"Well, with my Island having been destroyed thanks to the volcano's eruption, there is only one place I can think of where Ta Min would be. Ember Island." Replied Roku softly as he stroked his long beard before glancing towards his left, prompting Aang to look right, the two gazing into the distance ocean.
"I'm assuming we're close to Ember Island, then? If not, I'll be hard-pressed to devise a believable excuse for Monk Gyatso." Asked Aang lightly as he shifted his focus to Roku, who nodded before faintly smiling.
"Yes, we are pretty close. Heh, Gyatso, that old dog." Muttered Roku with a nod while faintly smiling, causing Aang to raise an eyebrow before shaking his head.
"Well, then, I'll speak with you soon, Roku; tell the others I said hello." Remarked Aang softly, his words causing Roku to nod as he smiled.
Closing my eyes, I took a moment to focus on myself before opening them again, and when I did, Roku was nowhere to be seen while everything else was as per usual, though even so, I had this almost instinctive feeling I wasn't alone. Figuring it was Roku's spirit keeping a close eye on me, I shook that slightly weird feeling and patted Appa's head, causing him to growl softly.
"Let's go right, Appa." Said Aang softly his words causing Appa to nod as he flapped his tail at an angle, pushing him right as they parted ways from Gyatso, who hadn't noticed them.
Seeing Monk Gyatso continue flying through the air, none the wiser, I gently stroked Appa's shedding fur while he descended lower to the ocean and flew northward; unfortunately, I didn't know exactly where Ember Island was, but I had seen the entire map of the world before so I wasn't entirely helpless.
'Though Ember island isn't located on the map, so all I know is it's somewhere close to where Hama lived after escaping from the waterbender prison.' Mused Aang lightly as he recalled the map he had examined before leaving the Southern Air Temple.
Roku had said we should be close, and I did trust his judgment, so I made sure to keep an eye out for any sort of significance, and as the minutes passed of flying over the ocean, far east, I spotted a Fire Nation ship heading our way.
"Appa, see that ship? Head that way." Asked Aang lightly while pointing towards the ship in the distance, prompting Appa to growl softly as he changed their direction again.
After a few minutes, we eventually flew over the ship, and although it was a quick pass by, I did notice that despite seemingly being a merchant ship, it boasted a decent amount of firepower, which wasn't a good sign.
'Hmm, it seems Sozin is thoroughly preparing for the war.' Thought Aang with a frown, only to shake his head as he shifted his focus away, only to spot the silhouette of an Island.
Seeing my theory being correct, I gave Appa some lovely pats while he continued to fly towards the Island, which we arrived at after several more minutes.
Approaching the Island, I didn't have Appa land; in fact, I had him fly high in the air while I grabbed my bo-staff before leaping off his back and falling towards the Island below; if a young Air-Nomad were seen at Ember Island, where the wife of the previous Avatar is staying, it wouldn't take a genius to make the connection, and I wished to keep my identity a secret until it's revealed to me the proper way as that would avoid a lot of questions.
'Though, I also don't want Sozin getting word of the Avatar being in his territory; that would be me just asking for trouble.' Thought Aang lightly as he jerked his bo-staff, turning it into a glider he used to fly through the air.
I didn't get a description of what kind of house Ta Min would be staying in, so I just flew above the city of Ember Island, which was a resort Island for the wealthy of the Fire Nation; while it was large, it wasn't as densely populated as a typical city.
'So, where would Ta Min and Roku stay? I'd imagine somewhere quiet and further away from people, a place nice and quiet.' Mused Aang lightly with a thoughtful expression as he flew above the several luxurious beach houses before heading more inland.
While flying more inland, I entered a sparse forest, and after a few moments, I happened to spot a modest house, one that didn't look like it was supposed to be on this Island, given all the other large, fancy, and luxurious houses. Feeling as if I'd found something noteworthy, I rapidly descended toward the modest house before coming to a halt just above the ground while I holstered my bo-staff onto my back.
"Hopefully, this is what I'm looking for." Muttered Aang lightly as he fixed his appearance before approaching the modest house, standing on the small porch.
Knocking on the door, I patiently waited a few seconds, only for footsteps to quickly resound behind the door as it was promptly opened by a young woman, causing me to internally sigh as she wasn't who I was looking for.
"Eh? An Air Nomad? Can I help you with something?" Asked the young woman with a surprised expression as she looked at Aang while holding the door open.
"Ah, no, I was just looking for someone; sorry for intruding." Replied Aang softly with a shake of his head as he clasped his hands, greeting the woman, who nodded.
"Oh, well, I hope you find who you're looking for; have a good day, young man." Said the woman with a friendly smile as she waved goodbye, prompting Aang to do the same before she closed the door.
"Who was it, Rina?" Asked an older woman from inside the house as she slowly approached Rina, her voice sounding slightly muffled.
"Oh, it was a young Air-Nomad looking for someone; weird, right, Mom? Ah, actually, now that I think about it, you and he looked very similar; you didn't have-eh, Mom. Is everything okay?" Replied Rina with a shake of her head while glancing at the older woman, whose eyes only continued to widen as she spoke, prompting her to practically run toward the door.
Walking away, I grabbed my bo-staff and was about to take to the skies in hopes of finding another house Ta Min may be living in; however, just as I was about to take off, I heard the door to the house aggressively open along with the woman from before shouting, prompting me to turn around, only to see an older woman staring at me.
"Mom! Careful, you may hurt yourself!" Stated Rina loudly as she tried to support the older woman, who was staring at Aang with teary eyes.
As I stared at the older woman, the first thing that came to mind was the uncanny resemblance she and I held, with the only major difference being her skin was slightly more tan than mine.
'So, that theory that you're reborn with the face of the person you loved the most isn't a complete lie.' Thought Aang lightly with a raised eyebrow as he slowly approached the woman, who was crying, completely confusing Rina.
"Mom!?" Exclaimed Rin in worry and confusion as she looked at the older woman, only to turn and glance at Aang, who was smiling.
"Roku had sent me, Ta Min." Said Aang softly with a small smile, his words causing Ta Min to suddenly embrace him in a hug while Rina's eyes widened in disbelief.
"F-Father sent you? B-But isn't he dead?" Muttered Rina in confusion as she stared at Aang, who was finding it hard to resist Ta Min's embrace.
Despite her weak appearance, Ta Min had impressive strength, and if she weren't careful, I'd have to send Korra to visit Monk Gyatso; however, I still reciprocated her hug while she cried onto me for several minutes.
"Y-Young man, d-do you think I-I could speak to R-Roku?" Asked Ta Min softly as she wiped her tears while glancing at Aang, who nodded while grabbing her hands.
"Yes, but I'll need a few minutes to contact him." Replied Aang with a nod, her words causing Ta Min to nod rapidly as she forcefully pushed Aang into her house.
"I've been waiting eight years; a few minutes is nothing. Rina, prepare the Tea!" Stated Ta Min with a smile as she led Aang into her house before practically yelling at Rina, who nodded and closed the door.
With Ta Min leading me through the house, we entered another room with a mat at the center, where she gestured for me to sit while she used a match to light the many candles that surrounded me.
"Here's the tea. Mom, can you tell me what's going on? What does he have to do with, Father?" Asked Rina softly as she placed the tea on a small table while glancing between Aang and Ta Min, prompting the later to silence her.
"Quiet, he's meditating!" Stated Ta Min sternly as she eyed Rina, who meekly nodded before glancing at Aang.
With silence filling the room, I steadied my breathing and focused intensely on myself; after a certain amount of time had passed, I opened my eyes and saw Roku standing to my right, gazing at his wife and child with a smile.
"Just know, I'm only lending you my body, so don't do anything weird." Stated Aang as he suddenly stood up, his bluish spirit emerging from his physical body while Roku nodded aith a thankful expression before entering his body.
Watching Roku's spirit enter my body, I gave him some privacy with his family as I looked away, only to see a long line of my numerous past incarnations standing to my right; there were so many people I couldn't see where the line ended, but the person I could see was a tall, beautiful woman with face paint standing directly to my right.
"Aang." "Kyoshi." Said Aang and Kyoshi, respectively, as they greeted each other.
"You're much larger in person." Remarked Aang lightly as he observed Kyoshi, who raised an eyebrow, not knowing how to respond.