A/N. And… guess who is back!
Jumping from the boat that didn't deserve to be called a ship, the man stretched and had to resist to kiss the sand and rock underneath his feet. Three days on sea with that unholy thing would have been terrifying for any man, and even an experienced seaman like himself would not have liked the voyage.
Walking a few paces from the boat, he looked up the small cliff that hid this little bay. It was low tide, and from here, he could see the entrance of a cave. Walking towards it, he let his bag fall down at the entrance and sat down, readjusting the dark red tunic he was wearing.
Three weeks ago, when the comet had been high in the sky, Hakoda had left Chit Shang, Haru, Teo and the Duke in the small village where they had taken refuge. The village had been where Haru had lived, so he knew they were safe there… He regretted that choice now, as his only source of information had been the man who had sold him the boat.
The man, an old fisherman who was going to stop his work to retire and live with his son, a carpenter, had told him that Wulong had burned, and that there had been a great battle. When Hakoda had asked the outcome, the fisherman had shrugged, saying that nothing would change. The chief had been desperate for news, but no one had known what had happened. The wife of the old man had said that rumours around the village said the Fire Lord had won, but others disagreed, as otherwise the soldiers would have come to the village.
Hakoda knew that between facts and hope, there was often a great difference. But his hope was that, somehow, Aang had won that battle. But the facts were that that bastard Ozai was a great bender, and that there was the real possibility that the Avatar had lost…
He had passed an island the day before, but had chosen not to stop there, as a great plume of smoke rose out of the volcano, and the whole island looked like it was on fire. In the shadows, Hakoda had seen the ruins of a building, but otherwise, the island had seemed uninhabited…
But now, he had managed to find the island west to that one. If he still had some maps, he would have known the name and what he could expect… but now, he had just landed in potential enemy territory, without an idea of what or whom to expect. The people he had met in the Earth Kingdom had not been able to give him answers… So he was going to find them himself.
To that end, he had perhaps stolen some clothes from a camp full of Fire Nation soldiers just south of where he had bought his boat. To that end, he had undertaken this dangerous crossing… And yet, now that he was here, Hakoda didn't know where to start. He had never spent an actual day inside the Fire Nation, trying to be incognito… His children had managed just fine, but they had Aang with them all those months ago, and he had been sufficient enough with Fire Nation culture…
Tui and La, would Aang still be alive? Were his children somewhere? And Toph? What about all their friends… Even that prince, Zuko… He owed every single one of those people his life, and the least he could do was try and help them.
Standing up, Hakoda sighed softly. The first step was finding a living creature on this island, and check if it was actually inhabited. Checking his belt on which hung his only weapon, a small knife that was fitter for cutting a moonpeach, he began to walk.
As he managed to reach the top of the cliffs by the small path that had been carved in the rocks, he looked into the sky. Small plumes of smoke indicated a lot of fires… But not the kind he had seen in the Earth Kingdom. There, the great plumes of dark smoke often indicated the Fire Nation burning houses and farms… But these were soft, white greyish, seemingly just cooking fires… And where there was cooking, there were people. As Hakoda walked, he suddenly heard a crack as if lightning crossed the sky, but as he looked up, she was met by the dark grey clouds that had hung over the world for more than two weeks now… Was that an omen? In the Water Tribes, there was the belief that the weather was the spirits showing their anger… But surely, if Aang had won, the spirits were supposed to be happy… Right?
Of course, he knew better. The weather was a natural phenomenon, not influenced by anything like spirits or gods… Still, lightning was not natural with this kind of weather…
Then, the air was filled by a rumble, loud enough to actually make the sparrow bats in the trees fly up with an angry chirping. Frowning, the chief turned to where the sound had come from and walked a few hundred paces before emerging on a small hill.
Just below, a small forest was filled with people, wearing the dark red uniforms of the Fire Nation military, and even further, Hakoda saw that a whole stretch of land had been cleared. At the end of the cleared space stood impressive, high walls, flanked by towers at regular intervals, and a deep moat the separated the walls from the open killing zone. In that moat lay several huge blackened rocks. He recognized them as the projectiles used by the Fire Nation, but he didn't understand…
Why were Fire Nation soldiers attacking one of their own fortresses? Observing the walls, he realized that it was not just a fortress, but judging by the amount of smoke plumes, it was probably a town… That was even weirder. He had seen Earth Kingdom soldiers built a replicate of a fortress held by the Fire Nation, and attack it as to train for the real assault… But this? Why was the Fire Nation attacking a town?
"Who are you?" A voice suddenly spoke from the trees, and turning around, Hakoda saw that it was a man wearing the uniform of a firebending archer. Gritting his teeth, he sighed.
"Sorry friend, got lost on my way to the latrines." He spoke in his best Fire Nation accent, but even he could hear the bad lie. Of course, the latrines would be inside the siege camp, and not outside…
"Try again." The man took an arrow and lit the tip with a flick of his finger.
"I just arrived from the Earth Kingdom… And have no idea what is happening." He said instead, telling the truth this time.
"So, judging by the uniform, you have deserted your post guarding earthbiters. The commander here is rather pricky on rules, friend. If I was you, I would get lost very, very fast." The archer waved his hand again and the arrow's fire went out.
"What has happened?" Hakoda asked. This man seemed rather sympathetic to deserters… Something he had not expected from the Fire Nation military…
"Where have you lived this last month man? The Fire Lord has declared war on his sister." The archer walked towards him, waving at the town in the distance, "We have been stuck here for a few days. But there is worse I guess. Fire Fountain is known to be impregnable."
The Fire Lord… That meant that, at the very least, Aang had lost… Trying to control the anguish he felt in his heart, Hakoda sighed softly.
"Why has he done that?" The chief had not known that Ozai had a sister… He had always thought that there was only Iroh.
"The princess Azula claims the throne… Seriously, how have you not heard this?" The archer shrugged as if he actually didn't care, which, Hakoda supposed, he didn't.
Azula… Wait…
Azula's brother… Zuko!
"Wait, the Fire Lord… Is it Zuko?" Tui and La, let that be true!
"Yes my dear, ignorant friend… Seriously, no news whatsoever?" The archer waved for him to follow, "Let's get something in your stomach. I'll tell you all about what happened. Just don't mention the whole deserting part, alright?"
Zuko was Fire Lord! Aang had to be alive too! And knowing the airbender, that meant that Katara and Sokka were alright too! Tui and La, he could weep… But he had to keep a front up for this soldier. Hakoda quickly followed the man. He needed news, and to be honest, he was hungry.
And this man had to be a better cook than Bato.
"So, what happened?" He asked as they descended the hill towards the trees.
"Well, Lord Ozai went to the Earth Kingdom. But the Air Degenerate attacked him there, and did something… no one really understand. Either Lord Ozai is dead or a prisoner. But the tra… No, Lord Zuko claimed the throne in an Agni Kai against the princess. She escaped, and also claims the throne as the named heir of Lord Ozai."
Hakoda didn't exactly like the fact that this man was clearly no fan of Zuko or Aang, using insults to describe them… While not insulting Azula…
"I heard she is a bit… crazy."
"Sure, but let's be honest… The whole royal family is like that. It is the cousin fucking I think. But then again, Lady Ursa was no cousin... But we all respect the Prince Iroh, and he says we need to back Zuko, so we do." The archer waved a hand at a sentry, and they passed the tree line. Immediately, they were surrounded by tents, cooking fires and men sitting around.
A siege was dull, Hakoda knew that. The first few days were exciting, but then, the siege weapons had to do their work, and depending on the quality of said weapons and of the walls, it could take weeks, even months. And during all that time, most soldiers were just sitting, drinking and eating, waiting for something to happen.
"Guys, this is… Oh right, I didn't ask your name!" The archer stopped by a group of men wearing the same kind of uniforms. The water tribe chief looked around, and saw several bows stand against a tree, and several quivers full of arrows lay next to them.
"Ehm… Kuzon!" Sokka had told him that that had been the name Aang had used when they had travelled the Fire Nation, so he supposed it was a rather good name for someone of the islands.
"Well, this is Kuzon. Found him around the camp." The archer shrugged.
"Deserter?" One of the soldiers asked, as if it was the most common thing to do.
"From the Earth Kingdom yes." The archer answered.
"Alright, Azula or Zuko?"
"Zuko." Hakoda answered without hesitation. This camp was clearly Zuko loyalist, so that would be the correct answer… normally.
"Great!" And the archer handed him a flask of water. Gratefully, Hakoda took some, drinking deep and feeling the coolness go down his throat. His water had been gone since that morning, so it was great. As he handed it back, he saw one of the archer look at him curiously.
"You were in the Earth Kingdom? What… What was it like?" The man asked him, hesitantly and fear clear in his voice.
"What do you mean?" These were soldiers… Surely, they knew?
"Well… We are the domestic troops… We haven't… We haven't seen any action. The garrison of the capital did when the Water Savages attacked it, but… well, we would like to know."
Ah… Boys. They were no more than boys. As Hakoda looked closer, he began to see what he had missed at first glance. The man that had found him outside the camp was slightly older, probably a veteran, but the other archers were all under twenty years old… Looking, he saw innocent ember eyes staring at him as if he would be able to help them… Unshaven faces, unblemished by any scars…
"How old are you?" He asked, pain in his heart. He had seen what war did to young people… The youngest person who had accompanied him to the Earth kingdom had been sixteen… That boy had grown into a man in a few months of fighting… And he had died during the invasion…
"Furzo here is the youngest at seventeen! He is actually from this place!" One of the archers waved awkwardly at him.
"You are from here?" Hakoda could not imagine why someone would be in an army besieging his own hometown. If it had been him, he would have gone immediately over to the town walls and explained the situation, telling his friends from inside the town all the secrets of the siege camp.
"Yeah…"
"What are you doing here then?"
"I… I was at Wulong… I was one of the few people who survived when the airship went down… A friend found us, and helped us sent a letter. Lord Zuko sent some help, and so, here we are…" The young man explained, wringing his hands together in a way Hakoda knew all too well. That was the go to signal of someone who had seen horrible things, and was remembering them… And even if his heart was shouting for Hakoda to ask the boy what had happened… The chief knew he couldn't do that. He had seen enough of this to do that… It had been the unspoken agreement between the tribesmen not to discuss particularly difficult fights…
And to do that to a boy? A boy who had seen the horrors of war and had survived? A boy who should have been home, finding a sweetheart and live a good life? No, Hakoda couldn't do that…
"Good friend I suppose." Hakoda smiled at the boy, who shook his head.
"Saw him only once before… Actually, he has the same name as you do. He was weird, but in a good way."
Wait… That sounded a little too specific…
"Kuzon? What was he like?" A friend who had helped this young man to contact Zuko… With the same name as he had just used…
"Weird ideas… Talking about how we used to be… As if he had been there. And he threw a party! Here! We never did that, and we still don't! But he did it as if it was the most natural thing to do." Furzo laughed, "On Ji, a girl from the town, had a huge crush on him, but we all saw he had only eyes for the girl he travelled with!"
Aang.
That had to be Aang. The description was too specific, too much like the airbender… Balling his fist to keep himself from asking too many questions, he realized that the girl in question was most certainly Katara… Spirits, little Kat… She would be where Aang was! And to know where the Avatar was, Hakoda knew whom he had to ask.
"So… Who commands here?" He asked, trying to sound casual.
"Lord Piandao. He is a good commander, I had worse." The older archer, the one who had found him, answered, "Decent, very strict on the rules. No plundering and no messing with the local people."
Hakoda knew what that meant. This commander would punish his troops for disobeying such orders, and a good thing too. He had never permitted any of the tribesmen to act like a savage. People said the Water Tribe were no more than savages, and it was their job to show them that that was a lie. So, he had always been strict, and had punished some men for disobeying.
"I would like to meet him!" Hakoda tried a smile, but saw the confused looks. Yeah… of course a normal deserter would stay clear of any officer, and certainly one of that kind.
"Take him." The older archer growled and grabbed his arm. Another hand took his left arm in a grip like a vice, and Hakoda understood he had screwed up. Of course they would suspect him now…
"So, you would like to meet the commander? Well, let's. A deserter or a spy… It will make no difference. We do have gallows, just so you know. Brand new, never used…" The archer began to drag him, and Hakoda followed, as he would have done if he had a choice… Meeting this commander would be no problem. An officer loyal to Zuko, probably having seen the Avatar… If he explained who he actually was, there would be no problem.
As the two soldiers dragged him deeper into the camp, Hakoda began to think about what to do when he would be free and able to go to his children and their friends… He hoped that Sokka or Katara had secured the release of the tribesmen, but knowing his children, that would have been the first thing they did. And Aang… Well, he would have run straight to Katara and begged her to marry him, that was for sure.
He knew the airbender had tried to give his daughter that necklace he had made… And what she had said. What Azula had threatened to do had weighted heavily on his mind, but Hakoda knew that it would make no difference in the long run. Those two would end up together no matter what, and having the surety that Ozai was defeated, and their friend in power over the nation that had terrorized the world for a hundred years… Well, that would have taken away any fear those two had.
And that meant that sooner rather than later, he would have to accept that Katara was more than able to decide her own fate… however much it pained him to realize that his children didn't actually need him anymore…
"Lord Piandao?" The older archer spoke up, and Hakoda looked up from his thoughts, to see a small group of men, all around fifty, in plain uniforms, stand near the tree line, observing the town. One of the men, an older one with greying temples and a tired face, turned to them.
"Yes?" The man spoke in a soft, clear voice. On his hip was a sword, one that seemed to be more for usage than for show. This was Zuko's army commander? Or at least, the commander of this part of the Fire Nation army? He seemed… Normal. Hakoda had never actually been so close to enemy generals, and had always imagined them… As he had imagined Ozai. Terrible, a very dangerous bender… And cruel.
But the presence of a sword indicated that the man was a non bender, something that did surprise him. Hakoda thought that there was a rule in the Fire Nation army that said that all commanding officers had to be benders…
"We found this man. At first, he claimed to be a deserter, then he began to ask too many questions. Clearly, a spy from the town." As he was forced to his knees, he glanced behind him. The chief saw that a small group had gathered. There were several soldiers, among whom was Furzo. Next to them, standing a little apart from the soldiers, was a group of a dozen youngsters.
The ember eyes of the man looked at him, in an expressionless mask that made Hakoda think twice. This man was clearly dangerous enough to be feared by his soldiers, but also beloved. And he didn't seem to be on the forgiving side…
"What are you doing here?" Piandao asked softly.
"I wanted to know what was going on. I had no news whatsoever… I need to find some people." Hakoda explained,
"Release him soldier. He is a member of the Water Tribes, so he can't be a deserter." Piandao actually smiled at him, a thin smile, but a smile nonetheless. The man extended a hand to him and pulled him up.
"I guess, by your accent, the Southern tribes." The commander waved at the soldiers to scatter, and they did, "I have a good friend from the northern one. He went there recently, and apparently the tribe is getting by rather well."
"He did?" Hakoda asked, surprised. His children had told him that a small group of northern waterbender had gone to their home… But he had not imagined that this Fire National would know the first thing about that.
"Yes, he was full of stories. Something unusual for him, as he rather prefers silence and teeth gritting. Apparently, married his old betrothed."
"Wait… Is his name Pakku?" He had heard from his mother how she had come from the North Pole, fleeing a marriage that she had not wanted. And seeing as she was the last contact they had had with the Northern Tribe… There was only one possibility…
"Yes! How do you know that?" Piandao laughed aloud this time.
"His old betrothed is my mother I think…" Hakoda felt his head swim.
"Oh no, not you." Another voice spoke up, and turning to it, the chief saw someone he had not expected… And certainly not like that. A girl stood a few paces away from them, a moonpeach in her hand. The clothes didn't fit her, she was clearly annoyed… But it was Toph, that was one thing that was sure.
"You know each other?" The commander sounded alarmed suddenly.
"He is the Chief of the Southern Water Tribe." Toph waved irritably, as if that didn't matter, "We have met, yes."
Yes, the first thing the blind girl had done was hit him on that sandy beach in Chameleon Bay… And she had been clear that he had to keep his nose out of his daughter's business… If she was here… That meant that his children were somewhere too!
"To-" Before he could finish her name, a rock hit him hard under his foot, as if it shot straight up from the earth. The meaning was clear… Shut up.
"We have much to discuss it seems… But before, you might look at the fortifications. If it is true, and you are Sokka's father… I can only hope he got his brains from you." Piandao gestured towards the walls in the distance, and walked away, leaving him with Toph.
"What are you doing here?" The blind girl asked as soon as no one could hear them.
"I needed to know what was happening!" Hakoda answered. He didn't need to defend his actions!
"Shit is happening! Zuko and Azula are fighting, and… Well, you should talk to our… bald friend. He might need a person to hit. And to be honest, it would be fun for me to watch." Suddenly, Toph didn't sound so irritated and mean, but more concerned and worried.
"Why?" A dark pit of despair opened in his guts… The commander had spoken about Sokka… As if he wasn't here. Had something happened to his son?
"Go." She shoved him towards the tree line. Quickly walking towards it, he realized that she had meant Aang by bald friend… He was alive! And well, if they had taken him to the siege!
As he neared the mile of open ground, he saw a lone figure stand a few paces out of the tree line… And that figure was so recognizable for anyone who had met him, that Hakoda didn't need to ask who it was. The young man had his back turned to him, standing tall and straight…
And that was the first hint the chief should have seen… He knew Aang was not one to stand straight. The young man always moved, always bent to the left or the right, laughing and speaking to the nearest person… But the lonely figure was standing straight…
"Hakoda." The man spoke, and the chief stopped dead in his tracks. Aang had not turned around… So he had sensed him, probably by the same bending as Toph did.
Ad what surprised him the most was the voice. Aang had always sounded joyful, his melodious accent so foreign to anyone… But the voice that had spoken sounded hard, as if it was made of pure iron…
"Hey…" He said tentatively. Why was Aang like that? Katara had said, during those three horrible weeks, that the airbender was prone to moments of brooding, when he thought no one was looking. Hakoda had smiled at that, because it had implied that his daughter had been looking…
But there was nothing funny about what he was seeing or hearing.
"Is it Sokka?" He had to know…
Aang suddenly turned around, and Hakoda knew enough. No, it wasn't Sokka… He recognized all the signs. The unshaven jaw, the dark circles underneath the grey eyes, eyes so filled with pain and anger… Oh, the rage was clear. And Hakoda knew…
"K… Kat…" He couldn't say it. The dark pit that had opened in his guts filled him. He had failed Kya… Kya had protected their child. She had done what any normal parent would have done… But here he was… Not having been able to do that.
"No." Aang nearly spat, and Hakoda saw the muscles in the airbender's arm flex as he balled his fists, "She is somewhere. Azula… Azula said… Said… But Appa is here! And he doesn't leave people behind!" The arm began to tremble, and there too, the chief recognized the signs. Anger… And then pure and utter depression.
Stepping towards the airbender, he saw how the young man fell to his knees in front of him.
"You have to believe me… I did everything I could!" The hard voice broke. Quickly putting his arms around the young man, Hakoda didn't understand a single word or even what exactly had happened… He only understood one thing. Azula had done something. And Katara was involved.
And if that was the case, he would storm this town himself and kill anything that moved.
Answers :
Guest : Yeah, On Ji is distrustful of course. We know Katara has only good intentions, andwants to help… But On Ji, having suffered under the Fire Nation regime for her whole life, is not buying the truth.
LeeLee2234 : Yeah, I hated writing that, but of course it had to be done. Hope you enjoyed this chapter too!
