Destiny

by negative 97

With the Earth Imperium and the Water Confederacy nearing victory in the war, the Fire Nation and the Water Tribe, struggle to hold them off while trying to gain some sort of foothold on the battlefront. Wrapped up in this conflict is Yumi, a young Fire Nation noble who wants to help the war effort; unfortunately for her, she gets her wish.

5. Chapter 5 Coming Together

Ch.5

Coming Together

Avatar the Last Airbender is the property of its respective owners, Ocs belong to me

Sighing heavily, a blind, twelve year old girl wearing a white robe with an insignia of a flying boar on the back of the garment sat down at the desk of her private room and proceeded to bury her face in her hands. While she wanted nothing more than to just flop down in her bed and take the longest nap ever, she had to file her report on today's engagement. With that in mind, the young girl grabbed a stylus and writing slate and wrote every little detail about the battle she was in not too long ago, no matter how small or insignificant said detail might be.

[Broke off from the main attack force after we completed our occupation of the eastern side of Ember Island and headed towards the housing district with Haru, Tyro, the Boulder, and the Hippo. Your sources were correct; there was a heavy resistance presence there. Engaged the enemy; my team suffered no casualties. Enemy force killed in its entirety. Earth Imperium troops proceeded to occupy the area.]

[Discovered that the city center of Ember Island had been converted into a base by the resistance. Infiltrated the area with my team and your Kyoshi Warriors and terminated the leadership along with several key members. Enemy forces in the area were sent into disarray and fled towards the countryside. Pursued and terminated them to a man. Launched a search for a possible resistance camp, but could find nothing. Returned to the city center and contacted the main attack force. Earth Imperium troops proceeded to occupy the area.]

[Rendezvoused with the main attack force and laid siege to yet another school converted into a fortress. Assisted the main attack force while your Kyoshi Warriors snuck around the back and slew enemies in key positions within the fortification, sending the enemy into disarray. Knocked down the gates while the defenders were distracted and proceeded to secure the area. Any captured firebenders were terminated while anyone discovered to be earthbenders or waterbenders were sent to reeducation camps in either the homeland or Water Confederacy territory as per protocol. Earth Imperium troops proceeded to occupy the area.]

[Your Kyoshi Warriors, my team, and I were ambushed. Responded accordingly, no casualties. Enemy force suffered heavy losses, unable to interrogate survivors as they had swallowed a fast acting poison that left them brain dead in a matter of seconds. Further inspection revealed that the attackers mainly consisted of the staff and students of the schools we occupied. Earth Imperium troops proceeded to occupy the area.]

[Upon returning to base, we launched an investigation about our ambushers and discovered that they are not part of the resistance we are familiar with. They and the main resistance suffer from a moral and ethical split on how best to combat us. This schism is most likely because this other resistance consists of Home Guard members and the aforementioned staff and students, individuals who have either not experienced warfare or are consciously trying not to use the methods the main resistance is infamous for. Heavily suggest sending spies to both camps to breed hostility and discontent in order to make the subjugation of both groups all the easier once they are discovered.]

With her report done, the young earthbender set it aside and put a hand on her chin. She figured it was time to get some rest, something she thought she had more than earned, but before she could even leave her chair to get onto her bed, she felt a familiar presence approach her door through her seismic sense, making the child soldier sigh heavily.

"Yeah, yeah, just give me a moment," the blind earthbender grumbled before the individual in question could even knock on her door, causing said individual to grunt, but otherwise patiently wait for the young earthbender.

Releasing a breathe, the child soldier grabbed one of the copies of Avatar Kyoshi's supposed memoirs that detailed the late avatar's twilight years of being Kyoshi Peninsula's protector, turned to a random page, and placed her index finger on one of the indented letters in order to make it look like she was studying for the monthly test on the memoir's material. With that done, the blind earthbender threw open the door, revealing a Kyoshi Warrior wearing a menacing, bright green face mask resembling the serpent from the Serpent's Pass and a dark green, lamellar plated kimono with the Earth Imperium insignia proudly displayed on the back and chest of the heavily armored garment. Moreover, the woman standing before the blind earthbender wore stone gloves and boots like the Dai Lee agents of Ba Sing Se. Sure, the agent standing before the child soldier wore the signature face paint and headdress the Kyoshi Warriors were known for, but any resemblance to the late Avatar was purely superficial.

"Alright, what do you want? My report isn't due until-"

"There's going to be a meeting so make yourself look presentable and bring your report with you," the pseudo Kyoshi Warrior bluntly interrupted the blind earthbender and to drive the point home, slammed the door in the child soldier's face.

Huffing, the child soldier tried to shake away her annoyance of this surprise meeting being sprung on her and changed out of her ornate robe and into a rugged, worn out shirt and faded shorts. Completing her look with studded wrist and ankle bands and a round, green, steel hat with a pointed spike, the child soldier grabbed her set aside report and opened the door. Just as the young earthbender was about to remark "Satisfied?", the pseudo Kyoshi Warrior turned around and began walking to the meeting place, fully expecting the child soldier to follow her. Growling under her breathe, the blind earthbender caught up with the pseudo Kyoshi Warrior and, through her seismic sense, gazed upon Ember Island.

What had once been an idyllic resort that the people of the Fire Nation could go to in order to escape the burden of their impending defeat and subjugation was now a foreboding hellscape of rivers and lakes of lava that no person dared tread. What's more, the blind earthbender also heard the deafening crackling and bursts of thunder and lightning going off near constantly in the electrical storms dotting the ash filled sky, making her jolt each and every time. Anyone would be demoralized, if not outright giving up and surrendering to the enemy, if they saw their home like this. In spite of this, the two rebellions were holding, but only just about if their desperate attacks against them were any indication.

"Any reason why this surprise-"

"I do not know, but it is most likely something that will hasten our victory over the Fire Nation," the pseudo Kyoshi Warrior cut off the child soldier while cringing when she saw scores of female komodo rhinos, cruelly restrained with tight chains that dug into their flesh, being put down with a giant boulder to the head or an earthen spike to the heart. The blind earthbender herself grimaced whenever the komodo rhinos were not killed instantly, leaving parts of their broken, bloody skull caved in, making them wildly spasm for a long moment before going still. That, or when their tough skin prevented the earthen spike from going through their heart, their executioners, with annoyed huffs, moved onto the next restrained komodo rhino like they were trying to fulfill their quota for the day while they were left to bleed out.

"If it is, I'll be grateful, if only because I want-"

"Chin will only let up once we've won, and even then, these animals will only be able to breed if he allows it," the agent cut off the child soldier, making the blind earthbender huff, as she glared at the myriad of workers sitting at their tables with a cleaver in hand and a female messenger hawk pinned down to it as if they were doing a boring desk job. The fact that the workers were beheading the poor avians with a dull expression on their face, swiping the messenger hawk's decapitated heads off of their tables like it was a completed file, and grabbing another live messenger hawk from a cage didn't help matters.

"You act as if he has control over life and deat-"

"For the animals the Fire Nation uses for military purposes, he does, and, when we've conquered the Fire Nation, it will be the same for its citizens," the pseudo Kyoshi Warrior butted in, causing the blind earthbender to scoff, but otherwise could do nothing but tolerate it as they made their way up the hill towards their base of operations. Verifying who they were with the guards, the duo entered the base which was guarded round the clock by sentries and supported by workers from the homeland or slaves taken from what remained of Ember Island's civilian populace.

"Come, they're expecting us in the war room," the onna-bugeisha stated as she and her cohort ascended a flight of stairs and went down a hallway to their destination, maneuvering their way past the copious amount of workers and slaves they ran into.

"I know where it is-"

"Then make haste," the agent interjected, making the child soldier huff, as, just as she was about to slow down her pace ever so slightly, a servant girl carrying a tray of food, bumped into the onna-bugeisha. The servant girl, who was wearing a raggedy, green tunic, had a badge of the Fire Nation's symbol pinned to her garment, and had characters that spelled out Fire Nation dog painfully branded on her face, palms, wrists, and back of her neck, gasped and immediately prostrated herself, trembling the whole time.

"P-please, I-I'm sorry! I-it w-was a mistake! I-I promise to not let it happen again!" the servant girl fearfully blubbered with tears streaming down her face, causing the pseudo Kyoshi Warrior to sigh as she noticed all eyes were on her. The onna-bugeisha, if circumstances allowed, would have been more than happy to just let this incident go, but, given who she was in the Earth Imperium hierarchy, she knew if she didn't do something, losing face would only be the tip of the iceberg. Still, there was no need to be brutal, and so, with that in mind, the pseudo Kyoshi Warrior shot out her stone glove, grabbed the servant girl by the scruff of her collar, and tugged her toward her.

"I've seen you around before; your name is...On Ji, correct? Come to my barracks later to repair my garment and I'll consider the matter settled. Name drop Musashi to your overseer and they'll tell you where to go," Musashi said, making the servant girl fearfully nod, as the pseudo Kyoshi Warrior relinquished her grip on On Ji, making the slave fall to her knees with a thud. Grimacing, On Ji cleaned up the fallen food and scurried away like an elephant rat fleeing a dangerous predator when she was done. The onna-bugeisha heard some people murmur that she was too merciful or that she should have taken things farther, but paid them no mind as she and the child soldier continued on their way.

"That was awfully nice of-"

"Contrary to what you might think, I do not approve of how the Fire Nation's citizenry are being treated," Musashi cut off the child soldier as they arrived at their destination and entered the war room where the onna-bugeisha saw high ranking officials in the army, navy, and their newest branch, the air force, in attendance by way of astral projections.

"Must be really serious if Chin called them here," Musashi thought to herself as she curtly, but politely bowed to the blind earthbender before joining her fellow pseudo Kyoshi Warriors on the other side of the room.

Huffing, the child soldier joined Haru, Tyro, the Boulder, and the Hippo and folded her arms, impatiently waiting for the meeting to commence. Once everyone was inside, the guards sealed the doors and windows shut and triple checked that everyone present was who they said they were while the shamans present read everyone's aura and chi just to be sure. When the head guard gave the all clear, an official pressed a button on the podium, causing Chin the Peacekeeper's astral projection, which towered over everyone in the room, to appear and gaze upon the attendees like a deity about to pass judgment on lowly mortals.

"Thank you all for coming; let's get down to business. Firstly, our astronomers discovered a solar eclipse that will cause firebenders to lose their powers for eight minutes. If all goes well, then the invasion Chief Arnook and I are planning can end this war earlier than projected," Chin the Peacekeeper informed his forces, causing several outward sighs of relief from many of those present. Some of the more stoic attendees kept a straight face, but internally were just as elated at the war ending earlier than what was estimated.

"Secondly, we have calculated the path Sozin's comet will take so when it does get here, we will destroy it and prevent any remaining firebenders from drawing upon it as a power source," Chin the Peacekeeper continued, causing more relieved murmurs to erupt from the attendees as few wanted to face souped up firebenders, especially the more powerful ones like the Dragon of the West.

"Lastly, I'm glad that we almost have complete control over the land masses close to the Fire Nation, but given the information we now know, I want to strike at the heart of our enemy. With that in mind, I want Ember Island wiped off of the map within a week where you will then rendezvous with the blockade and await redeployment," the ruler of the Earth Imperium commanded causing everyone present to nod though General Fong frowned.

"Sir, forgive me, but can't we just attack the Fire Nation now? With our numbers, our technology, and the Water Confederacy's help, we can crush them like the bugs they are," General Fong declared while clenching his fist, a sentiment General How wholeheartedly supported, but Chin the Peacekeeper merely grunted.

"On that, we agree; however, the Fire Nation knows we're going to invade sooner or later and have prepared their defenses accordingly. If we were to strike now, we would certainly win, but at a death toll I would rather avoid," Chin the Peacekeeper answered, something that General Fong was not entirely satisfied with.

"But it's like you said, sir. If we attack now, we can end this conflict once and for all; surely that is worth any price we have to pay," General Fong countered, causing the child soldier, who had been biting her tongue all this time like she would when she was with her parents, to venomously remark "Except you wouldn't be the one paying it." Scowling, Fong was about to riposte with his own scathing remark only for Chin the Peacekeeper to hold up his hand, causing the exuberant general to huff, but otherwise back down.

"Once Ember Island has been decimated, we will launch our invasion of the Fire Nation homeland in earnest by taking areas vital to the continuation of our enemy. Once that is done, you and General How have my permission to end this conflict on the day of the eclipse," Chin the Peacekeeper proclaimed, causing the two generals to eagerly smirk, already imagining the destruction and mayhem that they would enact unto the Fire Nation military and its citizenry.

"Sir, the Royal Family along with the other nobles may have hidden, underground passages for such a scenario," the blind earthbender suddenly pointed out, but all this did was make the ruler of the Earth Imperium laugh softly.

"I'm well aware; if such underground passages exist we will simply bury them underneath the rubble. Sure, we will lose critical intel and leverage over the resistance forces that will inevitably crop up, but I believe such a trade-off will be worth the cost," Chin the Peacekeeper replied with his feelings on the matter shared by Musashi to an extent, something the child soldier picked up on and shot a quick glare at the pseudo Kyoshi Warrior.

"Chief Arnook will now inform you of the last order of business," the ruler of the Earth Imperium stated while stepping back, causing his astral projection to disappear, and the astral projection of the Water Confederacy's chief taking his place.

"Thank you all for coming; I would like to commend all of you for your sacrifice and courage in the face of this conflict. I know it is daunting, but we ask that you bear this unfortunate burden a little longer," Arnook stated, making the blind earthbender huff as she was suddenly reminded of the fact that her that her request for leave to return to Gaoling, which she had put forward eleven months ago, had been denied.

"Now then, the Water Confederacy has completed our takeover of the land and seas around the eastern and southern fronts and will subjugate key locations from our enemy in those areas once Ember Island has been conquered. Once that is done, your northern front will combine with our eastern front and your western front will combine with our southern front where we will initiate the siege on the Royal Palace during the eclipse," Chief Arnook informed everyone present, causing some to murmur that the Earth Imperium was bearing the true burden of the war while the Water Confederacy was just tagging along.

"Our navy and submarines will provide assistive fire on enemy forces, but their primary focus will be countering any reinforcements the Fire Nation may send by sea. Similarly, your air force will fire upon enemy soldiers and undergo bombing runs, but their main concern will be taking care of the war balloons the Fire Nation will employ," Arnook continued, causing the sentiment that the Earth Imperium was doing the legwork of the war to increase.

"Our land forces will be organized as such; benders, archers, crossbowers, and artillery in the back while the warriors, armored fighting vehicles, and cavalry will be in the front. This formation should maximize our ability to advance and enable us to constantly pressure our enemy, preventing them from regrouping and pushing us back," Arnook went on, causing Musashi to purse her lips and nod, How and Fong to grin, while the child soldier said nothing though she was a bit irked that benders like herself needed to be in the back.

"Lastly, we will have rear guards comprised of all our units established on each front just in case the Fire Nation does somehow manage to get around us. Does everyone understand?" the chief of the Water Confederacy inquired, causing someone to quietly murmur that they were going to bet 100 gold pieces that the rear guards would primarily be composed of Water Confederacy forces, making his cohort chuckle.

Though Arnook did not hear it, the blind earthbender subtly clenched her fist, sending the miscreant sprawling to the ground, while Musashi clenched her teeth, causing the ground underneath the miscreant's friend's feet to briefly turn into lava. Yelping, the ne'er do well jumped back while clutching his feet, making Arnook raise a brow while the astral projections of General Fong and How glared at both the miscreant and ne'er do well. Gulping, the two men prostrated themselves and apologized profusely to Chief Arnook, something the wizened chief accepted and beckoned them to rise rather than punish them like some of the attendees were expecting.

"Uh, Chief Arnook, sir, could my troops and I be in the rear guard?" General Sung requested, making How and Fong scowl, while Arnook, after conversing with Chin off screen, nodded.

"Of course, General. Chin and I agreed that is where you and your forces would be best suited," Arnook answered, causing Sung to breathe a sigh of relief while ignoring the subtle insult both the chief of the Water Confederacy unintentionally directed at him.

"If there is nothing else left to discuss, then this meeting is adjourned. May the spirits guide and protect you all," Chief Arnook declared before signing off, but not before the miscreant and ne'er do well respectfully bowed to the leader of the Water Confederacy. Releasing a breathe, the child soldier rolled her shoulders before walking over to the astral projection of her commanding officer, General Fong, and held her report out. The projection of Fong, with the help of the shamans present, proceeded to tear open a hole in the Spirit World, enabling the real deal to reach a hand through the tear, grab the report, and finish reading its contents in not time at all.

"I'll send this to Chin immediately and while I like your suggestion of deepening the divide between the two resistance forces, it will not be necessary since this island is proving more trouble than it's worth," Fong stated, making Toph cringe internally as she did not want to be witness to yet another island, city, or landmass being completely destroyed.

"Sir, with respect, we almost have Ember Island under our control. I think it would be best if we conquer it and use it as base or port for our forces rather than bringing it to the ground," the blind earthbender reasoned in a way that would not only benefit the Earth Imperium war machine, but spare the populace of Ember Island any more hardship as well.

"Toph, we're on a timetable, and I don't want to waste anymore time with these fire breathing savages than we already have. If we have time, we'll take the survivors as slaves. If we don't, we'll destroy this place and send the decapitated heads of any stragglers straight to the Fire Lord," Fong proclaimed while balling his hand into a fist, making the blind earthbender's stomach churn.

"Of course, sir," Toph responded while biting back a scathing curse, causing the projection of Fong to respectfully bow to his subordinate before dissipating. Before the blind earthbender could converse with her team, Musashi, after submitting her report to a shaman who answered to Chin the Peacekeeper, approached Toph with her fellow pseudo Kyoshi Warriors hanging back.

"Come, we need to talk, and no, since I'm higher ranked than you, you don't have a choice," Musashi murmured less in cruel mockery of the superiority she held over the blind earthbender and more in matter-of-fact. In response, Toph groaned while tilting her head back, but nonetheless acquiesced to the onna-bugeisha's order. Before she did though, she silently mouthed to a worried Tyro, Haru, the Boulder, and the Hippo that she would be fine, though she felt the doubt emanating from her team.

"What do you wan-"

"Not here, this isn't a matter that can be discussed openly," the onna-bugeisha whispered while doing her best to look like she wasn't conversing with the blind earthbender at all.

In spite of it looking like she was doing just that, Musashi's second nevertheless turned her head, narrowed her eyes at her leader from across the room, discreetly transformed a rock she had up her sleeve into a razor sharp, glass dagger, and made a cutthroat motion with her thumb. Musashi's third, in solidarity with the second, subtly liquefied a hunk of earth up her sleeve into a tendril and mimicked strangling and snapping the onna-bugeisha's neck, making the pseudo Kyoshi Warrior snort. They returned to their barracks as the pseudo Kyoshi Warrior ordered, of course, and bowed to the duo before departing, but both knew it was more out of keeping up appearances rather than any sort of genuine respect on their part.

"Alright, let's g-"

"Good, follow me," Musashi stated, causing Toph to roll her eyes and follow the pseudo Kyoshi Warrior out of the meeting area, down a corridor, went outside of the base, and down a pathway. They then stopped in an abandoned vacation house that used to be on stilts, but had since been grounded because of the ongoing struggle.

"Before we continue, you have to stop interrupting-"

"I will do so after we're done," the onna-bugeisha butted in, making the blind earthbender huff, as time would tell if the pseudo Kyoshi Warrior would be true to her word.

Scanning left to right to make sure no one was around and deeming it safe, the onna-bugeisha gestured for Toph to do the same. Saying nothing, the blind earthbender smashed her palm into the ground, sending out a seismic wave that gave her an exceptional mental picture of her surroundings and, like her cohort, found no one they didn't want around. Breathing a sigh of relief, the onna-bugeisha quickly burnt a hole in the ground big enough for both of them and gestured for Toph to get in, causing the child soldier to fold her arms and raise a brow. Rolling her eyes, Musashi jumped in first, prompting Toph to follow her, where the former closed the hole so they would leave no trace that they had been there in the first place.

With that done, the pseudo Kyoshi Warrior pushed forward by melting the rubble into paste with searing hot lava to...wherever she was taking her. Before Toph could even ask where they were going, Musashi motioned for her to stop. Sucking in a breathe, the pseudo Kyoshi Warrior parted a hole in the ground above them and jumped out of the self made tunnel, causing Toph to follow suit where she felt that they were at the local library, but in a room that she was unfamiliar with. The child soldier, however, was able to discern that this secret room belonged to someone of prominence in the Fire Nation, or used to, given the amount of scrolls that had a burnt, ashy smell to them and dusty, broken down, dragon like furniture around them.

"Now then, I'm here to warn to be more careful. Chin is tiring of how you accomplish things, in spite of his open approval of you," Musashi interrupted while gesturing at the seat across from her, causing the blind earthbender to grunt, but otherwise approach the table.

"He doesn't like how I do thi-"

"Yes, he doesn't. He wants results, and he wants them immediately, something neutral jing does not facilitate. If you want to get some of the heat off of your back, your going to need to learn to be more aggressive. Here are some scrolls from the combat system earthbending troops are taught in boot camp; incorporate some aspects of them into your fighting style," Musashi stated in a tone that sounded less like a request and more like an order while throwing the scrolls, modified so blind people could read them, across the table. Huffing, Toph picked one of the scrolls at random, unfurled it, and began tracing her fingers over one of the forms. The blind earthbender proceeded to jolt and do a double take to make sure she processed the information correctly before setting the scroll down.

"These forms feel like they would suit firebenders more," Toph observed while grabbing another scroll, tracing her finger over one of the forms it was trying to demonstrate, and quickly came to the same conclusion, causing Musashi to grimly nod.

"Chin calls it an improvement over the traditional combat system and in some aspects, he's right. More importantly, however, his combat system is even being taught to non-benders, leaving the old ways at risk of dying out, something that's intentional on his part," the pseudo-Kyoshi Warrior replied as, out of all the people to financially back to reach the citizenry, he chose Yu and Xin Fu; one was a man who taught a bastardization of Chin's system and the other a shameless promoter of Chin's values wherever Earth Rumble Six went.

"Well, even if his system is being taught over the old ways, there's still going to be some people left-"

"No, there isn't. Chin's burned every scroll pertaining to the old ways he could get his hands on and sent anyone who knew traditional combat techniques to prison or, if they were particularly belligerent, Lake Laogai. The only reason he spared you is because your skills were too valuable to let go to waste in a cell, and even that's beginning to not be enough to spare you," Musashi cut in while forcing down the guilt she felt for directly contributing to the scroll burnings and kidnappings she had been part of.

"So what you're saying is we're going to have a lot of hyper aggressive earthbenders and non-benders running around?" Toph surmised while stuffing the scrolls into her satchel, already having ideas as to how to incorporate some of these forms from the new system into her fighting style without compromising it.

"Correct; mentality wise, the old ways stressed patience, listening and waiting before moving forward, doing what was necessary to accomplish something, acknowledging when you're wrong and seeking to atone for it, and knowing when to cut your losses. Chin's way-"

"Stresses aggression, moving forward at all times to create your own opportunities while never looking back, and doing everything in your power to not only accomplish something, but ensuring that those who impeded you won't be able to do it again. Not only that, Chin wants everyone to acknowledge your mistakes and take steps to make sure you don't repeat them, but never admit that you were at fault and to not give up in the face of someone who wronged you, no matter the odds," Toph cut off the onna-bugeisha while hiding her satisfaction at being the one to interrupt Musashi this time around, something her ally noted with mild amusement if the slight grin tugging at the corner of her lips was any indication.

"Correct; given the amount of bad blood on all sides, such traits are not going to foster a healthy post-war environment," the pseudo Kyoshi Warrior posited, something the blind earthbender agreed with, as she could already imagine the brutal fights and clan killings over minor disputes that were best shrugged off.

"I know, but what can we do-"

"Besides my earlier suggestion, you should perhaps consider...leaving and going to Omashu, a region Chin grudgingly respects the autonomy of. I know you want to see your parents, but Chin's not letting you leave the battlefront anytime soon," Musashi commented, causing Toph to huff, frown, and scrunch her brow.

"Speaking to the choir, Toasty. I already thought of jumping ship to King Bumi's side, but that would mean leaving my parents," Toph rebutted as while she was here in Ember Island, her parents were back home where they could be eliminated to force her compliance if Chin felt it was needed.

"I know, No Eyes, but if you stay in the Earth Imperium, you will be bogged down by Chin's system that, while it does promote those on merit, it favors those who subscribe to his philosophy. That means your hope for advancement, along with your ability to influence change, will be little to null, even with your popularity among the troops," Musashi fired back, making Toph huff, as, while she realized that some portions of the Earth Imperium military were not fond of Chin, they also realized that they were in the minority.

"That still leaves my parents vulnerable-"

"They can move their operations to Omashu since King Bumi is unlikely to give them up to Chin if he demands it," the pseudo-Kyoshi Warrior reasoned, causing Toph to put a hand on her chin as her father and mother did have a business dealing with a cabbage merchant's small, but growing vehicle company in the autonomous city. Still, the majority of her family's wealth and influence was in Gaoling, so moving where they primarily operate would mean making new in-roads and partnerships. Suddenly, a thought occurred to the blind earthbender, making her slap her palm onto the table.

"That's it! Dad just needs someone to do business for him in Gaoling while he's in Omashu! That way, he and Mom stay safe-"

"And they continue to build their wealth," Musashi finished, nearly overwhelming the child soldier with excitement, but Toph kept her composure as she considered other facets for this course of action.

"I think The Boulder would be a good fit. My Dad helped him get started in Earth Rumble Six and he's been loyal to him ever since," the Blind Bandit explained, causing Musashi to tilt her head and raise a brow as while she knew the bombastic entertainer turned Earth Imperium soldier was smarter than people gave him credit for, she did not know if he was up to this task.

"Are you sure-"

"Positive. He may have rocks for brains, but he's a quick learner," the child soldier assured as, with The Boulder taking his leave of absence soon, he could file for exemption from military service if things went according to plan.

"Very well; I'll try and get into contact with your mother and father while you go talk to The Boulder at a later time. Moving on though, I'm sure you've heard of the superweapon that is currently in development?" the pseudo Kyoshi Warrior assumed, to which Toph grimly nodded as she read the report on the botched field test when the weapon, when it was in bomb form in its early stages, destroyed a large island in the Water Confederacy when the scientists lost control of it.

"How do we stop it?" the blind earthbender asked, to which the onna-bugeisha helplessly shrugged, as she tried everything she could feasibly think of. She went for the brute force approach by destroying any of the weapon's blueprints and prototypes while in disguise, and it managed to be built anyway. She went for a subtle approach by sabotaging tests and neutralizing engineers vital to developing the weapon, and it moved to the next phase of testing regardless.

"We have two options; firstly, we can go to the North Pole and destroy it. It won't prevent it from being rebuilt, but it will most likely prevent it from being fielded on the day of the invasion and reaching the mass production stage, at least for a short while. This, however, will make us traitors, which means we will be hunted relentlessly for the rest of our lives," Musashi elaborated as while she had no relatives waiting back for her in the homeland, much less anyone she could call friend, she knew the same could not be said for her ally.

"Okay, let's say we destroy it and we're caught. What happens to us then-"

"Our eyes will be gouged out, our ears will be chopped off, our tongues will be ripped out, and our limbs will be hacked off. Chin will then throw us in some dark, isolated cell so we can be lost and forgotten to time," the onna-bugeisha interrupted in an off-handed manner, complete with a calm wave of her hand, making Toph balk and unconsciously rub her chin.

"A-and the second option-"

"We go to the North Pole, talk to Chief Arnook, and try to convince him not to field the weapon. In theory, if he agrees with us, Chin can't use it due to the terms of the treaty. In practice, however-"

"Chin's going to use that superweapon no matter what anyone says. If Chief Arnook keeps or destroys it, Chin's going to break off their alliance, annihilate the Fire Nation, and then come for him. That, or Chin, blinded by rage, will gun for Chief Arnook with every fiber of his being, completely ignoring the Fire Nation who will mop both of us up once we're at our weakest," Toph butted in with an annoyed sigh directed at the Earth Imperium's ruler, hoping that if Arnook did keep the weapon, the first scenario, minus the destruction of the Fire Nation, was the one to come to pass.

"In either scenario, we're going to have a three way war on our hands," the pseudo Kyoshi Warrior replied, making the blind earthbender grimly sigh, as the onna-bugeisha knew, or at least she hoped she knew, that Chin would still be smart enough to leave someone to deal with the Fire Nation, most likely Long Feng.

"Great, just great. So, how are we getting there anyway?" the child soldier asked while mentally going over what clothing and gear to bring with her to the North Pole.

"We'll take a bi-plane and given that I'm the leader of one of Chin's sponsored Kyoshi Warrior groups, people won't suspect us too much," Musashi answered though she wondered if she would be able to see this through in the first place, given how her second and third have gotten bolder in their assassination attempts as of late.

"I doubt Canker Sores is just going to let us go," Toph remarked, still bitter that her request for leave had been denied for the umpteenth time, something the onna-bugeisha sympathized with.

"So long as I promote a leader in my stead, he won't care too much, especially since Ember Island is pretty much conquered already. However, he will throw quite a fit once he realizes I've taken you with me," Musashi responded as most likely, Chin had already departed from the North Pole by way of his airship and was on his way back to the homeland, meaning they wouldn't have a less than ideal run in with him once they got to their destination.

"All the more reason we should go," Toph commented with a slight laugh, wishing she could see Chin's reaction once he realized that the best bender he had just up and left seemingly without trace.

"Very well; we'll leave as soon as possible which is why I'm requesting that you...accompany me to my barracks and I'll do the same for you," Musashi declared, making Toph nod, as while she wasn't the victim of assassination attempts like her ally was, the blind earthebender did catch one of the onna-bugeisha's teammates watching over her from time to time.

"Lead the way, Toasty. I just need to talk to The Pebble before we go," the Blind Bandit responded, causing the pseudo Kyoshi Warrior to grunt, but otherwise did not protest as she jumped back in the hole she made with Toph quickly following suit.

"Try and make it quick, No Eyes," the pseudo Kyoshi Warrior responded while closing the hole, remembering that she had ordered On Ji to go to her barracks and was most likely still waiting for her even with how much time had passed.

"Making it quick doesn't adhere to the old ways," Toph joked, causing her to not only feel the pseudo Kyoshi Warrior turn around and briefly glare at her, but Musashi stifling a brief, barely noticeable chuckle as well.

---

Releasing a breathe, Samsara looked up at Lee, Lian, and Yumi's estate from atop Ming's komodo rhino as they, along with the military police and Lee's family's bodyguards, came to a stop. The rakshasi figured that Yumi was some sort of big shot noble the moment she laid eyes on her, but the daughter of Mr. Inferiority Complex's best warrior? The girl had it made in Samsara's opinion as she wrapped her arms around Zhen Liu's waist and helped her off of the beast of burden while Ming, her fellow officers, and the bodyguards secured the perimeter.

"Jeez, the end of the world as we know it and they're living large? Anything to make the Fire Nation's subsequent razing better I guess," the rakshasi quietly remarked, making the belly dancer a raise a brow, as Lee, Lian, and Yumi exited their carriage when they were given the all clear.

"What do you mean?" Zhen Liu inquired as Lian handed an understandably exhausted Yumi to Tozen, who carried her to her room, so she could get some much needed rest.

"I saw the Earth Imperium and the Water Confederacy invade the Fire Nation in these visions I had and the results...aren't pretty. To put it bluntly, there isn't going to be a Fire Nation when this war is over," Samsara muttered, making Zhen Liu widen her eyes, needing to take a moment to process this information. While she had resigned herself to whatever conditions the Earth Imperium and the Water Confederacy would impose on the citizenry when they won the inevitable invasion, the fact that they would be taking no prisoners made a deathly cold chill go down her spine.

"H-how...how long have you known about this?" Zhen Liu quietly inquired as Lee talked to his head bodyguard and asked him to send an update to Ozai about their situation via a messenger hawk.

"Uh...a month, give or take. It took a me a little while to piece things together because spirit world visions are vague as fuck. They just show you random images and leave it up to you to figure out whatever the hell they mean," Samsara remarked with a shrug, immediately causing whatever fear Zhen Liu had for the future to turn into blinding, blistering rage.

"When, exactly, were you planning on telling me?" the former nurse seethed through gritted teeth, causing the rakshasi to hold up her hands in a placating gesture, something which did nothing to quell the belly dancer's anger in the slightest.

"Look, it's just...there's no right way to bring up the Fire Nation is doomed in casual conversation. Like, was I supposed to tell you when we went out to eat, went for a walk across the pier, went to one of the festivals, or when we went to see Love Amongst the Dragons?" Samsara remarked, but upon seeing that all this did was make the former nurse clench her hand so tightly that her knuckles turned white, the rakshasi gently clasped her friend's shoulder.

"Look, I've been hearing from around the grapevine that there was this Fire Sage who was iced by Azulon's assassins for still being loyal to the avatar and his son, Shyu, I think, feels the same. If anyone's going to be able to do something with the knowledge of the impending destruction of everything we know and love, it's him," Samsara assured, abating Zhen Liu's wrath to an extent, as the rakshasi wisely decided to leave out that she would only keep her, Ming, and now, Yumi alive when Armageddon came. Before they could continue their conversation, Lee motioned for the duo to come over causing the former nurse to briefly glare daggers at the spirit before trudging over to the warrior with a huff, leaving Samsara in the dust. Rubbing the back of her head, the rakshasi caught up to the former nurse who accepted a chest full of coins from Lian with a gracious bow, a gesture the noblewoman returned.

"Thank you, thank you both. So, what are you guys going to do now?" the belly dancer inquired while doing her best to suppress the fury in her tone of voice, something which she was successful at for the most part.

"Well, my six weeks of leave are done as of tomorrow which means I'm being shipped back to the front lines. Prince Ozai wants me to spearhead his invasion to take back Ember Island, but-"

"With Earth Imperium and Water Confederacy reinforcements being only a day away from all the islands they captured, it's going to be incredibly difficult, if not impossible, to complete your objective," Zhen Liu interrupted, making Lee grimly nod, as he looked to Lian and wondered what would become of her and his daughter should something happen to him.

"Right, not to mention that there's this new earthbender, a blind, little girl no less, tearing our troops to shreds. I've encountered and defeated a lot of earthbenders, but she's...she's on an entirely different level, one in a million in fact. I'd hate to see what she's capable of once she's fully grown," Lee explained in a voice barely above a whisper, making Samsara force down a snide remark that went along the lines of 'We're truly doomed if we're being beaten by a toddler.'

"Damn, isn't Prince Iroh Prince Ozai's military advisor? Wouldn't he tell Ozai-Prince Ozai not to meet a bender like that head on?" the former nurse inquired with Samsara and Lee noticing the former nurse's slip up, something the latter ignored while the former was amused that her friend wasn't as respectful to the throne as she thought.

"He does, but my prince seldom listens," Lee responded, making the belly dancer, who was used to the mad prince's...tactical decisions from her past deployments, sigh softly.

"I know with how things are going right now that these words are just hollow, but may Agni's fire bless you," Zhen Liu stated while bowing to Lee, who returned the gesture, as the former nurse glanced at Samsara out of the corner of her eye. Raising a brow, the rakshasi realized too late what the belly dancer was going to do as Zhen Liu looked back at the club wielder and opened her mouth.

"While my ability to help you regarding Prince Ozai's campaign is limited, perhaps I could help you in some other way. You see, my friend has been receiving these visions as of late that shows that our country is going to be destroyed when the Earth Imperium and the Water Confederacy inevitably invade-"

"What do you mean inevitably invade?" Yumi abruptly interjected while limping towards the entrance of the estate where her parents, Zhen Liu, and Samsara were conversing with an exasperated Tozen in tow.

"Fire Lily, you're supposed to be resting-"

"I know, but I want to hear what Mrs. Samsara's visions are about," Yumi declared while apologizing to her mother for interrupting with a humble bow before locking eyes with the rakshasi. Just as the rakshasi was about to lay things out for Yumi, Tozen, at Lee and Lian's behest, picked her up and carried her off to her room, much to his young master's chagrin.

"You're not helping her by coddling her," the rakshasi remarked, a sentiment the former nurse shared, but didn't vocalize, causing Lee to grunt while Lian narrowed her eyes at the spirit.

"Look, we believe you about your visions that our country is going to be destroyed. That's why Lee has been looking for places in the Earth Imperium that would treat someone like Yumi relatively well," Lian murmured, making Zhen Liu widen her grayed out eyes, while Samsara folded her arms and tilted her head.

"So you're essentially planning on dropping Yumi off completely alone somewhere in an entirely new country, in an entirely new culture, separated from everyone and everything she knows and loves, and hoping it works out?" Samsara dryly commented to which Lee and Lian grimly nodded, making the spirit whistle lowly.

"Yeesh, me saying that Yumi's going to be nursing a pretty big chip on her shoulder is an understatement," the rakshasi remarked as she, if nothing else, was well versed in vengeance and the various forms it could take. Should Lee and Lian set Yumi down this path, the young firebender might get a job, blend in, and pay lip service to Chin the Peacekeeper for weeks, months, or even years, but inevitably, she would get tired of the abuse she would no doubt face for her clearly Fire Nation traits. Combined with the suppressed hatred she would have for those she saw responsible for annihilating her country and kinsmen, Yumi, with no absolutely doubt in the spirit's mind, would snap and go on the warpath, and a bloody one at that.

"We know, but at least she'll be alive. Onto other matters, I'll inform my prince of your visions, but he undoubtedly will dismiss them. You should go to Kosuke; here's her address and a seal from our house to let her know that we sent you; she'll give you the answers you seek though she might not be available right now because of the party Prince Ozai is throwing," Lee elaborated while handing Samsara a scroll with directions to the seamstress's house along with a medallion showcasing his estate's symbol, a dragon striking the heavens with a mighty vajra in its maw, sending lightning across the sky in every direction. Bowing to the nobleman, Samsara pocketed the seal, waited for Zhen Liu to finish bowing to Lee and Lian, and then walked towards Ming with her friend in tow.

"Okay, this is good. I hear Kosuke has some pull with the other nobles and some members of the Royal Family so she might be able to do something," the former nurse commented, making the rakshasi grunt, as Ming asked her superior officer if she could take Samsara and Zhen Liu home. Nodding, Ming's CO dismissed with her a wave of his hand, causing the military policewoman to ride towards the duo and gestured for them to get on.

"Yeah, I guess so," Samsara huffed while handing Ming the directions to Kosuke's estate, making the belly dancer tilt her head, as Ming helped her onto the front of her komodo rhino while the rakshasi sat towards the back.

"What's wrong? What are you trying to hide from us this time?" the former nurse asked while grasping the spirit's wrist as the military policewoman, after memorizing the directions, beckoned her mount forward with a raised brow regarding their conversation.

"It's...uh...it's nothing. Actually, it's...uh...not nothing, but it's...uh...you know what? Never mind, let's just go," Samsara sheepishly stated, but Zhen Liu, not willing to let the rakshasi off of the hook that easy, tightened her grip on the spirit's wrist, but not to the point that it would be painful.

"Tell us, now," the former nurse demanded, long since weary of information being withheld from her whether it be as of now, in her job, or her past military service.

"Okay, okay! It's uh...Kosuke. She's not actually Kosuke, but...uh...Himiko. You know, the pseudo-avatar?" Samsara remarked, making Ming's eyes go as wide as saucers while Zhen Liu, while suitably taken aback, quickly regained her composure.

"I know of her from the books we read as children, but it's like she's your enemy from the sound of things," Zhen Liu pointed, causing Samsara to say yes, she is, making Ming do her best to hide her incredulous expression while continuing to guide her komodo rhino to their destination.

"Okay, what did you do?" the former nurse asked as, while Samsara didn't talk about her past much, Zhen Liu had long since figured out that it was pretty checkered.

"What didn't I do?" the rakshasi replied as she knew that she had done things that would earn her a spot in every circle of Naraka and was 100 percent certain that Himiko would be more than happy to speed that process along.

"You're not honestly believing this, right?" Ming commented as the spirit suddenly put a hand on her thigh. Before she could shove the appendage off, the military policewoman gasped when Samsara, for a few seconds, reverted the limb back to its true appearance, making her accidentally tug the reins. Whining, her komodo rhino reared up, making the military policewoman calm her mount down before urging it forward once more.

"Okay, I believe you, but what does she want?" the military policewoman asked in a hush-hush tone, hoping the bystanders that she got the attention of with her stunt would move on with their lives.

"Uh...well...she wants to build a...world of light," the spirit responded, making Zhen Liu raise a brow and tilt her head while the military policewoman had to do a double take to process what she heard.

"What's that supposed to mean?" the belly dancer asked to which the rakshasi shrugged, causing Zhen Liu to look over her shoulder and narrow her grayed out eyes at the spirit.

"What? She didn't exactly stop to explain herself while trying to cave my face in," the rakshasi remarked, making the former nurse grunt and face forward while the military policewoman cleared her throat to get the spirit's attention.

"Does Himiko have any allies we should be worried about? Is she serving anyone?" Ming inquired, causing the spirit to put a hand on her chin, furiously mull over the second question, and release a heavy breathe.

"For your first question, yes, she most likely does, but they could be here, the Earth Imperium, or the Water Confederacy. For your second, she is, but I don't know their identity. All I know is that Himiko's master has amber eyes, nine fox tails that look like snakes, and has dragon scales on her face," Samsara explained with a shrug, something Ming drew a blank on, while Zhen Liu drew upon her limited knowledge of spirits to figure out the identity of Himiko's master.

"Alright, well, if she's your enemy, then why are we going to her house?" Ming confusedly asked, something the belly dancer was curious about as well, but all the spirit did was shrug, lean back, and put her hands behind her head.

"Because, if we want to do anything with my visions, we're going to need the whole picture and Himiko's our best bet," the rakshasi replied as the former whispered Samsara's prophecy to her friend, making Ming jolt, glance at the spirit with eyes as wide as saucers, and then glowered at the spirit. Zhen Liu, however, managed to swallow her anger at the rakshasi, to an extent at least, and requested that Ming pull over. Nodding, the military policewoman clicked her tongue and flicked the reins, making her komodo rhino to saunter off of the road and rest on its belly. Pinching the bridge of her nose, the belly dancer growled before turning to face Samsara and in spite of not being able to see, gave the rakshasi an intimidating glare.

"I'm still mad at you, but I still care about you, so tell me why we should go to someone who's going to try and kill you, even if she she can help us?" the former nurse asked, making the spirit shrug, while Ming gestured for the few bystanders out so late at to move along as there was nothing to see here.

"Like I said, she could tell us the whole picture and anything I overlooked," Samsara answered, causing Zhen Liu to be stone faced, as she considered what she had been told for what seemed like an eternity before releasing a breathe.

"Fine, but-"

"I know what you're going to say, and no. If and when she attacks me, you two run and let me handle it," the spirit interrupted Zhen Liu, making the former nurse huff indignantly at being treated as if she were helpless, a sentiment shared by Ming. Noticing their expressions, the spirit sighed, put hand over her face, pinched the bridge of her nose, and locked eyes with the military policewoman.

"Guys, if it were someone else, you know I wouldn't put you two on the bench," the spirit reasoned, though the former nurse and the military policewoman weren't convinced. In spite of this, Zhen Liu asked Ming to carry onward, making her friend raise a brow before hesitantly proceeding to do so.

"We should go back to the station, bring some backup-"

"Look, I'm not knocking you or your police buddies, but they wouldn't even slow her down," the rakshasi cut off, making Ming snort before facing forward. Traveling in silence for the rest of the trip, they arrived at Kosuke's estate, a small, but regal house which befitted someone like the shaman in Samsara's opinion.

"Okay, let's see if she's home," the spirit muttered as she hopped off of the military policewoman's komodo rhino and, without even bothering to tidy up her robe, trudged up to the front door with a confident swagger. Unbeknownst to them, Himiko, having tracked them this entire time in her astral form, immediately excused herself from the party, hurried back home, and waited for the spirit to make a move. Before the rakshasi could even knock on the door, the shaman, wearing a humble, yet intricate yukata, opened the door a crack.

"Can I help you?" Kosuke inquired in spite of knowing full well why they were here and feigned surprise by raising a brow when she saw a law enforcement officer like Ming walking up to the door with Zhen Liu in tow.

"Yes, I'm Manjula, and if it wouldn't be too much trouble, I've been having these visions as of late. Lee said I should come to you to make sense of them," Samsara responded while showing the seal from Lee's house, making Kosuke grunt, and subtly sized up Zhen Liu and Ming.

"You can put the seal away; I help anyone who needs to make sense of the visions they were given from the spirit world...in most cases at least," the shaman stated while fully opening her door and inviting the trio inside, while meticulously studying every move the military policewoman and the former nurse made. She observed that the belly dancer was a quick study as while she had practically slowed down to a crawl as she moved in this unfamiliar environment, she slowly, but surely sped up as she got a better picture of it. When Ming offered her arm to the belly dancer, Zhen Liu thanked her for the gesture, but assured her she would be fine, making Kosuke purse her lips.

"Officer, I trust this also isn't an investigation of some sort? If it is, I'm at a loss as to what I've done," the shaman stated, knocking Ming from her stupor, as the shaman led them into the living room and offered them seats on her couch while she went to fetch some tea.

"N-no, no investigation, ma'am. I'm merely providing protection for these two; you see, the Freedom Fighters and the Kyoshi Warriors-"

"I'm aware of what they did and rest assured, I intend to visit Lee, Lian, and Yumi first thing in the morning to check on them. As for Manjula and her friend, I assume they've done something to get targets painted across their backs?" Kosuke posited to which the military policewoman nodded, as she and the spirit sat down on the quite comfortable couch. Zhen Liu, after taking a moment to feel around for the furniture and almost tripping over a rug and potted plant, joined them.

"Yes, see Zhen Liu and Samsa-I mean, Manjula, found Yumi in the storm drain and healed her as best they could. They even defended her at the risk of their own lives when the Freedom Fighters made an attempt on her life to get at Lee," Ming explained while hoping the shaman didn't notice the last minute name swap, something Kosuke was happy to let the officer believe, as she returned with a tray of tea and set it down on a nearby table.

"I see, but you're the only one protecting them?" the shaman asked to which the military policewoman nodded as Zhen Liu leaned forward and felt around for the tea tray.

"Unfortunately, yes. My CO deemed Lee, Lian, and Yumi's safety as the priority and hopes Zhen Liu and Manjula's irrelevance to the war effort keeps them safe," Ming answered as she and Samsara grabbed a spot of tea for themselves and, after brushing her hand against a tea cup, so did the former nurse.

"An expedient, if a bit heartless, solution. Given that Lee, Lian, and Yumi seem to trust your charges, these assassins might seek to exploit it," Kosuke pointed out, a grim and very real possibility Ming acknowledged as their leader, Jet, didn't seem the type to let those who slighted him go.

"We appreciate the concern, but could we-"

"Your visions, of course," the shaman interrupted as she gestured at a reclining chair, causing the rakshasi to set her tea down on the table and maneuver around the furniture. Plopping down on the chair and putting her hands on the armrests, the spirit watched the shaman's every move like a hawk and vice versa.

"So tell me, what did you see, exactly?" Kosuke asked as she carefully placed her fingers around the spirit's head, making the rakshasi freeze up for a moment before relaxing as, for the time being at least, harm wasn't the shaman's intent.

"Welp, the Earth Imperium straight up annihilated the Fire Nation during their invasion and to rub salt in the wound, planted their flag over the remains of the Royal Palace," Samsara elaborated, causing the shaman to nod, as a bright light briefly flashed throughout the living room with the shaman showing the spirit the entire vision.

In this version, the spirit saw a bald headed monk with airbender tattoos, a short, blind earthbending girl she assumed to be on the one Lee spoke of earlier, the fair, white haired Water Confederate princess, Zuko, of all people, and a single Kyoshi Warrior looking deeply conflicted on the destruction that had been wrought. However, the vision, instead of ending like Samsara thought, went further as she saw what was most likely the final battle of another war, this time between the superpowers currently assailing the Fire Nation. In it, she not only saw technological marvels being churned out of factories and her kin being used as attack dogs, but the bald headed airbender get impaled through the head by a razor sharp earth column by Chin the Peacekeeper, the blind earthbending girl being simultaneously drowned and getting her neck snapped by Hakoda's absolutely livid daughter, and La's spirit vessel being fried to a crisp by Azula's lightning.

What's more, the Kyoshi Warrior and Hakoda's son scored a mutual kill on each other with the former having her heart stabbed by the latter's dagger while the latter had his throat slit by the former's katana. Zuko himself met a particularly gruesome end by getting buried under tons upon tons of rubble by General Fong. By the end of the hostilities, the Earth Imperium had technically won the second war, but because of the lengths they went to, now had nothing to rule over. Wheezing, Samsara leaned back and took in heavy breathes with sweat pouring down her brow while Zhen Liu and Ming confusedly and concernedly looked at her.

"W-what? What did you see-"

"Guys, it's a lot worse than I thought. The Fire Nation is fucked, yes, but so is the whole word when the Earth Imperium and the Water Confederacy go to war with each other," Samsara interrupted Zhen Liu in a voice barely above a whisper, making Ming's eyes go wide. The former nurse, for her part, while briefly taken aback, sighed heavily and hung her head shortly after.

"So, I guess that's it then? Even if we do find a way to prevent the Fire Nation from being destroyed, it's going to be destroyed anyway in this second war," Zhen Liu dejectedly breathed out while shrugging her shoulders and slowly shaking her head. Releasing a breathe, the military policewoman, despite feeling similarly at a loss as to what to do, put a reassuring hand on her friend's shoulder which did nothing to abate her friend's feeling of helplessness.

"Samsara-I mean, Manjula, did you see the avatar in your vision-"

"I did, and he was nothing but a kid," Samsara interrupted while giving the military policewoman a look that all but said 'I'm sorry.', making Ming give her an appreciative nod.

"I will inform Prince Iroh, the Kimun people's leader, Chief Hakoda, the nobles I've befriended, and those in the public service whom I'm on good terms with of this," Kosuke assured the trio, lifting the belly dancer's and Ming's spirits somewhat, while Samsara downed the rest of her tea in one gulp.

"I don't suppose you could tell us anything about this Fire Sage called Shyu-"

"Ah, the adherent to the old ways. I've not had the pleasure of meeting him, but it's rumored that like his father, he's staunchly loyal to the avatar, wherever they are as of now. If you intend to go to him with your visions, he's most likely in the colony the Earth Imperium set up on Crescent Island which will take quite some time to get to," the shaman cut off the rakshasi who nodded, expecting as much, and stood up as did Zhen Liu and Ming who were still shook from the revelations they learned.

"Well, thanks for your help, but I'm guessing you're not going to let me leave, are you? I'm also guessing that you planned on taking me out at my domain, but knew I figured out you were onto me?" Samsara assumed, making Zhen Liu grit her teeth, while Ming prepared to rain down fire at a moment's notice. Internally, the shaman laughed to herself as yes, the chance to attack Samsara when she was right in front of her was nearly overwhelming. The best part? All she had to do to get away with it was blame any injuries she inflicted on Ming and Zhen Liu on the bloodthirsty rakshasi and everyone would believe her. However, the seamstress just tilted her head and raised a brow, making Samsara frown as she knew that this was some kind of trick, it just had to be!

"I'm sorry, I think you have me confused for someone else," Kosuke replied, causing the rakshasi to huff, as she, in spite of the shaman's superb acting, saw right through the act like a window.

"Don't play dumb! I know you visited Dock's fishing village to look for me!" the rakshasi yelled, making the shaman to look at the spirit as if she grew a second head, while the former nurse put a hand to her face and sighed softly.

"Um...well...yes, I did. However, it was more to support them in their current predicament than to look for any one person," the shaman explained while gesturing at her kitchen where the spirit saw that the slurry coated fishes, oysters, and clams were being boiled in a large cauldron and then moved into a sand filter once the first process was finished.

"You liar! Why don't you-"

"We'll be going now! Thanks for your help!" the former nurse hurriedly cut in while giving the seamstress a gracious bow, a gesture the shaman returned, while gently pushing the rakshasi towards the door.

"Of course, and I'm sorry the information provided was so...bleak," Kosuke responded, causing the belly dancer to nod, while Ming bowed to her before jogging to catch up to the duo. Releasing a breathe, the shaman, after the trio had departed, brushed back her hair, approached the window, and discreetly pushed the blinds aside to glare at Samsara.

"Soon," Himiko snarled before walking away from the window and towards the kitchen to check on her early morning snack while the trio got on the military policewoman's komodo rhino.

"Sh-she had to have known it was me! Sh-she just had to! Wh-why would she just let me walk out of the door like that-"

"Maybe she didn't want to risk losing everything she worked so hard to gain," Ming interrupted as she clicked her tongue and flicked the reins, making her komodo rhino huff before trudging away from Kosuke's estate and towards Zhen Liu's house.

"B-but-"

"Samsara, I believe you when you say she wants to kill you, but it looks like she's not going to do it in a way that exposes who she really is," the former nurse cut off, making the spirit pout like an angry child before looking off to the side, refusing to speak for the rest of the trip back to her friend's home.

Rolling her eyes, the belly dancer went back to thinking off who exactly Himiko's master could be and quickly surmised it couldn't be Agni, but it had to be some sort of...sun deity. The former nurse spent the rest of the trip back to her home drawing a blank, and, due to the Fire Nation not implementing some sort of way for the visually impaired to read, couldn't exactly go to the library after work. Releasing a breathe when they came to a stop at her home, the belly dancer decided to put that endeavor on hold for now as she, Ming, and Samsara disembarked her friend's komodo rhino and entered her house. The rakshasi, for her part, cleaned up whatever mess that was left, laid down on her sleeping mat, and closed her eyes, already in a deep sleep.

"She's taking it pretty hard," the military policewoman whispered as she and Zhen Liu noted that the spirit wasn't in her usual resting, meditative pose.

"I know, but she'll get over it. Me, however, it's just...I need some time to let it all sink in," Zhen Liu quietly replied while offering her old childhood friend some food, something Ming gladly took her friend up on.

"I understand," Ming responded as her friend fixed her friend a bowl of the mish-mash of food she gave Yumi earlier, heated up the broth with her waterbending, and handed it to the military policewoman.

"Samsara said she saw the avatar in her vision, but he was just a kid? A hundred years have passed so how could he still be a child?" the belly dancer incredulously asked while walking over to her closet, grabbing a spare blanket and pillow, and handing it to Ming.

"I don't know, but wherever he is, he's in for a quite a big shock when he sees what the world's like," the military policewoman replied as she grabbed the offered blanket and pillow with a polite bow, a gesture Zhen Liu returned, before biding her friend good night and disappearing into her room.

Releasing a breathe, the military policewoman sat down on the couch, set her blanket and pillow aside, and began to chow down on the food Zhen Liu gave her. While that was happening, Himiko's astral form watched them intently and, to make sure things ran as smooth as possible, checked to see if any Freedom Fighters were close by. Sighing in relief that there were none nearby, the enforcer of the presence decided to go to work and waited until Ming finished swallowing her food. When she did, the projection silently put up a wall of obsidian around them, making Ming jump back, enabling the astral projection to wrap her up in a bearhug that not only pinned the military policewoman's arms to the sides, but applied pressure on her lungs by digging her fingers into her rib cage as well. Letting out a loud, strangled gasp that was completely muffled by the wall of obsidian, Ming strained greatly to conjure any sort of flames, but could not generate so much as a measly spark.

Hacking violently and uselessly kicking her legs that were dangling in the air, the military policewoman threw her head back in the hopes that it would smash into her assailant's nose, but the enforcer of the presence was cleverly pressing her forehead against Ming's shoulder blades, preventing such a maneuver from landing in the first place. With her face turning blue and large trails of saliva flowing down both sides of her mouth, Ming's eyes lolled to the back of her head before she went as limp as noodle, causing the shaman to immediately let up on the pressure. Getting rid of the wall of obsidian and gently putting the now unconscious military policewoman on the couch, the shaman cleaned her up, put her fingers on a pressure point on Ming's head, and sent her chi into flux so she wouldn't wake up earlier than intended.

Himiko, feeling generous, also gave Ming dreams of sharing rare and delicious tea with not only her father who was a connoisseur of the beverage, but the Dragon of the West as well. With that done, the astral projection gazed into the former nurse's room and saw that the belly dancer was in a deep, albeit fitful slumber. Deeming it safe to move, Himiko's body, now that there was no one to impede her, crossed over from the spirit world and melded with her astral projection. Quietly entering Zhen Liu's room, Himiko gently placed her fingers on the belly dancer's forehead and not only disrupted her chi as well to prevent any unforeseen interference, but gave her dreams of spending time with her adoptive grandparents too. Finally, the shaman went back to the living room and, with a scowl on her face, knelt down next to the rakshasi's sleeping mat and put her fingers over the spirit's head. Being a spirit, one couldn't just kill Samsara in the conventional sense (though it was certainly possible, if unbearably time consuming) so other methods were required.

Upon feeling something messing with her chi, Samsara's eyes shot open and saw Himiko with her hands clasping her head. Before she could say anything, the shaman clamped a giant, glove like hand over her mouth, enveloped the rakshasi's head in obsidian, and forced some of the volcanic glass down her throat for good measure, completely muffling any sound the spirit made. With no recourse left, Samsara spirited both of them away to her domain where they landed on the ground in front of the slurry lake with a thud. Punching the shaman off of her who rolled with the impetus in order to seamlessly get back onto her feet, the spirit shifted back to her true form, ripped off the obsidian coating over her face, and spat out the volcanic glass obstructing her throat.

"If you were going to try and kill me, you should have done it-" Samsara started to say only to summon a gigantic tidal wave of slurry from her lake and with a quick flick of her wrists, sent the tons of contaminated water down onto her foe. The seamstress, however, froze the literal maelstrom of slurry with dry ice and then shot bolt of lightning at the spirit who was forced to dive out of the way due to its blinding speed. While her foe was recovering, the shaman flung obsidian flechette after obsidian flechette at the spirit with by striking the air with knifehand strikes, forcing Samsara to erect a barrier of thick brambles to avoid being cut to ribbons.

"Rest assured, I intend to make this our final battle," Himiko retorted as she blasted the barrier with a bolt of lightning, blowing it to kingdom come...only for Samsara to be nowhere in sight. Snorting, the shaman remained on guard and barely reacted when the rakshasi burst out of her slurry lake with a copious amount of arms formed from the substance.

"To what? To make me pay for what I did? That's fucking rich coming from someone who's done some shady shit for their precious world of light," Samsara pointed out while lashing out at the shaman with a copious amount of conjured vines and salvos of pressurized slurry which Himiko either blocked outright, flash froze with dry ice, or slipped out of the way of.

"Ah, resorting to deflection? For someone who's trying to move on from their past, however sincere that endeavor is, I must say I'm greatly disappointed," Himiko retorted as she cut another swarm of brambles apart with an obsidian daggers and flash froze more vines with dry ice before forming a lightning discharge into a ball, solidifying it, and chucking it at the rakshasi.

"I-I don't need the approval of some fatass, holier than thou bitch!" the rakshasi shouted while catching the orb of solidified lightning and quickly regretted it as the heat emanating it from it completely disintegrated some of her hands. Wincing, but quickly composing herself, the spirit tried to overwhelm the shaman with another tidal wave of contaminated water while attempting to grab her with her slurry arms or trip her up with her brambles only for the shaman to jump into the air.

Smirking, Samsara, suspending herself in the air within a cyclone of slurry and lashed out at the shaman with an overhead, condensed salvo of slurry. Just as it seemed the blow was going to hit its mark, the shaman twisted in midair, narrowly avoiding the wave, and unleashed a barrage of dry ice darts at the rakshasi. Gasping, the spirit, taken off guard, shielded herself with her arms and grimaced as the flechettes not only embedded themselves into her limbs, but froze and rotted them away as well, leaving the spirit with her original two arms.

"Maybe you don't need the approval of a fatass, holier than thou bitch as you so succinctly put it, but you've had more than enough time to grow as a person, and you've changed very little from the monster you once were," the shaman remarked as she slid towards the rakshasi by creating platforms for herself with dry ice, making the spirit jolt and do a double take, and created a blade of solidified lightning.

"G-give it up, Himiko! We've done this song and dance before!" the rakshasi shouted as she waited until the last possible moment before ducking underneath a swipe at her neck and backing away from a slash at her belly...only to get zapped by a bolt of lightning from the shaman's well hidden offhand.

Howling in pain as an entire portion of her body was blown apart into wooden dust and splinters, leaving her without an arm, the rakshashi crashed to the ground with a rough thud and tumbled across the earth before coming to a stop on her belly. Groaning, the spirit, upon feeling her instincts screaming at her to dodge, frantically dove out of the way just as a giant obsidian spike stabbed itself into the ground where her head once was and urgently jumped forward when the shaman shot a burst of lightning at her. Sucking in a breathe, the spirit wrapped a vine around her waist to aid in her movements as she caught Himiko's wrist just as she tried to slice her head from her shoulders, stopping in its tracks after it left a superficial, but painful slash mark on her neck. In spite of a brief struggle with the spirit holding a slight edge, the shaman proceeded to headbutt Samsara, knee her in the ribs, and tried to shoot her with a discharge of lightning at point blank range when the rakshasi was down on all fours.

The spirit, however, rolled away in the nick of time and swept the shaman's feet right from underneath her by grabbing her foot and yanking it back, making the shaman fall onto her face with a thud. Samsara, however, didn't escape unscathed as part of her face was charred, but paid it no mind as the shaman had already kipped up to her feet. Deciding to switch tactics, Samsara summoned thorny vines and razor sharp brambles from the ground to relentlessly assail or bind her foe. Himiko, remaining calm, conjured blades of obsidian and solidified lightning and cut the tendrils to pieces, all while slowly, but surely making her way over to the spirit.

Smirking, Samsara fought the urge to motion for the shaman to come at her as, when the seamstress was within breathing distance, she leaned out of the way to the stab at her chest and slipped the downward slash at her skull before slugging the shaman in the gut. Grunting as she was sent flying back, the enforcer of the presence landed on the ground and flowed with the momentum in order to get back on her feet...only for the rakshasi's thorny brambles to wrap around her legs and tug her to the ground. The rakshasi, with a maniacal laugh, proceeded to wrap her thorns around the shaman's entire body, making the seamstress wince as the spikes punctured her flesh, and lifted her up into the air in her binding column of wooden, thorny vines with the only part exposed being Himiko's head.

"Ha, you see? You have nothing I haven't seen before!" Samsara cackled in spite of being blindsided by the shaman's ability to solidify lightning and create platforms of dry ice for herself to maneuver around in midair. Shaking these thoughts aside, the rakshasi exerted he maximum amount of pressure onto Himiko's form, making the shaman grimace as not only was her body being crushed into dust, but the thorns were embedding themselves deeper and deeper into her body. On top of that, the rakshasi was draining her of her chi and from the look on Samsara's positively delighted face, was clearly relishing every single second of it. In spite of this, Himiko just smirked, even when blood was pooling out of the corner of her mouth, making the spirit laugh out loud as she summoned slurry from her lake, formed the substance into deadly bludgeons like hammers, maces, and clubs, and repeatedly, and quite brutally, slammed them down on the shaman's skull.

"Why are you smiling, huh!? Do you like it when I hurt you!?" the rakshasi yelled as, with absolute glee, she continued her relentless, vicious assault on the shaman who let out a brief scream with each successive hit from the spirit's weapons of solidified, contaminated water that bloodied and cracked her head.

"If we both walked different paths and met under different circumstances, I certainly would, but I digress. There are some words of wisdom that I feel are applicable at this point in time," the shaman replied only to curse as a solidified slurry club struck her across the face, bringing no end of amusement to the rakshasi. With Himiko at her mercy, Samsara didn't even care that it would take a long time to finish her off, in fact, she was elated that she could take her sweet time paying the shaman back for everything she did to her.

"Go on, then! Share whatever wisdom you got off a fortune cookie with me!" the rakshasi screeched in triumph as she brutally slammed the shaman face first against the ground and slowly dragged her against it, breaking out into a fit of mad cackles when doing so.

"Just because you see something coming..." Himiko began as suddenly, she freed one of her arms from her prison of thorns and grasped the rest of the column, making Samsara suddenly strain to make the pillar of brambles budge even an inch.

"Doesn't mean you can stop it," the shaman finished as she suddenly started glowing blue, making Samsara gasp as she felt, to her shock, her chi being drained instead of the other way around, causing the spirit to collapse onto her knees while tightly tensing her only arm left.

"Your own spirit must be unbendable! Your own spirit must be unbendable!" Samsara chanted as white tree sap poured out of her nose and mouth in droves as she struggled to reverse the process. Coming to the realization that she would be overwhelmed if she continued on like this, the spirit broke off the chi draining process and struggled to regain her bearings. Himiko, taking advantage of the lull in battle, freed herself from her prison by discharging lightning from her body, atomizing the wooden brambles and thorns. As she was descending to the ground, the shaman sent a moon obscuring hailstorm of obsidian and dry ice spikes at a winded Samsara who widened her eyes and conjured a hasty barrier of solidified slurry.

While the barrier endured the first volley, it quickly crumpled under the pressure of next one, making Samsara scramble away before it could completely collapse...and got both of her thighs and one of her eyes gruesomely impaled for her troubles. Throwing her head back and screaming bloody murder as her eye was reduced to nothing but mush, and her thighs were turned into pincushions, the spirit looked up and saw Himiko advancing on her. Sucking in a breathe, the rakshasi reared her arm back...only to shriek in agony as, with deft precision, the shaman blasted the limb off with bolt of lightning, sending wooden splinters and dust flying through the air. Whimpering, the now armless spirit, with Himiko looming over her, conjured vines from the ground with her face, and desperately lashed out at the shaman...who caught the tendrils, ripped them straight out of the ground, and tossed them aside before roughly grabbing the spirit by her hair, making Samsara yelp.

"You've had this coming for a long time," Himiko growled as she viciously kneed Samsara in the face with an obsidian coated knee, caving it in, before brutally slamming the spirit against a tree back of the head first, cracking it like a nut. Grimacing, the rakshasi briefly blacked out as Himiko bashed the dagger already embedded in her eye with a palm strike, making the spirit wildly spasm while screeching in agony, and then kneed her in the gut, making the rakshasi violently retch a stream of white tree sap onto the shaman's thigh. Gritting her teeth, Samsara hastily formed a new arm and tried to slug the shaman in the face...only for Himiko to catch her wrist, flash freeze it with dry ice, and shatter into nothing but a million pieces with a hard yank. Shrieking, the spirit screamed as the shaman completely obliterated one of her legs with another discharge of lightning, making the spirit crumple to the ground.

Screeching as the shaman punt kicked her across the face, shattering her nose, Samsara whimpered like a hurt puppy only to feel the shaman sit on her chest, making her weakly look up. Widening her only good eye when she saw the shaman had coated one of her hands with obsidian and the other with dry ice, the spirit couldn't even get a word out before the shaman rained down hard, vicious punches on her already destroyed face. It didn't matter what the rakshasi did; if she tried to pull the seamstress off by summoning vines from the earth, the shaman would tear them from the ground before resuming the beating. If the spirit tried to blast her with jets of slurry from her lake, Himiko with a subtle swing of her hips, would evaporate flash freeze the streams with dry ice before continuing her merciless assault.

Hacking up a glob of white tree sap after another brutal punch and letting out a gargled scream as her only usable eye was destroyed with a wet squelch, Samsara could do little more than flail around like a fish out of water. For a few more agonizing moments, the shaman's assault continued, leaving Samsara a barely conscious, twitching mess in a pool of her own tree sap, before finally getting off of the spirit who now had some of her teeth missing. Confident that the spirit was weakened enough, Himiko moved to truly finish her off.

Tensing her muscles, Himiko jabbed her fingers into Samsara's sternum and pried it apart, revealing the spirit's core which glowed black, but had tints of blue shining through the darkness. Snarling, the spirit desperately wrapped her vines around a nearby tree and tugged it down onto the shaman. Grunting, the shaman caught the tree without her knees buckling, tossed it aside, and advanced on the rakshasi who quickly made some new, albeit weak arms, and wrapped the shaman up in a tight bearhug. Wincing, Himiko clapped Samsara's ears with the bony part of her palm, making the spirit yelp and release the shaman who promptly knocked her back to the ground with a kick to the chest.

"Say...whatever...speech...you have...for...me...and...get it...over...with," Samsara weakly croaked while spitting tree sap into Himiko's face, making the shaman grab a napkin she kept on her person and wiped her face clean.

"I have no speech for you, but I will say your life is about to be given new purpose," the shaman replied as she caught the quickly made, weakly constituted spike of solidified, contaminated water after seeing it out of the corner of her eye and stomped on Samsara's gut. Vomiting up white tree sap from her mouth like a geyser, the spirit wailed as Himiko planted the razor sharp spine deep into her enemy's hip, making Samsara shriek as loud as she could while throwing her head back.

"I'm...not...serving...you...or your...master's...stupid...world of...light!" the rakshasi defiantly spat with as much vitriol as she could muster only to sob as Himiko, with a blank expression on her face, cruelly twisted the barb, making tears stream down Samsara's face like a waterfall.

"Oh, you will, just not in the way you're thinking," the shaman replied as the spirit went limp, causing Himiko to move towards her while keeping herself on guard just in case. Seeing that the spirit was well and truly finished, the shaman, relieved that there would be no counter offensive, sat on the spirit's chest, grasped her core in a death grip, and began draining the spirit of her chi. Letting out a soundless scream, the rakshasi's visage soon became pale and emancipated with her mouth open agape in abject horror as her life force disappeared from her body. Snorting, the shaman ripped Samsara's core from her body, making the spirit's body crumble away into nothing but dust which was then carried away by the wind.

Bringing the rakshasi's core up to eye level, Himiko regarded it with a wooden gaze and came to the conclusion that as she was now, Samsara posed no threat. Still, the shaman would leave nothing to chance so, like what she did with Avatar Kanna's spirit when she finally managed to slay her and Avatar Amaruq's spirit once her master had finished her off, Himiko began to assimilate the rakshasi's core into her body. With her last vestige of strength, the spirit weakly struggled to break free, if only just to not make things easy for the shaman, but was completely subsumed into Himiko's body in seemingly no time at all. Before she lost all consciousness, Samsara fondly thought back to her times with Zhen Liu, Ming, and Yumi before everything went black.