======== 70 - North Pole ==========
As a true inhabitant of the hot regions of the Earth Kingdom, where on the best days the temperature stayed at a minimum of thirty-five degrees and usually hovered around forty-five, I could hardly imagine how I would survive being sent to the cold pole. Sokka, as a resident of a completely opposite climate, often discussed this topic with me and claimed that the temperature at the South Pole was the opposite of what I was used to, i.e. fairly stable at minus forty, with frequent snowfalls, slippery roads and deadly icy water.
I had been to places where it snowed or was extremely cold a couple of times — at the same southern nomad temple that was closest to my companions' home — but the temperature in such places never dropped to absolutely terrifying levels. That's why I had to think about how I would survive such conditions.
"Unlike your desert, at our pole, it's dangerous to even leave the house. You never know if you'll fall into a snowdrift or if snow will fall on your head, burying you alive in a deadly refrigerator. And if you fall out of a canoe into the water, they usually amputate both your legs right away," Sokka boasted as the temperature outside our flying bison continued to drop and the precipitation turned to snowflakes.
"Don't talk nonsense," Katara rolled her eyes when she heard this. But since I understood that this was a truly masculine dialogue in which two opposites were battling, I looked sternly at the guy in response:
"In my desert, I couldn't even leave the settlement until I was ten. Deadly beetles, scorpions and snakes hid right under my feet and could bite through even thick rags. Despite the heat, the adults worked every day, and if you fell out of the boat, you would die at best. But you could also be eaten by beetles or wasps, or you might die of dehydration or suffocate in a sandstorm, and I won't even mention the bandits, who outnumber the ordinary inhabitants.
"Funny..." Zuko, who was listening to us, scratched his nose. "You're talking about large areas or entire continents where there is still life. In the west of our archipelago, there is nothing but constantly active volcanoes, and every time new ones erupt, forcing people to flee. At least your cities aren't wiped out by some cataclysm.
"At least you still have living settlements," someone in the audience said, and we all froze. Seeing Aang hug his knees in disappointment, we grimaced at our mistake and looked away from Katara, who was frowning. "I'm sorry, I wasn't bragging," Zuko raised his hands, quickly slapping himself in the face. "Oh, I'm such an idiot..."
In fact, it was difficult to name a nation that currently existed in the world. Even in the Earth Kingdom, there were only a couple of cities that remained peaceful during the war, but if you think about it, every nation, except for the air nomads, of course, had places where everything was wonderful and people lived without wanting for anything. The North Pole, where we were flying, could well be called such a place.
As soon as the temperature outside began to drop exponentially and huge ice floes, about five to ten App in size, began to appear in the sea, the city we were looking for, or Agna Kel'a, appeared on the horizon. The majestic white capital of the Northern Tribe, surrounded by an ice wall of completely inhuman dimensions.
From a bird's eye view, there was an excellent view of the giant system of water channels used to move between areas. The houses resembled mansions that fit perfectly into the interior, and if it weren't for the terrible cold that emanated from it all, I would say that this was the best place on the planet I had ever seen.
Of course, everyone who was flying and could see such sights was beside themselves with excitement: Aang wanted to ride the penguins and learn waterbending, the Southerners were eager to see the new architecture and meet their "brothers," and Zuko and Ty Lee...
"It's so cold," they said, wrapping themselves more tightly in the fur coats they had wisely bought. Only Airo sat smiling and exhaling warm air that kept him perfectly warm — his mother was a cheater. Although... "Ah, that's not fair!"
Zuko opened his eyes when he saw how I had turned a small amount of sand into a red-hot substance that warmed simply from its own heat. And while Ty Lee could come closer and warm herself, Zuko looked at me as if I would make him swallow the whole mess if it started to stick.
In any case, Appa descended lower, and the absence of wind made it a little more bearable.
"Let's land in front of the walls so they don't think we're enemies," Aang pulled on the reins, intending to land right in front of the walls. I didn't want to break the plan, even if it meant landing just a couple of hundred metres from the city, right in the water, which Appa didn't care about. We were quickly spotted and not exactly welcomed with open arms.
"Stop!" In a second, a squad of five rafts, each carrying seven men, approached us on fast waves. The water around Appa instantly froze, trapping the bison in a vice from which he could not escape. They work well.
"What are you...?" Aang frowned, clearly unaccustomed to such encounters, but I quickly put my hand on his shoulder and stopped him.
"The Avatar and his team. We've come to learn the art of waterbending," the squad clapped their eyes in surprise. And as soon as Aang showed off a couple of his tricks, which he had, of course, learned in advance to impress people in moments like this, their reaction changed instantly.
How pleasant it was to penetrate the most guarded places using the reputation of a guy who had never worked a day in his life to earn it. Oh, of course, I wasn't jealous, I just saw ways to use it. Let my gaze become a little greedy because of that, causing Aang to become afraid. But that's okay. I'll make him work anyway.
Already imagining what magical techniques we would learn here, the mages guarding the perimeter took it upon themselves to accompany us. Their boats sailed alongside us thanks to the pushing waves, which made Katara stare in fascination at the unusual movements, somewhat different from the familiar techniques she had learned from the scrolls. When we stood before the giant wall depicting the symbol of water, we all felt a righteous awe, and it became clear why this place had not yet been captured.
The fortress was very similar to those built by earth mages. Even the gates were created by our escorts, who pushed the icy wall aside, opening a direct path inside the enclosed pool. To enter the city, we had to swim into a vestibule, which, after an identity check, was filled with water, lifting the boat, or in our case, the bison, to the very top.
"We will report your arrival to the chief. Follow us," the people around us stared at us as if we were curiosities, running out of their houses to see us in person, while the children waved their hands. The news of the Avatar's arrival spread like a tsunami.
One of the boats sailed ahead of us along the waterway, escorting us straight to the main palace, as if on a short tour. I'm sure there was a shorter way, but they decided to show us the fountains with waterfalls, suspension bridges and houses towering above it all.
"How beautiful it is here," Katara couldn't contain her emotions. And it's hard to believe that this place was also damaged during the tsunami in the Roku era, as it's so different from the city of the past. I moved closer to Appa's head and looked at our escorts, then asked a direct question.
"Listen, has a tsunami recently hit the walls of your city? Did you see any anomalies?"
"Hm? No, what are you talking about? The city hasn't been disturbed by anything at all," replied the elderly man.
"And we'll be lucky if there isn't~
"What?
In order not to spoil anyone's first impression, I hid all my fears inside myself. Of course, it was far from certain that the spirits would want to kill me, so I just had to wait for Avatar's or even Airo's opinion. But the fact that there was no earth in the area, which meant that my senses were literally not working, was incredibly bad. Not only did I have no materials to create magic, but I was blind again. I feel like I need to prepare a pumpkin with sand again.
***
The meeting with the Avatar was colourful. As we approached the Chief's majestic palace, we were met by a crowd of what appeared to be high-ranking people who applauded us like real heroes. Getting acquainted and settling into the palace all happened very quickly, as we were being intensively prepared for our meeting with the Chief. Some ran around setting the table, others distributed our belongings among the rooms. In short, it was no less hectic than in Bumi's palace.
However, what looked beautiful on the surface felt somewhat different from the inside.
"I have a bad feeling about this Avatar. He disappeared for a hundred years, abandoned his duties — he'll end up repeating the fate of that disgraceful Kuruk," people whispered in the corridors of the mansion.
"Hush. Let's not spoil the atmosphere by mentioning the worst Avatar in history. Especially while the Chief is preparing to receive guests.
Yes, the only Avatar who helped us selflessly was treated no better than shit here. And you can understand them, it's hard to accept a man who ruined the reputation of the entire North, was a drunkard, neglected his duties and died at the age of thirty-three. And while they smiled at Aang, some of them prayed silently that history would not repeat itself.
When we were completely ready, we were called into a large and colourful backyard. There, against the backdrop of a simply gigantic waterfall, surrounded by a crowd of courtiers, stood three people on a slight elevation who were clearly the most influential and from whom an invisible pressure could be felt.
An old man with a piercing gaze and grey hair, sitting with his legs crossed, exuded wisdom and the power of open chakras.
A young white-haired girl, whose appearance made Sokka melt like melted ice, exuded a faint spiritual aura, and even Afka was struck by her energy. She had the imprint of a great being, like Aang.
And in front of all these people stood a man who was completely unassuming and unmysterious, but nevertheless exuded charisma. He was the least interesting of them all. He was the one who spoke.
"I am Arnuk, chief of the Northern Water Tribe. Today we celebrate the arrival of our brother and sister from the Southern Tribe, who have brought with them a special, dear guest. One who was long thought lost to our world... Avatar Aang.
"May the spirits of the Moon and the Ocean be with us in these difficult times," said a white-haired girl, who was introduced as Princess Yui, in a beautiful voice, while those around her clapped loudly, inviting her to sit at the table.
Yes, the rest of the team had simply been forgotten, with no one deigning to introduce the four extra people. Never mind, we'll survive, the main thing is that they recognised us. The white-haired old man, who seemed to be a magic teacher, looked closely at Airo and me. Then I heard Uncle Zuko's voice.
"This is Pakku, also a member of the order. We'll definitely relax and have a good time here once the welcome meeting is over.
Airo was already dreaming of days of feasting and long hours of Pai Sho. I understood him — I missed the rich life.
"Actually, you arrived just in time, it must be fate. Today, in this place, we may finally end the war and achieve the peace we have been waiting for so long. We have a guest here whose arrival we have been arranging for a long time, our new political ally," but Arnuk did not stop there and turned to the empty passageway, raising his hands again as if introducing someone important, "I present to you the princess whom the Lord of Fire has sent to us as a symbol of cooperation. Thanks to her, the waters of the Northern Sea have been freed from siege and we have regained all our territories, as well as receiving substantial financial support. Lady Azula!
"What?" Zuko froze instantly, his jaw dropping open. I stopped as if I had heard the most absurd joke in history, while Airo frowned in disbelief.
"Hello, everyone," and finally, a girl dressed in a red winter jacket with a fire symbol in her hair appeared from the passageway. She waved at everyone with a smirk and quickly scanned the crowd, focusing on our group.
"Hm? "Her black-haired friend with a poker face appeared with her, and her eyes changed dramatically when she looked at us," "Tai Li?
"Zu-zu?
"Azula?!