THE MORNING SUNLIGHT pooled across the bedroom floor, spidering all the way up the walls until a sliver of light dared to kiss her eyes. After a moment the Fire Lady stirred and woke groggily from her restless slumber filled with troubling dreams, the more troubling because she could not remember them.
Her dreams had always been open to her, as clear as printed words on parchment, yet these dreams had been murky and fearful. She'd had too many of these dreams as of late and they left her wanting to run away—to escape and never return. It was that marked uneasiness that caused her to send word to Ty Lee not some two days ago. Her dreams, though hazy, hinted at trouble and Mai couldn't think of a greater trouble than the Fifth Column and the threat they posed to her fragile nation.
Sitting up in bed, she raised her arms above her head and stretched languidly from side to side. She glanced around her richly-decorated room, thick with gilt from the wide cornices to the tall mirrors on the wall to the high-vaulted ceiling almost cathedral-like in appearance. The fireplace situated at the back was enormous and tall enough for her to walk into. The floors were a polished marble and set in the middle was a huge golden insignia of the Fire Nation, giving the room a heavy official feeling.
Her favourite piece of furniture was the canopied bed. Unlike Zuko, Mai was not a morning person, so the bed was situated just far enough away from the balcony that she could still feel the breeze but would not be blinded by direct sunlight in the morning. The bed's wooden frames and panels were lacquered with red enamel and decorated in carved dragons studded with ruby eyes. This was her fortress; from here she could hide within its red lace curtains.
The entire room, like the rest of the palace, was gorgeous; however, Mai didn't feel any pride in her surroundings. She had grown up living in splendid manors. She would as soon have felt pride in walking across the room without falling down. She also didn't feel any pride in who she was as the Fire Lady. It was no title to boast about. She held no real power. Besides, to be royalty in a nation ripe with civil strife was no grand accomplishment. Never in her wildest dreams had she ever envisioned such a disappointing fairy tale existence.
Indeed, Mai found herself longing for simpler things, simpler times. She was an independent woman capable of great things and who wished to carry on her own adventures. She'd had that once, but now she was a lordless lady sitting on a throne she never wanted, with an absent husband far too wrapped up in his own honour to have ever considered bringing her with him. She had more of a connection with Zuko's double, Shin, than she had with the man she married only two short years ago. And those two years had flown by quickly—too quickly. They had barely been married before he took off, stealing into the night to become a dark hero like days long gone.
She exhaled a long sigh of boredom and threw off the sheets, gracefully padding naked across the floor to her wardrobe. She paused in front of one of the gilded mirrors and briefly studied her features. She had never been a curvaceous woman, gifted with supple breasts and full hips, but she was long, lean and powerful.
Taking in a deep breath, she turned and frowned. Something was missing: her blades. It had been so long but there used to be a time when she wasn't seen without her short blades and shurikens strapped to her thighs and forearms.
Spinning around, she headed back to her bed and knelt down to remove a secret panel. Inside were several holsters and five dozen short blades, give or take. Strapping the holsters to both thighs and inner forearms, she began to swiftly slip the blades in place. She walked back over to the mirror, feeling the cool metal rest against her warm skin, and studied herself once more. A small, rare smile graced her lips and she nodded, satisfied.
"Mai?" There was a brief knock on the door. "May I enter?"
It was Shin calling to her from the adjacent bedroom.
Walking over to her wardrobe, Mai grabbed a red silk robe from the hanger and slipped it on, tying the belt securely around her waist. "Enter."
The door slowly slid open and in stepped Shin, her fake husband and Fire Lord for the past two years. He bowed respectfully.
"Sorry to intrude," he said with a raspy voice not unlike Zuko's. "May I say that you look beautiful this morning, like every morning?"
Mai bit the inside of her cheek, trying to prevent the stubborn blush from blossoming on her cheeks. For some reason it was very difficult to remain her stoic, emotionless self in this man's presence. He had this charmingly annoying habit of making her feel like a schoolgirl with a crush.
Even how he wore his clothes was appealing. Dressed in a handsome embroidered gold and red silk coat with matching trousers and sash. He gracefully leaned against the door frame. On his hips, looped over the sash, was a leather belt with an intricately decorated holster that sheathed a short black sword.
His amber eyes briefly appraised her body before turning away with a soft blush on his cheeks. He really was a lot like Zuko in some ways. Not just how he looked but how he acted, although he wasn't nearly as brooding. Shin had a rather optimistic side to him that was somewhat appealing to her. Who would have thought that age would change her mind-set?
"Can I help you, Zuko?" She rarely called him by his fake name in private, but she had to keep up appearances in case someone was listening.
Shin pushed himself off the door frame and looked at her hard but said nothing.
Mai couldn't help but feel uneasy. Normally Shin was dressed the part of the Fire Lord, including the made-up scar on the right side of his face. However, Shin was sans scar this morning, and the normal good-natured twinkle in his eyes was nowhere to be seen. Three were creases in his stunningly handsome face that she hadn't noticed before. He looked serious.
Dangerous.
Something was very wrong.
An indefinable sound came from outside and Mai turned. It sounded like someone was shouting. She looked back at Shin and a terribly dark expression hung on his face. It was then that she knew.
Turning on her heel, she took off out the other door and down the hall. She ran past bewildered chambermaids and servants and swiftly reached the north-west aspect. She peered over the edge and spied the source of the racket in the courtyard below. Her own entourage had been ambushed by men dressed as Fire Nation soldiers. But these soldiers were not loyal to the current Fire Lord. They were the Fifth Column. Zuko's bane.
They had already breached the security of the palace. In minutes they would occupy the inner building and take her prisoner, but Mai wasn't about to let that happen. She had to fight back or she had to escape. Her only hope was that the Kyoshi Warriors had received the message that she had sent days earlier.
"It's too late," Shin said.
He had approached her from behind, talking in soothing tones as though he were trying to coax a skittish animal. He slowly undid his belt with his sword and held it out like a peace offering before hanging it up on the dais behind him.
"The palace is surrounded, Mai. Your servants and entourage are already being taken into custody."
Mai eyed the sword and felt the heavy, comforting weight of the knives strapped to her arms and thighs. "Fifth Column, then?"
She knew Shin was too good to be true. Men like him always were.
"I'm sorry to have deceived you this way, but I—" he fumbled "—Mai, I love you, and I don't want to see you get hurt."
She snorted humorously. "Save your words for someone who cares."
Shin dropped his hand and met Mai's hard gaze. She looked oddly calm, regale even, but her eyes were slightly out of focus and not on him. He followed her line of sight and saw that she was staring at his sword. Grimacing, he picked up the belt and sword and pointed both at Mai accusingly.
"You must understand. I do this for the good of my nation—our nation."
Her eyes narrowed dangerously. "Too many men in my life have chosen the 'greater good' of their nation over me."
She swiftly withdrew two blades from her sleeves and aimed at Shin's chest. He narrowly avoided the knives with a side-sweep before letting loose a jet of fire at Mai's head. She dodged it easily enough and retrieved several small bo-shurikens from her thigh, this time sending the sharpened steel at the traitor's head.
Shin quickly ducked, barely missing the whizzing blades, although one managed to slice through his shoulder. He recoiled with a side-step and threw his own volley of fire at Mai before retreating towards the throne room. She took off after him in hot pursuit, darting forward with blinding speed. Once she rounded the corner, the hilt of a sword swung out to meet her face. She hadn't expected Shin to incapacitate her with steel and she hadn't brought her hands up in time to properly block the blow.
Head ringing, her world blurred. As she struggled to throw off the stunning effects of the blow, she silently cursed herself for her slow reflexes. It had been so long since she had trained or even had a good fight. She had refused the offer from the Kyoshi Warriors to become Fire Lady, something she had always regretted. Without constant training she had become complacent, all because of the supposed love of a man. And when he had left, the love of another man who looked exactly like him had taken his place. Shin, who had seemed to care about her deeply—more than her real husband, or so she had believed—had ultimately betrayed her.
Whirling around, Mai threw blindly, determined to keep Shin away. After a few seconds her vision began to clear and she looked up. The room had filled with a handful of soldiers, all Fifth Columnists.
This is about to get ugly, she thought to herself, before reaching down her thigh to pull out two long bo-shurikens. She warily twirled the blades between her fingers as she eyed the approaching men.
A bolt of fire was aimed at her ribs, but she was nimble and avoided the flames by jumping back and away. Still, the force of the shot staggered her the slightest bit and she struck her shoulder against the wall. Her entire arm went numb and she nearly lost her footing when something hooked her leg from behind and tried to topple her.
Not one to be so easily bested, Mai threw her shurikens and flipped back up onto her feet, manoeuvring herself between the long table and her assailants. Her eyes darted around but Shin was nowhere in sight. Growling, she kicked the table out and trapped the soldiers against the wall.
"Get her!" one of them snarled.
Leaping up onto the table, Mai delivered a hard, swift kick to the face of the man who had cried out. He dropped his sword as his head snapped back, connecting with the wall behind him, and she immediately tumbled forward and snatched the blade. Flipping back up onto her feet, she levelled the sword at the immediate threats currently pinned to the wall in front of her and once more scanned the room for Shin.
He was still nowhere to be seen.
The cowardly bastard.
Another pair of soldiers entered the room and immediately lunged for her. Spinning around, Mai began to slash at them with her short sword, parrying the fire attack of the first solider while side-stepping the other's attack. Then folding a pair of bo-shurikens into her free hand, she aimed them at the second soldier with deadly accuracy.
A blast of fire soared above her head and her fingers touched more hidden blades, firing them off with an incredible flurry. At the same moment Shin flashed into view and Mai's eyes narrowed. She plunged her blade mercilessly into one of the soldier's before pulling it out and driving a fistful of shurikens into the men pinned behind her.
Shin blinked in surprise at her ruthlessness and Mai took advantage of the opportunity, jumping past the fallen men. She was spinning, slashing low, before cutting at Shin's knees. Blood spurted out, spraying across her face and his legs buckled beneath him.
Mai hovered above him. This was her opportunity to strike out, to kill the wounded traitorous dog kneeling before her. But she couldn't do it. Instead, she flipped the short sword in her palm and aimed downwards, striking the back of Shin's head with the hilt. He fell forward into a crumbled heap. Unconscious.
The room began to fill with more soldiers and Mai slowly edged back towards the balcony. She would have to make a run for it, take to the roof and escape. She didn't have enough knives on her to dispose of them all. Plus, most of them appeared to be firebenders, who would eventually consume her with the element.
"Impressive as always, Mai."
Heart pounding against her ribs, she glanced up to see two female warriors enter the fray. Both were dressed in Kyoshi Warrior garb. One was small, lithe and wearing some grotesque mask on her face that resembled the Blue Spirit while the other was much bigger and not quite as flexible. Though larger, the woman was strong and fast and her face was painted a pale white.
Mai suddenly let out a breath she hadn't even known she'd been holding.
The soldiers didn't know what hit them.
The entire scene became a blur of fans, blades and swinging kicks. The larger, unmasked warrior moved into flanking position, depriving her enemies of retreat. She slammed her fans into face after face, sending the soldiers reeling into walls before grinding their heads into the marble floors with a satisfying crunch. Scraps of flesh broke away from their rattled bodies as painful moans filled the room.
The masked warrior was less direct in her assaults as she flipped and twirled in the air. Whirling aside, she danced through the erratic storm of fire before locating her targets, landing a series of precise pressure point moves that left each bender impotent.
When the dust finally settled, all three women stood above their prey and breathed heavily, gauging each other and the bloody scene with calculating eyes.
"Ah, Mai." The smaller warrior lowered her mask to reveal the cherub-like face of Ty Lee. "Sorry we're late."
The other woman, fully donned in Kyoshi Warrior apparel, closed her fan before delivering the final blow to a wounded soldier at her feet and knocking him unconscious.
"Like I told you, Ty Lee," Suki said, breathing heavily as a crooked grin lit up her face, "Mai had this."
The bubbly acrobat reluctantly nodded in agreement, placing her hands on her hips while she surveyed the damage. Over a dozen Fifth Column soldiers were lying on the floor, rendered completely incapacitated. Not bad for a short fight.
"That was some rescue effort," Mai said mirthlessly, examining both Ty Lee and Suki sceptically before tucking her shurikens back up her sleeves. "I don't know what sort of terror you're supposed to be, Ty Lee—" she pointed at the mask "—but please don't ever try to save me again looking like that. I'm liable to kill you before I know it's you."
Ty Lee looked down at her mask in hand and frowned. "I was trying to be incognito."
"Incognito doesn't suit you."
Ty Lee laughed and dropped the mask, lunging forward to embrace the taller woman. Mai couldn't help but smile one of her rare smiles and folded the smaller warrior into her arms.
"It is good to see you, too," Mai said, holding Ty Lee out at arm's length before regarding the other woman and her swollen belly. "And Suki, you are far too pregnant to be doing this."
"That's what I told her!"
Suki stubbornly folded her arms across her increasingly large bosom. "When have I ever missed a fight? And besides—" she pointed at Mai's shredded silk robe "—aren't you a bit too naked?"
Mai glanced down at her wardrobe with a slight frown. She felt no embarrassment fighting nude, but she wasn't entirely sure that her friends felt the same way. She would have to find something to cover herself. However, Suki was already on that, picking up one of the soldier's cloaks and tossing it to the taller woman. Her grey eyes met Mai's, softening in the morning light.
"We got your message and came as quickly as we could."
Mai threw the cloak over her shoulders and offered Suki a slight bow. It was a comforting thought to know that some people never changed. Even long after drifting away from the Kyoshi Warriors, Mai knew that her friends would always be there for her and that they could always be counted on. The thought alone warmed her heart.
Unfortunately now was not the time for heartfelt reunions. If these men—those that were still alive—didn't wake up soon, then other soldiers were bound to come eventually. Only one option remained: they had to escape the palace.
"So can I expect the same flawless execution with your escape plan that you had with your rescue effort?"
"Hey, we have a plan!"
Mai shot Ty Lee a sceptical look before turning her gaze on Suki, who bowed her head sheepishly.
"Yeah, we have a plan."
It really wasn't much of a plan. Since receiving word from Mai about the possible planned Fifth Column coup two days earlier, Suki and Ty Lee didn't have enough time to gather the other Kyoshi Warriors let alone devise some great rescue attempt. What it had boiled down to was finding Mai somehow, freeing her somehow, then hoping she wasn't injured too badly so that they could make a hasty getaway. Minor problems, no doubt, for heroines in an epic tale, but Suki wished there had been more time for real planning, not just what she and Ty Lee hammered out while rushing to the Fire Nation capital as fast as their ship could travel.
"We better get going," Suki cautioned, checking to make sure the coast was clear. "Ty Lee?"
The small warrior nodded and ran back out into the hallway to retrieve a bag. Re-entering the room, she pulled out some nondescript clothing. "
Here." She handed the clothes over to Mai. "We have a disguise for you."
Suki and Ty Lee then took off their own Kyoshi apparel, stealing cloaks from two unconscious soldiers.
"We can escape through the tunnels," Suki said, throwing on the Fifth Column clothes. "It looks like they don't know of its existence cause that's how we got in here unnoticed. We have a ship docked at the harbour. We can make our way north."
Mai quickly changed and followed the other two girls towards the secret tunnels below the palace. As they went she could hear the kitchen staff shouting and she lingered at one of the windows. Gazing out below, she could see Fifth Column soldiers file into the courtyard. They were only moments from storming the palace itself.
A light rain began to fall and she scowled at the thick black clouds gathering in the sky. Soon they would obscure the pale sun already feebly crawling up the horizon. It was light rain now, but in a few minutes it would thicken like the clouds. Dark, threatening and unavoidable.
"So the civil war has finally begun," Suki said solemnly, briefly looking past Mai to regard the dismal scene below.
Mai shut out the scene and swiftly turned away, making haste to the hidden underground passage; their only means of escape. Thanks to their cloaks, they managed to avoid detection and steal down into the network of tunnels below the palace. Using the torch Suki had left behind when she and Ty Lee had first entered the palace, the pregnant warrior navigated the trio through the intricate paths to the hidden harbour.
Under the cloak of the dark storm brewing outside and the massive confusion within the palace, they would find their escape.
But at what cost? Mai asked herself.
Was it right for her to leave her staff and guards behind? So foolishly had she placed her trust in Shin when she should have been more cautious, more suspicious. She had let Zuko down. She had let the Fire Nation down.
"We need to send word to Aang and Zuko," Ty Lee said, as they neared the light at the end of the tunnel.
"First we need to get out of here safely," Suki muttered.
A moment later they were outside and Suki set off to tend to the small fishing boat. As she undid the ropes that anchored the ship to the dock, Ty Lee joined her and began working on the other end.
Throwing off the last of the ropes with a grunt, Ty Lee helped the very pregnant Suki on board. "Do we even know where Aang and Zuko are?"
Suki took Ty Lee's hand and lifted herself up onto the boat. "No. Sokka, Toph and General Iroh are searching for Aang as we speak."
Mai tuned out the rest of Suki's words and glanced up at the face of the hill where the palace stood. Though the only sound carrying on the wind was the roar of the tumultuous ocean, she swore she could hear cries from above.
The palace itself looked to be soaked in shades of grey even though it was still early morning. The dense black clouds hung heavily overhead like an omen, blotting out the sun as they swelled with thickening rain. The downpour was immediate and Mai quickly raised the hood of her cloak before turning around and leaping on board the ship. The three women then heaved forth together with the oar, pushing the boat out to sea.
"So what are we going to do?" Ty Lee asked, shaking out large beads of water from her cloak before assisting Suki with the sails. "How do we get a hold of them?"
Mai immediately took hold of the helm and began steering the ship eastwards. She knew once Shin and the Fifth Column discovered her missing they would anticipate her fleeing north to Phanom Rung. It was the shortest distance to travel and the easiest place to hide. But there was no guarantee that someone wouldn't already be waiting there for her or that Iroh and the others were even there.
What they needed to do was regroup with the Kyoshi Warriors, and for that they would have to travel south-east. Hiding in plain sight in the Fire Nation would be the last place the Fifth Column would expect to find her.
"I know how."
·
回
·
THE SUN STOOD little more than halfway down the horizon by the time Iroh clambered up the well-worn snaking path to the top of the steep-sided cliff. The mossy top was clear of brush and flat, if far from level; a rough stone table one-hundred paces long and broad. High above, he was given a spectacular bird's eye view of the land, stretching for kilometres over a patchwork quilt of forests, pastures and long-abandoned groves. Far too many browns and sere yellows were mixed in with the hundred shades of green, crying out for rain in the sun-baked heat.
Despite the faint mist of dust in the air, he could see far and wide. The land, though riddled with knobby hills and scattered dense thickets, was relatively flat. The surface woodland itself proved to be strange and disquieting with an endless brown and green hall of round trunks that rose like crumbling pillars out of some grand hall of days long gone. On the other side of the cliff was the expansive view of the rolling sea, shimmering a soft blue with the dying glow of the sun.
It was the perfect location to scout for approaching enemies, and Iroh was quite certain that someone was out there. He had been certain all afternoon. Perhaps the Fifth Column had followed Zuko's messenger hawk that had arrived at the villa the other day. Perhaps not. Regardless, Iroh believed in being cautious. He knew it was always best to trust his instincts and his instincts told him that there was danger nearby.
Aside from the endless blue-green sea and the mighty trees below, there were all manners of birds and small animals dwelling in the heart of Phanom Rung. After a half-dozen heart-stopping starts, Iroh was soon able to identify a number of discrete bird calls, insect noises and animal sounds, relegating them to the realm of the insignificant. But after twenty minutes the familiar sounds of the forest began to still. Out of the corner of his eye he caught motion, back down the cliff near the small river basin where the stone gave way to brush and a few small trees. Fifty paces away, a man dressed in plain colours stepped out into the clearing and raised a bow, smoothly drawing the fletchings to his cheek.
Then everything seemed to happen all at once.
Moving quickly, Iroh hauled around, watching the archer adjust his sight to follow. How he had even spotted him up so high, Iroh did not know. Deciding not to question it, he seized his inner chi and began a swift, precise volley of fire at the archer when he noticed a second man perched on the limb of the highest tree in the forest.
One archer, one scout.
Turning back around, Iroh made his way to his real target: the man with the higher ground. Fireballs the size of his fists struck out at the scout, causing him to leap off the burning branch onto the top of the cliff, sending his own firestorm Iroh's way.
Now the two were on equal footing.
From below the archer let fly his steel-tipped arrows. The piercing whistles would have been enough to throw off any experienced fighter, but Iroh was exceptional. He flinched only a hair, feeling the wind of the arrow's passage against his cheek before punching down an incredible flurry of fire. The archer screamed in pain as his arm spun away, hand still gripping his bow. The other hand took his left leg at the knee and he fell, shrieking.
Iroh then turned his attention back to the scout, who was already churning out a deadly attack. The general easily side-stepped the forward assault before reaching out with his fist to deliver a flame-fuelled blow to the man's solar plexus. Pin-wheeling, the scout fell backwards and over the edge. And as the enemy fell, Iroh quickly manoeuvred himself down the face of the cliff before rounding on his wounded foes.
Both men were bloody. Now that Iroh could get a proper look at them, he could see that they were dressed in colours of blue, white and gold; however, only the scout wore the Fifth Column regalia and only the scout appeared to be a firebender. The archer, who wore plain clothes, looked to be a mercenary for hire. His leg was currently red and swollen, a deep gashing line of blisters where Iroh had struck him.
Still clutching his leg, the archer looked up at Iroh with terrified eyes and began apologising frantically.
"I had no idea that we were sent to find you, General Iroh," he babbled. "If I had've known, I would have never agreed to work for this bastard here!"
The scout, who clutched at his right shoulder in pain, sat up in defiance. It was obvious that the scout's arm was broken and his shoulder dislocated from the fall. He was in intense pain. He was also the man Iroh wanted to deal with—the one who had been given the mission to come to Phanom Rung. However, the scout didn't look willing to talk like the paid mercenary. If anything, the foolish young man had a defiant glint in his eyes, like a man wanting to show the superior warrior that he was unafraid, even if he was ready to soil himself. But Iroh knew what kind of man this scout was, that he was the kind of man who really wanted to run and abandon what dignity he had not already tossed at his feet. Simply put, he was no match for the Dragon of the West and he knew it. He had little choice but to bow down and surrender.
"I will tell you nothing!" he spat, desperately holding onto his last shred of dignity. It was a poor attempt at defiance, for Iroh could readily see the fear and weakness on his face. "I would rather die than help the uncle of that traitorous Zu—"
"Silence!"
Many would have flinched to hear such a cold tone from the general, and this Fifth Column scout was no exception. Iroh was the picture of what general was supposed to be: strong and commanding with a bold, fearless face, a strong chin and waves of white at his temples. Even his voice, deep and mellifluous, fit the image. His dark amber eyes surveyed the scout before him with harsh scrutiny, though beneath that carefully crafted veil were the eyes of a wise man silently calculating, beholding the situation as one would survey a bloody battlefield: deep in thought with cool detachment.
Overhead, a dark shadow fell across the villa and Iroh looked skywards. A large white object streaked across the sky and the general let out a sigh of relief at the all-too-familiar sight of Avatar Aang's sky bison coming into view. Barely clearing the treetops, the giant bison dove towards the groves, gulping whole shrivelled fruits into its gigantic maw as it levelled toppled trees in its wake before landing next to the river's basin.
The komodo rhinos immediately moved away, giving the sky bison a wide berth as it dunked its face into the stream and drank greedily.
"What have we got here?" Sokka leapt off Appa's saddle and slowly perambulated about the prisoners, lightly appraising them before turning to Iroh. "Fifth Columnists?"
Iroh motioned to the archer. "This one is simply a mercenary for hire. However, this one—" His hand swept outwards, motioning to the other man holding his broken arm. "This is a Fifth Column scout. I believe he was sent here to find me or someone else, though who that someone or something else is, I do not know."
The ground suddenly rumbled beneath them and both Iroh and Sokka glanced up. Toph had made a set of stone steps for her and Hahn to climb down from Appa's saddle.
"Nice work, Pops," she congratulated him, before returning the earth to its original condition. "You caught yourself a spy."
Sokka stared at the prisoners with keen eyes, blue like ice. Cold and calculating. He then turned to Iroh, leading him away from the group and out of earshot. "Do they know anything about Zuko and the fake on the throne?"
"I didn't want to say anything in their presence, but I believe so," Iroh said, looking grim. "At least I think the Fifth Column know about the imposter on the throne. It makes no sense for a scout and an archer to come out all this way for me unless something happened at the palace."
"A coup?" Sokka rubbed thoughtfully at his chin. "Either Shin was discovered or—"
"Or Shin is a double agent," Iroh cut in darkly. "We need to find out which."
"Agreed." Turning around, Sokka took a step towards the prisoners and cracked his knuckles. "I guess it's interrogation time."
The scout flinched at the mention of interrogation. His face seemed to drain of all colour and his mouth gaped as wide as it would go, as if he had wanted to scream but had forgot how. "B-but I don't even know anything!" he protested. "I'm just a scout."
"Right," Sokka muttered, unconvinced.
"W-wait!" The scout pointed at Iroh. "How could anyone expect an archer and a scout to take down the Dragon of the West?"
Iroh turned to look at Sokka, folding his hands up his sleeves. "He speaks truth there."
"Maybe. Or maybe he never expected to find you here. Maybe he expected to find someone else, and I want to know who."
"I was just sent here to see who was at the villa. That's all. I swear!"
Drawing a dagger from the belt on his hips, Sokka took a menacing step towards the prisoner. "Well, we'll find out soon enough if you're telling the truth."
"Stop it!" In an instant Aang was blocking the path to the prisoners.
"Aang," Sokka breathed sharply, "we don't have time for your peaceful negotiations. We have to find out what he knows now."
"No, Sokka. Not this way."
"Aang?"
"I said NO!" The Avatar's eyes narrowed, his nose almost touching Sokka's. He had made his decision; he would give no quarter. "You—" He turned and pointed down at the archer. "You are free to go."
The man merely looked dumbfounded for a moment before painfully rising to his feet. He would not question the Avatar's mercy. "T-thank you, Avatar."
"Do you have a ship nearby?" Aang asked the scout, but when he refused to reply the archer answered for him.
"Yes, it's not far from here."
"Good. You can treat your wounds on the boat."
"Take the rhinos," Iroh suggested, pointing at the large beasts. "It'll be faster for you and I'd rather not leave them here, so take them with you on the ship."
The archer nodded thankfully to the Avatar and the general before limping over to the komodo rhinos and untying their reins.
"This is stupid!" Sokka pulled at his hair in frustration before pointing at the wounded archer. "Now he will go tell the Fifth Column everything."
"No, I won't! I swear!" He waved his hands in front of his face before letting out a hiss of pain. "I don't even know how to get a hold of them. And even if I did, I am done working for them."
Sokka let out a deep sigh and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "All right, fine. Go." He dropped his hand to point a long, accusing finger at the archer. "But if I find out that you ratted us out—"
Not waiting for the warrior to finish his sentence, the archer painfully mounted one of the rhinos while leading the other. Once they disappeared down the path heading back out towards the sea, everyone turned to regard the Avatar with curious eyes.
"So are you going to let this one go, too?" Toph asked, pointing to the scout who was still sitting on the ground.
Aang shook his head. "No. The archer knows nothing about the Fifth Column, but this guy—" he pointed down with his staff "—this guy does."
"I'm telling you I don't know anything!" the scout protested in vain, but none of them were buying it.
Suddenly Toph moved into stance, lifting the ground beneath the prisoner's feet and forcing him to stand. Trapping his entire body in rock, she forced the scout to remain still as she reached out and put a hand on his chest. Sokka then took in a deep breath and levelled his eyes on the prisoner.
"Why were you sent here?"
"To look for the general," the scout replied.
"Why?"
"To keep an eye on his movements." The scout swallowed hard, stealing a glance at Iroh. "To see if he was in contact with his nephew."
"He's lying," Toph stated darkly, causing the scout to blink at her in surprise.
"N-no, I'm not!"
"So he's not here for the general but he knows about Zuko." Sokka scratched his chin, beginning to piece the puzzle together. "You were sent here to find someone else, then?"
"No, just the general."
Toph shook her head and then tightened the earth that held the prisoner in place, driving stones into his injured shoulder. The scout screamed in pain and Aang was about to advance when Iroh put a hand on the airbender's shoulder and stopped him.
"Who were you sent to look for?" Sokka leaned forward, pressing his nose against the scout's. The man was panting in considerable pain. "Answer the question and the pain will stop."
Just then Toph adjusted the pressure and the sound of crushing bones filled the air. The scout screamed loudly, his entire body convulsing as tears pooled in the corners of his eyes.
"Toph!"
"Tell us!" Sokka roared, ignoring Aang's protests. "Tell us who you were looking for and we will release you."
"MAI!" the man suddenly yelled, spittle flying from his mouth. "I was sent to find the Fire Lady!"
Sokka immediately signalled for Toph to stop. Loosening the slack, the earthbender kept the prisoner pinned and in pain, encouraging him to continue talking. She wasn't about to let him go just yet.
"Why are you looking for Mai?" Sokka asked as the scout panted, his face twisting in agony.
"I was told that the Fire Lady might escape to Phanum Rung."
"Escape?"
The stones pressed tighter and the prisoner shrieked.
"We were scheduled to seize the palace this morning! Shin was supposed to take her prisoner." He swallowed back a sob. "In case—in case she escaped, I was sent here to wait for her and take her back to the palace. And that's it." His uninjured shoulder slumped forward in defeat. "T-that's all I know, I swear!"
Sokka angrily exhaled through his nose and looked to Toph, who was nodding slightly. The scout was telling the truth. With a nod from Sokka, Toph released the prisoner, who fell to the ground with a listless thud. He let out a sharp yelp of pain before clutching onto his arm, rocking slightly to and fro.
"We have to find out more," Sokka said in a darkly thick voice, reaching down to yank the prisoner up by the elbow. "And you are going to tell us everything."
"NO!"
Sokka turned around to see Aang standing directly behind him. He was breathing heavily with a sunken look to him.
"But, Aang—"
"I said NO, Sokka! No more!"
The Avatar's grey eyes narrowed dangerously and everyone went quiet. A heavy silence hung in the air. Tempers flared and patience was being worn thin. They were all tired and agitated and seemingly no closer to finding Katara and Zuko than they had been several weeks ago.
"I have to agree with the Avatar," Iroh said, breaking the silence. "This man is a low-level member, hardly someone to be informed of the group's inner workings. Even if we torture him, he cannot give us the information we seek."
The general was right. This man was merely a scout, someone sent to spy and observe. He had no idea what the Fifth Column's real agenda was or where Katara was being kept. It was beyond his rank and scope.
"But we can't just let him go," Sokka reasoned, letting go of the scout's arm in disgust. "He'll return to the Fifth Column and tell them everything." He took in a deep breath and nodded resolutely. "I say we tie him up and leave him here."
The scout looked terrified at this decision while Aang looked downright appalled. "That would kill him, Sokka!"
"It's no less than he deserves!" Sokka snarled. "Remember, this guy is part of the same group that kidnapped Katara!"
Aang looked down and sighed. Sokka was right. It was the only way to give themselves time to find Katara. They would have to leave him behind.
"It's true that he knows next to nothing about the Fifth Column's plans, but he is a scout." Iroh gently tapped the side of his nose. "Scouts are sent all over the world to track unfamiliar lands."
"That's ridiculous," the scout scoffed unconvincingly. "I hired that archer to help me find this place."
Iroh slid his hands up his sleeves again and began to pace. "That's what I thought at first, but you knew exactly where to find me, where to position yourself and the archer. You only hired him to help ambush your target because you were not confident in your own fighting skills. Plus, you needed someone to retreat to the ship in case either of you were captured."
"Is this true?"
The scout stared long and hard at Iroh before his eyes flitted warily to Toph. Buckling under the pressure of the day's events, he nodded. His bruised body sagged forward in defeat.
"We must bring him with us," Iroh said. "He's our only guide."
"I agree with General Iroh." Aang lowered his staff. "Even if he refuses to give us information on the Fifth Column or doesn't know where Katara is being kept, we can use him as a tracker. Wherever Katara is being kept must be dangerous and we could use a man of his skills."
"He could double-cross us," Sokka supplied in a cautious tone.
"He very well could, but I'm willing to take that chance if it means finding Katara safe."
Sokka nodded and placed a large hand on Aang's shoulder. "I'll take that chance, too."
"Me too," Toph agreed, grabbing Aang's other shoulder and squeezing it affectionately.
Aang smiled at his friends and nodded in relief.
"Then it's agreed. Hahn?" He looked to the warrior and motioned to the prisoner. "Can you tend to his wounds and seat him on Appa?"
Hahn bowed informally and turned towards the prisoner, carefully helping him to his feet. As he took the scout over to Appa to set his bones and dress his arm, the rest of the gang gathered around in conference.
"Even with this scout to guide us," Toph said, "we still don't know where Katara is."
"Yes, we do."
Everyone looked up at Iroh, who was smiling mischievously. Bringing his fingers to his lips, he whistled loudly. After a moment there was a piecing cry and the sound of wings flapping. A hawk swooped down from the top of the cliff and landed on Iroh's outstretched arm.
"My nephew's personal hawk arrived here the other day." He patted its head gently. "I was waiting for you all to return so I could send a message back and we could follow it."
Suddenly all the sorrow had lifted from their faces and was replaced with something they hadn't felt in weeks: hope.
"Did Zuko leave a message?" Aang asked.
"Yes. My nephew managed to infiltrate the prison, one of my father's internment camps, and is keeping Katara safe."
Aang let out a breathless sigh of relief. "Thank the spirits."
"But they need our help now," Sokka added seriously, "especially with the possible situation going on in the Fire Nation capital."
Iroh nodded. "I agree. The sooner the better."
"All right, let's get going," Aang said, feeling genuine optimism for the first time in days. "General Iroh, please release Zuko's hawk.
Iroh took out a scroll of parchment from inside his robes and fitted it into the canister. He was about to give the hawk its mission when Toph suddenly stepped forward and placed a hand on Iroh's forearm, hissing at them all to shut up.
"Wait! I hear something." She pointed up at the sky. "It's another one of those noisy birds."
A hawk appeared in the east ahead, screeching as it skimmed over the treetops. It twisted and turned, following the curves of the land until it spotted its objective and dived low. Sokka lifted his forearm, signalling for the bird to land. It did so with a great fanfare of flapping wings and Sokka lifted his fingers to the small canister tied around its back. Popping off the lid, he removed the rolled piece of parchment from inside and began to unfurl it.
"It's a letter from Mai," he said, reading the message.
"What does it say?"
"She says that the puppet Fire Lord Zuko put on the throne as a decoy is actually a Fifth Column infiltrator."
Aang frowned. "Is she okay?"
"She says she's safe with Suki and Ty Lee. Suki?" Sokka shook the parchment in frustration. "Suki, you stubborn woman!"
"Go on," Toph encouraged. "Don't leave us hanging."
Growling to himself, Sokka continued reading.
"They've fled the palace and have taken refuge in the village of Jang Hui. They are going to get in contact with the rest of the Kyoshi Warriors and the White Lotus. They await orders from Zuko or General Iroh or you, Aang, should any of you intercept this message."
Sokka finished reading and the gang grew silent.
"What does this mean?" Toph asked, looking from Sokka to Iroh.
Sokka turned to meet Iroh's gaze for a moment before looking away, a grimace settling on his lips. Toph and Aang, however, looked to Iroh for answers and the general quietly bowed his head before collecting his thoughts.
"It means that civil war in the Fire Nation has finally begun."