Authors notes
Okay, so I am reordering the episodes a little. There is a reason in the last chapter I gave them 5 days till the solstice instead of 1 like they had in the show. This episode normally takes place after the journey to the crescent island. Please just understand that is not the way I am writing it. The order I am making it in will be important. Please enjoy. :)
Danny's eyes fluttered open, he was squinting in pain. His head was throbbing. He was having a hard time registering what was going on around him. He shifted his wrists slightly, feeling metal cuffs on. The clinking of the chain was loud to his very sensitive ears. He was struggling to keep his eyes open. Two men were holding him by his arms tightly.
He was sort of attempting to walk, his legs dragging across the ground causing trails in the dirt every couple seconds before he could pull his legs up again. He looked up to the side and at one of the guards blurrily, he was wearing a red uniform and a white mask with what looked like red horns on top. Same with the other guy. Matching uniforms.
The next thing Danny knew was that he was being dragged onto a ship. It was completely made of metal. He could see the black smoke rising up from the ship out into the atmosphere. Sam would not be impressed.
Zuko walked up the plank bridging between the ship and the land. He stood right in front of Danny, who was now on his own two feet. His arms were still being held by the fire nation guards, and hands were chained behind his back. Danny was coming back to his senses already, well just enough to be sassy when he needs it.
"Where is the Avatar going!?" Zuko demanded, his fist igniting in flame for a second. He was looking the halfa in the eye, they were almost the same height. Zuko only being slightly taller, not that it animated Danny at all.
"Why would I know?" Danny asked, shrugging his shoulders a bit.
"You have been traveling with him, and are sure to be a part of his plan. Where. Is. He. Going!?" Zuko pointed at Danny's chest angrily.
"All right Pretty Boy, I have known these people for, what, about a week, and I have been unconscious for at least half of that." Danny shrugged. "You think they would tell me any of their plans?"
Zuko was about to speak up again, when one of the guards came running up to them, panting slightly from exhaustion before holding up his arm in solute. "Prince Zuko, we integrated the town folk as you suggested. They claim that the Avatar is headed to the crescent island, in the fire nation. He is trying to get there by the summer solstice."
Zuko narrowed his eyes at Danny, and Danny narrowed his eyes back. "At Least someone is being helpful." Zuko commented.
"Oops, must have slipped my mind." Danny shrugged, tilting his head to the side with a slight smirk. Causing Zuko to growl angrily.
"Lock him up. We will need him later." Zuko commanded the guards.
"Aren't I supposed to get a phone call or something?" Danny asked. Zuko just rolled his eyes as Danny was led away deeper into the ship.
Uncle Iroh turned and watched as the boy was led away before turning back to his nephew. "The solstice is in 4 days time. If the Avatar hopes to get there, he will have to pass the fire nation guard. And, so will we."
Zuko spun around angrily. "Then we will have to capture him before he gets to the border. Later I will ask our new prisoner some more questions."
"And are you sure he will answer them? He did not seem like he would any of the others."
"I'll figure it out!" Zuko started towards the entrance of the ship. "I am going to my chambers." He pinched the bridge of his nose.
X
Danny was led through the ship, which was much smaller than he would have imagined for a Prince's ship. The fire nation boots clinking against the metal floor with every guard's step. One of the guards let go of his arm and spun around what looked to be a wheel on the door. It reminded Danny a lot of a door on a submarine.
Once opened the guards lead Danny into a room, the walls were covered in fire nation tapestries. In the corner of the room was a steel barred cage, it looked to be about 5 by 5 feet and the height reached the roof.
The other guard walked around and opened the cage, while the other one unlocked Danny's cuffs and shoved Danny into the cage. Danny would have tried to make a run for it the moment his cuffs were off, but he figured with such low energy and so many injuries, it would be a bad idea to try and attack the trigger-happy flamethrowers.
The steel door behind Danny was swung shut and locked with a key. Danny tried to memorize the shape of the key as it left the lock and was put onto the guard's belt. The other guard reached to his side and grabbed Danny's katana from his hip.
Danny's eyes widened slightly. They must have taken it from him when he was unconscious. The guard placed it down and Danny's locket on the table on the other side of the room. The moment Danny saw the locket he reached for his wrist subconsciously.
The two guards turned and left the room without another word, closing the door behind them and leaving Danny alone. Danny slid down against the bars to the floor. "Kidnapped 5 times in a week, I must be going for a record." He mused, leaning his head back against the steel bars.
He just hoped that the others weren't lying about coming back for him. Sure he has only known them for a couple days like he told Zuko, but they didn't seem like the type to abandon him. And if they did, well, he would just have to escape on his own then.
X
"I can't believe we had to leave Danny," Aang said sadly. They were walking through a red-leafed forest, they were taking a small break on their journey to the crescent-shaped island to rest up.
Sokka used his water tribe machete to slice off a branch of a red-leafed bush covering their path. "I feel bad about leaving him too, but we can't think about that right now, we need to focus."
Katara stopped walking, putting her hands to her sides. "How can you talk like that Sokka!?" Katara yelled. "We had to leave him with Zuko, who knows what they would do with him!"
"We had no other choice, Katara." Sokka turned around. "Danny is a warrior, just like me. He told us to go ahead, he knows that we need to get to the island before the summer solstice. And when Aang is done with all of his avatar whatevers we can go back for him." Sokka crossed his arms.
"But what if we can't find him again, Sokka?" Aang asked quietly.
Sokka turned around and started chopping through the bushes again. "Zuko will keep him close, he is the only one that has been with us so far. He also knows that we are going back for him so it would be dumb for him to send him to a Fire Nation prison." Sokka explained. "And Danny isn't dumb either, you've seen him. He can take care of himself for a couple days."
"Sokka I- '' katara started, only for them to walk straight into a fire nation campsite. Their eyes widened as they looked over the camp of about 20 fire nation guards. All of the guards turned around to look at them before springing into action. "Run!" Katara yelled.
They tried to turn back the way they came, only for one of the fire benders to light the bush behind them on fire blocking their path with flame. "We're cut off!" Sokka yelled.
Katara pulled out her water to try and put the fire out that was now surrounding them, only for it to do barely anything to the rapidly spreading flame. They were all now backed up against the fire, pinned between it and the Fire Nation soldiers.
"I-if you let us go we promise not to hurt you." Sokka called out to them trying to sound menacing.
"What are you doing?" Katara asked, whispering.
"Bluffing?"
Katara sighed. "See this is why we need Danny."
"Hey I ca-'' Sokka was cut off as the guard directly in front of them fell to the ground with an arrow in his shoulder. The three of them gasped, jumping back slightly. The guards started looking around frantically.
"Look, there!" One of the guards yelled.
A boy jumped down from the tree and landed on the backs of two guards knocking them to the ground. He had brown hair and was holding two swords with hooked ends. He hooked the blades under the feet of two other guards knocking them down on their backs. "Down you go." The boy quipped.
He spun around and attacked another guard while two other people fell down from the tree landing on some of the guard's shoulders. One of them was much shorter and pulled the helmet over the guard's eyes. While the other merely knocked the guard down before doing a backflip and landing in a crouched position holding a sharp wiggly dagger in her hand, warrior's face paint on her cheeks.
An archer in the trees shot three more arrows at the same time, one of them knocking the sword out of a guard's hand while the other two pinned the guard's shoes to the ground. He then hung upside down and shot two more arrows, knocking the swords out of a few of the other guards' hands, causing them to start to retreat.
By now the three kids were snapped out of their stupor and started getting into the fight. Katara had seen a barrel of water on the edge of the camp and pulled some water out of that, she threw it at the guards and the sheer amount of water threw the three of them back.
Aang used his staff to blow a guard out of the way, smashing him into a tree where he fell unconscious at the base. Sokka started running towards one of the few remaining guards with his club held high above his head. Only for the hook sword boy from before to jump out of nowhere using his swords as leverage to kick the guard to the ground. "Hey, he was mine!" Sokka grumbled.
The boy smirked, a piece of wheat sticking out of his mouth. "Better be faster next time."
By that point, almost all of the guards were unconscious or had run away. Aang ran up to the leader of the group. "Wow! You guys took out a whole army by yourselves!"
Sokka rolled his eyes. "Army? That was like 20 guys."
The boy turned around. "My name is Jet, and these are my freedom fighters."
X
Danny was awoken by the sudden sound of the large metal door opening. He lifted his head and looked up seeing Zuko walk in with an older man standing next to him, arms tucked into his sleeves. Danny rolled his head back again. "Can't a guy get a little beauty sleep around here?" he complained.
Zuko growled slightly. "I'm here to ask you more questions. And you are going to answer them."
Danny glanced over at Zuko again who was now much closer to the cage he was in. Danny didn't like feeling defenseless like this but he certainly wasn't going to show it. "If I answer them will you let me go back to sleep?" He asked nonchalantly.
"It depends on how cooperative you are." Zuko held his hand up, igniting a flame in the middle of his palm and he held it close to the cage, the light flickering around the room off the walls.
Danny rolled his eyes, he got the message. He doesn't answer, Zuko can fill his cage with fire at any second and Danny wouldn't be able to do anything about it.
"What is the avatar's plan?" Zuko growled.
"I thought you already knew about it?" Danny raised an eyebrow with a slight smirk on his lips. "The whole going into the Fire Nation thing, yadda yadda, summer solstice, yadda."
"We know about that one, what is his big plan. Where does he plan to go after!?" He stepped forward, narrowing his eyes.
Danny shrugged, pretending to not be intimidated in the slightest. But he had now gotten up off of the ground and was standing leaning against the back of the cage. "As I said before, Haven't known him that long. You think he would spill his guts to me?" Danny looked at his nails to make him seem uninterested in Zuko.
The prince narrowed his eyes. "Well then, let's start with something that you should remember. Who are you?"
Danny raised an eyebrow. "What, so you're making this about me now? Hmm, where to start, well I was born about 15 years ago and then I started to learn how to walk, talk, and all that, but after."-
Zuko growled again. This time throwing fire at the boy's feet causing Danny to jump back slightly. "The only reason you are not a charred body on the ground right now is because you are my best chance of leading the Avatar into a trap!" He threw his hand to the side. "But if I hear one more wise crack out of you I might be tempted to give that up." Zuko said darkly.
Danny froze for a second before regaining his confidence. "Sorry, Ponytail. But Sas is part of my religion." Danny said playfully. Causing Zuko to yell angrily before storming out of the room throwing fire behind him on the floor. Clearly trying to get out of there before he burned Danny. Danny smirked, leaning back on the cage as both Zuko and the man he came in with left, leaving the door open. They would be back soon, Danny was sure. But he would have to wait for his royal highness to calm down from his tantrum.
X
"Today, we struck another blow against the fire nation swine." Jet held up his cup in victory as everyone around the table cheered loudly. "I got a special joy from the look on one soldier's face when the duke dropped down on him and rode him like a wild hog monkey!" He gestured his hand to the short freedom fighter who raised his arms in the air, resulting in another cheer.
The rest of the gaang was now sitting with the freedom fighters in the top of a treehouse in the middle of the forest. It was their hideout where they were making plans to take out fire nation shipments one by one. Making it difficult for the fire nation soldiers to stay there and keep taking over their land. Slowly working to free the valley they lived in.
They had just met the freedom fighters earlier that morning and were now eating with them for lunch. Katara seemed swept away by Jet, and Aang was happy to meet some new people who were willing to help them. But Sokka wasn't sure about any of this, something just didn't sit right with him. His instincts were telling him that this situation was bad, it is best if they could get out of here as soon as possible.
Sokka crossed his arms and glared up at Jet as he continued his speech. "Now the fire nation thinks they don't have to be scared about a couple kids in the trees. Maybe they're right…" Jet turned away with a slight smirk on his lips as everyone around the table booed. He spun back around. "Or maybe they're dead wrong!" He growled. Throwing his sword into the piece of meat prepared on the table. Everyone burst out into cheers again.
After a couple more inspiring words Jet smirked and got down off the table to go and sit next to Sokka Katara and Aang. "That was a great speech Jet." Katara started.
"Yeah, it was, and Thank you for letting us stay here for a bit. We really need it." Aang said, putting his arms on his crossed knees and smiling brightly.
Jet smiled back. "I was really impressed with your bending out there today." He said to Aang and Katara. Turning his back towards Sokka. "You are both naturals."
Katara blushed. "Well, he's great, he's the avatar." Jet's eyes widened for a second before going back to his playful manner. "I still need some training."
"I thought you did perfect, katara." He paused. "Hey, I might know of a way you and Aang can help us in our struggle." He pointed at them, cup still in his hand.
Sokka stood up and narrowed his eyes at Jet. "We would love to stay and help, but we have places to be and a friend to save. We have to leave, now." Sokka started walking away.
"Sokka's right." Aang sighed. "If we don't get to the island by the solstice, Danny's sacrifice would have been useless."
Jet raised an eyebrow. "Danny?"
Katara looked back up at the freedom fighter. "He was captured by the fire nation at our last stop. We are planning to get him back as soon as we get to the island to help Aang with his Avatar journey."
"Your friend was captured by the Fire Nation?" Jet started. "See this is the kind of problems the Fire Nation is causing. The solstice isn't for 3 days, I am sure you will get there in time. If only you could help us with our mission tomorrow I am sure we can free this land from the fire nation for good. Please."
Katara bit her lip, and Sokka turned around to say something, but Katara spoke up first. "Jet's right, If we can help tomorrow we can save these people here. We can still make it to the island in time if we wait another night. We can leave tomorrow."
"But-." Sokka started protesting.
"Katara's right Sokka." Aang started. "If we wait another day it will not change our plans. These people need us now. I promise we will leave as soon as we are done helping."
Jet stood up and walked over to Sokka putting a hand on his shoulder, causing the water tribe boy to tense up. "We need you Sokka. It's only for a day, I'm sure your friend isn't going anywhere. And I need your help for a mission later this afternoon."
Sokka sighed. "Fine. But we are leaving as soon as this whole fiasco is over with.
X
Danny had been sitting in that room for probably over an hour after Zuko left. It was getting rather boring, but he was sure he was going to have to go through a lot of that in the next couple days. Every once and a while he would see a guard walk past the passage in front of his room, none of them atchaly looking in only keeping their eyes forward as they walked. Probably something they were trained.
Suddenly something caught the corner of Danny's eye, he turned his head to see a small gecko no bigger than the palm of his hand was staring at him with shiny charcoal black eyes. He was just sitting on the inside of his cage on one of the bars at about Danny's eye height. He was a burgundy red with an orange stripe down his back.
Danny looked at him for a couple more seconds before the gecko tilted his head to look at the halfa better as well. Danny smirked at the little one's cuteness. "Hello, there etulo." The gecko looked at him again before scurrying down the bar of the cage and up onto his raised knee, which caused Danny to chuckle. Its little chest was taking quick breaths and he stuck his tongue out to lick his eye.
"Aren't you cute." Danny smiled. "What are you doing in here?" He asked, sticking his hand out to scratch the little gecko under the chin, who leaned into the scratching eagerly, causing Danny to once again chuckle.
"He's a fire gecko." Danny jumped slightly at the new voice and his eyes shot up to see who spoke, it was the older man who was standing with Zuko earlier in his 'interrogation.' The door to his room had been left open after the prince left, he didn't even hear the man enter, normally his senses are better than this. "Small little thing isn't he?"
Danny looked back down at the gecko. "Yeah, he is," Danny said kindly. He stroked his finger down the back of the lizard feeling that it was a little slimy.
Iroh pulled up a chair and sat next to Danny's cage in a calm manner. "He must be a stowaway. Probably came in with our last food shipment from the fire nation. Normally these guys like to stay up in the mountains where it is colder." Iroh held out his hand low to the ground and the lizard scurried off of Danny's knee and onto Iroh's hand looking up at him.
"Where it's colder?" Danny asked. "That is not something I would expect for something named a fire gecko," Danny said. His shoulder now leaning against the bar of the cage.
Iroh held him up closer to Danny. "These little guys like the cold because it helps regulate their skin. They give off their own heat in the form of fire that helps them make nests and melt through the snow."
Danny tilted his head. "So they breathe fire? Like a little dragon?"
"No, no, no. These guys' ancestors may be the dragons but they do not breathe fire. But they do something quite similar, in a way." He paused to let his hand spark up with a flame, the tiny lizard still on it.
Danny froze for a second thinking the old man just fried the poor thing. But was amazed when the lizard itself ignited with flame. Not burning just on fire. It was still sitting there just fine. Only his body was coated in the wisps of flames. "Woah." The gecko stuck his tongue out and licked his eye again as if nothing had changed.
"The coating they have on their bodies helps keep the flame going, and helps keep it from burning their scales." The flame dyed down on the gecko until it was no longer there. "They can heat up their bodies enough to ignite the flame and use it to their advantage."
He held out his hand with the gecko on it towards Danny, reaching it through the bars of the cage. Danny in turn held out his hand closer to Iroh, the little lizard jumped off of the general's hand and onto Danny's, curling up in his palm.
"Such beautiful little creatures," Iroh said fondly.
"Yeah," Danny said quietly stroking the gecko's back once again, this time pulling a little cold from his core onto his finger. The gecko curled into his hand more at the touch and seemed content. "They are."
X
Aang and Katara were just walking back to meet up with Jet after they had finished filling up the reservoir like he requested that morning. Sokka was still nowhere to be seen, Jet had told him that he had gone on a scouting mission with a couple of the other freedom fighters to make sure the fire nation hadn't caught on to them.
They were sure that the water they had provided from the guisers was more than enough to put out the forest fires Jet had told them the Fire Nation were planning on starting. It would also help the freedom fighters for weeks to come.
As they stepped towards the edge leading down to the valley Katara noticed something at the base of the wooden dam. People moving around, not just any people. Jet's freedom fighters? Katara raised her eyebrow as she studied the scene more closely. "What are they doing with those barrels of blasting jelly?" She asked.
Aang's eyes widened suddenly as things were all pieced together. "They're going to blow the dam! Sokka was right about Jet."
"But that would destroy the town. All those people down there." Katara panicked. "Jet, wouldn't do that."
"I need to stop them." Aang narrowed his eyes and started running towards the edge of the cliff with his glider. Only for it to be snatched out from above him by Jet. Aang skidded to a halt, almost falling off the cliff. He managed to use airbending to push him back in the right direction. "Ahhh!"
"Yes, I would." Jet said, gripping tightly onto Aang's glider and turning back to face Katara.
"Jet, why?"
"Katara, you would do the same thing if you were in my shoes if you just stopped to think, think about what the fire nation has done, to your mother, to your friend, to all of the people around the world. They started this war and the only way to end it is by stopping them. Permanently."
"Killing them is not the answer, Jet!" Katara yelled.
Aang stood up glaring at Jet. "They are people, with lives and families, just like you had. They are not worthless just because they are fire nation. Everyone deserves a chance."
"Ugh! I thought you guys would understand. I thought your brother would understand too. But I was wrong." Jet reached his hand out to touch Katara's face in a calming motion.
Aang quickly stepped in between them and Katara stepped back, tears welling up in her eyes, threatening to spill over. "What have you done with Sokka!" Katara yelled.
"Katara I-." She glared at him with all of her might, before pulling water out of her water skin and threw it at him with all of the power she could muster. Almost making him fall off of the cliff. He caught himself with the hook on the end of his sword and swung himself back up onto the ledge, he growled as he charged at them with his swords in hand.
X
Katara and Aang's hearts dropped when they heard the final whistle coming from across the valley. The sound of the dam exploding ringing in their ears. Jet was frozen with water to a tree and unable to move. Katara and Aang quickly ran back to the ledge only to see the town get flooded by a tsunami of water spreading through the town in seconds. Knocking over houses and washing away karts and belongings. "…No." Aang said quietly, his eyes filled with horror.
"All those people…" Katara spun around. "Jet you monster!"
"This was a victory, Katara. The Fire Nation swine is gone and this valley will be safe from their tyranny."
"It will be safe." Sokka's voice rang out to them. "Without you!"
Katara ran towards her brother. "Sokka!"
He quickly hugged his sister before turning back to face Jet. "I warned the villagers about your plan, just in time. They are all safe."
Jet's eyes widened. "What! Do you have any idea of what you have done!? This was our chance, Sokka. We could have freed this valley."
Sokka glared at him. "And who would be free!? Everyone would be dead!"
"You traitor!"
Sokka turned his head away. "No Jet, you became the traitor when you stopped protecting innocent people." Sokka started walking away with Aang right behind him.
"Katara help me." Jet called out to the girl.
Katara froze for a second before she continued walking. "Goodbye Jet."
Authors notes.
Thank you all so much for your amazing comments on this story so far. They mean so much to me. I hope you liked this story and enjoyed seeing things in Danny's situation. Sassy Danny is the best in my opinion. I am also very fond of the conversation between him and Iroh. The little gecko is so cute, and we will be seeing more of him. I have drawn a photo of him on my Tumblr if you guys want to check it out. He is the cutest little boi. :3
Please tell me what you thought of this chapter, I would love to hear your opinions! I am very excited to write more and expand on this world. Thank you all for reading and I hope you are enjoying the story so far and future chapters. :D