Chapter 16: Defining Moment

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As the group approached the ruined city, Zuko looked at Mai worriedly. He remembered the city of the Sun Warriors with its booby traps. It was entirely possible there would be some of the same sort of traps in this city. How could he expose a weakened Mai to that? "I think you should stay outside the city with Topekaia." Seeing Mai's warning glare, he added quickly, "We should be back soon."

"Oh, you should be back soon? Because I always have to stay behind?"

Zuko knit his brow. "No, not because of that."

"Because it's too dangerous for me, huh? It's always too dangerous for me to come with you. It's a wonder I came this time!" Mai turned away from Zuko.

Zuko grabbed Mai's shoulders and turned her around. "Do I have to remind you that you're pregnant? I know you're perfectly capable of taking care of yourself under normal conditions; will you please just let me take care of you for now?"

Mai sighed. Zuko's desperate look was too much for her to hold up against. "For now," she allowed. "But I intend to follow you next time."

Zuko looked slightly relieved until he realized that last part had been a warning, but he let it go in the interest of not upsetting her further. He released Mai's shoulders and straightened up. "Let's hurry," he said to everyone else. With one last kiss to Mai's forehead, he walked off.

Mai crossed her arms. "I hate it when he does that. He always gets his way when he panics."

Topekaia shrugged diplomatically. Zuko had a point. Mai had barely been eating; however, Mai was usually very capable, and, after she got some food down and rested a little, she would probably be back to normal.

Topekaia touched Mai's arm. "Why don't you sit down; I'll make you something warm and appetizing."

Mai frowned. She knew that she was being pampered. And she hated that. But she knew that it made people happy to wait on her, for some demented reason. So she sat down and waited for Topekaia to be done with whatever she planned on doing.

Topekaia took one look at Mai and folded her arms.

"Don't you go looking like that! It's your own fault! If you'd been eating, there's a good chance you could have convinced Zuko to let you go! That way you wouldn't have to be waited on!"

Mai looked up. She felt like she'd been attacked in some way. She resisted the urge to snarl. "Have you ever tried to convince Zuko to change his mind? It's not as easy as you seem to think!" She tried to calm herself, but realized that she was in a mood. She looked away, hoping that would help. She hated blowing off so much emotion.

Topekaia put her hands up in front of her defensively and turned back to her work. "Diplomatic Kaia, be diplomatic," she muttered, hiding a smile behind her hand. Mai was most certainly in a mood.

Mai could hear Topekaia muttering to herself. Her words were sort of calming. Mai really should be diplomatic, she knew; it just was kind of hard to get reason through the reddish haze collecting in front of her eyes. She tried to shake it away. "I'm very sorry," Mai said through gritted teeth. "I need to walk. I'm getting way too worked up over nothing. It's not your fault. None of it is. I just hate being left behind by Zuko. It's happened one too many times." She stood up, dusting off her clothes and straightening her hair to hide her shakiness. "I'm not mad at you," she reiterated before walking off. "Oh, and don't stop me, please."

"Alright," Topekaia called, "but please don't go too far. You still have to eat this!"

Mai turned long enough to show Topekaia her grimace of acknowledgement before hurrying into the trees. There in the shade she could feel the anger draining away. It was reassuring to know that that technique still worked. Now that she was hidden, it didn't seem to matter how angry she'd been a second ago. She noticed that there were an unseasonable amount of dead leaves on the ground near a tree. They seemed almost charred, which was very strange. She stepped closer to investigate. It looked like someone had stood in the tree, and shaken it, and then gotten annoyed at something and firebended a line down the tree's side—

Snap!

Mai found herself flying into the treetops. She yelled in shock, hoping she was imagining this. But she saw that there were thick metal bars all around her, forming a spherical cage. It was obviously a Fire Nation trap, because only a scant handful of earthbenders also knew how to metalbend, while the Fire Nation boasted the best—and most numerous—metal workers in the world.

Mai growled in frustration. Some stupid hunter had caught her in his animal trap! How humiliating.

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Topekaia had just placed a sprig of parsley on top of the broth she had prepared when she heard a yell coming from the trees.

All thoughts of broth flew from her mind as she dashed into the tree cover. She found Mai in a cage hanging from a tree.

"Mai! Oh my word! How did you—" Hastily, Topekaia grabbed the lowest branch of the tree and hoisted herself up through the branches until she was alongside Mai. "I have got to get you out of there," Topekaia said, shaking her head. "But first, how did you get in?"

Mai sighed long-sufferingly. "I was walking; I saw that mess of leaves down there, and thought I'd investigate. It looks like some dumb hunter was getting very fed up and burned some of this tree. Please don't swing the cage; you're making me nauseous."

Topekaia immediately stopped shifting around as she examined the cage.

"Thank you." Mai looked around. "I don't know how these things unlock. Did you have them in the colonies?"

Unfortunately Topekaia knew nothing about the cage. "I don't know any more than you do. Around where I lived there was no game that big. Speaking of which, there is no game around here that big either. Somehow I don't think that this cage was meant for an animal."

Mai's eyes widened with comprehension. "You mean— It's happening again!" Her head whipped around, trying to see if anyone were coming. "I have to get out of here before someone comes to pick me up!" She tried to sit up, but her stomach muscles weren't cooperating, and she slid back into the contours of the sphere. "This thing ought to have some sort of weak spot—or you could get Toph to help—" She didn't want to mention Zuko.

"Calm down, Mai, please," Topekaia coaxed. "If you stress yourself, it won't do any good. The others will come back eventually; let's just hope we won't have to depend on them."

When Mai was sufficiently calmed, Topekaia nodded decisively. "I am going back to camp to see if I can find something to pry open the bars." Deftly, Topekaia climbed down the tree. Before she started back to camp, however, she circled the tree looking for a weak spot in the cage. "I can't seem to find—" Suddenly her foot caught on a wire, and Topekaia plummeted forward. She caught herself, turning her fall into an agile flip, but it was too late; the cage was already closing around her. "Well, would you look at me." She gazed through the foliage at Mai. "Trapped."

Mai's frown deepened. "That's not good. Now we'll just have to wait until they come looking for us." She took a sharp breath, realizing that "they" did not necessarily mean her husband and friends. "Is… is it rope holding you up? If you want, I could try cutting through it with some stilettos… and then maybe you could roll back to camp and free yourself…" She winced, her stomach lurching at the idea of falling from the tree herself. What a stupid idea…

"I'm afraid they've thought of that. It's chain holding you up and I am assuming they've used the same for me." Topekaia's voice was irritatingly calm. "Still, we've got to continue to look for weaknesses."

Mai felt around. The hinges were well oiled; she couldn't reach the top of the cage, because she was unable to sit up all the way, and below her was a firm base. "I'm out of ideas. This is too simple a machine. Do you have anything?"

"I was thinking since these bars are metal I could melt them, but what good would that do? I wouldn't be able to force them—" Topekaia suddenly straightened up, ecstatic. "I have it! The tree! The tree will burn!" She turned to Mai, "Brace yourself; I'll do your branch first."

Mai heard the sound of a few people approaching over the thumping of her heart. "Hurry up and free yourself! You'll be able to fight the people who are coming now!"

"But—" Topekaia began to argue when the sense of Mai's words dawned on her. "Alright." She squeezed her hands through the bars of the cage and began to burn her branch.

"Well," a voice from below intoned, "if it isn't the Fire Lady and her little servant girl?"

Mai and Topekaia looked down to see a man dressed in Fire Nation clothes, with a few Earth Kingdom men coming into view behind him.

"Get us down from here, scum!" Topekaia ordered.

"It's all right, little servant. When we take your mistress, you'll be free to go. You've got the right idea about how to open your cage. Luckily for us, the Fire Lady can't do the same."

"Who are you?" Mai hissed. "Who sent you to find me?"

"Two questions, the answers to which are confidential in mixed company." The man shifted his eyes to Topekaia. "I can tell you all about it when we've left our messenger behind. We want her to tell the Fire Lord what happened to his lady… after he's lost her for good, that is."

"You disgusting worm!" Topekaia screamed in shocked disgust. "You don't know who you are playing with, do you?"

"On the contrary. We know exactly who we are toying with. If we didn't, we wouldn't have set those traps. And now we've caught the Fire Lady as easily as a harmless little meadow vole. To think we'd heard so much about how good a fighter she was, and how formidable. It appears that we heard wrong."

"Just like I said, you don't know who you are messing with!" Topekaia hissed venomously, shooting fire down at the man through the bars of her cage.

Unfortunately, the man sidestepped; he tripped but nimbly pulled himself up again. "You'll regret that!" he called to Topekaia.

She glared back.

Mai shot a couple stilettos at the men climbing up the tree to untie her. "Get away from me," she warned. She didn't get the men who'd climbed around the other side of the tree, and they undid the chain holding her in the tree. She fell a few inches, and had to hold on to the sides of the cage to stabilize herself. She had to stop talking, because she was getting nauseous again. She shot Topekaia a look of horror before replacing it with her mask. Her emotions stirred behind the mask, but she held them back, even as she reached the ground, surrounded by her captors.

Seeing Mai being lowered to the ground, Topekaia completed burning her branch and plummeted downward. She had intended to attack the men but the impact of hitting the ground left her dazed. "You can't take her," she managed to say.

"Tell Fire Lord Zuko," said the man, looking from Mai to Topekaia, "that he will never find his wife. It's a warning. Either he follows the demands of the Order, or he's next." He motioned to his followers, and the earthbenders started pushing Mai along. "Goodbye, servant girl!" the man called without looking at Topekaia.

"Goodbye, Kaia." Mai was on the point of tears, so her voice wavered, but she managed one more glance at Topekaia before her eyes fogged up completely.

Topekaia tried one last attack, but the spare earthbenders blocked it easily.

"We'll save you, Mai," Topekaia whispered as the group disappeared from sight.

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The search for Fu Yu's charm had been unsuccessful. Zuko's shoulders slumped, the thought of returning home to more arguing and plotting weighing heavily on his mind. He wanted to get back to Mai. She was always able to put things in perspective. Even if she didn't have anything good to say, her presence alone was reassuring. As he reached the camp, he was greeted with the sight of Topekaia trying to pry open the bars of a cage she was trapped in. She was rolling around with the force she was applying to the bars with a crowbar. She was also alone.

"Where's Mai?" He managed to hold back a roar, but he still growled.

Katara ran over to Topekaia, told her to hold still, and quickly began slicing through the metal with her water. "What happened?" Katara asked quietly, glancing worriedly over to where Zuko was still standing, glaring at Topekaia.

"Mai was really upset so she went off for a walk," Topekaia began. "It was only a little ways into the trees. I was making a broth to help her feel better so I didn't go with her." Topekaia glanced up at the fuming Fire Lord and the worried faces surrounding her. "Then I heard her scream and went to find her." The bars finally broke and Topekaia crawled sluggishly out. "I found Mai in this… this cage up in a tree. I tried to find a way to get her down, I really did, but then I got caught. I was going to burn through the branches and free Mai, but these— scum showed up and took—" Topekaia voice choked. "They captured Mai." She sobbed at last, her fatigue overwhelming her.

Zuko felt dizzy. He'd left Mai with Topekaia, but that hadn't been enough. She would have been safer with the group. He had made the wrong decision, and because of that, he'd lost Mai. He blew fire from his mouth. "Where did they go?" he growled.

Topekaia wiped her eyes. "They went eastward." She looked up at the others. "I am a failure, aren't I?" Choking back more sobs, she pulled herself to her feet and walked away from the group.

Zuko blinked. He wasn't that unreasonable. "No! Topekaia, wait! I'm not mad at you. It wasn't your fault. We'll make this work." Determination replaced his rage. He ran after Topekaia and gripped her shoulder. "I'll give you time alone if you want it, but just know that I don't blame you, and, furthermore, I'll be requiring your services."

Topekaia nodded. "I don't have any services to offer, except maybe that of a friend. I feel like I have let you all down, and, more importantly, let Mai down." She brushed Zuko's hand off her shoulder and smiled weakly. "I wasn't leaving, you know; I just needed a minute to think. Can I go now?"

Zuko nodded.

"I'll come see what the plan is later."

Zuko turned and left her. Walking away, his anger returned as he remembered that Mai had been stolen from him. His anger subsided for a moment, making way for a cold, empty feeling. What if they hurt her? Or worse? He shivered, and ran over to Aang. "Is it possible to follow them now?"

Aang looked around the campsite. "I don't think we're ready. And we have to clean up."

Zuko's face reddened with his anger. "Meanwhile, Mai is being carried off to who knows where!"

Aang grimaced apologetically. "I don't think it will be too hard to find her. Didn't those first assailants mention that they planned on sending Mai to the mines?"

Zuko blinked. That was true. "All right." Zuko started cleaning up furiously, although he took extra care with Mai's belongings.

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The earthbenders got a bit antsy as the large war balloon took off. They had succeeded in disarming Mai's wrists and ankles, but she still had a few knives they hadn't been able to get to yet. She, still in the cage, had been rolled into a corner. She huddled as far away from the men as she could. Maybe she could think of something to do that would slow them down, but not crash the balloon. She didn't want to commit suicide.

The man in Fire Nation red walked up to her, grinning with proud malice. "Well, your highness, are you enjoying the flight?"

Mai glared at him. "Who are you?"

"I'll tell you when I'm sure your husband isn't following us." He looked over the edge of the balloon's basket.

"You're afraid of him, aren't you?" Mai asked, a hint of smugness sneaking into her voice. "For all your defiance, you're still afraid."

The man stared down at Mai with a look of pure hatred. "You are very young," he said, "just like your husband. You're just a couple of children. You have no right to rule the Fire Nation."

"Azula is younger than both of us," Mai shot back.

"She was a prodigy beyond her years."

"She is also insane. Even her sane personality was twisted. She would have ruined the country even more than before. Even her father couldn't have kept her in line. You were asking for trouble by supporting them. Zuko will rule the Fire Nation justly. But you don't deserve him."

The man snarled. "I'd burn you now if you weren't worth more whole."

Mai relaxed. She had the upper hand here, after all. At least for now.

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The balloon landed, and new earthbenders relieved the benders pushing her along.

"Now will you tell me who you are and what's going on?" Mai asked.

"I am Governor Katsurou."

"My father was a governor once," Mai said stoically. "He isn't called that any more. He has no city to govern. You probably don't, either."

"Which is why I'm rebelling. The Fire Lord demoted me in the interest of peace," he scoffed. "He demoted a lot of my friends, too. We decided we weren't going to take it."

Mai was still staring stoically ahead. "So what do you plan on doing with me?"

A wicked grin spread over Governor Katsurou's face. "You'll find out in a minute."

As a thought suddenly occurred to Mai, fear swept over her. She could handle anything they decided to do with her; Zuko would find her eventually. But she was going to be a mother. Would she be able to protect her child if they found out about it? She knew there were no visible signs of her pregnancy yet, but how long would she have to wait until she was rescued?

She craned her neck to scan the sky, trying to figure out where she was.

She noticed that all the men around her were putting masks on, apparently to protect their noses and mouths. Before she had time to think about what this meant, she felt herself getting drowsy. She was asleep in less than a minute.

-x-x-x-x-x-

Merry Christmas!

Merci beaucoup to those kind souls who took the time to review our story: broken and forgotten, gloomy maiko lover, Keitorin Asthore, Kimjuni2, and silvereyes12.