The Lunar Warrior [ATLA FF]

Book 1: Water | 65 | Spirit Ties, Part 3

Aang sits upon the serpentine back of the spirit dragon, Fang, flying through endless clouds. Orange and red hues painted the sky as dusk was fast approaching. He had no idea where the creature was taking him, but he had to hope it was somewhere with answers. Answers he desperately needed.

Soon enough, they come upon a crescent-shaped island within Fire Nation waters. The spirit guide treated what made Aang uneasy like air. Fang paid no heed to the ships roaming the hostile waters, the dragon flying past them to their apparent destination.

On the relatively small island, upon a lone hill, sat a five-tiered pagoda. It must have been a temple of some sort. Aang didn't have time to observe more than that as Fang zoomed through the entrance. He twisted gracefully through the hallways until they reached the central-most room.

Then, he proceeded to fly straight for the ceiling.

"H-hey, what are you doing?!" Aang panicked as the beast didn't drop his speed. Guess he really was dying today. But not by being eaten, but by crashing into a wall at the speed of sound!

"Ah!" He closed his eyes, bracing for an impact... that never came. It felt like they passed through nothing. Fang ceased moving, landing elegantly on the floor.

They'd effortlessly entered whatever room was above the ceiling.

Aang blinked, shocked that they easily passed through the walls before remembering they were in the Spirit World. Spirits have no care for the walls, a dragon even less so, even if they were in the mortal plane still.

The airbender felt that the noble, scaly beast was judging him for being terrified just now. "Uh... I knew! I knew it all along."

"No, you didn't." That was what Fang's unimpressed huff meant.

Deciding to take the judgement with a grain of salt, Aang slid off of Fang's back. The dragon was patient, letting the boy explore the room with his eyes.

It was empty aside from a ray of light and a statue of Roku, similar to the one he'd seen in the inner sanctum of the Southern Air Temple. This room seemed to have been built with the most care compared to the rest of the temple. But he didn't come here to see a nice room!

Walking up to the visage of his past life, Aang sighed, "I don't understand, this is just a statue of Roku. What am I supposed to do with a statue? Admire the craftsmanship?"

The dragon, of course, didn't say anything. He only gave Aang a glance, and with a saint's patience, moved his feeler again. As it connected with Aang's forehead more images revealed themselves.

A comet blazed, ferocious and ominous. It lit the sky in a burning fire, foreboding as it turned night to day.

A young spirit with silver-white hair, his eyes darker than the sea's deepest trenches, screams as a shadow tries to overtake him. The evil laughs as waters bleed crimson, its good counterpart, a being of light, doing nothing to stop it.

The young spirit looks on in horror as the light's human host refuses to help out of fear for their own life. A vow broken.

The first of many betrayals.

"Ah!" Aang stumbles back, terror coursing through him. It takes him a minute to regain his bearings, and when he does he's nothing but questions. "What was that? Who was that?!"

Thousands of thoughts crossed the young boy's mind. That person... It looked like Ayaan. But they were a spirit, definitely. Covered in shimmering, black and white scales and glowing marks. It couldn't have been him.