We set down on land after a while to go over our plan while Aang plays with Appa. "I agree, we escaped from the Dai Li, we got Appa back, I'm telling you, we should go to the Earth King now and tell him our plan. We're on a roll." Sokka says.
"One good hour after weeks of bad luck isn't much of a roll." Katara argues.
"We can build on it!" Sokka shoots back, "If we want to invade the Fire Nation when the eclipse happens, we need the Earth King's support!"
"What makes you think we'll get it?" Toph asks, "I don't know if you've noticed but things don't usually go smoothly for our little gang."
"'You have me." You say, stepping forwards, next to Sokka now, "Besides the bastardized Mercenary Tao, I'm the person Kuei trusts the most."
"And Long Feng is still in control of Ba Sing Se!" Katara exclaims, "Even if we get your brigade, what then? We can't beat an entire army! I think that we should just keep flying and leave this horrible place behind us."
"I'm with Sweetness," Toph says, "Sorry Y/N, but I've seen enough of Ba Sing Se. And I can't even see!"
"I won't give up on my city." you state firmly.
Aang finally joins the argument, "But now that we have Appa back, there's nothing stopping us from telling the Earth King the truth. About the conspiracy and the war."
"See? Aang's with us!" Sokka exclaims, "It's the whole reason we came to Ba Sing Se in the first place. We have to try."
"We have to have hope." you add.
"Well I guess if the Earth King knew the truth, things could change." Katara decides.
"I don't trust this new, positive Sokka and Y/N. They brainwashed you two didn't they?!"
You walk forward, take Toph's hands and kiss her gently, "Does that answer your question, Dear?" She blushes deeply. The group doesn't see this, they are looking at the water, more specifically, ships in the water.
"That's probably the Dai Li searching for us." Sokka decides. "Are we doing this or not?"
"Let's fly!" Katara says.
First, you and Aang discreetly go in in disguises, Aang wearing Appa's fur as a beard and a sun hat. You walk towards Bo's shop and enter.
"Hello there." a voice says.
"General Sung." You greet, bowing. "You are a bold one."
Bo steps forward. "Everything is set up, Y/N. Is Operation Fizzle a go?" You nod and Aang pulls back.
"Meet me at the palace." You say. Aang nods and leaves as you draw your sword, "Let's kick some ass." The two men nod in agreement and you all make your way towards the palace, butchering any threats that come your way. Your small army meets theirs and you take front and center position, before Aang lands in front of you and starts launching pillars that take down all except one. Appa takes him down. "Spread the fire!" you order. Your men make a perimeter around the gate and you follow Aang's group. Dai Li launch rocks at you which you, Toph and Aang take down quickly. Several men are taken down by your archers and Katara takes care of those who aren't, apologizing as she takes them down. A group of Dai Li rushes at you, Toph lifts the ground up and drops it down like dominoes. You look back at your army to see them fighting on their flanks, when the Terra Team saves them by sending boulders at the Dai Li. While this is happening, Katara frantically apologizes.
On the other side of a stream, Dai Li are in offensive form and two statues are launched your way. Aang and Toph create a cover, the statues are destroyed and Katara works her magic, taking all of the Dai Li and throwing them into the stream and Aang freezes it. More Dai Li pour out of the palace. Toph turns the stairs into a ramp and the Dai Li start sliding down as her and Aang use the ground as a platform which they push up the stairs. You and Aang take care of the Dai Li that slide onto your platform.
"Seriously, we're actually on you guys's side!" Sokka exclaims. Katara calls several more apologies, which you find aggravating, as you try not to kill the men by accident. At the top, a number of Dai Li attack only to get barraged by arrows and taken down. "In there!" Sokka leads you into the palace, where even more Dai Li move to ambush. Toph sends several men on pillars into the ceiling. "Y/N, which way to the Earth King?"
"Uh... straight!" While Toph, Katara and Aang attack, you and Sokka run down the hall. He checks every door along the way while you dodge bodies of Dai Li flying towards you and go straight down the hall. Until you duck under a hail of debris. Toph runs up to check on you.
"Are you okay?" She asks.
"Never better." You grunt, standing up.
"Now that's an impressive door, it's gotta go somewhere." Sokka admires. You crawl over pieces of the building and stand up to watch Sokka attempt to kick open the door, to no avail. Toph and Aang on the other hand blow it open with ease, Launching Sokka and the doors forward. "A little warning next time?!" Sokka calls. Everyone runs forward with drawn weapons to meet the king. Long Feng and several Dai Li step forward.
"We need to talk to you!" Aang says.
"They're here to overthrow you." Long Feng says.
"No we're not!" You call back, "We're on your side."
"We're here to help." Sokka adds.
"You have to trust us!" Katara tries.
"You invade my palace, lay waste to all my guards, break down my fancy door, and you expect me to trust you?" Kuei says, standing up.
"Yes, Kuei. I spoon fed you soup for a month. If I wanted to hurt you I'd have done it then." You reply.
The Earth King looks down. "If you're on my side, then drop your weapons and stand down." You throw your sword on the ground first, followed by everyone else.
"See? We're friends, your Earthiness." Aang says, cheerily. You groan. Then the Dai Li cuff you.
"Detain the assailants." Long Feng commands.
"But we dropped our weapons, we're your allies!" Sokka cries.
"Don't do this, Kuei! You're making a mistake!"
"Make sure the Avatar and his friends never see daylight again." Long Feng says.
"The Avatar?" Kuei asks, "You're the Avatar?!" He points at Sokka.
"Not him, Kuei," you groan, "The other idiot."
"Over here." Aang says.
"What does it matter, your highness? They're enemies of the state."
"Perhaps you're right." Kuei mutters. Bosco walks up to Aang, sniffs him, then licks him, then he sees you and pounces on you, holding you down and licking you.
"Ow, easy on the shirt, Big Guy!" You groan.
"Bosco still trusts him." Kuei says, "I'll hear them out." Kuei decides. Aang walks forward and Bosco sniffs you before growling at a guard who picks you up.
"Well, sir, there's a war going on right now, for the past hundred years, in fact. The Dai Li's kept it secret from you. It's a conspiracy to control the city and control you."
"I vouch for everything the Avatar just said." you say.
"A secret war?" He asks as if it were a ludicrous idea, "That's crazy."
"Completely." Long Feng adds.
"Long Feng didn't want us to tell you," the Avatar continues, "So he stole our sky bison and tried to blackmail us. And Blackmail is the least of his crimes!"
"Torture, illegal hypnotism, cruel and unusual punishment, murder, conspiracy to murder, conspiracy to manipulate the throne, theft, invasion of privacy, kidnapping, assault, unwarranted capturing and manipulating of both people and mammals, all in the last two weeks." You add, all in one breath.
"They're lying!" Long Feng declares, "I've never even seen a sky bison, your majesty. Frankly, I thought they were extinct."
"Your claim is difficult to believe." Kuei says, taking a seat, "Even from an Avatar."
Long Feng whispers something into his ear. "I have no idea what he's saying, but he's wrong!" You shout.
"I have to trust my advisor." Kuei decides.
The Dai Li apprehend you and start pulling you away, before Sokka cries out, "I can prove it!" Sokka yells, "Long Feng says he's never seen a sky bison, ask him to lift his robe."
"What?! I am not disrobing." Long Feng says, offended. Aang heaves a breath and his robe lifts from the ground, revealing the bite mark.
"Right there! That's where Appa bit him!" Aang identifies.
"That happens to be a large birthmark, thanks for showing everyone." Long Feng fibs.
"Well I suppose there's no way to prove where those marks came from." The king sighs.
"Think again!" A voice calls, you turn to see Hui Yin limping in with Appa right behind him. "Dai Li wreck my spa, I come out, see war. See men trying to subdue terrified creature. Not in Ba Sing Se." Hui Yin breaks everyone's cuffs and leads Appa towards the throne. "Lift robe. Now." Hui Yin commands, and Long Feng, seeing how large the commander is, obeys resentfully. Appa opens his mouth and Aang compares the teeth to the bite marks.
"Yep, that pretty much proves it." Kuei decides, "But it doesn't prove this crazy conspiracy theory."
"Yeah, but now you know that he's willing to lie to you." You say.
"Yes, I suppose it is worth looking into."
"I will take leave, my Liege." Hui Yin says, before he bows and limps back the way he came.
You all lead the king to the train and have a spot cleared. When you'd left the building, the Pass-Down Organization had already left leaving Dai Li in piles on either side of the gate to the palace. The train makes space for the king, who looks surprised by the shocked citizens. "So this is a train, huh? I didn't expect it to be so... public."
"So you've never been out of the upper ring before?" Katara asks.
"I've never been outside the palace." He corrects, cheerily, "Now that's the way to travel!" He points at Aang and Appa flying alongside the train. "So, may I ask where we're going?"
"Underneath Lake Laogai, your kingliness. To the Dai Li's secret headquarters." Sokka explains, "You're about to see where all the brainwashing and conspiring took place."
When you get there, Toph raises the path again, to find it completely destroyed, "It's gone." She says.
"That's impossible." you whisper.
"Oh, don't tell me-" Sokka starts, then takes a breath, "That's okay, I've still got my positive attitude."
"The Dai Li must've known we were coming and destroyed the evidence." Katara says to the king.
"Hm, that seems awfully convenient." Kuei says.
"Hey, if anything, this proves the conspiracy exists even more." Sokka tries.
"Long Feng was right, this was a waste of my time. If you'll excuse me, I'm going back to the palace." Kuei says.
"The wall!" Katara exclaims, "They'll never be able to cover that up in time!"
"Not if we continue to dilly dally." you say, walking towards Kuei. "Your highness!" you kneel, "I'm going to make you an offer that you can't refuse."
In seconds, he's clutching onto Appa and screaming. It reminds you of your first time. These past three haven't been too much different. "First time flying?" Toph asks.
"It's both thrilling and terrifying." Kuei replies.
"Yeah, I hate it too." Toph says, making you laugh.
"I can see why Y/N chose you by the way!"
"I didn't choose her, she chose me!" You call.
"I have to be honest with you," Kuei says, "Part of me really wishes that what you're telling me about this war... isn't true."
"I wish it wasn't." You hear Aang say, sadly.
When you get to the wall, Aang spots it, "It's still there!" he cheers.
"What is that?" Kuei whispers.
"It's a drill. A giant drill made by the Fire Nation to break through your walls." Sokka explains. You land on the wall and watch as Kuei's existence shatters before his eyes
"I can't believe I never knew." Kuei says in shame.
A familiar, hateable voice speaks up. "I can explain this, your majesty," Long Feng speaks, "This is nothing more than a construction project."
"Really?" Katara asks incredulously, "Then perhaps you could explain why there's a Fire Nation insignia on your construction project."
"Well it's imported of course! You know you can't trust domestic machinery."
"How about you look at the person you're talking to?" You snap. Long Feng glares at you. "Well, Kuei. in the L/N house, we'd call this a fork in the road. Side with me, the person who nursed you back from certain death, took care of your bear and still managed to get the best grades in my class, or the scum who waited for you to die?"
"That's not true! I am your most loyal attendant!"
"And I am your most loyal servant."
The next few seconds are tense as you feel sweat dot your brow and Kuei looks between the two groups. "Guards arrest Long Feng! I want him to stand trial for crimes against the Earth Kingdom."
"You can't arrest me." Long Feng growls as he's cuffed up, "You all need me more than you know!"
"I would've put him to death." You mutter, "But life in prison isn't a bad punishment either."
"Ha, looks like Long Feng is long gone!" Sokka calls after him, you smack Sokka on the back of his head. "Ow!"
"That one flat out sucked." You grunt.
"What? I've been saving that one up!"
"I can tell." Toph replies.
When you're back at the palace, Bosco sits at the king's feet, covered by the blanket you got him and the king looks at you all as equals. "I want to thank you young heroes, for opening my eyes. All this time what I thought was a great metropolis was merely a city of fools. That makes me the king fool. We are at war with the Fire Nation."
"That's why we came, your highness. Because we think that you could help us end the war." Sokka says.
"We don't have much time." Aang says, "There's a comet coming this summer that will give the firebenders unbelievable strength. They'll be unstoppable."
"But there is hope." Sokka adds on, "Before the comet comes, there will be a window of opportunity. A solar eclipse is coming. The sun will be entirely blocked out by the moon, and the firebenders will be helpless. That's the day we attack the fire nation."
"Zei said that my place was with the Avatar to take down the Fire Nation. That he wanted me to get them here, and to stay with them throughout their journeys. This is our best shot, if we don't take it, we're no better than Long Feng."
"Very well." Kuei says at last, "You have my support." Everyone starts to celebrate in their own way, Katara and Sokka hug, Aang does his scooter thing and Toph grabs your collar and pulls you into a kiss. The celebration is cut short by a general.
"My lord, I apologize for the interruption."
"This is General How." Kuei says, "He's the leader of the council of five, my highest ranking generals."
"We searched Long Feng's office. I think we've found something that will interest everybody." He brings you all into the king's office and a guard brings in two chests. "There are secret files on every citizen in Ba Sing Se. Including you kids."
The king opens the first box and pulls out a scroll. "Toph Beifong." he says, handing the scroll to How, who hands it to Aang, who hands it to Toph, who hands it to you. You open it.
"It's a letter from your mom." You say, "She's in Ba Sing Se and she wants to see you."
Toph's eyes widen, "Long Feng intercepted our letters from home?" she asks, "That's just sad."
"Aang." Kuei says, handing him the scroll.
"That scroll was attached to the horn of your bison when the Dai Li captured it." How explains.
"It's from the eastern air temple!" Aang says.
"Is there a letter for me and Sokka by any chance?" Katara asks.
"I'm afraid not." Kuei replies.
"But there is an intelligence report that might interest you." How says.
"A small fleet of Water Tribe ships?" Katara reads.
"What?! That could be Dad!"
"Protecting the mouth of Chameleon Bay... Led by Captain Hakoda! It is Dad!" Katara cheers.
"This chest is all yours." the king says to you, before opening it with an agape jaw you look in and see that inside is full of urns. There's a scroll at the bottom and you grab it, setting down Toph's. No, No, No!
"Dear Mr. L/N," you read, "It is with great regret and a heavy heart that we send you these urns. D/N L/N, M/N L/N, S/N L/N, G/N L/N, B/1/N L/N and B/2/N L/N were all found dead this morning with severe burns to their upper bodies. These urns contain the remains of your family." You feel tears start to form in your eyes as you grab the chest and leave. Toph grabs her scroll and follows you, as does the rest of your friends, even the king. They follow you out to a field, you snatched a shovel along the way. You start digging.
"Y/N, are you okay?" Toph asks. You ignore her and continue digging.
"Y/N, you're scaring us." Katara tries. Nothing will get through your head, you're a man possessed by a goal; bury your dead.
"They didn't want to be cremated!" You shout, "They wanted to be buried!"
"Let me help." Toph whispers.
"No." You reply. You continue digging. You're a mess before long, dirt smears your clothes, your hair is mopped with sweat, your palms are covered in raw skin, but you don't care. They all watch you solemnly as you drop the chest into the hole, cover it and kneel, Bottle it all up, so you can dish it out at the right moment. Everything is tearing you apart inside. Hatred, resentment, sadness, pain. The boy who wrote that was a juvenile fool. You feel tears force themselves out of your eyes. You try to push them back, but a sob releases them all. Toph walks towards you and hugs you into her shoulder. "I miss them so much." you whisper.
"I know." Toph whispers back, "I know." Kuei soon joins you, followed by Aang, followed by Katara and Sokka. They all give you a big hug as you clutch onto Toph with every fiber of your being.
"Don't leave me." you whimper.
"I'd never leave you. Let's get you back to the palace, yeah?" You nod and she leads the group back into the palace.
When they sit down, they discuss the plan and they decide to split up. Aang is gonna take Sokka on Appa to see his dad, then Aang is gonna see a Guru at the Eastern Air Temple. Toph is gonna see her mother and Katara is gonna work out the plan with the generals of Ba Sing Se. You say goodbye to Aang and Sokka before they leave and head off on your own, promising Toph to meet her at her mother's. After a long time of walking, you sit down on a bench and start sulking. Then you hear a voice.
"There's two types of fighters, Y/N. The kind that hide from their emotions and the kind that accepts them."
The voice is booming. All of a sudden, you're a little kid again, sword training with your father, his playful demeanor evaporates when you spar. He's serious and angry, then. Maybe he has a reason.
"You aren't a man if you bottle everything up, Y/N. That honor isn't for the people too weak to face themselves."
He holds the flat of his blade to your face and you see every person you've killed, one by one, all with that terrified look.
"Would a real man be so insecure with himself that he has to kill anyone who wrongs him?"
"No."
"I can't hear you."
"No!" you shout.
The world melts away and you stand ankle-deep in ash.
"Why are you doing this to me?"
"You're doing this to yourself!"
He comes at you with a sword strike that you block.
"You guide your sword like a boy playing with a toy."
You block a second strike.
"You're reckless!"
A third.
"You're disjointed!"
A fourth.
"You're a danger to yourself!"
The next strike you dodge and swing your sword at his back. He disappears.
"The man doesn't guide the sword, the sword guides the man."
You shoot awake and see a big man sitting in front of you, Hui Yin. "I see you sleeping on bench, figure bench not comfortable, so I check. You whispering to yourself. I knew it was nightmare so I let play out."
"I'm sorry for scaring you, I've just... got a lot on my mind."
"I heard about ashes. Long Feng is terrible man. I know how painful it must be." he looks down. "I've been through bad situation or two, lost men. Good men. I always find solace in thought that I don't have to be bad man because of it. I see similar conflict in you." He rests a giant hand on your shoulder. "You grow up too fast. I wish I could say that life gets easier, but no. Doesn't. You make own destiny in this world."
"Thanks." you say, "That makes everything a whole lot more clear."
"Glad to help."
"Hey, would you like to meet my girlfriend?"
"Wife?"
"Right. Wife."
"I think I have, but okay."
When you both show up at where her mother is staying, you find it empty. There's a clearing in the dust where a cage has fallen and large footprints leading out of the door. "Hey, would you like to go on a man hunt with me?"
"Since spa is broken, yes." You both follow the prints.