Zuko was slowly losing his patience. He just lost count of the number of times his uncle had theatrically whined in pain as they passed the line of trees.
It's been over three hours that the pair have been riding, having left their temporary shed when the sun had just started rising in search of the nearest village to re-provision. Their stranger-guest, 'Zhang', had opted against following them according to Iroh having collected his weird looking clothes. The old man had seemed slightly disappointed that the stranger did not wish to tag along, a sentiment that the exiled-Prince did not share with his uncle.
He turned his head to look at Iroh as the older man let out another whine and watched as his uncle clasped his left shoulder while recoiled in pain. Though his face showed it was more of an exaggeration.
"Maybe we should make camp," Zuko suggested. For all one knows his uncle was playing around, but the teen did not want to take the chance that Iroh's injury was being aggravated from the travel or the heat.
"No, please," the older man pleaded, forcing out the words between gritted teeth. "Don't stop just for me."
Heeding Iroh's words, Zuko kept their ride moving forth. There had been silence for a mere minute before he heard his uncle groaned in pain again. The firebender had enough of Iroh's shenanigans and pulled the reins, forcing the ostrich-horse to halt at a nearby rock.
The former general saw the small stop they made and hopped off their mount to sit atop the rock. Zuko also dismounted, walking towards his uncle as he watched the older man massage his shoulder.
A small whine escaped the ostrich-horse throat, which made Zuko turn and inspect the cause of the sound. He noticed the animal was looking behind them, its eyes wider than normal. Seeing their ride acting up and feeling the small tremors on the ground, Zuko entered his battle stance as he prepared for an ambush.
Iroh too felt the tremors, which were getting stronger by each passing second but merely let out a weary sigh while looking in the same direction as his nephew and the ostrich-horse.
"What now?"
As if answering the former general's question the tremors stopped for a moment, then five komodo rhinos in red armour jumped out of the thicket surrounding the duo. Each komodo rhino had a rider on it, who spotted different looking armour but all had a similar colour scheme - red and black of the Fire Nation.
The komodo rhino standing in front of Zuko and Iroh stomped its left foot onto the ground, creating cracks on the surface.
Zuko's eyes narrowed and steadied his stance, raising his hands to the same level as his head as he eyed the rider that towered above him.
The rider spotted a black armour that adopted red accents across it. His head was clean-shaven bar the man bun tied at the top along with the long, straight moustache that originates on the corners of the mouth and beard.
"Colonel Mongke!" Iroh greeted happily, taking Zuko aback with the excited tone his uncle had used to greet the rhino rider blocking their escape. "What a pleasant surprise!"
Colonel Mongke maintained a straight face. "If you're surprised we're here, then the Dragon of the West has lost a few steps." With that, he clanged his bracers several times, and Zuko realized that the other riders drew their weapons. One held a guandao, one notched an arrow onto his bow and pulled the string, one pulled out a stick of dynamite and another started swinging his chains.
Zuko took a step back but did not lower his guard as he whispered to Iroh.
"You know these guys?"
"Sure!" Iroh happily replied, placing a hand on the exiled-Prince's shoulder. "Colonel and the Rough Rhinos are legendary. Each is a specialist for a different weapon."
He thought for a moment before adding, "They are also a very capable singing group."
Seriously, uncle?
"We're not here for a concert! We're here to bring in two fugitives of the Fire Nation!" Colonel Mongke angrily responded.
"Would you like some tea first? I'd love some," Iroh offered as he rubbed his shoulder. Immediately Zuko realized his uncle was stalling.
"How about you, Kahchi?" Iroh continued asking as he turned his attention to the bearded man holding his guandao. "I make you as a jasmine man. Am I right?"
Colonel Mongke saw through the front as well.
"Enough stalling!" His eyes had widened with rage as the Leader of the Rough Rhinos yelled his next command. "Round 'em up!"
The tense atmosphere broke into chaos as Iroh kicked into action - kicking back the metal ball from the chain before rolling forward to dodge the incoming arrow and fire blast. As he neared a komodo rhino, the former general jumped up to smack it on its behind, causing it to charge straight ahead, dropping the chain wielder who fell backwards from the inertia.
Chuckling at the scene, Iroh turned only to see that Colonel Mongke started blasting more fireballs at him. The older man entered the defensive as he started deflecting the fireballs with his hands. He missed one, and though the fireball was smaller than the others, it still stung him and Iroh was sent flying back a few feet.
"Uncle!" Zuko yelled as he sent his own blast at the archer, who jumped off his rhino to avoid being hit. A small opening was made and the Prince rushed towards his uncle, only to have the window quickly shut in the face by fire blasts, dynamites and a steel ball. The interception attempt forced Zuko back as he had to make with more arrows being shot at his direction.
Eyes narrowed at the Guan Dao wielder who was approaching his uncle, Zuko's brows furrowed and snarled his lips as he realized he was put into a one against four, with the four riders pushing him back towards a tree. If he was going down, he would be going down swinging.
The Prince was ready to start spinning when he felt it. The others felt it too, as they looked at each other.
The ground was shaking. Very hard. A lot harder than the small tremors Zuko felt right before the Rough Rhinos surrounded them.
An earthquake?
Except it wasn't. Just as all the Komodo rhinos started panicking, amber eyes watched as five pillars of water exploded from the ground, hitting all the Rough Rhinos except Colonel Mongke as he jumped off before being. The other four were sent into the air as they screamed in shock. Then the earth underneath the Komodo Rhinos split, swallow the riderless beasts into oblivion.
Then a figure jumped out from the bush and engaged the Colonel. The tenacity and speed of the figure's attacks were so quick Zuko thought he was looking at a blur as he watched the leader of the Rough Rhinos continually step back. It was until Colonel Mongke, who had lost his own patience with being on the defensive, shot a huge fireball forward and forcing the figure to leap back that Zuko was able to see the figure with a muscly build, wild jet black hair and a weird looking fork for a black tattoo holding a weirdly shaped double-edged bronze sword.
"Zhang!"
"Just simple refugees, huh?" 'Zhang' turned his head to face the Prince, a smile was plastered on the young man's face. It looked so sarcastic Zuko definitely would have burned it out of 'Zhang's face if his mind was unpreoccupied with processing the events that appeared in front of him.
'Zhang' is a waterbender?
"You!" Colonel Mongke yelled as he shot fireballs at 'Zhang', trying to keep a distance between him and his assailant. Whoever this man was, he was good with a sword, which the Colonel would know since he was almost turned into minced meat if not for his backstepping. "How dare you aid these fugitives?!"
Zuko watched with wide eyes as 'Zhang' used the sword in his hand to deflect the blasts. What?!
"Haven't you heard, Baldy? I hate bullies."
'Zhang's expression darkened and charged Colonel Mongke again, who had a desperate look on his face as he tried shooting balls of fire at him.
"Zuko!" The Prince turned his head to see his uncle had mounted the ostrich-horse and was riding towards him, and noticed that the other four Rough Rhinos had fallen to the ground after gravity pulled them back.
"Go!" Hearing 'Zhang's voice, he turned back to see the young man's serious look. "I'll buy you some time!"
The teen's eyes narrowed at that. He had questions for 'Zhang', whoever he was, but merely nodded and turned around again to grab Iroh's extended arm and climbed onto the ostrich-horse. The animal took off as soon as Iroh spurred it forward with his heels.
'Zhang' - Percy - watched as the duo escaped then turned his attention back to his opponent. Seeing the other four of the colonel's comrades were beginning to get up, Percy tightened his grip on his sword.
Command them! The elements are yours to command!
He heard the voice again. The same voice that rang in his ear right before he summoned the water pillars and split the earth. Shifting his focus towards his surroundings, Percy heard the current underground crashing against the earth covering them, and he felt the familiar feeling of his gut tugging at him as he stabbed his sword into the ground. A large geyser erupted from below, stunning the five black armoured rhino riders who stood ready to face him. The water from the geyser soon formed a water wall, creating a wave that slammed the enemies. The komodo-rhino hybrid was not spared either.
"Impossible!" Percy heard one of the men, probably the leader ''baldy' (who he heard was called 'Colonel Monkey?'), yell before the wave crashed into them. The man's head appeared from the surface of the water again as the current carried him away. "No waterbender has this much power without the full moon!"
oOo
Zuko was losing his patience. Again. This time he was losing patience faster than the time he lost his 'rematch' with the Southern Waterbender Katara at the North Pole.
Iroh had dragged him to a small town called the Misty Palm Oasis. At first, he thought they had stopped there to re-provision but had doubts about it when he remembered his uncle putting on his thinking face when Zuko mentioned 'friends who aren't trying to kill us' during their escape from the Rough Rhinos earlier in the day.
His doubts were reaffirmed by the fact that they have been in the local bar for over an hour and they only ordered a small cup of tea for Iroh. The place was buzzing with villagers, traders and foot soldiers. With every passing moment, Zuko was certain someone in the crowd would recognize the duo as to being the fugitives in the Wanted posters pinned on the village board. There was no way one would notice the big red scar on Zuko's face and think "Nah, it's just some idiot who had a bad sunburn from frying his face under it for too long" instead of putting two and two together by seeing the resemblance to the poster.
Also, his head was reeling from the earlier events. The teenager
Seeing his nephew stiffen his posture for the fifth time in the last four minutes, Iroh let out a sigh and placed his cup on the table.
"You should really consider ordering tea, Prince Zuko. It helps to calm the mind."
The exiled-Prince turned to glare daggers at his uncle. He had heard the 'tea calms the mind' theory before, when Iroh was explaining the basics of lightning bending to him. Zuko had an open mind and was patient at that time. He had neither of those this time around.
"Maybe I'll be calmer if you did not use our 'actual' identities in public. Also, why are we even here? All these people look like filthy wanderers"
Iroh ignored the tone his nephew used with a smile and a short remark that they too look the same. His eyes scanned the bar again before they locked onto a skinny old man who had just entered and was walking towards a large round at the opposite end of the room.
"I think our friend has arrived." Iroh said as he got off his seat, with Zuko following suit. When he recognized the pattern on the table, the Prince was not as enthusiastic as Iroh.
"You're joking," Zuko whispered. "You brought me here to wait over an hour just to gamble on Pai Sho with a 'friend'?"
Iroh merely smiled as a reply and requested permission from the other old man to have a game. Zuko watched as his uncle sat down and picked a tile piece before setting it in the centre, and decided to take a seat as the game commenced. However, his attention was on neither the game nor the weird, cryptic conversation his uncle was having with his so-called 'friend'. Rather, his mind was replaying the events earlier in the day which left several questions and no answers.
Who is 'Zhang'? Is he a waterbender? How can one be so efficient with a sword and be a proficient bender at the same time?
His focus shifted back to reality when he saw that the game had stopped.
"Welcome, brother," the skinnier man said as he spread his arms wide in a welcoming manner to Iroh. "The White Lotus opens wide to those who know our secrets."
Amber eyes darted between Iroh and the mysterious figure.
"What are you old gasbags talking about?" Zuko could not comprehend a single word being said. To him "White Lotus" was just a tile with a large white flower that taking up most of its space. He turned to look at the board only to realize that the tiles formed the shape of a lotus. Is this a variation of Pai Sho?
A smile formed on Iroh's face. "I always tried to tell you Pai Sho was more than just a game."
Then everything happened in a blur. As the trio stood up and prepared to leave, they were confronted by two earthbenders trying to catch Zuko and Iroh for the bounty. The Prince remembered the older skinny man appearing to backstab them, but in reality, he just wanted to mention 'gold'. The word apparently was effective, as every other customer in the bar broke out into a riot, creating a distraction for Iroh and Zuko to sneak out with the former general's 'friend' and disappear into the dark.
oOo
Zuko had completely lost it. He and Iroh were led by the skinny old man – Fung – to a flower shop. Instead of buying flowers or arranging some flowers, Fung and Iroh entered a back room. Zuko came to learn he was not permitted access when the door was slammed on his face before he could even step foot into the room.
"I'm afraid it's 'members-only" his uncle had said.
Having to think of ways to kill time, the Prince-on-the-run resorted to looking at the flora in the shop. He was starting to get bored out his mind after walking circles in the building, studying and smelling each flower on display several times. Zuko was about to fall asleep standing up when the front door opened. Amber eyes widened from the drowsiness to see a familiar walking in and closing the door.
"You," Zuko said through gritted teeth, his mouth turning into a snarl.
"Man," 'Zhang' said in between light pants. A sarcastic but tired smile had been plastered on his face. "You guys sure make it tough for a guy to find you."
"That's the point of being on the run."
A simple 'Uh-huh' escaped the jet-black-haired man as he studied a pink flower in a vase before turning his attention back to Zuko. The smile on his face had faded.
"I got some questions. What's up with that poster that has you and your uncle's faces on it?"
"Why does it matter to you?" The Prince immediately raised both his fist to enter his battle stance. His counterpart just stood unfazed.
"I mean I can't read Chinese but it's pretty obvious that the poster's either for 'Wanted' or 'Missing'. So, –"
"You're not one to ask questions!" Zuko interjected. "Who are you and why are you really here?!"
The firebender was ready to blast a ball of flames at 'Zhang', but he stopped himself when Iroh's voice boomed throughout the room.
"What is this commotion about?" The teen turned his head to see his uncle standing at the backdoor, his face wearing an unamused expression. The old man's lips curved up slightly when his eyes landed on the young man standing at the entrance.
"Zhang!"
"Uncle Moshi," 'Zhang' greeted him. "But I'm guessing that's not your real name. The same way Li isn't his real name. Am I right, 'Prince Zuko'?"
Zuko's eyes narrowed at 'Zhang'. He took a step forward but his uncle's outstretched arm stopped him.
"What do you want, Zhang? It doesn't like you to come all the way here just to hear us say 'Thank you'." Iroh said, his facial expression hard to read before softening slightly. "By the way, thank you."
"Don't mention it. I owed you two."
"Then your 'debt' has been paid," Zuko added impatiently. He did not want this 'Zhang' around. "Why are you still here?"
"I thought of taking up your uncle's offer," the young man replied while sending his own glare towards the Prince. "In exchange of me tagging along and keeping you two safe. Seems like anywhere you guys go there's trouble."
The prince was about to argue that he and his uncle are well capable of taking care of themselves when Iroh who narrowed his eyes and spoke first. "I sense a 'but' coming."
"It's not really a 'but', per se," 'Zhang' replied without breaking eye contact from either of the two. "It just won't be easy for me to help two firebenders without having proper knowledge of what I'll be up against."
"Who told you we're firebenders?" Zuko demanded. Sea-green eyes merely rolled in amusement.
"As you can see, Prince of Brooding-Land, I have eyes," 'Zhang' said, using his left hand to point gesture at his... well, eyes. "My eyes allow me to see. Colonel 'Monkey' wasn't the only one throwing fireballs and being all Human Torch in the small desert."
Not knowing the meaning of 'Human Torch' nor any proper way to reply, the Prince turned to Iroh. "You're not seriously planning to take up his offer, are you?"
It would be risky to divulge the truth to this stranger. Sure, running with him is a lot better than having to run from him. The only two 'facts' they know about this young man is one – he can bend water. Which means he is most likely from the Water Tribes, making him a spy; and Two – he seems to be an experienced tracker. He proved it when he found them in this flower shop at Misty Oasis. Other than these two 'facts', they had zero knowledge of anything else related to him.
Iroh stroked his beard as he looked to be pondering on the offer for a few moments. Then, he stopped and looked at 'Zhang'.
"That sounds good to me," a broad smile formed on the former general's face. What? "I shall talk to my friends and see what they can arrange."
Zuko had to resist the strong urge to facepalm as his uncle agreed to the stranger's offer. Uncle has had too much tea it's flooding his mind. Both 'Zhang' and Zuko watched as the older man re-entered the backroom and closed the door behind him. The Prince lets a scoff escape his throat.
"Yeah, 'members-only'."
Silence befell the room, now occupied by the two young men who stood at opposite ends. The sound of the streets still buzzing with life filled the atmosphere for a few minutes before 'Zhang' spoke up.
"So, Prince Zuko of the Fire Nation, huh?"
Hearing that, the exiled-Prince shrugged his shoulders as he let out a sigh. "It's a long story."
"Looks like we have a lot of times in our hands," 'Zhang' said as he pointed at the night sky through the see-through hole on the front door. The young man then walked towards Zuko, who narrowed his eyes in response. Amber eyes watched as 'Zhang' stretched his arm out, offering his hand to the firebender.
"Let's start over, shall we?" 'Zhang' offered as Zuko cocked his unsinged eyebrow at him. "My name's Percy."