The expansive and ornate bedroom of the Princess glinted a light haze of orange as the morning sun crept into the Governor's Palace- Azula herself was almost immediately awoken by the sun's rising, as all Firebenders did- as their source of energy, the sun invigorated firebenders to wake with its rising above the horizon. She wiped her eyes, still feeling exhausted from her dredging through the reports and intel surrounding her assignment, and rolled over to pull herself from the large mattress. The bedroom was similar to her own, however its design was explicitly that of the Earth Kingdom- the bed had a golden ornate form that was dressed with her nation's colour, as to mask the original purpose of the room- to house a member of the Earth King's family- although she found it suitable to her title in that context- she was now the highest ranked official in the city, even the governor would theoretically have to follow her commands, however she noted the man had much greater vested authority in the city itself as the men of garrison were loyal to him, at least in theory.
Thinking about the governor and the garrison brought her back to the chilling idea that the governor could be playing part to the conspiracy she believed to be at play- perhaps the Dai Li had paid him off or helped him get rid of criminals- what she did believe however was that he had some debt or service to them, because if he hadn't the governor's men would have reported directly back to the Fire Lord about the various things that seemed to be going on in the city- her father's informant told her that there was missing soldiers and Fire Nation officials which had been covered up by the local government as simply accidents- in such a large city, lies could be fabricated and believed without thought. The informant purportedly didn't know much themselves, only having passed through the city and built up the case to provide to the Fire Lord himself upon the realisation of the unusual amount 'incidents' that had been going on in the city.
The Crown Princess raised herself from her bed and dressed herself into her basic underclothing, what she would usually wear under her armour, before cloaking herself with the painted red metal plates that constituted the armour- she had to get a replacement set from her gold and black armour she had lost in the shipwreck. She did up her hair last, raising it into her ordinary bun with the flame headpiece that she had worn to represent her title; she took great pride in her elegant appearance, and sought to forget of her disgraceful form that she had taken while stuck in that forsaken Earth Kingdom forest. After seeing herself fully dressed as she should be expected to be, Azula opened the equally opulent doors to see one of her guards standing on duty, who nodded at the Princess in deference.
"Your highness," he begun, "A palace guard came by earlier this morning- he told me he needed to talk to you directly- I told him of course that your sleep shouldn't be disturbed."
"You assumed correctly-" she applauded her guard, "did he mention exactly what the issue was?"
"It seemed relatively serious, but if it was dire in terms of the palace, I assume the issue would have been brought to the governor himself- not you." the guard explained, Azula nodding in affirmation.
"That is a reasonable conclusion- where is he now?" she requested, the guard nodding and pointing down the hallway, "He would be waiting at the tea-room, I assume."
"It seems his 'dire situation' caught him a break, how fortunate of him." Azula sarcastically remarked, her guard refraining to laugh- he wouldn't want to seem too 'easy-going', especially while on duty.
Taking the short walk between her bedroom and the tea-room she caught sight of the worried guard- his face paled at the sight of the Princess, and he immediately got to his feet and seemingly begged of her.
"Your highness please forgive me- I have failed in my duties!" he told her, Azula smirking at him at sign of his fear.
"What duties exactly?" she asked him, the guard raising his head to look her in the eyes, dread filling his own.
"I am the commander of the main-gate of the palace- yesterday evening I let your Water Tribesman go out into the Upper Ring- supposedly he wanted to get intoxicated to lessen the pain afflicting his face at the time." he explained, the Princesses face scrunching with a sense of frustration- Sokka had done something stupid, it seemed, "He hasn't returned- I had my men search the nearest market, and eyewitnesses told us that they saw him at a bar, but he disappeared- if I had just had some foresight none of this would have happened."
"So... you've lost my Water Tribesman?" she asked him, explicitly stating as if she owned Sokka like a servant boy, "Your incompetency amuses me, but I assume the Water Tribesman couldn't have run off drunk- he's probably wallowing in his own filth somewhere, and because of you I will have to search for his sorry arse." she explained to the guard, whose shoulders shrunk down in fear as the Princess towered over him.
"Do you need uh- help in your search?" he asked fearfully, knowing that what could come next might determine the fate of his employment or career as a whole.
"No you have done enough already," she snidely remarked before continuing, "I will have the governor deal with you- that's his job." The guard almost sighed in relief before pulling himself to form and racing away, probably to return to his station where he was meant to be the entire time.
Azula glanced in frustration as the guard ran away from her in fear, and was pleased that she could still instil the authority she desired to but was not happy that Sokka had decided to get drunk; she had pummelled his jaw a bit to harshly during sparring and this what happens- the only Water Tribesman in the city gets lost- spirits know where- while completely drunk, she assumed.
She immediately called the guard, "Get the men- we have to hunt down the hungover savage!" she commanded.
Walking down the hallway towards the exit of the palace Azula couldn't help but fume with anger and frustration- she gives a man an ounce of freedom and he uses it to do the most stupid thing possible- running away would have been less annoying, because she could have just sent bounty hunters after him if she wanted- this was just him wandering around a city he knew nothing about aimlessly, she couldn't guess what ended up happening to him after he decided to leave that bar- it was an endless city and she would have to find his sorry arse somewhere in it.
The early morning of sunrise led the shadow of the great Inner Wall of Ba Sing Se to cast its shadow over entire neighbourhoods in the Lower Ring of the city- in the darkness a small campfire was lit atop of a buildings roof, surrounded by those who would claim themselves the future of the Earth Kingdom- the Freedom Fighters. They believed they had a greater purpose or calling- they had done terrible things in the past, but their leader had taken them to Ba Sing Se, knowing they would be better in a part of their nation that was safe, only to see it fall to the Fire Nation; Jet commanded them to live their lives in service of fighting for the freedoms that they valued so- as long as the Fire Nation's banners covered the capital of the Earth Kingdom they would fight for it's liberation- to reignite the war in their favour and to drive the enemy from their lands.
Before their camp sat someone new- a man dressed in the blue colours of the Water Tribe- his compatriots had found him being whisked away by who they could only assume to be some kind of a insidious criminal- they were more concerned for the secrecy and elite nature of the attack on the man- according to Smellerbee the man had used stone gloves to contain the man and presumed to be used in his incapacitation- the sign of an Earthbender, perhaps an agent of the Earth King, but what would someone like that have to do with capturing a Water Tribesman- and more importantly what would a Water Tribesman be doing in a Fire Nation occupied city.
Jet stood before him and glanced at Smellerbee, "Well you took him here- wake this guy up- he ought to have an interesting story to tell." she sighed and grumbled at him in response, glancing at Longshot with mild spite.
"Why did you make us carry him the whole way here?!" she exasperatingly proclaimed to Longshot, who glanced at Jet, who looked back to Smellerbee.
"Look- Longshot had his reasons, and they were fair- look at him, he's the first Water Tribesman we've seen- ever." he explained, Smellerbee sighing before kicking Sokka in the back as if to let out her frustrations on the person she actually blamed for her labours.
"Ow!" he squealed in realising he was being hurt before looking at his 'captors' in shock.
"Wait what the- who are you guys?!" he almost screamed, his memory hazy and confused from his drunkenness the previous night.
"My name is Jet, and these are my Freedom Fighters." Jet proclaimed, triumphantly standing before him.
"Uh- the name's Sokka." he replied, glancing around at the odd bunch of teenagers he was being introduced to.
"Well Sokka- we'd very much like to get to know you- it's not everyday you run into Water Tribesmen in Ba Sing Se." Jet asked him, making him reel away in slight confusion about his current situation.
"How did I end up here- last thing I remember is talking to a bartender in the Upper Ring- and I think I hit my head- it's really sore, again." Sokka thought aloud.
Smellerbee intervened suspiciously looking at him, "So you don't remember being captured by some kind of spy? Longshot saved you from whatever that man was going to do- I can't guess it would've been pretty." making Sokka glance to the archer, whose steely gaze caught his attention.
"Uh- thanks man, I seem to get into shit like this more often than not now." Sokka told him, Jet glancing at Sokka with intrigue.
"What kind of 'shit' do you get into?" Jet asked Sokka, leaning toward him, his frame covering Sokka's field of view.
Sokka looked up at the teenager whose pose seemed a bit intimidating, "Uh- the kind that involves Earth Kingdom deserters." he admitted, sure he could say his mind to who he assumed were fellow minded folk.
"What do you mean deserters? I don't think there's many of those in this city." Jet argued, trying to figure out what Sokka's context-less explanations actually meant.
"It wasn't here- it was a while south of Ba Sing Se- I got shipwrecked you see." Sokka explained to him, Jet nodding his head in realisation.
"So you've had some experience fighting? These deserters tried to steal from you?"
"It was more of an 'unfortunate' run-in- I had camped in one of their hideouts and luckily I had the element of surprise" Sokka described, the story catching Jet's interest.
"So you came to Ba Sing Se- why would you come to a city that's under Fire Nation occupation?"
Sokka reflected on the question momentarily before looking back with a somewhat solemn face, "I'd like to get back to my people- coming here was the best option in the short term."
"That would explain your appearance here I assume- you're trying to make your way home." Jet assumed, Sokka sighing and nodding.
"Yeah you could say that- I'd really like to be on my way back home, but it's a bit of challenge to get back to the South Pole without a boat." he explained, Jet smirking at him.
"I can ask around, I'm sure there's people who would be willing to help out a fellow freedom fighter." Jet explained, trying to convince Sokka that they were worthwhile allies in this city.
"Well, I'm more of a warrior, born and bred really- I fight for my people, and that happens to be against the ash-maker scum." he told the Freedom Fighters, who smiled at the commonality of their interests.
"We could use some help around here- we've got a good setup, I'm guessing you're not going very well after a shipwreck; are you alone?" Jet asked him, explictly mentioning his desire for recruiting Sokka; the Water Tribesman smiled at him but glanced away, almost in shame.
"I uh- I can't stay with you guys- I've got to do something else." he admitted to them, not explaining himself any further- Jet and Smellerbee both looked upon him with suspicion.
"Why?" Smellerbee asked, almost in anger, "We saved you! You just want to go back out into that city alone?" she questioned him, thinking he was acting like an idiot to go back out there, especially if someone was looking for him and not for the right reasons.
"It's because of what happened- you say someone attacked me right?" he asked her, Smellerbee's suspicion unrelenting by his vagueness.
"Yes- and we also want to know why!" she demanded of him, Sokka looking in genuine fear.
"I don't really know why they did- there's things I need to do, and I don't want anyone getting involved in them."
"What things?!" Smellerbee asked him, Jet holding her back as if she was ready to attack him for simply avoiding her questions.
To the Freedom Fighters, Sokka looked to be in a state of avoidance in hiding his secrets, but Jet could see why Sokka was speaking how he was- he was hiding something; he obviously didn't want them to find out, perhaps his story wasn't as truthful as he had claimed, but he knew at least he wasn't an ash-maker; Jet stood forward and held his hand on Sokka's shoulder.
"Okay- you don't have to explain yourself to us- at least give us the courtesy of getting you where you need to go safely." Jet affirmed to Sokka, who smiled back with courtesy- he seemed to have the same idea as Jet- what didn't need to be said didn't need to be, but his face soon turned to one of fear.
"I don't think you'd like to go where I'm going- I'd honestly prefer if you just got me out of the Lower Ring really." Sokka explained to Jet, who looked at him momentarily- whatever Sokka claimed to 'have to do' must involve things that involved things beyond getting back to his tribe.
Smellerbee glanced at Sokka with continued suspicion, "So what- we drop you off at the monorail and hope you don't rat on us?" she exclaimed with full honesty.
"Wait what- I would never!" he almost shouted from the effacement, "I might not be fighting in the war right now, but wouldn't betray you guys to the Fire Nation or anyone like that just because you 'might' be a threat."
Jet smirked at Sokka, "A threat you say?"
"Uh yeah- you seem to be relatively well armed and assuming on what happened last night, pretty skilled fighters; I don't want to stop you doing whatever you're doing- for the sake of the war- for the world."
"We're not that important." The Duke commented, making Jet look back and chuckle.
"The Duke, it depends who you ask to know our importance- we may not be fighting the Fire Nation right now- but one day they will get what's coming to them, by our hand." he told his follower, although the statement was more directed at the whole group- instilling the loyalty that remained within the Freedom Fighters was a full time job for Jet.
Sokka looked back at Jet, "So if you're taking me to the monorail- are we going now?"
Jet chuckled lightly, "Well- I'd say to eat something before we go, but I guess we can find something on the way." smirking at Sokka, who didn't realise what he meant- the Freedom Fighters were not strangers to stealing food, however they refrained from stealing from the poor- only those well off enough to lose some were their targets- or if feasible, a local Fire Nation patrol could always use with a shake-down.
Sokka stood up in preparation to leave before immediately falling back onto his behind, "Argh- why do I feel sick standing up?!" he asked out, Smellerbee looking at him snidely.
"You got drunk- which you should remember." she explained, Sokka noting that fact in realisation of the previous night's events.
Jet lent out a hand, which Sokka grabbed and thanked him for before being pulled up and standing with his assistance, "Oh- it's going to be a bit hard for me to walk, but I think I'll manage." he commented, Jet nodding back to affirm.
Glancing out into the slums of the Lower Ring, Jet couldn't see much people wandering the streets, which was good- they would rely on the fact no one was around to see them to try and get some food; he looked back to the Freedom Fighters and decided a course of action. "Smellerbee and Longshot- you've done enough- you should rest and take watch while we go to the monorail- uh, The Duke and Pipsqueak can come along- you guys eager?"
"'Course Jet, come on little man." Pipsqueak grinned, patting The Duke on his shoulder, making the youngest member of their group glance with annoyance at his friend- he certainly didn't want to be infantilised, especially in front of someone new.
Jet went down the ladder first and helped Sokka descend due to his off-balance form- he seemed to have been hit pretty hard by the alcohol and whatever happened to him before Smellerbee and Longshot found him; The Duke and Pipsqueak weren't far behind and both checked around the nearby corners for potential Fire Nation guards- it wasn't unheard of patrols coming around early in the morning to snoop on activities- nothing much eventuated of this usually, Smellerbee had remarked the ash-makers to be exceptionally lazy for people that wake up at the break of dawn. Pacing himself down the street, Jet overlay his ordinary assortment of armour with a brown and green cloak that resembled the jackets that most refugees in the city would wear- the Freedom Fighters did the same; it was easy to disguise oneself in a city full of people. Jet glanced back to Sokka who was being assisted in his walking by Pipsqueak and thought immediately that his blue colours would give him away as 'not from around here', and threw him a green cloak.
Sokka smiled at him weakly, still nauseous from having to stand up, "Thanks man."
Walking down the narrow dirty laden alleyways of the Lower Ring, Jet led the group all the way toward the distinctive structure of the monorail- standing stories above the city itself, they could see it from miles away- even from their current abode, which was as far from anything as they could get themselves. Jet stopped the group as they reached a major road, which unlike the rest of the small alleys that they snuck through, was very much full of traffic at this early time- the Fire Nation's latest cargo trains of goods and luxuries, probably shipped from all over the world. Jet snickered at the sight of the caravan- he knew too well who those goods were going to- the well-off and powerful of the city and their new Fire Nation friends, the governor and his cronies- he considered the caravan a feasible route for their movement into the palace- from what Smellerbee described, getting in and out of the palace would be harder than just sneaking into some little Fire Nation outpost back in Gaipan.
Pipsqueak leant over to Jet's ear, "So are we going try and get a take boss?" Jet smiled back in return, pointing out the caravan's haphazard movement.
"We need only need a little distraction- I'm sure you can handle it, me and The Duke can sneak in from behind and take a score- we can stash it nearby just to be safe."
"What if we get seen?" The Duke asked Jet, who glanced back in thought.
"Huh- I guess if we do get caught, you're small enough to run around anyone tough enough to stop me." Jet explained.
"Hmm- fair, what about Sokka?" The Duke asked, Jet looking back to their dazed and confused companion.
"Sokka- could you be kind enough to get over the other side of the road- we'll meet you over there in a bit- we've just got to 'retrieve' our breakfast." Jet explained, hoping he would either follow what he was saying or just go with the euphemistic statements.
"U-uh okay- I'll just take a rest over by that wall- it looks nice enough to sleep on" Sokka babbled, making The Duke and Jet both looked at him with slight confusion before shuffling him toward the crossing.
As Sokka fumbled across the road, Pipsqueak raced up the road to get ahead where he could cause an 'incident' as the Freedom Fighters would like to describe it; Jet and The Duke eyed off the carriages of the caravan, noting the sloppy work of guarding that was being done.
"It's almost like they want us to go in and take a bite." Jet thought aloud- The Duke nodded understanding that Jet had a point- it seemed a little too easy for them to do, but if Pipsqueak was able to cause enough of an incident- they would easily get away with the golden prize- a load of food for them to eat.
Jet knew that if they showed the commoners around the Lower Ring what the elite were feasting on, perhaps they could persuade more people to support them- they'd need it if they wanted to get a reasonable opposition force to the Fire Nation occupiers once they got rid of the governor and his mysterious new ally. They could hear even in the distance a loud thumping noise, and then the inaudible shouting that clearly came from Pipsqueak- the good old 'did you just hit me?' move that he liked to pull on those who couldn't stand up to his size.
"This is our chance- let's go!" The Duke told him, running toward the last carriage in the caravan- if they were lucky they'd be in an out before the next caravan arrived.
The Duke quickly jumped into the caravan, and pulled out a bag of what seemed to be assorted vegetables- he threw it to Jet, who immediately decided to throw it into the alley where Sokka was standing, much to the Water Tribesman's shock. The Duke quickly shuffled out loaves of bread and salted meats- giving them to Jet who quickly ran into the alleyway and gave some to Sokka.
"Do me a favour and hide this somewhere nearby." he requested, Sokka gulping in fear and confusion- he probably hadn't caught onto what Jet had been saying about getting breakfast, "Yes- we steal food, but it's from the Fire Nation and their cronies- not from the poor."
Sokka almost tried to laugh but refused, "That's not much better- but who am I to argue." he admitted to Jet, taking the food and fumbling down the alleyway to find somewhere to hide the food, Jet turning back to check on The Duke.
The Duke had grabbed one last bag of vegetables before running down the alley- shouting back to Jet, "Pipsqueak's done, so we are too!" Jet then picking up the pace behind him with whatever food he was holding.
Racing down the alleyway they made their way to where Sokka had decided to hide the food- it was a set of empty crates sitting in an dark dead-end alley, Jet calling out to him.
"Good job Sokka- now we can get a snack before we send you off to where ever you're going." Jet told him, Sokka chuckling lightly.
"Don't think this is going to make me any less averse to spilling my secrets- I hold them for a good reason." he admitted.
Pipsqueak soon arrived in the alleyway and enjoyed a short meal beside them- they had to ration out most of the food- the rest they would give to Smellerbee and Longshot, as well as to put on show for the locals- the more food, the less verbose convincing Jet would need to show them the truth that the Fire Nation occupation had changed little for those on top and proved that they would need to take the ash-maker scum down themselves if the Lower Ring ever wanted a chance of achieving better standards of living. After their quick breakfast, The Duke and Pipsqueak covered up their stash as best they could- they would come back and get some when necessary from now on- it would be rather suspicious for a bunch of oddly dressed teenagers to walk around with enough food for a whole feast; Sokka still seemed confused by the whole situation but understood well enough their intent- food was a necessity and if some crummy bastards were taking more than their fair keep, the Freedom Fighters would put them in line.
The group then made their way through a labyrinth of alleyways which to Sokka's luck, the Freedom Fighters were well versed in travelling- they had had their fair shares of run-ins with the Fire Nation, and such alleys were a quick and easy way to run away from Fire Nation troops; within a few minutes they had made their way to the tall arches of the monorail- Sokka glanced at the monorail in awe, but Jet quickly directed his attention up the line toward the station where he'd get on- soon enough they had walked uphill to the entrance of the station- which was surrounded by Fire Nation guards- as to be expected, they vetted everyone who went aboard, and that was specifically why Jet avoided the monorail- he was well known amongst the Fire Nation forces as a rebel leader, if he showed his face to them it was more likely than not that one of they would remember him.
Jet turned to Sokka and smiled, "I guess this where we go our separate ways- I hope you reconsider our offer- you'll know where to find us- and if we're not there- we'll find you- the blue does stick out."
Sokka laughed at his comment but looked averse, "I don't want to cause you any trouble- I'm not the most unknown figure in the city, I'd best tell you why."
Jet smirked, finally knowing that Sokka would spill the truth on why he had been so quiet about his current situation.
"The reason I'm doing it here is because I understand who you are- because I'm just like you Jet- I just got in the wrong place at the wrong time." he explained.
"What are you trying to say?" Jet questioned Sokka.
"I wasn't shipwrecked alone- I was shipwrecked with the Crown Princess of the Fire Nation- you might have heard of her." he explained to Jet, whose face unravelled to one of shock.
"W-w-wait a minute," Jet stuttered, his volume raising in realisation, "That's who the governor's mystery guest is? The Crown Princess, and you're with her?!"
"Not exactly- I am serving her to pay for a safe travel home- I hope at least, unless she is as ruthless as she has been told to be." Sokka explained.
"So you're some kind of kiss-arse servant- you're worse than the elite snobs who claim they are the heirs of the Earth King!" Jet shouted at him, now angry at his new acquaintance who had turned out to be much more than he had bargained for.
"I'm no fucking servant!" Sokka shouted back, the first sign of a clear tone of voice since he had woken up- he was clearly offended in Jet's eyes, "I will do my part to help you, you and your friends saved my arse- I truly will, but I can't do much until the Princess tells me what's going on, I think it had something to do with my would-be kidnappers." Sokka affirmed to Jet, who turned away as if he had been betrayed.
"Next time I see you, give me a good reason not to kill you." Jet told him before walking away with Pipsqueak and The Duke who had barely caught into their shouting match.
Jet turned back and looked at his would be friend- someone who had betrayed his own people, it seemed; he didn't trust Sokka's words one bit, but if he really wanted to serve the Princess, he would have gone straight to the Fire Nation officials for help and to get the Freedom Fighters arrested- right now he was standing only a few paces from a group of Fire Nation soldiers that could easily be used by him to take them down, but it seemed Sokka didn't have that in mind. Jet wanted to believe that their was some truth to his story- that he really was a Water Tribe warrior, not some drunkard mercenary hired by the Princess, or worse, someone who sold out his own people to get a bit of splendour for himself.
Marching in formation, a group of elite Royal Firebenders surrounded their Princess- guarding her from the peering eyes of the locals of the Upper Ring; the Princess had ordered her men to take formation and move at haste- she even gave up using the palanquin for this specific task, knowing it would just slow her down. They made their way down from the palace gates to the nearest market where the gatesman refuted Sokka had been the night prior- the market was busy with morning trade, mostly consistent of the local servants coming down to purchase or collect goods for their masters with a few noblemen scattered about, eyeing the servants and the newly arrived group with suspicion. Azula took herself to one of the stalls, where a Fire Nation man held office- he had goods from the homeland to sell, so in her eyes he could be trusted as a loyalist of the regime; she looked at him with a single glare and he recognised her immediately due to her attire.
"Crown Princess! It is my honour to have you come to my lowly shop- I have the latest goods from the homeland- I'm sure your highness would appreciate the niceties of the land that misses her dearly." the man babbled, deferring to her as best he could, the Princess smirking at the respect before turning her mind to the more serious matter at hand- although she'd refuse to call anything to do with Sokka 'serious' to his face.
"How long have you been holding your stall here?" she asked him, the man smiling and bowing.
"Only for a few days your highness- I frequently tr-" he explained, Azula cutting him off with a hand.
"Did you see a young man wearing blue attire during your sales yesterday?" she asked him bluntly, the man taking a moment to think before raising his hand in realisation.
"Ah yes- that boy was searching around these stalls in the afternoon- I saw him later walking around the square." he explained, trying to remember as best he could, but the boy wasn't hard to miss- someone wearing Water Tribe colours was a rare sight in Ba Sing Se.
"Could you give me a specific time?" she asked him, leaning toward the man with her face showing her utter seriousness, making the man gulp in slight fear.
"U-uh I think it was closing time- last light, your highness." he explained, Azula smirking curtly before handing him a few silver coins.
"For your troubles." she stated, before turning around and walking through the square to look around at the nearby stalls and shops.
Azula glanced around and looked into the stalls and restaurants- she thought to try and think in Sokka's point of view- she thought immediately that he would try and throw up after drinking a lot, assuming that the Water Tribesman was new to alcohol- from what it seemed from the whispering amongst her guards- one of them had recommended to get drunk in response to the beating he had gotten earlier that day; one day in Ba Sing Se and Sokka had already gone and done something stupid beyond belief- she hadn't told him of the threats in the city, and now she considered he would be paying the price for her withholding of words- he could have got lost in the city, attacked by common thieves, or worse. She didn't really know what lurked in the city, and she was sure that whatever was there, whatever conspiracy going on was doing a good job of covering it up- she assumed the Dai Li- but she could be completely wrong; what if it was the people that tried to have her killed, the ones that employed Sokka and his tribe?
Azula came to a holt and looked at her guards, "I need all of you that aren't essential for my protection to go search the surrounding streets for any information regarding Sokka or anything that happened last night- that will help us narrow down where he actually went." her guards nodded immediately before racing off into the market and beyond to find agreeable folk to ask about a certain Water Tribesman.
The Crown Princess herself wasn't in the mood to deal with interrogating a bunch of clueless Earth Kingdom merchants and bystanders- she instead decided to walk into the various restaurants she assumed Sokka could have gone into as the gatesman wasn't overly specific in which restaurant. One after the other nothing of any result came up until she arrived at a restaurant where the man cleaning the floor had something of note to tell her.
"Yeah- that kid was here last night- he was talking to the bartender, Yin." the cleaner told him, pricking his thin moustache as he described to Azula.
"Did you overhear anything he said- anything of note?" Azula intrigued, the cleaner brushing his fingers along his moustache again in thought.
"Well- from what I heard- they were just talking about how the kid needed to slow down, which he refused to do."
"I'm not surprised..." Azula admitted, before looking back to the cleaner, "Well I'll look around here- he can't have gotten too far in that state."
"That'd be right miss." the cleaner acknowledged, unaware of her title, probably thinking she was just some Fire Nation noblewoman; Azula was slightly peeved about not being recognised, but then again she was new to the city and practically unknown amongst the people of the Earth Kingdom, unlike someone like her Uncle.
"That would be your highness, if I may correct you." she told the man, whose eyes opened in confusion and shock- he was unable to ask her what she meant as she quickly made her way out of the restaurant and back into the market square.
Azula glanced around for her guards, who seemed to be at work talking to as many people as they could so she resigned herself to walking alongside the stalls, uninterested in their wares- she was more focused on trying to figure out what happened to Sokka- she could only assume at this point- he got extremely intoxicated and disappeared from the market square soon after. Within a minute one of her guards raced up to her, clearly worried and slightly shocked.
"Princess- there's something you've got to see!" he exclaimed, and Azula was quick to follow him down a side-street that led behind the market square, there was a relatively clear and unfrequented road passing north-to-south, where the guard pointed out.
"There's a lot- I mean a lot of blood- right over there- it can't be a coincidence that it appears right behind the restaurant he was at, right?" the guard told her, his eyes worried genuinely, thinking that maybe Sokka had outright been murdered and his body disposed of to just leave that bloodstain.
The Princess paced over to the site of the bloodstain, which she noted to be relatively isolated- glancing down and up the street, there was no trail of blood that would be expected from someone dragging a body- or someone bleeding running away- she doubted Sokka would give up his life so easily if he was to be the victim of some savage attack.
"Whoever bled out on this street- they either patched themselves up or someone disposed of the body very well." she told the guard, who looked in a slight of shock, the other guards that had been with them looked confused as well.
"Maybe this is the answer you were looking for." the Captain noted to her, Azula grimacing.
"If- if this is who we think it is- no one is safe- if they're willing to outright murder in the streets- then we have underestimated them dearly." Azula explained to the Captain, who nodded at her ideas.
"But why the Water Tribesman? Why would they try to kill him of all people?" the Captain asked her, Azula considering that counter-argument.
"Well- we don't know if they were trying to kill him- for all we know, our little friends could have been trying to kidnap him, take him to their cause and then use him against us." Azula argued.
"Princess!" she heard a voice call out to her, and turned around to see a guard standing with someone she had for a moment, not expected to see alive- the Water Tribseman standing before her, a little worse for wear, but definitely alive.
"Uh- sorry if I got you worried." Sokka tried to defuse before the Princess could start berating him.
"Worried?! Ah- trust me, if I hadn't seen this blood, I would have thought that worrying was a stupid idea- but maybe it isn't; care to explain it?" she grumbled at him, pointing to the bloodstain on the ground.
"Oh shit- now I don't exactly remember- but I do know that someone tried to kidnap me- then somebody saved me by shooting an arrow through the guys chest- that's according to the people who saved me." Sokka explained, confusing the Princess further.
"Wait what? Someone saved you of all people?" she almost laughed, Sokka affirming his statement.
"Yeah- this guy called Longshot and his friend Smellerbee." he told her, Azula laughing further at the prescribed names.
"Those are some of the most fake names I've ever heard." she chuckled, doubting Sokka's validity.
"Well yeah- uh- they're probably fake, the people who saved me were- well they weren't from this side of the city, let's say that." he refrained, trying to tell her what he wanted her to hear.
"Okay you're going to need to give me more than that- I want information, not some vague description." Azula told him, pointing an accusing finger at him, before crossing her arms in slight contempt.
"How about you? Why the fuck would some random guy try to kidnap me?! You know something I don't!" he called her out- the guards looked in shock at Sokka for speaking in such a manner- Azula however was audibly sighing, acknowledging that Sokka had some perceptiveness at least.
"Good take Sokka- you're right; there's a group of people trying to undermine and perhaps overthrow the Fire Nation rule of this city." Azula told him, Sokka's eyes bulging in slight fear.
"Uh- I'm sure there's many people who want to see your people hang." Sokka told her, trying to avoid what she had asked him prior.
"So now- what of these people that helped you? They're from the Lower Ring, and happened to mysteriously show up and save you at the opportune moment?" she asked him, trying to undermine his story.
"No- these were good people, they even gave me breakfast." he tried to explain to her.
"So how were they in the Upper Ring- everyone knows their kind of filth is barred from this part of the city?" she told him, Sokka scratching his chin in confusion before realising something.
"I don't know why they were here." he bluntly told her, before glancing away, a sense of dread filling his eyes, "I can't trust telling you about these people- they're the kind of people you would antagonise to no-end, blame them for things they didn't do. I'm willing to face the consequences of not telling you who they are."
Azula looked at Sokka with frustration but considered what he was saying for the moment- she had built up trust with him and she couldn't throw it away to find some petty criminals- she valued his potential uses- and he had indirectly proved his worth- he paid attention to his new friends and was able to give Azula information back- if he was able to be her eyes and ears on the other side of Ba Sing Se, he was already useful enough, better than a simple spy is an enemy of the Fire Nation who works for you.
"You gave me two pseudonyms- and seeing that these people are probably not the people who tried to kidnap you, seeing they let you go- I assume they're of not harm to us."
"Us being the Fire Nation?" he asked her genuinely, unsure of her words meaning.
"That includes you- you're under my employ, with the rest of the servants and guards." she pointed out, reminding Sokka of his unintended position of servitude.
"Fine then- can we go back to the palace? I missed out on my dinner." he asked Azula, who looked back at him with a face of amusement.
"Always one with the food- I could bribe you to run across the Earth Kingdom if you knew you'd be fed well the entire time." she jested at him, Sokka looking at her with frustration, momentarily considering her statement- he probably would do that if given the chance.
Walking up back toward the palace gates, Sokka took place by Azula's side as her guards took station to circle them protectively- the Princess didn't want any other uppity Earth Kingdom natives trying to beat her or her followers up, not that they'd succeed- she would rather show a sense of strength than that of a single woman and her non-bender sidekick, which had been her situation prior to finding safety in Huangwen- she was glad that she had finally made her way to a civilised area of the world, but she knew that civilisation brought it's own threats- when a place is as big and complicated as Ba Sing Se, people can sneak around and do awful things without the authorities having a second glance- she knew that the Dai Li or who ever desired to have the city for themselves was more powerful than any given garrison- they must be waiting for the right time.
As the group made their way to the gate they could see a Fire Nation soldier racing down the courtyard, directly at them, his face red and flustered, shouting out her title, "Princess! Princess!"
Azula sighed in frustration of the sight of a dishevelled soldier- from the one place in the city she'd expect a man to have some standards.
"What is it?" she asked, the gate's guards looking to the soldier as well with slight confusion of ruckus.
"It's news from the capital!" he declared, "Your brother has been declared a traitor and enemy of the state!"
Sokka glanced at Azula in a slight of shock, "Wait what- your brother?"
Azula chuckled, almost considering it a joke, "You say what- my brother, the banished Prince who had half his face burnt off for effacing our dearest Fire Lord?"
The messenger nodded quickly, as if he was scared for his own life, "Yes- he defeated the great Admiral Zhao in an Agni Kai and burnt his face- not before telling him of his own plans- the Fire Lord's office states the Prince intends to fight the Fire Lord himself- he has broken all ties with his nation."
Azula smirked, "Well- it's about time someone gave that arsehole a beating- but then again, I'd prefer if my brother didn't act like a crazed fool."
Sokka turned to Azula, confused from the explanation, "You're telling me that your brother is trying to overthrow the Fire Lord?"
"Why yes- I guess that's good news on your behalf, depending on how you think about it." she told him, Sokka tugging at his bone necklace in fear.
"Ah- well- I wouldn't say that exactly- I don't- uh- know your brother." he stuttered, unsure how he should speak, especially in front of a bunch of Fire Nation soldiers.
"Oh- you'd both get along, you're quite similar- the unbridled arrogance and the utter weakness in skill." she mocked Sokka, making him turn away in offence.
"Are you going to do something about it- your brother?" he asked her, glancing slightly her way for a moment.
"Well- I'm sure my father can handle my traitorous brother- I- no, we have a more pressing issue at hand."
"Find the arseholes who tried to kidnap me and beat the shit out them?" Sokka asked her with a wide smirk.
Azula smirked her eyes gleaming with lethal desire, "Of course- we're going to annihilate them."