"I'm sorry, but the master is currently away," the girl apologized as soon as she rose from her bow. "However, you are still welcomed as patrons."
"When is he going to be back?" Aang asked.
"I am not sure," the girl answered. "Would you like to leave a message?"
As the two spoke, Jing Yin couldn't help but stare at the neck cuff around the girl's neck. Its green and gold colors suggested that it was only an accessory to the outfit. But what she found curious was that it was made of stone. That couldn't be comfortable.
"It seems odd that he would leave this place alone," the general spoke up, "and leave you and the other girls on your own."
The serving girl gave Jing Yin a smile. Nervousness was plastered all over it. "I assure you, we are perfectly fine. Now pardon me, but we have a patrons-only rule; if you are not customers, you cannot stay."
"Very well." Jing Yin pulled out a few pieces from her coin purse. "A bowl of sake, please. And you, Avatar?"
"Er… just water for me." Aang gave Jing Yin an inquisitive look. She dipped her head in the smallest of nods in reply.
The serving girl gave another bow. "Of course," she said as she took the money. "Please find any table you like. Your drinks will be out shortly." She turned and hurried away. Jing Yin walked over to a table in the corner and sat down. Aang followed her.
"You're right," she whispered to Aang. "This place reeks with suspicion."
"This is the first time we've seen the owner gone," Aang replied. "We usually see him every time we go here."
"And does he not think much of your repeated visits?"
"I gave him some kind of spiel about how I preferred the Lower Ring since the monks taught me to live without opulence," Aang said. "I'm not really sure if he bought it or not, but he never gave us any trouble."
"I see." Jing Yin straightened up when a serving girl brought them a tray with their drinks. After the girl left, Jing Yin continued, "You mentioned the firelord stopped coming here. Does he know anything about this place?"
"Other than what we already know, not really. But that reminds me—there's someone here I need to talk to."
"Who?"
"One of the girls here is Zuko's friend. Well… 'was'is probably the better word. They grew up together in the Fire Nation, and then she disappeared. Seven years later, he finds her here."
"She's from the Fire Nation?" Jing Yin murmured, her brow furrowing. "Interesting." She set her empty bowl down. "At first glance, they all looked to be of the Earth Kingdom to me. Which one is the girl you were talking about?"
"I don't see her here. She's probably in the back."
"Then that's where we'll go," Jing Yin stood up. When they left the inn, the door greeters bowed. "Thank you. Come again," they said in unison. Aang motioned Jing Yin to follow as he walked around the inn. As he rounded the corner, he stopped.
The way leading to the back of the building was blocked with a newly installed metal gate. Aang gripped one of the gate's bars and gave it a shake. The thing was sturdy. If only Toph were here!
No, wait. Hold on a second. He didn't need Toph. "Hold onto me," Aang said to Jing Yin. She gave him a strange look and put an arm around his shoulders. He bent his knees, and then launched the both of them off the ground with a powerful gust of wind. They flew over the top of the gate and, with a little well-timed airbending, landed gently on the other side.
"A little warning next time would be appreciated, Avatar. I'm not as young as when last we met, and neither is my heart," Jing Yin gasped, trying to catch her breath. After taking a few seconds to soothe herself, she continued, "But judging by that gate, we're onto something here."
Behind the gate was the back alley where the furnace was. As Jing Yin and Aang walked towards the inn's rear door, Jing Yin paused and looked at the ground below her feet. "You go on in," the general suggested. I want to take a look around here."
"Did you notice something?" Aang asked.
"Not quite," Jing Yin replied. "But you can't be too careful, right?" She opened the lid to the furnace and peeked in.
Aang quietly slipped into the building. He crept through the supply room and down the hall. There were hushes voices whispering in the air. He stopped and listened.
"—too late for me."
"Don't say that. We can still help you."
"You don't understand what's at stake."
It was Katara and Seiya. How did Katara get here before him? Well, no matter. It sounded as though he had arrived at just the right moment. Aang tiptoed over to the room and paused by the door. But it felt wrong to eavesdrop. He straightened up and walked through the door. Katara and Seiya were sitting at the edge of the bed. Seiya had her head bowed and her hands resting on her lap. They both seemed to notice Aang at the same time. A scared look crossed over Seiya's face.
"There's something going on in this place," Aang stated. "You know that, don't you, Seiya?"
The girl ducked her face down and remained silent. Katara flashed him a frown. "Seiya, you've got to let us help you. There are innocent people out there that are in danger." She gave Aang a look that seemed to say 'help, won't you?'
"I understand that you're scared," Aang said, stepping into the room and letting the door drift shut behind him. "I don't know why, but let me help. We can help. I won't let anything bad happen to you."
"Don't say that. Don't say that!" Seiya suddenly snapped, her eyes flying up to him. Aang was shocked to see how much pain had suddenly flooded his eyes. What had he said?
"I'm sorry. Seiya..." He knelt down in front of her. She stared warily at him. "I'll make you an Avatar's promise: if you tell me what's going on, I will do everything I can for you. It doesn't have to be this way—it shouldn't. You know that."
Seiya gripped her hands nervously. "You'll just tell him, won't you? You'll just repeat everything I say to Prince Zuko."
"If you don't want me to, I won't say a word."
The girl's tense demeanor suddenly withered. Her shoulders dropped. Her face looked worn out. "I've kept so much within me for so long," she whispered. "It's felt like the weight of the world has constantly been trying to drag me down. I'm so tired. But I don't want you to save me, Avatar. I want you to save them."
"Them?"
"If you want to know so badly, I'll tell you everything. It's about time I told someone. Maybe you can help, and maybe you can't. At this point… at this point, I'm just tired," she said, looking between Aang and Katara. "But it's not going to be what you want to hear."
She hadn't told the Avatar, but there was something big underground. She felt it. Jing Yin walked in a small circle in front of the furnace. Her ability to see through the earth wasn't quite honed, but she definitely felt the tunnel.
"What are you hiding?" she murmured. She planted her feet down and pushed the ground with a thrust of her fist. The earth scraped open and revealed the mouth of the tunnel. Jing Yin lowered herself down and dropped into the hole. As she landed, she felt the coldest of chills run down her spine. Something deep down inside her, the most basic of instincts, was screaming for her to not go into the darkness. Something bad was down there. Something very bad.
Jing Yin took a deep breath. She lifted an arm and closed the entrance above her. Green crystals jutting out of the walls dimly illuminated the downward-sloping tunnel. Her footsteps echoed through the dark as she walked down towards the abyss.
They had put a good distance between them and the outer wall by the time night settled. Arlei led them to a rocky cliff-face that concaved inwards. It was a decent place to settle for the night.
As soon as they dismounted and Arlei had pulled off the saddle, Sho plopped down with an exhausted huff and buried his nose between his paws. Barely a minute passed and he was out like a light. Arlei looked towards the red horizon. She pulled a small rod from the saddlebag.
"I'll be back soon," she said. "I can trust you to have a fire going by the time I get back, can't I?"
"Where are you going?" Iroh asked.
"I didn't bring any food with me," Arlei answered. "That won't be a problem." She hit a spring switch on the rod. It suddenly extended both ways into a javelin. "I better see flames when I get back."
"I thought you weren't very fond of flames."
"Don't get smart with me, firebender."
The sun had completely set, and the fire crackled merrily over the stacked wood. The night air was cool, but the warmth of the fire still felt nice. Iroh watched the translucent smoke trail up towards the stars. Beside him, Sho was still in his deep comatose sleep.
Then, from the woods, a dark figure emerged. The darkness peeled away as it walked towards the fire. She was carrying a row of three pheasants tied together over her shoulder.
Before Iroh could greet her, she said, "I would have stacked the wood a little higher."
"I would have caught more than three little birds."
"I'm going to imagine that all three of these are you while I skin them," Arlei shot back as she pulled out a knife. But before she did anything, she took a vial of oil from her pouch and rubbed a bit of it under her nose. The oil's minty scent was so strong that it hit Iroh from where he was. He actually felt his eyes watering.
He reached up and rubbed the corners of his eyes. "Can I ask what that's for?" he asked.
"I'm not very keen on smelling these," Arlei said as she began cleaning and gutting the animals.
"I didn't think something like that would bother you."
"There's a lot about me you don't know."
"I know you're from the Southern Earth tribes," Iroh said. The flaying knife paused just briefly before continuing to run underneath the pheasant's rubbery skin. "And I know there's a legend among the tribesmen that tell of a warrior born from the mountains. They say the smell of bleeding flesh awakens—."
"Are you trying to impress me?" Arlei suddenly interrupted. "Quite learned of the people we conquered, aren't we?"
There was a pause, heavy and non-breathable as the air after a fire strike. Iroh said no more, deciding to let the topic drop. They were left to silence once again. The crackling of the fire was accompanied by the scraping of metal on the carcasses. Iroh began wondering how Seiya, the sweet little servant girl, could have ever gotten close to a cold, blunt woman like Arlei. He considered asking, but given the history of their interactions, she wasn't very likely to tell him anything.
After a while, the birds were browning over the flames. Sho had woken up from his nap and watched the birds intently, the light of the fire reflected in his eyes. He shimmied closer, his nose twitching.
"She mentioned you quite a lot," Arlei spoke up, breaking the silence. Iroh looked at her, but she was leaning back against the cliff face. Her eyes stubbornly refused to look at him, instead staring out into the night.
"Seiya didn't have much of a family," Iroh replied. "I didn't think it was fair that such an innocent child should have to grow up without one."
"She wasn't treated very well in the Fire Nation," Arlei said harshly. "Her own people betrayed her."
"I agree that what happened to her was undeserved," Iroh said, trying to placate Arlei. Even then, she was clearly starting to grow irate again.
"And you did nothing," she spat.
"I—."
"Of course. She was just a servant. You were prince. I'm well aware of your inclination to belittle the lives you consider under you and throw them away. Such is the way of the Fire Nation, isn't that right? If history is any indication?" She crossed her arms and looked away from the fire. "Take them off. They're going to burn."
Iroh took the pheasants off the fire. He offered one to Arlei, but she waved her hand. "Give it to Sho." The cheetah wolf perked up and snatched the bird out of Iroh's hand.
Arlei's shoulders dropped as she sighed heavily. Her hands clenched her arms tightly. It seemed like she was fighting a war within herself. "But… but she tells me nothing but good things about you. Her time in the Fire Nation was rarely a happy one, but you… she tells me you made it bearable," she said slowly. "I appreciate that."
Well this was a glimpse of emotion he certainly hadn't expected. Shocked, Iroh looked over at Sho. The cheetah wolf returned his gaze as though he too was surprised. Then, he dragged a second pheasant over and buried his muzzle into it.
In a way, I need a change
From this burnout scene
Another time, another town
Another everything
But it's always back to you
Stumble out in the night
From the pouring rain
Made the block, sat and thought
There's more I need
"Shattered" by O.A.R.