Disclaimer – all original Avatar: The Last Airbender characters in this fanfic (excluding my OC's) are the property of Bryana Konietzko and Michaela Dante DiMartino.
Chapter 4. Little Secrets – part 2
Fire Nation Central Island, Hama's Village, Yan Zu's Cottage.
It was hard for Hama to determine if the Admiral really wanted to hurt or even kill Yan Zu, or he was just really serious about testing his skills. Their whole earlier conversation was strange and confusing, to say the least. Like they knew each other. Hama had no idea if Yan Zu really was the General named Zen Yuo, which Admiral Wei Cho mentioned, or if that was just coincidence.
Either way, if the Admiral wanted to kill Yan Zu, Hama wasn't against it. If anything, that was the best possible solution for her problem, even better than using the tea. Any potential consequences with the spirits would become the Admiral's problem.
However, she needed to be on guard. The Admiral could as well attempt to kill her afterward. True, the villagers would realize that the Admiral did it, but such a high-ranking officer wouldn't need to worry about consequences for killing a simple commoner. The only person he answered to was the Fire Lord, and Hama knew that Azulon wouldn't care if his Admiral would kill one or two peasants. Especially when the Admiral could simply deny everything.
Still, why did the Admiral come here alone, and what did he really want? Those were the real questions. Hama didn't believe that he came here just to hire Yan Zu, and if he came just to kill him, then why?
Right now, Hama could only watch from inside the cottage as Yan Zu evaded the Admiral's fire attacks.
The whole training field was filled with various tools used to help Yan Zu train the young swordsmen. The most common pieces of equipment were the training dummies stuffed with straw and set on rotating poles at a man's height. Because each of the dummies was the size of a man, the young ones could learn to aim their strokes instinctively, and because it moved, it could swing around and even hit a person who did not place or time his blow correctly.
Admiral Wei Cho didn't pull any punches and attacked even though the other man wasn't even armed yet. Luckily for Yan Zu, a few wooden swords, which were used to train beginners, lay right next to one of the training dummies.
Yan Zu rolled under a horizontal arc of orange flame and grabbed one of the swords. There were not a lot of places to hide or take cover aside from a few larger rocks, but Yan Zu didn't plan on hiding. They were around the same age, so the Admiral didn't have advantages in stamina, speed, strength, or experience. What's more, thanks to the tea, Yan Zu was well-rested and full of energy.
When the Admiral created a stream of fire with his fist, Yan Zu side-stepped to the right, avoiding it, and dashed towards him. Another stream of fire was shot at him, and he side-stepped to the left. When the Admiral created a horizontal arc of flame with a kick, Yan Zu rolled under it and threw the wooden blade into the air.
Admiral Wei Cho looked at it confused, thinking that he wanted to hit something above him, but there was nothing there, and Yan Zu managed to reach him. The Admiral threw a punch at the last second, creating a fire jab, but Yan Zu moved out of the way, feeling the heat on his cheek. He struck the Admiral's forearm two times with his index and middle finger and then hit his upper arm in the same fashion. The Admiral's right arm went down and swung limp.
"Chi blocking!" the Admiral realized and backed away from Yan Zu at the last second before another blow hit him. With his left hand, he fired a continuous stream of fire at the ground between him and Yan Zu, who was forced to drawback in order to not get burned.
The Admiral squinted his amber-colored eyes and began to ponder, while Yan Zu took a short breather since his opponent stopped attacking. The break didn't last long, though.
Huo observed the two men from his bedroom window, and the Admiral noticed him. His lips curled into a wicked smile. He raised his left hand towards the window, forcing Yan Zu to look where he was aiming. His brown-colored eyes widened when he noticed what the Admiral intended to do.
"Don't!" Yan Zu screamed, but the Admiral didn't listen. He began to charge his attack in order to release an enormous blast of fire.
Yan Zu didn't have time to think about a safe solution. The life of his son was in danger. Even though the ground between them was covered in flames, he dashed towards the Admiral. His feet were only covered in red sandals, so he immediately felt a burning pain. Screaming, Yan Zu reached the Admiral, who looked at him with a surprised expression.
Yan Zu punched the Admiral in the face with a loud scream, knocking him over. When the high-ranking officer fell to the ground, Yan Zu straddled him and began to punch him in anger.
The whole fight had nothing to do with swordsmanship. It resembled more of a brawl between two drunk men one could witness at the inn. Filled with pain and anger, Yan Zu finally stopped when he heard Huo's scream. "Dad!" the young boy opened the window and called out to his father with tears in his eyes. He never saw his father be so angry and violent. He didn't like it.
Yan Zu exhaled and stood up with a pain-filled grimace. "Leave... now!" he growled at the Admiral. "I don't care who you are, no one tries to hurt my family! I don't want to have anything to do with you, and I don't want to train your soldiers!"
Admiral Wei Cho blinked a few times, massaged his jaw, and groaned but managed to stand up. He extended his left arm towards the fire on the ground, and by closing his fist, he extinguished it. He thought deeply about something for a second, and then, he spoke. "I apologize for my behavior. I guess my competitive nature got a better of me."
Since Yan Zu didn't reply, Admiral Wei Cho continued. "Since you're not interested in training troops, maybe you'd be interested in selling me the sword. Name your price."
Yan Zu's expression didn't change. "Leave," he repeated.
The Admiral turned around and spoke without looking at Yan Zu. "I have some business on this island so I'll stay aboard my cruiser for a few days. It's stationed close to the island, you can't miss it. So if you change your mind, you know where to find me."
The Admiral approached the wooden fence and left the training field. Hama immediately opened the backdoor and ran up to Yan Zu, who winced and sat down. She realized what the Admiral tried to do earlier, and she almost rushed out on the training field to stop him from hurting Huo. She was ready to use her waterbending and deal with both men if necessary. However, Yan Zu managed to stop the Admiral in time.
"Yan Zu!" Hama looked at his feet, which were severely burned. It was astonishing that he managed to stand. Although she was confused and had a lot of questions, Yan Zu needed medical attention.
Sometime later – Fire Nation Central Island, Hama's Village, Yan Zu's Cottage.
When Huo was told to get Henea because his father was injured, the news about the Admiral quickly spread around the village. Ding, who just happened to be at the herbalist, came to Yan Zu's cottage with Huo and Henea.
Hama and Huo sat on the couch beside Yan Zu while Henea applied her special ointment on his burns. When she finished, she began to wrap up his feet with bandages.
"Who the hell that guy thinks he is?!" Ding said loudly, pacing around the room. "Entering a village and attacking innocent people! We should report him!"
"God luck with that," Yan Zu replied. "An Admiral answers only to the Fire Lord. Even if by some miracle you'd manage to get an audience with Fire Lord Azulon, he would never punish a high-ranking officer for simply hurting one commoner. And besides, the Admiral can simply deny everything. It's his word against yours."
"Tch!" Ding frowned and shook his head, but he had to admit Yan Zu was right. "Anyway... if you need anything, just let me know. You're in no condition to do any heavy work."
"Thanks," Yan Zu nodded.
"There," Henea said after she finished. "Unfortunately, the burns will leave scars. Try not to move too much, at least for a few days. Giving swordsmanship lessons is out of the question for a few days at least."
"Heh, understood," Yan Zu replied.
"Thank you," Hama said to Henea, who nodded with a smile. When Ding and Henea left, Hama gave Yan Zu a stern look. "You have some explaining to do," she said, crossing her arms over her chest. "That whole situation and your conversation with that Admiral were weird to say the least. Do you know him? Are you that General he spoke about?"
Yan Zu sighed and leaned back his head. "General Zen Yuo is dead," he replied. "I served under him as simple soldier. Admiral Wei Cho was always jealous of the General's skills and fame, so he decided to get rid off him. The blasting jelly aboard his own ship was his scheme. He asked the General to accompany him in order to kill him and make it look like an accident. There was no battle on the Eastern Sea. I know since I was on the same cruiser and we both got blasted into the sea by the same explosion. No one expected an Admiral to blow up his own cruiser to kill a rival."
"That's why you have a scar on your back," Hama said, and Yan Zu nodded. "You served under such a vile man?"
"The soldiers of the Fire Nation don't have the luxury to choose their superiors," Yan Zu justified himself. "Not following orders would mean treason. Spending the rest of my life in prison was not on my to do list."
Hama sighed and asked. "So what happened after the explosion?"
"By sheer luck, I ended up on a shore of an island," Yan Zu answered. "I've survived and I found General Zen Yuo, but he didn't make it. At first, I wanted to tell what happened to Fire Lord Azulon, but I knew there was a slim chance he'd believe me. Since I was officially dead, I decided to simply leave the military and start a new life. I became more spiritual, moving from place to place. After many years, I landed here. You know the rest."
"But that doesn't explain why the Admiral was here," Hama stated. "And why he asked such strange questions?"
"He though General Zen Yuo survived the explosion and changed his name," Yan Zu explained. "I'm guessing one of the people I've trained told someone about the sword. The news reached the Admiral and he came here. He was surprised to see someone else here instead of him, but he wanted to make sure that I don't know anything about his scheme. He never saw my face but he wanted to check what I know. That's why he said that the sword was given to him by the Fire Lord, but General Zen Yuo forged it himself."
"So what he said about the battle and the sword were lies?" Hama asked.
"Yes, to see if I would correct him," Yan Zu replied. "Then he'd know that I was there and he would try to kill me to ensure that no one would know what he did. Killing a commoner is one thing, but killing a General would put him in a really bad spot. Fire Lord Azulon would not left it unpunished."
Hama took a deep breath and exhaled. "So it's over now?"
Yan Zu didn't answer immediately, but Hama had a bad feeling. "I don't think so," he finally said, shaking his head. "He's stubborn and he won't risk that I may know something about what he did."
"So you're saying he'll return?" Hama asked worriedly.
"I'll protect you both if that happens," Yan Zu assured, but Hama wasn't convinced. True, he defeated him earlier, but if the Admiral would return with many soldiers, Yan Zu wouldn't be able to win. If there was just the slightest chance that the Admiral would hurt Huo, she needed to handle this matter by herself.
Huo listened to the conversation and didn't know what to think. His dad fought a man who wanted to hurt him, but from what he heard, he also served earlier under an evil man.
A few hours later – Fire Nation Central Island, Field of Fire Lilies.
After dinner, Hama and Huo went to see Suri. However, before they did, she took Huo outside the village. Since Yan Zu was stuck at home, Hama could give her son an important lesson.
"Where are we going?" Huo asked. "We're not going to visit miss Suri?"
"Later," Hama replied. "For now, I'm going to give some waterbending lessons."
"But we don't have buckets with water," Huo pointed out.
"Exactly," Hama confirmed. "You won't always have a good source of water with you, like river or lake. And even if you do, sometimes, enemies are able to take advantage of this by driving you away from water sources."
"Oh," Huo's orange-colored eyes widened.
"Waterbenders gain a significant advantage or disadvantage over other benders depending on the amount of water in the vicinity," Hama explained. "That's why at the South or North pole, waterbenders are surrounded by their element and thus benefit from advantageous environment. Here however, we need to be creative and resourceful. You need to have an open mind and control water wherever it exists."
Hama spun around, gathering the water from the red flowers beneath her feet, forming it into a ball. She then hurled a stream of water at the nearby rock, cutting it into five pieces. Huo gasped in astonishment.
"Grass, plants, trees, and all living things, are filled with water," Hama explained. She didn't tell Huo about the bloodbending yet since he was too young, but she planned to show him the skill after two or three years.
The young boy looked at the now wilted lilies. "Aww... poor lilies," he said with a pout.
"There just flowers," Hama stated, waving her hand dismissively. "When you're a waterbender without a proper source of water, you need to do anything you can to survive. If you'll master the ability, you'll become a force to be reckoned with. Nothing will be able to stop you."
Huo looked around. "What if someone will take me to a place without living things?" he asked.
Hama smiled, pleased that Huo asked intelligent questions, and began to move her hand in front of him. Water droplets appeared in front of the boy as his mother pulled the water out of thin air. She then covered her fingers with water and froze it, creating ice claws.
"Water is in places you wouldn't even think about," she stated, hurling the claws at the nearby tree. "You can even use your own sweat or saliva for bending. The possibilities are limitless; remember that."
Huo nodded, and the two headed back to the village to visit miss Suri and then return home. Hama planned to rest until nightfall because she wanted to deal with the Admiral. Since tonight was a full moon, she wanted to eliminate the threat to her plans once and for all.
Nighttime – Fire Nation Central Island, Fire Nation Cruiser.
With Yan Zu sleeping soundly, thanks to the tea, Hama dressed in more tight and dark clothes, additionally covering her face, and headed to find the Fire Nation ship. She felt the power of the full moon and confidently reached the shore of the island. The cruiser wasn't hard to find, and with the guards, it would be hard for anyone to sneak aboard or even get close to it, but not for Hama.
The waterbender simply approached the water and formed a bubble around herself. She began to walk underwater and headed straight towards the cruiser. When she found herself directly below it, she slowly lifted herself up towards the surface.
She didn't need to see the guards to know if they were there; she could feel them. With her bloodbending, full moon, and the amount of water at her disposal, Hama could've easily defeated the whole crew and even sunk the ship. That, however, wasn't her goal.
Hama created a water spout to elevate herself upwards the ship's side. When she reached it, she froze the spout and carefully peeked over the side. Eight guards stood in a group on the deck while two others guarded the entrance to the conning tower. Hama raised her head and took a good look at it, noticing the protruding bridge with the railing. She was sure that the quarters of the high-ranking officers were located , she didn't need to run through the corridors and the staircases to find the Admiral.
Using her waterbending, she began to create a dense fog around the cruiser. Of course, the guards immediately noticed it but didn't raise any alarms. Depending on the humidity and temperature, fogs could form very suddenly and then disappear just as quickly. Still, not being able to see, the firebenders created flames in their hands to at least be able to spot each other.
Hama got aboard the cruiser and silently moved towards the side of the conning tower. Using the water, she cloaked her arms, creating tentacle-like appendages. Freezing the ends into hooks, she began to scale the side of the tower, using the edges.
Usually, she'd be immediately spotted, but thanks to the fog, none of the guards was able to see her. When Hama reached a window, she carefully peeked inside, looking for the Admiral. She continued her search when he was not there until she finally found him in his office.
Admiral Wei Cho sat behind a desk practicing calligraphy with his right arm, which was back to full function. Hama immediately looked around the room, spotting two doors. One presumably led to a staircase or a corridor, the other led outside to the protruding bridge. Hama could easily break the window and storm inside, but that would leave proof that someone snuck aboard. Still, she got an idea.
The Admiral rolled his shoulder and stretched. He was about to go to sleep when he heard a knock on the door that led to the bridge. He looked at the door with a confused expression. "Say what?" he squinted his amber-colored eyes. There was no way someone was on the bridge.
He stood up from his desk and headed to the door. Ready to attack, Admiral Wei Cho opened the door. Because of the fog, he didn't see anyone, but before he could take a single step outside, an invisible power grabbed and slammed his head against the metal door, knocking him out immediately.
Admiral Wei Cho woke up with a headache and noticed that he sat at his desk. "Took your sweet time to wake up," a female voice drew his attention, and he spotted a figure clad in black, leaning against one of the shelves. The female pushed herself off the shelves and removed the fabric covering her face.
"You?!" the Admiral stood up, recognizing the woman who led him to Yan Zu. "You're Yan Zu's wife."
"Hama," the woman introduced herself. "I'm also the mother of the boy you wanted to hurt in case you have forgotten."
Admiral Wei Cho smirked. "So this is revenge?" he asked. "Funny, considering I didn't hurt him at all. What's more, I didn't return with soldiers to arrest your husband for assaulting an officer, which I could easily do, but I let it slide."
Hama frowned and used her waterbending to control the ink in the bowl and froze it into a dark-grey spike, which she hovered in front of Wei Cho's face. The Admiral's eyes widened. "You're a waterbender," he stated, shifting his gaze towards the window. "That explains the fog."
When Hama returned the ink into its liquid state and placed it back, the Admiral wanted to shoot a fire blast at her, but he suddenly felt as something grabbed his arm and twisted it as he was forced to sit down like a puppet. "What kind of a trick is this?!" he asked.
"The power I've discovered after years in your prison," Hama answered with a growl, and the Admiral's eyes widened in realization. "You're the southern waterbender that escaped."
"Exactly," Hama confirmed. "Now, you're going to answer my questions or I'll rip the blood from your veins. If you scream for the guards or if you don't comply, you'll be dead in seconds."
Hama released the Admiral, who massaged his arm and looked at her with a frown. "Ask," he complied. The Admiral needed to save his skin and he was honestly curious what the waterbender wanted to know.
"Did Fire Lord Azulon sent you here?" Hama asked the first question. "Yes or no."
"No," the Admiral replied. "I came here on personal business, but you can be sure I'l be completely focused on you and that traitor."
The Admiral's limbs were twisted by Hama's bloodbending, and he groaned in pain. "One more comment like that or a lack of answer, and you'll regret it," Hama threatened and released him shortly after. "Do you understand?"
"Ughhh... crystal," the Admiral replied.
"The whole talk about hiring Yan Zu was a lie?" Hama asked, and the Admiral smirked and admitted. "Yes."
Hama exhaled through her nose and asked her final question. "Did you try to learn if General Zen Yuo is alive after you tried to kill him?"
Admiral Wei Cho twitched. He wanted to ask a few questions himself, but he remembered Hama's threat, and instead, he answered. "Yes." He saw no harm in answering truthfully since the questions she asked weren't related to the Fire Nation and no one from the capital would even believe her.
"That's all I needed to know," Hama replied with a smirk.
"So what now?" Admiral Wei Cho asked. "You're going to tell on me to the Fire Lord?"
"More or less," Hama replied. "Or, to be more precise, you'll be the one who's going to come clean. Did you notice something new on your desk?"
The Admiral looked at his desk, and he did notice a dagger and a scrolled piece of paper, which weren't there before. "Before you woke up, I wrote a letter to the Fire Lord in your name," Hama explained. "In short, 'you' wrote that you killed General Zen Yuo and that it became a burden on your conscience. You began to have nightmares and could not sleep. The only way for you to restore your honor was to commit suicide. Maybe he'll believe it or not, but I'll leave no proof that I was ever here, so an assassination will be out of the question."
Before the Admiral could respond to that in any fashion, Hama once again used bloodbending and forced him to grab a dagger. "I got a feeling no one will miss you Admiral," she said coldly as the man fought against his own arm. "I know I won't."
Please R&R ;)