Chapter 19

4 Years after the Hundred Year War

Lake Laogai

Navigating the bottom of Lake Laogai and corridors of the abandoned Dai Li facility, in near constant darkness and surrounded on all sides by water, was a rather disturbing experience for Katara, despite the waterbender being in her element. Unsurprisingly, Azula was not having a great time of it. The princess did her best to use her blue flames and light their way in the dark, but she was freaking out too much to do so reliably at all times. The way Azula clung to her, very tightly, felt incredibly distracting, but Katara did not allow it to break her focus. She had promised that she would not allow Azula to come to any harm, and by the spirits, she would keep that promise.

The Dai Li facility under the lake bed was shaped like a particularly frustrating maze. Aware that Azula was struggling to hold herself together, Katara had hoped to keep their journey through the abandoned complex as short as possible, but it took them a very long time to find a promising passage that looked like it might connect to another Dai Li facility elsewhere. Unfortunately, after they had walked along the corridor for a few minutes, still completely surrounded by water, they came upon a massive rock blocking their passing, no doubt put there by the retreating Dai Li.

All throughout their journey, Katara had whispered soothing and encouraging words to reassure Azula and stop her from freaking out, but when they came upon this barrier, the princess had nearly succumbed to another panic attack, no doubt thinking that she would never make it out alive from this watery grave. For a good while, Katara had to simply hold the other girl tightly while maintaining the air bubble around them. Once Azula had calmed down a little, Katara began to work on breaking down the rock blocking their passage, using thin lances of ice to slowly whittle it down to chunks and create an opening for them to pass through.

After exhausting work of at least a quarter of an hour, they could finally see light shining through gaps in the heavy stone, a familiar green glow that Katara recognized instantly as the Crystal Catacombs of Ba Sing Se. While her memories of that place were not exactly happy, they did bring her hope of successful escape, and even Azula felt encouraged by the sign, joining in with her firebending and helping to blast through the last few pieces of rock standing in the way of their passing.

Following this exhausting and dangerous leg of their journey, they were both badly in need of some rest. Katara felt extremely exhausted by the effort the venture had required from her, while Azula simply appeared mentally drained by having to fight off a slowly building panic attack for so long. Fortunately, after they had broken through the blockage, the passage began to lead upwards, and shortly after they finally emerged from the water, Katara's air bubble collapsing. As soon as they were safe from the danger of drowning, the pair sunk against the corridor wall, sliding to the ground and simply remaining sitting there, side by side.

Exhausted, Katara could not stop a happy smile from settling on her lips when she felt Azula's hand tentatively seeking out hers. "Thank you for keeping me alive," the princess spoke quietly. "And let's never do this again. Also... I don't want you to mention this to anyone."

"Of course," Katara turned her head to smile at the other girl. "Even if I think there's nothing you should be embarrassed about. I certainly thought you were very, very brave, Azula."

Azula didn't reply, simply returning the smile with a dark blush covering her cheeks. "Well... good," she managed eventually. "Whenever you're ready to proceed, by the way."

"I need a few more minutes," Katara sighed, still not feeling back to her best. If they were to come upon some Dai Li agents now, Katara knew that she was not in a good shape to fight them off. What made the whole situation that much more dangerous was that they were surrounded on all sides by the element of the earthbenders. This was their turf, and that gave them a considerable advantage. The only way the two girls could hope to prevail was by being smart and stealthy, but they had already failed once when trying that approach.

"Take your time," Azula nodded at her. "I need you at your best."

"I should be good now," Katara smiled a little while later, getting back up to her feet. Aware that sources of water might be limited as they continued through the underground tunnels, Katara made sure to refill her hip flasks before proceeding, and then side by side with Azula they began to scale the upwards stretching passageway, soon bringing them into a wider cavern, reminiscent of an old abandoned street of a long-buried city, illuminated by the familiar green glow of the crystals.

Walking down what must have been a busy avenue of a now long-lost civilization made for a very bizarre experience, but they could not afford to get distracted now, they needed to find an exit from this place. Unfortunately, as they reached the other side of the rubble strewn street, they could not spot any obvious passage leading further. "If they used this space to transport prisoners to Lake Laogai, then there has to be an exit here, or am I wrong?" Katara mused, feeling frustrated.

"You're not wrong," Azula nodded at her. "It's simply no longer in use, and those damn Dai Li must have sealed it after flooding the lake facility. We'll have to find the blocked passage and then break through, just as we did before."

"Great," Katara sighed, shaking her head, the two girls starting to look around the impenetrable looking rocks at the dead end of the ancient street. Eventually, Azula managed to find what appeared to be a blocked passageway, the stone covering it clearly appearing to have been shaped more recently than the rest of the rocks. "This is going to make me even more exhausted," Katara frowned. "I wish we had something to eat so that we could restore our strength. We should have picked more apples at the orchard we passed by."

"Please, don't mention the word 'apples' for the next few weeks, I ate so many that my stomach feels... not right at all," Azula groaned. Katara snorted, though she did share the sentiment, her stomach felt rather upset as well. "Anyway, don't fret so much, I'll help you with this block of stone. Between the two of us, it won't take that much time."

"Alright... thanks," Katara smiled at the princess as they got to work in reducing the obstacle to rubble. Katara used the ice blades to weaken one side of the rock, while Azula did the same on the other side using the condensed flames forming thin blades of fire. Once the boulder had been weakened from both sides, Katara asked Azula to step aside and then used her water whips to encircle the rock, with some effort pulling the offending block of stone out of the passage and freeing the path ahead.

"There, that wasn't so bad. Everything feels easier when we work together," Katara smiled as they entered the opened passage leading them into another section of the ancient city below Ba Sing Se, this large square looking very familiar to her.

"We were not exactly working together the last time we were both here," Azula said, also recognizing the place of their great showdown more than four years ago.

"No..." Katara sighed as they stood at the center of the square, looking around. It seemed as if nobody had visited this place for the past four years. The signs of destruction from their hard fought battle remained, nobody had removed the rubble and cleaned the place up. "That was... such a horrible day," Katara whispered, the enormity of those events catching up with her, the emotions starting to feel overwhelming. The girl standing at her side had poisoned Zuko's mind and turned him against them, and then she had gone and nearly killed Aang... she would have killed Aang if not for the healing waters from the Spirit Oasis. And now... now Katara was falling in love with the girl who had done all those awful things. How was it even possible?

"I recall that day very differently," Azula said, looking thoughtful as she observed their surroundings.

"I'm not surprised to hear that," Katara smiled bitterly. "It must have been the day of your greatest triumph."

"It was," Azula nodded. "The reception I received upon my return to the Fire Nation... it made me feel like I was on top of the world. But thinking about it now, I can't help but feel that my father completely mismanaged my talents after recalling me to the capital. He should have given me the governorship of Ba Sing Se, maybe then it wouldn't have fallen so easily to my uncle's ragtag group of rebels."

"But you always dreamed of ruling the Fire Nation, not the Earth Kingdom," Katara remarked. Azula looked up at her, shrugging, withholding her reply. "Anyway, I remember how shocked I was that you managed to manipulate Zuko into turning on us back then. Was it all just a strategic decision on your part? Improving your odds for the upcoming battle?"

"For the most part," Azula admitted. "But... some part of me always wanted to have my big brother back. Mostly to manipulate and break him into becoming my utterly loyal pawn, I didn't know how to form any other relationships than that. But even though Zuzu was easy to manipulate, I could never break his spirit quite completely, he was too stubborn and strong willed, much as I hate to admit it."

"Wouldn't you like to have a normal relationship with your brother?" Katara asked. "None of this manipulation, forget all the history with your parents and who took which side against whom. I know that Zuko would love to wipe the slate clean and just have his sister back. You still mean the world to him, Azula."

"I..." Azula hesitated, swallowing heavily. "I suppose I... could try?" she ventured uncertainly.

"Well, I suppose that will do for now," Katara smiled at her, starting to slowly walk towards the large hole blown in the rock formation at the side of the square. "I don't think I'll ever forget the sight of your lightning hitting Aang and sending him falling to his death," Katara sighed as they walked past the spot where that particular incident had taken place. "You must have felt so proud, thinking that you had killed the Avatar."

"Actually, I never claimed the credit for it," Azula shrugged, making Katara blink in surprise. "No, I told my father that it was Zuko who had killed the Avatar. I wanted to trap him in a lie so that I could then manipulate him through that. It worked out even better than I had intended when he later blabbed that the Avatar was most likely still alive because you had that healing water."

"Spirits, Azula... you really were such a detestable bitch," Katara snapped, against her better judgment as her emotions momentarily took over. She regretted her words instantly, despite feeling like being objectively truthful. There was nothing to be gained by dredging up the past.

"I did what I thought I was supposed to do," Azula replied, sounding a mite defensive.

"I know... and I'm sorry," Katara apologized quickly. "I'm trying to let go of everything that happened, but it's not that easy."

"Don't I know that," Azula sighed as they stood side by side, looking at the part of the Crystal Catacombs that had served as a prison for Katara and Zuko. "I had you chained up in the palace dungeons before casting you down here to rot," she spoke slowly, as if hating that particular memory. "To remember that... it does not feel good," the princess admitted with her eyes downcast.

"It's alright, Azula," Katara smiled supportively at the princess. "I know that you're not asking for forgiveness, but I forgive you anyway."

"Thank you... then I suppose I will also forgive you for that great offense you caused me that day," Azula looked back at her.

"Oh? What did I do?" Katara wondered, feeling confused.

"Why, you used your blades of ice to slice off a lock of my hair," Azula glared at her. "That imperfection caused me so much mental anguish before I could get it fixed!"

Katara began to laugh despite herself, playfully elbowing the other girl. "Well, then I'm sorry for causing you such hardship," she snorted in amusement, pleased to notice Azula also chuckling at herself, both of them grateful for the dissolving tension. "Anyway, how do we get out of here?" she asked a moment later.

"Well, the palace dungeons are directly above us," Azula replied. "We just need to take one of those passages and we should emerge in the dungeons," she said, pointing at the walls all around them, dotted in many places with large holes through which the Dai Li reinforcements had poured in during the battle.

"Alright, let me get us up there," Katara said, motioning for Azula to hold on tight. The princess did so, wrapping an arm around her waist, and Katara then bent the water from the channel bisecting the ancient square, using it to create a pillar of ice underneath them, bringing them up to one of the open passages high up on the wall. It was very steep to climb and Katara had to use the water from her flask to create steps of ice, making their passage easier, but then, much to their chagrin, the passage ended with a thick layer of rock sealing it.

"That's the last barrier before we get to the dungeons... it has to be," Azula said, looking like she was trying to convince herself first and foremost.

"Well, getting rid of this one will not be easy," Katara sighed. "Any mistakes on our part, and that piece of rock will fall down on us," she shook her head, then forming a platform of solid ice underneath them so that they didn't have to worry about their footing as they worked to loosen the stone.

"Also, if we work on both sides at once, then the middle part could crush us if it becomes loose," Azula pointed out. "Come here and let's start from my side," the princess insisted. Katara did as she was told, and standing side by side, they began to chip away at the heavy rock above, rubble and dust falling on them as they worked, messing up their hair and making them appear grimy and filthy. Katara could sense Azula's frustrations building as they continued to work, but the princess persisted resolutely, never stopping to complain. After what felt almost like an hour, they had chipped a wide enough gap in the stone to crawl through, but before doing so and emerging in a potentially Dai Li filled dungeon, the two girls decided to take a little break and regain some of their strength, not an easy feat with only water to sate their thirst, but offer little sustenance.

"You can wash your face, if you want to," Katara offered once they had finished drinking, bending a blob of water and hovering it in front of Azula.

"Ugh, I'll be fine," Azula shrugged, her refusal surprising Katara. "We need to get to Long Feng first. Then I'll worry about my appearance."

"You never need to worry about your appearance, Azula," Katara blurted out, feeling too tired to think her words through.

"Umm... thanks," Azula managed a confused and bashful reply, her blush hidden under the thick layer of dust and grime on her cheeks. "We both look like some kind of animated statues with all this dust covering us. It's actually... rather pretty."

"Yes, in a strange way," Katara grinned at the princess. "So... rest some more, or shall we continue?"

"I think you need a few more minutes," Azula told her, which probably meant that she herself needed a few more minutes, but was too proud to admit it.

A while later, they were finally ready to continue. To their great relief, the dungeon above them was empty and there were no prisoners in the cells. It seemed that the Dai Li had not returned to their oppressive ways under Long Feng just yet. Having located a stairway leading upwards, Katara negotiated a few steps and then froze, having spotted a Dai Li agent standing at the top of the stairs, his back turned on them. With light and silent steps, she quickly turned around to return to Azula at the bottom of the stairs.

"I could maybe pull him down here with my water whips," Katara suggested quietly. "But he'll probably manage to cry out for help and then this whole place will be buzzing like a bee's nest."

"Hmm... there's another, much more subtle way," Azula said, having pondered about the issue for a while. "You could use your bloodbending thing."

"What? No, I won't, it's vile," Katara protested vehemently.

"Alright, then let's just blast our way through them and leave dozens of Dai Li corpses in our wake," Azula shrugged. "I thought you were the one who abhors violence and wants to limit casualties."

Katara frowned, falling silent. Azula's suggestion made a lot of sense, much as she hated to admit it. "Well... I suppose I could lead him down here and we could dispose of that agent without killing him."

"Glad you're seeing reason, waterbender," Azula winked at her.

"You are a terrible influence on me, princess," Katara sighed at Azula, then quietly scaling the first few steps of the stairway again. With her target in plain view, it didn't take Katara much of an effort to seize upon the blood running through his veins, controlling the Dai Li agent and forcing him to descend the steps into the dungeon. Once he had reached the bottom of the stairs, Katara slammed the helpless victim of her bloodbending straight into the wall, and he collapsed with a soft grunt, safely knocked unconscious.

"That looked like it hurt quite a bit," Azula commented gleefully.

"Well, I never said I was going to be gentle," Katara winked back at the princess.

"Why, Katara... I'm starting to like you more and more," the other girl chuckled.

"Oh, shush... let's see if we can scout ahead safely now," Katara replied, feeling her cheeks heating slightly from the compliment.

"No, wait... I just had another idea," Azula reached out to grab her hand, stopping Katara.

"Am I going to like it?" the waterbender wondered.

"You will, if you're smart," Azula nodded confidently. "I want you to control another Dai Li agent, bring them down here and take them out the same way. And then... then we'll dress up in the robes of the Dai Li, becoming agents in disguise. It'll be perfect! We'll be able to get close to Long Feng without having to fight the lot of them."

"I suppose that might work," Katara mused. She definitely wanted to avoid fighting as much as she could, and not merely because she detested violence. She hadn't eaten decent food for well over a day, she was incredibly exhausted, her body felt sore all over from the blows she had taken, and she was certain that Azula was in a similar condition. "But do you think we'll be able to just walk up to Long Feng even in our disguises?" she asked uncertainly.

"Oh, I know we'll be able to do that, because I will tell them that I have information that Long Feng is desperate for... the location of Princess Azula," the other girl grinned wickedly. "And it won't even be a lie..."

"You know what, Azula?" Katara responded with a wicked grin of her own. "I'm really starting to like this plan of yours..."