Chap. 8

Freedom?

"Are you sure about this Uncle?" Zuko asked once again.

"Fear not nephew. This test has revealed hundreds of traitors. There is no reason it should not work here. All you must do is go along with the plan we devolved." Iroh said.

"Perhaps. But there is something about him…" Zuko began, then quickly shut his mouth as Fuego walked up from the lower deck. In his hands were three sets of chains. Fuego came out of the door, then pausing a moment, gave them a swift tog, pulling the prisoners out. Seeing them out of their cell made Zuko feel even more nervous. He could not imagine the shame of losing the Avatar held captive on his ship twice. But he saw that the boy's gag was still in place and his hands were firmly locked together.

Gaining some reassurance from this, Zuko stepped forward, and said, "I have been told that you believe the boy is the Avatar?"

"Without a doubt, your highness." Fuego replied. "And I have also heard you wish to perform an execution aboard my ship?"

"For safety." Fuego explained. "I fear that the Avatar will gain strength from having his friends with him. But if he is alone, in every sense of the word, then he will break."

Zuko pretended to consider this, but he already knew his answer, just like he had known when his crewman had explained it to him. "I see the wisdom, but I do not think so. These two are simply nothings. I will leave them here, and let them live out their lives with the knowledge of their failure."

At this, Fuego shook his head. "It is noble to have such mercy, Prince, but I must advise against it. These two will not simply leave once you have the Avatar. They will follow you home, and do everything they can to rescue the boy. Let me eliminate them for you."

Zuko paused again, then said, "Very well. They have been quite an annoyance. Guards, prepare the chain locks!" With that, Fuego handed the chains over to two of the guards, who then dragged Sokka and Katara over to two strange machines on the deck, which seemed to resemble snake-bears. As Aang screamed and struggled under his gag and chains, the guards fed Katara and Sokka's chains into the 'snake-bears' 'mouths.' There was a whirring noise and suddenly, Katara and Sokka's chains were pulled tight, locking them into place. "

Allow me." Fuego said, as he stepped in front of the two Water-tribesmen, already moving into an attack stance.

But as Fuego prepared to fire, he heard a voice say behind him, "Perhaps we should not be so hasty." Fuego turned to see Iroh standing next to Zuko.

"Ah, General Iroh. It is an honor to finally meet you. Your reputation is well-known."

"I am glad I am still remembered well back home." Iroh replied. "But truthfully, I am somewhat surprised by it."

Fuego nodded, and said, "Your brother has admitted to being…. Stern in the past. But losing his own son for so long has given him perspective."

"I am… happy that my brother has gained such wisdom." Iroh replied, though it was obvious he was slightly surprised. "Although I believe that you should attempt to develop some of your own."

"What do you mean?" Fuego asked.

"Killing these two children may enrage the Avatar, instead of breaking him as you hope."

"Perhaps, but I would think the safety out ways the risk." Fuego said.

"Not with the Avatar's power." Iroh said. "Such recklessness should not be allowed. I would think that the Fire Nation Army would train you better."

"Sadly, the army did not train me sir. I was instructed by a far greater instructor then any in the army." Some of the crew seemed surprised at that, but Iroh's face did not change.

"And what was this instructor's name?"

"Oh he was a local in my village sir. You would not know him."

"Oh I might. What village did you come from?"

"I came from Onasi."

At that, Iroh stroked his beard and said, "Well that is strange. Only one master ever came from that village. And I do not think Jeong-Jeong would ever train another student. So, who trained you, really?"

At such a question, some might have appeared nervous. Some might have begun to falter. But Fuego was different. He paused a minute then shook his head with a chuckle. "I should have known not to put anything past you Iroh. Ah well." With that, Fuego suddenly fell to the ground and spin kicked low, knocking both Iroh and Zuko off their feet.

"Now guys!" he yelled over to the captive heroes. Nodding, Aang and the others quickly shattered their fake chains, and with a burst of air, Aang blew the nearby guards out of their way.

"Fuego, where did they put our weapons?" Sokka yelled out, as the other guards on deck quickly began to attack.

"Zuko kept them in the shed by the command deck!" Fuego yelled out, as he saw two more guards running towards him. Underneath his wrappings, he smiled. Dropping to one knee, Fuego held out his arms and ignited his firebending, as his arms suddenly went ablaze. As the guards closed in a second later, the red man suddenly sprang forward, spinning around in a whirlwind of fire. The guards instinctively ducked, but it didn't make a difference as Fuego suddenly leapt up over their heads. He landed behind them and before they could turn around, he shot out two fireblasts, knocking the two guards to the ground. Seeing that he was safe, Fuego turned to check on the others. The children had already reached the shed, and while Aang and Katara used their bending to keep the guards at bay, Sokka was smashing the lock with a recently begotten helmet.

"Not bad, for kids." Fuego said, as he began to move over to aid them. But before he had walked two steps, the ground in front of him ignited into a wall of fire. Pausing, Fuego turned to see the enraged form of Prince Zuko standing in front of him. Behind Zuko, Iroh was standing still, watching the battle, but keeping his eyes mostly on Fuego, waiting to see his move. This did not surprise Fuego. He truly did have respect for the former general and had studied much of Iroh's battle strategies. He knew that Iroh would observe an enemy before all else, making sure he knew exactly who he was fighting, including their strengths and limits. Of course, I doubt he'll learn everything about me just yet. Fuego thought, as he refocused on Zuko. The red man had also studied much on Zuko, and he knew that the boy-prince had a swift temper, made swifter by the years he'd spent banished. I'll have to remember to thank his daddy for that. Fuego thought grimly as he tried to reason with Zuko.

"You don't want to do this Prince." The red man said, as he looked upon the boy.

"Yes I do! You lied to me!" Zuko screamed, as his fist ignited. But Fuego just shook his head.

"The words I spoke did not come from your father. But that does not make them any less true." He replied calmly. "You have the potential, the strength, the wisdom that your father does not have and never will. Don't throw it away."

But his words fell on deaf ears. Zuko let out a scream of rage and shot a huge blast of fire straight at Fuego. Yet the man made no effort to dodge it, but merely stood there as the fire impacted on his body. The firelight it created was blinding, as all who saw it were forced to shield their eyes. Aang's face contorted in a mask of horror at the loss of another ally. Katara and Sokka simply stared in shock. Zuko's rage filled expression suddenly vanished, as he realized what he had done. He had wanted to stop Fuego, and bring him to justice. There had been no need to kill him. But a second later, Zuko's shock doubled.

When the flames vanished, Fuego was still there. But it was a different Fuego for Zuko, who had only seen him as a member of the Royal Guard. But now, Zuko saw the ragged, masked man that Aang and the others had seen. But he also saw a man who was totally untouched by the flames that had been hurled at him. His clothes were unmarked and didn't even seem singed. Fuego spent a second looking at himself, then raised up his head and looked at Zuko. "I hope you have more then that."

Zuko's response was another fire burst, but this time, it did not even reach Fuego. The red man simply put up his hand, and the flames stopped in mid air. As Zuko stared in amazement, Fuego gently moved his fingers and the flames coalesced into a small fireball that moved into the palm of his hand.

As he looked at it, Fuego said, "I am not your enemy Prince. But I have a mission, the same as you. And because of that, I cannot let you have the Avatar. You will let us go now. You will do this because there is nothing you or any of your crew can do to hurt us. But after that, you are free to try to capture the boy. Because in that quest Zuko, you will find your freedom from your anger and pride. In that search Zuko, you will know who you are, and what your destiny is."

With that, Fuego brought his hand into a fist, extinguishing the fireball. Fuego turned around then, and began to walk towards Aang, Katara, and Sokka. The firewall Zuko had created was still there, but now, Fuego simply walked forward and emerged untouched, to the shock of the guards, who in fear, backed away from him. The boy-prince simply stood there, his face in total shock at what had been said to him. But gradually the shock gave way to anger. Banished or not, Zuko was the crown prince of the Fire Nation. No lying traitor had the right to tell him what to do. Gathering his energies, Zuko suddenly stepped forward and bending into the proper stance, prepared to engulf this strange, insulting man in flame.

Or rather, he would have if flame had burst forth from his hand. But instead, Zuko felt the fire energy within him freeze in place, unable to move forward. As he stared at his hands in frightened bewilderment, Fuego said, "Don't bother trying to firebend. Right now it's a power that's out of your hands. That goes for all of you." Fuego said, as he reached the guards surrounding Aang and the others.

At the sight of this strange man, who seemed more powerful then any of them and had apparently disarmed Prince Zuko, the guards quickly moved away. Fuego walked up to the shed, which Sokka had almost forced open and placed his hands on the handles. Then with a grunt, he pulled back and the doors all but flew off the shed, landing at least five feet back on the deck. Sokka's jaw dropped at that, for such raw strength amazed him as much as Fuego's strange firebending amazed the benders on board.

Wordlessly, Fuego reached into the shed and with a few minutes, dug out Aang's staff, Katara's water-holder, and Sokka's boomerang. Handing them out to his companions, Fuego rose up, turned back to the assembled crew, and said, "On behalf of myself, and my friends, I would like to thank you for your hospitality and warmth, and wish you luck on all your future endeavors. Farewell."

But as Fuego said those words, he heard a soft chuckle. Pausing, he looked over and saw the smiling face of Iroh. "Something amuses you general?" he asked.

"That it does. You see, you are not going to be leaving as soon as you think."

"And why do you say that?" Katara asked, wondering what this old man could know or do that would make him a threat.

"It is simple. Fuego has restricted firebending on the ship, correct?" Iroh asked. The man in red nodded his reply.

"That is not the only power we have on board." With that, Iroh suddenly drew back, and as the air began to crackle around him, Fuego's eyes suddenly opened wide. "DUCK!" he yelled, as he pulled Aang and the others down, just as the lighting from Iroh sprayed over their heads.

"Damn, I forgot he could do that." Fuego breathed, as he quickly got back to his feet.

"Can't you control it, like the others?" Aang asked.

"No, lighting is out of my jurisdiction." Fuego replied.

"How good are you and the Waterbender?" he asked. "Pretty good, but aren't you…."

"Yes, but I'll need your help. If I use my full power, I risk losing my hold on the crew."

"Then we'd better get ready." Aang said, as he looked over at Katara, who had already loosened the cork of her water-holder. Nodding, Fuego reached behind his back into the folds of his cape. Then he pulled back, drawing something out of it. A second later, he had fully withdrawn the object, and held it in both hands. It was a long spear, its tip bright crimson. The weapon's body was composed of strong-looking wood, and connecting the tip to the body was a metal guard shaped in a wing-like flame shape. In the center of the guard was a large red gemstone.

As Iroh looked over the group assembled before him, he said, "I see this shall be quite a battle." "I'd say so. A great Fire Nation general versus three different benders." Fuego said.

"Ahem!"

"And a kid with a boomerang." Fuego corrected himself, as Sokka stepped up.

"Interesting indeed. Let us begin." Iroh said, as he drew himself into a fighting stance.

Aang, Katara, Sokka, and Fuego immediately got into their own stances, ready to fight. And they would have, if not for a strange glow that came from Fuego's spear-stone. Looking at it, the red man nodded, and turning back to Iroh, said "Another time."

With that, he suddenly ran for the deck and reaching the guardrail, suddenly leapt over it.

"Strange opening move." Iroh said, as he looked over at the deck. But a second later, that move was explained as a huge white mass suddenly shot over the deck, blowing most of the soldiers and Iroh back. The mass landed and with a roar lashed out with it's tail and knocked back the rest of the soldiers. "You have a good beast here, Avatar!" Fuego yelled, as he stood up on Appa's neck.

"How'd you get him here?" Aang asked in happy amazement, as he and the others quickly climbed on board, Momo greeting them with happy squeaks. "I have friends in high places." Was the cryptic reply. Turning back to the dissembled crew, Fuego found the form of Iroh. As the general got back to his feet, Fuego held his palm up, and moved the fingers up and down in a 'bye-bye' gesture. But in that gesture, something glistened on his open palm. Most of the crew saw it, but none could make it out except for Iroh, and its result was tremendous. The general's eyes widened in shock, and he actually backed away from the group. Nodding, Fuego cracked the reins and with a cry of "Yip-Yip!" sent Appa flying into the air, far from the grasp of Zuko once again.