Chapter 9: The Chase Begins

"Azula, slow down!" Ty Lee panted. The princess was stalking down the streets of Ba Sing Se as fast as she could without losing her dignity, cloak blowing in the wind. The acrobat found herself having to rush to keep up. "What's the hurry?"

"I know where my mother probably is now," Azula replied. "I want to get back to the ship as fast as possible so that I can continue with my search." And put as much distance between me and uncle as possible, she added silently. You're wrong, old man. I know who I am and what I want. You'll see!

Absorbed in her thoughts, Azula kept to her course without deviating, pushing commoners out of her way as they neared the crowded station. Ty Lee followed a step behind, apologizing profusely and occasionally shooting a worried glance at her friend. Finally the two girls arrived at the tracks, and after a brief wait were able to board a train bound for the docks.

They sat down on two seats away from the rest of the passengers, and Ty Lee turned to Azula. "Are you sure you're okay?" she asked. "You don't look so good. It's probably because you didn't have any of your Uncle's tea- I've heard that he says it's the remedy for everything."

"He does," Azula replied. "I don't agree. Tea is just a drink like any other- there's nothing special about it. And I'm fine, so stop worrying about me."

"If you say so," Ty Lee said, but she looked unconvinced. With a sudden jolt the train began to move, and Azula turned to look out the window at the city she had once conquered- and stopped, staring. A figure stood in the shadows behind one of the stations pillars, and at first the princess thought it was her shadowy nemesis- then another look proved her wrong. This figure's robes were dark green, not some strange black-violet, and its features were concealed not by a hood but by a wide brimmed hat.

Memory flashed through her mind- seeing figures like that the first time she arrived in Ba Sing Se disguised as the leader of the Kyoshi Warriors, learning of their significance from the Earth King himself… meeting Long Feng in his cell and together hatching a scheme that brought the Earth Kingdom to its knees… subverting his followers to her cause, proving once and for all that the will and charisma of true royalty trumped the patient plotting of a commoner any day… two of the robed figures fighting by her side on the Day of Black Sun, when firebending lost its power…

And in the end sending them away, for they had betrayed their old master and would most certainly do the same to her, given time…

"Azula!" she heard Ty Lee's voice as if from a great distance and shook herself out of the past. "What's wrong?" the acrobat asked, looking concerned. "You kind of went away there, except you didn't really go anywhere, and it was a little scary."

The princess seized Ty Lee by the arm. "The Dai Li," she said. "After the War ended, what happened to the Dai Li?"

"Well, I don't know a whole lot," the acrobat admitted, "but what I heard was that the Earth King pretty much gutted them. He couldn't just get rid of them- something about how they'd made themselves too important to running the city- but he was able to take away most of their power. They're just a bunch of administrators now- what's left of them." She winced. "You're hurting me."

Azula didn't apologize, but she did release Ty Lee's arm. "I saw one of them," she said softly. "He was standing on the platform watching this train."

"He was probably just waiting for another train to come and take him home," Ty Lee said. "They're not allowed to spy on people or kidnap them anymore. It's no big deal that you saw one."

Somehow Azula doubted that any of the Dai Li agents she had known would have concerned themselves with rules that they thought inconvenienced their true mission- maintaining order in Ba Sing Se at all costs. The Earth King was an idealistic fool if he thought otherwise- but then, Azula had met the man, and in her opinion "idealistic fool" summed him up quite well. Still, there was probably a perfectly rational explanation for the agent's presence- probably he just wanted to make sure that the crazy Fire Nation princess left his city as soon as possible. Yes, that had to be it.

But there was still one nagging worry. "And Long Feng?" Azula asked. "What happened to him?"

Ty Lee shrugged. "Nobody knows. They say he just disappeared."

Which meant that one of the most potentially dangerous people in the world was still on the loose. Well, Azula had never lacked for enemies. If Long Feng was smart, he'd stay far away, but if he decided he wanted to mess with her, he would soon learn exactly what a bending prodigy of the Fire Royal House was capable of.

/

The sun was beginning to sink towards the horizon as Azula and Ty Lee arrived back at the ship. In the evening light the harbor water seemed to be painted gold, and the acrobat stopped by the railing to stare at it, but Azula approached Captain Shin where he stood in the middle of the deck, staring off into the distance.

"Did you find out anything of value, princess?" he asked.

"I did," she replied. "Have one of your men fetch a map." Shin nodded and motioned one of the sailors over, relaying Azula's order. He hurried below deck and returned moments later with a rolled-up sheet, which was revealed to be a world map as he held it open and handed it to the captain.

"We're here," Azula said, pointing to the shoreline near Ba Sing Se. "According to my uncle, the place where we are most likely to find Mother is here." Her finger slid along the map, coming to rest on the eastern peninsula her uncle had shown her.

"Are you certain that is what General Iroh said?" Shin asked, looking surprised. "That's a bad region, princess- cut off from the Earth King here, or Bumi in Omashu, supposed to be ruled by outlaws and lowlifes."

"I'm sure it is," Azula said. "Uncle Iroh said much the same thing. But that is where my mother is, so that is where we're going. As soon as all of the crew have returned, we're leaving."

Shin help up his hand. "You may be a princess," he said, "but you're in disgrace, and this is my ship. That means that I can pull rank if I want, and I'd rather not. We're not going to be able to fight our way through the sort of scum you'll get out there with just yourself, your friend, the crew, and a half-dozen firebenders. Fire Lord Zuko wants your mother back every bit as much as you do- we'll return to the capital and pick up more ships and more men, maybe even your brother himself. Then we can handle whatever is out there."

"No," Azula snarled, twin balls of blue flame forming around her clenched fists. "'This is my quest, not Zuko's! Mine! I conquered the Earth Kingdom by myself, because I was able to outsmart and outmaneuver everyone else. I can do the same to a handful of bandit lords. We are going there, not the Capital."

She could see the fear in Shin's eyes, but he stood his ground anyway. "And if I refuse?"

Azula smiled tightly. "Then maybe it is time for a new captain here. What say you- Agni Kai?"

"If you insist." Shin dropped into a fighting stance. "Shall we do it now, or wait for the crew?"

"Stop it!" a voice shouted from nearby, and Ty Lee threw herself between the two firebenders.

"Get out of the way, girl," Shin said.

"Yes, Ty Lee, move. This doesn't concern you."

"Yes, it does." Ty Lee faced Azula, tears brimming in her eyes. "This is just like at the Boiling Rock all over again- you can't just go around attacking everybody who disagrees with you, or pretty soon there won't be anybody left, and you'll just get worse, not better! I won't let you do that to yourself. If you try this, Azula, I will stop you. You know I can."

The acrobat turned to face Shin. "And you need to understand that she needs to do this by herself. She thinks it's the only chance she's got left. You can't just bring Zuko into it and expect her to let that happen without a fight."

Azula lowered her hands and extinguished her flame, Captain Shin doing the same. "Very well," she said softly. "This is your ship. Do whatever you want with it."

"And it is your quest," the captain said. "We will go to seek your mother. I follow your lead." His eyes sparked for a moment. "Within reason." Then he turned and marched towards the bridge, map in hand.

Azula and Ty Lee stood on the deck without speaking for several minutes. "There aren't a lot of people who'd throw themselves between two angry firebenders like that," the princess finally said.

"I don't like seeing people get hurt," Ty Lee said quietly. "I know you don't care about that, but I do. That's why when we had combat training at the Academy I learned chi blocking instead of knives or swords or firebending- so I can fight without having to kill anyone."

She looked at Azula straight on. "And I didn't like seeing you the way you were there. You could be scary before, when you wanted to be, but that was like you weren't in control at all."

"I know," Azula whispered. "That's why I have to do this. I don't want to end up again like I was on the day the Comet came." She looked out over the waters. "People have called me a monster all my life," she said, "but one thing that I will not be is an animal."

/

The small Fire Nation ship left port and steamed away into the night. In a hidden cove nearby, another ship waited, also Fire Nation make- ironic that it was that nation that would develop the most advanced shipbuilding skills- but it had been many years since it had served the Fire Lord's purposes. On its deck a man lowered a spyglass and smiled.

"She is leaving," Long Feng said. "Now we must follow."

The former Grand Secretariat turned to face the line of robed men who stood on the ship's deck. The Earth King had done a remarkable job of culling his top lieutenants from the secretive organization, but there were still plenty in the lower ranks who remembered Long Feng's rule and sought a return to a time when they were more than pen-pushing administrators. Ten of these were easy to collect and bring out to the ship that the Dai Li had secreted here for whenever the need might arise.

"Gentlemen," Long Feng began, "no doubt you remember the Princess Azula and how she stole you out from under me and brought our city to ruin. Now we are setting out in pursuit of her party, and I need to make absolutely certain that none of you have- conflicting loyalties."

He already knew these men were trustworthy- he wouldn't have brought them along otherwise- but making them say it out loud would cement their loyalty.

"The princess used us and abandoned us," a man near the middle of the line said. "We swore undying loyalty to her and she spurned it. It is a stain upon the honor of the Dai Li that we ever served her. A stain which we shall remove."

"Excellent. To your stations." The Dai Li saluted their master and turned to various tasks about the ship, and soon it was sailing into the waters of the bay, heading in pursuit of Azula's vessel. Long Feng stood at the prow, contemplating his strategy for defeating the princess, when he felt a whisper of wind by his side. "Wei Ming," he said without turning. "It is a pleasure to have you aboard."

"Usually when I come to someone like that they are startled or afraid," she said. "You hardly reacted at all." It was hard to tell whether her tone was admiring or resentful.

"I learned long ago that showing your emotions to all is a road to defeat," Long Feng replied. "Let yourself be ruled by feelings and you will fail in the end. Logic and planning will always win the day."

"They failed you the day Azula stole your city."

Long Feng shook his head. "Only because my opponent outmaneuvered me – but that won't happen again. She made a skillful move, but in the end the game shall be mine. It is only a matter of time." He looked at her directly for the first time. "You did not tell me that Ty Lee is with the princess."

Wei Ming shrugged. "It seemed unimportant. What difference can one girl who cannot even bend make to the mighty Dai Li?" Though she tried to hide it, it was impossible for Long Feng to miss the scorn that dripped from her tone on the last three words.

"She is a skilled warrior who can disrupt the bending of others, even if she has none of her own. Still, she is nothing I will not be able to handle. I was merely observing that your information was incomplete."

Quick as thought Wei Ming reached into her cloak and drew a pair of gleaming daggers; before he could take a breath they rested against Long Feng's throat. "If she proves a problem for you," she hissed, "I will deal with her."

Long Feng didn't blink. "I'm sure you will," he said. "Now leave me. I have much to plan."

Wei Ming saluted with one of her daggers. "As you wish." She sheathed her daggers and wrapped her cloak around herself, seeming to melt into the evening darkness. When Long Feng was certain she was gone, he allowed himself a wolfish smile.

"And when you have served my purposes, girl," he murmured, "I will deal with you."

/

This is another chapter that I think is fairly self-explanatory. When I first wrote the fic, I'd worried that the Dai Li surviving at all was a bit of a stretch after they'd helped overthrow the Earth King, but I ended up feeling vindicated when they were shown to survive even to Korra's time. As an OC villain in one of my other fics observed, the Dai Li exist to serve the ruler of Ba Sing Se, and a new ruler means finding a new way to serve. Of course, that way might not be always what said ruler thinks it is, as the fact that Long Feng was able to put so many loyalists together attests.

Azula nearly attacking Shin over a relatively minor disagreement is a testament to the fact that she's far from completely healed, and could potentially come unraveled again at any time – a fact she's painfully aware of. Fortunately, Ty Lee fully remembers standing up to Azula at the Boiling Rock, and that gave her the confidence to do it again. The Fire Princess is still Ty Lee's friend, but her days of being Azula's doormat are over. In this case, by giving Azula reason to calm down and think things through, that worked out in her favor.

Next time, the quest is on…

-MasterGhandalf