Chapter 222: The Dark Age (2)

Chapter 222: The Dark Age (2)Chapter 222: The Dark Age (2)

"Aagh!" Aang let out a startled yelp as the black, suspiciously clammy, and gooey substance clung to him despite its mist-like appearance and covered him entirely as his body remained caught against the floor. He tried to curl his body and breath loudly yet the air passed through this substance despite its physical feeling and a hint of shock settled in his heart. This was no firebending and the only thing that fit the bill was— Energy Bending.

Ozai's laugh from the other side sounded muffled but as Aang began to struggle just to breathe, he felt like he heard Sun, and truly, a tanned-skinned youth with jaded green eyes revealing its surprise at the sight rushed towards the entrance and growled as he only saw one end of Aang's staff sticking out, "Let him go!"

The sides of the hallways bubbled into lava as Ozai scowled and pulled back in large strides while shooting Sun a threatening glare but the dark mist oozing out of him didn't seem affected by lava.

"Do you really want to hurt your own ally, Lavabender?"

"Then why'd you retreat?" Sun grinned, taking a wide stance and instantly launching jabs that caused bursts of lava to fly towards Ozai who dodged with his expression changing constantly.

"You're being a terrible distraction and I must ask you to forfeit your life!" Ozai snorted and Sun revealed an incredulous expression.

"You think talking would stop me?" Sun questioned.

"No, but it should distract you." Ozai smiled as a sudden and powerful burst of energy blasted away the gooey 'mist' with Aang promptly floating mid-air— his eyes and tattoos glowing an infuriatingly bright blue with his gaze locked against Ozai who's sclera turned pitch-black once again.

"Nice of you to show yourself, too, Raava." Ozai smiled but he looked distinctively different. Less... royal and stoic.

Yet, Aang's expression turned to that of shock when he looked back to find Sun on his knees with his chest stabbed through by a thin arm attached to a struggling dark-skinned woman who had tears building over her blue eyes.

The glow in Aang's eyes faded as he fell onto the ground, his lips parted in surprise and his eyes wide, too.

"Rena..."

Aang muttered as barely a whimper escaped through Rena's lips before she let her lips stretch into an ugly, haunting grin as her own hand sliced against her neck with the same black mist covering her palm.

"W- What? Hey! Sun! Rena!"

Aang shrieked and ran to them, his staff flung sideways and his eyes wide in horror.

"Aang, what's going on here?" A somewhat childlike voice broke Aang out of his daze and shock as he looked up and screamed at Tom-Tom, "No, run away from here! Now!"

"What?" Tom-Tom jogged towards Aang with a smile, "You look like you saw a ghost? Oh, or maybe me dying?"

With a sweet smile, Tom-Tom stabbed one of his blades from under his jaws. His lips parted slowly as the onyx-eyed boy whispered, "You lost, Avatar... you've disappointed us for the last time."

As if this wasn't enough, a cheerfully 'smiling' but tear-stricken Katara jogged into the hallway with a bleeding Sokka, "Look! I killed my only family member! Pfft, hahaha! I- I, s-save— Oh, surprisingly resilient spirit," she was quick to recover as 'Katara' unloaded Sokka near Rena and laughed, "Oh, Aang, it looks like you saw a spirit."

The boy's eyes widened in horror, "Please, Katara, don't—"

Yet, the next second, Katara sliced off her neck, too.

Ozai watched everything from a distance with an amused expression. He watched as Mai, Suki, Toph, June, and Nyla readily killed themselves with Aang unable to stop them with any means for they would find a way to commit a gruesome suicide in front of them.

Understanding that there was most likely a group of 'mischievous' spirits, Nik closed his eyes and felt his chi. A good thing.

This again proved that he was alive.

But the amount available to him was too low and it didn't come from him but from a 'purer' source. Not that it mattered. This source belonged to Nik, too, technically.

Channeling chi within himself and letting it connect his body and mind— consciousness, soul, and existence, Nik felt a rather calm Mokshi within him while his eyes began to glow in a sharp purplish light that even pierced through the curtain of black and white.

Mokshi would always reveal a sense of urgency to leave this world as if afraid that Nik would die and it would be stranded for years to come once again. But in this situation, it seemed calm and for a good reason as it opened up and allowed Nik to see it. The origin of—

---

"Grim... and Reaper..." Aang whispered with his eyes covered by solidified black crust as he was hidden in an alley of Phoenix City alongside Iroh who happened to have saved him.

"Grim and Reaper? Are these the names of the spirits assisting Ozai?" Iroh questioned as Aang nodded.

"Yes... I finally saw the vision once you pulled me away... But what about other prisoners, Master Iroh?" This was the term Aang adopted since Iroh did start teaching the Avatar Firebending.

"I don't know. I felt something wasn't right and when I saw you all alone—"

"Alone?" Aang questioned as Iroh nodded, "Alone. And it would seem that... Ozai is more than what we expected."

"Master Iroh..." Aang gripped his staff as he whispered, "I know what Ozai wants... and it's worse than ruling over the world... Grim and Reaper are two spirits but one. As if two sides of one coin. One gives and the other takes but both of their actions only always cause disastrous consequences... and even the Avatar cannot defeat them alone since the previous Avatar needed assistance, too. And if I can't defeat them... Sokka, Nik... everyone else..."

He lowered his head into his curled-up knees and choked his sobs as Iroh sighed and whispered, "Everything will be alright... let's start with understanding what this... or rather, these spirits are."

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Alternative Title: The Other Side

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