Chapter 33: Sun Warrior's Play!

After my strange encounter with a spirit butterfly that happened to sneak into the physical realm before returning to the other side, Monk Gyatso and I continued exploring North Chung-Ling, and although neither of us happened to experience another encounter like earlier, it was still a pretty interesting time; in fact, we had stayed the whole day as there was apparently a play happening tonight.

"Did you happen to plan this whole thing out, Monk Gyatso?" Asked Aang curiously as he glanced at Gyatso while the two moved through the crowd.

"Hoho, I would gladly take credit, but, no, I had no clue today was a special day for North Chung-Ling. Though, I suppose that's lucky for us; we had arrived at the perfect time." Replied Gyatso lightly with a faint smile as he continued to try squeezing through the crowd, though it was proving less effective.

After a little bit more walking, Monk Gyatso suddenly frowned before turning around, walking the way we had initially come, causing me to raise an eyebrow, though I still followed him until we eventually exited from the large crowd that filled the center of the city where the play was going to be held.

"It's almost nightfall, Monk Gyatso; at this rate, we won't find a decent spot before the play starts." Said Aang lightly as he glanced at the setting sun before looking at Gyatso, who nodded.

"I've thought of a better location to watch the play, and don't worry, we'll be ready before the play starts." Remarked Gyatso with a faint smile as he dismissively waved his hand at Aang, causing him to furrow his brows.

Although I was a little skeptical we'd arrive in time since there was hardly any sunlight peeking from beyond the horizon, I still followed behind Monk Gyatso; after five more minutes and several detours later, we finally stopped behind a two-story house, causing me to glance at him.

"Hoho, don't give me that look. Use your mind a little, will you?" Said Gyatso lightly as he jumped while a vortex manifested around his legs that pushed against the ground, uplifting him higher into the air until he landed on the angled roof of the two-story house.

Sighing, I copied Monk Gyatso and lifted myself into the air using a vortex, landing on the angled roof beside him; he gestured for me to be quiet while we walked towards the peak of the roof before sitting down, giving us a fantastic view of the center of the city down below.

'Well, you can't get a much better view than this.' Mused Aang with a raised eyebrow, waiting for the play to begin.

It seemed we had found our seats just in time since not even two minutes later, the last of the sunlight finally vanished, causing a curtain of darkness to envelope the city with not a single light to illuminate the area, at least until several fireballs were shot from what looked to be five benders; each fireball was precisely shot towards a lantern, lighting up the area, as the stage where the play would happen was now occupied by five benders: three men and two woman.

The five benders had red markings on their face and wore what looked to be some sort of tribe-specific outfit, with the only difference being that women covered their chests and their neck pieces were gold instead of red like the rest of their outfit, minus the golden arm bracelets and yellow scarfs that were worn around their waists.

Seeing them stand with a focused gaze, everyone in the crowd quieted down as they waited with baited breaths for the five to make their move, which they did a few seconds later with the two women stepping forward and launching a thick, continuous fire wave above everyone's head, followed with the three men punching upwards, doing the same as the two women.

However, despite their impressive display of bending, that was merely the opening act as they began to shoot powerful yet gentle waves of fire while they all moved about across the stage, yet they were doing so in a specific pattern…

'…As if they are dancing. Huh, I see; they must be Sun Warriors; no wonder I thought they looked somewhat familiar.' Thought Aang softly as he intently watched how the group of sun warriors danced in rhythm, utilizing their bending in tandem with each other.

The play continued for about an hour into the night, and throughout that time, they engaged in many different styles of dancing: ones that seemed to contain an infinite amount of wisdom and another that evoked one's spirituality, though that wasn't all. They also rooted who took center stage along with who danced with whom, and by the time they reached the end of it, everyone had not only had their own chance to shine, but they also had a one-on-one dance with each other.

When the time came to perform the closing act, they all stood at five separate points on the stage, each equally spaced between the other before they began stomping toward the center while creating fireballs in all kinds of directions, and when they met in the middle, they all launched a singular stream of fire into the air in front of them, causing their five waves of fire to surge into one and head upwards. However, that wasn't quite the end as they twisted their fists, causing their stream of fire to twist around the others, spiraling even higher into the sky.

After several seconds, they lowered their arms, causing the spiraling wave of fire to disperse while they all turned and looked at the crowd that promptly erupted into cheers, some even launching fireballs into the air.

"Ah, what a beautiful display; they are truly skilled benders." Said Gyatso softly with a smile as he stood up and clapped his hands, prompting Aang to do the same.

"Yes, incredibly impressive; they displayed what being a fire bender means." Remarked Aang with a faint smile as he nodded while gazing at the five benders, who held each other's hands and bowed to the crowd.

Although it was glossed over, the fact they could create such powerful flames when the sun had set only added to their impressive feat.

"I wished Appa could've seen this; I bet he would've liked it." Muttered Aang softly as he looked at the stage, only to suddenly shake his head.

"Actually, on second thought, he'd probably be more annoyed that his beauty sleep was being interrupted." Added Aang, his words causing Gyatso to laugh while nodding in agreement.

"Haha, yes, Appa can be quite the moody one." Said Gyatso, his words causing Aang's expression to twitch, though he didn't deny his statement.

While I was rather interested in possibly speaking with the Sun Warriors, it was rather late at night, and I'm sure they must be somewhat exhausted after that hour-long play during the night no less, so in the end, Monk Gyatso returned to our companions and slept through the night, well, I meditated.

When we awoke, we promptly left after our usual morning routine, heading a little more north, which was a little out of the way from our original path toward the Fire Nation Capital, but knowing Monk Gyatso, such actions were well within my expectations.

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Peacefully meditating atop Appa's back while flying in the sky, following behind Monk Gyatso, I was forced out of my meditation when I suddenly felt something pulling my spirit toward a particular direction.

'Ember Island.' Said someone softly, their voice only discernible to Aang, who suddenly frowned.

"Who?" Muttered Aang with a deep frown as he stood up and looked around.

After not getting a response, I sat back down and meditated, ignoring the faint pulling sensation my spirit felt as I deeply meditated, entering as deep as possible as I began to lose focus of the physical world. After several moments of deep meditation, I suddenly opened my eyes when I heard the same voice again; only this time, it was much clearer, and now I could even see who the voice came from.

Sitting in front of me, cross-legged, was an older man with a long, flowing white beard; he wore a unique outfit with the Fire Nation symbol on the front of his clothes; the most striking thing about him was his faint bluish color.

"Roku." "Aang." Said Aang and Roku, respectively, as they gazed at each other, each thinking differently.

To say I wasn't surprised would be a complete lie; I did intend to one day speak with my past incarnations; I just expected it would be when I wanted to, not the other way around.

"You look healthier than I expected for someone your age." Said Aang lightly as he observed Roku, who raised an eyebrow before stroking his long beard.

"Well, even in my old age, I kept a rather active lifestyle with my wife, Tai Min; however, speaking of my wife, I would appreciate it if you could visit her. I know we are not the same, but I hope it'll give her some kind of closure." Said Roku softly with a faint smile as he nodded before clearing his throat and pointing northwards, causing Aang to nod.

"I already intended to do such a thing, though I am surprised you know where your wife is. You have been dead for roughly eight years, after all." Replied Aang with a nod as he looked in the direction Roku was pointing in, causing him to faintly nod.