𝕍𝕖𝕟𝕦𝕤 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕂𝕪𝕠𝕤𝕙𝕚 𝕎𝕒𝕣𝕣𝕚𝕠𝕣: 𝕊𝕠𝕜𝕜𝕒 𝕩 𝕆𝕔

Chapter 47- The Day of Black Sun, Part 2: The Eclipse

Several fireballs are launched into the air. One lands forcefully near Sokka, a few troops and I as we were huddled together behind a stationery Earth Kingdom tank, studying a map lying on the ground.

Sokka winces at the explosion, but his expression brightens when Katara returns with Hakoda.

"Dad!" Sokka exclaims, rising and grabbing my wrist as we approach them. "You're on your feet again."

"Thanks to your sister." Hakoda sits down; somewhat weakly. "I'm in no shape to fight, but maybe there's some way I can help."

Sokka kneels before his father. "Everything's going smoothly and the eclipse hasn't even kicked in yet."

Katara, sensing something in the distance, moves away. "Let's hope our luck holds out." Hakoda notices her behavior. "Katara, you seem distracted. Is something wrong?"

Curiously, she responds, "Yeah. Is that...is that Aang?"

Sokka is shocked. "What?" Aang is riding in on his glider, dodging several fireballs. He lands in front of the group. "Please tell me you're here because the Fire Lord turned out to be a big wimp and you didn't even need the eclipse to take him down?"

Katara and Aang kneel with Sokka and me. "He wasn't home. No one was. The entire palace city is abandoned."

Whispering in disbelief, I shake my head. "They knew."

Aang rubs his fingers along the ground, looking dismayed. "It's over. The Fire Lord is probably long-gone; far away on some remote island where he'll be safe during the eclipse."

Thoughtfully, Sokka says. "No. My instincts tell me he wouldn't go too far. He would have a secret bunker; somewhere he could go and be safe during the siege but still be close enough to lead his nation."

"If it's an underground secret bunker we're looking for," Toph interrupts, pointing to herself. "I'm just the girl to find it."

Sokka pulls out a timing device. "The mechanist gave me this timing device. It looks like we've got about ten minutes until the full eclipse. Ten minutes to find the Fire Lord."

Aang speaks up with determination. "We can still do this. We can still win."

Katara interrupts, her voice filled with worry. "Wait!If they knew we were coming it could all be a trap." She looks at the others. "Maybe we should use the time we have left to make sure we all get out of here safely."

Hakoda steps in. "Everyone who's here today came prepared to risk everything for this mission. They know what's at stake. If there's still a chance and there's still hope, I think they would want Aang to go for it."

Sokka turns to Aang. "What do you think? You're the one that has to face the Fire Lord. Whatever you decide, I'm with you."

Aang rises, facing away from the group with determination. "I've gotta try."

Aang, Toph, Sokka, and I decide to fly over the caldera volcano on Appa, while Katara stays behind with her father. We land on the side, jumping off.

"Do you sense anything down there?" Sokka asks Toph.

Toph places her hand on the ground, feeling the vibrations. "Yep. There are natural tunnels criss-crossing through the inside of the volcano."

"Anything else?" Sokka inquired. "Is there a structure somewhere?"

Toph digs her fingers into the ground. "There is something big, dense-"

I let out a little chuckle, but Sokka shoved me to shut me up.