600 Days – The Tale of Lu Ten

Original Story Written

by Zorroami

Based on the Nickelodeon TV series

Avatar: The Last Airbender

Produced by

Michael Dante DiMartino & Bryan Konietzko


Chapter 3

Split

"FIRE!!"

It was a familiar cry now. It had been over two months. General Iroh's attack plan was flawless as was expected. But the siege was far from over. The walls of Ba Sing Se could never have been anticipated. The city looked impenetrable; formidable at the very least. Still, it would not take long to claim the city with the greatest general living commanding the Siege along with half of the entire Fire Nation army.

Perhaps a six month campaign at most.

Lu Ten signed. His head was pounding from the weeks of failed strategies, sleepless nights, and malnutrition. It's not that he minded the conditions – his fathers words at the start of the campaign never left him – it was the fact that even after waiting for the other soldiers to eat before he did or giving up his tent for the injured men, he was still dealt hostile looks from his comrades. They had it in their minds that he was being treated better than they. Never mind that the commanding officer was sleeping on a bed roll under a tree with an empty stomach. He was a Prince of the Fire Nation and therefore must be getting special treatment. From whom, Lu Ten would have loved to know. Yet he took it all in stride and offered more than was ever asked to anyone who needed it.

"FIRE!!"

Lu Ten rubbed two fingers over his forehead; the blasting didn't help either.

"Sir!" Lu Ten looked up from the scroll in his lap only to have another smaller one thrust into his hand by the messenger. "Intercepted from a messenger hawk leaving Ba Sing Se.

"Thank you. You are dismissed." The man bowed leaving Lu Ten to the task of deciphering yet another document. Most were basic requests for aid from the surrounding Earth Kingdoms cities, but ever now and again there was something of interest. On one occasion, they had received a payment slip for a shipment of explosives from an underground market. Now that trading ring was under the control of the Fire Nation.

"FIRE!!"

This one was different.

Lu Ten's eyes poured over the page before having to read it again. And a third time. He could not grasp just what it was he had been given. Without a word he slipped the small message down the neck of his shirt. He returned to his original position trying to focus on the words, but his heart was pounding in his chest.

"Sir?"

Chen appeared at his right awaiting his next order when Lu Ten abruptly stood. "Where is Lieutenant Lao?"

Chen was a bit taken aback by Lu Ten's sudden action, but he answered quickly. "He and two other have gone to the base of the wall to assess today's damages. They should return by night fall." Lu Ten was thoughtful for the moment. "Is something wrong Sir?"

"Maybe."

"FIRE!!"

The two shared a look before Lu Ten continued. "See that he reports to me once he gets back. As for now, continue the barrage until sunset."

"Yessir." Chen bowed and left Lu Ten alone again.

In the short time they had been campaigning, the three comrades had all aged greatly. Lu Ten was lucky to have Chen keeping him sane and also lucky to have Lao making him crazy. Lao had proven to be not only the most skeptical of the young prince, but also the most valuable soldier. He could not bend like Lu Ten or Chen, but he was a weapons master with a specialty in blowing things up. He was also skilled in hand-to-hand combat which made him the front runner for any direct attacks on the wall or recognizance missions. Whether Lu Ten liked it or not, he needed Lao. The paper that rested peacefully against his breast was proof of that.

After a few hours Lao and the scouts returned. Minutes latter he and Lu Ten were seated opposite one another in a tent reserved for counseling. Lu Ten started normally. "Report."

Lao leaned back in his seat, noticeably ignoring a proper address to his commanding officer and prince. "Unfortunately, nothing too great. There is a slight difference in the type of rock used at the bottom of the wall, but those earthbenders aren't stupid. The thing could be made of sand and it wouldn't matter, every time we do anything they just bend it back the way to was. And – I'm pretty sure that –" Lu Ten silenced Lao's need to hear himself speak by throwing the scroll on the table in front of him. Lao raised his eyebrow and picked it up. His suspect eyes quickly softened as he read. "You can't be serious . . ."

"Lu Ten!" My young cousins are always happy to see me. I think Zuko more so then Azula. He never really got on with the kids his own age and having me around sometimes makes it easier. But of course nothing stops the two of them from barreling me to the ground. I can't even begin to understand a word they are saying – their talking a mile a minute and fighting for dominance of my attention.

"That is quite enough you two; Lu Ten just arrived." They whined and climbed off me hearing Ursa – Aunt Ursa. "Their always excited to see you."

"And it's always a pleasure to see them." I loved my cousins. When Ursa was pregnant, I was so excited that I made out a list of the things that I would show the new baby how to do; simple firebending techniques that I wanted to be the first to show them or how to catch a firebeetle on a summer night and tie it to a string to use as a flying torch. You know important things that children need to know if they are going to grow up properly. Of course having a boy cousin to play with wouldn't hurt.

"Lu Ten, do you want to see what I learned to do?" You could not believe how trilled I was when Zuko began to recover from his birth ordeal! Before I could answer, Zuko was already showing me how he could fan a continuous flame from one side of his body to the next. A kind of fiery rainbow.

"Wow, that's great Zu –"

"Watch me Lu Ten!" Azula, of course, had to one up her brother by replicating his trick only adding a one handed cart wheel making a full circle instead of just half. "Pretty good huh?"

"Really good." Azula was amazing; there is no denying her skill with bending. Where Zuko had exhausted himself with his concentration, Azula was unfazed and began fire cart wheeling all over the place. Zuko scowled at her, his cheeks red in frustration and embarrassment.

"Alright, time to go inside." Ursa smiled at them shaking her head slightly. "Both of you have studying to do." I chuckled at their groans. After a short while it was just Ursa and I in the yard.

I chuckled and Ursa smiled at me. "How are you?"

"Very well. Your father will be so happy to see you. Lieutenant."

"Has he met with Grandfather yet?"

"He and your Uncle are with the Fire Lord now. It's good to see Iroh with his health after this campaign."

I let out a sigh of relief. "Dad pushes himself too hard and everyone knows it."

Ursa chuckled lyrically. "It is a sign of a great leader." She paused and looked at me then. I don't know what it was, but something in her eyes made me sad and I could physically feel pain inside of me. "It's always good to see you Lu Ten."

"You too." I had to ask. "Are you all right?"

"Huh? Oh yes, don't worry about me. I'm fine." I raised an eyebrow at her to which she rolled her eyes. "I'm fine!"

We shared a laugh and it was at that moment that I saw my father. He looked exhausted. "Dad!" Immediately upon hearing my call the general was running to where my aunt and I stood on the grass.

He opened his arms and embraced me for a long and much needed hug. Ursa smiled lightly and turned her eyes downward. Something was bothering her that was to be sure. "My son, you don't know how happy I am to see you." He brought me back to look at me , then ruffled my hair quickly and chuckling at my expense. "No topknot today?"

"Nope."

Dad smiled and then turned to Ursa with a slightly me serious tone. "Have you told him yet?"

"Told me what?"

"I thought you would want to."

"Tell me what?" I was becoming more impatient and didn't like that I was out of the loop. Sometime I still felt as though I was Zuko and Azula's age; no one told me anything.

"Your grand-father has decided that it is time to make a move on the capital of the Earth Kingdom and I am to be the commanding general."

My heart sank and my mouth spoke for it. "But you just got back."

Dad nodded. "I know." He put his hand on my shoulder and smiled. "But this time will be different."

Sometime my father makes this face and all I can do is raise a skeptical eyebrow. "How so?"

"You are a lieutenant now, my son, and you are more than ready to campaign."

No way. "Dad?"

"Prince Lu Ten, it would be a great honor if you would join the siege as one of my officers."

I bowed before he said my name. "General Iroh, the honor is mine. I will gladly follow you into battle." I could feel his smiling eyes but was also aware of my aunt's refusal to look at me. I peered up in her direction. She was gazing off after her children her eyes misting over. "Ursa?"

She shook herself from her trance and addressed us. "I'm sorry. This is a great day for our family."

Dad beamed. "It is! But you don't seem happy my dear sister."

Ursa sighed, "Believe me, I am. I only pray that this war is all over before anymore of our sons and daughters have to get involved."

My dad nodded and eyed me with the same wistful eyes as Ursa. "Children should never have to pay for the mistakes of their fathers."

It got really quiet. I looked from Dad to Ursa repeatedly. Despite our age differences or similarities I was definitely out of the loop on this one. They were both parents, they had a different understanding then I did on the world. At that moment I had to escape the growing silence. I was finally going to war! This was a thing to celebrate not contemplate like one's place in the universe. So slowly I smirked, I had to lighten the mood. "Well, it's a good thing my father doesn't make any mistakes." We all shared a laugh. That was the end of the sad eyes and unspoken fears. But . . . perhaps we should have actually talked about those fears. Then maybe some life lessons could have been avoided.

"What kind of people would sacrifice children to win a war?"

Lu Ten shook his head. "This is just to smuggle supplies, Agni knows what they would do in an actual battle."

Lao rubbed his chin and met Lu Ten's eyes. "What're you planning on doing?'

The prince sighed. "It's obvious that they are prepared to sacrifice the orphans –"

"Their orphans." Lao corrected.

"It doesn't make a difference; they are innocent lives and I can't force the men to fire on children. They –"

"There is a difference."

"What?"

Lao paused to collect his thoughts. "They are the enemy nation's civilians so they would just be casualties. It doesn't matter that they are children."

I was stunned. "Are you suggesting we fire on the convoy?"

Lao nodded.

"You could actually do it?"

He shrugged. "I can't say I won't have it on my conscience the rest of my life. But they have already chosen their path."

"We are not savages Lao. I don't think that stooping to their level would benefit us. We're trying to help these people."

Lao's eyes were hard, sizing Lu Ten up to some ungodly plateau that his mortal being could not hope to reach. "Do you want me to take care of it so you don't have to get blood on those soft hands of yours?"

Lu Ten balled his fists on the table but soon released them in defeat. "Do what you need to do to stop the convoy with as little casualties as possible." Lao nodded with out a grain of emotion on his face. "I want a full report of your plan in the morning."

Lu Ten stood up gently massaging his splitting migraine. Lao raised an eyebrow. "Where are you going?"

"To find a hot spring. Dismissed."

You shouldn't have regrets in life. But at the ripe old age of twenty-five, I'd already raked in too many to count.

Getting out of camp always took longer than it should have. Chen manned the command post while Lao retired for the night to pour over his stratagem for the morning. Lu Ten had to make his final rounds of the camp to see that the night watch was alert. He reviewed the daily reports, then the explosive inventory, then the rations, then checked the recovery status of his men in the infirmary tents, and the medical supplies – after all was said and done, it was nearing three o'clock in the morning and the prince had little over two hours before he would be needed again. He trudged through the under brush like the undead, searching for a place that may not even exist and wasting his precious sleeping hours. But he needed a bath. Even if he attempted to sleep now he wouldn't be able to with his brain ripping into a million pieces inside his skull.

He walked for a good while before he found a small stream with an out cove of large boulders that created a fair sized pool. Not a hot spring, but he could fix that. Lu Ten took very little time discarding his clothing and submerging himself in the refreshingly cold water. It came up to his navel, a perfect pool to sit and relax in. He didn't even want to heat it, but his aching head advised him otherwise. After a deep inhalation he exhaled a long slow breath raising the water temperature to a perfectly drowsy warmth. His eyes rolled back behind the lids and a light smile grazed his lips. This is what made life worth living.

Lu Ten listened to the sounds of the night; a cat-owl called over head and a number of night birds chirped a melody. The prince found himself staring off half-laden into the night sky with his mind no where in particular. The sound of the water moving over the stones on its way to the ocean was calming, but something struck him about what he heard. He furrowed his eye brows and listened harder. He could hear a disturbance in the flow of the water, like something other than him was in the pool.

Careful not to move his body he looked around. He didn't see anything around. Lu Ten had heard of the dangerous beasts that made their home in Earth Kingdom, but up until now they had only encountered the odd platypus-bear. His mind immediately thought the worst and that some boarcupine was out for a late night drink; or a giant saber-toothed moose-lion was in the water with him. Or it could have been one of those mythical wolf-bats that feed on the blood of humans during the dead of night. But that was just a story to scare children. Lu Ten wasn't afraid. His heart may have been racing faster than a bolt of lighting, but he wasn't afraid. Stupidly he hadn't even thought to look around to pool to make sure it was safe to swim. Now his senses were on heightened alert.

Carefully he stood up and walk to where the sound was coming from. A huge old tree gripped a boulder with it's roots and created a division between his sanctuary and where the water was coming from. Only Agni knew what was on the other side, but he had to find out.

"Dad! DAD!"

"What is it Lu Ten?"

The urgency in my voice must have worried him, because Dad came running out to see what was the matter.

"Look!" I was so proud of myself. I had been playing explorer and discovered an entire swarm of baby dragonflies. The lizards squirmed all over the ground in fear, still to young to use their wings. I reached down to scoop some of them up not really thinking at all.

"Lu Ten don't! They'll bite –" It was already too late. About five of them clamped down on my hand refusing to let go. I was screaming – more from shock than actual pain – but screaming none the less. My dad shook his head and scooped my six-year-old self up, gently plucking each of then buggers of me. Now I was crying from the pain. "I tried to warm you."

"But I wasn't gonna hurt um."

Dad chuckled. "Well I know that, but they didn't." He placed the dragonflies back onto the ground gently and looked over the swelling bug-bites. "You scared them and they had no way to defend themselves in case you tried to eat them."

"Eww gross!" We laughed playfully. All the tears on my cheeks were forgotten.

"If you just leave them alone they won't hurt you."

"But I can still look at them right?"

Dad smiled. "I don't see why not, it's not like they are going to eat you! Just be careful next time."

Tiny flying lizards are one thing, but what ever was on the other side could very well have eaten me . . . and I still had to see what it was. Why don't I listen? This is just one of those things that I never learned.

Lu Ten took a deep breath and braced himself for what he was about to find. He leaned around the boulder. His eyes widened and his breath left him. There before him was a far larger pool with huge rocks along the perimeter, surrounded by the forest beyond. But bathed in the pale moon light, was a single figure. A very female figure. She was not far from where he stood, moving water over her bare shoulders and back with her hands. Lu Ten bottom lip fell agape and he quickly turned around. He expected a scream, but there was none. If his heart had been beating fast before, he should have been dead at that moment. Wild animals he could handle; for the love of all creation he could handle twenty earthbenders armed to the teeth, but not this.

He closed his eyes, not that it mattered with his back to her. "I'm sorry!" His voice rang out echoed by a feminine grasp. But he couldn't stop his mouth. "I didn't mean to look – I'm sorry! I didn't know anyone was here. It's late! I-I-I – I'll leave." But he didn't move; he couldn't. He was horrified. He forced himself to take a deep breath. "I did not mean to disturb you. I just thought that you should know I was here. I really wasn't spying on you." He nodded his head in respect, far too naked to bow. Finally, he found his legs and took his first step back to safety.

Then she started to laugh, not maliciously. It was pleasant and almost reassuring enough to turn back to her. Almost. "Come back; it's okay."

"I shouldn't . . ."

"Don't worry, I'm decent."

"But –"

"I don't think I've ever met a man who announced he was watching –"

"I really wasn't spying on you!"

He turned around to defend his innocence. She had moved to the bank, obviously to retrieve her clothes. She was wrapped in a dark cloak which had been pulled over her shoulders in haste. The dim light masked her features but a kindly spirit exuded from her manner. "Don't worry. I actually believe you."

"Oh. Good."

A long silence ensued. Lu Ten was more than uncomfortable. At least she had clothes on, he still did not. The girl must have read his mind. "Oh!" She turned away hiding a blush that the darkness already concealed. "Maybe you should –"

"Yeah." Lu Ten disappeared behind the rock and was out of the water in a second pulling on his trousers. He reached for his tunic, but caught himself. Despite the panic he was in, the need for self preservation nagged him. If he put on his shirt she would know he was from the Fire Nation and undoubtedly alert the Earth Kingdom troops that they were camped somewhere near by. Lu Ten weighed his options, even debating whether or not he should kill this woman. But that was a moment of insanity and completely out of the question.

"Are you still there?"

The voice made him jump wildly into the air, but he quickly regained composure. "Yes." He chirped out before clearing his throat. "Yes, I'm still here."

He heard her laugher again from above him. Lu Ten looked up; clinging to the great tree trunk was the woman. He could see her much better than before; her eyes sparked against the night sky. "I just wanted to get your name so I can thank you properly."

"For what?" Lu Ten was in a daze and really had no idea if any of this was actually happening or not.

"For being the first gentleman I have met in a long time."

There was a pause, for a brief moment the prince debated within himself whether or not to say his real name. "Lu Ten."

She smiled gently. "Thank you for respecting my modesty Lu Ten."

"Yeah . . ." She was turning to go, but Lu Ten's mouth stopped her. "May I know your name?"

She stopped where she was, Lu Ten could almost see the same struggle within her as he just faced. Without turning back to him she spoke. "Hikari."

Hikari . . . she was gone after that; I wasn't. I watched after her. I actually wanted to go after her, just to be sure that she got to where ever she was going safely. But I didn't . . .