Chapter 117: Spirit Oasis
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It was strange, not only for the group, but also for Yue herself as they walked through the streets of the tribe. Many cast odd, but indignant glances in their direction. Nik could understand why. After all, their group was not only comprised of outsiders but they basically overthrew the ruler of the region. If everyone had a problem with Hahn, all of them would have rebelled. The fact that they didn't mean that despite the flaws, the man was at least adept in a few things, and given Yue's condition last night, both physically and mentally, abuse was one of them.
As the gazes bore into her, despite her relatively soft and demure behavior shown to them, Yue held her head high as if unbothered. This only made Katara whisper to her finally, "I'm sorry... you'd probably get implicated because of us..."
"Not really," Yue replied, her enticingly soft pink lips stretched into an amused smile, "The death of my father, the rule of my... former husband, and the consequence of his traitorous act coming into the light has taught me one thing... there is nothing more fickle than one's assumption of strength.
I considered my father strong but his rule was weak to betrayal. Then, for some time, I genuinely held feelings for Hahn and admired his rule. Although he took the knee, he saved the tradition of the tribe. His rule, however, was weak to his own unhonorable acts that soon came to light. And his strength was weak to actual warriors like you.
The people of my tribe have fallen for a traitor before so I don't doubt they will come to accept the rule of a proper chieftain this time around."
She didn't keep her words soft and let the trio walking behind her in on the conversation, too.
"Have you gone to meet your husband?" Nik inquired, "He may just regret what he did after hearing you."
"Former husband," Yue corrected, "Even before the news of his acts came to light... we'd started getting into a lot of spells of silence... there weren't even any fights and we began to ignore one another. Hilariously, we only began to 'talk' once the waterbenders laid it out on the tribe..." She held a bitter smile, "Still... I haven't gone to see him... If he somehow makes me believe that what he did was right... I would feel terrible."
"You don't have to be scared of him," Katara sighed softly.
"So... who is going to become the next chieftain?"
Yue hummed in response, "The position of Chieftain is hereditary and a new chieftain outside of the ruling family can only be elected once everyone from that particular family is dead. Right now, the next chieftain will be my new husband."
"Oh?" Suki raised her brows curiously and couldn't help but mutter, "Are you... even ready for another marriage?"
"The tribe needs a Chieftain," Yue's expression strangely turned stoic as she stopped and looked back, making Suki's and Katara's hearts clench with sadness and pity once she uttered, "And I'm... a woman whose first husband was a traitor. The quicker... marry and fulfill my responsibility... the better."
Even Mai felt her mask of indifference crack for a moment.
"Oh, congratulations are in order then," Nik grinned. His words and smile instantly stumping not only Yue but others around him. Even Mai felt compelled to give him a 'are you serious' stare.
"What?" Nik looked around, "I'm not going to start feeling sorry for you now. Heck, if you're lucky, you'll land a man multiple times better than Hahn... though, look out for someone around your age, you know, for ease in communication."
"*Khnk*" Yue covered her lips slightly with the tilt of her hand and snorted a chuckle as if her previous dry and stoic expression was nothing but an illusion while her light blue eyes felt a notch brighter, "I will keep that in mind. A better man than Hahn and someone around my age. In your wisdom, should I prefer younger or older?"
Her words seemed to have triggered something in Suki and Katara as they glanced at Nik intensely.
"Well..." Nik hummed and looked at Mai before contemplating, "My preference would include... all..."
Mai clenched her fist. His reaction of looking in her direction didn't escape her eyes and it could only mean one thing.
Suki and Katara, however, audibly scoffed.
Even Yue's smile turned the slightest bit coy as she turned around once again and began to lead. Not willing to delve further into serious topics, Yue took the chance to describe a few stories and shared a few memories that she had to allow the group to make a proper comparison of how the tribe was before and after the Fire Nation's takeover.
Again, things only shifted south when the waterbenders openly revealed Hahn's actions which made it impossible for him to rule unless he took more support from the Fire Nation.
Of course, that was quite impossible for him now.
Yue also went on and described how Hahn had gotten storage of dry rations from the Phoenix King's forces to support the fire nation troops and Zhao's forces since waterbenders taking over the walls meant a war would be imminent.
The only reason Zhao hadn't attacked the tribe was due to the news of Nik and the Avatar said to be traveling to this location. Even now, the news of Avatar was unknown but his source confirmed that Pakku was traveling with the Avatar and much to Zhao's delight, there was another someone present in the entourage with whom Zhao had to settle a score with.
The daughter of the former mayor of Omashu— Mai.
Unaware of these matters, however, the group of five finally completed their first official travel into the tribe and found themselves standing in front of a spherical wooden gate surrounded by a wall of ice. On either side of the gate stood two waterbenders who instantly bowed to Yue, "Greetings, Princess."
Yue nodded with a smile, "It's a pleasure to have waterbenders defend the spirit oasis once again instead of the firebenders."
Her words instantly caused the two cold-faced warriors to light up in delight. Not long after, the two of them pushed open the entrance and the five of them stepped in.
"Woah!"
"It's warm..."
"Amazing."
Yue enjoyed everyone's reaction and Mai's silent stare as they stepped into the location she wanted the group to view for themselves. After the death of her father, it had been hard for her to feel this excited, and seeing a bunch of girls from around the world really got Yue into her system to the point she wanted to delay her other immediate roles for the time being.
Nik and others stared at the pond enclosed by a round boundary of icy walls yet, strangely, the pond was concentric, surrounding a small piece of land. The sight was as strange as it was pleasant to the eyes. Despite the arctic environment, the internal portion of this location was as warm as early spring.
The sight of shrubs, grass, and even trees on the land only surprised others more as they failed to comprehend how could vegetation even grow. Yet, it was there nonetheless.
"This is Spirit Oasis," Yue introduced formally, "It is the most spiritual portion of the tribe and it is because of this oasis that the Northern Water Tribe was eventually settled here."
She walked towards one of the two wooden bridges that connected the icy shore to the landmass and beckoned the slack-jawed group with a merry giggle, "Come on, this place is a miraculous location for a reason. If there is any hope in treating your injuries, then this is it."
Others followed after her. As they stepped onto the bridge, Nik looked down to gaze at the clear water that reflected the afternoon, almost shrouded, sun. In a jungle's clearing, such a landscape would present nothing short of luxurious and enticing enough to stay a couple of nights just to relax.
On the small land happened to be a squarish stone structure in the shape of an entrance. Standing in front of this structure, Yue clasped her hands and offered a deep bow. Others didn't follow suit this time. Before knowing what or who they were bowing for, the group knew better than to just indulge in religious activities.
Still, more than Nik, Suki and Katara looked eager for the healing of his injuries.
"Yue, what about his injuries...?"
"Yes, well, as you are probably aware, waterbenders also hold the potential of another technique and that is healing. Through water, a waterbender can relieve someone of their surface injuries.
But... there is also another aspect to it. The water used in healing, if better, can produce even miraculous results."
"Better water?" Mai inquired idly and looked towards the pond. Her gaze fell on two koi fishes— black and white— each having a dot of opposing color on their heads as they continue to swim in a circle following each other's tail.
"Yes, better water. In this case, spiritually better water. The spiritual oasis is said to have magical properties." Yue explained.
Seeing the look of disappointment on their faces, more apparent on Nik this time since he was genuinely hoping to get his leg healed, Yue chuckled, "I understand your concerns. But what if one of the magical properties... allowed me to be who I am today?"
Seeing that she had regained their attention, Yue walked past them and stood next to Mai, her gaze falling on the only koi fishes in the lake once again.
"Truthfully speaking... when my mother gave birth to me, I was feeble. More so than any newborn of the tribe. My breathing came to a halt in a few short seconds after my birth but not the kind to give up, my father brought me to this Spiritual Oasis. It was his only hope, and mine, too.
He told me that when he presented me to the worshipped lake, under the full moon, a brilliance kissed my forehead," saying so, Yue's fingers traced her forehead with a soft smile on her lips, "My hair changed color. From dark to silver as if the moon spirit blessed me directly. Many feel that the spirit of the moon— Tui— is nothing but a legend... however, I am living proof that spirits never abandoned us."
Turning around, Yue snatched Nik's gaze and spoke with utmost seriousness, "Only a few are allowed every full moon to enter spiritual oasis and make an offering. Considering that I am partially the ruler of the tribe, I can allow outsiders to enter here but only in certain situations. You saved me from Hahn's clutches and I am ever grateful.
Bringing you here doesn't come close to repaying these debts, but I hope, this is a good start as any."
Yue had a way with words, naturally. Their earlier disappointment was swept away by her explanation and now, the remaining trio stepped to the shore of the land and viewed the two odd koi fishes themselves.
"What are these fishes?" Nik finally inquires. Their white and black scales really looked quite beautiful.
"I don't know. Nobody knows. The two koi fishes have been here since the beginning of the oasis or so it is said," Yue answered.
"Nobody tried fishing them?" Nik continued curiously. If it was him, he would have tried to cook the two delights instantly.
The moment he said it, Nik felt strangely ominous as if... something terrifying was snooping around his ass. Just when the goosebumps spread around his cheeks, Yue interrupted with a pout, "Please don't joke like these. Even seeing people drink tea from the leaves of the oasis brings me heartache. It was one of the main reasons I grew to despise Hahn since he would wantonly ship these leaves off to the Fire Lord to earn his favor... infuriatingly enough, it succeeded in getting him the favor of the Fire Lord."
Yue's sudden, miser-like nature was a surprising but a welcome sight. In fact, anything would be better than her rather gloomy expression when she thought of her future responsibilities and the low-key fear in her eyes displayed last night when she seemed to believe that all of it was a dream and waking up would make her fall in Hahn's hands all over again.
The strange pressure Nik felt disappeared with Yue's words. He would have suspected Yue had something to do with this if he didn't hear a rather familiar voice.
"Don't mess... with... Tui and La..."
Who else could it be aside from the source of all his power and trouble— Mokshi?
"I didn't mess with anyone," Nik frowned internally and tried to communicate with the spirit inside of him. It was always a rare moment for Mokshi to contact him so Nik didn't want to lose out on the opportunity. Still, Mokshi seemed pretty determined to set him straight and uttered again.
"Don't mess with... them... just leave this... world... with me..."
Nik was already aware of what Mokshi truly desired. It just wanted to explore the worlds beyond. In Nik's eyes, it was foolishness, but for better or worse, they were stuck together. If previously Nik wanted to stay until he could get rid of Mokshi... which didn't seem necessary given the benefits then now, Nik wanted to stay and find a way to get himself healed. There's no way he was returning to the strange homeworld filled with technological inventions with a drastic injury. It would cause a lot of suspicions given that, no matter how long he stays here, only a week would have passed in his homeworld.
At first, Nik felt that this feature was convenient but now he felt oddly mystified by such an ability from the Infinity.
Pushing aside these thoughts, Nik looked at the fishes again. This time, his violet pupils alight with doubt.
Mokshi's sudden interjection meant that he had slighted Tui and La somehow. The strange ominous sensation of mighty beasts preying on him may just be the consequence of such an act... but the only thing... or things, he had slighted were the two fishes by revealing his intent to enjoy their taste.
"Tui and La..." Nik mumbled, "Said to be locked in an eternal dance... huh..." his gaze grew profound for a moment as he continued to stare at the two swimming koi fishes.
"Something wrong?" Suki nudged his shoulder and whispered.
Nik shook his head. Even if his assumption was right, he was inclined to listen to Mokshi. Spirits weren't something he wanted to deal with if avoiding them was possible so he looked at Katara, "Will you try healing me? I'm still getting a hang of the skill so you should be the one to heal me."
"Okay," Katara accepted the task readily.
Aside from Nik, who sat down with his legs stretched out and Katara, who kneeled beside him, the other three stepped back.
With slightly trembling hands, Katara pulled back the leg of his trousers and slowly undid the wrap of cloth around his left knee.
Yue kept herself from gasping out loud while Mai frowned at the sight, too. She may have provided the immediate bandage but this was the first time she was viewing the end result.
While Yue had heard about Nik's injury, she didn't know the detail. Still, she expected a clean and neat hole, that's all. However, actual biology is not so kind to the eyes.
Seeing Nik's left knee now nothing more than a mangled mess of flesh, Suki couldn't help biting her lower lip. It wasn't even healed completely. The tender skin still twitched at times and was clearly red and swollen. They may have felt relieved before as to how quick Nik was in accepting jokes about his injury but what if...
"What if this doesn't work?" Katara whispered, anguish clear on her face.
"I suppose I will find some other method then," Nik shrugged.
Pursing her lips, Katara didn't pursue the negativity and hopelessness that came with such a task and instead cleared her mind with a nod.
With a thought, Katara's eyes opened. With heavy somberness flashing in her blue eyes, Katara weaved a small trail of water from the oasis and then laced it over Nik's left knee before closing her eyes and locking her brows in extreme concentration.
The collected layer of water on Nik's knee began to emit a soft glow while the mangled region of his knee started to twitch at a greater pace. An expression of discomfort took over Nik's face while he clenched his fist into the ground, digging into a few roots of grass and mud.
Still, as Yue stated, the effects were almost immediate. The flesh began to smoothen at a pace visible to the naked eyes and despite the increasingly growing discomfort, Nik's expression brightened.
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