Kishi: Eep. I forgot to mention the legal stuff last time. I will make special note of this at the end.

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Chapter 3

Running a Gauntlet

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The day dawned, cold and clear. The clouds were painted in varied shades of crimson as the sun rose red in the distance.

"Red sun in the morning," mused the guard aloud. "Sailors take warning."

"Fortunately, we're not sailors," chimed a voice behind him. The guard chuckled. "But if there's a red sun tonight," she purred, "I'll show you something to delight about."

The two of them stood at the top of a glacial wall. Jagged icy towers rose around them, the sun reflecting off of their polished surfaces. Behind them, all the structures were made out of snowy blocks. Houses stretched behind them, towards the Temple. The Temple itself had previously been right on the verge of being in the water, before the Priests had decided that they were too vulnerable to the Fire Navy. Now a snowfield stretched out for a mile, and the wall had been built to encompass what was, essentially, the only city of the Water Tribes in the entire North Pole.

The guard, had he been a younger man, would have blushed at the implications, but it had been so long that he was used to her by now. She came around to the corner of his eye and leaned against the rampart. She was tall, for a girl, with short brown hair, dark eyes, and the dark skin of all her tribesmen. She was, however, unusually buxom, even given the chest wrappings; there was no mistaking her sex.

"So what news?" she asked lightly.

"Nothing yet," he said. "There's no sign of the Fire Nation ships our scouts warned us about."

"Good." She stood up and stretched, though the guard wasn't sure if it was for his benefit or not.

"So what are we supposed to do today?"

"Well, there's no Tribe war to occupy our time," she said thoughtfully, "so we take the day off, I guess."

"You mean you take a day off, while we patrol and get drilled."

"That's how your breaks go, remember?" she asked with a cheeky grin. "You guys do that stuff for fun. I treat a day off like a day off."

The guard snorted and turned as the young girl began to walk away. Then, suddenly: "Yuki! Look!"

The girl was back leaning over the rampart in an instant, her eyes intent. On the horizon, columns of smoke were rising.

"So there they are," she mused softly.

"So much for that day off, eh Chief?"

She clenched one bandaged hand. "This'll do just fine."

---

The moon shone down on the bison in the sky, flying steadily onward. In the last week of travel, Aang had been pushing hard. It got colder and colder with the passing of days, but the Avatar didn't seem to notice it at all. He was always on Appa's head staring intently to the north. In those few precious instants when he could be persuaded to rest, he was staring at the Water scroll, as if all those moves he'd already memorized could somehow divulge a secret that would make the difference.

Tonight was exceptional because it was a night where all in the party were convinced that it was good to travel through the night. Aang, no matter how driven, had always hated to see Appa suffer for such a hard pace, but they were only a day away… and no land in sight. They had to get to the North Pole – they simply had no other choice.

"Would you look at that," said Sokka, from his prone position, staring up at the sky. Above him, multi-colored trails and auras arced through the sky. "Looks like the Spirit Flames have lit," he said. Katara could hear the grin in his voice as he said, "It almost feels like home, doesn't it?"

"I've heard of these things," said Shin. "But I've never seen them before. I'd always heard them called Heaven's Veils."

"Heaven's Veils?" asked Sokka. "Where the heck do you see any sort of veil in there? Nothing about those flames looks like a curtain to me."

"Always about you, is it?" asked Shin, but she could hear the teasing note in his voice.

"I mean, really, how could anyone see anything like curtains or draperies up there?"

"See how they just disappear into the night? Think how high they must be!"

"Yeah, right."

Leaving the two to their debate, Katara crawled towards the front, where Aang lay looking up at the sky.

"Oh," said Aang. "Hi, Katara."

"Hey. Are you doing OK?"

"Yeah, just admiring the light."

She smiled. "It's been a while since I've seen them too."

They were quiet for a time, watching the ebb and flow of light across the sky.

"I can't believe we've finally made it," Katara marveled. "I know it's kinda funny to say, but I never thought we'd actually make it here."

"It always seemed so far away," said Aang. "But we'll be there tomorrow. I can't wait to figure out some new moves!"

"Oh, you'll do fine," said Katara. "It's me I'm worried about."

"What do you mean, Katara?"

"I mean…" Katara paused, unsure of how comfortable she felt with telling him. But she saw the clarity in his eyes, the quiet understanding. "Well," she said at last, "you always pick it all up so easily. I'm sure you'll be through training with the Temple in a week, at most. But it always takes me months to get anywhere with any of this stuff. I don't want to slow you down."

"Don't be so hard on yourself," said Aang, grinning. "You'll be just fine."

"How can you say that?"

"Because I believe in you," he said, as if that profound statement of faith were only simple words. They struck a chord in the Water Bender's heart, and she suddenly felt like laughing and crying.

They continued toward the north in silence, for Shin and Sokka seemed to have drifted off.

"So why have you been pushing so hard?"

"Hm?"

"You haven't had a decent night's rest in a week," said Katara, her voice taking a slightly sterner timbre. "And you barely eat anything for all your pacing. What are you so worried about?"

"I just feel…" he seemed at a loss for words, until he finished: "Nervous."

"Nervous?"

"Yeah. I mean, what if things have changed? What if the Northern Tribes won't teach me? What if there are no more Tribes? The comet's going to be here in a matter of months! There's no time for mistakes of any kind!"

"Aang…" Katara reached down and patted his shoulder. He turned to look up at her. "Don't worry about it," she said, smiling. "I know you can do it. You've gotten around everything that's come up so far, and I know you'll do fine here too."

"I hope so," he said uncertainly.

"I know so," she replied. "And for what it's worth, I believe in you too."

Aang grinned and turned around, but Katara could have sworn that she saw him blushing.

Can't be. Must be a trick of the light, she decided, and lay herself down to sleep.

---

In… 2… 3… 4… 5… 6… 7… 8…

Out… 2… 3… 4… 5… 6… 7… 8…

In… 2… 3…

The knocking on his door knocked Zuko out of meditation. Sighing, he said, "Come in."

The door swung open to admit Airoh, who stepped in with a scroll in hand. "Good evening, Nephew. I have the maps you requested."

"Good." Zuko let the candles return to their normal levels before replacing them in their lanterns around the room, as Airoh spread the maps on the table. He also began to place models on the map of ships.

"Here's the Northern Wastes," said the general after his nephew sat down before him, dressed in the black meditative robes. "And here is the fleet as Zhao is likely to have it set," he continued, indicating the line of ships along the southern coast.

"Yes," said Zuko. "Ideally, we'd want to go around it, but Zhao's likely to have a bead on where the Avatar's going. Since we've been following his ships, the odds are good that we're going to hit the fleet."

"Perhaps," conceded the general. "However, going around should be easy enough. Zhao can't guard the entire coast. The only thing we lose is time."

"That's the one thing we can't afford!" Zuko hissed. "Every day that passes, the Avatar will learn something new and grow more powerful. We have to capture him now!"

"Very well, then," said his uncle. "What is your plan for how we should proceed?"

"We should let the Avatar do the work for us," said Zuko, his eyes narrow, shrewd, calculating. "Let him break up the blockade. We can hang back and wait for him to show up and disrupt it. Then we'll break through the gaps and pursue him."

"A fine idea, nephew," said Airoh, "but you haven't learned very well. Remember the last time we tried something like that?"

"At the Crescent Island?" Zuko rubbed his head tiredly; of course he remembered what had happened.

"But this would be different, uncle! We'll be waiting for him this time, anticipating his movements! All we have to do is follow through where he breaks through."

"That seems unwise. You'd be relying too much on a variable you couldn't control. Remember the Glorious Strategist's lesson—"

"Simple plans leave less room for error," growled Zuko. He'd heard those words since he was a child.

"Exactly," said Airoh, with that broad oblivious grin of his. He turned his gaze back to the map. Scratching his chin contemplatively, he murmured, "I do wish we had more intelligence to work with. If we knew where the Water Temple was, we'd be able to skip this whole business and be waiting for him right there."

"Zhao's probably got that figured too," said Zuko, scowling. "Which puts us right back where we started."

There was a knocking at the door. Eyebrow quirked, Zuko called out, "Come in."

The door swung open and the prince's eyebrow quirked higher as Reiko stepped inside. She was dressed in servant's eveningwear – a dark red frog-top and similarly colored pants. Her arms were left bare, as were her feet, and her hair was undone. She was carrying a teapot of the usual Fire design with a dragon's head spout and everything. The only real modification here was that it had been fitted with 4 small slots for holding cups.

The light glinted off her silvery eyes as she knelt. "The tea that the general ordered."

"By the heavens, girl, are you everywhere?" snarled the Prince. He knew he shouldn't be so hard on her and regretted his words, but it was late, and he was tired, and he was getting ready to be in a bad way if he didn't figure a way around this mess.

"Only where you are," she said.

"Do you not sleep?"

"Only when you do."

"Most of the other servants would be in bed right now."

"You called me to serve you," she said, her voice quiet. "So I do. I swore loyalty to you, my Prince. Have I displeased you?"

"No, it's just—"

"Ah! Tea!" Airoh beamed, looking up from the map for the first time. "And Reiko! What a pleasant surprise. Come in, please!"

With that, Reiko stepped forward and shut the Prince's door. Zuko breathed deeply, trying to contain his temper. After all, he rationalized, the only thing she's done wrong so far is whatever you tell her to.

As she poured out the tea into the small cups, he looked tiredly at the map. "Uncle, we've got to figure out how to break through this thing. When the Avatar breaks through Zhao's forces, we've got to be right on his tail or waiting for him when he arrives."

"I understand your sense of urgency, Zuko, but I think in this case we're going to have to take the long way around," said Airoh, guiding the model of the ship to a point on the coastline.

"Perhaps we could create a ruse of some kind?" asked Zuko, sipping the tea.

"That could work," said Airoh, his voice thoughtful. "But how are we going to fool a man like Zhao? He saw through the last ruse you pulled, and I don't think he'd let us pass so easily a second time."

The two soldiers stared back at the map as minutes passed, sipping tea.

"Oh!" said Reiko suddenly. "What about flags?"

"Flags?" asked Airoh. Then his features lit. "It's brilliant!"

"I don't follow you," said Zuko.

"It's simple," replied the general. "We run up the signal flags that warn of disease. We run really close to the ships, and they'll let us through."

"I'm not sure Zhao would fall for something like that…"

"He knows of your drive to capture the Avatar at all costs. He would expect you to keep going, even if your ship had contracted the plague."

"It's a gamble."

"True, but there are many more controllable elements this way."

Zuko's eyes blazed. "All right. We'll do it. We'll get the flags up first thing in the morning and keep the deck cleared of all life. That'll help us look sick."

"Should I see to it myself, milord?" asked Reiko.

Zuko looked at her, met her silvery gaze with his molten amber. Then his gaze softened slightly. "No. Go get some rest. You're no use to me if you're dead on your feet."

"As my Lord commands," she said, rising to go.

"One other thing," said the Prince. She turned to look at him. "Get more rest. I seriously have no use for you if you're dead on your feet. And that's an order."

As it just so happened, at that very instant the moon was shining down through the window, illuminating the patch of shadow that she had retreated to. All of her features were illuminated in that pale glow, her silvery hair and eyes gleaming in the light. And then she smiled, and the expression gave her a mysterious, otherworldly air, as if that slight quirk of the lips were enough to make her less real.

As Zuko looked at her, it dawned on him for the first time that this servant was extremely beautiful. She bowed in all of her willowy grace – and suddenly, the moonlight disappeared, and she was gone.

"I do believe that's the first real kindness you've shown to her this entire time," said his uncle.

"She isn't like the others on board," he said. "She never complains about how tired she is, or how her joints ache."

"Perhaps you should be more astute."

"I'm as watchful with her as I am with the others, but still I can find no fault in her. One would almost think her a warrior, to keep her hours and still be able to function."

"You have to be more careful with cute girls like her," said Airoh, leaning in conspiratorially. "Work them too hard and they age before they're due."

Zuko blinked. "What do I care? She's a servant."

"Oh isn't it obvious? She's utterly dedicated to you, moreso than any other servant you have on this ship. I think it's pretty plain what she wants."

"To be a concubine?"

"No, nephew," sighed Airoh. "I think she wants to be friends."

"Friends? With me?" The Prince snorted. "I don't do that, remember?"

"True, but there's no telling whether that's a good thing or not."

The Prince shook his head and finished the rest of his tea. "I'm going to bed," he said, and began to extinguish the lanterns one by one.

---

Zhao smiled to himself, taking a deep breath of the sea air. Today was going to be the day, the day when the Avatar was captured. Then this whole business would be put to rest, and the admiral would be able to go back to the important things, like the war. That damnable prince would be out of his way as well – without an Avatar to capture, his naïve sense of honor would keep him banished forever.

With no prince to take the throne, the odds of Zhao's succession would look positively stunning. But that was in the far-off, and he had to concern himself with the present.

His fleet was aligned along the southern coast, on constant alert for any sign of that bison the Avatar rode. The catapults were already deployed and loaded, and Fire Benders were standing by to ignite the ammunition at a moment's notice. If those countermeasures failed, there were the experimental rounds, but he doubted there would be a need for those.

Assuming the Avatar broke through here, he would have to break through the ships blockading the cove where the Tribe 'city' existed. But it wouldn't be there much longer, not with the land forces he'd deployed from those ships to attack directly.

No food, he mused. No trade. No aid from the other Tribes. They'll be completely cut-off. He grinned. We'll crush them flat into the ground!

"Admiral!" Zhao turned to see one of his soldiers standing down below. "The Shen has just reported a sighting of the Avatar, coming in from the southeast, bearing north northwest. They're requesting orders."

About time. "Open fire," he said. The soldier bowed and signaled the flagman, who began signaling the neighboring ships. Zhao looked to the skies and… yes, there he was. The ships continued cruising in their old pattern, but he saw red balls shooting from the ships in the area. The bison dipped in and out of the smoking trails, falling into the clouds. The rounds followed them in, the clouds disappearing in a steamy haze, but the bison was already descending to the sea.

Don't they already realize that such is a particularly poor idea? he asked himself before he saw exactly how low they'd gone. The bison was skimming the water, and suddenly he saw that the closer they came, the more difficult it would be for the rounds to hit them. His mind raced through strategic alternatives. Of course the Fire Benders would unleash their powers on the beast as it passed, but there was the chance that they wouldn't be able to bring it down. And once they passed, again, obtaining firing solutions would prove almost futile.

"New signal!" he shouted to the soldier down below. "Tell the ships to move faster. We'll ram that beast of theirs if they get too close!"

The soldier had a doubtful look on his face, but he saluted nonetheless and began running signals. All the ships began to move faster, maintaining the same pattern, and still the Avatar refused to change his course or altitude. "Ready!" he called out to the catapults as his ship came within firing range. "Aim!" Creaks and groans filled the air as the counter-weights on the catapults were adjusted. He could hear the port-side catapults adjusting as well; they'd have to take a longer shot if the Avatar made it past.

"FIRE!" A hail of fire swung up and out, flying toward the Avatar in a devastating arc. The Avatar began to duck and dodge the sprays of water, weaving left and right. One fireball did get close, but a wave of water erupted in front of the beast; helped forward by a gale wind, it completely consumed the projectile.

The Fire Benders onboard all rushed to the starboard side, sending gouts of flame to intercept the beast. It flew overhead. Two of the Fire Benders combined their attacks and shot a huge fireball after them, but the Avatar appeared over the tail and swung his staff. A gust of wind deflected the blast off in another direction where it proceeded to fade into nothing.

Zhao swore to himself. Those Fire Benders had abandoned their posts in their zeal to fight the Avatar. They would have to be punished for it, especially seeing as he needed them in place to use the experimental rounds. Ten lashes each and half rations for a week ought to teach them their place. He nodded, satisfied, and was about to retire to his quarters to figure strategy when a soldier hailed him.

"What is it?"

"Admiral, a Fire Nation ship is steaming towards us."

The admiral didn't respond but to pull a looking glass and peer toward the horizon. There it was, it-

"Zuko," Zhao growled. So the Princeling had come to play. But there was no sign of the royal pain anywhere on deck. In fact, the entire thing looked nearly devoid of life. It seemed to Zhao that they'd have to crush it (which he wasn't entirely against) when he noticed the flags. He read each one carefully, and his eyebrows raised as he pieced the signal together.

DANGER: HAS CONTRACTED PLAGUE. AVOID AT ALL COSTS.

He snarled. No way the little upstart would keep pushing with the Plague on his ship. He was responsible enough to know that they should have stopped at a port along the way and seen to medical aid.

… Then again, he pondered, if Zuko had been tailing the Avatar all this time, he had no doubt seen him somewhere and would have pushed on even with all his soldiers falling around him. He certainly seemed to be recklessly driven at this point, approaching the blockade as if it would part to let him through.

Which, the admiral realized, it would have to if it wanted to avoid the plague.

He gave the order to let the ship pass, but as Zuko passed by, a plan began to form in his mind.

---

"Ha ha! We made it!" crowed Sokka.

"We're here… we're really here," marveled Katara, staring at the arctic beauty.

"Yeah. Now we can make some progress," said Aang, grinning at Katara.

Shin, for his part, avoided the levity, looking down at the next blockade. It was an arced array, blocking off the cove where the Water Tribe city sat. But as they flew overhead, there was no real activity, aside from signals being passed.

Sokka thought he heard the young man say something, but when he looked back to check, Shin seemed so distant that it was hard to imagine him saying anything.

We finally made it, he marveled. Maybe we're not so hopeless after all.

---

Kishi: Wow. This turned out longer than I thought it would. And it kept me up late too. I do hope this gets at least another review, but whatever. Life'll go on regardless. And I'll still keep pumping these out.

Oh, and I forgot this last time:

Avatar: The Last Air Bender is copyrighted to people who aren't me. I don't know who they are, otherwise, I'd give 'em credit.

The only things I own in this story are those things that I perceive as being original, and thusly are mine. If you recognize something that you came up with first, all credit goes to you.

I have no clue where you can contact me. I think the address is in my profile…