Chap. 40

The Battle

Ozai gritted his teeth as he looked out upon the bay. For so long, that water had been calm, undisturbed, unchangeable. It had always comforted him to look upon it and reflect on the permanence of his reign. Like the water, it would never change. Ozai would keep the Fire Nation on course for power and allow nothing in that he did not accept. But now, he looked upon the water, his symbol of permanence and stability and saw it effectively destroyed. Whatever force he was facing had ripped the cliffs apart and forced their way in, as if trying to directly insult the Fire Lord by showing him that nothing was permanent, that even nature could be forced to change, and therefore, so would he.

But Ozai would not allow it. He was Fire Lord through his own power, and he had not worked for so long, continuing the war of his grandfather and father, to be stopped by this. Still, Ozai was no fool, and as he looked upon the bay, he knew that he would have a fight on his hands. The Fire Lord looked out and saw Earth Kingdom liners, Waterbender boats, and even a pair of Fire Nation ships, all marked with the symbol of the four Elements, sitting there as their passengers emptied out. All the different people joined together as they exited, becoming one force that moved closer and closer to the capital. And of course, Ozai saw their vanguard- the Airbenders that flew above them on their gliders and sky bisons. It was that sight that put a sliver of fear into the heart of the Fire Lord. They should've all been killed a century ago through the hand of his grandfather. Was this another mockery of the universe as well? That not even death was permanent? That he would be brought down by the power of a people his family had long ago put an end to?

No. he thought. I will not let this end me. No matter what power they may have, I am Fire Lord. This world belongs to me, and there are none strong enough to wrest it from my grasp.

He would've continued in this vein, had his aide not burst through the door in a huff.

"My lord, my lord," the aide said frantically. "We're under…"

"I can see that fool." Ozai growled. "Do you think I am blind?"

"N-No my lord…. Um…. What should we do? No one has invaded the capital in…"

"Send out the troops and war machines. Must I think of everything? And what is the status of our secret weapon?"

"It-It has not yet arrived Fire Lord."

"Fools. Can those blasted engineers do nothing right?" Ozai snapped. Turning back to his aide, he said, "Well, what are you waiting for? Deploy the troops!"

"My-My Lord, the populace is still outside, we need time to evacuate…."

"Idiot! Push through them if they block you! Now GO!"

The Army had completely exited the ships, and had begun moving up the beach into the capital. Because of the natural barrier the cliffs had provided, there were no walls separating the coast from the city, a fact that they had been sure to take advantage of. They marched quickly, led by the Knights and the Avatar Gang. Those who marched showed no signs of discomfort as they marched with their foreign brethren. All of them were fighting for the same ideas and principles. Every solider there was ready and willing to die for his country and the ideals of the Army. Perhaps it was that determination, that unity that explained why the Fire Nation soldiers they encountered as they entered the capital were so easily defeated. Many patrols had gathered near the bay of the city to halt the attackers, but at the very sight of so many invaders, their loyalty wavered, and fear began to enter their hearts. As the Army came closer and closer, the patrolmen attempted to do their duty, but their fear, combined with the experience and power of the Army, caused them to fail almost instantly. One by one, the patrols were blown away, until the Army had a clear path to the inside of the city.

Yet when they entered the city, they were greeted by something not a one of them expected. They had been expecting a ramshackle group of soldiers, hastily assembled with war machines to stop them. They had expected men that were surprised and startled by their presence. Instead, what they saw……. Was nothing at all. The streets before them were empty and bare, devoid of life save for a few civilians that stared from the windows of their homes in fear and confusion. The Army did not stop their progression through the city, but all of them looked around with uncertainty and apprehension.

"I know this was a surprise attack, but jeez." Jin said, as she looked around.

"Don't get comfortable. All this means is that my father's troops aren't here yet." Azula said. "But they will be."

"She's right." Iroh agreed. "Everyone stay on your toes. We could be attacked at any moment."

"Oh, I'm ready enough as it is." Tierra said, looking around at the faces staring from windows. "After all, I'm in enemy territory, getting ready to attack them at the heart."

"Well, at least it's a nice looking heart." Jin added, looking around the beauty of Agni Hai Di.

"Elephant Koi are nice looking too." Sokka said. "But they can still kill you if you're not careful."

"Don't start." Zuko said.

Suddenly, the group came to halt, as Toph called out, "Wait a minute." Placing her hand on the ground, she said, "Something's coming. A lot of something. And it feels really big."

"I can feel it to." Aang said. "We've got to get ready for them."

"Amen." Oscuridad said, as he summoned his shadowfire armor. One by one, the other Knights summoned their own armor. Behind them, the Army took the hint and moved into battle positions

"You could actually feel that?" Toph said, as the group readied themselves."

"Yeah. Pathnik really taught me about understanding the forces of the universe." Aang replied.

"Well well, I think we've finally got a full Avatar on our side. Can't wait to see you in the Avatar State then." Toph said.

Aang nodded back, but when Toph moved away, his eyes shifted for a moment. But it didn't last long, as their enemies finally appeared. The Fire Lord had sent most of his soldiers out to face this threat. More then four hundred soldiers appeared, flanked by rhinos and tanks of various shapes and sizes. As they moved into position, a general came forward and called out, "Foreign invaders. By the grace of Fire Lord Ozai, we offer you this choice. Leave our city now, or be destroyed by the superior forces of the Fire Nation."

The group looked at each other, then simply moved away as Aang stepped up to the front. Looking at the general, he said, "Tell the Fire Lord, that I didn't come here to leave. I came to end this. If he wants to avoid bloodshed, he can come and face me himself."

"So be it." The general said, as his fists ignited. Pointing at Aang, he called out, "ATTACK! Let nothing stop you!"

The Fire Nation army surged forward, ready to tackle this threat to their lord and master. But the Army of the Avatar met them head on, and one of the greatest battles in the history of the world began. This was the battle that would be recorded as the Battle of The Last Avatar, because everyone fighting that day, no matter there side, knew that it would be the Avatar that would be the deciding factor of it all. And so each side battled fiercely, doing all it could to destroy the other. Butt while the Fire Nation relied on it's own strengths, the Army of the Avatar had combined all their strengths into one, and become the thing they had been originally proclaimed- a giant, living Avatar.

The tanks moved forward, leading the rest of their army into the conflict, their pilots loosing blast after blast from the safety of the cockpit. Two rhinos flanked them on each side, adding their own power to the fight. But as the riders came forth, they suddenly noticed flashes of green cloth rushing around them. Before they could react, the Kyoshi Warriors put their training to good use, as they relieved the first seven rhinos of their riders. Once the rhinos were directionless, Suki called out, "NOW!" as she threw her fan in the direction of the lead rhino's flank. It struck hard, as the creature instantly let out a cry of rage and began to thrash about wildly, first gouging the tank, and then running headfirst into its own ranks. The other warriors followed suit, and soon the rhinos were rampaging through the conflict between the Fire Nation troops. The tanks began to turn towards their fellows, to attempt to control the rhinos. But without the beasts' protection, they were vulnerable. Almost instantly, Jet, Sokka, Jin, and the Freedom Fighters moved forward and charged the tanks. Concerned with the rhinos, the pilots didn't see them coming until it was too late. The group leapt onto the cockpit, and as the pilots turned to face them, each Army member threw a goo-filled bag at them. The bags exploded on contact, blinding the pilots, as well as feeling the tanks with an ungodly stench. The soldiers instantly evacuated the tanks, gagging on the smell, only to be captured and taken down by their attackers.

Meanwhile, the foot soldiers continued the battle on both sides. A Firebender took a shot at Katara, only to have her extinguish his flame with a Waterburst, then be sucked up into the earth thanks to Haru. Pakku and Jeong-Jeong stepped forward side by side into a double water and fireblast, creating a steam cloud that Aang and Malu blew onto the Firebender Army. As they stumbled around in the cloud, the soldiers were helpless as attacks by Hierro, Desierto, Luz, Oscuridad, and the Earthbenders continued to take them down.

But while all this was going on, other events were taking place. Zuko and Agua were battling a group of soldiers, their broadswords and trident flashing in the light of the sun. As Zuko pressed forward, he felt a pang of regret that he had to fight his own people. And he wondered, when it was all over, how he was going to deal with all these soldiers that he was now fighting. But as those thoughts ran through his mind, he suddenly heard a voice cry out; his sister's voice. He turned in its direction, and saw something that destroyed all the questions in his mind and honed his focus to a T.

Litu stood by the door of the shop, clinging to the door in terror just as her brother Aui clung to her. The eight-year old watched what was going on and just prayed that they would survive this, and find their mommy and daddy again. She didn't know how this had all happened; one minute they'd all been at the store, buying Daddy's fireflakes, when the horn had gone off. Mommy had made them run off, trying to get home. But then all these people had shown up, and Aui had wanted to see. Litu did too, and in all the confusion, they'd hidden by the store and tried to watch all the people. But then things started to happen, and now all this bad stuff was happening. Litu was just waiting for this to end. She wanted her parents; she knew that she'd never disobey her parents again.

"Hey!" a voice suddenly yelled. Litu looked up, and saw a solider standing over her. Litu smiled; the solider were always nice, they'd help them.

"Get out of my way, you little brats!" the soldier yelled, as he grabbed his club and began to brandish it. Litu's face fell, as she grabbed her brother close and held him as the soldier started to bring his club down. But before he could, something happened. Litu saw a pretty girl in dark red armor moved into the club's arc, grabbed it, and tossed it out of the soldier's grasp.

"Pick on someone your own size." The girl sneered, as she took a defensive pose.

For a moment, the solider blanched, but then smirked, as he saw two more soldiers appear behind the girl.

"Look out!" Litu yelled, as the girl turned just in time to catch the other troops' swordstrikes. She dodged them, then called out a name. Litu heard someone yell in response, then saw a boy in similar armor and a man dressed in blue armor come running towards them…..

Azula saw her brother and Agua approach and mentally breathed a sign of relief, as she continued to hold off the soldiers. But before they could reach her, the sword-wielders drew up their blades and attempted to bring them both down on Azula's head. But before they could make contact, Agua slid in behind her and caught the blades in his trident. Before the soldiers could react, he spun the weapon, pining their blades onto the ground, then quickly used it as a pole, spinning around and delivering a hard kick to both men's faces. As they fell in a heap, the first soldier's bravado vanished, but before he could even start to run, Zuko and Azula delivered twin spin kicks to his head, knocking him out as well.

"Couldn't handle them by yourself?" Zuko asked.

"I could've, but this was easier." Azula replied, as she turned back to the children. Upon seeing her, they began to tremble, but Azula began to speak to them, trying to be as soothing as she could.

"It's ok. We're not going to hurt you." She said. "Do you know where your parents are?"

"O-Our mommy ran away when this started." The boy cried. "We don't know where she is."

"Then we'll get you someplace safe." Zuko added. "After all, we have to look after our people, don't we Azula?"

"A-Azula?" the girl sputtered. "You're the princess?"

"Uh-huh. And that's my brother Zuko, the prince." Azula said. "And we have to protect the Fire Nation and it's people. Otherwise, we wouldn't be very good rulers would we?"

The girl nodded, and Azula said, "Come on, we'll get you someplace safe."

"Actually guys, I think that might be a problem." Agua said, as he pointed outward. The royal siblings turned to see that the Army had cleared a path to the Palace that towered over the city.

"Wow, they're ahead of schedule." Zuko said.

"Then we need to hurry." Azula said. "Aang and the others can't navigate the palace without us. Agua…"

"I'll take the kids." The cat replied instantly. "You guys get going."

"Right." Zuko nodded. Turning back to the children, he said, "Follow this man. His name is Agua, and he'll take you somewhere safe until we can find your parents, ok?"

"OK." The girl replied. Zuko gave a brief smile, and then he and his sister dove back into the masses, fighting their way to the pathway.