Chapter 8:
A bucket of water was filled and the pentapus' were all put into it after being collected. The leader had all the citizens gathered in the streets and the soldiers began to place the little sewer creatures on the citizens, letting them suck and create the red spots on everyone's skin. The creatures were shared around and the spots were added onto arms, legs and faces before Sokka walked up before everyone.
"The marks make ya look sick, but you gotta ACT sick, too. Ya gotta sell it!" Sokka had spots all over his face as an old man walked out groaning, using his walking stick to help him. Everyone watched him blinking before Sokka grinned.
"Now that's what I'm talkin' about." Sokka complimented, putting an arm around the man beside him and pointing after the elderly.
"Years of practice." the old man smiled as he tapped his wooden leg with his cain, looking back at them over his shoulder.
"Okay everyone! Into sick formation." Sokka pointed and he turned to follow the group.
Freya and Aang shared a look as Katara went to follow. The water bender noticed the two weren't following and turned to them as Momo chattered, pulling on Aang's clothes at his legs.
"Aang, what are you doing? Freya, aren't you coming with us?" she asked
"We can't." Freya said "Not yet."
"I'm not leaving until I find Bumi." Aang agreed, looking from Freya to Katara. Momo jumped onto Aang's shoulder and began to pull on the boy's lips.
"Sorry Momo, I'll feed you later." Aang said before Freya turned and she jumped towards the roof to her right. Aang threw a blast of air to propel her upwards and she disappeared over the roof top. He lifted the lemur from his shoulder and followed Freya up before Katara joined her brother and Omashu's residences.
Freya stopped as Aang came beside her and they looked around.
"Where do we start?" And asked
"Metal." Freya said. "This is an earth city and the Fire Nation has added the metal, it'd be their only chance at keeping him hostage." she believed as they looked around. "We'll just have to check all of the new Fire Nation structures."
"Have you seen the smog? There's heaps here." Aang believed
"Well I don't know where else to look." Freya shrugged. "Or where else there could be." Aang sighed and he looked over the city.
"If we want to find Bumi, we have to do what we can." Freya believed as she stood up beside her long term friend and gave him a determined look. "I'm not ready to give up, what about you?"
"Never." Aang agreed.
They moved their way up and over the buildings, looking through the trees and down the mailing system that had been slightly distorted by the Fire Nation. They were silent as they looked and Aang frowned as they found no trace of the King.
"Why do you think Bumi gave up?" Aang questioned as they moved
"I don't think he has…" Aang looked at the girl who was frowning "But if there had been a battle, it would have had to take place in the city. Being on a mountain there's nothing around the city for the Fire Nation to stand on in order to take aim." Freya thought "Imagine how many people would have gotten hurt and how many houses would have been destroyed?" she asked "Maybe what Bumi did, was for the sake of his citizens? Like you said, you can live to fight another day, when the opportune moment presents itself."
"You think that's what Bumi's doing?" Aang asked
"I don't know. But it could be something he thought about. Bumi's a genius remember." she grinned before the two jumped and landed between a few buildings.
"But if he can't bend then how can he…?" Aang began
"Bumi surrendered." Freya reminded him "He's probably not going to bend until he has an advantage." Aang grabbed her arm and threw her back up into the rooftops before he balanced along a beam quietly.
"What if he can't bend?"
"Bumi's a master at earthbending and he's been at it a long time. I'm sure he had some sort of contingency plan." Freya believed.
Aang didn't seem all that convinced as Freya glanced at him while he was silent before they came to a stop.
"You know… if that's the case, Bumi might not even need saving." she added
"So you want to give up?" Aang asked surprised
"I didn't say that Aang." Freya said "Bumi's my friend too and if he's in trouble I want to do something. But what if he's not?" she wondered
"Then we need to find out." The sound of a pulley chain moving caught their ears and they looked down to see a giant white animal, like a mutated rabbit, with sabre teeth and a black face, pushing a leaver around and around as it was chained to the device.
Aang and Freya shared a look before they jumped down.
"Flopsie!" Aang cheered. The animal turned to them as Aang held his arms out before Flopsie was stopped by the chain around it's neck.
Freya looked annoyed and she stomped forwards.
"How about we get that off?" she asked and she moved under his collar. "Aang you do the other end." she instructed.
Freya rose her hand and it turned red before her eyes, she grabbed the end of the chain around Flospie's neck and the metal began to steam and melt below her hand. Aang pulled water from a nearby barrel and iced it to the lock on the other end before he smashed it with his staff and it broke at the same time the metal dropped from Freya's hand and she shook her's to remove the heat.
The two benders shared a grin before Flospie grabbed them both up in a hug and licked their cheeks.
"Ew!" Freya complained before she laughed.
"Come on, Flopsie. You gotta help me find Bumi." Aang climbed onto the animal's back before lending a hand and pulling Freya up behind him as he grabbed the chain around the animal's neck. "Yip Yip!" the animal didn't move and Freya rose an eyebrow at Aang. "Oh… I guess that doesn't work with you. Let's go!" he changed and Flopsie launched forwards, weaving through the walls of the buildings.
They ran around the city, checking all the metal structures they could find as Freya saw the citizens being pushed from the city a ways behind them. They moved off along the single bridge from the gate, still groaning and flopping about as the soldiers refused to touch them and just pointed their spears.
Flopsie ran them everywhere as the sky began to darken and with a frown the two realised they weren't going to find him today.
"We should head back to the others." Freya mumbled and Aang looked around. "We wont be able to find him if we're sleep deprived. Plus everyone will be worried."
"You're right." Aang agreed and he turned Flopsie towards the exit.
The resistance had made a camp, flames lit and tents set up by the time the two found them and Flopsie loped along beside them exhausted.
Katara and Sokka saw them from beside Appa and ran forwards after getting to their feet.
"We looked everywhere. No Bumi." Aang said as Freya patted Flopsie. Katara hugged Aang and Flopsie growled before Sokka hugged him too.
"We've got a problem." the leader walked up behind them and the four turned "We just did a head count."
"Oh no. Did someone get left behind?" Katara wondered
"No, we have an extra." and he pointed to his right. They turned to see Momo being harassed by a baby in Fire Nation clothes. Freya hit her forehead.
"Aang your lemur just had to steal a Fire Nation baby didn't he." she groaned.
"He's just a baby."
"Yeah he is, but what about his parents?" she asked
"He's the son of the governor assigned to Omashu by the Fire Nation."
"See!" Freya complained pointing at the leader.
"We'll just have to take him back." Aang shrugged before he sat down near Appa to get some food.
"When?" she wondered but no one answered her. Freya hung her head before she did the same and Flopsie sat on their other side. Katara moved over to watch as the baby followed Momo around the circle that was added to by the Resistance leader, a few soldiers and Katara and Sokka.
Sokka eyed the child as Momo jumped away and it noticed the boy's water tribe club, it looked confused by the object as it fell onto it's bum. It picked it up curiously only to start sucking on the end. Sokka snatched it away.
"No! Bad Fire Nation baby!" he snapped. The child instantly started crying.
"Sokka," Freya sighed and Katara hit her brother.
"Oh… alright." he agreed before handing it back. The baby beamed and began to play with it in his lap.
"Ooo, you're so CUTE. Mmmmm…" Katara cooed as she leaned over the child and rubbed her cheek on his head.
"Sure he's cute now, but when he's older, he'll join the Fire Nation army." Katara had stared to play with the child as he'd dropped Sokka's club. "You won't think he's so cute then. He'll be a killer."
"Does that look like the face of a killer to you?" Katara question as she lifted the boy up.
"I'm sure Zuko was cute when he was a baby." Freya said before raising an eyebrow as Sokka and Katara looked at her surprised. She shrugged "Just proving a point."
But with a handsome face like that what else would you expect… Freya shook her head to remove the idea annoyed. Priorities. she reminded herself
The group looked up as a caw sounded and a messenger hawk flew over their heads and landed on a rock near them.
"A messenger hawk!" the leader noticed
"I guess he realised his son's missing." Freya mumbled as Aang got up and took the message on the bird's back.
"It's from the Fire Nation governor. He thinks we kidnapped his son. So… he wants to make a trade. His son for King Bumi." Aang read.
"As if they'd give up Bumi." Freya thought
"I don't think it's a good idea…" Katara thought
"Why?" Aang asked
"Yeah we didn't kidnap his son so we've got nothing to loose." Freya realised
"You say that now but when is anything that easy?" Sokka asked
"We have to get Bumi back." Aang believed.
Freya, Katara and Sokka shared a look before the older girl shrugged and stood up.
"Well it's not happening till tomorrow so, I'm going to get some sleep before this all goes terribly wrong." she decided
"Love your optimism!" Sokka shouted at her, causing the girl to just wave over her head.
"You know Freya's being going to bed a lot sooner than usual." Katara believed "And yet she always seems to be drowsy in the morning." Aang brushed the back of his neck.
"Really? I hadn't noticed." Sokka said as Katara rose an eyebrow.
"Why does that not surprise me."
"Well we have been working hard the last few weeks, maybe she's just overrun?" Aang offered as Katara turned from him to where Freya'd disappeared.
"Maybe, but wouldn't we all be feeling that way?" she wondered
"Not necessarily." Sokka added
"But Freya's usually been the more active one out of us all, wouldn't she be the less likely…"
"Or that's why it's more likely." Sokka interrupted, earning a raised eyebrow from his sister. "I just think you're making a deal out of nothing Katara." he shrugged.
Katara rolled her eyes but still looked concerned.
"Don't worry Katara, I'm sure she's fine." Aang said before he turned away guiltily.
Freya glanced back behind her before she took a breath and moved off through the rocks away from them all. When she had her distance she took a breath and resumed her stance before punching forwards for flames to burst from her fingers.