Erosion
Chapter Thirty-six
The woman known as Anko had been born with a certain amount of skills that were a boon to her role as a General. She was a powerful bender, had excellent instincts and an ability to read strategies that served her well both in the midst of combat and when plotting from afar. Still, for every strength there is a weakness. Anko's gift for combat was great; her ability to artfully link words together in a persuasive manner was distinctly lacking. Hachi had once joked that his commander had three settings: blunt, blunter and so direct that it would make hardened warriors run home to their mommies. It had been a bit of an exaggeration, but negotiating was definitely not one of her strong points.
Of course it didn't help that Ambassador Pakku was closed minded to begin with. She was tired, she was irritable and she was stressed. So when Ambassador Pakku asked in all sincerity why he should involve himself in a matter that was clearly an Earth Kingdom affair, all she could do for a moment or two was silently stare at the man with her mouth slightly agape while her brain cursed up a storm. It was then, in that moment, that General Iroh resumed bombarding the city. Anko could have kissed the man. Now her formerly flimsy words were being punctuated by distant impacts, the forces of which were enough to reverberate through the occupants of the house as well as shake the good china in the cupboards.
Since being honest and direct was easier for her than the fine art of persuasion, Anko spoke simply. "Ambassador Pakku, what we have here is a chance to stop those Fire Nation contraptions once and for all. I can't order your cooperation and I can't force you to help, but I can tell you honestly that the wall won't take many days of this pounding. The Fire Nation also has the capability to fire over the wall, blindly destroying houses and lives. Of course, you and your men are safe here… for now. But if the curtain wall is breached, if the outer city falls, how long do you think that security will last? Go ahead and do nothing if you wish… but don't curse my name when the enemy is outside your doors and you only have General Mito to depend on."
Anko met his light blue eyes as he considered her words. "Please Ambassador Pakku, we… I can't do this alone. I need your help. If it gives you pleasure, think of it as a sign that you were right all along and I should never have been put it charge of anything. But whatever you believe, please don't punish the entire city for it. Help us."
In the end, Pakku and his two companions came with her. He sneered and scoffed and lectured about a woman's true place in life; but he came. Anko ignored the rest. Actions speak louder than words.
They met up with Captain Pyron in the courtyard in front of the main gate. With him were three other men, two of whom Anko recognized as being members of the 126th. The bombardment continued. Today the Dragon was targeting the wall with both his machines, the rhythmic sound of impact after impact almost primal in nature. Anko sketched her plan out in the snow. Two army engineers she had snagged did the calculations for distance and height. They ended up on the roof of a three story building located at the edge of last night's destruction, a good five blocks away from the wall. From the roof top one could get a good overview of the damage that the barrage of missiles and the outbreak of fire had caused. The amount of damage caused in such a short quantity of time was disheartening to say the least.
General Anko left one of the earthbenders on top of the roof with Pakku. "Watch for our signals," she ordered her soldier. "The timing has got to be just right."
"Sir!"
She looked at Ambassador Pakku and bowed. "Thank you, Ambassador, for all your help."
The old man's gaze softened slightly before hardening again. "I want you to know that my cooperation in this matter changes nothing about how I feel. In fact, after witnessing what the war has done to you, I can only conclude that I was right all along. The battlefield is not an appropriate place for a woman."
Anko stared at the blue-clad man for a moment. Have I really changed so much? Then she looked out over the destroyed section of the city. "Ambassador Pakku," she said softly in her slightly raspy voice, "look around you. Can you honestly say that this is an appropriate place for any of us?" She left it at that.
In the street at the bottom of the building, Anko left two earthbenders and Pakku's two companions, both powerful benders in their own right, and one of the engineers. The waterbenders began to stream water from a nearby well, floating it up in a controlled manner until Pakku took governance over it. Anko, Pyron and the other engineer trotted themselves over to the outer wall, which was still being pummeled from afar. The wooden lift carts were non-operational, so they were forced to ascend sixty feet by use of stone stairs, jogging all the way. The poor engineer was gasping so hard that Anko feared he was going to pass out.
They reached the top of the wall and circled around until they were aligned with the building Pakku was on as well as with the Fire Nation weapons. This meant that they were standing directly above the section of wall that General Iroh was pounding. Anko's plan was fairly simple. The waterbenders would make an ice chute, similar to the earthen ones that carried packages around the city of Omashu. Once constructed, the lone earthbender on top of the building would bend an oblong stone down the slide. The end of the ice slide crooked up, launching the rock into the air. The two earthbenders at the bottom would give it another 'push', accelerating the rock even more. Anko and Pyron were the last keys to the makeshift weapon. The engineers had calculated the upward degree necessary for the rock to clear the top of the wall. Once it got there, already traveling with the speed and power of gravity and bending behind it, Anko and her Captain would give it another, final boost, hopefully enabling them to reach the Fire Nation camp and the horrible new weapons.
The two engineers were there to bring it all together. The one with Anko and Pyron could signal the one stationed with the watertribers to change the ramp, if necessary. Although the officers of the 126th could also aim the rock while giving it the final shove, it would be easier if they didn't have to. The wall shuddered under the bombardment. Pieces of limestone peppered the small group with each strike. General Anko had ordered mattresses and sandbags to be lowered in front of the damaged area in order to try and protect the wall but it hadn't taken long for Iroh's weapons to pound through them.
She used her boot to scrape ice, snow and fragmented limestone off the top of the wall before pulling off her boots and standing barefoot in the frigid winter air. Pyron followed suite. The skin of her calloused feet immediately protested such treatment, but Anko ignored the uncomfortable sensation. Instead, she focused on the other feeling, the feeling of connection with the stone, with the earth. She winced as she felt the weakness in the wall. The Fire Nation weapons had done so much damage. The Fox turned back towards the building, where an ice ramp was now glittering in the sun.
Captain Pyron gave a low whistle of appreciation. "Say what you will about Ambassador Pakku, but he is a powerful bender."
His commander grunted in response. "We aren't going to have many chances at this. Once General Iroh realizes we have the range to hit those machines, he'll waste no time in moving them."
Pyron spread his bare feet, assuming a stance. "Then let's not miss."
Anko took up her own stance, and then nodded to the engineer. "Signal them that we're ready."
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General Iroh observed the smooth mechanized actions of the trebuchets with pride. Unlike the spring loaded catapults, which would jump slightly into the air with every shot fired and reposition themselves, the trebuchets hit the exact same spot on the wall every time. As one fired the other was being loaded, meaning that the wall was under constant bombardment. In the early morning light, Iroh could see that the Earth Kingdom defenders had lowered mattresses and other cushions in front of the previously damaged area, but it hadn't taken long for the trebuchets to blast through them. Now that the sun was fully risen, he could see the damage that his new weapons had wrought.
For the first time in a long time, the Dragon of the West felt a strong sense of hope. If the trebuchets could do visible damage in such a short amount of time, then the wall could and would be destroyed. With the biggest obstacle out of the way, taking the city would finally be possible. The Fire Nation soldiers, who only yesterday had been walking around with stiff, resigned faces, were all smiles this morning. Finally, a light at the end of a long and dark tunnel. But Iroh also felt a quiet sense of foreboding. On the other side of the wall, the people of Ba Sing Sei had to be getting more and more desperate, and desperate people would do desperate things. That was one of the reasons he was only targeting the wall today, in hopes of forestalling any insane acts of aggression on the part of the earthbenders. But he knew it was only a matter of time. Unless they were completely hopeless, they would eventually be forced to strike back in order to silence the trebuchets.
The General pulled out a spyglass and eyed the wall. The Earth Kingdom had given up patrolling the section that he was pounding; only two people in green were standing above the area. Iroh squinted, wishing he could get a better view. From this distance, the images were blurry, but was that a black foxhead on the shoulder of one of the soldiers? And… were they in bending stances? The raised areas of the battlements hid half their bodies from view, but as they both simultaneously began to move, Iroh had his answer. He pulled away the spyglass and scanned the sky. What did they hope to accomplish? Iroh was well aware of the earthbenders' limits and even two working together couldn't hope to throw a rock this far.
He kept scanning the area where the earthbenders should be able to reach; it wasn't until a heavy object crashed into one of the two-man tents behind him that he realized that something had changed. For a moment, everyone in camp simply stared at the stone unbelievingly. They now knew the shock that the people of Ba Sing Sei had felt last night, when the Fire Nation began to fire over the wall.
The Dragon recovered first. "Cease fire!" he yelled at the trebuchets. "We must get those weapons out of here."
His orders were instantly obeyed, but the trebuchets were not easily moved. First the metal outriggers, which provided extra stability, had to be raised and cranked in, and then wheels had to be lowered down. Rhinos were brought forward and hitched up while they were waiting. The Earth Kingdom, however, didn't hesitate.
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Anko grinned as their first attempt flew far into the Fire Nation camp. They had missed horribly, but at least now she knew that her idea actually worked. They could strike that far. She glanced at Pyron, who was also grinning from ear to ear. Anko blinked. She had been so preoccupied with current events that she never realized how tired her Captain looked. Dark circles were under bloodshot eyes, even as he gave her a cheerful grin, she could see how exhausted he was. I wonder if I look that bad. No wonder he was trying to trick me into going to bed earlier.
"You brute," Pyron teased gently. "That was no where near our targets. You pushed too hard."
General Anko smiled back and reset her feet into the proper position. "I don't know what you're talking about," she said innocently. Then her voice turned serious. "They're not going to waste time moving those machines. Let's try it again."
The engineer used a mirror to catch the sun's light and signal the earthbender on the roof with Pakku. Another oblong rock was sent flying down the ice slide, accelerated by both gravity and the pair of earthbenders standing at the upwardly angled end of the slide. Anko closed her eyes, extending one hand out towards where the rock would be coming. Pyron did the same. Once she could 'feel' the rock, her eyes snapped open and she moved; her Captain mirroring her every motion. They pushed and aimed at the same time, adjusting the projectile so it would fly directly at the tall Fire Nation weapons.
Again they missed, flying over the machines and the swarm of red-clad soldiers attempting to move them. But on their third try, they struck home. The rock crashed into one side of the machine, destroying the wood timbers that made up the frame of the device. The watching Earth Kingdom soldiers let out a shout of joy as the hateful thing toppled. The sudden impact startled the rhinos hitched to the weapon. They broke free of their handlers, dragging off the remnants of the machine.
"One down, one to go." Anko stated with a wide grin. Where before she had been clinging to a faint hope, now she had real hope and confidence and the potent strength that the combination brought.
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General Iroh stared in horror as over a year's worth of hard work was destroyed in an instant by a simple rock. It couldn't end like this. They had worked so hard; they had waited for so long, and he needed more time to bring down the walls. The trebuchets had been his trump play and less than a day had passed before they were taken out? No.
"Round up the smoke bombs and set them off up wind." He ordered. "They can't hit it if they can't see it."
"You," he shook the head engineer, who looked as if he was going to cry, "Can this one still be fired?"
The man stared at him blankly for a moment before blinking and eying the remaining weapon. "Yes… but it won't be as accurate with the outriggers up."
"Can it be fired while the wheels are being lowered?"
"I… I think so."
"Then keep firing it. Aim for the area just below their feet. If they can't concentrate, they won't be able to bend."
The first wisps of grey smoke began to float by in the air as the Fire Nation soldiers scrambled to obey Iroh's orders. Another rock flew in to the camp; this one fell short of its target, but the fear it inspired was enough to make all the soldiers wide-eyed. The engineers rapidly prepared the trebuchet for firing, loading an iron ball filled with napalm.
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"Sorry, Ahn, my foot slipped." Pyron apologized as their last projectile fell short of the weapon.
The Earth Kingdom General grunted; squinting as the air around the Fire Nation camp started to become opaque. " They've set off smoke bombs. Clever man. We need to hit it next time. Are you ready?"
Pyron nodded, but the engineer shook his head. "They just signaled that a part of the chute became damaged with that last rock. The watertribers are repairing it now."
"Oh come on," Anko groaned, tapping a bare foot impatiently on the hard limestone wall. "Tell them to launch as soon as they can; we don't have much time."
She and Pyron assumed their stances, but instead of closing her eyes, Anko stared at the Fire Nation camp. Clouds of grey smoke went rolling by, obscuring her view of the target more and more. It rose above the Fire Nation camp as the winter breeze helped to distribute it. It was when the smoke suddenly moved in a strange way that Anko knew something was coming.
"Incoming!" she shouted a second before the projectile hit the wall, higher than the ones before it. Burning oil sprayed everywhere as the wall shook hard enough to knock them from their feet. The Fox General hit the ground hard and instantly rolled, smothering the flames that licked at her winter wardrobe. She heard cursing as Pyron and the engineer extinguished the fires that clung to their own clothes. Snow and ice hissed and sizzled as it instantly surrendered to the sudden intense heat. The all too familiar smell of burning clothes and hair wafted through the air. Anko crinkled her nose as she struggled to stand.
"No!"
Unaware of the difficulties going on at the top of the wall, the earthbender on top of the building had sent another oblong boulder sliding down the newly repaired chute. Anko could sense it coming, but she was unable to set herself in time to give it the final push. In a heartbeat it had passed through her range of bending, uselessly sailing out to land midway between the curtain wall and the Fire nation camp. Another of the Fire Nation projectiles hit the upper limestone blocks, a solid object this time. The impact's concussive force shook through the wall and both earthbenders were again knocked down. The sharp sound of two impervious objects colliding echoed throughout the city.
Anko grasped a merlon and pulled herself upright again. And just in time; another rock had been launched. "Pyron!" she yelled as her feet slid instantly into position. He staggered upright. They both pushed… and Anko prayed fervently as she and all those on top of the wall held their collective breaths. The stone shot through the air, causing visible turbulence through the now thick smoke as it neared the Fire Nation camp.
The earthbenders couldn't see the target. It had been a blind throw, one made by off-balanced and out of position benders. They heard a noise, a crash from the distant enemy camp, indicating that their rock had found some sort of target. But was it the right one?
Silence reigned, both on the curtain wall of Ba Sing Sei and in the Fire Nation camp. Slowly, so very slowly that it was a protracted kind of torment, the smoke began to clear. And the defenders of Ba Sing Sei breathed freely once more. The final Fire Nation weapon had been destroyed.
Anko let out a long sigh, a relieved grin bursting out as the tension she had been carrying evaporated in an instant. "We did it?" Her sudden giddiness at the improbably, yet successful shot made her want to laugh out loud. They had done it! It was over!
"General Anko," Pyron's quiet call brought her crashing back to reality, the formality he was displaying doused her excitement like an unexpected splash of cold water. She looked down at her crouching Captain and saw the impossible. Underneath his spread out hand was the result of the final Fire Nation strike. Not a weakness, nor a fissure; the unthinkable existed in a dark crack that ran boldly the full width of the battlements on which they were standing. The narrow crevasse ran down several courses of the massive limestone blocks, stopping only where the wall thickened significantly.
Anko also crouched to lay a hand on the abominable thing, using her earthbending to confirm what her eyes were telling her. It only took a second. She raised her hand and caught her head in it, a wave of exhaustion washing over her as both adrenaline and euphoria dissipated. The damage was extensive, far more than was visible to the human eye. They hadn't won a victory at all; it was a draw. She rose to stand on trembling legs, the weight of the events of the past twenty-four hours bearing down on her.
"Lieutenant-Colonel Jin can handle things from here, I think. When the weather breaks… we'll try to fill this up with mortar… or something."
General Anko stared out at the Fire Nation camp for a moment. Already, the red-clad warriors were scrambling to dismantle tents and hitch up rhinos. She knew better than to hope that they were giving up and going away. They would move the camp back beyond the Earth Kingdom's reach and start rebuilding their fearsome weapons. Next time, General Iroh would pummel them by the dark of night, when retaliation wasn't an option. Next time, they would be shown no mercy.
Anko looked down at the split in the wall. She knew it would be visible from both the Fire Nation camp and from inside the city. Ba Sing Sei couldn't handle a next time. Once again, just when hope was on the horizon, it was cruelly taken away. The General shook her head slowly.
"I'm… going to bed", she said to no one in particular. "Wake me if something happens."
I'll feel better… once I get some sleep… won't I?