailing behind the others, and stopped to see one of the enemies ships nearby. We were far up from the water, and I was sure to stick to the cliffs side. Suddenly, Fong lost his footing, and the rock he was standing on broke. He started to fall, and cried out, but Toph quickly got him back up to safety.

"I'm okay," he reasured his family, and we all sighed in relief. However, it was short lasted, when a giant piece of the cliff fell into the dreaded water below us, making a huge splash.

"They spotted us!" Sokka shouted, as a giant fire ball sailed through the sky. "Let's go, let's go!"

Aang lept into the air, and used airbending to send the fire ball back to its owners, and as it crashed into the ships hull, another fire ball was being prepared. It flew through the air, and hit the rocks above us, sending debris hurtling towards Sukki. Sokka pushed her out of the way, a I saw his arms fly up, in an attempt to defend himself. Quickly, Toph turned and raised her arms, so that a piece of rock flew out, and acted like a ramp to keep Sokka protected.

While everyone ran ahead, I waited for Aang to fly back, before sending my own blast of fire at the ships. I could just barely make out the figures running for cover, before the fire engulfed the ship. Without another glance, I followed everyone else further into the Serpants Pass.

/////\\\\\

The next day, the atmosphere seemed tense. I couldn't help but think that I was missing something, and the looks Katara was giving Aang made me sure of it. Sukki and Sokka were avoiding eyes, and it seemed that only Toph and I were really ourselves.

"Katara?" I asked softly, making my steps rhyme with hers. "Is everything okay?"

She glanced at Aang before nodding silently, and I knew I wouldn't get anything else out of her. I sighed and let her get ahead of me, while I walked with Toph.

Soon, we came to a terrible sight. A huge part of the path had been covered with water, and there was no telling how deep it was. Aang lowered her head, but Katara got a determined look on her face. "Everyone, single file," she demanded, and the water around us seemed to rise, and create a wall.

"Um... can't we find another way around?" I asked. "I really don't think this is a good idea." My eyes flitted to the other side, and I took a step back, away from the water line.

"Sam, there is no other way," Katara insisted. "You'll be fine, I promise."

I bit my lip, and shook my head furiously, taking another step back.

I wish Zuko was here. If he was, I wouldn't be this terrified. With him, I felt safe. I felt that the water couldn't touch me, and that I could do anything.

Someones hand slipped into mine, and I looked down to see Toph smiling at me. She squeezed my hand softly, and I forced a smile, even though she couldn't see it.

You can do this, I chanted to myself. It's just a little of water. Like bath... or a pool... or an ocean... Shut up, Sam!

Finally, I sighed, and nodded, taking a small step towards Katara. She smiled, and began walking. I let Toph lead me, and I kept taking big breaths through my nose.

As we got deeper into the water, I noticed that Katara's strength was beginnning to waver. "Aang, Sam, I need help," she said, and I immediatly began to mimik her movements. Aang gave his staff to Toph, and he too began to waterbend the water around us.

We walked through the water, and little fish kept swimming by. I saw Momo dash into the water, swimming around, and trying to catch a fish, before jumping back onto Tophs shoulder. I shook my head, and focused on the task at hand, and tried to ignore the fact that we were feet and feet under the lake.

Suddenly, a dark shadow came into our view, and we all stopped. "What is that?" I asked, my eyes following the figure. Before any of us could do anything, it crashed into our sancuary, sending all of us into a panik. Toph was the quickest to react, and I felt the ground surge, as we flew to the surface.

She calmly handed Aang his staff back, and grabbed my arm again, trying to calm me down, as I was hypervenalating. "Sam, it's okay, we're above water now," she comforted, and Momo hopped over to me.

A wave erupted from in front of us, and a giant green snake looking thing popped out of the water.

"Well, Sokka," I said, my eyes wide. "We know why they call it the Serpants Pass now."

"Sukki, you know about giant sea monsters, make it go away!" Sokka demanded, and Sukki got an evil look in her eye.

"Just because I live near the Unagui, doesn't mean I'm an expert!" she shouted back.

"Oh, great and powerful see serpant," Sokka started, and grabbed Momo from me, "please accept this humble and tasty offering! Thank you!"

"Sokka!" Katara scolded, and I grabbed Momo back, giving him a hug.

Aang swung his staff like a baseball bat, and sent a wave of air at the monster. "I'll distract it! Katara, Sam, get everyone across."

Katara glanced at me, and I guess something on my face held something, because she shook her head, and jumped out on the water, creating an ice path leading to the other side. She motioned for everyone to go, then turned to help Aang.

As much as I wanted to, I couldn't follow the others to the safety of land - one, because I couldn't stand the thought of Aang and Katara risking their lives without me, and two, because Toph was glued to her spot.

When everyone had made it across, Sokka turned back to us. "Toph, Sam, come on, it's just ice!" he shouted.

Toph slowly put her foot down onto the cold plates, and quickly retreated. "Actually, I think I'm gonna stay on my little island, where I can see," she said.

"Toph, let's go," I prompted, trying to push her to go.

She shook her head defiantly, and refused to move. Suddenly, the giant monster landed behind us, and we shrieked. Toph grabbed my hand, and we slowly ventured out. "Okay, okay, we're coming!" she cried, and I lead the way.

"Toph, it's okay," I told her. "You helped me, now I'm helping you. Let me be your eyes, okay?"

She nodded, a look of terror on her face.

"You guys are almost there!" Sokka promised, and I looked up to see that he was telling the truth. Just a few more feet, and we would be on solid ground. I blinked, and the sight I saw made me scream.

The giant serpants tail was falling towards us, and before I knew it, it crashed right in front of me. The impact made both of us fly into the air, before splashing back into the water.

And for the fourth time while being in this stupid world, I'm drowning.

Toph screamed, and acting on instinct, I reached out for her, holding her in my arms. "It's okay," I promised. "We'll be okay."

She kept screaming though, and her struggling, made me panik. I tried to remember what Zuko had told me, long ago, at the North Pole, but it seemed futile. Tophs struggling seemed to drag me - us - down further, and I accidentally took a gulp of water.

Next thing I know, I'm being dragged upwards, and then I'm gasping for breath, and coughing.

"Oh, Sokka!" Toph exclaimed. "You saved me!" She kissed Sukki on the cheek, and I chuckled at her.

"Actually, Toph, it's me," Sukki confessed, and Toph froze.

"Oh," she said. "You can go ahead and let me drown now."

Now that I was calm, I took a deep breath, and used the water to force us up, and back onto another ice path. Sukki picked Toph up - why hadn't I thought of that? - and we ran the rest of the way back to the others, just in time to see Aang and Katara defeat the monster.

They rejoinded us, and we quickly made our way out of the deadly area.

"There's the wall!" Sokka shouted, and pointed. "Now it's nothing but smooth sailing from here to Be Sing Se."

Ling cried out in pain, and we all looked to see her husband and duaghter freaking out.

"Oh no!" Ling cried.

"What's wrong?" Sokka asked.

"The babys coming!"

"What?" Sokka shrieked. "Can't you hold it in, or something?"

I hit him while Katara glared. "Sokka, calm down," she said. "I helped Gran Gran deliever lots of babies back home."

"This isn't the same as delivering an artic seal!" he shouted. "This is a reall, human thing!"

"It's called a baby," I stated, facepalming.

"And I helped deliver plently of those too," Katara added. "Aang, get some rags. Sokka, water. Toph, I need you to make an earth tent. A big one. Sukki, Sam, come with me."

I saluted, and followed the two into the giant tent that Toph had created.

/////\\\\\

Hours later, the baby was born, we got Ying and her new baby, Hope, situated. Aang had also gained some new confidence and hope, and had decided on traveling ahead of us to Be Sing Se.

After our farewells, he began to take off, but suddenly stopped. "I never really did apologize to you two," he said, turning to Toph and I. "I'm sorry. I was just upset. I know that you did everything you could to protect him, and I still yelled at you. Forgive me?"

I smiled, and gave him a hug. "You're like a little brother to me," I told him. "How could I not?"

"It's not really like we have a choice anyway, Twinkle Toes," Toph joked, and punched him on the arm.

He grinned, and took off. We watched him go, and then after saying our goodbyes to Sukki, we left.

"And don't forget to tell Jye-Lee I said hi!" I shouted after her, and she laughed, waving.

"Let's go meet up with Aang," Katara grinned.