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Bitter Alliance	By : Looneyluna Category: Avatar - The Last Airbender > Het - Male/Female > Katara/Zuko Views: 31138 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

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Act III

Chapter Thirteen

Two days have passed since our exodus into the desert. We travel by night and sleep during the day. I carry Sokka, for he is unable to traverse the rolling dunes that seem to swallow my feet with every step I take, and a makeshift sled containing water and food. Katara carries Kaya, and Toph carries Iroh. I have never felt so helpless. Death surrounds us. It is impossible to ignore.

As the sun rises on our third day, I drop to my knees and help Sokka off my back. “We’ll camp here,” I announce, my voice a raspy whisper. I unload the sled and set it up quickly. During the day, I shall reposition it as the orange-hued sunlight crawls along the sky.

Katara approaches me, handing me the leather bladder with my rationed water. It’s fuller than usual. “This isn’t mine,” I say, weighing the offering.

“Take it,” she whispers pleadingly. Her lips are cracked and the sun has burned her cheeks. I can see the look in her eyes, the hopelessness and despair. She carries resignation in her shoulders. She is ready to die. Kaya and Iroh are close-by, their robust features betraying their mother’s sacrifice.

She has been giving them her ration.

“Katara.” I open the water and take a sip, but only a sip. “You honor me and our children. Your blessings humble me.” Setting aside one of the poles that makes up part of our shelter, I kneel before her and take one of her hands in mine. “When we get to Ba Sing Se…” I press my lips against her upturned palm. “…We shall marry.”

Her pale eyes sparkle with emotion, and she falls to her knees. “Zuko…”

Pressing the tip of the water bag to her lips, I coax her to drink. “Please, Katara. Please drink.”

She does so hesitantly, her eyes devouring mine. A shrill squeal breaks the trance. Kaya is jumping up and down and pointing toward the setting sun. “They’re here! They’re here! You were right! You said they would come.” She points toward a small cloud on the horizon and claps.

A sand-glider emerges from the dust. Are they friend or foe? The thought is hardly a whisper in my mind as I run toward the children and prepare to fight. Instinct guides my momentum, and a floodgate opens within me. As I try to seek the core to tap into my diminished abilities, something monstrous takes hold of me. It is something not of this realm.

It is the power of Sozin’s comet.

The malevolent spirit of my father hovers near it, a ghostly smile of triumph upon his lips. “I knew you couldn’t resist.”

The burnt orange haze that taints the sky turns blood red. I feel as though I am split in two. Icy fire consumes me and strips my vision.

“No, Daddy!” Kaya shrieks as though she is far away.

I cannot see her, but I can see the shadows of those surrounding her—a boy, a young woman, a large beast, and a smaller one.

“You are stronger than this, Zuko,” a disembodied voice whispers into my ear. “I know you seek only to protect your children, but there is no reason to be alarmed. The Sandbenders will see you safely to Ba Sing Se.”

In the distance, I can hear a child crying.

“Get back!” Katara’s voice is the next to sound in alarm. “Kaya, no!”

“Your children are in danger. Crush the Sandbenders,” my father’s essence demands.

A small hand clutches mine. “It isn’t time, Daddy. Let it go. The Sandbenders are our friends. They will help us.”

The comet ceases to roar in my mind. It is as though someone has snuffed out the candle of a flame. A cool veil has descended between the madness and myself, and I fall to my knees. I feel nauseous, as though I’ve eaten too much at a fancy banquet.

“Zuko!” I feel Katara’s touch upon my forehead. “What was that? What happened?”

I can barely keep my eyes open. I feel displaced and exhausted. “I… think I’m going to be sick,” I rasp.

“What’s going on?” Toph’s voice is harsh, her frustration layered with anger. “I can’t see a damned thing. Did the sun crash onto the planet, or what? What was that hot blast?”

Sokka, his speech impaired by his injuries, rocks back and forth and soothes my son. “It’s okay, Uncle Iroh.”

Wind and sand swirl around us as the sand-glider approaches. I growl in warning as I feel the threat approaching.

“Zuko,” Katara gasps, her desperate gaze boring into mine. The perfection of her beauty is marred by horror. “You’re eyes…”

“What? What’s wrong with them?”

“They were red,” she announces with a shuddering breath. “There was smoke… coming from your mouth.”

Her description reminds me of a painting in the palace—a dragon with red eyes, devouring the gate of the Spirit World.

Hugging her knees, Kaya whimpers next to me. Her eyes are shut tight, tears streaking down her cheeks. “Go ‘way. Go ‘way. Go ‘way,” she chants, whips of unearthly steam emanating from her tiny lips.

“Kaya?” Katara crawls over my legs and grasps our daughter by her shoulders. “Open your eyes, Kaya.”

She refuses with a shake of her head.

“What the hell?” Toph exclaims nearby.

There is a loud crack and a thundering rushing noise. We’re sinking. It’s very subtle, but I cannot ignore the sensation. It is like the earth has opened and started to drain the sands of the desert.

“I’m sorry,” Kaya cries. “I couldn’t help it.” She opens her eyes. Katara and I are frozen in horror. Her eyes are no longer the icy-blue pools like her mother’s. They are dark crimson.

In an effort to save my children, I tapped into the power of the comet. The implications are too frightening to comprehend. Had my daughter saved me? If so… at what cost?

“Run!” Toph shouts, helping Sokka to his feet and scooping up Iroh. She runs toward the approaching sand-glider. “Sandquake!”

The nightmare unfolds before me in slow motion. Faith abandoned me long ago, yet I find myself praying to whatever god who will hear my humble prayer. Katara emits an unearthly scream, waving her arms about her as she summons all the water from the bags we have carried across the desert. She pulls the water into the sand. I can feel the icy fingers through the material of my boots as she creates a foothold for us to climb.

“Hurry!” she cries, the strain of concentration etched into the dark lines of her face.

Pulling Kaya onto my back, I climb out of the shifting sand and turn to help Katara. The sand glider grows closer. Kaya whispers her assurance that they are our salvation. I clasp Katara’s hand as the icy foothold cracks, causing the sands to shift again.

“My lord!” a familiar voice calls over the noise of the sand and wind. “Grab the rope!”

It is difficult to see. Sand stings my eyes as tears of frustration cleanse them. I grope for the rope, miraculously grasping the lifeline and heaving Kaya, Katara, and myself to safety. “Iroh!” I bellow, unable to see, for the sand has blinded me.

“He is safe!” the familiar voice shouts over the roar of the sand glider speeding along the desert. “As are the other two. Everyone is safe, Lord Zuko!”

I struggle to sit up, but a hand holds me down. I grasp it, feeling the muscular bulge of a masculine forearm. “Who are you?” I call out.

“Jeong Jeong, my lord,” he replies over the roar of wind and sand. I hear other voices, but they are muted. Emotion overwhelms me, and I clasp the forearm of my loyal general.

“Thank Agni,” I chant as exhaustion carries me into darkness.

--

TBC

Author’s Note—Whew! That was fun to write! I know I said this was the last chapter of Act III. Well, I lied. Ha ha! The fun thing about the way I write is that I never know where I am going. Bwhaaa! As always, I am humbled by all who take the time to review this story. All reviews are cherished and welcome.
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Bitter Alliance