The Lost Scrolls: Water (Avatar: The Last Airbender) Read online

  “Where are you hiding him?!” Zuko demanded.

  “Where is the Avatar?”

  Sokka tried to fight Zuko, but my brother was no

  match for the prince’s Firebending power. As Sokka

  battled the prince, I feared for my brother’s life. I also

  realized that I was too quick to judge Sokka. All he

  ever wanted was to do was protect us. That’s why he’s

  so mistrusting of others.

  Suddenly Aang came sledding into the village on

  the back of a penguin.

  “Looking for me?” he said to Zuko.

  “You’re the Avatar?” Zuko said with amazement.

  Aang? The Avatar? Was that possible?

  Aang agreed to go with Zuko if he spared our

  village. Zuko agreed. I couldn’t believe how brave

  Aang was; he was willing to risk his life for us. He

  deserved no less from me.

  “Aang saved our tribe,” I told Sokka and Gran

  Gran. “Now I’m going to save him!”

  To my shock, Sokka agreed to come with me.

  He

  surprises

  me

  sometimes.

  Even

  Gran Gran was proud

  of me. “Only the

  Avatar can save the

  world. Go find him,

  little Waterbender,”

  she said, kissing me

  good-bye.

  I felt proud. I also

  felt scared. But as Aang said, if I was to become a bender,

  I had to face my fears. And so Sokka and I climbed

  up onto Appa’s back.

  “What was it Aang said?” Sokka asked. “Yee-ha?

  Hup, hup? Yip, yip?”

  That did it! Appa took off into the sky. I knew that

  he would fly.

  It didn’t take us long to catch up to Prince Zuko’s

  ship. When we did, Aang and the prince were

  exchanging Firebending and Airbending blows on

  the deck. I looked down from Appa’s back in horror

  and saw Zuko knock Aang overboard with a fierce

  Firebending blast. Aang disappeared beneath the

  waves.

  But then Aang suddenly reappeared, rising out of

  the ocean and riding a huge column of water! He bent

  the tower of water toward the deck of Zuko’s ship,

  where it crashed down as a giant wave, knocking the

  prince and his soldiers into the sea. I couldn’t believe

  my eyes!

  “Now that’s what I call Waterbending!” Sokka

  shouted.

  Aang landed on the watery deck. Appa drifted

  down beside him, and we helped Aang climb onto

  Appa’s back, then took off again.

  “How did you do that?” I asked. “It was the most

  amazing Waterbending I’ve ever seen!”

  “I don’t know,” Aang said. “I just sort of . . . did it.”

  “Why didn’t you tell us that you were the Avatar?”

  I asked.

  “Because I never wanted to be,” Aang replied,

  turning away.

  “But the world’s been waiting for the Avatar to

  return and put an end to this war,” I explained.

  “And how am I going to do that?” Aang asked.

  “Well, according to legend, you need to first master

  Waterbending, then Earthbending, then Firebending,

  right?” I asked.

  “That’s what the monks told me,” Aang said.

  “Well, if we go to the North Pole, you can learn

  Waterbending!” I suggested.

  “We can learn it together,” said Aang, smiling.

  I turned and looked at Sokka, feeling proud of

  him. “And Sokka, maybe you’ll get to knock some

  Firebenders’ heads along the way.” I didn’t want him

  to feel left out.

  “I’d really like that,” he said.

  “Then we’re all in this together,” I said. And we

  headed off for the North Pole. I didn’t know what

  the future held. Would I really learn to master

  Waterbending? Would Sokka become a great warrior

  like our father? Would Aang be able to save the

  world? Whatever happened, I was sure glad that

  I had Sokka and Aang by my side.

  The Water Tribes are a peaceful people. They

  strive to live in harmony with nature and with the

  other nations of the world. There are two sects of the

  Water Tribes, the Northern and the Southern. In the

  time since the Fire Nation’s attack began, contact

  between the two tribes has ended.

  Waterbenders use their abilities for defense, never

  for aggression. Despite their peaceful nature, their

  current goal is to do whatever it takes to stop the Fire

  Nation from taking over the world.

  WATER TRI

  BES’

  I

  NSIGNIA

  The symbol of the Water

  Tribes is a circle containing a

  crescent moon and ocean

  waves. The insignia represents

  the Moon Spirit and the Ocean

  Spirit, who give the Water Tribes

  their life and power and guide their beliefs. They

  coexist in harmony, the moon’s force exerting a

  pushing and pulling motion on the ocean’s water.

  This pushing and pulling is the foundation for the

  art of Waterbending. The Water Tribes’ belief in

  peaceful cooperation among all nations stems from

  the relationship between these two spirits.

  have culled together about the peaceful

  nation of the Water Tribes.

  Each village

  in the Southern

  Water Tribe has

  its own leader, all

  of whom are male.

  The southernmost

  village of the Water

  Tribe was led by a great

  warrior named Hakoda,

  but he and the other

  men went off to war

  two years ago. Hakoda

  is Sokka and Katara’s

  father. The Northern

  Water Tribe is ruled

  by Chief Arnook, a great warrior.

  WATER TRIBE LEADERS

  Each of the four nations is influenced by a

  dominant season. The Water Tribes’ dominant season

  is winter. More Waterbenders are born during winter

  than during any other season.

  SEASON

  AR

  NOO

  K

  HAK

  OD

  A

  LOCATION

  Living at the frozen poles—near the seas—the

  Water Tribes depend on the oceans for many of their

  natural resources. Sea prunes, which they serve stewed,

  are a favorite delica
cy. Sea squid is a popular food that

  can be made into a variety of things, including sea

  squid soup. Seaweed can be used to make seaweed

  bread, seaweed soup, or seaweed sprinkles to top

  seaweed cookies. Giant sea crabs are a delicacy,

  considered by many to be the most delicious food in

  the Northern Sea.

  Skins from seals are used to build tents, and pelts

  from polar bears cover the floors. Hunters from the

  Southern Water Tribe and fishermen of the Northern

  Water Tribe are some of the best in the world.

  NATURAL RESOURCES/FOOD

  The Southern Water Tribe

  is located at the South Pole and

  the Northern Water Tribe at the

  North Pole.

  In both locations the

  terrain is mostly ice. The weath-

  er is cold and harsh, with snow

  falling year-round.

  PENGUIN

  FISH

  POLAR

  SEA LION

  The otter-penguin,

  a half-otter, half-penguin

  native of the South Pole,

  is clumsy on land but a very

  strong

  swimmer.

  Another

  animal found at both poles is the

  turtle-seal, which has a shell like

  a turtle and flippers like a seal. It

  slithers across the ice on its belly,

  then dives into openings in the ice

  to swim through the underwater ice

  tunnels. It dines on fish, shellfish,

  and squid. Its hard shell protects it from predators

  such as the polar leopard. The buffalo-yak is native

  to the North Pole and is a domestic animal

  used for transportation and carrying

  supplies. Because it can survive even

  in the coldest temperatures, the

  buffalo-yak is the perfect animal to

  take on long hunting trips into the

  frozen tundra. Other artic animals

  include polar sea lions, penguin

  fish, and ice crawlers.

  ANIMALS

  Waterbending is an ancient art unique to the culture of

  the Water Tribes. Legend says that the moon was the first

  Waterbender, and that ancestors of current benders saw how

  it pushed and pulled the ocean tides, and then learned how

  to control the water themselves.

  Unlike the other bending arts, Waterbending is defensive

  in nature. Waterbenders get their strength from the spirit of

  the moon and their life from the spirit of the ocean. Together,

  they create and maintain a balance.

  PHILOSOPHY AND STYLE

  THE ART OF

  WATERBENDING

  Waterbending is influenced by the ancient martial art

  of Tai Chi, which uses similar techniques to redirect the

  energy from an attack to use against an opponent. As with

  Tai Chi, the Waterbender’s intent is to control opponents,

  not harm them. Both disciplines were influenced by ancient

  healing practices in which healers redirected energy paths in

  the body to cure ailments. Their strict belief in controlling

  rather than destroying; healing rather than harming; and

  using their power for defense, not attack, are at the heart of

  the humane and noble characteristics of all Waterbenders.

  Both Waterbending and Tai Chi are less about strength

  than about body alignment, breath, and visualization.

  In both of these arts, softness and breathing prove more

  powerful than hard aggression.

  ANCIENT MARTIAL

  ARTS INFLUENCE

  water

  ice

  steam

  FORMS OF

  THE ELEMENT

  A Waterbender can control water in any of its

  forms—as a liquid (water), a solid (ice or snow),

  or a gas (steam), including moisture in the air and

  ground. This gives the Waterbender a variety of

  defensive moves.

  If there is no

  nearby body of water at

  the scene of a battle—such as

  a river, lake, or ocean—an expert

  Waterbender has the ability to collect all

  the available moisture in the air and ground

  around him or her. The Waterbender can

  then concentrate this small amount of

  water into a quantity that he or she can

  use to attack or defend.

  Waterbenders have many techniques at their

  disposal. They can suspend a body of water around

  themselves, then lash out with water whips and

  powerful waves.

  They can stop an attacker by

  encasing his or her feet in ice,

  or escape from an opponent

  by creating a screen of

  steam for cover.

  WATERBENDING

  TECHNIQUES

  A Waterbender’s power comes from an internal

  life energy, which is known as chi. Because of this,

  a Waterbender’s power is related to his or

  her emotional state. When a less-experienced

  Waterbender gets angry, his or her Waterbending

  force increases in intensity, but control is

  lost. This can be dangerous, especially in

  a bender with little or no training.

  STRENGTHS

  One weakness

  of Waterbending

  is the possibility

  that a Waterbender

  could find him- or herself

  in a place where no water can

  be found. This is much more probable than

  an Earthbender winding up without earth, or an

  Airbender without air. Firebenders create their

  own fire from the heat around them. Therefore,

  needing to be near a source of water is an important

  weakness to remember. In case there is not enough

  moisture in the air or ground, Waterbenders always

  carry skins filled with water.

  WEAKNESS

  Waterbenders are most powerful at night, when

  the moon is full, when they are near their homelands

  of the North and South Poles, and during the

  winter. They can choose how to direct their energy

  using two jings, or techniques, representing the push

  and pull of the moon on the tides and, in turn, the

  push and pull of the Waterbender on the water he

  or she controls.

  HEALING

  Waterbenders can use their abilities to heal by

  surrounding a sick or injured person with water, which

  Waterbender uses water to open chi paths in the body

  and help the healing process, making the person well

  again.

 
CHI

  THE WATER SCROLL

  The legends of the Water Tribes state that long ago,

  pirates stole a valuable scroll from a Waterbender of

  the Northern Water Tribe. The parchment contained

  several ancient Waterbending techniques, including

  the single water whip, which some believed was

  lost forever, but was recently recovered by a young

  Waterbender. As illustrated in the scroll, the single

  water whip is achieved by executing several moves.

  First the Waterbender reaches forward and, with a

  slow stretching movement of the arms and keeping

  the knees bent, draws a small amount of water from a

  source. Suspending the water in a circle in midair, the

  bender then slowly moves both arms to one side of the

  body. This move reshapes the water, elongating it into

  the form of a whip, which is unleashed with a swift but

  fluid move of the arms back across the body. The water

  whip follows the movement of the Waterbender’s

  arms, snapping like a whip.

  My name is Sokka. I’m a

  warrior from the Southern

  Water Tribe. I’m not a

  Waterbender, like my sister,

  Katara, or an Airbender,

  like our friend Aang—

  who just happens to be

  the Avatar—but I do

  all right for myself. I’m

  pretty tough in a fight,

  especially against those

  Fire Nation jerks.

  Aang, Katara, and

  I are traveling to the

  Northern Water Tribe

  so the two of them can

  learn Waterbending from

  a master. I’m going along

  to protect them and to kick a little Fire

  Nation butt along the way. One day,

  on our journey to the North Pole, we

  stopped on a beach to rest.