Hi girls/guys! I'm back. This chapter took a while because I went longer than intended without writing in it, but hey, better late than never, right?

Note: Due to my involvement in a community service project from 6/16-6/20, I will not be able to write anything during that time. Also, there are several upcoming chapters in The Burning Earth, my collaborative and main project, that I have been looking forward to writing for a while. I am not sure what to do for chapter V, either. In short, it might be a while before this story gets updated.

I do not own Avatar.

Chapter IV

Contrary to what Markka told the soldiers that were trapped underneath Appa earlier, they were not interrogated when "later" came about. The group figured that they could get more honest answers more easily from Haru than he and his friends would from Fire Nation forces. Haru was a friend of Aang and Katara, which made him more trustworthy. Information from a soldier was more likely to be a trap.

"You left the Western Air Temple with my dad and some of the others, right?" Katara asked.

"Yeah, I was with them."

"Then why are you acting alone now?" Markka questioned.

"Also," Aang added, "Where was Hakoda planning to go?"

"My father asked Hakoda to drop the two of us off at our village so we could help my mother. I knew it must have been extremely difficult for both her husband and only child to be away for so long. Besides, there was no guarantee the Fire Nation wouldn't come back to my village.

"Before that, Hakoda had posed as the captain of the stolen airship and flown around the Fire Nation, freeing a lot of the prisoners from the Invasion. He claimed that he had orders to take them all to a special prison in one of the colonies. More like a death camp, but you get the idea."

"Wait, death camp?" Katara asked concernedly.

"Yeah, he heard that Ozai had commissioned the construction of one at the very south of the Fire Nation. Its construction hasn't been completed just yet, though. We got a glimpse at the place as the construction process was drawing to a close. Nobody's been thrown in there yet."

"And how many prisoners did he pick up in total?" Markka asked.

"Offhand, I'd estimate several hundred. Airships aren't small, you know. And there were a lot of prisoners for them to take since there weren't many casualties on our side of the invasion."

"But after he freed a bunch of prisoners of war, where was he going?" Aang paraphrased his previous question, which Haru had not answered.

"He has plans to liberate Ba Sing Se. The Fire Nation forces that are currently occupying the city won't suspect the theft of one of their airships. It should take them by surprise enough that our likely numerical disadvantage won't matter."

"So after you show us whatever happened at your village, Ba Sing Se should be our next destination," Aang said. "To be perfectly honest, I'm not so sure the ruse will work."

"He's right," Markka agreed, "Hakoda doesn't seem to have any backup. That needs to be us." Katara and Haru nodded in accord.

"But first," Haru replied, "I said I'd show you what happened to my village."

Katara took note of the melancholy in his voice. "You really don't have to if you don't want to."

"But I should. It will explain why I've been acting alone and why I was on the prison rig in the first place." He could not bring himself to just tell them of the tragedy that had befallen him.


In the early afternoon, they arrived where Haru's village…Used to be. Where once a small mining village stood, there was a desolate wasteland. Not a single building that was there almost a year ago, when Katara, Aang, and Sokka first came, was still standing.

"Oh no…" Katara's voice didn't come above a whisper.

"Upon our return here, my father and I heard that an airship fleet was on its way to basically burn the whole Earth Kingdom to the ground during Sozin's Comet. However, it never came, and instead, the next day, A large battalion came to destroy the village. With them were five cavalry mounted on komodo rhinos."

Aang's head popped up in recognition of the reference to the cavalry. They were the Rough Rhinos, a freelance squad that preyed on largely defenseless villages to demoralize the Earth Kingdom. Mercy was a concept with no meaning to them; they came, destroyed everyone and everything in their path, and continued on their way, leaving nothing but ashes, rubble, and dead bodies in their wake.

Haru walked in the direction of his house and beckoned for the other three to follow. "They burned everything to the ground," He continued, "Me and Dad were the only ones who could really defend the village. We were hopelessly outnumbered."

"They just attacked a virtually defenseless village?" Markka asked.

Haru gave him a sideways glance and nodded grimly. "The cowards would not have touched us if we had a local militia to fend them off."

By the bitter tone in Haru's voice, the others deduced that he would prefer for them not to ask any more questions for the time being. They continued in silence until they arrived at the location of Haru's house. Like all the other buildings that once stood, it had been reduced to rubble and ash. However, just beyond the ruins were two tombstones arranged side by side.

"At one point in the fight, I was separated from my parents. When I last saw them, my dad was trying to form an earth barrier separating him and mom from the five cavalry. I was trapped inside a burning building and had to fight my way out. By the time I had gotten past a few dozen foot soldiers and made it back to where I last saw them…" He paused in an attempt to maintain his composure. "…The cavalry were gone…" His voice shook somewhat. "…Mom was dead and Dad was dying."

Katara placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "…Haru…"

"That's why I had gone to the prison rig alone. I wanted to avenge my parents, and I had nobody to help me." He paused.

"Haru, this isn't a good idea," Katara objected, "Killing people won't bring your parents back, and you know it."

"It's not about bringing them back," Haru replied somewhat harshly, "Nobody can bring them back. This is about closure and justice. I need this."

"The monks at my temple used to say-"

"Good for them," Haru interrupted Aang's proverb curtly, "But I'm not a monk. I want – I have to do this. I…I promised my father just before he died that I would do it. Guys, don't try to stop me. Please."

Katara nodded. "Alright. If you really think this is what you need, we won't stop you. But don't let your goal interfere with the big picture. We need to get to Ba Sing Se, and if you're coming with us, that needs to be your main priority."

Haru nodded. "I understand." He started to walk back to the shore, where they had left Appa. "Let's get going. I don't want to be here any longer."

The others followed him, although Aang found himself second-guessing whether or not they could count on Haru. Would he really prioritize the big picture over his thirst for vengeance? Or would he abandon them if he learned the Rough Rhinos were elsewhere? Only time would tell.