Chapter 22: Where Loyalties Lie
SEVEN YEARS AGO
The forest of glowing trees stretched out before them. Sarin did not know what to make of the forest. The Harrier was equally wary. Only Kalden nodded in approval. The brilliant lights of the Undying Bloom were exactly what the Hssk had described.
"We go alone from here," Kalden said to The Harrier. Lock had stayed behind in Republic City, and the Fogbender had drifted off to his own devices as soon as it was no longer needed to provide shelter with its fog. Only Harrier had remained to escort them to the Undying Bloom.
"I'll wait for your return here," Harrier said. "And escort you back to Republic City."
Kalden looked to the young man who had followed them across two worlds and shook his head slightly.
"It is likely I will not return, Harrier," Kalden said. He placed one wrinkled hand on Harrier's shoulder. "If it is so, I wish for you to know this; your skills, your loyalty, and your friendship have been among my greatest assets."
Harrier likewise extended his hand out to Kalden's shoulder and nodded firmly, if regretfully. Kalden was an inspiring leader to all his men, Harrier especially. The cult he led would be greatly weakened by his loss.
"Sarin will be succeed me, and hopefully, wield powers far greater than I ever could," Kalden said. "I hope you will serve him as loyally as you have served me."
Harrier turned to Sarin and bowed slightly.
"If you are half the man your brother is, I will follow you to the ends of the earth," Harrier said. Sarin nodded awkwardly in return.
Kalden and the Harrier bid each other a sincere but brief goodbye, knowing full well it might be their last, and then the Energybender brothers vanished amidst the blinding brilliance of the Undying Bloom. The darkened shadow of the Hssk led them through the searing luminescence of the forest, towards its heart. Sarin followed on his brother's footsteps, shielding his eyes from the searing leaves of light.
"What do you do to make your men so loyal to you?" Sarin asked. Kalden had a way of inspiring fervent devotion among his men. It would be a hard standard to live up to.
"Loyalty is not gained by any single action," Kalden said. "You must live your life to a standard. Embody an ideal for your men to follow, become their dream in fullness, and they will believe in you as strongly as they do the dream."
Kalden did not turn his eyes away from the heart of the forest.
"Now come. Your destiny awaits. We must see it through at any cost."
Sensheng waited in his chambers. He had not been here in months. When last he'd sat at this desk, it had been stacked high with papers, rosters, duty reports, plans of attack. Now it was as bare as the land around them. There was nothing left to report on. Every soldier they possessed, the few dozen of them, was gathered in this single structure. They had no scouts and no spies, no armies to command. Sensheng felt useless.
A long range radio crackled in the silence. Sensheng quickly rolled his chair towards it, hopeful for a brief moment that some lingering remnant of their army still held loyalty. It took only a second for that hope to be dashed.
"Dei Sensheng," The voice of the Avatar growled. Sensheng recoiled from the radio, but did nothing to silence the message.
"I have an offer for you," The Avatar promised. "Come to the Mount Erika in one week. Surrender peacefully, and we can negotiate."
Sensheng waited in silence. There was a brief pause in the message, perhaps to give him time to consider.
"This is the last mercy I'll offer," The Avatar threatened. "Bring anyone else willing to surrender. Anyone who remains loyal to Sarin after this week will face severe consequences."
The radio fell dead and silent. The room echoed with his threat all the same. Sensheng gripped the arm of his chair tightly. The fact that the Avatar had managed to reach this radio was an ill omen on its own.
Dei Sensheng listened to the silence around him. This facility had been built to sustain a few hundred, if necessary. It was occupied by a fraction of that. There was dead silence all around him.
The quiet closed in around him, and Sensheng fled from it. He walked the halls, seeking the answer to his dilemma. The offer of surrender was beyond tempting. It seemed the only intelligent choice. He couldn't look at his current situation and not see defeat in every possible future. There was no hope in this place.
It was painful to admit such an absolute defeat. He truly believed in the cause he was fighting for, after all. He was no opportunist trying to ride Sarin's coattails to power. Sensheng wanted nothing more than for this conflict to end and peace to reign for all eternity. Sadly, it now seemed impossible. The future promised only a hopeless darkness.
At the center of all that darkness and hopelessness, as always, he found Sarin.
The Energybender was fitfully attempting to meditate. The Avatar's viciousness had cost him greatly. Sarin was still coping with the loss of his eye and arm, struggling to relearn basic attempts now that he was short a limb. His robes were clearly disheveled, as he had struggled to even put them on. Sensheng took a deep breath and stepped forward, interrupting Sarin's rest.
"Sarin, I have been thinking about the future of our efforts," Sensheng said. He had to make an attempt to salvage all this. He had to believe, just one more time.
"As have I," Sarin said, surprising Sensheng greatly. "Our situation is obvious, Sensheng. There is little chance of overcoming the Avatar as we planned."
"Yes, I agree, I agree completely," Sensheng said. He was pleasantly surprised to see Sarin finally acknowledging the threat they faced. "What did you have in mind, so far as changes?"
"We'll have to reprioritize," Sarin said. "It's obvious that we cannot take the Avatar alive as I had hoped."
There had been a slight smile on Sensheng's face, and it quickly vanished.
"Kalden had always planned to strike and capture the Avatar when he was untrained and weak," Sarin said. "That should be our approach."
"The Avatar is already fully trained, Sarin, we'd have to-"
"Kill him."
Sensheng stepped back quietly.
"Yes, trying to take him alive was my only mistake," Sarin continued. "We'll start over. Reallocate our forces to the Fire Nation. When I strike Avatar Sen down, we'll have to track his successor quickly."
Sensheng said nothing. It was the most foolish idea he'd ever heard. There was absolutely no chance Sarin could defeat Sen under any circumstances. Even if some lethal impossibility occurred to claim Sen's life, he still had a waiting army of some of the most powerful people on earth. They would be swift to avenge him and to prevent Sarin making any progress towards the future Avatar. It was a completely ill-conceived and hopeless plan.
"It's a fine idea," Sensheng said. "I had a few interesting recruits in mind. May I take a helicopter to go meet with them?"
"Of course, Sensheng," Sarin said. "I was going to go on a recruitment mission myself. Re-recruitment, you might call it. An old friend, who has some expertise on the Fire Nation."
"Best of luck to you then, Sarin," Sensheng said, feigning good intentions.
"And to you, Sensheng," Sarin said with a nod. Dei Sensheng turned his back on his "master" and went swiftly about his work. He only had a week to meet the Avatar. Best not to waste any time.
One week after sending his message to Dei Sensheng, Sen stood at the base of the mountain, arms crossed impatiently. The carved doors of the temple loomed overhead, watching Sen fume while he waited for Sensheng. His teammates, as had become their habit, waited some distance away, leaving him to stew in his own anger from afar.
"He's going to go ballistic if Sensheng doesn't show," Hanjo said quietly.
"He'll just move on to Plan B, he won't waste time throwing tantrums," Ada said.
"He's got to snap eventually," Hanjo continued.
"I think he saves all his 'snapping' for Sarin," Whistler retaliated. "He's not going to go off on any of us."
"We'll see," Hanjo muttered.
Silence resumed as the wait continued. It was several hours past noon when Sen perked up slightly, focusing on a distant noise. Whistler heard it shortly afterwards, and soon they all did. The distant blades of a helicopter. Sen smiled with grim satisfaction.
They all watched in silence as the flying machine crested the hills and descended upon them. The spinning blades kicked up dust and debris, and all but Sen shielded their faces. He kept glaring at the helicopter and the rotors stopped turning. Sensheng stepped out, and hesitated slightly when he saw the Avatar. He quickly regained his composure. Seeming weak would only make him vulnerable in the coming negotiations.
"Avatar," He said cordially.
As Sen was backed up by his team, Sensheng was soon backed up by his three white-clad bodyguards. Sen watched them carefully, but they did not carry any of their usual weapons. Sensheng walked forward, feigning calm. Sen was almost impressed by the persuasiveness of Sensheng's performance. Less perceptive people might not have seen the terror he was trying to hide. The three women in white were less eager to keep up appearances.
Jan, Ken, and Po proceeded towards the White Lotus guards waiting nearby and promptly surrendered. Hanjo looked at them and sneered. He remembered his long-time captors well.
"Shame you don't want to put up a fight," He said. "Wouldn't mind another crack at you sisters."
The nearest of the three looked over at him with her blank mask, and then removed it, exposing a length of wavy black hair. The other two joined in shedding their masks, exposing their wildly different faces.
"We're not even related," The nearest one said. Hanjo shrugged broadly as the White Lotus guards led the three into custody. Sensheng watched his bodyguards be led away with a slight frown.
"Old friends of mine," He said idly. "It always helps to have people you can trust, yes?"
Sen did not respond. The cutting glare Sensheng received said quite enough.
"Yes, I suppose you're not here for small talk," Sensheng said awkwardly. "On to negotiations, then?"
"Negotiations, yes," Sen said. "Walk with me."
Sen turned and began walking up the steps to the temple structure. Sensheng followed behind.
"Are you familiar with Mount Erika, Sensheng?" Sen asked. Dei took it as a good sign that Sen was making small talk.
"In passing, but it was never very important to me," Sensheng said.
"It used to be a temple, no one's sure what for," Sen said. They reached the mighty doors of the former temple and Sen stopped to look at them.
"Later on, the White Lotus reclaimed and retrofitted it into a prison," Sen said. That was not such a good sign. "For Zaheer."
In a flash of movement and force, Sen's hand closed around Sensheng's throat, holding him tight and lifting him off the ground. Any semblance of control in Sen's behavior was quickly shed as his hatred was made evident –and focused entirely on Dei Sensheng.
"This is the deepest, darkest, most inescapable pit I could find," Sen roared. "Tell me everything I want to know, and maybe I won't throw you in it. That is our 'negotiation', Sensheng!"
Sensheng grabbed on to Sen's arm and kicked his feet, trying to reach the ground and find footing as Sen's grip closed off his lungs and robbed him of breath. The tightness of the Avatar's grip made it quite clear he was not in the mood for discussion.
"I'll talk," Sensheng choked out in breathless gasps. "I'll tell you everything!"
The Avatar dropped Sensheng just as Hanjo arrived to try and grab his arm and pull him away from his choking grip on Sensheng's throat. Sen shook Hanjo away and stepped towards Sensheng. The former right hand of Sarin gasped for breath and clutched his bruised throat. Sen could hear protests about his behavior from behind him. He ignored them and knelt down next to Dei Sensheng.
"Hope for your sake that what you can tell me outweighs the war crimes you've committed," Sen growled. Sensheng had been responsible for planning some of Sarin's most brutal attacks. He was second only to Sarin in the sheer hatred Sen bore for him.
"Anything you want," Sensheng gasped. "Anything I can."
Sen stood, leering at Sensheng as he remained knelt on the ground. The stone statues of the temple prison were the only things that stood taller and darker in that place.
"What do you know about the Hssk?" Sen demanded.
"I know that it exists," Sensheng said, not hesitating in the slightest to answer. He was still breathless but he did not dare to keep Sen waiting for an answer. "I know that it can erase memories, more than that, I can't tell you."
Sen nodded. Sensheng was cooperating nicely.
"What about his other ally?" Sen continued. "The tiger called Ta Jide Shui?"
"I know even less," Sensheng quickly admitted. "Only Sarin and Kalden ever went into the Undying Bloom."
Sen's eyes narrowed. He had wondered long about Kalden and his eventual fate. He might as well satisfy his personal curiosity now.
"What happened to Kalden? How did Sarin take control of his brother's cult?"
"Sarin never spoke of it. All we know is that Kalden and Sarin went to the Bloom, and only Sarin returned," Sensheng said. "There's no one who would-"
"Don't lie to me!"
There had been just the slightest flicker of untruth in Sensheng's words, enough to draw Sen's ire. Sensheng quickly recoiled and admitted his fault.
"There's one! One person who might know, I'm not sure," He shouted nervously. "The Harrier. The Harrier was their escort into the Spirit World. Kalden and Sarin went into the Bloom together, but only Sarin came out. The Harrier might know more."
That answer seemed to displease Sen, but his anger was not directed towards Sensheng for the moment.
"You have him locked away at the Boiling Rock, don't you? The Harrier?"
"It doesn't matter," Sen said bleakly. "You haven't been worth the trouble you caused just yet. I only want to know one more thing, Sensheng."
Sen leaned down to look Sensheng in the eyes. The light of the Avatar State did not, could not burn in his eyes, yet there was a fire in them all the same.
"Where is Sarin?"
Several days before Sensheng would surrender to Sen, the guards of the Boiling Rock scattered as the first of them fell. As they had laid eyes on Sarin there had been a moment of bravado, seeing him bereft and arm and an eye. One brave guard had even made a move to strike the Energybender down.
His body was broken, but his dark power was not. The energy provided by the Hssk coursed through Sarin, empowering him to tear at the soul of his would-be opponent. Discordant howling, so low as to be almost inaudible, ripped through the metal halls of the Boiling Rock as the guard fell. The guards fled from the sound, their temporary courage shattered.
As the lifeless body of the guard collapsed, so did Sarin. He leaned breathlessly against a nearby wall, struggling to recover. He blamed his recent injuries, and thought little of the struggle it had been to take the guards life. He soon caught his breath and continued onwards.
The halls rang with shouts and cries from within prison cells. They were not clamoring to be released. The prisoners did not seek salvation through Sarin's presence. From behind bars they hurled mockery and insults at him, deriding him and spitting at his feet as he limped forwards. Sarin paid them no mind. These lowlife degenerates were not why he was here.
Sarin found his way to The Cooler, the highest security wing of the Boiling Rock, and soon identified his real target. A specialized cell, maximum security among maximum security, impervious to any known form of conventional bending. Sarin, luckily, wielded unconventional and dangerous powers.
A weak beam of grey light lanced through the metal briefly, shattering the locks and melting the door. Sarin reached out to grab the door with his right hand before catching himself. He shifted to his left hand –the only one he still possessed, and opened the door.
The cell's lone occupant sat huddled in the corner, his limbs wrapped close around him to conserve heat. He had not moved when he'd heard the start of the chaos, nor when the door had begun to break. The only movement he made was to look up at his new visitor.
"Harrier," Sarin beckoned. "It's time for a second chance."
The once-handsome Harrier now looked ragged and unkempt, with his beard long, unshaven and unwashed, his face caked in layers of dirt and filth. Conditions at the Boiling Rock had been poor for decades; Goto felt no need to take care of his prisoners, and his successor Mika would likely leave that policy unchanged. The Harrier sat there among frozen muck and bone-chilling cold.
"You shouldn't have come here, boy," The Harrier growled. Despite the years, he could still only see Sarin as the simpering child trying to walk in his brothers footprints.
"Your defeat at Gai Zhu was a disappointment, Harrier, but you were ambushed," Sarin said. "It's time for you to try again."
"And fail again," Harrier said with a scowl. He stood slowly and unsteadily. The cold was beginning to drain from the room. He could feel some of his strength returning.
"The guards always made sure to take time to mock me," Harrier said bitterly. "To tell me how the cause I believed in, fought for, was falling apart. How every day brought some new failure. How every choice you made destroyed us more and more."
Sarin froze as the cold creeped around him and out the door. The Harrier looked at his hands. The cold and thick metal made chains useless, so he had full freedom of movement. He made use of that to pace back and forth across the small cell.
"We all saw the writing on the wall the day you were born," he said grimly. "Not even a bender. How could such a weak spirit ever lead us to greatness. But Kalden talked us into it. He made us think you were worth following. Because we believed in him, like we could never believe in you."
"I am Kalden's successor, you swore loyalty to me," Sarin growled accusingly.
"I was only ever loyal to an idea, an idea you betrayed," Harrier shouted back. "You attacked innocent people without cause, you killed your own men, you recruited bloodbenders, Sarin! We were meant to be architects of peace!"
"I am fighting for our cause," Sarin protested.
"You are fighting for nothing!"
Sarin roared loudly and reached out with one hand. Harrier did likewise, and braced his fingertips against his shoulder. Sarin recognized his old soldier's trademark bending style and held a hand out to block his attack –his right hand.
The phantom limb served only as a reminder of how much Sarin had lost as the lightning raced towards his chest. The blow struck him unimpeded, and the blue lightning scorched his robes and burned his skin as it sunk into his chest. The pain was excruciating, though not lethal. Harrier had deliberately held himself back.
The once proud soldier looked over Sarin as he twitched in agony and scowled. As the pain in Sarin subsided, Harrier walked over and placed his foot on Sarin's chest, pinning him down.
"I could kill you now," He threatened. "Might even earn me a pardon from the Avatar."
Harrier looked down at the broken man pinned beneath his heel, at the stub of his arm and the red scar of his eye, and he sneered derisively.
"But I think it'll be more satisfying to let you live. To let the Avatar hunt you down, find you. Then you'll have the chance to face that destiny you're so obsessed with –and you'll fail. Like you always have."
Harrier removed his foot from Sarin;s chest and walked towards the door, turning his back on his former commander.
"You were born a failure, you've lived a failure, and you'll die a failure, and no alive will mourn you!"
The Harrier exited the chamber and slammed the prison door behind him, leaving Sarin alone in the cold and dark. Sarin laid there unmoving for quite some time. Somehow, he struggled back to his feet and kept moving. He always found a way to get back up and keep chasing his destiny. It was all he had. He pushed past the door and headed back to the only shelter he had left.
"The Siwong desert," Sensheng shouted. "His base is in the middle of the desert, an oasis where Wan Shi Tong's library once was."
Kalden had chosen the location specifically because of its spiritual significance and its isolation. No one who didn't know where to look for it would ever find it.
"And your pilot, he knows the way there?" Sen demanded. He pointed at the waiting helicopter and the pilot still nervously sitting behind the controls.
"Yes, he can take you there right away," Sensheng said quickly. "You can be there in less than a day!"
Sen nodded approvingly and looked to the southeast, in the direction of the Siwong. Sarin would have nowhere left to run. But that was still in the future. He had a more immediate enemy to finish his business with. He reached out grabbed Sensheng by the collar, pulling him upwards. He dragged Sensheng a few steps and then tossed him towards the White Lotus guards.
"Lock him up," He commanded. Sensheng looked at the temple behind him in shock.
"Here? You can't do this!" He protested "You said-"
"I said maybe," Sen growled. "And now I say 'no'."
Sen turned his back as Sensheng tried to resist the pull of the White Lotus guards dragging him into the stone protest. Sarin's former second in command tried to protest, but Sen didn't.
"Take one last look at the sun, Sensheng," Sen said idly. "You'll never see it again."
"You can't do this to me," Sensheng shouted back. "I surrendered! I have rights!"
He was right. Sen didn't care. He continued his walk towards the helicopter as the stone doors of the prison slammed shut, sealing Sensheng inside. He paused only to take one look at his friends, waiting far behind him. They were not walking with him, or even looking at him, their heads cast down in shame or disappointment. Only Hanjo was still looking towards Sen, his eyes making his disapproval clear.
"Are you all waiting for an invitation?"
Sen gestured towards the waiting helicopter. They were on the cusp of victory, just a few steps away from the end of the war. Yet they didn't move. Sen waited for them to react, but nobody moved. Miyani looked up for a second and quickly looked away when she caught Sen's eyes.
"I'll go alone if I have to," Sen said. He would only wait on them so long. Whatever meager scraps of an army Sarin had left, Sen was sure he could handle them.
"You shouldn't be going at all," Hanjo said accusingly. Sen switched gears and walked away from the helicopter, towards Hanjo. The rest of the group stepped back as they faced off.
"Excuse me?"
"You heard me," Hanjo said, refusing to back down. "Are you even thinking about what you're doing, Sen? You just imprisoned Sensheng without trial."
"Everyone knew he was guilty," Sen said. "Having a trial would be a waste of time."
"And not having a trial is fascism!"
Hanjo jabbed a finger into Sen's chest accusingly. Sen refused to be pushed back by such a petty gesture, so Hanjo pressed harder.
"How many lines are you going to cross, Sen? How far are you going to go? You've already mutilated Sarin, let someone else bring him in."
"This isn't anyone else's fight," Sen shouted. "Since day one's Sarin has been out to kill me, and no one else. The rest of you are here because you choose to be. I'm here because I have to be. Because every day Sarin is out there, someone else is getting hurt, someone else is at risk, and it's my fault!"
Sen's face was red now, from his injuries and from his anger. His voice was echoing off the walls of the river valley, filling them with his thunderous yell.
"Don't try to pretend you're still doing this for other people," Hanjo shouted back. "This is all about you, Sen, and how much you hate Sarin!"
Sen suddenly dove forward and grabbed the front of Hanjo's shirt, pulling him close to scream in his face.
"How many people have to die before I'm allowed to be angry?" He demanded loudly. His voice was nearly deafening now. "How many widows and orphans do there have to be before my anger is justified?"
Hanjo said nothing. Sen released him and stepped backwards. He rubbed a hand across his red face, trying to soothe the stress and anger he felt. It didn't work. He looked back at Hanjo and demanded answers.
"Was Goto not enough? Yakkul, Moldun, were they not enough? Who has to die next, Hanjo?" He asked. "Does it have to be one of us for you to understand? Should we just wait until Sarin comes and kills Suda, orphans his-"
"That's enough," Ariak shouted, slamming the butt of his spear into the ground. The loud noise broke Sen's concentration, and he turned to look at Ariak. The hunter pointed his spear at Sen, not threateningly, but angrily enough to get his point.
"Just go," Ariak said angrily. "Take whoever will go with you. Finish this however you want."
Ariak put his spear away once again and crossed his arms defiantly.
"Just consider the consequences of your actions," Ariak said forebodingly.
Sen snorted angrily and turned his back once again, facing towards the helicopter.
"I'll give you five minutes to join me," Sen instructed. "After that you get left behind."
Sen walked away and boarded the helicopter without another word. The six friends he left behind looked around for a moment. They all considered their options, but were reluctant to be the one to make the first move. With a deep sigh of resignation, Miyani was the first to rise.
"I know this seems bad," She said, trying to explain herself. "And I don't agree with what Sen is doing, I don't, But just because…sometimes things have to be…"
Miyani rubbed her hands together nervously, recalling the bandages she had once worn.
"Before Sen and I became friends, I hated him. He insulted me, and made me feel…I hated myself too," Miyani admitted. "And I was right to hate him, he deserved it, but he changed. He came back, and he apologized, and made me realize the way people treated me, how they made me feel about myself…It wasn't my fault. But we had to hate each other for that to happen."
She bowed her red-marked head and looked at the ground as she walked slowly towards the helicopter.
"Sometimes you have to be wrong to learn to be right," She mumbled as she moved.
"Don't have to justify yourself to anyone," Whistler said. Miyani looked up. She hadn't even heard Whistler move. Whistler put a hand on Miyani's back and pushed her forward. "Let's just get this over with so Avatar Four-Eyes can get back to normal."
Ada was the next to rise, though hesitantly. She grabbed her sword and looked at the three still sitting.
"They have a point. Sen's…off, but he's still doing the right thing. Sarin needs to be stopped."
After Ada, naturally, came Suda. Ariak shook his head. Suda shrugged.
"Old habits die hard, I guess. Somebody's got to look after these kids," Suda tried to joke. It fell flat, and he sighed. "Look, I get it, and I don't really want to go, but, if you think something bad is going to happen, the best place to be is right there, you know?"
Ariak looked at the helicopter and groaned. He had backed away from confronting his father once before, and the results had been disastrous. Maybe Suda had a point. If Sen truly was going to go too far, then the best place to be was by his side –if only to stop him, not help him. Ariak clenched his fist and unwillingly headed off to join the rest in the helicopter. He took a look over his shoulder at Hanjo.
The first to join Sen's team was the last one to move. And he never did. Hanjo shook his head as Ariak looked, and planted his feet.
The five minutes were up, and the helicopter took off, leaving Hanjo behind.