Disclaimer: I do not own A:TLA or any of it's characters. The only thing I own is my OC.
The Six Rules:
Rule Number One: Alec won't warn the Gaang about things in advance or solve their problems for them, with a few rare exceptions.
Rule Number Two: Only Alec has the right to tell people his true origins, and he will mostly limit this to group members. He will tell new group members his secret as soon as they join the Gaang.
Rule Number Three: There are some changes Alec wants to make, and he will use his knowledge of the future to make those changes.
Rule Number Four: Sometimes, to make a change, Alec will act in a way that doesn't make sense. If that's necessary, he'll tell the Gaang "I need you to absolutely trust me." After he says that, the Gaang has to either do whatever he asks or leave him to do what he needs to do.
Rule Number Five: After a change happens, Alec will tell the Gaang what happened in the original story, in the interest of transparency.
Rule Number Six: If a major change happens that Alec doesn't expect, the Gaang will have a meeting ASAP. In this meeting, Alec will break Rule One and tell them all relevant information that will help them figure out how to respond to the change.
Chapter 28:
Drill and Defection
Ty Lee POV
We sat in the command center of the drill. Azula, Mai, and I sat in what looked like a cross between a captain's chair and a throne. Azula had the biggest one, being the princess. Mai sat to her right, spinning a knife in her hand. On the outside, she was bored, but her aura was tense with anticipation. I felt guilty about what we were about to do. Mai and I had been friends with Azula since we met in school. But I couldn't fight for the Fire Nation anymore. Not after what I'd learned.
We weren't alone in the command center. There were over a dozen people in there, twisting knobs and pulling levers. I had no idea what those things did. War Minister Qin was also there, pacing back and forth. "This drill is a feat of scientific ingenuity and raw destructive power." He stated proudly. "Once it tunnels through the wall, our troops will storm their city. The Earth Kingdom will finally fall," He looked Azula in the eye. "And you can claim Ba Sing Se in the name of your father. Nothing can stop us."
I was keeping myself busy by looking through the periscope. "Hm." I said. "What about those muscle-y guys down there?" I spotted a whole platoon of guys in Earth Kingdom army uniforms in trenches right in front of the wall.
Qin suddenly knocked roughly against the periscope, making me jump. "Please," He said dismissively. "The drill's metal shell is impervious to any earthbending attack."
"Oh, I'm sure it is, War Minister Qin." Azula said sarcastically. "But just to be on the safe side," She turned to us, "Mai and Ty Lee, take the earthbenders out!" She ordered.
Mai stopped spinning her knife and stood up. "Finally, something to do." She said with relief.
When we walked through the corridors of the drill, I took the chance to whisper to Mai. "What should we do?"
Mai gave me a glance. "Play along for now." She replied. "We should avoid killing them, though. It'll be harder to convince Alec and his friends that we're on their side if we leave a trail of bodies. I'll aim for their clothes to pin them down. You knock them out with chi-blocking."
I nodded. "Okay, but what will you say to Azula if she asks why you didn't kill them?" I questioned.
Mai gave a smirk. "I have an idea."
Alec POV
"That's not good." Sokka said with a worried tone.
I gave him a look. "It's a giant metal drill over a mile long. I think 'not good' is a bit of an understatement." I snarked.
Ying looked at the drill, holding on tightly to Hope. "We made it to Ba Sing Se and we're still not safe. No one is!" She despaired, huddling with Than and Asha.
"What are you people doing here?" A voice called harshly. We turned and saw two guards in Earth Kingdom uniforms giving us a severe look. About time they noticed nine people, a baby, a lemur, and a ten-ton bison. If we were the enemy, we could have taken them out before they noticed us. "Civilians aren't allowed on the wall!" He barked.
Aang stepped forward and put on his serious face. "I'm the Avatar." He said with all the seriousness he could muster. "Take me to whoever's in charge."
One guard took the refugees to the nearest train station so they could enter the city proper. The other guard escorted us to a roofed-over area of the wall. We were led to an older man sitting at a desk. He had short, black hair in a topknot, and a Fu Manchu mustache and beard. His green and gold uniform was elaborate, it even had a cape. Don't get me wrong, capes are cool and all, but Edna Mode taught me that they're much more trouble than they're worth.
"My name is General Sung. It is an honor to welcome you to the Outer Wall, young Avatar." He greeted with a tone much too happy for the situation. "But your help is not needed."
Aang stared at him in disbelief. "Not needed?" He repeated.
"Not needed." Sung confirmed calmly with a smile. "I have the situation under control." He stood up and led us to the outside battlements. "The Fire Nation cannot penetrate this wall." He insisted.
"Yeah, and the Titanic couldn't sink." I thought to myself.
"Many have tried to break through it, but none have succeeded." Sung continued.
Toph crossed her arms. "What about the Dragon of the West?" She challenged. "He got in."
Sung seemed taken aback. "Well…uh, technically yes." He composed himself and raised a finger. "But he was quickly expunged."
I scoffed. "He wasn't expunged." I refuted. "He was winning when he left."
Sung raised an eyebrow. "If he was winning, then why did he leave?" He countered. He shook his head. "No matter, I've sent an elite platoon of earthbenders called the Terra Team to deal with the threat." He said confidently.
"That's a good group name." Sokka said, looking thoughtful. "Very catchy."
He walked off to observe the action through a telescope mounted on the wall. When he was gone, the others turned to me. "Can the Terra Team win?" Katara asked.
I scoffed and shook my head. "Not a chance."
Aang looked concerned. "Well, shouldn't we help them?" He suggested.
"No." Suki said sharply. "I've seen his type before. Stubborn idiots like him need to make a big mistake before they agree to get help or change their ways."
I raised an amused eyebrow. "Are you talking about Sokka?"
She grinned. "Yep."
"Hey!" Sokka said indignantly.
Suki grabbed his arm. "You were a stubborn idiot." She said warmly. "You got better."
Sokka warmed up at that. "Anyway." I said. "I'm gonna go watch the show." I pulled my telescope out of my bag and observed. We'd picked up a set for Aang, Katara and me during our last supply run. Sokka already had one, and if you need to ask why Toph didn't get one, I can't help you.
We set up on the wall. The Terra Team bent up massive columns of earth, wedging them into the drill in an attempt to halt it. The drill's segments separated, crumbling the columns to dust. "I can feel two people coming out of the drill." Toph reported.
I knew what that meant. Sure enough, I saw the Terra Team bend up a shield of earth in front of themselves, blocking a hail of knives. I moved my telescope towards the source, and I saw them. Mai and Ty Lee slid down the side of the drill. I kept my telescope on the acrobat. One of the Terra Team tried to bend a pillar under her, but she jumped ridiculously high and landed behind him. She knocked him to the ground with a few strikes.
Toph let out a low whistle. "Damn, I can feel those two from here. They're good."
"You weren't kidding when you told us how dangerous they were." Aang realized.
More of the Terra Team tried to attack, but Ty Lee kept dodging. Mai grabbed their attention by throwing knives, forcing them to defend. Ty Lee dodged circles around the earthbenders, knocking them down with graceful strikes. Spirits, she was beautiful…
"So, I'm guessing that's your soulmate?" Suki asked in a low voice so we wouldn't be overheard.
"Yeah, how did you know?" I confirmed, not taking my eye off the telescope.
"Because you're drooling." She replied with humor in her voice.
I think my body temperature must have skyrocketed. I quickly wiped my mouth on my shirt, completely embarrassed. I put the telescope back up to my eye. It looked like all the Terra Team had been defeated. They were all on the ground, motionless, but I was pretty sure they weren't dead. I kept my focus on Ty Lee. She turned around, and looked up right at me. Then she smiled and waved.
I felt my cheeks turn hot. Did she know I was here? Before I could process that information, General Sung started freaking out. "We're doomed!" He screamed, flailing his arms.
Sokka slapped him. "Get ahold of yourself, man!" He shouted.
General Sung rubbed his cheek. "You're right, I'm sorry."
Toph held her arms behind her back. "Maybe you'd like the Avatar's help now?" She suggested smugly.
General Sung turned to the twelve-year-old air nomad with a lemur on his shoulder. "Yes please." He said meekly.
Ty Lee POV
I turned to Mai and we made our way back to the entrance of the drill. "I'm sure they're up there." I said excitedly. "We have a chance!"
Mai raised an eyebrow. "How do you know?" She asked.
"I saw Alec's aura, and his friends'." I explained. "I'd recognize his aura anywhere."
Mai rolled her eyes. "If you're right, we'll take the chance." She said.
Alec POV
We gathered around in the wall. "The question is, how are we gonna stop that thing?" Aang asked. They all looked at me.
I shook my head. "Rule One." I said. "Not talking."
Everyone turned to Sokka. "Why are you all looking at me?" He asked.
"You're the idea guy." Aang replied.
"So I'm the only one who can ever come up with a plan if Alec doesn't talk?" Sokka complained. "That's a lot of pressure."
"And also the complaining guy." Katara snarked.
"That part I don't mind." Sokka admitted.
Sokka was trying to think of ideas. "How about if Toph wrecked it with metalbending?" He suggested.
Toph shook her head. "That thing is too big." She replied. "By the time I got halfway through it, it would be through the wall."
Sokka turned to me. "Can't you cut the drill bit off with a fire blade or something?"
"No." I replied. "It's too thick. There's no way I could cut through it in time. Plus, as soon as they realize something's wrong, they'll send soldiers after us, including Azula, Mai and Ty Lee."
We made our way to the infirmary. Katara was trying to heal some of the members of the Terra Team. General Sung was trying to help his injured troops. The local healers weren't making any progress. Katara looked over one of them and started bending.
"What's wrong with him?" Sung asked. "He doesn't look injured."
"His chi is blocked." Katara said. "I've heard of it, but this is the first time I've seen it in person."
I shook my head. "I've gotta admit, Ty Lee's good." I said with a hint of admiration. "She knows the human body and its weak points. It's almost like she takes you down from the inside."
A flash of inspiration crossed Sokka's face. "Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh!" He said excitedly.
Katara stopped healing and gave him a questioning look. "Yes?"
"What Alec just said!" Sokka exclaimed. He turned to me. "That's how we're going to take down the drill! The same way Ty Lee took down all those big earthbenders!"
"By hitting its pressure points!" Toph realized.
Aang walked over to the window and looked down at the drill. "We'll take it down from the inside." He said with determination.
Aang and Toph used earthbending to make a makeshift elevator that took us down to ground level. Momo was with us, but Appa stayed up on the wall. He was just too big to be stealthy. We hid in one of the trenches before we could be spotted. The drill looked even bigger up close. I turned to Sokka. "If we ever see the Mechanist again, remind me to slap him." I said.
Sokka gave me a confused look. "What does he have to do with this?"
I gestured towards the drill. "He designed that thing."
Katara pinched the bridge of her nose. "Of course he did." She said in an exasperated tone.
Suki and Toph looked confused. "Who's the Mechanist?" Suki inquired.
"Crazy inventor. He led a group of refugees to the Northern Air Temple." I explained quickly. "The dumb motherfucker couldn't keep a low profile, so the Fire Nation found him and forced him to build weapons for them, or else."
"Language." Katara chided. I ignored her.
Toph spoke up. "Okay, once I whip up some cover, you're not gonna be able to see. So, stay close to me."
She jumped out of the trench and landed with a powerful stomp, kicking up a massive cloud of dust with her earthbending that extended from the trench all the way to the drill. "Run!" She shouted. We followed her into the dust cloud.
Ty Lee POV
Mai and I made it back to the command center. I had a big smile on my face. I would get to see him soon! As soon as we entered the command center, Azula nodded at us. "Well done, you made short work of them." She raised an eyebrow at Mai. "Although, I'm surprised that all of them are still alive."
Mai gave Azula a flat look. "I was bored, so I tried to fight them without killing them. Self-imposed challenge to make things less boring."
Azula smirked. "Ah, I see." I think she bought it.
I sat back down in my seat and pulled down the periscope. I wanted to keep an eye out for them. I saw the dust cloud appear. I focused on it through the periscope. Despite the dust, I could see seven auras running through it. Six people and one small animal. I gasped. It was definitely them! I recognized most of their auras, except for one. A new person. That was exciting!
"What is it?" Azula said sharply, making me jump.
I needed an excuse. "That dust cloud." I said quickly. "It's so…poofy." I gave her a spaced-out look. "Poof." I added.
"Don't worry, Princess." Qin assured Azula. "I'm sure it's nothing."
Azula looked doubtful, but said nothing.
Alec POV
The good thing about running through a dust cloud is that your enemies can't see you. The bad part is that the dust stings your eyes and makes it hard to breathe. It felt like an eternity before we were close enough to the drill that we were in the enemy's blind spot. We were coughing every other breath, and a few of us had tears in our eyes, including me. Toph finally stopped and spun her arms like she was stirring a pot. A hole in the ground swirled open. "Everyone into the hole!" She barked.
Aang jumped down with Momo riding on his shoulder. Sokka followed close behind. Katara, Suki and I followed. Toph jumped down last and closed the hole behind us, plunging us into pitch black darkness.
"It's so dark down here." Sokka complained. "I can't see a thing!"
"Oh no, what a nightmare!" Toph replied, her voice dripping with sarcasm. I laughed out loud.
"Sorry." Sokka said sheepishly.
"Alec, why don't you give us some light?" Suki suggested.
"Bad idea." I replied. "Any fire I make might burn through all the air in here before we get out."
We all held hands while Toph kept earthbending a path forward for us. A few minutes later, a hole burst out of the ground, and we saw daylight again. We took a few seconds to get our bearings. We were underneath the drill. On either side of the drill, massive treads enabled the machine to move forward at a slow, steady pace.
Sokka pointed at something. "There!" He exclaimed.
I looked where he was pointing. There was an opening in the drill we could use to get inside. Aang ran forward and leapt up. He hung upside-down from a bar and held his hands down to help us inside. Momo flew inside the drill. Katara, Sokka and Suki had Aang help them up. Toph launched herself up with earthbending. I flew in using jet propulsion. We made it inside the drill. Now we had to bring it down.
We walked through the hallways of the drill. With the red lights and all the metal, the interior looked a bit like that of a Fire Nation warship, only much bigger and with a lot more pipes. "I need a plan of this machine." Sokka stated. "Some schematics that show what the inside looks like. Then we can find its weak points."
"Where are we gonna get something like that?" Aang wondered.
Sokka looked at a steam valve on one of the pipes. He pulled out his machete and knocked it off, filling the room with steam. Aang and Katara recoiled.
"What are you doing?!" Aang exclaimed. "Someone's gonna hear us!"
Sokka grinned. "That's the point." He replied. "I figure a machine this big needs engineers to run it. And when something breaks…" He trailed off to let us fill in the blanks.
"They come to fix it!" Katara realized.
"I'll take care of the engineer." Suki volunteered. "If they don't see signs of bending, they won't know it's us."
Toph raised an eyebrow. "You sure?"
Suki smirked. "I got this."
Suki climbed up the pipes like a spider, and held herself in the corner of the ceiling. Unless somebody thought to look up, they wouldn't notice her. The rest of us hid behind large pipes. A few minutes later, a big, burly engineer in a gas mask appeared, holding a massive wrench. He spotted the broken steam valve and replaced it, tightening it down with his wrench. As soon as he turned to leave, Suki dropped down on him from above, knocking him out with a blow from her fan. She took a coil of rope from her bag and tied him up, taking off his mask and gagging him for good measure.
We all came out of hiding. Sokka grabbed the plans from the engineer. "This'll work. Thanks!" He said to the unconscious man.
Toph turned to Suki. "Why'd you wait so long to take him out?" She inquired.
Suki smirked. "If we took him out before he fixed the problem, they might send another engineer." She explained.
Toph nodded. "Good thinking, War Fans." She complimented.
Suki raised an eyebrow. "War Fans?"
"She gives nicknames to everyone." I explained.
Sokka pulled out the plans and began studying them. "It looks like the drill is made up of two main structures." He stated. "There's the inner mechanism where we are now, and the outer shell. The inner part and the outer part are connected by these braces." He ran his finger along the illustration, indicating a system of support beams. "If we cut through them, the entire thing will collapse."
Suki got a thoughtful look on her face. "That's a lot of braces to cut through." She noticed. "It might be a good idea to make a distraction to buy us some time. It's only a matter of time before they find that engineer."
Sokka nodded. "You're right." He looked around at us. "Anybody have any ideas?"
I thought of something. "If you have a headache, but someone drops a hammer on your foot, you forget about the headache." I said.
Everyone turned to me with a quizzical look. "What do you mean by that?" Katara asked.
I smiled. "We're the headache, and Toph's the hammer." I said. "Toph, can you recognize different people by their footsteps?"
Toph nodded. "Yeah. It's how I tell people apart."
"Perfect." I said with a nod. "Okay, here's my idea. The rest of us will go to the braces and cut through them. Meanwhile, Toph runs through the drill making as much chaos as she can."
Toph looked like her birthday had come early. "Really?!"
Suki looked a little confused. "Why Toph?" She wondered.
Toph grabbed a piece of the wall and it crumpled under her hand, before it formed a gauntlet over her arm. "That answer your question?" She snarked.
Suki's eyes nearly popped out of her head. I kept talking. "Anyway, it would be best if the enemy didn't know who you are." I continued. "Do you have a way to stay hidden or cover up your identity?"
Toph grinned. She bent down and picked up a section of the floor. It began molding around her body. Once she was done, she was wearing a suit of armor, complete with a helmet that only had a small slit over the mouth to let air in and out, but didn't let enough light in that you could see there was a person in there. "How about this?" She said proudly.
I grinned. "That'll work. Just keep track of us. When you feel us leave the drill, get out of here and meet back up with us. Don't forget to have fun!"
Toph nodded and ran off down a corridor.
Zuko POV
Uncle and I were in an elaborate train station, waiting for the next train to take us from the Outer Wall to the interior of the city. I was trying to clear my head. I was also desperately trying to forget the sight of Uncle flirting with the homely ticket lady. I noticed someone sit next to me on the bench. I turned and saw that it was Smellerbee, with Longshot sitting next to her. "So, do you have any plans when you get to the city?" She asked.
I shook my head. "I'm trying to find my own way." I answered.
I saw a man with a tea cart walk past. "Get your hot tea here!" He advertised. "Finest tea in Ba Sing Se!"
Uncle perked up at that. "Ooh! Jasmine please!" He said with a wave of his hand. The tea seller poured some tea into a cup for Uncle. Uncle took a sip, but soon regretted it. "Blaugh! Ugh, coldest tea in Ba Sing Se is more like it!" He grimaced. "What a disgrace!"
"So," Smellerbee continued, "Can we talk for a second?"
She motioned for me to follow her. We walked several feet away from Uncle. Smellerbee turned to me. "So, you seem like a decent guy. Do you think you and your uncle would want to stick with us? It might be better for us in the city if we worked together." She offered.
I was taken aback by her offer. "Um, thanks, but Uncle and I need to find our own way." I refused politely.
She shrugged, and Longshot nodded. "Okay." She said. "If you change your mind, we'd be happy to help you out." She looked in Uncle's direction and her eyes widened for a second. She turned back to me with a serious look. "Look, I understand now that not all firebenders are evil, but your uncle should be more careful." She whispered.
My eyes widened. Smellerbee held up her hands in a placating gesture. "Don't worry, I won't tell anyone." Longshot nodded in agreement. They walked away.
I turned towards Uncle, nearly panicking. The cup of tea, which he had complained about being cold, was now steaming hot. I ran over and knocked the teacup out of his hand. "What are you doing firebending your tea?" I whispered through gritted teeth. "For a wise old man, that was a pretty stupid move."
Uncle sniffled. "I know you're not supposed to cry over spilled tea, but it's just so sad!" He mourned.
I rolled my eyes. "Listen." I growled. "Those two figured it out! We really need to keep a low profile."
Uncle's eyes widened. "They figured it out?" He whispered.
I nodded. "Yeah, but they said they know that not all firebenders are evil, and they said they won't report us."
Uncle nodded. "I see." He composed himself. "Very well. We'll need to be careful from now on."
Alec POV
Sokka led the rest of us through the inner mechanism to the outer shell. Once we walked out, we realized just how big the beams really were. "Wow." Sokka said. "It looks a lot thicker in person than it does in the plans. We're going to have to work pretty hard to cut through that."
Katara crossed her arms. "What's this 'we' stuff? Aang, Alec and I are gonna have to do all the work." She pointed out.
Sokka turned and gestured to himself. "Look, I'm the plan guy." He pointed to Suki. "Suki's the 'take out the guards' guy." He made chopping motions with his hands. "And you three are the 'chop stuff up with bending' guys." He struck a heroic pose. "Together, we're Team Avatar!"
Suki chuckled. Aang and Katara looked at each other awkwardly. I rolled my eyes. We quickly got to work. Aang and Katara positioned themselves on opposite sides of the brace, passing water back and forth to cut through the metal beam. I started cutting on the opposite side by making a fire blade and using it like a welding torch to slowly cut through it so my cut would meet their cut in the middle.
It took a lot of energy. When I was about a third of the way through on my side, I had to stop to catch my breath. Aang and Katara were doubled over and panting. Suki ran over to Katara and me to give us a drink of water. Sokka was attempting to be a cheerleader. He was just as annoying as the cheerleaders back in my world, but he didn't have any of the sex appeal. At least, not the sex appeal that I was interested in. "Come on, team!" Sokka cheered. "Don't quit now! We're…"
Katara and I turned around and glared at him. Katara made a water whip and I made a fire whip. Sokka got the message, and stared at us in fear with his arms still in the air. "I mean." He pointed reassuringly. "You're almost there!" He said.
We went back to work. A few minutes later, we cut through the brace. Instead of collapsing, however, the brace just slid a few inches. Katara sighed in frustration. "At this rate, we won't do enough damage before the drill reaches the wall." She said, panting with exhaustion. Suki came up and handed her a canteen. "Thanks, Suki."
"You're welcome." Suki replied with a smile.
"You've got a point, Katara." I said between sweaty pants. "I don't think we have enough time."
"I don't know how many more of those I have in me." Aang said, sitting on the floor to catch his breath.
Suddenly, we felt the drill rumble and we heard a groaning sound. "You hear that?" Sokka asked excitedly. "We took it down! We better get out of here, fast!"
We ran for the corridor, only to be stopped when we heard a voice through the overhead speaking tubes. I was impressed those things worked, given that they were a step above two paper cups and a string.
"Congratulations, crew." A male voice announced. "The drill has made contact with the wall of Ba Sing Se. Start the countdown to victory!"
"Well, fuck." I said tiredly.
"Language." Katara said, just as tired.
Sokka ran over and tried to push the brace, to no avail. "This is bad." Katara stated. "Really bad."
"We're putting everything we've got into busting these braces, but it's taking too long!" Sokka complained.
A flash of realization crossed Suki's face. "We don't need to cut all the way through." She said. "Sokka, take a fighting stance." Sokka obeyed. Suki walked over to him. "I was taught that you shouldn't put one hundred percent of your energy into a single blow, except for the final blow. It's better to hit a series of points." She struck Sokka in a few places on his torso, sending him reeling. "And then deliver the final strike." She knocked Sokka lightly on the head, making him fall to the floor.
"So, we just need to weaken the braces, not cut all the way through." Katara realized.
"Then I'll go to the top of this thing and deliver the final blow." Aang continued.
"And boom! It all comes crashing down!" Sokka finished.
"Everyone inside that wall. The whole world is counting on us." Aang declared dramatically.
"The whole world minus the Fire Nation that is." Sokka corrected, ruining the moment.
We made our way through the outer shell, cutting through the braces. Aang and Katara would cut a third of the way through on one side, and I would cut a third of the way through on the other side. Something was strange, though. If Ty Lee saw me earlier, why wasn't Azula right on top of us already?
While we made our way to the final brace, I decided to speak up. "It's possible we'll run into Azula." I said.
Sokka raised an eyebrow. "Even with Toph working as a distraction?" He questioned.
I nodded. "Azula's smart. She might figure out what we're up to." I answered.
"What do we do if we run into her?" Aang asked.
I shrugged. "Standard procedure, I guess."
Suki gave me a curious look. "What's standard procedure?"
"I say something to make her mad so she won't fight as well, then we run for our lives." I explained.
Katara pinched the bridge of her nose. "I assume you have an insult ready?" She asked, not looking forward to the answer.
I smirked. "Oh, you'd better believe I do."
Ty Lee POV
I was surprised we hadn't heard anything about intruders yet. Had I imagined seeing Alec's aura in the dust?
My thoughts were interrupted by an urgent voice coming through the communication pipes. "War Minister, an engineer was ambushed!" The man on the other end exclaimed. "His schematics were stolen!"
I kept myself from smiling. That had to be them! Azula narrowed her eyes in suspicion. Another voice came through the pipes. "War Minister, a brace on the starboard side has been cut clean through! It's sabotage, sir!" War Minister Qin looked like he'd seen a ghost.
Before we could react, we heard a third voice come through the pipes. "War Minister! Some thing is tearing apart the inner mechanism! We can't get a good look at it! It's knocking us aside like nothing! Oh Spirits. IT'S IN THE VENTS!" A loud crash interrupted him. Then we heard a sinister chuckle from the other side of the pipes that made my skin crawl. What was that monster? Was it some kind of spirit that the Avatar summoned?
Azula stood up. "Let's go ladies." She said sharply.
Azula, Mai and I made our way through the corridors quickly. I looked at the signs on the walls, and noticed we were heading to the outer shell. "Azula, why are we heading to the outer shell?" I asked.
Azula didn't glance at me when she answered. "Whoever's cutting through the braces is a more immediate threat." She explained. "This drill has multiple engines, but it only needs one to work. But if any part of the shell collapses, the drill will break." She narrowed her eyes as we rounded a corner. "I suspect whoever's tearing apart the inner mechanism is only a distraction. We can deal with them later. I'm almost certain the Avatar is involved."
Mai and I glanced at each other. Mai gave me a quick look that said 'not yet, but soon.'.
We made our way to one of the beams in the outer shell. We saw them on a nearby beam. The Avatar and the waterbender ("Aang and Katara." I reminded myself) were cutting through one side by passing water back and forth. Alec (Wow, he looked cute glistening with sweat) was cutting through the other side with some kind of firebending. Momo was sitting on Aang's shoulder. I wonder if he remembered me? I saw another person there. She was wearing a long green dress with black armor over it. She had white makeup with red markings on her face, and a gold headdress. She looked like some of the performers I'd seen in the circus. She must have joined recently. Interestingly, the earthbender wasn't there. I guess that made sense. How much damage could an earthbender do in a metal drill? The last one, Sokka, was cheering on the group. "Good work, Team Avatar!" He cheered. "Now Aang just needs to…" He noticed us just as Azula shot a fireball at him. "Duck!" He yelled.
Azula shot another fireball, but Alec jumped in front of it and blocked it. His fist was smoking afterwards. I remember Azula telling me that blue fire is hard to block. I gasped before I could stop myself. I needed to cover it so I didn't sound like I was worried about an enemy. "Wow, Azula, you were right!" I exclaimed. "It is the Avatar!" I smiled flirtatiously at Alec. "And friends."
Alec's eyes widened for a second, then he gave me a small smile. "Hi." He greeted. I could tell by his aura that he was happy to see me.
Katara turned to him and glared. "Alec." She said with a warning tone.
Alec blinked and then he remembered that we were enemies. "Oh, right." He said. He made a show of looking around the drill. "You know, this just proves my point." He declared.
What was he talking about? I tilted my head in confusion. Mai raised an eyebrow. Azula narrowed her eyes. "What are you babbling about, Hand Slicer?" She demanded.
Alec smirked. "Come on." He put one hand up with his index finger raised, and made an 'okay' sign with the other hand. "A giant, phallic drill." He moved his finger so it was going in and out of the hole in the 'okay' sign. "About to penetrate the walls of Ba Sing Se?" He said with a grin. "It looks like that little letter I sent you was right, Azula. Ozai's clearly compensating for something."
My hands flew over my mouth. If I laughed now, I would die! Mai's eyebrows shot up, which was the equivalent of open-mouthed shock for her. And Azula…I glanced to the side. Azula was furious. Her aura flared with anger, and I could see her gritting her teeth in frustration.
"Run!" Alec yelled. He and his friends booked it down the corridor. I jumped after them, as did Mai and Azula. We followed after them as fast as we could. When they reached a split in the hallway, Aang ran down the right hall with Momo on his shoulder, and the others ran down the left hall. When we reached the fork, Azula narrowed her eyes. "Follow them." She ordered, pointing down the left hallway. "The Avatar is mine." She ran down the right hallway.
Mai and I ran after them. Mai threw a few halfhearted knives at them that would have only grazed them at most, but the new girl blocked them with some kind of metal fan. Cool! Eventually the hallway reached a dead end, with a massive pipe labeled "Slurry pipeline". Sokka opened the lid on the pipe and they jumped down, one at a time. Mai and I reached the hatch and looked inside it. We saw a river of mud flowing through the pipe.
"Ugh." Mai shuddered. "Disgusting!"
I gave Mai a look. "Mai, I think now's the time." I said seriously.
Mai looked me in the eye and nodded. "You're right."
I gave her a hug. "Thanks for doing this with me." I said warmly.
Mai returned the hug stiffly. "We need to find our way out and meet up with them." She stated.
I smiled. "I know a way out." I started leaning over the open hatch, still holding on to Mai.
Mai stiffened. "Not again!"
We fell into the mud, and it carried us down the pipe.
Alec POV
That was, without a doubt, the second-worst pipe I'd ever been in. On the plus side, this one was full of mud, as opposed to shit. We all made it outside. The slurry was all being pumped out of the backside of the drill, making it look as though the drill was having violent diarrhea. We landed on the ground, sweaty, muddy, and a little tired. Katara picked herself up and started wiping herself down. Sokka made a groaning noise and started wiping off his tongue. Honestly, he needed to learn to keep his mouth closed while swimming through mud. Scratch that, he needed to learn to keep his mouth closed in general. Suki picked herself up. Like the rest of us, she was covered in mud. Interestingly enough, when she wiped the mud off her face, her makeup was still perfect.
I looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "Is that makeup waterproof?" I asked, genuinely curious.
She nodded while wringing out her sleeves. "Waterproof, sweatproof, tearproof, and it's pretty breathable, too." She listed.
I nodded. "Impressive." I wasn't sure if makeup could do that in my world. Then again, I wasn't an expert.
Suki's gaze shifted back to the waterfall of slurry. "We've got company!" She announced.
I turned and looked. I saw Ty Lee and Mai flowing down the pipe. That was strange. I didn't expect Mai to come down the pipe. While I pondered this, Katara jumped up and took a stance. She stopped the slurry's advance with waterbending, plugging up the drain and trapping the acrobat and the knife-thrower. I saw Ty Lee struggle to swim. Then she looked at me with pleading eyes and lifted up her arms, waving wildly at me. I could see her shouting something, but I couldn't make out what she was saying.
"Katara, keep that up." Sokka instructed. "The pressure will build up in the drill. Then when Aang delivers the final blow, it'll be ready to pop!"
I narrowed my eyes. My curiosity overwhelmed my caution. "I need to check something." I said.
Suki raised an eyebrow. "Check what?"
I didn't answer. I got into my Iron Man pose and flew up so I was level with Mai and Ty Lee. I flew close to them so I could speak to them. Their jaws dropped. "You can fly?!" Ty Lee asked with awe in her voice.
"Not as well as Aang." I replied dismissively. "Were you trying to talk to me?"
She nodded. "Yeah, we wanna talk!" She said enthusiastically. "Could you let us down?"
I had no idea where this was going, but I was curious. I nodded. "Sure." I agreed. "Give me a second."
I flew back down to the others. "They wanna talk." I reported. "Katara, could you let them down, and then go back to plugging the drain?"
Katara gave me a look. "Are you sure that's a good idea?"
I nodded. "Yeah. If it's a trick, we can beat them." I looked up at the trapped Fire Nation nobles. "I'm curious about what they have to say."
Katara dropped the water, letting Mai and Ty Lee flow down to the ground. Katara went back to plugging the drain. Ty Lee stood up and tried to wring the mud out of her braid. Mai shook the slurry out of her sleeves and gave Ty Lee a fierce glare. "I swear to you, I will get you for that." Ty Lee giggled in response.
Suki took out her fans and took a stance. Sokka drew his boomerang and stood protectively in front of Katara. I didn't take a stance. "So, what did you want to talk about?" I asked.
Ty Lee rubbed her shoulder awkwardly, but she still made it look cute. Was everything this girl did cute? "Well…um…the thing is…we…" She stammered. She was really nervous.
Mai gave her a look. "Go ahead." She encouraged her. "You can say it."
Ty Lee took a deep breath and closed her eyes. "We want to defect!" She announced.
Sokka looked flabbergasted. Suki slowly dropped her stance with a raised eyebrow. Katara almost lost control of the slurry for a second. I was trying to form a coherent response. I was hoping they would defect, but I wasn't expecting them to. At least, not this soon. I tried to think of the most eloquent thing I could say.
"Huh?" I managed to get out. Yeah, not my best moment.
Ty Lee swallowed and looked me in the eye. "We thought about the stuff you told us." She explained. "That, and some other stuff we learned made us realize you were right." She looked down sadly. "Azula is my friend, but I can't fight for the Fire Nation, not after what I've learned." She finished quietly.
"I see." I responded. I turned to Mai. "What about you?"
She looked me in the eye. "My reasons are simpler." She stated. "After what you told me, I can't work for Fire Lord Ozai."
I nodded. "That's fair."
Sokka cleared his throat from behind me. I turned to him. "What?" I asked.
He gave me a flat look. "How do we know they're not playing us?" He pointed out.
Suki looked thoughtful. "They seem sincere, but we need some way to confirm." She suggested.
I grinned. "That shouldn't be a problem. We just have to wait for Toph."
"You guys need some help?" A familiar voice inquired. Speak of the Shrimp, and she shall appear. I turned and saw Toph coming towards us, no longer clad in metal armor. She reached us and raised an eyebrow. "What are they doing here?" She wondered.
"Mai and Ty Lee say they want to defect." I explained. "Can you confirm that?"
Toph nodded. "Sure thing." She walked over to the two aspiring defectors.
Suki raised an eyebrow. "How will that help?" She whispered to me.
"Toph can sense changes in people's heartbeat and breathing when they lie." I whispered back. "This should tell us the truth."
Toph got close to the girls and clapped her hands. "So." She began. "Hand Slicer here says you want to defect. Is that true?"
"Yes." Mai answered. "Yep!" Ty Lee replied with an enthusiastic nod.
Toph asked another question. "Okay, are you planning on double-crossing us? Is this a trap?"
"No." Mai replied evenly. "Never!" Ty Lee denied.
Toph thought briefly for a few seconds. "Okay, I want each of you to tell me a lie. Don't question me, just do it."
Mai spoke first. "I'm twenty years old."
"I'm an only child." Ty Lee stated.
Toph nodded and turned to us. "They're serious about defecting, and they can't get past my senses, either."
I had to hold myself back from jumping up in the air. Getting Mai and Ty Lee away from Azula would make our lives a lot easier. I just hoped our conversation later would end well.
Katara grunted. "Toph, could you help me plug up this drain?" She said with exertion straining her voice.
Toph stood next to Katara and took a stance of her own, pushing the slurry even deeper into the pipe. A few minutes later, we heard a loud crash. I looked and saw the segments of the drill bursting, sending slurry everywhere. "Here it comes!" Toph yelled. She stomped down and raised a platform underneath us, elevating us over the increased flow of slurry. The drill segments began to collapse and release steam, much like an overheated car. The drill was dead. We had won!
Once the slurry stopped flowing, Toph brought the platform back to ground level. "We should probably get out of here." Mai suggested. "That drill is still full of Fire Nation soldiers."
Katara nodded. "Aang should be on his way, we need to meet up with him, then Appa can take us back to the wall." She reported.
Right on cue, Aang showed up on his glider with Momo. Aang was covered in mud, like the rest of us, but still smiling. "Hey guys!" His smile faltered a bit when he noticed the newcomers. "Um…"
I held up my hands placatingly. "Mai and Ty Lee are defecting." I explained. "They're joining us."
Aang smiled brightly. "Really? That's great!" He exclaimed happily.
Mai gave him a deadpan look. "He can't be that naive, can he?" She whispered to me.
I chuckled and shook my head. "Keep in mind, he's twelve." I defended. Ty Lee giggled beside me.
Sokka was still in a post-victory high. "We did it!" He cheered. "Things are going our way for once!"
There was a splashing sound as someone landed in the mud behind us. I turned around and saw the last person I wanted to see right now. Everyone but Mai and Ty Lee took stances and I gave Sokka a glare. "Sokka, why do you say things?" I asked with exasperation in my voice.
Azula looked at all of us and took a stance. "Let them go." She growled.
I saw Ty Lee shake her head out of the corner of my eye. "Azula, we're not prisoners." She said with a hint of sadness in her voice. "We're defecting." She admitted.
Azula's eyes widened. For a brief moment, I saw something there that I never thought I'd see: hurt. "What?" She said, her voice barely above a whisper.
Mai was much more blunt. "She didn't stutter. We're defecting, Azula."
Azula snarled. "You're betraying the Fire Nation! You're betraying me!" She shouted. "Why?!"
Mai gave Azula a glare. "I know what happened to Zuko." She explained simply. "You lied to me."
Azula scoffed. "Please, you're mad because your little crush got punished for his weakness?" She asked sarcastically. "You're betraying me for a weakling?" She spat the last word. She turned her gaze to Ty Lee, making the acrobat flinch. "And you. I've seen the way you look at the Hand Slicer." She taunted. "You know, he only likes you because you make it so easy. You're not a challenge, you're a tease. It's not like he actually cares about you."
I heard Ty Lee sniffle, and Katara and Suki growl. Oh, she was going down. "That's not true!" I exclaimed. "I care about her!" I noticed Ty Lee look at me out of the corner of my eye with wide eyes. "Aang, call Appa." I narrowed my eyes at the princess. "I'll take care of this bitch."
Katara didn't even correct me. I knew I was in way over my head, but I wanted to do something to shut Azula up. Azula raised an eyebrow. "Quite a mouth on you, Hand Slicer." She observed. "What would that filthy, Water Tribe peasant mother of yours say?"
Before I had a chance to retort, a giant wave of mud picked up Azula and slammed her into the side of the ruined drill. Azula fell to the ground on her back, alive, but completely unconscious. The rest of us turned slowly to Katara. Her face was twisted in rage. She got ready to prepare another wave, but Aang grabbed her wrists before she could. She glared at the airbender. "Aang, let me go!" She growled.
Aang shook his head. "You'd never attack a helpless person." He said gently. "She's beaten. I'll call Appa, and we'll get out of here." He offered.
Katara looked conflicted for a few seconds, but then she swallowed and nodded. "Okay." She said quietly.
I decided to inject some humor into the tense situation. "Way to steal my thunder, Katara." I said teasingly.
Katara blinked, but then gave me a smirk. "What, you think you could beat her?" She retorted.
I shook my head. "No, but I said I would." I insisted. "It's a matter of principle."
Katara rolled her eyes. "Boys."
Aang blew the whistle and Appa picked us up, carrying us back to the top of the wall. Ty Lee had a big smile on her face for the whole flight. Mai, by contrast, was paler than usual and clung to the saddle for dear life. Speaking of which, the saddle was getting cramped with this many people. We needed to do something about that.
Once we landed, we ran into another problem. General Sung approached us. Like the rest of us, he was also covered in mud. I guess the slurry had a bigger splash zone than I thought. He approached us with a smile. "Thank you, Avatar." He said with a gracious bow. "If there's anything I can…" He noticed Mai and Ty Lee and his eyes widened. He pointed at them. "What are they doing here?!" He exclaimed.
I probably should have seen that reaction coming. He must have recognized them from the Terra Team's failed assault on the drill. Ty Lee looked a little bit scared. Mai's face remained impassive. "They're defecting." Aang explained with a smile.
Sung wasn't convinced at all. "They attacked my Terra Team!" He shouted angrily. "All of them need medical attention!"
"Um, chi-blocking wears off after a few hours." Ty Lee said timidly. "They should be okay."
Sung ignored her. "Why should we trust them?"
Suki stepped forward. "Because we do." She said with an angry tone in her voice. "Your defense strategy was pathetic! If we hadn't been here, that drill would be making its way to the inner wall by now. Instead of questioning our judgement, you should be thanking us for saving your city and getting two new allies in the process!"
And so, General Sung, a member of the Earth King's Council of Five, was reduced to a stammering mess by a teenager. Eventually, he managed to gather his wits. He took a breath. "You're right." He admitted. He bowed to us. "Thank you for saving the city." He said with complete sincerity. "I'll send word to the city of your accomplishments. They'll most certainly accommodate you for as long as you require. In the meantime, we have an empty barracks that you may use for the evening."
Aang gave a polite bow. "Thank you." The rest of us followed Aang's lead.
An idea occurred to me. "General, could you not tell them where Mai and Ty Lee are from?" I requested. "The powers that be might be hostile towards Fire Nation citizens."
General Sung nodded. "Very well. I suppose if they're with the Avatar, it doesn't really matter."
With that out of the way, General Sung led us to an empty barracks on the wall. Appa waited just outside the door. As soon as we entered, Katara shook her arms, trying to get all the mud out from her clothes. She shook her head in frustration, then turned to our earthbender. "Toph, could you help me get the mud out of everyone's clothes?"
Toph cracked her knuckles. "Sure thing."
The two of them went around the room, bending the dirt out of everyone's clothes and hair. When they finished, we were all reasonably clean. Ty Lee smiled happily. "Thanks!" She said brightly, doing a small backflip where she stood. "That feels a lot better."
Katara gave her a warm smile. "You're welcome." She said sincerely. Toph just shrugged.
Sokka looked out the window at the ruined drill. "I just want to say, good effort out there today, Team Avatar!"
Katara put her hands on her hips, unimpressed. "Enough with the Team Avatar stuff. No matter how many times you say it, it's not going to catch on."
Sokka looked thoughtful for a few seconds, before a flash of inspiration crossed his face. "How about, the Boomerang Squad?" He suggested, pulling out his weapon. "See, it's good because it's got Aang in it. Boomeraang." He said, ruining the joke by explaining it.
"I kinda like that one." Aang admitted with a grin.
Toph facepalmed. I pinched the bridge of my nose. That name was the worst pun I'd ever heard.
"Maybe we should think of something else." Suki offered gently.
Mai shook her head at Sokka's antics. "How in the world did Azula have so much trouble catching you?" She wondered.
"Appa, mostly." I said with a shrug. I decided to give away the answer to avoid hearing more of Sokka's cringe-inducing names. "Officially, you were called Team Avatar. Unofficially, you were called The Gaang." I explained to them.
The people who were in on the secret gave me a look. "You mean the name did catch on?" Katara said in complete disbelief.
I nodded. "It's better than anything else Sokka could come up with." I pointed out.
Mai gave me a confused look. "What do you mean, they 'were' called Team Avatar?" She questioned.
I guess it was time to reveal my secrets to them. I opened my mouth, but before I could speak, I heard a loud growling noise. For a second, I thought it was Appa, but it came from the wrong direction. We turned to the source of the noise: a blushing Ty Lee, currently holding a hand over her stomach. "Sorry." She apologized. "Could we get something to eat?"
Luckily, the barracks had a fire pit in the center for cooking purposes. I started the fire, and Katara and I cooked a big vegetable stew for everyone. We hadn't had lunch, so we were pretty hungry. Everyone ate at least two bowls of stew. Sokka and I each ate three. The real surprise was Ty Lee. The rest of us, except Mai, who was probably used to it, watched with amazement as Ty Lee downed five bowls of stew.
Sokka pointed at her in shock. "How can you eat so much?!" He exclaimed, tactless as ever.
Ty Lee looked slightly uncomfortable. Mai shot Sokka a withering glare. Suki elbowed him in the ribs. Katara smacked him upside the head. Toph hit him in the forehead with a well-aimed pebble. Aang tried to give Ty Lee a comforting smile. I tried not to react, but the fire shot up about a foot before I took a deep breath to calm myself.
Mai turned to Katara. "I'm curious." She said dryly. "Does the Water Tribe have a different definition of manners, or is that just him?"
"It's just him." She assured her. "Sokka's mouth moves faster than his brain."
"That implies his brain moves at all." I snarked. Ty Lee giggled, all embarrassment forgotten. I looked at her empty bowl. "You know, that makes sense, actually."
Sokka rubbed the various aches and pains that he now had on his body. "What do you mean?" He asked.
I gave Sokka a look. "Think about it." I turned back to Ty Lee. "You're a hand-to-hand fighter that does a lot of high jumps, cartwheels and flips. And you're not enhancing your movements with bending. It's all you. That has to take a lot of energy."
She nodded. "Yeah, it does." She replied.
I took a deep breath. "So, I bet you two have some questions, huh?" I began.
Ty Lee and Mai looked at each other, then they nodded. "Well, we have a few questions about today." The acrobat replied. She turned to Suki. "You're new, right?" She asked curiously. "I'm pretty sure we haven't seen each other before."
Suki nodded. "I'm Suki." She introduced herself with a smile.
Mai narrowed her eyes. "Why do you dress like Avatar Kyoshi?" She inquired.
"I'm the leader of the Kyoshi Warriors, from Kyoshi Island." Suki replied. "We dress like her to honor her legacy."
Mai nodded. "I see."
Ty Lee turned to the Blind Bandit. "Excuse me, Toph?"
Toph turned to her. "What's up?"
"I was wondering, you're blind, right?" Ty Lee asked. Her tone suggested she was trying hard not to offend her.
Toph brushed it off. "Yep, can't see a thing." She replied.
Ty Lee tilted her head, curiously. "Then how can you fight so well?"
Toph grinned. "I see by feeling the vibrations in the earth." She explained.
Ty Lee's eyes widened. "That's so cool!" She whispered excitedly.
Toph smirked. "Thanks, Kitten. You're pretty good, too."
Ty Lee got a confused look on her face. "Kitten?" She questioned.
"She gives nicknames to everyone." I explained. I turned to Toph. "Why Kitten, though?"
Toph shrugged. "She's quick and light on her feet. Plus, she seems really nice."
Ty Lee smiled broadly. "I like it!" She turned to Aang. "I'm curious. What was the monster you used earlier?"
What was she talking about? Everyone except Mai got a confused look on their face. "What monster?" Aang questioned.
"The monster you used to tear up the drill while you cut the support beams." Mai elaborated.
I snorted and started laughing. The others joined in. Ty Lee looked confused. Mai raised an eyebrow. "What's so funny?"
I managed to calm myself down and answer. "There was no monster. It was Toph." I explained between chortles.
Ty Lee gaped at Toph. "How? You're an earthbender. How did you do so much damage to a metal drill?" She asked in disbelief.
Toph grinned and turned to Mai with an outstretched hand. "Can I borrow one of your knives?" She asked.
Mai raised an eyebrow, but pulled a knife out of her sleeve and handed it to Toph. The earthbender gave a little flourish, then she turned the knife into a ball, then a star, and finally changed it back to its original form and returned it to Mai. Mai and Ty Lee stared at her in shock. "You can bend metal?" Ty Lee whispered.
Toph nodded. "Yep. It's not too hard when you can feel the bits of earth inside it." She said proudly.
Mai inspected the edge of the knife. "I'm impressed." She admitted. "It looks even sharper than it used to be." She gave Toph an appreciative nod. "Thanks."
Toph smirked. "You're welcome, Knives."
Mai raised an eyebrow. "Is that my nickname, now?"
"Trust me, you got off easy." I said with a snort. "She still calls me Hand Slicer, even though I hate that nickname." I smirked. "But I call her Shrimp, so it evens out. Plus, I suppose it's not as bad as her nicknames for Sokka, Katara and Aang."
Ty Lee looked curious. "What are their nicknames?"
I chuckled. Toph pointed at each of the three in question. "Snoozles, Sugar Queen and Twinkle Toes."
Ty Lee laughed out loud. Suki gave a giggle. Even Mai cracked an amused smile. The three victims looked embarrassed. Then Mai frowned after the laughter died down. "They didn't mention metalbending in your file." She told Toph. "I guess they didn't know about it."
What? I turned to Mai. "What file?" I asked seriously. "What are you talking about?"
Mai turned to me. "After you escaped us last time, Azula sent a letter to Fire Nation Intelligence asking for all the information they could dig up about you. We got files about each one of you, except for Suki. Probably because she joined you recently."
That was distressing. I didn't even know the Fire Nation had an intelligence network. Then again, it made sense that a military power bent on world domination would have something like that. Sokka looked at Mai. "What did the files say about us?" He asked.
Mai turned to him. "They say that all of you are extreme threats to the Fire Nation, especially the Avatar." She replied evenly.
Toph raised an eyebrow. "Even Snoozles?" She inquired, making Sokka frown.
Mai nodded. "Apparently, they think he's some kind of genius strategist. They know he came up with the plan to defend the North Pole from Admiral Zhao, and the losses were so heavy that the victory would barely have been worth it if the Fire Nation won."
Toph seemed surprised by this. "Huh. Not bad, Snoozles." She complimented. Sokka gave a small nod. He was happy with the compliment, but the sheer amount of death he witnessed during the siege probably tempered his sense of accomplishment.
Something occurred to me. I turned to the knife-thrower. "What did my file say?" I asked. I needed to know what they knew about me.
Mai looked me in the eye. "We know that you were adopted by Katara and Sokka. Strangely, before that, there isn't any information about you. Also, you told us once that you had a source that gave you your information, but there was no mention of your past. No info on your parents or any friends you might have had before you were adopted."
Well, that was a relief. I didn't think that the Fire Nation would figure anything out, but it was comforting to hear that they had no idea where I came from. Ty Lee gave me a curious look. "It's weird, it's almost like you appeared out of thin air." She said.
A round of smirks went around the room. I chuckled. "Well, that's not exactly wrong." I replied.
Mai and Ty Lee gave me curious looks. "What do you mean?" Ty Lee asked.
Here we go again. I took a deep breath. "I'm not from this world." I said.
Mai raised an eyebrow. Ty Lee's eyes widened. "Are you from the Spirit World?" She whispered. "Are you a spirit?"
I turned to my brother. "Three for three!" I exclaimed in triumph. Sokka groaned. Aang, Katara, Toph and Suki laughed out loud.
"Every. Single. Time." Aang got out between laughs.
I turned back to the bewildered Fire Nation nobles. "To answer your question, no." I said calmly. "I'm not from the Spirit World. I'm from a world beyond that. I was sent here to complete four tasks for Lady Ài, the Love Spirit."
Mai turned to Ty Lee and saw the acrobat staring at me in wonder. "Mai, he's telling the truth." She said, her voice just loud enough to be heard.
Mai turned back to me, her eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Okay, say we believe you, that still doesn't explain how you know the things you know." She challenged.
Here was the hard part. "Well, about that, in my world, this world existed in a story." I explained. "A story I loved. I know the past, present, and a potential future for everyone in this room. That story is my source."
Ty Lee's mouth was wide enough to catch a bowling ball. Mai gave me a flat look. "Yeah right." She said dismissively.
Ty Lee turned to her friend. "He's telling the truth." She insisted.
Mai narrowed her eyes. "Or he thinks he is." She countered. "He could just be insane." She pinched the bridge of her nose. "Great, we defected from the Fire Nation and threw our lot in with a crazy person."
"I can prove it." I offered. "I know something about your past that I couldn't possibly know unless I was telling the truth."
Mai rolled her eyes, still not buying it. "This should be good."
Oh, was that how she was going to be? I had thought about telling her why she was so stoic, but instead, I decided to go for the embarrassing route. I gave her a knowing look. "I remember a certain event in the palace garden that only you two, Azula and Zuko were present for." I said with a smirk. Mai's eyes widened slightly. I tapped my chin thoughtfully. "I believe it involved an apple, firebending, a fountain and wet clothes."
A light blush appeared on Mai's shocked face. Ty Lee covered her mouth to avoid laughing. A smirk appeared on Toph's face. "Hand Slicer, what are you talking about?" She wondered. "Knives' heart rate just spiked."
Mai recovered and gave me a severe look. "Don't you dare." She warned.
"Are you sure?" I asked teasingly. "Maybe I should tell everyone the details so you know I'm not lying."
Mai's glare turned murderous. "I have way too many knives up my sleeve for you to still be talking."
I held up my hands in mock surrender. "Okay." I conceded. "Do you believe me now?"
Mai blinked, now thinking clearly with her embarrassment gone. "Huh, I guess you are telling the truth." She realized. Amusingly enough, she had a calmer reaction to that than she did to the fact that I knew something embarrassing about her.
Ty Lee looked at me with wide eyes. Well, that was the easy part down. The hard part was coming next.
Ty Lee POV
I'd seen and heard a lot of weird things while traveling with the circus. I thought I couldn't be surprised anymore. But a boy from another world who knew our world like it was some kind of fairytale was something I never would have guessed. Alec spent the next several minutes explaining the Six Rules, as he called them, to Mai and me. We asked a few questions here and there, but the rules made sense when we thought about them. I thought back to my time in school. Would I have learned anything if I had an answer key to every test? The interesting part was that he used to be twenty-eight, and now he was fifteen again. Why would the Love Spirit make him younger? To make him fit in better with the others?
There was one question that I needed an answer to. One piece that was missing. After we got through the rules, I looked over at him. "Why did the Love Spirit send you here? What were the tasks she gave you?" I asked him.
Something strange happened. All the group turned to look at Alec. I focused on his aura. It was a storm of emotions. It was orange, meaning he was nervous, but also had flashes of a forest-y green, meaning hope. What would make him feel that way? He closed his eyes for an instant and took a deep breath. His aura stopped moving so rapidly. He was still feeling those emotions, but he managed to calm himself down. He looked me in the eye. "Can I talk to you, alone, outside for a few minutes?" He asked nervously.
I wasn't sure what was going on, but I had to find out. "Sure." I agreed. I stood up, as did he. He looked at the others. "Could you guys bring Mai up to speed?" He requested. "I need to tell Ty Lee this personally."
Katara gave him an understanding smile. "Okay, good luck." Mai raised an eyebrow, but didn't object to this.
Good luck with what? What was he talking about? He walked over to one of the doors of the barracks and opened it for me. I smiled appreciatively at the gesture. We walked outside. He leaned against the battlements and took a deep breath, staring out over the fields below. The only light in the darkness was from the moon. It was more than halfway full, so we could see each other clearly in the night.
He turned to me. "Well, the Love Spirit gave me four tasks to do." He began. "The first task was to stop Zhao from killing the Moon Spirit. I can't tell you about the second and third tasks yet without giving things away, but the fourth task was the main reason she brought me to this world."
I looked into his soft brown eyes. "What's the fourth task?" I asked him.
He swallowed. "My fourth task is to find my soulmate." He answered. "Apparently, I was born in the wrong world, and too early to boot. That's why she made me fifteen, to bring me closer to my soulmate's age." He said. He chuckled. "Though, dealing with growing pains and excessive hunger again is a pain in the ass."
I giggled. He was funny. Then the realization hit. He was trying to say I wasn't his soulmate. He could tell I was attracted to him and he was trying to let me down easy. I felt a minor pang of hurt. I wasn't expecting us to be together, but I did like him. Now it seemed like I would never get the chance. No, I couldn't think selfishly like that. Even if we couldn't be together, I could still be his friend. I needed more of those anyway.
"Do you know who she is?" I inquired softly. "I want to help you find her."
His eyes widened briefly, then a glint appeared in his eye. His aura flashed dark blue. He was feeling mischievous. He looked me in the eye. "I know who it is." He said gently. "But how about we play a little game. I want to see if you can figure it out. I'll tell you all the hints I received."
Ooh, a puzzle? I loved puzzles! I nodded and smiled. "Sure."
"Okay, well the first clue I have is that she's a kind and pure soul." He started.
I frowned a little. "That doesn't narrow it down much." I responded.
"Tell me about it." He agreed. "Anyway, the next clues are that she's a nonbender, and about a year younger than me."
Okay, now we were getting somewhere. The 'about' part left some room for error, though. "When's your birthday?" I asked.
"A few months from now." He responded. "The twelfth day of the fifth month." He gave me a look. "Out of curiosity, when's your birthday?"
"I turned fifteen two days ago." I replied. "We were hunting you down, so we didn't have time to celebrate." Interesting, that made him about nine months older than me.
He smiled sadly. "I'm sorry about that." He kept talking. "Anyway, that's all the clues that Lady Ài gave me when we met. I thought I would have to spend years looking for my soulmate after the war ends."
"What changed?" I prompted.
He smiled. "Right after we met again in Omashu, the Gaang and I ended up in a swamp." He said. "Turns out, the swamp is full of spiritual energy. It makes you see people from your past, or your future."
"So, what did you see?" I wondered.
He smiled. "I saw a kid. He was probably ten years old. Dressed in Fire Nation clothes. He called me 'Daddy'." He said.
My eyes widened. "You saw your kid from the future?" I whispered.
He nodded. "Yeah. I tried asking him who his mom was, and when I would meet her, but he just laughed and told me I already knew who Mommy was." He chuckled.
So, it was a nonbender, about a year younger than him, who was a kind and pure soul, and possibly from the Fire Nation. Interestingly, he already met them, even though he'd only been in the Fire Nation once, and briefly at that. "So, what else happened?" I encouraged him to continue.
His aura flared rapidly again, he was getting nervous. "Well, at the time, I was lost and looking for the others. I asked the kid if he knew where they were and if they were okay." He explained, rubbing the back of his head. "He pointed me in their direction, he said they were okay, but their auras were orange and they were worried about something."
My breath caught in my throat. Had I misunderstood why Alec wanted to talk alone? I looked into his eyes. "Tell me." I whispered. "What did this kid look like?"
He looked me in the eye. "He looked like a smaller version of me, except for his eye color." He said in a quiet voice.
I swallowed. "What color were his eyes?"
He gave me a kind smile. His aura shifted to a light magenta. Affection. "They were silver, like moonlight." He whispered. "He told me he got his ability to see auras, along with his eyes, from his mother." He continued. "They're the same eyes I'm looking into right now."
I gasped. He thought, no, he knew I was his soulmate. This was completely overwhelming! How was I supposed to react to this?!
"Why are you telling me this?" I asked, finally finding my voice again.
He bit his lip nervously before he answered. "You see, after I figured it out, Toph asked me if it was possible that Lady Ài was taking the choice of falling in love away from us." He replied. "Then, I got some advice from Iroh."
That was a surprise. "You met Iroh?"
He nodded. "Yeah, Azula injured Iroh when you chased us down in that tank." He explained. "Katara healed his wound. I asked him for advice about this, but I didn't mention you by name."
I'd only met Iroh a few times, but I could tell that he was smarter than he let on. "So, what did he say?" I prompted.
Alec smiled. "You can lead an ostrich-horse to water, but you can't make him drink."
Something clicked in my mind. "So, Lady Ài set us up to meet, but where we go from there is up to us." I realized.
He nodded. "Impressive. You understood what he meant quicker than I did." He complimented, making my cheeks warm. He looked me in the eye. "He also told me to not think about what Lady Ài or the swamp told me, but to think about how I feel about you."
I got a general idea of how he felt from his aura, but I wanted to hear him put it into words. "And, how do you feel about me?" I asked with a whisper.
He gave me a kind smile. "You're the nicest, sweetest, prettiest girl I've ever met." He said quietly. "And I'd love to get to know you better."
I smiled at him. "I'd like that, too." I responded.
He swallowed nervously. "Could I…maybe…that is…" I giggled. He was so cute when he was flustered. He took a breath. "Could I take you out to dinner sometime?" He asked.
I hugged him tightly. "I'd love to." I whispered in his ear. I pulled back from the hug and took his hand, lacing our fingers together.
He smiled. "We should probably get back inside." He suggested. "We need some sleep. We're going into the city tomorrow."
We walked hand in hand to the barracks.
Third Person POV
War Minister Qin was on the verge of panic. Everything had been going well, he knew the plan would work, but it had failed! This was the biggest failure in the Fire Nation military since Zhao's failed siege of the Northern Water Tribe. And, unlike Zhao, Qin was still alive. Most people would see that as a good thing, but not Qin. He knew that Fire Lord Ozai liked to make examples of failures. Qin knew that nobody was safe from his wrath. Not even his own family.
Speaking of family, that was another mess. Apparently, Princess Azula's friends had defected, for whatever reason. On top of that, Princess Azula was growing unstable. Her quarters were right next to his. He heard her screaming at her mother, even though Ursa hadn't been seen in years. Once Fire Lord Ozai heard about this, Qin knew his head would roll.
Wait. A thought occurred to him. Perhaps, depending on what the Fire Lord was told about this, Qin could deflect enough blame to save his own hide. But it would be risky. He weighed his options. Doing nothing would almost guarantee his death. On the other hand, taking this step had no guarantee of success, but it was better than nothing. He took out some parchment and ink and began to write out a letter.
AN: One of my longer chapters. Next time: walls, secrets, dates, POVs and more! Before anyone complains that Katara wrecked Azula too easily, think about two things. First, Azula was looking at Alec, and expecting him to attack, not Katara. Second, Azula pressed the Kya Button. She shouldn't'a did that.
