The sky above them slowly darkened, the vibrant colors of dusk fading into the deep blues and purples of night. The shadows of the trees seemed to stretch and shift with every step, giving the forest an almost sentient feel, as if it were watching, waiting. The Air Temple they had just left behind had been silent and still, but something had awakened the forest. The trees whispered in the wind, their leaves rustling as if exchanging secrets.
Tang felt a knot form in his stomach. There was an unshakable tension in the air, the kind of tension that precedes a storm.
"Tang?" Katara's voice was soft, but there was concern in her tone. "You've been quiet since we left the temple. Are you okay?"
Tang blinked, pulled from his thoughts. He looked at Katara, who was watching him with those steady, compassionate eyes. He realized he hadn't spoken much since they had encountered the spirit in the temple, and for good reason. The spirit's cryptic message still rattled around in his mind, refusing to settle.
"I'm fine," he said, but his voice lacked the conviction to make the statement true. "I've just been thinking… about what the spirit said."
Aang, walking a few steps ahead, turned his head slightly. "Spirits aren't always direct. They give us things to think about, things we may not understand right away. But I've learned that when they speak to you, there's always a purpose."
Tang nodded. "I just don't know what that purpose is yet. 'Your heart is not aligned,' it said. What does that even mean?"
Sokka, ever the pragmatic one, scoffed lightly. "Maybe it just meant you should stop worrying so much. Focus on one thing at a time, like staying alive right now."
Katara rolled her eyes, but there was a hint of a smile on her face. "Sokka, you're impossible."
"Hey, I'm just saying," Sokka shot back, "spirits are known for making things complicated. I prefer straightforward problems—like how to avoid getting eaten by a giant spirit wolf."
Katara opened her mouth to respond, but before she could speak, Tang abruptly stopped walking. His hand shot up as if he could feel something in the air.
"Wait," Tang said, his voice tense. "Do you feel that?"
The others halted, turning to him. Aang closed his eyes for a moment, inhaling deeply. His brow furrowed, and when he opened his eyes again, there was a serious edge to his normally calm demeanor.
"The wind," Aang murmured. "It's… off."
Katara looked around, confusion knitting her brow. "What do you mean?"
Tang took a few steps forward, his senses alert, as though the air itself was vibrating with energy. The wind, which had been gentle and cool a moment ago, seemed to carry a strange pressure now. It wasn't just a breeze anymore—it was alive, moving with intention.
"I don't know how to explain it," Tang said, scanning the trees, "but something's wrong. The wind feels… different. Dangerous."
Sokka's hand instinctively went to the hilt of his boomerang. "Great. Just what we need. Another dangerous forest."
Suddenly, a low, haunting howl echoed through the trees. The sound was so eerie, so unnatural, that it made Tang's skin crawl. It was a sound that didn't belong to the natural world, but something older, more primal. The howl was soon joined by others, each one rising in intensity until the forest was filled with the chilling cries of unseen creatures.
Aang's eyes widened in recognition. "Spirit wolves," he whispered, his voice barely audible. "They must have been drawn here by the disturbance."
"Spirit wolves?" Sokka's voice shot up an octave. "Why are spirit wolves always a thing? Can't we go anywhere without running into something supernatural?"
Tang's heart pounded in his chest as the shadows around them seemed to grow darker, thicker, and from the depths of the forest, shapes began to materialize. Large, hulking figures moved silently between the trees, their eyes glowing an unnatural red in the darkness.
"Stay close," Aang said, his voice calm but urgent. "They might not attack if we don't provoke them."
The wolves circled the group, their forms flickering in and out of the shadows like specters. They were massive, their fur black as night, blending into the darkness except for their glowing eyes, which fixed on Tang and the others with unsettling intelligence.
"They're not going to leave us alone, are they?" Katara asked, her voice tight with fear, as she unscrewed the cap of her water skin, preparing to bend at a moment's notice.
"No," Tang said, his gaze locked on the nearest wolf, which was pacing back and forth, watching him with predatory intent. "I think they're here for a reason."
The largest of the wolves, easily the size of a horse, took a step forward, its red eyes locking onto Tang's. There was something about its gaze, something more than just animalistic hunger. Tang could feel it in his bones—these creatures weren't simply hunting. They had been sent, or called, for a purpose.
"They're not like normal wolves," Tang said softly, more to himself than to the others. "They're testing us. Testing me."
"What do you mean?" Aang asked, glancing at Tang with concern. "Testing you how?"
Before Tang could answer, the lead wolf lunged.
The creature moved faster than any natural animal should, closing the distance between them in the blink of an eye. Tang barely had time to react, throwing up his arms and summoning a gust of wind to shove the wolf back. The air swirled violently, pushing the creature off course, but it landed gracefully, its glowing eyes still locked on him.
"They're not going to stop!" Tang shouted. "We have to defend ourselves!"
With that, the wolves attacked as one, a coordinated pack of shadow and fury. Aang immediately leaped into action, his airbending creating powerful gusts that kept the wolves at bay, while Katara bent water into razor-sharp tendrils, slashing at the air in defense. Sokka, ever the warrior, hurled his boomerang with deadly precision, striking one of the wolves square in the jaw.
Tang found himself at the center of the chaos, every wolf seemingly drawn to him. They darted in and out of the shadows, their teeth flashing in the dim light as they tried to find an opening in his defenses. Tang's airbending was strong, but the wolves were relentless, their attacks faster and more coordinated than he could have anticipated.
As the battle raged, Tang felt the pressure building inside him. His movements became more desperate, his strikes more forceful, but with each attack, the wolves seemed to adapt, their red eyes gleaming with a dark intelligence. The spirit's words echoed in his mind: *Your heart is not aligned.*
Was this what the spirit had meant? That he wasn't in balance with himself? That he was fighting with force instead of understanding?
Another wolf lunged at him, and Tang barely managed to sidestep, the creature's claws grazing his arm. He hissed in pain, but something strange happened as the wolf's claws made contact. For a brief moment, Tang's vision blurred, and suddenly, he wasn't in the forest anymore.
He was back at the Air Temple, standing before the ancient spirit once more. The air was thick with the smell of incense, and the spirit's eyes, glowing with otherworldly light, bore into him with a kind of gentle sorrow.
*"You are not yet ready,"* the spirit said, its voice reverberating in his mind. *"Your heart is not aligned. You seek control, but the wind is not to be controlled. It is to be understood."*
Tang blinked, the vision fading as quickly as it had come. He was back in the forest, the wolves still circling, their attacks relentless. But something inside him had changed