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Chapter 14: Plans
"So how are we going to do this?" Sokka asked, pinching the bridge of his nose, a headache coming on strong.
Everyone sat around the large dining room table, in large clumps organized by family.
Aang and Katara sat with Gyatso and Kya, the family still showing the scars of the intense battle.
Zuko, Mai, and Iroh sat next to them at the head of the table. Tyrus was looking around the room darkly, his thoughts known only to himself. Roku, too, sat in the room, heavily bandaged but refusing to be left out of this meeting.
He was set a little apart from his family, a little closer to Kya…
Xu, Ty Lee, and Ling sat on the Fire Lord's other side. Xu was sporting multiple bruises on his face and his clothes were slightly charred. Ty Lee seemed more or less unharmed, and simply sat holding her child close.
Next to them was Sokka and his family. The Water tribesmen was holding a large ice block to his black eye. Suki seemed unscathed and she held Jie and Suk on her lap, both huddled very close to their mother. Tri sat there too, holding a bandage over a burn on her shoulder.
Across the table from them was Toph. She had multiple burns spotting up and down her body, but she refused medical attention from now.
Close to Toph, much to her discomfort, was Tyren. Tyren had placed his black cloak over himself to hide his scarred body.
At the end of the table, opposite of Zuko, sat Sin; the firebender was still bound to his chair.
"Well you do have very few options," piped up Sin.
"Shut up," said Sokka, no bothering to look at him. He readdressed the group. "How are we going to handle this?"
"Our only real hope is to try and get those artifacts before Azula and this Order does," shrugged Aang. "And maybe, with some luck, we can take down Azula and The Order along the way."
"You can't bring down The Order," sighed Sin.
"Shut up," said Sokka again.
"So the Fire Nation's artifact is already taken," said Zuko. "Assuming Sin's telling the truth… We'll have to make stops at each of the nations again."
"I wasn't lying!" protested Sin.
"Shut up," repeated Sokka.
"So should we split up then?" asked Katara, glancing around the group. "Cover more ground…"
"That really isn't-" began Sin.
"Shut it!" snapped Sokka.
"It would make sense," said Uncle Iroh, stroking his beard thoughtfully. "
"No really you don't understand-" Sin tried again.
"If you talk one more time, I'm going to cut off your tongue," said Sokka darkly.
"Sokka leave him be," said Tyren. "Maybe he has an idea that will help."
"Or send us all to the spirit world…," muttered Sokka.
"What is it you were saying Sin?" asked Tyren.
"Look, I do not mean to sound like I'm trying to force you into anything, and I swear on my life I am not lying to you," said Sin quickly, his eyes traveling up and down the table. "I want The Order stopped as much as anybody."
"Why do you despise them so much? You are supposed to be one of them after all," Toph said, her eyes narrowed.
"The Order is not what it used to be," said Sin. "The history books talk of when in times of trial or peril for the world or Fire Nation, The Order would straiten things out. Now however… They only work for their own gain. Only his own power is what interests the Master now."
"I do have a question then," Xu chimed in. "If your Master is looking out for his own power, why not try and stop Aang and the others during Sozin's War?"
"Ozai never would have given up his power to The Order," said Sin, shaking his head. "He was too power hungry himself, and convinced that he didn't need the extra help in conquering the world. So Master told us to stay low and out of the war and that is what we did."
"So Azula is going to help them with their power?" asked Aang.
"The coming of another Living Dragon will boost the power of every person in the order," explained Sin. "And then when the world is under Azula's control, Master must have been promised something important. He would never endanger himself or his organization for anything petty…"
"So what do we do to stop them?" demanded Suki.
"Well it's like you said… Try to beat them to the artifacts at least, and then try and take down the princess," said Sin. "But if a may be so bold as to give you a suggestion, I would not split up your group Avatar."
"Why? It's a good idea!" said Sokka incredulously.
"So it may seem," said Sin. "But whichever sorry group of yours runs into Azula and her guard I do not envy. You all were barely able to fight them off here; imagine if Princess Azula was with them. And then imagine your numbers only half of what they were here. There would be no hope for you. Besides, Azula and The Order will not split up."
"They won't?" inquired Zuko.
"No," replied Sin. "The artifacts must be picked up by the Living Dragon. No Order member would dare to defy that law."
Everyone along the table exchanged glances.
"Very well," said Aang. "We won't be splitting up."
"If I may, I request that I come along with you as well," Sin said quickly.
"Why would you come with us?" demanded Sokka.
"As I told you before, no nation's leader is going to remember where the artifact they have been entrusted with even is," explained Sin patiently. "Not only this, but I am well aware of The Order's rules and conduct. I will be able to tell you what they are planning to do next. And, not to mention, I am not a pushover when it comes to fighting. I can be an asset to your group."
Everyone once again looked at each other, weighing the ins and outs of letting this Order member come with them.
"Fine," Zuko decided finally, his eyes closing in frustration.
"What about the kids?" asked Ty Lee.
"They obviously need to be put somewhere safe…," said Katara.
"Hey now wait a minute!" said Roku standing up. "Don't we get a say in this?"
"Your too young to have a say in this," snapped Zuko.
"We want to go," Tyrus said, meeting his fathers eyes. "After what happened today you gotta figure none of us is safe no matter where we try to hide. We might as well go with you all."
"No way!" said Sokka. "All of you are way to young!"
"Dad, calm down," said Tri quietly.
"I agree with Roku," Kya said, standing as well.
The Fire Prince and she exchanged glances.
"We should get a say in this. I want to help save the world too. And besides, if we're with you guys, we will be completely safe."
"Yeah, I wanna go with you dad," said Jie, facing his father.
Sokka was fuming, but unable to get his words to pass his lips.
"I don't know about that Kya," said Aang uneasily.
"Aang you seriously can't even be entertaining the idea!" said Katara. "They're way too young!"
"We're the same age you all were when you were floating around trying to save the world!" said Roku fiercely.
"Watch your tone!" warned Zuko.
"He's right," Kya said firmly. "We are the same age as you guys were!"
"We didn't have a choice!" snapped Sokka.
"Sure you did," Tri said, calm as ever. "You could've left Uncle Aang at the iceberg. You could've stayed in the Southern Water Tribe where it was probably safer. But you didn't. And neither will we."
No one responded to that. Tri thought she had greatly impressed them all with that argument.
There was a collective pause among everybody.
"If I may…," said Tyren, breaking the silence.
Everyone faced the shadowbender.
"Look, I'm not saying I know what is the best idea or anything," said Tyren. "I don't have kids, so I don't know what the rest of you are thinking. But as a…" Tyren's eyes flashed to Tyrus, "caring friend. I agree with the kids here.
"Your right," muttered Sokka darkly. "You don't know what its like. So we can't really go off what you say."
Tyren looked at Sokka sharply.
"Let me put it to you this way then Sokka," Tyren said. The shadowbender's voice held some repressed anger; there was a definite edge to his voice. "What iff you had walked in here…and found like Zuko found."
Everyone at the table stiffened.
"So far every time you have left your children somewhere…safe," Tyren continued. "They've almost been burned alive and then killed by Order members. Do you really want to try again? When are you going to realize they are probably safest with us? When one of them is killed?"
Sokka was very white faced now, but Tyren's showed now change.
"I agree with all of your children. Bring them with us." Tyren finished.
No one dared to say a word. The very breath in the room seemed to have stopped.
"We'll think about it," Aang said finally. "In the mean time you kids had better get to bed."
There was a short protest, but finally all the parents trooped out to tuck their kids in.
Tyren, however, stayed behind, the cogs in his mind turning fiercely.
"You're a very curious character, shadowbender," said Sin quietly, studying Tyren closely.
"Oh?" muttered Tyren, not looking at him.
"I can't tell if your trying to help your friends do this…or if your tempted to do this yourself and just leave them behind."
Tyren didn't respond, instead opting to look at the door everyone had just walked out of.
"You're a very tortured soul aren't you shadowbender?" inquired Sin further.
"How'd you guess?" growled Tyren.
"Why?" asked Sin.
Tyren again didn't respond right away, just thinking numbly to himself….
"I can't remember who I am," said Tyren finally.
"Pardon?" Sin blinked in surprise.
"I can't remember anything about me," Tyren said in a low voice. "I can't remember where I came from. I can't remember who my parents are. I can't remember if I had any friends. All I know is a damn name and for all I know, that's wrong too."
Sin looked at Tyren, a look of shock on his face.
"I apologize…" he mumbled.
"Don't. You don't need to," growled Tyren. "That's what I was doing for fifteen years though. Trying to find myself. Obviously I wasn't very successful."
"That is rotten…," muttered Sin.
"But you can help with some of it. Why don't you explain to me what it is you found in your Order's library," Tyren said, facing Sin.
"Well, The Order's library if filled with thousands of years of knowledge," explained Sin. "Every small detail; every tiny fact was written down and cataloged in our great library."
"Where is it?" asked Tyren.
"In the heart of our headquarters," Sin replied. "Which is underground. Deep. And heavily guarded."
"Ok… Go on," prompted Tyren.
"One day I was roaming around the library, it was my preferred place to stay, when I came across the curious legend of men who could bend the night around them. Though I guess more accurately, the shadows around them."
"How far back do these date?" asked Tyren.
"Thousands and thousands of years," Sin said. "The furthest dated was well over ten thousand years ago."
Tyren face was suddenly shocked. Ten thousand years?
"It is amazing I know," said Sin. "But recently there was a decline in number. Eventually there was only one shadowbender, and then they were born hundreds of years apart. Like whatever made the shadowbender was hoping people would forget about them. Which I guess is what happened…"
"Wow," muttered Tyren.
"The last shadowbender to date was one thousand years ago."
"Excuse me?" snapped Tyren. "I don't think that's right…"
Sin look puzzled.
"The last shadowbender was born almost one thousand years ago. He almost destroyed the world!"
Tyren felt his jaw go slack.
"The man born with shadowbending was something to behold. It took all the power of all four nations and the Avatar to subdue him. And that was after years of pain and death."
"Man?" question Tyren.
"Yes, the last shadowbender was a man…," said Sin.
Tyren's eyes glazed over, his mind racing.
"Your books missed one then."
"Pardon?"
"There was another shadowbender born after him. A woman. Her name was Nira."
"Mmm…" Sin muttered to himself. "She was never mentioned before… I must fix that if I ever get back to the library."
She hid…
Tyren's head snapped around, searching for the voice. But he should have known better by now… Just the shadows…
"Your very strange shadowbender," commented Sin.
"Live in my shoes for a week and see if you stay normal," retorted Tyren.
"Fair enough," Sin said. "I only tell you this to warn it though. I am not the only one with this knowledge. The extent your powers went to all those years ago is still in that library… And I'm sure I am not the only one who has seen it."
Azula sat at a desk, deep underground.
It almost made her feel like the walls were closing in again… Just as they had that day of the comet…
She shook off the thought and continued looking over the texts in front of her.
A shadowbender? Someone who could bend the night itself…
This has gotten interesting…she thought icily.
She studied the sketch someone had given her of the shadowbender.
His hair was blown back, his features fierce. Even on paper, his eyes seemed to be boring into her, trying to destroy her…
She shook the thought off again and threw his portrait aside. She would deal with him when the time came. And when she had her power… There would be no stopping her anyway.
Azula grabbed another scroll and unrolled it, checking over news in the Fire Nation.
There was nothing about the Siege on the Palace…yet.
Azula felt her teeth bear into a grin and she went to throw the scroll aside.
Then something caught her eye….
She picked the scroll back up and red the small piece closely.
Her eyes widened, and she felt the feral smile creep back onto her face.
She had just found possibly the most important thing that would bring down this shadowbender…
Hey just letting you all know. I'm going to be out of town for four or five days. So i expect my next update not to be fore another week or so. Sorry, i'll be back though. Please review.