Haven't updated in a little while. Bad me. Sorry, no Zuko or Katara in this chapter, since Aang and Sokka are taking the spotlight. But don't worry, our favorite couple will be back next chapter...
OR WILL THEY?
:evil grin:
Chapter 4: "A Catastrophe"
Aang gripped Appa's reins as he leaned forward, mentally willing his bison to fly faster. But the bison was moving at top speed, as he had been since they took off after Zhao. Aang squinted at a tiny dot in the distance–Zhao's ship. It would be an hour or so before they entered Fire Nation territory. The Avatar bit his lip in worry. Katara...was she alright?
Sokka fidgeted in Appa's large saddle. Cleaned another phantom scuff-mark off his already immaculately polished weapons. He let out another long breath–the third one in five minutes. Waiting was driving him crazy. Was Katara hurt? Scared? Alone? Did those firebenders do anything to her? Sokka didn't like admitting he was scared, but the prospect of his sister in the hands of Zhao, heading towards the Fire Nation, terrified him. Another sigh.
He glanced over at Aang, who was watching Zhao's tiny ship in the distance with a furrowed brow. Aang looked determined–almost calm–except the hands gripping at the reins were white at the knuckles and shaking slightly. Sokka turned his gaze away from his friend and looked out morosely into the distance, tracing the horizon with his eyes, trying to soothe the fears clutching relentlessly at his stomach. His eyes stopped when he saw another little dot.
Sokka reached into a nearby pouch and pulled out a small spying glass. Momo perched on his shoulder to see what he was doing. The young warrior put the seeing tool up to his eye and looked out into the distance. A ship came into view...and not just any ship–Zuko's ship!
"Aang!" he called out. Sokka put the spying glass in Momo's hands, who scurried over to give it to him, then pointed in the direction he wanted Aang to look. Aang took the spying glass from Momo and peered in. When his eyes caught sight of Zuko's ship, he visibly started.
"I don't get it...why is Zuko chasing after Zhao?" Aang queried.
"Well, Zhao has Katara...so Zuko knows we'll go after him...maybe he's planning to try and steal you from Zhao...?"
"Hold up! Didn't Zuko get arrested?"
"From what I saw...I thought that was just a ploy from Zhao to get Zuko out of the way...I thought he was still in Puaga, behind bars. Wait...you don't think..."
Both boys echoed each other: "Zuko is on Zhao's ship too!"
"That would explain why Zuko's ship is following Zhao into the Fire Nation...his men are trying to save him!" Sokka deduced. "Zhao must be taking Zuko with him to be arrested when they reach Fire Nation territory."
"So who's running Zuko's ship?"
"Good question. But whoever it is, they have a similar goal to us. We want Katara, they want Zuko. Which means..."
"We could work together!"
"Exactly. Assuming they agree to work with us, siding with Zuko's men would be a big help. Let's face it, Zhao's ship is huge and heavily guarded. We would have a hell of a time trying to get aboard without being spotted and captured. If we team up with Zuko's men, that will increase our chances of success."
"What are we waiting for then?" Aang shouted and tugged Appa's reins in the direction of the ship. "Yip-yip!"
Iroh paced the deck of the ship, his eyes trained in the direction he knew Zhao's ship to be heading. Fire Nation waters. The old general normally didn't waste energy with useless pacing like his nephew did, but his worries made it impossible to sit down.
He absolutely had to stop Zhao before he brought Prince Zuko into Fire Nation territory. Bringing Zuko there could prove deadly for him. Iroh had been wracking his brain trying to find a way to retrieve Zuko, but to little avail. Zhao's ship was so large, a direct attack would be useless. Negotiation looked bleak too, since Zhao was planning to capture the Avatar, and a successful capture would excuse almost any misdeed on his part–Ozai would be too pleased with Zhao's boon to bother about his transgression. And Zuko...
Iroh's pacing increased. He must get Prince Zuko back. Somehow...
A shout from the helmsman caught his attention. He looked up and caught the word "Avatar" as the helmsmen pointed to his upper-right. Iroh watched as a ten-ton bison descended very quickly upon them. When the bison was astride the ship, it stopped its decent and kept pace. Iroh recognized the Avatar and the other boy from previous encounters.
Perhaps there would be hope for his nephew after all.
"Aang!" Sokka croaked, "You can't just barge in like this! They're still firebenders, remember?"
Aang ignored him as he hopped off Appa's head and onto the deck of the ship. Many of Zuko's men had come up from below deck to see what the commotion was all about, but Aang marched right past them, up to the only other person whom he had ever seen give orders besides Zuko, Iroh. The Avatar stopped an arm's reach away from the man and looked straight up into his surprised face.
"We need help," Aang stated matter-of-factly, "Zhao has our friend prisoner. We need to rescue her. Your prince is captured too. If we work together, maybe we can save them both. What say you?"
A long, stunned silence followed. Iroh finally raised his hand and snapped his fingers. The soldiers surrounding Aang suddenly bristled with weapons, and the Avatar looked around warily. "Well," Iroh replied cooly, "I could have you captured and traded for Prince Zuko's return..." He paused a moment for effect. Aang braced himself for combat while Sokka slowly drew out his boomerang. "But," Iroh continued at last, "I find your idea more appealing." The old man ended with a smile.
Aang relaxed.
Aang and Sokka rode high up over Zhao's ship, using the clouds as cover. Zuko's uncle had agreed to work together with them on the condition that they rescued his nephew as well as Katara. Neither of them knew how Zuko would act once he was no longer behind bars, but given the circumstances, both Aang and Sokka expected some manner of cooperation from him.
Aang steered Appa while Sokka and Momo kept an eye down below. They were awaiting the signal from Iroh to advance on the commander's ship. The retired general decided he would be attacking Zhao's ship as a decoy. While Zhao was preoccupied with Iroh's "attempt to reclaim his nephew", Aang, Sokka, and Momo were to sneak aboard the ship. Appa would be flying right on the ship's bow, out of sight and harm's way. Once they found and rescued Katara and Zuko, they would bind the prince and hastily return him to his uncle. Then they would make their escape–whatever happened to Zuko and his uncle afterwards would be their problem.
The Avatar and his friend tensed as they entered Fire Nation territory.
Iroh watched Zhao's ship grow larger at their approach. He grit his teeth. What he was doing was dangerous–they had just entered his homeland's waters, and Zhao's ship was many times larger and heavily armed. The commander was no fool either–he would eventually figure out Iroh was using himself as a distraction. Those two boys would have to work fast if they wanted to save Prince Zuko and their friend.
And...once Zuko was returned, both he and his nephew would flee. However, depending on how ferociously Zhao reacted, he might be forced to take the Avatar hostage. A minor detail Iroh decided not to divulge in the explanation of his plan to the two boys. Having the Avatar in his keep would insure Zuko's safety against any arrest for trespassing, and Zhao wouldn't dare fire on a vessel containing his key to success. Of course, Iroh realized, this was an extremely risky ploy. There would be Zhao to contend with, naturally, and he doubted the Avatar would willingly allow himself to be used as a shield. Not to mention Prince Zuko...his nephew would waste no time in an attempt to turn over the Avatar to his father–something Iroh could not allow to happen. Iroh sighed. He was going to have to be very crafty if he was going to save Prince Zuko and the Avatar from Zhao and Ozai.
Iroh turned as he heard a metallic groan and saw the final preparation of the catapult in place. Ammunition was loaded and ready to fire. The former general turned his gaze back to Zhao's ship and gave the command.
"FIRE!"
Zhao clenched his fists in irritation as he heard a urgent knock on his office door. Hadn't he explicitly stated he did not want to be disturbed? "What? It had better be good!" he snapped.
"Sir!" the officer called from the other side of the door, "Prince Zuko's ship has been spotted...and is approaching rapidly!"
Zhao stood straight up. Was Zuko's uncle coming to rescue him? They were already well in Fire Nation territory–he had no power here. So what was the old man planning to do? The commander marched out the door and headed towards his ship's deck. When he got there, he saw his men running about in a frenzy. "What's going on?" he demanded, angry at himself for being the last to know of the situation.
"Sir, the approaching vessel is preparing to fire!"
"What?" Zhao exclaimed, bewildered. A red movement caught his eye, and he glanced up to see an angry flaming projectile hurtling straight for his ship. He nearly lost his footing as the helmsman tried to dodge Iroh's attack, but the vessel was too large to move in time, and suffered a blow to the side. A bright orange blast blinded him as a small tremor shook the deck. Zhao shouted for a damage report and was relieved to find that it had only been a glancing blow and no hole had been punctured into his ship.
"Fire on the opposing vessel!" he bellowed. By then, his men had already brought out the ship's catapults and loaded them. They fired, raining down deadly missiles upon Zuko's ship. But the boat was a small one, and very maneuverable, making it easy for Iroh and his men to evade the attacks.
Zhao stared in wonder. Did Iroh seriously plan on getting into a battle with him? He might be able to avoid being hit for now, but sooner or later he would be struck and would have to surrender or perish. Surely the great former general was not so stupid as to do something this reckless, especially with his nephew on the line...? No, he wasn't.
So there must be something else going on. Zhao narrowed his eyes as he began to suspect what.
An explosion below caught the attention of Sokka and Momo. "There's the signal!" Sokka cried as Momo screeched in emphasis. Aang yip-yipped and spurred Appa's decent downwards. They flew down quickly as possible, hoping Iroh's fire would keep Zhao and his men from spotting them before they reached the boat. When they were practically touching the water, Appa moved along to the side of the ship and kept pace. Sokka and Aang reached up from the saddle and climbed awkwardly through a porthole in the ship, Momo deftly following behind. Once inside, they took in their surroundings. The room appeared to be the soldiers' quarters–apparently of low rank, noting the number of cramped beds and crude furniture. They waved Appa off and the bison flew to the bow of the ship to watch and wait.
The three peered out the door of the room and into the ship's hallways. Momo kept his sensitive ears perked for any approaching soldiers. They quickly navigated through the maze of hallways, cautiously trying out important looking doors to see where they lead. After a few minutes of exploring did they finally realize how massive Zhao's ship was.
"This is going to take forever! How are we supposed to find Katara?"
"Well, she's probably being kept in the brig, but I haven't seen any stairs leading down at all!"
Momo gave a warning squeak, and the two hid themselves in a dark corner as soldiers rushed past. "Thanks, Momo," Aang whispered.
The trio continued their search frantically, knowing they were running out of time–Iroh's distraction would eventually be figured out, and then they'd be in serious trouble. At long last, they came to a hallway significantly wider than the others–most likely one of the main ones–and hastily traveled down it. Soon, a stairway leading down came into view. Momo let out another squeak. Aang listened hard and heard soldiers coming down another hallway that intersected with their own. All three pressed themselves up against the wall. The soldiers rushed past them, oblivious to their presence, until one of the soldiers stepped on Momo's tail, which had not been tucked in.
Momo shrieked shrilly, and the soldiers turned to find the Avatar and his friend not three feet from them. Aang reacted first and used his airbending skills to knock them down the length of the hallway. Sokka and Aang raced to reach the stairs, but soldiers alerted by the commotion intercepted them, blocking the path to the stairs. Both of them could hear shouts as the message of their discovery was relayed throughout the ship. So much for stealth.
Unable to reach the stairs due to the amount of soldiers pouring into the hallway, Aang and Sokka turned tail and ran the other way before they could be overwhelmed. Hopefully there would be another way to get to Katara. They ran from hallway to hallway, soon getting lost in the maze of passageways, meeting more soldiers at every corner.
After managing to dodge another group of Zhao's men, the three turned a wrong corner and found themselves at the end of a wide hallway, with a large pair of doors straight ahead. Soldiers' footsteps could be heard–Zhao's men would be upon them in seconds. With no other option of escape available, Aang and Sokka pushed against the doors until they opened with a groan. The Avatar used his wind to slam the doors shut just moments before the soldiers reached them.
Aang looked around the room they had entered. There was a lot of heavy equipment in this room; weapons, catapults, ammunition, explosives–this was an artillery room! Aang used his airbending powers to help Sokka move several heavy crates and lumber against the door to brace it shut, but both knew this would only buy them a minute at most. Looking around for exits, they found only several large pulleys and trapdoors above them...all of which led to the ship's deck. And Zhao.
They were surrounded, and in very, very deep trouble.
"Sokka, what do we do? There's firebenders at every exit! We're trapped!"
Sokka looked around at the weaponry. "Well," he said slowly, "There's no way we can fight this many firebenders...but if we take that ability away, we could even the odds." He tapped a crate of gunpowder. "And we might get a good bargaining chip for Katara, if we play this right..."
Aang tilted his head to the side, confused.
As a volley between his ship and Zuko's took place, and Zhao was becoming more and more confident of his suspicions. When a soldier ran up to him and breathlessly reported the Avatar was below deck, his suspicions were confirmed.
"Keep firing on that vessel! Make sure that old goat stays busy, understood?" he shouted. His men affirmed their comprehension, and Zhao rushed below deck. As he went from soldier to soldier, he learned the Avatar and his friend were trapped in the artillery room. The only reason his men hadn't broken down the door yet was because they were waiting for his command. When he reached the door, he gave it, and his benders blew it in with a mighty blast. The Avatar used his airbender abilities to deflect the door and debris careening at him aside. Zhao strode in.
The Avatar stood waiting, staff ready. His companion, a boy from the Water Tribe, had his boomerang out and ready to throw. Zhao almost did a double-take at the older boy. He didn't recognize him at first, but after his run-in with the blue-eyed girl, he knew without question that this was her brother. That boomerang looked very familiar too...
"Give us Katara!" the older boy shouted.
Zhao blinked. Katara? Was that her name? Katara...
"And Zuko!" Sokka added, though without as much emphasis.
Zhao raised his eyebrows in surprise. Zuko? What did they want...oh. Iroh. He must have agreed to help them under the condition they rescue his nephew as well. However, Zhao had no intention of giving up either of his prisoners.
"You're a bold pair to be giving me orders. Do you children not know what situation you are in? The only two exits to this room, this door and the trapdoors above, are blocked by my men. You are completely surrounded with no way out...except surrender. Give yourselves up, and I won't hurt you or your friends..."
"Hmph!" Sokka snorted, "I don't think you know what situation you're in. Take a good look at the floor and walls around you."
The commander scrutinized his surroundings, and found everything covered in a layer of dust. No...not dust...gunpowder...the Avatar and his companion had coated this room full of explosive weaponry with gunpowder...they were sitting on a giant bomb!
"My friend, the Avatar here, used his wind powers to blow gunpowder all over this room. And in this room are lots of explosives. If so much as a single spark hits the floor the entire place will ignite and these crates holding explosives will go boom. Which means, unless you want to be blasted into the next life, you won't be using any firebending."
"There are enough explosives set up here to blow the ship in half!" Zhao balked, "Are you willing to gamble with your lives?"
"That's up to you," Sokka replied, feigning calmness. Inside he felt like his heart was going to beat out of his chest. "Since none of you can use fire, you're all pretty much at the mercy of my pal, Aang. So, unless you wan to be beat up–or blown up–I suggest you bring my sister and that jerk prince up here now."
Zhao narrowed his eyes. He wasn't about to be bowled over by some Water Tribe brat. "I have a better idea," he growled, "Either you surrender, or I give the order to have your friend killed. Your little trick might protect you and the Avatar, but it doesn't protect your friend–I can relay a message to have the girl's throat slit at any time." He raised his hand as if to give a signal, and several soldiers stood in attention at the artillery room's door, ready to sprint to the brig at the drop of his hand. "Give yourselves up, or I'll have her executed."
"No."
Everyone looked at Aang. It had been the first time he had spoken during the standoff.
"I know firebending," Aang lied, "I can make a spark that will ignite this whole room. Give us Katara and Prince Zuko, or I'll blow this whole ship up."
"You wouldn't."
"I would."
"You'll kill us all in the blast, and the ship will sink, taking the girl and the prince with it."
"I'm the Avatar. I can shield Sokka and myself from a blast like that using my powers. You will not survive. Once this ship is blown apart, I'll find Katara and Zuko and rescue them." Aang glared at Zhao from across the room and delivered his ultimatum: "So you can either hand over my friend and Prince Zuko, or I can blow everything up and get them anyway!"
An agonizing silence filled the room.
"We're out of ammo! Go to the artillery room and tell somebody to send more up!" one of the catapult operators yelled to a fellow soldier. The soldier nodded and bolted below deck. None of them would have believed a tiny vessel could have landed three blows on them and not get hit even once under their relentless barrage–except for the fact the one in charge of that little ship was the infamous General Iroh. The old man lived up to his reputation...it was uncanny how he could predict their moves before they even made them.
A sense of dread washed over Iroh as he saw Zhao's ship cease fire. Had Zhao caught onto their plan? Were he and his men ignoring his distraction while they searched for the Avatar? If he was to help the boy in his mission to retrieve Prince Zuko and their friend, Iroh had to keep their attention. It appeared as if he would have to make an all-out assault on the ship.
"Bring the ship around to a stop! Load the catapult with the best ammunition and prepare for a final assault!"
Aang and Zhao still stood locked in a stalemate, neither yielding. The boy prayed the commander would believe his bluff about his firebending and Avatar abilities, and would just hand over Katara and Zuko. The steely look on Zhao's face, however, left him little hope.
"Ammo—we need more ammo—we're out—Iroh—ship—" a voice bounced off the walls as a young soldier came rushing towards the room. He gazed, completely bewildered, as he reached the doorway, and found his commander and the Avatar in a standoff. His fellow soldiers were about to push him out of the way, when Iroh's final assault hit the ship, the force rocking nearly everyone off their feet. The young soldier, thinking the sudden, violent tremors a result of the Avatar, reacted and fired.
"NO, YOU FOOL!" Zhao screamed.
"DON'T!" Aang and Sokka shrieked.
BOOM.
THE END.
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
Noooo, that would be mean. Guess you'll have to wait till next chapter to find out the body-count, tee-hee!