Equivalent Exchange
Chapter 27: Evil Lies in Wait
The port town was raunchy, full of criminals and low lives and full of men and women looking to cheat unsuspecting people like the Avatar. Iroh loved it. He walked up and down the main street, talking and haggling, making strange eyes at curvaceous women and generally having a great time. Sokka loved shopping as much as Iroh and walked alongside the old man like they were best friends.
The rest of the group stayed a bit behind, looking around warily at the criminal element the other two seemed oblivious of. When a barker solicited their business, going on and on about goods from all over the world, neither Iroh nor Sokka could resist.
"Come on, everyone," Aang suggested. "We should look too. That nice man said he's got curios. I wanna see some."
Mai rolled her eyes at the Avatar's enthusiasm but stepped onboard the floating shop anyway.
"You do realize," Mai informed the bald boy, "that the word 'curios' is just that pirate's way of making his junk sound alluring, don't you?"
"He's a pirate?" Aang whispered. "How can you tell?"
"Just go,' Mai replied and gave the boy a gentle nudge up the gangplank.
The ship was full of curios, alright, strange items from all corners of the globe, most of them, as Mai had predicted were cheap, useless items, poorly made, tacky and overpriced. Iroh was in his glory. He picked up almost everything, turned each item over and over in his hands and spoke with what appeared to be the owner of the ship.
"Handsome lizardparrot you have there," Iroh said while observing the strange creature perched on the man's shoulder.
"Hmph," he replied. "That boy's lemur is intriguing. I could get a lot of money for him. Hey, boy!"
Aang turned around and looked at the owner.
"How about we haggle over that lemur? He's a fine looking animal."
"Momo is not for sale," the Avatar replied indignantly. "He's priceless."
Momo clung to Aang as if he understood the owner's intentions. From behind Aang's head, he peeked at the man with large green eyes, chattering occasionally in what sounded like upset tones.
"Fine, but you might regret that choice one day," the owner replied.
Iorh cleared his throat. "I see you have a sungi horn over there. I'll give you one gold piece for it."
The haggling began and in the end, somehow Iroh paid only half that. Meanwhile Mai and Zuko leaned against a wall, holding hands and watching everyone, bored expressions on their faces. Katara poked through a shelf full of scrolls until one caught her interest.
"Look, Aang, it's a genuine waterbending scroll. It could really help us with our training. Maybe we can buy it."
"Let's ask how much it is," Aang said optimistically.
"You won't be able to afford it," Zuko predicted gloomily. "That actually looks genuine and it's probably rare too."
"Yeah, well, it belongs with the Water Tribes, not with a pirate from the Earth Kingdom," Katara huffed. "He should sell it to us out of decency."
Mai chuckled dryly. "Good luck with that."
Katara approached the table behind which the owner stood.
"How much for this scroll?" she asked politely, giving the man what she hoped was a sweet smile.
"That's sold already to an Earth Kingdom nobleman; unless you can give me more than one hundred gold pieces for it."
"Oh," Katara replied.
She looked downcast for a moment but then tried again.
"Don't you want this genuine Water Tribe scroll back in the hands of someone from the Southern Water Tribe? It would be like returning a piece of our culture to us."
The man pushed back his wide brimmed hat and then laughed loud and long until it became a hacking cough instead.
"Let me see," he finally replied, "culture or money? Hmm, I'll take the money."
'Aww, come on," Aang stepped in. "I've got two copper pieces. You can have them both."
"I'm getting angry now," the man hissed. "I said no."
"Now, now," Iroh interjected. "There's no need to get upset. We can work something out, can't we?"
"It's simple; Give me one hundred and one gold pieces and the scroll is yours," the pirate replied firmly.
The group watched with avid interest now as Iroh turned on the charm. He praised, cajoled, wheedled and confused until the owner wasn't sure which way was up. Katara considered just stuffing the scroll into her sleeve and running but she caught Sokka watching her out of the corner of her eye and decided against it.
"So, that's ten gold pieces plus the sungi horn for the Water Tribe scroll, right?" Iroh asked, looking for confirmation at the end of the negotiations.
"Oh, Iroh, I can't let you do that," Katara said.
"It's okay, Katara. I'm glad to help. This gentleman has a good business head. He knows that ten gold pieces in his hand are worth more than one hundred pieces promised. And besides that, he gets his sungi horn back."
"Thank Agni for small mercies," Mai said quietly to Zuko who smirked in reply.
"Um, well, yes, I suppose that will do. Those ten gold pieces will come in handy. Who knows if I ever would have gotten the money from the nobleman? You know how tight that type can be."
"Certainly, certainly," Iroh replied. "Here is your gold and here is the horn."
Iroh sniffed exaggeratedly when he passed the instrument back to the pirate.
"Here's the scroll," the man said gruffly and handed it to Iroh.
The former general bowed and slipped the scroll into his wide green sleeve.
"Alright everyone, time to leave," he suggested.
Zuko, Mai and Jee who had joined them in their cynical observations, peeled themselves off the wall and made their way down the gangplank. Katara talked excitedly with Aang while Sokka and Iroh took one last longing look around the shop. Once outside, Iroh urged them to hurry along.
"When he finally realizes how little he got for that scroll, he'll be furious. And I have a feeling a furious pirate is something that none of us want to see."
Fire Nation Palace, Zhao's temporary room
Zhao reclined in the comfortable bed in the comfortable room that Ozai had provided as promised. He was woozy from pain suppressing herbs that the healer had practically shoved down his throat. But he supposed that he should be grateful. The pain from the burn was excruciating, enough to make him actually vomit three times. He looked over at the basin that sat on the bedside table. It was full of bloodied scraps of material and chunks of dead skin that the healer had indelicately removed. His wound was covered lightly now with gauzy, filmy white. Zhao had an almost irresistible urge to peel back the cloth and run his fingers over the burn. But infection was the last thing he needed so he bit down on his tongue, drawing blood and that sharp, new, insistent pain distracted him.
All the commander could do now was wait for Ozai to show up, put in the remainder of his allotted time and leave again. He was surprised to still be commander. Perhaps a demotion would come later, yet another humiliation.
People would pay for all the suffering he had endured. He closed his eyes and pictured Mai. She was beautiful, far too beautiful for someone like Zuko. It was almost a pity she had to die, but he could never tame her anyway. Better to use and then toss aside. He smiled a bit then, the movement creaky and slow. When he pictured the banished traitor prince, his face grew dark and anger smoldered there. Smoke curled from his clenched hands and his heart beat harshly in his ravaged chest.
"What are you doing?" the crusty old healer asked when he walked into Zhao's room. "I told you to rest, not get all excited. You're a fool, just like the Fire Lord said."
Zhao snarled at the man and attempted to sit up. He wanted to wrap his hands around the scrawny throat and squeeze.
"Guards are stationed outside your door so don't even think about it. Now settle down."
Zhao growled low in his throat but eased himself back down onto the pillows. Revenge would come soon enough and when it did, oh, how sweet it would be.
Fire Nation Palace, dining room
Ozai dismissed the servants with a wave of his hand and a grunt. They left hurriedly, leaving the Fire Lord alone with his daughter. She concentrated on her fish and rice, taking small, measured amounts and placing them in her mouth, chewing slowly and thoroughly each time. At fourteen years old, Azula was lovely to look at, with her perfectly made up even features and her mature body. But she gave off no warmth. Her beauty was cold and without heart. Her mind ticked away like some frantic machine, always planning, always looking ahead and always trying to please Daddy.
Ozai considered her for a moment and then took a bite of his own. After downing a small glass of chilled water, he spoke.
"I have some rather unsettling news, daughter."
"What is it, Father?" Azula asked calmly.
"It turns out that Zhao is a blundering fool. Your brother along with Mai and I'm assuming Iroh are very much alive."
The princess showed no outward sign of distress. She coolly put her chopsticks down, sipped at her spiced wine and then looked her father directly in the eyes.
"Perhaps I should be sent to track them, father. I'm certain that I can do a better job than that pitiful excuse for a commander. I saw him pacing outside the throne room, terrified out of his mind. He's weak. I'm strong."
"Your time is coming soon, I feel it. I want you to train for a few more weeks. Zhao has some sort of invasion plan he wants to tell me about. If I give him permission and he fails again, you will take over the hunt for both the Avatar and your brother."
"Thank you for your confidence in me, Father. I will never let you down."
"One Zuko is enough," Ozai replied ominously. "To think that a child of my loins would turn traitor against me, actually travel with the Avatar and help him. And your former friend, Mai, is right there with him. Her parents need to be told, Azula. I want you to do that tomorrow."
"What exactly should I tell them, Father?"
"Well, tell them that Mai is alive, a traitor, an enemy of our nation and she will be hunted down and brought back here in chains; that's if she isn't killed by someone like Zhao first."
"What price will there be on her head?"
"That reminds me; I'll need portraits painted and wanted posters made for all three of them. I want those placed all over the Earth Kingdom. And the price on Mai's head will be two thousand gold pieces. Zuko's and Iroh's will be three thousand. I think that's enough of an incentive."
"That's perfect," Azula smiled cruelly.
"Go see Mai's mother and father tomorrow morning, immediately after breakfast."
"Yes, Father. I wonder how Ayaka will react to seeing Mai; that is if I get the chance to hunt her."
"I'm sure she'll want to kill her. Mai is the original come back to life."
"Hmm, yes, she'll be a wonderful asset then, won't she, Father?"
"Indeed, she will, Azula. It's the other one I don't trust."
"Ty Lee is loyal. She's too afraid of me to be anything else."
"Keep a close watch on her. That's all I ask."
"I will."
"Now, finish your dinner. I need to go speak with Zhao."
Fire Nation Palace, Zhao's room
His room was shrouded in darkness now, only a bit of light seeping in from the corridor, pooling under the closed door like liquid gold. Zhao was almost asleep. Those damnable herbs did things to his body that he couldn't seem to fight. The blanket was in a crumpled pile at the foot of the bed and the scarlet sheet was damp with perspiration. He reached for the pitcher of water and knocked the entire thing onto the carpeted floor.
"Damn," he cursed and shouted hoarsely for the guard.
It was Ozai who entered his room, however.
"Clumsy as ever, I see," Ozai remarked coldly.
"My lord," Zhao replied. "Forgive me, please."
Ozai stood, hands behind his back, and looked at the commander consideringly. His presence was intimidating; regal robes, cold smile and piercing gold eyes that seemed to cut right through Zhao's skin and see into his heart, his very soul even. The commander trembled a little. He grabbed hold of a bit of sheet and held on tightly.
"Speak," Ozai finally ordered.
Zhao's head felt as though it were stuffed full of cotton. His thoughts were lost in there somewhere and he tried valiantly to gather them up and make a coherent whole of them.
"I read something important once…..about the moon spirit."
"I'm not interested in spirits, Zhao. That's more my useless brother's domain."
"Wait, please; the moon spirit has taken physical form and lives in an oasis deep within the Northern Water Tribe. If I have enough ships, I can invade, make my way to the oasis and kill the moon spirit. Once I do that, the Northern Water Tribe will be powerless."
"The Northern Water Tribe city is strong and difficult to breach. Do you really think that you can do this and find this moon spirit you speak of?"
"I do, my lord; just give me another chance."
Ozai stood silently for a full minute and considered the proposal.
"Alright, I'll give you one hundred of our best ships. They will sail north slowly, while you search the Earth Kingdom for the Avatar and my treasonous son. I want this all finished by the end of the winter. And if you fail, Azula will take over the hunt and you will die by my hand."
"Yes, my lord, thank you; I won't disappoint you again."
Ozai turned and walked to the door then. Before he left, he looked back at Zhao over his shoulder.
"I've changed my mind."
Zhao's heart froze for an instant.
"I want you gone by tomorrow at midday. Quite frankly, the sight of you sickens me."
Once the Fire Lord was gone, Zhao breathed deeply. He had his chance and he would make the most of it.
Capitol City, Fire Nation
Azula relaxed in the royal palanquin as it took her to the former home of Mai, her former friend. Red cushions surrounded her and red curtains kept her hidden from view. She could sense the people of the city parting for her, though, and she smiled.
Zuko and Mai were alive. That was a shock. She had already mostly forgotten both of them. She rarely gave either a thought. Occasionally when she walked by Zuko's old room, some mundane recollection of her brother would surface. And sometimes when she watched Ayaka handle a knife she would remember Mai's much more graceful movements. But she certainly didn't miss them. Her brother's 'death' especially had been a boon to her. A clear path to the throne was nothing to sneeze at. But now, the very fact that he lived and breathed, changed things; his resurrection gave rise to other possibilities, ones that Azula was not happy with at all.
The palanquin stopped at the foot of the staircase leading up to the home's front door. Azula stepped out and walked up the steps, ordering the palanquin bearers to stay put until she was ready to go home again. The princess knocked sharply on the door and the servant who answered almost fainted from shock.
"Princess Azula," she said and then bowed as she let the teenager pass.
"Tell them I'm here," she ordered curtly.
"Yes, my lady."
Azula could hear the cries of Tom-Tom, the Ikeda's almost two year old son. She wished he would shut up. The sound was grating and loud.
"I'd rather die than have a child," she muttered to herself.
Sen and Masami appeared a few minutes later, apologetic and harried looking.
"Please forgive us for making you wait, Princess Azula," Sen said and they both bowed. "We're honoured to have you in our home."
"Yes, yes, where can we talk?"
"This way, Princess," Masami replied and led the way to a tiny parlour with comfortable chairs.
She shut the door, smoothing her elegant robes as she turned, and gestured for the girl to sit down. Azula perched on the edge of a chair and crossed her legs.
"Mai is alive," she blurted bluntly.
The two adults stared at Azula as if she were insane. Masami's mouth hung open slightly and Sen gripped the arm of his chair. The princess paid no heed to their reactions. She simply continued with her prepared words.
"She was seen recently in the company of my brother, the Avatar and the Avatar's friends. She has been declared an enemy of the state and as such there is a bounty of two thousand gold pieces on her head. All effort will be made to capture her and Zuko. Should they resist capture, lethal measures will be taken."
Azula stopped then and looked at Sen and Masami.
"How can this be?" Sen finally asked. "I've grieved for her, put her to rest and now she's alive and will be hunted down like an animal."
"She's a traitor; they are worse than animals," Azula replied.
"Who knows about all this?" Masami asked next.
"Oh, you're worried about your reputation. Everything Mai said about you is true then. I'm sure that word will spread somehow. Perhaps you should take a posting outside the capitol; perhaps even in the Earth Kingdom. Speak with my father about it. If you're fortunate, he'll help you out."
"Perhaps," Sen replied.
"That's all I have to say," the princess finished.
"Of course; I'll see you to the door," Masami offered.
"Don't bother."
With those two words, Azula rose from her seat and left.
Masami turned to Sen, her eyes damp with tears.
"Why couldn't she just stay dead?"
Earth Kingdom
The forest that the group of seven traveled through was thick and dense, full of huge, beautiful trees, tall and majestic and covered with leaves of fiery read. Sokka had decided that he, Aang and Katara should walk for awhile at least, keeping the very noticeable Appa out of the sky. Zuko and his group followed behind, leading their ostrich horses.
"Why do you get to make the decisions?" Katara whined.
"I've told you, I'm the oldest, well besides Iroh and Jee and Zuko, that is."
"Who cares?" Mai asked in a bored tone. "Just walk."
Katara glared at Mai and continued.
"They're not really part of our group. They're like a sub group or a secondary group."
"Who got you the scroll?" Mai asked snarkily.
"Look, Katara; one day I'll let you make a decision, but right now I think I should be in charge."
"Ugh, you're such a jerk!" Katara said through gritted teeth.
"That comes with being a leader, I suppose."
Iroh and Jee were laughing so hard they could hardly see where they were going. Tears rolled down their cheeks and they were hunched over, grabbing their stomachs. Katara picked up a handful of nuts and whipped them at her brother. He retreated and walked alongside Mai and Zuko for a few minutes.
"Sisters," he declared. "You've gotta love them."
"Obviously, you haven't met Zuko's," Mai retorted smartly
"You have a sister too?" Sokka asked with interest. "Is she younger? Do you miss her? What's she like?"
"She's fourteen, two years younger than I am. I don't miss her at all and she's terrifying. I can only imagine what she's like now."
"Oh," Sokka replied. "I guess I don't have it so bad after all."
"Trust us," Mai replied. "You've got a great sister. She cares about you."
They walked in silence for a while and then Sokka spoke again.
"So, when do we start using those fake names of yours, Deshi and Shen?"
"I guess as soon as we run into some people," Zuko replied. "It's just safer, for us and for you."
"Okay then, Deshi."
"Very good, Sokka," Mai stated.
The Water Tribe boy gave her a look of mock hurt and covered his heart with a tanned and calloused hand.
Mai rolled her eyes at his antics but there was a smile beginning on her face.
"Hey, where did Momo go?" they heard the panicked Avatar ask.
"He's probably looking for food," Katara replied immediately. "He's fine."
As they rounded a turn on the path, they saw Momo approach a neat, too neat, pile of nuts placed on a leaf.
"It's a trap," Zuko shouted but Momo reached out and was pulled up into the trees, caught in a metal cage.
"How did you know that?" Katara asked, whirling on Zuko suspiciously.
"That's a Fire Nation trap. I've learned about them and the fact that they are here means that there are Fire Nation soldiers close by. There must be an encampment just ahead."
"I need to get Momo down," Aang said and airbended his way into the trees.
"Here, let me," Sokka said and threw his boomerang expertly, its honed edge slicing through the rope with ease.
"Nice," Mai commented.
"Hey, thanks," Sokka replied. "Me and boomerang, we've been through a lot."
"Let's stop and think for a moment," Iroh said. "Zuko's right. The Fire Nation is close by and unless you want to fight, I suggest we move ahead very slowly and very carefully."
Heeding Iroh's and Zuko's advice, everyone tread as silently as possible, looking about for any other signs of Fire Nation activity. The path was clear until they came upon a thick bunch of trees blocking their way. Without thinking, Aang pushed them aside.
"Uh oh," he said. "I think we found the Fire Nation."
The small Fire Nation encampment, set up in the clearing, held about twenty soldiers. There were three tents, a wagon, some supplies and not much else. The men sat around a large campfire talking amicably and eating what must have been lunch. As soon as the leaves rustled, they were alert and stared at the strange group of people.
"Great," Zuko moaned. "I guess we have to fight. Why did you just walk through the trees, Aang? I told you to be careful."
"Sorry," the Avatar whispered. "I wasn't thinking. I'll make it better, okay?"
Before he had a chance to say anything else, the soldiers began tossing flames their way. Zuko, thinking quickly, unsheathed his sword and deflected the fire.
"Hey," the boy dressed in airbender orange and yellow shouted. "We're friendly, see; just let us go and no one gets hurt."
The soldiers guffawed and then one dropped to the ground like a stone, an arrow sticking out of his armor.
"Who did that?" Mai asked.
"Look, up in the trees," Sokka cried.
A young man about Zuko's age, dropped from the trees, using a pair of hook swords to ease his descent. He was cocky looking and had a stalk of grass in his mouth. He proceeded to take out soldiers, whirling around with his blades like they truly were a part of him. Zuko stared for a moment and then got to work himself. He took on two soldiers, skillfully removing their weapons and sending them flying. Mai had two more pinned helplessly to trees, looking like butterflies trapped in a spider's web.
Suddenly, there were more people. They dropped down from above and took on the rest of the men, leaving Zuko and Mai nothing to do. Arrows and knives flew, heads were banged together, and bodies were tossed every which way. When it was all over, Mai retrieved her blades and let the soldiers run off into the forest after the rest of their company.
"That was some fancy blade work, you two," the charismatic leader said when he approached. "My name's Jet and these are my Freedom Fighters, Sneers, Longshot, Smellerbee, The Duke and Pipsqueak."
"Oh, uh, hi," Zuko replied. "I'm…."
"Don't mind him," Mai said, saving Zuko from further stammering. "I'm Mai and he's Deshi. The two in blue are Katara and Sokka, the airbender is Aang, and those two gentlemen are Jee and Shen."
"Nice to meet you," Jet grinned. "You and Deshi, you're not together, are you?"
Zuko's nostrils flared and he stepped in front of Mai.
"Yes," he stated loudly. "We are together."
"Okay, okay," Jet said and raised his hands defensively. "You're one lucky guy."
"Yes, I am," Zuko replied.
"So, I see you've had an encounter with the Fire Nation too."
Jet stuck his face close to Zuko's and peered at the huge scar covering nearly half of the prince's face.
"Yeah, something like that," Zuko replied sullenly and backed away.
"Cool, I get that you don't want to talk about it. Look, we're going to take all the supplies here back to our hideout. That's what we do, see; we ambush the Fire Nation, block their supply routes, steal from them and so on. They've taken over this valley and we want the scum gone. One day soon, we'll get rid of them for good."
He sad the last words ominously and a darkness came over his face. His brown eyes grew hard and cold. Then just as quickly, he was wearing a cocky, lopsided grin again and wrapping an arm around Zuko's shoulders.
"Bring your friends. Come see our hideout."
"Did he say hideout?" Aang and Sokka both asked.
"I did," Jet winked. "Follow us."
They did but both Mai and Zuko felt uneasy about the charming leader of a bunch of refugees. There was something about him, something not quite right.