𝑨𝑪𝑻 𝑶𝑵𝑬 ━ 𝑪𝑯𝑨𝑷𝑻𝑬𝑹  𝑻𝑬𝑵

𝐓𝐎 𝐁𝐄 𝐅𝐀𝐈𝐑, 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐖𝐀𝐒 𝐁𝐄𝐓𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐍 𝐁𝐄𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐀𝐓𝐓𝐀𝐂𝐊𝐄𝐃 𝐁𝐘 firebenders, but Kya wouldn't be lying if she said that she was scared of the king. The palace looked even better than the city, but right now Kya was more focused on the fact that one: her hair was ruined, and two: they might get punished by the king.

The grand ceiling of the palace of Omashu loomed high above, there were beautiful designs everywhere which Kya was staring at until Sokka hit her arm and gestured towards the king. The King of Omashu, who sat on his throne, guarded by two stern-faced guards. 

A watch guard stood at the entrance, slightly stepping aside to allow four to pass through. Kya's gaze settled on the king, who looked at them with a questioning expression, arching an eyebrow and grunting as if he was thinking. 

As they were pushed into a kneeling position by two guards, an Omashu soldier stepped forward and spoke. "Your majesty, these juveniles were arrested for vandalism, traveling under false pretenses, and malicious destruction of cabbages."

The cabbage merchant, who had followed them into the hall, jumped up and down, waving his fist in the air. "Off with their heads! One for each head of cabbage!"

   "Silence! Only the king can pass down judgment. What is your judgment, sire?" The soldier gestured at the merchant, his voice firm.

The king squinted his eyes and grunted, considering the situation. The quartet uneasily eyed each other. Kya gulped while Sokka whimpered softly, while Katara managed a somewhat hopeful smile, her hands folded in front of her. Aang, however, kept his gaze fixed to the side, one eyebrow arched in a pout.

The king was taking way too long to respond to them, and Kya could feel beads of sweat running down her forehead onto her cheek. That was until she looked Infront.

Raising his hand, the king declared, "Throw them. . ." Sokka, Katara, Kya and Aang gasped, ". . .a feast!"

The guard gasped as well, and the cabbage merchant grasped his head with both hands. Sokka and Kya broke into wide smiles, while Katara darted a questioning look toward Aang, who arched his eyebrows in wonder.

To say that Kya was hungry was an understatement, in front of her was a richly filled dining table, with all sorts of different dishes and teapots. 

Momo was busily eating a lot of the food, the others sat at the table, their eyes wide with amazement at the spread before them. The king stood behind their chairs, watching them with a playful glint in his eye.

The king turned to Aang. "The people in my city have gotten fat from too many feasts," he said, leaning over Aang and grabbing the chicken leg on his plate. He held it up in front of him. "So, I hope you like your chicken with no skin."

   "Thanks, but I don't eat meat," Aang replied politely.

The king then turned his attention to Sokka. "How about you? I bet you like meat."

The king didn't let him answer and stuffed the chicken into Sokka's mouth, who ate it appreciatively. He then walked over to his own seat.

Katara leaned in close to Aang and whispered, "Is it just me, or," she turned circles with her index finger beside her temple, "is this guy's crown a little crooked?"

The king turned to Aang, "So tell me, young bald one," he said, sitting down, "where are you from?"

Aang hesitated for a moment before answering, "I'm from... Kangaroo Island!"

Kya couldn't help but roll her eyes at the answer and chuckle. Aang shot her a look to go along with it. But the king's eyes sparkled with humour. "Oh, Kangaroo Island, eh? I hear that place is really hopping!"

There was a moment of silence followed, broken only by the sound of someone coughing. They all just stared blankly at the king. Suddenly, Sokka burst out laughing. Katara, Kya and Aang turned to look at him, still maintaining their blank expressions.

Sokka stopped laughing, looking unsure. "What? It was pretty funny."

The king lazily stretched his arms and yawned. "Well, all these good jokes are making me tired. Guess it's time to hit the hay."

Bumi eyed the children with a weird expression as he leaned to the left on his chair. Suddenly, he hurled a chicken leg at them. The meat flew through the air, and Aang nearly tumbled off his chair, reflexively catching the chicken leg in a small airball. The guards gasped in surprise. The entire table watched in shock as Aang continued to suspend the chicken leg in the airball.

The king gestured at Aang. "There's an airbender in our presence, and not just any airbender." He stood up decisively. "The Avatar!"

Kya mumbled under her breath, "Oh spirits. . ." She then turned to Katara whose eyes were wide open. 

Aang stood there, shocked, quickly stopping his bending and putting his hands behind his back. The chicken leg fell onto his plate with a thud.

The king sat down again. "Now, what do you have to say for yourself," he asked with a satisfied smile, "Mr. Pippinpaddleopsicopolis?"

Aang stood up, throwing his hands in the air. "Okay, you caught me," he admitted. "I'm the Avatar. Doing my Avatar thing, keeping the world safe. Everything checks out."

   "No firebenders here. So, good work, everybody!" He looked underneath the table. He pulled Kya, Katara and Sokka into a hug. "Love each other, respect all life," he continued, as they started walking backward toward the exit, "and don't run with your spears. We'll see you next time!"

As they neared the guard at the exit door, the two men crossed their spears, effectively blocking their path. Katara turned to the king, her voice accusatory. "You can't keep us here! Let us leave!"

The king, seemingly oblivious, picked up a lettuce leaf from his plate and waved it in the air. "Lettuce leaf?" he asked nonchalantly.

Sokka held his hand to his mouth and whispered to Aang, "We're in serious trouble. This guy is nuts."

The king's demeanour shifted as he made his announcement. "Tomorrow, the Avatar will face three deadly challenges," he declared, the tension in the room rising. "But for now, the guards will show you to your chamber."

Aang, Katara, Kya and Sokka exchanged worried glances as the guards stepped forward to escort them. They were going to be here for a while. . .

𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐘 𝐖𝐄𝐑𝐄 𝐈𝐍 𝐀 𝐏𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐎𝐍, 𝐎𝐑 𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐂𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐄𝐃 chambers. As the group and their guards walked out of the room they were roughly pushed inside, and the wall was immediately bent up again after them. 

The room in question had an absence of any door. Four green beds were in the centre with three green drapes hanging from the ceiling above them. The children stood in the centre of the room, taking it all in.

Katara looked around in confusion. "This is a prison cell? But it's so nice."

   "Yeah. . . This doesn't feel like a prison to me." said Kya. "Feels more like an inn or like a guest house⎯."

Momo jumped off Aang's shoulders and onto a bed. Aang nodded, "He did say it was newly refurbished."

Sokka huffed at this and said, "Nice or not, we're prisoners!"

Aang's face tightened with worry. "I wonder what these challenges are gonna be."

   "We're not sticking around to find out. There's got to be some way out of here." Katara, determined, looked around the room and glanced at Kya to help her. The latter only nodded and started looking around. 

Aang, excitedly pointing at the other side of the room after a few minutes and exclaimed, "The air vents!"

Kya, inspecting the room more closely, added, "If we can reach those vents, we might just be able to escape."

Sokka, harshly, retorted, "If you think we're going to fit through there, you're crazier than that king."

   "Do you have anything else, genius?" said Kya glaring at Sokka who only huffed. 

Aang turned to Sokka with a spark of hope and said, "We can't, but Momo can!"

Aang looked at the lemur, hopeful. "Momo, I need you to find Appa and bust us outta here!"

Momo looked up at Aang, blinking and chittering softly. Aang climbed onto a chair and began pushing Momo towards the air vent. Aang struggled to get Momo inside the vent without success.

Kya wouldn't lie if she said it was a sad sight, the lemur didn't really look like he wanted to go into the vents. So, Kya walked towards her bed which was next to Katara's and laid down only to stare at the ceiling.

   "Go on, boy, get Appa!" Aang encouraged.

Finally, Aang stopped trying, looking down discouraged, leaving Momo stuck in the vent. Sokka, meanwhile, was relaxing on his bed. "Eh, how was Appa supposed to save us anyway?" Sokka questioned.

Aang reasoned with him, "Appa's a ten-ton flying bison; I think he could figure something out."

Katara, climbing into her bed, added, "Well, no point arguing about it now. Get some rest, Aang." She glanced over at him. "Looks like you'll need it for tomorrow."

Aang walked toward his bed, the weight of the upcoming challenges on his mind, as the group settled in for the night, each contemplating their predicament and hoping for a way out.

𝐖𝐄𝐋𝐋, 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐖𝐀𝐒 𝐀 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐄𝐍𝐆𝐄 𝐀𝐋𝐑𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓, Kya was sure she would have fainted a hundred times already if it was her, but of course she didn't. Well, wouldn't you do the same if you were kidnapped in the middle of your sleep. That was the exact situation Kya was in. 

The King had ordered his guards to kidnap Kya, Katara and Sokka and to be freed, Aang would have to pass all the three challenges. 

They were held up by guards who had a strong grip, Katara had stopped fighting them a long time ago while Sokka and Kya were still very much trying to get out of their grips. "Get off me! Let go!" 

Sokka tried to kick and punch the guards which did not help at all since they were quite strong. The guard simply sighed and shush him which to Kya's surprise, well not really, Sokka grunted and stood quietly. 

That was until they stood infront of a wall which opened to reveal Aang and King Bumi, and as soon as the trio saw Aang they started struggling again. 

King Bumi said, "Oh, I thought you might refuse, so I will give your friends some special souvenirs."

Aang looked back at Bumi, his mind racing. Katara's guard slid a green ring over her finger, and it immediately glowed and tightened around her finger. Sokka had received a blue ring and was frantically trying to remove it. Kya, also held by a guard, had a red ring slipped onto her finger, which tightened just as quickly. All three of them struggled, but the rings wouldn't budge.

King Bumi explained, "Those delightful rings are made of pure jennamite, also known as creeping crystal. It's a crystal that grows remarkably fast. By nightfall, your friends will be completely covered in it. Terrible thing, really. I can stop it, but only if you cooperate."

Bumi glanced toward the water tribe trio. Sokka's ring glowed and expanded toward his hand. "Ah! It's already creeping!" Sokka exclaimed.

   "I'll do what you want," Aang agreed, his voice filled with resolve.

Kya, meanwhile, was examining her red ring with a look of horror. "This ring is hideous! And it's ruining my manicure! Can't you take it off and put it on my other hand?"

Sokka, Katara, Kya, and Bumi were now on a balcony cut into the wall to the left of the waterfall. King Bumi was laughing, laughing at Aang, who was starting his challenges. 

King Bumi looked over the balcony rim while Katara, Sokka, and Kya stood guarded behind him. The jennamite rings had already expanded to engulf part of their right forearms. Bumi glanced back at the siblings with a grin on his face. The jennamite glowed and crept further on their arms.

Bumi turned his attention back to where Aang was standing, ready for the challenge ahead.

And that went well for the first two challenges, he had past them easily while the others tried to get out. After successfully completing them, Aang stood tall. "Come on! I'm ready for the next challenge."

The king gave an evil laugh, Aang and the king stood on a balcony overlooking the arena, while Sokka, Katara, Kya, and a guard stood on an adjacent balcony. The crystals had passed their heads, leaving their faces exposed.

Bumi announced, "Your final test is a duel. And as a special treat, you may choose your opponent."

Two tough-looking men emerged, standing next to the king. Aang looked at them uncertainly.

   "Point and choose," The king instructed.

   "So ... you're saying whoever I point to, that's the person I get to fight?" Aang clarified.

The king's grin widened, "Choose wisely!"

Aang hesitated before declaring, "I ... choose ... you." He pointed at the king.

   "Wrong choice!" the king exclaimed.

The king straightened up and removed his outer robe, revealing a powerfully built old man. With a swift earthbending move, he sent Aang flying off the balcony and into the arena. Bumi jumped down right in front of Aang and laughed, ready for the final challenge. . .

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐖𝐀𝐒 𝐒𝐔𝐑𝐏𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐋𝐘 𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐎𝐍𝐆, 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐖𝐀𝐒 𝐍𝐎𝐓 𝐀𝐂𝐓𝐔𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐘 surprising, if you'd see him, you'd know you would not be able to beat him, but Aang was the Avatar, so he would be able to beat him? Right?

Kya was right, obviously, Aang won, well technically no one won but, in the end, he'd gotten them equalise, the king was held by staff point while he held a huge boulder above both of them. 

The King looked at Aang with a grin. "Well done, Avatar. You fight with much fire in your heart." He tossed the boulder aside and bent up to the balcony where the three siblings were almost completely encased. Aang joined him. "You've passed all my tests. Now, you must answer one question."

Aang's face twisted in frustration. "That's not fair! You said you would release my friends if I finished your tests."

Bumi chuckled, "Oh, but what's the point of tests if you don't learn anything?"

"Oh, come on!" Sokka exclaimed, exasperated.

Bumi continued, "Answer this one question and I will set your friends free. What ... is my name? From the looks of your friends, I'd say you only have a few minutes."

Aang turned to Katara, Sokka, and Kya, whispering urgently. "How am I supposed to know his name?"

Katara's eyes widened with realization. "Think about the challenges. Maybe it's some kind of riddle."

Sokka's face lit up. "I got it!"

Aang looked hopeful. "Yeah?"

   "He's an earthbender, right? Rocky. You know, because of all the rocks," Sokka suggested.

Katara smiled softly. "We're going to keep trying, but that is a good back-up."

Kya added sarcastically, "Rocky? Really, Sokka? We're about to become crystal statues, and that's the best you've got?"

Aang sighed, trying to think. "Okay. So back to the challenges. I got a key from the waterfall, I saved his pet, and I had a duel."

Katara's eyes lit up with a hint of urgency. "And what did you learn?"

Aang thought for a moment. "Well, everything was different than I expected."

Katara nodded, her anxiety growing as the jennamite continued to creep up her arm. "And?"

Aang's eyes widened with realization. "Well, they weren't straightforward. To solve each test, I had to think differently than I usually would." He turned to face them with newfound confidence. "I know his name."

Kya sighed hopeful, while Aang ran to the king to confront him, and when they had reconciliated, Katara's voice echoed with urgency. "Uh, over here!"

Sokka, struggling against the crystal, added, "Little help?"

Kya struggled as well and said with more urgency, "Please?!"

With a swift motion, Bumi used his earthbending to break the jennamite crystals encasing Katara, Sokka, and Kya. The shards flew everywhere, and Bumi caught one, examining it.

   "Jennamite is made of rock candy," he explained, taking a bite out of the crystal. "Delicious!"

Katara looked at Aang in astonishment. "So this crazy king is your old friend Bumi?"

Bumi chuckled. "Who are you calling old? Okay, I'm old."

Sokka, still bewildered, asked, "Why did you do all of this instead of just telling Aang who you were?"

Bumi leaned back, snorting with amusement. "First of all, it's pretty fun messing with people. But I do have a reason. Aang, you have a difficult task ahead. The world has changed in the hundred years that you've been gone. It's the duty of the Avatar to restore balance to the world by defeating Fire Lord Ozai. You have much to learn. You must master the four elements and confront the Fire Lord. And when you do, I hope you will think like a mad genius. And it looks like you're in good hands. You'll need your friends to help you defeat the Fire Nation." 

Momo climbed up onto Aang's shoulder, and Bumi smiled. "And you'll need Momo, too."

Kya, finally free and brushing herself off and said sarcastically, "Well, this has been quite fun."

Aang grinned at his friends and then turned to Bumi. "Thank you for your wisdom, but before we leave, I have a challenge for you."

Bumi and Aang were riding down the mail system of Omashu, laughing as they sped through the city. The bustling cityscape stretched out before them, filled with the sounds of life and energy. 

A cloud of dust was raised as a crash echoed in the distance, the sound of their laughter lingering in the air. . .

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❪ ៸ 𝐀𝐔𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐑'𝐒 𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐄 ━━━━━ ! ﹆◞ ❫
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❪ . . . the tenth chapter for kingdom come everyone!!!! ❫
❪ . . . this chapter is sorta more of a filler episode and am not sure whether i should do the haru episode with a bit more somethinf between haru and kya or i should go directly to the other episode??????? enjoyyyy!!!! ... 3.1k words ❫
❪ . . . PLEASE tell me how you guys feel about it ??❫
❪ . . .PLEASE don't be a ghost reader, comment and vote, I love to reply to everyone and interact with my readers, love all of you darlings <33 ❫