Chapter 8: Within the Catacombs

Appa flew faster than either airbender on his head had ever seen him fly before, their mutual worry infecting him as he soared away from the Eastern Air Temple in the direction of Chameleon Bay to pick up Sokka. The wind whipped through Rinzen's clothes and roared in her ears, cold and biting despite the humid late spring evening as she clutched Appa's horn tightly to keep from being flung off by the strong breeze.

"Tell me what you saw," Aang said quietly, breaking the silence that had fallen between them ever since they had climbed onto Appa and taken off.

"I saw Zuko, chained up and held captive by someone," she answered, scrubbing a hand over her face to try and hide her exhaustion somehow. The past two nights of little to no sleep had begun to catch up with her, but she couldn't bring herself to even consider closing her eyes when she was so afraid of what she would find when they returned to Ba Sing Se.

"I saw Katara chained up, too," Aang confessed, drawing her out of her thoughts, and she slid her free arm around his hunched shoulders, knowing he was just as afraid as she was.

"We'll find them," she reassured him and he managed a weak smile back up at her.

"I know." He paused, debating his next words before admitting sincerely, "I don't know what to make of you and Zuko just yet, but I hope he's okay."

"Me, too." She dropped her gaze away from her brother. "I know it's not easy for you to wrap your head around, the idea of him and me. And I don't entirely know what he is to me, either. He's...he's just important to me." It felt like too much and at the same time too little to describe whatever Zuko was to her, and the confusion mingled with her worry made her head spin.

"That's all that matters," Aang answered, squeezing her knee lightly in return. "We've still got a long way to Ba Sing Se no matter how fast Appa flies, though. You should try and get some rest."

"And risk being blown off by the wind?" she deadpanned, cracking a tiny smile despite herself as she got to her feet and carefully made her way to their packs to retrieve a small loaf of bread to split between them. Despite the tension in Aang's shoulders, he couldn't stop a sigh of contentment from escaping as he bit into his half of the loaf.

"It's good to eat something that isn't onion-banana juice," he said fervently.

Rinzen couldn't help but agree as she nibbled on her own half, her stomach growling to remind her how empty of actual food it was and yet twisting unpleasantly with nausea at the same time. She forced down a few bites of bread before giving up altogether, stuffing the partly-eaten loaf back into her bag of food. She couldn't remember being this afraid for anyone in her life other than her brother, and the realization of how intense her fear for Zuko's safety was scared her just as much as imagining what could be happening to him in that moment.

Sensing her worry, Aang nudged her shoulder briefly with his own as she sat back down beside him on Appa's head. "He'll be okay," he said with a faint smile. "Both of them will." He sounded like he was reassuring himself more than her, but she appreciated the sentiment all the same.

"I know." She elbowed him back lightly, watching as the ridges of the mountains surrounding Chameleon Bay came into view.

Several Water Tribe warriors moved below on the rocky beach, loading the Water Tribe vessels with supplies, and she hoped Sokka hadn't already boarded one of the ships as they brought Appa down to land on the beach. To her relief, she saw Sokka standing on the wooden gangplank of one of the ships beside a man who could only be his father Hakoda based on how similar they looked, their packs in hand.

"This can't be good," Sokka said after one look at Aang and Rinzen's faces, grimacing.

"It's Katara," Aang blurted out, unable to stop himself as the worry spilled out of him. "I have a feeling she's in trouble, we have to go back to Ba Sing Se and find her."

"Go with them," Hakoda reassured Sokka, nudging him forward as his own eyebrows creased with concern. "We'll see each other again soon. Take care of your sister."

"I will, Dad." Sokka threw his arms around Hakoda, clutching him tightly for several long moments before reluctantly pulling away and hurrying to clamber into Appa's saddle. Aang snapped Appa's reins to take off again as Sokka tied down his pack beside Aang's and Rinzen's bags, peering down at the departing Water Tribe ships and giving Hakoda one last wave just before they cleared the ridge surrounding the bay and vanished out of sight.

"So what kind of trouble is Katara in?" Sokka demanded, clutching at the edge of Appa's saddle to keep his balance as he made his way to the front to peer down at Aang and Rinzen. The sun was just beginning to peek over the horizon as they flew, illuminating the world with bright golden rays. Even as beautiful as the sunrise was, Rinzen couldn't bring herself to admire it when she was still wracked with concern over Zuko and Katara's whereabouts.

"I don't know," Aang answered Sokka's question, pursing his lips worriedly. "In my vision, I just knew she needed help." He tossed a pointed glance at Rinzen, silently reminding her that she couldn't keep her own vision from Sokka for long, and she made a face back at him.

"You know, it would be nice if your Avatar powers could be a little more specific from time to time," Sokka grumbled and Rinzen took a deep breath.

"Katara's not the only one in trouble," she confessed and Sokka turned his attention to her, frowning now.

"Is Lee in trouble, too?"

"Well, his name's actually Zuko, but yeah," she said quickly in the hopes that he wouldn't take the revelation as badly, but his jaw dropped and she knew he had.

"Zuko?!" he echoed, stunned. "Your secret boyfriend's actually Zuko?!"

"Yeah, I know, right?" Aang deadpanned over his shoulder and Rinzen elbowed her brother roughly.

"He's not my boyfriend," she said firmly to both of them. "I don't know what we are to each other, but that's not important right now. What's important is that both he and Katara are in danger and we have to get them out of danger before it's too late."

"Yeah. Yeah, sure." Sokka still looked as if he had been hit over the head with a bag of bricks as he slumped back into the saddle. "Rin and Zuko. Jeez," she caught him muttering to himself and was relieved for the distraction when they heard a rumbling sound and saw a giant dust cloud moving below them. "What is that?" Sokka asked as he pointed to the dust cloud.

"Let's find out," Aang said, curious now as he brought Appa lower to investigate. To Rinzen's relief, she recognized Toph's small figure skating on a large mound of earth, deliberately making her way in the same direction as them towards Ba Sing Se.

"Need a ride?" Sokka called out to Toph as they reached her level and she yelped, her concentration breaking as she toppled backward off the mound of earth. Sokka, Aang, and Rinzen all grimaced in sympathy as they brought Appa down to land briefly before Rinzen hopped off the sky bison to help Toph into the saddle. "So it turns out Rin's secret boyfriend is actually Zuko," Sokka said as soon as Toph was settled and Appa took off again, Rinzen rolling her eyes as she slid back down onto Appa's head.

"What, you didn't know that already?" Toph pointed out, raising an eyebrow.

"Wait, you did?" Rinzen demanded, turning to glance back at her in surprise, and the earthbender shrugged.

"I could tell you were lying since the moment you first mentioned him, and I figured out who he actually was since there's only one reason you'd lie about who he was and that's because you thought we'd be mad about it. I'm just surprised these two didn't figure it out sooner." She jabbed a thumb in Sokka and Aang's vague direction and the boys looked appropriately abashed, shuffling a little self-consciously. Thankfully, Toph took pity on Rinzen's growing embarrassment and changed the subject, asking Aang, "So how did it go with the guru? Did you master the Avatar State?"

Aang flinched slightly before forcing a smile onto his face. "Uh, sure. It went great. Definitely mastered it." He deliberately turned his back on them to focus on steering Appa. Sokka turned a questioning look on Rinzen, who pointedly shook her head with a wry smile, and then promptly relayed her response to Toph in a low whisper. The earthbender raised an eyebrow.

"You know we're gonna have to address this eventually, Twinkletoes," she pointed out and Aang grimaced, thankfully saved from responding as the outer wall of Ba Sing Se appeared on the horizon and Appa picked up speed.

"Katara is fine," King Kuei reassured them. They had burst into his throne room, explaining the situation hurriedly, only to have him shake his head back at them with a warm smile.

"But in my vision, I felt so sure she was in trouble," Aang insisted, glancing back at Rinzen worriedly, and she shrugged back at him helplessly. Even if Katara was safe, that didn't mean Zuko was, and she didn't know what to make of the situation.

"Well, she met with the Council of Generals to plan the invasion. And since then she's been off with your friends, the Kyoshi warriors," King Kuei answered.

"That settles it, then," Sokka said, relaxing. "She's with Suki. They're probably back at our apartment right now, talking about makeup or something."

"You trying to make a point about girls and their conversation topics?" Toph deadpanned, elbowing Sokka sharply as he winced.

"Maybe you're right," Aang admitted, although he still looked as unconvinced as Rinzen felt.

"Believe me, if there was any danger at all, Bosco's animal instinct would sense it," King Kuei said, gesturing to the large bear at his side. Rinzen still found the creature odd, as he was just a plain large brown bear with no other animal crossed with him, but he was charming in a certain way as he yawned widely and padded over to Rinzen to snuffle at her pockets in hopes of treats. She patted his head gently instead, scratching behind his ears. "He likes you," King Kuei pointed out with a small smile at her and she managed one back despite her worry for Katara and Zuko.

"We should check the apartment," Sokka said as Bosco trudged back to the king's side. "See if Katara and Suki are there."

"Right." They bowed to the Earth King before leaving the palace, making their way down the streets of the upper ring to the house they shared.

"Katara?" Aang called as they entered the house, shutting the door behind them. The hole in the house Toph had made was still there, only having been half-rebuilt.

"There's no one else here," Toph said, frowning as she shifted her feet to sense for other people in the building.

"I knew something was wrong." Aang wrung his hands together worriedly. "We should check Zuko's place, too," he added to Rinzen, who nodded as she turned to head back for the door. Just as she reached for the handle, a knock came on the other side of the door.

"I know who it is," Toph said before Rinzen could call out to ask who it was. "It's an old friend of mine." Rinzen opened the door, relief flooding through her to find Iroh on the other side before she registered the worry on his face.

"I need your help," he blurted out.

"Wait, how do you two know each other?" Rinzen demanded, turning to Toph, who shrugged.

"We met in the woods once and I knocked him down. Then he gave me great tea and some pretty good advice." That did sound like something Iroh would do, Rinzen mused as she stepped back to allow Iroh into the house.

"Princess Azula is here in Ba Sing Se," he explained and Rinzen felt like a bucket of cold water had been poured over her head.

"She must have Katara," Sokka said angrily.

"And Zuko," Rinzen murmured, receiving a confirming nod from Iroh.

"Then we'll work together to fight Azula, and save Katara and Zuko," Aang said firmly.

"You lost me at 'Zuko,'" Sokka pointed out, frowning.

"I know how you must feel about my nephew," Iroh pleaded. "But you must believe me when I say there is good inside him."

"Good inside him isn't enough!" Sokka protested. "Come back when there's good outside him, too!"

"Sokka," Rinzen said quietly and he exhaled loudly, scrubbing a hand over his face.

"Look, I know you two have a thing or whatever-"

"You do?" Iroh looked delighted suddenly and Rinzen rolled her eyes even as she flushed slightly.

"It's a relatively recent development, give me a break. You can tease us when Zuko's safe again." He sobered up just as quickly, nodding in response.

"Katara is in trouble. All of Ba Sing Se is in trouble. Working together is our best chance," Aang said as he turned to Sokka, who pinched his nose in deep thought for a moment before finally nodding reluctantly.

"Fine."

"I brought someone along who might be able to help us," Iroh said, leading them outside where a Dai Li agent was bound and gagged on the porch, trembling with fear.

Rinzen gaped at Iroh, stunned. "You kidnapped a Dai Li agent?" He shrugged modestly in response, reaching out to tug down the cloth covering the agent's mouth, and Rinzen recognized him as the one who had stopped her and Zuko all those weeks ago, when Zuko had first walked her home from the lower ring.

"Azula and Long Feng are plotting a coup. They're going to overthrow the Earth King," he blurted out, his voice shaking, and Rinzen wondered what Iroh had done to terrify him so much.

"My sister! Where are they keeping Katara?" Sokka demanded, unsheathing the machete on his back.

The agent gulped as Sokka aimed the machete at his throat. "In the crystal catacombs of old Ba Sing Se, deep beneath the palace." He eyed Rinzen warily when he noticed her glaring at him. "We took your friend there, too. The scarred firebender."

Rinzen clenched her fist, wanting nothing more than to punch the Dai Li agent as hard as she could in the nose, but stamped down the urge in favor of turning on her heel towards the palace. "Let's go. We have to warn the Earth King and get Katara and Zuko out of the catacombs."

As they approached the walls of the palace, Toph stopped in her tracks, frowning as she knelt to the ground and pressed her palm to it.

"That agent was right," she explained when everyone stopped and turned to her. "There is an ancient city down there, but it's deep."

"Then let's split up," Sokka decided. "Toph and I can go warn the Earth King. Aang, you, Iroh, and Rin go look for Katara and the angry jerk. No offense," he added to Iroh, who shrugged mildly.

"None taken." Rinzen had a feeling Sokka would be bitter about Zuko being on their side for a while, but at least he wasn't being outright hostile about the idea.

She watched as Aang opened a pathway underground while Sokka and Toph made their way towards the palace, following her brother and Iroh into the dark, damp tunnel. Iroh lit a flame in his hand, holding it out in front of them as Aang continued to tunnel a path forward with earthbending and Rinzen focused on clearing stray bits of rock from their path with blasts of air. An awkward silence lingered between the three of them as they were unsure what to say to each other, especially now that Aang knew the truth.

"So, uh, Toph says you give pretty good advice and great tea," Aang said at last, breaking the silence as he moved his foot forward to drive another pile of rocks away from them.

"The key to both is proper aging," Iroh joked, stroking his beard with his free hand.

"You ought to try his butter tea sometime, it's just like the kind Monk Gyatso used to make at home," Rinzen added with a small smile, nudging her shoulder against Iroh's when he flushed at the praise.

"I'd like that sometime," Aang admitted, cheering up a little at the idea.

"What's on your mind?" Iroh prompted and the smile on Aang's face faded slightly.

"Rin and I met with this guru who was supposed to help me master the Avatar State, and control this great power. But to do it, I had to let go of someone I love, and I just couldn't." He peeked at Rinzen, hoping she would back him up with her own story, but she pointedly raised an eyebrow at him and kept her mouth shut.

"Perfection and power are overrated. I think you were very wise to choose happiness and love," Iroh answered easily. Rinzen didn't know why that soothed her as much as it did, even though she hadn't said anything about her own worries. To her relief, he didn't comment on the silent dialogue she and Aang had exchanged, only giving her a small reassuring smile in response to her glance in his direction, worried that he had caught on to what Aang had been hinting at.

"What happens if we can't save everyone and beat Azula? Without the Avatar State, what if I'm not powerful enough?" Aang confessed, his voice rising a little in panic at the thought.

Iroh sighed quietly. "I don't know the answer. Sometimes life is like this dark tunnel." He gestured around them. "You can't always see the light at the end of the tunnel, but if you just keep moving…" As if to punctuate his words, Aang managed to clear the last of the rocks and a dim green light spilled in. They stepped through the opening to find themselves in a large open cavern filled with glowing green stalactites and stalagmites, twin waterfalls cascading from an opening in the ceiling and pooling in a large pond below. "You will come to a better place," Iroh finished his train of thought, smiling as he extinguished the flame in his hand.

"Look." Rinzen pointed to a small dark tunnel in the wall of the cavern ahead of them. "That's the only way forward, it probably leads to where they have Zuko and Katara."

"Then let's go," Aang agreed, setting forward again. As they entered the tunnel, he placed his hand on the wall and dragged it along as they walked, tilting his head as if listening intently.

"What're you listening for?" Rinzen asked, frowning and wondering just how much he had learned from Toph when it came to earthbending.

"Vibrations from voices, movement, I don't know. Something that'll tell us where they are." He stopped in the middle of the tunnel, pursing his lips in concentration before turning to face the wall and then breaking through it with a well-aimed punch.

"Aang!" Katara exclaimed in surprise from the cavern they had just opened a hole into and Aang beamed as he rushed forward to hug Katara tightly. Zuko stood just behind Katara, motionless and stunned, and Rinzen was flooded with relief to see that he seemed unharmed. Iroh closed the space between himself and Zuko to hug his nephew as well as Rinzen made her way into the cavern, stepping around the piles of rocks crowding the entrance Aang had created. She couldn't quite read the expression on Zuko's face as he placed a hand briefly on his uncle's back to awkwardly return the embrace, but then he turned a sharp, mistrustful glare on Aang, who scowled right back at him over Katara's shoulder.

"What're you doing with the Avatar?" Zuko demanded to Iroh.

"Saving you, that's what," Aang shot back before Iroh could answer and Rinzen bit her lip as she moved the rest of the way forward, impulsively wrapping her arms around Zuko once Iroh let go.

"I'm glad you're safe," she mumbled into his shoulder. He was frozen for a moment before slowly sliding his arms around her in return as his anger drained away, clutching her more tightly than he had hugged Iroh. His fingers threaded into her hair, warm against the back of her head, and she buried her face into the crook of his neck.

"I thought you were at the Eastern Air Temple," he pointed out and she shook her head as she pulled back slightly.

"We both had a feeling something was wrong here, so we came back." She could feel both Katara and Aang's eyes burning into the back of her head, but ignored them, leaning up to press a brief kiss to the edge of Zuko's scar. He flushed bright red, but she could see the tiny smile tugging at his lips as he ducked his head to press his forehead against hers.

"I'm glad you did," he murmured back. Katara cleared her throat pointedly and Rinzen wished she hadn't as Zuko's smile vanished immediately. He pulled back, his arms and gaze dropping away from Rinzen, and reluctantly, she took a few steps back as well.

"We should find Sokka and Toph," Aang spoke up, breaking the awkward silence.

"Yes, go help your friends," Iroh agreed. "We'll be right behind you." He placed a hand on Zuko's shoulder and gave Rinzen a small, reassuring smile. She managed one back before hurrying to follow Katara and Aang out of the cavern.

"Really?" Katara complained the moment they were back in the tunnel and out of earshot. "You and Zuko?"

"Is now really the right time to be nagging me about this?" Rinzen answered irritably, still a little hurt by Zuko closing off the way he had.

"I thought you were dating a nice Earth Kingdom boy," Katara grumbled and Aang sighed heavily, rolling his eyes.

"Look, we can worry about that later. We have to find Sokka and Toph first and get out of Ba Sing Se," he reminded them as they entered the main cavern.

Rinzen felt a flare of searing heat behind her and turned sharply to find a volley of blue fire rocketing directly at them, but before she could react, Aang beat her to it, bending a large wall of earth up to block the fire. The wall didn't withstand the full impact, though, and blew apart, knocking Aang off his feet as he skidded several feet back. Azula stood above them on a ledge, her fingers smoking from the attack and a cruel smirk on her painted lips. She had swapped her usual red and black armor for shades of green instead, her hair tied back in a bun with a light green ribbon and two strands hanging neatly in front of her face.

Rinzen and Katara moved to engage her simultaneously, Rinzen sending a blast of air at Azula while Katara summoned a wave of water from the pool at the base of the waterfalls just as Azula threw another large ball of blue fire at them, leaping off the ledge as she did so. Rinzen's air blast knocked the fireball off its course and directly into Katara's wave of water, dissipating it into a large burst of thick steam that settled over them. The droplets of moisture clung to Rinzen's skin, wet and humid, and she peered through the steam to try and catch a glimpse of where Azula had gone. She could see Katara and Aang glancing around worriedly as well.

An almost-silent scrape of shoes against rock reached Rinzen's ears and she looked up just as Azula jumped down from one of the large green crystals hanging from the ceiling of the cavern, unleashing another powerful torrent of blue flame that vanished the steam as she landed neatly on a stone pillar jutting out from the ground. Katara and Aang moved in unison to extinguish the fire with another wave of water before Aang slammed his fists into the ground, unleashing a shockwave of earth that rumbled towards Azula.

She gasped as the pillar under her feet disintegrated and fell off the crumbling stone. She landed on the ground between Aang, Katara, and Rinzen, her hands extended to either side of her with little blue flames flickering on the tips of her fingers as a warning not to make another move. Her gold eyes, so much like Zuko's and yet much colder and more calculating, darted between them warily as she debated who to take on next. Rinzen had never seen her so disheveled and uneasy before and had a brief flash of hope that maybe they had a chance of getting away from her safely.

Before any of them could make a move, though, a blast of bright orange fire landed between them, causing Rinzen to jump back instinctively from the heat. She looked up to find Zuko jumping down from a ledge above them, flames on his fists, and felt relief cascade through her as he landed between them and Azula. The relief quickly faded when she saw the look on his face, torn and confused. Had Azula said something to him? Had she somehow turned him back to her side? Rinzen hoped that wasn't the case as he glanced between them and Azula, his eyes lingering momentarily on Rinzen's face. She tried to silently plead for a sign from him that he was on her side, that he had really changed and she had been right to put her faith in him. He closed his eyes briefly and she prayed that it was the sign she had been looking for.

Then he pivoted sharply on his heel and sent a powerful blast of fire directly at Aang.

Dun dun dun.

This was the part of the story I've really been keen to get into this whole time, especially since it's the point of the plot where, for me, it turned a great show into a phenomenal one.

I hope you enjoy it!