Chapter 41

“Rangi tell us how she’s alive right now, how is she alive? You said she was dead” Wong demanded, though you could hear the relief in his words. Kyoshi was still alive.

Rangi tried to explain what Kyoshi had done, and the reasoning for her plan, until it was clear that some stragglers were still trying to see what had happened above.

“What do we do now, we need to get Kyoshi out of here” Kirima said urgently.

Little did the members know what was waiting for them at the top, a dead leader, shut portal, the crumble of their dreamt nation.

“Let them come.” Rangi declares as she stands over Kyoshi’s body.

Slowly members finally reach them on the platform, wearing wired looks of anger and confusion.

“Watch her for a minute, will you Kirima?” Rangi asks as she begins to approach them.

The members yell at first, seeing the mess in front of them. Rangi briefly tells them what had happened. Their leader had messed with the peace between not only the other nations but the spirits as well, and had paid the price. The portal was merely caught in the crossfire. Though it wasn’t the exact truth it seemed more than they deserved.

With her words this angers most of them, acting out sheer hatred they charged at Rangi without thinking, without considering the possibility of what would be instored for them.

The only thing on Rangi’s mind wasn’t the swarm of people charging at, or that her group was outnumbered. It was the fact that Kyoshi was behind her, completely vulnerable to the world around them. She would be Kyoshi’s first and last line of defense.

Seeing the determination in the members eyes, Rangi hardly felt like her mind was in control anymore, it was all nearly reflex.

Inhaling sharply she produces a massive flame wall shining of pure white light. Her team members behind her stared in awe, the flames were as pure as Rangi’s honor to protect the avatar, to protect Kyoshi.

“Touch her and you’re dead,” Rangi says from behind her firefly wall. There was a tone of desperation in her voice, she would not fall. It sounded as angry as it did broken.

Most of the people had been caught in the flames, ending with them stumbling back over the edge. When Rangi was sure they had a minute before anything else could get in their way she rushed back to Kyoshi’s side.

The only thing now in her mind was undoing the damage that Kyoshi had inflicted on herself. She hesitantly reached out over Kyoshi’s body before Kirima yanked it away. “You can’t do it like that,” She said firmly. “She’s probably hyperthermic by now, humans are meant to hibernate or whatever the hell she did to herself.” Kirima said.

“Don’t you think I know that?” Rangi replied, ripping her wrist out of Kirima’s grasp.

“Then you know that we can’t heat her up as quickly as we can, her body would simply go into shock.” Loa ge explained. He didn’t have to say the consequences, they all already knew.

Eventually Rangi realized that she couldn’t help Kyoshi not now, but they had to get out of here. Wong and Lao Ge get to creating a bridge across the trench that Kysohi had created, using large slabs of earth to make it strong enough to cross. 

When they were first done, Rangi tried to start and lift Kyoshi, as if she would carry Kyoshi all the way back home. But her body simply wouldn’t stop shaking, as frustrating as it was she realized she couldn’t do anything here either.

Wong ends up doing it instead, Kirima helping him get Kyoshi on his back. As they did so Kyoshi’s fans fell from her sash and clattered onto the ground. Rangi picked them up quickly, her hands were still trembling but she just tried to tighten her grasp as they began to leave.

If the only thing that she could do right now was to hold the fans that Kysohi loved so much she would do just that. Even if her hands begged to let them go, she would prevail.

For once Rangi walked behind most of the group, her eyes fixed on the avatar, she watched each shallow breath escape from Kyoshi’s lungs, her only sign she was still alive.

The time between each breath Rangi felt herself holding her own, as if her body believed that each breath would have been Kyoshi’s final.

As they move further from the portal some scattered men approach them, trying to challenge Kyoshi. They were mad at her. They assumed she was behind the chaos, they guessed right of course. But their threats and challenges were to deaf ears.

Wong spoke up first for once, and tried to keep up the rumor that Kyoshi was dead to limit the drama and conflict between here, and the nearest hospital. After all you couldn’t tell unless you waited and watched closely enough to see a small shuttered breath, or feel the ever so faint pulse.

But the men still pressed on, one looked to be an earth bender from his looks, he in particular seemed rather upset with this development.”You wouldn’t guard a dead body, not like that”

Rangi hardly remembered what happened after that, it felt like the more time passed the more stiff and tired her body became, the more she dragged on.

She had gotten into a fight with Kirima when the water bender had told Rangi to let her Lao Ge take care of them but this only angered her more.

Though Rnagi couldn’t see how exhausted she had looked, the condition that Kyoshi inflected on herself seemed to almost be taking a worse toll on Rangi. She after all was the one who had to stay conscious the whole time.

One way or the other they made it back to town. At first they were going to go to the hospital but Rangi refused, so much so that the others thought she would have collapsed there on the spot..

“The hospital would be best” Lao Ge commented.

“No, we’re not going back there,” Rangi yelled.

“Kyoshi needs medical attention, you need medical attention Rangi. Snap out of it” Kirima argued, using the firebender’s real name for the first time since they had been introduced.

“What did you call me?” Rangi called, it seemed like hearing her own name from Kirima was enough to pull her back a bit.

“Rangi, Kyoshi needs help. Help you can’t give her right now”

The others stared at the waterbender as she spoke, Rangi’s eyes widened with anger.

“Kirima quiet, we don’t need anymore fighting,” Wong said, trying to hush her.

“No she needs to hear it, we all want to help Kyoshi but she needs real help, and she deserves the best. Don’t you think so?” Kirima asked turning to Rangi, who had seemed to had finally thought about Kirima’s words

“It will be fine, I got her” Rangi said desperately, “Give her to me” It started to sound more like a plea as she reached for Kyoshi as if she were going to try and carry her somewhere. But Wong turned away, keeping himself between Rangi and Kyoshi who was still naturally slumped on his back.

“Wong what the fuck, stop that” Rangi yelled.

They were getting nowhere, even though Kyoshi never liked to be a diplomat or being in the middle of drama she was always a natural mediator, especially in this group and they were all feeling the effects of her absence.

“Okay timeout” Lao ge called over the commotion stomping one of his feet so that the earth shook a bit to gain their attention. “Everyone agrees to go to hospital, except you” He pointed to Rangi. “Maybe if you would explain yourself then we could see it your way. If not you are simply outvoted”

Rangi scowled before she suddenly became focused on the ground. “I don’t want to take her there, not again”

“That’s not a good enough reason, we’re wasting time so either tell us why or that’s where we’re going.” Kirima said, crossing her arms.

“Kenna worked there okay, and she admitted to messing with Kyoshi while she was there the last time so there still may be some people there that would do the same and that’s not a risk I want to take right now okay?” She finally admitted. “I don’t want to risk anything, not when it comes to her”

Even though they had found a way to get the portal closed and Kenna was now gone, Rangi still couldn’t shake the feeling of betrayal from a few mere hours ago, and that place would only remind her of that.

The group seemed to be slightly shocked at the raw emotion they were seeing from Rangi, but as much as Kirima hated to admit it she could see Rangi’s point. At least from the firebder’s perspective.

They had decided on going back to Hei’ Ran’s place and having a medical team meeting there, the place was big enough. But this plan had a condition too, if any of the medical staff said that Kysohi needed to be moved Rangi wouldn’t fight it. She had finally agreed to these terms.

Rangi used the force of her body to push open the doors, while the rest of them followed behind. “Can someone send a hawk to Jinap?” She mumbled as the doors shut.

Wong had set Kyoshi down on a couch covering her with a blanket as best he could as Rangi stood over her. Soon someone tapped her on the shoulder breaking her from her trance.

It was Jinpa who wore a wary smile. “A healing team is on there way”

Rangi nodded as she went back to watching Kyoshi, as if she would disappear if Rangi looked away for too long.

“You should sit down, ” He offered. The rest of the group stay back from the corner, they had also offered this, and were now done dealing with the firebender. If Jinpa wanted to play with fire, that was his funeral.

“Not until they get here” Rangi muttered, clenching her fists. She wouldn’t rest not until Kyoshi was taken care of first, she had promised herself that.

Jinpa looked over Rangi more carefully, that mission was no walk in the park. Even Rangi as much as she prided herself on looking neat and put together looked awfully tattered. “Here, they will be there soon” He offered again as he pulled up a chair.

But she kicked it away, “I said I’m going to wait okay?” She yelled back. He sighed as he looked over to the others who all gave them a ‘I told you so’ look.

“Fine I’m gonna go wait by the door” He decided to stay out of Rangi’s way for the time being, and not just because she seemed to snap at every word someone said. It was that look of fear in her eyes, they almost looked defeated. It was hard to stand by and just watch, this way at least he felt like he was doing something.

Is finding someone you love that much a good or a bad thing? He thought as he left the room. Perhaps it’s both, it can be both a strength and a weakness.

When the medical team finally came it took them a while to understand what the exact condition of the avatar really was. They settled on a really severe case of hyperthermia, and got to work trying to reheat her slowly, and bring her body temperature up hoping her other organs would follow.

As night fell Rangi passed out beside a warm tub that Kyoshi was propped up in. Much like when Rangi was healing in the northern water tribe what felt like so long ago.

The rest of the crew was in the other room with the couches all sleeping in various positions. The only one who was still up was Jinpa who was looking over scrolls, and writing down what information he had gotten out of the group. He figured he ask more questions tomorrow, like where was Kenna? The other water bender that they decided to bring along. Jinpa had ment to ask sooner but there where more important things going on, plus none of them brought it up. Something must had happened.

He looks up form his scrolls as Hei Ran walks through the door, by the looks of it she must had been out somewhere for dinner. She looked around the assortment or people passed out around her living room in various positions before finding Jinpa.

“Why is the flying opera company scattered through my house? This is not an inn. And where is my daughter, and daughter in law to be?” She asked the monk.

He stood with a sigh as he geustered into the other room. They walked in together til Hei Ran saw the healing tub and her daughter asleep beside it.

“Spirits, what have they done now?”

Jinpa sighed once more, “We should talk in the other room”

So I feel like this may have been a boring chapter but there was definitely collateral damage, and I was sad when I’ve been writing these past chapters so I’m sorry to say that you all will suffer with me. Also do we want more like little flash backs, they are honestly just little one shots I liked to add in for fun but I feel like this story is needing some light and fluff so maybe I should start adding them back in, let me know what you think, and have a great day/night❤️