When the Fire Nation Attacks

by Kennie Barton

Bumi and Kuzon eagerly await the return of their long time friend Aang from the Southern Air Temple. Never ones to sit by waiting, Bumi leads a charge through Omashu leaving a trail of devastation in their wake. The boys find themselves in a deserted city avoiding soldiers when they learn about the encroaching army outside the walls. A One Shot on the beginning of the 100 Year War.

"See, I told you it was fun," Bumi cheered slapping Kuzon's shoulder with a snorting laugh.
Kuzon laughed as he climbed out of the mail cart, "Yeah, until we crashed into that man's cart," he smiled watching Bumi leap from the cart and send it speeding away on the track.
"They should know better than to leave them so close to our slide," Bumi walked toward another set of rails to catch the next empty cart. "We can't be held responsible for accidents like that one," Bumi snorted again. Kuzon laughed.
"So where to next Bumi?" he asked dropping to the ground beside his friend.
"We're getting close to the palace."
"So?" they had been closer to the palace than they currently were plenty of times, and only got in trouble for it once.
"I thought we'd try our luck again," Bumi looked mischievously over his shoulder at Kuzon, "Once Aang finally shows up I want to ride right past the palace gates."
At the mention of their missing friend Kuzon looked up and toward the South. Three weeks prior Aang had said he needed to go back to the temple to learn the next skill set for Airbending and had left Kuzon in Omashu for that time. Kuzon could have easily made it back to the Fire Nation during that time, but he liked hanging out with Bumi, so he decided to wait until Aang came back. But neither of them had expected Aang to be gone for three whole weeks and an additional three days.
"What if he doesn't show up today?" Kuzon asked as Bumi launched a mail train up the hill, more likely than not in the wrong direction.
"Then we'll wait until he gets here. Aang has to be here when we ride past the guards at the palace," Bumi dropped down next to Kuzon to wait. "He has to see the looks on their faces."

After what felt like hours to both boys, Bumi jumped to his feet again and ran to the rails; nothing had passed them since Bumi shot the cart up the hill.
"Hey Kuzon, have you seen any of the mail carts?"
"Not recently," he was laying on his back throwing rocks at a wall behind him.
"I wonder why," Bumi looked up and down the hill, normally there were hundreds of the carts going at a time, and they ran all day long on every track.
"Does it matter?" Kuzon pushed himself up on his elbows looking at the track and Bumi, "Maybe all the people went on break?"
"But they always run," Bumi commented looking up the hill, the car he had sent up before was just at the crest. He pulled it back with Earthbending and jumped in, "Come on, were going to see what's going on." Kuzon stood and joined Bumi in the cart and they started off.
They were nearly to the palace when they hit a break in the tracks. The boys got out and started walking through the streets.
"Guards," Kuzon ducked into an alley as a large groups of soldiers passed pulling Bumi in behind him.
"What?" Bumi stuck his head out to look down the street they had been traveling.
"Get back," Kuzon pulled Bumi back by the collar of his shirt. "They must be looking for someone."
"I don't understand, it's like they know we're near the palace," Bumi pouted crossing his arms and dropping to the ground.
"Well, it wasn't like we were taking extra care not to break stuff," Kuzon pointed out.
"That wasn't our fault, he should have known better than to leave it there," Bumi was still defending his position that it was not their problem, the man should have known better than to be near the mail slides.
"Well he obviously believes otherwise," Kuzon frowned watching as another squadron of guards passed them. "They've sent the whole army after us Bumi," he exclaimed hoping that his friend would realize it was their problem and it was serious.
Bumi sighed and crawled over to the alley's entrance to see what Kuzon was talking about. He whistled seeing the dozens of troops leaving the Palace and spreading out. It was serious and they were past the reach of Bumi's secret escape routes. "We might have a problem," he whispered pulling away from the entrance.
"You think?!" Kuzon asked shaking his head, he should have known better than to let Bumi crash in to that cart. He should have known better than to do anything with Bumi, but that was unimportant. "What are we going to do? I can't get arrested, my parents will never let me out of the Fire Nation again!"
"I'm thinking," Bumi crossed his arms glaring at Kuzon to stop him from yelling. "It's takes time for my genius to work!"
"Could you make it work faster?" Kuzon looked over his shoulder at the troops.
"I got it!" Bumi leapt to his feet and exclaimed so suddenly that Kuzon reeled back and fell. Bumi snorted helping Kuzon to his feet.
"You have an idea?" Kuzon asked dusting himself off.
"Earthbending," Bumi smiled smugly.
Kuzon rolled his eyes looking at Bumi. They were about to be arrested and all his "genius" could come up with was Earthbending. "Great, you're an Earthbender and I'm a Firebender, how is that helping anything?"
"I get us through all these houses to where the tunnels start and we're home free. I can Earthbend us across the city!"
"Bumi your genius is showing," Kuzon wrapped Bumi in a hug before pushing him in the direction they needed to go. "Now get us out of here!"
Bumi stepped up to the wall and took a deep breath, about to begin when they were discovered. "What are you two doing here?" the soldier shouted starting down the alley.
"Go Bumi, go," Kuzon shouted. Bumi dropped the wall and the boys ran in before the guard made it to them.

The closer Bumi and Kuzon got to the wall of the city the harder it was for them to avoid the guards. The Earthbending troops walked in huge groups toward the wall, Kuzon become more nervous as it became harder to walk through the city, the whole time neither of the boys saw any other people. Finally they reached Bumi's home and ducked in just ahead of a trio of soldiers.
"Where are your parents?" Kuzon asked looking around the oddly vacant front room.
"They should be here," Bumi walked into the kitchen, it was also empty. "What's going on?" Kuzon followed Bumi through the house; it looked like everyone had just got up and left, leaving everything behind.
"Maybe it has something to do with all the soldiers outside," Kuzon looked out a window concerned.
His was only visible for a moment, but that was enough for someone to see them. "Hey, there are children in here," one of the men shouted turning and starting for the house. Kuzon backed away from the window quickly looking around in a panic for where they could hide.
"There are two boys here!"
The man dropped part of the wall and was in the room with them before Kuzon and Bumi could even consider a hiding place. When he spoke the whole house shook, Bumi looked up at the ceiling wide-eyed then to the guard.
"We didn't mean to wreck that man's cart, it was an accident. Honest," he pleaded dropping to his knees before the soldier. "Please don't take my house down!"
"Haven't you heard," the man looked between Kuzon and Bumi; they both shook their heads oblivious to what the soldier could possibly be talking about. "The Fire Nation is at our gates. They're looking for the Avatar and plan to wipe out anyone else in their way in the process."
Bumi looked disbelievingly at the man then to Kuzon. Why would the Fire Nation do something like that, Omashu had never done anything to anger the fierce Firebendering nation; they hardly fought at all given their bloody history. "That can't be true," he refused to believe what the man was saying. "Kuzon, tell him that's not true."
"Kuzon? Are you Fire Nation?"
"My friend brought me here a few weeks ago, he's an Airbender," Kuzon was having a hard time believing it too. "But he had to go back to the Southern Air Temple for training and left me here. I don't know anything about this, I'm from Ember Island; they're not military," he looked pleadingly at the guard; now he really could be arrested.
"Aang," Bumi's breath caught in his throat. They all knew the previous Avatar had been a Firebender, and if the Fire Nation was looking for the new Avatar they would be looking in the Air Nomads.
"That's why he never came back," Kuzon knew it was true too; the Fire Nation had killed their friend that was why he had been gone so long. Aang was never coming.

The wall shook when Bumi and Kuzon started up the steps to the towers. The guards had evacuated the city to the safety of the Cave of Two Lovers when they saw the army approaching and the commander the boys had seen said they would be safer on the wall with the majority of the army; there simply was not enough time to get them out of Omashu safely.
"Get those boys into the tower!" one man shouted as they reached to top stair, several hands pushed and guided Bumi and Kuzon to a door then shut them in with a door made of Earth. Bumi ran to a window looking away from the city and motioned Kuzon to join him.
"Look at all of them," he whispered when Kuzon stuck his head out the window. It was the largest gathered force of any army either boy had seen.
"They could have killed Aang," Kuzon lamented drawing his head back in. "What does Fire Lord Souzin want with the Avatar?"
"More like, why does he want the Avatar dead?" Bumi corrected going back to where the door was suppose to be.
"Where are you going?"
"I'm going to fight. The next Avatar is an Airbender, they'll probably kill every Airbender they find. I don't know about you, but I've got quite a few friends in those Temples."
Kuzon shook his head, "I can't fight them, they're my people."
"Your people! What about your friends? What about Aang, what about your friends in the Earth Kingdom; are you just going to let them die at the hands of your people?"
"What difference will I make, I'm not important in the Fire Nation and I'm not even a very good fighter," Kuzon shook his head. How could Bumi expect him to turn and attack the people of his homeland?
"One person could make all the difference, look at the Avatar," Bumi dropped a door from the wall and walked out to join the defenders.
Seconds later Kuzon was beside him and smiled at his friend, "I may not be the Avatar, but I'll do what I can." Bumi smiled and clapped Kuzon on the shoulder.
"Who knows, maybe Aang got away."
"Maybe he's the Avatar," Kuzon laughed.
"Then we'll need to help him when he gets here," Bumi agreed turning to face the Fire Nation army. "Ready?"
"I never thought I'd fight my countrymen," Kuzon sighed watching the columns of Firebenders marched toward the wall of Omashu.
"Anything could happen when a Nation attacks," Bumi offered his friend waning smile. "I'm just sorry it was the Fire Nation."
"Me too."