Ch.17 The Penalty for Disobedience
"Suki, please wake up," Katara pleaded. Her shackles rattled as she touched Suki's forehead. The sound woke the wounded Kyoshi Warrior, who tried to bolt off the cot she had been placed on. She awoke to unfamiliar surroundings. "Where are we?" Suki sputtered, finally easing back down. "Don't talk," Katara said softly. She looked at the familiar faces surrounding her. Zuko, Katara, Mai and Sokka. "We are in the council dungeon," Katara explained. Sokka was at her side the moment he heard her voice. "How are you feeling?" he asked. Suki met his gaze. The pain seemed to have lessened a bit. "I'm fine, for now," she said. Her voice was as raspy and weak as before. "What happened?" she asked. Somehow she had remained unconscious for the entire fight. She didn't even remember the guards taking her.
"The council's on to us," Zuko explained. Suki noticed that both Katara and Zuko were chained hand and foot. Katara's water pouch was nowhere to be seen, and as an added precaution, Zuko's hands wore metal gauntlets. "They attacked the tea shop," Katara continued. Suki nodded in realization. "Iroh?" she asked, her voice shaky. She wasn't sure she wanted to know the answer, but he wasn't in this cell with them, so that could only mean... "He's alive," Zuko answered. "As far as we know. They just left him." Suki's eyes softened. "This is my fault," she said, trying not to break down. Sokka would hear no such talk from his future wife, however.
He ever so gently kissed her on the lips. "No, it's not," he said. As soon as their lips parted, they were interrupted by an unwanted visitor. "Young man, that is Long Feng's wife. You have no business being intimate with her in any fashion." Everyone whirled to see Zhang Chang, the male representative of the Fire Nation standing on the other side of the bars. "You bastard!" Sokka yelled. The older man paid his insult no heed. "So, you all have formed a rebellion, I see. Fire Lord Zuko, I would have expected better of you." He shifted his gaze to Katara. "And you, you shouldn't even be here. Pray tell, what made you think you could abandon your husband?" Katara grasped at the bars, and angry expression on her face.
"Hahn is not my husband," Katara growled. "If you must know, I escaped on my own," she lied. He didn't look like he believed that. It was plausible. Katara was a master water bender. "And for your information, he tried to rape me," she added. Zhang Chang digested that for all of a second. "That is of no consequence. He is your husband. It is, therefore, your obligation to satisfy him in any manner he requires," he replied. At this very callous observation, the gauntlets surrounding Zuko's hands began to glow red hot. It was clear that trying to bend was hurting Zuko more than anything else, so he finally gave up.
"So the pressing problem we have," the councilman continued, "is what to do about this little rebellion." He glared at the prisoners. Mai stared back, emotionless as ever. "What do you expect to do to us?" she asked, indicating herself and Zuko. "Yeah," Sokka added. "You are truly stupid. Imprisoning the Fire Lord and his wife? I thought we were all trying to prevent major wars from happening again," he said, sarcasm dripping in his voice. Katara nodded her agreement. "Sokka's right. You can't punish Zuko and Mai. At least not unless you want to risk another war," she said. She knew they were trapped, and she was merely trying to buy time.
"Let's start with you, young lady," he said, contempt in his voice. It was clear he was losing his temper over the disrespect his prisoners were giving him. "I recall explaining to you and Miss Bei Fong what would happen if you did not submit, do you?" he asked. Katara clutched her necklace, a clear sign that she hadn't forgotten. His stare seemed to burn a hole in the young water bender's eyes. "Good, you remember. We will send for Avatar Aang immediately," he said, with an authoritive tone in his voice. Katara clutched the bars in fear. "When he arrives, he will strip you of your bending, and then you will join Miss Bei Fong at Boiling Rock."
At hearing this, Katara slowly sunk to the floor. She had been so sure that Aang would not follow through with that. But then he told her he'd stripped Toph. Zhang Chang then turned his gaze to Suki, who lay almost unmoving on the bed. "You," he said, "will be returned to your husband." As soon as the words left his mouth, something seemed to snap in Suki. "Never!" she replied, and to the amazement of her friends, sat up, took aim, and threw a hidden dart right through the bars, piercing her target in the shoulder. "AAARG!" Chang screamed, as he clutched the wounded limb.
He glared at her. It was apparent that the guards had not checked her for hidden weapons. They had just assumed that because she was injured, she was harmless. Suki sank back down on the bed. It was clear she only had enough energy for that one attack. Sokka attempted to steady her decent. There was no need for her to hurt herself worse. "I've changed my mind," Zhang Chang said angrily. "You can go to Boiling Rock with your water bender friend here. Enjoy, ladies." As he was about to turn his attention to Zuko, a messenger suddenly burst in. "This had better be important," he growled. The messenger shakily handed him the message, saying only, "Urgent message from Boiling Rock," before rushing from the room.
As he read the message, his expression became angry. "What is it, oh mighty council member?" Sokka mocked, earning him scolding looks from Katara and Zuko. He took a moment to compose himself before answering, "It seems that Toph Bei Fong and Ty Lee escaped from Boiling Rock," he answered. It was clear he was leaving something out. Finally, he said, "with help from the Avatar." The entire group cheered, much to the councilman's fury. "Very well then," he said, the tone of his voice stopping the applause in it's tracks. "The Avatar wants to play games? Fine. By the order of The Council of Nations, all of you will be put to death, immediately!" As fear crept on all their faces, he stormed out.
Aang breathed a sigh of relief as finally, Ba Sing Se was in sight. "Come on, Appa, I know you're tired, but we're almost there," he encouraged. "I gotta thank you, Twinkle-Toes," Toph said as she sat beside him. "For what?" Aang asked. Toph smiled. "Well, for one thing, not taking my bending away," she answered with a laugh. Aang looked on her with a serious expression. "I would never strip you of your bending. You should know that," he said. Toph hugged him. "We would have been toast if you hadn't showed," she said. Ty Lee rose from some much needed sleep as they flew over the wall.
"Are we there yet?" she asked, enthusiasm in her voice. "We just flew over the wall," Aang replied. "Katara told me to meet back at Iroh's tea shop." As he said that, he realized something was wrong. "Do you guys smell that?" he asked. Toph nodded. "Yeah it almost smells like..." Aang and Ty Lee looked down at the same time. "Smoke," Aang finished. What he saw scared him to his core. He signaled Appa to land. "What is it?" Toph asked. She could tell by Aang's heartbeat that he was scared, and his fear was beginning to scare her.
Appa landed in front of the smoking remains of the Jasmine Dragon. There were small fires on the roof, and the entire front wall was missing. "What happened?" Ty Lee asked, worry evident in her voice as well. Toph put one foot on the ground, then clutched Aang's shoulder. "Aang, it's Iroh," she said. As they hurried to the rubble, groaning could be heard. "Are you alright?" Aang asked, as he and Toph pulled some rubble that had fallen on the old man off of him.
"Zuko... Katara..." It was clear that Iroh was delirious. "You're gonna be fine," Aang said. He spied a nearby well, and made a motion with his hands. Soon, water from the well was encasing his hands, and he pressed them gently on the old man's chest. The water glowed a bright blue as he did so. "Katara taught you healing?" Toph asked. Aang didn't break his concentration as he answered, "I'm nowhere near her level." As Iroh's breathing steadied, the glowing ceased. "But this should be enough for now," he said.
"What happened here?" Aang asked, struggling to stay calm. "The council sent guards, and the Dai Li," Iroh said. At hearing this, Aang rushed toward the wreckage. "KATARA! SOKKA! KATARA!" he shouted, hoping someone would answer them. Hearing nothing, he began to despair, and it was all he could do to fight the fury building up inside of him. "They aren't here," Toph said softly. Before he could ask the question, Iroh answered, "The council arrested them."
Before they could fully process what they'd just heard, a child bumped into Aang, clearly in a hurry to get somewhere. Aang helped the boy to his feet, whereupon the child tried to run again. "What's the rush, little one?" Aang asked softly. "Avatar Aang, there's been a rebellion." Aang felt his stomach drop. "The council has ordered the rebels to be executed." At hearing this, Aang released him. "Go home," he instructed. The boy nodded before changing direction. As soon as he was out of sight, Aang began to glow. "I've had enough," he said. Toph and Ty Lee nodded their agreement. It was time to put a stop to this.