Chapter 1

I am a weapon, a tool to be used as my family sees fit. this is not a choice ,it is a fact. I'd love to be some beautiful flower, floating among garden breezes, a dancer...but I'm not. I'm an assassin. I have the talent and I will carry out the family's wishes, even if I lose myself in the process. I will stand against those who would oppress my people. I will destroy those who would hurt us. I will...

"Umm miss?" I looked up sharply."Are you sure that you can complete this ahh... 'assignment?" I glanced at the speaker. Sweat dripped off of him like he had recently run across the haruba, or as he would call it, the dessert and he nervously wrung his hands.

"I wouldn't be here if I couldn't do this." I said. (These people cant seem to get past the fact that I'm short) I stepped out of the alley.
"Hmm..." The smell of fire cakes and flaming candy mingled in the air sending my brain into hungry mode. Nothing like the smell of charred sugar to get you in the mood for a festival. Clammy employer guy rushed after me.
"Miss! Miss! My boss has ordered me to follow you at all costs. " He grabbed my hand. "You are not to leave my sight!" His hand was (you guessed it) clammy and he was obviously NOT qualified to go to the market much less an actual mission (these earth kingdom nobles can be so stupid). All I could think of was how nasty this whole business was getting.
"I am not a hand wipe, you filthy cow hippo''I hissed I gave him a healthy dosage of knee to groin and left him on the street groaning before disappearing into the crowd. So maybe I over reacted but the mission at hand was a hard one and I was nervous.

Usually when I'm on a mission such as this, I go all 'rooftop ninja' but today I had to blend in. My employer had been thoughtful enough to providing my Fire Nation parade clothes and more importantly, my weapons drugged needles and a couple of small hand to hand combat knives.

The crowds were so thick if you put your hand in front of you you would only see it for a minute because someone was bound to push it out of the way to make room. It seemed the entire fire nation must be moving within those crowds all pushing to get to a drink stand or to see this or that performer, any serenity the fire nation was known to have had fled the night before when the celebration began. The entire festival must have cost a good portion of the firenations yearly budget but no expense mattered in the face of a royal wedding.

Moving along with the crowd was easier then fighting it, so I let the tide of people carry me towards the food booths. Besides I'm not going to complain if food is involved.

I stepped up to a fire flakes stand. The stand was an unflattering neon puce color. I debated getting a shade hat.

"Seven orders of fire flakes please" said the man in front of me. He was older than me probably approaching forty, he had a sword at his hip in a tired looking scabard and he wore Water Tribe garb but that certainly didn't stop him from celebrating like a true Fire Nation citizen. He was probably one of those weird people who had decided to move to another nation after the war. Freaks...

The guy's stomach growls loudly and my attention was drawn back to him. he had enough stuffed animals to have hit every booth in the festival "Oh and 15 fire funnel cakes" he added "Prrow" said a... stuffed lemur monkey? Wait. A live lemur monkey, I had been sure they were extinct. Several people gave each other significant glances and stepped out of line, getting distracted I too stepped out of line. This guy was way to into the Fire Nation for me if he was to into the firenation for firenation citizens.

I took a seat on a bench conveniently placed next to the path of the parade and took some time to observe. The streets were made of some kind of dried out brown looking stone, like coarse sand but it would serve for running not like that horrible slippery stuff in the earth kingdom. From many buildings, red and gold streamers hung. A couple had fallen, as if to join the festivities. Can't blame them though, the party down on the ground was a lot safer then the wild bending in the sky, which stood out against the blue sky of the capitol.

It was in all honesty kind of pretty, with the deep reds and golds of the Fire Nation flag contrasting against the bright blue sky and the red tiled roofs contrasting with their cream colored walls. too bad all that beauty was built by extortioners and thieves. On that happy note I got up and walked closer to the parade looking for a good opening devoid of heavily armed royal guards.


After about an hour of watching various people throw flames at each other the last performance before the Royal family made their procession ended. Royal gaurds in all their royal flunkieness marched down the cleared parade path, I could hear the trumpets now, see over the crowds the red Fire Nation flag. Three ornate palanquins made their way into my view. According to tradition the first palanquin must be the grooms family while the second was the royal family and the third would be the bride who rode alone (as alone as one can be in a crowd) in honor of her journey to her new family. Now came the hard part.

The man in front of me was tall with wide shoulders and a skinny neck, perfect for what I have in mind. I grabbed his shoulders ran up his back and using the momentum I gained flipped myself over his head, landing in the path of the parade (always stick to the classic moves). A komodo rhino lumbers toward me. The soldier riding, saw me simply as a confused citizen and I used that to my full advantage. Running past him towards the royal palanquin, he may have burst a blood vessel. I dove under a komodo rhino who looked almost as confused as his rider. The riding soldier swung at me about 5 seconds to late. I was already running towards the Fire lords palanquin. Someone behind me sounds the alarm, rather pointless given the situation. At this point, the crowd was beginning to catch on, some trying to escape some to help in the effort of my capturing. Good. More panic. I grabbed the end of an oncoming staff and shoved back the way it came, there just long enough to see the owner double over in pain. I snatch it out of her hand and vaulted over a rather stunned looking guard.

Ahead of me someone smart had begun to form ranks which could be a serious issue but not an unanticipated one. I tore the brown backpack off and dumped its contents onto the street. Sand, tiny grains of individualized rock streamed to the ground. I could feel it all, every speck. the shock on these peoples faces was absolutely perfect. I raised my hands then flung them forward the sand rushed upwards then at the last second swinging downwards as if to bow, manipulating the sand into a whirlwind confusing and blinding those surrounding the palanquin. While people blundered around I dove toward a heavily embroidered curtain. There was a rich looking person in the middle. I couldnt get a good look at them, they were so covered in ornate robes but I didnt particularly care. "A little younger than i thought they'd be" I thought. Oh well, Whatever. I gave them a swift punch in the jaw and went to work getting rid of their fancier jewelry and robes, then I mused up their hair and threw on a brown cloak for me and a cheap festival mask for him.

I dragged them out of the palanquin where the sandstorm was starting to settle.

"Help! HELP! My brother has fainted!" I screamed. Several people came to my 'brother's' aid and helping me drag "him" from the panicked crowd.

It wasn't until I had reached the outskirts of the city that I realized I had the wrong noble.


This idea has been bouncing around in my head for forever so on a boredom driven whim here it is. We'll see where it goes.Please review even if you want to tell me this story made your eyes bleed.