Chapter 25
They had finally arrived at their destination at long last. It was a small fishing village located in the middle of a slow running river that was surrounded by flowing hills and even small foothills. All buildings were built on long poles that were driven into the riverbed. Rickety bridges made out of wooden planks connected the various buildings with each other. It was clear that it never had been a prosperous village. When Sokka had tried to find some information about the village he had found very little.
They had to leave the ship behind as they were rowed upriver. What distinguished the village and the surrounding area was the stench. A foul sheen of pollution lay over the river giving it a yellowish colour. Dead vegetation from the river and once in a while a dead fish floated past as they drew ever closer to the village.
"This is awful!" Katara stated angrily as she looked out over the dying river. "Why would anyone approve of this and even more importantly, why continue when the result is clear for all to see?"
"The greater good, ignorance and laziness I presume." It was Azula that answered Katara. She looked out over the river with a small frown and when Katara looked questioningly at her, Azula nodded seriously.
"The factory that is responsible for this situation is vital to the Fire Nation, thus the greater good. When it was constructed, no one really understood the implications for the surrounding area. Ignorance from everyone involved." Azula explained in an even voice. Ty Lee sat beside her with a handkerchief covering her nose and mouth.
"And when the consequences became more and more evident, there was no one with the responsibility to deal with it." Azula continued and looked over at Sokka. "Until now that is. Sokka has been given this assignment to solve by the Fire Lord himself." Azula finished, her golden eyes inscrutable.
Katara looked also at her brother. He looked unperturbed by the foul stench as he gazed out over the river and the fishing village that slowly came closer. Did he know of what princess Azula was talking about? Suddenly this mission didn't seem so easy anymore.
Sokka knew all about the previously decisions that had been taken that had ended them in this mess. He also knew about his orders and that various and vital interests were linked to the steel mill he could catch a glimpse of just about now... He could not fail in this mission! If he did so he would weaken the Fire Lord's position but more importantly, he would let his friend and liege lord down. Failure was not an option!
§§
The village of Jang Hui was far worse off than anticipated. People were sick and malnourished. They lay scattered everywhere. Some did not even have the energy to greet the strangers that had come to their village. An ominous silence lay over the village.
The only person with any energy to greet them was an old man called Dock that was in charge of the docks.
"Why, yes me lord." Dock bobbed his head in an awkward bow as he spoke to Sokka. Azula and Mai had taken one look at the old man and looked away in disgust. "Our village is not faring well. Yes, the poison from the factory makes all of us fall ill." Dock said with a scratchy voice.
"Did the entire village fall ill?" Katara asked as they looked around at the villagers coughing and sitting and staring at nothing.
"Yes, me lady," Dock answered politely with another bob. "Some have even died because…"
Sokka and the other listened to Dock for a little while. It seemed it was far worse than expected in the village. If the villagers had it this rough, it meant this situation would not be an easy feat to turn around.
"This is awful." Ty Lee said softly. She looked really concerned about the villagers. "What can you do for them, Sokka?" Ty Lee asked Sokka, her confidence in him shining in her grey eyes.
He saw the same confidence in his abilities from Mai. He looked around and wondered where to start…
"Dock told me that we should speak with his brother Xu about the food and how they treat the villagers that have fallen ill. We should find him at the fish market." Katara told the group, determination shone in her eyes. She had made her mind up – she would help the villagers.
The fish market was easily the largest structure in Jang Hui which was quite understandable. Still, it was largely empty. Nearly all shops were closed and Sokka noticed a starving feline searching for scraps. The only shop open was in the middle of the market. And behind the empty counter was…Dock in another hat?
"Me ladies, me lords, I am Xu." The fishmonger called out to them. "Can I offer some freshly caught fish?" The man continued and put up his wares on display.
"Are you not Dock?" Sokka asked with a frown. In the South Pole he was friends with two identical twins. But how come Dock and Xu had the same patched clothes?
"A common mistake, my good man." Xu replied cheerfully. "But my brother Dock ferries people over the river and makes sure the docks run smoothly and I take care of the fish business." Xu continued in the same tone of voice as he put forward some clams.
"I don't know about that, your shirt have the same… Wait!" Sokka interrupted himself. "That fish have three eyes!" Sokka exclaimed as one of the fish on display caught his interest.
It was only Katara that had been paying attention to his conversation with Xu but after his exclamation the fish in question became the focus of every eye in the market.
"I am not eating that." Mai stated in her usual monotone voice and breaking the silence that had descended upon the little group of friends.
"I second that." Katara agreed firmly. Zuko nodded in agreement with both Mai and Katara. They had plenty of food on the ship downriver that they certainly preferred over that sad and potentially poisonous fish and clams Xu had on display.
"And we are not taking any rooms in this disease ridden excuse for a hamlet." Azula stated firmly but insensitively. Katara winced at the princess' words and gave Azula a half-hearted glare. The princess might be right but she did not need to state it so publicly.
A heated debate took place among the friends where they should stay. The ship was too far downriver and Jang Hui was out of the question. Azula wanted them all to stay at the factory where they could find decent accommodations. Sokka could see the point but declined since he wanted to be close to the river as any effort to right this wrong would begin in Jang Hui.
They decided to put up camp a little bit away from the river by a clean spring with a small pond beside it. They placed the camp so that they were sheltered from the winds by two small hills but still had a good view over the river and the factory further upriver. The best part was that they couldn't smell the foul river.
When their accommodation was decided it was time for Sokka to visit the factory. Sokka, Azula and Zuko would make the first visit, Katara and Ty Lee went back to Jang Hui to assess what kind of help the village needed and Mai was in charge of setting up camp, with the help of the crew from the ship and their servants, of course.
§§
"And that concludes the inspection of our facilities." General Mung said ponderously and addressing the two royals. He was a large and intimidating man under ordinary circumstances yet he paled in comparison with the likes of Zhao or Ozai. Sokka would not underestimate him but after spending an hour with the man, Sokka was not impressed with Mung's petty scheming.
It was a large crowd that was gathered in the conference room. Every officer the general could obtain was sitting in their splendid uniforms in an effort to impress the high-ranking visitors. The general's speech didn't interest Sokka very much since Mung only gave them hot air for information. What interested Sokka more were the officers gathered around the table. They differed in age and rank as was expected, of course. But they had one thing in common: they were men and woman that had no connections in court and they had all risen through the ranks by hard work and skill only.
The only one with a political connection was Mung himself. A man with ties and loyalties to the faction led by Lord Tian, Mai's father. Sokka felt the need to protect Mai from any political ramifications his mission could cause Lord Tian. Why did the Fire Nation always have to do things so unnecessarily complicated?
"General Mung," Sokka interrupted the man's blabbering and became the focus of the entire room. Sokka kept his eyes on the general but he could see very well the way Azula rolled her eyes at the general's foolery. Sokka smiled slightly in understanding and was rewarded in turn with a smirk from the princess.
"Your tour of this impressive facility has been most enlightening." Sokka said pleasantly. It was obvious that Mung didn't think much of Sokka, an upstart and a foreigner that most likely was a fool. His officers were used to political assignments, they took their orders and soldiered on.
"I am here to solve the issue with the dying river. Not to place blame for it." Sokka continued in the same manner. "The past is the past. But it might be necessary to shut down and rebuild the factory to achieve the Fire Lord's orders."
Mung glowered at Sokka's words. It seemed he didn't like that at all.
"That is impossible." Mung declared in a strong voice. "This facility is vital to the maintenance of the royal navy. Without it the nation would be vulnerable to an attack." Mung continued and nodded for emphasis.
"But I am sure you have stockpiled reserve material?" Sokka asked with a small frown. "Surely the Fire Nation has a contingency plan if something were to happen to this facility?" Sokka continued and wondered what the man's answer would be. The high command had a contingency plan, Sokka had read it himself when he studied up on this mission.
"Well, you are correct about that, Lord Ember." Mung said after a long pause. "But we had to shut down for maintenance some time ago and have not been able to refill our stock. So they are very low at the moment." Mung continued.
Sokka knew that was a lie. There had been no report of a scheduled maintenance shutdown.
"I believe we are done here for today." Sokka said and gave a smile to the officers nearest to him. He could see relief gushing over the general's face from the corners of his eye. "I need the blueprints of the facility as a whole and of the industrial machinery in particular at once." Sokka stated and saw how Mung's face reddened.
"That is impossible!" Mung nearly spluttered. He was rather fond of that particular word it seemed. "The plans are not allowed to leave this building and they are classified as a state secret." Mung continued and was so agitated that he actually stood up and gestured with his arms. Azula's smirk deepened at the general's discomfort.
"General Mung. That was an order, not a request." Sokka stated firmly and stared coldly at the man for an unpleasant moment, making the general recoil slightly.
Mung glanced at the two royals. The prince was giving him a hard and unhelpful stare and the princess was smirking rather cruelly at him. Beads of sweat were now running down his face.
"…Of course, a mistake from my side." Mung managed nervously. "You will have them shortly." Mung continued and gestured to a captain who immediately darted out of the room.
§§
They were relaxing after a late dinner and the servants had set light to several lamps that were placed all over the small camp. Wong served them tea and Azula could hear Zuko and Mai chatting somewhere behind her and Katara and Ty Lee were immersed in a discussion on what they needed to do tomorrow in the village. Dragonflies danced over the small pond, their wings flashing in the firelight. It had been a very pleasant evening.
Yet her interest was on Sokka who sat by a small foldable table, studying the blueprints Mung so reluctantly had parted with some hours before. He read them in the steady light from an oil lamp that cast him in a warm light.
It had been interesting to see what Sokka had done during their visit to the factory. Azula was well aware that he had brought her and Zuko along just so he could have leverage over the fool for a general.
"Why did you not call him on his lie?" Azula asked Sokka suddenly. She was curious of how he would go forward with his mission. All in all, Sokka had impressed her on how he was dealing with the general.
Sokka looked up and blinked as he regarded her. Then he cocked his head and gave her a small smile.
"How did you know he lied?" Sokka asked while putting down the blueprints.
Azula scoffed and raised an eyebrow at his comment. "I am a people person and that lie was as outrageous as they come." Azula explained with her trademark smirk.
"I want to know more of his aims before I act against him." Sokka explained softly, his blue eyes glittering in the candle light. "Perhaps I can come up with a solution that does not end up with Mung as an enemy." Sokka said as he sipped his tea.
Azula laughed at his statement. It came out as a bit derisive. "I believe that is too late for that outcome." Azula stated and flicked her hand dismissively.
Sokka's smile only became broader as he looked at her. She was sitting in a small foldable chair, her back straight and one leg neatly folded over the other. Her eyes golden and glowing in the firelight, she was beautiful as ever. Her royal headpiece adorned her topknot as usual and her bangs framing her pale face beautifully. She was enchanting...
Azula frowned suddenly at Sokka. "But you already surmised as much." Azula murmured as she regarded the smiling upstart of a fool.
"You want him in charge so that neither Zuko nor I can sweep in and replace him with one of our own cronies." Azula stated with a glare at the now grinning snow-cretin.
"I always knew you were astute, princess. Glad you are able to keep up." Sokka said with barely suppressed mirth.
"That is awfully clever of you." Azula continued as she stood up and swept out of the open tent with a cold glare.
§§
Mai watched Azula stand up and stalk away from a grinning Sokka. But as Sokka once more started to study his blueprints Mai could see Azula smile as she walked away. A very pleased smile. So she was only marginally upset then?
Yes, Azula was very much in love with Sokka. No one could treat her the way Sokka did and not, well, die. He had actually pushed the Princess Azula, Azula, into the sea! It was quite fascinating to see them interact to tell the truth. And she was now confident that Azula or Sokka would manage to annul the betrothal between Azula and the foolish Chan so they could be together. It was only a question of time, of that Mai was sure.
Mai had decided to keep a low profile during this mission. She was not briefed by her father but she was well aware of general Mung's affiliation. And that Sokka kept her out of the way meant he tried to shield her from whatever damage that would befall her father's interest. It felt good to have a friend like that.
"What are you smiling about?" Zuko asked softly, with a smile of his own.
Suddenly feeling content with her life, Mai leaned into Zuko and kissed him passionately. She could feel his surprise at first and then how it changed into something else. They broke apart and the look that they gave each other was filled with all their love and passion.
Without a word they stood up and hand in hand, withdrew to her tent…
§0§
Sokka ate a breakfast with his sister and Ty Lee. Wong was serving them a delicious but simple breakfast of fruits, bread and omelette. And tea, of course. Sokka had had several discussions with Wong about serving meat at breakfast and, well, in general. It was an argument that Sokka seemed to be losing. How could you win an argument with a man that replied "Yes, my Lord" and just ignored said arguments?
And ordering the man seemed not to help either. The answer Wong gave Sokka was that it was the lord's personal butler that had the responsibility to give his lord proper food that was good for his master's health. The outrage! Sokka ate far less meat now as a lord than he did as a guest at the royal palace. An even greater outrage!
"Ty Lee, you would love a man even if he had a potbelly? Right?" Sokka asked and interrupted the conversation between Katara and Ty Lee.
Ty Lee blinked at Sokka as she tried to process said question. Sokka looking at her with pleading blue eyes was making her even more confused. Where did this come from?
"Sokka!" Katara exclaimed before Ty Lee had a chance to answer the weird question. "Would you take this seriously! And why are you always asking strange questions while eating nowadays?" Katara asked and gave her brother a stern stare. Sokka gave her a hurt look and was about to answer her.
"Wait, I don't want to know." Katara stated and held up a hand to forestall him and received an annoyed look instead. Lord Silliness was more fitting. Really, what was the Fire Lord thinking making Sokka a lord of the realm? Crazy people the whole lot of them, Katara thought not for the first time.
"Katara and I were wondering where the medicine that was sent to Jang Hui had gone?" Ty Lee explained to Sokka in a serious voice. Ty Lee being serious was in itself unusual enough to warrant Sokka's attention.
"What do you mean?" Sokka asked the grey eyed girl. "According to shipping records, there has been quite a lot of medicine that had been sent to the ailing villagers." Sokka continued, his thoughts of meat forgotten.
Katara raised an eyebrow at that. He had checked the shipping records? Why would he have done that?
"They can't just have disappeared." Sokka said slowly. "They must have been taken by General Mung." Sokka stated softly as he contemplated what this could mean for his mission. It was the only explanation that made sense. Mung was the only one with permission to alter destination of something as vital as medication on this island.
He looked at Katara and Ty Lee, his blue eyes shining with cold determination. He needed to speed up his timetable. Stealing medicine from poor fishermen that were ill or dying? That was truly despicable.
"You two will try to take care of the villagers as best as you can." Sokka said quietly but firmly to Ty Lee and his sister. "When Azula and Zuko come back from their morning training we will head back to the factory once more. General Mung will be sorry he was ever born." Sokka continued with an unyielding look in his eyes.
Katara stared at her brother as he walked away to wake Mai. Where had the silly man with ridiculous questions gone? She had seen a similar look as Sokka had in his eyes just now in their father's eyes when the High-chief needed to dispense justice. A cold smile slowly graced Katara's lips. No, she wouldn't want to be in the general's shoes when her brother caught up with him…
Sokka managed to open Mai's tent and enter it but to immediately stumble on some of her shoes. Trying not to step on them Sokka fumbled his way into the interior of the tent until he ran into a wardrobe, making it sway dangerously back and forth. He fell down with a soft thud right beside Mai's bed. Really, who brought a wardrobe on a camping trip?
"Mai, are you awake?" Sokka whispered or wheezed, it was hard to tell, really.
"No." Mai answered curtly. Idiot, the man made enough noise to wake the dead! How could he be so graceful with a blade and like a Komodo Rhino in a porcelain store in situations like this? Mai could never understand.
"Err, good." Sokka said after a pause. "Then you wouldn't know if I said that I probably stepped on your best shoes and broke a heel just now." Sokka continued in a voice now more sounding like a whisper.
Mai hit him hard with a pillow and was rewarded with a muffled "argh".
"Why do you have to wake me in this awful way?" Mai said in an exasperated voice.
"A wardrobe? On a camping trip? That is just too much, Mai." Sokka ignored her question and asked instead in the same kind of voice from the floor.
Mai rolled over so she could look down on him. Annoyed silver eyes met annoyed blue.
The two friends glared at each other until Sokka gave her a slow smile. It was rather amusing situation actually. His smile was contagious and soon they both were chuckling at Sokka's not so graceful entrance.
"So, why are you waking me up at this hour, Sokka?" Mai asked again but now with a smile, her annoyance gone like the wind.
The question brought Sokka back to reality and his mirth disappeared as morning mist in the Fire Nation. Mai saw the change in Sokka and become serious in turn.
"Mai, the situation has become a little more complicated." Sokka said seriously. He had her attention now. "I strongly suspect Mung to have stolen medicine that was meant for Jang Hui and if that is the case, he will face prison." Sokka explained in an even voice.
Mai gave Sokka a long look. She knew what Sokka implicated, a scandal of this magnitude would harm her father and it was Mai's duty to warn him. It was a petty theft that had no gain for her father so he was most certainly not involved. Sokka was giving her a way to save face for her father. Mai hated the Great Game. Someone always ended up hurt, usually the weak and innocent. And the wicked always ended up with more ill begotten wealth and power.
"I will warn my father." Mai sighed softly.
Sokka rose and gave his friend a nod and started to walk out of the spacious tent. As he went past the wardrobe he gave it an affectional pat. It was enough to give Mai back her good humour from before.
"Sokka, thank you." Mai said with a smile.
Sokka turned back to give her a dazzling smile, his eyes light blue. Then he promptly stepped and stumbled on her shoes and nearly fell out of the tent.
It was a very surprised Zuko that suddenly had a stumbling Sokka in his arms. They nearly fell down but managed to keep their balance.
"Why, thank you!" Sokka exclaimed happily as he disentangled himself from the surprised prince. Ty Lee and Azula stood a bit away from them and Sokka's sudden exit from Mai's tent had interrupted their conversation. Azula's eyebrows rose in surprise.
"What where you doing in Mai's tent?" Zuko asked, it was clear that he had not yet decided if he should be angry or not.
"Did you sneak in to sleep in Mai's bed without me?" Ty Lee exclaimed with a hurt tone of voice. Zuko and Azula froze at Ty Lee's comment and even Katara turned around and blinked at her brother. He had done what now?
Sokka didn't notice of course. He was busy flinging one of Mai's boots back into her tent. But he snorted at Ty Lee's comment.
"Don't be ridiculous, Ty Lee." Sokka said as he took time to close the tent carefully. "I just ate breakfast with you, as in five minutes ago." Sokka told Ty Lee and made a dismissive gesture toward the grey eyed girl. The tension eased slightly from Zuko and Azula, not that either Ty Lee or Sokka noticed.
"Besides, I would totally tell you beforehand, Ty Lee. I am not a jerk you know." Sokka said if it was the most natural thing in the world as he walked over to Ty Lee.
"Yay, you are the best!" Ty Lee exclaimed happily and jumped to embrace Sokka making him stagger a bit. "Can we do it tomorrow morning? Please! Pretty please!" Ty Lee pleaded with large grey eyes that Sokka found impossible to deny. And when Sokka nodded the girl laughed very happily.
When Sokka fetched some documents from his own tent and came back to where he left the others, he was met with two sulking firebenders that glared at him and one smiling sister.
"What?" Sokka asked his friends. What had he done now?
"I love you, Sokka." Katara said still smiling and leaned in to give her brother a kiss on the cheek. "You are such a dork." She continued and then she walked away to find Ty Lee.
Sokka gave Katara a suspicious look. Something fishy was going on here. Well, no time to figure that out. He had other things to do.
"It's time to go." Sokka said to the two sulking royals. They must have argued earlier but Sokka had no time for that either. General Mung was waiting and it was time to set things in motion…
§§
"As you can see from the reports that I have presented to you, my Lord, we are lagging behind in the production because of the unscheduled maintenance stop we did a month ago." Mung was winding down after talking for some time. The papers he had presented were all lies and deceit. Rather cleverly done since Sokka didn't have a staff of his own to check up on the details.
Silence settled over the room. It was obvious that Zuko had his mind on something else. Had Azula rattled his cage so badly this morning? Azula herself was frowning quite hard. But she divided her glare equally between Sokka and the general. Why, Sokka had no inkling of.
Sokka regretted what he was about to do but Mung had most certainly stolen medication from a very poor and ailing village. On the heights the roads are paved with daggers. He had heard Zuko say that some time ago. Time for Mung to pay the piper…
"According to the reports you have sent to the Royal Palace and also to war Minister Qin, you state very clearly what you have and what you will produce for this year." Sokka stated softly. His eyes cold as he slipped a report over to the general. "You also very clearly state what you have stockpiled here." Sokka continued and saw how the man got paler with every word Sokka said.
Mung opened his mouth to speak but Sokka hold up a hand to silence him. Every eye in the room was now on Sokka.
It was so silent that it seemed every man and woman in the room had stopped breathing. Sokka gave the man a long cold look, it was utterly devoid of any mercy or compassion.
"Let me remind you, General Mung." Sokka said softly, his voice as cold steel drawn from a sheath. "Lying and falsifying reports to the Fire Lord and his high command are considered treason." The general swallowed and protested weakly.
"Have you falsified the reports to the Fire Lord?" Sokka snapped at the general. Mung could only shake his head as an answer. No, he had not.
Sokka's glare ought to have frozen the man solid. Mung had severely underestimated the young lord, he had thought Sokka's inexperience and young age should have made him gullible for his lies. Pitiful fool!
"Where is the medicine you have stolen from Jang Hui?" Sokka all but roared at the shaking man. That was news for the rest in the room.
"Well, if you cooperate it is possible Lord Ember could offer clemency and suggest a prison sentence instead of execution to the Fire Lord." Azula drawled with a cruel smirk as she studied her nails when the general hesitated.
Mung stared with dread on the petit, beautiful and terrifying princess.
"I ask for clemency…" Mung said with a broken voice.
Sokka gave the general a disgusted look. How could someone fall so low? To lose all honour for some petty gold?
"General Mung, I Sokka, Lord of Ember Island and first advisor to the Fire Lord Azulon, strip you of your rank as general and relieve you of your command. You will leave for the Caldera to stand trial for your crimes." Sokka stated coldly. With a final look of derision Sokka turned to one of the colonels in the room.
"Officer Han." Sokka stated formally, still with a cold voice and frighteningly cold eyes. "You will take command of this facility and you will shortly receive more orders and instructions. Your first order is to escort the prisoner to a secure cell." Sokka paused as he regarded the middle-aged woman who looked wary over the sudden fate of fortune of her former commander. Still, she looked ready to serve. An unflappable officer indeed.
"We will have a very hectic period before us and I expect every officer and soldier to do his or her utmost." Sokka said evenly to the gathered officers of the factory. "Failure is not an option." Sokka concluded coldly.
§§
Some days later Mai sat in their camp and listened to Sokka and Katara's banter, the evening sun bathing them all in its warmth. The last days had been busy. Sokka had a tight schedule for all of them. After a large part of the medication was found and retrieved, Katara and Ty Lee managed to get the villagers back on their feet. Mai helped too since she was in charge of food deliveries from the factory to Jang Hui. Zuko helped her and it was very rewarding in a strange way, helping others that is. Katara had started to clean up the river with the help of the villagers. They made progress.
Sokka and Azula were in charge of the factory. They worked very well together. So effectively that it was a bit frightening to tell the truth. When those two had a common goal and worked together they were indeed a force to be reckoned with.
It seemed Sokka had sent for the Mechanist. He would have to come up with solutions to Sokka's ideas of utilizing the plant while not destroying its neighbourhood. The man had to be a genius since Sokka's drawings were not much to go by. They had all been laughing at his drawings when he showed them some days ago. Much to Sokka's indignation.
But in all honesty, these past few days had been great. She was surrounded by her friends and she had Zuko all by herself. Once more she had been woken up by Sokka and Ty Lee who made themselves comfortable in her rather small bed. It was uncomfortable, annoying and totally wonderful. The best part had been when Sokka explained to the two sulking royals that they were indeed very welcome to participate but they needed to talk about their feelings if they choose to join. They didn't of course. Yes, these was happy days indeed.
"Who is that?" Katara said and shielded her eyes with her hand.
Mai followed her gaze and was nearly looking straight into the sun. She could see the contours of a very large man standing on the crest some fifteen meters away from them. So it was not Azula or Ty Lee who had taken a jet ski to the royal ship some time ago. They were all gazing at the strange man now, something about him made Mai wary.
Zuko stepped out of his tent, unaware of the newcomer. The man noticed Zuko and took a step forward with a metal leg. Mai acted only on instinct as she flung herself at Zuko and pushed them both to the ground. Something hot flew where Zuko had stood just seconds ago and then Zuko's tent exploded in fire, forcing the air out of her lungs.
Katara reacted when Sokka started shouting. She flung several ice projectiles at the attacking man but the sun was making it hard to aim. Most of the projectiles missed its target but some forced the enemy to shield himself with the armour on his right arm.
"Get out of here!" Sokka shouted at the shocked servants as he frantically looked around for his boomerang. Mai was lying deathly still on the ground, some of her clothes were burning fitfully.
The frightening enemy once more fired a fire projectile at them. It came very close until Zuko managed to force it to explode prematurely with a fire blast of his own. The explosion flung Sokka on his back, the heat causing blisters to appear on his exposed skin.
Katara retaliated once more and this time with more focus. It was her first time fighting for her life, someone was actually trying to kill them! She flung ice projectiles and let them come at him in a different momentum. Forcing the enemy to take time to counter her offensive and allowing Zuko to go on the offensive too but the sun was once more making it hard to aim.
The enemy, a huge bald man with a tattoo on his forehead, conjured a wall of flame that melted nearly all her projectiles and the single one that made it through he swatted aside like a fly. At the same time he shot a new fire projectile that came boring down on them.
With eyes large with fright, Katara created a wall of water in the path of the incoming fire projectile. When the projectile hit the water it exploded. The impact from the explosion forced Katara down on one knee.
Zuko had managed to stay on his feet and when the wall of water dissipated in the explosion, he attacked the enemy with all his might. With a furious shout Zuko kicked out and a large fire blast arched toward the bald man. Mai lying just a few feet away from him, unmoving, was fuelling his attacks.
The enemy fire bended the incoming attack to pass him by. He was very skilled. But Katara had taken the time to conjure two tentacles of water that extended from her arms. Now she attacked before the enemy could retaliate.
Her first attack missed but forced the man to sidestep. The second hit him on the side of his head. He managed to shield himself from most of the impact but he bled nonetheless. Wounded or not, the man was very quick and Katara's attack had also dissipated the last of Zuko's earlier attack. And if Katara's water tentacles were deadly they also were a bit slow. As Katara withdrew them for a second attack he attacked with a fire projectile of his own.
Sokka had finally found his boomerang and was running back to his sister. If anything happened to her he would never forgive himself!
Sokka could see Katara trying to shield herself from the incoming projectile but she was too slow… Ice filled his stomach in dread… But Zuko came charging to Katara's side and pushed her down while he created a shield to protect them.
It was not enough, the incoming projectile was too close, too powerful. It connected with Zuko's shield and exploded – the impact hurling the prince in Sokka's path. Zuko's face was on fire!
This was it, they were all about to die. But Sokka would not go down without a fight! He charged over his screaming friend and landed at Katara's side, they both were shielded by a small wagon that offered no protection whatsoever. Her eyes were large and glued to the burning prince who screamed in sheer agony.
"Katara, I need you to create ice mirrors! Blind him!" Sokka nearly shouted as he shook his sister. Another fire projectile came flying by them and Mai's tent exploded sky-high.
Katara tore her eyes away from the burning prince and her large fearful eyes sought out her brother and she found herself looking into two hard and unyielding ones. She nodded and then darted to the left as she bent forth several large ice sheets that she moved so they mirrored the sun back at the enemy. The water from the pond was nearly all gone now. This was their last chance…
He was huge! And both his right leg and arm were made out of metal. His cold eyes sought her out immediately when she come running.
Sokka started to move at the same time as his sister but he ran to the right. He saw the enemy fire a projectile but because of the sun was now reflected back at him, the projectile didn't have its deadly aim. It hit the wagon instead.
Sokka threw his boomerang with all his might just as the wagon exploded behind him. Pain shot up his left leg as something hit him hard and made him stumble. But his aim with his boomerang was true, it hit the enemy squarely in his forehead, right in the middle of the strange tattoo.
But the man was huge. The blow should have knocked him out cold but he still stood his ground, looking a bit dazed. Sokka fell down on one knee since his left leg couldn't hold his weight anymore.
Then the man focused his black and utterly emotionless gaze at Sokka. Sokka knew he was a dead man, he didn't even have a dagger to defend himself with! Sokka could only snarl back and face death head on.
Suddenly a blade came flying and burrowed itself in the man's human arm. Mai, standing on wobbly feet, her clothes still burning at some places as she defended her friend.
With a glare the large man fired a projectile at them. The only warning Sokka had was the sudden widening of the man's black eyes.
"Get down!" Sokka shouted at Mai as he pressed himself down in the dirt.
A tremendous explosion that made the world shake reverberated between in the small valley as the man blew himself up.
The blast made Sokka lose consciousness for a little while. As he came to he could see that the camp was in total disarray and there was a ringing in his ears that drowned out every other sound. Tents and equipment were scattered all over the place. Mai was down once more but not unconscious since he could see her move. Pain shot up from his left leg in several places but he ignored it with a tremendous effort of will. As he managed to turn over he could see his sister at Zuko's side trying to heal him. Zuko was still screaming but Sokka couldn't hear through the ringing in his ears.
§§
Azula and Ty Lee had left their boat immediately when they heard the explosions at the campsite. When they finally arrived they could see how bad it was. Servants were walking aimlessly about and they could hear a man screaming. Azula ran down from the crest and entered the camp. If something happened to Sokka she would burn down the world!
She found him lying on his stomach on the ground with Wong hovering over him. Wong hands were bloody since he had cut open Sokka's trousers and was now busy sewing him up. Sokka gave Azula a slow smile. He had a wound somewhere beneath his hair because he was bleeding down on his forehead and he also had blisters on his arms and on his face. He was covered with dirt, blood and soot. He had also been hit by several wooden splinters.
Azula rushed to his side and clasped his hands. She could see her own relief in finding him alive mirrored in his.
"Why is Katara not taking care of you?" Azula asked angrily.
"He can't hear you, my princess." Wong answered respectfully but did not stop his work. "The last explosion has made him deaf. Hopefully temporarily. And Lady Katara is more needed with Prince Zuko, my princess" Wong continued, not taking his eyes of his work.
Azula hesitated but needed to find out what had happened to her brother.
"I will be back shortly." Azula said to Sokka and stroked his hand. He only smiled at her, conveying that he would be alright.
She found her brother on his back on a table with Katara, Mai and Ty Lee standing beside him. He was unconscious at the moment. He had a truly horrendous burn over his left eye and all the back to his temple. It was covered in water that glowed but she had enough understanding of burns to know what this would mean. Was his eye even functioning after a burn as severe as this?
"How bad is it?" Azula asked simply as she joined her friends around the unconscious young man.
Katara didn't answer, probably because she hadn't heard. She was concentrating fiercely on the burn, to heal it most likely. Katara had some light burns but other than that she seemed fine, dirty and shocked but fine. Zuko also looked good except for that awful burn on his face.
Mai was another story altogether. She looked as if someone had tossed her around while she was on fire. Her clothes had large burn marks and she bled from her nose and it looked like she had her shoulder dislocated. Her hair was not shiny anymore, she was a mess. Still, it was her eyes that made Azula look more closely at her friend. Mai's silver eyes were large and frightened as she stared down at Zuko. Not long ago it had been Azula who had stared down at an unconscious and dying Sokka with an arrow in his chest.
Mai mistook Azula's searching look and started to explain what had happened. How the mysterious man had shown up and how the battle had unfolded. Mai had been out cold for a large part of it so she couldn't give an account of how Zuko's burn had happened.
"He got hit when he tried to protect me." Katara said softly when Mai had finished talking. "He couldn't stop the entire explosion… His face caught on fire…" Katara shuddered at the memory.
"He will not die." Katara said tiredly when she recovered from the memory of Zuko burning. Mai swayed with relief when she heard and Ty Lee exhaled sharply. "I'm not sure if I managed to save his eye. But he will have a scar, unfortunately." Katara continued in the same way.
She gave Azula and the others an account of what had happened during the battle as she and Ty Lee took care of Mai's dislocated shoulder. Mai cried out once when they forced it into its correct position.
"Creating exploding fire projectiles from his forehead…" Azula said in deep thought. She had heard of such a man. But her thoughts were soon pushed aside when Katara went to check up on Sokka.
§§
When the Mechanist arrived a couple of days later on a battleship they were greeted by a dejected Sokka and a high-ranking officer. Sokka couldn't stay for long, just an extra day before he needed to travel to the capital with the wounded prince. Still, Sokka managed to inform the Mechanist and his son Teo what he expected of them.
It was a grim Lord Ember that walked up to the throne room to give a report to his liege lord. His mission had been a success and by the removal of General Mung the Fire Lord's standing was strengthened. All was good except that Zuko was still severely wounded. He had not regained consciousness at all during the sea voyage.
But one thing Sokka knew for sure, he knew what he would do with the ore from the meteor that he had found. He would forge himself a blade.
§§
Authors Note:
And now Zuko has his scar! Zuko wouldn't be Zuko without his scar.
I really wanted to have Combustion Man around for a little while longer but the story thought otherwise. Still, he made an impact…
Chapter 25 and 100 000 words for OE! In all honesty, I didn't see that coming…
So, I have to ask. So far, what is your favourite scene/moment of the OE? I have not made up my mind if it is when Sokka and Azula share a moment and a kiss in the Moonlight in chapter 13 or Azula understanding she has fallen in love under the cherry-tree in chapter 14.