Chapter Ten: Smoke and Mirrors

It wasn't until the next day that Saiben regained consciousness. The one hit he had taken had broken his skull and burned him very badly. As far as the burns went, his right earlobe was completely gone as well as some of the other outer parts. All the skin on the better part of the right side of his face had taken on a reddish purple colour and remained extremely tender no matter what his mom applied to it. She had been able to stitch up the fracture in his skull, but he still had a lump on his head from where he had been hit.

Despite all this, he got up immediately and went to see where he was, much to his mother's dismay. He found Jouku and Seizu sitting in the kitchen trying to make breakfast. It seemed that his mother hadn't left his side the whole time and that meant that Jouku and Seizu had to try to cook. It wasn't that Saiben's dad couldn't cook; it's just that you'd be crazy to actually eat it. When Saiben stumbled into the kitchen Seizu actually broke down and started crying on the floor. It was a thoroughly disturbing thing to see. If you were to see her at any other time, you would assume she was as tough as nails. To see her break down made Saiben realize that he had let his eyes judge her before anything else.

Saiben's mother went over to console her while Jouku came over to talk to Saiben, "She's like that because of you, you know. She blames herself for distracting you during the fight. Normally I don't think this would happen, but she thinks she's responsible for you somehow."

"I sort of figured. Her comment really did throw me for a loop though."

"What did she say to you?"

Saiben rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment, "I didn't notice I was fighting a bunch of girls."

"They pressed you hard enough that it shut off the mind set and you went back to being your ignorant self huh?"

"Essentially, though you could be a bit nicer."

"Sorry, but things haven' gotten any better since yesterday. The city is still in turmoil and so far, it looks like Fallen Fire still controls of it which is really grating on the nerves."

"Looks like I am leaving the country then."

"When did the mind set come back on?" Saiben just gave him a smile and then turned to leave.

"Where do you think you're going? You won't be able to do anything with the state you're in!"

"Look, practically the whole city is after me! They obviously have the Fire Lord or else things would be fixed by now. The only option is for me to get the Fire Lord out of the country as well as myself so we can get some international help and retake our country!"

"Yeah, a fifteen year old with a fractured skull that's easy to spot is going to be able to walk right into the palace and ask where the mean men are holding the Fire Lord!" Jouku was trying to get under Saiben's skin so he gave the whole statement the feel of talking to a toddler.

"I can use the tunnels to get in; they'll never know I'm there until it's too late!"

Jouku' plan had worked: what had gone unsaid between them had just been thrown into the open for everyone to hear, "Yeah, and I'm actually going to tell you where they are."

Seizu had recovered by the time Saiben's outburst was over and tried to reason with him, "Do you honestly think that those were the only psychopathic fighters they had? Their bound to have more and..." she drifted off as she realized that Saiben might be able to handle them if she hadn't slipped up and that just started making her cry again.

Jouku decided to step in where she had left off, "You won't be able to do much on your own. If there are more of us then we have a much higher chance of finding him and getting out alive. Besides, we got reported anyway, so we're wanted now too."

Saiben heaved a sigh, "You're going to tail me if I go alone anyway so come if you want. I honestly don't see why you'd take yourself out of hiding and throw yourself into danger."

"The same reason you are." was the response Jouku gave.

Saiben was forced to stop again to reason with his parents as they had both gotten up to go with him, "There is no way you're coming with me. Dad, you're not a bender and haven't trained for fighting or anything like that. Mom, you never really learned how to bend. Go get Stendra and hide at grandpa's cottage."

"Why do you want us to get your sister?" He could tell his mother was getting near crying.

"I don't want them hanging anything over my head." It was obvious he meant a hostage and they all knew it. His mom nodded dejectedly and sat back down along with Saiben's father.

Saiben, Seizu, and Jouku left through the side door, using any shadows they could until they got back to the road. Once they started towards the palace Jouku darted into a store and came back out with a mask that you would wear during the Fire Festival. He handed it back to Saiben who grimaced as he put it on. He honestly didn't know why he was wearing the mask. It just made him stick out more. Even if the Fire Festival was only a week away, it was still weird to be wearing a mask this early.

He wore it anyway and they continued towards that palace. They walked for a good ten minutes then Jouku turned onto a street that almost went back the way they had come. A few more steps down this street and Jouku stopped on a one of the may stone slabs that made up the road. He directed Saiben and Seizu to stand where he was then he left and came back rolling a garbage can full of stones, then another and another. On the fourth one, the grounded shifted and Saiben and Seizu dropped down in a tunnel that was only a couple feet below the road. The door was just a lever so all you needed was enough weight to move it. Jouku dropped down after and helped Saiben pick up one of the cans and heave it back out onto the road. With the extra weight gone the door closed again and a fire flared to life in Saiben's hand.

They walked for what seemed like an eternity until the tunnel came to an abrupt end. Jouku walked forward and shot a little dart of fire into a barely visible crack in the wall. A few seconds later and the wall whispered open. It was just as dark in the new room as it had been in the tunnel.

When they entered the next room Jouku started to speak, "You know this might not be such a good idea. We're not even sure if they're keeping the Fire Lord here. They could have moved him."

Saiben stopped and tried to reason with him which he didn't want to, they were wasting time, "No they would need him here to act as the figure head. He's still here."

"They're bound to be guarding him, and with the prize that big there's definitely going to be a lot of people so we probably won't be able to get to him anyways."

"Look, if you're having second thoughts you can go back, I'm not." Saiben stated with finality. Although Jouku didn't turn back he became more nervous with a worried expression forming on his face which rivalled Saiben's mom. When they reached the next door Jouku became calm again and opened the door the same way he had the last one. When they walked into the next room something came down from out of the blackness and Saiben knew no more.

AN: Oh no, a cliff hanger! Ha-ha I'm evil! Sorry, but I couldn't help it. If you've ever written a story, you might get the same kick as I do when I do this. Yes it's maniacal, but hey, I restrict myself don't I? Anyway, please R&R.