"I agree. I'd rather not wait to find out if they are of low moral character, or smart enough to learn a lesson from this." Jampo waves Uupa to come down, and the young sky bison obliges, settling to the ground with a WHUFF and scattering of small debris kicked up by the bison's airbending.
"Would you like to join me master Taikahana?" Jampo offers, gesturing for the warrior to precede him climbing into the sky-saddle.
"Master Jampo, if Uupa would condescend to carry some of our mounts' baggage, Mica and I could ride while everyone else flies. That would give us scouts both on the ground and in the air, and we would make better time than if we walk," Palila suggests with some hesitation.
Moesashi Taikahana appears pale as Jampo asks if he would like to climb on the great beast. Did he go a shade grayer when he looked at the great air bison? No, surely it must just be the aftereffect of being pummelled senseless.
"I-I'm sure that request is t-too much. We should not a-ask so much of Jampo-san." He swallows carefully. "We...we are slower yes, b-but there's-s no shame in walking. On the ground with both feet. Solidly, on the ground."
He seems rather tense.
"You may ride Siba if you like, Taikahana-san. I would not mind flying like a bird for a while, and Siba is well-trained." Palila closes her eyes, as if already feeling the wind streaming through her hair. "Maybe we can pet birds as they fly by."
Mica closes her eyes, imagining being a bird herself. On one hand, being able to fly would be really cool. On the other hand, she tossed her cookies the last time she rode an airship. I guess I would be a really crappy bird...
"Speaking of crappy birds..." the earthbender mumbles, her eyes darting around. She had managed to lose track of Karoo during their brief scuffle with the triads. But perhaps it would be more accurate to say that the ostrich horse had lost track of itself. Mica does not have to search for long, because just a few seconds later, she spots her trusty steed loitering just a dozen or so feet off the road, with its head buried in the ground. She runs a hand through her hairdo and sighs in defeat. "Yeah, I think I'll stick to the ground for now, thanks."
"Master Jampo, if Uupa would condescend to carry some of our mounts' baggage, Mica and I could ride while everyone else flies. That would give us scouts both on the ground and in the air, and we would make better time than if we walk," Palila suggests with some hesitation.
"An excellent idea Palila." Jampo smiles in relief.
Uupa is still small, and has not yet reached his full growth,..." which seems to surprise a couple of the group, seeing their reactions to that comment. ",... But there is still plenty of room in the sky-saddle for a few packs, as well as multiple riders." Jampo smiles. Evidently he likes the idea of having company.
Aside from the scuffle outside of the gates of Republic City, Team Avatar does not find any hardship along the way to the river crossing to Yu Dao. There are some travelers upon the shore, waiting to board the ferry to get across the river, mostly those who could not afford a satomobile and needed to journey back to Yu Dao on foot after the Avatar Day festivities. There are only about five or six families here still waiting.
"Hey!" a bald-headed boy with a faded arrow drawn onto his head and a few missing teeth points out behind at the approaching group. "It's those famous guys!"
There's some mumbling among the crowd as they turn around to see, and the boy zooms towards Team Avatar with his arms outstretched while making some plane sounds. He doesn't look up, however, and instead wonders, "Hey, where are the rest of the famous guys! Did you lose some members of your team? Where's your airbender?" He doesn't allow an answer before offering, "I'll be your new airbending master! See this, I got my tattoos! And I can airbend! Watch this!" He punches up in Taikahana's general direction, "Whooosh! Whoooosh! You can feel the breeze on your face now! Whooosh! I knocked you off your ostrich horse!"
After she carefully shows Taikahana how to control the ostrich horse (as if he has never ridden before), Palila practically skips over to Uupa to pat his nose and clamber on board, carrying her pack and weapons to relieve Siba of that weight.
When everyone is settled and they ascend, Palila laughs with delight. "I was always jealous of Pima being able to fly, and now I can do it, too! Everything looks so different from above! Look, I can see Jian's house from here!" All the exclamation points are obvious.
The ostrich horse seems a trifle startled by the rapid approach of the flying airbender...or possibly Taika was just doing his best not to fall off, and the poor beast didn't quite understand how to interpret his movements and shifts. After some jostling, Taikahana rolls off its backend as the Master Airbender punches him with the power of wind.
Surprisingly, Taikahana manages to roll into the fall and comes up in a fighting stance, his face deadly serious.
He rushes the Master Airbender, his arms moving in the forms of firebending katas to release bursts of flame well over the boy's head and side away from the crowd. Then he feigns a trip and rolls onto his back at the boy's feet.
"Ah, you've defeated me, Master Airbender," Taika says seriously. "Please spare my life; I have a mission of utmost importance."
Taikahana's experience with staged fights for shrine festivals actually comes in handy surprisingly.
"Well I'm definitely eager to join up on Uupa!" He's been hoping to get a chance to fly, and sticking close to Palila can't hurt. Once they're up in the air he can't help but grin sharing in Palila's delight "Wow yeah, you can see everything from up here! It's amazing!"
Peering down at the group gathered trying to make out what was going on below "Hey, what is going on down there?" Seeing the sudden blast of fire the waterbender's eyes widen "Whoa fire!, something's happening down there, we'd better check it out."
"Oh no! Is Siba OK?" Palila peers worriedly over Uupa's side, trying to see her mount without falling off.
The boy regards Taikahana with great scrutiny, deciding on the man's fate. "No mercy!" he cries, and he gets ready to unleash his finishing move when a boulder of a man intervenes.
"Gotan!"
At the sound of his name, the boy rolls his head back and says, "Okay, fiiiine, mercy." He nods towards Taikahana, "You got lucky, buster! Let me know if you need a new airbender, 'cause I kick butts!"
The man steps forward between his son and the samurai, speaking in a low gravelly voice, "My son didn't mean anything by it! He got very excited after hearing the stories about Avatar Aang back at the festival." He looks towards his son and then back at the two travelers. Anxiously, he adds, "Are you going to be crossing on the ferry?"
Jampo positively beams in the new riders admiration of his furry friend. But he quickly turns serious when the others mention flame blasts! He glances to where the others are pointing.
"I think he's fine. Look, Taik is right,... is he kneeling to that boy?"
Jampo actually scratches his shaved head in confusion.
"Come on Uupa, let's land over there and see what's going on." Jampo reaches over and ruffles the sky bison's fur once more, and flicks the reigns to tell the great beast which way to go.
Within a few short moments, the sky bison has landed with a gentle rush of air, and Jampo leads the others in dismounting. (His experience allowing him to dismount by the time the others untie their safety straps)
The people by the river point upwards towards Uupa when his shadow passes over, smiles apparent on their face: even now, it's rare to see a master airbender with a sky bison.
"The other famous guys were in the sky!" cries Gotan at the twist. "Wow, that's so cool! He's got real tattoos!"
The large man holds up a hand towards his son to try and quiet his excitement down a little bit. He says, "I see now. You have your own way to get across... I- we were hoping..." He trails off.
and most of the adults present, to be worried.
Taikahana carefully picks himself up off the ground. "I am in your debt, young master," the young fire samurai says to Gotan seriously. He makes a formal bow to the child.
Straightening, he nods with a small smile to let the boy's father know he has taken no offense.
"I hope you will forgive my theatrics. I come from a long line of shrine tenders, and the festival displays were always some of my favorite activities in which to take part."
In response to the first question, Taika responds, "I believe we do need to use the ferry. These fine ostrich horses belong to my companions, and I believe we will need to get them across in the normal way."
"Yes, we will be needing to use the ferry, sir. Would you mind showing me how it operates?" Taika says a little louder than necessary to convey that he understands the man is trying to shield his son from whatever worries him. Taika's eyes casually sweep the area around them, and those familiar with combat see the tension of readiness begin to simmer.
Palila slides down Uupa's side, giving him a pat and her thanks. Seeing no apparent danger, she dashes to Siba to be certain the great beast is unhurt. On the way, she encourages the fallen Taikahana with a quick, "Don't worry; I'm sure you will win next time!" She comforts the bird-beast, finding it and its gear in fine fettle, then leads it to the ferry conference.
She listens to the conversation but says nothing, feeling that Taikahana's question is adequate (for now) and very to the point.
Mica looks around at the nearby families, feeling a pang of sympathy for them. She, too, could not afford a satomobile. Despite it being on her birthday wish list for the past few years, her father had never deigned to buy her one. Her genius plan to get one from a pro-bending sponsorship had not exactly panned out either.
A shame, really. She could see it in her mind: the new Team Avatar (sans Avatar) packed into a tricked out ride with honking big wheels, catapulting off sand dunes and landing in all sorts of danger. Karoo, unfortunately, would have to eat their dust.
"Huh? Wha? Oh, yeah, ferry," she says distractedly, catching onto the gist of the conversation several seconds late.
Jampo smiles once he figures out the situation. He figures he'll have a little fun as well, and bows to the boy, assuming a somber expression on his face that he hopes make him look like one of his Airbending teachers. One of the stuffed-robe ones.
"Very good young airbender." Jampo says, trying to keep a straight face.
"Always remember to temper your power with wisdom, and mercy." Jampo flashes a smile at the father, and notices that something seems to be bothering the man.
"Thanks, mister master airbender!" says Gotan, bowing in return, "I'll be the best airbender of all. Whoooosh! Whooooosh!" He returns to running around with his arms out and making airplane sounds in excitement.
The child's father seems relieved when Taikahana offers to talk to him near the ferry, and hurries towards the shore. When enough of Team Avatar is around, he says, "They've been talking about something in the river. Some kind of... creature. The ferrymen are talking about extra pay for protection, or they're not going to cross. We don't have enough between us here to afford what they're offering... We only planned for standard fare." He glances back to the group. "But if you all could protect the boat on the trip..."
"Money for protection? I don't understand. Will they throw money at it?" Palila scrunches her face in confusion, then shrugs, smiling. "No matter. Siba and Karoo must take the ferry across, so the ferry must go across. I will go with them and protect the ferry from the creature. And I will not throw money at it! I will bonk it on its nose!" She twirls one of her bonking sticks.
"Most things do not like being bonked on the nose," she explains to the father, gravely.
"Most things do not like being bonked on the nose," she explains to the father, gravely.
"That is very true." Jampo agrees wryly, absentmindedly rubbing his nose at a memory.
"I will be happy to keep watch with Uupa from above, with whomever wishes to join me. The rest of us can ride and guard the ferry if it becomes necessary. Although, I find the chances of a 'creature' in the river to be, unlikely. We will offer to guard the ferry and see if the ferry master will agree to that." Jampo says to the father with a smile.
Jampo speaks to the others, out of earshot of the father.
"This sounds like a scam to me. A ploy to get more money out of would be passengers. Hopefully that's all it is. But, on the off chance that there IS a 'creature' of some sort in the river, it would most likely be a spirit creature of some sort. In which case, please do not attack it first. It likely means no harm, and just wishes to be left alone."
Palila squints at Jampo. "Spirit creatures can be very terrible. If it is attacking the ferry, which has been running peaceably until now, it may not be as nice as you think! We should ask the ferrymen what they have seen. That will help us understand what we are up against."
"I can think of nothing which would make me happier than to help you, sir. I, Moesashi Taikahana, will see to the safe passage of you and your son."
The samurai stands straight and proud.
"Thank you! Thank you, Moesashi Taikahana. I'm sure you will be more protection than their hired help anyways, and then we'll get to go home..." says the man, his voice hushing slightly at the mention of the boat's preferred enforcer. "The captain is on board, I'm sure he will talk to you if you ask for him."
Tikaani slides down and hops off of Uupa landing lightly by the bison's
leg, and gives the animal a little pet.
"Money for protection hmm? If they've been having trouble with something making trouble for the ferry maybe they needed to hire some extra muscle." The waterbender nods in agreement to Palila's suggestion "Yeah I think talking with the Ferrymen is definitely a good place to start. They can tell us some details, if this is a spirit maybe the ferry is disturbing it somehow... I'm not familiar with spirits... if it is one, can we talk to it? Find out what the problem is? If it's some kind of creature maybe it's being territorial."
"Spirits? They're just like people. Only see-through. And they don't look like us. And they won't always talk. And they think different." Palila considers a moment, idly scratching Siba's ear. "I guess they aren't really like people. But we don't know it's a spirit; that's just something Jampo said. Maybe the ferryers will know more."
Jampo bows his head, acknowledging the questioning of his presumptions.
"True, not all Spirit Creatures are friendly, although I have been taught that even unfriendly ones are not always aggressive. Let us proceed as you have wisely suggested. We shall speak with the ferry captain, and find out what is happening. Best to proceed with what knowledge is available than guessing and being mistaken, or rushing blindly in."
"Well, then, let's go talk to this captain man." Palila tugs Siba into motion and strides towards the ferry with a determined air.
"Spirits are... very much themselves," Palila says to Jampo as they walk, "And you are right; even unfriendly ones are not always hostile. It's like... I guess like a snake with poison here. They do not necessarily want to bite you, but they will if you make a mistake. And sometimes, you don't even know a snake is there, so you make a mistake and they bite you... but they didn't understand that you didn't see them. Does that make sense? And many of the spirit's missions and interests, we don't understand. It can be very hard to communicate."
"Hey, let's not count on it being a spirit just yet," Mica interjects, growing just a tad nervous. She rolls her shoulders around as the group heads for the ferry. "For all we know, it's just a crocodile shark. Or an alligator shark. I always forget which one's freshwater... That would make things a lot less complicated, yeah?"
"Very true." Jampo replies to Palila with a nod of his head.
"Being raised at the Air temple, I tend to forget that not all the world is as often in contact with the spirits as we are. Not that most of us interact with them on a daily basis. But they are not uncommon. "
JAmpo gives a small smile at Mica.
"Yes. It would make it much simpler. I confess that I would prefer a simple solution to, whatever this is." he smiles again, at a memory.
"One of my favorite teachers once told me, 'Hope for the best. But prepare for the worst. That way you are seldom disappointed. Or surprised.'"
As Gotan's father had implied, the guards seem to let the group by without any trouble since the ship is not scheduled to cross (though they do warn against starting any trouble).
The ferry is decorated in bright greens, yellows and reds, with a curved gabled roof in traditional Earth Kingdom style. This ship has a waterbender on it, near the back, likely the one in charge of propelling the vessel across the wide river.
The river appears to be miles across, with the distant rocky shore seemingly tinged blue in the distance. The captain is out on the deck dressed in a long forest green coat with gold coloured buttons, and he looks out across the wide, glittering expanse with concern etched into the features of his face. As your footsteps come closer, he glances over his shoulder, "Ah? Are you needing to cross?"
Jampo gives a friendly bow and a small smile.
"Yes please. We have some who need to ride across. We have been told that there may be difficulty with the crossing? Some sort of creature? We would like to offer our assistance in protecting the vessel as it crosses, and in dealing with the creature. We are all Benders and Warriors of some skill. We would like to help resolve the situation if we can."
Taikahana reassures the concerned citizens they will look into the matter and most certainly strive to keep the other passengers safe. He moves to stand resolutely next to Jampo giving the ferry captain a sharp nod to emphasize the airbender's position.
The captain scowls and turns towards Jampo, "Is that what they are saying? A creature? Well... it is more what the creature comes with that I am worry. It seems to be be trained by some river pirates. You ever hear of river pirates?" He lets just enough of a lull to make it seem like it paused, and then bangs his hands against the rail, "Me neither! This just started, and Kasom from the Norther Water Tribe has been helping us out. By reputation alone, he's managed to keep them at bay, but his help hasn't come cheap."
The captain scowls, "But if you think that you can actually fight them off, be my guest! I would rather not pay another copper to that greedy son of a-"
"Are my ears burning?" says a dusky-skinned man, stepping out of the captain's quarters. He needs to duck underneath the doorway, as he stands at nearly six and a half feet tall. "Are you singing my praises, captain?" He does a one-armed flex, showing off his huge biceps coming out of his sleeveless, fur-lined top. "My name is Kasom of the North! Strongest man to come out of my city, and one of the best benders around."
"I didn't think you needed muscles to bend. I thought it had more to do with what was between your ears and in your heart," Palila chimes in, uninvited. "But then, I'm no bender."
Jampo manages to bite his lip, to hide his smile at Palila's comment.
Oh yes, Jampo thinks he LIKES this lady!
Coughing gently as if to clear his throat, Jampo smiles at the newcomer.
"I'm sorry, I'm a little confused. We are dealing with a river monster, AND river pirates? That seems, highly unusual." Jampo looks innocently between the captain and the large Northerner.
"I LIKE unusual. It's exciting!" The youth adds, his smile growing broader. "I was afraid that this trip might be boring. Long journeys usually are, don't you think?" He asks Palila, turning his head to look at her so that the captain and Northerner can't see his sly wink to her.
"But pirates, in THIS day and age! THAT sounds like fun, don't you agree?!" He continues cheerfully.
"River...pirates?" Taikahana blinks at the ferry captain's words.
Taikahana looks at the muscled newcomer with an oddly detached expression.
"Mmm...and why would you charge for your services instead of simply taking care of the problem decisively once and for all?" His voice is dripping with disdain.
"River pirates," repeats Kasom, holding out a hand towards the Captain while interrupting him. "A fiercer lot of river pirates, I've never seen! They have a fearsome hippo shark pulling their riverboat, with teeth the size of me! And I am no small man!" He laughs and slaps Taikahana on the back in a familiar way. The laugh is cut short when he processes what the firebender said.
"If those cowards were not so quick to run away, I'd have given them my famous one-two punch! But you can't travel the lands on an empty wallet or an empty stomach. So what about you kids?" says Kasom, putting his hands on his hips, "Are you able to pay the fee?"
"Oh, we will just do away with the pirates and hippo shark and cross for free," Palila smiles at the big man, "Then you won't have to worry! You should stay on the shore, because it sounds like they are very afraid of you. They won't be afraid of us, but we will surprise them."
Again, Jampo suddenly develops an itch on his cheek that he reaches up to scratch, conveniently hiding his smirk at Palila's declaration.
Years of living with monks, some of whom have taken vows of silence, has not provided many opportunities to practice quick-witted, clever comebacks. This journey will provide new opportunities at least!
Jampo raises an eyebrow at Kasom's familiar treatment of Taik. A part of him is surprised that the big Northerner still has a hand!
"We will, of course, pay for the transport of the Ostrich-Horses." Jampo adds solemnly, straight-faced once again.
"After all, it would be unfair to deny the Captain his fair wage for services provided. Will that be acceptable Captain?" Jampo nods politely to the Captain of the ferry.
Palila turns to Jampo in confusion. "But the captain is paying this big muscle man to protect his boat. If we beat the pirates for him, why wouldn't he pay us? Then we would pay him back for passage, so it would all be free to both of us? I don't understand money," she frowns.
Taikahana turns to Palila and provides the confused young woman a slight smile.
"It is a matter of honor, Palila. A true warrior knows that it is his honor and duty to to serve and to protect those who may not be able to do so on their own. To succeed is payment enough, but if the captain and his crew wish to provide us passage as a reward then we shall not turn down a gracious gift. However, the passage of your ostrich horses would still be the very nature of the ferry trade. We cannot in good conscience expect these fine men and women to make no profit for doing the very job which is their livelihood."
The firebender's eyes narrow, and he casts an aspersive glance towards the muscled waterbender. "Those who would do this have forgotten the path of righteousness and abandoned honor to bully and take advantage of others. This is not the way of the true and noble warrior."
"Honor. Money. So confusing. This is why I talk to Siba." Palila studies the toes peeking out from the ends of her sandals, sighing. Her hanging hair obscures her face.
Tikaani looks the giant man up and down "Wow they sure make them big in the northern water tribe, I'm from the southern tribe myself, although Yu Dao has been my home for a while now."
The young waterbender smiles at Palila's question of bending. "You are mostly correct Palila, though some muscles are required... I would say bending is like... dancing" Tik decides "Yes, it's like dancing, you may learn the same steps, but everybody does it differently, everyone has their own style." He grins towards Palila "Maybe I could teach you a southern water tribe dance sometime."
Turning back to the tank of a man Tikaani says "I have not seen any waterbenders that depend on so much muscle, we usually prefer flexibility and ease of movement to flow from one motion to the next. I would be most interested to see the northern style and see how you make use of these muscles Kasom. Perhaps we could have a friendly spar sometime."
He frowns a bit when the man interrupts the captain "Please let the captain speak as he would, he is the captain after all, and should be shown the proper respect." Thinking back Tik doesn't think the Captain has actually gotten a word in since Kasom came out. Could this man just be a bully steam rolling the captain like Taikahana implied?
He leans in closer to Palila as she studies her toes, and puts an arm over her shoulders to talk quietly to her for a moment.
He sighs and takes a glance back towards Kasom "Also something else is bothering me, Captain said this guy is keeping the pirates at bay by reputation alone. Which makes me question two things First, sounds like that means he's never actually had to fight any pirates, they haven't attacked while he's been around. Second, being a pro bender I've met a lot of benders, but I've never heard of Kasom of the North, have you? How does someone we've never heard of have a rep that scares off fearsome pirates? If he were Nuktuk Hero of the South that would be another story."
Mica looks Kasom up and down, genuinely impressed by his "assets." Even some of the most muscular earthbenders she'd met in her time were less swole than the guy. Even so, alarm bells go off in her head the moment the waterbender opens his big mouth. Any sense of attraction is immediately lost to her conclusion that the man must have rocks for brains.
"Flexibility? This guys looks like he does plenty of flexing," she says to the others, jabbing a thumb in Kasom's direction as though he were out of earshot. Whether she is making fun of a guy is up for debate. Probably. "A real musclebender, if you know what I mean."
The earthbender turns to address the captain, clearly more interested in what he has to say.
"A hippo shark sounds pretty manageable to me. Those pirates? Even more so. How about we give you and musclehead here a hand? For free, of course. And, uh, for honor, or whatever."
Palila whispers back to Tik from behind the curtain of her hair.
"A duel with me? Why, you're a spirited rapscallion!" laughs Kasom, "I'd be glad to show you a-" He flexes once more, and then points outwards, "-pointer or two."
While Kasom does not seem to understand much of what these younger people are talking about, he definitely understands that they are trying to steal his job. "Captain, surely you don't want to tr-"
The Captain shakes his head towards Kasom and says, "The lost fares are absolutely killing us. If they're going to chase those pirates away for good, well, that's worth it to me!" He seems to be a lot more perked up than he was when the group had arrived on deck.
"But look how young they are! What if something happens? Think of the children, Captain. The children!" protests Kasom, "If I stay ashore, I'll never be able to protect them, and it will haunt me! I'll be a shell of a man, all because I let inexperienced children get slaughtered by river pirates!"
The Captain gives a tense smile and says, "If you feel so strongly about it, Kasom, how about you give me a break on your fee?"
This seems enough for Kasom to back off. "This is not going to be on my head!" He runs and leaps off the side of the boat, leaving a big splash behind, then swims back to shore, apparently not so keen on climbing down the gangplank.
The Captain just watches with a bewildered expression. He shakes his head and then looks towards Team Avatar, "I'd be happy to let you and your animals ride for free if you can get rid of these pirates. Er, except for the bison, there's a weight limit to take those people across, but he can fly right?"
Palila watches Kasom swim away, bemused. Was he talking about us? she wonders. "Was he talking about us?" she asks, "I am not a children!"
Taika looks at Palila questioningly, but then he grunts slightly.
"Most adults still view those our age as children, but make no mistake, age certainly does not guarantee one's ability to behave appropriately or act responsibly."
Turning to the captain, Taikahana asks, "Honorable Captain-san, when do these pirates appear along the journey? How do they use the hipposhark? Does it simply attack or is it merely something they threaten?"
"Do you think they are friends with the hipposhark? Maybe they are hurting it to make it do what they want. Maybe we could save it," Palila suggests to the samurai.