Avatar: the last airbender belongs to Michael Dante DiMartino, Bryan Konietzko and Nickelodeon.
-The next morning, the main noblemen and councillors of the court were summoned once again. Though the ones imprisoned on the orders of Azula had been freed, they were all uneasy by the menacing presence of the Dai Li guarding the room. Long Feng stood in front of the throne.
"As you most certainly remember, Ba Sing Se fell to he heirs of the Fire Nation." He announced as he walked by the first line of nobles. They nodded and mumbled in agreement. "The heiress died, as you all witnessed three evenings ago. You will be pleased to learn that her three companions have been neutralized as well."
"Maybe, maybe." A lady interrupted. "But the Earth Kingdom is still in a critical situation. The Dai Li is rotten to the core. You're in the best position to know..." She said, not hiding her contempt of Long Feng. She was sure he had planned for them to be rid of after the gathering.
"Actually, the Dai Li acted on my direct orders." Long Feng pretended as he walked to the woman and faced her. "They lured the princess in a false sense of security, which later led them to discover her brother." He pivoted to look at the throne. "It is a major step in winning the war. The Fire Nation royalty has no more heirs."
"And so does our kingdom." She rebutted.
Long Feng frowned. That laughable Earth King had slipped his mind. "True, Azula did dispose of our dear ruler before we could intervene." He replied, turning back to face his audience but not bothering to give a glance to the female aristocrat. "But you cannot but know that he never was of much use or efficacy. Ba Sing Se never needed him to be flourishing and the Council of Five is to thank for the defence against the Fire Nation, not the Earth King."
"You dare to call our ruler useless!"
Long Feng sighed in irritation. He had the feeling a new Joo Dee would soon be introduced into the palace. "Yes, I do. Is there anyone caring to prove me otherwise?" Most of the noblemen coughed or shook their heads. Even without the threat of the nearby Dai Li, they had to admit that Long Feng administered the impenetrable city excellently and preserved their privileges as well. "I thought so."
He walked away from the nobles. "As the Grand Secretary and tutor of the disappeared Earth King, I will rule from now on." Before anyone could object, he whirled around and narrowed his eyes at his audience. "This meeting is finished. I must discuss the strategic values of the Fire Nation heirs' deaths with the Council of Five, freed on my orders, shortly. You are dismissed."
As the noblemen quitted the room, the few disputants forced out by the Dai Li, an agent came to Long Feng. He bowed. "Master?"
"Yes?" Long Feng inquired, looking at the leaving nobles.
"Do you remember the two Freedom Fighters who escaped Lake Laogai?"
Long Feng stroked his chin. "Those whose leader I killed? Yes, I remember them." He turned his head to look at his agent, still bowing. "What of them?"
"As you ordered, we followed Azula's escort and we discovered those Freedom Fighters were on their trail too." He straightened his back." The archer took care of them in a forest to the west.
Long Feng smiled. "I presume you offered them a trip back to Lake Laogai to thank them for their help?" The Dai Li gave a sly smile. "Perfect."
----
"Can I get up now?"
The edge in Azula's voice would have scared Jin if she did not know she was Lee's sister. He was very sweet and so was his uncle, why should it be different for his other relatives? "Well, if you're well enough to keep complaining, I suppose you can." She called from the adjoining room she cleaning, a teasing tone evident in her voice.
Azula wanted to melt this smile off her face, but she could not even light a spark. The poison was either really strong or specific to firebenders, maybe both. "Whatever." She spat as she stood up with difficulty. She barely made a few steps before collapsing loudly on the floor. Jin heard the racket and ran to her, helping her up as Azula mumbled curses.
"Or maybe you can't..." Jin offered a sad smile as she led her back to the mattress. Azula muttered a quarter-hearted thanks as she laid down. "You should continue to rest." She then left the room to continue brushing.
Azula covered herself with the bed sheet, frowning. This situation was getting more and more humiliating and did not progress. Save for the peasant, who watchfully took care of her she recognized, she was pretty much alone. She did not know where Mai, Ty Lee or Zuko could possibly be. Azula almost missed them, almost. But the future ruler of the Fire Nation was not supposed to grieve over anything.
She rolled over, a new thought occurring to her. She hoped her father would never know of this shameful situation...
Jin inattentively swept the floor. Lee's sister -she realized it was the only thing she knew about her, as she forgot to ask for her name- just confirmed her doubts with her earlier fit of temper when she subsided. She had assumed, she had hoped that Lee, Mushi and her golden eyes were explained by some marriages between people of the Earth Kingdom and the Fire Nation, but the girl's mention of Agni in her curses marked her out as an actual native of the Fire Nation.
She sighed. Even if they technically were enemies, Lee and Mushi were very nice and sweet. The girl's annoyance probably came from her fever. Maybe she could also tell her what happened to them and why they still did not return.
----
Zuko woke up and was not surprised anymore by the darkness and the silence surrounding him. He had no idea of the time he spent in that oblivion, but he supposed it had been enough to forget about light and noise if it was not for the torch and voices regularly coming to him.
He remembered disagreeing with the voices at first, trying his hardest to tune out their arguments. He failed to comprehend why he did so now. Refusing their advice had brought him nothing whereas he had been extracted of the darkness little time after he agreed with the voices. He did not even need to declare his agreement, they already knew he would accept their arguments. The voices knew everything.
As he was pulled out of his cell, he realized that he had been in the dark not only literally. It was as if a veil of disorder and mistakes vanished away when he understood the voices had been right since the very beginning.
"Who are you?" A man wearing a dark robe and a wide brimmed hat asked. Zuko realized he was the owner of one of the voices.
"Lee of Ba Sing Se."
"Who do you serve?"
"Long Feng."
The man lifted his hat. "Why?
"Because Long Feng keeps our city in a state of peace." He answered. The voices had mentioned Long Feng. Zuko felt he was the nicest person in the world.
"And how will you serve him?" The agent's stare intensified.
"By tracking down those disrupting peace and eliminating them." Zuko swiftly replied. He then pointed at something behind the Dai Li. "Like them."
The Dai Li agent looked around to discover the two Freedom Fighters his colleagues had captured earlier on. "Good answers." He smirked.
----
Long Feng and the Council of Five were debating in the war room, green flames creating enough light for them to see each other and the maps on the stone table. A myriad of Dai Li guarded the room and reminded the five generals who held the real power in the palace.
"The Fire Nation has lost its only heirs and this Water Tribe boy mentioned an eclipse." Long Feng stated, looking alternatively at all the generals. "The first might cause a civil war to occur when succession comes, but the latter could fasten their demise."
"I'm not sure." General Sung cut in. "They might as well a punitive expedition to avenge them. They surprised us with their drill, who knows what other monstrosity they hide on their islands."
Long Feng rolled his eyes. Sung could have been a good diplomat, talking his way out of trouble, but he was a poor commanding officer. "The drill was most likely their very secret weapon. Besides, this is the second major defeat of the Fire Nation. Their navy has been reduced to smithereens at the North Pole and all the investments they put in their war machine is lost."
The oldest general raised his hand. "But they did take over Omashu."
"Bumi was nothing but a senile fool." Long Feng always considered the royalty of Ba Sing Se and Omashu to be deadweight. "And the resistance in this region is rampant."
"With their Navy so diminished, the invasion suggested by the Avatar could actually succeed." General How reluctantly agreed, he never liked having Long Feng as a leader. "They may not know about the Day of the Black Sun, and even if they did, they surely don't expect us to know about it." He pointed at the Fire Nation on the maps. "But we'll need a great army to attack their islands. We might even have no more troops to send against the Fire Nation if they conquered more of the western regions."
The old general stoked his grey beard. "It's a gamble. It could either be our final victory or our worst defeat."
Long Feng noticed one of his agents step out of the shadows. "I trust you to find the best strategy. Now, if you may excuse me for an instant, something seems to have occurred." He bowed to the generals, who bowed back, and walked out of the room. The earthbender promptly followed him.
"What's the matter?"
"The Fire Prince has finished his vacation in Lake Laogai." He answered, bowing. "But I was told he, though now loyal to our cause, still showed some initiative."
"It's a minor nuisance." Long Feng replied, raising his eyebrows at the agent. "It might even make him more believable." He turned over, ready to come back to the Council of Five. "Carry on with the plan." He smirked. "I think it's time for a little family reunion..."
The Dai Li bowed lower. "Master."
-
As this fanfiction revolves around surprises, plot twists and other cliffhangers, please do not spoil the events in your reviews. Also, the generals Sung and How belong to the Council of Five. The first appeared in "The Drill" and the latter in "The Earth King". For further information on these chracters, visit the Avatar section of