(1) Augmentum | Zuko

Chapter EIghty-Four

Rana slides down the side of Appa and lets out a breath. Talonflame sitting next to her, waiting patiently as she pulls out some writing supplies from her bag. Iroh's letter is in her other hand as she sets everything up before she finishes reading what Iroh sent. Really reading it. Iroh talks about the spirit-bond and Zuko's recent illness because of June and her shirshu. She feels terrible about it. She was looking for her. June only tracked her scent back to Zuko because she was looking for her. And he got hurt. Really badly hurt by the sounds of it. But it's because of that bond that Zuko feels that she's hurt, which she is. Next to her, she opens up the book and flips to the page Iroh mentioned. The one that talks about the spirit-bond. She touches the pages as she reads through the information. It does explain some of the stranger things she's experienced. The whispers. The phantom touches. How sometimes she feels like she can hear him or see him, but him not actually being there. It's all explained, and frankly, she's relieved that it's not a sign of her descending into pure madness. She leans her head back against Appa. There is something about Iroh having a pokemon that touches her. They only connect to people they choose and they see something in. Pokemon are spiritual creatures, see more than everyone else. Talonflame must have seen something in Iroh. She turns a little and picks up a piece of paper, managing to pull a knee up to rest it on, though it hurts to do so. Iroh thought enough about her to check up on her, she can at least assure him that she's fine, in pain but alive. She adds a little note for Zuko before she sets her quill down. She's not sure what else to write. She wants to write more so it doesn't seem so...empty. She taps the quill to the paper and then moves down the page, adding a little side note for Zuko. Hoping and believing that Iroh will show him. As she finishes her letter, Rana rolls it up and slides the letter back into the satchel before she turns to Talonflame, waiting patiently at her side. She lets out a breath and then holds it out.

"You can return to your master now" She assures him. "Thank you" Talonflame inclines his head before he takes the satchel and then off, disappearing through the clouds. Rana sighs and scratches at Appa's fur.

..........

Iroh holds out the letter to Zuko who frowns as he takes it before unrolling it to take in the writing on it. He softens as he realises who it's from, but there is still worry in his eyes.

"She was shot with a spirit-arrow" Iroh explains as Zuko reads the note at the bottom for him. Just a little reassurance that she's okay and he shouldn't be worrying about her. That doesn't mean he's going to stop worrying. What he felt from her in that dream was...horrible, and she was likely feeling 100 x worse than that. "You were right, she is hurt, and sick..."

"Spirit-arrow" Zuko whispers reading the rest of the note.

"They are used to poison the vastaya, to cut them off from their elemental realms...meaning that they can't bend...." Zuko clenches his jaw.

"Meaning they can't fight back" Zuko adds. "Or defend themselves" Zuko clutches the letter in his hand, crumpling it. "Zhao" He growls. He's the only one deranged enough to use that arrow on his own daughter. He is really determined to hurt Rana. Not even just straight up killing her. But hurting her. Poisoning her. Hunting her. It's a lot more twisted.

"Eevee" Zuko looks down at Eevee who is watching him, seemingly reading his upset. Zuko relaxes his hand, the crumpled papers smoothing slightly. He crouches in front of her and ruffles the fur on her head to reassure her that he's okay.

.........

Rana holds her arm around herself as she wanders around the air temple with Pikachu perched on her shoulder. She got bored. It's that simple. She's walking down a long corridor of the Temple. Huge Air Nomad swirls are built into mosaics on the floor, Rana smiles a little as she looks over them. She hopes Aang saw this corridor, he'd like this. To see something of his people. She looks up when she comes to some huge doors. Dominated in the centre by a woodcut comprised of three wooden air symbols protruding from its surface and which are arranged in a triangular pattern. The symbols are attached to tubes that end in two horns near the bottom of the woodcut.

"Just like the other temple," She tells Pikachu who looks at her and then at the door.

"Pika" Pikachu agrees.

"Hmm, you're right" She voices staring up at the door. "Only an air-bender can open it" She then smirks. "Or me" She and Pikachu share a look.

"Pika pika" Pikachu argues, looking at her bandaged side. Rana hangs her head, remembering that she's not got any bending abilities right now. Pikachu jumps down from her shoulder and moves to the door, knocking on it before looking back at Rana, she takes a deep breath and then nods, more to herself than anything. She then holds out her hands and concentrates, trying to reconnect with her abilities. For a flicker, just enough to pump some air through the old mechanisms. It hurts, but she is definitely something there, flickering at her fingertips. Rana then air-bends two jets of air, one from each arm, into the horns at the bottom of the woodcut. The air runs through the tubes and one by one flips the air symbols from the blue sides which had been showing, to the maroon sides which had been facing the interior of the temple. As each turns, it flips another mechanism on the outside of a door, clearly, all three of the symbols had to trigger each of their mechanisms in order to unlock the Temple door.

"Pika" Pikachu whispers clutching Rana's leg. The doors open and her eyes widen to find that it's filled with evil-looking war machines and torture devices as well as Fire Nation flags. She clenches her fingers into her palms.

"You don't understand" Teo's father, the Mechanist, is stood behind her. She lets out a breath, moving a hand to her side.

"Rana?" Sokka's voice sounds from behind the Mechanist. "What's going on?" He turns defensive a little seeing the lines in Rana's shoulders that show she's upset. He moves towards her and looks between the Mechanist and his friend. She lets out a breath and turns around.

"They're making weapons for the Fire Nation" She answers, staring at the Mechanist.

"You make weapons for the Fire Nation!?" Sokka asks angrily.

"What?" Katara, Aang, and Teo are stood behind his father. It's clear they've just heard everything.

"Explain all this! Now!" Teo demands his dad.

"It was about a year after we moved here. Fire Nation soldiers found our settlement. You were too young to remember this tale. They were going to destroy everything, burn it to the ground. I pleaded with them, I begged them to spare us. They asked what I had to offer. I offered... my services. You must understand, I did this for you!" Teo turns his head and his wheelchair away. The Mechanist hangs his head and then walks away from his son. Rana cringes and pulls her hand from her side to find it covered in blood. She wasn't ready to move or to bend anything.

"Don't leave it like this" Rana tells Aang and Teo. "Go and talk to him" She curls her arm around her middle.

"Yeah, and I'll change her bandage" Sokka gives Rana a scolding look. She just rolls her eyes a little.