A/N:Whoo! No school or hospital duty today! Must make most of it…must continue fanfic…(drools over keyboard)

Episode 2: Emissaries of Doomsday

Fire Lord Zuko paced steadily within his throne room. Before him were Aang, Katara, Sokka, Suki and Toph. Once again, after almost three years, here they were as a group. And still facing circumstances beyond their years. It was only last night that Aang and the others had arrived on Appa. And only this morning was he told that the Spirit World would send two envoys to the Fire Nation to decide the fate of the human race. His head swirled as he tried to understand what Aang kept on repeating, going over the same explanation and stumbling.

"Did Wan Shi Tong tell you the exactly what their plans were?" Zuko asked impatiently.

"Not exactly, just the gist of it. Mina and Milo were originally supposed to be the ones to immediately destroy all of humankind but now he's sending them here as envoys, probably to see if we do deserve to live or not…" Aang said.

"Probably?" Katara repeated.

"Hey! The guy wasn't big on the details. I was scared enough as it is meeting him! I thought he was gonna eat me up!" he defended.

"So…basically we have to suck up to those two in order to save humanity, again…" Sokka concluded.

"Its more than just sucking up, Snoozles," Toph argued.

Zuko massaged his temples and sank himself on his throne. Three years as Fire Lord, he thought he'd done enough to restore most of what the Fire Nation had previously destroyed and even made improvements on the new settlements. But it had cost them many forests and lands. Trades by the sea even improved, but ships crowded the waters and ports. The extent of these damages hadn't occurred to him until Aang brought up the upset of the Spirit World. But he still didn't feel the reaction to justified. Something didn't feel right.

"What we need is a plan…" Katara said in finality, breaking up the fight Sokka and Toph were about to start.

"That's a new idea," Zuko scoffed. "What can we do besides lay out the truth to them that humanity is helpless to their powers and would beg for mercy at doomsday?"

"You're not being very helpful, you know," Toph pointed out.

"And I don't think they'd be convinced with just words, Zuko. I've seen those two and they feel…different. Like they're not even Spirits…" Aang said. "I think they really need to see how humans are, they really need to know about humans."

Zuko could see where Aang's thoughts led.

"How long do we have?" he asked.

"Two more days before they get here, and I don't know how long they'll be staying, but I guess it'll be short. The Owl warned me the Greater Spirits were not patient."

"Shouldn't we let the people know about this?" Suki asked. "I don't think they'll be convinced that two otherworldly creatures just happened to stop by."

"They don't need to know," Zuko replied. "Panic and mass hysteria over the end of the world wouldn't do us any good. Let's keep this knowledge within this room."

^_^

Two days had passed. It was mid-afternoon and the gang still waited for the arrival of the twins. They didn't know how and even where in the Fire Nation they'd be arriving to but they kept themselves within the Palace, peeking every now and then outside the gates, listening for any news. Aang and Katara stood watch above the gates of the Palace, looking over the city. The sun was slowly sinking, giving off a purple to orange hue over the rooftops. Toph stood in the ground below them. Sokka and Suki made rounds in the Palace and Zuko waited anxiously in his throne room.

Toph paced the grounds, hoping to feel something different from it, maybe an arrival of carriages, or an unfamiliar step on the floors. She didn't feel as much worry as the others and was even glad for this challenge presented to them. Her confidence in herself led others think of her as very arrogant and even shallow. She was okay with arrogance but she never felt she was shallow. She knew she didn't mesh well with the others, except maybe for Sokka, but their fighting wasn't exactly meshing. In her opinion, he needed to break a few more bones, to which she would happily oblige.

Then, she felt a small tremor beneath her soles. It was a persistent tremor only felt by her. It wasn't carriages arriving. The tremors felt more like footsteps. Footsteps that she could feel vaguely coming from the Palace.

"Twinkletoes, Sugar Queen!" she called out to the other two. "I think they're here!"

^_^

Zuko hadn't been feeling his best since Aang had told them the news. He was feverish the night after and his muscles had been feeling very weak. Fatigue seemed to have caught up with him after three years of non-stop working. So, instead of searching out for the envoys, he had decided to wait, resting head on the palm of his hand and closing eyes. He wasn't falling asleep but he wished he did. Maybe he did need sleep.

Slowly, the doors to his throne room opened. He heard the creaking sound and jumped up, ready in his stance. It couldn't have been the wind because the summer heat in the Fire Nation stilled the winds from the oceans. Someone had opened the door deliberately.

"Show yourselves. Are you prepared to fight the Fire Lord in his domain?" he said, shifting his stance to the offensive.

"No," a male voice answered.

Then, from the shadows outside, two figures walked into the throne room, tall and human-like. Their hairs were like silver and their eyes blue. Pale skin like ivory.

"But we are prepared to take on what the whole human race has to offer," he had finished, a wicked smile pasted on his lips.

Zuko lowered his hands, eyes fixated on the two. No doubt crossed his mind that these two were Mina and Milo, the children of Wan Shi Tong.

"Welcome," he offered a bow to both of them, to which only Mina had returned. Milo stood still, watching Zuko with feigned interest.

"You're very young," Mina said in surprise.

In his mind, Zuko would've said the same about her but of what little he knew about spirits is that they never seem to be the age they are.

"Yes, but what I lack in years, I make up for my eagerness to serve my people," he told her as what he all told every diplomat, officer and leaders who've said the same thing.

She smiled a bit. "I didn't mean to question your title as the Fire Lord."

A rush of running feet entered the hallways as the others had come up, eager to greet or to fight.

Milo acknowledged Aang.

"Avatar, we've come. We are late but we've come," he told him.

Toph could feel that these Spirits did seem different. She could feel how Katara, Sokka and Suki all seemed to be in awe with them. The spirits feet seemed light-footed to the floor but she could feel them well-enough.

"Katara, what do they look like?" Toph whispered.

"They seem human, but none I've ever seen before," Katara said as best as she could.

Aang had begun to introduce them each. Mina approached them, taking their hands in hers and smiling ruefully.

When she had taken Toph's hands, Toph felt how cold her hands were. Like ice.

"You're blind," she told Toph.

"I'm aware of that."

"I'm envious."

Toph was puzzled with what Mina had meant.

"I'm Milo, and this is my sister Mina," Milo began, being as curt as possible and in his mind, he felt he wanted to be someplace else other than here.

He couldn't take his eyes off the blind girl, Toph. He was told that she was the greatest Earthbender, but he couldn't logically imagine how that could be. She was tiny and barely a woman.

"We're glad that you've reconsidered and come to our world," Katara said.

"We haven't reconsidered. Our father is just procrastinating," he told her. "I'd like to make one thing clear now, before you all plan your persuasion. I have no hesitations in ending this world once we've decided on it. And I have never thought much of your race to begin with."

Zuko had a headache and was barely able to stand this morning. His headache persisted and his patience easily wearing thin since the morning. He was pissed with Milo since the moment he saw him, no matter how fascinatingly human he seemed. But he had no intentions of being insulted, even if humankind rested on sucking up.

He took a step forward.

"I think we all understand that clearly since we've heard the news. Spirits don't like humans. I get that. But I'd like to add something to your list," he began threateningly. "This is the human world now. And the Fire Nation is my domain. Any creature within its boundaries is under my rule. Logic would tell you to tread carefully, for I have no hesitation burning you down if I wished."

"Think fast, boy or you'll bleed," Milo seethed, his hands seeming like now claws raised to attack.

But Mina grabbed his hand and stayed it.

"Stop acting like a child, Milo, or else you'll be the one who needs to think fast," she whispered to Milo's ears, barely audible to Zuko who had not shifted from his stance.

Aang and the others could only gasp at the speed of how things had gone down.

This time, Mina spoke to Zuko. "You're brave, Fire Lord, but it would be wiser not to anger my brother now. I cannot always save you from him."

"I didn't need to be saved," he told her, wondering why he directed his anger to her now.

"No?" she said in surprise. "He could easily rip you to pieces without you knowing."

Zuko could hear the truth in that. Milo angrily let himself go of Mina's grasp and apologized to her. But not to Zuko.

"We'll rest now," Milo said.

Zuko readily asked Katara if she could arrange for the bedrooms for their guests and instructed that if anyone asked, they were Uncle Iroh's business partners in the teashop.

Not a very solid excuse but his mind couldn't think anymore.

He himself went to his bedroom, where he slept easily as soon as he hit the mattress.

A/N: Wow…I'm done! What do you think? I think the first parts were a bit slow and repetitive of the first chapter but maybe I got better at the second part. Conflicts and over-all plots are still little hazy for me now though…