Wandering Firebender
Fifty Five: Destinies Converging
Three young men. One young lady. A group of four traveling through the Earth Kingdom, making their way towards the outer wall of Ba Sing Se. Three firebenders. The leader of the group, an earthbender, who was walking in front of the others, clutched his side, grunting in pain and discomfort. At the insistence of the lady, they stopped to take a break.
"Sit here on this rock, Alger." Marx said, taking him by the arm and helping him sit. Alger gently brushed his hand away as he sat down.
"I'm fine, honestly. I just need a moment is all." He said.
"I appreciate you keeping your word and coming all the way back here," Koda said as she stood by him. "But if I'm being honest, you don't seem to be in any condition to fight." She said, shaking her head. Alger sighed and looked down.
"I apologize for slowing us down. I know that I am being stubborn, but I must continue. With the comet arriving in three days, this is the fight that matters most. I refuse to sit on the sidelines." Alger said.
"A man of principle! I respect that!" Nezu said approvingly, "We got your back, Alger, don't you worry!" He promised. Alger smiled appreciatively.
"Thank you, Nezu. Never would I have imagined I'd have so many friends from the Fire Nation." Alger chuckled at how ironic this was.
"We're happy to help. Still, take it easy. Just because the war is ending doesn't mean your life needs to end too." Marx said.
"Very well spoken, my young firebending friend!" Another older voice spoke up. Koda got into her fighting stance, and all of them turned to see an old man with dark skin approaching them.
"Who are you?! State your business!" Koda demanded. However, Alger stood and held his arm up in front of her.
"It's alright! He's an ally. Master Rala! What are you doing here?!" Alger asked in shock. Rala chuckled.
"I heard there were some rogue firebenders and an earthbender traveling this way, liberating small towns and such. And I said to myself, 'Hey, that sounds like something one of my students would do!'" Rala answered with a laugh.
"This is your master, Alger? I didn't know you were a servant!" Nezu said.
"It's not that kind of master, idiot. He's a teacher." Koda corrected him.
"Haha, yes. So, despite your injuries, Alger, you still wish to fight?" Rala presumed. Alger nodded.
"Yes. Please, Rala, can you assist us?" He pleaded. Rala smiled and nodded.
"Of course. I will take you west, away from here." Rala said, starting to walk away from Ba Sing Se. The others stood up, but only Alger began following him right away.
"Wait, what about the city?! It's still under Fire Nation control!" Koda pointed out.
"Oh that? Don't worry, there's already masters here that will take care of that! You're needed west!" Rala said.
"For what?" Marx asked as the others started to fall in line.
"The Earth Kingdom army is preparing to intercept a fleet of Fire Nation foot soldiers out that way. I will take you to meet up with them. That is where your fight awaits." Rala answered.
"Oh man! A huge battle like that?!" Nezu exclaimed.
"The Earth Kingdom army wouldn't accept us to fight alongside them, would they?" Koda asked.
"I'll help smooth things over. I just so happen to have a few connections." Rala reassured her with a smile.
"Thank you, Master Rala. Will you be fighting alongside us?" Alger asked. Rala shook his head.
"No. I'm afraid my fighting days are over. I leave it to you four." He answered.
"I understand..." Alger nodded and fell silent.
"The destinies of many, many people are all coming together to be realized on one day. Your lives are all about to change dramatically. And not just you, but your friends, your contemporaries, and let's not forget about Elio all the way over at the North Pole." Rala said.
"Elio...I hope that he's alright." Alger said to himself. The others nodded in agreement...
Elio was feeling very nervous. Despite the swirling pit in his stomach, he'd made dinner. He'd organized everything in his little lodge, but was he really ready? Why did he feel like he was forgetting something...? Too late now! There was a knocking at his door.
Elio took in a deep breath and fixed his clothes. He went to the front door and opened it up. There, Cindra stood with a guard just behind her. She smiled at him, "Hey, Elio! Something smells good in there."
"Haha, yeah! Uh, dinner's almost ready. Please, come in. Thank you." Elio said, inviting her in. He closed the door behind her. Cindra removed her parka and hung it up on the coat rack by the door. She had a beautiful blue and purple outfit on underneath.
"Wow. That's a really nice look." Elio complimented her.
"Aww, thanks! I'm glad that you were able to get permission from the chief for me to come and visit you. We've talked, but it doesn't feel like we've actually gotten caught up, you know?" Cindra said as she removed her boots and walked further into the lodge.
"Yeah. We honestly haven't," Elio chuckled. "So I'm not the most experienced at cooking fish, but I tried to throw some Fire Nation flare on there. I think you're gonna like it!" He said with a smile as he walked back into the kitchen to put on the finishing touches.
"Can't wait! Where do I sit?" Cindra asked.
"Oh, at the table over there!" Elio answered, pointing to his dining table, which had been pushed up against the window overlooking the rest of the Northern Water Tribe. Cindra smiled and sat down.
"You really didn't have to cook, Elio. I could've brought something." She pointed out.
"Hmm? Oh no, it's fine! I think this is much better! Well, hopefully anyways. So, I have a lot to tell you, so we should probably start with what's been going on with you since you arrived here." Elio said as he served their food and drinks. He sat down across from her at the table.
"Me? Oh, haha, not nearly as much, I'm sure. Uh...when I came here, I found out that Ansel had a new burn scar from the invasion. And I started with waterbending lessons. That was honestly it. Other than that, things were honestly just...everything went back to normal." Cindra summarized simply.
"Oh yeah? Well hey, nothing wrong with that," Elio shrugged and chuckled. "You know, your brother, Ansel, reminds me of our earthbending friend, Alger. He says hi by the way." He chuckled again. Cindra giggled and smiled.
"Does he? Aww. Hey, Alger!" She pretended to greet him with a little laugh. Elio smiled and shook his head, and they began to eat.
"Hmm...mmm. This turned out pretty alright." Elio nodded approvingly.
"Pretty alright? It's good! You did good. It's spicier than I'm used to though." Cindra laughed and took a sip of her water.
"Oh yeah? Ha, my bad."
"No no, it's fine. It's really good, thank you," She smiled at him. "So tell me everything! Start from right after I left!" Cindra said excitedly.
Elio chuckled and started to think back to everything that he'd gone through. There was so much to tell! He had to really sort through everything, putting the pieces back together in chronological order. Finally, he started to recount it all again.
"Okay! Uhh...so I ran into Azula again like right after you left." Elio started out.
"Really?! Is that when she told you about the attack?" She asked curiously. He shook his head.
"No that was later. I just by coincidence ran into her and her friends. She came after me and chased me through this Earth Kingdom city, but I was able to get away with a little bit of help. It came very, very close, but I did get away in the end." Elio said.
"Really? Is Princess Azula really that good?" Cindra asked. Elio's eyes widened and he nodded.
"She's insane."
"Jeez...well I'm glad you got away. What next?" She asked.
"Um...oh! I met up with Sri and her family again! You remember Sri, right? From the desert?"
"Of course! How is she doing?" Cindra asked.
"She's alright. They'd sold everything and they were traveling to Ba Sing Se. Since I was going there too, I joined up with them and we got all the way to Full Moon Bay together."
"What's Full Moon Bay?" Cindra asked.
"Full Moon Bay is a hidden port. It has these big cargo ships that takes hundreds of people from the bay to Ba Sing Se. It took a whole day to sail there because of the hidden route and stuff. We had to camp there for awhile just waiting to get on a ship!" Elio added.
"Oh man! Well with hundreds of people, that makes sense." Cindra reasoned.
"Uhuh. Oh, and Suki was there too! So I got to catch up with her!" Elio remembered.
"Suki?" Cindra tilted her head.
"Oh, uh, Suki's a friend I met while I was working on the Yellow Horizon. I thought I'd mentioned her before."
"You mentioned the Yellow Horizon before, but not Suki."
"Oh. Well she's a Kyoshi Warrior I met, and she was working at Full Moon Bay, so she helped us out!" Elio explained.
"What's a...Kyoshi Warrior?" Cindra asked slowly. Elio chuckled.
"Oh, uh, they're a bunch of warrior women who follow the path of the previous Avatar: Kyoshi. They all live on an island called Kyoshi Island, obviously." He answered with a chuckle.
"That's so cool! Man, I wish I could've seen it!" Cindra giggled.
"Haha, maybe they could've showed you some moves." He chuckled.
"Yeah! You know I'll take any help I can get," She laughed. "So you went to Full Moon Bay and saw Suki, and then you went to Ba Sing Se." She summarized. Elio opened his mouth, but then paused. His expression sank a little.
"Actually...something happened before we left for Ba Sing Se."
"What? What happened?" Cindra asked with a concerned look, picking up on Elio's mood change right away.
"Um...you remember Cassian?"
"Yeah..."
"He followed me all the way to Full Moon Bay. He got a hold of Sri and I had to go against him. He wouldn't stop so...I-I...I killed him." He finally forced the words out. Cindra's eyes widened in shock.
"Oh, Elio," She quickly got up and walked over to him. Elio stood up too. She hugged him tightly and he hugged back. "I'm so sorry. I know he was your best friend...are you okay?" She asked in a soft voice. Elio sighed sadly.
"I'm doing okay. But it still hurts...a lot."
"I can only imagine." She said, looking up at him. Elio nodded, reaching up and pulling the collar of his shirt down. Cindra looked down and could see the burn scar on his chest.
"His parting gift to me," Elio chuckled sadly. "One here, and one on my shoulder." He said. Cindra's expression saddened more. She pressed her fingers on the scar.
"I'm so sorry, Elio. I...don't know what else to say. I'm here for you." She said. Elio nodded and hugged her again.
"I know. Thank you." He said. Cindra hugged him back, resting her hand on his chest. After a few moments, they let each other go.
"Let's, um...you wanna keep going?" She asked.
"Yeah. Yeah, there's still more." Elio cleared his throat and nodded. He sat back down and took a sip of his water. Cindra sat down too, but she was still concerned for him.
"We can save it for another time if you want." She offered. Elio shook his head.
"No, it's fine, really. I'm okay." He said to reassure her.
"Okay," She nodded. "So what happened next? Ba Sing Se?" She asked.
"Yep. Sri's family could only afford one ticket, so it was just the two of us on the ferry ride to Ba Sing Se."
"Oh wow." Cindra said, contemplating how Sri must have felt.
"Yeah. We were given a place to live in the Lower Ring. It was...not a nice place, honestly. It was pretty bad, and crime was high. But I was able to get a job. Sri got a job too in the Middle Ring." Elio explained.
"Really? Ba Sing Se was bad?!" Cindra asked. After everything she had heard about the city being a safe haven, that didn't sound right at all. However, Elio explained it further.
"Ba Sing Se has different sections: the Lower Ring, the Middle Ring, the Inner Ring, and the palace. The further in you go, the nicer things are. Each section is separated by walls too." He explained simply.
"Oh! So you got stuck in the not so nice Lower Ring. Gotcha." Cindra nodded, now understanding.
"Yeah. But eventually Sri and I were able to earn enough money to move into the Middle Ring. And that's where we met Alger!"
"Alger! Oh wow!"
"Yeah. He actually has a house in Ba Sing Se and goes to school in the university there! We ran into each other while I was working and he invited us over for a meal. We all became friends, and he was helping us out with our house payments." Elio explained.
"Aww, that's so nice of him!" Cindra smiled, "I'm glad he was there to help."
"Me too. Things were good for about a month, but then I had another run-in with Azula." Elio said.
"Again?!"
"Yeah. She and her two friends disguised themselves as Kyoshi Warriors and snuck into Ba Sing Se. I actually spent a whole day with Azula and had no idea."
"No way!" Cindra exclaimed in shock.
"Yeah. So under her, the Fire Nation took over Ba Sing Se. She had me captured and took me back to the Fire Nation as a prisoner." Elio continued.
"That's how it happened?!"
"Yep!" Elio nodded. "I spent the next month in prison. My...family actually came to visit me while I was in there. I got to see them all again, although they weren't exactly happy with me." He shrugged and chuckled sadly.
"Oh, man...that must've been really hard."
"It was. But, my cell was placed right next to a man by the name of General Iroh. He's actually Princess Azula's uncle." Elio brought up.
"Yeah?"
"Yes. He and I started secretly training together, and we busted out of prison together."
"Whoa!" Cindra exclaimed, her eyes widening again.
"Yeah! So then we escaped to the Earth Kingdom. And from there, I made the journey here to the North Pole." Elio said.
"Ohh. So wait, when did Azula tell you about the attack?" Cindra asked.
"While I was in prison. She came to see me once or twice, and told me then." Elio answered.
"She came to see you? Well, I forgot that you two liked each other." Cindra chuckled.
"What? We don't...like each other." Elio said with a confused chuckle.
"I'm teasing you, dork." Cindra rolled her eyes and shook her head at him.
"Ohh...well anyways, after Iroh and I escaped, I made my way north and ran into Alger again. He helped me travel to the same town we said goodbye at, and from there it was a short journey here." Elio finished the story.
"Wow! Wow! You've been through so much, Elio! I can't believe it! When this is all over, you need to, like, write a book or something!" Cindra said. Elio laughed.
"Sure, I'll release a memoir," Elio rolled his eyes and chuckled. "That kind of covers everything. Honestly, I'm still leaving a lot out." He said with a chuckle.
"I bet! But still, it's amazing! You really have been busy. But I'm glad that you're here with us now." Cindra said, smiling warmly at him. Elio nodded and smiled back.
"Me too. Are you finished with your food?" He asked.
"Oh! Yeah."
"Here, let me get it for you." Elio said, getting up and taking their plates away.
"Thanks," Cindra said, watching as Elio put the food away. "I still can't believe you're really here." She brought up again.
"Yeah, I can't either! But it is nice, getting to spend time together again. I've missed it." Elio said, sipping his water. Cindra stood up, seeing that Elio wasn't sitting back down.
"Yeah, I have too, honestly." She admitted, blushing a little. Elio turned to look out of the window. The Northern Water Tribe still glistened beautifully, even at night.
"Your home is really pretty, Cindra. It's cold as heck, but still, I love looking at it." Elio said. Cindra giggled, standing next to him and looking outside too.
"Yeah. I agree. I'm glad that you got to see it. There's nothing like it." She said with a fond sigh. Elio nodded in agreement.
"Yeah...are you worried at all? About the comet? It's only 3 days away now. Less since it's nighttime now." Elio pointed out. Cindra let out a shaky breath.
"Yeah, don't remind me. I am scared...but we're as prepared as we can be now, I think." She said.
"Yeah...yeah..." Elio looked down at his cup. "I have to admit, I'm scared too. I don't know if I've got what it takes to make it through this." He said. Cindra turned towards him.
"Hey, don't think like that. You're an amazing fighter! We're both gonna get through this. Together." She emphasized that last word. Elio nodded.
"Yeah. We will." Elio said, smiling softly at her. Cindra smiled back.
"I'll be right by your side. If you get hurt, I can always heal you." She pointed out.
"True. True," Elio chuckled. His eyes drifted down a little. He noticed that she had on an Earth Kingdom necklace. "Hey, isn't this the gift I bought you?" He asked.
"Yeah," She giggled. "I thought it would be nice to wear it. What do you think?" She asked.
"It's great." Elio answered, smiling at her again.
The two of them looked at each other, a warm silence between them. Although nervous, the two wrapped their arms around each other and kissed. Then they wrapped their arms around each other tighter and just stood there, holding each other.
"I missed that too." Cindra said softly, sighing happily. Elio chuckled a little.
"Yeah. I'm glad we had this chance...to relax and everything before it's back to training and eventually the battle." Elio said.
"Yeah, me too. We should probably get some rest. It's starting to get late. My family will want me back soon." Cindra said.
"True. You should go then." Elio said, letting go of her. She blushed more, lingering close to him before turning and walking to the door. She put on her boots and her parka.
"Thank you for dinner, Elio. This was really great. We should do it again after the battle." She suggested with a smile. Elio smiled and walked over to her.
"Yeah, that would be nice. You can cook next time." He suggested with a chuckle.
"Sure," She giggled. "Can I...kiss you one more time before I go?" She requested, blushing hard. Elio chuckled and blushed too.
"Well, like I would say no to that." He answered humorously before they shared another kiss.
"Heheh...uh, goodnight, Elio." She said bashfully. Elio smiled at her and opened the door for her.
"Goodnight, Cindra. See you tomorrow at training."
"Sounds good!" She hugged him before hurrying home, waving as she left. Elio waved back and watched her leave before closing the door.
He sighed to himself and couldn't stop smiling as he got ready to go to sleep...
All available Fire Nation ships and naval forces were charted to set sail for the Northern Water Tribe. For some, it would be their second time going to the North Pole. For others, it would be their first time – such was the case with General Chinen.
In one of the lead ships, General Chinen, under orders from Fire Lord Ozai, had been partnered up with Admiral Huang with the task of taking down the Northern Water Tribe. The two men talked in a private room, going over the best strategy to accomplish this mission.
"The waterbenders gain their power from the moon, so we must avoid fighting when the moon is up at all costs." Admiral Huang started. General Chinen nodded in agreement.
"Of course. However, Sozin's Comet doesn't pass over until the afternoon. Do you think it would be wise to wait until it comes to start our attack?" He asked. Admiral Huang stroked his chin thoughtfully.
"I'm not so sure...we need to make sure that we are in the ideal position to take full advantage of the comet's power. If we wait until we have its power to start the attack, we'd be wasting time. Not to mention, we'll certainly have to fend against opposition before we even get to the city." Admiral Huang reasoned.
"Right...so I propose that we begin our attack in the morning when the sun rises, like last time. We will infiltrate the city and fight normally. The waterbenders won't be ready for our new weapons. We'll wear them out until Sozin's Comet arrives." General Chinen decided.
"And then we'll hit them with the killing strike!" Admiral Huang concluded with a grin. General Chinen nodded again.
"It's the ideal plan. Keeping the morale of our men up will be vital to our success. We need to outlast the water tribe. If they tire out before we do, our victory is guaranteed." General Chinen pointed out.
"You're much more of a people person, general. I'll let you handle that with one of your rousing speeches." Admiral Huang said with a chuckle. He went to a nearby table and poured two drinks for them.
"Heheh, I'll gladly take that honor then. Thank you." He said appreciatively as he took his glass from the admiral and began to drink.
"Mm. I have to ask though, how prepared are you for this invasion?" Admiral Huang asked. General Chinen's eyebrows furrowed strangely.
"What do you mean? Why do you need to ask that?" He questioned.
"I've heard word of your son's insolence. I just want to ensure that-"
"I'll stop you before you say something you'll regret," General Chinen cut him off in a threatening tone. "I assure you, my focus is clear. Fire Lord Ozai chose me for this mission, and I will not let him down." He said certainly.
"Good. That's all I wanted to hear." Admiral Huang said with a sideways smile before taking another sip of his drink...
