That single ship, sailing towards the coast, had been the most unwelcome sight for Sokka, all the way back at his vantage point at the top of the capital's crater. He had clenched his fists, fingernails digging into his gloves, as he turned his back on the bay and tried to ignore his heart's urges to run straight towards the bay and help Azula as the sun rose in the horizon. She had given him an important responsibility, one he meant to uphold, by putting him in charge of the reinforcements' strike force. Whatever was happening with the second hijacked ship, Sokka had to take care of it, no matter what.
He had no doubts his behavior was just as unsettling for the strike force as the situation itself was. Even Toph had refrained from joking around, and Iroh settled for speaking with the soldiers, even if he had followed Sokka without complaint. So far, Sokka had expected far more dissent within his troops, but it seemed his last exchange with the captain of the Imperial Guards' second squad had been harsh enough to solidify his authority over them.
"Only one ship" Rui Shi confirmed, lowering the spyglass; he had borrowed the utensil from soldiers poised at the towers that flanked the road into the Fire Nation Capital's crater. Sokka sighed and nodded.
"We can't back them up yet" he said, his brow heavily furrowed.
"You know to trust the Princess" Rui Shi said, softly "As otherworldly as the opponent may be, she is stronger than anyone else in this nation. It will take more than a malicious spear to stop her"
And she would be fighting more than a malicious spear, Sokka thought, though he refrained from speaking his mind. He didn't doubt Azula's strength… but he didn't doubt Rhone's eagerness for bloodshed either, especially if he thought he'd finally slay a member of the Fire Nation's Royal Family. Even if it cost him his life, Rhone wouldn't be likely to stop until he had dragged Azula to hell along with him… and with a weapon as powerful as the Bloodlust Spear to aid him, there was no telling whether all the might of the Armed Forces of the Fire Nation would be enough to save the Princess from such a fate.
Would Sokka be any more help than them? At least, he ought to be a good enough distraction to steal Rhone's attention from Azula. He was just as prepared to sacrifice his life to stop Rhone as Rhone probably was prepared to die, if that was what it took to kill Azula… the gladiator clenched his fists, wondering if it truly could come to that. Hoping it wouldn't…
"A bird!"
The exclamation came from one of the Imperial Guards, pointing at the south. Sokka whipped his head around with a start, spotting the hawk as it sped its way towards them. It had to be a message from the scouts… if it was, perhaps they could finish their job and rush back to help Azula before Rhone even reached her – going by the slow speed of the ship they could see in the distance, it wouldn't be that surprising if that were the case.
"Faster than I thought… but all the better, if so" Iroh said, breathing deeply as Toph, sitting on a nearby rock, cracked her knuckles and pushed herself off her seat.
Rui Shi stepped forward, raising his gloved hand expertly, allowing the hawk to perch on his forearm. The message, marked with a black ribbon, could only be the one they had been waiting for.
Rui Shi withdrew the letter and handed it to Sokka immediately. The gladiator took the scroll, surprised that Rui Shi would defer to him without a sign of hesitation, but he nodded in Rui Shi's direction before unfolding the message.
The contents of the small letter wasted no time with pleasantries: The enemy disembarked in the southern shores. Forces stationed nearby have attempted to repeal the attack unsuccessfully. The most important strategic building nearby is the airship factory. Make haste.
Sokka gritted his teeth, and once he finished reading the letter's contents, a distant sound of a horn reached him: three interrupted sounds. The soldiers around him tensed up and he frowned in their direction.
"Hostages" Rui Shi answered his wordless question "The sentries by the barrier have identified hostages on that ship"
Sokka snarled, clenching a fist with his empty hand. Brilliant. His heart begged him to rush down to the port at haste, knowing Azula was headed to a dangerous struggle without the slightest advantage: if Rhone had hostages, the Princess was certain to attempt to set them free. If the strike team rushed in when the enemy didn't expect an attack from any other sources, it was possible that Rhone's plans would fail altogether.
Yet… this wasn't what Azula had asked of him. She had been clear with her request and expectations of him: he had to defeat the attackers on the second ship. And the message they'd received urged them to make haste, for the Fire Nation's forces seemed to struggle in that battle…
It killed him inside to make this decision. It did, on every level possible. Yet he swallowed hard and turned towards his troops.
"It seems the target may be the airship factory" Sokka said, his voice steadier than his heart felt, at the time "We'll march at haste in that direction and, once we've closed in on the enemy, Toph, you'll build us an underground tunnel and we'll attack them from below"
"Huh, sounds about right" Toph said, nodding in Sokka's direction "Lead the way, Dog"
His chest ached with every step he knew would put distance between himself and the woman he loved… but he tightened his fists and started his way down the crater's paths, on his way to the southern roads of the Fire Nation mainland. The troops followed him, dutifully, and Sokka clenched his jaw: they would finish this fight against the opponents in the south as fast as possible, and once they did, he would return to Azula's side, right away. As long as they were quick and efficient, and used their advantages to their favor, there was nothing Rhone's allies could do to defeat them… or so he hoped.
Toph was on his right, and Rui Shi marched to his left, followed by the rest of the Imperial Guards. Behind the large group, Iroh guided the Domestic Forces, marching at the frantic walking rhythm Sokka had imposed upon the group. The official rhythm for the army was far slower than that, meant to help the soldiers preserve strength and energies rather than spending them all merely walking places… but there was no time to waste. And at that quick pace, it only took ten minutes before they could glimpse the airship factory, in the distance.
"Alright, that's where we're headed, Toph" Sokka said, breathing deeply and glancing at his friend "It's still far, but…"
"Eh, I can sense something in the distance, it's not that far away" she said, cracking her knuckles "Want me to make my tunnel here?"
"Seems like the right place, yeah" Sokka said, breathing out slowly as the earthbender began to work, waiting for no further orders to crack the ground open.
She endeavored to make a massive enough gap in the ground for their forces to fit through, though the soldiers would be forced to walk in line instead of in the blocks they'd been formed in so far. It was Toph who led the group for natural reasons now, shoving the earth forcefully out of the way, compressing the ground with each step she took as she tore open the path with which they'd take the waiting enemy by surprise. The group's progress slowed down now that they needed the earthbender to carve the way for everyone, but every step forward meant they were closer to the position they had to defend. And that meant that, paradoxically, each step further away still brought Sokka closer to the moment when he would be fighting alongside Azula.
For he knew he was reckless, and he hoped his urgency was unfounded… but deep down, Sokka couldn't shake off the conviction that he was walking away from the very place he should be in right now.
"PRINCESS!"
The shouts came from so many different sources, and hands reached down to clasp her before she could topple, face down, onto the stone dock…
And not a single one of those voices, not a single movement, registered in her mind. The shock was so great that, albeit her eyes were open, Azula's mind could not process images, or sounds, or sensations in general. Was it the promised pain's fault? She couldn't feel it yet. Was it because she hadn't expected an attack to come from behind her? Perhaps, yet even now, the realization that the sword had cracked through her armor and slashed into her skin, tearing muscles and perhaps even hitting her collarbone, had not dawned upon her. Her mind was blank, more blank than ever before…
And it would fall to her men to defend their position against the dangerous, deadly enemies who continued to fight against them.
Rhone had escaped, chased away by Taro's searing flames, but he had jumped into the water once more: fighting by the shore wouldn't end well for the firebenders, not when the enemy was as quick to hide underwater as Rhone had proven to be so far.
"We have to fight inland!" shouted Tai Wei, as the guards rushed to Azula's side: her labored breathing, and the color that drained from her face, wasn't a promising sight as she nestled in Wuhan's arms, trembling violently.
Neither was the Spear that flew in their direction, aiming directly towards the wounded Princess.
"IT'S COMING!" shouted Fei Li, forcing his fellow soldiers to face the upcoming threat.
It would aim for Azula first, that much was clear. And it would seek to sap her from her blood: if it reached her, even if briefly, the chances of saving her from the corruption wouldn't be in her favor… for, naturally, the only person with the power to annul said corruption was Azula herself.
If the Spear successfully reached the Princess, it would take the rest of them next. The promised massacre that she had tried to avoid, as best as she could, would happen unless her guards fought back.
"SHIELD!" roared an unexpected voice: Renkai stepped forward, raising his fists in the Spear's direction.
His shout served to clear away all their minds of the helplessness and confusion that had seized them, now that the Princess was in such serious danger. As many as seven guards joined Renkai, and together they launched a combined fire attack so strong, so bright, it could have blinded them: every single one of them cast condensed flames, crafting a barrier to defend the Princess that the Spear would have to overcome if it wanted to reach her. It was possible that their defense wouldn't withstand the power of such a fierce opponent, and they knew as much… but they refused to let the otherworldly weapon get away with reaping away Azula's life.
And so, the Spear rushed towards them, chased by a frantic dragon that could only panic at the confusing, dreadful shape his rider was in…
The blade sank into the shield of constantly pouring flames, but it couldn't breach it.
The remaining guards rushed down the port and joined in defending against the Spear save for Wuhan, adding their power to the flaring condensed flames to back up their fellow soldiers: an orange inferno engulfed the weapon, and it seemed fated to stay at bay, no matter how powerful its urges to steal the Princess's blood might be…
And then the Spear was shoved underwater anew, by a ferocious, wrathful dragon that roared before sinking into the sea.
The soldiers could lower their defense now, but only temporarily: they needed to leave the pier at haste, for their Princess's sake most of all.
"Can you carry her? Wuhan…!" asked Fei Li, and the tallest member of their squad nodded, slipping an arm underneath Azula's knees and holding her against his chest.
The blood was already trickling out of the bottom of her armor, droplets staining the once immaculate white stones of the pier as the group ran towards the shore at haste: half the group ran ahead of Wuhan, and the other half lingered behind him, cautious of Rhone's potential resurfacing. Wherever the bastard was, they hoped to ensure he wouldn't make it out of this scuffle alive after his latest sin.
Finally, they reached the end of the pier and Wuhan sped towards a nearby wall, erected against the natural grassy ridges that hugged the port. He deposited Azula carefully against the wall, uncertain of how to proceed now: it didn't seem the Princess was conscious, although her eyes were open.
"Princess…" Wuhan called her, as Fei Li dropped beside them, eyes wide with terror "Princess, can you hear me?"
"Princess, we'll protect you" Fei Li vowed, though the words felt faint to him all the same: even if their condensed fire shield had worked just now, it was hard to say whether it would pay off anew, especially if the spear's wielder reappeared.
The other guards took their stances near the Princess, focusing on protecting her and nothing else. Yet self-doubt and disappointment clung to their very souls: this was the one time the Princess had needed them, and they had failed to sense a threat that could have taken her life. Even if they had kept the Spear at bay so far, would they block it successfully anew if it slipped out of the dragon's control?
Sudden, violent intakes of breath startled the guards: Wuhan and Fei Li gasped upon glimpsing a return of consciousness in the Princess's gold eyes.
She couldn't see anything: dark stains swum before her eyes, and she blinked repeatedly until they were chased away, if only enough to understand where she was, and who was with her. She had been fighting, she knew, and she had to continue fighting, though she barely remembered why anymore… what was going on? Why on earth was she so weak she could barely move? And why was there a surging feeling inside her gut that someone dear to her was in danger…?
"X-Xin…? W-where's…?" she managed to say, her voice weaker than they had ever heard it before.
"Princess, you're wounded" said Fei Li, gritting his teeth "We need to get you to safety at once… maybe once the Admiral returns you can be taken to the tunnels with the rest of the hostages"
"N-no, no, Xin Long is…" she gasped, gritting her teeth until she shook her head: violent pain sprung in her neck at it, and she cried out for it: why did it hurt so badly? Fei Li said she was wounded, surely that was it, but… what on earth had happened to her? "Help Xin Long, he's… he's in danger. Xin is…!"
On cue, the dragon shot out of the water with a loud splashing sound, and every guard glanced in his direction: Rhone had reappeared, legs wrapped around Xin Long's neck, while Xin Long restrained the spear with his talons.
"Oh, hell…!" Fei Li said, snarling as he dashed forward with the rest of the men.
Yet how could they attack? Xin Long seemed to have been targeted by both the human and the weapon, and he writhed in midair as he attempted to shake them off: he swung his body violently, but Rhone, despite it all, wouldn't let go, swinging his massive sword towards Xin Long in hopes to cut into his armor and pierce the scales of his skin.
"Crash! Xin Long, crash him into the ground!" shouted Haoren, uncertain if the dragon would understand him.
"And what do we do?!" asked Jianghuo, as Haoren huffed and raised his arms.
"We make another condensed shield, if the Spear comes our way! And if he manages to shake off that man…!"
"We'll kill him!" shouted Tai Wei, standing alongside Haoren, arms raised in preparation.
Despite Haroen's initial fears, it seemed the dragon had understood his strategy: he dove down, aiming to land at a short distance from where the guards were gathered… and he turned in the air just in time to ensure Rhone's body would take the worst of the fall.
Rhone tried to stay latched to the dragon's neck, but it was impossible after an impact as violent as that one, powerful enough that his head crashed against the ground and the air fled his lungs once the massive creature's weight was crushing him.
In the crash, however, the Spear in Xin's talons went free. Again, Azula's blood seemed to summon it, and it charged against her: the group of guards crafted another condensed, tight shield that successfully held the Spear off from its main target.
Xin Long groaned, struggling to stand up anew, his eyes set on the Spear… his heart set on his rider. She was wounded, badly wounded, because she hadn't noticed the lurking enemy behind her when she was focused only on trying to save him. He should have worked harder… he should have given his all to fighting for her sake, undeterred by the damned, spiritually-charged spear that stank of death. If it was his death instead of Azula's, Xin Long would certainly consider it an acceptable trade-off.
"N-no… it's not… d-don't even… Xin!" Azula called, as her dragon gathered his strength, hoping to tackle the Spear again.
Everything was so difficult to understand, yet her dragon's thoughts were loud and clear in her head: if she stopped focusing on herself, and focused on him instead, perhaps she could find enough clarity to resolve this problem. To find a way to defeat their enemies…
As shaken as he had been by the crash-landing, Rhone lunged for the dragon when he had the chance, slashing at the armor with his sword: the impact was strong enough to knock Xin Long off target, and just so, one of the guards faltered: the Spear breached the shield of condensed fire, even when a new guard stepped up to block and push back the flying weapon.
They couldn't hold the condensed fire shield forever: as jumbled as Azula's thoughts were, that much was a certainty. No one could outdo that damned spear, not without gold fire… and she was the only one who could conjure it. Even if, right now, she didn't think she could conjure anything at all…
Yet her ability to fight back the corruption with gold fire made her a threat for the Spear. Her blood attracted it, too. Rhone wanted no one's death as badly as hers, she suspected. Hence… wasn't there a single, obvious choice to be made? One that would see to it that her men, some blocking the Spear while others attacked Rhone, helping Xin Long against him, would survive this ordeal safely?
She wasn't sure how she managed to move, leaning her body forward to gather enough momentum and rise to her feet – her left shoulder sent strange, foreign pulsations across her body, and she briefly wondered if her heart would leak out of the wound she had yet to see for herself. Her armor had never felt so heavy, so difficult to breathe in… but she still exerted strength enough in her feet and knees to rise up, her right hand clasping the wall behind her for further support.
Her efforts, however, didn't go unnoticed.
"Princess!" shouted Tai Wei, watching her from the corner of his eye "You're injured! You mustn't move yet!"
"What?!" exclaimed Fei Li next to him, shooting a wary glance over his shoulder to find Azula was, indeed, on her feet, her head hung as she held up an awkward, unstable posture against the wall "Princess, we will protect you! Stay behind us!"
She heard their words, but knew she'd have to ignore them. Just as she had often ignored them in the past… them, and the man who typically spoke them. Oh, Rui Shi… he would be so cross once he heard of what had happened to her. Azula only hoped he wouldn't blame the rest of the guards… she had planned, despite everything, to fight by their side this time around. Yet…
"Princess!" Tai Wei's voice rang with warning, and Azula breathed out slowly as she pondered her next course of action… as she sent those plans in her dragon's direction, too.
His armor was dented and in bad shape: it seemed Rhone had dedicated himself, both while underwater and during their current scuffle, to slamming the armor: he attempted to carve numerous paths for his spear to attack the dragon, knowing that, with Azula disabled, Xin Long would be the only opponent who could keep the deadly weapon at bay, and he would likely falter eventually too, if Rhone's plan paid off…
"Xin…" Azula called softly, her voice broken, hoarse and unnoticeable in the midst of such chaos.
Her dragon could feel her calling for him, but try as though he might, he couldn't seem to shake off the large man who clung to his armor, undeterred by the fire the large creature could unleash upon him. Yet Xin Long restrained his flames, for he risked hurting Azula's guards if he behaved recklessly… just so, the guards who weren't in the shield's formation in front of Azula would try to give Rhone hell, but they remained unwilling to cast fire when there was a chance that they might hurt the dragon.
Azula clenched her right fist, watching through the orange flames as her dragon swung in a circle, dodging Rhone's newest attack: the Kinslayer leapt out of the reach of his closing jaws…
With strength Azula hardly knew still lingered inside her, the Princess raised her right arm, two trembling fingers stretched out of her tight fist, and a sudden, clumsy blast of blue fire shot at haste, catching Rhone on his exposed back. The impact saw him losing his footing, but he didn't loosen his grip on his weapons: Xin Long had to jump to avoid being cut by Rhone on the underside of his body, for his crumbling armor no longer protected him as well as it had before.
"Princess!" shouted Haoren, one of the guards who had taken the duty of fighting back against Rhone.
Azula didn't have the luxury of waiting around to know whether Haoren was surprised, worried or even rejoicing in her sudden return to the fray. She knew the last option was the least likely one – she was, after all, in worse shape than she remembered being up to date –, but she wouldn't hold back from her new, chosen course of action, no matter if her guards begged her to. If she hoped to spare them the consequences of the very worst outcome of this battle, she only had one chance to do so.
"Stay back! Princess!" Haoren shouted, watching as she took a step forward, her right hand raised towards the dragon that had darted away from Rhone and now trotted towards his rider at haste.
He knew what she had in mind, and he agreed with her choice wholeheartedly: this wasn't working. And even though the battle might not be any better after her plan was put into effect, at least the collateral damage wouldn't be so great.
Xin Long stopped before Azula, lowering his body as he urged her to sling her leg over his saddle. Never before had such a simple, practiced motion been such a challenge for the Princess, but she clasped the protective tubes of the saddle with her right hand and hoisted herself with what strength she could muster.
"Princess! No!" shouted Fei Li, at the condensed fire barrier that now threatened to break, both because the guards were losing their focus and because the spear was suddenly changing its angle, still chasing Azula's blood "We can protect you! It's our job to…!"
"Careful! Fei Li!" shouted Han, pouring further strength into the barrier to save his captain from being cut by the weapon.
Such mishaps would only continue to occur: it wouldn't be long before the Spear reached one of them. And as much as they might be willing to give their lives to fulfill their duty to Azula, she wouldn't allow the Spear to reap them.
"Go… go!" she shouted at her dragon, clutching at the saddle as her body slumped forward. Her voice sounded scarred, as though it had been torn, just as her shoulder was…
Xin Long didn't waste another second: he leapt towards the shore and angled his body in the direction of the water, baiting the Spear away from the guards at last as it glided against each barrage of fire until it was free to chase after the speeding dragon, who was already gaining momentum to jump into flight with his hind legs…
A pair of hands caught the dragon's long tail, gripping the scaled skin and the light-blue hair as tightly as could be.
The guards lowered their shield, and those fighting Rhone now launched no shortage of fire blasts at the man dangling on the flying dragon's tail: yet, even though the fire scorched his face, arms and legs, he wouldn't let go. He roared furiously, a sign that the pain was reaching him indeed… yet his hold on the dragon's tail was unyielding, even after Xin Long's flight pattern had been diverted by the extra weight.
"He's getting away… the Spear! T-the…! The enemy…!" Fei Li shouted, casting further fire towards the man that clung to the dragon's tail… but his fire couldn't reach them once they had flown too far from the shore.
Horror clenched all their souls as the dragon continued to ascend through the sky, chased by the Spear, with Rhone refusing to let go of the dragon's tail. Azula gritted her teeth, not even daring to raise her head to direct her dragon. She would have to leave this to him: she was no use right now. All she had meant to do was ensure Rhone and the Spear would leave her guards alone… so none of them would wind up as she was.
Where to, though? Xin Long asked the question only to roar in frustration: the hairs on his tail were being pulled at violently by the enemy.
To Azula's surprise, Xin Long dove downwards, slowing just at the level of the sea, sinking his tail underwater: if Rhone wouldn't let go so easily, Xin Long would merely need to make it even harder for the enemy to clutch at him this way. Yet, even when submerged against his will, Rhone still clung to him tightly: water wouldn't deter him much, even if reason said he would lose his breath before long. Yet, before they could have kept him underwater for enough time to drown, another enemy was sure to catch them: the Spear, as Azula had planned and expected, was following them across the sky at full speed, giving chase to the fleeing dragon.
"Can't… let it reach Rhone…" Azula said, gritting her teeth "Shake it off, Xin…!"
Xin Long groaned before shooting upwards anew, just in time for the Spear to submerge under water while giving them chase: Azula cried out painfully as she turned her head – the muscles on her neck sent no end of torment right to her brain as she overexerted them. Still, as much as Xin Long kept shaking his tail as he flew in wild directions, with no set pattern, Azula noticed Rhone's hand was stretched out… he was summoning the Spear. As long as he held onto the dragon's tail, the Spear would fly after them, and if it ever reached his hand…
"X-Xin…" she called, turning her head forward again and leaning close to the dragon's neck. Her right hand clasped the reins with whatever strength she could still muster – she was lightheaded now, how much blood had she lost? Her plan was to summon the Spear away from her men at first, but now… what was she to do? Were they merely going to fly for hours, with no set goals, no plans, until the damnable Spear finally caught up with them…?
As hopeless as his rider felt, Xin Long refused to let the enemies get away with any sort of victory over them. He asked Azula to hold on as tightly as she could, for his flight was about to get far bumpier… and the Princess's legs clutched at his body over the saddle, even if not with the strength she guessed would be necessary or preferable for the dragon.
And so, Xin Long dove to the sea anew, avoiding the Spear, whipping Rhone's body wildly by swinging his tail in countless directions. A twirl, a full body wheel, sudden sharp rises in speed paired with abrupt stops that caused the Spear to shoot ahead, missing its target. All the while, Azula clung to Xin Long desperately, hoping this wouldn't be the end. As dignified as it might be to die astride her dragon, she had so much left to do, so many promises to fulfill. There was someone waiting for her… someone who needed her by his side, just as badly as she needed him by hers. As weak as she felt, as helpless as the situation might be, the Fire Nation's Crown Princess would cling to life with every ounce of strength she had left, trusting her dragon would guide her out of the darkness that seemed to envelop her senses with each passing moment…
The aerial battle was the most desperate spectacle to watch from the Fire Nation's bay: Fei Li had fallen to his knees, breathing agitatedly as the dragon's serpentine shape struggled to shake off both the man clinging to his tail and the Spear that wouldn't stop giving him chase. And Fei Li was far from the only guard who couldn't cope with the sense of helplessness that permeated them right now.
"W-we have to do something… we have to…" said Taro, shaking his head "The Princess is…!"
"What is there for us to do?" asked Haoren, gritting his teeth "She… she did it to save us, damn it. She… she knew we would die too, if the Spear broke through the fire shield for good. She…"
"She's… she's our royal. It should be us protecting her!" Fei Li shouted, slamming a fist into the ground as tears welled in his eyes "If Rui Shi were here… i-if Rui Shi…"
"If Rui Shi were here, he'd be pissed as hell because she ditched us when she needs us most" Tai Wei finished, startling Fei Li "But he's not. So… it's our turn to be angry. And our turn to give chase!"
"W-wait… we'll charge into the water?" asked Qiang, astonished.
"Hell, no… we'll run along the shore, as fast as we can, as far as we must go!" Tai Wei said, gritting his teeth "If they return to shore, we'll be there to help! Doesn't matter if we die, does it? That's what we're here for! Our lives, we give to our nation! And our hands fight for our Fire Lord… Fire Lord Azula!"
Tai Wei's words landed in each of the guards' hearts, filling them with strength they hadn't expected to find in such a convoluted crisis. Fei Li breathed slowly to still himself, but he rose to his feet again after a moment, holding Tai Wei's defiant gaze with his own.
"You're right" Fei Li said, before turning to the rest of the guards. Those who had fallen on the ground out of sheer despair were rising too, just as he had "This… this is our duty. Our purpose. Maybe we won't be able to help at all… but if there's any chance we can, we will!"
The guards nodded, with some voicing their approval earnestly. Though, before Fei Li could give out the order to move out…
"What… what's happened?"
All their heads whipped back to find Admiral Zhao, as well as a group of Domestic Forces' soldiers had returned. That the Princess, the dragon, the Water Tribesman and the Spear would be absent couldn't have been more foreboding: the sinking feeling in the pit of Zhao's stomach grew stronger as the worst-case scenario presented itself in his mind.
"The Princess took off, to divert the Spear's attention, Admiral…" Fei Li said, gritting his teeth before he acknowledged his failure "We failed to protect her. The Kinslayer attacked her and has injured her badly, but still…"
"She's being reckless and taking advantage of her bleeding to direct the Spear away from the lot of you?" Zhao asked, his voice deep and trembling. Not the worst-case scenario just yet, then: merely the preamble, before the worst-case scenario finally unfolded. Fei Li nodded.
"We tried to keep the Spear off her afterwards, and it was working, but… she chose to take matters into her own hands" he said "We're going after her now, though. No matter if she might not need us"
"So… what are we wasting our time here for, if that's the case?" Zhao said, raising his eyes to the struggle between the dragon and the spear in the distance "Let's go!"
With Fei Li and Zhao at the helm, the group of soldiers dashed through the port at haste, on their way to the south: the Spear was chasing the dragon in that direction, though they still hovered in the sky, above the blue waters of the Fire Nation…
The guards and soldiers weren't the only ones who witnessed the airborne struggle between the weapon and Xin Long: in his armored airship, further inland, Captain Zhen lowered his spyglass, lips parted as he failed to give the situation credit. That was, he knew, the Princess's dragon… and the gold armor he had glimpsed on the creature's back meant she was with him. But she wasn't fighting back: the only fire in sight was that of the dragon, whenever he turned his head back to shoot blue fire blasts in the hopes of breaking the Spear's progress somehow. And every now and then the dragon's tail shook violently… when Zhen finally focused on it, it became clear there was something, or rather, someone, stubbornly clinging to the dragon regardless of Xin Long's continuous attempts to shake him off.
It was near impossible to tell what was happening, but it was clear the Spear was, as Admiral Zhao had warned him, an otherworldly weapon. Zhen gritted his teeth: what was he to do in this situation? How could he be of assistance to the Princess? She had expressly ordered him not to act at all, to serve for scouting purposes and nothing more… and frankly, Zhen wasn't sure his airship could serve any other purpose anyhow: he would be a liability if he joined the fight somehow, for that Spear might be able to tear through the airship's metal balloon and send them plummeting to the ground… which was, of course, the reason why the Princess had ordered him to stay out of reach.
But was this truly the full extent of what he could do for her? Was he so powerless he could only watch the Princess fight against near-certain doom?
"Captain Zhen!" exclaimed one of his trusted deputies "A hot-air balloon is coming towards us!"
The unexpected claim caused the tense Captain to frown and tear his gaze away from the midair struggle between the Princess and the Spear at last: a hot-air balloon? Was it friend or foe? The enemies had been headed for the airship factory, after all… could they have steered a hot-air balloon all the way here, to strike down their airship…?
Dreading they would have to fight an enemy of their own, regardless of the Princess's orders, Zhen wasted no time rushing to the other end of the cabin, raising his spyglass quickly anew, hoping to identify whoever rode the hot-air balloon in question…
After what had felt like hours of walking underground, despite it hadn't been quite so long, Toph finally stopped bending. As experienced a bender as she might be, the quick pace with which she'd had to open her way through this underground tunnel hadn't done her stamina any favors. She breathed heavily once she finally halted, though she offered Iroh a reassuring grin once he placed a supportive hand on her shoulder.
The firebenders had ensured the way through the tunnel would be lit, holding out plums of fire so no one would trip on stray roots or rocks. Toph would have made a remark on how pitiful it was to need a light source to navigate the underground, but the situation was so tense she didn't dare. Not when Sokka was at his most humorless mood ever.
"This is it?" he asked, stepping forward. Toph nodded.
"At least… feels like it" she said, confirming her suspicions after stepping hard on the ground: the vibrations of the earth told her that they were right below the factory's entrance. Though they also revealed something else, something she hadn't noticed until now… "They're already fighting, Sokka. There's a struggle. We… we've got to get in there"
"Yeah, we do" Sokka said, breathing out and nodding "Can you do the honors?"
"Want me to exploit the element of surprise that much, eh?" Toph said, smiling as she raised her hands and carved their path through the tunnel once again.
"Be ready" Sokka warned the soldiers behind him "As soon as Toph breaks us out, we're to seize all the rebels immediately. If they resist capture… I'm sure you'll know what to do"
Iroh's eyebrows rose as he cast a quick glance at Sokka: had the foreigner truly given the Fire Nation soldiers full-blown permission to kill? And here he had thought he'd be more restrained in his approach to this situation… then again, it wasn't merely that his sponsor, Princess and closest associate was likely in danger: Sokka knew the people they would be fighting. He had crossed paths with the waterbender who had attempted to assassinate Fire Lord Azulon, after all. Perhaps he understood that, whoever these foes might be, they might not be willing to surrender at all. It was better to hope that was the truth than to assume Sokka had grown to embrace Fire Nation violence fully, as some people suspected he had…
Iroh swallowed hard but focused on Toph anew. She had crafted a new stretch of tunnel, and the walls around them were trembling lightly: the battle waged above them.
"Here we go…!" Toph said, flexing her arms before shooting herself out of the underground with an explosion that shattered the earth underneath the enemy's feet.
"GO!" Sokka shouted, rushing out through the gap Toph had left in her wake: the striding soldiers followed him.
The scene outside was confusing at first, yet once Sokka took in the pandemonium of the battle, he realized Toph had calculated her earthen explosion perfectly: the earth had splattered towards the enemies, saving the struggling Fire Nation soldiers from the vicious attacks of their foes.
There were far more of them than Sokka expected, though: about ten enemies still stood near the tree line by the outskirts of the factory, at enough distance of the earthen explosion that they hadn't been knocked down, but around fifteen more had either fallen to their knees or been flung to the ground with the impact. He was sure there weren't so many of them in his vision, back at the Swamp… but the Stingray hadn't been there either, and Sokka was just staring the stumbling man in the face right now. Perhaps Rhone had recruited more supporters on his way to the Fire Nation…
It seemed the Stingray had recovered from Sokka's savage triumph over him, all those years ago: a wooden prosthetic had taken the place of his right hand, and there were tight bandages around his left, where Sokka had stabbed him… perhaps there were similar bandages on his legs too, which he had crushed with his club. Yet the man could stand, and he could bend, so the damage he had sustained that day no longer fazed him.
"Oh, yes, ahahaha! Rhone's going to be so mad I got to you first, Wolfy!" he shouted, a savage grin across his face as he raised his hands.
The trees weren't so far away, but it seemed the Stingray's power could affect them anyways, to Sokka's utter disbelief. He watched in chagrin as the waterbender brought his hands forward, and a sudden, unexpected onslaught of water poured out of the trees… leaving them dead and dry in the wake of being sapped of all their water.
Well, that was definitely a technique Sokka had never seen before.
He snarled and leapt back just in time for the water to crash into the ground, just where Sokka had been moments ago. The Stingray reeled back his newly acquired water, smiling with mad abandon as he geared up to strike again…
Sokka was prepared to jump out of the way… but to his surprise, he wouldn't have to: a blur of red suddenly leapt in front of him, and a massive barrage of orange fire shot into the water, evaporating the blast just before it could reach them.
"I guess you're used to fighting these kinds of people by yourself, Sokka…" Rui Shi said, as Sokka gasped behind him "But you don't have to do that today"
As dire as the situation was, Sokka actually found it in himself to smile as Rui Shi glanced back at him to offer him a reassuring nod. He had a full team of firebenders with him, of soldiers prepared to swarm Rhone's men. Suddenly, facing around twenty-five or thirty enemies mattered little.
For the Imperial Guards were attacking the Stingray's group, whether the earthbenders or non-benders, while the Domestic Forces' officers rushed to the aid of the forces who had been fighting back against the invaders so far. There were several wounded, some in terrible shape, with frost clinging to their open wounds – without a doubt, the Stingray's doing – while others continued to fight even with bleeding gashes across their faces or arms. Were there any casualties so far? Sokka clenched his teeth, guessing he would only know for sure once the battle was over. For now, his job was to ensure that there wouldn't be any more deaths on the Fire Nation's side. As for the opponents… he highly doubted the Stingray had come here with any intentions of surrendering. If it came down to that, he would see to putting an end to the man's life today.
Versatile as she ever was, even an exhausted Toph was capable of wrecking the enemy's forces with her earthbending: she could wrestle earth out of the opposing earthbenders' control, stopping their attacks just before they could reach her allies, and if she couldn't counterattack yet, Iroh would do it for her: he dashed out with timed, controlled firebending, shooting the necessary fire blasts to force the enemy to falter.
"Push them back! Push them back!" roared one of the soldiers who had been part of the Fire Nation's initial defenses: he had been disheartened merely a minute ago, but now, with their numbers bolstered to this extent, it seemed they weren't fated to lose this battle today.
"We have to get to the damn building! Stupid eel, weren't you supposed to get us there?!" shouted one of the non-benders in the enemy's ranks.
The Stingray ignored him, or perhaps failed to hear him: of all enemies, no one was being pushed back as effectively as him. He had to rush to the forest, seeking more water with which to attack the ferocious firebender who had targeted him. One non-bending invader realized the leader of their squad was in a tight spot now: drawing an arrow and nocking it to his bow, he was ready to shoot the enemy… until his bow snapped in half, his hands bleeding after a blue boomerang had cut over his fingers.
Sokka caught the boomerang again, aiming it towards the next earthbender who attempted to assist the Stingray. Yet, as soon as he had cast it, another non-bender aimed an arrow in his direction. Sokka heard the whipping sound of the released string and dropped flat on the ground, hoping to avert the arrow that way, and it soared above him safely enough.
The archer responsible for the arrow had been fierce as he attacked… but now that the Blue Wolf's attention was on him, his face was contorted with fear. He even seemed ready to shout as Sokka jumped back to his feet, raising a hand to catch his boomerang expertly and toss it anew.
Although the archer avoided the first half of the boomerang's trajectory, an Imperial Guard shot a fistful of flames into the man's armored stomach: stumbling back, the boomerang hit him on the back of his head, knocking him unconscious as he fell forward into the shifted earth underneath their feet.
As desperate as the situation had been for the soldiers, there was no doubt anymore that, through the combined power of a surprise attack and the bolstering of their numbers through reinforcements, the Fire Nation forces were winning now. That was enough to quell some of Sokka's discomfort: Azula would be proud that they had put a stop to Rhone's secondary faction, just as she had asked of them.
And the sooner they were finished here, the sooner she would have a chance to feel that pride. Sokka clenched his boomerang as it returned to his hand and aimed for another foe: while the majority of the invaders were trying to keep the Fire Nation soldiers off the Stingray, the Stingray extended no such courtesy for his allies, Sokka noticed. He fought alone, for himself, gathering water from plants as he backed further into the forest without the slightest hesitation, launching barrages of attacks at Rui Shi, who so far had managed to evaporate every attack, and dodge the ones he couldn't finish off.
"We've managed to salvage fifteen wounded soldiers!" exclaimed one of the Domestic Forces officers, approaching Sokka as the gladiator scanned the battlefield, watching attentively for further dangerous moves by the enemies, though for now, only about five foes were still standing, aside from the Stingray "Some are in dreadful shape, too. What should we do?"
"Well…!" Sokka grinded his teeth before launching his boomerang one more time: the boomerang was remarkably more useful than any of his other weapons in this situation, where ranged combat was inevitable and frequent "Either take them back through the tunnels as fast as you can or use one of the airships in the factory to carry them away, if you know how to use them. There must be a few in the hangar, so…"
"I… I'll ask around, maybe someone learned to pilot them" said the officer, gritting his teeth as he returned to his group.
The injured soldiers, as well as those who had retreated to the factory mostly unharmed, had gathered right past the building's front door. Whatever quick first aid they were receiving, it wasn't likely to be enough to save them all. But perhaps the Blue Wolf had offered a good enough solution for their predicament… a solution that, however, hinged on the unlikely hopes that someone in their ranks knew how to handle the aircrafts.
Meanwhile, the strike force continued to keep the enemy at bay: most of them were already unmoving, lying flat on the ground while the battle waged around them. The Stingray wouldn't fall as easily as others, however, and retreated deeper into the forest: Sokka and Rui Shi gave chase right away, following the Stingray easily through the path of dry trees and vegetation he left in his wake… yet it wasn't long before they realized that there was something unusual on several of the dry trees in question.
Sokka froze when his mind finally translated what his eyes were seeing: terribly injured officers, in Domestic Forces uniform, had been pinned to the dry trees, either with melting ice spikes or earthen ones. The first responders had done their duty as best as they could, Sokka didn't doubt it… but the Stingray and his group had been more than happy to kill as many of them as possible. He snarled in outrage.
"Rui Shi! The trees!" he exclaimed.
Rui Shi hadn't stopped attacking the Stingray, but he frowned at Sokka's call: he had noticed the soldiers too, but he hadn't known if it would be wise to let down his fire barrage when the enemy might take that as an advantage to strike away at him.
"Get help from the others!" Rui Shi said "I'll keep the waterbender at bay!"
Yet it was obvious that the Stingray's attacks were no longer as earnest as before: he had understood Rui Shi's firebending was far too potent, and the amounts of water he had procured from the trees wouldn't prove enough to fight back. Yet there were fun ways to resolve this particular problem posed by the persistent firebender: the Stingray engineered, with his prosthetic and real hand, a large enough ice spike that he aimed at his enemy…
Rui Shi knew he couldn't melt it fast enough to avoid damage: dodging it would be his only choice, then. Yet, just as the Stingray launched it, he realized he had stepped right past a tree with a pinned, squirming soldier that hadn't perished from his wounds yet…
If he dodged, that soldier would receive the blow. If he tried to melt it, he wouldn't do it fast enough, and if the water splashed him, the Stingray would take his chances to freeze him alive.
The second option, dangerous as it was, might be the easiest one to cope with. Rui Shi breathed quickly, packing a fire blast with all his might… but he didn't launch it.
For the ice spike was shattered violently by a Water Tribe club, slamming into the ice projectile and ensuring it wouldn't reach either the Imperial Guard or the soldier pinned to the tree behind them.
Sokka's agile intervention had taken the Stingray by surprise, but the waterbender only smirked in delight for it as he continued to run backwards across the forest. Rui Shi made to follow, but Sokka clasped his shoulder with a hand.
"Wait a minute, Rui Shi" he said, breathing out slowly "What he's done to these soldiers… he surely did it with many others down that path. If you chase after him again, he'll keep doing what he just did"
"And he keeps running… maybe back to the bay" Rui Shi reasoned, gritting his teeth "Or maybe there's a stream nearby? He probably wants more water at his disposal…"
"It'll be damn bad if he finds more, I know, but if we give chase without thinking it through, we could risk the lives of the survivors…" Sokka said, casting glances at the trees nearby.
A few of the soldiers stuck to the trees with plasters of earth were still moving, though all of them appeared to be in bad shape. The ones in worst shape were those impaled by ice: most of them seemed to have stopped breathing by now. Sokka gritted his teeth as he approached the nearest one.
"We need to help them. There's a chance we could save their lives still…"
"Don't!"
Sokka hadn't raised a hand to the ice spike yet, but Iroh's voice stopped him on his tracks all the same. The old general and Toph had rushed towards them, though where Toph appeared confused, unsettled by what little she could understand of the trees surrounding them, Iroh was determined and serious. The surviving, pinned soldiers groaned and whimpered, as though begging to be released.
"If you remove those spikes, they will bleed to death" Iroh said, eyeing the closest ice-impaled soldier with a remorseful frown "There's still a chance they might not survive even if we don't remove the spikes until they're treated, but… doing it now, without thinking, would be a death sentence"
Sokka gritted his teeth but nodded. It did appear as though the path of the ice spikes had been perfectly calculated to break the main blood streams and organs of the body: the Stingray knew just what to attack, how to shatter the chi's natural pathways as well as the flow of blood. As insane as the man might be, he was a highly efficient killer all the same.
"What do we do, then?" Sokka asked "How do we get them out of here, and…?"
"And what do we do about that bastard?" Rui Shi said, shooting a glare into the forest: the Stingray was nowhere in sight anymore "Have the others been defeated yet?"
"Pretty much all of them, yeah" Toph said, wiping the sweat off her brow with her forearm guard "Wasn't that much trouble. I think that splasher is the bigger deal of this group…"
"He needs to be stopped. There's no telling how much worse he's going to be if he finds more water" Rui Shi said, scowling.
"Then… we should split up, I'd say" Sokka suggested "One group should take care of removing these soldiers from the trees, and the others will chase after the Stingray"
"They need to be taken care of, at haste" Iroh said, gazing at the closest one "Though I… I don't think they can afford being carried through that tunnel, truthfully"
"Then what do we do?" Rui Shi asked, scowling "Are you saying it'll be pointless to try to save them, or…?"
"Hey, we're at the airship factory" Sokka said, whipping his head back towards the large building "We could load the injured on hot-air balloons and fly them to safety. It'll be far faster than traveling through the tunnels"
"Sounds great, but are those things easy to drive?" Toph asked, raising an eyebrow "I sure as hell can't steer one, might just get myself and the soldiers killed…"
"I don't think you'd be the one doing it" Rui Shi blinked blankly and Toph shrugged "Though… it probably ought to be you, Sokka"
"What… me?" the gladiator said, astonished.
"I know you have bad blood with this waterbender" Rui Shi said "But you're the expert on hot-air balloons. If you teach other soldiers how to steer them, the injured will be safe that much sooner"
"I… I guess" Sokka said, frowning "But it's a risk too, isn't it? It's not that easy and the situation is delicate enough, inexperienced pilots could make it worse if… wait. Captain Zhen! He's in his airship, he sent us that bird! Surely he's got his full crew aboard, he can load the injured with him, and he might even have a few medics in his squad who can start treating the ones in worst shape!"
"That's actually a decent idea" Rui Shi acknowledged "Though… someone needs to send word to them. We left their bird at the Capital's towers, didn't we?"
"You designed and can drive those aircrafts, right?" Iroh asked Sokka "Can you drive one by yourself?"
"Well, I mainly helped with the designs of the hot-air balloons, but yeah, I can" Sokka said, raising his eyebrows "I can try to catch up to Zhen, then"
"Very well… sounds like a wild plan, but it should pay off nonetheless" said Rui Shi, nodding in Sokka's direction.
By then, several of the Imperial Guards had caught up with them. The captain of the second squad was amongst them, casting wary glances at the pinned soldiers.
"The factory is safe. All the enemies have been defeated" he announced. Sokka sighed in relief.
"Good. Well, all save one" he said.
"A few of them were carrying explosives, rudimentary ones, but still…" said the captain "We suspect they were hoping to use them to destroy the factory. We've already taken their explosives, though, so there's no more danger that they'll use them before they're safely disposed of"
"Well done" Iroh said, nodding in his direction "Though the worst isn't over yet. Sokka…"
"I know" Sokka said, gritting his teeth as he glanced at the closest victim on a tree "Alright, alright… you, captain, gather about half your guards and join Rui Shi, Iroh and Toph. You guys will take down the waterbender"
"O-oh. Very well" said the captain. No doubt he was surprised the gladiator would relinquish the flashiest of fights to him, when it was clear they barely trusted each other.
"The other half of the guards will keep watch on the surviving enemies. They should be taken as prisoners, I figure" Sokka said "I'll help the Domestic Forces with releasing the wounded from these trees, alright? And after that I'll take a hot-air balloon and ask Captain Zhen for his assistance with the injured"
"Very well" said Rui Shi, nodding "We'll handle the waterbender"
The Imperial Guards' captain rushed out to convey the orders to the larger group that remained by the factory. By the time the first few Domestic Forces soldiers had joined him, Sokka had already whipped out his sword and expertly slashed the spikes that kept a soldier pinned to the tree, without removing them from the body. The damage was extensive, seeing as the ice spikes had ruptured important blood vessels. Most the men attacked with earthen spikes hadn't often been hurt in vital locations… even so, it was only right to get all the survivors to safety at haste, and to see to their healing as soon as possible. Sokka deeply hoped Zhen's airship would be carrying enough healers to save as many of the injured as possible.
Still, there was no point in dwelling on the matter when he had that much work to do. Rui Shi, Iroh, Toph and the Imperial Guards had chased after the Stingray, leaving him and the Domestic Forces' officers to save as many pinned soldiers as they possibly could. Surprisingly, a few of them had barely been injured, kept in place with earthen spikes that had only pierced their clothes. By the time Sokka had released the final officer from the trees, he had taken down about twenty injured men as well as twelve who hadn't survived long enough to be saved. They had also found several corpses on the forest's path, to his chagrin. They had arrived on time to prevent a full-blown massacre, from the looks of it… but it hadn't been soon enough to salvage several officers: they had underestimated the Stingray's bloodthirst, though, as it was, Sokka couldn't think of any better strategies they could have followed with their available resources. It didn't mean the lives the Stingray had stolen would hurt any less, though…
"Is that everyone?" Sokka asked, once the last of the injured had been carried to the apparent safety of the empty factory. The lieutenant of the Domestic Forces' group nodded.
"The survivors… and the dead, too" he said, gritting his teeth "Those bastards will pay…"
"They will, but the injured need to be helped first" Sokka assured the man, frowning "I've talked with the others, they suggested I should seek aid from the scout airship so they can help transport the injured away from here. They might even have healers aboard, I don't know…"
"Oh! Great!" said the lieutenant "Though we don't have any messenger hawks here… how will you reach them?"
"I helped design the hot-air balloons this very factory builds" Sokka said "I'll take one and fly to the airship, get their help as soon as possible"
"Right… right" said the lieutenant, his eyes gleaming with hope now "Please… be safe, gladiator! We'll protect the wounded here, so make sure we can save as many lives as possible"
"That's the plan" Sokka said, with a half-hearted grin, before racing towards the factory's hangar. That he still remembered the building's layout after all these years was, frankly, quite surprising.
The hangar was far more crowded than it had been the last time he had visited the factory. Massive airships occupied most of it, and at the very end of the hangar Sokka spotted a few rows of hot-air balloons, ready to be deployed once the engine was running. Sokka released the balloon's bindings and started the engine right away, muttering impatiently under his breath as the heated gas filled the balloon gradually… by the time the basket finally rose from the ground he released a relieved breath and ensured to set the course of his flight.
After guiding the balloon safely out of the hangar, Sokka scanned the horizon for the aircraft he had to track down. Nothing but blue skies and the bright sun greeted him, though: where was it? He really should have brought a spyglass with him…
Finally, he spotted a dark stain to the north: it looked to be about the right size for the airship so Sokka sped towards it, fueling the hot-air balloon as best he could, navigating the air currents that seemed to fight against him – frankly, guiding a vessel through water felt far easier than this. Yet he didn't falter or slow down: the lives of the men Azula had placed under his command were at risk, and he refused to fail her.
Meanwhile, Rui Shi's group had given chase to the Stingray: it wasn't difficult to follow him through the path of dried trees he had left in his wake. The man had taken advantage of his head-start, in all likelihood finding enough time to gather his strength, Rui Shi suspected…
"There's a river around here, past these trees!" exclaimed one of the Imperial Guards "Brace yourselves…!"
Rui Shi abided by the man's counsel… yet, upon breaking out of the thicket, the whole group froze cold in the middle of a large, deep valley.
"What…?" said the captain of the second squad, stepping forward to analyze the grounds before him.
The earth before them, at the bottom of the valley, was moist. Fish flapped awkwardly on the soil. Rui Shi clenched his fists as he glanced upriver… or what would have been upriver, if there had been a stream left at all.
"He's amassing the entire river?" he said "Or… could he be planning on redirecting it altogether?"
"It's… a possibility" Iroh acknowledged, frowning. The Imperial Guards glanced between the two, astonished.
"What… what do we do, then?" Toph asked, huffing between her gritted teeth. As much as she hadn't used her bending for the last minutes, her grand earthbending feats from earlier had taken a toll on her stamina, whether she wanted to acknowledge it or not "It's… what, a huge mass of water coming our way? Or you think he's redirecting it towards the factory?"
"They had bombs…" Rui Shi reasoned, gritting his teeth "In all likelihood, yes, he will be trying to destroy the factory and everyone in it"
"We cannot allow it" the captain of the second squad declared, raising a fist "We must find him, and put a stop to his nefarious deeds at once!"
"Certainly. But we cannot predict the actions of a deadly waterbender easily" Iroh huffed, shaking his head "Captain, you and the Imperial Guards should give chase to the Stingray. Me and Toph, we'll return to the factory and warn them of the danger in the enemy's likeliest next move. If they meant to destroy the factory, from what we can guess… perhaps this Stingray character would go to any extremes to fulfill his mission"
"A rather foolish way to waste his own life. He won't get away with it" the captain declared.
"You're sure about this?" Rui Shi asked Iroh, who only nodded.
"If, spirits forbid, the Stingray has already gone too far for you to reach him on time, Toph and I can help keep the water at bay. I hope so, at least" Iroh said, casting a glance at his partner. She huffed and punched his shoulder.
"Hope so? Give me a break. I'll smash this, just as I always do! Let's go!" she exclaimed stubbornly. As chaotic as the situation was, Iroh couldn't suppress a smile at his earthbending gladiator.
"Very well. Let's do that" he said, glancing at the Imperial Guards again "Be careful. With that much water, he will be truly deadly. Don't pull your punches"
"Naturally, we won't" said the captain of the second squad, nodding in the retired general's direction before turning to his group "Let's go!"
Again, their group was divided: Toph and Iroh raced back to the factory as fast as they could while the firebenders chased the path of the river, upwards, seeking the Stingray… yet he remained elusive, no doubt far faster while traveling with his waterbending than he could be while on his two feet.
If only Sokka had glanced back from the heights in which his hot-air balloon traveled, he might have understood the Stingray's plan right away and put a stop to it before it had calamitous consequences. He might not have been able to deal with it all on his own, but he would have rushed to help, at once, if he had realized the troops he was trying to save would soon be in even deadlier danger than they already were…
Yet he didn't glance back at all, focused only on chasing the scout airship that loomed in the distance. He wouldn't know it yet, but keeping his back turned towards the factory, and the upcoming catastrophe it would soon face, wouldn't be the wrong choice, in the end.
Finally, the airship was close enough for Sokka to detail it properly: even then, he continued to fly his hot-air balloon towards it until he finally was within view of the cabin: to his relief, a large window had been opened, behind which stood several soldiers, amongst whom the only face he recognized was Captain Zhen's.
"Gladiator!" Zhen exclaimed: if Sokka had thought the situation back in the factory wasn't all that promising, the paleness in Zhen's face only deepened his concerns "What's happened at the factory?!"
"A lot of soldiers are wounded!" Sokka shouted back, hoping his voice would reach Zhen without trouble, regardless of the blowing wind and the noise of the airship's engines "And pretty badly, too! I came here to ask if you can help! All you have to do is collect the wounded, and if you have any healers available…!"
"The Princess is in trouble!"
Sokka's voice faded in the wind, and not because it was blowing any harder.
His face froze into an inexpressive mask for a second as the words rang in his head over and over. Shivers of dread rushed through his spine, so violently they snapped him out of his shock, leaving him trembling as he clasped the edge of the basket, knuckles white under his glove and forearm guard.
"What… what do you mean?" he asked "What's happened to her?!"
The authority that rang in his voice with his second question took the airship's soldiers aback. Even Zhen flinched, daunted by the man who had once taught his son the basics of swordsmanship…
"I… I don't know! I can't tell!" Zhen answered truthfully. Sokka's stomach sank, his chest heaving rapidly "But she's riding her dragon, and…! And that thing, the spear the Admiral told me about? It's real! It was chasing her, and…!"
Sokka's face contorted with a violent, surging snarl. His brow furrowed so heavily it clouded his bright eyes.
It was real. The Spear was real. Rhone had found it… and he had turned it against Azula.
"WHERE IS SHE?!"
Again, his voice rang in the air, and it was clear he would stop at nothing for an answer. That a Water Tribesman would prove so ferocious and fierce, with willpower that burned hotter than any flames could, was nothing short of flooring. Yet…
"By the coast!" replied Zhen, gritting his teeth "We'll go to the factory, you go help the Princess!"
He didn't need to say it twice: the gladiator had already begun maneuvering with the steering levers of the hot-air balloon, still snarling as his blood boiled: the coast wasn't that far away, he could see the sea already from these heights: but he couldn't see Azula yet. He couldn't. Where was she? Where was Xin Long?
The airship took longer to start moving, but Sokka didn't wait around to ensure they were on their way to the factory as promised: the hot-air balloon was far too slow, far too ineffective, almost taunting him about his failure to protect the woman he loved…
He had seen it in his dream: Azula's body, lying on the ground, unmoving, helpless, right after his vision of Rhone with the Spear: how on earth had he allowed her to talk him out of going with her? Why had he been such a fool? How could he leave her to fight such a dangerous foe on her own?
He shouted, desperate, slamming a fist into the balloon's basket, wishing he could do more to speed it up further. To reach her, at all costs, before the worst could happen…
There was no shaking them off. No chance to get rid of the pursuing spear or the unbearably irksome man who clung to his tail, refusing to let go.
There was no stopping the blood that trickled down his rider's shoulder, or the occasional slips into unconsciousness she'd have: Xin Long couldn't remember having felt Azula's mind as weak and uncertain as it was right now. He needed to make it stop. He needed to put an end to this mad, pointless ordeal, or else…
Or else Azula might not make it.
The thought was terrifying. His dragon's heart seemed to falter at the very possibility that his rider was facing deadly peril right now. He needed to help her somehow, he didn't know how… but first things first: he needed to get rid of the problem poised by that wretched spear and its human partner. Once they were out of the way, everything else would follow. Saving Azula would be possible by then.
He shot urgent thoughts into her mind, jolting her back to consciousness. Azula gasped as she raised her head, understanding the message Xin Long was sending: it was a wild, dangerous idea, but it might help with doing away with Rhone, if nothing else.
The question was, of course, whether she was up for it or not. Azula breathed out repeatedly, stilling herself… and she nodded, weakly.
With that, Xin Long dove towards the coast at haste, furthering gravity's pull upon his body as he rushed down, to meet the sand down below. Azula gritted her teeth, the wind swatting away at her, and waited until they were closer to the ground. Just a little further…
Xin Long groaned as a warning, and Azula rose on her seat on his saddle, swallowing hard as she gathered her strength…
And then she flung herself off the saddle, gritting her teeth as she shot a few fireballs through her feet, in a feeble attempt to regulate her landing… to no avail. She wasn't strong enough to fly with her bending anymore.
She fell on the sand heavily, letting her back and broken armor take the worst of the blow. Her head whipped back against the sand, and she guessed it hurt too… but nothing registered in her body anymore. Yet her mind did process a few things still, even if she was close to unconsciousness again… and she glimpsed a black stain flying overhead: the Spear. It hadn't chased her… for Rhone was still summoning it towards him, either unaware that Azula was no longer on the saddle or unable to react to the change on time before Xin Long dove violently into the sand, several meters away, slamming his tail against a tall, natural rock wall that hugged the beach.
It hurt the dragon to fall so violently on the ground, to strike his tail against solid rock… but it certainly hurt the human he'd been trying to shake off all the more.
The Spear rushed to Rhone even then, falling into his hand… though it oozed that strange, dark cloud around itself as it did. Stunned, wounded and bleeding as he was after that crash landing, Rhone barely seemed to notice his own blood was beckoning the Spear now… yet, to the exhausted and battered dragon's horror, Rhone roared and the blackness of the Spear shrank again.
He sent the images to Azula's mind at haste. She coughed, struggling to breathe… knowing, though, that as inexplicable as the situation was, the only sense to be found in the Spear's receding at Rhone's command was that it obeyed him, without question. It believed it benefited more from keeping Rhone alive than from killing him.
Xin Long hadn't gone unharmed after his violent crash landing. He struggled to rise back to his feet, evoking blue flames in his slightly parted jaws to threaten both Rhone and the Spear… but threats didn't work on a man who feared nothing. Who welcomed death gladly, if it was what it took to fulfill his own quests.
Rhone rose to his feet again, blood trickling down his face and limbs. He grunted, raising his Spear and releasing it anew: as though trained for it, the weapon turned in the air before rushing in the direction where Azula lingered, splayed on the sand. Xin Long roared, ignoring his injuries as he dashed forth clumsily, tackling the weapon away from his rider and knocking it off course. Azula, as she was, could barely conjure a few plums of blue fire with her right hand in a worthless attempt to defend herself.
Try as though she might, she wouldn't be able to bend properly. And if the blue fire was so difficult to conjure right now, gold would be virtually impossible.
Gold fire… Sokka. His warm smiles, his brimming enthusiasm, his flustered retorts whenever she embarrassed him. His blue eyes, so caring and gentle, so loving and sincere…
Suddenly, it was difficult to evoke them at all. Azula huffed, dropping her arm again, disappointed in her weakness… in all her weaknesses. To think that this could be it for her… to think she couldn't even see Sokka in her mind's eye, at the last moment.
"Pathetic…" she managed to say.
The word, at first a mere remark, suddenly infused her heart with rage. Was this truly how it would end for her? Would her last moments truly amount to nothing more than a pointless battle against a madman and his pet weapon, by the shore of the Fire Nation? It was ridiculous. It was unthinkable… Rhone wasn't worth this. He didn't deserve the pride of having killed her. He never would, so how could she give him that satisfaction? She couldn't. She had to fight back: it didn't matter how, it didn't matter what she might do, but she had to fight back at all costs…
Rhone stumbled where he stood, clutching his ribs as he watched the dragon and the spear engaging in another fruitless battle. He should go help the Spear… but why not do away with the worst of the problems, first of all? She was right there, wasn't she? Lying helpless, useless on the ground… ready to die by his hand.
She twitched then, and Rhone scowled as he took a step towards her, and then another. At least, he thought he had: he knew he was in bad shape, but somehow, it didn't feel like he was cutting the distance between them at all. Was it just his perception? Or was he not moving at all, although he thought he was? He clenched his fists, baring his teeth: maybe the boomerang would do, then. All he had to do was toss it at her neck, sever her head if he could get away with it… if not, then simply slit her throat. It would work just fine, wouldn't it? And then the world would be rid of one more ashmaker… one of the very worst of them, to boot. He knew he'd never live long enough to see it happen, but one day, people would rejoice in his achievement… one day, Sokka would understand it was only right. It was the only way. It was his purpose. This was why he had lived… why he had survived until now.
He had always known he would die one day, he had chosen this path knowing that he wouldn't survive this battle, and he intended to take that damned Princess with him, if nothing else.
He raised his hand, finding the steel of his boomerang. The very weapon he had crafted, in the likeness of his tribe's favored weapons. Today, just as the Spear had, it would help him fulfill his true purpose…
That was the last thought he could indulge in before a dark shape appeared in the sky, right above him.
He raised his head, confused…
And his eyes widened when, for the second time in his life, for the second time in these lands, he saw Sokka high above him, glaring fiercely as he dove to the ground at full speed, the rope of his hot-air balloon firmly tensed in his hands.
This time, there was no mistaking the wrath in those blue eyes. It wasn't meant for any other foes this time, whether an invisible being or anything else: this time, Sokka's rage was, without a doubt, meant for his childhood friend and no one else.
"RHONE!"
His powerful voice pierced through the beach, the sound slamming into Azula's mind with a start, jolting her senses back from her self-deprecating tirade in a single attempt. Xin Long was distracted upon hearing it, for just one moment, and in that instant, the Bloodlust Spear slipped out of his reach, flying towards Rhone's spread hand anew.
For the fierce, wrathful gladiator was aiming the vehicle towards the man who he had once called a friend, who, despite his previous resolve, now took to running away from the hot-air balloon as fast as his broken body allowed him to.
Sokka refused to release the lid's rope, aiming perfectly for Rhone's running shape: he was falling far too fast as it was, he wouldn't be able to correct course anymore… and he didn't want to, anyways. This was as far as Rhone had driven him… and no more sentimentality about the past would stay Sokka's hand anymore.
With the ground mere meters away, Sokka raised himself over the edge of the basket and jumped… just before the vehicle impacted the sand at the highest possible speed.
And all eyes that could yet see were blinded, all ears that could hear were deafened, by the brightness and the noise caused by the collision of the hot-air balloon's engine with solid ground.