Chapter 14: Fear Here

The sun was rising. Zuko drowsily opened his eyes to the dimly lit room before him. Damn being a firebender—his body had grown accustomed to waking up with the sun. He rubbed his eyes with his palms and yawned. He wished he could go back to sleep.

Katara was still sleeping in front if him stretched out on the metal floor. Her long wavy hair draped over her face, covering it from his view. Zuko felt a frown crease in his forehead as he reached out his hand towards Katara, and gently moved the hair curtaining her face. He felt a small grin tug at the corners of his lips seeing her restful face. She was constantly worrying about Sokka, exhausted from overexertion, or having weird dreams. He wondered if she ever got a good night sleep. Katara suddenly shifted, dragging her knees to her chest while a frown formed between her brows.

She must be cold. Zuko remembered the numerous amount of blankets sprawled out for the other soldiers. He needed to stretch and go for a walk anyways. His sore neck and lower back protested his sudden stand up, but after a few stretches and a sigh of relief, Zuko walked towards the stairwell.

He stopped by a room and grabbed a few blankets, sliding them under his arm. As he returned to the bottom floor, he paused, and faced the other side knowing the location of the secret room. Guilt began to eat away his stomach again. He needed to tell Katara. As soon as they got the chance, they had to bust Sokka out and run for their lives. He knew if he fought princess Azula seriously again, he could die for real. Zuko quietly walked back into the room and gently laid the blankets over Katara's body. He would have to do something about the lighting in there. The orange glow was making him constantly sleepy.

He lightly threw on his new armor and decided to head to the deck. He needed to find out where the ship was headed. As he fit the arm guards, he took a last look at Katara's face before heading out.

The sun was still halfway hidden by the ocean line, and gave view to one of the spectacular sunrises he had ever seen. Remembering back, Zuko had never traveled by boat too often. It was rare for him to get the view of the vast ocean. As he approached the dock, he heard someone quietly panting in ahead of him. Low blasts of air accompanied the breathing. Zuko cautiously stepped forward to see none other than princess Azula, standing in the middle of the deck.

Pieces of her long raven hair were sticking to the sides of her face and neck, which were beaded with sweat. Her shoulders heaved with every ragged breath she took. Just what had she been doing? Only minor parts of her armor were on, leaving her in a loose fitting red and black robe. As he stepped forward, she shot her eyes towards his direction in a cold glare.

"Lee," she stated in her usual calm voice. Zuko cleared his throat into his hand and inclined his head.

"Princess," he bowed respectively. "Is... there anything you need?"

Azula took another deep breath, and slightly narrowed her eyes at him. "Grab your stance, Lee," she ordered, stepping back with her fists raised. "I want to test your strength once again."

Damn. Why did I have to ask that? Just my luck for her to say she needed a sparring partner, not a towel. Zuko inwardly cursed his miswording, as he braced himself in a defensive form. The last time he fought her, he barely walked away with his life. He wasn't even sure if she was using her full power. Although he loved having bending battles with his uncle, fighting with her was a complete different story—his life was on the line with every misstep he took.

As soon as he appeared ready, Azula blasted a ball of flame towards him. Oh yeah, and her fire is a ridiculous blue that burns through anything. Zuko quickly called forth his own ball of fire to neutralize it.

He continued the intense spar, knowing that she wasn't using her full power. It felt as if she was simply testing him out. A feeling completely different from the powerful killing intent he felt yesterday. The more Zuko prolonged the fight, the more it felt like he was fighting against his uncle. His fighting style strangely matched the style Azula fought with. The similar stances and attack pattern puzzled Zuko. Without warning, she heightened the power of her strikes, every arch of her legs exerting an enormous amount of force and heat.

His breathing came hard. The sun was rising above the waters, filling him with energy. With renewed effort, Zuko powered himself closer to Azula, closing the gap. Her hands rose in blue flames and quickly jabbed towards his face. He narrowly dodged the attack and grabbed her right wrist, twisting it against her back. Her back leg abruptly swung out of view and came crashing down the back of his head. Zuko cursed as he almost lost consciousness. In his imbalance, she swung her other leg behind his, knocking him off his footing. Zuko came crashing down on the metal deck, and landed roughly on his back. His breathing was torn, and his robe was drenched in sweat as he struggled to sit up.

Azula was no different. Her golden eyes still blared domination, but her breathing came in pieces. After a moment of silent recuperation on both sides, Zuko's breathing started to even out again and he wiped the seat off his forehead. She stared at him, watching Zuko slowly stand up again. "When did you join the army?"

Zuko froze. What would he say? Why was she asking questions suddenly? He paused before thinking of his answer. "About… a year ago." His voice sounded like a dying old man. He cleared his throat and waited.

"Who was your master?" she asked again. Zuko's mouth went dry as he tried to think of the best answer.

"I was... taught by my uncle," he replied honestly. "A simple man of his word." Azula continued to frown deeply as she across at him. What is she trying to figure out? She hummed quietly, wiping the sweat off her face with the back of her hand, and gracefully pulled her hair out of her view.

"I see," she simply replied. "Is there an understanding of last night's situation?"

Zuko blinked. "I'm sorry?"

"There was an attack on the ship last night near midnight." She stated. "Six men gone."

He stood there dumbfounded. Attack on the ship? Six men missing? What was going on… who would attack the ship? It had hit him. They were in the middle of the ocean. "A person on this ship…?" He cautiously spoke.

Azula blinked once. "It seems unlikely that a fish could climb aboard and take six men, no?" He frowned. Did she just make a sarcastic remark? He cleared his throat again and looked across to her. She looked absolutely serious.

"I apologize for my incompetence, princess… I'll look into it," he quickly responded, inclining his head. She nodded and continued to adjust her arm guards.

"There's also been a change of plans," Zuko perked at the news, and raised an eyebrow. "We'll be arriving near Kyoshi Island in a few hours. They have been neutral in this war for far too long."

Kyoshi Island? Where was that? Were they already somewhere near the fire nation? Zuko nodded once. "And your orders for me?"

"You will remain here." Zuko frowned and started at Azula. Remain here by myself? "I will leave you a few soldiers to capture the culprit of yesterday's attack." Her eyes flashed darkly as she turned to look out into the sun. "I'm sure they will move while we are gone. Guard the prisoner well."

His world had lit up instantly. This would be the perfect opportunity to take Sokka and escape. Most of the soldiers would be gone, Azula would be gone, and they would have plenty of time to get away. His heart skipped joyously as he fought the urge to smile excitedly.

"One more thing," she called out. "There's a small ship that's been following us since yesterday morning. Keep an eye out for them."

The news went in one ear and out the other. He bit his tongue in order to suppress his over joyous tone of voice. "As you command, princess." He gave her a quick bow as she turned and walked off the deck, stepping through the large double doors.

Zuko flew. He couldn't wait to tell Katara the great news. Although it felt like they had infiltrated weeks ago, he couldn't believe the sudden chance that came right in front of him. It was truly a miracle.

"Katara!" he exclaimed, busting in the dark room. He ran forward until he heard a quiet groan from the back. He had completely forgotten she was sleeping. Katara was still resting on the ground her eyes groggily opening and closing. He sat in front of her and raised a hand in an apologetic motion. "Sorry… forgot you were sleeping."

She grinned, and puffed out her nose. "Thanks for the wake up call," she sluggishly replied. Katara pushed herself up and leaned against the crates. "So," she said yawning. "Why do you look so excited?" She raised an eyebrow at him, still holding the playful smile on her lips.

"I have good news for you," he said, leaning closer to her. He was about to speak when he noticed dark circles under her eyes. His face quickly frowned at the observation. "Did you not sleep well? You don't look good… bad dreams?"

"Huh?" she muttered, still not fully awake. "Uh—I guess not. I don't actually remember much…" she trailed off, then rubbed her eyes to try and make them look better. "Wait, what's the good news?"

Zuko tensed, not sure how to word his revelation. "I know how we can save Sokka," he firmly said. Katara's eyes widened as she pulled herself closer.

"So he's here…?" she whispered. Zuko nodded. Katara's eyes shifted as she frowned and looked down. "Where…?"

"That is…" Zuko mumbled. "Something I'll find out later." She glanced back up with a frown. "Right now, we're headed to someplace called Kyoshi Island," he explained. "Princess Azula is taking over half the men for to try and get them to change their neutral position, while I remain here to guard the ship."

Katara slowly nodded, understanding the message. "So… we can take him back while they're gone!" Her voice raised, eagerness clearly visible on her face.

"But we have a problem…" he cautiously said. She frowned and raised an eyebrow at him. "Someone attacked the ship last night from the inside, and there's a good chance they'll attack again today."

Katara's eyes shifted down as her mouth slightly opened as if to say something. "I'm supposed to watch out for this guy and try to catch him," he continued. "They could potentially mess up our plans if we run into them."

"No one's going to attack," she quietly replied. Zuko made a face of confusion and stopped his words. She softly sighed looked back up to his face. "Cause… that was me."

Now Zuko was really confused. Katara attacked the soldiers? "What?" he slowly responded, baffled at what he was hearing. "You did that?"

She lowered her gaze in hesitation. Zuko was literally mind blown. Katara took out six guys last night, and I wasn't even awake. "What happened?" his voice sounded urgent. "Were you attacked? Are you hurt? Why didn't you wake me—"

"I…" Katara cut in. "I just wanted to find out some information… and Sokka." She silently sulked. "Then some soldiers spotted me… but I'm okay! Honest—not a scratch on me. I can take care of myself."

Zuko wanted to protest, but he knew she had a point. She was safe, sitting in front of him within an arm's reach. He recognized that she was a strong, independent girl who can take care of herself, but he couldn't help but feel disappointed that she hadn't relied on him. "Sorry…" he muttered. "I just didn't want to see you hurt." He lowered in head as a blush ran across his cheeks. What was he saying? He was speaking as if he owned her, or something. His blush deepened at the thought. Don't think about it. Don't think about it.

Katara released a light giggle and grinned. "Thanks for your concern," she scooted closer and gazed up at Zuko's face with bright eyes, determined. "So… tell me the plan."

Everything was going perfectly. The ship had docked near the shore, and Azula had taken well over half the soldiers on her operation to the Kyoshi Island villages. After witnessing that she had indeed left, Zuko and Katara began their save-Sokka mission. They had grabbed his dao dual swords and her bow as they left the crate room.

"Katara… I need to tell you something," he urged. He needed to tell her before the guilt completely consumed him. They were headed towards the hidden door. She slightly cocked her head to the side, as if to show she was listening. "I… talked to Sokka," he admitted, shutting his eyes in guilt. "I've known where he was since yesterday… I'm sorry." His voice croaked.

Silence passed between the two. After what seemed like forever, Zuko slowly pulled his eyes open to see Katara's blank face, right in front of his. Startled, he stepped back with a stutter and a hand instinctively shielding his face and started to apologize again.

"It's fine," she reassuringly said. Zuko mouth slightly opened. "He told you not to tell me, right?" She huffed quietly. He gave her a stiff nod. "You don't have to feel bad, Zuko. Although I'm upset, I understand where you're coming from."

He felt incapable again. Had he disappointed her? Made her feel like she couldn't handle the truth? Maybe this was why she didn't rely on him. Anger began to flame his inner heat. Why was he so angry with himself again? Oh yeah—he had made Katara upset for something that could have been avoided. The torches nearby began to flare wildly, responding to his lack of control.

"Zuko," she called out, her voice unyielding. She gave him a small smile and placed her hand on top of his hair, ruffling it. "There, there, it's fine. No one's angry at you."

"Stop that," he subtly whined, a small laugh in his voice. His rage began to settle quickly. What the heck? How did she do that? It normally took an hour of mediation and breathing before his anger subsided.

"Then let's go, no more guilty confessions unless you want to go bald by burning all your hair off," she retorted, making sizzling movements and noises near her head.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," he playfully responded, figuring she was talking about his body temperature again. He smirked inwardly, as a warm feeling spread through his chest.

Zuko walked up to the hidden door with Katara following behind him. It perfectly blended in with the rest of the wall, leaving no room for suspicion. She gave him a look of confusion, as he motioned for her to back up. Breathing carefully, he felt the heat in his palms rise, ready to bend fire when necessary. With a deep breath, he expelled a powerful stream of fire from both hands into the corners of the wall. The familiar insignia of the fire nation burned on the metal wall.

Katara looked stunned. Her eyes widened as the wall moved, revealing the cold, empty room inside. She seemed hesitant to enter, but suddenly ran ahead of him and spotted Sokka on the ground.

"Sokka!" she cried, rushing to the floor next to him. She lifted his face between her hands and shook him. "Can you hear me? It's me, Katara!" A quiet cough escaped his lips as he sluggishly opened one of his eyes, the other one too swollen to respond.

"Katara…?" he croaked, his voice sounded worse than yesterday. "What…" he trailed off. His attention drifted to Zuko, who was standing behind her. "You… told…"

"Yes, he told me, you idiot-brother!" Katara stuttered. "We're going to get you out of here." Zuko took this as his cue to walk forward. He examined the chains and shackles that were cuffed to his wrists and ankles. They were unbelievably heavy and thick.

"Katara…" Sokka rasped again. "Just… run… away." She forcibly gripped the fabric around his neck and looked straight at him.

"No. I'm done running," she firmly stated. "Whatever it is, I'll fight against it. I'm not going to run away again." Sokka's good eye widened at her words, and the siblings stared at each other until Zuko cut in.

"I can't get these off," he urgently spoke, lifting the chain. Katara picked up Sokka's wrist and examined the metal, trying finding some kind of fault. She muttered a frustrated snarl.

"Fire…" Sokka unexpectedly muttered. Both Katara and Zuko quickly looked over to him. She glanced back at Zuko. "Can you do it?" her voice pleaded.

"Of course," he confirmed, as it struck him. "But I can only melt the chains for now, trying to take off the circle fastening could burn his skin." Katara nodded quickly. He pulled the chain into a tight line and released a thin stream of condensed flame from his fingertip. The area of attack began to glow a light orange. As he worked at melting the chain, Katara swiped her hand in the air, taking in all the water particles that lingered. The room dried quickly, allowing her to obtain a tiny pool of water around her first two fingers. She placed the water over Sokka's bad eye and began healing him. The water glowed a familiar blue.

One by one, Zuko melted the chains off until he was down to the last one. Katara had healed some of the physical injuries on Sokka's face, but the amount of water needed as a catalyst was inadequate. The last chain finally separated from the wall, and crashed into the metal floor.

"I'll carry him," he quickly said, pushing up Sokka's limp body. "Try to fend off the remaining soldiers that were left here." She nodded in understanding, and helped lift Sokka to his feet. He grunted in pain as the two worked to drag him out of the room. Zuko bended fire against the wall again, demanding the metal to reopen.

He slumped Sokka over his back and carried him upstairs. First piggyback the sister, and now the brother. Zuko almost smirked at his realization. Although no soldiers were in sight, it didn't make his burden any less. Sokka was one big guy. Not including the extra weights he had on his arms and legs. Carrying him up three flights of stairs proved to be great difficulty.

Katara burst out to the deck with her hands raised, ready to attack anyone in sight. The deck was empty. Zuko staggered up the last steps and felt the sunlight beam on his face, filling him with new energy.

"Something's wrong," she murmured, still glancing around the empty deck. "Why isn't there anyone here?" Zuko frowned. He told the remaining soldiers to stay on deck to look out. Had something happened? He grunted, adjusting Sokka's weight on his back.

"Let's just go," he huffed. Katara bit on her bottom lip, but still led the way down the ship. As soon as they stepped on the shore, a small comet of blue flame came flying in their direction.

"Watch out!" Zuko cried. She reacted instinctively, and raised a wall of seawater from the shore, dousing the fire. They both froze. In the distance, Azula walked towards them with her arm extended out. The soldiers surrounded her sides, creating an intimidating aura. Impossible. She was supposed to be at the villages.

He then realized. He had slipped up, too far in to notice. She had realized, and completely fooled him.

"So… it is you," he heard her say. She stopped her march a hundred yards away from the three stunned individuals. Katara tensed. Zuko's mouth went dry as she approached again. "For you to come to me on your own accord… saved me a lot of time." Azula's voice hardened, turning icy just as Zuko first remembered.

"Your attack last night was impressive," she continued. Katara's eyes widened as horror and shock ran across her features. Her mouth opened slightly to say something, but no words came out. "However, it seems you miscalculated somewhere."

Zuko was too mind blown for the day. Azula had figured them out. He knew he would lose if he fought her again in his weakened state, and he definitely didn't want Katara to fight her. Fear gripped at his heart, as his thoughts flew wildly on their possibilities. Escaping wasn't one of them.

"Now neither of you are needed anymore," she said towards Zuko and Sokka. "Although… you were an… interesting fellow." Azula stepped forward with an unrecognizable stance. She pointed two fingers in his direction with the utmost look of concentration on her face.

Something wasn't right. Her arms danced in a swirling motion, graceful and nothing like firebending. But Zuko could feel it, the extreme concentration of energy that was gathering at her fingertips. Whatever she was doing, it was extremely dangerous. The hair on the back of his neck stood up at the sudden crackling sound that emitted from her unusual bending. The soldiers at her side shuffled back, not wanting to be caught in the attack. Azula took a deep breath.

"Katara, run!" he shouted in her direction.

Numerous things happened at once. He saw her face, serious yet somber look straight back into his horrified eyes. "I'm done running," she whispered. A static stream of white circulated between Azula's hands before a blast of burning white energy burst towards them at an incredible speed. Katara jumped forward, calling a wall of water in front of her, rapidly solidifying it to ice. There was an ear-shattering explosion as shards of ice flew everywhere. Zuko was thrown back, causing him to lose grip of Sokka and fly backwards.

There was only silence.

A quiet hissing noise emitted in the distance. Zuko groaned as he pushed himself up to see splints of ice surrounding him. A few had sunk into his skin. In front of him, Katara lay motionless, thrown down against the ground.

"K-Katara!" he yelled, frantically getting to his feet and pushing himself to her. Her eyes were barely open, the light in them rapidly fading. Her breathing came in pieces, barely audible. "Stay conscious! Why... Why… did you…"

She stayed motionless.

Seeing her in front of him, unresponsive, Zuko's world was about to flip over any second. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't see anything but Katara's limp body in front of him.

"That was close," Azula's cold voice settled over the silence again. "She would have really died if I didn't slightly change course." Zuko stared in her direction. But Katara was all he could think of. Katara died? Impossible. Never. She would never die.

"It's time to end this," she called, pointing two fingers in his direction again. He was going to be killed. This was it. There was no way an attack like that could be countered. She circled her arms again as static began to concentrate near her hands. He held Katara's face in his arms, as fear froze his body in place. Another white beam of energy blasted from her fingertips towards him faster than anything Zuko had experienced. He closed his eyes.

I don't want to die.

A large arm suddenly shot out in front of him. Zuko forced his eyes to open just in time to see another blast of white energy fly towards the sky. Nothing had hit them. A large man stood in front of him with his arm raised in the air. Steam rose from his fingertips.

"Whew," a familiar husky voice sighed of relief. "Looks like I made it in time."

A/N: Hello! Wow this is the longest chapter I've written so far! Over 4,000 words :D Hope you guys enjoyed it. Are they getting too long? I know I should set myself on a certain word count... but it's just not happening.
Also, welcome Iroh! Glad he's finally here after 14 chapters of just mentioning him. Although this isn't much of an introduction... it'll happen next chapter. (Sorry, ugh.) There's also a high possibility than two more characters will make their appearance soon!Hehehe. I know the ending was a tad bit depressing for Zuko... but things will get better!

So review, review! I seriously love reading them (: And a quick thanks to the guest reviews, sorry I can't reply to your review directly... but I'm immensely grateful to you all! See you guys soon^^