"Complicated"
Avril Lavine
When they had landed they figured out from a map that they were only twenty miles from Ba Sin Sai. At first Sokka wanted to fly, but Kyle and Josh pointed out that Azula had probably stationed herself near the city, and by flying would only alert them to the their presence.
"Then what do you suggest we do?" Sokka demanded.
"We need to split up," Alex said as she adjusted the sword at her waist. It was a good thing she had grabbed it before heading up deck just before the battles had ensued.
Everyone looked at her. Josh, Tina, and Kyle looked as though they would follow her anywhere, but of course Sokka had to interject with his opinion.
"Maybe we should, I suggest me, Aang, and Katara go to the city, and the rest of you leave."
Alex didn't look up from tightening her boots, "Not exactly. You, Katara, and Kyle need to be separated from Aang."
"WHAT?" Sokka yelled at her, "Are you mad?"
Alex sighed and looked at him, "Azula walked toward Katara on purpose. Not to hurt her, but as a test. When Aang pushed her out of the way he showed Azula that he cared about her, which makes Katara a prime target. Just to be safe you and Kyle should stay away too, since you came with him."
"What would she want with Katara?" Aang asked.
Alex paused, thinking over the best way to tell him what she feared, "Aang—she wants to kill you, in the avatar state. I think she plans on provoking you by hurting or possibly killing someone close to you. Now she knows who that is."
"Why should we trust you?" Sokka demanded.
"Because she's got a lot more brains than you, so just shut up and listen!" Tina snapped at him. She turned to Alex, "You're the boss, where to chief?"
Alex nodded and surveyed the group, "All right, this is a large group so we need to be careful. Obviously Katara and Kyle will be together…and just for safety Josh should go with you. I guess Sokka will too." She looked over at Aang, "Aang and I will go separately, I'll bring Tina with me to make the other group smaller. Katara, your group will take Appa, to give Azula the illusion that Aang is with you, it may or may not work, but it's worth a shot."
"Oh no, I'm not letting Aang go alone with you," Sokka said bluntly.
"Well I'll be with him too," Tina said angrily.
Alex shook her head in wonder, "Fine, Sokka, if you want to come I can't really stop you."
Katara frowned, "But one bender to protect Aang? Will that be enough?"
"I think we'll manage, thank you," Tina said dryly.
"All right, let's head out. My group will head west around to the back entrance to the city, you guys go east the same entrance hopefully she won't figure out our plan."
An hour later Alex and her group were trudging through the densest part of the forest.
Aang looked at Alex, who was at the head of the party, cutting branches with her sword, "Why would Azula want you dead?"
Alex paused momentarily to glance at him before continuing, "Because if she were to be banished or marked as a traitor-I would take the throne."
"But what about Troy?" Tina asked.
"Who's Troy?" Sokka asked from the back. For once his tone was calm.
"My older brother. But he renounced his title as a lord, it would skip over him."
"So why don't you renounce?" Sokka asked.
She stopped and looked at him over the heads of the others, "If it was a choice between doing what I wanted and what was best for my country, it would be my duty to choose the later. I refuse to let Azula take the throne." She turned and hacked at another branch.
Sokka went to the front and pulled out his machete, "Here, let me help."
She looked at him oddly but nodded and fell back to let him lead, sheathing her sword, which could use with a good sharpening.
Meanwhile, the others were walking through a clearer part of the forest. Josh and Kyle were eagerly catching up on everything that was happening, and Katara was staring straight ahead.
Would that Azula girl really—kill her?
She shook her head, she was being silly. After all, didn't she have the upper hand here? Wasn't fire's greatest weakness water?
She sure hoped so.
Her thoughts drifted to that of the Firebender girl, she sensed there was something about her that was unusual. She also had an eerie about the three newcomers, especially the ones that were with her now. Kyle had had such vague knowledge of their world that she suspected that maybe just maybe, he wasn't from their world at all.
