Chapter 25

Carrying Aang over her good shoulder, Azula had backtracked out of the spirit oasis and once again moved along the outskirts of the city to avoid detection. Fortunately, he wasn't particularly heavy, enabling her to keep a decent pace. She figured it would take her a solid hour to make it to the port. She could already make out the sounds of fireballs smashing against the fortress walls, knowing the battle was in full swing.

After having put some distance between herself and the spirit oasis, Azula placed Aang on the ground, laying him on his stomach. His tattoos were still glowing, indicating his deep meditative state. She had no idea how much longer he would stay that way and didn't want to take any chances with the boy.

Opening her pack, she took out a coil of rope and a long strip of cloth. Pulling Aang's arms behind him, she first tied his wrists together, then did the same with his ankles. Next, she wrapped the rope around his body, pinning his arms to his sides. Knowing that he still had the ability to airbend using his breath, she then took the strip of cloth and gagged the airbender with it.

Quickly checking over the ropes to make sure they were secure, Azula then lifted Aang back up onto her shoulder and started moving once more.

Katara knelt next to the pool where Aang had last been before Azula had taken him. She felt guilty about letting the firebender get away with her friend. Tears filled her eyes as she spoke. "I can't believe I lost him."

"You did everything you could," Sokka said in an effort to reassure her. "And now we need to do everything we can to get him back."

The young warrior turned from his sister to help Yue up onto Appa. Katara turned to look at her brother, who glanced back at her.

"Azula can't have gotten far. We'll find her. Aang's gonna be fine," he said confidently.

Katara stood up, knowing that her brother was right. "Okay."

Momo was sitting, looking out over the pond. Katara looked down at him and said, "It's alright. You stay here, Momo—in case Aang comes back."

He chittered sadly in response.

Katara then climbed atop Appa, where Sokka and Yue were waiting.

"Yip! Yip!" Sokka called out to the bison, and Appa launched himself up into the sky and out of the spirit oasis. To the north, the trio saw the dark gray clouds of a blizzard.

"Do you think Azula would have taken Aang into that?" Katara asked Sokka.

"Not unless she absolutely had to," he reasoned. "No, she must be looking for a way out of the North Pole. The only way is by boat. We just need to figure out which one," he finished. Considering how many Fire Navy ships were in these waters, Sokka knew it wouldn't be an easy task.

Azula continued to carry Aang just outside the city, careful to avoid detection. She climbed up a ridge, knowing that just beyond it lay the Water Tribe port and her escape from the North Pole. Suddenly, the sound of a nearby explosion could be heard, and the ground Azula stood on shook.

Furrowing her brow, she quickened her pace a bit. As she reached the top of the ridge, the port came into view as another explosion went off. In the port waters, she could see one of the Water Tribe warships in flames. Fireballs from a fleet of Fire Nation warships pounded against the remnants of the barrier, allowing the Fire Navy access to the port.

Azula recognized the head ship almost immediately. "Zhao," she said under her breath, her voice filled with disgust and frustration. "Now how am I going to get out of here?"

Zhao barked out orders from his place of command on the foredeck of his ship, which had sliced through the ice barrier.

"Take out all of these ships! Every last one has to be destroyed! The only way these Water Tribe savages are leaving their home is in chains!"

His destruction of the ships ensured that not only would the Water Tribe be unable to fight back on the ocean waters, but they wouldn't even be able to escape once the next phase of the invasion was implemented.

As he watched yet another ship go up in flames, Zhao's eyes caught movement up on the ridge. Grabbing his spy glass, he put it up to his eyes to get a better look.

"Princess Azula. What are you doing out here? And you have someone with you—the Avatar." A cold smile came to his face as thoughts of revenge danced in his head.

He brought his spyglass down as he saw Azula begin to backtrack. There wasn't a moment to lose. "Lieutenant," he said to the man beside him. "Finish the order. I have some unfinished business to attend to."

"Admiral, are you sure that's wise? Prince Zuko expects you to be on hand for the next phase."

"That won't happen until twilight. There's plenty of time before then."

"But, sir, last time you fought her—"

"Did I ask you for your opinion?" Zhao shouted, cutting the other man off. "I am your commanding officer. Do as I say and follow your orders. Finish carrying out this phase, or else."

The admiral's face was hard, and the lieutenant gulped. "Yes, sir."

"Good." His expression didn't soften any. Moments later he was off his ship and giving chase to the girl who scarred his face.

Aang had made it into the Spirit World, and found himself in an ethereal swamp. After some unsuccessful attempts to find out where the Moon and Ocean spirits were from various beings in the Spirit World, the boy spotted Avatar Roku in his reflection in the swamp water.

"Hello, Aang," Roku said.

"Roku!" Aang replied, delighted to have come across him. Perhaps he could help. "Roku, the Water Tribe is under attack. I need to find the Ocean and Moon spirits."

The reflection of Roku began to solidify then, and the man soon stood before Aang.

"The Ocean and the Moon are ancient spirits. They crossed over from the Spirit World to the Mortal World very near the beginning. There is only one spirit I know of who is old enough to remember."

"Who?"

"The spirit's name is Koh. But he is very dangerous. They call him the Face Stealer."

This information left Aang looking shocked and frightened.

"When you speak with him," Roku continued, "you must be very careful to show no emotion at all—not the slightest expression—or he will steal your face!"

Aang forced the fear from his face and nodded to Roku stoically.

Azula cursed under her breath as she moved through the snowy banks of the frozen tundra. She could see a blizzard in the distance moving closer to her. "Where am I going to go now?" she thought, slowing her steps. She contemplated going back to the citadel, but the battle was in full swing, so it wouldn't be the most prudent of moves.

Suddenly, her eyes widened as she sensed movement behind her. Dropping Aang onto the snow covered ground, she whirled around just in time to see a fireball coming directly at her face. Acting on instinct, she created a flame with her left fist and brought it in front of her face just in time to absorb the attack.

She heard the unmistakable growl of Zhao as she was met with an onslaught of fireballs. Dropping her body to the ground and ignoring the pain that shot through her right arm at the impact, Azula swept her right leg out, sending out a horizontal arc of blue flames at the man's legs. On the snowy surface, his footing was weakened. Unable to avoid the princess's flames, he was knocked onto his backside.

Azula pushed herself back up, and was immediately on the offensive. She lashed out an the admiral with a fire whip, but he rolled out of the way and propelled himself up to his feet. His golden eyes were filled with anger as he glared at her, and she matched his glare with one of her own.

Fire danced at their fingertips as they charged at one another.

Ty Lee cartwheeled across the plaza, narrowly dodging a water whip aimed at her and moving closer to the waterbender who wielded it. With two quick strikes to his side, Ty Lee felled the man. She looked up to see ice daggers flying toward her. Her gray eyes widening, she propelled herself up into the air with her powerful legs. One of the daggers caught on her pants, ripping the material.

As she came back down, she saw one of Zuko's Imperial Firebenders blast the man who had thrown the deadly icicles. "That was close," she thought with some relief. But it was brief.

A group of four warriors charged her then, spears drawn. Leaping forward, she ran up along one of the men's spears and flipped behind him. Before he had a chance to even register where the girl was, he felt three jabs in his back and was down. A determined grin came to her face, as she easily dispatched the other three men.

"That's at least twenty guys I've taken down so far. The firebenders and soldiers are doing good too. I hope we can do enough to convince Zuko he doesn't need to harm the spirits."

The acrobat furrowed her brow in concentration, as she sized up her next opponent.

Aang descended the staircase to Koh's lair beneath a large tree, which was shrouded in darkness. There was no ceiling, only roots above, allowing a few trickles of light to pour, so the boy was able make out where he was going.

"Hello?" he called out. "I'm looking for a spirit named Koh."

The roots above him began to move. Sensing the movement, Aang looked around, but saw nothing. A moment later a white face appeared before him with grey patches around its eyes and luscious, blood red lips, which smile at him. He could see that the face was attached to a huge centipede like body, which arced around him.

Prepared to face this spirit, Aang kept his face emotionless.

"Welcome!" Koh greeted him.

"Thank you," Aang said as he clasped his hands together and bowed.

"My old friend, the Avatar. It's been a long time." His voice was low and soothing, yet carried a hint of danger.

"You know me?"

"How could I forget you!" he replied, changing his face to that of a middle-aged mustached man. "One of your previous incarnations tried to slay me!" he accused, getting up in Aang's face. "It was eight or nine hundred years ago."

"I didn't know that. Why did he—or I—try to kill you?" Aang asked, keeping his face passive.

"Oh..."His face changed to that of a beautiful, flowing haired young woman. "It was something about stealing the face of someone you loved." His face then changed to a curly tailed blue nose as Koh laughed. "Of course, that's all behind us. Why should I hold a grudge against you for something in a past life? After all, you're a different person now." The spirit slithered around Aang, coming up behind him and speaking into his ear, "You've come to me with a new face."

Zhao's attacks came in rapid succession, alternating between fireballs and streams of fire. Azula quickly found herself on the defensive, and it was all she could do to simply block or absorb the attacks, let alone manage a hit on the admiral. Due to the terrain, some maneuvers, such as fire waves, were ineffective. And frankly, Azula was tiring. She hadn't been one hundred percent when she had gotten to the North Pole, and after her earlier battle with Katara and carrying Aang for well over an hour, she wasn't long for this fight.

The snow around the two firebenders was melting from the heat of their flames, creating slush and an even more difficult terrain on which to fight. Zhao's feet slid as he tried to establish stronger footing to get off his next attack. Azula took the opportunity to let loose a charged blast. The admiral threw up a shield of fire, and quickly followed with a firebomb.

Too slow to block the attack, it hit Azula square in the chest, knocking her back into the slush, soaking her clothes and sending a chill through her body. Having finally gained the upper hand, Zhao pounced on the fallen princess, straddling her waist and grabbing onto her wrists.

"You'll pay for scarring me and for spurning my generosity," Zhao said as he wrenched Azula's arms over her head, causing the girl to cry out in pain. She grit her teeth in an attempt to stifle her pained yell, and her eyes flashed with anger.

Before she could retort with words or fire, the admiral shifted his body, pressing one knee down into her stomach. Azula's eyes widened as she gasped for air. Using one of his large hands to hold onto both of her wrists, his brought the other along her side. Something akin to panic began to well up inside the princess.

She felt heat in his hands began to increase as he leaned in closely, forcing her to look at the ugly, newly forming scar on the man's face. "Let's see you try to breathe fire now," he whispered cruelly as he pressed his knee deeper.