The Southern Air Temple

This is the third episode of Book 1: Water.

Synopsis
Nazz and Ed are packing up their campsite. Ed is planning to visit the only home he has known, the Southern Air Temple. Eddy wants to sleep a bit longer. Too anxious to wait, Ed picks up a pickle stick and slides it across Eddy’s sleeping bag. Ed shouts to Eddy there’s a pickle snake in his sleeping bag. Terrified, Eddy leaps up screaming. After falling to the ground, Eddy realizes he’s been tricked but now that he’s up, they can leave.

Off the coast of the Southwest Earth Kingdom, Prince Kevin docks at a Fire Nation controlled harbor. His ship needs substantial repairs from his encounter with Ed. Kevin wants the repairs done quickly so they won’t lose Ed’s trail. He warns Iroh not to mention The Avatar during their stay so no other Firebenders will start looking for him. Jonny walks up to Iroh and Kevin welcoming them to his harbor. Kevin and Iroh learn of Jonny’s promotion from Captain to Commander. Seeing how damaged their ship is, Jonny asks how it happened. Kevin makes up a story about crashing into an Earth Kingdom ship. Curious, Jonny invites the pair of them for a drink. Kevin attempts to get out of it but Iroh speaks for both of them and accepts the invite.

Nearing the Patola Mountain Range, Eddy comments that they don’t have any food (as Ed used Eddy's blubbered seal jerky as fuel for their campfire). Nazz is trying to keep Ed from getting too excited about their visit to the air temple. She tells him to expect the possibility that his people have been killed by the Fire Nation. Ed is convinced she’s wrong on the grounds that you have to fly to reach an Air Temple and the Fire Nation couldn’t possibly accomplish that. They reach the top of the mountain (above the clouds) and look down on the Southern Air Temple.

Commander Jonny is explaining the Fire Nation’s planned victory to Kevin and Iroh over tea in his tent. Kevin voices his doubts that the plan will work. Jonny then asks about Kevin’s search for the Avatar, to which Kevin replies he has been unsuccessful. Jonny says he didn’t expect anything different. Kevin then gets up to leave but Commander Jonny’s guards stop him. One of Jonny’s soldiers walks in and reports that he interrogated Kevin’s crew and found out that Kevin had the Avatar but let him escape. Kevin has no choice but to tell Jonny the truth.

Eddy is still very hungry and is berated by Nazz for being one of the first outsiders to see an Airbender temple and only think about food. Ed begins to give Nazz and Eddy a tour of the temple but becomes disheartened almost immediately. Seeing his home abandoned he realizes how much things have changed, and in order to cheer him up, Eddy volunteers to play a game of airball with Ed. We see that airball is played much like soccer on a field composed of totem poles of various heights. The ball is propelled by Airbending and bounces off the totems into the opponents' goal, sometimes taking the opponent with it. Lying on the ground after being creamed, Eddy spots a Fire Nation helmet. He points it out to Nazz and they agree to show it to Ed. When Ed begins to walk over, Nazz changes her mind and covers the helmet with snow. After commenting that Nazz's ability to manipulate snow is impressive, Ed wants to show them the rest of the temple. Eddy discourages Nazz from protecting Ed’s feelings as she just did, to which Nazz points out to Eddy that Ed would be devastated if he knew Firebenders invaded his home. They come to a statue of an Airbender monk which Ed introduces as Monk Gyatso. Gyatso was Ed’s mentor and father figure 100 years ago, Ed then flashes back to a day with him.

Gyatso is teaching Ed how to make cakes and Ed isn’t listening. Ed has become burdened with the knowledge that he is the Avatar. Gyatso reassures Ed that he will be fine, that Ed must focus on the present, and that once Ed is old enough to enter the Air Temple Sanctuary, he will meet someone who will help him to become a better Avatar. Gyatso has Ed do some air bending target practice by blowing the freshly baked cakes through the air and onto the other elder monks’ heads while they're meditating. They are then pounced on by flying lemur bats, slurping the cake off the monks' heads. The master and student laugh at their little prank and Gyatso congratulates Ed on his perfected aim.

Returning to the present, Ed makes for the Air Temple Sanctuary. There’s someone he’s ready to meet. Nazz is doubtful that anyone has been closed off in the temple for 100 years, but Eddy hopes that the person in there has some food (particularly cured meats). To get into the Sanctuary, Ed Airbends two currents into the ornate locking mechanism causing it to open the doors. Ed then calls out, "Hello" and begins to walk into the darkened temple with Nazz and Eddy following him. All three of them block an air current running under the floor of the Sanctuary which causes a humming noise.

Commander Jonny is appalled that a twelve-year-old boy bested Kevin and his crew. Kevin passionately states that he is going to hunt the Avatar from now on and shall not underestimate the Avatar again. When Jonny replies that he will be taking over the hunt for the Avatar, Kevin leaps for Jonny in a rage but is held back by the guards. Jonny orders for Kevin and Iroh to be kept in his tent and leaves. In anger, Kevin kicks a table as Iroh asks for more tea.

The Air Temple Sanctuary is filled with hundreds of statues, and Eddy (still hungry) is thoroughly disappointed at there not being any food. Nazz and Ed notice a pattern in the line of the statues. They're arrayed in the Avatar cycle (Air, Water, Earth, and Fire). From that Nazz figures out that these are statues of previous incarnations of the Avatar, Ed’s past lives. Ed singles out the last statue in the line and gazes into the statue’s eyes, going into a kind of trance. A gentle shake from Nazz breaks him out of the trance, at which point Ed knows the statue is of Avatar Jimmy, the Avatar before him. Eddy recognizes Jimmy as a Firebender by his robes and top-knot. The three of them hear the humming noise from the entrance indicating that someone else has just come in. Preparing to fight a Firebender, they reveal themselves to see it’s just a lemur. Desperately hungry, Eddy wants to eat the lemur for dinner. Ed on the other hand wants to keep the lemur as a pet. This prompts a race to see who can catch the lemur first. Nazz stays behind in the Temple Sanctuary while Ed and Eddy run after the lemur, each trying to trip the other up. As it turns out, the lemur can fly, and Ed jumps off the balcony of the temple in his determination to catch the lemur.

Commander Jonny and his search party are almost ready to set sail on their search for the Avatar. Jonny will then release Kevin when his ship is out at sea. Kevin states forcefully that he is going to capture the Avatar before Jonny, who laughs at the thought. How can a banished prince compete with a resourceful commander with hundreds of warships at his disposal? Jonny then demeans Kevin by telling him that his cousin would let him come home without the Avatar if the he really cared. Jonny states that all Lord Eddy's Brother sees in his cousin is failure. Kevin challenges Jonny out of pure rage and disgust to an Agni Kai at sunset, to which Jonny accepts. After Jonny leaves the tent, Iroh reminds Kevin about how his last duel with a Firebending master turned out. Kevin responds; "I will never forget".

After landing safely, Ed follows the lemur and discovers a room where there lay many Fire Nation soldiers’ bodies, centered around the skeleton of Monk Gyatso. His laughter stops. His former master and father figure gone, Ed starts to cry. Eddy finally catches up to Ed and questions whether he caught the lemur, going on to say that he didn't actually intend on eating it. It isn't long before he sees what has made Ed so upset. As Eddy tries to comfort Ed, he suddenly goes into the Avatar State and creates an Air Sphere around himself, violently blowing Eddy backwards.

Back in the temple, Nazz observes that all the Avatar statues’ eyes begin to glow in the same brilliant white as Ed's tattoos. Realizing Ed must be the cause of this, she runs out to find the boys. In this moment, the Water, Earth, and Fire Nation Temples simultaneously experience a similar event, Avatar statues and murals start to glow. In the Fire Temple, the fire sages hasten to inform the Fire Lord that the Avatar has returned.

After finding a windswept Eddy, Nazz is informed that Ed found out that Firebenders killed Gyatso. Ed’s anger has escalated so that he now floats within his Air Sphere. Nazz then makes her way toward Ed in order to calm him down.

It is sunset and Commander Jonny and Prince Kevin are ready to duel. The two combatants begin back to back. Iroh counsels Kevin to remember his basics as they are his greatest assets, but Kevin doesn't appear to heed his uncle's wisdom, instead simply stating that he will not lose and assumes his stance. Jonny claims that the duel will end swiftly, and also assumes his stance. The two opponents stare deeply and fiercely into each other's eyes. The gong sounds and the match commences.

Jonny seems more than a match for Kevin, effortlessly avoiding and nullifying all of Kevin's fireblasts. As he catches his breath, Iroh continues to advise Kevin to remember his basics. Jonny then proceeds to throw his own volley of fireblasts. Kevin is able to block each, but is slowly forced back with every parry. For the final blast, Jonny uses both fists, forming a blast that connects and knocks Kevin to the ground. Pressing the attack, Jonnny leaps into the air, covers the distance between him and Kevin, and prepares a finishing fireblast aimed directly for Kevin's face. An instant before contact, Kevin rolls out of the way, rises with a kicking flourish, and knocks Jonny out of his stance. With newfound vigor, Kevin releases a series of low attacks that cause Jonny to retreat, finishing him with a jet of fire from a full body kick. Jonny expects Kevin to strike him once more, to mark his victory, but Kevin releases a fireblast past Jonny’s face instead, promising next time Jonny is in his way, he will not hold back. As he turns to walk away, enraged by his defeat, Jonny sends a jet of fire at Kevin’s back, which Iroh swiftly stops with his bare hand. After throwing Jonny to the ground, Iroh lectures Jonny about how dishonorably he has acted, and that his nephew is more honorable even in exile. Iroh is still polite enough to thank Jonny for the tea. After leaving the arena, Kevin asks Iroh if he really meant what he said back there, to which Iroh responds: "Of course. I told you ginseng tea is my favorite". As the two walk back towards the ship, the faintest of smiles crosses Prince Kevin's lips.

At the Air Temple, Nazz attempts to console Ed by imparting how she felt when she lost her mother, and even goes on to state that even though his people are gone, both she and Eddy are now his family. The words seems to reach Ed, who falls out of the Avatar state and slowly descends back onto the ground. Eddy backs Nazz's statement with the promise that neither will let anything happen to him. With this, Ed finally comes to the conclusion that he is indeed the last of his kind.

Just before they leave, Ed stands before Jimmy’s statue once more, wondering how his past life can help him if he is dead. Suddenly, the lemur reappears with a variety of fruits and lays them in front of Eddy, who doesn’t waste any time wolfing them down. The lemur then climbs onto Ed’s shoulder, possibly bonding with him because of his Airbender tattoos. After realizing that the lemur, Appa, and he himself are the last survivors of the Southern Air Temple, Ed names the lemur Plank, the newest addition to their family. Night falls as the gang flies off on Appa. Deep with thought, Ed takes one last gaze at his old home before it fades behind the clouds.