Chapter IV.
"You set up that whole thing!" Sokka shouted as he burst into Chief Arnook's private chambers. There were two guards trying desperately to contain the young man, and so far they were having little luck.
"Release him." Chief Arnook said from behind his desk. Sokka glared at the guards and then at Chief Arnook as he sat behind the wooden desk that had been a gift from the Earth Kingdom.
The guards let Sokka go slowly and bowed when Arnook dismissed them with a wave of his hand. "That's very astute of you Sokka. It was meant to look as if it were coincidence, at least to the merchants. I'll make a proper prince out of you yet."
"Well, let's just say I start to get suspicious when people start acting too nice." Sokka said warily. "Aang is downstairs trying to console Katara. She's blaming herself for what happened to Zuko. That IS what happened to Zuko isn't it?"
Chief Arnook sighed from behind his desk. "Yes, the real messenger arrived this morning. I counted it as good news, it made my plans much easier."
"Why did you have to go involving me and my sister in your 'plans'?" Sokka asked defiantly.
Chief Arnook stood up and walked over to the window and looked down into the square outside and then motioned for Sokka to join him. Sokka walked over and saw some children gathered in the square that were being taught to stand at attention.
"How old would you say those children are Sokka?" Chief Arnook asked.
"A little younger than I am, maybe as old as Aang." Sokka replied.
"They are. They're all roughly ten to twelve years old. They're being trained as warriors. After the last attack by the Fire Nation, we lost many good men. I had high hopes that assassinating Zhao would have curtailed the battle, but it wasn't meant to be, I suppose. If the Avatar had not been here, the North would have fallen." Arnook told him.
"Yeah, but Aang was here." Sokka said suddenly unsure of himself.
"Yes, but he cannot remain. The world is bigger than the north. He must leave soon to master earth. What will happen to us when he does? What will happen to those children when the Fire Nation attacks again? Ozai knows we cannot stop him." Arnook said wearily as he went back to sit behind his desk. "What I did was regrettable, yes, but necessary. THAT, little children, is how you defend a country without spilling the blood of its young."
"People think Katara is engaged to Zuko!" Sokka said finding his voice again. He moved away from the window so he wouldn't have to see the children training. It made it easier. He wondered if it was the reason that Chief Arnook had stepped away as well.
"Yes, and whether or not it is the truth is irrelevant. Often it is the belief in a thing that carries the power rather than the truth. To you, it was a joke. Something to hold over your sister so you could have a few harmless laughs at her expense. The truth didn't matter; it was just a joke. Well, I capitalized on that joke. If the right people believe in it though, Ozai is going to have a very uncomfortable summer." Arnook said looking down at his desk.
Sokka deflated and took the chair opposite the chief. "So you're just going to let Zuko die and let my sister feel the guilt for it."
"Sadly, a martyr will do me about as much good as a living prince. Also, it's not like I'm going to let the Fire Nation do anything. They're going to kill him and there isn't anything that the Earth Kingdom or I will be able to do about it. Besides, I was under the impression that you wouldn't really care what happened to the prince." Arnook said looking at Sokka.
"If he died, it wouldn't really hurt my feelings too much. He's been chasing us ever since we left the South Pole. I just don't want Katara to blame herself for it, and I'm not so sure she feels the same way." Sokka said seriously.
"Oh?" Arnook said with interest.
"Something I haven't told anyone is that when we rescued Aang and left Zuko behind, Katara kissed him before we left. I think she may actually be starting to have feelings for him." Sokka admitted.
"That is unfortunate." Arnook said looking off into space.
"It's bloody well more than just unfortunate!" Sokka said losing his temper. "You don't know Katara like I do. She'll demand we go rescue Zuko. He's saved Aang before, even if it was for his own selfish reasons. She won't let him die, it's not in her."
"I say it is unfortunate, because it is." Arnook said levelly. "We cannot allow Katara to go. You know that as well as I do. If she tries to go she will be captured and the hope of the north will die with the both of them. Right now, the people are looking to her as a sign that it might be possible to end this war without further bloodshed. Whether or not it is the truth, it is all they have."
"Aang will also want to go. He is too noble to let Zuko take the fall for this when he saved him." Sokka added.
"The same applies to him. Not only the north, but the entire world is resting its hopes on his young shoulders." Arnook said quietly.
"That might be, but I don't think you'll be able to contain Aang like you would Katara. He WON'T be stopped. You might reason with Katara, or if all else fails tie her up, but Aang can't be stopped that easily." Sokka said looking back toward the window.
"What would you recommend we do then?" Arnook said suddenly.
"Why are you asking me?" Sokka asked incredulously.
"Because like it or not, you are now a prince. For some time now you've had to concern yourself with the welfare of others above your own. I wish I could tell you the seas get easier to navigate, but I will not lie to you. This war and the people of the north are my concern. Your friends are yours. You will have to make decisions at times that will cause you to weep, it's all part of the life we lead." Arnook said seriously staring at Sokka to measure his response.
"You would have given Yue to Zuko if it meant bringing peace, wouldn't you?" Sokka said suddenly. The impact of his words seemed to strike Arnook deeply. He leaned back in his chair and sighed heavily. Arnook did not move or say anything for quite some time.
"And wept bitter tears the rest of my life." Arnook said nodding.
Sokka tried to find something to say. He couldn't. He wanted to get up and walk away from the north, but he couldn't do that either. Yue would have wanted him to help bring peace to her people. He also knew she would have willingly gone with Zuko to secure that peace.
Finally, Sokka decided on a course of action. It might have not been the brightest idea, but it was the right thing to do. He'd just have to let Katara think that she'd forced him into it. "Aang and I will go rescue Zuko."
Arnook nodded and looked over his desk. "I may be able to help."
"I'm open to suggestions." Sokka said finally.
"I have a prisoner down in the dungeon that can take you to Iroh and Zuko." Arnook said uneasily.
"A prisoner? Who?" Sokka asked.
"He's a Fire Nation captain. Iroh and Zuko 'commandeered' his vessel when they left the north." Arnook said smiling. "Apparently this old captain is a friend of Iroh's. If we tell him what we're planning, I think he might go along with it."
"So this captain can get us to the port where they're keeping Zuko and Iroh?" Sokka asked.
"Yes. After that, it's up to you." Arnook said seriously.
Sokka nodded and stood to leave. He headed for the door as he thought about what he might be able to accomplish. He also thought about how convenient it was that they had someone able to take them to Zuko. The thought burned at Sokka for a moment. He stopped at the door and turned back towards the chief.
"You set all this up again, didn't you?" Sokka accused softly.
The old chief was standing and looking out the window again. He didn't say anything for a moment before he grunted. "You're learning."
Sokka found Katara in her room. Aang was with her. Sokka entered and motioned for Nerise to leave. The young girl left with a worried expression on her face. Sokka didn't know how to soothe his sister, so he opted for the next best thing. He picked a fight in order to take her mind off things.
"Well, I guess we won't have to worry about Zuko any more." Sokka said with a smile as he stretched out on Katara's bed.
"Sokka! How can you say that?" Katara said as a new round of tears threatened to well up.
"Easy. He's been a pain in our neck for long enough, I guess it's his turn to get a pain in his." Sokka said giving a chopping motion to his neck.
Katara looked angry. Good, it meant she wouldn't be crying anymore. Sokka hated that more than anything else. He'd seen too much of it when their mother had died and their father had left for the war. So, he'd learned to pick a fight. It took her mind off things, even if it did mean he would occasionally get soaked.
Katara practically growled at him. She was definitely angry now. "We have to go save him."
"How? He's in a Fire Nation port surrounded by firebenders. The last time we had that problem, it took the intervention of the Blue Spirit." Sokka said stupidly. He immediately regretted it. He could see the wheels beginning to turn in their heads.
Sokka glanced nervously at the mask that Katara had already hung up in her room.
"Maybe the Blue Spirit is exactly what we need." Katara said thinking.
"They can't believe that Zuko is the Blue Spirit if they see the Blue Spirit and Zuko at the same time." Aang echoed.
"Why would the Blue Spirit rescue Zuko?" Sokka pointed out. "Even if he did you might as well sign Zuko's death warrant as a traitor."
The two seemed to deflate for a moment, but they wouldn't be deterred that easily. "I could let them capture me. That way the Blue Spirit could come and rescue me and then have to let Zuko go." Aang said quickly.
"There's no guarantee that they would take you to the place where Zuko was being held. The only way they're going to believe it is if they see the two of them together at the same time. They won't believe reports of the Blue Spirit enough to release Zuko." Sokka said looking up at the ceiling.
"I know you hate him, Sokka, but you could at least try to help us think of something instead of trashing all of our ideas." Katara said testily.
"I am helping. If these ideas of your can't fool me, then you're never going to fool the Fire Nation. Besides, it's not as if the Blue Spirit is a girl." Sokka shot back.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Katara said angrily.
"It means for this plan of your to work, you're going to need a Blue Spirit. You people keep talking about the Blue Spirit and Zuko as if they aren't the same man. It's not like he's going to show up without somebody to play the part. Someone is going to have to rescue Aang, which means he can't do it, and they would know something was up if the Blue Spirit suddenly changed into a girl. So I guess that narrows down the options of who is going to have to put on that mask and put his life on the line for this little adventure, now doesn't it?" Sokka had not meant for his words to hold so much venom, but he couldn't help it. He didn't like the idea of going to save his worst enemy and REALLY didn't like the idea of his sister starting to fall for him.
Katara looked down mollified. Sokka softened his tone. "Look, Katara if you want to save Zuko, fine. I'll do it, just come up with a plan that I can actually carry out without getting myself killed in the process. I have one other requirement too."
Katara's head jerked up and regained some of its contention. "What's that?"
"You're not going." Sokka said simply.
Katara came alive and looked ready to argue, but Aang stopped her.
"Sokka is right Katara. You shouldn't go." Aang told the girl.
"What do you mean? I can't expect the two of you to go off risking your lives trying to save Zuko for me while I stay here all safe and sound." Katara shot back at the Avatar.
"Yes, you can and you must." Sokka said stubbornly. "I can't be watching out for you AND Aang during this fight. We're going to be lucky to get out alive ourselves. The more people that go, the more chance there is that something will go wrong. You're a princess now, get used to other people risking their lives for you."
"Besides," Aang continued, "It won't be believable if you're there. If you show up they might realize that Sokka is the Blue Spirit."
"That would still mean that it wasn't Zuko." Katara said desperately. Sokka knew that she was fighting a losing battle, if he and Aang were both against her going.
"Yes, but what reason would I have to disguise my appearance? This has to look like somebody else who has a reason to remain anonymous, just like Zuko did." Sokka said finally. "It has to be this way Katara, or else I won't do it. I won't be forced to make the choice between saving Aang or saving you."
Aang and Katara looked at Sokka and then looked at each other. Both of them knew what was riding on Aang being able to stop the Fire Nation. Sokka and Katara had never discussed what they would do if they were faced with the choice of protecting the Avatar or protecting their sibling. Neither if them really wanted to think about it.
"Okay. I'll stay here." Katara said finally.
Sokka slowly let out the breath he had been holding so that the other two wouldn't notice. "I think Chief Arnook can get us to the port, but I need to look at the ships that were wrecked during the battle. I need to get a few things ready. I'm going to be facing firebenders and soldiers and I need to be prepared. Aang, we won't be able to do much planning for your actual rescue because we won't know ahead of time where you'll be kept or what the place looks like."
Aang nodded. "You think you can find some way for us to make it look like I've been captured?"
"If all else fails you can let yourself be actually captured once we're there." Sokka said seriously. "Goodness knows we've played out the scenario for real on more than one occasion."
Sokka got up and headed for the door.
"Where are you going?" Katara asked him.
"I'm going to get my supplies. I'm going to need every trick I know to do this." Sokka said to her as he turned to leave.
"Sokka." Katara said softly.
"Yes?" Sokka replied. He didn't turn from the door.
"Thank you."
Sokka didn't know if she was referring to the brief shouting match or his roundabout way of volunteering to help, but it really didn't matter. She was his sister, and he would do anything in the world to protect her. Sokka briefly nodded and set out to gather his equipment. Arnook could handle getting them in, but getting out was all up to him.