Ty Lum sat by the table with her book in hand alongside with notepad. Her Earth Kingdom attire made her blend in well nicely to avoid conflict. She diligently wrote various notes on the pad from the political book.

She had been at this for two years now. Traveling around the Four Nations in disguise to report on various things to the Lord himself. From war tactics, diplomacy, and even cultural knowledge for some particular reason. Though she had no choice in the matter, she did not mind at all.

Even though Ty Lum was a loyal citizen of the Fire Nation, she herself was in a tough sitch. She figured as payment of being a Fire Nation citizen, she had to sacrifice her childhood and experience the world through any means necessary. From theivery to fraud, she did it all for the sake of her country.

Her hand kept writing various things from the book she found and decided to add her own knowledge.

The Earth Benders are very head-strong people. Their tactics will mostly deal with brute force within itself. There is no tolerance for cowardice and underhanded methods what so ever. They lack in strategy and will be easy to penetrate, and defeat if the first front is broken. One advantage they have is the environment. They would be able to hide and become one with the Earth. No further reports.

If I may be frank, Lord, I wanted to know if I can visit my family. It's been a while since I've seen them. Forgive me if I have offended you.

From,

Ty Lum

She walked out of the small library she was sitting in. Ty Lum took in her surroundings and observed the conditions of the refugees in the lower circle. It was as she expected, the conditions were horrible and the people were treated unfairly. The road was riddled with litter, the walls were covered in thick grime, and sickly homeless people sat outside. It disgusted her but her nation is to blame for such things happening which caused an unwanted conflict on her conscious. She decided not to dawn on such things as it was not her place to hold political opinion due to her specific circumstance.

She walked in silence, not saying anything or waving at anyone else. There was no reason to smile to and talk to the people whom very lives were destroyed by her people. She came to understand why General Iroh surrendered after his son died.

He experienced the same thing the enemy experienced. The pain was reciprocated and understood which is the very thing that brought him to surrender. We take it all for granted until it is gone.

She kept walking, blocking out all of the white noise. The densely packed crowd didn't get to her, as it should not. Ty Lum bumped into several different people but just kept walking until she reached her rendezvous point. It was in the middle of the forest. She whistled and the raven eagle swopped down, and dropped a satchel.

She took a paper and a map out and placed her letter in. The animal flew away leaving Ty Lum in her thoughts. She read over the letter multiple times. Ty Lum didn't know how to feel about the letter due to it's confusing and vague orders.

My son, Zuko is currently on a venture around the Nations. I would like for you to accompany him and report his behavior as assurance of accurate reports. I believe your first task will become easier if you accompany him, yes? I entrust this to you. Do not fail me.

Fire Lord Ozai

She looked at the map and saw the "X" which was close to the South Air Temple. The location wasn't accurate enough for her to pinpoint the exact location to where she had to travel. In the end, she decided to use the process of elimination of which port was of Fire Nation property. She would leave Ba Sing Se in a few hours. She figured about time she gets there, Zuko would be long gone.

Ty Lum returned to her apartment and packed her things. She predicted about time she reached the edge of the Earth Kingdom, Zuko would be near Kyoshi Island or maybe at the dock she was heading to. Ty Lum stretched and cracked her bones before she fell asleep for a while.

Time flew by further than she realized. She snapped awake and looked around in a daze. She cursed under her breath and grabbed her stuff. She didn't bother looking around the apartment one more time and bolted out the room.

Ty Lum ignored the pedestrians and kept running. She needed to be out of Ba Sing Se tonight to be able to stay on schedule. Ty Lum sprinted through the crowd with a resolve of a bull. As a result, a cabbage cart had to suffer as she broke the cart.

"My cabbages!" a man yelled.

Ty Lum didn't have time to offer any condolences for the man's damaged veggies. Also, she didn't even care that much either. She needed to hurry to the station as the last ferry was about to depart. She ran up a ramp and flipped over several onlookers. She stuck the landing, as she should.

She shoved more people out of the way and one hand gripped her shoulder. She looked back and saw a gigantic, muscular man.

"You bumped into me, you punk," the man said with a small hint of malice.

"Too busy and don't care. Bye!" she yelled and stomped on his toe and ran.

The station was within her sights and she leaped for the door. She made it and tucked and rolled into the station. She ran to the ticket booth and slammed down her fake passport.

"Ticket for Omashu, please!" she said in a loud, booming voice. The receptor gave her a skeptical look and slowly stamped her passport. She gave Ty Lum the ticket and told her to scram. She happily obliged and got onto the ferry. There weren't a lot of people on the ferry due to it being late.

I'm finally going to Omashu.

The trip would take several days, she knew that much, and she packed specifically for that matter. She took out a book on the History of Omashu and began taking notes on it.

Summary*

Omashu is the second largest city in the and the capital of one of its states. Only outdone in size and importance by, Omashu was one of the last great strongholds of the Earth Kingdom during the war and continued to supply them with troops and supplies. The gates of this bustling metropolis are guarded by an army of elite soldiers. This city is also well known for its famous architecture which was created by and relies on a combination of both earthbending and gravity.

The tall mountain peak on which Omashu was founded is in the in the southwestern Earth Kingdom. It rises high out of a deep chasm and was created by earthbenders several centuries. Being built on this mountain provides the city with one of its best defenses; the only way to reach the gates of Omashu is across a long narrow bridge of stone that spans the sheer gorge.

History

An ancient legend states that a man named and a woman named, each from one of two warring towns, met atop a mountain that divided their peoples and fell deeply in love. Although their relationship was forbidden and it was dangerous for them to continue meeting, the couple found a way to continue seeing each other in secrecy. By observing the badgermoles, the couple became the first earthbenders. Using their new powers, they created a which only they could navigate. This allowed them to meet secretly, while anyone else who tried to follow them would become lost forever in the ever-shifting tunnels.

One day Shu did not come to meet Oma, nor would he ever again. Shu had been slain in the war between their two villages. Oma, stricken with grief and sorrow, performed a terrifying display of earthbending power that could have easily destroyed both villages. Instead, she declared the conflict over and demanded that the two villages live in peace. The warring villages joined together and built a new city to honor the couple's love. This city eventually grew into Omashu, the name being derived from the combination of their two names. The short epitaph found on the lovers' tombs deep within the cave reads only "Love is brightest in the dark".

During the of the Conqueror, almost the entirety of the Earth Kingdom, Omashu being no exception, fell into the hands of this tyrannical warlord. The city remained under his rule until Kiyoshi refused to allow Chin to conquer what she called home. Chin fell to his demise in the sea below when he stubbornly refused to move as the rocks underneath his feet crumbled into the sea. His death signaled the end of the war.

Omashu's main industry was producing weapons and supplies for the war effort; civilians had developed a complex and efficient mailing system used to transport goods throughout the city that employed earthbending and gravity using extensive ramps and chutes.

"How much longer are you gonna write outta the book?" a child-like voice asked her.

"For however long I want," she responded.

"Ohh~ Cool! I'm Shei and I'm here with my mom and dad. Who are you here with?" Shei persistently asked her.

"No one," Ty Lum monotonously answered.

"Then we can be friends so you have someone!" Shei gave her a smile and a thumbs up. Ty Lum looked up briefly and looked back down.

"I decline," Ty Lum kindly told him.

"W-Why not?" Shei asked.

"I won't be in Omashu for long. I have to leave after a few days to get where I need to go. So I'd rather not," Ty Lum explained, hoping the kid would get the hint.

"You travel a lot? That's so cool! Aren't you kinda young though?" Shei ignored her excuse and asked more questions.

"I started early so I can finish while I'm still young yet old enough to have some freedom. I'm thirteen so I'd be done about... three years from now? Yeah, three years," Ty Lum went along again and answered.

She was pretty tired so she couldn't focus on what Shei said and steadily fell asleep.

4 days later

She got off the ferry along with Shei, who was clung to her like a magnet. She tried to get him off of her but to no avail. His parents had to pull him off of her.

"I don't want Ty Limmie to leave," Shei whined. The seven-year-old didn't budge on what he'd been trying to do other the past four days.

"I have to go though, Shei. Now be a big boy. Know what? I'll hang out with you until I leave," Ty Lum offered.

The boy folded his arms and pouted but agreed. Ty Lum thanked the parents and left to rent out a room for a few days. She looked at the city from afar and acknowledged its beauty.

To think earthbending created such a beautifully complex building. It's astonishing as it is impressive.

She didn't know what possessed her to walk into a bar. Even worse there was a brawling cage in the center. She didn't pay any mind to the loud screams of spectators watching the two people going at it.

She went to the bartender and sat down at one of the stools.

"Do you know where the cheapest inn is, sir?" Ty Lum, respectively, asked.

The buff bartender looked at her and let out a boisterous laugh. "You there, child. Who let you in here?"

"I walked in."

"Fair enough. Cheapest one is $120 a night. Now leave, kid," the bartender informed.

"$120!? What a preposterous price! Are you sure there is nothing a little bit...you know...less ridiculous?" Ty Lum complained.

The bartender stopped cleaning the glass and looked at the kid. He put the glass down and leaned toward Ty Lum. He pointed to the fighting ring and looked back at her.

"Win a fight, you either get to stay here one night for free or you get prize money. If you choose to go for the money you originally had to make a bet for over $50. Now, what will you-?"

Ty Lum was right by the announcer and asked him about it. He gave her a once over and obliged. Ty Lum looked at the competitors and took them for muscle heads.

"Tooooday we have a challenger! Her name is-"

"I'm Hadoka! I'm thirteen years old and I challenge one of you!" Ty Lum pretended to be an arrogant child. She had to look overconfident to hopefully intimidate one of them.

"Now who would like to compete against our uhh challenger?" the announcer asked. Many hands shot up at the opportunity to put a child in their place.

"You? Okay! Please, you two head to the ring," the announcer told the two.

They entered the cage and stood on opposite sides. They faced each other. Ty Lum looked at her opponent.

Her opponent had brown hair, tan skin with freckles with deep green eyes that matched her own. He looked about sixteen and wore a stoic expression on his face.

"On one corner there is our champion, Liu. On the other corner, there is our challenger, Hadoka! Are you ready to rumble! Okay, remember the rules...No bending and no killing...all weapons are permitted," the announcer announced.

"No bending! What?" Ty Lum complained. She was happy on the inside though. Things would have been even more complicated for her.

"Are you that reliant on bending?" Liu scoffed. Ty Lum put on an angry front and growled. She didn't reply to his insult.

The bell rung and Ty Lum charged but not blindly. She knew exactly what she was doing. Liu sighed and sidestepped her and kicked her temple. His kick didn't connect and he looked down to see what happened...She blocked it.

She swept his feet from under him and backed up. He stood up and nodded.

"Game on."

He came at her and she was ready. He, to her surprise, went airborne and punched her in the face. Her body recoiled and she grabbed her face in pain and bent over. Ty Lum snapped out of it and attacked back.

She grabbed his wrist and pulled, jerking his body forward. She kicked him in the gut and in the face before he grabbed her ankle and tripped her. She fell on the floor, with Liu still holding onto her ankle.

I have to get out of this and fast.

She flipped her body to where she was lying on her back. She put her hands flat on the floor and pulled her ankle forward and kicked Liu in the gut.

His grip on her ankle had got even tighter. She grunted in pain and couldn't get out of Liu's death grip. She tried to do the same thing twice but failed.

Lui caught her other foot. He bent back and swung Ty Lum's body to the ground. She caught herself by the hands which caused her palms to start throbbing. She used most of her strength to bring Liu over with her legs and slammed him to the ground.

He released her ankles and she got up with a back handspring. Liu got up too.

"Not bad. You might not just be a hot-headed idiot," Liu baited.

"I can't say the same thing about you though," Ty Lum countered. Liu's face twitched and he came at her again.

His fists were flying at a higher speed than before. All Liu could do was dodge and she did dodge most of the attacks. She suffered several blows to her face and abdomen. She didn't give into the pain and counterattacked.

She ducked under his fist, struck him in his side. She grabbed his wrist once again and pulled his arm upward. She brought her elbow back and used her arm to hit his elbow. Ty Lum heard a crack and let go.

She backed up and every part of her body ached. Her labored breathing was very audible and showed that she had nearly reached her limit. She wasn't going to give up. Her budget wasn't going to be cut severely by an inn.

I have to win!

She took the initiative and attacked Liu. He fluidly dodged and kicked Ty Lum in the face. That didn't stop her as she snuck behind him and grabbed him by the waist and flipped him over. She let him go and rolled out from under him. They both stood their ground.

"You can barely move. Forfeit, kid," Liu said.

"And you can't move your arm. Why should I forfeit?" Ty Lum countered.

RING

A bell was rung and they backed off.

"Wow! The challenger lasted one round with Liu. Who will win?" the announcer hyped the crowd up.

Ty Lum leaned against the cage and let a sigh of relief slip past her lips. The crowd roars grew louder. She cleared her head and thought back to her time in the Fire Nation.

I need to think. Fighting like this isn't going to get me to win. I need to use-

"Round 2. You can now use bending," the announcer said.

Shit!

The two walked back to the center and faced each other until the announcer rang the bell. Ty Lum automatically jumped back to avoid the boulder that came her way. She needed to end him and fast before he caught on.

She dodged his incoming shraps of the earth. One caught her shin and she grunted but kept going. Ty Lum reached her hand out and poked Liu's arm. He tried to earthbend with his hand but it didn't work. He tried again and it still didn't work.

"What did you do?" Liu asked shocked. His calm facade broke when he realized he couldn't bend with that arm. He went to using his legs. He relentlessly kicked more boulders at Ty Lum. She flowed through it the best she could but got hit multiple times.

She sprinted and jumped as high as her body would let her and spun. She was in Liu's personal space and knew he couldn't hit her while she was this close. She reached to poke him again and he blocked and threw her upward.

He sent earth needles to try to kill her. She maneuvered around the needles by constant and awkward body changes. She shot straight for Liu and he brought up an earth barrier. She curled up into a ball and broke through it.

She knew she couldn't win because she was tired but she might as well go out with a bang. She straightened up and darted towards him like a bullet from the sky.

She headbutted him in the face. They both fell down the ground and the bell rung.

RING

"Round two is over! Are they still conscious?" the announcer asked.

The referee checked and nodded. Ty Lum rolled away from Liu. She stumbled back up and went to the corner. She asked someone for a mirror and a random lady gave it to her.

She looked at how busted her face was. She had a gash on her forehead, a bruised eye, half of her face was swollen, and various cuts around her body. She sat there and took a deep breath. She couldn't last any longer.

The bell rung again and they stood at the center. Ty Lum could barely see out her left eye.

"Why are we fighting again?" Ty Lum asked.

"You are fighting for something you want, yes? It would be a shame if you back down now...It was starting to get fun," Liu elaborated.

"I won't be able to move for several days and all over a stupid free room. I wish my Lord wasn't a cheapskate when it comes to me," Ty Lum rambled on. She moved very slow. Maybe even slower than a snail.

"Your Lord?" Liu commented.

She nodded and took one step forward. Which proved to be a step too far as she fainted on the spot.

Four Days Later

She walked around the infirmary with Shei around her shoulders. His childish squeals brought a smile to her face.

"Are you feeling better, Ty Limmie?" the boy asked her. She nodded and continued to bounce the kid around. She laughed at his various sounds of excitement. She put him and squatted to his eye level.

"Yes, I feel amazing Shei. I have to recover fast so I can leave. I'm majorly behind schedule," she told the kid. As a response, he pouted.

"No fair! You can't leave yet! You haven't seen all of Omashu," he argued back. He puffed out his cheeks and crossed his arm and looked away.

Ty Lum actually felt guilty for leaving him and she hadn't even looked at the ferry. As a consolation, she picked him back up and carried him back to her room.

She opened her door and saw her doctor talking to a man in elaborate robes. She assumed him to be a noble of some kind. Despite how illogical it was, Ty Lum harbored feelings of worry that they found out her true origin.

"Is there something going on?" Ty Lum asked calmly. She looked back and forth between the two until one spoke up.

"Yes, in fact...Great news even! I am Shin, Royal Advisor of King Bumi of Omashu. You are eligible to compete in a tournament to become the Princess of Omashu. Congra-" Shin started.

"I decline. Thank you for the offer," Ty Lum shot down. She bowed out of respect and walked into the room past Shin. She let out a breath she didn't know she was holding.

"Excuse me for my curiosity, but why not?" Shin asked, clearly confused.

"I do not consider myself worthy of becoming a figurehead of one the most prestigious cities of the Earth Kingdom. I also have many other things to attend to. I am already behind schedule for several days so I have to cover a lot of ground. Once again, thank you for the offer," Ty Lum respectfully explained. It was a half-lie or as she called it a half-truth. Ty Lum was a devout, loyal citizen of the Fire Nation and nothing could simply change that.

"I think that explanation explains exactly why you are worthy. The tournament is not simply just a fight and who wins, wins. It's about tact, intellect, and patience. All those virtues are what makes a princess a princess. Now we can't also just have a princess who can't defend themselves. It would be a waste," Shin tried to convince Ty Lum. Ty Lum turned to look at him, eyes full of interest.

"Say if I do join, participate, and win. What will I gain from it besides a title? One cannot simply integrate the responsibilities and mannerisms that a noble is taught from birth, into their lives. What is the catch for becoming the princess? What do I have to give up in order to become the princess?" Ty Lum asked persistently.

Shin smirked. "Well I can't go into detail but one thing is a guaranteed sacrifice...Time. One thing you'll get in return is an allowance, of course. If you are curious, report to the Royal Hall at 10 AM sharp. I put my faith in my nomination," Shin said before he dismissed himself.

"Your housing and medical bills were paid for by himself. Please repay him the kindness and at least go to the meeting. Because tomorrow, you will be discharged. I believe you get what the implications are. Good day," the doctor said before he dismissed himself and left.

Shei groaned and plopped on Ty Lum's bed. "Ughhh! They were so boring but does that mean Ty Limmie is going to become a princess?" He asked with sparkles in his eyes.

She sighed as a response. "If I win. Which I'm hoping I won't because I do...I'm royally screwed," she explained.

"Then don't go."

"I have to. It's the right thing to. Was I being backed into a corner of acceptance? Absolutely. Will that change my obligation to return a favor? No," she told herself to process her conscious decision.

I am an honorable citizen of the Fire Nation. I will give credit when credit is due and that time is now. What could possibly go wrong?

She was lost in thought about the tournament while she waited for Shei's parents to come pick him up.