Chapter 3
Ekin jogged through the dockyard, searching for a likely candidate. A rough looking cluster of workers without any work seemed to meet his criteria, and he walked over to them.
"Hey, could you do me a favor?"
"Maybe, what do you want?" with a minimum of courtesy
"I was looking for a friend of mine, knew him in the war, he used to live somewhere in Han Tui,"
"Well it's a big city, I hardly know everybody here," the dockworker sneered.
"No shit, what I was really wondering was if you know where I'd go to find the people who do know everybody here."
"Depends on where he's from,"
"Don't know the neighborhood, if it helps we were firebenders in the Seventh Grenadiers," the surly dockworkers eyes widened, and Ekin added, eyes glinting, "Fire Lord's Own Stormtroopers"
"Well," his voice a little shakier, "I'd try the Gilded Horn, bar upriver, by the Old Wall," the only surviving remnant of the original Earth Kingdom city, destroyed nearly a hundred years ago, the Old Wall was a crumbling stretch of, well, wall that was left undeveloped as a historical monument. As the new city had swelled, the gash of green and brown amidst the blackened factories and tenements had taken on the status of a landmark.
"Thanks," his grin showing more teeth than strictly necessary, "Take care of yourselves,"
He pushed through the industrial sections near the harbor and along the river, his confident swagger keeping trouble at bay. Further up the river, and further up the coast, the factories faded into cramped apartment, and, further on, into better and less crowded middle class houses. He sidled around the great market square, now dominated by the Free Corps, the merchants having little to sell. The various Corps controlled and organized the sprawling tent city, filled with refugees, Fire Nation colonists and Earth Kingdom collaborators alike fleeing the reprisals of the previously victimized. Only a fraction of them could fit in the square of course, and the streets overflowed with people. A confused gaggle, the only element that separated this ragged mass from Ba Sing Se a year and a half ago was the absence of angry youths, they had been recruited weeks, even months ago. Ekin brushed off beggars and peddlers alike, he had a goal.
He easily found the Old Wall, the overgrown ruin more resembling an ill managed park, which is what it was now in practice; they had ceased decades ago to annually burn it on the anniversary of Sozin's victory during Azulon's reign. The Gilded Horn, nestled between the edge of the forest and the river, readily identifiable by the oversized and garishly painted model of a komodo-rhino's head, was crowded, Ekin scowled, he would have to fight just to get inside.
He shoved his way into the mass of patrons, trying to spot someone with authority, the barman perhaps, or, over in the corner, someone not being shoved around, a vacant circle surrounding him, and his guards. Ekin pressed forward, a long, grinding journey through milling crowd. Odd, it was the middle of the day, and more importantly, no one was drinking, why would the bar be so packed?
Before he could get close enough to say anything, or even get a good look at whoever was important enough to merit guards and breathing room, the answer to his other question became apparent. The big shot found himself a podium, or a soap box or whatever, Ekin couldn't see, too many people, and too many tall people in the way but he could hear, he didn't recognize the voice but was impressed with his elocution, his voice easily boomed throughout the crowded, noisy bar. This did not keep him from finding the man's pompous, overwrought and highly expressive style desperately amusing.
"Burn brightly, sons and daughters of the FIRE NATION! I know that you are worried about the rumors sweeping through the city, and it is with the utmost regret that I must officially inform all of you that Azula, RIGHTFUL Fire Lord, MASTER firebender and champion of OUR RIGHTS! has fallen; struck down by the lackeys of the treacherous Zuko; his mind poisoned by the VILE AVATAR!" Ekin's snigger was thoroughly drowned out by the ecstatic crowd, which followed the speakers emotional leads to a tee.
"FEAR NOT, righteous citizens of the glorious Fire Nation, all hope is not lost. We will NEVER YIELD to the cretinous Earth King and we stand ready to repel ALL EFFORTS against us. The magnificent rulership of the magnanimous FIRE LORD AZULA will be greatly missed but her heartbreaking death is not the end of the pride of the FIRE NATION, it is not the end of our HONOR, of our LAND or of our PEOPLE!"
The roar was deafening and no one noticed Ekin's very feeble efforts to contain his laughter. Composing himself as the cheers finally began to subside, he shoved his way closer to the speaker, who was now, speaking quietly with a few hangers on, moving towards the back of the bar and presumably some sort of room or exit Ekin couldn't see. Years of intensive firebending training and battle experience just barely qualified Ekin to bodily smash his way through the crowd, which was filtering out of the bar, but he barely managed picking up speed as the mass thinned and he neared his goal only to be brought up short by the firm hand of a stocky bodyguard. Ekin spun, scrambling to come up with a convincing story, when the man let go suddenly, gaping in astonishment
"Ekin?" now able to see his obstacles face clearly, Ekin started with surprise both his identity and his fantastic luck.
"Tai! I was almost, sort of looking for you, Fire fist bump," swinging his fist up just to the side of his old friend, who met it with his own in a burst of orange flame.
"I thought you transferred to some fancy airship thing," waving his hand dismissivly.
"A fancy airship thing that happens to be in town, though captained by a pompous martinet, I kinda had to skip ship to get here," Ekin gave a sheepish shrug
"Not bothering to maintain the bare minimum of discipline anymore," Tai chuckled indulgently, "but here of all places?"
"Well, I figured you'd be here, and where better to jump, if you're gonna jump,"
"If you were planning on joining the revolution you picked a bad time, Kuya's, that's him," pointing to the man he was guarding, the speaker from before, "comments aside, without Azula, we could be in real trouble,"
"Less trouble than you'd be if you had actually managed to set her on the throne, psycho bitch would've burned half of you alive the second day for having bad haircuts, yours is particularly atrocious I might add," Ekin flippantly retorted, they moved into the bar's backroom, away from the crowd.
"It was you wasn't it?" Tai asked quietly.
"It usually is," Ekin joked lightheartedly, then, as his old friend continued to stare him down, "Only indirectly, but, it was our ship. You're better off without her," he added, trying to be consoling.
"I know you hated her, but we needed her; you, well, you don't know anything about what's going on around here, but we needed her, she's a master firebender, one of the best in the world. She could fight off an entire division by herself, and even if she was crazy, if she could bring even a quarter of her old cold blooded analytic machinations to the table, we might not even need to fight."
"So, you, well not you so much as whoever's in charge, are committed to restarting the war?" Ekin asked softly.
"We have no choice, our land, our families; they'll take everything from us," forcefully gesturing.
"And how was Azula supposed to help, she's already lost to Zuko and the Avatar, the Avatar in the Avatar state, mopped up Ozai, the most powerful firebender in the world, on the day of Sozin's comet, what do you plan to do about that?" Ekin responded with equal fervor.
"There is a, well, I can't really talk about it, but, yeah."
"Really, a good plan, 'cause 'maybe he'll have a stroke' isn't what I'd call a high percentage play,"
"I don't know all the details, but it's pretty good,"
"There's no way to let me be the judge of that for myself; I don't intend to join the losing side,"
"What 'Guts and Glory' Ekin, a little afraid,"
"Mortals, I can deal with, just sign me up. Forces of nature, I'd like a little assurance,"
"Listen I can't tell you, operational security, you know, but here's what I'll do, I'll give you a recommendation, bring it to Kuya, maybe he'll throw you a bone,"
"Generous, generous, throw in a ham and I'll think about it,"
"I'll take that as a yes, come with me."
The upper floor of the bar was not at all as Ekin had expected; instead of a dark attic or a set of sunken, pest ridden beds it was an airy, well lit command center. Maps spread on tables, charts on walls, messenger hawks waiting in the rear, the staff bustling, jotting notes, moving markers; it was as well managed a war room as he had ever seen.
"Nice, huh," Tai grinned, now pulling Ekin bodily through the press, towards the speaker from before, now evidently meeting with other high ranking Free Corps officers, a sharp, angular man, a scarred woman, whose laughter could not soften her hard features, her hook hand waving, unintentionally menacingly and stocky one legged man, his long white beard not disguising his hard muscles.
"Sirs, ma'am," Tai began respectively, bowing and kicking Ekin when he did not immediately follow.
"Yes, Lieutenant?" the portly baritone of the rabble rouser Tai guarded was warm, a promising start.
"I would like to introduce an old friend of mine, who has expressed interest in joining,"
"Is this really something that needs our attention?" the sharp man interjected snidely, drawing the speakers attention
"You're right," he turned back to Tai, "Recruitment is…"
"I think you should consider meeting him personally," Tai spoke rapidly, nervously, desperate to make his case before they could stop him, "he deserves more than a entry level position, he's a high level firebender, I've never beaten him in a sparring match and, you remember I was second through the breach at Tu Fong, that was because he was first," he punctuated his points with jabs of his open hand.
There was a pause as the four shared a brief look, a silent contest of wills playing out before the nervously idling supplicants.
"Perhaps he does merit the direct attention of Central Command, tell me," addressing Ekin directly for the first time, "Why didn't you join earlier? Your experience would have made you a natural candidate for high rank, if only you weren't pleading at our doorstop at the eleventh hour,"
"An excellent question, three reasons, most importantly, I did not actually arrive in the city until today, secondly I despise Azula, whom you were planning on setting up, and finally I'm still not completely certain I wish to join your fine organization," this, rather predictably, did not go well with any of them, "oh don't get me wrong, I like you, I like your goals, mostly anyway, I'd like to join, but I'm not suicidal, I have no intention of drowning trying to halt the tide," the harsh, questioning stare he received perhaps indicated his metaphor had been misunderstood, Ekin hoped, "That is to say, if we are merely going to be crushed by the Avatar,"
The woman laughed, a throaty chortle, "I like him, direct, blunt even," she turned to her comrades, "He's only asking the question everyone is always too afraid to say out loud. If that is your only concern, then I should have a place for a fighter, and thinker, of your caliber,"
"Don't get ahead of yourself, Seri, he cannot be allowed into a position of authority until he has been tested as well as vouched for," the one legged man spoke up.
"If I might be allowed to be a bit more direct, blunt even, could you explain exactly how you intend to defeat the Avatar?"
"Suffice to say we have a plan," Seri curtly answered.
"With all due respect, so did Ozai," he replied without respect.
"Do you always preface your barbs with pleasantries? Nevermind," waving off what would undoubtedly have been a very witty retort, "our plan emphasizes subtlety and is far superior, and more likely to succeed, than the brute force methods of the honored former Fire Lord, effective though they were," her sharp tone making it clear that she would not tolerate criticism of Ozai.
"Again, with all due respect, that is very easy to say, and much harder to accomplish," with a bit more actual respect.
"Surely, you understand we can't simply tell all of our secrets to anyone who happens to pass by, there is such a thing as operational security, which is all the more vital in our scheme; as General Jalat mentioned, there will be a test, Lieutenant," she hesitated, "Tai," Tai supplied, "Tai, yes, has already vouched for you, so we can, I think skip a few steps we would otherwise do, but you must still be tested. Don't worry too much, I'm sure your glib tongue will be enable you to squirm your way out of any repercussions should we ultimately fail," her wry jab tempering his excitement at his rapid success
"I certainly hope it will not come to that, what sort of test do you propose, some sort of suicide mission or one of those things where you fake the whole thing so I never have a chance to do any real damage, either by failing or succeeding?"
"Must you always do that?" she muttered darkly, growing annoyed with his casual snark.
"How else would I display my sparkling wit and silver tongue, but yes, I can stop,"
"But not completely," Tai jumped in, his mood soaring now that his gamble had paid off, "that's how you got kicked out of the Royal Procession, wasn't it?"
"Only after I stopped trying, I hated the Royal Procession,"
"Enough chit chat," General Jalat intervened decisively, "Seri, did you have a specific test in mind?
She rubbed her chin, with her hook, rather disconcertingly, "Yes, I have a good idea,"
"And you wanted him in your division?"
"Oh yes, he should fit in nicely," her grin less than friendly and more predatory.
"Then I leave him to you, deal with him as you will," he turned, clearly dismissing them.
.oOo.
"What did you call me for, is that a Wang 15, one cylinder steam rhino?" Miu swung open the door to the hold of the Shu Jing, to find Lee holding a scroll, brush poised, examining the beat up steam engine.
"Actually it's a pair, of broken Wang 15's," Lee answered without looking at her, as the other engineers and firebenders, or both, followed her into the hold.
"And why do you have them," her exasperation evident.
"We are going to turn them into steam reformers, well, mini gasification plant and steam reformer, I threw together some sketches, here, take a look," handing her the scroll.
As she expected his thrown together sketches were precise, intricate diagrams, and they immediately fell into arguing over details, "You have yards of pipe running all over this mess, apart, from when it all collapses under its own weight or explodes, we don't have any pipe,"
"Because it is not used anywhere in a steamship or airship," he asked sarcastically, as the other engineers crowded around Miu to see his sketches or inspected the engines, "Besides, I had some pipe brought along, it is back there," pointing vaguely , further into the hold.
"Hm, yes, but the water gas shift reaction requires high temperatures,"
"I know, here, you see, we divert and burn some of the producer gas to maintain the temperature in the reforming chamber."
"Using one boiler for steam and the other to heat the coal, I see. This might actually work."
"No need to sound surprised,"
"Whatever, give me a brush I need to make a few corrections, Oka start cutting these pipes, Chen and Zi help me take this boiler apart, we'll need to gut it completely, Lee…" she stopped hestiatant of ordering around her commanding officer.
"I have set up a portable forge over here, I'll assist Oka in shaping the piping."
Oka followed him deeper into the hold, focusing on increasing the intensity of the carefully controlled flames springing from her finger tips. By the time they reached the forge a tightly focused sheet of fire streamed out. Lee deftly marked portions of the battered metal pipe with a bit of chalk, "Cut here and here," She brought flame to bear burning through the metal, handing him the chunk with her nonbending left hand.
"This chart should indicate the sizes needed," Lee pinned it to the wall, while pumping the bellows, stoking the flame of the portable forge, heating the section of pipe and bending it into shape.
Shortly later he carried a set of pipes over the now disassembled steam engines,
"Weld these in here," directing Oka, the firebender focusing a tightly focused flame from her forefinger, to add to the cobbled together, inelegant monster they were assembling.
Miu, now elbow deep in a boiler, casually asked, "So you're not going to visit your family at all?"
"No," Lee seemed surprised that the question was asked at all.
"Well, if we were near Ember Island, I'd want to visit my family,"
"Should such an occasion arise, hopefully we would not have a pressing mission, and you would be allowed to."
"What pressing mission?" Miu rolled her eyes, "We're running trials," spilling grease over the floor, not to mention her uniform as she dismissively waved her hand.
"The city is a tinderbox, and the Corps has already begun its play, a failed effort, but now they are backed into a corner and even more dangerous,"
"And you aren't worried about your family, in the middle of the firestorm?"
"They are quite safe, the Guilds look after their own."
"Wait," the eavesdropping Oka interjected quizzically, "Weren't the Guilds broken up after the rebellion?"
"Not entirely," Lee shifted easily into the lecturing tone of a teacher, "While Sozin disbanded most of the Guilds after the Luddite Rebellion, he was unable to do without the services of the smaller, more technical guilds, those that could not be replaced by power looms. The guilds moved to the colonies at the first opportunity, in the face of suspicion and distrust, misplaced of course, from the establishment. They constructed a separate community, that was eventually swallowed by the sprawl of Han Tui, but it remains quite insular and distinct. Few guilder would dream of involving themselves in an outside organization and the Corps would be fools to try to force their way inside the walls of the Guild Quarter."
"So what guild were you in?" Oka pressed further. Miu, familiar with Lee's past, turned her attention back to the half ripped apart engine, half built steam reformer.
"I was never in a Guild, I joined the Navy," Lee archly clarified the technicality, "But my family are clock makers," forestalling the inevitable objection by answering the spirit of the question. "Regardless, get back to work," it would take a lot of effort to finish this project, and the Indefatigable would stuck here until it was done.
.oOo.
Ekin followed Seri down a dank, dimly lit tunnel, listening attentively.
"And tear of your sleeves, the uniform will do, we've been using them, even for those who weren't in the military, seized a huge stockpile of them, but we need to mark you as one of mine, take this," she gave him a simple black band, "I don't like fancy nonsense, it gets in the way,"
"Aw, but it kills with the ladies," Ekin feigned disappointment, drawing a laugh from Seri.
"Never had to worry about that myself, basic supply and demand operated in my favor," she joked waving her hook carelessly.
"If I might be so bold?" he asked hesitantly.
"How'd I lose the hand? Don't worry, everyone always asks, or wants to and just stares, that's actually more annoying; in the Six Hundred Day siege, when I was Colonel Seri of the 94th,"
"The 94th?" Ekin stopped, gaping in surprise.
"Yes, I stood up in a cornfield, at Lishin," Ekin stared remembering the stories his father had told him of the famous battle; Lishin, General Iroh's greatest victory, won by accident, when the Earth Kindom's most elite troops had been shattered by a single regiment. The Granite Guard had been the bulwark of the Earth Kingdom for decades, at each of Iroh's previous victories, they alone had held the rearguard, holding off viscous assaults and saving the Earth Kingdom army from annihilation again and again. At Lishin, the Earth Kingdom had emptied the walls of Ba Sing-Se to field an overwhelming force, and Iroh had responded with the only reasonable course of action, outnumbered in hostile territory, he attacked. Catching them off guard with rapid thrusts, he split apart the larger army, isolating divisions to be crushed in detail. However this strategy left his units exposed, and when, late in the second day he committed his last reserves, personally leading the assault on the stubbornly held Lu farmhouse, the Granite Guard advanced into a crucial gap in his lines. From there they could seize a strategic ridge, and cut off the Fire Army's right flank, turning Iroh's own favorite tactic against him. Against the finest force the Earth Kingdom could muster stood only the 33rd, a veteran unit but grossly understrength, and the 94th, green as summer grass. Iroh could only watch in horror as the 33rd was tossed aside like so much straw, the 94th nowhere to be seen. Ekin had heard the story many times, his father had been Iroh's aide de camp, as he told it he had then asked Iroh, desperately "This is one of your counterintuitive genius plans, where I protest how unconventional it is, and then eat my words when it turns out to be brilliant, right?" and Iroh, supposedly had replied, "No, we are in serious trouble." But before he could rally his men, something remarkable occurred, for the 94th had not disappeared, instead their commander, Colonel Morn, Seri had been his second in command, she would take over the regiment when he was promoted for his role in the battle, had them conceal themselves in a convenient cornfield when they had first taken up their position before dawn. And now the perfect opportunity presented itself, as the unsuspecting Guard marched up to them, when they reached the perfect position, he ordered the attack. They stood up and delivered one perfect volley, the second was more ragged and by the third their nervous were completely frayed, excitement and fear intermingling, it was then that he ordered a charge, but the Guard was already wavering, scourged by waves of fire at point blank range, caught completely by surprise, they did not wait to meet the surging Fire Nation soldiers, they crumbled like rotten stone. When the rest of the army watched the finest soldiers in the Earth Kingdom flee, their heart went out. The pursuit lasted until after midnight, netting tens of thousands of prisoners, when Iroh arrived at the walls of Ba Sing-Se two days later, they were almost empty. But their sheer size thwarted him, it took weeks to assemble the siege equipment to breach them and by then a last ditch conscription effort had swelled the ranks of the defenders, the street cars shut down, the drivers drafted, the only line upon the one way trip to the wall.
"I see you're suitably impressed," Seri gently mocked Ekin out of his reverent trance.
"Uh, yes?" she had stated the self evident.
"Then you will listen closely to my orders," she rebuked him sharply.
"Of course," he placated her.
"Now, there are many factions in this city, combined Central Command controls nearly three quarters of the manpower, but some of them are strong enough to be dangerous; I want you to deal with one of them."
"If they're so powerful, what do you think I can do?"
"Frankly, they aren't that important, if you hadn't shown up, we would have merely waited until after the coup."
"So, do you want me to deal with them, or deal with them," drawing a finger across his throat to illustrate.
"The latter," Seri replied simply and coldly.
"As you command,"
"Your primary target is their leader, a woman by the name of Fusako, her Red faction has some radical scheme for a new world order with everything communally controlled, its earned her a good sized following amongst some of the poor," she dismissed the uppity ingrate with contempt, and then described her, finishing with directions, "Take the fifth ladder down the left tunnel, when your finished head back to the Gilded Horn, I won't be there but they can direct you to my headquarters."
"And then you'll finally explain your grand scheme?"
"If your performance is satisfactory."
He emerged deep in the industrial slums, draping himself in a cloak so as to not announce his allegiance to the world at large; surrounded by large, now empty and silent arms factories surrounded by high rise tenements, tiles cracked and paint chipped, exposing rotting wood. Ekin doubted anyone with any clout or sense, would stay in the decrepit apartments, and so turned to the nearest idle factory. The front door would naturally be guarded, but it was a big, rather cheaply constructed building, there must be another entrance; if only he could find one, or make one.
It was still only the afternoon, but the smog dimmed the sun and the buildings cast long shadows; from them a patrol emerged, a pair of red armbanded men. Ekin was too busy scrutinizing the wall to notice them before they had noticed him. They approached him, sword and spear upraised, "Hey you, what are doing here?"
"I am, well, I'm," Ekin stalled, blanking on a suitable excuse, "doing something?" he finished lamely.
"Really," the guard sounded skeptical, "Why don't you..." Now they were close enough and Ekin stopped bothering pretending to be harmless, snapping the spear and sending the sword flying with a single flaming kick, knocking the two over.
If he hadn't been before, he was now in a hurry. He picked up the fallen sword, a mass produced blade of indifferent steel, but sufficient for his purposes. After swing his arms a few times to warm up, he crouched and then literally exploded, a burst of fire to give his jump increased strength. Unlike Azula he could not use firebending as rocket boosters, but the shockwave from his blast was enough to propel him twenty feet into the air, just short of the factory's windows were located, safe from vandalism, providing free natural light. The sword created a handhold, easily biting into the cheap plaster. With a firm grip on the sword, he scrambled up onto the window sill, and paused for a moment, to contemplate his next move and scope out the factory interior. The factory had been converted to a barracks, pallets sprinkled among the silent assembly lines. The great forges were cold, the great crucibles empty. To his right, along the south wall, there was a second floor office overlooking the floor, an excellent position for a command post.
The window had never been intended to be opened and there was no way to do so. Without any other options, he smashed the window, quickness and brutal force would have to do instead of stealth. He dropped a few yards unto a catwalk, and raced towards the south wall office. Below, the revolutionaries below, gaped at the intruder, the faster benders firing blasts at Ekin, which he effortlessly deflected, fire rolling harmlessly over his shoulders.
As he reached the edge of the catwalk, he took a flying leap, kicking a wave of fire to clear his way, shattering the windows of the office, showering those inside with shards of glass. As Ekin landed, rolling to avoid injury, trusting his armor to protect him from the broken glass, he tried to scope out the room; nothing really clicked until the room stopped spinning. Rising to a crouch, he identified his target, from Seri's description, the woman's angular face could charitably be described as handsome, but the fire in her eyes burned through her shock; that was why they feared her, that was why she needed to die. She was sitting, now rising, at a table strewn with scrolls with three others, presumably her lieutenants, planning their next move.
He didn't bother with witty banter, barely even sparing a glance to her comrades, slower to react in any case, only Fusako had a proper stance, ready to receive his first blow. Ekin wasted no time, he was desperately outnumbered, he had to finish her quickly. Three quick jabs sent fireballs straight at her, she dispersed all of them, the backwash of heat sending the others diving out of the way, one bleeding freely courtesy of a sliver of glass. Ekin sprinted forward as she was occupied, when she tried to retaliate with a fireblast of her own, instead of deflecting or dispersing it he smashed it back down her throat with a more powerful one. She went down, as she struggled to regain her footing her lieutenants rallied. Only one was a firebender, or at least only one attempted to firebend. Before he could finish his strike Ekin hit him with a slash of fire that not only took him out but wrecked the wall behind him. Ekin leapt over a desperate scissor kick from Fusako, unleashing a fierce jab, just before landing, the blast, as much concussion as fire, stuck her dead in the chest. It might have been a fatal wound by itself, but Ekin took no chances, his second strike leaving her throat a charred wreck.
As he stared at his target, his mission accomplished, his intense focus faded and he became consciously aware of his surroundings. The table had been smashed, and the scrolls on it were scattered about the room, they smoldered lazily already spent, the flames licking walls were livelier. The bender was still down, the others were fleeing. Ekin ignored them, now contemplating his escape, on the factory floor, the Red's were rallying, strange, none of them were firing at him through the opening he at created.
Ekin turned to the hole he had smashed in the far wall, if his spatial sense was right, the room behind it would be flush with the exterior, an escape route. However, a soft voice from behind the wall froze him
"Mommy?" the quiet, hesitant question came from a small girl, maybe seven or eight, Ekin had never been good at telling children's ages. Fusako's daughter? Guilt and shock hit him like a hammer to the stomach, he choked it back, this was no different from any of the other people he had killed, just because he hadn't seen their families mourn didn't mean they hadn't. This was no different, he had killed her for the same reason as the others, to serve his nation, to defend his people, to protect his family. He shook his head, trying to clear it, he had only minutes to escape, and unless he wanted to fight the swarming angry Red's, she was in the way. He shoved her to the side, jumping through the hole in the wall. He was in luck, there was a window to the outside, right in front of him, just on the other side of the sparsely furnished room; the only personal touches were dolls and toys on the bed, obviously the girl's. Ekin paused to consider the child he had just knocked aside, the wall fire might spread and consume her room. He pulled the flame to him, depriving it of fuel, careful not to feed it with his chi, and hurled it through the window. "I needed to break that anyway," he justified to himself. It was only as he flew out the window that he pondered his landing. He reversed his entry technique, using a blast of fire to cushion his fall, and then sprinted for a sewer grate, gone before his pursuers could follow.
.oOo.
The new steam reformer was a clunky, awkward mess. It resembled a pile of scrap struck by lightning more than something constructed from a plan. But it worked. Not well, not efficiently, and you'd be a complete idiot to run it in an enclosed space. But it worked.
It would take all night for the Indefatigable's gasbags to be refilled; too slow for Miu's tastes. The air on the Shu Jing was ripe with tension, also smoke, and probably more leaking producer gas than could possibly be healthy; but that didn't concern the engineer, smoke was more or less her stock in trade. Lee had ordered a strict watch and insisted none of the crew venture onto the aged patrol ship alone. This had been easy enough to enforce, only a few one man jobs and anyway, the rest of the crew could taste trouble, probably better than Miu, her head stuck in an engine metaphorically when it wasn't literally. It wasn't currently, literally anyway, she was stuck on the deck helping restock the ship.
"Can we hurry this up," she snapped at the man operating the lift. He was one of her junior engineers, very young. There was little he could do, since he was only loading sacks of coal unto a lift, to be hauled up to the hovering Indefatigable.
"Uh?" the boy stammered, stiff as a board.
"The winch is operating at maximum capacity," Lee stepped in with annoying but reassuring calm.
"Maximum rated capacity and how fast it'll go if I ask nicely can be very different things," Miu ignored her hapless subordinate, giving her captain a cocky smirk.
"Which is why the winch is operating thirty percent over its original maximum capacity, because you modified it weeks ago," Lee looked down at Miu with a strictly neutral expression, though on closer examination, she noticed his eyes glittering just a little bit.
"Oh yeah," Miu stopped short, a little deflated. "Still too slow."
"We have no way of speeding it up, there is no option but to wait."
"Well, waiting bites," she crossed her arms petulantly.
"In two hours second watch will take over,"
"Wonderful," if Lee noticed that her reply was marinating in sarcasm he gave no sign. He shifted, tracking a group of Shu Jing crewmen with suspicious eyes. As they headed into the hold, he turned back, the lift was coming down. He bent to lift a sack of coal; airships, due to limited space were shorthanded and he didn't trust the crew of the Shu Jing. Which meant he had to get his hands dirty; not that he really minded, any hint of officorial elitism had been stripped from him as a midshipman. With his back to the command tower, it was the ideal moment for a figure to slip out.
Bent over holding a hundred pound bag of coal, Lee was in a vulnerable position. The attacker was wise to strike then. It didn't help him, but it was a smart move. Also intelligently, he didn't scream or curse, he just rushed at his target, thick bladed knife out and ready to stab.
Lee was a blur, dropping the bag, twisting around, drawing his sword and slitting his attacker's throat in a single, smooth motion. Blood spurted from the stricken man's severed arteries, spraying over the other two, who only now were grasping the situation. The boy was white as a sheet, barely keeping his footing, Miu was little better, eyes wide, bringing one shaking hand to wipe off a drop of blood from onto her cheek, gaping at its bright red, in vibrant contrast to the rest of the world, dingy with coal dust.
"Should have taken him alive" Lee mused, his voice as empty of emotion as always, casually wiping his blade on the rough wool of the coal sack. Glancing up, he saw the shocked engineers.
"Up" he commanded, taking a single long stride towards them; the youth, mechanically obeyed, long habit overriding everything else. Miu was still out of it staring at the blood on her fingers, another stride brought Lee to her, "Miu," he put a hand on her shoulder, "Chief Engineer Miu," more forcefully, shaking her from her daze, "Head on up," he gestured to the lift and its solitary bag of coal, and a still pale engineer; "Send down a full security detail, if they are not already on their way,"
Above the rocket turret swiveled, fixing on the command tower, the lift rose, and Lee waited. He watched the tower but the deck remained empty. It was not clear if this was a good or bad for him, but it seemed prudent to wait for backup. So he waited, absently cleaning his sword, in a manner that hypothetical observers, who had just, hypothetically, watched him kill a man, might find intimidating.
When the lift arrived, half a dozen hard faced men and women stepped off, moving immediately to flank their captain, he did not speak, instead a simple hand signal directed them forward. One bender, Jalak, secured the door, the rest followed swiftly, clearing the corridors. Lee seemed to ignore the commotion, as one of his men shoved back Shu Jing sailors, advancing on the bridge with a measured, purposeful stride. The captain and a cluster of officers, watched him come, flanked by stern guards, with apprehension.
"I would like to report an incident with a member of your crew, and discuss some measures to prevent further incidents," Lee calmly, pleasantly and dangerously announced.
"Of course, of course," the other captain nervously agreed, glancing from steely eyed guards, to the battery floating overhead. "I had no idea that such a disgraceful incident," he picked his words with care, "was being planned. I assure you that your safety and that of your crew is of paramount concern for me and my senior staff."
"That is excellent, you will therefore be eager to implement my recommendations; the first of which is that your men not approach the deck for the duration of our resupply efforts,"
"That seems a bit…," Lee continued to stare at the man, unblinkingly and unnervingly, "But, this is clearly a very serious matter and all necessary measures will, of course, be immediately carried out."
"Of course, you will also be quick to allow my men to conduct a search of the crew, and officer, quarters, as well as sequestering munitions and disabling the trebuchet."
"That's…" the captain started, but under Lee's continued disconcerting, level gaze halted, collecting himself, and glancing again at the rockets aimed at his ship and the sword at his opposite's side, "an entirely reasonable set of suggestions, that should be carried out immediately, we wouldn't want to delay your departure," he laughed nervously, the echoes slowly fading in the face of stoic silence.
"Excellent, let us begin immediately; if you will permit me to take my leave?" not waiting for the response, an enthusiastic endorsement of Lee leaving as rapidly as possible, Lee signaled his troops to follow him out.
As they entered the corridor, Lee began to rattle off orders, "Jalak, take a detachment and begin searching their quarters, confiscate weapons, store them in the armory, check for any documents, suspicious plans of any sort; Oka lock down the armory and put together a guard detail for the deck, Shu, organize the coal bunkering, we are leaving at sundown, regardless of fuel, get as much on board as possible."
As he crossed the deck, and his subordinates scattered to carry out his commands, he made his way forward, towards the trebuchet; it was the only weapon the Shi Jing had that posed a threat to the Indefatigable. With the practiced ease of long familiarity, Lee began to strip down the key mechanisms controlling loading. Finally, with a satisfying thunk, he released the counterweight. It would take at least a day to restore the artillery piece to working order, and he hoped to be long gone by then.
When he arrived back on the bridge, the watch officer Shu meet him,
"Sir, our bunkers are half full, the gasbags only a third of maximum capacity,"
"That is unfortunate, we should be able to run the gasifier while underway,"
"But it will chew up our fuel supply, its buoyancy effect will be as much by that as the gas," Shu shook his head.
"Nevertheless, I intend to lift at sundown, we are too vulnerable at night,"
"You suspect the attack was part of larger plot,"
"Not this one specifically, it was poorly thought out and uncoordinated, a single knife? No, the question is whether he was a singular fanatic or an impatient member of a larger conspiracy."
"They complied with all of your demands though, didn't they?"
"Yes, but they hardly had any choice. It is clear that none of the Han Tui garrison can be trusted,"
"Without a full fuel and gas complement we won't be able to run the trials,"
"The trials can be considered scrapped at this point. There are no other problems?" when Shu shook his head negatively Lee concluded, "You have the deck," leaving the bridge, working his way back to engineering, where he found his chief gunnery officer, and sometimes torch cutter, welder or lighter in charge.
"Miu was a little shaky so I, uh, arranged for an accident to take the number four engine out of commission temporarily," she explained in response to his barely raised eyebrow, "she and the sheet faced kid, er…"
"Chen," Lee supplied.
"Him, yes, they're off busy fixing it, and forgetting about the mess."
"Excellent thinking, the situation here is under control?"
"Battened down,"
Lee didn't let out his sigh until he reached his quarters. No use putting it off. Pulling out a brush and parchment, he began composing a report of the incident. Killing Fire Nation soldiers created a mountain of paperwork.
