Serpent

The serpent is a large, mysterious aquatic creature that inhabits the waters of the Earth Kingdom, specifically the lakes surrounding the Serpent's Pass.

History
The locals of the area named the Serpent's Pass after the serpent that inhabited the surrounding lakes. Fear of the serpent was instilled in nearby lore, as a sign at the entrance to the pass was emblazoned with the words, "abandon hope".

thumb|left|200px|[[Aang and Katara battling the serpent.]]

As they were crossing the Serpent's Pass, Team Avatar, accompanied by Tahn, Ying, and Tahn's sister, was attacked by the serpent. When the group reached a portion of the pass that was completely submerged, Katara used her waterbending to part the sea and allow the group to travel in a small, capsule-like bubble under the waves. However, they were attacked by the serpent, causing the bubble to break. Toph quickly earthbent the path underneath the group, raising them above the water and saving them from drowning. Avatar Aang and Katara created a huge whirlpool around the serpent, spinning it around until it hit one of the pass' walls and was knocked out.

Later, when the group was escaping Ba Sing Se on a captured Fire Nation warship commanded by Bato and Chief Hakoda, their ship ran into an actual Fire Nation destroyer right beside the Serpent's Pass. The Fire Navy officer interrogated Hakoda and let him pass, but realized as he was leaving that the ship's operators were not Fire Nation. He ordered an attack on the ship and nearly managed to destroy it until the serpent suddenly rose up out of the water. As it prepared to attack the ship, the serpent was struck by a stray fireball, which angered the creature and caused it to attack the enemy ship, cleaving the vessel in half with its body.

Anatomy
The one hundred foot long serpent is covered in teal and purple scales. It also has bright red eyes and a long, snakelike tongue, although unlike a snake's tongue, the serpent's is not forked. It has two long, thin barbels and a set of small, sharp white teeth. Fins protrude from its side and head.

Behavior
This ferocious animal lives mostly on fish and other water creatures, but it will attack and eat just about anything - it has even been known to attack ships when looking for a meal. It lets out an extremely loud, blood-curdling scream just before it attacks.

Connection
The serpent's overall design is based on the sea serpent in mythology, most notable in Western myths. The head and body is based on the seahorse, which is a long faced fish with frills and a prehensile tail. In overall anatomy and design, the serpent is based on a group of fish called the syngnathidae (seahorses and pipefish).

Trivia
thumb|right|200px|The serpent as it appears in [[Super Deformed Shorts#School Time Shipping|School Time Shipping.]]


 * The serpent was featured in the unaired pilot of Avatar. It rose from the ocean and stood before Prince Zuko's ship. Later in the episode, the serpent's burned head was brought into the fort where Zuko was staying.
 * It was also seen in the non-canonical short School Time Shipping within a tank in the classroom where Aang is feeding it. It appears as a small seahorse rather than the giant sea serpent it truly is.
 * The design of the serpent somewhat resembles the unagi.