Gyatso and Kara: Prodigies of an Avatar
Chapter 32-The Military Base
When Appa landed on the Earth Kingdom military base, everybody was excited. Everybody that is, except for Katara of the Water Tribe, wife of Avatar Aang. She had absolutely no happy memories from her last visit to the base. Being buried alive wasn't exactly a warm welcome (as well as being mildly flirted with by half of the soldiers). The mother was weary of letter her children, especially her daughter, and the children that she had been trusted with into a hell hole like the base. Kara would go nowhere near the infamous General Fong, not that she had anything to fear with her brother, Li, and Iroh ready to defend her as well as the rest of the group within a minutes notice.
Speaking of whom, as soon as General Fong saw Appa land, he ran to the group. He did not look very different from when Katara last saw him except for a couple of new wrinkles and grey hairs, working had done him well. His ego, however, was bigger than ever.
"Avatar clan, welcome!" Fong greeted the group with a warm smile that Katara didn't buy. There was always a hidden agenda with the old man, and she wanted to find out exactly what it was.
"Good morning, Fong." Katara said dryly sliding off of Appa with the rest of the group, Kuzon on her arm.
"Katara, it has been such a long time, hasn't it?" Fong awkwardly looked the woman up and down. She was definitely not the 14 year old that she used to be. Fully blossomed, time had done her wonders. She couldn't say the same for him, though his features stayed relatively the same, you could see the inner egotistical maniac that he tried to hide in his eyes.
"I guess so," Katara replied adjusting Kuzon on her hip.
"Hello!" The little boy waved at the old geezer with an innocent smile-something that Fong hadn't seen since his childhood.
"Wow, another child with the Avatar, huh? I guess you were busy these long years after all." Fong said with a slight mocking in his voice along with patronization.
"General Fong, hi!" Gyatso jumped in feeling that that was the only passive way to shut the general up. He was crossing the thick line between joking and being a butthead.
"Oh, Gyatso, is it? You've grown, son." Fong chuckled looking up to the boy who towered over him.
"I'm not your son-"
"Gyatso, we're guests in this base, respect General Fong," Katara scolded her son, only because she was obligated to as a parent-she really wanted to tell her son to bloodbend the man to death- and hit him on the arm softly.
"I apologize," Gyatso smiled at Fong and then in a hushed, lowered voice said ". . . Mother."
Feeling the tension building up between the two men, Katara decided to get the group moving so that they could get more supplies and leave the base.
"Is the war room in the same place that it used to be in, General?" She asked tilting her head, which caused her hair to fall down to her back. The general blinked a long blink.
"Yes, yes, right along now." He replied a little bit- a lot too eager.
Once the group actually got to the war room, they all sat in a circle around the huge map/table of the four nations. Guards surrounded the perimeter of the room including the exits, and were ready to do anything with their bending. Though they were there to protect and serve, the Avatar crew needed none of them.
"Azula's army is swooping in on the Earth Kingdom from Omashu, and I believe that she and her army will try to invade Ba Sing Sei shortly after that, which will take approximately a month from now. I suggest that you and your soldiers head out for Omashu immediately to stall her long enough to let us get to Ba Sing Sei and surprise her."
"Aunt Katara, whoa. I didn't realize that you had brushed up on your war skills." Topaz marveled in awe. Katara had always been passionate about her causes, but never studied up on them. Katara didn't spend five years just playing with Kuzon and traveling around.
"I didn't either," General Fong seconded stroking his obnoxiously long beard. He wasn't paying as much attention to the mother's brain as he was her butt.
"Mommy, I'm sleepy." Kuzon yawned pulling on his mother's dress. There were dark circles under his eyes, and his words slurred out of his mouth like a drunken man's.
Katara looked at the map, and then those who she was in charge of. She brushed her hands through Kuzon's hair and sighed closing her light blue eyes.
"General Fong, I think that we will be leaving this afternoon, or after Kuzon's nap. I trust that you will follow my warning and ready your soldiers for Omashu."
"That's fine, um, kids, could I have a moment alone with Katara?"
"No," Gyatso and Kara both snapped. When Fong gave them a look that screamed 'Leave, maggots!', both siblings gave him a look that said 'You'll have to kill me before I leave my mother alone with a buffoon like you.'
"We stay with our Katara or we go with her." Iroh added looking Fong in the eyes.
"All right, I'll just throw this out there in front of everybody. Katara, would you like to accompany me to the ball this evening?"
"Is that a trick question, General? I'm still married . . . you do know that I am still married, right?" Katara asked completely bewildered by the man's question.
"No, I'm actually quite serious." Fong chuckled, not taking no for an answer.
"She's not going to the ball or whatever with you, Fong. Get over it and take us to the nearest exit." Topaz pointedly butted in as she stood up and got out of her seat, heading for the nearest door.
Katara, Gyatso, Kara, and everybody else followed, but the guards blocked the doors. All turned to General Fong who had to give them the okay to leave.
"Somebody has to agree to go to that ball before anyone can think of leaving." He said giving a malevolent smirk to Katara.
Just as Katara was about to agree against her will, Kara jumped in.
"I'll go in my mother's place." She agreed with each word coming out of her mouth like vomit.
"Kara!" Iroh yelled before he could bite his tongue.
"Iroh, don't worry-nobody worry. Iroh, since you're so . . . so, uh, weary of me going alone, you can come with me and protect me against anything that General Fong may do." Kara reassured her worried family and friends.
"I'll go with you, too, Kara." Kyoshi added looking at Li for a split second.
Little by little every one said that they would go along with them-every one except for Katara and Topaz. They said nothing the entire time.
"Katara, will you be joining now?" Fong barked on the tree again.
"No, I won't be joining you all tonight. I'll be taking care of my baby boy."
"Topaz would be happy to watch him for you, won't she?"
"That's funny," Topaz laughed mockingly. She flipped her hair-which was still in a loose bun, by the way-and looked over to the door.
"C'mon, sporty, let's open the door now." Topaz ordered the tall guard like she was his master. She looked him up and down when he didn't move, and tried to get out herself. The guard roughly pushed her and she luckily fell into Iroh's arms, enraging all of the boys in the group instantly.
"What the heck?!" Gyatso yelled getting the guards face.
"Who do you think that you are, pushing somebody that you don't know?!" Li screamed, also going up to the guard.
"Back off, little boys, don't get yourself hurt, now." The smug guard laughed rising some rock with his hands.
"You should be afraid." Gyatso retorted, squinting his eyes and taking out his trusty pouch of water. The boy removed the cap from the pouch and moved the water onto the large rocks, made them mud, and then put the mud into his pouch without breaking a sweat.
"Water beats rock, remember."
"Move," Topaz ordered once again stepping in between the males. "Nobody wants to start a bending battle."
The guard looked to the general and waited for his cue to unblock the door. Fong waved his hand, telling the guards to move.
"We finally got out of there!" Topaz exclaimed exasperatedly as the rest of the group walked out of the room.
"Pazzie, don't be happy. We all have a dance to go to tonight." Kara sighed looking down at the floor.
"No, you all have a dance tonight. I'll be chillin' with Kuzon and your mom."
PAAARTYYYY TIIIIIMMMEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!! Whoo-Hooo, who's ready for some DANCING! I will have some songs for you guys to listen to as the dance goes on hopefully. It might take a while for this chapter to come out though, I don't really know what to do with this great idea.
God Bless,
Leelee488512