At the sight of the Fire Nation banner, every hair on Zuko's body stood on end. His breathing became shallow and fast. Was it an illusion, or was the banner coming closer? Was there nowhere in the whole world where he could escape it? How did it always find him? Zuko saw again the tanks crawling up the mountain towards the defenseless people, like an army of ants, indestructible and overwhelming. When a hand fell on his shoulder, he didn't hesitate. He took a huge breath, turned and ran for his life. It was easier to run in the warm air. He ran as fast and as far as he could, which was quite far. But no matter how far he ran, he couldn't escape the crawling ant-tanks.

"Zuko!" Iroh called after him. He got no response. Zuko and the water dragon that flew after him disappeared from sight.

"Wow," Sokka whispered. They had never seen Zuko have a panic attack before. "He freaks out just from seeing the Fire Nation flag? We're nowhere near."

"He'll come back eventually," Katara said. "While we wait, let's plan out our next move. Clearly, finding Aang an earthbending teacher isn't going to be as easy as we thought."

Aang turned to look out over the great chasm that should have protected Omashu. "I can't believe it. I know the war has spread far, but Omashu always seemed untouchable."

"Up until now, it was," Sokka murmured sadly. They could all see bridges the Fire Nation had built over the chasm. "Now Ba Sing Se is the only great Earth Kingdom stronghold left."

Katara went to Aang's side. "This is horrible. But, we have to move on."

"No," Aang snapped. "I'm going in to find Bumi." He started to walk forward.

"Aang, stop!" Sokka called. "We don't even know if Bumi's still…"

"What? If he's still what?"

"...Around."

"I know you had your heart set on Bumi, but there are other people who can teach you earthbending," Katara argued.

Aang was not swayed. "This isn't about finding a teacher. This is about finding my friend."

"Okay," Katara said. "If you're sure about that, then we should plan our next moves even more carefully. Infiltrating an entire city held by the Fire Nation isn't like anything you've ever done before. If Bumi is still…around, he's sure to be held somewhere heavily guarded. How will we get to him? How will we even get into the city?"

Sokka groaned. "Are we really doing this?" He sighed. "Might as well plan for it, then. We've been to Omashu before, so we know our way around. And Iroh knows how the Fire Nation conducts warfare."

"But I can't go into the city with you," Iroh said. "A great city as important as Omashu is sure to be occupied by high-ranking people who would recognize me. My nephew and I can't take the risk."

"Tell us everything you know about how the Fire Nation occupies its captured cities, then," Sokka asked.

While Iroh was doing that, Zuko returned. He paled as he heard what Iroh was saying. "You're going into Omashu?" he asked at the next pause. "Are you trying to kill yourselves?!"

"Bumi isn't just the best earthbender I know," Aang told him. "He's also my friend. I knew him before I got frozen. He taught me how to enjoy life. I need to save him."

Zuko trembled all over. "Don't worry," Sokka said, waving a hand. "We know an important city is going to have high-ranking people in it who might recognize you. We don't expect you and your uncle to follow us. We've faced the Fire Nation with just the three of us plenty of times before. We can do it again."

"Once we have Bumi, we'll flee the city," Aang said. "You can wait for us two mountains away." He pointed at the mountain in question.

Zuko did not want to seem like a coward. But this time, he had no choice. He nodded. "Fine."

"Assuming you want to stick with us at all," Sokka added. "I have no idea why you're even here."

"Neither do I," Zuko admitted. "I just have a feeling that I have to be."

"Maybe because being forced into it is the only way you'll ever make up your mind about your father and the war," Katara said. Zuko gulped. That was a very realistic possibility. "While you're waiting, make your choice. The next time we meet the Fire Nation, you may not be able to stay out of it."

Zuko turned away and found a rock to hide behind. The water dragon nuzzled the top of his head. "I listened to the earth, but I don't feel any better," he told it.

The water dragon mimed piling things on top of each other. More.

"Fine. As long as I'm crouching on the side of a mountain, I might as well."

It hugged him. They stayed like that for a while until Iroh came. "The Avatar and his friends are going to enter the city using a secret entrance through the sewers," Iroh said. "Sokka tells me that if there's no sign of chaos breaking out in the city within twenty-four hours, we should assume they've been captured."

"Let's go one mountaintop over for now," Zuko said. "You keep an eye on the city, and I'll listen to the earth."

.

Night had fallen by the time he and Iroh landed on a peak with a decent view of Omashu. "It's going to be a long night," Iroh said. "Are you sure you want to stay up?"

Zuko lay flat on his stomach and pressed one ear against the ground. "If I somehow fall asleep on bare rock, I'll assume the earth wanted me to."

Iroh decided not to make a campfire, fearing that they might be spotted. He relied on his inner fire to keep him warm as he watched the slumbering city. Meanwhile, Zuko pressed his palms flat against the earth and closed his eyes. At first, the earth was cold and grains of sand bit into his skin. But as he lay there, his body heat warmed it until he felt perfectly comfortable. So I should…give it some time? If I spend enough time in the Earth Kingdom, I'll get more comfortable with being here? That might be true of the Earth Kingdom, but I don't have any problem with the Earth Kingdom. It's the Fire Nation that I need to worry about! How is listening to the earth going to help me deal with the Fire Nation?

He didn't hear or feel any vibrations. Nobody was moving nearby, and the mountain sat still. Zuko concentrated as hard as he could, but couldn't hear anything. Not before he fell asleep.

Zuko opened his eyes as Appa lowed. He lay on his belly, draped over the bison's head. Appa was made of stone, but he still flew. The bison flew up to the top of a mountain. Zuko slid off his head onto the pavement before the gate of the Fire Nation palace. The gate was open. No guards were around. He walked in.

The gate shut behind him. He whirled around and pounded on it with his fists, to no avail. He turned around, fearing that Zhao would be there. But nobody was there. The entire palace was eerie, deserted and silent. He took a few steps and listened closely. He heard nothing.

He entered the palace. When no guards appeared to arrest him, he relaxed. There was nothing to be afraid of. Nobody was around. He made his way through the confusing labyrinth the palace had turned into. It was alright; he wasn't in a hurry. He had plenty of light.

He saw a torch. It was held by a statue. He stayed away, fearful that he would be burned. But then he remembered that Fire spoke through sight and sound. The torch made no sound. It was only an illusion! He touched its flickering flame, and felt nothing.

The torch fell from the statue's hand as it grabbed Zuko's wrist. He gasped and tried to pull his hand free, but the statue was made of solid stone. He couldn't do anything. This was no illusion. He saw, to his terror, that the statue was of General Fong. The fanatical general stared at him with a gaze that bored into Zuko's skin. Zuko still couldn't pull his hand away. Nor could he look away. The earthen statue held him in its grip with a power he could not resist.

Zuko opened his eyes with a gasp. The dream receded, but he still felt the statue's hand around his wrist. He pushed himself up and examined his wrists. They were both free. But the feeling stayed with him.

"Did the earth tell you something?" Iroh was still keeping vigil over Omashu. By the look of the moon, several hours had passed.

"I fell asleep," Zuko muttered. "I had this dream that… That…" He struggled to remember it. "I was in the palace. Nobody was around. I saw this torch, but I recognized that it wasn't real. I touched it and didn't get burnt. But then, the statue holding the torch grabbed my hand. I couldn't pull free. It was a statue of General Fong." He shuddered. "It was terrifying."

"How interesting," Iroh said. "General Fong reminds you of your father, who is leader of the Fire Nation. And it is the Fire Nation that you fear. Yet in your dream, the fire was harmless and earth was the element that attacked you."

Zuko looked down at the mountain. Is that the message I was supposed to listen for? I don't understand. What does it mean? He hoped they weren't going to run into the Fire Nation for a long, long time, because it could take him months to decipher what that dream meant.

"I heard something," Iroh said. "From near the palace. I don't know what it was, but it seems the Avatar and his friends have not been captured. We can get some sleep."

"I think I'll sleep on a blanket this time."

"After a dream like that, no wonder." Iroh helped him set up the tent and unroll the blankets. He patted Zuko on the shoulder. "Sleep well, Nephew." They both went to bed.

.

They both awoke well into the morning. As Iroh stretched, Zuko checked on the city. Nothing seemed to be happening. But while they ate breakfast, a metallic clanging sound filled the air. They looked out over the city again. "There seem to be a lot of people standing in front of the gate," Iroh muttered. They kept watching. Soon, something incredible happened: the gate opened, allowing lots of people to exit the city!

"He's definitely still at large," Zuko said. "Time for us to relocate to that other mountain."

"For now," Iroh said. "Those people are heading into the mountains. We may be able to meet up with them."

"Good idea, Uncle. Change of plans." The two of them spent their day secretly supervising the exodus. They noticed Katara and Sokka dressed in blue, but not Aang in his characteristic orange. Zuko squinted at a bundle of white. "That's not Momo. Is that person carrying a baby?" From their distance, they couldn't really see anything besides colors. "I would've thought Earth Kingdom babies dressed in green, like the grownups."

"I've never seen an Earth Kingdom baby," Iroh said. "I've seen young children, who wear traditional green clothes. Maybe babies are given more neutral garb." Aside from briefly wondering how babies were treated in different countries, they didn't think any more of it.

The exodus was…enormous. What, was the entire population of Omashu being evacuated? They would've loved to land and ask some questions, but Katara and Sokka were too firmly enmeshed in the group. They had to wait until the evacuees settled down, which didn't happen all day. A scattered but organized web of people within the group kept everyone moving, heading deep into the mountains where they could not be recaptured. As the sun set, the group split. A wide mountain pass, easily navigable by carts and ostrich horses, led to other Earth Kingdom towns. Most of the group camped there. A smaller portion, which looked an awful lot like the organized web, camped in a narrow gorge nearby. Katara and Sokka still weren't separate, but it would have to do.

Zuko and Iroh landed out of sight. The water dragon agreed to stay behind. They crept down onto the path and entered the camp. Katara saw them and ran up to them. "What's going on?" Zuko asked.

"This is the resistance," Katara said, gesturing to the other people in the gorge. "If they'd stayed and tried to resist the Fire Nation government from inside, they would've been killed, so we helped them pretend to be infected with a plague. The Fire Nation just let us out."

"Where's the Avatar?"

A tall, thickly-built Earth Kingdom man who looked and acted like a military leader joined them. "Who are you? Where did you come from?" Sokka followed him.

"They're allies of ours," Katara said. "They chose to stay behind in the mountains rather than sneak into Omashu. I was just explaining what we've been up to."

"Did you get the king you're here to rescue?" Zuko asked.

"Aang stayed behind to look for him."

Just then, they heard an animal grunting. It turned out to be a creature that Zuko had never seen or heard of before, walking tamely at Aang's side. "We looked everywhere. No Bumi," he announced. Katara gave him a hug. The creature looked just as sad, so Sokka gave it a hug.

Someone else came up to and spoke with the Earth Kingdom man in hushed tones. The man groaned. He turned and told them, "We've got a problem. We just did a headcount."

"Oh no. Did someone get left behind?"

"No. We have an extra." The man turned and pointed at the baby, who was clinging to Momo as the lemur desperately tried to escape. They watched these adorable antics for a little while. Then Katara shook her head clear and freed Momo from the baby's grasp. She looked up at the man questioningly. "He's not one of ours," the man confirmed. "That baby's from the Fire Nation."

Zuko gulped. Oh, no. What have I gotten myself into?

.

Katara seemed to think everything was okay. She invited them in to join the circle around a campfire. Zuko caught her attention and gestured to the rock the water dragon was hiding behind. She nodded, so he brought it out. That made three large beasts circling their campfire, six grown-ish humans, one lemur and one baby.

"I saw one of the Fire Nation people who are governing Omashu," Aang said to Zuko and Iroh. "I got a pretty good look at her. Maybe you guys -"

Zuko held up a hand. "Stop there, Avatar." He turned to the Earth Kingdom man and sighed. "My uncle and I come from the Fire Nation. That's why we stayed behind in the mountains. We didn't want to take the chance of being recognized."

The man's hands and face tightened. "You're Fire Nation?"

"Uh, former," Katara said. "They're on the run. Don't worry. They're not dangerous."

"You were saying, Avatar?"

"Maybe you guys know her," Aang finished. "She had black hair tied up in buns. She threw knives at me. Her face was mostly blank, except when she fought me. She seemed to enjoy that."

Zuko's eyes widened. "Mai," he said. "I know her. That's one of my sister's friends slash cronies."

The Earth Kingdom man raised an eyebrow. "The daughter of a prominent Fire Nation nobleman is your sister's crony?"

Zuko groaned. "Yes." He hoped the man wouldn't ask anything more.

"So, about that decision of yours," Sokka said. Katara was busy watching the baby. "Any progress?"

"Can we not talk about important things with this guy sitting right here?"

"Good point," Aang said. "Sorry, Mang. We need to talk about some high-level stuff that could decide the whole war. It's best that you don't know too much."

Mang snorted. "I understand. I will trust your judgment, Avatar. Even if you did foil our best shot at freeing our city from the oppressors." He got up and left.

"I listened to the earth, and I had an interesting dream." Zuko told them what he had told Iroh about his dream, and summarized what Iroh had said about it. "I have no idea what it could mean. Any ideas?"

The others applied their minds as hard as they could. "Maybe it was telling you your father isn't what you need to worry about right now? That there are bigger threats in the Earth Kingdom?" Sokka suggested.

"That sounds pretty reasonable," Aang said. "He's far away in the Fire Nation, and people like General Fong are right here."

"Maybe," Zuko muttered. But that amounts to nothing more than stalling. I still have to face him at some point.

"It could mean a lot of things," Katara said, tickling the baby's belly and making him laugh. "Let's not get too absorbed in any one idea."

"I'm not seeing any other interpretation," Sokka said.

Aang rubbed his chin. "I am! Remember what Zuko taught me in the North Pole, about how the elements can stand in for a lot of different things? He dreamed about earth and fire. He could have been dreaming about the nations. He could have been dreaming about bending, like that earthbending is more dangerous than firebending is. Or…or he could have been dreaming about personalities. Remember how the elements have different personalities?"

"Huh," Katara said. "Fire's personality is inconsistent and unfocused, always living according to whims and forgetting anything it's not currently crazed about. That doesn't sound like Firelord Ozai. He's relentless. He keeps going forward, sending soldiers after soldiers until he has everything under his control. He actually has the personality of earth, not fire."

"Okay," Sokka said. "Nice insight, Katara. How does that help us fight him?"

"How do you fight solid rock?" Katara muttered. "It's impenetrable."

"Unless you smash it clear through. Maybe that's what the earth was saying - that in order to defeat the Firelord, we're going to have to go all out. No mercy, no holding back. We're gonna have to destroy him completely."

Zuko shuddered. "I can't listen to this. And you're wrong. I was the one listening. Whatever it said was meant for me, and I would never ever do that to my own family."

Katara held the cooing baby in her lap. "Your father has a strong grip on you, just like General Fong did in your dream. How do you escape Earth's grasp?" She answered herself with, "By becoming air or water. Stones can only hold back solid things. I guess the ground can soak up water. That leaves air."

Zuko shuddered again. "I can't learn to just not care about things."

"Maybe one of those alternate personalities you have can," Sokka suggested. "Speaking of which, I haven't seen one in a long time."

"I agree with myself more," Zuko muttered. "Shifting is less obvious." Except for the Blue Spirit. I still need to put on the mask to have that personality. Should I try to embrace it more? But how? I picked up the mask from a theater that was selling knockoff props from its plays. The Blue Spirit is someone else's established character. How can I possibly absorb that? All my other states are variations of me, but the Blue Spirit isn't. It's not me.

"Do you have one that can do it?" Katara asked.

"Yes, but it's not me. It's just a character from a play. I have to dress up in order to access it."

"You mean that one with the blue monster mask?" Aang asked.

"Yeah. That one."

"Well, you created these states somehow," Katara said. "If you can't find a way to absorb it, just make a new one that's almost identical but doesn't require you to dress up."

Zuko shot her a look. "You think it's that easy to manipulate my own mind?"

She shot him a look back. "You're a spiritbender. That's literally your main ability."

He couldn't argue with that. He sighed and resigned himself to another late night spent meditating on the side of a mountain. "Neato," Sokka said. "Now, about this Mai girl -"

The cry of a hawk interrupted him. A red messenger hawk landed nearby. All of the resistance members stood up. Aang ran up to the hawk and took its message. He read aloud for everyone to hear, "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!"

.

The entire camp erupted into cheering. "Our king!" resistance members exclaimed. "If we can't have our home, at least we can have our king!" Aang jumped for joy. Another chance to rescue his friend!

Iroh understood their happiness, but didn't share it. He was too experienced in the ways of war to think it would be as easy as that. He was surprised and proud when Zuko jumped up with a snarl and dragged the Avatar away from the celebrating throng. Zuko pulled the boy back to their private circle and hissed, "Are you really that naive? We need to be careful. This is definitely a trap, and it could end with us all killed or captured."

"I have a chance to rescue Bumi!" Aang exclaimed. "Even if it is a trap, they'll need to let me see him to lure me in. That'll tell me where he's being held. We could run away right then and come back later. Assuming it is a trap, which I don't think it is. He must want his son back just as much as we want Bumi."

"You don't understand," Zuko said. "I don't think the governor is setting a trap. I'm not worried about him."

"Then what are you worried about?" Sokka asked.

"My sister."

Sokka raised his eyebrows. "Your sister. Who's crud you scraped off your shoe."

"No," Zuko said. "She's basically a younger, girl version of my father." As soon as he said that, his whole body rang like a bell. His face went blank. He looked confused, like he didn't understand what he'd said.

Katara sat up. "She is?"

Zuko blinked. "Well, no, it's just that - She's a lot better than I am at being what he needs her to be, and she's a sociopath too. She can tell any lie she needs to to get her way. I - I don't know what I said earlier." He rubbed his head and sat down, looking like an ostrich horse beset by flies.

Katara's eyes widened. "In other words, she's a younger, girl version of your father. And if one of her friends is here, she's probably not far behind."

Aang gulped. "I can't hold a baby hostage. Not if his parents really do love him and want him back. But if girl-Ozai's going to be there too…"

"She's not…" Zuko shook his head again.

"We're in trouble," Sokka summarized. "Zuko, tell us everything you know about your sister and her friends."

Iroh smiled. They were handling this very well! They had come far in the days since they went around behind each other's backs, missing crucial information and making plans that only worked out because of luck. He took the baby from Katara and watched the youngsters strategize like generals.

Zuko shook his head one last time and did as requested. "My sister is a firebending prodigy. She's also an expert at manipulating people, turning them against each other. She might attack you directly with her firebending. More likely, she'll find a way to spoil the deal. She outranks the governor, and she doesn't care about returning his son. She won't release a king for a toddler."

"Describe her appearance," Sokka said.

"It's been a few years since I last saw her, so I can't say for sure what her hair or clothes will look like. But the way she holds herself can't have changed. Her face always looks like a mask, like behind it she's plotting something. I'm sure she's taking full advantage of being princess, probably going around with the royal procession, wearing royal emblems." Zuko described certain items she might be wearing on her head or clothes.

Sokka nodded and thanked him. "I was there when we fought Mai, so I know what she looks like. Anything else we should know about her?"

"Her blank face isn't a mask," Zuko said gravely. "It's real. She doesn't have much of an inner life, and she'll do whatever Azula says without question."

"Wow. Charming personality."

"Then there's my sister's other friend, Ty Lee," Zuko continued. "Brown hair, probably keeps it long, always looks cheerful. I don't know what she might be capable of now. Last I heard, she was dreaming of joining a circus. If she's there, stay far away. She'll be maneuverable and fast. But I can't see her using weapons, and she's a nonbender."

"What do you expect your sister to be doing? Getting the whole gang back together?"

"She's too dangerous. I don't think it's possible to overestimate her."

"Strategy time then," Sokka said. "What do we do if we go to the exchange and she shows up?"

"Run."

"We can't run from every enemy we face. And Aang still has a friend to rescue."

"Identify where Bumi is, then run," Zuko rephrased. "As fast as you - hold on." He turned to Aang. "You're the Avatar."

"Do you think she's gonna want to capture me, too?" Aang asked.

"Definitely. Did Mai see your arrow?"

"No."

"You're definitely going to use airbending to fight her or run from her or both. My sister doesn't seem to be on your tail yet. If you go to this exchange, she will be. Is adding 'girl-Ozai' -" He grimaced. "- to your already lengthy list of enemies worth it?"

"I won't be out in the open then," Aang said. "I'll be perching somewhere nearby, hidden."

"Assume she's omnipotent and has psychic powers."

"She's not and she doesn't," Sokka replied.

Katara elbowed him. "Better to be safe than sorry."

"But what about Bumi?" Aang glared at Zuko. "Even if it does earn me another enemy, I can't let my friend be held prisoner. Flopsi was chained to a mill and forced to walk in circles all day." He gestured to the strange creature, which whimpered. "I can't let that happen to Bumi."

Zuko's face softened. "You want to be the sort of person that sticks up for friends no matter what."

"Yeah. I do."

"...Then I guess we can plan for Azula from now on." Zuko turned away. Iroh saw the terror in his eyes. This feeling, Iroh shared. Who knew what might happen? Iroh glanced at the water dragon. A chill ran down his back. It hung its head, barbels entwined as if hugging itself for comfort.