AN: Back again, and this time pretty promptly. Or at least in comparison to other updates! Hope you all had a good Christmas and New Year!
Thanks for reading and please do leave a review, or feel free to PM, I am usually much better at answering those!
Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson or Avatar the Last Airbender.
( - )
(Last Time)
It started off slow at first, but the panic soon spread like wildfire as men turned and ran, only to be cut down by the remaining Earth Kingdom soldiers.
The remains of the Fire Nation centre and a good chunk of their backline had been routed.
So long as the two flanks had held up relatively well, then it should only be a matter of time before the rest of the Fire Nation army was put to flight.
Letting out a heavy breath as the main bulk of fighting surged past him, he unfortunately didn't have long to rest before he was attacked again.
Only this time he was struck in the back by an intense blast of blue flames.
( - )
Chapter 20
( - )
(With Percy)
Pain.
That was the first thing Percy felt, as the blue flame rolled over him.
What little resistance to fire his blood gave him, wasn't enough to protect him from the scorching flames as they rolled across his body.
His back felt sticky and raw.
His armour had thankfully taken the brunt of the blast. But even so, the superheated flames had still set his sweat-soaked clothes alight and deformed his cuirass.
Staggering forward a step from the force of the blast, Percy grabbed a hold of his clothing tore the flaming remnants of his tunic off his back and hurled them away. The rest of his armour came with the remains of his clothing as the burning leather straps at the sides and shoulders gave way under the strain.
All around them, the battle continued to rage as the resurgent Earth Kingdom piled onto the flagging Fire Nation soldiers.
They had the momentum for the moment.
But the battle was not yet over as the Earth Kingdom soldiers tried to turn the Fire Nation's controlled retreat into a rout.
He turned to face his attacker.
Sea-green eyes met burning golden.
She was younger than he expected.
A teenager.
She was probably only seventeen or eighteen maybe.
Gripping his poleaxe tightly, he drew on his remaining reserves.
If he were not in a battle right now, he probably would have taken a moment to take in just how attractive the girl in front of him was. Her hair was raven black, and her eyes were a deep, lustrous gold. She had a lithe, powerful, build, which was evident even beneath the ornate black and gold armour she was wearing.
But unfortunately, he didn't have the time.
After all, she was dangerous.
The blue-coloured fire she was able to wield was many times hotter and fiercer than that of any other firebender he'd had the displeasure of meeting. Not even the exiled prince and the former general he had met on Kyoshi had exuded this level of danger.
No, there was something intrinsically different about this firebender.
And it went beyond her just wielding different coloured flames.
It was similar to the feeling he got from Aang.
As if she were chosen by a higher being for some purpose beyond the ken of mere mortals.
In Aang's case, the feeling made sense, as he was the Avatar and had a strong connection to the spirits which seemed to dominate this world.
But there was only one Avatar.
Which did raise the question in his mind of just why this girl felt so different to the other benders he had met.
What was it about her, that set her apart?
He had questions he wanted answers to.
But now wasn't the time to get those answers.
"You killed my brother," the girl snarled, her flawless features twisting into a snarl as she glared at him.
"I don't even know who you are," Percy shot back, his eyes flicked back and forth as the battle continued to rage on as the last remnants of the frontlines swept past them.
It was like they were in the eye of a storm.
All around them was chaos, but for just a few moments at least, there was an odd sense of stillness between the two of them.
Only for that feeling to abruptly vanish as the girl's eyes flared with barely concealed rage at his response.
No more words were said.
Instead, there was only action as she whipped her hands through the air, the first two fingers of each hand extended as she weaved through a series of picture-perfect patterns.
The air around her seemed to thrum with energy.
He could feel a metallic taste on his tongue.
Girding himself for one final push, Percy threw caution to the wind and lunged forward.
The sodden earth beneath his feet rippled as he pushed off.
The sludgy ground hardened, as he ripped the moisture out of it in an instant. Partially scabbed over wounds split and bled a new, and burnt flesh stretched painfully. He could feel blood and sweat dance across his body, soothing his burns and aches as he pushed forward.
In front of him, he could see arcs of lightning crackling along the girl's extended fingers.
Percy's eyes narrowed.
He had seen this kind of technique before back on Kyoshi.
Gripping his weapon tighter, he continued to charge forward.
He was exhausted and injured.
He wasn't in any condition to fight.
It was a far cry from the condition he had been in when he faced off against a similar attack on Kyoshi.
But even so, he had no choice in the matter.
If he tried to run, she would be at her mercy.
The only chance he had, was to face her head-on.
Several metres in front of him the girl's lips twitched into a vicious smirk of haughty contempt as she extended her right hand in his direction.
Raising his poleaxe above his head, Percy slammed it into the solidified earth in front of him like a makeshift lightning rod.
At the exact same moment, the girl unleashed a blast of forked lightning from the tips of her fingers.
In response, the world momentarily went white, and an explosion of noise rocked his senses.
Hitting the ground with a hiss of pain, Percy clenched his eyes shut and allowed himself to roll across the broken earth.
His burnt flesh scrapped painfully against the broken earth as he was bounced across the ground.
Using the momentum from his roll, Percy surged to his feet again in an instant, his hand extended as he used the accumulated water had managed to gather to forge a new sword.
The palm of his hand was burnt almost black.
In front of him, the girl was already in motion, as she leapt toward him, her brow furrowed in anger and momentary confusion as she kicked out with both feet and sent a colossal blast of blue fire in his direction.
Ears still ringing, Percy shifted his blade back into a liquid state and used it to partially shield himself from the blast of searing blue fire.
With another explosion of heat and sound, he was once again rocked backwards.
Gritting his teeth, he could skin sting as the flames lapped at his flesh.
The blue fire didn't melt his skin like candlewax in the way this level of fire normally would, but they still burnt badly.
Erupting forward, Percy was once again forced on the defensive as the girl landed backwards on her hands, before with a startling level of athleticism, she spun around on one hand, and kicked out again, only now with a single booted foot sending yet another blast of blue fire at him.
This time he wasn't fast enough to block and was instead struck head-on by the concussive blast of fire.
Flying backwards, Percy bounced several times across the ground again before he finally managed to regain control of himself.
There was a fresh cut on his head. No doubt caused by a sharp rock or discarded weapon. He could feel fresh blood pouring out of the wound and spilling down the side of his face.
The crimson liquid dripped over his brow, and partially obscured his vision.
Pushing himself up onto one knee, he felt his heart pounding away furiously in his chest, and exhaustion tugging at his consciousness.
Spitting out a mouthful of blood, Percy forced himself to stand.
His body tried to resist.
It was desperately screaming at him to let it rest.
His spirit was still willing, but his body it seemed, was not.
His legs shook, and it was only through sheer willpower that he was able to keep himself standing.
Around him, he could hear the carnage of battle.
The Fire Nation forces seemed to be in full retreat now, with the remains of the Earth Kingdom forces doggedly pursuing them.
The battle seemed all but won.
Yet, across from him, the angry Fire Nation girl still looked raring for a fight.
Even as he struggled to remain standing, he could see her cutting down several men with contemptuous ease.
An earthbender attempted to attack her from behind, and she responded with a supernatural level of awareness and used a single swift blast of fire to reduce him to a charred lump of meat.
The smell of burning flesh tickled his nose.
Several non-benders turned to flee at the sight.
In response, she burned them without a second thought.
Clothing and greasy hair burst into flames.
Pieces of leather armour deformed.
Plates of metal armour glowed a cherry red and started to cook the people wearing them alive.
Gritting his teeth, Percy's gaze once again met the girls.
She was angry.
He could see that quite easily.
Her golden eyes blazed with barely concealed wrath.
Yet she was still in control.
Glancing down at his feet, Percy took a moment to pick up a fallen spear.
From the design, he could see it had once belonged to a Fire Nation soldier.
Taking a breath, he tried to calm his breathing.
His arms felt dead.
The muscles in his legs were burning.
And the flesh on his chest, back and face felt tight and raw.
Wetting his lips, he forced himself into a fighting stance.
Blood was still dripping down his face but there was less of it now he had used his power to clot the wound.
Across from him, the Fire Nation girl did the same, her face a mask of haughty contempt as she raised both hands in readiness.
She didn't look like she was ready to stop anytime soon.
Putting on a strong front, Percy shifted his right foot forward.
The effort almost made him hiss in pain, but he managed to school his expression into a look of nonchalance.
By this point, the main fight had swept past them.
The Fire Nation had been forced back into the woods, and the Earth Kingdom soldiers were still gamely pushing on.
Taking a moment, Percy could see nothing but the dead and dying around them.
Men and women of both kingdoms.
There was so much death.
So much carnage.
Letting out a breath, he felt blood in his mouth.
"Come on!" Another voice shouted.
Looking up he could see the Earth Kingdom's backlines had nearly reached their position as they hurried to keep up with the rapidly advancing frontlines.
The girl in front of him seemed to notice this too.
Her golden eyes broke contact with his own for a moment as she took stock of her situation.
Their fight had barely lasted a minute and already the situation had rapidly changed.
He could see the internal conflict in her eyes as anger seemed to battle with rationality.
She desperately wanted to kill him.
Yet, she was also now very much aware that she was on the verge of being surrounded by enemy forces.
Wrath battle with common sense, and for a moment it looked like she would let her anger win out.
However, after a few moments of thought, she glared at him.
"The next time we meet, you die, Avatar," she said, her lips curling up in anger.
Avatar?
He felt his brow furrow.
Before he had a chance, to ask she unleashed another blast of blue fire, this time it exploded out in all directions. The flames scattered the troops rushing towards her and forced him to flinch back.
A few moments later she was gone.
Leaving behind only death and destruction.
Sagging forward, he was forced to use his borrowed spear as a crutch as he felt darkness starting to paw at the edges of his consciousness.
By the time his allies reached him, what little energy he had left fled him and he collapsed forward as the unconsciousness finally took him into its welcoming embrace.
He had survived.
( - )
(With Azula)
Bitter fury tugged at Azula's thoughts as she violently carved a path through the rear of the Earth Kingdom forces.
She had been so close.
Lashing out in anger, she blasted aside several Earth Kingdom bumpkins before they could turn to face her, and then used several controlled explosions of fire from her feet to shoot up and over the remains of the Earth Kingdom troops as she quickly caught up with her own forces.
From what she could see, her officers had managed to regain control of the fleeing Fire Nation soldiers and had managed to keep the retreat at least somewhat controlled.
Leaving her officers to do their jobs the moment, she continued to brood as she swiftly moved through the lines and joined up with a group of commanders.
Thinking back on what had just happened, Azula bit back a snarl.
In the end, common sense had prevailed.
It had been a close run thin, but after taking stock of her situation she had ended up breaking off the fight with the waterbender and retreating.
It was unfortunate. But in the end, the field had changed, and her position was on the verge of being overrun by the Earth Kingdom reinforcements. Added to that, was also the fact that her opponent, although battered and burnt had still been standing and ready to fight.
She gritted her teeth.
He had been far tougher than she thought and had shrugged off both her fire and lightning in a way no other had.
As much as she hated to admit it, and she truly did. She had been reckless in seeking him out like she had. And, had she not retreated when she had, she would likely have been overwhelmed by both the waterbender and his reinforcements and possibly killed or taken captive.
Her eyes narrowed angrily as she took a seat astride one of the spare mounts.
In hindsight, she should have gathered Ty Lee and Mai to her position and then attacked him as a unit. Between the three of them they could have quickly whittled him down, and either killed him or captured him without too much trouble.
She hated hindsight.
"What's the situation?" she asked sharply as she swiftly butted into the ongoing conversation her commanders were having.
At the sight of her, all the officers straightened and showed her the proper deference someone of her rank was due.
"The entire expeditionary force is in retreat, Your Majesty," a captain replied at once. "We're keeping ahead of the Earth Kingdom soldiers and have managed to avoid a full rout. But they are not giving us the time we need to reorganise and re-establish the battlelines."
"The battle is lost for now," Azula said after a moment. A number of the officers around her looked relieved. "Withdraw the men and try to keep as many of them alive as possible. We will regroup and try again another time."
"Yes, your majesty," several of her commanders chorused.
"If it weren't for the damned Avatar, we would be knocking on the gates of Omashu by now," one of the lieutenants grumbled as several of those present turned to give fresh orders to the runners.
Several other officers grumbled their agreement.
Azula scowled and shifted her attention away.
The man she had thought to be the Avatar had indeed swung the battle for the Earth Kingdom. The moment they lost their centre to his attack – she still wasn't entirely sure just what he had done – the battle was pretty much finished.
It was only because of the competence of her officers and the overall quality of her soldiers that they had managed to keep a good chunk of the army intact.
It was galling to say considering the defeat they had just been handed, but they got off lucky.
They had managed to inflict devastating losses on the Earth Kingdom sortie during the first part of the battle.
It was only after the waterbender had attacked that it had all changed.
And even then, the centre had managed to hold, or at least it had until Temujin had been slain.
She wet her lips and scowled.
Looking out over her forces as they continued their flight, she could see that the Earth Kingdom soldiers were being pulled back and reigned in.
As she continued to survey the area, she managed to spot Mai and Ty Lee approaching her position.
An unexpected warmth blossomed in her heart at the sight of her two friends.
They had managed to survive the fight.
Smiling tightly, she ground her boots into the sides of her mount and moved to join them.
"Azula!" Ty Lee cried out at the sight of her. She looked tired and sweaty, and there was blood staining her pink and light red clothing. The light armour she was wearing had also picked up several new scratches and scrapes. But for the most part, she looked thankfully uninjured.
Mai nodded her head in greeting. Unlike her companion, the dour dark-haired girl looked practically immaculate.
"I'm glad to see you both made it," Azula inclined her head. A part of her wanted to do away with formality and just embrace her friends. But a larger part, the part that had been raised and nurtured by her father, wouldn't let her break decorum in such an unseemly manner.
"Just about," Mai muttered, her expression dull. "Do you know what happened?"
She didn't need to expand on what she meant.
Ty Lee, however, didn't seem to get that, as she instead bobbed her head. "Yeah, like one minute it was all going fine, and then the next 'boom', people went flying, and then everyone was going crazy!"
"It was our target," Azula scowled.
"The Avatar?" Ty Lee clarified.
"Maybe," Azula's expression shifted.
Thinking back on the fight more rationally, several things had started to gnaw at her mind.
The man she had thought was the Avatar, had looked momentarily confused when she had used his title. It had been quick, but she had always been very observant. Her accusation had caught him off guard.
Additionally, he had shown no other bending abilities, aside from water, and the concussive explosion from before – and even then, she was not entirely sure what the cause of that was just yet. For all she knew, it could be some advanced waterbending technique.
"You have your doubts?" Mai was able to pick up on her uncertainty in an instant.
Azula wet her lips as she thought about what to say next.
"I'm not sure," It was painful to admit. "I fought him, and he wasn't all that… strong. I don't think he's the Avatar."
"So, it's the airbender then?" Mai sighed.
"By process of elimination yes," Azula scowled. "Fortunately, I sent a force of cavalry to track him so we might not have lost his trail yet. The captain I sent has a good head on his shoulders, and should be able to find where he went, even if he can't catch up with his skybison."
Mai's expression hardened almost imperceptibly. "So, you intend to give up the hunt for the waterbender?"
Azula's expression hardened.
It had been the waterbending peasant that had killed her brother.
This she knew.
But at the same time, as much as she wanted to avenge Zuko, things had changed.
"We still need to capture Omashu. I've invested too much into capturing the city to just leave now. To do so would impact the war effort, and have wider implications at Court," she said after a few moments of thought. "Considering the heavy losses they've taken; the Earth Kingdom forces will almost certainly retreat back behind the city walls. Many of them will be injured, which will make them burdens on the city's resources. Once we've regrouped, I will reassess our position and then either continue with our previous tactics or use new ones to adapt to our changed circumstances."
Azula scowled and looked out at the nearby citadel.
The remaining Earth Kingdom troops had mostly pulled back at this point. She could see them withdrawing through the woods, though some still harried her retreating forces.
"I'll send word to the cavalry captain and have him keep on airbender's trail. I'll also request additional reinforcements from the south. We'll take the city and send a message to all those that resist us in this area. They will see what resistance earns them. And when we do take the city, I will find the waterbender and will kill him." She continued resolutely. Her mind was whirling as she started putting together the bare bones of a new strategy. She would still run it through her other officers first. But with additional support from the advancing Fire Nation forces to the south, she could still see a way for them to achieve victory.
"And when the city does fall?" Mai cocked her head to the side.
"Then we'll head north. The Avatar still needs to master all four elements. And going off the pattern past Avatars have followed when it came to learning the elements. If the airbender is indeed the Avatar, then he'll head to the North Pole to master waterbending." It was a bit of a stretch and was based on what she had learnt about past Avatars. But there was always an order in which to learn the elements.
Avatars from the Water Tribes first learned water, and then earth, fire and finally air. Avatars from the Air Nomads meanwhile, always mastered air first, and then mastered water, earth and finally fire. And considering all the waterbenders in the South Pole had been imprisoned or purged many years past. The only place the Avatar would logically find a waterbending master was either the North Pole… or the city of Omashu.
Her brow knit together at that thought.
Maybe that was why the airbender and waterbender had been together. Had her attack disrupted the Avatar's attempts at mastering waterbending? Or was that the other way around?
It was possible, but still immaterial for now.
Pushing that thought out of her mind, she refocused.
For the moment she needed to consolidate her forces and put together a workable plan for taking the city.
Both the waterbender and the airbender would die.
But for now, she would keep to the initial plan.
Should the worst happen and it turned out that the airbender was indeed the Avatar as she now heavily suspected. Then, all was not lost. After all, she knew of a certain ambitious admiral who was even now putting together a grand fleet to invade the North Pole. It would not take much effort to catch up with Admiral Zhao and co-opt his invasion plans. The man was an ambitious, insecure, grasping little man, and as such could be easily played by anyone with authority at Court.
( - )
(With Aang)
After nearly two days of travel, they had finally stopped off for the night in a little place called Makapu Village. Appa had to rest, and they all needed to stretch their legs and replenish their dwindling supplies. Considering the isolated location in the mountains, Makapu Village was a good place as any to stop off for a bit.
Walking through the village and looking around at all the happy faces, Aang couldn't help but smile bitterly at how different his place was from the city he had just come from.
Shoving his negative thoughts to one side, he continued looking around.
The war felt very far away.
Makapu reminded him a lot of Kyoshi.
Or at least what Kyoshi had been like before he had arrived and brought the Fire Nation with him.
His stomach clenched as the now familiar feeling of guilt welled up within his gut.
Would the same happen here?
At this point, it almost felt like he was cursed.
Everywhere he went, the Fire Nation followed him, and people died.
Would the same happen here?
He really hoped not.
Staring at the selection of fruits and vegetables on the stall in front of him, Aang worried his lower lip.
They should move on soon.
They had only been here half a day. But after what he had witnessed in Omashu, the very real realities of the ongoing war were weighing heavily on his mind.
His mood dipped ever lower at the thought of Omashu.
Percy and Suki had stayed behind to help.
He really hoped that they were still alive and that they had managed to drive off the Fire Nation.
Whether they were or not though…., well, he just didn't know.
None of them did.
Looking around, he took in the smiling faces around him and listened in to some of the gossip.
Apparently, this village was home to a famous fortune-teller named Aunt Wu.
Upon hearing this, Sokka had been predictably sceptical. Katara meanwhile had been excited at the idea of finding out her possible future. As for him, he still wasn't sure what to make of it all.
Not that it really mattered. After all, they wouldn't be sticking around all that long.
All three of them had already agreed that they would only stay the night, and then they would need to continue moving.
Now that he had been slapped in the face by the realities of the war, he knew he couldn't play around anymore.
No, he needed to get to the North Pole so he could start his training, as the sooner he mastered all four elements, the sooner he could help bring the ongoing war to a close.
Katara had helped him as much as she could. But like him, she had no formal teaching, and so there wasn't much she could do.
The truth was they needed to find a real master.
One who would actually be able to train them, unlike Percy.
A bit of bitterness returned at that thought.
Percy had been… abrasive, to say the least.
Aang knew he'd had a sheltered childhood, and that a lot of time had passed since he first crashed into the sea on that fateful night he fled the Air Temple.
But even so, the disregard, bordering on dislike, that Percy had toward the title had taken him aback.
Katara and Sokka had both been in awe when they found out. As had Suki. Percy though, had treated him like an annoying, irresponsible kid.
He shook his head and used some of the calming techniques he had learnt at the Air Temple to clear his mind and purge the negativity from his thoughts.
Anger, bitterness and resentment were like a poison.
The longer they festered within a person's soul, the more damage they did.
Exhaling softly, he opened his eyes again, only to jump as a voice suddenly spoke up behind him.
"You look conflicted."
Flinching, Aang turned to see a short, matronly-looking woman with slightly greying hair smiling at him.
Forcing a smile, Aang quickly bowed. "I'm sorry, I was just lost in thought."
"I'm not sure what you have to be sorry about, dear. As far I know there is no law against being lost in thought." The woman replied with a dry chuckle.
"I guess," Aang laughed softly.
"So, would you like to talk about what is bothering you?" The older woman asked.
"Erm," Aang looked around.
"Come, if you want we can talk back at my house," the woman said softly.
Aang looked uncertain.
She seemed nice, and judging by the way those around her were acting, she was someone important within the village.
But even so, she was still a stranger.
"I can put on a nice pot of jasmine tea," she continued with a kind smile. "And since my assistant Meng did some baking this morning, you can have some cake too."
A small smile crept across his mouth at the offer of sweet treats.
He was being too suspicious, as she honestly did just seem to be a kind old lady.
"Sure, that sounds nice," he said, giving the older woman another bow. "I'm Aang."
"It's nice to meet you Aang, I am Wu," Wu replied.
"The famous fortune teller?" Aang asked, suddenly startled.
"The one and the same," Wu smiled. "Would you like me to read your fortune too? I might be able to give you some clues on what fate has in store for you."
Aang's smile faded. "I think I already know what my destiny is."
"Nothing is set in stone," Wu said softly, patting him comfortingly on the shoulder. "Destiny, fate, prophecy, until it happens, it is still only a possibility, and nothing more than that. Every action and choice we take in the present. No matter how small, or how seemingly inconsequential. It has an impact on our future."
Aang frowned slightly as he mulled over her words.
"So, if nothing is set in stone, what is it you see?" He asked confused.
"What I see, is the most likely path your future will take. Nothing more than that. Whether or not that path comes to pass, however, well that depends on your own actions in the present. If I tell you that you will meet the woman of your dreams while wearing red shoes, and you spend the rest of your days wearing red shoes, then that possible future will likely come to pass. However, if you hear that fortune, and decide to never wear red shoes again, then it will not." Wu said easily. "In the end, I just give people a likely possibility of what might happen. What a person chooses to do with that information, well that's up to them to decide. So how about it, would you like to know the possible path your future might take?"
( - )
(With Percy)
The rumble of wooden wheels on rock and the jostling of whatever it was he was resting on, woke Percy up.
Opening his eyes blearily, he was almost immediately blinded by the midday sun shining down through the canopy overhead.
Letting out a soft groan, he gingerly pushed himself up into a sitting position and looked around.
He was in a wagon lying alongside nearly a dozen others. All of them looked injured in some way or another. Some were missing limbs, others had bloodied bandages wrapped around their heads or chests. Still, others just lay ominously still.
Holding back a hiss at his body's protests, he lifted his head and looked out over the rim of the wagon.
It looked like he was in a convoy of wagons.
Just one of several dozen.
"Percy, you're up." A familiar voice sounded out.
Looking over, he felt nothing but relief as he saw it was Suki.
She had a few bandages wrapped around her upper body and around her arms, and some nasty bruising on her face and around her throat. But otherwise, she was still on her feet and moving.
"Suki," he rasped.
"Here," she said thrusting a waterskin into his hands. "Drink first and talk later."
Nodding, Percy took a drink of the water.
Almost at once, he felt better as he felt the cool liquid surge through his body.
Exhaling, he took another drink.
"What happened?" He finally asked, lowering the waterskin.
"We won," Suki said.
There was a brittle smile on her face.
"Sort of," she continued.
With a slight groan, she grabbed onto the side of the wagon and pulled herself up.
Making room for her, Percy smiled as he felt her arms looping around his waist.
There wasn't that much room in the wagon, but he didn't care about that.
Drawing her into a hug, he buried his head into the crook of her neck and let out a relieved sigh.
"I'm glad you're alive," he said softly.
"That's my line," Suki muttered back.
Smiling as they broke apart, he raised his hand and gently cupped her cheek.
There were dark rings under her eyes, and her skin was pale. She looked completely exhausted.
"What happened?" He asked after taking a moment to just drink in the sight of her.
"We won the battle," Suki reiterated, her expression shifting from happy to sad as she looked around at the convoy. "But in the aftermath, all those deemed as unfit to fight, either because they were injured or too old were forced out of the city. Including those who were injured in the sortie. They saw your arm, Percy… and the condition you were in after the fight, and they deemed you a burden."
Percy winced and looked around again.
There were a lot of people, but now he looked they all fit the category that Suki described, even those that were leading the wagons and acting as guards were either old, crippled or injured in some way.
Looking back down the track, he could see plumes of smoke in the distance and just about spot the distant city of Omashu.
"How long has it been?" He asked.
"A day and a half maybe," Suki shrugged, resting her head tiredly on his shoulder. "From what they told me there were too many refugees in the city. Things were getting too overcrowded, and resources were running short. So, they made the 'hard' decision to force us out."
He grimaced.
From an objective point of view, it made sense. In an overcrowded and besieged city starvation and disease were a very real problem. It had certainly been an issue in Omashu, even before they had beaten back the Fire Nation.
But looking around and taking in all the hopelessness of those around him, he couldn't help but feel angry.
"Do you know where we're going?" He asked.
"North," Suki shrugged. "I don't think there is a particular destination in mind. We were just told to go north and try and find somewhere else to take refuge. And if we should run across a Fire Nation patrol… well they just told us to surrender and hope for the best."
He closed his eyes and took a breath.
"How many?" He asked.
"I don't know," Suki said softly. "This is just one of several dozen convoys."
"Well shit," Percy muttered, heart sinking. Looking down at the water in his hand, he took another drink.
The sooner he was back on his feet and recovered, the better.
( - )
AN: So let me first put my helmet on and take shelter. I suspect I'm gonna come under some heavily negative fire, some no doubt deserved I'm sure.
But yeah, maybe I imagine that this is not the climactic battle you might have been waiting for, but that's life. Percy was knackered, she was fresher and had the initiative and momentum. If things had continued, she would have beaten him just due to the circumstances. He was battered, low on energy, and without much water. She was hopped up on adrenaline and passionate rage (which fuels fire)(plus there was other stuff eluded too). It made sense to me, so I wrote it. That said, if she stayed, she too would have been surrounded and either injured or captured by the remaining Earth Kingdom backlines. Which she didn't end up doing, as Azula regaining control of her temper after the initial flare-up and thinking logically when she saw the Earth Kingdom's backline coming, made sense to me considering her character. She is a little crazy, but she is still very clever. Unfortunately, things just don't pan out in the dramatic and cinematic ways we want them to. Battle, like life, is messy.
Either way, I am sure there will be some who heavily disagree, and some will be spouting off about Riordan's inconsistent power levels and feats, saying that Percy should be able to swim in the sun without being hurt. To which I say nah, I played lip service to it with him having a form of fire resistance, as shown in previous chapters. But he is not immune to fire, because that's dumb. But as I said, people are free to disagree and have their own opinions. I'm sure I'll have people spouting off about the lava thing and all the other inconsistent things Rick added in ad hoc, and that's fine, this is an AU, which should be obvious considering the differing backstories and the fact he's in a different world. Honestly though, I don't get paid to do this, I do it for fun. So I'm gonna write it in the way I want.
That said, hopefully, some of you liked the chapter. There were some important bits and pieces littered throughout, including clues for the future. Plus, it is now the end of the Omashu arc, and on to the next one. Which will have Percy and Suki doing some more adventuring, and Aang and co. doing an altered journey, though the main focus will be on Suki and Percy.
If you didn't like it, my bad. But it is what it is. If you spot any glaring typos, grammatical errors or continuity issues, let me know and I'll do some fixes. I've only proofread this and ran it through Grammarly, so it is more than possible that there are things I've missed.
Other than that, I hope you all have a great new year.
Thanks for reading and if you have any suggestions or questions feel free to PM me or find me on Discord.
Catch you later.
Greed720.