Hello everybody. Fifteen years of Avatar and I want to participate at the atla15 with one story or another and since 'A Flame For A Cabbage' from BellatrixLestrangey has been so much fun for me I decided to write my first story for the promt 'Cabbages'. So far I can say I regret nothing and I can assure that some tomatoes have been snacked during writing ;-) I wish all of you a lot of fun with this One-Shot.
Killer Cabbages
Gan-Lan had tears in his eyes. His heart was broken… again. He felt his bottom lip quivering as he watched at the smoking parts on his stall in front of him. He didn't notice the celebrations all around him, the cheering people who left the buildings in Ba Sing Se. He didn't took notice of the crushed tanks in the street and the running soldiers. Gan-Lan had only eyes for the burned and smashed cabbages all around him.
He had tried to find shelter for them.
He had tried to hide before the fights within the walls as these little group of men had attacked the city, but he has failed his cabbages again.
The merchant got down on his knees and a sob escaped his throat as the picked up a tattered rest of an once perfect cabbage. He pressed the vegetable gently to his cheek as a tearful whisper forced his way out of his mouth.
"...My...Cabbages..."
A cold and hard hand touched his shoulder. It should have been a comforting and uplifting touch, but it made the merchant stiffened instantly.
"Things like this wouldn't happen with the right men in charge."
Gan-Lan didn't dare to turn his head. Something in this voice behind him was merciless and he hadn't the strength to face its source so far. The dramatic break was well played and the false compassion was almost convincing.
"All these wonderful cabbages… Its a shame."
The merchant took a look at the destruction in front of him. Smashed and shredded cabbages, smoking leaves and pieces of his stall all in between. The owner of this unsettling voice was right.
"Animals would at least have a chance to run but my cabbages..."
He felt a new sob shaking him and he pressed the ragged cabbage closer to him. He didn't notice the grip of the man tighten at his shoulder.
"And some of them could have fought back."
There was a dangerous note in the voice behind him, but this quote made Gan-Lan's eyes jump wide open. He had heard the promise in it, something irresistible for him. He carefully turned around and watched in the glowing eyes of Long Feng.
"Have you ever heard of the mysteries within the big swamp? I came across stories lately that the plants at this place should be… extraordinary."
The man had a malicious smile around his lips, but all Gan-Lan was noticing a promised secret connected with something bigger.
A new chance for his cabbages.
A chance for them to survive this cruel world.
A chance to fight back when officials, rulers or even royals or the Avatar would dare to threaten them again.
Gan-Lan stood up and let his eyes wander over the rests of his cabbage stall. Nothing was holding him here anymore. He would start his business again with the help of this man, who was smiling so devilish now.
About a year later
It was a particular sunny and warm morning as the post at the main gate of Ba Sing Se noticed a big wagon pulled by a comodo rhino getting closer to the wall. Two merchants, one on the wagon and one beside the creature were part of this transport. The load was tired up on the vehicle and covered with a plan. Qui, the commanding sergeant of this post frowned at the sight. Years of duty had shaped a six sense for fishy situations and even if he couldn't place a finger on it he felt that he should better check this load carefully.
He blocked the way with three of his men and waited until the transport has reached them.
"Greetings. Names and sort of cargo you're transporting."
The man on the wagon smiled wide at the sergeant and bowed a little.
"Gan-Lan, at your service and this is my business parter Lee. We're transporting cabbages. Perfect and precious cabbages."
The frown of the sergeant increased at this answer. Something in the voice of this merchant was alarming him. It was too sweet. He started to circle the wagon.
"Reason for traveling to Ba Sing Se?"
Gan-Lan observed the soldier pensively and suspicious as he started to walk around his wagon. Lee didn't care about him, he was busy with the comodo rhino.
"Oh, we're planning big business with these cabbages. They're all very special and Ba Sing Se is the perfect place for such precious and perfect ones like these are."
Qui felt an uncomfortable tickle in his guts. He got closer to the wagon and started to pull off the plan to check the cargo, but he stopped at the terrified shriek of the merchant.
"NO! Be careful with them! They are the most perfect ones! Don't dare to touch them so carelessly they don't like to be groped by everyone!"
The sergeant's look got alarmed instantly and his men took attack stance instantly.
"Sir, I must order you to get away from the wagon now. I'll check this load and we'll arrest you if you should try to interfere our duty!"
The rest of the guards of this post gathered around the wagon and the seven men were ready to strike at the two merchants at any moment. Gan-Lan was turning white and it seemed he wanted to argue with the sergeant but Lee clearing his throat was enough to force out a defeated sigh of the merchant. He got down from the wagon and walked aside with Lee murmuring a little beg to be gentle with his cabbages. The sergeant waited until both men were in safe distance and guarded before he removed the cover.
The slight whimper of Gan-Lan got ignored. On first sight everything seemed to be okay. The wagon was filled with really beautiful grown cabbages, perfect in shape and color. They looked really tasty. The sergeant removed some of the cabbages and started to search through the pile of vegetable for something suspicious but all he noticed was the whiny worried quotes from Gan-Lan. He had buried his arm deep in the pile as his hand suddenly got stuck. The soldier pulled at his arm, but it seemed to him that he only got pulled back.
"I need a little help here."
Two other soldiers appeared and tried to free his arm, but suddenly they looked confused at him as their arms also got stuck in the pile as well. They pulled harsher to get free but out of nowhere the man beside the sergeant started to scream in pain and within the next moment the horrified group of soldiers watched the poor victim disappear within the cabbages as a brutal force pulled him into the pile. Muffled screams escaped the rattling and moving pile before they died into a dead silence. The men stared in horror at each other and then towards the merchant. Gan-Lan was smiling hurtingly sweet at them
"I warned you to be careful with the cabbages. They don't like this sort of treatment."
The sergeant panicked.
"Get us out or you'll pay for that."
A chuckle escaped Gan-Lan. The pile suddenly came to life as some of the cabbages jumped off the wagon rolling with rustling growls at the remaining soldiers. Sharp teeth approached between beautiful and delicate green leaves and the shouts of the solders turned into screams as the green flood swarmed and overwhelmed the poor guards.
The sergeant watched in terror at the chuckling merchant.
"This is madness. You'll not get through with this. Your wagon is outside of these walls. There are none of your killer cabbages in Ba Sing Se.
Lee has started to walk towards the wall, but Gan-Lan came close to the sergeant who was still stuck with his arm in a pile of cabbages.
"Oh my partner can handle these walls, don't worry. And beside my cabbages got delivered during last week to this city and cities all over the kingdom. This is only the last load."
Gan-Lan held up his hand and a ragged cabbage jumped on it. The merchant cuddled the vegetable gently.
"There are Killer Cabbages in Ba Sing Se. And soon the whole world will know it."
Gan-Lan turned away from his wagon ignoring the last screams of the sergeant and followed his partner who has started to open a hole for the wagon within the wall. Long Feng smiled satisfied at the cabbage merchant.
"Ready to write history?"
Gan-Lan fondled the cabbage on his arm and nodded with a satisfied smile.
"Now the world will pay for mistreating my cabbages."
The market was swarmed with costumers and Ging was presenting his vegetables a woman as a curious question from aside caught his attention.
"Excuse me, Does your cabbages always try to bite off a hand if you want to check the quality?"
Gin was annoyed by the stupidity of this question. None of his cabbages has ever done something like this before. No cabbage at all has ever done this before so he didn't consider to waste his time with such nonsense.
"Never. And by the way there are no biting cabggages here in Ba Sing Se or anywhere else in the world."
A hard knock at his head brought him to the ground and he was about to curse the rude behavior of this mad costumer as he noticed the growling cabbages on his chest. Sharp and perfectly grown teeth were to be found in this malicious grin of the biggest one. It was the last thing he saw as the marketplace started to burst in panic while cabbages started to overrun the area from out of the stalls and carts all around.
Huan-Ga was beyond being nervous. His new costumers were terrifying. A horde of cabbages had kicked down the door (they had no legs but in his panic he couldn't think of a better description) of his shop and were now checking the looks and fits of his crafted flowerpots. Some also seemed to like the soup bows and due to the grunts and snarls they argued about the perfect look with each other.
One of them had spitted a bag of gold on his shop's desk but the fact that there was still a bloody hand on it hasn't convinced Huan-Ga to check if the money would cover the broken door and the broken pottery cause the cabbages have decided to break every piece which didn't seem to hit their taste.
An angry snarl from the back of his shop caught everyones attention and the cabbages stopped checking the pots instantly. A big cabbage was growling in hate beside a pot in the shelf and all color drained from Huan-Ga's face. Beside the fact that none of the cabbages seem to have eyes he could still feel the hateful looks resting on him.
"Maybe we can forget the money. All of you have a free choice from my store and we forget about the kimchi pot?"
The growling got louder and Huan-Ga felt the cold sweat running down his neck. His voice fell down to a trembling whisper.
"...Deal…?"
Jisong slammed the door close behind her and barred it with shaking hands. She closed her eyes and tried to ignore the horrible screams from outside. Ba Sing Se was in panic and people were trying to find shelter from the green flood which was attacking everyone outside. She was on her way to her flower shop as the nightmare started.
She winced at every thud at her door when another angry cabbage was hitting the solid wood. This was a true nightmare.
Jisong didn't know how long she was leaning against her door as she noticed strange noises from her back of her shop. She pressed her hands before her mouth to muffle a gasp as she heared the sound again. It sounded like a mad chuckle.
The shop owner moved carefully away from the door towards the another one behind her desk which was leading to her storage room. She grabbed a little rake from the desk and moved closer and closer towards the door which was slightly open. Jisong started to hear more noises from out of the room. It sounded like... singing?
It took the frightened woman all of her courage to push the door open... and her eyes jumped wide in horror and disbelief.
The room was a chaos. The flowerpots were broken and shattered and the good soil was spilled all over the floor but the most shocking sight was a group of eleven big cabbages bathing in her best fertilizer. These monsters had ripped open every bag she had and piled up all the good stuff. The brown gold was smeared all over them and she couldn't help but noticing that the group was growling in a melodic way like a bunch of drunken idiots, laughing and cheering as loud as they could. They used one of her destroyed shelves as a ramp for sliding into the pile of fertilizer over and over again.
"What in all cabbages name..."
The words have slipped her mouth faster than she could stop them. The shock and surprise have cost her focus for a moment and she cursed her loose tongue instantly as all cabbages froze in motion. The dead silence was hurting and Jisong prepared herslef for her end as she noticed more faint thuds at her front door. The woman suddenly noticed that the cabbages in front of her haven't moved so far. One or another was growling threatening as she moved a little but it seemed that this group was kind of nervous...
Jisong's jaw dropped for a second, which let two cabbages growling a bit louder but the woman felt a little ray of hope. She raised her hands up and got down to place the rake on the ground carefully.
"You don't want to share, do you?"
She nodded at the fertilizer and the cabbages stopped growling immediately. A nervous smile rushed over the woman's lips.
"Maybe you would get in trouble for this also, am I right?"
The growls returned but it was too late. Jisong has noticed the frightened trembling of the cabbages. She had seen enough nervous men in her shop who were terrified because they have forgotten an important date. She could see when someone was in trouble and these cabbages have bathed in it.
"You could kill me but this wouldn't be silent. They will hear it."
She nodded with her head backwards never stoping to observe the cabbages. She could swear that some of them have started to sweat.
"But if you let me stay here with you, then no one must ever find out that we are here and you can have all of this for yourself."
The cabbages had no eyes, only leaves and teeth but Jisong was sure that the group was sharing some looks with each other... and then the bigfest cabbage started to laugh a gurgling laughter. The others joined in and soon the group was busy with singing and bathing in fertilizer. Jisong released a big breath. She felt a little dizzy but was happy that she seemed to be safe for now. She winced at a nodge at her ankle. A cabbage has rolled to her and grunted at her in a questioning sound. Again her tongue was faster than her mind.
"My name is Jisong"
The cabbage seemed happy at the answer and rolled back to the others. The woman took a look around and cleared another bag of fertilizer from dirt and pottery pieces.
Trapped with a group of cabbages drunken by dung.
Jisung remembered her hasty flight to her store and the panic on the streets. So far she could have hit a fate far worse than that.
It was sunset but dark smoke was alredy covering the sun. Gan-Lan observed the destruction from the balcony of the Palace his cabbages has conquered about an hour ago. faint screams from own the city were still filling the evening, raising up to the sky with the fires which were spreading out within the walls.
It was a display of his revenge. Revenge for all the cabbages he had lost.
"It's only the beginning."
Gan-Lan smiled at the quote of Long Feng. The man was in his old robes again he had worn before he lost his position as the head of the Dai Li. The man was also smiling at the sight of chaos before him.
"Tomorrow we will start to rebuild the old strength of this Kingdom. We'll lead it back to its rightful place in the world, we..."
Long Feng got buried under a rain of cabbages which had waited on the rooftop of the building for the right moment to attack. The cabbage merchant turned around and his smile was poisoning. The former head of the Dai Li tried to free himself but the cabbages had fixed him perfectly on the ground. HHe stared confused at Gan-Lan which elicited a chuckle from the merchant while he was stroking the ragged cabbage on his arm.
"Why...?"
Long Feng's boice was a mixture of disbelief and curiosity. The cabbage merchant bowed down to him to whisper in his ear.
"Because who needs the Earthkingdom? Or a kingdom at all? What could be better than a world rueld by cabbages? They are perfect."
Shock came to Long Feng's face as he realized his defeat. It brought a satified smile the Gan-Lan's face as he stood up again.
"Now you understand. You was never even a player... against my cabbages."
The cabbage merchant left the balcony ignoring the last screams of Long Feng. His smile was growing as he passed the parade of cabbages in the hall.
Tomorrow the world would know of this attack.
They would pay for destroying so many helpless cabbages
All of them, even the Avatar.
This was only the beginning.