Defeated. The word hung oppressively over Captain Yung's mind for the past week, with each night plagued with increasingly unbearable nightmares. No matter where he was, awake or asleep, Yung could still hear the haunting screams of soldiers around him. Yung could still feel the scorching heat surrounding him. He could still smell the sickening stench of burning flesh.

That day was supposed to be just another day fighting the weak-willed Fire Nation enemy. His scouts had reported yet another group of Fire Nation riders moving near a village. Confident of another easy victory for Omashu, Yung joined the small task force in subjugating the Fire Nation scouting party.

He had heard stories from his counterparts in the north about the infamous Komodo Dragons. How they were riders of apocalypse for the Earth Kingdom. He was told about their leader, how the man was more demon than man and was unfearing in the face of a thousand men. Yung was skeptical of the stories, thinking them exaggerations of prideful, defeated men, but still kept the stories in mind as reports came in about the Fire Nation invasion force raising the sigil of the three black horns.

After a few weeks facing off against the Fire Nation however supposedly affirmed Yung's skepticism of the stories. The stories spoke of bold men charging against the impossible, breaking the otherwise unbreakable earthbender spirit under their mounts' hooves. What was facing him was nothing more than an inexperienced whelp, too conservative and risk-averse to do anything meaningful in their futile campaign. Yung concluded that the stories were just fictitious so to save the egos of officers too proud to admit to losing against a green boy.

'How wrong I was.' Yung bitterly thought to himself.

Assured that the Fire Nation riders were just the continuation of a pattern of over several weeks, Yung felt no need to take the usual precautions and simply rode out with his men to hunt the Fire Nation.

Yung still remembered the smiles and cheers of the villagers that they rode out to. How they called for them to end the Fire Nation menace. He didn't know then that that was the last time he would see such smiles or hear such cheers.

Before they could ride out again to search for the Fire Nation, the Fire Nation found them. Only, they weren't the ostrich horse riders that was commonly reported previously. They were Komodo rhino riders. And unlike the reports, they were easily two hundred, maybe more, rather than a hundred. And all of them were just beyond the village, waiting and observing.

While the difference in the enemy's mounts and numbers gave Yung a slight pause, he was still confident that victory could be achieved. His own force numbered at three hundred and all of them were earthbenders. Additionally, he had the villagers nearby to supplement his forces, putting the numerical advantage still with him.

'You should have retreated with the villagers.' Yung mentally berated his past self.

Yung had ordered his men to dismount and prepare against a frontal assault by the Fire Nation. He knew they were more skilled as earthbenders rather than cavalry and so tried to play to their strengths. He had also called upon the village for their help, gaining him a hastily assembled militia of common men and boys. Yung was slightly suspicious as to why the Fire Nation allowed them to set up without any challenge but simply chalked it up to inexperience and luck.

'That wasn't enough. Nothing would have been enough.' Yung thought, already dreading the upcoming memory – the upcoming nightmare.

It was only when they had set up earthen walls and barricades to nullify any cavalry that the Fire Nation finally made their move. The sound of hundreds of hooves caught their attention and so they prepared. Many of them, him included, laughed at the thought of the Fire Nation charging against their line. By all means, it was suicidal.

Yung saw the first barrage of boulders they sent towards the Fire Nation burst into small, insignificant pieces, destroyed by intense fireballs from the riders who didn't stop their charge. Yung saw how each subsequent volley was similarly dealt with, with little casualty on the Fire Nation. Yung panicked slightly but assured himself that even then, the riders won't have enough power to breakthrough the makeshift walls they made before needing to stop against it. There simply was no way.

Then, he heard that hair-raising crackling in the air.

Across the field, at the lead of the all the Komodo rhino riders, was a man with electricity forming around him. Yung didn't know what he was doing until the sudden crack of a lightning caught his attention.

A large section of the wall was utterly destroyed. Scorch marks marred the surviving sections of the wall but those were the least of their concerns. There was a breach, and the Fire Nation was charging straight through it.

The sight was unbelievable to Yung. Where his soldiers and fellow Earth Kingdom citizens were prepared to fight, he then saw the same people melt away in a disorganized panic. Some soldiers tried to put up a fight, but they were quickly killed by streams of flames that burnt them alive. The rest simply ran away, dropping their weapons en masse and abandoning the defense of the village.

Yung tried to regroup with his men to mount a counterattack but with every man he collected, five more were burnt alive in front of him. To these riders, Yung and his men meant nothing.

By the time Yung gathered a good number of men, the skies of the village were already blackened with smoke. The riders had already moved further in the village and have already burnt most, if not all, the buildings.

Yung remembered wanting to strike back for such crimes but was held back by his soldiers who pleaded that they focus instead on rescuing the villagers trapped in the burning village.

By some miracle, they weren't pursued outside of the village and were able to direct those who survived back to Omashu.


Yung shook his head to rid himself of such memories. Guilty as he was, they served no purpose now with the Fire Nation right at the doorstep of Omashu.

Just across Omashu's walls and steep canyon, Yung saw the Fire Nation army encamped and preparing for a siege. He could faintly see trebuchets and other unfamiliar heavy equipment being prepared along the canyon.

Yung was still reeling from the defeat at the village but tried to rationalize to himself that this time, the Komodo Dragons couldn't win. There was no place they could use their cavalry in the siege, Omashu was surrounded by a canyon. And Omashu's walls were far thicker than the improvised earthen walls of the village so most likely, no amount of firebending could bring them down. Besides, King Bumi was the one leading the defense, and if nothing else, Yung placed his faith in his king.

Yung's musings were cut short with the sight of large fireballs coming straight at Omashu. Several crashed behind him at the city proper, while most struck the high walls of Omashu. Yung steadied himself from the slight rumble of the walls before surveying the horizon.

'The Fire Nation has started their assault.' Yung mentally concluded, noting that the heavy equipment he saw previously were metal bridges that were now extending steadily towards Omashu.

"Your orders, my king?" Yung asked in nearly desperate tone, hoping that the aged royal would have the answers he didn't.

"I'm going to do… nothing." King Bumi replied as more fireballs flew overhead, laughing nonchalantly as the city behind them burned.

Captain Yung was completely stunned. All his remaining hope that he placed on King Bumi to lead them to a final victory against the Fire Nation invasion was crushed by that simple statement.

"Are we to surrender?" Yung asked tentatively, still not believing what he had heard.

"Yes. We shall." King Bumi answered before breaking into his snorting laughter once again.

This time, Captain Yung boiled in rage at the answer. Not only was their king readily accepting surrender to an invader, but he dared laugh in the middle of battle? When hundreds have already died against the Fire Nation invasion? When hundreds more are suffering under this siege?

His previous fear and guilt-stricken heart momentarily forgotten; spite filled his heart instead. Spite for the king who apparently abandoned them easily and spite for the Fire Nation that dared invade their home. Spite enough to embolden him to take the reins of the defense instead, to find, against all the odds, the victory that was still eluding Omashu.

Yes, he could feel it! He could see it! It was just across the gorge-

As quickly as it left did it come back tenfold. His blood turned cold and yet he also felt an oppressive heat around him. His throat became dry, with whatever words he hoped to speak to rally men long gone. A sharp tingle ran down his spine yet he could not will any part of his body to move. This was fear, his fear.

Just across the now destroyed stone bridge of Omashu, standing alone just near the ledge was the same man that wielded lightning in his very hands back in the village.

And once again, he was back there, just outside the burning village, looking back at the destruction. And right there, staring seemingly at him from a distance, was the man who held lightning.

There he saw the same thing he saw now across the canyon. Even far away, he could see it clearly. Flames cruelly dancing in the man's eyes. And for some reason, that unnerved him the most.