Disclaimer: I do not own any Avatar or Korra characters created by Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, and owned by Nickelodeon. All OCs, however, are all mine.
Chapter VI
Sokka and Toph slowly, carefully made their way to the galley. As they opened the doors, they made a loud squeaking sound that felt like nails on a chalkboard. Sokka looked to see a few bowls and plates worth of food on the table, with his sister standing over it all, her arms crossed, ladle in her hand, and a scowl written on her face.
"Hope you two idiots slept well," Katara quipped sarcastically.
"Katara," Toph groaned as she and Sokka both held their ears, "not so loud."
"Well then, maybe you shouldn't drink so much… in the middle of the freakin' day. Or sleep with my brother," Katara chastised them, mainly Toph.
"Oh yeah? Well maybe-" Toph started but was interrupted when Katara took an empty pot and beat her ladle against it like a drum. Sokka and Toph both screamed in agony at the loud clanging. With that, Katara walked out through the double doors, then poked her head back in and said, "Just so you know, dear brother, Aang and I have been sharing a room for three weeks now and have not had sex yet, so if you have any objections now or in the future, remember yourself here and now."
Katara finally left, slamming the door as loud as possible.
The Great General said: the art of war is of vital importance to the State, Leo read the book he took from Toph's room, running his fingers over the bumps that made braille writing, It is a matter of life and death, a road to either safety or to ruin. Hence it is a subject of inquiry which on no account can be neglected.
Leo chuckled as he read, wondering who was the 'Great General' that wrote this book. He must've written the exact same book as Sun Tzu, word for word.
"What's so funny?" Aang asked as he steered the helm, bringing Leo out of his thoughts. He was sitting in the bridge, keeping Aang company while Katara whipped up some hangover food for Sokka and Toph.
"It's just…" Leo began, "The world where I grew up had a book just like this one, written by some general from long ago. His book goes by the same title and I swear the table of contents is identical. Even the first two lines are exactly the same. It's like these guys' brains were on the same frequency."
"No kidding," Aang gave his own chuckle at the coincidence.
"I kid you not. Hey, who exactly is the Great General?" Leo asked.
"He doesn't really have a name," Aang explained as best he could, "It's believed the manuel is a collection of strategic wisdom gathered from multiple sources, instead of one individual. I mean, who could possibly be that knowledgeable of one subject, especially with a subject like war."
Leo was a bit perplexed by the disdain in Aang's voice towards the end of his comment and replied, "Those who are knowledgeable of one subject, Aang, are what people call 'experts' and 'specialists'. And what do you mean by 'a subject like war'?"
Aang was taken aback a bit by Leo's response. He tried his best to answer, "Well, all war does is destroy things. It destroys peace, families, lives, and the very balance of the world. That's why it's better for people to just stop fighting and learn to get along. Everyone living in harmony with one another is possible, they just need to look past what divides them."
"But not everyone is willing to get along. There's always going to be a threat in the world, whether it takes the form of ignorance, fanaticism, or tyranny. We don't live in a perfect world, Aang. You can't expect everyone to achieve that kind of standard," Leo reasoned.
"W-what're you saying? That war is a good thing or that there's no hope?" Aang questioned, almost exasperated.
"I'm saying that we live in the real world, and that war is always inevitable. All we can do in life is hope for the best, but be prepared for the worst. And when the worst comes for you, it takes more than skill alone to survive; it takes planning, strategy and tactics to survive the worst the world has to throw at you, and that's what the Art of War is all about: survival," Leo calmly explained his point.
"But the world doesn't have to be like that," Aang countered, "You'd be surprised what a few kind words can do; they can brighten one's day, or even turn over a new leaf."
"What? Turn over a leaf?" Leo raised an eyebrow at the phrase.
Aang rolled his eyes at Leo's ignorance of the phrase as he elaborated, "It means to turn one's life around."
"A few kind words of encouragement may do some good, but action is what's required to fix the world. Words won't solve the world's problems, action will. You don't fight injustice with kindness and understanding," Leo said calmly.
Aang stood there for a moment in silence just looking at Leo, then turned his attention back to the helm. Leo went back to reading.
Aang didn't like what Leo had said about war, and accepting the world as it was: broken, like he'd given up hope and settled. After three years of studying under Master Tenzin, Aang had taken his teachings to heart. Year of witnessing violence in the Triads had given Aang a strong distaste for it, and saw that violence only led to more of it. With the Air Nation, Aang was more than happy to put all that behind him.
However, Aang couldn't deny that Leo had made several valid points, and some of the things he'd said Aang had personally heard from Master Tenzin himself.
"Always hope for the best, but prepare for the worst. That is why we study airbending as a martial art, for the defense of one's person and others," Aang recalled one of Tenzin's lessons, then he remembered the last part of it, "But remember, we can never stoop to their level, otherwise we're no better than those who stand against us. Harsh words won't solve anything, action will. And we must be wise when deciding what actions to take."
Aang gave a small smirk as he broke his silence, "Is it not wiser to meet might with reason, instead of arms? Violence just begets greater violence. One cannot stoop down to the level of those who begin the circle of conflict."
At this, Leo raised his eyebrows, brought back out of the words he was reading as Aang rekindled their little debate. He nodded his head, scratching his chin as he thought on the airbender's words, "Hm. That's a valid point, Aang."
Aang smiled at this, "Thank you."
"However, what if that might is without reason?" Leo asked.
"What?" Aang was caught off guard.
"Aang, sometimes people can't be reasoned with. Foes like that need to be neutralized, no 'ifs', 'ands', or 'buts'. In that way, violence has its uses, but violence also has its limits," Leo closed the book and set it on the table in the middle of the room, "Here's a scenario: a man, his wife and their kids are all asleep in their beds one night, when all of a sudden, a stranger breaks into their home with malicious intent. What should the man do?"
"Defend his family, obviously," Aang immediately answered.
"Exactly. And does he have a right to do so by any means necessary?"
Aang thought for moment, "Anything within reason."
Leo's brow furrowed and let out a frustrated sigh, "What did I just say about that? Some people can't be reasoned with. Aang, I'm gonna present you with another scenario, and this time don't think about your answer. Just say the first thing that pops into your head, okay?"
"Spirits, alright," Aang swore as he replied, getting a little agitated.
"What would you do if someone was trying to rape Katara?" Leo asked bluntly.
At this, Aang's train of thought lagged, his eyes growing wide as he grimaced, "What?"
Leo leaned forward and repeated, "What would you do if someone was trying to rape your girlfriend?"
Aang tried to wrap his head around the question, then his mind shifted, as if on instinct, to the thought of his girlfriend, his Katara, being… he wouldn't dare imagine it. He focused his gaze at the alien and answered plainly, "I'd kill 'em."
Leo raised his eyebrows at Aang's response. He'd said that he wanted an immediate answer from Aang, but he was still slow to give one. However, in that moment it took him to answer, he sensed Aang's heart rate and breathing race, his thinking rushed, then he calmed himself as if his inhibition fell away. Leo knew that meant his instincts had taken over and his train of thought had come to a clear conclusion.
Aang was a bit surprised by his answer, but it was an honest one. He'd never, ever, let anything happen to Katara. He knew if anything were to happen to her, he'd hunt down whoever hurt her and tear them to shreds. His forever girl was off limits.
"And such is your natural right to do so. A man's sacred duty is to defend his family, even if that means giving his own life for them," Leo assured Aang.
"Wow… I never thought about it that way," Aang didn't know what else to say. He was unsure of how to feel after his whole debate with Leo, which actually ended in positive light.
The door to the bridge open and Katara came in. She came to the table in the middle of the room, her eyes scrunched closed. She hung her head and gave a small huff.
"Hey, sweetie. What's wrong?" Aang asked her.
"Toph got drunk, got my brother drunk, and then she slept with him," Katara vented about the obvious, then laughed a bit, "Haha. I also told Sokka that we're sharing a room."
Aang's eyes almost popped right out of his head as he exclaimed,whipping around to face her, "What!? Why?"
"Because he had sex with my best friend, and she had sex with him. Remember how immature and overprotective Sokka was when we first started dating? And Toph has been waiting for us to either tell Sokka ourselves, which he would freak out, or for him to find out on his own, which would also cause him to freak out," Katara voiced her vehement criticism of the two in the galley.
"Wait, I thought I was your best friend," Aang scrutinized the one detail.
"Don't be ridiculous, Aang. You're my boyfriend, which means you outrank her," Katara corrected him.
"Well… okay. I guess that's one less thing to worry about," Aang concluded, not wanting to ruffle her feathers any more than they were.
"Alright, you two lovebirds, what's the plan here?" Leo inquired.
Aang turned on the autopilot and stood at the table across from Katara. Covering most of the table were a bunch of maps, some of certain nations, specific regions, and one of the whole world. Aang brought his finger to a spot on a map of the Earth Kingdom, "We're right here, just off the coast of the Province of Omashu, which is in the southwestern region of the Earth Kingdom."
"Our destination is Ba Sing Se, on the opposite side of the entire continent. The city itself takes up almost the entire region," Katara said, "And then we have to reach Republic City, on the south coast of this arm of land west of Ba Sing Se."
"We may have to ditch the ship and just take Appa. It'd be easier and faster just to get there by air," Aang voiced his thoughts.
"We'd have to fly very high so that no one would see us," Leo rubbed his chin.
"Or Katara could bend the water in the clouds and make some kind of cloud camo," Aang proposed.
"Yeah, and Aang could help," Katara chimed in, "Clouds are made of water and air, afterall."
"That's not a bad plan," Leo grinned at the idea. He certainly never would've thought of using clouds as camouflage, "But in case we have to consider other options, what's the fastest route to Ba Sing Se?"
Aang gave a deep sigh then spoke up, "Well, the quickest route from where we are now is to travel north along the western coast, then go up the Hei Bai river to two giant lakes. They're only a few hundred miles from the outer wall of the city."
"But Aang, what about the ship? We can't just leave it behind unguarded. Even if we find a place to properly dock it, flying to and from Ba Sing Se would still take a few days; probably a week in total. That's too much time for some strangers to find it and take it," Katara pointed out.
"Then why don't we just go up the Zhang Tze river," Aang suggested, "It flows into the same lake and up to the Northern Air Temple. There's a point where it's the second closest body of water to the outer wall. Coincidentally, that's where a riverside village called Canglong is located. We can make port there, and trust the villagers to keep it safe and untouched for us."
"How do you know that?" Leo asked him.
"A while back, we helped them out with a bandit problem that, at the time, Kuvira's army neglected to address," Aang simply put it.
"That sounds solid. How much traffic would be on this route?" Leo asked.
"Well, there are quite a few stops along the way: an Earth Kingdom base, a few villages, the Great Divide," Katara pointed out on the map, "Why?"
"We need to stay out of sight; the more people see us, the easier it'll be for the Tyravians to find us," Leo told them. They both remembered the barbarian's last words 'the infiltration has already begun' before her took his own life.
"Alright, it seems flying to Ba Sing Se is our best option. We just need to fill Sokka and Toph in before we do anything," Leo concluded, " In the meantime, is there anything that needs to be addressed?"
"Yes. We are running low on a few supplies, including food. I just used up most of what we had fixing the hangover feast for Toph and Sokka, so we need more food; and a lot more of it now that we have one more mouth to feed," Katara added, gesturing to Leo.
"Just give me a fishing rod and some bait, and I'll get my own food. I don't want to be a burden on you," Leo held up his hand in a placating manner in response.
"Leo, don't be ridiculous. The food we get is gonna be for everyone, including you," Katara insisted, "Now, since Omashu is the closest place to resupply, and the White Lotus has a chapter there, I say we go there."
"Plus they have a stable where Appa can stay while we get what we need," Aang added, "And there's a port right next to the city. We can make port there."
"Sounds like we're going to Omashu," Leo deduced, then asked, "Really quick though, what's Omashu like?"
Aang and Katara exchanged glances before answering Leo's question. Katara started, "Legend has it that Omashu was founded by the first earthbenders ever, then named after them. They were lovers from two warring villages. When the man was killed in the war, the woman unleashed a devastating display of her prowess. But rather than destroy both villages, she declared the war over. Afterwards, a great city was built as a monument to their love. The woman's name was Oma, and the man's name was Shu. Ever since then, the mighty city of Omashu has stood strong."
Aang picked up, "It was one of the last Earth Kingdom strongholds during the Hundred Year War, until it was captured by the Fire Nation; but that was only a few months before Avatar Yangchen defeated Fire Lord Ozai, ending the war; and even that was after King Bumi the Great took the entire city back in one day."
"Wow…" Leo muttered, "Wasn't expecting a history lesson."
"However, Omashu today is more like a grand collection of casinos and hotels. Gambling, hookers, and gangsters are what define the city now, not its military might," Katara chided.
Leo laughed a bit in his throat, "Sounds like Vegas."
"What?" Aang voiced as Katara simply raised a brow.