Chapter 3: Honor and Prestige
Jiazin rapped lightly on the door of her father's office.
"Who's there?" came the terse reply from the other side. "I'm busy."
Jiazin sighed. Did her father ever do anything but work? She knew full well that what he did benefited the Empire and brought honor to their family, but on a personal level it could get incredibly annoying. "It's me," she said. "I need to talk to you."
The door opened and Father was standing there, looking like he often did by this point in the evening- disheveled and exhausted. He always started out each morning the very picture of a dignified Imperial nobleman, but by the time the sun set work had caught up with grooming and left it in the dust. "Jiazin," he said with a tired smile. "Come in. Have you been enjoying your birthday?"
"I have," she said. "But that's not what I'm here to talk about. Earlier this evening, High Minister Qing Xi sent a servant to say he wanted to talk to me."
Father put his hands on Jiazin's shoulders excitedly and looked her straight in the eyes. "What did the High Minister say?" he asked.
"Well, he talked about how he was impressed by my Agni Li this morning, and talked a little bit about the Empress- nothing big," she said when Father's eyes went wide, "just about what I already knew about her. And then- then he said that he needed my help to save the Empire and that he wants me to come to the Capital with him. He wouldn't say why."
"Jiazin, this is incredible!" Father began to pace excitedly around the room. "To be given a task of such importance from the High Minister himself!" He looked at his daughter straight on, expression crafty. "Are you absolutely certain he didn't say what he wanted you to do, or why he thinks the Fire Empire needs 'saving'?"
Jiazin shook her head. "I asked him, but he just smiled and said I'd find out when we got to the Capital. It was kind of annoying, actually, but I didn't think it would be smart to tell him that."
Father chuckled. "Of course it wouldn't. Qing Xi deals in secrets, Jiazin- knowing things that no one else does helped get him his position in the first place, and I think he rather enjoys being mysterious. But this is so exciting for you- when do you leave?"
"Tomorrow morning. I think that I'm actually the whole reason he came out here, believe it or not. Now that he has me, he can head home." Jiazin shook her head. "I don't even know what I did to interest him in the first place."
"As I said, the High Minister works in mysterious ways. But I do know this, Jiazin- those who serve him well go far. This will bring honor and prestige to you and our entire family! I must tell your mother!" With that, the Governor of Long Du Shi hurried from his office, leaving Jiazin there alone.
"Honor and prestige," she muttered. "That's what you really care about, isn't it?" It was a somewhat unfair criticism, and Jiazin knew it- the favor of the Empress and her ministers was essential to any noble family, and Father did love his wife and daughter, even though it often seemed he had little time for them. But she had to admit that the fact that he'd thought of the political benefits of the High Minister's request hurt just a little.
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The next morning, Jiazin walked with her parents, High Minister Qing Xi, and an escort of guards down the streets of Long Du Shi to where the train waited to bear them to the docks. Crowds of citizens had turned out- it wasn't every day one saw the governor and his whole family out for a walk, much less with the Empress's right hand in tow. This close to the palace most of the people were quite well off and of Fire Nation descent, and the Governor was popular and respected. In the outer rings, where there were more people of Earth Kingdom stock who remembered that they had once had a proud and independent nation of their own, things were different.
The train was a cylinder of black iron decorated with images of stylized flames. Once, trains like this had been run by the power of a handful of earthbenders, but that had been ended when the Fire Nation leveled the original Ba Sing Se. The trains of Long Du Shi were purely technological, powered by burning coal, and a plume of black smoke rose steadily from a stack as this particular transport waited for its passengers.
The governor's family climbed into their car, accompanied by their guards, while Qing Xi's litter was loaded by his own guards into the car behind them. "Why doesn't he ever get out of that thing?" Jiazin asked when she was certain he couldn't here. "Can he walk?"
"It's just theatrics," Mother said. "It makes him look like royalty to be carried around like that all the time- and it makes him more mysterious when people can't see his face when he's talking to them."
"More mystery," Jiazin muttered. "Dad told me last night that the High Minister loves that kind of thing."
"And he isn't the only one. I grew up in the Capital, Jiazin- the Empress loves intrigues, and that entire city is thick with them." Mother looked at her carefully. "Watch yourself while your there. It can be a dangerous place."
"Mother, I've been to the Capital before."
"Never by yourself." Mother smiled reassuringly. "Don't worry too much, though. You're smart, a good bender, and you know what to do with that sword. You'll do fine."
The rest of the trip passed in silence, Mother looking at her lap, Jiazin at the city, and Father at some report or other from one of his underlings. Finally they passed through the outer wall- not nearly so high as the famed walls of Ba Sing Se had supposedly been, but in Jiazin's opinion even more impressive, as they were coated with iron and topped with a row of black spikes- and crossed the plain to the docks.
The train came to a stop and belched a satisfied cloud of black smoke, and the passengers stepped out of it. Jiazin saw the High Minister's ship- larger and more magnificent than any vessel she had ever seen- waiting for them in the harbor. The young noblewoman turned back to her parents.
"I'm going to miss you both," she said. Her mother rushed forward and wrapped her in a tight embrace.
"Good luck, Jiazin," she said emotionally, then pulled away.
"Remember to write," Father said with a smile. "I want to know everything that happens to you."
"Everything?" came a cultured voice from behind him, and all three turned to see the High Minister's litter being borne towards them. "Now, now, Governor- I can't let your daughter get away with sending you state secrets."
"Of course not," Father said, bowing. "I didn't mean to imply that she should." He turned back to his daughter. "Good-bye, Jiazin. I know you'll serve splendidly however High Minister Qing Xi requires. I will miss you." His tone was even, but Jiazin could see in his eyes that he meant it.
"I'll miss you, too," she said, surprising even herself by wrapping him in a tight hug. Father patted her on the back awkwardly, and then she released him and went to stand by Qing Xi.
"Well, then," the High Minister said. "With that taken care of, we must be off. I am on a tight schedule, after all."
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Tong grunted and planted his feet, the four other earthbenders in line beside him doing the same. Behind them, the taskmaster raised his fire whip above his head and cracked it- not to cause pain (at least not this time) but to signal the slaves to begin. As one they brought their hands together and pulled them back, and in front of them a stone wall shot up from the ground.
The taskmaster (he'd never told the slaves his name) stepped forward to inspect their handiwork. "Crude," he said, "but why should I expect otherwise? It does appear serviceable." Tong sighed in relief- coming from the cruel firebender, that was almost praise. He seemed to be in a relatively good mood, and probably wouldn't burn any of them today if they kept the quality up.
Once, the elders said, the earthbenders had their own nation- a great Earth Kingdom that spanned the continent. Tong wasn't sure he believed that- all he had ever known was crushing poverty and the tyranny of the Fire Empire, and then enslavement when his earthbending manifested itself. Under the old Phoenix King known Earthbenders had been killed, but his daughter was of a cannier sort. The Empress was loathe to waste a valuable resource, provided there was no chance it could rebel.
There was no chance of rebellion from most of the earthbender slaves- their will to fight was crushed out of them at an early age. They learned only the most basic techniques needed for construction in a closely supervised environment, meaning that even if a slave did chose to fight back, it was no challenge for a firebending overseer to put them back in their place. It was perfectly safe for the Empire to use them on expansive construction projects, such as Long Du Shi. Tong and the work gang to which he belonged were working on expanding the docks. The Fire Empire had a vast navy, and apparently High Admiral Yuan had been complaining to the governor. Tong knew this because the taskmaster's superiors had been complaining to him- a fact he made his slaves very painfully aware of.
Tong paused to wipe the sweat from his brow while the taskmaster inspected the newly-raised seawall. Looking up, the young slave saw some kind of gathering at a dock near them- a large group of people, all well dressed, some preparing to board a ship. He elbowed the man next to him. "What's going on over there?" he asked quietly.
"Don't ask me," the other slave said. "Do I look like the Governor's personal secretary? I just build stuff, same as you."
"It is the governor," one of the other slaves hissed, his eyes burning. "I worked in the inner city for years- that's him. He's the reason we're living like this!"
Tong knew what was coming a moment before it happened. The will to fight had been crushed out of the slaves, but sometimes one just… snapped, and the results were never pretty for anyone involved. The wild-eyed slave stood there for a moment, then he roared at the top of his lungs and grabbed the earth with both hands. With a grunt he pulled out a lumpy block of stone and hurled it at the Governor.
It never hit. A slender figure near the Governor exploded into motion, drawing a sword that was instantly limed with fire. The blade struck the boulder dead on and it exploded into red-hot fragments. Looking through the debris, Tong could make out the figure- a girl about his own age, her features possessed of the cold beauty of the aristocracy, her golden eyes burning with fierce determination.
The slave who'd attacked stood there open mouthed, but not for long. The taskmaster hurried over with his whip of fire at the ready and began striking the man repeatedly and savagely. Tong stared in horror, as he always did at beatings where he wasn't on the receiving end, and stepped forward to try and help in some way. A hand touched his arm, and he turned to see the fourth member of the work gang, a sad-eyed older man.
"Don't," he said. "You can't do any good there. You'll just get beat too."
"So should I do nothing at all for him?" Tong asked. "I wasn't going to step in- just offer to help him up when it's over, is all."
"No. But there's a right moment for that sort of thing, and this isn't it."
"'This sort of thing'? What do you mean, old man?" Tong demanded, but the other slave didn't respond.
"Who was she?" the second slave asked absently. "That girl who saved the Governor?"
"Jiazin," the old man said. "His daughter. Must have been- I've heard she's real good with firebending and that sword."
"Jiazin." Tong repeated the name, enjoying the sound of it. It struck him as ironic that such a name would come from the ruthless nobility of the Fire Empire. He turned to look back at the Governor's daughter, but she was gone. Her parents were boarding the train in a hurry, while the last in a line of firebender guards was marching onto the ship.
Finally the screams and sounds of fire from behind them stopped, and the slaves turned to see the taskmaster stepping away from the attacker. "Let this be a lesson to you lot," he said, kicking the man and eliciting a pained moan. "You're lucky I'm in a good mood today. Any of you misbehave like that again, and you'll get it worse."
Tong and the other young earthbender hurried forward to help the beaten man to his feet, but a line of fire shot between them and the body.
"Oh, no," the taskmaster said. "You're friend's not gonna get any help from you. Oh, he's not going to die- couldn't afford to lose the muscle- but there's sill work to be done here. Get to it!" He cracked his fire whip for emphasis.
"Yes, taskmaster," Tong said quietly, but there was an air of defiance- not much, but certainly something- in his voice.