A/N: Welcome back everyone.
I want you to know that this chapter and the previous one used to be a single chapter. But at more than 21 thousand (21,000) words it was just huuuuge and I honestly didn't want to publish a monster like that. Now it's a comfortable ~11k words per chapter.
Sorry for the delay, there has been a detail which I didn't like but also couldn't fix. It should be ok now. I hope.
Hope you enjoy part two:
-/-
the next day:
It was time. Time to face Kuei and ask some uncomfortable questions. Aang was drumming his fingers on the table in front of him, waiting for everyone to get ready. The group currently staying at the Jasmine Dragon would have breakfast together, before heading out to the palace and confront Kuei. The Avatar was sitting at the large table, which consisted of three other tables pushed together, and waited. He wasn't alone, Azula kept him company, keeping a watchful eye on him. She could tell how nervous he was and she was absolutely right. Aang was more than nervous and had been so for quite some time now. He did sleep surprisingly good, though. Somehow Aang thought he wouldn't close an eye. Yet he still was nervous now. A part of him died to learn what Kuei's reason for all this was, another part didn't want to know at all. He just hoped the evacuation went smoothly. By now the airbenders should be at the western airtemple for sure.
"Relax" Azula said, sitting down next to him and capturing his hands in hers. As usual, her touch was warm and caring, whereas his hands were almost ice. "You cold?" she asked with a breath.
Aang just nodded. It was a warm day again, yet he still didn't feel warm at all. Azula smiled faintly, heating her hands up a little, to warm him up.
He laughed, remembering something very pleasant "I used to do that, remember?" he asked, his mind floating back to the not too distant past.
"Yes, whenever I was cold, when we travelled on Appa." she replied, joining his laughter for a moment. "You know, I always lied to you when you asked why I didn't warm myself" she admitted.
Aang laughed even louder "And you thought I didn't know that?" he beamed at her.
"Wait, you knew!?" Azula gasped in playful surprise, letting go of Aang's hands. He quickly caught hers out of the air and reversed the position, this time taking her hands into his.
"Of course I knew. You aren't afraid of heights, silly. You liked me warming you up" he smiled at her.
"I hate you" Azula pouted. Aang naturally didn't believe that a second. He leaned in and kissed is wife. Softly at first, but with growing passion, before he wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her out of her chair and on to his lap. Her hands brushed over the smooth skin on the back of his head, as she pressed him closer. She was just about to slip a hand under his robes, when.
"would you stop biting each other? There are minors watching" Mai said, her voice gloomy as usual, as she walked past the couple making out passionately. The assassin was carrying her adoptive son, who was snoozing peacefully, she slightly shifted his position, carefully not to wake him up, before she sat down on the far corner of the same table the married couple was sitting at. Azula reluctantly broke away from Aang with an unsatisfied moan, checking who was watching, as she returned to her chair.
Well, there were only three minors here who could have been peeking and all of them did. Kiyi was rolling her eyes, leading Jin and Johanna, who was allowed to stay for the night, because it got late the day before, into the room and seated them on the same table of Azula and Aang. They were going to have breakfast like everyone else.
"You ok, Jin?" Azula asked, as the airbender sat down next to her. She did look gorgeous in that black and white outfit. It seemed to give her a little bit more confidence as well. The black leather jacket also was a nice extra.
"I am" Jin answered with a cautious smile. "He really isn't forcing you to do that?" she asked, completely out of context. Azula blinked for a second, not immediately understanding what Jin meant. She realized a moment later, that Jin was referring to her kissing Aang, but was only partly correct. Jin referred to something else as well, but the princess didn't know that. Azula half laughed, half giggled.
"No, of course he isn't. Trust me, if he was, he wouldn't be sitting here now." she said dramatically. Aang joined the playful mood.
"That's right. You'd need a broom to sweep up what's left of me." Aang wisecracked, smiling widely.
Johanna was observing the scene silently. That must have been, what family was supposed to be. She would never know, her parents died at a very young age and Johanna had been taking care of herself ever since. Almost no one knew about that. She was a little jealous of Kiyi and also of Jin, that the two got to live in such a warm and caring, big family. Sure, Jin wasn't here for long, but Azula had a very large, very protective wing spread over the young airbender.
She was beginning to wonder, if spending time with Jin was good for Johanna's health, because she was positive that Azula would make true on her threat and kill her if she'd hurt Jin.
On the other hand, Jin was a very sweet girl. Broken to a point where her soul was hardly human, but Johanna didn't mind. It was the way Jin seemed to want nothing more than not being alone on the one hand and feel save on the other. She was unable to stay alone for more than a half an hour and got really uneasy whenever that was the case. It was the way, in which the white-haired girl always had to hold on to some other girl in order to feel at ease. The way she asked shockingly twisted questions. All those things were weird at first. But as soon as Azula had told Johanna what happened to Jin, the redhead understood. Suddenly it all made sense and suddenly there was this overwhelming need to protect Jin, to be nothing but good to her. It was both heart-warming and breaking, how Jin acted. She was so shy, almost anxious to do the things she apparently needed to do.
Tonight was the perfect example to Johanna. She couldn't sleep, so it wasn't a problem that someone had knocked on her door in the middle of the night. The redhead wrapped her thin blanket around her naked body and went to open the door. She couldn't even ask who it had been, before someone already had hugged herself close to Johanna. She immediately knew it was Jin and was rather surprised.
"Jin, what are you doing here?" she whispered and the airbender just whimpered.
"I'm scared. Azula has a customer. I'm scared" she answered feebly. Johanna needed a second or two, to connect the dots, before it clicked. Yes, of course. Jin used to be a sex-slave (the mere thought made Johanna want to vomit), she wasn't used to consensual intercourse. Aang and Azula were obviously having some fun in the sheets and Jin was unable to understand what was going on. She tried to make sense of it using the terminology she knew and understood. This lead to the assumption that Azula had a customer, who in reality was her husband. Realizing how horribly skewed Jin's perception of things was, was indeed painful. The poor thing would need quite some time to be able to live a normal life. If she'd ever be able to do so.
"Shhh" Johanna said, wondering why Jin came to her instead of Kiyi. But she also had no idea what Kiyi had been up to, she had said something about wanting to talk to her brother about something, before going to bed. Maybe their discussion had still been going on? Johanna didn't know at the time. "It's alright. Don't worry, you aren't alone." she considered explaining that the princess and the avatar were just having fun and they didn't do anything Azula didn't want to do, but Johanna felt like it wasn't her place to say that. She didn't know the princess at all and felt like it would be inappropriate for her to say such a thing. "Do you want to come in?" Johanna asked instead and felt Jin's nod through the blanket.
"Alright, come in, honey" Johanna let the airbender in and closed her door again.
An hour later she had been lying on her bed again, Jin was cuddled up to her side, snuggling close and resting her head on Johanna's busty chest. It did feel really weird to Johanna, who had been still naked under the blanked, but she reasoned that it was no problem, since Jin had been above the blanket and still fully clothed.
"...Johanna?..." Kiyi asked, but the addressed girl didn't react, she was still thinking back to the night.
Awaking this morning had been another affair entirely. The blanket had somehow bid its goodbye at some point along the night, and Jin had now been cuddling with a completely naked Johanna. Luckily the latter woke up way earlier than the former, so she had been able to quickly get dressed before Jin noticed anything.
"...Johanna?" Kiyi asked again, this time bringing Johanna back to reality.
"Mh? Sorry, I kind of zoned out for a moment" she said, shaking her thoughts off "You were saying?"
Kiyi hid a small giggle. "Ty Lee asked what tea you prefer?" she asked. Johanna looked up and realized a beautiful young woman was standing in the kitchen looking out with a amused smile, clearly waiting for Johanna. Her face turned the color of her hair. "Sorry!" she squealed "Anything is fine, really, whatever you have"
Kiyi shook her head "She takes black tea with milk" the firebender answered for Johanna.
"You remembered my first order here?" Johanna blinked.
Azula shook her head, also amused "of course she did. She has my memory. We forget nothing, don't we?"
"Not a thing!" Kiyi confirmed, giving her sister a high five across the table, which was slowly filling itself with more and more people. Ty Lee had brought the tea and sat down with Mai, before Toph was coming in, followed by warden Molt.
"Morning, losers" Toph let herself fall on a chair, Molt seated himself to her side. Azula observed Jin's reaction carefully, but she didn't react at all. What Azula couldn't know was, that Jin had no idea who Molt was. He never visited the brothel and Jin was never allowed to leave it. The two of them never crossed paths before today.
"I have to say, your prisoner isn't a half bad person, crazy-queen. You can actually talk to the guy. Even has some humor" Toph announced, typically for her rather bluntly and not caring about politeness.
"Well, I honestly didn't bring him because I was lonely, Toph." Azula replied dryly.
"Nah, I know. You have Twinkletoes to take care of that" she shrugged, causing Johanna to nearly spit out her tea though her nose.
"Oi, new girl. Noses are for air-intake. Not liquid outlet" Toph said without even looking up from her breakfast.
Azula rolled her eyes "Don't mind her, Johanna. The dirt-ball over there is called Toph. She is rude, ill-mannered and has problems with behavior. Ever had. Ever will. Pay her no mind"
Yet again the door opened. "For the task at hand everyone surely is in a good mood." Zuko said from the door as he walked over to the table and fell into a chair at the head of the table. He looked really beaten up, had dark circles around his eyes -at least the one without a scar- and his hair was a mess.
"Zuzu, you look like shit" Azula said.
"Tell me more about it" Zuko replied reaching for a the pot with black tea and pouring him a cup. He was so tired he didn't notice when the cup was full and kept pouring.
"Want another cup, Zuko?" Aang asked, bending the extra tea back into the pot, while Zuko kept pouring.
"Shit..." Zuko muttered, setting the pot down immediately "Thank you"
"What in the spirits name have you been doing all night?" Mai asked, she was holding her adoptive son in her arms, who was still peacefully sleeping. The baby was just too adorable, never made a ruckus and slept a lot. It was very rare that he cried. In fact he only cried when he wanted to be fed.
"Went over all the documents again and again." Zuko answered, telling only half the truth. While he did do what he said, it was just to use time for something productive. Truth was, Zuko had been up all night, waiting.
"And you have been waiting for a word from Katara" Azula added for her brother. She knew him, he couldn't hide a thing from his hyper observant sister.
Zuko sighed heavily, before nodding slowly "yes. Still no word."
"Come on, Zuko" Ty Lee chirped "She is just busy, I am sure there is a lot to do. You know Katara, she is taking care of everyone, making sure they are all doing alright. Don't you worry, she'll either be back soon, or tell you everything in a mile long letter. You know how she can be; I bet she's just fine!" the acrobat said gleefully.
Zuko nodded again, slurping his tea without setting the cup down. "You're probably right" he said.
-/-
Around the same time Zuko's wife was anything but fine. There was not a single thing she could think of, which would have been anything even close to fine. No, really, the situation was more shit, tending to become catastrophic. And the worst part was, that at first glance, it didn't look so bad at all. But it was.
Katara was sitting in another cell and had no idea where she even was. The location reminded her a lot of the cell she and her friends were tossed into, the first time they visited Omashu. Back in the day King Bumi had them locked up in a rather comfortable holding-place. This place was similar, it had light brown stone walls, a couple of rather comfortable beds, a sitting area with some fruits in a bowl on a table in the middle. It was actually a nice place. That might not have been a bad thing per say and many wouldn't understand why Katara found the situation so horribly. Things were getting better, no? No. This was too nice, too sudden.
Something was up, their captors surely hadn't a change of heart out of nowhere. No, something very bad was going to happen, Katara could almost feel it. Her mind was racing, trying to figure out the reason behind everything. Why were she and P'Li brought here? No one told them anything. They were suddenly picked up from their cell in the airship, got a dark and heavy bag pulled over their heads and were dragged away, just to find themselves in another cell after being tossed around through long corridors.
Katara tried to memorize left and right turns and how many steps she walked, should P'Li and she try to escape, but it was impossible to memorize. The walk was too long and had too many turns, she quickly lost track, yet she didn't give up. It helped her not to fall into blind panic. Katara was scared out of her mind, naturally. She didn't show it, of course, but deep inside herself, she was crying for help. The firelady didn't allow this weakness to show, neither would she give this kind of satisfaction to her captors, nor would she allow herself to break down in front of P'Li, who went through hell for her, without breaking. No, the determined waterbender would stay strong, even if it was the last thing she did.
When their blind walk came to an end, the hoods were pulled off their faces and even before their eyes could adjust to the sudden light, the guards who brought them were already gone.
The new place definitely was in some building of solid structure, but the light was artificial, they could have been underground, they could have been in the 20th story in a windowless room. Katara had no way of knowing. All she knew was that they weren't on an airship anymore. And that there weren't any forgotten corpses around to be seen. Luckily.
Katara could not make any sense of any of this. The sudden change of scenery from dirty, rotten prison cell to almost luxury was too good to be true. Something was up, Katara could tell it and it scared her even further. Something was not right at all. She was on edge the entire time, trying to figure the reason for all this out. She couldn't come up with anything and it made her even more anxious. Her guts told her that this place was somewhere you bring people before you do something horrible to them. Two beautiful girls in a luxurious prison cell had a very disquieting aftertaste. P'Li already had been raped multiple times, there were more beds than necessary and there was no way to run and hide, so a very unsettling conclusion was imposing itself. The mere thought made Katara shiver.
P'Li had been taken away by two female guards for maybe half an hour and when she returned the combustion-bender was freshly showered and wore a simple form fitting green earthkingdom tunic. Katara's dark red robe of the firelady was washed and brought back to her by the same two guards who picked up P'Li. This really did not help Katara to ease her lingering fear of what this place might be used for.
At least P'Li was back now.
"Are you alright?" Katara asked worried, as P'Li sat down on her bed, completely exhausted and at the end of her nerves. She her hands were trembling badly, as she tried to hide it by sitting on her palms.
The combustion-bender nodded. "I'm fine. It's just my nerves, it will go away. There was nothing to be afraid of, Milady. Do not worry about me." P'Li answered with breathy voice, as she tried to regain her composure. She was able to do so in the middle of her answer, where she shortly caught a breath.
"What did they do to you?" Katara wanted to know, P'Li merely shrugged. To be honest, if she'd known what would happen, she wouldn't have been nervous, but the fact that she didn't know made her almost lose her mind. She anticipated an assault basically any second until she was back in the cell.
"Well, they showered me and gave me new clothes." P'Li answered. "Apart from that, they didn't do anything. It was really weird. And... scary" It was scary, no matter how weird that sounded from a warrior like P'Li was. The women who showered her were nice, but that was exactly the scary thing. They were not supposed to be nice, were say? All the alarm bells in P'Li's head told her to be on the watch, which was why the combustion bender was so tense all the time.
"Something is not right" Katara mused.
"Yes, I have the same feeling. That doesn't add up at all. I don't like this, it's like they are waiting for us to let our guard down before they strike" P'Li agreed, she was very observant of the situation. Even though she couldn't pinpoint it, something was a mile off about the whole situation. It almost seemed like everything and everyone tried way too hard to seem friendly and harmless. People usually feel the safest the moment before their deaths. P'Li wouldn't allow herself to feel safe. And she didn't feel safe, not in the slightest. A quick glimpse at Katara told her that this held true for the firelady as well. Deep down below they were both scared to a point of panic, but neither one of them would allow to show it, for the sake of each other. But they both shared the uncomfortable feeling of an invisible string slowly choking them, the effects of adrenaline constantly rushing though their bodies at an increased level. It felt like barbed wire being pulled through their veins.
"Want me to try and bust us out, Milady?" the combustion bender asked, not only to keep the conversation going but also to attempt and change something. They both knew something bad would happen sooner or later, might as well do something about and not take any chances.
Katara considered it for a while, as she was scratching her chin. The room was rather large, maybe it could work.
"You think we'll survive the explosion?"
"I don't have to power the beam up completely" P'Li answered. "We could hide behind a bed or so."
Rock crumbled behind them, followed by steps "I would personally not recommend doing that. The cell is going to collapse and you will be squashed alive. That would massively thwart my plans."
Katara and P'Li spun around, to see who came to pay them a visit. Their eyes fell on a general Katara knew all too well. He walked forward, as the stone door closed itself behind him with an equally crumbling noise.
"Sung!" Katara hissed, her eyes narrowed. "What do you want? What is the meaning of all this?"
General Sung walked up to Katara and P'Li before he bowed politely. "First of all, please excuse the circumstances of our meeting" he said, his voice was calm and pretended to be friendly, but Katara would not buy it for a second. "It is most unfortunate that things went the way they did. There have been some severe misunderstandings along my line of command." Sung oozed charm in a disgusting manner.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Katara asked angrily, crossing her arms over her chest, her right foot tipping the floor repentantly, betraying her nervousness.
Sung gave the two women a supportive smile, while he played with his beard. "I have to apologize for my subordinates, the way they treated you and your companion is not acceptable. They are going to be punished for their actions, rest assured. However..."
"...Yes?" Katara asked demandingly, someone once told her that everything being said before a 'but' was completely worthless. And a 'however' was just a glorified 'but'.
"However, in order for my plans to work I'll unfortunately have to detain you for a little while longer. You two might be a very valuable leverage and as such need to be unharmed. Please keep calm and be patient for a while. I reassure you, that no more harm will come to you and you two are going to be released from custody as soon I see fit."
"And when would that possibly be?" the firelady was feeling like she actually was close to bending fire. Well, it would most likely have been something like explosion-bending, because she was close to doing exactly that. Explode. Sung was such a disgusting sleazeball, he drove the waterbender mad just being near her.
"Once those responsible have been found, brought to justice, faced the full scope of our laws and have been dealt with accordingly, of course" Sung replied with a smug grin. This was his chance to shine. He would clean this mess up nicely and in doing so, he would go a long way.
"What do you mean with that, Sung?!" Katara asked, clearly mad.
"That should be none of your concerns, firelady. All you need to do now, is stay out of the way, while I do my thing. Things are a little vague at the moment, but you will soon understand my actions. At least I hope you will. Maybe you will even appreciate them sooner or later." Sung smiled a creepy smile "Now, please excuse me, I have some very important matters to tend to. Should you need anything, the two lovely ladies you met before will do anything in their power to provide. I hope you have a nice day" Sung bowed out of faked respect, before taking his leave. The stone wall once again made room for Sung to walk through, before sliding back in place.
"That is bad!" Katara breathed, burying her face in her hands, falling down on the bed next to her. "really bad."
P'Li walked over to the firelady, sitting down to her side "He promised not to hurt anyone of us. That's a plus, isn't it?" she didn't claim to have understood anything, which was said. P'Li was a warrior, not a politician and while she wasn't exactly stupid, her intelligence was of a more practical kind. Politics and eloquence was something beyond her grasp.
"No, no it isn't. He is using us, or better me, to blackmail Zuko. I bet on it. He even said it, we are a great leverage. A leverage. We are only save, as long as Zuko plays along with the demands they give him. Kuei surely set that up nicely. Sung is an idiot, he does what he's told. This is horrible" Katara was close to being wasted. "Sure we are safe for now, but the consequences on the world politics with me in their hands... I can't even begin to imagine... Oh, Zuko..."
"So firelord Zuko will do what they ask him to?" P'Li asked.
"No!" Katara yelped in despair "I hope not. I pray that he won't. He is the firelord. He shouldn't give in to what the person Zuko wants. I have tried so long to make that clear to him. His position demands decisions, which are against his own convictions. I really hope he does, what must be done. Even if it means our demise. But he cannot lose the great scheme of things out of his eyes. I am afraid, us being caught might have been the single one thing bringing us to another war. I know my husband. He is a hothead. I just hope... I hope..." Katara stopped her rambling and lifted her head up to look at P'Li. "I am sorry I dragged you into this mess. I really am." she sighed guilt-ridden. "Please forgive me." Katara said suddenly realizing that she wasn't the only one caught here. Katara was just the only valuable person, the only one who's physical integrity mattered to their captors, whereas P'Li was... expandable.
The combustion-bender smiled "There is nothing to forgive. I knew what I signed up for. Just in case, I want you to know, that it was an honor serving you, Milady. But I still haven't lost hope. We are not yet done for. There may still be a way out, even if we are unaware of it as of now." the combustion-bender provided.
Katara nodded "You are right" she whispered, before repeating with a much more firm voice: "You are absolutely right"
-/-
later the same day:
King Kuei was in a meeting with his council of five. Those selected five most capable and most trusted generals he had. They all were standing around a large map, while one of the generals was explaining the most likely military and strategic impacts the newly founded republic city would have on the earth-kingdom. The situation wasn't half bad, Kuei was sure he had enough soldiers to keep the united republic at bay, should the need arise.
The firenation was far away and as long as he kept Zuko from asking unpleasant questions, Kuei was sure he could do as he pleased. The only thing he needed to be careful with, was the firelord's crazy sister. Azula wouldn't hesitate to roast Kuei alive for whatever reason she found good enough to do it. And being the Avatar's wife, Kuei knew she could probably pull it off unpunished as well. Hell, she pulled off war crimes of the worst sort without ever being even so much as questioned about it. He had tried his best to get her head for the things she had done (while he didn't care about the things she did as much as he wanted her out of the way, for all the trouble she would cause), but at the end of the day the Avatar-card was unsurpassable. Kuei had to give up on that objective long ago. And it wasn't for a lack of trying to get rid of the red reaper. The earthking even initiated the Omashu-treaties, a huge treaty of human rights, universally signed by all the nations (A/N: imagine the Geneva Convention in the Avatar-world), to have the legal groundwork on which to prosecute her. But even with that huge-ass effort he couldn't reach her. One day the Avatar showed up at his office and almost yelled at Kuei to leave his wife alone. Aang was so outraged on that day, Kuei chose to drop the matter altogether.
Now the earthking had to always work around princess Azula. She was so annoying. Too smart, too good looking, too powerful, too confident and as if that wasn't bad enough, she also had the backing of the Avatar and the firelord. It was just plain annoying. The negotiations about Yu-Dao proved Kuei's case.
He had to admit that his plan to gain control over Yu-Dao backfired massively, which was mostly thanks to the crimson princess. But, at least, the firenation now had just as little control over republic city as he did, so it wasn't a total disaster. Of course, he would have preferred to simply annex Yu-Dao to the earthkingdom. It would have brought some much needed boosts in tax-income as well as prestige. He could have told his people that he prevailed against the firenation once again and was able to free the last colony from the evil firebenders. At least that was the theory. Well, his propaganda- agency would still make the best of the situation. Maybe something along the lines of him giving the colony independence out of the sheer goodness of his divine heart, or some other ridiculous bullshit like that. They were doing a good job, coming up with all those lies which sounded so pleasant. Twisting words was something the propaganda-people were almost godlike at. Kuei was grateful for their work, it made ruling so much easier. Keep the nobles and financial aristocracy happy and feed the plebs pleasant lies. Easy as that.
Kuei didn't pay attention to the general giving his presentation anymore. He was lost in his fantasies of his earthkingdom. Of his empire. One day he'd have it, a beautiful place without any disturbing elements. He'd just lock them all up long enough, until everyone forgets about them. Worked like a charm already.
The king's daydreaming was abruptly cut short, by the door leading into the council-room being burst open. The people walking in were expected by no one. No one other than General Sung.
The eloquent, yet incompetent General had spies watching every move of the firelord, the avatar and the crown princess. He even had someone watch the younger girls who showed up and everyone who was in contact with the main figures. Sung knew, they would come. But he didn't say anything. He twisted the left strand of his moustache to hide a one-sided smirk. He might have been incompetent, but he wasn't stupid. He wasn't good at doing things, which was why he left that to others. He was however good at planning things and also at deciding them. Pulling strings was his field of expertise, along with fancy words. Sung waited and let the scene develop, everything was going according to his plan.
Kuei blinked in confusion as he laid his eyes upon the firelord standing in the room of his council of five, having an angry expression on his face. Zuko was wearing the complete robes of the firelord and made a very impressive appearance. He was accompanied by the Avatar and the crown princess, both of which didn't seem like they came for a pleasant chit-chat either. Especially Aang was pissed off to no end and it showed on his otherwise always happy face. Today he wasn't even the slightest bit of happy. Azula looked dangerous as always and Kuei chose to carefully leave her out of his view. He was still afraid of the princess. Then there was another person, a blind earthbender, who followed the group with a little bit of distance. Kuei didn't know her and she also didn't seem the least bit interested in anything. It wasn't important. What were they doing here?
"Firelord Zuko" Kuei said with a weak smile "What a pleasant surprise. Please excuse the current state of things, we are in the middle of a very important meeting. I'll of course interrupt it for the honor of your presence. I'll have my advisors leave, so we can have some privacy" Kuei said in badly faked humbleness. The generals were beginning to collect their things and about to leave. To Sung's luck Zuko had something different in mind.
The firelord rose his hand "That won't be necessary, King Kuei. If you don't mind, I would like it if they'd stay"
"Why of course" Kuei smiled forcefully, his generals returning to their place on Kuei's command. "Now, what can I do for you, Lord Zuko?" the earthking asked.
"We would like to have your input on something" Azula spoke up, despite not being addressed. She walked up to the table and scared a guard, who was trying to stop her, away with nothing more than a stare. She placed a stack of folders on the table, with scrupulous focus on the edges being perfectly aligned. "If you could distribute these" she said to the first general, who nodded and passed out the folders. The first generals opened the maps and began to read. Aang could exactly see who was already reading, the fading color of the faces was a good indicator.
Kuei was still smiling as fake as it got, as the last folder reached him. He picked up what was given to him and opened the first page. His faked smile dropped immediately.
"King Kuei, what is the meaning of this?" A general harshly stood up and slammed his fist on the table "This is outrageous!"
Kuei laughed a bitter laugh "Now, now, general. I am sure you do not believe everything, which is written on some paper. I can make up a whole array of lies reaching various degrees of impudence" he shrugged, stupid enough to not even deny.
Azula laughed loudly at that, while she held Aang back with a soft touch. She could feel his fury boiling inside of her own body, which was very unsettling. She'd do the talking, to spare him the torture of not yelling at Kuei.
"There is no need to deny this." The princess announced. "We have already taken care of the airbenders in your secret prison. We also have the warden of the facility and already asked him some questions. Molt confirmed that you were the person issuing the orders here. The only thing we are here for is to ask for a reason, before we demand justice." Azula smirked her evil smirk of doom, she saw how Kuei massively lost the support of his generals, who all let the documents sink to the table in front of them. They all stared at him in disbelieve. "Besides there are more than four hundred airbenders currently at a safe location, who will all tell you the same story. Generals, what you read in these document is nothing but the truth."
Kuei broke out in a cold sweat, beads of perspiration were showing on his face. His hands started trembling and he suddenly had trouble breathing. This was not happening! How did they find out about this?! How was this possible!? It was his biggest secret! The first step to his ideal world, the first step into a better future!
His hands weren't able to hold the folder anymore, the earthking let it slide out of his hand and fall to the floor, the enclosed documents slipped out and flattered around over the floor, slowly sinking to the ground.
"This is top secret information, princess" Kuei stated with a stare fixed on nothing. His eyes lost focus, the weight of his generals gazes was wearing him down. As usual when princess Azula was around he felt stupid. He couldn't come up with a single thing to say, in order to cheat the gallows.
"This is a violation of the Omashu-treaties signed by all four nations after the war" Zuko roared. "Are you out of your fucking mind Kuei?! What were you thinking locking up an entire population of airbenders in a prison? Were you even thinking at all? This is unforgivable, it is outrageous. There is no way I will let this slide without any consequences for you. I demand you immediately abdicate, before a thorough investigation as a joint effort of all four nations, and yes I include the airnation now, takes place."
"That is ridiculous!" Kuei yelled "I am the earthking!"
"Whoever has to say he is king to justify his actions, is no king." Azula hissed, she couldn't stand hearing phrases like these, for the simple reason that it reminded her too much of Ozai. "My father would have said things like that, before he committed the cruelest of crimes. Being king is no excuse for being a crazy bastard, Kuei"
Aang seemed to have gotten to a point, where he found himself capable of speaking, without yelling. He gave his wife a reassuring squeeze of her hand, before he spoke up.
"I have been in Ku-Roah, earthking. I have been in your secret prison. I have brought my people out of that hell you put them through" Aang spoke slowly, his voice low and a lingering danger hidden underneath it. "Just answer me this: Why did you do it? Why did you put them through that?" he asked seriously.
"You seriously don't understand it?!" Kuei laughed like a madman, throwing his head back into his neck. If the situation wouldn't have been so serious, it could have been funny. "Why? Why you ask? Why not? They were living from the pocket of the earthkingdom for far too long." Kuei was making wild gestures with his hands, laughing while he was speaking. "It was time to take something back, of course! If I had released them, they would have taken off to their precious airtemples and no one would have ever seen them again. Their temples are on earthkingdom territory for the most part, that makes them my property! And even though they would have lived on my land, eating my food, and living in my property, they wouldn't have paid any taxes now, would they? They would have been of no use to no one but themselves." Kuei rose a dramatic finger "But" he began theatrically "as long as they were locked up, they were beneficial for the earthkingdom. We learned so much from the experiments!" Kuei was positively rambling. No one knew if he just lost his mind or if it was his actual reason. He would have been stupid enough for both.
Aang was boiling with anger, close to losing his shit and would have very much liked to just finish Kuei off. Luckily Azula softly touched his hand, reminding him where and who he was. Aang was the Avatar. Everything he stood for was balance and justice. Murdering Kuei right here in cold blooded revenge and hate would have been wrong. Aang never killed for his own, personal gain or sake. In fact he had only taken the live of one person, General Fong to be precise, and the avatar took his life only for Azula's sake. For all the bestialities that monster did to his then girlfriend.
This would have been different. He would have done this way too much because of himself than for his people. Those who directly affected them were already taken care of by Azula. Killing Kuei now would only have satisfied Aang's momentary bloodthirst.
Kuei was still rambling, causing everyone in attendance to shake their heads in disbelieve. He was insane. Positively insane not just crazy or mad, no this man was completely wacko. No idea when or how that happened. Maybe he couldn't handle his power, once he actually got to decide things after he was re-established after Azula relinquished control over the earthkingdom. Maybe he had never been stable and his servants just did a good job at hiding it. Whatever it was, having to hear his cruel and almost racist fantasies was horrible for everyone.
They all were so distracted by Kuei's less and less logical 'reasoning' that no one noticed the black clad shadow swinging from one of the huge gray stone pillars forming the window- line inside the large council-room. Even though it was broad daylight, the shadow was able to move completely unseen and without making a single noise. Only Toph could have sworn, that, for a swift moment, there was some movement in the direction of the giant pillars, but then it was gone again.
She shrugged it off as imagination.
"You can't rebuild a nation with a couple of hundred weak individuals anyway!" He laughed even more "Just think about all the inbreeding! You would generate a nation of retards! The airbenders are extinct anyway, might as well use what's left of them for the greater good! Medical advancements were made, breakthroughs in psychology and sociology were achieved. It was for the good of all! My ancestors were just too stupid to realize the potential! They thought it was alright to hide these subjects from the firenation. But they were blind and both unable and unwilling to do what it took. We are almost at a point where we can uncover the secret behind bending! We can-"
Kuei stopped, halted by a strange noise. He did feel kind of weird all of a sudden. Looking at the guests, who all had their mouths wide open, he knew something wasn't right. Aang had to blink, not sure if he saw reality.
It happened so fast, he couldn't react, even if he wanted to. There was the sound of a single footstep, followed by a sword being drawn out of its sheath.
From one strangely silent moment to the next an enormous blade pierced through Kuei's chest from behind, precisely at the spot where his heart was. A loud splashing sound echoed through the council-room.
The earthking looked down on him and saw the huge weapon sticking through him. Before he could say or do anything, the blade was turned around about ninety degrees clockwise, while still inside Kuei, causing him to cough up blood, before the blade was roughly withdrawn. A fountain of dark blood spluttered out of the earthking and on to the map-table in front of him, before he sank to the ground, obviously dead. His eyes were twisted and his mouth open wide.
Standing right behind the earthking and only now, that Kuei had sunken to the floor, appearing in everyone's field of view, was a figure clad in black. Aang had regained enough of his senses to recognize those emerald eyes. Yet again it was the only visible trait, the rest of the face was hidden behind a balaclava. There was little doubt who the attacker was. It had to be the assassin Aang had met a couple of times already. Those eyes of hers were a dead giveaway.
She was wielding her enormous bidenhänder, which was almost as large as she was herself. With a precise movement she rid her weapon from blood, splashing it to the side, before the elegantly let the huge weapon glide back in its scabbard.
The silence filling the council-room was heavy, almost unbearable. The five generals in attendance were staring at the assassin like they just found god. The firelord was staring. As did the Avatar and his wife. Toph didn't stare, she didn't know where to look. That assassin was not there, she couldn't even feel a heartbeat.
What the hell was going on here? Aang had prepared for a lengthy trial, for long struggling, a magnitude of legal affairs and all those things. He had not expected someone to assassinate the earthking today of all the days.
It was Sung who spoke up first, walking up to the assassin. "Gentleman" he began "Ladies" he acknowledged Azula and Toph. "I am terribly sorry to inform you, that last night our beloved earthking passed away in his sleep, because of a highly sudden, very much unforeseeable and sadly rather severe fever. In those dark hours for our nation it is very important that we remember our friends and allies, while we stand together as one. The death of the 52nd earthking Kuei is shocking and tragic, but his life will be remembered." Sung sighed dramatically, he had considered saying that Kuei would live on in their hearts, but that would have been too much. "I am very sorry to inform you that, due to his sudden passing, he obviously cannot welcome you personally today." Sung had a smug grin on his face as he continued, his voice partly dripping with irony "May I ask you to postpone any possible inquires, you might had come here for, to a later point in time? We all are in deep shock about the tragic loss of our beloved leader, but I am sure we will try our best to answer all the questions you might have in the future. However, in light of the most recent affairs and seeing things from a more global point of view I would suggest that digging in the past surely helps no one. Let us remember our earthking the way we knew him, as a kind and friendly king, one of the few earthkings caring for his people. May he never be forgotten, and may the government following his sudden passing never be held responsible for his possible wrongdoings." Sung had now reached the assassin and passed her a large bag of money.
"Your contract is fulfilled. I thank you for your service." Sung said. The assassin nodded, but before she was gone, she turned to Aang and Azula
"It was a pleasure seeing you again Avatar" she bowed slightly "Princess. You have my card. I really hope this was for the better" she said and did sound relieved, then she was gone just as fast as she appeared.
Sung turned back to the audience, continuing with his hidden proposal. Words were a wonderful thing, weren't they? He could tell a fake story in front of everyone and all the relevant people would be here to hear it on the one side and could on the other side hopefully agree to it. This way, this gigantic mess would be covert up neatly, there wouldn't be war, there wouldn't be a public scandal and everything would be just fine. Well, at least that was the plan. Sung would see how it turned out. He still had the firelady and her bodyguard as a last resort, should things go terribly wrong. He just hoped that Zuko would play along, so the general wouldn't have to use his leverage.
"As I am sure you all know, King Kuei did not have an heir. As such it is common for the next earthking to be elected amongst the council of five. I would like to take this opportunity and announce my candidacy" Sung revealed.
"Also I hope to see our dear visitors at the earthking's funeral, just as much as I hope that future relationships between the earthkingdom and the firenation will be as peaceful as they used to be in the last years and I especially hope for a long-lasting, peaceful and profitable relationship with the new air-nation, for the new establishment shall do everything to make your people's life as easy as possible. That is, if this is acceptable for you, Avatar Aang."
The generals in the room were completely dumbstruck. They just stood there and watched, no one even moved an inch. Sung had just gotten rid of the earthking in precisely the moment, when he got unbearable. He offered the firenation to just let things continue the way they were, with peace and prosperity for everyone, while he reassured Aang unconditional support. Oh, yes and he announced to be a candidate for the next earth-king as well. Maybe Sung wasn't as incompetent as he made everyone believe.
"Hang on a moment" Azula spoke up. Was Sung covering up or was he staging a coup when he knew the earthkingdom had lost all his support, doing it in front of the firelord to gain his support? If Sung had planned it this way, the man was a freaking genius."Did you plan that, general Sung?"
The general smiled. "Princess Azula. I have to admit that I always admired the way you handled things. So I might let myself be inspired by your cunning methods. But to answer your question. Yes. Yes, I did plan it this way. I did learn of Kuei's dark deeds about a week ago and was thinking about doing something against it. It was only later that I learned, the firenation was already taking care of things, of which I am, even though the diplomatic chaos we find ourselves in now, very grateful. I figured you would confront Kuei at some point, so all I had to do was to keep an eye on you. And here we are now." he explained.
Azula looked over to Toph, who nodded.
"Complete truth" she said. Spirits, it was the best idea ever for Toph to come along.
"So, general Sung," Aang spoke up, he had regained his ability to speak again, after losing it for more times than he cared counting today. "You want us... me to just forget about the events of Ku-Roah? Of everything which was going on there?" he asked.
"I can relate to your anger, Avatar Aang" Sung said with an understanding nod "Trust me when I say that I did not know about what was going on before recently. I do not approve of the things King Kuei did to your people, as I am sure does no one else on this council." Sung looked at the other generals. They had read the documents and also had heard enough to have an accurate enough picture of what happened, so they murmured in agreement.
"Don't you think, it would be the best way to keep Kuei's face in public, announce the return of the airbenders in a couple of months, after the new government has been established and keep peace and order? Making this mess public will cause nothing short of chaos, possibly even war." Sung said.
"Was that a threat, Sung?" Aang growled, causing Sung to rise his hands in defense
"No, no. Not at all, I might have chosen my words poorly, I apologize. But you surely do see that our current situation is a time-bomb. Handling the matter discretely would be best for all of us. I truly desire nothing but peace. And isn't that what you seek, too? You are the Avatar after all, aren't peace and balance your utmost priorities?"
Aang was quiet for a long moment. That last part Sung said was very much true, but this solution just felt so horrible wrong, so dirty, so very underhand. Azula squeezed his shoulder tightly. "Aang" she whispered "Let it go. It all worked out. Kuei is rotting in hell. Everyone is save. These are basically internal affairs of the earthkingdom now."
"I know" he sighed "I know... It's just..."
"It feels unsatisfactory, am I right?" Azula guessed, Aang just nodded. The princess smiled at her husband "I know what you feel like. It will fade away soon, trust me. I know." Azula referred to the late general Fong. While she was eternally grateful for Aang killing him, part of her always regretted not getting to gut the bastard herself.
Aang nodded again "Alright, general Sung" he said, after taking a deep breath "I'll give your plan one chance in succeeding. One. But know that I will not be this peaceful, should I learn there is more to it than you admit."
"Of course, I appreciate your support, Avatar." Sung nodded. "What about you, Lord Zuko?"
The firelord was considering things in all the time Sung spoke. He was torn between his rational and his emotional self. While his emotional self told him how disgusting Sung was, that he betrayed the king and that it was the work of a coward, his rational side told him that Sung did the only reasonable thing. If Zuko wouldn't play along now, he'd risk a lot. Especially a lot of peace. He didn't want that. It was true, what Azula said. These were internal matters of the earthkingdom, Zuko didn't have to like how they handled things. Sung got rid of the one person responsible for the airbernders suffering. It should have been enough, shouldn't it? Sung even offered a carte blanche for the future government's support. The rest was none of his concern. Well, at least that was, what Zuko's rational half told him. His emotional half hated politics and despised how dirty it was. This felt wrong. But it was the only viable thing to do. Even if it felt so wrong and even if Zuko had a strong desire to set this place to the torch.
Zuko cleared his throat in an indecisive manner. "Well" he began "I am merely a guest at this palace and will not intervene with internal political affairs in other countries. However I do expect the new government to stay true to all the treaties and contracts concerning foreign relations, which were signed by the late earthking."
"Of course" Sung nodded, shifting uncomfortably from one foot to another. He was relieved that Zuko agreed to this procedure. Now, there was something else to clear up. "Now that this is taken care of, there is one more diplomatic incident I have to ask you to oversee. Especially you, Lord Zuko."
"And what would that be?" Zuko asked, raising his only eyebrow. Damn, sometimes he hated politics. Actually he hated it most of the time. It was a dirty business in a golden bowl. Looked nice from the outside, but was completely rotten inside.
"Well..." Sung rubbed over his eyes "You see, in order to verify the vague reports I had on the situation in Ku-Roah, I dispatched a group of my men to take care of things." he began "Unfortunately there was a huge misunderstanding in the chain of command and to my eternal regret my men ended up taking two prisoners." Sung snapped his fingers and a side-door was opened.
Someone was kicking and yelling in the side-corridor leading up to the council-room "Don't you dare to-" a familiar voice screamed angrily. "What the hell is the meaning of all th-" Katara hissed, but suddenly stopped dead in her tracks. This could not be. She was hallucinating. Why was there "Zuko?" she gasped and blinked. "Azula? Aang?" She could not believe her own eyes! Her heart skipped a couple of beats at once, not claiming to understand what was going on, but indefinitely relieved either way. Her husband! Her sister in law and her best friend! She and P'Li were safe now, weren't they?
"Katara?!" everyone called in surprise. The firelady hurried over to her husband, the two female guards accompanying her did nothing to stop her. P'Li kept a short distance to Katara, but she followed the firelady never the less. She couldn't wait to get away from those earthkingdom people as soon as possible.
Sung cleared his throat, very uncomfortable about all this.
"In true regret for the things that happened I humbly return the firelady and her bodyguard into the hands of the firenation. Please rest assured that the people responsible for your treatment have been punished accordingly to the severity of their crimes." Sung said "I hope we can overcome this in favor of ongoing peace."
"You expect me to let all this slide, Sung? Are you out of your mind? Your men raped P'Li!" Katara yelled. The eyes of Zuko narrowed, as did Azula's.
"Did they touch you?" Zuko wanted to know. His voice made unmistakably clear that Katara's answer would most likely decide over peace and total war now. There were only so many things he could overlook on one day and his wife being laid hand on was definitely nothing he could overlook at any day. Not today, not tomorrow. Never. He would start a war over her.
Katara shook her head no "I am unharmed, but only thanks to P'Li."
"General Sung, I am starting to have difficulties in trusting your capabilities" Azula hissed. "And I have serious problems with the rape-tendency in your country."
"He was being honest" Toph interjected, feeling it needed to be said. Sung really was sorry for what happened, apparently it really was miscommunication.
"If I may show you something, Lady Katara? That of course goes to your bodyguard as well" Sung offered. Katara was really mad, how was it that everyone was so forcefully calm?! Her insides were boiling with rage, and she was sure that she wasn't alone. So why was everyone clenching fists and gritting teeth, but not speaking up?
A quick glance at Zuko and his sister gave Katara an answer. There was a lot going on and things were on a make-or-break point. The waterbender might have been mad, she might even have been furious, but she was still very well capable of thinking before doing anything rash. As long as she didn't know what exactly was going on, she wouldn't risk ruining something possibly important. So she decided to play along, at least for now.
"What is it?" she asked.
Sung gestured her to follow him. He walked up to a small, yet double winged door on the side of the council-room, he pulled the two doors open and lead the way out onto a small balcony. The sound of someone hammering nails into something echoed into the room.
"Would you please take a look at that?" he asked and Katara reluctantly followed him out of the council room and onto the balcony. Her slightly annoyed face fell immediately. P'Li also wanted to see what was going on outside, so she followed the firelady's example and walked out of the council-room, keeping an eye on separating Sung and the firelady with her body. Just in case. Once P'Li reached the handrail and looked down to what was to be seen beneath the balcony, she realized that this was the best decision in her life. P'Li suddenly felt like laughing loudly.
"To your information, that is the entire crew of the airship you were being held prisoner on. And of course the sub-commander I dispatched." Sung explained.
Katara wanted to look away, but was unable to. It was like an accident, something you knew you shouldn't stare at, something you didn't even want to look at, but also something you just could not get your eyes off, like they were glued to gruesome scenes. Down below the window was a fairly large inner yard, it held resemblance to a parade ground or something like that.
The floor was made from loose gravel and it wasn't empty.
"You are crucifying them?!" Katara gasped, her gaze wandered over all the wooden crosses spread over the parade ground. Some were already erect in a meticulously exact distance to another, with half naked soldiers nailed to it. Other crosses were lying on the ground, the death-row inmates were forced onto the cross by three soldiers, another one was hammering the nails into their wrists. Then there was a cage full of half naked men and women, who were all waiting for the same fate. The soldiers being executed screamed in pain and panic, as they were nailed to the wooden bars. Or at least they tried to. Their mouth was stuffed with a dirty rag.
"Yes. It is the worst form of capital punishment, reserved for high treason. I sincerely hope you can accept this form of apology."
Katara wanted to slap Sung. She really wanted to slap him. It wasn't because of what he did, it was because of how he did it. There was no trial, no judge no nothing. He just ordered them to be executed. Katara was sickened, she really wanted to slap him and that hard. Two things kept her from doing so. The first one was the relieved expression on P'Li's face, her determined spark of life had returned to her beautiful blood red eyes, which in itself was almost enough for Katara to let the matter slide. The second one was the whole situation as such. The earthkingdom and the firenation seemed to stand at a point, where even the tiniest slip would cause a massive war all over again.
Katara of course didn't want a war. She hated to admit it, but somehow she understood. Which only sickened her further, but this time her disgust was directed at herself. Sung tried to save the day and fucked up. Now he desperately tried to clean up Kuei's mess, while also keeping his own fuckup at bay. He resorted to drastic measures so he wouldn't seem weak-minded. He needed to appear strong and dependable.
"Are you ok with things as they are?" Katara turned to look at P'Li. She was the one violently raped by the entire crew. Katara was just sitting in the cell next to the place where it happened, slowly losing her mind out of worry for her bodyguard. Katara would let P'Li decide.
P'Li looked down on the parade ground, taking the few in once more, while she could not help but start smirking. The indefinite hate she was feeling for these people was indescribable. She hated them so much, it almost hurt as much as what they did to her. "Are these all of them?" she asked, her voice the dangerous hiss of a injured snake.
"Yes. Everyone from the airship you were kept on." Sung confirmed.
The combustion-bender nodded slowly, her gaze still fixed down on the parade ground. Her whole body tensed up and her nails were digging into handrail.
Suddenly, from P'Li's forehead shot a massive beam of superheated air, blowing parts of the parade ground up in a violent explosion. The force of the impact was so massive, it shook the entire palace violently and the combustion bender wasn't even done yet. She dragged the stream of explosive heat over the place, huge explosions erupting from the ground upon impact. The palace was shaking, it felt like it would collapse sooner than later. It was over as fast as it began, the entire parade-ground was gone, nothing but ash as left from the crosses and the prisoners were mere dust.
P'Li sighed relieved. Somehow this gave her peace. She looked at Katara, who was looking at her bodyguard with a worried smile.
"You ok?" she asked silently.
P'Li nodded "No I am. Sorry, but..." she started, but Katara stopped her with a gentle touch of her shoulder "It's ok." she said.
"I guess that settles things" Katara breathed lowly, facing general Sung. She would probably have to rant at Zuko for a while, when she returned home.
Sung forced himself to a quick smile, after swallowing heavily. "An eye for an eye, I guess. It seems fair to me." he replied with a scared smile. There were a couple of sweat drops on his temple, caused by that intimidating display of bending. It was obviously to his luck, that P'Li seemed to care enough for Katara and her politics to not blow everything up, because she could have definitely pulled that off. All Sung had to do now, was not saying anything about a firebender killing a regiment of death row inmates out of revenge. Of course Sung wouldn't say anything. He didn't expect to get out of this without some form of payment. Letting the combustion-bender kill a group of soldiers, who were already sentenced to death was a price Sung was willing to pay. It was a more than fair deal. Even though, this combustion-bender surely was one scary bitch.
"In regard to the world peace, I am willing to forget what you did to my bodyguard." she stated in an almost Azula-like cold and dangerous pseudo-diplomacy voice. Superficially friendly, but intimidating and threatening underneath. Katara made clear, that this would be the only time she'd let it go.
"I am very happy to hear that, firelady Katara" he said, bowing deeply.
-/-
A/N:
So, here you go dear friends. I really hope you enjoyed this, because it was reeeeeeally difficult for me to write. The last two chapters were, actually. Gosh...
Leave me a review, will ya?
I know the end isn't what you guys expected. I am also sure that it feels very unsatisfactory, which was intended. I really wanted to show, that politics is a dirty, dirty business and that it needs a lot of swallowing your own pride in order to work properly. They all want to keep peace at all costs. Another war would have doomed the Avatar-world for good.
The point I am trying to make is this: In order for us to keep peace, we often must do something, which is conflicting with our moral ethics. Sometimes we have to swallow our pride for the greater good, sure that feels sour and leaves a burning feeling in your chest, but at the end of the day, it saves a lot of lives. That was, what I tried to convey.
Sung panicked and tried to make the situation work. He didn't know how Zuko would react, so he didn't release Katara immediately, thinking he might be able to use her, should Zuko want to start a war. Yes, this wasn't the brightest idea he had. But Sung also isn't exactly a real genius either (which was why the disaster with Katara and P'LI happened in the first place. he didn't tell his sub-commander what to look for. Just to take care of what he'd find). He made it work as good as he could. Should his decisions and plans confuse someone, please do ask me. I'm happy to answer. I tried to get some conspiracy and playing both sides in there, hope you liked it.
Tell me what you think, because I am sure this will be controversial as hell.
See you in the next one!
o7
P.S. I am super nervous about this chapter, ok? So please give some feedback and not just leave and never come back. Thank you~