Disclaimer: I do not own ATLA or any of the characters from the series.
Chapter 34
A week later, Zuko was in the war room again. The news was no less disheartening than the last meeting. The councilmen were pressuring him even more to launch an attack.
"Why wait until they are at our front door with half the world marshaled behind them? If we attack now, we can catch them off guard, while they are still trying to organize themselves."
"Our recruitments have come along marvelously. Many of the men are already trained, either from the previous battles or in advanced firebending. Another month and they should be ready for the first wave of attacks."
"But will they be ready for the second and third?" Zuko asked. "Once we start, we must be able to see this through to the end. If we declare active fire again, it will get ugly. These men must be able to endure and rise victorious against an all-out war, not just the first surprise attack."
"They will be, your highness. If they prove to be as promising as they seem so far, then we have an army of warriors and champions at our disposal."
Zuko looked further down the table. "And how is the manufacturing going? Weapons, armor, provisions, battle ships, war balloons, air ships, tanks?"
A round of assurances followed. Each man in charge of an area of production declared that the factories and shipyards were working at full capacity and would, of course, be able to equip the newly trained army by the time they were ready to be deployed.
The Fire Lord sat back and thought about his options. There were not many that he could see, and all seemed to end in a great amount of bloodshed for both sides.
"My Lord," a quiet voice broke the silence. Zuko looked up to see Huizhong, one of the only women who have earned a place in the highest ranks. She was mostly in charge of training new recruits and maintaining the homeland police force, but she was highly respected for her skill and sound intuition.
"Many of the colonists have called the Earth mainland home for generations. We no longer have enough land to provide for all our citizens without the colonies. And if we lose the colonies, refugees will flock here. It would be only a matter of time before our resources are cut off and the homeland falls to ruin."
Zuko sighed. Speaking slowly, he made up his mind. "Prepare for an offensive move directed toward the colonies in one month's time. Have our fleets on the offence, too, against any Water Tribe navy. Leave the merchants in peace unless they show hostility. If all goes well, we shall march through the Earth Kingdom cities, subduing their armies. Supplies and soldiers permitting, we shall then divide and conquer the Water Tribes. Those, however, will be the most difficult. Further strategy will need to be discussed at the time.
"I want all this kept quiet. If word gets out that we are on the offense, it may prompt the other armies to speed up their progress. They already have time and numbers on their side; let them not have the advantage of knowledge as well." To himself, he thought 'And to avoid upsetting Katara.'