𝑾𝑨𝑽𝑬𝑺 || 𝑨𝒂𝒏𝒈 (𝑩𝒐𝒐𝒌 1) *Revamping

The Spirit World*

After several days of flying, Jade wished she could say she was better with it. And maybe, in a way, she was. At least she wasn't clinging to the saddle anymore.

She still couldn't look down, though. Which was too bad, because she was sure the ground looked pretty cool from up above. The problem was that it wouldn't matter how cool it was when it was so far away. All she'd be able to think about was the idea of falling all that way. It'd probably look a lot less cool up close, when she was a Jade-shaped pancake splattered on the ground.

Jade remembered a story her neighbor told back when she was really little. About a man who climbed a tree, fell from the top, and never walked again. Up until the day she left Omashu, she'd never realized how much that story scared her. After all, she'd never been off the ground before. She wasn't like Aang, who probably spent half his time in the air. For a non-earthbender, Jade was oddly attached to the ground.

To keep herself from looking down below, she gazed up at the blue sky above. Curled up in her lap, Momo slept peacefully. She'd become pretty attached to the little lemur since the start of their journey. Stroking his fur managed to soothe her in a way she couldn't explain.

"...Those clouds look so soft, don't they?" She looked over to see Katara gazing over the side of the saddle. "Like you could just jump down and you'd land on a big, soft cottony heap."

Jade blinked. "Could that happen?"

Carving a piece of wood next to her, Sokka smirked at his sister. "Maybe you should give it a try."

"You're hilarious." Katara grumbled.

Up on Appa's head, Aang lit up. "I'll try it!"

Before Jade could even protest, he grabbed his staff and jumped. Instinctively, she looked down to watch him fall, only to immediately flinch when she realized that she was trying not to do exactly that. But still, she watched Aang plummet down, his laughter growing fainter until it vanished along with the sight of him. He passed straight through the clouds.

Gripping the saddle tightly, Jade sighed uneasily. "That answers that..."

They kept searching for him up until they heard a splat! behind them. Startled, Jade spun back to see Aang sitting there, dripping wet and grinning widely. "Turns out, clouds are made of water."

With a deep breath, he slammed his fist into his palm, drying himself off with a burst of wind. Jade smiled weakly. "Well, now we know, I guess."

"...Hey, what is that?"

Katara stood up, moving to the front of the saddle to stare ahead. Jade didn't trust herself to stand, but she did sit up on her knees for the next best thing. Through gaps in the clouds, she could see what caught Katara's attention.

Most of the land ahead of them was beautiful shades of green. But a huge patch of it was black, and it stretched on for miles. It reminded Jade of the fish she burned back when she tried to learn to cook.

"It's like a scar..."

Once they were over the dark patch, they landed. And the sight was even worse up close. From where the green ended, there was nothing but ashy grey ground and charred tree trunks. Jade caught whiffs of a burning smell, which meant that this couldn't have happened too long ago. Not that it really mattered, because it still happened. There were no traces of life, from animals or plants. She hated to imagine how beautiful the land could have been before...this.

Crouching down, she trailed her finger in the ashes on the ground. Sokka looked around, frowning. "Listen...It's so quiet. There's no life anywhere."

"Aang?" At Katara's soft call, Jade looked over to see Aang gazing at the area with slumped shoulders. He didn't respond.