Lai rushed down the mountain, avoiding the many tangled roots and smashing through various rocks on the way. She ran down to Tiku's house, and slammed into the kitchen. Akmei was eating breakfast there, and shoved the food in her mouth as Lai entered.

'You ready for training? I think Tiku's sleeping, so he might be a while.'

'We have more problems than training.' Lai said, sitting down. She started explaining what had happened in her mediation. Akmei ended up looking thoughtful at her.

'So now we know that Zolt's going to attack who knows how many people, and we've no idea when it's going to happen.' Lai slammed her hands into her face.

'Hmm.' Akmei said. 'Actually, I have a pretty good idea when Zolt will attack.'

'Oh?' Lai said, surprised. 'How?'

'Well, think about it. Day of fire. What day is a firebenders power strongest at?'

'I dunno. Midsummer? That's past now.'

Akmei sighed. 'Lai, have you been keeping up with news at all?'

'Not really.' Lai shrugged. 'I've been busy.'

'Well I have. Come on, I'll show you.' Akmei nipped up stairs, and then ran back down with her laptop. She opened it up on a Fire Nation new site.

'Let's see. United Republic elections, North Water Tribe promises to put troops at Serpent City, riots in Yi – Ok here we go.' Akmei clicked on a news article.

It read 'Preparations made for return of Sozin's Comet.'

'You see?' Akmei said. 'Sozin's Comet gives firebenders more strength than a dozen other benders for a single day. What a better time for a mad man like Zolt?'

Lai squinted at the article. 'What preparations are being done?'

'A variety. It's an important festival for Air Nomads too, though for different reasons of course. But mostly it's our disarmament.'

'Disarmament?' Lai asked.

'OK. The other nations don't like the idea of the Fire Nation having so much power – especially what happened the last two times the comet came. So to prove we're not planning anything, all our ships are moving back our home waters, and are being stored together so we are unable to act in a military fashion while the Comet is in the sky. It's the same all over – soldiers are being brought back from overseas garrisons, planes being deactivated for the period. It's just to prove we have no ambitions. There's still our army to defend ourselves, but we won't be able to act overseas for the period.'

'I see.' Lai thought it sounded a little excessive. It was a long time since the Hundred Year War. Maybe it was more about Fire Nation guilt than the world's fear.

'Anyway, that gives us what?' Lai looked at the date. 'About two weeks. About two weeks to find Zolt, or where he's going to attack.'

'It's not just you, Lai.' Akmei interrupted, 'The whole Fire Nation police will be working to find out what he's doing – and to protect the people he's trying to hurt. They'll find him.'

'But it's not just Zolt, is it? It's this other guy Zolt's working with. And he cares about me. So what I do effects what he'll do. We have to find Zolt and stop him quickly, before the other one can plan anything else with them.'

There was a knock at the door. Lai, thrown off her stride, opened it to find Nokka standing outside. 'Hey, there Grandma.' He walked inside, and nodded at Akmei. 'Hello, Cousin.'

'Cousin?' Akmei was clearly thrown back by this. 'I'm not your cousin.'

'Sure I am. Through Avatar Roku. I'm not sure how removed we are. You'd have to work it out.' Nokka sat down in the empty seat Lai was occupying previously. 'Nice place this.'

'It's our trainers.' Lai said.

'Really? Curious style. Those basalt columns made me think it was an earthbender's house.'

'Those aren't basalt columns. It's limestone blocks. It's pretty clear.'

'I'm sure that it was natural basalt.'

'Trust me it isn't. I'm an earthbender – it's as different as bread and books.'

'Oh well, if that's how you want to play it. By the way,' turning to Akmei 'I wanted to thank Liko for his soup recipes. They were really nice.'

'Sure?' Akmei said. 'Does he many good recipes?'

'Oh sure. We both know a lot about spending times in the wilderness. It's important to know good recipes. But most of mine involve nothing but meat or ingredients from the spirit world.'

'Huh.' Lai never knew what to say in these conversations. 'So what were you here for?'

'Oh yes, that was it. I was walking after you down the mountain, and then I saw the mountain was starting to erupt.'