AN: Chapter 34 takes place during Season 2 Episode 13: The Drill. Various POVs as usual, so enjoy my lovelies!
Several Fire Nation tanks flanked the large metal drill as they rumbled across the rocky terrain. The drill followed behind the tanks slowly, several sections of the drill extending then retracting to propel it forward, towards the Outer Wall of Ba Sing Se.
"This drill is a feat of scientific ingenuity and raw destructive power." War Master Qin all but gloated as he stood in front of Princess Azula, Ty Lee, and Mai in the drill's command module, "Once it tunnels through the wall, our troops will storm the city. The Earth Kingdom will finally fall, and you can claim Ba Sing Se in the name of your father. Nothing can stop us."
"Hmm…" Ty Lee hummed quietly as she looked out of the periscope at several Earth Kingdom troops that are Earthbending large trenches in front of the wall, "What about those muscle-y guys down there?"
"Please." Qin drawled as he walked over to the acrobat and he hit the periscope with his knuckle, "The drill's metal shell is impervious to any Earthbending attack."
Ty Lee recoiled with a startled gasp then she glared at the War Master in annoyance, a pout forming on her lips.
"Oh, I'm sure it is, War Master Qin, but just to be on the safe side…"Azula said then she addressed her two friends sharply, "Mai and Ty Lee, take the Earthbenders out!"
"Finally," Mai muttered blandly as she swung one of her knives around her finger and she got to her feet, "Something to do."
Ty Lee giggled quietly and followed her expressionless friend out of the command module.
Katara led her brother, Toph, and Tahn's family towards the wall. The dark-haired Waterbender lifted her head and blinked in surprise when she saw Aang and Momo flying towards them.
"Aang," She said in surprise when he landed in front of her and he snapped his glider closed, "What are you doing here? I thought you were looking for Appa."
"I was." Aang replied and he looked off to the side as Momo landed on his shoulder, "But something stopped me. Something big."
Katara looked at him in confusion but the young Airbender didn't say anything as he took the lead and he led the group back towards the wall. When they reached the base of the Outer Wall, Toph and Aang Earthbended the section of ground they were standing on and began lifting it up the wall towards the top.
"Now what's so big that Appa has to wait?" Sokka asked curiously from beside Toph as he crossed his arms over his chest and looked over at his friend.
"That." Aang replied and he nodded his head towards the massive Fire Nation drill heading towards the Outer Wall in the distance.
The group reached the top of the Outer Wall and they hopped off the section of earth, looking out at the approaching drill and tanks.
"We made it to Ba Sing Se and we're still not safe." Ying sobbed despairingly as she clutched her new baby to her chest and her family huddled around her, "No one is!"
"What are you people doing here?" An Earthbender guard suddenly demanded when he spotted the group, "Civilians aren't allowed on the wall!"
Aang turned towards the guard and he stepped forward, "I'm the Avatar. Take me to whoever is in charge."
"It is an honor to welcome you to the Outer Wall," General Sung stated happily as he sat behind his desk and he looked at the four teens standing in front of him, "But your help is not needed."
"Not needed?" Aang demanded in surprise and he looked at the general like he was crazy.
"Not needed. I have the situation under control." General Sung repeated firmly as he got to his feet and he walked out from under the roof of his office, gesturing towards the wall, "I assure you the Fire Nation cannot penetrate this wall. Many have tried to break through it, but none have succeeded."
"What about the Dragon of the West?" Toph asked drily as she thought about her friend, "He got it."
"Well…uh, technically yes, but he was quickly expunged." The general agreed in a taken-aback tone then his tone became confident, "Nevertheless, that is why the city is named Ba Sing Se. It's the 'impenetrable city.' They don't call it Na Sing Se."
He laughed at his joke then he became serious, "That means, 'penetrable city.'"
"Yeah, thanks for the tour," Toph drawled sarcastically as she folded her arms over her chest, "But we still got the drill problem."
"Not for long." General Sung responded smugly, "To stop it, I've sent an elite platoon of Earthbenders called the Terra Team."
Sokka cupped his chin with a thoughtful expression as he looked at the general, "That's a good group name. Very catchy."
Katara rolled her eyes in exasperation at her brother.
The Terra Team began to launch their assault on the Fire Nation drill and the tanks. They rode on waves of rock and earth, taking out one tank as they got closer to the drill.
"Ready!" The leader shouted as they dropped the rock waves and prepared to attack the drill, "Attack!"
The group of Earthbenders used Earthbending to wedge large spikes of rock into the metal shell of the drill in an attempt to stop it. At first, they thought they had succeeded until the drill's segments suddenly separated and caused the spiked to crumble. The Earthbenders ducked their heads and raised their arms to avoid the falling rocks. They lowered their arms and lifted their heads just in time to see two girls slip out of the drill and slid down the metal shell towards them. The Terra Team just managed to throw up shields of earth to defend themselves against the flying knives on of the girls hurled at them.
The girl in pink jumped off the side of the drill and she flipped gracefully through the air, landing lithely on her feet. One of the Earthbenders launched a small wave of rocks at her, but the girl easily jumped into the air and somersaulted, landing beside the Earthbender that had attacked her. She smiled when he whirled around to face her and, still smiling, she jabbed his pressure points easily.
Five more Earthbenders attacked her by launching some boulders at her, but she jumped out of the way again. They had no time to prepare when she suddenly landed in the middle of them and began jabbing various pressure points with her knuckles. The girl in pink smiled cheerfully as she stood in the middle of the fallen team of Earthbenders, completely unharmed.
General Sung blanched and he recoiled from telescope he'd been looking out of, witnessing the Terra Team's defeat.
"We're doomed!" He cried out in panic as he began flailing his arms around.
Sokka slapped the general across the face, "Get a hold of yourself, man!"
"You're right." General Sung said as he rubbed his reddening cheek, "I'm sorry."
"Maybe you'd like the Avatar's help now?" Toph asked sarcastically and she crossed her arms over her chest.
General Sung shuffled forward to stand in front the young Avatar with his head bowed humbly, "Yes, please."
"The question is, how are we going to stop that thing?" Aang asked aloud as he stood at the edge of the wall with his three friends, looking out at the approaching drill.
Aang, Toph, and Katara all turned their heads to look at Sokka standing at the end with his arms crossed. Sokka blinked and he looked at his sister and two friends.
"Why are you all looking at me?" He demanded in confusion.
"You're the idea guy." Aang replied like it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"So I'm the only one who can ever come up with a plan?" Sokka complained with a huff, "That's a lot of pressure."
"And also the complaining guy." Katara quipped with a small smile.
Sokka shrugged nonchalantly, "That part I don't mind."
The large woman with a mole on her forehead looked at the three passports in her hand critically then she looked at the three individuals standing in front of her.
"So Miss Xin, Mr. Lee and Mr. ummm…Mushy, is it?" She asked and she looked at Iroh curiously.
"It's pronounce Mushi." Iroh corrected her with a small smile.
The woman leaned forward slightly and gave him an annoyed look, "You telling me how to do my job?"
"Uh, no, no." Iroh said hurried and he quickly approached the ticket booth, giving the woman a flirtatious look, "But may I just say you're like a flower in bloom. Your beauty is intoxicating."
Xiaodan turned her head to the side and coughed to cover up the giggle that had escaped her lips, her hand coming up to cover her mouth. She saw Zuko's eyebrow twitch slightly and a scowl was starting to form on his face.
"You're pretty easy on the eyes yourself, handsome. Raorr!" The woman replied back just as flirtatiously and she gave a small flirty growl, "Welcome to Ba Sing Se."
She stamped three tickets and Iroh smiled coyly at her as he took them from the booth. He walked back over to his nephew and young friend with a smug smile on his face.
"I'm going to forget I saw that." Zuko snapped in disgust and he snatched his ticked from his uncle, stopping away from him.
"You old flirt." Xiaodan giggled and took her own ticket from the older man then she trotted after the grumpy prince.
Iroh grinned cheerfully to himself as he trailed after the younger benders, heading towards the monorail that would take them into the city.
Jet leaned to the side slightly and watched as three he knew as Lee, Mushi, and Xin walked through the archway that led towards the monorail while he waited in line with Smellerbee and Longshot.
"I think Lee would make a good Freedom Fighter. He's just trying to find his way in the world, like us." Jet commented with a smirk as straightened and held his piece of wheat in one hand, "And if we can convince her, I bet Xin would be good addition too."
"You don't know anything about them, Jet." Smellerbee refuted his idea flatly as she looked away from Lee and Xin, her arms crossed over her chest.
"I know he didn't get that scar from a Waterbender." He retorted and he rolled his eyes.
Smellerbee ignored his comment, "Besides, I thought we were going straight now."
"We are," Jet said reassuringly as he looked at his friend, "And the new Freedom Fighters could use a guy like Lee. What do you think, Longshot?"
The archer looked at him silently with a meaningfully expression on his face and he blinked slowly.
Jet nodded, "I can respect that."
Katara kneeled beside the cot and attempted to heal one of the Terra Team's members with Waterbending.
"What's wrong with him?" General Sung asked worriedly as he stood with Aang, Toph, and Sokka, "He doesn't look injured."
"His chi is blocked." Katara stated and she stopped trying to heal the Earthbender, "Who did this to you."
"Two girls ambushed us." The Earthbender said and he winced when he tried to move, "One of them hit me with a bunch of quick jabs and suddenly I could Earthbend anymore and I could barely move. Then she cartwheeled away."
Katara frowned then her eyes widened in realization and she looked off to the side with small frown.
"Ty Lee." She stated darkly, "She doesn't look dangerous, but she knows the human body and its weak points. It's like she takes you down from the inside."
Sokka pursed his lips then he gasped as an idea came to him and he started dancing around excitedly.
"Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh! Ooh!"
His sister looked at him oddly, "Yes?"
"What you just said!" Sokka exclaimed excitedly as he pointed at his sister, "That's how we're going to take down the drill! The same way Ty Lee took down all those big Earthbenders!"
"By hitting its pressure points!" Toph said and she hit the palm of her hand with her fist as a smile appeared on her face.
Aang looked out over the wall with a determined look, "We'll take it down from the inside."
Toph, Katara, Sokka, and Aang stood behind one of the trenches at the base of the wall. Toph gestured towards the drill with one hand.
"Once I whip up some cover, you're not going to be able to see." She explained carefully, "So, stay close to me."
The blind Earthbender leapt over the trench while her friends jumped into it. Toph stood in a horse-stance and closed her eyes, her hands raised as she slowly began to lift them up then she leapt up and stomp her foot on the ground, sending up a mass of flying debris towards the drill.
"Run!"
Toph ran into the debris cloud with Katara, Aang, and Sokka racing after her.
Ty Lee peered out of the periscope curiously at the dust cloud.
"Hey, look at that dust cloud. It's so…poofy." She said then she looked away from the periscope and she wiggled her fingers, "Poof!"
"Don't worry, Princess." War Master Qin stated calmly, "I'm sure it's nothing."
Azula narrowed her eyes and she gave him a doubtful look, but she didn't say anything on the matter.
The four friends stopped beside the drill and Toph quickly Earthbended a hole in the ground.
"Everyone into the hole!" She ordered and she jumped into the hole.
Katara, Aang, and Sokka followed her and the ground above them closed, leaving them in total darkness.
"It's so dark in here, I can't see a thing!" Sokka whined.
"Oh no," Toph snapped sarcastically, "What a nightmare."
"Sorry." The young Water Tribe boy apologized sheepishly.
Toph rolled her blind eyes and opened another hole beneath the drill. The four run underneath the metal monster until Sokka spotted an opening.
"There!"
Aang leapt up onto the bar that was hanging from the opening and he flipped upside down from by his legs. Katara ran forward and he hoisted her into the drill followed by Sokka. The young Airbender hung upside down and waited for Toph to move, but she didn't.
"Toph," Sokka called out as he poked his head out of the drill, "Come on!"
"No way am I going into that metal monster." Toph responded tightly, "I can't bend in there. I'll try to slow it down out here."
"Okay, good luck!" Sokka agreed then he and Aang disappeared into the drill.
Toph quickly Earthbend a thick rock spike into the drill and she put her hands against it in an attempt to the keep the drill from moving forward, but it was proving to be a difficult task.
Sokka led his sister and Aang through a tunnel of valves and pipes in the drill.
"I need a plan of this machine." He said as he stopped beside one of the pipes, "Some schematics that show what the inside looks like. Then we can find its weak points."
"Where are we going to get something like that?" Aang asked curiously.
Sokka unsheathed his machete and suddenly used it to cut off a steam valve, sending a cloud of steam into the air.
"What are you doing?" Aang demanded in shock, "Someone's going to hear us!"
"That's the point." Sokka replied with a grin, "I figure a machine this big needs engineers to run it. And when something breaks…"
He trailed off and Katara blinked in realization.
"They come to fix it!" She said with a grin and Sokka nodded.
Katara and Aang grinned at each then the three teens settled into wait. A few moments later, a Fire Nation engineer wearing a mask walked down the misty hallway towards the site of the damage.
"Hi." Katara said as she suddenly appeared behind the engineer and when he turned she froze the mist with Waterbending, covering the engineer in a thin layer of ice.
Sokka ran up to the frozen man and snatched the schematics from his hands.
"This'll work." He said with a grin as he ran back the way he had come with his sister, "Thanks!"
The engineer watched helplessly as the trio ran off, his spear falling from his hand.
"It looks like the drill is made up of two main structures." Sokka commented as he, Aang, and Katara studied the schematics, "There's the inner mechanism where we are now and the outer shell. The inner part and the outer part are connected by these braces. If we cut through them, the entire thing will collapse."
Katara and Aang nodded in agreement to his plan and Sokka rolled the schematics back up.
Xiaodan sat between Iroh and Zuko on a bench at the monorail station, waiting for their train into the city. The white-haired Airbender yawned and unconsciously rested her head against Zuko's shoulder, oblivious to the way he tensed slightly.
Zuko glanced down at the top of the girl's head resting on his shoulder as he leaned against the pillar behind the circular bench he, his uncle, and Xiaodan were sitting on, his arms crossed over his chest. The banished prince exhaled quietly from his nose, but he didn't push her off his shoulder and he instead looked back towards the rails to wait for the train. He was distracted from staring blankly in front of him when Jet walked over and sat beside him. Xiaodan lifted her head to look at the shaggy haired teen then she laid her head back on Zuko's shoulder, dismissing the other boy without a word.
"So, you guys got plans once you're inside the city?" Jet asked casually as he crossed his arms loosely over his chest.
"Sleeping sounds like a good plan to me." Xiaodan quipped without lifting her head and Zuko nudged her side lightly with his elbow.
The white-haired girl huffed quietly, but she was too tired to lift her head.
"Get your hot tea here!" A man yelled out pleasantly as he pushed a small tea-cart passed the four, "Finest tea in Ba Sing Se."
"Ooh!" Iroh gasped excitedly and he waved his hand to get the tea-seller's attention, "Jasmine please."
Xiaodan smiled slightly at the kooky, tea-loving old man as he grinned goofily. The tea-seller walked over to Iroh and poured the tea into a leaf cup, then he handed it to the older man. Iroh took a sip of the tea then he grimaced in repulsion.
"Blaugh! Ugh, coldest tea in Ba Sing Se is more like it" He spat and he shook his head in disappointment, "What a disgrace."
Xiaodan lifted her head and giggled quietly behind her hand while she placed her other hand comfortingly on Iroh's shoulder.
"Hey," Jet said suddenly, pulling Zuko's attention away from the white-haired girl and his uncle, "Can I talk to you for a second?"
Jet stood and motioned for Zuko to follow him. Zuko glanced at his uncle and Xiaodan briefly then he sighed and reluctantly got to his feet. The two teenage boys walked several feet away from Iroh's and Xiaodan's spot, Zuko moving so his back was to them while Jet stood in front of him. He could feel his uncle's and Xiaodan's curious gaze on his back, but he ignored it for the moment.
"You and I have a much better chance of making it in the city if we stick together." Jet stated bluntly and he smirked at Zuko as he put his hands on his hips, "You wanna join the Freedom Fighters?"
"Thanks, but I don't think you want me in your gang." Zuko replied vaguely and he shifted so he could see his uncle and his white-haired friend out of the corner of his eye.
"C'mon, we made a great team looting that captain's food." Jet said in an attempted to persuade the other teen, "Think of all the good we could do for these refugees."
Zuko started walking back to the other two and he called over his shoulder, "I said no."
Jet frowned slightly as he watched the other teen walk away, "Have it your way."
Jet's gaze flickered over to the white-haired girl, who was leaning against the pillar behind the bench with her hands behind her head and her eyes shut. His brows furrowed slightly when he caught sight of the old man beside her sipping at the leaf cup, steam rising from it. Jet's eyes went wide with shock and realization when he remembered that the old man had said the tea was cold.
Zuko scowled as he stomped over to his uncle and friend. He glanced over his shoulder slightly, catching sight of Jet. He saw the other teen's eyes narrow then he turned and walked away. Angrily, Zuko knocked the teacup out of his uncle's hand, startling Xiaodan enough that she straightened and looked up at him with wide, molten orange eyes.
"What are you doing Firebending your tea?" The banished prince hissed through gritted teeth as he glared at his uncle, "For a wise, old man, that was a pretty stupid move."
"Iroh!" Xiaodan gasped quietly and she gave him a chiding look, but the old man was staring sadly at the cup of tea on the ground.
"I know you're not supposed to cry over spilled tea, but…" He sniffed slightly, "It's just so sad!"
Xiaodan made a disbelieving noise and she covered her face with her hands, shaking her head slightly while Zuko scowled even harder at his uncle.
Sokka led Katara and Aang through a door and onto a massive steel beam in the interior of the drill. He looked at the opened schematics in his hand then up at the thick steel pillar in front of him.
"Wow, it looks a lot thicker in person than it does in the plans." He commented in surprise then folded the schematics and looked at his sister and friend with a grin, "We're going to have work pretty hard to cut through that."
"What's this 'we' stuff?" Katara demanded with a quirked brow as she put her hands on her hips, "Aang and I are going to have to all the work."
"Look, I'm the plan guy. You two are the cut stuff up with Waterbending guys." Sokka stated matter-of-factly then he did a ridiculous pose, "Together, we're Team Avatar!"
Katara and Aang shot each other awkward and bemused looks while Sokka wasn't looking then Aang quickly moved to the other side of the steel pillar while Katara walked closer. The Waterbender bended the water from her pouch and she and Aang began sending it back-and-forth, slicing through the metal sharply.
What felt like hours later, Katara and Aang paused to take a break, both of them bent over in exhaustion while the brace was only sliced halfway through.
"C'mon team! Don't quit now." Sokka said encouragingly from behind his sister, "We're-"
"Grr!" Katara cut him off with an angry growl as she whirled around, threatening to hit him with her water whip.
Sokka stepped back and held his hands up defensively, "I mean…you're almost there."
Katara gave him another hard look then she and Aang went back to slicing the brace. As the cut through the brace enlarges with each lash of the water whip, Sokka became more and more eager. Finally, after what seems like forever, Katara and Aang cut clean through the brace. The three watch eagerly as the brace slid forward and, to their disappointment, stopped after budging only mere inches from its original position.
"At this rate," Katara panted tiredly, "We won't do enough damage before the drill reaches the wall."
Aang groaned and sat down on the beam he was standing on with a thump.
"I don't know how many more of those I have in me." He said tiredly then he perked up when the drill suddenly creaked ominously.
"Do you hear that?" Sokka asked then his tone became excited, "We took it down! We better get out of here fast!"
The trio ran for the door, but stopped before they reached it when a loud voice suddenly came through from the overhead speaking tubes.
"Congratulations, crew. The drill has made contact with the wall of Ba Sing Se."
War Master Qin stood in front of the speaking tubes in the command module with a smirk on his face as he made the announcement, "Start the countdown to victory!"
Cheers erupted from crew all over the drill at the news. Azula's eyes narrowed as she sat on throne like chair at the back of the command module, a threateningly determined expression on her face.
Aang, Katara, and Sokka looked at each other in dismay and shock. Sokka spun around and ran back towards the brace. He began pushing it against it desperately.
"C'mon brace…budge!" He grunted and made several more attempts to move the thick metal pillar.
"This is bad, really bad." Katara said worriedly as she stood with Aang behind her brother.
"We're putting everything we've got into busting these braces, but it's taking too long!" Sokka remarked in a panic.
Aang's eyes suddenly widened and he looked at the two siblings.
"Maybe we don't need to cut all the way through. Toph has been teaching me that you shouldn't give one hundred percent of your energy into any one strike." He said, starting to get excited, "Sokka, take a fighting stance."
Sokka did as Aang said and the young Airbender walked over to him.
"You've got to be quick and accurate. Hit a series of points and break your opponent's stance." Aang explained then he struck Sokka several time, surprising the older boy, "And when he's reeling back, you deliver the final blow."
Aang hit Sokka lightly on the head with a grin, "His own weight becomes his downfall, literally.
While Aang spoke, Sokka kneeled beside him with a glazed look on his face.
"So we just need to weaken the braces, instead of cutting all the way through." Katara clarified and Aang nodded.
"Then I'll go to the top of this thing and deliver the final blow."
Sokka jumped to his feet, "And boom! It all comes crashing down!"
"Everyone inside that wall." Aang said quietly, "The whole world is counting on us."
"The whole world minus the Fire Nation that is." Sokka quipped with a grin and the other two stared at each other.
Toph stood under the drill, putting all her strength into keeping the rock column stable as the force of the drill slowly pushed her back.
"C'mon, Twinkle Toes, hurry up!" She grunted as she continued to strain and be pushed back by the drill.
Aang and Katara made rapid progresses as they sliced halfway through multiple braces, weakening them.
"That's enough!" Aang said as he stopped slicing through the current brace, "We need to get to the next one!"
Katara nodded and the two ran towards the next brace.
War Master Qin watched from the command module as Earthbenders sent boulders down at the drill from the wall without any effect. Suddenly, one of the engineer's voices filtered through the speaking tubes, grabbing the War Minster's attention.
"War Minster, an engineer was ambushed! His schematics were stolen!"
War Minster Qin's eyes went wide in surprise while Azula's golden orbs narrowed dangerously on his back.
"War Minster!" A second engineer shouted from the speaking tubes, "A brace on the starboard side has been cut clean through! It's sabotage, sir!"
"Let's go, ladies." Azula said sharply as she stood and led her two friends out of the command module, leaving the nervous War Minster alone.
Katara and Aang continued slicing through the last brace while Sokka stood behind them.
"Good work, Team Avatar! Now Aang just need to…" Sokka cheered then he glanced up and he shouted in horror, "Duck!"
Sokka ducked and covered his head just in time to avoid the blue fireball that was launched at him by Azula. The Fire Nation princess ran across the metal beam above the trios followed by Mai and Ty Lee.
"Whoa!" Aang gasped as he barely dodged another fire blast.
"Wow, Azula, you were right! It is the Avatar!" Ty Lee exclaimed then she smiled flirtatiously at Sokka, "And friends."
Sokka smiled sheepishly and waved, "Hey."
Katara rolled her eyes and walked over to her brother, dragging him away with an annoyed look. Azula and Mai run in the same direction that Katara and Sokka had gone in while Ty Lee smiled and jumped off the side of the beam, grabbing the bottom and swinging herself towards Aang. Aang quickly twisted around and sent a blast of air at her, sending her flying away from him then he ran after his two friends.
The trio raced through the drill's hallways and away from the three Fire Nation girls. The three come across an intersection in the hall and they stop, looking around hurriedly.
"Guys, get out of here." Aang ordered, "I know what I need to do."
"Wait." Katara called out, causing Aang to pause and she tossed her water skin at him, "You need this water more than I do."
Aang caught the water skin then he began running again while Katara and Sokka ran in the opposite direction just as Azula and her friends reached the intersection.
"Follow them!" Azula barked and she ran after the Avatar, "The Avatar's mine!"
Mai and Ty Lee chased after the Water Tribe siblings.
Sokka and Katara panted slightly as they reached the end of the hallway they had run down, a closed hatch keeping them blocked in. Sokka rushed forward and began struggling to open the hatch, Katara moved over to a nearby sigh.
"Slurry pipe?" She read in confusion, "What does that mean?"
Sokka finally opened the hatch and he looked into the canal it led to.
"It's rock and water mixed together." He said quickly, "It means our way out!"
The siblings quickly began to descend into the pipe just as Mai and Ty Lee appeared at the other end of the hallway. Katara and Sokka just barely managed to escape into the canal full of slurry in time to avoid the flurry of daggers Mai threw at them and they floated through the slurry.
Mai and Ty Lee ran towards the hatch and the two peered into the pipeline.
"Ugh, disgusting!" Mai groaned in repulsion as she recoiled slightly.
"C'mon!" Ty Lee urged her friend, "You heard Azula. We have to follow them!"
Mai sneered slightly, "She can shoot all the lightning she wants at me. I am not going into that wall sludge juice."
Ty Lee rolled her eyes slightly then she leapt through the pipeline and into the slurry. Mai shuddered in disgust and closed the hatch on her friend.
In another part of the drill, Aang raced swiftly past several engineers, using Airbending to make him faster as he tried to find another way out of the drill so he could deliver the final blow.
Katara and Sokka gasped as the slurry rushed out of the rear of the drill. The two slid through the slurry onto the ground, Ty Lee in following them in hot pursuit. Katara quickly pushed herself to her feet and began Waterbending the slurry to stop the flow and plug up the back entrance of the drill, trapping Ty Lee.
"Why don't you try blocking my chi now, circus freak?" Katara called out tauntingly in a spiteful voice.
"Katara, keep that up." Sokka commanded as he too got to his feet, covered in slurry, "The pressure will build up in the drill. Then when Aang delivers the final blow, it'll be ready to pop!"
Aang finally managed to reach the outside of the drill and he quickly raced towards the end that was drilling into the Outer Wall of Ba Sing Se, Momo on his shoulder.
"This looks like a good spot, Momo." The young Airbender commented as he stopped a few feet or so away from where the drill was inside the wall.
He looked up then gasped and jumped out of the way when he saw boulders being hurtled down the wall, nearly crushing him.
"General Sung," Aang yelled as loudly as he good, "Tell your soldiers to stop shooting rocks down here!"
"Soldiers, whatever you do, don't stop shooting rocks down there!" General Sung ordered his men frantically as he stared down at the drill.
The soldiers nodded and launched another round of rocks towards the drill. Down below, Aang yelped quietly and leapt out of the way of the incoming boulders then he began slicing at the hull of the metal drill using the water from Katara's water pouch.
"Good technique, little sister!" Sokka cheered as Katara kept the slurry hole plugged while keeping Ty Lee captive in the sludge, "Keep it up! Don't forget to breathe!"
"You know, I'm just about sick and tired of you telling what to do all day!" Katara shouted in annoyance at her brother, "You're like a chattering hog-monkey!"
"Just bend the slurry, woman!"
Katara growled in frustrated and used her other hand to Waterbend a wave of slurry at her brother, knocking him off his feet.
"You guys need some help?" Toph asked with a smirk as she approached the two bickering siblings.
Katara nodded gratefully, ignoring her brother as he sputtered on the ground.
"Toph, help me plug up this drain."
Toph moved so she was standing beside the slightly older girl and together, the two bend the slurry easily, sending Ty Lee farther into the drill while the pipes inside the drill began to expand under the increased pressure.
Aang panted slightly as he continued to slice through the metal hull with the water-whip.
"What I'd give to be a Metalbender." He commented exhaustedly as he continued to slice.
Momo suddenly shrieked and Aang whirled around, deflecting a blast of blue fire just in time. Aang quickly assumed a fighting stance.
"Momo, get out of here!" The young Airbender barked and Momo screeched again then took off into the air.
Azula suddenly appeared in front of Aang and she assumed her own stance, a smirk on her face. The two stare at each other for several moments then Azula quickly launched a fireball from her fingertips. Aang ducked and spun around, sending a crescent of air at the Fire Nation princess's legs. Azula jumped back slightly then she leapt forward, launching several fireballs, only for Aang to deflect each of them with his water whip. Aang continued to lash out with the water-whip, striking Azula's hands or feet whenever she tried to shoot a fire blast at him.
The princess glared at him then she ran forward and jumped into the air, kicking two blasts of blue fire at the young Avatar before she landed again. Aang quickly brought the water in front of him as a shield, but the fireballs vaporize the water and he was sent flying backwards towards the wall with a yelp.
Azula ran towards him only to jump back again as boulders suddenly began raining down from the top of the wall. The two jumped and dodged the incoming boulders for several moments and Aang looked up, catching sight of a large boulder heading straight for him. Thinking quickly, he used a combination of Airbending to grab the boulder and throw it at Azula. The princess gasped quietly and dropped into a split, the boulder passing harmlessly over her head.
Azula jumped back to her feet and launched another powerful Firebending assault at him. Aang quickly Earthbended the boulders and rocks on the top of the drill into a shield, protecting himself from the fireballs then he began launching the rocks at the princess from behind the safety of the rock shield.
The Fire Nation princess kicked the rocks out of the way with a grunt then she swung her leg around and kicked a stream of blue fire at the Avatar. Aang's eyes went wide and he quickly ducked behind the rock shield again to avoid it then he sent more rocks at Azula. The female Firebender leapt over the rock and somersaulted in midair, fire arcing over her from her feet then she launched the powerful attack at the rock shield.
The blast hit the rock shield, breaking it apart easily and Aang was sent flying backwards. He hit the wall with a grunt and he fell forward, unconsciously. Azula's eyes narrowed and she stared at the bald boy for a moment then she smirked confidently. As the drill broke through the Outer Wall, she sauntered towards the unconscious Avatar, his body partial under the hole in the wall. Fire danced at the tips of her fingers as she prepared to deal a deadly, final strike as she lifted him, holding him against the wall.
Aang suddenly jerked back into consciousness and his eyes went wide. He Earthbended the rocks from the wall around his fist and knocked Azula's hand to the side just before she could send the fireball at his head then he pressed his rock-gauntleted hand against her abdomen and he shoved her away from him. Azula skidded to a stop and she glared at Aang as he took a defensive stance, the rock gauntlet still on his hand. The princess scowled and raced forward, propelling herself faster by shooting streams of blue fire from her hands.
A flood of slurry suddenly erupted from around the drill, coating the too. Azula yelped when the slurry hit her and she went through the sludge, slamming right into Aang as he was getting to his feet after being knocked over by the slurry. The two collided with the wall and the force sends them both sliding off opposite sides of the drill.
Azula gasped as she ground her feet and dug her nails into the drill's side to stop her descent. On the other side of the drill, Aang scrambled to stop his fall but he is unable to get a good grip on the slick metal. Momo suddenly appeared and grabbed his shirt's shoulders, dragging him up the side of the drill to the top with the aid of Airbending.
"Thanks, Momo. I owe you one." Aang said gratefully then he ran over to the cut he had already made in the drill, "Now all I need…"
He jumped back slightly as a boulder fell in front of him, "Actually, that is what I need for once."
Aang quickly used Airbending to position the over the 'x' mark he had made in the drill, then he used Earthbending to cut the rock several times until he had created a wedge that fit inside the middle of the hole. Aang sucked in a deep breath then he sprinted towards the wall, then he created an air-scooter and scaled the wall. He dissipated the air scooter once he reached a certain point and he ran up the wall several more steps then he twisted himself around and with a shout, he propelled himself back down the wall at lightning speed.
Azula caught sight of him as she pulled herself back on top of the drill and with a determined expression, she ran forward several feet. Aang jumped off the wall and curled his legs up in preparation. Azula twisted her body around and shot a powerful blast of blue fire at Aang, missing him by mere seconds as he slammed down on the wedge. The hit created a large ripple effect that forcefully knocked the Fire Nation princess back several feet while the impact of the blow caused the sliced braces inside the drill to collapse and the pipes to burst, releasing a torrent of slurry, which began to seep from the drill.
At the end of the drill, Katara and Toph remained in their bending stances as they kept plugged the drain with the slurry, Ty Lee still trapped.
"Woohoo!" Sokka cheered when they saw the slurry exploding from the sides of the drill.
"Here it comes!" Toph shouted and Katara looked at her in surprise when she stopped bending the slurry and instead Earthbended herself, Katara, and Sokka onto a rock pillar.
Katara dropped her arms and slurry suddenly gushed from the rear of the drill in a torrent, slamming Ty Lee into the bottom of the rock pillar. Steam began to spew from the drill and the segments began collapsing while on the other side of the Outer Wall, the drill came to a screeching halt.
Aang stood on top of the rock that was wedged into the drill, complete covered in slurry from head-to-toe. He quickly wiped the slurry from his face and grinned widely while Momo landed on his shoulder and licked his cheek with a happy chitter.
Slurry slowly slid down the window of the command module and War Master Qin stared out in complete shock and horror.
Atop the wall, General Sung, covered in muck and slurry, stared down at the stopped drill with wide, gleeful eyes.
Ty Lee sat up and spat the slurry out of her mouth with a disgusted expression as she wiped her face. Azula slid down the side of the drill, also covered in slurry and she landed beside her acrobatic friend, covering her in more slurry as her gold eyes burned with fury. Suddenly, a hatch on the side opened up and Mai leaned out.
"We lost." She stated drily and Azula glared at her.
"Last call for Ba Sing Se!" The train conductor shouted from the front of the monorail that would be heading into the city.
Jet stormed towards the train with Smellerbee and Longshot.
"Jet, relax." Smellerbee pleaded with her friend as they walked, "So the old guy had some hot tea. Big deal."
"He heated it himself!" Jet snapped back at her and his tone turned dark, "Those guys are Firebenders!"
Jet's eyes narrowed when he spotted Lee, Mushi, and Xin, if that was even their real names, board the train cart behind the one he was getting on.
Zuko, Xiaodan, and Iroh sat down next to a small family, Xiaodan sitting between the two men. Iroh smiled when he noticed the sleeping infant in the arms of the woman on his other side.
"What a handsome baby." He complimented as he gently stroked the baby's cheek.
Xiaodan leaned around him and smiled when she saw the baby, "Awww…"
"Thank you." The woman said as smiled at Iroh and Xiaodan softly then she looked down at her baby with adoring eyes.
Xiaodan smiled again and she leaned back in her seat, resting her head against Zuko's shoulder again. Zuko tensed slightly when her head touched his shoulder then he slowly relaxed and leaned against her slightly. The white-haired girl smiled secretly and closed her eyes as the train began to move.
"I just want to say, good effort out there today, Team Avatar!" Sokka praised his friends and sister as they stood at the top of the wall overlooking the sunset.
"Enough with the Team Avatar stuff." Katara groaned in an unamused tone, "No matter how many times you say, it's not going to catch on."
"How about…" Sokka started then he whipped out his boomerang, "the Boomeraang Squad! See, it's good because it's got 'Aang' in it. Boomeraang."
Aang grinned at his friend, "I kind of like that one."
Katara sighed and began walking away with Aang, "Let's talk about this on our way into the city."
"The Aang Gang?" Sokka suggested with a grin.
"Sokka…"
"The Fearsome Foursome?"
"There'll be five of us when Xia gets back." Toph stated drily with a shake of her head as she began following Katara, "And you're crazy."
"True, but why am I crazy?" Sokka demanded, "We're fearsome!"
They ignored him and Sokka quickly ran after them.
Author's Note: Oh my God, I can't believe it took me so damn long to get this chapter posted. I swear, it was more of a pain in the ass than Sokka is sometimes! Honestly, I was having such a hard time writing it, but I finally finished and I hope it's okay. Cute little Zukia moments and Jet tried to flirt a little with Xia, but she's so not interested. Anyhooties, next chapter takes place during Season 2 Episode 14: City of Walls and Secrets, I'll try to update soon, so stay tuned!
Special THANKS to everyone that faved and/or alerted! You guys are freaking awesome-sauce!
SPECIAL MENTIONS!
MidnightWolf191: Thank you, I'm glad you think I'm doing a good job writing this story, it means a lot to see someone say that. Anyhooties, I'm glad you liked the last chapter and I hope you liked this one too!
Mira SeverusSirius Black-Snape: Me too, I think she's adorable. Anyhooties, I hope you liked this chapter!
LadyAmazon: Thanks, sadly only one of the eggs hatched, that's okay since it was their first clutch and the chick is very healthy, which is all I can ask for. Anyhooties, I hope to have your one-shot written up soon and I hope you liked this chapter!
Molly Grace 16: Thanks, I'm glad you liked the last chapter, there are some cute ones in this chapter too, I think. As for your question, I think I'm going to have Zuko go on the date with the girl and maybe have Xia go on a date with another boy, create a little jealous between the two, but I haven't decided yet. Anyhooties, I hope you liked this chapter!
Furionknight: I hope you liked this chapter!
Slightly Crazy Author: Thanks, I'm glad you liked the last chapter! I watch the episodes online mostly and the site I use most often is called , you can get almost any anime there. I wish you luck with your AtLA fic, one thing I've found that helps me a lot is .com, you can get everything from episode transcripts to episode summaries there. Anyhooties, I hope you liked this chapter!
Vicky Lexi Bennett: Thanks, I;m glad you liked the last chapter! Haha, I hope the small fight between Azula and Aang will be okay until I can write up the fight between Zuko and Jet!
Morsmorde Caster: Haha, maybe, we'll just have to wait and see. XD I hope you liked this chapter!
DreamyFlower: Thanks, I'm glad you like the story and Xia so far! I hope you liked this chapter too!
Becky: Haha, most baby birds are butt-ugly with their fuzzy bodies and their too small heads, they look almost alien. Heehee, you'll just have to wait and see what Jet does (or tries to do) with Xia…And wow, that sounded very wrong, even though I meant it in a totally, non-perverted way. Anyhooties, I hope you liked this chapter!
BookLover695: Thanks, I hope you liked this chapter!
XxBookXxWormXx: Ayup, I haven't decided if she'll rejoin them or just see them from afar, but I know it's going which episode she's going to be doing either of those things in. I agree that Aang probably could use Xia's support right now with Appa gone, but I think it's also good that's she not there, since I want to show that he's growing as an individual and he won't always have his big sister there to make everything better, you know? Haha, I haven't quite decided what I'm going to do about the Mai/Zuko situation other than NOT make it some kind of convoluted love triangle and yes Zuko does have some feelings for Xia, he's just not quite sure what they are yet. I'm glad you liked the picture of Xia too. Anyhooties, I hope you liked this chapter!
Kyoki no Megami: Haha, that's okay, it happens. Anyhooties, I probably am going to take my time getting Xia back with the GAang, since, you're right, it is a Zuko story. Anyhooties, I hope you liked this chapter!
Cat of Flames: Thanks, I'm glad you liked the Zukia fluff in the last chapter! I hope you liked the little moments they had in this chapter too!
Sensible One: I'm glad you like the story so far! Haha, I know what you mean, every time I watch the episode I'm doing a chapter for I keep expecting to actually see Xia in it. XD Anyhooties, I hope you liked this chapter!
JadiexGurl: Haha, so sorry, it's taken me so long to update, I'll try to update sooner. I'm glad you think the story is so good and I'm glad you like Xia's character, she's definitely one of my favorite brain-babies. There will definitely be more Zukia moments coming up, though they'll be small for now, since they're still warming up to each other and they haven't quite gotten passed that platonic-unsure-of-the-other's-feelings stage. Hmm…Honestly, I'm not sure what I'm going to do about Jet. I mean, I want to the story to stay as canon as possible, but at the same time I thought it sucked duck-butt that he died so soon. Also, don't worry about the Jet/Xia moments, there will probably be a few small ones, though how those will turn out is anyone's guess. XD Anyhooties, I hope you liked this chapter!
Teddy bear 007: I hope you liked this chapter!