Latching the final harness on Appa's saddle, I gently rubbed his furry head, causing him to growl before licking my side, causing me to faintly smile.
"Are you sure you can carry him by yourself, Appa? Your kind aren't exactly lightweight." Asked Aang softly as he looked at Appa while gesturing to the cloth-covered Flying Bison.
Growling at my words, Appa stood up on his two hind legs, revealing his large frame and muscular underbelly that would put any other Flying Bison to shame. Ever since he had gotten some muscle definition, he would use any chance he had to flaunt it, which I found amusing, though, at the same time, he put in a lot of hard work and sacrificed years of delicious meals to attain such a physique, so I didn't mind if he flaunted his muscles every now and then.
"Alright, big boy, I understand. Haa, I wonder where you get your stubbornness from." Remarked Aang with a sigh as he patted Appa's side, causing him to plop heavily back onto his legs while nudging him.
"Haa, that's right, you got it from me." Muttered Aang with a roll of his eyes as he pushed Appa's head away while approaching the clothe-covered Flying Bison.
Gesturing for Appa to come closer, I grabbed the hooks connected to the special fabric that would carry the Flying Bison and hooked them onto Appa's saddle. Once all ten were perfectly secured, I gave Appa warm-up scratches to prepare him for what he was about to do since even I was skeptical if he could do it.
After a few minutes, I left Appa alone and walked toward Monk Gyatso's coffin, where Monk Jun and Pasang approached me.
"Aang, are you positive Appa can carry him by himself?" "Yes. we know you've been giving him strict training, but this is dangerous." Remarked Pasang and Jun, respectively, as they stood beside each other while occasionally glancing at Appa, who was gently flapping his tail.
"No, I'm not sure, but this wasn't my decision, Monks; Appa refused to have anyone assist him. Look for yourself." Replied Aang lightly with a shake of his head as he looked at Jun and Pasang before glancing at Appa, who was shooing off another Flying Bison.
"I tried to advise him differently but figured it was better not to anger my ten-ton muscular companion." Added Aang with a wry smile as he gently shook his head while shifting his focus to Jun and Pasang, causing them to sigh.
"Don't worry too much, Monks. I will act before anything disastrous occurs… You can count on that." Said Aang confidently, his words causing Jun and Pasang to nod with relieved expressions.
"Haa, that is reassuring, Aang." "Just know I'll push the blade to you, Monk Pasang." Said Pasang and Aang, respectively, as the former sighed in relief while the latter smirked in amusement, causing Jun to chuckle.
"Hehe, I see Brother Gyatso did rub off on you a little." "Haa, if that is so, at least be sure to add this bumbling fool as well; I do not wish to experience the anger of a Flying Bison alone." Remarked Jun and Pasang, respectively, as the latter faintly smirked while gesturing to the former, whose expression twitched in annoyance.
"Tsk, tsk tsk, and to think I would call you Brother, Pasang." Said Jun with a disappointed expression as he shook his head while eyeing Pasang, who pretended he didn't exist.
"We will depart in ten minutes, Aang; be ready by then." "Yes, Monk Pasang." Said Pasang and Aang, respectively, as the latter clasped his hands and respectfully bowed while the former and Jun did the same before walking away.
With Monk Jun and Pasang leaving me alone, I turned around and glanced at Monk Gyatso, only to softly sigh as I gently closed the lid before tightly sealing it with the latch. Sitting down, I leaned against the coffin as I closed my eyes, patiently waiting for the minutes to pass.
___
___
"Ready, Monk Gyatso?" Asked Aang softly as he gently knocked against the coffin with a faint smirk before backing away.
Spreading my feet, I thrust my palms forward as I began to circulate them, causing dust to be kicked up as a vortex formed around Monk Gyatso's coffin; within a matter of moments, the tiny vortex that wasn't even capable of lifting the coffin rapidly grew until the size of a miniature tornado.
Turning around, I glanced at Appa, who was kicking up a storm with his powerful tail that vigorously flapped, causing the other Flying Bison to look lackluster.
Leaping into the air, I unholstered my bo-staff and transformed it into a glider, using the vortex to keep me afloat as I reached the coffin at the center of the vortex.
Once I reached the top, I heard Appa roaring loudly, followed by a powerful gust of wind nearly disrupting my vortex, though I saved it just in time. Shifting my focus to Appa, although struggling, I saw him lift the Flying Bison off the ground and into the air, which caused me to smile in pride.
'All that complaining, but look at you now; you're such a drama queen.' Thought Aang with an amused yet proud expression as he gazed at Appa before shifting his focus to the group in the distance.
With the group already leaving us in the dust, I waved my arm, creating a mighty gust of wind that helped Appa, allowing him to shift most of his focus to simply riding across my wind, increasing his speed and letting him save strength.
"Just focus on using the least amount of energy, Appa; I'll handle the rest!" Said Aang loudly from the top of the vortex as he gazed down at Appa, who growled in annoyance before reluctantly nodding.
Although he didn't like my help, he had to begrudgingly accept it.
Maneuvering my vortex down the mountain, I tried to keep my damages to a minimum, but uprooting a few trees was bound to happen; thankfully, they were mostly small trees as the bigger ones could withstand the circulating winds. As the creatures, they were smart enough to avoid the vortex that practically carved its way through the forest surrounding the mountain's base.
'This is going to be a rather boring few hours.' Thought Aaang lightly as he and Appa trailed behind the leading group while they headed toward Memorial Mountain.
___
___
Spotting the silhouette of the mountain in the distance, I shifted my focus to Appa, who hadn't taken a single break in between, though because of that, he was barely able to stay afloat, and that was with my assistance.
"Just a bit more, Appa! You came this far; you can do it!" Yelled Aang as he cheered Appa, who lethargically nodded while adding a bit more strength to his weak, flapping tail.
A few more minutes passed with Appa ever-so-slowly losing altitude, yet, in the end, he just barely managed to arrive at Memorial Mountain.
With Monk Gyatso floating in the center of the vortex behind me, I thrust my palm forward, creating a spherical vortex of air that gently caught the Flying Bison while Appa crash-landed just beside it.
Gently placing down Monk Gyatso and his companion, I and everyone else, who had long since arrived, rushed toward Appa.
"Appa, are you okay?" Asked Aang anxiously as he gracefully landed beside Appa while carelessly dropping his glider to the ground.
Lifting Appa's head off the ground, he gave me a weak lick while softly growling, causing me to sigh in relief as I affectionately rubbed his head.
"Haa, you worried me there, Appa; that crash looked rough." Muttered Aang softly as he looked at Appa, who gasped for breath while closing his eyes.
"Is Appa, okay, Aang?" Asked Hitsugaya in concern as he, Jun, and Pasang stood beside Aang while glancing at Appa, prompting him to nod.
"Yes, Monks. Appa is fine, just exhausted…. Even his body is heating up." Replied Aang with a faint nod as he glanced between the three Monks while muttering the last part to himself.
Despite being able to regulate our body temperature, Appa was really hot, which caused me to frown since a big furball like him doesn't do well with the heat; however, since he was clearly too exhausted to regulate his body temperature, I did it for him.
"If you could just give me a few minutes while I lower Appa's temperature." Said Aang lightly as he glanced at Jun, Pasang, and Hitsugaya, prompting them all to nod.
"We shall bring Brother Gyatso and his Companion closer to the Memorial while you tend to Appa." Said Pasang lightly as he, Jun, and Hitsugaya left Aang alone.
While tending to Appa, who had fallen asleep, several children came to walk around, checking on him, causing me to faintly smile since Appa would sometimes play with them.
"Is Appa okay, Monk Aang?" Asked Silura softly as he glanced at Appa before looking at Aang, who nodded.
"Yes, just a bit exhausted. If you all could help Monk Jun, Monk Pasang, and Monk Hitsugaya by removing the hooks connected to Appa's saddle, that would be much appreciated." Replied Aang with a faint smile as he glanced at Silura and the several other children, who all eagerly nodded.
"Though, don't think this act will make me forget you had lied, Silura. You will still receive punishment." Added Aang calmly as he continued to lower Appa's temperature while Silura froze in place before lowering his head and slumping his shoulders.
"Yes, Monk Aang." Muttered Silura sadly as he joined the other children, removing the hooks from Appa.