Book Three: Fire
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-ScorpioRed112 and Sam
Chapter 6: Putting One and One Together
How could I have been so stupid? Zuko thought, pacing the palace floors. How could I have expected them to help me? Is this plan going to work?
He had his doubts—large doubts, too—but something inside was telling him that this plan the Water Tribe boy had created was foolproof. He scoffed at himself, thinking fondly of those children. How could he?
They had tried so hard to get rid of him in the crowded city, tried so hard to destroy him. Now, he didn't blame them, but he had had a secret weapon.
"Just one question: how do you plan to do this yourself, with no knowledge of the Fire Nation whatsoever?"
It was pure gold—how did they know of the Fire Nation? They didn't, and they needed him.
But he could not just take them into the palace. Not only would his sister find them and punish all three of them, but they would ruin his already faltering plans with Iroh. The problem was, every "sub-plan" ended in failure, and the Earth Kingdom generals were getting very hasty. He needed time to think, time to plan, and most importantly, time to figure what Azula was up to.
"Zuko, still sulking?" It was her voice, clear and sharp, from the end of the hallway. "You look...different today. Let me have a look at you."
Without his permission she grabbed his face and stared him straight in the eyes. He felt his pupils narrow. "What? What do you want?"
The girl was silent, menacing, and dropped her gaze to Zuko's feet. "Nothing. I'm just sick of your infantile attitude, is all."
Zuko's face wrinkled, his scowl once again gracing his face. "Listen, why would you care about my attitude when you're the one screwing around with our Uncle and your creepy friends? You have nothing to do with me."
"True," Azula added sarcastically. "The fact that my brother wakes up in the middle of the night and sneaks around Ba Sing Sei shouldn't concern me at all."
The prince froze, his skin tingling. "What?"
Azula began circling him. "Don't act so humble, Zuzu. Don't forget that I'm in this palace. I know what you're up to."
"No," Zuko replied, shaking his head. "No, you don't."
His sister snapped her neck backward, glaring at him. She stayed silent for a second, as if testing his comment. "I don't?"
"No, you don't."
"Well, Zuzu."
It was obvious that she didn't know what Zuko was up to, but she planned to get it out of him. She turned towards him again, her eyes locking on his. "Brother, you wouldn't want father to know that you're joining the rebels, would you?"
Zuko's face was as still as stone. "I am not joining the rebels."
"Liar."
He looked at his younger sister. "Liar," he repeated to her.
Her face lit up brilliantly, as if she had just tensed for a fight. "Name calling?"
"You said you know what I am up to, but it obvious that you don't. So, you are a liar." He pushed passed her, making his way for the hallway, when he heard her fist slam the wall behind him.
"Mark my words," she called after him, "that you'll regret whatever you're planning on doing!"
"Liar," Zuko said to himself.
The fleet was small.
It would never do, and Aang knew it. Sokka's plan could work, but Aang had been depending on a much, much bigger army. A fleet of only one hundred men sounded like child's play compared to the every blooming Fire Nation.
"You're worried," Katara kept telling him. "You're worried, and it's showing. Every thing's going to be fine, alright? Just don't worry so much."
"I am not worrying," Aang would reply. "I just...have a feeling that some thing's missing."
"I feel it too."
"What is it, then?"
But there was no answer to that. The pair felt hallow, and every time they looked at the fleet they felt sick and remorseful.
They're all going to die, Katara envisioned, looking at them. They're going to fall to the Fire Nation..and so will Aang.
Their last night at the North Pole was a memorable one. Chief Arnook came to the travelers' tent, smiling broadly, with a withered scroll in his hands.
His words were simple, sweet, and to the point. "I have a plan."
"What is it?" Aang asked him as he eyed the scroll. "We agreed we were using Sokka's plan."
Arnook shook his head. "Not that."
The scroll opened, and Aang and Katara saw that it wasn't really a scroll at all, but a cloth with pockets in it. Within the pockets were small vials of a reddish, purple fluid.
Katara looked at the old man. "What's this?"
"Penguin blood," Arnook replied. "And lots of it."
Aang winced. "What for?"
"Tell me this, dears," the man stated. He cleared his throat. "Have you ever seen any penguins hopping around the Fire Nation?"
"No," the two answered.
"Have you ever seen any penguin blood vials in the Fire Nation?"
"No," they answered again.
"Well then, they are all about to come down with a nasty virus, one that they cannot cure. A virus that will not only rid them of bending, but also make them as sick as the dogs they are!"
Arnook stood up and handed the cloth to Aang. "Take this with you, an infected cloth. Put it in a bag, and wrap it tight. Then, when in the Fire Nation, put it in vents and other such places. The whole Fire Nation will fall within months!"
"You aren't...honestly planning on killing innocent civilians, are you?" Katara's tone was serious. "Chief Arnook, we can't do that. There are children and women and innocent bystanders in this war." She was silent for just a moment, her face lifting to meet Arnook's stare. "I don't want to kill innocent people."
Aang shook his head. "Neither do I. It's a good plan, but it isn't realistic. We're only worried about Firebenders, and Ozai."
Arnook sighed heavily, his gaze drifting to the top of the tent. He bit his lip. "Well...it seems I have forgotten what civilization has taught me." He shook his head, just as quickly as Aang had done, and ran his hand throw his thinning hair. "No...you cannot kill innocent people, you're right." The man's eyes lit up. "But...you can kill Firebenders, and Ozai. Very well...I guess the only acceptable place to put these infected clothes would be in the palace."
"Then we'll need something living to carry the virus there," Katara added, glad that the Chief had changed his terms. "Viruses can't live without a host."
"You're right," Arnook stated, accepting Katara's obvious genius in the field of health. "I've kept the virus in its purest form in one of those vials. I believe it's labeled. If the cloths don't hold out, use the vial."
Aang and Katara bowed, and Arnook did the same.
"This is really a genius plan, Chief Arnook," Aang commented before he left the tent. "I'm sure it's going to help us."
"Thank you," Katara added. The Chief nodded, and waved them off.
Katara and Aang smiled at their inventory: one hundred Water Tribe soldiers, 5 vials of penguin blood to cure the Tor Sen virus hath it reach them, 1 vial to spread virus once near the Fire Nation, 2 infected cloths, four Water Tribe war ships, one flying bison swimming along side of them, and (of course) each other.
"So should we trust him?" That was the biggest thing on Sokka's mind at the moment. Every time he thought of the "plan" his mind drifted to Katara and Aang's reaction to Zuko and Iroh. The whole thing was making his guts squirm in discomfort. With lack of a rational mind himself, he turned his attention to his blind companion.
"Well, I already told you he wasn't lying before," Toph answered simply. "He was telling the truth."
"That's not what I meant."
"Okay, then what did you mean?"
"...I don't know," Sokka sighed and leaned back against the wall. He crossed his arms loosely, thinking. "I've spent the last year running away from this guy with Katara and Aang, and now suddenly he's trying to join us? It doesn't fly."
"So you think he has an alternative motive?" Toph looked in Sokka's general direction.
"I don't know...maybe."
"He was right though, Sokka."
"About what?"
"We don't know a damn thing about the Fire Nation," Toph sounded serious now. Her tone dropped. "You can take what all four of us know about the Fire Nation, and fit it on a teaspoon—with room to spare. And now we have a Firebender—no wait, two Firebenders, if you count his uncle—who are willing to help us. And—oh!—bonus: one of them could teach Aang Firebending along the way. I'd say it's a pretty clear cut choice"
Sokka hated it when Toph made this much sense. He tried again. "The guy still tried to kill us. Am I supposed to just forgive that?"
"The enemy of my enemy is my friend," Toph quoted logically.
"Huh?"
"It's a saying," the girl shrugged. "Basically it means do whatever it takes to win. Even if it means joining someone you don't like. After that go right ahead and continue hating him, but if you have a common enemy, it makes you allies."
"How the hell do you know all this stuff?"
"I hear things," she narrowed her eyes, smirking. "Don't change the subject"
"Toph," he looked back at her. "You don't understand. He's a Firebender. Firebenders are our enemies. Maybe right now he's telling the truth, but what happens if we decide to help him, and he ends up on the throne? Then what? What if this war just keeps going? What if it's worse with him? What if joining him means condemning the world to absolute doom? Then we can be the ones that say 'yeah, we helped that maniac come into power'. Do you want to be able to say that?"
Toph just faced him. She paused, not for a thinking moment but perhaps to make her point. Finally she stated, "The Avatar"
"What?"
"Aang!" She exclaimed in an inpatient manner. "That's what he's for isn't it? Keeping the nations under check? We put your pal Zuzu in power, Aang can be his guard and make sure he doesn't get completely out of control."
"Given that Aang lives through this fight," Sokka said grimly. Immediately he regretted it, for he hadn't meant to say it. The words had simply slipped out, as if Aang's death was a well known and unavoidable fact.
"He will."
"We hope he will."
"He will." The total sureness in the way she said that made it hard for Sokka to argue. "And if he doesn't, fine, then we'll take over for him."
"Can we do that?"
"Do you have a better option?"
"Toph," Sokka said. "I think we're out of options."
The matter was settled, and definite. A bystander could easily tell that Toph was confident of the team's conditions. Sokka, though a bit frightened by it all, was thankful for her sureness. He sighed heavily, and decided to believe her.
"So when do you think we'll see Zuko again?" Toph asked now, glad to move on. "We have to start getting things ready...putting stuff in order."
"We'll see him soon," Sokka clarified. "We'll be seeing Katara and Aang soon too."
Without another word the two dissappeared into a nearby ally, and made their way to the small motel where they were staying.