Ch 6 1984
As they traveled on a monorail towards the city, Olivier looked at the vast amount of agrarian land. It then occurred to her just how close the city could have fallen. Even if the fire nation didn't have enough troops to breach the second wall, they could simply set the fields on fire, and starve the citizens to death.
"Look, the inner wall!" Katara excitingly said. "I can't believe we made it to Ba Sing Se in one piece."
"Don't jinx it." Sokka said, skeptical. "We can still be attacked by some giant exploding fire nation spoon. Or find that the city's been submerged in an ocean of killer shrimp!"
"You've been hitting the cactus juice again?" Toph asked.
"I'm just saying, weird stuff happens to us." Sokka said, as a man sucking a piece of corn sat down between the two of them.
As they passed the second wall, the full scope of the city came into view. While the gang was impressed by the view, Olivier wasn't. She'd seen the same thing in Amestris.
Toph wasn't too pleased.
"Back in the city. Great."
"What's the problem? This is amazing." Sokka said.
"Just a bunch of walls and rules. You wait. You'll get sick of it in a couple of days." Toph pointed out.
Olivier noticed a women standing just in front of them. She walked towards the group, with a large and slightly odd smile.
"Hello. I'm Joo Dee!" the women excitingly said. "I have been given the great honor of showing the Avatar around Ba Sing Se. And you must be Sokka, Toph, and Katara. Welcome to our wonderful city."
Olivier knew something was off about that women. It was as if she had recited the lines over and over. Sokka went up to her, and repeated what he said.
"Maybe you missed what I heard. We have important information about the war. We need to talk to the king."
Joo Dee's reply wasn't helpful. In fact, he was being outright ignored.
"You're in Ba Sing Se right now. Everyone is safe here." She said.
"That's bullshit. The fire nation was this close to breaking thru the wall, and killing everyone in this city." Olivier said, though the words went past Joo Dee's head.
Moments later, they were in a large carriage pulled by ostrich horses. Olivier was starting to get annoyed with Joo Dee.
"This is the lower ring." Joo Dee said.
"What's the wall for?" Katara asked.
"Ba Sing Se has many walls. There are the ones outside protecting us, and the ones inside, that help maintain order. This is where our newest arrivals live, as well as our craftsmen and artisans. It's so quaint and lovely."
Olivier looked outside, and saw slums. The people were doing no better here, than those outside the wall. And Joo Dee said the inner walls maintain order. Order as in, lets keep the refugees bottled up in the slums. Out of sight, and out of mind. Olivier started to take down notes, along with her thoughts. She came to the conclusion that Ba Sing Se was more of a police state.
As they entered the middle ring, Sokka snapped.
"Yes, we met a professor from the Ba Sing Se University. He took us to an ancient underground library where we discovered information about the war this as absolutely important for the king to hear!"
"Isn't history fascinating?" Joo Dee said, ignoring what Sokka said.
"Is that women deaf, she hears only half what I say." Sokka said.
"It's called getting handled. Get used to it." Toph said.
Soon, they were in the upper ring, which was the smallest ring in the city. They passed by an enormous building.
"What's inside that building?" Katara asked.
Three men looked from inside the building at the group with much suspicion. Olivier looked back at them, and gripped her sword.
"And who are those mean looking guys?" Sokka asked.
"Don't you know? That's the people's police." Olivier said, with much sarcasm and cynicism.
"Inside is the royal palace. Those men are agents of the Dai Li, the cultural authority of Ba Sing Se. They are the guardians of our traditions." Joo Dee said.
Olivier looked at Joo Dee with suspicion. She looked at the eyes, and noticed that they weren't behaving like a normal eye would.
"Here we are, your new home." Joo Dee said.
While it wasn't the Armstrong mansion, it was impressive.
"And more good news. Your request for an audience with the earth king is being processed and should be put thru in about a month. Quicker than usual." Joo Dee said.
"A month?" Sokka asked.
"6-8 weeks in fact." Joo Dee said.
Inside the house, Olivier put her stuff in a room and searched for her books. She quickly found the three books she found.
Idiots guide to Utopias
Idiots guide to Dystopias
1935 (FMA version of 1984)
Grabbing some food, Olivier poured over the books and the notes she had taken. So far, she was proven that the city was a police state. If the soldiers on the outer wall really knew what was going on in Ba Sing Se, they'd probably defect to the fire nation.
"Olivier, you coming?" Aang asked.
"Yeah, sure." She said, grabbing her sword.
First stop, was a market place. It was crowded with animals.
"I haven't heard of a flying bison. I didn't even know there were any." The owner said.
"If someone wanted to sell a stolen animal without anyone knowing, where would they go?" Aang asked.
"Where's the black market? Who runs it? Come on. You know." Sokka said, pointing to him.
Olivier caught that Joo Dee was shaking her head towards the owner.
"Uh… that would be illegal. You need to leave. Your lemur is harassing my sparrowkeets."
They tried their hand at the university, and talked to a student.
"I've never seen any sand benders or nomads either. You should try professor Zei. He teaches the class on desert cultures."
"Right. And who could we ask about the war with the fire nation?" Sokka asked.
The student grew nervous, and looked at Joo Dee. She shook her head side to side, and quit when Sokka turned to see.
For Olivier, that confirmed her suspicions. The government of Ba Sing Se knew about the war, knew about Appa, and didn't want anyone to know. If someone spoke about it, they would be thrown into prison, never seen again.
At their house, they noticed their neighbor quickly duck into his house.
"Hey, come with me." Sokka said.
The group knocked on the door, and it opened. The owner only stuck his head out.
"You're the Avatar. I heard you were in town. I'm Pong."
"Nice to meet you Pong." Aang said.
"So Pong, what's going on with this city? Why is everyone here so scared to talk about the war?" Sokka asked.
"War? Scared? What do you mean?" Pong asked, now sweating in fear.
"I can feel you shaking." Toph deadpanned.
"Look, I'm just a minor government official. I've waited three years to get this house. I don't want to get into trouble." He said.
"Get in trouble with who?" Katara asked.
"Listen. Stay away from the Dai Li. And don't mention the war here at all." Pong said, before closing the door.
Olivier went to her room, and closed the door and shut the curtains. She poured over the books, and wrote some new information provided by Pong. Don't mention the war. Stay away from the Dai Li. They must be dangerous to install such fear in the population. And Joo Dee. That was a strange case. Every time the gang was trying to get a lead, she blocked it. Either she's working for the regime, or has been brainwashed, lobotomized, or something else.
Next morning, Katara came in with news.
"I know how we'll see the earth king!" she said.
"How, one does not just pop in on the earth king." Toph said, mimicking Joo Dee's voice.
"The king is having a party for his pet bear." Katara said.
"You mean Platypus bear?" Aang asked.
"It just says bear." Katara said.
After going thru the different bear like creatures on the planet, it didn't say anything about it.
"This place, is weird." Toph said.
"Anyway, the place will be packed. We can sneak in with the crowd." Katara said.
"Won't work." Toph said.
"Why not?" Katara asked.
"Well, no offense to you simple country folk, but a real society crowd will spot you a mile away. You've got no manners." Toph said.
"There's also another issue." Olivier said, sharpening her sword and knives.
"This is for the king. There will be dozens, if not hundreds of military guards, police, and the Dai Li. You won't be able to get past all the guards. And even if you do, why would the earth king be interested in a small group of children? He'll be busy with something else." Olivier said.
"But I'm the Avatar." Aang said.
"How stupid can you be? He doesn't care if you're the avatar, or a brigadier general. He hasn't heard of you personally. He won't be interested in seeing you. Besides, you might be thrown into prison or killed on the spot. Anyone can impose someone important. Not that you are." Olivier spat.
But Olivier's warning fell on deaf ears. Toph and Katara dressed up to head inside the palace. Olivier weighed her options, and knew she had to accompany them. If the shit hit the fan, she would have to rescue them.
Standing in line, they approached a guard, and managed to get in, thanks to Olivier's rank as a 4 star general.
"Glad you're on our side." Katara said.
They looked around, and saw hundreds of people. Olivier went to a table, and filled a plate with food.
"What, I'm hungry. After the desert, and fighting Azula, I'm on the verge of exhaustion." She said, sitting in a chair and eating some of the food. It also gave her the opportunity to scan the room, and search out for Dai Li, the king, and Aang and Sokka.
The kids meet each other, and quickly talked.
"You see the king?" Sokka asked.
"No, Sokka. He could be anyone." Katara said.
Joo Dee appeared, and quickly talked to them.
"What are you doing here? You have to leave immediately, or we will all be in trouble!" Joo Dee said.
Now that was interesting. Now she was freaking out. Olivier knew that palace was heavily guarded, and it was possible that they were watching for potential assassinations.
"Not until we see the king." Sokka countered, blocking Joo Dee with his food trey.
"You don't understand. You must go!" Joo Dee urgently said, and pushed against Sokka. Sokka fell against Aang, and Aang let the large jug of juice fall from his hands, and drench a women.
After Aang dried her with air bending, his cover was compromised.
"The Avatar. I didn't know he would be here."
Joo Dee's expression went to pure dread. Aang grinned as everyone has their eyes on him. Sokka quickly came up with an idea.
"You keep their attention while I look for the king."
Aang quickly got the attention of the party guests, by balancing himself on a pot, and holding various drinks in a sphere via water bending. Olivier finished her plate and went to grab some desert and sweets. She knew this was going wrong. Whatever the kids had in place, was no longer working.
This wasn't how you conducted an operation. Olivier doubted that the kids had plans for an escape. She spotted a curtained palanquin, carried by eight guards. She surmised that it was the king. The gang went to see the king, but the Dai Li quickly caught them. Sokka was intercepted by two agents, who pinned his arms behind him.
Katara and Toph were captured in another manner. Dai Li agents behind them launched clay gloves, and wrapped them around their head and mouths. They were quickly pulled into the shadows. Olivier put the plate down, and grabbed two butter knifes. She stayed in the shadows, keeping her back to the wall, ready for an attack.
She saw Aang follow a man, and they entered a room. Probably where Aang's friends were. Inching closer to the large doors, she had a feeling that she was being watched. Turning around, she saw a Dai Li agent attempting to sneak up on her. The agent was stunned, not expecting his target to turn around. Moving fast, Olivier stabbed the agent in the heart, killing him immediately.
Quickly spinning around, she killed another agent. She moved the bodies aside and headed back to the double doors. Placing an ear on the door, she heard them talking.
"What's most important to his royal majesty is maintaining the cultural heritage of Ba Sing Se. All his duties relate to issuing decrees on such matters. It's my job to oversee the rest of the city's resources. Including the military." Long Feng said.
"So the king is just a figurehead." Katara said.
"He's your puppet!" Toph exclaimed.
"Oh no, no. His majesty's an icon. A god to his people. He can't sully his changes with the hourly changes of an endless war." Long Feng said.
Olivier gritted her teeth in anger. So he was the one behind the Utiopa plan. Silencing talk about the war. But the defenses can't hold forever, that Olivier knew. After 100 years, the fire nation was getting real close to taking the city. The drill was just one of many experiments the fire nation had developed.
"But we found out about a solar eclipse that'll render the fire nation powerless. You could lead an invasion…"
Long Feng would hear none of it.
"Enough! I don't want to hear your ridiculous plans. It is the strict policy of Ba Sing Se that the war not be mentioned. Constant news of an escalating war would throw the citizens of Ba Sing Se into a panic. Our economy would be ruined. Our peaceful way of life, our traditions would disappear. In silencing talk of conflict, Ba Sing Se remains a peaceful orderly utopia. The last one on earth." Long Feng said.
So that was the reason behind everything. Why everyone was afraid of the Dai Li. They would be silenced. The refugees were all shoved into the lower ring, and denied access to the upper two rings. Out of sight, and out of mind. No one in the upper rings ever knew about the war. And those that had some knowledge of it, were too scared of the Dai Lee to do anything about it.
"Utopia, it's a fucking dystopia." Olivier muttered.
Next conversation told Olivier of how naïve the kids really were. Long Feng was a powerful man, and had infinite resources at his disposal. Something the kids didn't have. They just didn't get the fact that Long Feng didn't give a damn about them, and would run things as he saw fit. Any opposition, would be crushed, and never rise again. Aang boldly stated his disagreement, causing the general to roll her eyes.
"I'll tell them. I'll make sure everyone knows!"
Long Feng responded with ominous words.
"Until now, you've been treated as our honored guests. But from now on, you'll be watched by Dai Li agents. If you mention the war to anyone, you'll be expelled from the city. I understand you're looking for your bison. It would be a shame if you failed to complete your quest. Now Joo Dee will show you home."
The bastard! He knew where Appa was. Probably had him kept prisoner somewhere in the city. Talk about serious black mail. He had the Avatar by the balls, and could control him any way he saw fit.
The children looked at Joo Dee with faces of surprise. The woman was not the same one they met entering the city.
"Come with me." Joo Dee said.
"What happened to Joo Dee?" Katara asked.
"I'm Joo Dee. I'll be your host as long as you're in our wonderful city." She said with a bow.
Having enough, Olivier executed a door breaching maneuver. She kicked the doors hard enough to open them. She entered the room, sword in one hand, throwing knife in the other. She was met with a look of surprise, except Toph who said "Look, the cavalry is here."
"What is the meaning of this?" Long Feng asked.
"Crashing a party. Takes a big man to threaten kids, doesn't it?" Olivier asked.
"You've been listening. You will pay the consequences." Long Feng said.
"You don't know me at all. I can tell you're a corrupted prick who needs to be removed from his spot. You're also incapable of thinking ahead. What will happen with the fire nation breaks thru the wall? I was on the wall yesterday, and didn't see any advanced weapons to stop them." Olivier said.
"I can make you disappear." Long Feng threatened.
"Your men already tried that. Didn't work. And I have a warning for you as well." Olivier said, walking up to Long Feng, and glared into his eyes. "Make one aggressive move towards me or these kids, I will split you open from testicle to forehead. I'll cut you open, pour salt all over the wounds, peel your eyelids back, and leave you to fry in the desert. Try anything, and I will kill you."