Chapter Sixteen: A Piece of History

The following week or so dragged on like a never ending nightmare. Without Natsumi I would've lost my mind, and I was already tinkering on the brink as it was. My slip up had cost a lot, and Zhao was even more determined to break me. I maintained my facade of obedience as much as I could, but it seemed like nothing I did was enough.

Right now, we were outside on the upper deck. I was still in chains, but I had been allowed to keep my hands tied in front of me. I had been given a fancier black and red tunic to wear, but it was more revealing than I was comfortable with.

"Recite the Fire Nation oath," Zhao said.

I met his gaze. "My life I give to my country. With my hands, I fight for Fire Lord Ozai and our forefathers before him. With my mind, I seek ways to better my country. And with my feet, may our March of Civilization continue."

He smiled. "Good. Very good. Now, list your knowledge of the Fire Lords."

I nodded. "Fire Lord Sozin began the war to spread the Fire Nation's greatness throughout the rest of the world. He was as patient as he was clever. For instance, in the Battle of Han Tui, his army was outnumbered, but he was able to calculate his advantage. The Earth Kingdom army was downwind, and the area was suffering from a drought, leading to their defenses being easily burned down. Sozin then waited for the comet to begin the war in full, starting with the Air Nomads. He died an old and successful man."

Inside, I trembled with rage. Spread greatness? How could anyone think that murdering millions of innocent people is greatness?

"Fire Lord Azulon took the throne after his father's death and was a fire-bending prodigy. He led the Fire Nation to victory in the conquest of the Hu Xin Provinces and the Battle of Garsai. He also ordered the raids on the Southern Water Tribe and captured their water-benders until the tribe was weakened into nothing."

Well, it wasn't completely nothing, but Sokka and Katara said that after their father and the other men left, they didn't have enough hands to keep everything as stable as it was before. Although, now that I thought about it, Sozin had failed to find Aang, so Azulon must've started the raids just in case he had been reborn again.

"Azulon had two sons, Iroh and Ozai. Iroh was the original crown-prince and is known as The Dragon of the West. As a General, he laid siege to the Earth Kingdom capital, Ba Sing Se, for six hundred days and managed to breach the outer wall. However, he was defeated, and for his dishonorable failure, he was passed over for the throne in favor of Ozai."

I furrowed my brow as I remembered my last encounter with Zuko. He had called the old man traveling with him his uncle.

"Fire Lord Ozai has contributed many industrial and technological advances and is expected to win the war by summer's end. He has only one heir, Princess Azula."

With a sudden sway, the ship finally docked at a village. Land, oh sweet land. I'm not used to traveling on the water, and to be honest, it wasn't my favorite thing. I could barely keep my balance half of the time, and it was so monotonous and boring. Granted, it's not like I could do much except chat with Natsumi and be a pretty decoration for Zhao's entertainment.

One of the soldiers approached us and bowed to Zhao. "The rhinos have been dispatched, sir."

"Perfect." Zhao stood and looked at me. "Are you ready to prove your loyalty, my little air-bender?"

He can't even be bothered to learn my name. Ugh, the day I get to collapse his lungs will be the greatest day in world history. I bowed my head. "Yes, Admiral Zhao. I am most honored for the opportunity."

He smiled and walked over to me. "We'll be making a trip into the mountains. Play your role right, and you'll be free of your chains."

I nodded. "Yes, sir."

With one hand, Zhao lifted me to my feet, and with the other, he scooped me into his arms. I tried my hardest not to cringe as he carried me down the ramp of the ship. Waiting for us at the bottom were komodo rhinos, and he mounted the one at the head of the group with me riding sidesaddle in front of him. The rest of the soldiers mounted their rhinos, and we made our way out of the village and into the mountains.

We traveled a long way, and it was evening by the time we reached Zhao's destination. There was a strange, bell-like structure in the snow, and it had Air Nomad symbols on it. We continued past it to a group of man made caves below, and I furrowed my brow. Something wasn't right about this place.

"Alright, men. Keep out of sight until I give the signal," Zhao said.

The other soldiers guided the rhinos into one of the caves on the end. Keeping me in his arms, Zhao dismounted his rhino, and one of the soldiers took it to hide with the rest. Zhao carried me into the main cave in the center. Even with the glow of the setting sun, I could barely see anything. After we were far enough inside, Zhao set me on the ground and proceeded to light a bunch of candles.

I gasped. "What is this?"

The cave was filled with a whole bunch of ancient artifacts, and upon examining some of them, they had Air Nomad symbols on them.

"Feels just like home, doesn't it?" Zhao chuckled. "Oh, that's right. You're a half-breed from the Earth Kingdom. This junk holds no meaning to you."

"I suppose not, sir." I suppressed my urge to scream. "But may I ask what all of this is about?"

"This place was created by Fire Lord Sozin at the start of the war as a trap for the air-benders who escaped his assault on the Temples," he said.

My eyes widened. "What?"

"Ingenious, isn't it? Using the air-benders everyday objects and desire for refuge as bait." He smirked. "And now you'll help me trap one last air-bender."

No. Aang. I looked at all the artifacts. "What do you want me to do?"

"Keep the Avatar occupied long enough for us to capture him." Zhao gripped my right arm and squeezed it. "If you try to warn him or help him escape, it'll be the last thing you ever do."

His tone was venomous, and his hand warmed up and burned through my sleeve.

"Yes, sir." I winced. "I will not fail you."

Releasing me, he smiled and picked up an air nomad's robe from the ground.

"Stay still and remain quiet." He placed it over me.

Zhao exited the cave, and all I could feel was dread. When I was little, I had always wondered if other air-benders had survived like my great-grandmother, and now I finally had my answer.

They survived only to be killed like this. I shuddered. How can the Fire Nation be this cruel?

It was hard to explain, but simply being in this cave made an eerie sensation crawl up my spine. It was like I could feel the ghosts of the previous victims. They were screaming and crying for me to leave, to not end up like them.

I won't. We won't end up like any of you. I promise. I fought the tears that were burning to escape my eyes. My facade for Zhao ends here. He's a fool if he thinks I'll ever betray Aang.

The hours passed, and it wasn't until super late into the night that I heard footsteps.

"Wow! This place is full of air-bender stuff!" Aang's cheerful voice rang through the cave. "Hello?"

I shifted under the robe, but I couldn't get it off of me. "Aang, don't!"

"Huh? How do you know my name?" Aang stepped closer, and I felt his hand touch my shoulder. "Did you send for me?"

I shifted again until I fell onto my back, and the robe fell off of me.

He gasped. "Tashi?"

"Aang, you have to get out of here. It's a trap. Zhao is…." I said.

"Now! Get him!" Zhao called from outside.

Soldiers piled into the cave and swarmed around Aang. He stood in front of me, but one of the soldiers ensnared him in a net.

I turned onto my side and struggled against my cuffs. "No!"

Zhao stepped into the cave. "Make sure he's bound up tightly. We wouldn't want him escaping again."

Aang glared at him. "Zhao, you're a bit far away from the sea for an Admiral."

"One doesn't catch pheasant-squirrels by staying on a boat. You hunt them where they live." Zhao smirked. "It also helps that I have such lovely bait."

He gestured to me, and my stomach twisted with nausea. I swore his death would be painfully slow.

"What's going on?" Aang said.

I met his gaze. "This cave was used to capture air-benders who escaped Sozin's attack. Zhao must've used my great grandmother's necklace to lure you here."

"That is correct. But I'm afraid I am disappointed, my little air-bender. I told you not to warn the Avatar, and you almost blew our cover," Zhao said.

I scowled at him. "I'll never be loyal to you, you disgusting creep. You and the rest of the Fire Nation deserve to burn in an inferno of your own cruelty and hatred."

"You first." Zhao narrowed his eyes. "Men, take them to the ship!"

The soldiers moved to take us in, and I looked at Aang. He smiled and winked at me. I nodded. Now that I had help, I wasn't going to let Zhao win. Aang spun into a whirl wind, knocking the soldiers away and freeing himself from the net.

"So this cave was used to lure in air-benders, huh?" Aang flipped through the air. "I bet none of you know what these items are."

"You idiots! Hold him!" Zhao said.

He set his sights on me, and I took a deep breath and blew a large gust of air at him to hold him back.

Aang landed by a large, brass horn and flipped it into an upright position. "Tashi, try one of these horns. It has a much better effect."

I quickly sat up, and taking another deep breath, I played the horn as hard I could. The crass sound stunned the soldiers, allowing the force of my breath to knock them away. Aang rushed over to me, and he hooked my cuffed hands around his neck, allowing me to chicky-piggy-back ride him. Zhao shot a fire blast at us, but Aang leapt out of the way.

"Enough! I'll bring both of your charred remains to the Fire Lord!" he snarled.

Aang landed by this large, green, rolling pin thing and stood on the handle in the center.

"Hey, Zhao! Ever seen one of these?" He gave the Admiral a mischievous smirk. "Curious to find out what it can do?"

Not giving Zhao a chance to respond or attack, Aang used his air-bending to spin the large rolling pin. It went haywire, swirling and crashing into all of the soldiers.

"The Dorje was used in rituals, but my friends and I found out that if you spun them too hard inside a room, this would happen!" Aang bended his staff up into the air and caught it with his teeth.

He carried me out of the cave, and given how destructive that Dorje was, it didn't look like Zhao and his men were coming after us any time soon.

Aang opened his glider and positioned it over us. "Tashi, give me a boost."

I took a deep breath and combined my air-bending with Aang's to launch ourselves into the air. As we flew off into the distance, I heard Zhao's screams of anguish.

"Nice try!" Aang laughed. "Are you okay, Tashi?"

I didn't respond and stared at the mountain terrain below us. It was almost surreal. Had I really escaped Zhao? Was I really with Aang right now?

"Tashi?" His voice sounded concerned, but I was still too stunned to speak.

Morning arrived by the time Aang and I returned to the camp site. Hearing someone call his name, I spotted Katara and Sokka running towards us.

"There he is!" Katara waved.

We landed, and Aang struggled to deal with his glider and me at the same time.

He gave Katara and Sokka a bashful smile. "A little help please."

"Yeah, but who's…." Sokka blinked before his eyes widened. "Tashi?"

"Oh my gosh." Katara rushed to our aid and helped unhook my arms from his neck. "What happened, Aang? Where did you go? Tashi, are you alright? We were worried sick."

I fell against her and was still too stunned to say anything.

Aang frowned. "Zhao used Tashi to lure me into a trap, and we escaped."

"Well, the important thing is that both of you are okay." Katara looked at her brother. "Sokka, get that lock picker you got from Teo's dad."

"On it," he said.

I relaxed once I was able to sit down by the fire. Momo jumped into my lap and started chattering at me. Katara sat next to me while Aang sat on the other side. Sokka returned with some strange device and knelt in front of me. With two clicks, my legs were free, and then my hands. The skin on my wrists and ankles was red and sore, but I was too glad to be mobile again to care.

"I should be able to heal these." Katara looked up from my wounds and met my gaze. "Tashi, what happened? We were so worried. We thought…."

She choked on the last sentence, but I could already guess what she was going to say.

"We're so sorry we couldn't save you sooner." Aang's voice trembled while he placed a hand on my shoulder. "Zhao said he'd spare you if I surrendered, but Jeong Jeong stopped the deal. It turned into a huge fight, and we were forced to flee. The last thing we heard was Zhao shouting that he was gonna kill you."

If only…. I lowered my head.

"Yeah." Sokka glanced me over and blushed. "Uh… what's with the getup?"

I shifted my gaze from Momo, to Katara, to Aang, to Sokka, and then to Appa. I was finally free. I survived Zhao's torment, and now I was back with my friends. My chest felt heavy, tears welling up in my eyes, and I couldn't stop them from falling.

Aang furrowed his brow. "Tashi, what's wrong?"

Tearing the ribbon from my hair, I tossed it into the fire and buried my face in my hands.

Katara hugged me. "It's gonna be okay."

I felt the additional weight of Sokka and Aang as they joined in on the embrace, and Appa roared behind us. I was home. Everything would be okay.