Ba Sing Se
November 10th, 1940
Michael felt the wind blow against his head as his Panzer IV sailed through the grassy plains that laid outside the Si Wong. It felt so peaceful, with him feeling like it was only him and the wind. Back when life was so much simpler.
The Spezielle Panzerkorps had been sent east to help stop the Fire Nation attack on Soviet forces. For the past two days, the Soviet advance on Ba Sing Se had stalled due to both logistical reasons and staunch resistance from Fire Nation defenders who were acting as the rearguard.
They rounded over a hill and were greeted by another field with a thick tree line at the other end. They rolled down the hill and began to approach this tree line.
Michael knew that the Fire Nation could be anywhere in the next few miles. They could be in trenches. They could be in the tree line. They might be on the other end or the tree line or on the other side of the hill. They were masters at attacking from easily defendable positions.
Then, Michael felt something whizz past his head and the tank to his right exploded in a shower of flames.
"Contact! In the tree line!" Franz shouted. Of course they were in the trees Michael thought with a snarl.
Then he dropped into the tank and shouted, "Get us somewhere safe driver! Is the gun loaded?"
Kurt nodded, "Aye commander!"
Michael aimed down the sights and saw ten Fire Nation medium Zoryu tanks exit out of the brush. Michael however was not filled with fear until he saw two giant hunks of steel limbering out of the woods too.
They had only heard bits and pieces of a new Fire Nation heavy tank, one even more powerful then the KV-1. It was the heavy Agni 1 tank, a menace to the Panzer IV
Michael moved his sights to one of the smaller Zoryu tanks. He aimed for the frontal plate around the area of its frontal machine gun. This was where the Zoryu tank was weakest. It was a terrible design flaw.
After Michael fired, the round impacted the turret right where Michael had planned. The Zoryu stopped moving and its gun drooped down.
Kurt pushed open the turret and loaded another round into the tank with a grunt. Michael aimed for another Zoryu and fired again. The round bounced off its thick side armor and hit a tree, sending it tumbling down on another Fire Nation tank.
"That was convenient," Kurt commented.
"Tell me about it," Michael replied.
There was the click of another round being loaded into the gun and Michael decided that now would be a good time to shoot a single round at the giant Agni tank.
He aimed for the tracks of the tank and fired. It flew through the air and hit right on target. The tracks exploded and the Agni tank was crippled.
"I hit the Agni tank!" Michael cried in happiness. "It's knocked out for good with one of its tracks." The other three laughed joyfully. Too bad Paul wasn't there.
The Fire Nation tanks were eventually forced to retreat back to wherever they came from leaving five knocked out tanks still on the field. There was one Agni and four Zoryu's.
The Agni tank was taken away back to Germany to be used in a new German heavy tank. The Zoryu's were taken apart to be used for parts.
However, Michael and his group would continue to push forward until the Fire Nation rearguard was forced to retreat, back to the hell where they came from.
November 16, 1940
"Ba Sing Se's walls are impenetrable!" Yelled the Soviet general. "We launch an attack on the walls and beat them down but at night, the wall always finds itself repaired."
"Earthbenders, probably the Dai Li," Sokka responded, with his hand on his chin.
"The only way to break the walls will be to infiltrate the city," commented the leader of the newly formed The Grand Peoples Earth Force. "The question is how to infiltrate the city."
There was silence among the group.
"I believe I have a plan to solve all our problems," the American general said, causing all heads to turn to him.
"And how do you suggest we do that?" Aang asked curiously.
"It will take a while to plan but the idea is to use a joint British, American, and German paratrooper unit to get into Ba Sing Se. But to do this we need to allocate the necessary resources. This includes planes, troops, and logistics," the American general said.
"Ve also need to prepare resources to perform a heavy push ven the paratroopers land. Zey vill hopefully be able to buy us enough time to breakthrough into ze city," said the German.
Each general plus Aang and Sokka voiced their agreement. They had a plan and it would not fail. Ba Sing Se would be theirs.
December 14th, 1940
"Sokka, Avatar," the American General nodded at them.
"General."
Sokka saluted and Aang simply nodded.
"As you two have the greatest knowledge of the city, tell me if these drop locations are alright or are they in easily defendable areas?"
"Do we know who is in charge of defending the city?" Sokka asked as he inspected the locations flagged on the map.
"We sent a few members of the GPEF into the city and they told us it was Fire Lady Azula," the General said.
Sokka nodded, "Then we're going to need Prince Zuko too for his insight."
Once Zuko arrived, he and Sokka sat around the table studying the drop locations. They and the American General would talk to each other in low voices, while Aang stood silently to the side.
"Azula is a tactical genius, on par with Sokka. But in recent times, I think she's starting to lose herself. But she's still a serious threat. I don't think she knows about the paratroopers. But we definitely can not land in the Upper or Middle Rings," Zuko explained.
"Why not, it would end the siege quickly?" the American asked.
"The Upper Ring is going to be heavily defended and it is probably the new headquarters for the Dai Li. Azula also resides there and going there is suicide. The Middle Ring is filled with nobles that I think would be unwilling to help us. They would turn us in for profit because I'm sure Azula will put up a bounty for any soldier that appears. It also won't take very long for the Dai Li to travel there," Sokka said.
"So our only option is the Lower Ring, am I correct?"
"Yes, it is. We can break open the walls and establish a foothold. Plus the population there hates Fire Nation rule and with our help, will revolt. It will be a long fight to take the rest of Ba Sing Se but if we land in the Lower Ring, our chances of being eradicated upon landing are lowered significantly," said Zuko.
The American General nodded and moved a few flags to new locations.
"We also need to find a way to defeat the problem that is the Dai Li. Suggestions?" Sokka asked.
"We drop earthbenders with the paratroopers. A member of the GPEF per squad. This way they can combat the Dai Li," the American argued.
Sokka and Zuko nodded.
"But it still leaves a few squads open without earthbenders. Any other suggestions?"
Aang for the first time stepped forward, "We can do it General. Us three combined can defeat the Dai Li. I can go with one squad, Sokka and Zuko can have another."
"Is that alright with you two?" The American turned to the other two mentioned people.
"Wouldn't have it any other way. Zuko and I can take down the walls as long as you have Toph on the other side. I would suggest having her drop from a plane but she's blind."
The American General nodded, "We can do that, May I suggest this location right here."
He pointed to a section of the wall where on the other side was a large road. "This is a gate and there will definitely be a sizable force there. But if the gate is taken, our troops can rush in. Madam Toph can help us break through the gate if you distract the garrison."
"That's possible," Sokka said and Aang and Zuko nodded.
"We'll give everyone radios with each of you being second in command of your squad. Both your squads plus a few others will try and take the gate while the rest secure key points. I wish you the best of luck men."
December 16th, 1940
"So you're the Avatar?" Squad Commander Ryan Larck asked when he saw a small fifteen year old come up to him.
"I am," Aang said.
Larck stared at Aang for a few moments then turned around to face his squad.
"Meet your new second in command soldiers," Larck gestured to Aang who waved.
A few waved back hesitantly but most stayed where they were sitting. There were fifteen of them plus Aang and Larck.
Larck turned back to Aang and lowered his head, "I hope you have military experience. It's gonna be bloody once our feet hit the ground," said he.
Aang nodded but gripped his staff a little tighter.
December 18th, 1940
"So this is the plane?" Larck asked. It was dark and about two o'clock in the morning.
The pilot nodded vigorously, "This is my baby. She'll get us through!"
Larck turned to the rest of the squad. "You heard the man, hop in!" He yelled.
The American paratroopers nodded and climbed into the plane. Aang was the second to last one in, the last being Sergeant Larck.
Aang found himself situated near the door of the plane, giving him a perfect view of the plane's wings. He watched the propellers begin to turn until they were moving faster than he had ever seen something move.
The plane moved slowly at first, as if it was in a long slow moving line. But soon, Aang felt himself lurch backwards as the wheels lifted off the ground.
Once they were in the air, Aang could already see the lights from the city. They twinkled like little fireflies dancing in a summer's night. But today, they were the target of the largest air invasion in history.
Looking around the sky, Aang saw hundreds of German, British, and American planes soaring through the air.
With a start Aang realized that the war had created its own peace. Nations that would never get along now did so with a common enemy. What Aang had always wished for his world had occurred on the other because of his own war. How long this peace would last, Aang didn't know. But still, it warmed his heart.
Then the transport planes began to shake. Flak exploded around them from the city below. When Aang looked back towards the others in his squad, he saw pale faces illuminated by a dim red light.
"We know what we have to do," Larck said to everyone in the plane. He received blank stares and nervous glances.
"Approaching the drop zone!" The pilot called out.
Aang heard a sudden explosion and looked out to see one of the transport planes diving towards the ground aflame. He watched as little things fell from the plane as it spiraled towards the ground. Aang tried not to think about it.
He looked back into the plane and saw men attaching hooks to a rail on the roof of the plane. Larck was to the side.
"We're over it!" Called the pilot.
"Go! Go! Go!" Larck screamed as men jumped from the plane one after another. Aang was the second to last person to reach the doorway.
"You don't have a parachute Avatar," Larck yelled over the wind.
"I don't need one," Aang yelled back before leaping from the plane staff in hand.
Azula stood on the balcony of the palace as she stared out at the approaching planes. She had been woken up again by the siren wailing. But no attack ever came. They were dropping stuff but she didn't know what.
"Dispatch the Dai Li, have them check whatever they're dropping out. Make sure they're not bombs or reconnaissance devices," Azula ordered one of her aides.
The aide bowed and rushed off.
"Also, get Mai and Ty Lee. We're going to check it out ourselves too."
When Aang jumped from the plane, he extended his glider. Around him were white little dots from parachutes as men glided towards the ground.
Honestly, he was surprised no one had realized that there were people dropping into Ba Sing Se. He had expected flames and rocks to be flying at them from all sides the second they got out of the plane.
It felt so peaceful. It was just him gliding through the air surrounded by little white dots. He felt weightless. As Aang glided around the city, he for the first time in a while, felt at peace.
Not even the planes with their wings on fire could disturb his mood. It just contributed to the beauty of the scene. But like all good things, it came to an end.
His feet were among the first to hit the cobbled streets of Ba Sing Se. He changed his glider back into his staff and waited for the others to land.
When they did, they had to take off their parachutes. After that Larck called them all to attention.
"We need to go four miles to the west to open the main gate. We're not the only squad doing this and we'll have support. But be careful of enemy soldiers. There's going to be a heavy amount of them out there. Also, be careful of the Dai Li, if your feet start sinking, call for Aang and he'll get you out in a snap."
The paratroopers nodded and they began to walk down the road with another group of paratroopers. Then rocks, sharpened to the point of a spear, flew at them.
"It's the Dai Li!" One soldier yelled out in fear.
Aang raised a wall of earth to protect his squad.
"This way, down this alley!" Larck ordered.
"But what about the Dai Li?" One of the paratroopers called out.
"Let them deal with it, we have an objective," Larck replied.
"But then they'll die without us!" Aang said in shock.
"Their job is to hold out long enough for us to take down that stupid gate," Larck said.
There was a sudden explosion from behind them. Aang looked back in time to see a man get gunned down by a tank. In response Aang snarled, and launched some pieces of rock at the main gun and machine gun of the tank, and both were destroyed.
A second later the tank exploded as three anti-armor rounds slammed into its exposed armor.
Aang's eyes widened in horror as he realized he had just doomed that tank crew. However they had killed others already. But did that mean he could kill them?
They began to walk through the alleyways of the city. Carefully and silently they creeped while Aang pondered this question. He didn't directly kill anyone but he did allow them to be killed. How many other times has this happened to him and he didn't realize it?
Would the anti-tank rounds still fly towards the tank if he didn't knock out its guns? Maybe the Americans realized too late that the Fire Nation tank was taken out and that they could have surrendered. Yes, that was it.
Then they reached one of the main roads that they had to cross. The first soldier who crossed, a private, received no problems as he sprinted easily across the road. The next person also had no trouble.
The third person though was gunned down as a machine gun further down the road lit him up more than a Christmas tree.
Machine gunner, down the road," one of the soldiers on the other side said.
One of the soldier's on Aang's side used the butt of his rifle to slam it against a window in the building they hid behind. He then climbed into the window followed by one other.
"Avatar, go with them," Larck commanded.
Aang nodded and followed the two soldiers who went through the window. The home was dark but it showed signs of people living in it.
One of the soldiers raised a finger to his lips. They creeped through the house until they reached a closed door.
Aang placed his ear against the door and heard a baby crying.
"There's a baby in there," Aang whispered slowly.
"We have to get through it," said the one with jet black hair. He moved his hand to the handle and tried to push, but the door refused to open.
"It's locked," he said, backing away with clenched teeth. He and the other soldier, one with blond hair, moved against the door and forced it open.
The door fell to the ground and the two raised their weapons prepared to fire. Instead, they were confronted by a woman holding her baby. She had tears streaming down her face faster than a waterfall.
"Please don't hurt us," she pleaded.
The two soldiers lowered their guns. "Sorry ma'am, don't mind us," said the blond head one with a thick southern accent.
They were about to leave when the woman asked, "Are you here to save us?"
"No, we're the vanguard," replied the black haired one.
They exited the building into a small courtyard. Aang stomped his foot, forming a series of steps for them to the two soldiers' shock.
They ascended the steps and leaped onto the roof of the adjacent building. They crawled forward until they reached the end of that roof.
"How much further?"
Aang glanced up and saw the machine gun a few more houses away. He held up three fingers.
"So one more house and we can shoot them."
"I think I have a better plan," Aang thoughtfully said after thinking for a few moments. "There should be a river a few blocks down. I can summon the water and overrun the position without any of you firing a single shot."
"Do you have to see the river?" The blond one asked.
"No, but it would be best if we get on that tall building right there," Aang pointed to a building a little further away.
"We can do that."
A few minutes later Aang was standing atop the building, able to see the river and machine gun position. He took a deep breath before making a sweeping motion with his hands.
The water rose from the river to the shock of the other two again. They were just getting continuously shocked all the time. Aang performed another sweeping motion and the water flew down the street.
The men manning the machine guns began to scream as the water began to rush towards them with a fury. They were swept off their feet and pulled back into the river, their screams drowned as they were pulled towards the wall.. The machine gun was also brought to the bottom of the river by Aang's will.
"Holy mother of God," the blond gasped upon seeing this display of power. Aang however grimaced, "That was tiring."
He raised his hands and formed three balls of air under them. Both men gasped in utter horror as they were raised into the air and forced off the edge of the building to the glee of Aang.
They soon arrived back with Larck and the rest after going on a joyride.
"Machine gun taken care of sir," they chorused together with a salute.
"Good, it should be another three miles away."
Once again, they creeped in utter silence as they approached the gate. They reached another road and were about to cross when the building across the street opened fire on them.
"Ahhhh!" One man screamed as he got shot in the shin. He outstretched hand out to them and Aang brought him closer with a little help from airbending.
"Medic!" Larck screamed as two men carried the screaming one into another building. The medic rushed in too.
"I got this!" Aang yelled as he raised a wall around the building firing at them.
"Move! Move! Move" Larck shouted as they quickly moved across the road and around the building. They found the back door of the building and huddled around it.
The blond soldier prepared to open the door while the rest stayed against the wall. He cracked it open and was instantly pummeled with bullets. He gasped for the air as blood slowly pooled around his body to the shock of the rest of the squad.
Larck took a grenade out from his belt and chucked it into the building. "Grenade!" He shouted.
The rest put their hands over their ears as a loud explosion rumbled from inside the house. Then it collapsed onto the soldiers inside.
Aang looked back at the blond one and saw that his breathing had stopped. He inhaled a sharp breath before they continued down the alleyways. Their numbers were now down to thirteen.
Aang could begin to see the gate out in the distance. He could feel the nerves running inside of him and wondered how Zuko and Sokka were doing.
As they were moving through the valley, suddenly Larck's feet began to sink.
"Hey, Aang!" He shouted in horror and Aang stomped causing his feet to come back up. He then swooped his hands and earth pillars catapulted them all to the roof tops.
After waiting for a few moments, they saw four Dai Li agents emerge from the ground. Aang immediately jumped down between them to the shock and horror of Larck, who thought that Aang had just signed his death warrant. How wrong he was. This was the Avatar!
A Dai Li agent immediately launched a rock at Aang who ducked. Said rock slammed into another Dai Li's reproduction area causing him to yowl in pain as he fell to the ground in a heap.
There were two Dai Li agents in front of Aang and one behind him. In unison they launched rocks at him at the same time forcing him to jump much higher than your average human can without airbending.
Once he landed though, he swept his leg across the ground sending one of the agents in front of him to the ground.
The one behind attempted to launch more rocks but Aang raised an earthen wall with a stomp. Aang raised his hand towards the last agent in the front and sent a gust of air sending the man stumbling back.
The other agent was able to leap over the wall and attempted to attack Aang from behind. Aang felt it coming and was able to duck just in time. He then raised a small pillar to slam into the man's chin knocking him out.
The agent who had been knocked down by Aang's air kick stood and turned his fists into rocks. He charged with a fury that Aang found easily dodgeable. After ducking under his strike, Aang ignited his fist with fire and slammed it into the man's chest, effectively knocking him out too.
The last agent who had been blown away by Aang's gust of wind began to attack again. Aang dodged the first few rocks before using airbending to speed himself up and get close and personal with the man.
Once he was, Aang was able to launch him up into the sky before sending him back down with the help of the air.
With all four agents down but not dead, Aang smiled and yelled, "We're clear!"
The rest of his squad jumped down from the building in a stupor after seeing the power of their second in command. They soon reached the gate without any more trouble and Aang saw some familiar faces.
"Sokka, Zuko!" Aang called with a wave.
The two mentioned people turned instantly and waved back. Both of their squads combined and together moved to the gate.
"So you're telling me that they dropped men from planes into the city and no one was able to stop them!" Azula screeched at the cowering scout.
The scout answered as fast as he could, desiring to be out of the woman's presence as soon as possible. "None of us realized what was going on. We thought it was an air raid and the next thing we know, we're getting shot at."
Azula grabbed the scout by his collar and hoisted him off the ground. "Where are they going?" She snarled into the scout's wide fearful eyes.
"To open the gates, we've stopped the ones at the east and south but the north and west ones could fall at any point."
"Then go to the west gate and order all soldiers to prevent it from opening no matter the cost," Azula ordered.
The scout nodded frantically and Azula threw him to the ground. "Go already!"
The scout stood and without hesitation sprinted away.
Azula turned to her two friends. "I suppose we have to stop the west gate all by ourselves," she drawled in fake sadness.
"Sounds like fun," Mai said in her bored tone while Ty Lee smiled happily at the idea of getting some action.
"So how was the drop?" Aang asked Zuko and Sokka.
"It was alright, a little nerve-racking though," replied Zuko and Sokka nodded.
"The height alone makes me nervous. Add that we're under fire from flak it was insane," Sokka said.
When the two squads got within half a mile from the gate, they were immediately under fire from bullets, rocks, and flame.
Aang stomped to create a temporary earthen wall to allow everyone to get to cover. They took up positions in side by side two floor buildings.
One of the paratroopers ran to the window with an SMG and began to fire with fury. The others soon joined him.
"Bit of a pickle we're in!" Sokka called out over the sound of gunshots and rocks slamming into the building's framework.
"Zuko and I will flank them. Sokka, make sure they keep laying down suppressive fire!" Aang shouted back. Sokka nodded and turned to Larck to tell him.
Aang and Zuko exited the building through the back door and walked a few blocks into the city. Then they turned and walked two blocks before turning back. They walked silently as they approached where they knew the enemy was.
Aang pointed to the rooftops and Zuko nodded. With the use of air, he was able to get them both to a perch above the battlefield. They could see the two houses under fire and the Fire Nation and Dai Li battling them. It was a rattling sight.
"Ready?" Aang asked.
"To become legends, of course," Zuko said with a small smile. They leaped across the rooftops and got behind the attacking enemy.
Zuko lit his hands on fire and jumped down. The first Dai Li agent never saw it coming. The next one fell to a strong fire kick.
When Aang jumped down, he raised an earth wall in front of the attacking soldiers. They stopped firing and began to chip away at the wall. This was when Aang chose to attack.
He leaped into the middle of them and sent an air gust to blow everyone flying backwards. He then created earth walls to pin them all against the wall. He lowered the wall and yelled to the two squads, "Come on!"
The two squads came charging in to defeat the remaining Dai Li agents. Upon seeing they were outnumbered, the remaining Dai Li retreated into the ground whilst under fire.
After this ordeal they rushed to the gate and reached it without any more issue. Near the gate was a line of sandbags for the purpose of it being some sort of defense.
"Everyone, set up along this sandbag line. I'd be surprised if there wasn't a major attack," Larck commanded and as with any soldier, they followed his orders. The road ahead was a palace road. This meant it was one of the largest roads in the city and would be perfect in getting logistics into the city. Hence why it was picked. It would also be easy for the Fire Nation to attack them.
Meanwhile Aang, Zuko, Sokka, and one of the demolition experts in the squad, stood inspecting the giant gate.
"How do we open this thing?" Zuko asked.
"There should be a gatehouse," the demolition expert said. But upon everyone looking around there was no gatehouse. Then Sokka looked up.
"Oh great, it's atop the wall."
"Zuko, stay down here, I can get them up," said Aang before raising three stone pillars for Sokka, the demolition expert, and him.
They entered the small building that was the gate house and were floored by the amount of levers.
"There has to be a locking mechanism here," the demolition expert said after inspecting the levers. Then Sokka's radio turned on.
"Sokka, we're under heavy fire! You better get that gate open before we get gunned down!" Zuko yelled over the radio. Sokka looked at the demolition man before turning to the levers.
Aang peeked out the window in the gatehouse just in time to see lightning and blue fire go flying.
"And Azula's here too!" Zuko frantically added
over the radio.
Aang looked down at the sandbags to see the members of his squad putting up a good fight against the Fire Nation soldiers, who were charging them. They were furious in their defense because they knew that the soldiers would take no prisoners. They had both everything to lose and everything to gain.
Meanwhile, Fire Nation soldiers were falling left and right but they kept on coming. None were brave enough to go against the orders of Azula. To do so was practically suicidal.
Zuko was sending fire from his palms like his life depended on it. He was using it as a sort of smoke screen for the American paratroopers to hide them from the bullets flying at them. It was actually very effective.
Aang created a series of small stones and began hurling them into the mass of red. Then there was a loud creaking noise and a large metal pillar appeared next to Aang.
"Did that do something?" Sokka asked, sticking his head out from the gate house.
"It raised this pole?" Aang pointed to the large pole in the ground.
"The gates unlocked! Now we gotta open it!" Sokka then went back into the gate house and began pulling more levers. Aang had a better idea though.
He ran to the other side of the wall and shouted. "The gate is open! You just have to push it!"
Toph who was near the gate smiled at Aang's words and sent two tons of rock into the gates. Aang jumped down so that he could warn his now squad, but he inadvertently left both Sokka and the demolition specialist stranded atop the walls.
"Hey!" Sokka shouted at Aang before sighing and deciding to just sit atop the wall for the time being.
"It could be worse," said the demolition expert as he took a seat next to Sokka. "We'll have the best view in the house!"
Sokka chuckled. "I guess we will," he said. The demolition expert reached into his pocket and took out two cigars.
"I was saving this for when we won but I think we have already, want one?"
Sokka stared at the two before sighing. Why not?
Meanwhile, when Aang's feet hit the ground, he instantly said, "The gates are opening!"
Larck turned to see the gates open up completely and he sucked in a breath. "Everybody, get out of the way!"
As soon as the gate was wide enough, men on animals that Aang knew as horses rushed in. The lead man had a trumpet and was playing a tune that Aang had never heard before.
Behind him though were a series of lancers that galloped ahead of the trumpet man and charged the Fire Nation forces. They wore sideways caps and were screaming as they forced their horses forward as fast as they could.
As Aang watched the horses gallop away, he saw Suki and Toph together on one. Toph was hanging on for dear life as Suki wore her traditional makeup, armor, and carried her sword.
Then a horse stopped in front of Aang. He looked up to see Katara with a wide grin. "Come on Aang!"
Aang hopped on and they rode in the second line of horsemen right behind the lancers.
The Fire Nation forces had stopped as if they had hit a wall upon seeing the cavalry. Then they turned and ran in the opposite direction.
"What are you fools doing! Attack!" Azula shouted. Then she saw the horsemen charging at her. Instantly, her primal emotions of fear took over and she too fled from the unstoppable force.
Aang watched this as what Katara called 'Cossack Cavalry' charged at the Fire Nation force. Fire Nation soldiers fled while shooting their weapons back occasionally. One officer fired his pistol once before throwing it on the ground so he wouldn't have to carry it. But man on the horse next to Aang shuddered, then fell off his horse before being trampled.
Then the lancers finally caught up to the Fire Nation. One of them fixed his hand position on the lance and threw it at a Fire Nation soldier. The soldier grasped his chest which now had a giant stick in it and fell flat on his face. The lancer then took out a sword and cut down another man to Aang's own horror.
Katara created a water whip and used it to slash at the fleeing soldiers. One swing and a soldier was whipped and flung to the ground in a heap.
Aang glanced behind his back and saw the infantry following close behind the cavalry with their own charge. Their screams however were nothing compared to those of the fleeing Fire Nation soldiers.
The logical thing they should have done was man machine guns and gun the Cossacks down. But the Fire Nation soldiers were anything but logical at the moment. The few men that did try to mount a defense were instantly cut down by swords and lances from the Cossacks. However, a few Dai Li agents raised giant walls to stop the cavalry.
Suki rode to the outside of the column and let Toph dismount much to her pleasure.
"Toph, giant wall fifty feet ahead," Suki said.
"I got it already," Toph replied as a ramp made of earth appeared allowing the horsemen to continue riding.
When the Cossacks reached the top of the wall, Aang created another ramp to help them down.
The final thing between the Cossacks and the end of the lower ring was a large trench filled with soldiers with rifles. But these soldiers also broke in the face of the charge and fled for their lives to the other side of the Middle Ring Wall. A few more ran into the houses and began to shoot from there, taking out the cavalry slowly.
Then the infantry arrived and they spread out, securing a large foothold in the Lower Ring. But the soldiers who had retreated to the Middle Ring now sat atop the wall taking cheap shots at the soldiers. That would be a problem for another day.
After shooting at them for a bit they halted. The Gaang regrouped near the main wall and enjoyed a nice reunion. At least until Toph asked, "Where's Sokka?"
Poor Sokka and the demolition expert were still stuck on top of the wall. Both their cries for help were left unanswered until after Aang found them. Once he did, they finally got down.
December 19th, 1940
News reached them the next day that the British and German paratroopers were able to open the gate on the north side of the city but had made little progress in. They were bogged down from a fierce resistance.
The attack on the south and east gates had also failed with the paratroopers becoming little bubbles in the city or trying to retreat back to friendly lines.
The only true successful story was the one that occurred in the west. The joint American and Soviet forces were able to overpower the Fire Nation through the charge of the Cossack cavalry and the sweeping American and Soviet infantry charge.
They set up fortifications quickly along the west palace road and took some key infrastructure around the Lower Ring before seeing heavy resistance.
However, the leaders of the GPEF were talking to the locals of the city to rebel and negotiations were going exceedingly well. Likely within a month, there will be a giant rebellion from the people of the Lower Ring to overthrow their Fire Nation oppressors.
In total, the operation was a success. The Allied forces were able to breach the city and begin the process of liberation. But the hard part was just beginning. The Fire Nation would be staunch in their resistance and the soldiers would have to go house to house to slowly dismantle Ba Sing Se.