Hello! I hope you all have a lot of fun with this chapter. I was really anticipating posting this one. Finally getting this ball rolling. Let's go!
Chapter Three: Mako Island
Bataar waddled out of his small home with his fishing rod over his shoulder and a bucket of bait at his side. He was a fairly old fisherman with a frail frame and long white hair. Tonight, he was going to go night fishing.
Night fishing was one of the most calming activities that Bataar could do. He absolutely loved fishing in his small steamboat with only the lapping of waves to accompany him. Sometimes, the catch was great and he would come home with lots of fish, while other times the fish would barely bite. But on a full moon, the fish were more active than they could ever be.
His enthusiasm only made him the more surprised when he went down to the dock to find his boat gone. At first he was confused, but a sinking feeling filled his chest as he frantically scanned the area.
Someone surely couldn't have stolen his boat, could they? Maybe the rope broke or maybe he forgot to tie it again.
No. If the rope broke, then one half of it would still be tied to the dock and the last time he went fishing was two days ago. He remembered his boat still being there the day after. The sinking feeling only got worse as his fears were confirmed.
Bataar dropped his fishing rod and bucket of bait before turning around and scrambling up the stairs and into the streets. His eyes frantically searched the dim streets for the police station. Once he spotted the building, he made a beeline for the front doors.
Bataar burst through the doors, startling a few of the people in the lobby. He immediately went to the nearest guards who were stationed outside of a door.
"Officers! Officers! I was going to-went to dock-night fish-boat not-," Bataar said through heavy breaths as he leaned over with his hands on his knees.
"Calm down. I can't hear a thing you're saying. Take a moment to catch your breath and then we'll talk," a guard placed a hand on his shoulder. The door they were stationed in front of suddenly opened and out walked a man in heavy armor.
"What is all this yelling about out here?!," the man demanded, glaring at the two guards. He stood tall and waited patiently for the men to answer. The guards swiftly turned to face him.
"Sorry to disturb you Chief Kali. This fisherman here barged through the front doors and began to rant on about a boat," one of the men gestured to Bataar who was still breathing heavily.
"I have more important matters to attend to. We can listen to his story later. File out a report and we can assess it tomorrow," and with that Kali began to turn back into the room.
"W-wait! Please! At least hear me out first before you leave!," Bataar pleaded and hurried up to the large man. The guards roughly grabbed his arms and pulled him back.
The chief turned back to look at Bataar before sighing heavily, "Put him down. Let him say what he wants to say," the men quickly let go of the old man's arms. "You better make this quick."
Bataar bowed, "T-thank you! Thank you! Well I was just about to go night fishing and I went down to the docks to find my steamboat gone! I think someone stole my boat. There was no sign of the rope breaking and I'm certain I tied-"
"A boat! Of Course! She escaped on a boat!" The chief's eyes widened in realization. "At attention!" The two guards straightened their posture, "Tell all the other guards to meet at the port immediately!," Kali said in urgency.
The men nodded and ran off through the doors. Bataar stood in stunned silence. What was going on!? Who was she? Was it the girl on the posters? Why did it have to be his boat?
The chief turned back to the room he came from and bellowed, "Men, I want you to acquire some boats with cells and get a crew ready. We need to start searching the water now!"
A loud "Yes sir!" echoed from the room and out walked five soldiers who were better dressed than the two men who just left but less decorated than the chief. They had been sitting at a table with a map of the town and surrounding forests.
Kali turned to Bataar and patted his shoulder before walking off with the other soldiers, "Thank you for your contributions."
The old fisherman simply looked at the chief. He was just hoping that he could get his boat back. Too bad it seemed to be involved in some manhunt.
The volcano of Mako Island loomed over Azula as she sat near a small campfire by a stream. The full moon shone brightly in the night sky and illuminated the mist surrounding the volcanic mountain, giving the island a mystical feeling to it.
The trip to the island took two grueling hours and another thirty minutes to bring the boat on land, find a place to camp, and set up. Azula was exhausted from a day of almost constant traveling and she wanted nothing more than to sleep. Much to her annoyance, she's been up for the past hour because someone wouldn't shut up and let her sleep.
"I told you to shut up and leave me alone! If the message wasn't clear enough, I meant that I wanted you to shut up and leave me alone FOREVER!," Azula yelled from her spot near the fire at the hallucination of her mother.
Ursa was standing near the edge of the camp fire's light. Her mother, as always, was dressed in her usual royal clothing and hairstyle with a neutral facial expression and a dead look in her eyes.
Ursa looked slightly somber when she responded, "I didn't want to abandon my child."
"Hypocrite!"
Azula clenched her fists in rage, "You should have thought of that before you abandoned me all those years ago! Where were you for six years?! OH RIGHT! YOU LEFT ME AND RUINED MY LIFE!" The campfire grew intense and the flame tips took on a blue hue before dying down to its normal orange color.
Ursa only looked on sadly from the dim light. "I love you, Azula…"
Azula scowled. She pressed her hands to her ears and flopped onto her back before rolling over to face in the opposite direction. Ugh, if only she hadn't been in such a hurry to leave Hira'a. She had brought a bag of supplies with her. If she had brought it, then she wouldn't have needed to spend so much time in that town and she wouldn't be stuck here right now.
"Stop lying and shut up already! You've been telling me that for the past hour and it isn't going to make me believe you no matter how hard you try to convince me!"
"I just want some damn sleep. Is that too much to ask for?"
The hands over her ears were futile and did nothing to stop her mother's voice from echoing in her head. "Please, Azula. Let go of your grudges. I love you and Zuko loves you. You can't keep us from loving you."
That was it. This conversation went on for far too long. Azula was tired of hearing her mother lie about how people actually cared for her. Azula violently got up from her spot on the ground and stood to confront her mother standing partially in the darkness.
"I'm tired of hearing you lie so blatantly! What's more important is how in Agni's name you found me.!" Azula was genuinely curious. She truly didn't know how Ursa found her. Azula didn't see any sign of her mother in Forgetful Valley or when she escaped on that boat.
"As I've said before, I didn't want to abandon my child," Ursa smiled slightly, probably the only noticeable expression she could ever give. Azula growled in frustration.
"This conversation is going nowhere!"
"How did you find me, mother," Azula pinned her mother with her gaze. Ursa's smile dropped.
"How do you think I found you?" her mother simply replied. This only added to Azula's rage.
"I am the one asking the questions here! Don't try to draw attention away from you. Answer me now," Azula demanded in a voice that became dangerously low and collected.
Ursa only sighed and became even more somber looking, "I'm just looking out for you, my de-"
A collection of twigs snapping from the forest behind Azula suddenly caught her attention. "Quiet!," she hissed, cutting off her mother, "I think something is here." Surprisingly, her mother did stay quiet, but Azula was too distracted to notice.
Azula turned to peer into the shadow-filled forest. The snapping continued and seemed to grow closer to Azula's location. She shot up from her spot on the ground and got into a defensive firebending stance. She scanned the direction that the sounds were coming from.
"Mostly likely an animal. Nothing I can't handle." Azula wasn't bothered, but still. She didn't want an animal wandering around her campsite.
That's when she saw the light. A small flickering flame in the distance. The single flame then turned into a collection of them and the snapping twigs got slightly louder. Azula swiftly snuffed out her campfire, making sure to leave not one ember burning. Adrenaline began to pump through her veins.
Azula turned to her mother in outrage, "You traitor! No wonder why you've been keeping me up! You've given those soldiers my location and your keeping me exhausted so they can catch me easier! I should have attacked you the second I saw you! I will not let you win mother!"
The hallucination of her mother frowned slightly before backing into a small shadowed area and disappearing.
"You coward," Azula growled at her departing mother before turning and racing to roll up her sleeping mat and collect her things.
"Hey, where'd that fire go?"
"I think I heard something over here."
They were getting closer. Azula could faintly hear their voices. She hurried up her actions, haphazardly stuffing the sleeping mat into her bag before throwing a strap over her shoulder and running in the opposite direction.
"Damn it, damn it, damn it!," Azula swore to herself. She shouldn't have been so naive. Nothing good ever happened when her mother was around. She should have taken her mother's presence as a warning.
Azula ran to the nearby stream, hopping from one boulder to the next trying to carefully navigate around a small waterfall in the moonlight. She wished she could use her bending to see, but it was too risky. The sounds coming from behind her started to get closer and the light of their fires intensified.
She moved quicker, the rocks clacking together as they shifted from her weight. She hurried to climb the small hill of rocks to reach a large boulder that would take her to the forest. She leapt across a small stream of water. Azula was almost there, so close to freedom. But, just as she was about to reach for the large boulder, she failed to notice the slick rocks.
Her foot slipped from underneath her and Azula yelped in surprise as she went sliding down into the darkness of a small hidden cave below the large boulder.
Just then, the soldiers arrived at her campsite.
Azula landed on the damp sand covered floor with a grunt. The cave was absolutely pitch black, with only the entrance to provide weak moonlight.
She groaned in slight discomfort as she lifted herself from her spot on the floor.
"What unfortunate place have I found myself in this time?," Azula thought irritably. She lit a small blue flame in her hand to illuminate the area.
The walls were made out of brilliant black volcanic rock that sparkled in the blue light and the floor was covered with soft, fine sand. On the other end of the small room was a staircase of rocks leading to a dark cave way. The stairs seemed out of place in the cave. They looked to have been carved into the rock as if someone had been here previously.
Azula's gawking was cut short when she remembered that there were guards searching for her and that they could possibly see the light of her blue fire. She dimmed her flame down to the intensity of a candle.
"Better to be safe than sorry. I wish I had taken that advice earlier, now look at where I am." Azula gazed around at the cavern before turning to retrieve her bag, which had fallen off her shoulder during the slide. She looked up the hole she had fallen down.
A small trickle of water flowed down the cave entrance and the rock was lined with wet moss. It would be too slippery to climb back up. She could use her bending to evaporate the water, but she'd rather remain hidden than alert them. Especially while on a small island where they could surround her. The only way out, really, was to continue on through the cave and hope it exited somewhere.
Azula decided to continue on through the cave. She walked to the other side of the room and ascended the rock staircase. The tunnel was made of the same volcanic rock, and a few blue gemstones stuck out in different areas. As she walked deeper into the cave, Azula increased her fire's ferocity to illuminate more of the path.
It was after a few minutes of walking that Azula felt a breeze flow through the tunnel, suggesting a possible exit. She quickened her pace and a dim light came to view through an opening ahead. Azula exited the tunnel, and was awestruck by what she saw.
She was inside the monstrous volcano of Mako Island. The opening of the volcano let the bright moonlight shine in. The walls of the magnificent cavern were made of the same brilliant volcanic rock and the floor was completely covered in sand. Most spectacular of all was the large pool of majestic blue water that resided right beneath the cone of the volcano.
Azula gazed in awe as she walked about the cavern. It felt so peaceful here. So isolated and protected. Although she never dabbled too much into spirit world stuff, the place was obviously very spiritual. If the Avatar were here, he'd rant on to everyone about how spiritual the place was and to be respectful.
The harsh reality of her situation presented itself once more. She needed to focus on getting out and getting off the island. If she were here under different circumstances, then she wouldn't mind staying a while to relax.
Azula sweeped the walls of the cavern for a passageway out, searching every end of the room. She even checked the cavern twice to be sure she didn't miss anything. Aside from the tunnel she came in through, there were no other exits. At least, not an exit above the water.
It was then that she noticed something peculiar about the pool of water. The water was rippling. It wasn't stagnant like an isolated body of water. On the other end of the pool, an indentation in the rock suggested an underwater cave.
She nealt down next to the pool and her suspicions were confirmed when she smelled the familiar scent of salty ocean water. Azula frowned in disapproval at what she was thinking.
With the guards above ground and no other exit from the cavern above the water, swimming through the underwater cave was probably the only other option of escape. The thought of getting wet was disgusting.
Azula disliked the water. She didn't completely hate it nor did she have aquaphobia, and bless anyone who dare to say she couldn't swim, she just preferred to avoid it. Of course drinking and bathing were exceptions, but recently water seemed to be even more unfavorable to Azula.
The water was like a constant reminder that she had lost everything. Most of the time her mother would appear in Azula's reflection and torture her mind with lies of love. Other times she would be reminded of her humiliating defeat at the hands of that water peasant on the day of Sozin's Comet. And sometimes, just sometimes she would be reminded of a time when her family was actually happy...
Azula shook the intrusive thoughts from her head. She needed to focus on escaping the island as soon as possible. No time for insignificant feelings to sabotage her plans.
Still, she felt a twinge of annoyance. She had just bought new clothing and supplies, and here she was destroying them already.
Azula stood at the edge of the pool before tentatively stepping into the water and onto a staircase that seemed to have been carved into the rock as well. The water was strangely warm. Slowly she descended into the water until it reached her chest. Azula cringed a bit at the feeling of wet clothing.
"I don't even know if it exits somewhere. For all I know, it could be a lot longer than I expected and I'll drown. Think about that. The great Fire Princess, drowning!," Azula mentally argued with herself,"Ugh, you're already drenched and in the water. Stop complaining and get it over and done with."
Azula huffed and she steeled herself. She secured her bag of items around her body and began to steady her breathing with a quick exercise. She was just about to take a gasp of air and dive under when suddenly the pool began to bubble.
"What the…?!" A feeling of panic began to rise within Azula's chest as the water began to bubble more violently. She swung her head left and right. The whole pool of water seemed to be in a torrent.
She lifted her startled gaze to the mouth of the volcano and her golden eyes widened. Passing overhead, the full moon inched into view as the time approached midnight. As soon as Azula's eyes locked onto the celestial body she was mesmerized by its light. Her mind went blank and her body felt weightless.
The moon shone so incredibly bright and its power felt overwhelming. It was as if Tui, the moon spirit itself, was giving her its power. She couldn't tear her eyes from the full moon as it centered itself in the volcano opening. The moon flashed and magically, golden bubbles began to rise into the sky from the churning water.
Ever so slowly, the moon inched away from the center of the volcano opening as it continued its celestial path. The golden bubbles stopped rising and the pool slowly ceased it's boiling. Not even three minutes later, the moon disappeared from sight and let Azula go from its otherworldly pull. The whole event ended as quickly as it had started.
Azula felt dazed. She stood there in the water for a good 20 seconds as she processed the event. She could feel a headache coming on.
"What in the great name of Agni was that?!," Azula was absolutely perplexed. The question only brought up more questions and her small headache intensified.
She closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose before taking a deep breath. She needed to focus on the immediate threat of the guards. She can ask questions later.
Azula reopened her eyes and readjusted her bag. Once ready, she took a deep breath before diving beneath the surface. As she predicted, the indentation in the rock led to an underwater cave. She swam through the cave as quickly as she could, the phantom fear of drowning still lingering in the back of her mind.
As her supply of air was expended, a twinge of panic surged through Azula. Her lungs slowly tightened the more she remained underwater. The cave was dark and the water was cold, unlike the cavern she had left. It was too far to swim back and who knows how far the cave went.
Her fears subsided when the confines of the cave opened and the blurry outlines of a reef appeared before her in the dim moonlight. Azula immediately started swimming upwards. As soon as her head breached the surface of the water, she gulped at the precious oxygen. She treaded the water, keeping her head above the surface as she looked around.
It was dark. Extremely dark. The moon barely did anything to brighten the area, unlike what she had experienced in the cave just a few minutes before. The water looked black in the night. Behind her, a cliff rose from the ocean, and above that the dormant volcano loomed in the night sky.
Azula desperately needed to get on land. She was going to tire out soon. If she were more active, then staying afloat for a long period of time wouldn't be a problem, but the staff in that dastardly asylum prohibited her from actively training. Of course they let her exercise from time to time (under strict supervision) and sometimes she would slip in some training while alone, or else she wouldn't have made it this far.
The cliffs were far too steep and treacherous to approach. Though it was the closest land to her, she didn't want to be smashed against the rocks. Azula peered into the darkness, scarcely spotting the outline of the island in the night. To the left, she could see the cliffs dip down into what she assumed was a beach further down the shoreline.
A slight humming noise that was quickly drawing near ripped her from her thoughts. At first Azula wasn't able to hear it, but when the humming became louder than the sound of the waves, she quickly turned around. Rapidly approaching was a large metal boat with a dozen of people standing on it.
"Ashes! How did they find me in this darkness?," A wave of dread washed over Azula as she saw the craft move towards her location.
Although there wasn't much she could do, she turned and began to swim towards the cliff. Screw it. She'd rather risk the rocks than let Zuzu and Ursa have their victory.
The action proved futile when waters around her began to shift and the rough voice of the captain could be heard yelling commands at the crew. There was no chance of fighting back against the heavy chain as it wrapped around her left leg and began to drag her under the surface. Afterall, what was a firebender in the water other than useless?
Panic rushed through her body and the natural instinct to stay alive kicked in. Azula frantically kicked and flailed in an attempt to keep her head above the surface as the heavy metal dragged her down. The horrid salt water made her gag as she tried to take a gasp of air.
The chain suddenly yanked and her body was forcefully tugged towards the boat. As she got closer, another chain was thrown and wrapped tightly around her right bicep. Instead of sinking further, the chains began to lift her out of the water, painfully pulling at her limbs.
Azula struggled to inhale as she coughed up the salty water. She cringed in pain as the chains tugged her further from the water. She didn't dare try to fight against the chains as she was hoisted up the side of the boat. Too much struggling and she would surely dislocate her arm, making the experience much worse than it already was.
Azula clenched her teeth and tensed as hands began to grasp at her arms and pull her onto the vessel. She began to breathe heavily. The feeling of helplessness and weakness was scary. She hated it. Rage began to boil within her.
Two guards roughly grasped her arms and forced them behind her back before cuffing her wrists. Another pair of men came over and undid the chains that were wrapped painfully around her limbs. Azula struggled and even attempted to kick the guard that was undoing the chain around her leg.
"If I were fully rested, you'd all be begging for mercy!," she snarled and glared angrily at the men. She had been running around all day and barely had any sleep. She silently cursed her body for being so useless.
"Save your breath," an authoritative voice sounded from behind her and a rather tall, bearded man walked around to stand in front of her. Based on the intricate designs his armor bore, Azula assumed that he was the captain.
"You've attacked and stolen from a man, attacked soldiers, stolen a boat, and now you're threatening us? You're lucky that I'm being nice. I don't think Fire Lord Zuko would be too pleased to find that we've treated you badly." Azula glared venomously at the Captain, locking golden eyes.
"Take her down to the cells and have two guards stationed outside," He took a few seconds to regard her appearance. "And give her a blanket and a towel. I don't want her to suffer from hypothermia." The captain waved his hand and the guards holding her arms turned around and began to escort her towards a doorway.
"Now," the captain began from behind her. She sharpened her hearing. "Fetch me some messenger hawks. We must contact the other ships and tell Fire Lord Zuko that we've found her." Footsteps began to walk away from her.
They obviously didn't know what she was capable of doing. Talking about important information while in earshot of her was dangerous. Even if she was captured, the ignorant captain unknowingly gave her a chance at escape. Her anger dissipated into a feeling of opportunistic glee. Azula smirked as she was guided through the metal doorway and down a staircase.
As they guided her, she took note of where they were taking her. They turned right at the bottom of the staircase a took a left to a long hallway. Below deck, it was much colder. The metal didn't do much to insulate heat. Royal ships were lined specially to keep the interior warm, and fire would help sustain the heat. The small ship was nothing more than a few linings of metal and torches were spaced so that there were few as possible. She watched as they passed by a few sets of doors that were labeled as storage and maintenance rooms.
They brought her to the end of the hall where two doors faced opposite to one another. One of the men opened the right door and they guided her into the cell block. The cell block of the ship was small, with only 4 cells and little space for movement. They opened the first cell door.
One of the guards removed her bag from her shoulder and threw it off to the side while the other uncuffed her before roughly shoving her into the small space. Azula stumbled slightly and looked back to scowl at the two men. The cell door was slammed shut and was promptly locked. Azula huffed and went over to sit on the rather plain looking cell bed before observing the guards outside. A plan was brewing.
A few minutes passed before two guards, one male and female, came up to the men that escorted her and dismissed them. Azula guessed that they'd be guarding her for the rest of the night. She took note of how young looking they were. The captain must've been understaffed. That or he severely underestimated her. The two men who brought her here must be working somewhere else on the ship. She took note of the keys that hung at the man's side.
The female, who was carrying a towel and a rather thin red blanket, looked at Azula through the bars before throwing them to her,"Water and cold don't go together, so dry off and give the towel back to me when you're done."
"Also, while you're here, don't ya even think 'bout tryin' to firebend," the young male threatened.
Azula didn't say anything back. Instead she obliged and stood up to wring the water from her clothing. As she worked to remove the excess water, her mind lapsed in and out of thought.
"So, the captain had not yet sent out a message to the other ships, nor Zuzu. This could be good. If the steamboat took two hours to get to the island, then the metal ship would probably take about half that time."
Azula undid her hair and let it fall before wringing out what water she could remove. She bent down and picked up the towel, rubbing her hair vigorously.
"The time it takes a hawk to deliver a message depends on how far apart the ships are. If the ships are more spread out, then there would be less guards. However, if they're closer I'll have to work quick."
Once Azula was satisfied with how dry her hair was, she placed down the towel and bent down to remove her shoes and wring out her socks. The floor was cold.
"Zuzu is most likely still in Hira'a. It would probably take quite a few hours to deliver a message that far and another couple hours to travel to the town. Even if my first window of opportunity closed, I'd still have time to outsmart the guards."
She picked up the towel once more. Azula pondered whether or not she should just take off her shirt and pants and then wring them out, but she settled for patting down her clothing. She's already lost so much, best to not lose her dignity as well.
"The guards standing outside the cell are quite young. Strong and quick, but inexperienced. They're probably trained to deal with simple thugs and basic firebenders. They'd be dispatched quickly. Take down the one closest to the exit and grab the one with the keys."
Azula shivered, half from the cold and half in disgust. Even though her clothes were relatively dry, the feeling of her damp clothing rubbing against her skin was irritating. She sat down and began to comb her hair with her fingers. As she began to relax, the familiar weight of exhaustion began to seep into her muscles.
"Only an hour for a power nap. Some sleep is better than no sleep. Best to save my energy,"Azula thought with a yawn.
Azula re-tied her hair into a ponytail and slipped her damp socks and shoes back on. As uncomfortable as it was, she needed to be ready to make her move when they reached the harbor. She threw the used towel at the bars of her cell and bent down to pick up the thin blanket.
Azula laid back on the small cell bed and turned to face the wall, throwing the blanket over herself before curling up to conserve heat. Despite the growing anticipation, Azula fell into a light sleep.
The forest of Forgetful Valley was peacefully quiet as a soft, cool wind blew thin mist through the trees after a night of light rain. Peeking from behind some clouds, the sky began to turn from a dark purple to a dim yellow as the early morning approached. Resting just outside the forest, the small sleepy village of Hira'a slowly stirred to life.
Mal and Akai, who had awoken an hour before sunrise, were tasked with tending to the komodo rhinos and ostrich horses and getting them ready for a day of searching. The two brothers trudged back and forth through the mud, carrying bales of hay to a small rickety stable. One of the villagers were kind enough to let the soldiers use the old stable to house the animals.
Mal let out a relieved sigh as he threw down the last hay bale in front of Kizar's komodo rhino. He stood up and stretched his sore back before wiping some beads of sweat from his forehead. The large beast bent its head down and sniffed at the hay before reluctantly eating.
Mal smiled sympathetically at the animal and patted its nose horn,"I know you don't like hay that much, but it's the only thing available right now. We'll get you some meat soon." The komodo rhino grunted in response and continued to slowly eat.
"Mal!," a loud voice caught Mal's attention, "Are you done yet? I want to get back to the house."
"Yeah, I'm done, Akai!," Mal called back. He gave the komodo rhino's horn one last pat before rushing out of the stables to catch up with his brother who had already started walking back to Ursa's home.
"So impatient, Akai," Mal playfully nudged his shoulder as he caught up, "Couldn't wait an extra minute?"
"Nope. I want to get back as soon as possible for that extra hour of sleep," Akai impatiently said. He walked at a slightly faster pace.
"At least Tarrak is nice enough to even give us an extra hour of sleep, especially since we're going to be searching the larger part of the forest," Mal quickened his pace to keep up with Akai.
Akai scoffed, "He's only being nice because we're in the presence of the Fire Lord. You know how tough Tarrak can be."
"That or he's genuinely looking after us. You forget how nice he can be also," Mal pointed out and smiled. Mal's smile fell as Akai huffed and a look of frustration washed over his face.
"I just wish that Zuko would send for more men. We can't cover the whole forest with only nine people. We need help, especially since we have no leads and this rain has probably washed away any footprints or tracks," Akai looked exasperated and tense.
"Akai, it's our job. Maybe we are a bit short on men at the moment, but let's do our job to the best of our abilities," Mal said in a soft voice. He paused for a second before adding, "Plus, we're getting paid extra for serving the Fire Lord."
Akai thought this over, "I guess that's one of the upsides."
Mal smiled once more and they continued to walk along the muddy path.
So far, their day seemed to be going fairly normal then suddenly a screech and the flapping of wings caught their attention. Looking skywards, the outline of a messenger hawk descended upon them, but what really caught their attention was the black ribbon hanging off the back of the hawk.
"It's an important message!," Akai gasped as he noticed the black strings.
Mal held out his arm and the hawk landed, digging it's talons into his arm. Mal winced slightly, but the excitement of getting such an important message numbed the pain. He opened the canister and removed the message from its back. The hawk flew off to perch in a nearby tree.
Akai peer curiously over his brother's shoulder as he removed the black string tying the message. Slowly, almost cautiously, Mal opened the message and their eyes quickly scanned the paper, taking in all the information. Both of their eyes widened as they read through the letter.
"WE HAVE TO TELL THE FIRE LORD!," Mal yelled in shock.
Akai quickly nodded his head and whistled for the hawk to follow. The animal swooped down and followed the brothers from the air.
Without a second thought, they sprinted down the muddy path back to Ursa's home.
Important authors note. There is a 50/50 chance that I may not upload next month. Every year I like to work on a costume for Halloween, plus my school is planning a hauted house this year and I'm probably going to be a part of costuming, so I'll most likey be very busy and burnt out.
Oopsies. Cliffhanger.