Torches hung across the stone brick walls and pillars within the wide, massive hall. Large statues of various animal spirits scattered about. The statues were each occupied by the presence of worshippers. Many of them were monks of all race, gender, and age, wearing robes of red and purple. Some of the individuals wore clothes accustomed to their nation. The air filled with the chants and humming of their comforting prayers.

The walls had many doors of many sizes. A tall yet narrow door opened and Eason entered the vast underground chamber. Pack at hand, he strolled through the outer edge of the room ignoring the crowd and the rest of the surroundings. He knew where he had to go. He knew what he had to do. But that couldn't prevent being stopped by the creepiest attendant. A woman's voice spoke behind him out of nowhere, "Good evening, sir." Sighing to himself, Eason turned around, "Hey you," he greeted, forcing a smile.

The middle-aged woman wore a simple Earth Kingdom gown. Her long, dark hair was straight. But what stood out most was her never-ending smile. The woman bowed and spoke almost with a monotone, "I am Joo Dee. I have noticed you have just arrived and seemed to be astray. It is only procedure for me to ask how may I be of service."

"No I'm not lost, Joo Dee. I'm just heading to good ol' Jagmohan. I have something he just might like." he gestured to his pack.

"Oh," she reacted with a wider smile, "I apologize for the inconvenience, but Jagmohan has stepped out and won't return for another week or so."

Eason furrowed his brows, "Jagmohan steps out?"

She nodded, "Apparently so, but in proposition I have been instructed to direct all contacts of Jagmohan to Nua Hasho. Shall I lead you to him?"

"Oh so Jagmohan's secretary is dealing with the boss work, huh?"

Joo Dee gave a giggle, "You are very comical sir. Nua Hasho is the Vice-Chancellor. Jaghoman's most trusted companion."

He shrugged, "As long as he has the title to pay me, then it's fine with me. Okay, I'm dump all this to him then. And please, call me Eason…for the hundredth time."

Her grin squinted her eyes, "Alright. Now please follow me Eason, sir."

Eason just rolled his eyes but kept quiet and followed her lead. Walking through the crowded room, they exited through what looked to be a random door. The two were now in a narrow, torch-lit hallway. The chants slowly down die from behind; they were now able to hear the echo of their own footsteps.

Finally they reached the end of a hall which widened into a small antechamber. At a corner was a small table and chair. Joo Dee halted at the center of the room before turning to Eason, "I'll will inform Nua Hasho of your presence. You could have a seat at that table while you wait." She pointed at the table with an open palm.

"Sure," Eason confirmed as she went into the door ahead. He gazed all around the antechamber; it was much more intricate than the other rooms and hallways. Rather than plain stone bricks, the walls and ceilings were covered in stone carvings of an array of animals and spirits. The torches fueled off from the mouths of dragon head statues erecting from the wall. There were also statue heads of the giant Unagi. Water poured out of their mouths into small fountains aside of the walls, taking Eason's immediate attention. Walking up to one of the fountains, he dunked his face into the water and took in a mouthful in the process. He lifted his head up. Water dripped down from his chin and the ends of his hair. Swallowing the water he wiped his hand down his face. It wasn't till that moment that he realized how tired he was. It had sure been a long day. He put his left wrist in the water, soothing the burn he had received during the fight with that firebender. Wonder if the guy's still alive, he pondered. He thought back when he last saw him and his dragon falling through the sky from the cyclone. If the dragon hadn't been fazed out for too long, it could have easily came to its senses with enough time to save the firebender.

Looking down at the water, he stared at his faint, wobbly reflection. He thought about the firebender's companions: the desert man and the female Earth Kingdom guard. Wait, it was a woman, he realized. Recalling his memories, he remembered a female guard that attempted to chase him down back at the palace. Could she have been the same person? Nah ,she couldn't be. What hell would a palace guard be doing at the outer wall…riding a frickin' dragon with a firebender and... But she also had a katana. Damn it…Eason cussed to himself. Thinking about it, that whole situation was entirely fishy. And thinking about it started giving him a headache. He tried to pass through his thoughts only to start wondering about Chi. How is was doing. What she did. He couldn't understand why she'd kiss him at such a moment. Thinking of her didn't help with the headache. Grumbling a sigh, he just mumbled, "Damn woman and her infatuations."

"Eason, sir?" Joo Dee's voice popped out. Eason flinched in reaction when the corner of his eyes spotted Joo Dee standing right next to him. This was another reason why the woman crept him out: she was one of the very few people that could successfully sneak up on him, she's just some average woman. But before he could reply to her, she continued, "Nua Hasho will see you now."

He exhaled, "Alright then."

But she paused him with a question, "I see that you're a bit thirsty. I'm going to run to get Nua Hasho some tea. Would you care for any refreshments Eason, sir?"

"Joo Dee, saying my name before 'sir' kind'a contradicts the point."

"Contradict?" She titled her head, "Oh I see. My apologies sir Eason."

Eason breathed out grunt, "Nevermind. Just give me whatever saki you have." And he ambled to the door.

Opening it, the door creaked, and a voice called out in encouragement, "Come in, come in." Entering the room, Eason saw two bright fireplaces on each side lighting up the quarters. There was a large desk at the center, where the man sat. Eason walked toward the desk and tossed the backpack onto the table. "Howdy Hashi." Eason greeted as he plopped himself on an empty seat across from the man. The Vice-Chancellor wore red and purple robes like the monks back at the large chamber. But he always wore a tall purple hat. Nua Hasho just stared at the pack with his hands folded and grinned, "So you managed to retrieve the documents at the palace library. My my, when will you cease to amaze me?"

Eason lifted his shoulders and sarcastically answered, "When the pay gets lousy."

Hasho just shook his head before reaching for the pack. He then grabbed out a scroll, opened it, and quickly scanned the writing. "This is it." He was still in awe, "This is really it. Well done my good man. And you've managed to pull this off with minimal conflict?"

"Well…I guess you can call it minimal. Had a run in with a few guards…the Dai Li agents. But I left them in the dirt."

"Hmm…" The man's tone became serious, "You know, we can't afford to nab even the slightest of attention."

Eason leaned back on his chair, "Ah, get serious. No one has a clue about you guys. They don't even have a clue who I am."

"I only ask that you don't ever become over-confident. At least to the point where you could intimidate the confidence of others."

"Intimidate? Lemme guess…" Eason put his index finger to his lips, "Roe whined with another complaint letter about me." He knew Roe informed Jagmohan and Hoshi ahead of time when Chi had told him.

"Listen," Hasho was calm, "I put my 100 trust when assigning you these objectives. But I also put my trust with Rohshamiki as well. He wouldn't have been lasting Ba Sing Se for so long if he wasn't as careful as he is."

"Yeah, I get it." Eason spoke with mock seriousness, "I'll be more careful to ensure I don't put your other guys in danger."

"Thank you," Hasho nodded with a smile, "Now how is miss Chi Yagura doing?"

Oh crap! Eason bit his tongue, Spoke too soon. "Oh Chi. Well…she was part of the 'run in' I mentioned about."

"But you didn't see her till early this morning?" Hoshi raised an eyebrow.

"Well you see, there was encounter with a group of people…and a dragon."

"A what?!"

Eason hated dragging on truths so he spilled it, "When I got together with Chi, we were supposedly followed by this Si Wong man. Now you have to believe me that I never saw the guy in the city, so he had to have been following Chi. He ambushed us from disguise, and the next thing you know it, a dragon comes swooping by with a firebender and a palace guard." Eason saw the awkwardness in Hasho's face but continued, "I had to fight off the firebender at first. But Chi and I agreed that the documents here…" Eason pointed at the bag, "were more important. So she told me my airboard was fixed at the last and I pretty much skedaddled my way out of there."

Hasho had his hand to his face in disbelief, "My my, that's troubling."

Eason added, "But to be honest and judging by my instinct, I really don't think they were working directly for any of the governments. First off we know the Si Wong tribes have no other relations with outsiders. (But you have a connection with a tribe, right?) But anyway, you have a dragon master from the Fire Nation and an Earth Kingdom guard. If you ask me, they must be for-hire. They were definitely aiming to capture or kill me and Chi than anything else. Since the both of us have dealings with the rebels. There was too few people for it to have been planned by the governments."

"Well it's certain nothing can go as smoothly as expected." Hoshi pouted.

"Oh come on Hashi, you'd consider the operation smooth compared to 'your' past attempts. Plus I'm not really worried about Chi. She can handle herself."

"When Jagmohan went in search these documents at the palace years ago, he was never caught or discovered," Hasho pointed out.

"For starters," Eason retorted, "I'm still getting used to the fact that Jagmohan is not here. And your telling me he infiltrated the palace without getting caught…but he didn't find anything."

"Oh no." Hasho corrected, "He found a clue that ensured him these documents existed. "

"And he found…?"

"He found Joo Dee."

Eason squished his eyebrows, "He found wha- who?"

"Ah, Joo Dee. There you are. Thank you so much," Hasho yelled over Eason at Joo Doo, who had just entered the room with a plate of cups and containers. Walking up to the desk Joo Dee put the plate down. She held up one container, filled it with a flat cup and handed it to Eason. "Here is your saki, sir Eason." Ignoring how she addressed him, he took the saki, "Thank you," then chugged it in one gulp.

"And here is your hot tea, sir," She handed Hoshi a filled cup. The man took a sip of his tea and mumbled with delight, "Great tea, thank you again, Joo Dee."

"It is my pleasure, sir," and she took a bow before leaving the room.

Eason went ahead to refill his cup, his mind going into 'reset.' He then asked the man, "So, what's with these Long Feng documents and methods that these scrolls have …" he took another swig of saki, "…why are they so important? You plan to brainwash your enemies or something?"

Hoshi softly retorted, "My friend, don't demean these methods as brainwashing. These are going to be a big help in spreading our enlightenment with the people. Those are our goals, to enlighten the public for a better future. These documents are going to help us…quicken the pace, so to speak. We are not planning to abuse this knowledge. Jagmohan is by far the most enlightened being alive. He will make sure he leads this world into peace and equality. Our followers and myself, will make sure we help spread determination for the goal: peace and equality for a better future."

Eason snorted a chuckle over his saki, "Says the man being served by a maid."

Hasho finished his sip of tea, "Joo Dee had chosen her occupation all on her own. You can even ask her yourself."

"Eh, whatever. And by helping the Fire Nation rebels, you bringing peace? Riiight."

Hasho sighed, "You have to understand, my friend, we're at a point of civilization where the only way to reach the getter good is the use of 'necessary evils.' Picture this: You have a desolate island oceans away from any other land. On the island you have its inhabitants. The inhabitants continue to populate and use the islands resources at an increasing rate. Now the inhabitants reach the point no return. At this point even if the inhabitants cease to repopulate. They are going to starve themselves. But by eliminating a portion of that population the inhabitants (the necessary evil) they will be ensured of a future and learn from their mistakes not to burden future generations with necessary evils."

"I see where you're going." Eason refilled his cup again, "So Jagmohan's taking the initiative to dirty his own hands for the sake of an innocent future. How thoughtful of him."

Hasho then said with concern, "You know, my friend, the reason that we hire you…the reason that we encourage close interaction is because we had hoped you would better understand our purpose."

Eason raised a brow, "What are you saying?"

"We are grateful for the aid you have provided us in our cause. But we had hoped you would start to have faith in our cause as well. We want you to be part of that future."

Eason gave another small laugh, "Sorry, but in all honesty. I really don't see you any different than the Fire Nation rebels, with the 'goals.' You all believe you can lead the world into a better place when in the end you just lead it into war. You guys just happened to be more shy about it for now - staying in hiding until the time's right."

Hasho only quieted while shaking his head, "I'm sorry you feel that way. But let me ask you. You don't seek to better this world…Sonam?"

Eason paused himself and stared right into Hasho's eyes. He said nonchalantly, "The world's not going to change…and I told you never to call me that."

Hasho just sat back and sighed, "You can't run away. You can't keep running from the past. It's just leaves an endless hole inside of you. You may try to fill it up but it is bottomless, unless you stop running away."

Eason stood up from his seat after putting the saki down, "Well, thanks for the juice, Hashi. So where's my pay?"

"We'll be sure to accommodate you with money before you leave. But, Eason you look a bit tired, you should try to get some sleep. Joo Dee should be waiting outside the door. She can take you to a private quarters with a bed."

Eason cracked his knuckles while thinking, "Yeah, a bed sounds pretty right about now." He then looked at Hasho, "Have my payment ready by the morning."

Hasho confirmed the request with a nod.

Eason walked to the door. He turned around to tell Hoshi, "Oh and one last thing. As an added bonus, I found the coordinates of where the super library is…or once was. I knew Jagmohan was interested in that too. Eason couldn't tell what the expression on Hoshi's face was from his distance. Hoshi responded across the room, "Well done." Eason smirked and left the room. He knew that should make up for any o Hasho's disappointment (his deductions in the pay).