Blind, chapter 1
Disclaimer- I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender.
Five Days Later
Katara was roughly shoved into the used-to be throne room of the Earth King. Arms bound with tight ropes and her feet in chains, she threw the nastiest look she could muster up to the guard who had just pushed her.
Suddenly a voice who she could only know to be Azula, practically dripping with a barely contained anger spoke.
"I ask for the Avatar, and you bring me this? Pathetic."
Katara felt a hand grab her arm from behind and force her into a standing position. As she used the last of her strength to raise her head to acknowledge her attacker, only to see the mocking face of Azula staring back at her.
The firebending prodigy raised her palm and willed for flame to appear in it. She guided it forward, until it was only centimeters from Katara tan neck, almost touching it.
Before, the only emotion that was present in the waterbender's eyes was defiance, now, looking into her eyes once more, Azula could see the emotion that she craved flicker through the eyes of Water Tribe girl. Fear.
Bringing her head even closer to that of Katara's, and spoke in a whisper that only the two benders could hear.
"I'll be seeing you later."
Satisfied with the look of terror in the face of her prisoner, she turned around and addressed the guards. "Take her to the dungeons."
Just as a soldier was about to push Katara out of the throne room, a man suddenly ran into the room, with a small cylindrical object in his arms.
"Your Highness!"
The exhausted voice rang out and in the massive throne room.
Directing her attention away from the frightened waterbender, Azula stared at the winded servant running toward her. Bending down on one knee before her, he spoke.
"Princess, a message from the Fire Nation!"
Snatching the scroll from the hands of the panting serf, her eyes widened with surprise as she started to read the message.
Stepping absentmindedly around Katara, Azula's lips curved into a smile when she finished the scroll and proceeded to roll it back up. Slowly, she started to walk in a small circle, her red, ruby-covered boots clinking against the dark, cold tile of the floor being the only sound that could be heard. Suddenly, she swiveled around and turned to address the guards standing silently near the wall of the room.
"Get this creature to the dungeon. And while you're at it, bring me my dear brother Zuko."
As the sentries took a struggling Katara away from the throne room, Azula's high, commanding voice with a hint of amusement resounded through out the throne room once again.
"It seems we have a little treasure hunting to do."
---
With her face covered with either dried blood or dirt, Katara was unceremoniously pushed into one of the dark, damp cells of the dungeons. Falling with a loud thud, a sudden pain sprouted from the back of head, and slowly blossomed throughout her body. Strength sapped by the seemingly unending beatings she had endured while held captive by the Fire Nation soldiers, Katara was barely able to lift her hand to her head in an attempt to find the origin of her momentous headache. Grimacing as her hand came into sight covered with blood; Katara took in a deep breath and sighed.
Lying here in the light less cell, Katara could only hope that her friends were in a better condition that she was in. It was the only comfort she had here; to know that Aang and the others were safe, that they could actually have a chance of defeating Ozai, a chance to save the world.
Lost in her thoughts, she barely heard the quietly opening of the prison door, and her mind substituted the whispered steps for the scurrying of a small mouse. And she noticed the dark figure looming over her far too late, and the only thing she could do was to let out a small gasp as she collapsed unconscious toward the ground.
---
General Hu walked along the shore of the beach occasionally glancing down at the small piece of paper held in his left hand, his dark leather boots leaving a string of footprints in the white sand. The wind was blowing, the sun was shining, and the temperature was just right, cold enough to not be hot, yet the general pulled at his sweat-soaked. As he saw a flock of birds fly across the sky, he suddenly thought of his daughter, who always loved to watch birds. At the mention of his daughter it felt a pair of heavy chains clamped onto his heart, and a sense of helpless despair fill his system.
My daughter, he thought bitterly, the one I'm never going to see again.
Suddenly a flurry of emotions ravaged his mind. Sadness. Disbelief. And, of course, anger. Angry at himself for abandoning his newborn daughter, who would never get to know her father. Angry at his fellow generals, for persuading him to do this. And angry at Ozai, for even believing in what he was doing.
There was a loud knocking on his door, and General Hu looked up from his shoe-cleaning. He slowly set down his half-gleaming shoe and walked toward the door where the knocking was increasing with speed. He deliberately opened the door so sluggishly that a loud creak could be heard throughout the corridor. When the door was fully open, the general saw a small, frantic servant panting out of breath. With a quiet voice that held more anger than the loudest scream, the general spoke, "What do you want?"
The servant shrank noticeably at the general's voice, and the in the tiniest whisper, stammered, "It's O-Ozai s-s-sir. H-He wants t-t-o see you immediately."
The general's anger melted away and formed back again into curiosity. What on earth would Ozai want with him? After that…incident a few days ago, he was lucky to be alive! And now Ozai requests an audience! What is he thinking?
The smallest quiver of a voice broke into his thoughts, "S-sir? S-s-shall I t-tell L-lord Ozai that you will be coming?"
He frowned.
"Yes. Tell him I will."
---
Katara awoke from what seemed like an eternity of blackness. She cracked open her eyes an inch, and the only thing that her eyes were greeted with was another blackness that seemed only slightly lighter, maybe even a little red.
Red, Katara thought, red like Aang's clothes. Aang, and Sokka, and Toph...
Aang! She gasped and shot up into a sitting position.
Where was he? So stupid of her, to doze off at a time like this! What if something-
Suddenly, all her memories came crashing back to her. Shocked for a minute, Katara slumped back down, and sighed.
Of course, she thought, who knows where they are now?
She only prayed that her sacrifice was not in vain. But the where was she now? The last thing she remembered was that she was taken prisoner by the Fire Nation. And as she studied her surroundings, this was most defiantly not the prison. Tall, dark trees were all around her, and the white canvas tents surround a blazing orange-red fire. Most likely a camp. And from all the weapons strewn on the ground, a bandit camp. A bandit camp!
Her eyes darted to her hands, and she was suddenly aware of a slight, nagging pain in her wrists. They were covered with a pair of rusting, iron shackles, and underneath them were raw criss-crossing scars on her wrists.
Katara sighed. She had to figure a way to get back to everyone else, before it's too late.
She looked up at the stars, and wondered if this was all a dream. A simple dream, and before she knew it she would wake up inside the family igloo, warm and cozy; the way life was suppose to be. Not the life she had now, fighting renegade princes, chasing the Fire Lord across the globe; she snorted.
I mean really? Who ever heard of the Avatar coming back to life?
Maybe this was all part of her imagination, just a figment of creativity. But before she could wonder more, the sharp scent of alcohol met with her nose, and she found herself staring into the dark eyes of a person.
"Well, well. It seems that our prisoner has woken up."
Dark eyes that told her they weren't afraid to kill.
---
A few minutes later, the General Hu's boots clanked into the throne room, and even though he'd been here countless times, the royal Fire Empire throne room had yet to stop amazing him.
Everything was gold. Everything. The floors, the walls, even the clothing of the Lord and his advisers were woven from fine gold liquid. The chairs, tables, desks, and the gleaming auric ink of the golden pen was flowing onto the gold-tinted paper. How they could read the record was one thing the Hu could never comprehend.
"Ah! General Hu! How nice of you to join us."
Lord Ozai's deep voice echoed off the walls of the luxurious chamber, a voice that held the might of the greatest empire in the world, yet also held the reason of fear for thousands of people.
"If you don't want anything, I will be leaving."
The ruler of the Fire Nation smirked.
"Still bitter about last week, I see?"
It was through the years of military training that gave Hu the control over his barely-contained anger, and all he did was turn around to march back to the door.
Ozai saw this, and shouted a "Wait!" and stepped down from his throne. He walked over to the general, and whispered something in his ear, and looked satisfied when he saw the horrified expression plastered onto his face.
---
(A/N0: Well? How'd you people like it? I know I haven't updated in...6 months? Wow. But school is rather busy so I really don't have any time to write. This is hopefully a little longer than my Prolouge, so I hope everyone enjoys. R/R!
I got my ideas for my prologue and parts of chapter 1 from fuzzytomato's Brothers In Arms. --Awsome fic.
Just hope she doesn't kill me.
