Rating - T

Disclamer - I do not own any of the people, places, or concepts from Avatar the Last Airbender. I do, however, own this derivative work.

Notes - Major EDIT on Chapter 1. Very sorry. Won't happen agai-much-er... you should probably get used to it. I screw up a lot. It's either go back and fix it, or give up the whole venture in despair. Praise, Comments, Criticism, and Flames welcomed. It's so lonely here on this side of the interweb.

oOo

"What is WITH this day?" With an exasperated growl, Muren ran back towards the pasture, scooping her bow up and bypassing the broken fence for a more concealed trail over the rocks. Speed was an issue, but she wanted some high ground.

"Wait up! We can help!" General Iroh called.

Like hell, she thought. She climbed faster, hopping up the trail and through rock passes, hoping Shiro and Kuro were alright. Am I just flying some kind of flag today for everyone to see? Stop here to harass koalasheep and owner for profit and pleasure? She didn't even want to think about the questions they'd been asking. If Zuko knew what had happened to Ursa... lying seemed to be pointless, but she couldn't imagine telling him the truth.

Maybe these guys will kill me and save me the trouble, she thought wryly, sliding down the other side of the rocks and coming to a stop on the slope down to the pasture. She wasn't hiding, but the men trying to steal her sheep didn't notice.

There were five men altogether, gathered in the middle of the pasture. How the hell did they even get in here, she wondered. Two of them were holding off Shiro with poles or staffs and trying to get a looped rope around his neck, while he snarled and darted in to snap at legs and arms. Kuro had already been caught, and she lay on her side in the grass, muzzled and hobbled. The other three men were rounding up sheep and tying them together in a line.

Oh, no doubt they're just here to catch up with old friends as well, she thought. If I can wound them and get Kuro loose, I'm sure we can run them off. She notched an arrow and let it fly, aiming at the man with the noose. It hit him with a solid thunk in the shoulder and he screamed and grabbed his arm, falling to his knees. The other men froze, shocked, and she sent another arrow into the leg of a sheep wrangler. He fell as well.

She whistled for Shiro and he came to her, white ruff bristled and teeth gleaming. She reached back for another arrow and - there were none. Her mind went blank for a moment. She knew she'd had more than that. She'd been low, but she'd had more than that!

Shiro snarled and lunged forward, and she snapped back into the present to see that her enemy had taken advantage of her distraction to cross the pasture. She didn't have time for an illusion. And she was out of arrows.

Two of them had converged on her. A big man grabbed her arm and wrenched her forward, throwing her down the hill. She fell, twisting her arm when she tried to catch herself. She gasped in pain. The other man, dark skinned and wearing a hooded cloak, dealt a sharp blow to Shiro's head with a pole. The dog fell, motionless.

"Shiro!" she screamed.

"Guess that's one less pandadog to sell," Muren's attacker said. He glared at her. "Where did this bitch come from? I thought you said this place was deserted."

"I thought it was," the dark man said. "Are you guys okay?" The man with the arrow in his leg seemed alright, but the man with the shoulder wound let out a choked sob. The one who'd stayed back with them was checking out the damage. "I think it's in the bone," he commented.

Muren's attacker kicked her in the ribs. She yelped and curled defensively around her stomach.

"Koya, don't..." The dark man's words trailed off at the glare her attacker shot him. He shrugged. "Why don't we just tie her up and leave her? There may be others."

Her attacker kicked her again and glared at her with hateful eyes. She lay there, helpless, and stared up at him. His eyes were hard and pale, and he was bald. She had never seen a man go bald so young. "I'm not leaving her here to run her mouth off about us." He retrieved the rope they'd been trying to put on Shiro, and caught her hands. Terror thrilled through her. "No!" She twisted, trying to escape. It was useless; he far outweighed her, and soon had her hands bound tight. He pulled her to her feet.

"She's coming with us. Get the animals."

She panicked and dropped to her knees, trying to use her body as a weight to keep him from pulling her along. He punched her in the stomach, and while she tried in vain to take a breath, swung her over his shoulder.

Where the hell was the General? She'd been rude, but she knew he had to have followed her. Surely they wouldn't let her get away so easily without answering their questions. She'd tell them whatever they wanted to know about Ursa, about Liu, about any damned thing if they'd just blast these guys. She coughed, sucked in a lungful of air, and yelled "HELP!"

As though she'd called it forth herself, a fire ball whooshed over their heads and slammed into the rock wall, raining them with black gravel. Her captor dropped her and all of the men spun around, grabbing their weapons.

General Iroh and Fire Lord Zuko had indeed followed, and were sliding down the same rocky slope she had. The Fire Lord sent another warning blast over their heads. "Lay down your weapons." The General's command was calm and powerful. Muren, working at the bonds on her hands, saw the group of raiders hesitate.

"Spirits, I think that's General Iroh," the dark man breathed. Her captor shot him a look. "Distract them. We're leaving." The dark man nodded. The rest of the men left the sheep and ran, disappearing into the rocks. Muren's captor tried to pick her up again, but she had her hands free now and she bent the light in front of her, sending a blaze of bright white light into his face. She scuttled away from him while he clutched his eyes.

"Bitch!" he roared.

"Koya, just get out of here!" the dark man said, sounding desperate. He had taken a bending stance, and Muren felt a breeze stir her hair as he rotated his hands. Airbender, she thought, shocked and confused. But the Avatar is the only airbender left in the world. As if to defy her disbelief, the wind swirled stronger and stronger around her, whipping her hair into knots.

This was insane. She stood, bracing herself against the wind and made her way back to where Shiro lay, closer to General Iroh. The Fire Lord was gone. She hoped he was taking care of the rest of the bastards.

The wind was a torrent now, a cyclone of air spinning around the pasture. She couldn't see the dark man anymore. He was obscured by the whirlwind. The noise was incredible. "Do something!" She yelled at the General. He gave her a sidewise look as if to ask what she suggested he do. She mimed throwing a fireball at the whirlwind. General Iroh raised an eyebrow at her, but he did send a blast of fire at the center of the swirling air. It didn't so much glance off as it was sucked along the outside of the vortex and then released, making gravel of another rocky outcropping.

Spirits, if General Iroh couldn't break through that barrier, it couldn't be broken. The dark man was powerful. Muren hugged Shiro to her, closing her eyes against the bits of rock and dirt that were stinging her face. She could taste salt on her lips, and wondered if she was crying.

The force of the wind lessened. She opened her eyes and saw General Iroh crouching above her and Shiro, shielding her from the full force of the cyclone.

They stayed that way for several minutes, waiting, until finally the cyclone settled into hard gusts, then died, and she looked up to see that the dark man had vanished.

"Well," the General said. "That was interesting."

She stared at him, not at all sure he was joking. He glanced down at her and smiled. "Let's go see what Zuko's up to."

oOo