Calming Ice

Chapter Three

"Princess." the captain said, saluting. His armored arms fell to his sides as he stared straight ahead.

"Captain." the princess replied dully. She did not look up from the map she had made countless red marks on. Her manicured finger found a point on the paper. "Do you think the Avatar would attempt to go back to the area where Jong-Jong was apprehended?" she asked, turning back to the man. The girl had been pouring over maps for a week, attempting to figure out where in the world (literally) the Avatar was headed. Several locations of villages and islands were circled in blood red ink to indicate a possibility.

"Princess, the Avatar has actually been spotted." The captain flinched slightly out of pure nerve. Stay calm. He told himself. She won't throw you overboard if you aren't ignorant or question her authority. Or at least that's what the other men had said.

"Oh?" the princess stood and fixed her piercing golden gaze upon the captain of her ship. She showed no emotion in her young features. The man stood quietly as a drip of sweat crawled down the side of his face. Talking to Princess Azula always made him nervous. He bit the inside of his lip to remind himself to keep calm. This girl was not the person to anger. Three people had already been thrown overboard; among them was the ex-captain. He had been telling the princess about the tides…

"We are within two miles of the bison. Do you wish us to catapult the beast or keep our position secret?"

"Captain, don't you think they would see us from their aerial position?" the princess inquired, pacing a line in front of the man. Oh no. This was the tone the soldiers had said the princess had used with the "Tides Captain." It seemed she enjoyed interrogated people. Her hands were behind her back and her lightly painted lips curved into a miniscule smirk.

"Yes, princess. I just thought you might want to weigh all of your options, no matter how…risky." The captain spoke calmly, choosing his words carefully. This surprised Azula to no end.

How is he so calm? She wondered. Surly he has heard of the fate of my last captain. The princess looked the captain over. She had not seen him much in the few days of his arrival. He was barely taller than her with a face that was still slightly boyish. His eyes were full of emotion and a few wisps of ebony hair escaped from his helmet. In all honesty, he didn't look much older then the princess herself.

"Princess?" The captain pulled Azula from her thoughts.

"Full speed toward them. When we are within a mile of the bison, or when they approach land, catapult them." With a nod and bow, the captain exited Princess Azula's quarters.

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"Sister?" Sokka cried, exasperated. "You have a sister?" Zuko gave the feeblest of nods. His eyes were downcast. Sokka threw his arms up in a spasm of frustration. Aang was quiet as he merely watched the situation unfold. I rested a hand on his shoulder, making him look up. I ignored my brother's sputtering of protest.

"It's alright. If she gets too close, you can singe her hair again." The prince offered a small smile. Sokka and Aang just sat there with baffled looks on their faces. My brother glanced at Aang who only shrugged.

Later…

"ZUKO!" I yelled, pulling him around by his shoulder. His eyes widened at the sight before him. Hurtling from the ship was a monstrous ball of flames. We were in real trouble now.

"Katara, water! Aang, try to bend the rock!" Zuko commanded. If the situation wasn't so startling, I'd have been surprised Zuko even knew Aang's name. I focused and with a quick, strong movement, I brought up a wall of water. It wasn't nearly tall enough. It made it just above half way. I turned to see Zuko firebend the flames away from the rock and fire them back at the ship. Good. I didn't need to put the flames out myself. Aang spun in the air, letting out a yell and pushed the ball of rock back toward the ocean below.

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"WHAT!" the princess yelled. It was more of an exclamation than a question. Her angered outburst filled the air about the deck of the metal ship. Several soldiers stopped and stared while others near her fell over in surprise and fear of being hit. "He's learned all of the elements!" She absentmindedly sent up a flamed punch to stop the returning fire ball. She consumed another ball of rock in flame. "FIRE!"

Little did Azula know that it was actually her pain-in-the-ass brother that was bending the fire.

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"There's another!" Aang called out, pointing. Zuko leapt up and bended the flame from the projectile with a massive exhale. Aang used the same maneuver he had before. Sokka looked over his shoulder to see what was happening. He held onto Appa's reins so tight, his knuckles were turning white. Fear was evident in his face.

"Fire!"

"Does your sister have it out for you or what?" Sokka yelled in frustration.

"She probably doesn't even know I'm here, but yeah. She hates anyone in the family that isn't Father." There was no time for conversation. "Here's another one!" Zuko and Aang repeated their process.

"Fire!"

Pry away the fire. Push it back. Kick the rock into the ocean.

"Fire!"

Pry away the fire. Push it back. Kick the rock into the ocean.

"Fire!"

Pry, push. Kick.

"LOAD ALL THREE!" Azula commanded. Soldiers hurried to load the catapults. With a humongous burst of fire power, the princess lit the balls of rock. "FIRE!"

Pry, push, kick. Pry, push, kick. P—

Zuko wasn't fast enough. Sokka had seen this, and attempted to swerve, failing miserably. The ball of flame collided with the bison, sending the beast into a roaring, searing agony. Flames consumed his fur, sending a horrible burning smell into the air.

Appa swerved, sending me over the edge of the saddle without warning. I held onto the very edge for dear life. Thank the gods for instinct. Still, fear gripped every fiber of my being. That was a long drop to the water... Gigantic splashes from the falling rocks echoed in my ears. Waves crashed across the big open sea. I closed my eyes and looked away before I allowed them to open. Dieing in my element would be too ironic. Not to mention scary. I screamed. Almost at an instant, a pale hand flew over the edge, grabbing my free hand. It pulled me back onto Appa's back with unbelievable strength. I fell on top of my savior due to momentum. I looked down into pools of molten gold. I was breathing hard, like I'd just run a long distance. I climbed off Zuko and thanked him, moving over to help Aang put out the fire set to Appa's fur.

"We're loosing altitude!" my brother shouted from the front. It was true. The deep ocean was leering closer and closer with each passing second. There wasn't much we could do about that at the moment. We had Appa to worry about. I grabbed a sleeping bag from the packs and smothered the fire with it. I let it fall from my hands when it caught fire itself. The thick blanket floated in tatters, still burning, toward the water.

"AANG!" Zuko yelled. Aang looked up to see the prince bending fire from yet another projectile. The Avatar used his earthbending yet again. This situation was hopeless. There had to be something I could do! I watched the prince and my friend extinguish and redirect several more balls of fire and rock helplessly. They were breathing hard. Trails of sweat glistened across their flushed skin. This extreme bending was really taking its toll. There was no telling how much longer they could last. I peered over the edge in search of a way I could help. And I saw it.

I stood up and used another quick, strong movement to throw a gigantic wave over the side of the ship. I saw several soldiers go with it. I hoped I'd managed to knock Zuko's stupid sister off. I resumed my position and pushed another wave over the ship.

"GO KATARA!" Aang cheered. He took the same position next to me.

"Push and pull. Push and pull. Push and pull." we chanted together, washing what must have been like tsunamis over the ship. Black and red armored soldiers sprinkled the surface of the water. They steadily grew smaller as we got farther and farther away. The ship had stopped. This fight would take a while to recover from.

"You saved us!" Aang exclaimed, throwing his arms around me in a tight hug. I saw Zuko give Aang a death glare and Sokka turn around. He pursed his lips and started making kissy noises. "Shut up, Sokka." Aang told my brother. Sokka's eyes widened in shock. Since when had Aang told him off?

"You and Zuko did more than--" I began.

"But you beat the crud out of them!" Aang pointed out, pulling away from the embrace.

"So the driver doesn't get any credit?" my brother said from the front. He was ignored. That's not much of a shock, is it?

"And it will take them days to recover from that, Katara." I looked behind me to see Zuko standing there. His face was slightly smudged with dark soot. "You did great. When Azula finds out it was you that kicked her ass…" he smirked, allowing everyone's imagination conjure up an ending. He knelt beside me and picked something out of my hair, letting it go in the wind. "Ash." Zuko added, looking toward a scowling Sokka. He sat back against the saddle contentedly. My brother set to muttering quiet threats to Zuko as he climbed in the back with the rest of us.

"I'm going to land so Katara can heal Appa. You need a rest, don't you boy?" Aang told us, taking the reins. Appa let out a groan in response.

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"I can't believe he mastered all four elements so quickly!" the princess yelled, slamming her fists on the table. A jar of calligraphy pens rolled onto the floor with a clatter and a bottle of red ink spilt over her precious map. She paid it no mind. The flame in the lamp flickered with her anger. "How many men were thrown overboard?" She turned to the captain expectantly.

"One hundred fifty, princess. All but one was recovered." The captain was sure to look forward. He kept his back straight and his hands behind his back.

"Injuries?" Azula asked, stopping in her spot. The captain was momentarily caught off guard by the slight pleading sound in the girl's voice.

"…Thirty-seven minor, six major. We're down by forty-four soldiers." The captain told her. Azula sighed and sat with her head in her hands.

"This would have been so much easier for my pathetic brother!" she yelled, throwing herself into her seat. "The Avatar only knew airbending and Zuko couldn't even take that! Father needs me to capture the Avatar and my stupid older brother. Thank Agni I've already got Iroh!"

Azula looked up at the captain. And the princess did something she hadn't done in years. Azula broke down and cried.

Poor captain.

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A/N: So how was it? Boring? Short? Yeah, I thought so, too. Let me know! Toodles!