Hardened Winds
Chapter II
Summary: Two years ago, Aang was betrayed by Katara, who fell for Zuko and ultimately led to the avatar's failure to defeat Ozai before summer's end. Hardened, the young airbender is now back with a full army and is on the verge of defeating the Fire Nation once in for all. Yet despite his belief of being in full control, nightmares of the past still haunt him. What will happen when Katara returns and a series of misunderstandings and more betrayals unveil? Will Aang be able to handle it all?
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"Aang, you should be more careful."
The ground was unnaturally hard and gritty. It was obvious that it had been visited by the Fire Nation. But she didn't care. She was too busy wrapping up bandages on his burned arm.
"I'm sorry, Katara."
He bowed his head to emphasize his apology, but he also didn't want her to see his face, which was reddening considerably.
"This is a rather bad burn, isn't it? I'll need to ask Sokka to get some herbs."
"Okay then."
When she was done with the bandages, she gave him a small hug, and suddenly his arm wasn't so painful anymore.
"You should be more careful, Aang," she repeated, with concern.
"I'm sorry, Katara."
And before he knew it, he was suddenly standing on the ground, in the dark. Blinking in astonishment, he had no idea where he was. Until he saw the faint outline of pagoda-like buildings. He then instantly knew that he was in the village where the spirit of Hai Bai lived.
And there was only one thing –one person- he saw clearly. Only one girl who was out of the shadows, protected by the light.
"Aang, please, the world can't afford to lose you to the Fire Nation and... neither can I."
The second those words slipped from her lips, he wanted to believe them. He almost did. But even in this darkened place, he remembered. And he turned his head away.
"But you could. And you did."
He looked around then, because he knew he was somewhere else. This time, it merely took him a second to figure out his location. A prison cell in Zuko's ship. Control, he thought, breathing deeply, I need to gain control.
But just then, she was there, in front of him, on the other side of the bars. She was smiling, and before he could tell her to go away, she reached for him and touched the arrow on his left hand.
Instantly, it glowed a dangerous blue, and he was clutching the bars, his tears streaming and burning his face. Why was this happening all over again? Why did he always… lose?
"Why, Katara," he sobbed, and although his eyes were closed, he knew she was vanishing, as quickly as she had disappeared from his life an eternity ago. "Why…?"
----- ----- -----
"Hum… today's such a wonderful day."
Sighing happily, the sixteen-year-old waterbender leaned onto the edge and looked down at the lapping waves that lazily bumped into the immense gray ship. She let the soft winds playfully tangle her brown hair while her cerulean eyes looked up at the white, cotton candy clouds above, all the while smiling dreamily. Another content sigh escaped her lips. Her home for the last two years seemed so dreary and despondent compared to the lovely scenery beyond, and she shook her head and frowned slightly as she looked at the somewhat dirtied floor beneath her.
"What's wrong, Katara?" a deep voice suddenly spoke up, and the girl immediately jumped and blushed.
However, when she opened her mouth to reply, her voice was steady and confident.
"I was just thinking about how beautiful today is," Katara informed the Fire Nation prince, who had just come to the bow of the ship to join her, "… and about how filthy the ship is."
"Yes, today is a great day to be on the water," Zuko muttered distractedly, but when he heard her insult his ship, he abruptly swerved his head towards her and countered: "The ship's not dirty at all! It may not be clean, but…" All words of defense died on his lips when he, in turn, saw the grimy floor, yet he quickly shook the subject off by pointing out: "This ship was designed for efficiency. Not for… luxury."
"Well then," the younger teenager folded her arms, "you might as well change that, because there's a girl on your ship now, and she prefers a lifestyle that's at least…" she quickly looked at her surroundings, "… sanitary."
The scarred boy glowered fiercely at her, but instead of reprimanding her harshly, he gritted his teeth before bending towards her and planting a soft kiss on Katara's lips. Another blush quickly rose to the girl's face, but when Zuko gradually pulled back, what he saw was a composed waterbender in front of him. However, the prince still knew her well enough to know that she was presently at least somewhat frazzled.
"There," he said in satisfaction, "that should shut you up about sanitation for a while."
Scowling at him, Katara thought about defying him and talking about the minuscule cabin she was forced to sleep in, not to mention the cramped kitchens and the rotting prison cells. But in the end, she decided to drop on the topic and instead leaned her head on his shoulders.
"Where are we going?" she murmured.
"To Haidad." Zuko's tone was firm and determined.
"Why?"
"There's some… business I want to take care of."
Katara nodded slightly, not bothering to pester him more about his 'business.' Zuko was always a little secretive, no matter how much she knew he loved her. But he did love her, and there hadn't been a moment when the prince hadn't informed her when necessary. The girl had learned long ago to just trust him, because constant poking in his affairs was guaranteed to lead into a heated argument. And why fight… she grinned, once again feeling the sweet sea breeze stroke her cheek, on such a nice day?
"What are you smiling like that?" Zuko unexpectedly asked her, looking strangely at her.
The Fire Lord's son adored her smiles, the waterbender knew, but he was never brave enough to admit it. Pride was a rather large obstacle, after all.
"Katara," the boy then started, clearly uncertain, "I think… you should know why we're going to Haidad. In case something happens."
Happy that he trusted her enough to confide in her this time, Katara slowly lifted her head from his shoulder and gazed tranquilly at his face.
"The avatar," Zuko said quietly, "is growing stronger and stronger with his new army."
"I know," she replied, ignoring the small twinge of guilt that she so suddenly felt in her heart; fortunately the uneasy sensation vanished just as swiftly.
"Yet my father still underestimates the airbender, thinking that he is invincible. The fool."
"I know."
"You think you're so smart, don't you," the prince finally turned to look at her, and although a normal person would've taken that as an insult due to his solemn tone, the sixteen-year-old merely smiled. "Anyway, through your sources and what I know, I'm sure that the avatar's resistance is planning to attack an important Fire Nation city soon. And it's most likely Haidad."
"You know my sources are never wrong."
And true to her word, Katara had always made sure that she only gained her knowledge directly from the avatar's army. Ordinarily, it wouldn't have been easy; after all, the Resistance had been trained to be suspicious of all people. However, the waterbender had been known as a close friend of the last airbender, and many of his men still did not know of her betrayal. Besides, who would suspect an innocent, waterbending girl from the South Pole?
With her slim figure and her large, warm eyes, she didn't seem at all capable of hurting others. And in a way, she wasn't. Katara didn't want to get information to hurt people. She was just doing her duty and serving the Fire Nation, because when the people would at last get used to the idea of a world ruled by one nation (which wouldn't be too long now), there would be no more fighting and solely peace. And people like her mother wouldn't need to die unnecessarily ever again.
The Fire Nation was only trying to conquer, not destroy, and it was too late to try to stop it. All the people could do now was to try to end the war as painlessly as possible, and that was Katara's mission.
"I'm going to Haidad myself," Zuko continued, and the girl redirected her undivided attention to him, "to warn the people that there's going to be an attack there soon."
"They'll probably not believe you, you know. To them, you're only a banished prince."
"I didn't forget about that," the eighteen-year-old sighed. "If I fail to warn them (which I probably will), I'll just patrol their coast from the distance. The avatar can only reach the city by water anyway, and I'll make sure I'll get to him before he gets to the city."
"You plan well," Katara grinned at him, "but I'm afraid that the Resistance will have more people than us. Do you think we'll be able to fend them off?"
Zuko heaved another weary sigh.
"I'm not sure. The avatar's army has grown rather powerful these years, despite what my father thinks. But no matter if we win or lose, we'll be helping the Fire Nation, and that's all that counts."
"You're so responsible, Zuko," the waterbender laughed, hugging him. "I'm glad you're still so determined to serve your people, even when… your dad practically abandoned you."
Just then, quiet, yet heavy footsteps could be heard coming towards to them, and the two adolescents quickly turned around to face an elderly, plump man with a platter in his hands that held two cups of tea.
"Uncle," Zuko greeted him.
"Ah, children, I see you're enjoying the gorgeous skies and the gentle winds today," he commented, smiling cordially. "Would both of you like some tea? It's ginseng, my favorite."
"Of course, thank-you," Katara answered kindly at the same time Zuko brusquely replied: "No."
The waterbender and the firebender exchanged a glance before the girl took a cup from Iroh's platter. She could feel the man's troubled, almost suspicious eyes on her, and she subconsciously shuddered. It appeared as if Zuko's uncle was always distant towards her, and although she had no idea why, she was a little frightened nevertheless. It wasn't the wisest decision making an enemy out of Fire Lord Ozai's brother.
Zuko, meanwhile, was gazing skeptically at the other cup of tea, but after a moment he grudgingly took it. Iroh let a smug grin briefly show on his face before he unexpectedly looked at the sky and sniffed the air.
"A storm's coming," he then said quietly.
"Again with your illogical predictions, uncle?"
The more experienced firebender huffed indignantly, but he was cut off by whatever reply he could've shot back by one of Zuko's less experienced men, who suddenly ran towards them, his eyes frantic.
"Prince Zuko," he managed a hasty bow, "I just saw a ship coming towards us. I think it may even be a pirate ship!"
Katara could see the boy grit his teeth in anger, and a light frown adorned her visage, too. Neither of them was fond of pirates, especially after that episode with the stolen waterbending scroll.
"Are you sure?" the prince barked.
"Pirate ship or not, it is coming to us."
"Let me see for myself."
Startled by that curt reply, the soldier babbled for a moment before turning around and jogging back to his post, the temperamental co-captain right at his heels. This left Katara and Iroh alone with their thoughts.
"Bad day for fighting," the retired general sighed after a few minutes, making the girl feel bemused and unsettled.
Zuko returned before she could throw her own comment, and judging by that deep scowl, he was far from pleased.
"I know that ship," he declared. "It's the avatar's! I knew they would be sailing to Haidad soon enough! Though where he got the pirate ship I have no idea…"
Katara immediately recalled that the young monk had also begun disliking pirates after his encounter with them two years ago. Aang must have changed… she mused, astonished.
"Uncle! Tell the men to bring out the catapults! I'm going to keep track of the avatar's ship!" Zuko gave his orders to Iroh, his voice tense and crisp.
"Bringing out the catapults…" the older one wondered out loud, "is that really the best decision, nephew?"
"Be quiet and do what I say!"
Iroh sighed but abided to the banished one's wishes, going back inside and alerting the others. After a moment, it seemed as if the firebender finally realized that Katara was still standing besides him, and he stared at her, obviously astonished.
"You seemed to have forgotten all about me," Katara pointed out, putting her hands on her hips.
"Of course not," Zuko said slowly, "I… uh… you should go back inside and find shelter!" he then changed the topic, which was really the coward's way out, the waterbender couldn't help thinking without a touch of amusement.
"Of course I won't just hide away and leave you idiots to fight for yourselves," she retorted, giving him a condescending look. "I'm staying outside and I'm going to fight like the rest of you, whether you like it or not."
As always, hating to be disobeyed, Zuko glared at her, but it didn't last long before he reluctantly gave in.
"Fine, risk your life up here," he told her, his voice deadpan. "But if you get yourself kidnapped, you'll be at the bottom of my priority list."
"Right," she said sarcastically, grinning at him mockingly before kissing him fully on the lips.
They stayed like that for a rather long time, but the second the sound of the rolling catapults reached their ears, Zuko gently pushed her away and began directing the crew, ordering them to position the catapults so that it faced west and commanding them to prepare the flaming missiles. Katara watched the hurried men as they worked together in sync to please the prince, her excitement rising in each passing second.
Soon, she was able to see the avatar's ship, and a moment later, the two ships were side by side. It did look like a pirate vessel, Katara noted, gazing serenely at their opponent. It was still rather far away from Zuko's ship, but Katara could distinctly make out its gleaming mahogany body and its pitch-black sail with the four elemental symbols in white drawn in the middle. Aang's pirates, the girl thought to herself. I wonder if they'll be as vicious as the last.
"FIRE!" Zuko unexpectedly roared, and Katara let out a gasp as she heard three huge missiles on fire whoosh above her. The high-pitched noise was horrid and deafening, and she could smell the acrid smoke.
Much to her bewilderment, she found herself praying. Please let them only hurt the ship. Please don't let the fire hurt the people. And abruptly, a terrible thought came to mind. What if… she thought, aghast and staring at the other vessel, what if there are people being burned alive there? A part of its deck was beginning to burn and Katara wondered what the people there were doing to try to tame the fire.
"They're coming towards us!" the Fire Nation prince bellowed triumphantly. "Get ready to fight, men!"
Blinking, the waterbender squinted at the small object on the water, which had somehow stopped burning and… yes… it was becoming larger and more threatening at every passing second. It was both a fascinating and a frightening sight. She stared at the looming vessel, fear beginning to mount inside her, and she was disgusted when she found herself losing her confidence. Get a grip, she chastised herself. After all, it wasn't the first time she had had to fight. Yet it had been a long while since the last time they had had to face an adversary, and an even longer while since the last time Zuko had been looking for a battle.
Plus, it was the first time she would have to be facing her former best friend. Please, her prayer became entirely different. Please tell me that Aang isn't on board. Please tell me I won't have to fight anyone… I know.
And then, the opponent was right besides them. The two ships were almost touching, and gazing at the crowd on the avatar's vessel, Katara realized that they were all pirates. Or at least… they were all dressed like pirates. And judging by their furious, almost savage expressions, they were playing their parts rather well, too. A teenage boy looking barely older than Zuko abruptly stepped up onto the edge of his ship, his thin face enraged and defiant.
"You think you can just bombard our ship and get away with it?" he snarled, pushing a strand of his long, black hair away from his face.
That was when the sixteen-year-old realized that half of the boy's bangs were… bright green? Staring at his hair and at his face, Katara wouldn't have been surprised to see a hook where his hand should've been.
"You were sent by the avatar, weren't you?" Zuko cried in reply, his expression equally bold and angry. "Any friend of the avatar's is an enemy of ours!"
"Moron," the pirate rolled his eyes and smirked. "Long live the avatar!"
He said the last statement with a touch of sarcasm, much to Katara's bemusement, and just as soon as he said that, he conjured a long wooden plank seemingly out of nowhere.
"Come on, men!" he shouted to the rest of his crew. "Let's kick some Fire Nation ass!"
A second later, he and twenty or so other people were on board Zuko's ship, all armed with swords, daggers, and bows and arrows. The girl then discovered that she was too close to the enemy, and she instantly retreated to a safer place within her own group before taking on a fighting stance. When she looked around, she saw that all of Zuko's crew had done the same. Just then, a small, blond woman stepped up besides the boy with the green bangs and murmured something in his ear, but the South Pole waterbender, still closest to the enemy, heard her words.
"Misaki, this isn't part of the plan. What about the reinforcements?"
Misaki frowned at her words.
"We have all the time we need, Gloria," he calmly whispered back, but when he saw her worried expression, he groaned and did the strangest thing; he looked at a few of his men to his right and gestured to them with his hands, and immediately, they nodded and withdrew back to their own ship.
Strange, Katara pondered, all the while reminding herself to tell Zuko about this later.
"Okay then," Misaki at last said out loud, smirking confidently. "Why don't we get this fight started?"
He then raised his two long, thin blades, which glimmered dangerously in the sun, and as if on queue, mayhem right away ensued. Katara barely managed to register what happened exactly when a tall woman clad in black attacked her with her dagger. The girl managed to dodge in time, although she could feel a cut opening in her arm where the weapon had touched her. The raucous clamor all around her was thunderous, yells and curses pressing hard against her ears, and it was so difficult keeping track of the woman, who had quickly vanished.
However, Katara knew the other still had sights on her. Her mouth set on a determined frown, she took a step back and gasped when she abruptly collided with someone else, and before she could turn around to see whether it was a friend or a foe, the woman in black was back, heading straight towards her with the sharp dagger aimed at her heart.
Shrieking, Katara put her hands in front of her, and she had no idea how she had managed to waterbend when her adversary was splashed by water, gasping and stumbling back. The girl, taking a deep breath, performed the water whip and let out a victorious exclamation when the whip sent the woman tumbling overboard. Sighing in relief, she had a quick second to look around and see that everyone seemed to be engaged in lethal combat before a dark-skinned man unexpectedly punched her in the face.
A cry of pain escaped her lips before she came crashing down the floor, and still dizzy by the blow, she could see the man preparing to step hard on her stomach. Fear was quick to overcome her, but apparently, Zuko was quicker as he unexpectedly came into the scene and gave the man a violent kick in the stomach before Katara had time to cower.
"Be careful!" was all he could shout to her before a stranger grabbed him by the throat.
Katara had no time to summon another water whip, because the two of them had already disappeared in the frenzied crowd. This is not good.
A rough plan soon came into her head. There were limits to her abilities, the waterbender knew. Her best option was to try to get as many people overboard, and that was exactly what she would do. Preparing a water whip, she looked for a suitable victim, and it was just as well that a scrawny man was at that moment rushing towards her, because a second later, he was flying in the air, a peaceful but somewhat agitated sea right below him.
Feeling herself once again in control, Katara smiled to herself, and her smile only broadened when she saw Misaki fighting furiously with Zuko, his blades swift with precision while he gracefully dodged the prince's flaming punches. Yet his back was to Katara, and she knew that the boy was too preoccupied to expect anything from behind. The sixteen-year-old prepared her water whip and lashed it out on Misaki with all her force, and he let out a cry of surprise and fell to the floor.
"I've got you," Zuko muttered, his fist on fire and ready to strike the final blow.
"No." The firebender rapidly turned his head to see Katara, who was gazing at him meaningfully with the water whip still at her side. "I've got him."
Zuko had no time to protest, because at the crack of her whip, Misaki was soaring on his way out of the ship, and elated at the fact that she had been the one to overthrow the captain, Katara punched her fist in the air. The fist soon went down, though, when another water whip appeared in midair and practically knocked Misaki back into the ship. Falling heavily to the floor, the boy grimaced and glared at the blond who had so quietly appeared in front of Katara, one hand poised in the air.
"You know," Misaki hissed, "you could have used a gentler way to save me."
"I know," the woman –was her name Gloria? Katara wondered- said nonchalantly.
Zuko, meanwhile, glowered at the two before raising both his fired fists in air, which became pointed at the fiery boy and the blond waterbender.
"Boy, do I really hate firebenders," Gloria sighed, and when the fireballs were unleashed, she extinguished them with a flick of her finger, releasing two small, yet powerful spurts of water.
"Go fight with your prince now while we girls have a heart-to-heart chat," the blond then ordered Misaki, and he and Zuko glared at her even harder. "Fine then," Gloria pouted, her face wearing a bored expression. "I'll make you."
She raised both of her hands, and a big wave rose from the sea only to forcefully push the two boys to the very back of the vessel. Just as naturally, Gloria soon made the wave recede back into the water, and Katara could only gape at how skilled she was in her art.
"I'm pretty good at this, if I do say so myself," Gloria, seeing the girl stare, laughed modestly.
"You're excellent."
"Why, thank-you," the blond told her, more please than ever. However, her face soon grew serious when she asked: "Now, I don't understand why such a nice girl like you –who can waterbend, no less!- is with the rotten Fire Nation. Especially when you can be a great and honored warrior of the avatar."
Katara frowned, although she should have known this subject was bound to come up.
"I'm happy where I am now," she politely but firmly informed the other waterbender.
"The Fire Nation is made up of scum," Gloria stated, and her previously serene azure eyes suddenly alighted with hatred. "It would be such a shame for you to be part of their mess."
"The Fire Nation isn't as bad as you think," Katara replied harshly, her anger rising. "They're not trying to hurt people. I think… I think you and your avatar are just looking for trouble!"
At that ruthless response, the older one scowled at her, and it was at that moment that two people –both on the same side, by the looks of it- decided to interrupt their conversation, their arms drawn and their faces feral. Gloria swiftly scrunched her face in concentration and made a quick motion with her hands, and a second later, two torrents hurtled past her and knocked the invaders unconscious.
"Look around you, child," the blond glanced at Katara, "look at what's happening."
A cool frown still on her visage, the teenager slowly turned her head around to scan her environment, and fear gripped her insides when she discovered that things were rapidly turning for the worse for Zuko's crew. The avatar's pirates were obviously well trained and resolute, and it wasn't as if they weren't numerous, either. It didn't appear to matter to them that they were dressed in soiled and torn clothes, or that most of them didn't have the ability to bend.
Their pale, drawn faces were grim, and their eyes had a glint of subtle pride. Katara felt a jolt when she realized that it was the same glimmer she had seen in Aang's gray eyes years ago.
"Yes, the avatar taught his students well," Gloria remarked at last, as if reading into her musings. "He could teach you, too, you know. He taught me quite a few handy things."
Katara snorted. It was ironic that the blond woman was recommending the airbender to her when she had been the first Aang had turned to in order to master waterbending. Though she had a feeling that Gloria would not want to know this.
All of a sudden, from the corner of her eye, Katara saw somebody stepping off the other ship to mount the plank, and her heart stopped when she recognized him. Haru. The boy had become taller and more muscular, his face presently glowing with a quiet confidence he had not had before. Besides that, though, he remained the same with his long brown hair and dark green attire. She abruptly took a step back, not wanting for him to see her, but judging by his animated façade, he had other things on his mind.
"Everyone… stop fighting!" he shouted, and when everyone ignored him, he scowled deeply.
What did he expect? Katara wondered, looking at him dubiously. After all, it was hard singling out a voice in all this boisterous fighting, and the girl didn't know how she had managed to distinctly hear him herself. Her eyes still on the new arrival, the waterbender raised her eyebrow when Haru then did a rather strange thing. Slowly closing his eyes, the earthbender raised his hands, and a few moments later, an enormous mass of coal shot up from the ship's chimney, sending sparks of fire as the coal itself remained suspended in midair for all to see.
That stopped all the chaos. Everyone stopped in their tracks to gape at the sight above, and when Haru seemed satisfied with their undivided attention, he slowly dropped the heap back into the chimney.
"I have important news from the avatar!" he thundered after a moment, and he drew a scroll from his sleeve.
In a flash, Misaki was at Haru's side, clearly irked by the earthbender's unexpected appearance. They quickly whispered between themselves for a few minutes, during which Katara noticed Haru giving the scroll to the other boy. When Misaki was done reading it, he had an unreadable expression on his face. Katara was wondering what it meant when someone lightly tapped her shoulder. She whirled around and came face to face with Zuko, who was gazing at Haru and Misaki with distrust.
"How did the earthbender get here?" he whispered to her. "He couldn't have been on the ship all this time."
For a short while, the girl also puzzled over this, but the mystery cleared when she saw a boat besides the avatar's ship –something that had not been there when the fight had started.
"He came from the boat," she then told Zuko, pointing at the smaller vessel, and the prince frowned.
Finally, Misaki addressed the crowd, wearing a small smile on his lips.
"Ladies and gentlemen," he began, his voice loud and clear. "The war is over."
Katara's eyes widened. Dread now held her in a strangling hold.
"You heard it right," the pirate captain continued. "The avatar's forces have captured Jennoh, the Fire Nation Capital. The Fire Lord has been captured by the avatar himself. We have at last… won this war!"
"No…" the waterbender heard her prince gasp behind her before a huge roar of victory arose from the pirates.
The war was over.
----- ----- -----
Gloria was ecstatic.
After more than a century with the merciless Fire Nation on the world's back… after all these decades when she had been hoping, praying for a miracle to end the war… after the years she had trained, she had fought against the enemy… they had finally won. The world was no longer held tightly by the Fire Lord's iron grip. They were finally free.
And for a smaller, more personal triumph, it had been her idea to directly tackle Jennoh instead of wasting time conquering Haidad. And look at that –they had succeeded. Take that, Sokka.
The firebenders all around her were frozen stiff in shock, and she laughed to herself as she pushed her way to Misaki, enveloping the young, inexperienced boy in a fierce hug. And for the first time, he tightly embraced her back, laughing.
"Long live the avatar!" he roared, whole-heartedly this time, and everyone around her –her comrades, her friends- repeated it enthusiastically after him, some punching their fist in the air while others embraced and giggled like children.
Looking at Misaki, she beamed when she saw his radiant face and his wide, warm smile. It illuminated his entire being, and for once, the woman saw him not for the rash, sarcastic, skinny adolescent he usually was but for the talented, generous, capable leader he could also be and had transformed into. Of course, she thought, the gradual transformation had started ever since the former pirate joined the avatar's troops, and in a way, everyone had changed for the better. Even me, she thought, laughing.
"Okay, men," Misaki said after a while, coming back to his senses. "Before we do any more celebrating, we have to make sure the Fire Nation scum is safe behind bars."
He glowered at all the men in red, and since they were clearly outnumbered and presently had nothing to fight for, they gave themselves up willingly, their faces ashen and dejected. Serves you right, Gloria pondered, her face now a mask of indifference. As she watched each firebender being led down to their own prison cells (Misaki had decided to take control of the Fire Nation vessel), she suddenly remembered the naïve, waterbending girl. Her eyes rapidly looked around, searching for her, and she then realized that not only had she vanished, but also…
"Misaki!" Gloria ran urgently to him. "Misaki! The girl and the prince! Where are they?"
The teenager instantly gasped and whirled around, looking furiously for the two, and when he also learned that they were nowhere in sight, he cursed out loud.
"Men!" he turned to five of his crewmembers who currently had nothing to do, relaxing instead at the edge of the ship. "That spoiled prince and his girlfriend have escaped! Go inside and look everywhere for them!"
On cue, they nodded and quickly headed inside. Meanwhile, Misaki had grabbed a random firebender by the collar and was now staring at the poor man in absolute loathing.
"You!" he spat. "Does the ship by any chance hide a small boat in which your captain can escape?"
The firebender looked uncertain, perhaps asking himself whether he should answer the question truthfully or not. But one glance at Misaki's livid visage and his silver blades told him that lying would most likely grant him a quick and painful trip to the Spiritual World.
"Yes, there is!" he answered quickly, his eyes still lingering on the blades. "But he's probably gone by now!"
"Gloria!" the boy barked. "Take five other people and go immediately to where the boat is!" He practically threw the unfortunate firebender to her. "And take this idiot with you. He'll lead you there."
"Right," the waterbender nodded and she motioned for five of her peers to follow her.
"Now you…" she turned to the captive, "you better lead us to the right place, or else I'll…" She made a small wave with her hand, and a ball of water immediately appeared. "You wouldn't believe the many ways I can kill you with just this little," Gloria warned him lazily, and the man was wise enough to pale significantly and scurry inside, quickly followed by the blond and the other five.
They immediately came into a dark corridor. The firebender was fast, swiftly slipping from one hallway to the next, but Gloria kept a constant eye on him, as well as making sure that her fellow comrades were always right behind her. Before she knew it, they had reached the stairs, and they all hurried down.
After all, it wouldn't be much of a win if the prince -a rather hefty prize- managed to escape, and remembering Misaki's previous joyous expression, the woman hated to think about how easily the adolescent's joy could be wiped away. A few minutes later, they were down to the lowest level of the ship, and only a door faced them now.
"The ship should be in this chamber," their captive muttered.
"He should be," Gloria repeated, and she hated how her voice presently had a hint of doubt.
Frowning and determined, the waterbender wrenched open the door, and when she saw an empty room of bare concrete, she clenched her fist and scowled.
"Go up to the deck as fast as you can!" she commanded the other five. "We need to tell Misaki! Maybe if we're lucky, we can still see the boat!"
Gloria bit her tongue in frustration before she grabbed the firebender's collar, literally dragging him behind her as she began hastily following her mates. As she moved from one corridor to another, she wondered why there were so many hallways, why it was taking so much time to get outside… Each passing second helped the enemy get away, and thinking about all the abominable things the Fire Nation had done during their years of ruthless conquest, the blond knew that the prince deserved no forgiveness. He should suffer.
Finally, an eternity later, she breathed in the fresh sea air. She let go of her load and dashed to the edge of the ship, scanning the peripheral waters carefully and hoping with all her might that she would merely see a tranquil, bare sea.
That was why her heart sank when she saw a small brown dot quickly sailing away, already too far for them to do anything about it. She hung her head, letting a deep sigh escape. A moment later, Misaki was besides her, looking into the horizon and letting out another crude curse.
"It's no use now," Gloria said quietly. "They're gone."
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A/N: This chapter was so much more interesting. I think… I hope. Yeah… (shifty eyes) It took a rather long time to edit it all (longest chapter I have so far), and I'm afraid that it may have more errors than the last two chapters. I'm sorry about that, and hopefully it more or less makes sense. Still, it was action-packed, right? And look there (fake gasp): some Katara/Zuko fluff! Minuscule, really, I know… but still there.
Okay now… I'm going to talk about Katara's reason for joining the Fire Nation, besides the fact that she has the hots for the Fire Nation prince. As some of you know and will probably complain about, some sources say that Ozai wants to exterminate all tribes except his own. That sounds rather stupid of him, and at first I didn't believe that. But then… why are the Air Nomads gone and the Water Tribes almost extinct? For a Fire Lord, Ozai is rather dumb. And Katara wouldn't want the genocide of her own tribe, would she?
Now… my (hopefully not too poor) explanation. She doesn't know what Ozai really wants to do. The only way she can know is by Zuko, and the latter hasn't seen or talked to his father for ages. And he was pretty naïve the last time he was with his dad, yes? And what about the extinction of the Air Nomads, you ask? Isn't that a clue enough? Well, it would be if Ozai was now trying to get rid of the Water Tribes and all… which he isn't. So genocides and holocausts… that's not what's in Katara's mind when she's serving the Fire Nation.
And I think the Air Nomads were eliminated by the Fire Nation because they lived in high mountains that were truly difficult to reach, as Aang pointed out in 'The Southern Air Temple.' Unless the Fire Nation managed to convince the Air Nomads to work for them, it had to destroy the Air Tribes. After all, it couldn't keep track of them, and airbenders can give major advantages to the other benders. Hopefully, my explanations will satisfy you.
Lots of reviews I got for the last chapter, despite its dullness. I thank you all!
Saucy Noodles: Yes, I'm glad the last chapter explained a little about Aang's new behavior. You'll know more about the avatar soon. And I hope you liked the slight Katara/Zuko fluff… or not.
Jaqq: Hazaa! I'm original! (victory dance) Anyway…. Does this chapter qualify as 'something that happens with Zuko?' Hope you'll review this chapter, too.
Rebel Thief Lava Wolf Cooper: Thank-you; I will!
Blackrosebunny: Don't underestimate yourself, Megan; you're doing very well in your writing. And see… I'm updating! Happy? Thanks for your wonderful review.
Fran: Thank-you for your awesome review and I'm going to explain more about the Aang-killing-a-prisoner thing soon.
avatarkgb: Much thanks and I will!
Ryuusui: That was a little confusing… were you talking about my OCs? And I can't wait for your next review!
aangsair: Tada! A new chapter! Hope you enjoy it and I will go deeper into the Aang-killing-a-prisoner thing… eventually.
MysticWaterBender3: Thank-you so much for all the nice things you said and yes… sad stories are fun!
dustbunny99: I'm glad you have such great hopes for my fanfiction (I'm so glad I actually have a plot in mind), and I think I have a good reason for the Katara/Zuko pairing. And if I don't… well, it's all about Aang anyway! (pushes Katara and Zuko to the edge of the page)
More and more reviewers. I feel so fulfilled. Keep it up! Anything else to say? Oh, yeah: next chapter won't be as interesting as this one, but hopefully it'll be slightly better than the first chapter. Constructive criticism is always welcome.
Review if you're nice.
