A/N: Sorry it's a little late. I was waiting on at least 1 more review, and then I had bad internet. Thank you to everyone who reviewed! Hugs to everyone! Hope you enjoy and let me know what you think, so, again, please review!
Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar
Chapter 11
Suki watched the lightning and fire flowing back and forth between the four combatants on the ground as she left the balloon with Jade and Katara. She still wanted to go back into the falling balloon and tear it apart until she found Sokka.
They had been running back to the engineer door after shutting off and destroying the engines and furnaces when they had come across a group of ten firebenders. They had fought their way through and gone ahead, Aang in the lead, followed by Suki, Jade, and then Sokka. When they had reached the engineer door, Sokka was missing. Suki wanted to run back in as Katara and Appa approached, but Aang had told her to get to safety. He would find Sokka.
She was still angry and wanted to fight when she noticed a large explosion and then an arc of blue lightning headed towards a new target. Her breathing stopped as she saw the lightning actually hit the new target and saw that it was Toph as the lightning lit up her face.
She and Katara screamed out Toph's name as Appa started diving to the ground. All at once the air above the combatants became a cloud of dust. Appa landed next to where they had seen Toph go down, thumping his tail onto the ground and clearing the dust. Katara ran to Toph as Suki and Jade started checking the surrounding area. The other three were gone, as if they were never there to begin with.
Suki growled as she found one of Zuko's swords from where she had seen the lightning come from that had struck Toph, but oddly it had blood along the edge of it. Next to that was a rock the size of her fist, also with some blood on it. With the skill of a tracker and her experience as a Kyoshi warrior she looked at the ground around the fallen sword and rock. She found fire nation style boot imprints and recognized them as Azula's. Her anger intensified as she remembered the long days of imprisonment and torture by the princess.
But why was Zuko's sword next to the princess and why did it have blood on the edge? And why was there a rock with blood on it too? She looked further and found the imprint of a body with a bloodstain in it and a set of unfamiliar prints and then nothing. Suki moved to where she had last seen the other combatant that had been throwing fire and found the imprint of a body and Zuko's tracks closer than she had expected. Next to the imprint of the body she found more tracks, one smaller, and one larger and another fist sized rock with some blood on it.
Suki thought she recognized the smaller of the prints as belonging to one of the princess's friends, most likely the tall, dull one, but the other set of tracks was completely unfamiliar. She saw Jade coming towards her and knew the assassin had seen everything she had. Suki showed her Zuko's sword with the bloody edge along with the bloody rock. Jade took the sword and brought the edge to her nose and sniffed it as Suki looked at her oddly.
"The blood belongs to a woman," Jade stated, handing the sword back to Suki. "Where did you find it?"
"Over there," Suki said, pointing to where she had seen Azula's tracks. "How do you know that?"
"The hormones are different," Jade replied.
Suki shrugged as she tried to put everything together as they started heading to where Katara was treating Toph. Zuko, Mai and Azula had disappeared, and their disappearance had been helped by earthbenders by the look of it. Only earthbenders could create that kind of dust shield and that kind of a disappearance without leaving exit tracks. But from the evidence, Zuko had hit Azula with one of his swords and then had possibly been knocked out himself. And then someone had knocked out the princess, or made it look that way.
They quietly approached Katara and Toph and waited. Suki noticed with relief that Toph was breathing and it looked like she was going to be ok, but the twin to the sword Suki held in her hand was next to Toph with the earthbenders' blood on its' tip. The hilt was also blackened and it looked like it had been in a fire. Katara sighed as she moved the remainder of her water back into her pouch sluggishly and looked back at Suki and Jade.
"Is she going to be ok?" Suki asked. "What happened?"
"Yes, and I don't know," Katara replied. "Zuko's sword was in her shoulder, but there wasn't any major damage, just some blood loss, but the weird thing is her right arm. It looks like it was burned without the burn all the way to her shoulder and then it just stops. She'll be out for a while; can you two help me get her onto Appa?"
"Yeah," Suki answered as Jade nodded.
Suki and Jade picked Toph up gently as Katara went to Appa, guiding him closer to Toph. They carried the small earthbender onto the saddle by first stepping onto the bison's tail. Suki felt bad when Toph moaned slightly as they set her down before she jumped off. She retrieved Zuko's swords before climbing back onto Appa. The bison lifted off and headed back to Gaoling with all his passengers depressed.
"What happened?" Katara asked looking from Jade to Suki while Appa started flying back.
Suki glanced at Jade and then back at Katara. Katara looked really worried, and not just about Toph.
"We need to know what happened," Katara told Suki. "Toph's dad could kick us out, but Toph will still need many more healing treatments."
"I found Zuko's other sword next to Azula's tracks," Suki said, showing Katara the sword. "And Jade said it has Azula's blood on it. There was also a rock with some blood on it next to an imprint of a body. I also found Zuko's tracks next to that girls', Mai, and an unfamiliar set and then the imprint of a body not ten feet from Toph."
"It looks like the prince was farther away," Jade said, "and then was running towards the earthbender when he was knocked out. The impression was too large and heavy for the girl. It also looks like he threw the swords at the same time, though I don't know why he threw one at his girlfriend. What about that burn? We all saw Toph get hit by the lightning. Could it be from that?"
Katara sighed, and nodded. Suki then noticed Lao come out of the house as they descended into the Bei Fong estate.
"We need help, Toph's hurt!" Katara yelled to Lao as they landed.
Lao's face went pale as he yelled for his servants. They came at a run and helped carry Toph off of Appa's back. Katara spoke with Lao before he and his servants took Toph inside. Katara climbed back onto Appa as Suki turned inward. Suki didn't know much about lightning, but knew that if it hit you, you'd probably die. She had seen the lightning hit Toph and the burn on her arm proved it, but why did it stop? And why did it stop where the sword had been?
"Does Toph's father know she was hit by the sword?" Suki asked Katara quietly.
"No," Katara said, shaking her head. "All he knows is she was injured and will be unconscious for a while. It would probably be best if we don't tell her father. I'll treat her and just let him know we found her injured and about the burn, but nothing else. Ok?"
"Sounds good," Jade replied. "But where did the others go?"
"They had earthbenders helping them," Suki said. "I don't know how or why, but they did."
Katara bowed her head. "Dai Li agents, from Ba Sing Sae. They helped Azula take down the city and Sokka and Aang said she kept a few with her."
Suki and Jade nodded. But Suki still didn't understand why Zuko was missing too. Azula had been possibly knocked out and then saved by her Dai Li agents, and maybe the girl, Mai, too. But Zuko? Was he their prisoner or accomplice? He had attacked his own sister, drawing blood and she had seen him fighting the princess with fire and lightning from the sky, but why was he missing?
She wanted to believe that the others were right, that Zuko had changed and was now on their side. That would make him a prisoner, but if he was lying the entire time, and her mistrust of the firebender was correct, he would be an accomplice of the princess. But then why would he leave without capturing the Avatar and why did he wound his sister? And was the princess unconscious, and if so, by whom?
Suki shook her head, it was just too confusing and she was going in circles. She saw Lao come back out to them, looking sad and confused. He approached them and looked up at Katara.
"Will she be ok?" he asked the waterbender.
"Yes," Katara answered, "but I need to do more treatments later. My bending isn't at full strength yet, and I used almost everything to heal her up to now."
Lao nodded. "What happened?"
"We don't know for sure," Katara told him. "But her right arm is burned oddly, though none of it shows on the outside. I'd like to stay with her and heal her as she recovers."
Lao nodded and gestured for Katara to follow him. He turned to Suki and Jade before showing Katara inside.
"You ladies should get some rest and something to eat. Shen will show you to a guest room and can provide food for you."
Jade nodded, but Suki was determined to get back to searching for Sokka. She just needed to wait until Jade left. Jade seemed to know what she was thinking as she crossed her arms and sat in the saddle, studying Suki.
"You can't find him now. If the Avatar hasn't found him, he's long gone," the former assassin stated.
"That's not true!" Suki cried, turning to Jade and fighting back tears. "I can and will find him!"
"You need rest. We've been awake all day and night. Let the Avatar try and then we'll search. They'll be impossible to find on the road, especially with earthbenders helping them. But if the Avatar hasn't found him, I know of a few places we can look in a day or two."
"No, I won't wait!" Suki yelled at the former assassin and jumped at her, trying to take her out.
Jade saw and grabbed Suki's reaching hand, turning and pinning Suki to the saddle floor, poking Suki several places in her back as she did so. Suki recognized the pressure points as she felt her body go limp.
"You've learned a lot," Jade remarked, admiration in her tone, "but I've had years more experience."
Suki felt herself crumple inside as Jade kept her pinned and started crying. After those long months of torture and imprisonment, she had finally escaped with her fellow warriors and Iroh. She and Sokka had been reunited, if only for a little while. They had separated only to be reunited again in Gaoling. He told her he was so sorry that he hadn't tried to rescue her, but he hadn't known she was imprisoned until the day of black sun.
He had promised her that he would protect her from then on and always be with her, but now he was the one captured. She needed to rescue him, to make sure he didn't go through what she had, but Jade wouldn't let her. A small part of her knew that Jade was just doing the right thing, but she didn't care. Suki cried as Jade gently let her go, poking her again so that she could move sluggishly and guided her into a room and to a bed, sitting against the door as Suki cried herself to sleep.
--
Mai paid off the Dai Li agent and watched as he bowed and left. She knew he would remain silent as to her whereabouts. He could go into hiding himself for a long time before she needed him again with the price she had paid. She looked over her shoulder to the bed in the small, dark room. Zuko was laying there, still unconscious, with his left hand and foot chained to the bed he was on. The bed was anchored on his right side to the stone wall of the small building.
She had hated to do it to him, but he needed to see sense. Once the spell the little earthbender had on him had worn off, Mai was sure he would see that she still loved him and he would take her back. Mai went to the table next to the bed and grabbed a cloth, dipping it into the bowl of water next to it. She gently cleaned the spot where her rock had hit Zuko's head and then moved on to clean the small burns that went with every Agni Kai.
She had to cut off his shirt to reach some of the burns and threw the ugly earth kingdom clothing away before placing salve on the burns. Mai noticed a scar on his side and remembered that her parents had said that he had been grievously injured by the Green Dragon. She thanked the waterbender silently for saving Zuko's life, but that didn't mean she would show mercy to the little earthbender.
Mai moved the salve, cloth and bowl of water away from Zuko and to her own room, the only other room in the small building. When she returned to Zuko, she noticed him starting to waken.
"Hello Zuko," she said, smiling gently at him as he opened his gorgeous golden eyes.
"Mai," he said, half awake as he blinked his eyes a few times. He abruptly sat up and stared at the chain holding his arm down, only allowing him the movement of six inches from his wrist. "What's going on?! Where's Toph?!"
Mai frowned at the mention of the earthbender. Why did he have to bring her up? Her frown only made him fight the chain harder, though Mai could tell he was still a little unsteady.
"Calm down, Zuko," Mai said, trying to reassure him with her voice. "She's not here. I think I saw the waterbender go to her as we left."
She saw Zuko take a deep breath and look more relieved, though his golden eyes were darting everywhere, taking everything in. She was glad she had found this building and boarded up the windows a few days before.
"I brought you here, to make sure you were ok," Mai told him, sitting on the bed next to his legs.
Zuko looked at the chain on his wrist and held his arm up so that the chain pulled taunt. "And this?" he asked. "Why this if you only wanted to make sure I was 'ok'?"
Mai frowned, but quickly changed it into a sweet smile. "Only to make sure you wouldn't hurt yourself. I wanted to make sure you would listen."
Zuko put his arm down and glared at Mai. "No, I won't 'listen'. I want you to release me. Now!"
"No Zuko, you need to listen." Mai looked at Zuko, pleading with her eyes and letting some emotion appear on her face. "I love you, I always have. I know we're meant to be together. You told me you still cared for me, and I know you were holding back on me when we were fighting. Please just tell me that it was an act with the little earthbender, an act, to get close to the Avatar."
Zuko glared at her, his golden eyes turning hard as steel.
"No," he said finally after Mai had pleaded her case. "I don't care for you in that way, I told you that before. And Toph wasn't an 'act'! Let me go! NOW!"
Zuko kicked out his left leg and kicked Mai off the bed, only to stare at the chain connected to his ankle. Mai got up brushing herself off as she saw him concentrate, heating his wrist and ankle. They started smoking, but the metal stayed cool, and Zuko cried out as his wrist started burning.
"You should know better that to try and burn through thorium," she told him, admonishingly. "Now, let me treat your burns."
Mai went back into her room and picked up the salve, though she heard Zuko continue to struggle with the chains. She came back and when he saw her, he stopped struggling, but continued to glare at her. Mai treated his new burn with care, moving the manacle to place a bandage around his wrist to make sure it wouldn't rub.
"With time, you'll learn that I'm right," Mai told Zuko, getting up as he continued to glare at her. "You've had a long night. Get some rest."
Mai turned and left, closing the door to Zuko's room. She leaned back against the door as she surveyed her own room and the small kitchen in it. She knew she loved Zuko and she knew he cared for her. He had told her he cared for her, what made the little earthbender any different? She would make Zuko see the truth, and they would be together. She just had to make him see, no matter how long it took.
