Avatar: The Warring Earth
Book Two—Air
By Twins of the Pen
Disclaimer: Avatar in itself belongs to Nickelodeon and Bryan Konietzko/Michael DiMartino. The only things that belong to Twins of the Pen are the original characters.
"Why can't I go too? You're going!" Kei protested for what seemed like the fiftieth time, frowning as he watched Tiki braid her hair to keep it out of the way. She sighed from her seat on the bed and gave him an exasperated look.
"I've told you already, Kei. Now say it with me: bender," she said, pointing to herself, before pointing her finger at Kei and saying, "nonbender. We can't have you out there while we do this. It'd be too dangerous."
"You mean," Kei began shrewdly, "that it'd be too dangerous in the sense that I might betray you all? Is that it?"
Tiki sighed. If she had known he was going to get like this, she never would have come to his room to say goodbye. "Look, Kei, I won't be able to vouch for you while I'm doing this, all right? It took enough effort to convince ZanYi to let Syaoran and I go, and I'm sure she'll be against the idea of bringing you along. We have no means for you to fight, so if I were to be blunt, I would say bringing you with us would be useless."
Ouch.
Kei lowered his gaze, his frown deepening. This wasn't fair at all: hadn't he proved himself trustworthy the whole time they had been down here? And so what if he couldn't bend? He could still be useful, if they would just give him a chance!
Tiki didn't like the look on the nonbender's face, and she sighed, approaching him. "Don't look that way, Kei," she pleaded with him, reaching up to pat his cheek. "If all goes well, we'll be back before you know it, okay? So don't worry—we'll be fine." Of course, Tiki had no concrete way of knowing that… but why say so out loud? There was no need to be a Negative Noatuk. Kei, for his part, looked unconvinced at her soothing words, but he did nod in surrender before suddenly pulling the tiny airbender in a tight hug.
"Be careful," he mumbled into Tiki's ear. Touched, the tiny airbender hugged him back, patting his shoulder gently.
"I will. I promise."
There was a knock, and the ajar door came open with it. Inviting himself in then, Syaoran leaned against the dark stone doorframe, crossing his arms. "Tiki, it's time to go," he urged her, acting as sentinel and timepiece. Dawn had come much too soon, he supposed, but Syaoran had been itching for it, waiting. It had nearly driven him mad last night, having to wait, knowing his mother and sister were still out there—and hopefully his father, but irritatingly enough, there was no news about him. But Syaoran had waited, and the morning had finally come.
"We have to go now to get suited up," he continued, remembering the message he'd had passed on to him by one of the waterbenders in Ransik's unit. Syaoran's fingers were twitching, his foot being constantly stilled by sheer willpower. Nerves were piling up, twisting and knotting, but he had to keep himself under control: if he lost control of his anxiety like he had with the lieutenant, his family was done for.
Tiki hurriedly pulled away from Kei at Syaoran's entrance, something the nonbender did not miss. He quirked a brow at her, but she avoided his gaze, looking only at Syaoran. "Right… let's do this," the tiny airbender sighed, heading towards Syaoran. She noticed how twitchy the Avatar seemed to be; she slid her hands into one of his, putting slight pressure on it as she looked up into his eyes and reminded him, "Breathe." Turning to look at Kei, Tiki raised a hand. "Bye, Kei. We'll be back before you even miss us," she promised with a brave attempt at a smile before pulling Syaoran out of the doorway. Kei could do nothing but watch them leave, unfamiliar emotions twisting through his stomach.
Strange… He had never been beaten in anything before. Street fights he usually won by name alone, though he could throw a few bodies around if he needed to. When it came to cash fights, he had more than enough to throw around. And good looks… well, let's just say if the first two things weren't enticing enough for the ladies, it was definitely the third that brought them flocking to him. So it was ironic that the one time he actually put effort in pursuing a girl he genuinely liked was wasted—she was already spoken for, as he suspected… though she didn't seem to know it yet.
Kei huffed. He didn't lose a lot, which was probably what made him a sore loser: even though it looked like a lost cause, he still wanted to fight for Tiki. So when one of the guards he recognized passed by, Kei called out to him.
"Hey, buddy, come here. You wanna make a few yuans right now…?"
Canteen? Check. Comm unit? Check. Dogtags?
Shun patted the cool metal under his shirt and smiled. Check. He was standing with Ransik and the rest of the waterbenders, decked out in camouflage—no one was supposed to notice them as they apprached the POW camp unless absolutely necessary. It was a get in and get out job. The easiest feat of the day, in fact. The real challenge lay with the AKs…
Shun's eyes traveled over to where ZanYi was standing across the vast loading bay for the umpteenth time, his anxiousness rearing up once more. He had to keep telling himself over and over that she would be fine, and that his job was to follow Ransik's orders, no matter what happened. Shun had been lucky that Ransik had been accommodating—he would not disrespect the older waterbender's kindness by running off and disobeying orders.
"She'll be fine. She's the Lieutenant."
Shun jumped a little—Sikka had appeared at his side out of nowhere, and she was wearing an expression that was far too understanding. "Yeah… I know that…" Shun mumbled, hastily tearing his gaze away from ZanYi to hide his blushing cheeks. Sikka giggled.
"You're adorable when you blush, Shun. Perhaps you should let Lieutenant Tsong know how you feel about her, while you have the chance?"
"Don't say that," Shun groaned, turning an aggrieved expression on Sikka. "It's bad luck."
Sikka sobered at this. "Sorry," she apologized, "but you have to admit that life is short. If you don't say anything now, you may never get a chance to…"
Shun frowned at this, looking over at ZanYi once more. He had made up his mind last night that he would not tell ZanYi just how deeply he felt about her, but now Sikka had him questioning his decision. What if something happened to her? What if something happened to him? Was he really willing to take that chance?
Shun turned to consult Sikka, but she was already gone, speaking to Ransik about something. Shun sighed, squared his shoulders, and turned his back on ZanYi. He had already decided that he wasn't going to tell her, for Syaoran's sake. So no matter what happened today, he could not tell ZanYi he loved her. Shun had to believe that they would survive so he could live to tell her another day. He had to.
ZanYi turned just in time to see Shun look away and frowned. There just was no possible way that she could erase his worries. She'd attempted the past few days, and even again that morning when they'd gotten up. He hadn't said much, but the look he'd been giving her when she opened her eyes that morning said enough.
But she didn't have the time to worry about Shun's anxiety. Everything had to be in order to go.
Watching her AKs start piling into the back of the transport truck, and feeling content they were set to go, ZanYi made her way over to Ransik's troop. "Stop worrying and focus, Shun," she admonished him, walking over. "Where's Syaoran and Tiki?"
"I'm here," came the Avatar's voice, pushing through the crowd of waterbenders. It was no wonder that she didn't see him immediately; in the same camouflage as everyone else, there was nothing left to distinguish him from the other soldiers.
But ZanYi stood out in comparison to them—all of the AKs did. Sure, they had the camouflage uniforms to keep hidden. But they also had the flak jackets and utility belts on them. Syaoran could even see a gun strapped to her leg; after seeing her threaten Kei with one, he had no doubt she knew quite well how to use it.
At Syaoran's attendance, the lieutenant nodded and let her amber eyes scan the crowd. "Okay," she muttered, "then that just leaves Tiki…"
"Present," she called, moving from behind Syaoran. She had finally let go of his hand to adjust the uniform she had been given, which were too big on her, of course. Still, she looked more comfortable than Shun—he looked like his clothes would burst off him if he even breathed wrong. Tiki swung her long brown plait over one shoulder, trying to ignore the fact that her mother always used to wear her hair in such a fashion. This was for functionality purposes only, not a style choice. "Are we almost ready to go?" she asked, glancing around at the waterbending unit she and Syaoran were supposed to be traveling with. Shun turned to catch the eye of Ransik, who gave him a slight nod.
"I think so," the giant waterbender replied, turning to face Tiki and Syaoran. "You two have your comm units, right?"
"Yeah, I—" Tiki began, patting the pocket she had put the communication device in… or where she thought she had put it. Suddenly it wasn't there anymore. Tiki patted her other pocket—empty. Uh-oh.
"Tiki," Shun began, frowning as the tiny airbender swiveled around, her gray eyes wide, "you didn't lose your comm unit, did you?"
"No, I had it, I swear!" Tiki assured him, patting every inch of herself in search of the missing device. "I was handed one along with Syaoran just two minutes ago! It couldn't have gotten far!"
Shun sighed. He was beginning to question the decision to let Tiki tag along. She was more responsible nowadays, sure, but an airhead was still an airhead sometimes.
"It didn't," Syaoran answered with a roll of his eyes. Fishing a comm out of his pocket, he handed it over to Tiki, giving her a pointed look. "Though you would have lost it if I hadn't taken it for you."
ZanYi took a deep breath and pursed her lips, unhappy already. They were going to make her regret this—all three of them. "Put it in now, Tiki, and don't you dare lose that. You lose that comm, and you're on your own out there." Literally. That wasn't a threat. Tiki would literally be on her own because no one would be able to get a hold of her or find her. And the Resistance could not waste precious time trying to find her blindly.
"Okay, okay," Tiki responded to ZanYi, placing the comm unit in her ear while giving Syaoran a look right back. "You know, it wouldn't kill you to trust me with the little things. I'm taking this just as seriously as everyone else."
"Now's not the time to be fighting amongst ourselves," Shun reminded the two youngest members of Team Avatar with a severe look. "We need all our attention focused on our task today, so squabble later."
"All units, into position!" Ransik called, and the waterbenders shuffled to their assigned positions for departure. With a jerk of his head, Shun urged Tiki and Syaoran to get a move on, which Tiki heeded. Shun turned to ZanYi one last time, placing a hand on her shoulder and giving it a squeeze.
"Be careful," he urged her, letting his hand slide away to join the waterbenders. He saw the cord of his necklace poking out from under ZanYi's uniform. That helped a little. Before following in step, Syaoran looked at ZanYi. There was a lot that could be said, and no time to do it. So he went with what he felt the most strongly.
"Thank-you, ZanYi," he told her, looking serious. If it weren't for the lieutenant, he wouldn't be saving his family, wouldn't be able to help them. And that would have torn him apart. Despite the fight he'd caused with her yesterday, and despite the fact that she caused most of the conflict in his life, ZanYi was still someone he could count on. When his back was against the wall, he knew he could call on her.
The lieutenant simply nodded, then ushered him off to go with the rest of the waterbenders and Team Avatar. Knowing that her other team was set to go, she returned with a jog over to the AKs. They were all loaded up in the truck, and ZanYi scanned to make sure nothing and no one was out of place in the cavernous loading bay. Her eyes met Zaron's across the way, loading up his own soldiers in a similar truck. He gave her nod, to which she returned, and when he smirked, so did she. They were going to get this right. A well thought-out plan, multiple teams engaged, and both Tsongs out there together. WeiTai was going down, and ZanYi knew she was ready for this war to end.
Turning away from her brother, ZanYi hopped into the back of the truck and they were off. The AKs were going in first to disable the security; therefore they had to leave first. As the ground opened up and the truck drove up the earthen ramp to the world above, she allowed one last look over to Ransik's gathering group, assuring herself that Team Avatar would be okay, that Shun would be okay.
"Lieutenant Tsong," she announced in her comm, now going live with the others, "AKs departing now. Proceed to follow."
It was game time.
They had been riding for what seemed like eternity for Shun when the trucks suddenly halted to stops. Above him, the canopy of forest greenery hid the morning sky, only peeks of pink and orange to be seen through the thick leaves. The air was still and poised, as if it were preparing for the assault as well.
"We go on foot from here, Team Beta," Shun heard Ransik's voice speak into his comm; he was up front driving the truck. "Remember, stay low, and don't make any sudden movements. This is a rescue mission, not a spy movie." Shun had the distinct feeling that Ransik was addressing the three 'newbies' on the team, namely him, Tiki and Syaoran. With a slight smirk, Shun waited for the rest of the waterbenders to hop out of the truck before he followed, the worn earth crunching beneath his boots. Crouching down as low as he could, Shun moved into his position near the front, passing Syaoran and Tiki, who were to be stationed in the middle of the group.
"You two stay close to each other," he reminded them in a low mutter before giving them nods and continuing on his way. Everything from here on out had to go without a hitch if they wanted this mission to be a success, if they wanted to save Syaoran's family, the AKs, and the general.
Tiki returned Shun's nod before he moved on. It was almost alarming how in sync he was with Ransik's waterbenders, like he had been doing this his whole life. Tiki was impressed, but hopefully Shun wouldn't get so used to hanging out with the waterbenders that he decided to stay on Ransik's team. He was part of Team Avatar first, and that's where he should remain.
Then Tiki turned to look at Syaoran. His body had been tense the whole time he had been on the truck, and now that they were so close, he was beginning to get jittery again. "Breathe," she whispered to him again, as if he would forget without her reminders. Crouching low like everyone else—though she hardly needed to—Tiki kept her position in the middle of the waterbending troop, knowing that they were supposed to be a wall protecting the Avatar should anything happen. And while Tiki had faith in this well-thought out plan, her premonition was getting stronger all the time. Something bad was going to happen. It was inevitable. All Tiki could do was pray that whatever damage the bad event caused could be reversible.
Syaoran gave Tiki a look, but he did as she said, trying to breathe. Not firebending breathing, where it was all controlled. He tried the deep breathing of airbending, using what Tiki had taught him. As uptight as he was at the moment, Syaoran still knew he had to relax, had to keep calm. There were a lot of lives at stake, and his family was included in that.
Once he started to feel some of the knots in his muscles loosen, he nodded to Tiki, uttering thanks. Then Syaoran looked up ahead, and slowly through the trees, the target became clearer and clearer. In a clearing ahead, it was a two-story complex, formidable and imposing, yet eye-level to them, as it was downhill. The bricks were dark in shade, blending almost with the earth it sat on, camouflaged. Syaoran was sure there had to be even more levels beneath. Dark and dreadful, it was worse than the surveillance pictures they'd seen.
When the soldiers halted, so did he, keeping low. He knew the plan; they just had to stick to it. Infiltrate, rescue, escape. And somewhere in there, the AKs would be attempting to assassinate the puppet master of this war, whose appearance is still a mystery to them.
There was a light rustle up ahead in the shrubbery, and vaguely he could see the forms of soldiers moving towards the building. The sound of an electrifyingly familiar crackle zipped through his comm, followed by a light thud.
From down below, ZanYi reached up to touch her comm. "Exterior camera disabled, door opened. Alpha's going in," she reported. Leading the front, she stepped into the building, hands poised to strike if need be, flanked by two other AKs, their boots quiet on the linoleum floor. Reaching the end of the vacant corridor, she looked both ways. No personnel. Four cameras.
Pointing both directions, ZanYi nodded to her soldiers, and they responded in like. With quick, short jolts, they disabled the cameras each way. She led them down to the left and, recalling the outline in her head, took a quick right. With a silent finger count to her soldiers, they positioned outside a door, and when she got to zero, they swooped in. It was the control room, and the Neo-Equalists manning it were taken by surprise. But before they could even shout or utter a word of warning, ZanYi and the AKs at her side had them out cold with swift movements. Stepping over to the control console, her gloved fingers flurried across the keyboard. In a matter of seconds, she had the remaining cameras in the compound down.
"Cameras throughout facility disabled. Corridors 1A and 1B secured," she spoke into her comm, knowing the few other AKs with her were still manning that and their entrance. "Send down Beta."
"Acknowledged," Shun heard Ransik respond to ZanYi, and the giant waterbender grinned. ZanYi was nothing if not fantastically adept at her job. What was he worried about? "Beta Team, move out!"
The waterbenders, plus Tiki and Syaoran, moved as one down the hill and into the building until having to separate into two groups: the first group was led by Ransik and included Shun, and they headed into corridor 1A to the left. Tiki and Syaoran's group was led by Sikka, and rushed through corridor 1B.
There were so many twisting and turning hallways to this place that Shun was beginning to get dizzy. Whoever designed this building certainly didn't want to make it easy for trespassers. Eventually, however, Shun and his group began to pass doors. Ransik motioned for his team to halt. "Check every room, but cautiously. If there are prisoners inside, find a way to set them free and send them outside to our reinforcements. If there are NEs inside, show no mercy. Move out."
Shun paired up with a waterbender he had practiced sparring with, and together, they rammed the nearest door open. There was a large cell within, containing half a dozen prisoners. Two Neo-Equalists jumped up from their desks, alarmed by the sound, but were made swift work of by Shun's water whip. As he worked on freezing their hands and legs to the floor, the other waterbender—Luka—grabbed a set of keys hanging on the wall. With reassuring noises to the frightened prisoners inside, Luka unlocked the cell, pushing the metal door out of the way. The prisoners ran past them, and Shun directed them down the hall, where he knew other waterbenders were stationed to make sure none of the prisoners they freed would get lost in the labyrinth of the hallways.
"One cell down, who knows how many to go," Luka joked feebly. Shun smiled anyway.
"Let's keep it going."
Tiki was panting, trying not to lose her cool. She hadn't expected the building to be this difficult to navigate! Somehow she had taken a wrong turn and found herself separated from the others. Thank goodness she still had her comm unit.
"Syaoran, where are you all?" Tiki whispered into her comm, trying not to sound panicked. "One minute I was right next to you, and the next minute—"
Tiki skidded to a halt. She had just come to an end of a hallway that must be housing something very important, for there were roughly a dozen Neo-Equalists guarding the door. Immediately, they rushed at her. "I'll call you back," Tiki mumbled into her comm before crouching low into a defensive stance. As soon as the first NE was upon her, Tiki slid through his open legs, aiming a kick to his crotch. His howl of pain made the tiny airbender smirk, and she continued her solo onslaught of the Neo-Equalists. It wasn't easy taking them all down—Tiki got into a couple rough spots where she was hanging in the air by her braid once or twice, but she managed to emerge victorious with a few scrapes and bruises, and she had avoided getting electrocuted, luckily. The men now on the floor had relied on brute strength because they had underestimated Tiki: she had energy, strategy, and unpredictability on her side. All in all, a very good combination for her, and a very bad combination for her enemies.
Dusting off her hands, the tiny airbender picked her way through the fallen bodies to get to the door. It was locked with a card swipe, which meant her lock-picking tools were rendered useless. Dang it. Glancing around, Tiki spotted what she needed in a manner of seconds—a key card attached to one of the unconscious Neo-Equalists. "I'm borrowing this," she told him, using her airbending to slice through the cable that attached the key card to the man's belt. Bouncing back over to the door, Tiki ran the key card through the swipe. The light on top switched from red to green, and the sound of an enormous lock clicking open sounded. With a bit of effort, Tiki pulled the heavy door open, slipping carefully inside with her guard up and hands at the ready in case there were any more Neo-Equalists inside. Instead, she found a large cell with shifting figures inside. One of them moved forward into the light, and Tiki recognized him immediately.
"General Chen!" Tiki called, rushing over to him. "I found you!"
The general's weary green eyes widened. "Tiki Chouko?" he addressed the tiny airbender by her full name, as if he could not believe his eyes. It appeared as though he had aged immensely over the last several months since the ambush, but there was still a rugged grit to him, deserving of a man of such rank. "What on earth are you doing here?"
"Rescuing you, what does it look like?" she asked him with an odd look. She glanced around the room quickly, but found no keys to unlock the cell. Which meant she had no choice but to play with her toys. Awesome.
"Sikka," Tiki addressed her team leader as she fished out the black case containing her lock-picking tools, "I've located General Chen! I'm working on setting him free now!"
"I'm not the only one in here, Chouko," General Chen pointed out. Tiki glanced up at him curiously.
"But I don't see anyone—"
"Come into the light," General Chen interrupted Tiki, beckoning to a couple of shadowy figures that were still cowering back against the wall. "It's all right; she's a friend."
Tiki paused in selecting her tools, squinting into the darkness of the cell. Slowly, two figures edged their way into the light: one was an emaciated looking woman, tall and thin with medium length brown hair. Her brown eyes observed Tiki carefully, and she had a bony arm wrapped around a younger woman who looked to be in her teens, of average height and the same color hair as the woman next to her, though longer. Her eyes were hazel, and they fixed Tiki with the same searching stare as the woman next to her, who must be her mother. Tiki's breath caught in her throat.
"Are they…?" she began to ask General Chen, her eyes never leaving the women.
"If you know as much as I hope you do, then yes," the general confirmed solemnly. Still staring, Tiki placed a hand to her comm unit once again.
"Syaoran," she breathed, hardly daring to believe it, "I found your family."
ZanYi, once Ransik's team was secured inside, led the AKs down the stairwell. The meeting rooms and interrogation rooms were on the first sub level, and that was where they would find WeiTai. The surveillance teams had noted his arrival an hour prior to their arrival—no visual confirmation, but the arrival of a very covert vehicle with suspicious personnel was the best verification they had. And according to the intercepted itinerary, WeiTai was supposed to be in one of the lower interrogation rooms. If ZanYi hadn't memorized the layout already, she surely would have been lost. The place was a maze, a labyrinth. It was darker, dingier, and the walls clammy and wet to the touch.
She led them slow, cautious. If they were too loud or missed a single beat, it could spell doom for all of them. There was a light around the corner, voices reverberating off of the stone brick walls. Nearing the edge, the lieutenant held up a fist, halting the soldiers behind her. She crept to the corner. Drip. Drop. The water seemed to plop. With caution, ZanYi moved to peer one eye around the corner.
And then a hand reached around to grab her uniform. ZanYi made quick work of her assailant, dropping him to the ground swiftly before he could overpower her. But that didn't stop the bullet that zinged past her arm, echoing loudly in the space. Her AKs flew around the corner, to which they were met with not one gunman, but a whole horde of Neo-Equalists. The odds, benders or not, were not in the Agni-Kais' favor.
Wordlessly, the fight broke out, AKs dodging and weaving around the bullets that rained down, the Neo-Equalists doing their best to avoid the fiery blows. As bad as this seemed, ZanYi knew they had to be close; this much security could only mean a few things. But that didn't make anything easier.
It seemed like the soldiers were pouring out of the halls, a hydra that never seemed to die, no matter how many of its members were taken down. ZanYi struck another soldier down, kicking him in the gut as he crept up behind her. This was not going perfectly.
"Delta and Gamma, move in!" the lieutenant spoke rushed into her comm, pausing only to avoid another bullet. "Security is focused on SubLevel 1, corridor 5C. Requesting back-up! Now!"
The chaos going on in Shun's comm made him freeze for a precious second—the Neo-Equalist he was fighting threw an electrocuted punch at him, opting to go for the older technology with an electrical glove. Shun was thrown back, and Luka had to step in. After a few well-aimed kicks and punches, the Neo-Equalist went down, and Luka had to rush to Shun's side.
"Shun? Shun, wake up! Are you okay?"
Shun groaned, struggling to sit up. His head was pounding, and there was a hissing noise in his ear—his comm was fried. Shun yanked the dead device out of his ear, smashing it to the ground in frustration. "I'm fine. Help them," the giant waterbender commanded, nodding to the prisoners they had just set free when a stray NE had come across them. As Luka assisted the prisoners, Shun struggled to his feet. Something had gone wrong downstairs, and now ZanYi was requesting back-up. Back-up was not supposed to be needed if things were going according to plan.
But Shun's orders were to help the prisoners. A condition of him even coming along was that he obeyed every order Ransik gave him. And right now, Ransik's orders were to free the prisoners. And that was what Shun would continue to do. He would have to trust that ZanYi would be okay with the back-up that would come to her.
"What?"
In the dimly lit halls of the compound, Syaoran came to a halt next to Sikka, unable to believe his ears. Already his family had been found? That easily? Granted, Tiki had gotten herself lost in the process—he'd only spent the last ten minutes trying to find her. But at least she'd found them.
"You found them?" he repeated, talking through his comm. Sikka stopped as well and listened in through her unit.
"Tiki, where are you? We'll come meet you," she asked in concern, but with a look of concentration and severity that Syaoran had never quite seen on her before. But it came with the mission and he was more than willing to do anything it took to get to his family.
"Tiki," Syaoran added, speaking hurriedly, "Tell them you're there to help and that you're my friend. My mother's name is Shima, my sister's name is Sora."
On the other end, Tiki nodded, and then remembering that Syaoran could not see her, said, "Shima and Sora, got it." The women reacted physically to their names, and Tiki gave them a reassuring smile. "It's okay: like General Chen said, I'm here to help. I'm a friend of your son and brother."
"My son," Shima whispered, her voice sounding rough from no use, "Is he safe?"
Suddenly, alarms rang through the base, loud and demanding. A horrible wave of déjà vu hit Tiki, and she returned her attention to picking the lock on the cell. "For now," she told Shima honestly, her tongue squeezing in between her teeth as she poked and prodded inside the industrial lock. Twenty seconds later, the lock gave, and Tiki retrieved her tools and hurriedly pushed the cell door open. "Just follow me and I'll take you to him. But we have to hurry!" Against ZanYi's earlier warnings, Tiki ripped out her comm unit and handed it to the general in her midst. "I have no idea where we are, so tell Sikka where to meet up with us. I'm sure you've gathered intel while being held prisoner here."
"What else was there to do while being held captive?" General Chen replied, attaching the comm unit into his ear and muttering instructions to Sikka. Glad that was being taken care of, Tiki turned to the frightened nonbenders before her.
"Don't worry, everything's going to be fine," Tiki promised, touching Shima's arm briefly. "We're going to get you out of here—just stay behind me and run when I tell you." The tiny airbender moved to lead the way out of the room when a touch on her arm stayed her. Turning back, Tiki looked into Shima's tired, worried eyes to see a light of hope blooming there.
"…Thank you," Shima whispered, her fingers tightening briefly around Tiki's arm. Tiki gave Syaoran's mother a smile. Despite all the worry and bad feelings she was feeling, it was that hopeful look in Shima's eyes that made Tiki feel like it was all worth it.
It was rough, trying to fight through the Neo-Equalists. They were coming in droves—it made ZanYi hope that everything was going fine getting the prisoners out, because it seemed like every single soldier the compound had was down in the sub-levels fighting them.
Which meant WeiTai had to be close.
ZanYi roundhoused a fiery leg at another Neo-Equalist, sending him crying out in pain. There was a thud behind her, and she turned just in time to see another fall. And at the hands of none other than Zaron.
The two only gave each other brief looks and nods before rushing back to the fight. They knew each other like their own moves, fighting like one breath, one heart. He was her springboard. She was his cannon. Her aerial moves and his rigid attacks balanced each other, an extension of each other in body, thought, and heart.
"Get your AKs and keep moving. Gamma and Delta will handle this," Zaron grunted to her, urging her onward. ZanYi nodded, no hesitation.
"Alphas, proceed onward. Delta and Gamma have the fight," she ordered into her comm. One by one, she could see the Agni-Kais peel after her as she took off down the hall. At the end, there was on room with a light, in the heart of the throng. He was in the room with the light. WeiTai had to be in the room. He was waiting. She was going to finish this.
ZanYi slammed open the door and rushed in.
And found nothing.
Nothing. And no one.
Her chest heaved, frustrated and breathless. This couldn't be happening. He was supposed to be there…
"We've been had!" ZanYi yelled into her unit, stressing it to all of the group leaders. "WeiTai isn't down here! He's already—"
And then when she stepped into the hall, ZanYi saw the shadow rush down another way, away from the fight, a shadow clearly not dressed for a fight. It had to be him. "I think I've got eyes on him!" she ended up finishing. But the fight had been brought to them. Her soldiers were surrounded again, but ZanYi couldn't stop. They were too close to ending this. "Tsong in pursuit!" she informed the link.
The lieutenant took off down the hallway, following the rapid footsteps as they moved farther and farther from the battle. In her ear, she could hear Zaron, ordering her to wait for back-up. But she couldn't stop, couldn't listen. This was her job.
Then she hit a vacant, opal room, the cavern spiraling up in multiple steps and ladders. Where had he gone? ZanYi couldn't lose him.
When she heard the footsteps draw near to her, ZanYi spun, ready to fight. Zaron caught her mid-punch, breathing hard from chasing after his sister. "Let's do this," he encouraged, brow furrowed as he nodded. The lieutenant took a deep breath and mimicked him.
But there was a small hissing sound, coming ever closer. Both Tsongs looked up, but just in time to see the shadow step away from one of the bridges above anda grenade falling down towards them. "GET DOWN!" Zaron called out, pushing his sister down just as the bomb hit the ground.
There was a loud explosion: fire, brimstone, shrapnel. The ringing in her ears was unbearable, the heat so hot. Stones fell everywhere. Her brother was heavy on top of her before the heat of the blast tossed them both back, spiraling to the floor apart.
Dust settled as the floor ceased to shake, and ZanYi found it a struggle to open her eyes, her lungs filled with dust. She felt as though chalk caked her throat, and everything hurt, wounds open to the destructive air around her. "Zaron?" she wheezed, trying to make sense of the spinning world around her. She couldn't even hear herself talk, couldn't hear anything but that ringing.
When her amber eyes finally opened, they widened at the sight around her. Destruction. Rubble. Fire. And… "Zaron!" she cried out, able then to hear her muffled voice. The sergeant major was not far from her. But he was face down.
Unmoving.
"ZARON!" ZanYi yelled again, trying to scuffle to her feet. She fell again. And again. Eventually crawling her way over to him, she reached for her brother's pulse. It was almost impossible to find. "Zaron!" she tried to rouse him, turning him over onto his back with every ounce of strength she had left.
There was a small flutter to his eyes and ZanYi coughed, the air getting stuck in her throat, catching like sandpaper. "Zaron, can you hear me?" she asked him, trying to gauge how bad he was hurt. He nodded slowly, wheezing.
Blood came out.
"Just hang on, Zaron. It's going to be okay!" ZanYi promised—whether to herself or him, she didn't know. Starting to regain her hearing ever so slowly, she yelled into her comm tersely, "Lieutenant Tsong in! Lost sight of WeiTai. Blown up. I need immediate assistance in the sublevel's southeast cavern. Sergeant Major Tsong is down! I repeat, he's down! Ransik, I need Shun. Now!"
Shun. He could fix this. He was the best healer there. He would hear her. He would come.
Something tried to grasp her hand, and ZanYi's eyes looked down to find Zaron's staring up at her, his hand on hers.
"ZanYi…" he croaked, but ZanYi fixed him a furrowed brow.
"Don't talk, Zaron. Save your strength. Shun's coming; he can help you," ZanYi told him, but the hand on hers only tightened as much as it could.
"Zaza… I'm not going to make that long."
The words made her blood run colder than it ever had. They couldn't be true. They couldn't. Her brother never gave up, never gave in…
He never lied to her either.
ZanYi gaped down at her brother, her breaths short. "Don't say that," she told him strictly, glaring down at him. "Don't you dare give up on me. You're not a quitter!"
Zaron coughed again, more blood tainting his lips. "I'm not a quitter," he grumbled, still perturbed his sister would even suggest such a thing, "but I am realistic."
And she knew that. Zaron was strong: a fighter, a soldier. He was a stubborn powerhouse, unable to be deterred. But he was a realist. He knew odds and weighed them well. So when he reminded her none too gently, ZanYi looked over him. Third degree burns. Through his burnt and torn uniform, she could see the cuts and shrapnel imbedded deep. Blood dripped from his banged-up brow. All of that could be fixed. Didn't he realize that?
But then she stopped before she could say that. His flak jacket had risen up when he dove. Blood was seeping through. With quick hands, ZanYi unstrapped the jacket, revealing his torso. There was a large piece of shrapnel embedded in his stomach.
"No…" the lieutenant breathed. Gritting her teeth and shaking away her negative thoughts, she quickly applied pressure around the wound, knowing better than to try and take it out. Zaron groaned out in pain and the sound made ZanYi cringe. "We've got to keep the pressure on it, Zar, just until Shun can get here—"
"Listen… to me," the sergeant major ordered, voice weak, but still as rough as ZanYi always knew to be. Her angry golden eyes turned to meet his gaze, finding him looking paler by the minute.
"Stop talking. Now!" she ordered him, her frustration almost giving way to desperation. "You will NOT die on me, Zaron!"
"Listen, Zaza…"
The words were quieter, but they were urgent. Her breath turned ragged as she stared at his grim expression. ZanYi couldn't find it in herself to stop him, and when Zaron knew she wasn't going to speak, he continued.
"I'm sorry… I'm sorry about everything," he croaked, trying his best to get the words out. His hand clenched her arm, all of his strength behind it. Despite that it hurt her and made her grimace—how bad was she off compared to him?—the strength was fading. "I tried to do it all… I really did. But I knew that I could never fill their shoes for you… I couldn't be Dad and Mom—"
"And I never wanted you to be," ZanYi told him, trying to keep him with her. She could see him slowly slipping. It scared her. "All I wanted was my brother, and I got that. You drive me crazy, but I love you, Zar. I don't need anyone else, so just stay with me!"
But despite her demands, Zaron could only shake his head. "ZanYi, you need and deserve more than that…" he told her, gaze imploring her with a concentration that only he could muster. "So listen to me: even if I'm gone… make sure you find a way to be happy. Don't let this war consume you like it did to me…"
"Zaron—!"
"I'm not done yet," the sergeant major cut her off, bitter. ZanYi kept her mouth shut, not wanting him to exert himself by way of yelling at her. He sighed. "Look… there is more than this war. I know you've come to know this… You're with that waterbe—Shun."
He reached his hand up and ZanYi followed his reach, finding that her uniform looked as bad as his, the cord of Shun's necklace peeking out. Zaron tugged it out to look at it, absentmindedly feeling the fang. "That man cares about you… more than you realize," Zaron uttered, knowing of the waterbender's feelings for her. At that moment, it actually filled him with relief, satisfied that Shun had beaten him, had earned his trust. Dropping the necklace to fall back against her chest, Zaron gripped ZanYi's hand, letting his fire—weak—consume her hand. ZanYi returned the favor, her hand shaking a bit.
His eyes went up to ZanYi's. "So let him make you happy… He won't leave you… not like I am."
Zaron's voice started to fade, and ZanYi felt her insides flip in panic. This couldn't be happening. This couldn't be real. Her vision began to tunnel and her mind couldn't fathom what was happening. "Zaron!" she yelled, trying to get him to focus on her again, his eyes starting to glaze over.
"Tell Master Fei… I'm sorry for everything. I love you, Zaza… I'm sorry I—"
Zaron gave out a nasty, gurgling cough, his lips pooling red. His eyes began to glaze over, rolling back. "Zar?" ZanYi stressed, pressing around the wound harder. "Zaron, you can't go. You can't leave me alone. You promised…" He promised her—she'd been a child, but he'd promised her. A promise to a seven-year-old girl was still a promise…
But he didn't respond. His eyes closed. ZanYi could feel him grow still under her hands. His flame went out and her grip began to burn him. In a frantic hurry, she rushed to find his pulse. There was none.
"Zaron, you promised me. YOU PROMISED!"
But her bellows wouldn't bring him back; her anger wouldn't open his eyes. Her anguish wouldn't be enough to breathe life back into him. All was silent. All was still. The dust was settling around her and Zaron, but that was it. He was gone.
Zaron was dead.
A/N from DJ: ...I'm just going to leave this here, and run and hide. Before I do, acknowledgements!
Masseffect321: There's a reason the AKs work with explosives... ZanYi just didn't have the chance today. TiRan is a bit more subtle than ShunYi in a lot of ways. Friendship feels~
Revolution but Civilization: Air is a very difficult element for Syaoran and for a reason - it's everything he's not xP But that will change soon enough. As for ShunYi, things develop in many ways, just remember: everything is one step forward, two steps back. As for the camp... well, we're already seeing this unfold. Good luck with your feels.
Here is where I hide. Kthxbai until next week!