12. New Perspectives
"Oh no! It's a dead end! Now what do we do?" Sokka turned to look at Aang and Katara, "we have to think of something and fast before the bloodthirsty pirates catch up!"
"Oh man, if only I still had my glider I could try to fly us out of here", Aang looked at the fans in his hands with disappointment, "that won't happen with these things."
"It's not your fault", Katara consoled the young monk,"and you wouldn't probably have been able to carry the three of us anyway."
"Arr!" a ferocious sound echoed from behind a corner.
"Here they come", Sokka gulped but took his fighting stance nonetheless.
No matter what Katara says, it is sort of my fault, Aang thought. I'm the Avatar. If I can't even save my friends, how can I save the world?
"Catch those thieving otter-snakes!" A pirate yelled. He and his numerous companions began advancing on the children.
Aang didn't want to hurt anyone, but he had to protect his friends. He wasn't yet a fully realized Avatar, but he was an airbending prodigy.
Sokka used his boomerang to take out two guys. Katara used the water in her water skin to create a slippery floor, which took down a few more pirates. Aang blew the rest out of their way with his fans and shouted to his friends: "We have to go back this way. Follow me."
As Team Avatar was almost past their enemies and out of the dead end, one of the pirates took out a handful of smoke bombs. The thick smoke made it hard for Aang to see where he was going. He could only hope the pirates were just as confused.
"Sokka! Katara!" Aang called out.
"I'm... somewhere!" Sokka called back, and added, "Let's split up and rendezvous where we left Appa!"
"What about the watch tower?" Katara asked. "It's much closer."
"Sure, but I'm willing to bet my boomerang the pirates just heard that, too."
Aang looked around in the smoke, still not seeing much. Sokka was right. "Okay, we'll meet up at Appa."
Aang decided the best way he could help his friends was by attracting as much attention as possible on him.
The Air Nomad did a swirling airbending kata to clear off smoke around himself, revealing his location to everyone near-by. As Aang had hoped that caused most of the pirates to follow him as he took them out on another wild chase around the town.
ooo
Sokka had his arms stretched in front of him as he stumbled forward. He'd just gotten through most of the smoke and could now see a few meters ahead of him.
Making the most of his newly gained sight, Sokka started running.
He got to an end of a street, but his sense of direction was still not working properly, so he wasn't sure which street he was on. Sokka ran behind a corner and realized he was heading back towards the docks.
Well that's not where I want to go.
Sokka turned around to leave but before he had time know what hit him, the world went black.
ooo
Iroh was heading back to the town after having spent the entire afternoon searching the village and the near-by moors for Zuko. What Iroh had found on the grassy hills raised more questions than it answered.
A major spiritual happening had taken place not far from the village, of this Iroh was sure.
His trip to the Spirit World six years ago had opened his eyes, and other senses, to be far keener on spiritual happenings than what most people's senses were.
Even so keen that it was sometimes a bit of an inconvenience when a passing spirit caught Iroh's attention when it really should've been on the present.
This time Iroh was nothing but grateful for his insight on spiritual matters, though. Any clues to Zuko's whereabouts, even vague ones, were welcome at this point.
Iroh was almost certain he had not sensed much spiritual presence in the vicinity when arriving this morning.
There was a possibility he had simply overlooked it, but Iroh doubted that.
If the spiritual activities were recent, as Iroh presumed they were, there was a very good chance they were connected to his nephew's sudden disappearance.
Zuko, where are you?
Iroh couldn't shake of the feeling that the spiritual place he'd found at the moors and the spiritual encounter Zuko had had the other night had to be connected.
Zuko had been awful quiet after his meeting with the Dragon Spirit, but Uncle had dismissed it as the kind of quiet that was caused by the awe every man felt after meeting a spirit for the first time.
He had even thought it was excitement over reuniting with Ursa. Iroh hadn't thought Zuko had beenwithholding information from him. Not before now.
What was the exact deal Zuko made with the spirit? I really should have asked for more details.
Iroh felt exceptionally old when re-entering the town. He knew there was no points in letting your worries get the best of you.
Still, Zuko was like a second son to him and Iroh couldn't bear the thought of losing him, too.
One way or another, Iroh was relatively certain Zuko wasn't coming back to this place.
Not after the way the meeting with Ursa had gone.
However, it still didn't hurt to check the village one last time before returning to the ship to wait for Zuko. Iroh wasn't about to let his confidence in his deductive abilities get the best of him.
Also, their ostrich-horses were still parked outside the smithy.
ooo
Ouch.
Sokka's head ached. It was a jamming kind of pain that wouldn't let him rest.
He opened his eyes but had to blink a few times to get a sense of his surroundings.
Sokka was lying on a blanket on top of a haystack. He was in a dark small room, or quite possibly a tent.
How did I get here?
Suddenly Sokka remembered that the pirates had attacked him.
Oh no! I'm being held captive by pirates! I've got to think of something.
Sokka tried to feel around himself for anything that could be used as a weapon. To his great surprise, the pirates had left all his stuff, his boomerang and machete included, next to the blanket.
Okay... Not very bright pirates.
Sokka gathered his things quietly. He got to his feet but had to pause for a while as the world started spinning uncomfortably.
Sokka touched his head to feel for any injuries only to find that someone had already bandaged it.
Feeling his every step carefully, Sokka began to make his way towards a little glint of light that came from under a cloth working as a door.
Sokka was only halfway to the door when he heard something.
The Water Tribe boy stopped moving and listened intently, picking up more words of the loud conversation as it approached.
"... potentially important information out of the prisoner", An unfamiliar man's voice finished.
I'll tell them nothing, Sokka decided.
To Sokka's surprise, the next speaker was a woman.Odd. Sokka didn't recall seeing any women among the pirates.
"It's not our policy to take prisoners and you know it. This is a bad idea. Also, I have difficulty understanding why you picked this prisoner particularly."
"We have a reason to believe this particular prisoner has valuable information on local Fire Nation outposts", the man defended his case.
No... I don't.
Sokka wondered what the pirates would do with that sort of information anyway.
"No, we don't", the woman responded and added. "Do you really think I don't see why you picked her out of them all?"
"That had nothing to do with..." the man tried to answer but was interrupted.
"We both know she wasn't taken a prisoner forinformation gathering! She isn't even an officer!" the woman shouted.
Suddenly the piece of cloth that marked the door was pulled aside
"And you", Ilya said. "You are not supposed to be out of bed!"
For a moment, all Sokka could do was blink. Now he officially had no idea what was going on.
"I've been kidnapped by... the Earth Kingdom Militia?" he guessed.
Ilya and the older man Sokka didn't know stared at him for a while before the man corrected him: "No. You've been saved by the Earth Kingdom Militia."
Sokka looked puzzled: "I've been... what?"
"Ilya", the man addressed the young woman. "See to it that our... guest has everything he needs. And on the earlier topic: I don't want to hear another word of it. I'm in charge of this camp, and you'd do well to remember that."
The man walked away.
"Okay, I'm still confused", Sokka confessed.
Ilya glared at him before rolling her eyes and answering: "We saw a bunch of thugs carrying you around. They said you'd stolen from them. Had you?"
"What? Stolen from the pirates? No."
"We didn't think so, either", Ilya said, "and despite what your bestest buddy the Avatar thinks of the Militia, weare a pretty decent bunch. So we fought the pirates until it wasn't worth it for them to keep you as a prisoner. Then we brought you here.
"We actually saw quite a bit of trouble to save your sorry ass, so a little gratitude wouldn't hurt", she added, "And when I tell you you shouldn't be out of bed, you really should realize to get back to bed. Do I have to make you?"
"Wow, I can't stay here!" Sokka realized, "I gotta find my friends and make sure they are okay. Are Katara and Aang here?"
Ilya shook her head: "We found you alone with the pirates. We saw no signs of the Avatar or your sister."
"Man! They must be getting worried for me. How long was I out?" Sokka rubbed his bandaged head.
"Almost the whole day", Ilya answered, looking a bit more sympathetic, "We were starting to get worried. You lost quite a bit of blood from the cut in your head before we got a chance to bandage it."
"The whole day? Oh no. Then Katara and Aang are super worried. They'll think I've been caught by the pirates."
"You were caught by the pirates", Ilya pointed out, "Look, I understand your concern but there is nothing you can do about it right now. Not in your condition. You need to lay down and rest."
"Nah, I'm fine", Sokka said, and took a step forward to prove his point.
And if only the world had held still.
Ilya was suddenly next to him, supporting him with her body. She guided Sokka back to the make-shift bunk at the back of the tent.
"Look", Ilya began, "How about I tell our scouts that if they are to run into the Avatar, they'll let him know you are okay and at our camp. How does that sound?"
"It... sounds pretty good", Sokka couldn't think of a better solution.
Ilya told Sokka to lay still as she went to tell a friend to tell a friend to tell a scout. She returned soon with a bowl of soup in hand. Sokka accepted it more than gladly. He was starving.
"What is this place, anyway?" Sokka asked to start a conversation.
"A temporary camp. We're headed north, but I can't tell you exactly where we're going. I can tell you that we are some distance away from the port we found you at."
"Okay", Sokka mumbled while sipping the last of his soup, " So, I guess you're right. I should probably thank you guys for saving me."
Ilya waved her hand, dismissing the topic: "Truth be told, we've had trouble with those pirates before. We barely need an excuse to pick a fight with them."
"I'm not surprised", Sokka commented, "I mean, they attacked me and my friends without any provocation. I should think they would've made a lot of enemies withthat tactic."
"Don't know about that, but you got lucky we happened to be near-by", she sighed, looking suddenly sheepish, "and that we chose to rescue you. I mean, it took some convincing to get the others to rescue a friend of the Avatar after he didn't give us his support."
"Yeah, we didn't exactly depart as best friends. So why did you save me?"
"Even if the Avatar doesn't' like the Militia, he is still the best chance our kingdom has to win the war. Or, well, at least that's what I told the boys", Ilya explained.
"So does that mean it's you I owe to?" Sokka inquired.
Ilya actually blushed for a moment, shaking her head.
Her voice, however, held solid: "Hardly. I didn't do it for you. It was just the right thing to do."
"But wait a second", Sokka's mind was slowly processing what he had learned so far, "Earlier I heard you guys talking about a prisoner. If it isn't me, then who?"
"Are you always this paranoid?" Ilya rolled her eyes, "Well, we weren't talking about you, obviously. We've got another prisoner. A Fire Nation soldier."
Reading her face, Sokka could tell this fact bothered her.
"I thought you guys weren't trying to pick a fight with the Fire Nation?"
"Sometimes we don't have a choice. Fighting them is kind of unavoidable in our line of work. Truth be told, I don't think all of us even want to avoid it", Ilya said.
"Everyone hates the Fire Nation", Sokka commented, "So why do you have a problem with the Militia fighting them?"
"I don't", the young woman defended herself, "I hate the Fire Nation, too. It's just... too much hatred sometimes makes people lose sight of what fights are really important. They throw away their principles for simple retribution, and without principles we really are the rag-tag bunch of thugs almost everyone already thinks we are."
Sokka nodded. He thought he understood that: "You fear the Militia attracts wrong kind of people. The kind that would rather destroy Fire Nation stuff than help build schools."
"Exactly! I mean, don't get me wrong. I believe in the Militia, I really do. It's just sometimes... like today, for example... when I'm not sure if even we know what we are fighting for."
Ilya's face was calm, but her eyes were burning with something Sokka couldn't put a finger on.
There's something she's not telling me. Something important.
Ilya's hair was longer than Sokka had remembered. On their earlier encounter she'd worn it on a bun, but now that her black hair was on a long braid, it reached almost to her waist.
The girl was wearing a loose, dark green tunic with a wide belt around the waist. Under the tunic she wore a wide-sleeved shirt and loose trousers. No shoes, as was traditional for earthbenders.
All in all, Ilya's look was so traditionally Earth Kingdom that it was hard to guess this young woman was a freedom fighter. Which was probably the whole point.
The only even slightly noticeable thing about Ilya's appearance was that she had wide, jade bracelets on both her wrists. Sokka guessed they were important to her, maybe a gift or family jewels.
The silence made Sokka feel uneasy, so he quickly thought of another conversation opener: "So... this prisoner you have... did I hear someone say it was a 'she'?"
"Yes", was all Ilya said.
"And that's why you have a problem with it?"
"I have a problem with it because I've been taught that it's wrong to treat anyone, even your enemies, with unnecessary cruelty", she answered.
One look at Sokka's face told her he wasn't following her line of thought, so Ilya began to explain: "In Earth Kingdom, women aren't allowed to join the Army. It's not considered... feminine."
"Yeah, the Water Tribes think it's a man's job to fight, too", Sokka told her.
"The Fire Nation has female soldiers, but because the concept of women fighting is bizarre to our culture, most of our soldiers don't... get it."
"Hey, but what about you? You're a woman fighting", Sokka pointed out.
"Yes, I am. But I'm not in the Army. The Militia enlists women, though mainly to compensate for the shortage on able men. We need every bender who's willing to fight and hasn't already joined the Army, which pretty much means women. Though not even Militia takes women if they're married or mothers", Ilya clarified.
"Not everyone in the Militia is as radical as some of our ideals are. Not even close", Ilya went on, "My point is that most Earth Kingdom soldiers, Militia and Army alike, don't see the enemy's female soldiers as soldiers at all. They see them as something that shouldn't be. Something evil."
"Soldiers fight because they have their orders, but since women aren't soldiers, they must be doing it because they are exceptionally ruthless and evil, even inhuman. That's why our soldiers sometimes treat them... inhumanly."
Ilya looked disgusted for a moment before continuing: "Fighting and killing on the front lines where it's either you or him I get, but hurting people when you don't have to..."
Sokka thought about that for a moment. His recent visit to Kyoshi Island had opened his eyes to the fact that girls were no worse fighters than men.
However, if Sokka hadn't been there, he wasn't sure how he would've taken to the concept of Fire Nation enlisting women. To him, it sounded coward-like of them to make their women fight for them, but Ilya had a point, too.
"So, you think she's being treated worse than prisoners of war usually are because she's a woman?" Sokka wanted to confirm he'd gotten it right. Ilya nodded.
"But", Sokka had to point out, "woman or man, she is a Fire Nation soldier. They are all evil, so odds are she's getting what's coming for her."
Ilya looked furious.
"It doesn't matter how born-and-bread evil they might be. It doesn't give us an excuse to go down to their level. No one deserves to be treated inhumanly!"
A bit calmer, she added: "Also, I'm not even sure everyone from the Fire Nation is evil. Not anymore. I know, blasphemy to say such things."
Ilya rolled her eyes before continuing, but there was no humor in the gesture.
"I've seen Fire Nation soldiers do decent, even good things. Like the first time we met. That one Fire Nation soldier risked his life trying to save an Earth Kingdom village because it was the right thing to do."
It took Sokka a while to realize who Ilya was referring to.
"Hold on. You're not trying to say that Prince Zuko is your moral idol? 'Cause I've met him before and I've gotta break this to you: that guy is nothing but trouble. He didn't do what he did for any noble reasons."
"I don't know what his motives were", Ilya admitted, "Still, back at Halti, he was the only one who stood up for what was right even when it meant he had to make a stand against his own people. He did what the rest of us should have been doing."
"Hey! The way I remember it, you were the one who practically sat on the rest of us to stop us from acting", Sokka reminded Ilya.
"Those were my orders. It still doesn't make what that Zuko guy did any lesser."
Sokka didn't understand: "So what exactly are you getting at with all this?"
Ilya took a deep breath: "What bothers me is that I feel like I'm a worse person than this Zuko guy. Worse than some Fire Nation soldier. In fact, I feel so bad about this whole thing I'd like to..."
Ilya didn't finish her sentence. When she glanced at Sokka, her eyes had a weary edge to them, almost as if she was afraid she'd said too much.
"I really should stop bothering you with my rants and let you get some rest", Ilya changed the topic.
Before Sokka had time to say anything, she was up and out of the tent.
ooo
The sun was already setting and Sokka was still nowhere to be found.
This is all my fault, was the only thing Katara could think of. The stupid scroll is so not worth this.
Katara sat at an end of a peer. The moment she and Aang had realized Sokka wasn't coming to the rendezvous point, she'd confessed to Aang that she'd taken the waterbending scroll. Not knowing what else to do, they had returned to the town, ready to take on the pirates to save Sokka. The only problem was that the pirates had no longer been docked to the harbor.
Aang had taken Appa to search the near-by waters for the pirate ship. Katara had stayed behind to search the town in case Sokka hadn't been caught but was hiding somewhere instead.
She'd already searched the town from top to bottom twice and even gone back to their rendezvous place a few times to see if Sokka had returned there. She'd found no signs of her brother.
Katara began crying even though she'd promised herself that she'd be strong. Momo, who had stayed with Katara to help her in her search, sat on Katara's lap. As she sat there petting the lemur , she felt absolutely terrible.
If something bad has happened to him, I'll never forgive myself.
Suddenly, somebody called from behind her: "Girl. Yes, you there."
Katara turned around and saw a boy probably about her age approaching her.
"Are you the one who's looking for that fellow that the pirates chased down?" the boy asked.
Katara was on her feet so quickly she dropped Momo:"Yes, yes I am! Have you seen him? Do you know where he is?"
To Katara's great irritation, the boy took his time answering. Eventually, he said: "I may have seen something."
"Then tell me what you know. Please. He's my brother and he could be in trouble", Katara pleaded.
"Oh, he's in trouble alright. Never a good idea to steal from the pirates", the boy said smugly.
"Tell me at once", Katara was running out of patience.
"Sure, sure. What's it worth to you?"
"Worth? He's my brother!"
"I meant how much have you got to give me for my trouble", the boy clarified, keeping his calm. He'd probably done this sort of thing before.
Katara had just about had it: "Tell me right now or I'll make you wish you had!"
The boy didn't look concerned: "And then who's gonna tell you? 'Cause I'm telling you, Sugar, no one's gonna give you anything without a price around here. In this port, everything is for sale, which means everything comes with a price."
Katara tried to calm herself. She hated this whole port and all its unhelpful inhabitants.
"I... I have a copper coin."
"Please. A copper coin? No deal."
"I have two copper coins. But that's really all I have. You can take them or keep your information to yourself. I'm sure no one else cares to buy it from you", Katara bargained.
The boy considered that: "Throw in that pretty necklace of yours and I'll tell."
Katara called forth water from the sea beneath the peer. She threw a wave at the boy, but the boy docked and took out a pocket knife.
Before Katara could think of another attack, a sudden gosh of wind knocked the boy down. Appa swooshed over Katara's head and Aang jumped down, fans at hand.
"I'm not going to let you hurt Katara", he said.
Katara felt irritated. Even if Aang was a far better bender than she was he didn't have to rub it in at every turn: "I didn't need you to save me! I had everything under control!"
Aang looked shocked, even a bit hurt.
I shouldn't shout at him. Katara bit her lip. It's not himI'm angry at.
"Sorry, Aang", Katara said more kindly. "Did you find the ship?"
Aang shook his head, looking almost as miserable as she felt.
Katara turned to look at the boy who was now sprawled on the ground. Katara was still holding a globe of water in her hands.
"Tell me everything you know."
"Fine", the boy said, his eyes never leaving the globe in Katara's hands. "I saw the pirates knocking a kid out. He was wearing blue clothes a bit like yours. And when I say they hit him, I mean, they really took a swing at him. His head was bleeding and all."
"Oh no", Katara exhaled, already seeing all the worst possible scenarios in her head.
"The pirates were dragging the kid back to their ship, but then these Militia people showed up and started to pick a fight."
"Militia?" Aang asked and looked at Katara, who was as surprised as Aang was.
"Yeah, Militia. A big bunch of them. And one of them said she knew the boy and they argued with the pirates about it. And then they fought."
"The Militia fought the pirates?" Katara asked, still stunned. "Then what?"
"The Militia won. Sort of. They told the pirates to get lost."
"What about Sokka? Who got Sokka?" Katara insisted to know.
"Not sure."
Katara lifted the water globe.
"No! Seriously, I'm not sure! It wasn't safe to be standing right next to the battle. But I think the Militia took him. That's all I know."
Katara and Aang looked at one another.
"You think they rescued him?" Aang asked more from Katara than from the boy on the ground.
"I don't know", Katara said. "But we're going to find out."
ooo
Ursa was sitting by a window, waiting for any sign of Zuko or Iroh's return. She didn't like the way their encounter had ended.
So many things I should have said. So many things I should have done.
Finally, when the sun had already set, Iroh came back. Ursa walked out to the yard to meet him.
"Iroh", she said to catch his attention. Ursa noticed Zuko wasn't with his uncle. She could guess why. "He doesn't want to see me again."
Iroh took a breath and turned to look at Ursa. He looked tired.
"I don't know where Zuko is", Iroh finally said.
"What? What do yo mean?" Ursa was now worried.
It was unlike of Zuko to run away without telling anyone where he was going. Or at least it had been unlike of the Zuko she'd once known.
"So, he hasn't returned here", Iroh sighed to himself, clearly not having expected Zuko to have done so.
"He is hurt, isn't he?" Ursa had to ask.
Iroh took another deep breath before answering: "Emotionally? Undoubtedly. Physically? I don't know. Zuko hasn't had it easy these past few years. Far from it. You were... hard on him."
"I know", Ursa said. "But you must see that it is impossible for him to stay here."
"Even so, Zuko is your son", Iroh looked Ursa in the eye. "And he needs you just as much as your other children do. It is your responsibility to help him even when it's... inconvenient. As a parent, you don't get to cherry pick which of your children you like the best."
"I know", Ursa repeated shortly.
After her banishment, Ursa hadn't expected to ever to see Zuko or Azula again. The pain of having to leave them behind had been almost unbearable, but there had been no other way.
Ozai would never have allowed Ursa to take the children with her. Also, a life of a fugitive was no life for a young child.
She liked to think she had made the right decision that night, but it had been a long time since she'd been sure.
"I often told myself that there was no other way. That my children would be better off raised in a palace. But sometimes, especially after what happened to Zuko, I wonder. I wonder if I simply abandoned my children into the hands of a monster."
Ursa knew it was risky of her to criticize Ozai this openly to his brother without knowing where Iroh stood on the matter.
Well, everything about today's meeting has been risky. I should just thank the spirits it was only Zuko and Iroh who found me.
"I don't know my niece as well as I should, but Zuko I do know. He is a wonderful child. He's suffered more than anyone should and he's struggling to find his way, but even after all that's happened to him, he hasn't grown cold or cruel", Iroh stated evenly.
"I'm glad he has you to look after him", Ursa said earnestly.
"I will always look after Zuko", Iroh vowed. "But having an uncle around is not the same as having yourparents to care for you."
Ursa nodded. She still felt terrible, but she couldn't afford to dwell in self-pity. She had to be strong for her family.
"When you find Zuko, please tell him that I never stopped loving him."
Iroh had untied two ostrich-horses and was now preparing to leave.
"I can tell him that, but it is one thing to say you love someone and another thing to act accordingly."
Ursa didn't remember Iroh being this cold, but since she probably deserved the criticism, she just nodded.
"I have searched around the village thoroughly. I seriously doubt Zuko is still here, so there's no point for me to stay any longer. I will return to our ship", Iroh stated. "If Zuko comes back here, please tell him where I went."
"I will", Ursa promised, and added: "But you don't think he's coming back, do you?"
"No, I don't", Iroh stated. "Goodbye, Lady Ursa. I wish the best for you and your family."
Iroh's manners never failed him but it was clear to Ursa that the greeting was said solely out of politeness.
"Goodbye, Iroh."
ooo
I'm going to regret this.
Ilya was sneaking around the campsite the Militia had built amidst trees to cover it from sight. She could hear people sleeping inside a tent she was just rounding, and she moved very quietly as not to wake them.
Technically, she had every right to be walking there. Nonetheless, Ilya didn't want to run into anyone.
I can't believe I'm going to do this. I'm such a traitor.
Despite all her doubts, Ilya's mind was made.
I'm going to aid the Fire Nation. My family would so disown me, if they hadn't done that already. They'd hate me for this.
Even though Ilya's whole body shook with nervousness, she tried to focus. By concentrating on her bending, she could roughly tell if there were people walking near her location.
So far, no one.
Ilya had counted on Shen putting an end to the whole prisoner-fiasco when he had returned from his scouting trip, but he hadn't.
Shen had pulled Ilya aside and told her that the matter wasn't worth fighting for.
Ilya realized she was being followed.
She took a breath and tried to concentrate. Someone was closing in on her. Someone wearing soft leather boots.
Ilya waited a while, letting her follower catch up.
When Sokka emerged from behind a tree, Ilya had already composed herself enough to convincingly stare him down.
"Wow", Sokka exclaimed.
"What are you doing here? You're supposed to be resting", Ilya accused Sokka, as if it was he who had been caught up to no good.
She was almost whispering as not to wake anyone up.
"I... I just came to say that you... you shouldn't do this", Sokka, too, was whispering.
"Do what?" Ilya asked a bit too quickly.
Sokka sighed: "Look, I get it that you think you have to do something about the Fire Nation prisoner, but I'm telling you, this is not a good idea."
Okay, so he had figured it out.
"I know", Ilya sighed, "but I won't let them kill her, and you can't stop me."
"They're going to kill her?" Sokka asked, surprised, "What for?"
"On the record, because she's a Fire Nation spy. Off the record, because it's 'good for the morals'. Apparently we here in the Militia are so righteous we don't need areal reason to start executing people."
Good for the morals?
Ilya had been disgusted by Shen's words. And disappointed.
She'd always thought Shen would be ready to move mountains when it was the right thing to do. Turned out Shen only moved mountains for his people.
The Water Tribe boy gaped at Ilya before answering: "Well, uh, I can't believe I'm saying this but... then maybe you do have a point."
"I mean, Fire Nation is evil and all, but it still isn't... right to pin all their crimes on one woman just because she's conveniently available."
"I guess I'm just going to have to come with you."
"What? Absolutely no!" Ilya hissed, "It's my stupid plan, and I alone will go down with it. After I've ranted about this to everyone who's stood still long enough to hear me out, it's really unlikely people won't figure out it was me who broke her out. There's no need to get you into trouble for this as well."
"Yeah, but I owe you, so I'm not going to let you do this alone. What's the plan?"
"You're in no condition to help me. Also, if you do this, all of Militia will become not just your enemy but the Avatar's as well", Ilya tried to reason, "Is that a risk you're willing to take?"
Sokka thought for a moment, but eventually replied: "I'm sure Aang will forgive me for getting some dirt on his reputation because if he was here, he'd be right with you on this whole 'let's not kill anyone' thing. He's totally opposed to death penalty. He wouldn't want to kill the Fire Lord."
"So I'm coming along whether you like it or not. And by the way, I'm already in a much better condition, thank you very much. I can help."
Ilya felt guilty for getting Sokka into trouble, but she was also relieved by the boy's offer.
While planning her move, she had begun to question her own mental health. It was reassuring to hear she wasn't the only one who thought the situation was rotten.
"Fine. But you have to be quiet and do exactly as I tell you."
Sokka nodded and smiled: "So, the plan?"
They continued together towards the partially natural cave, partially bending made building, where the prisoner was being held.
ooo
Ari felt cold. She didn't usually envy benders and she sure as hell didn't think they were better warriors than none-benders, but in situations like this, firebending would've come in real handy.
Ari's hands and legs were tied with iron chain that was attached to the ground, so bending wouldn't have gotten her out of the situation, but at the very least she could've kept herself warm.
Ari was shivering, and not just because it was cold in the crude, rocky structure her captors had built for her imprisonment.
Years of elite training had taught her how to stay calm, rational and in control under battle circumstances. Her training had enabled her to appear quietly defiant throughout the ordeal of being taken prisoner and dragged to an enemy stronghold.
My fearless expression is my true war paint.
Ari wondered briefly if any of the actual, red war paint she'd put on her face that morning was still in place.
Probably not.
Now that she was alone she couldn't stop shaking in a way that had nothing to do with the cold.
I don't want to die.
Ari could hear muffled footsteps approaching the tent. The two guards sitting outside heard them as well.
"Who's out there?" one of them called.
"Relax", the other man said, "It's just Ilya."
The man who'd spoken first didn't seem to relax one bit: "What are you doing here, Ilya? And who's your friend?"
"Hey, Jing", a female voice greeted, "Sokka here is from the Water Tribes and he was curious to see how we here in the Earth Kingdom handle our Fire Nation prisoners."
"Apparently, the people of Water have had some pretty unsuccessful experiences with it themselves because their prisons and chains are made of ice."
Both guards and the girl laughed quietly while a young male voice tried to defend his people's customs: "... how were we supposed to know they would melt!"
"I don't know kiddo. Our orders were not to let anyextra people in", the first guard said, though he was obviously considering it.
"Come on", the other guard replied, "Isn't it our duty to our allies to show them how it's done?"
The other man must've agreed, since a moment later, two people walked into the room, closing the wooden door behind them.
The new arrivals were a girl wearing Earth Kingdom clothes and a boy in Water Tribe colors.
They were young, even younger than Ari herself, and she was only 21.
The kids exchanged glances, apparently trying to determine whether the men waiting outside would hear them.
Since the men themselves were making a loud conversation, the two kids started whispering to one another.
"This is your great plan?" the boy asked, incredulous.
"What? I got us in, didn't I?" the girl answered.
"Yeah, but how are we going to get out of here with those two waiting outside?"
"Well I didn't hear you suggesting a better plan."
"You kidding me? How about you, being an earthbender an all, dig a secret tunnel to this cave, we take her and no one would even know we were here?"
"If you can dig a secret tunnel then now would be a good time to do so", the girl rolled her eyes.
"What? Wait, are you saying you don't know how to do that? I thought making tunnels was earthbending one-o-one", the boy scratched his head.
The girl sighed: "Well it isn't. Moving rocks is. Tunnels require more planning and power."
"I already told you girls aren't generally taught how to fight, and my family isn't so wealthy they could've sent me to an academy or get me a private teacher."
"I know how to clear a field of rocks or how to dig a ditch and stuff like that, but almost all the fighting moves I know I've learned after joining the Militia. I could try to dig a tunnel, but even if I succeeded, it would be loud. Someone would figure out something was out of place a lot faster than I could dig."
Ari tried to look tough, but she couldn't help beginning to get curious and even carefully optimistic.
Did he just say they are here to rescue me?
The boy nodded.
"Okay. So, back to your plan, what happens next?" the boy smiled encouragingly despite his obvious worry.
The girl smiled, lifted her wrist and pointed at a stone bracelet on it.
"There is one trick I know that most earthbenders don't. My grandmother, the only other bender in our family, taught it to me years ago. She wanted me to be able to protect myself."
As the girl spoke, she moved her fingers and a small but sharp stone spike formed, still attached to the bracelet.
It's a hidden knife disguised as jewelry, Ari thought.
"Great", the boy said, sounding less confident, "but since we don't want to kill her, how does that help?"
"Because this isn't just a weapon. I can shape it to fit the lock, making it a universal key. So, all we have to do now is to get her on board", the girl said and nodded towards Ari.
Both kids turned to look at her. Ari had no idea what game they were playing or if she could at all trust them, but she feared she had no choice but to go with them.
She had defiantly told her captors that her squad would come and rescue her but, in reality, her last assignment had been so poorly planned that she knew she had little hope of being rescued.
Ari's team was far from here and even if they would come looking for her, they would never get here in time.
Ari doubted the situation could get any worse, so she nodded.
ooo
"Run!" Sokka shouted, and pushed the Fire Nation woman on the back to emphasize his words.
Sokka could barely believe he was actually staging a prison break to help the Fire Nation.
Now it was too late for second thoughts, though. The alarm had just been given and they would soon have the whole camp after them.
"Would've - never guessed - this morning - I'd be doing this - tonight", Sokka told Ilya, trying not to pant too heavily.
"Shut up - and run", the earthbender panted back, but there was a hint of a smile on her lips.
No matter how serious the situation gets, a little humor never hurts, Sokka thought to himself.
They had attempted to distract the guards and sneak out, but after that had failed, they had opted to running fast.
The Fire Nation woman wasn't a bender and had asked to be given something to protect herself with, but Sokka and Ilya had been less than enthusiastic about trusting an enemy with as much as a pocket knife, so that hadn't happened.
Now the soldier was running ahead of the bunch, followed closely by her saviors.
Good thing she wasn't wearing a standard Fire Nation uniform, Sokka thought to himself, she'll run much faster in that light leather armor.
The night sky was beginning to clear as the trio was running through the forest. Sokka tried to look around himself for a possible hiding place.
We are moving fast but we can't run forever.
Before he had time to find anything promising, a rock wall shot up from the ground only a few meters ahead of them.
Sokka and Ilya managed to stop themselves before running into the wall, but the fire soldier wasn't as lucky. She got up pretty quickly, but their pursuers were now closing in on them.
I don't like these odds. I've got to think of something fast.
The trio started running to a new direction, but it, too, was soon blocked with earthbending.
The Fire Nation woman switched to offensive. In lack of better weapons, she picked a few rocks from the ground and was now throwing them with uncanny precision.
"Wow", was all Sokka could say.
"You think this is something... If I had a bow and enough arrows I could take all these guys down", the woman muttered under her breath, more to herself than Sokka.
Maybe, but then again we don't really want to kill any of them , either.
Ilya, too, turned to scan their pursuers.
After apparently finding the person she was looking for, she threw three rocks with her bending towards him. The man, an older bender, blocked the rocks with an earth wall and retaliated with a precise spike to Ilya's side.
The hit came through, and Sokka could hear a bone snapping as it hit Ilya's right hand. The girl screamed out of pain and fell to the ground. Sokka run to her protection.
A ten or so guys had surrounded them. The Fire Nation woman and her rocks were the last thing keeping them away.
Now what? Sokka tried to frantically think of a way out.Damn, I wish Aang, Katara and Appa were here.
Before Sokka had time to say anything, something bright and fast fell from the sky between the trio and their attackers. As it hit the ground, it exploded into a fiery blaze, lighting the entire scene in a moment.
What the...?
By the time Sokka's eyes had adjusted to the sudden change in light, a long, black creature had landed before them, standing on the scorched ground.
It coiled and curled and opened its mouth, letting out a fearsome growl that ended with a hiss.
Oh, spirits, now we're dead.
ooo
Zuko tried to look as big and menacing as he could.
He had immediately noticed the commotion on the ground, but had initially decided not to interfere since he didn't know who the people running were or what they had done.
After flying closer for a better look, he had noticed one of the people being pursued by an Earth Kingdom mob was a Yu Yan archer.
He'd thought they might all be Fire Nation, despite their clothes, but the earthbending had proven that presumption wrong.
The more Zuko learned of the situation, the less any of it made sense.
One of the runners even looked like Sokka, the guy traveling with the Avatar, and Zuko had no idea how that fitted into anything.
The only thing Zuko knew for sure was that the people running were in desperate need of help, but no help was coming. No one but Zuko.
Zuko breathed fire, but more to get the men to back off than to try to take them down.
If he had to fight his way out of the situation, he wasn't sure what the outcome would be.
Young dragons weren't nearly as powerful as the old and mighty ones, and he was still trying to get used to his new situation, so the odds weren't on his side.
Good thing fighting wasn't his only option.
Zuko turned to look at the three shocked youngsters behind him.
He charged towards them and grabbed the Yu Yan in one front paw and the two teenagers in the other.
Zuko was a small dragon, but the kids weren't big themselves, so he was able to lift them all.
Before any of the benders had time to get wild ideas about trapping Zuko's paws to the ground, he opened his wings and took off.
The black dragon and his newfound captives disappeared into the darkness of the night.
()()()
A/N
I bet a lot of readers would've liked to learn more of Zuko's transformation in this chapter, but I can say that many of your questions will be answered in the next one.
I'll say this much on the topic: Zuko will turn in and out his dragon form, but he won't be able to do this at will. At least not yet.
This isn't a curse from a spirit, but a gift. Tuli wanted to protect Zuko in the best way she knew how, aka by giving him thick skin, claws and the ability to fly.
Tuli promised to be there for Zuko when he was at his most vulnerable. This is not an Avatar State that pops up every time Zuko gets into trouble. Tuli's definition of vulnerable was when Zuko isn't sure what he's supposed to do, whose side he's supposed to be on or(especially) when he's not sure who he himself is supposed to be.
The trigger isn't physical or mental but emotional.
And just to clarify, Zuko and Tuli didn't merge or anything like that. They are still two separate entities with emotions and plans of their very own.
Also, Zuko won't be freaked out every time he turns into a dragon, mainly because, by definition, when he's upset enough to turn into a dragon, the transformation is the least of his worries.