Dai Li's Personal Spy

Chapter 28: "Who's there?"

I looked down at my hands, scraped, calloused and bloodied. I clenched my palms to check the feeling of pain, but there was none. I was in that dream again. The slow drip splashed, echoing against the cave walls.

"Again." The deep voice didn't echo, but it was loud in my ears.

The whoosh of a flying rock soared towards me. My body fell into step, and I tried to stop it in midair. Like always, it collided with my palms, the force sending me flying back into the wall. It didn't hurt, but I still winced.

"Get up," He said, and I shakily listened to his order. My clothes were dirty and tattered, my hair greasy, and my joints sore. I sobbed, "Please... no more," I pleaded with Long Feng, but he did not succumb.

"Do you think I keep you alive out of sympathy? You are a weapon, and you will learn how to earth bend properly." He waved his hand, and more Dai Li agents readied their rocks, looking like they wanted to pummel me.

"Again."

I woke up to my arm desperately clinging onto the saddle as my body lifted into the air. I snapped my eyes open, but the force of the air around me made them sting and water. I couldn't scream. My voice was caught in my throat along with my stomach. I saw a blue figure go flying from the saddle. My arm unlinked from the hole in the saddle, leaving only the ends of my fingers to hold on. I squinted through the pain and tried to look around, but it was all blurry. My pinky unlinked from the saddle, then my ring finger, then each finger until only my thumb was left. I felt it begin to dislocate and screamed in pain, letting go.

I spun in the air, plummeting to the ground. Bunches of branches, vines, and trees broke my fall on my way down, scratching me and clinging onto me. I splashed into shallow water, my back completely soaked.

I opened my eyes, unable to take in the environment before I rolled over and heaved. I vomited all of my lunch into the water. I coughed, the taste sour in my mouth. I stumbled up from my kneeling position, finally taking in my surroundings. It was wet, squelchy, and humid.

I was in a swamp.

"That was gross," I heard a familiar voice say. I turned around to see Aang, Katara, and Sokka dusting themselves off. Sokka was, of course, the one to say it. I scowled at him.

"Oh, I'm sorry; I'll make sure not to eat my lunch before we fall out of the sky." I glared at him. Katara walked over and offered me some water from her water skin. I smiled and thanked her, rinsing my mouth out.

"Is everyone okay?" Aang asked, no Appa or Momo in sight.

"Besides being thrown out of the air and almost dislocating my thumb, I'm alright," I responded, extending my thumb to only inhale sharply and leave it alone. Okay, maybe it was dislocated.

"Well, I'm alright, but Sokka... you have an elbow leach." Katara looked at Sokka unimpressed; he had a massive leach attached to his elbow.

"Where? Where!?" He asked frantically, writhing around.

Katara crossed her arms. "Where do you think?" He checked his elbow and pulled the monstrous thing off, its black figure swimming away. Aang began to look for Appa and Momo whilst I tried to pop my thumb back into its socket.

Katara noticed and walked over to me. She bent the water around my thumb. The pain began to subdue, but the water started to glow. My eyes widened, and I lurched back, afraid her glowing water would hurt me.

"Stop! It heals," Katara explained, holding me in place. She then moved the water in one quick motion and popped my thumb back into its socket. I screamed out, but the pain was instantly better.