CHAPTER 31: COLLAPSE (PART 1)
(Disclaimer: Avatar The Last Airbender belongs to Nickelodeon and Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto. I only own my OCs)
(PLEASE READ: THIS IS NOT A SEQUEL TO "SHUJINKO: THE FOURTH MEMBER", BUT A DIFFERENT STORY WITH SHUJINKO AS THE MAIN CHARACTER. THIS STORY WILL NOT HAVE ANY EFFECT WHATSOEVER IN "SHUJINKO SHIPPUDEN". I REPEAT, THIS IS NOT A SEQUEL TO SHUJINKO'S ORIGINAL STORY)
Summary: One night, a stranger breaks into Shujinko's house and tries to steal one of the most mystical objects in the history of the Ozuma clan: The Eye of Kazemaru. When Shujinko tries to stop him, the two of them activate an ancient and forgotten power of the gem by accident, which sends them to another dimension where a certain bald-headed monk has to master the four elements in order to defeat the evil Fire Lord. What kind of impact will Shujinko's presence have in the Avatar universe? Who is this stranger and what does he want? Get ready for one wild space-time adventure
"J-Jheeht-hg…"
Between the fear and the giant knot in her throat, Smellerbee was barely able to speak. Her mind couldn't fully assimilate what was going on. Part of her insisted this wasn't real; this had to be a bad dream, a cruel hallucination implanted in her brain by the Dai Li or something. But just as she was starting to believe any of the hundred fantasies inside her head, the feeling of Jet's agitated breath brushing against her ear and the cold steel of the shuriken harassing her neck snapped the poor girl back to reality.
Katara was the first to raise her voice, though that didn't mean she was any more composed than the rest of those who were present. "What in the world do you think you're doing, Jet!?" she shouted with eyes as wide as saucers, her face painted with confusion and panic. "Let go of Smellerbee; you're going to kill her!" Jet's reaction to the words of the waterbender was to let out a growl and give his hostage a rough shake from behind, to which Smellerbee almost passed out due to how violently her heart jumped inside her chest.
"Shit," Shujinko mumbled out loud, cursing his lack of foresight as well as his rotten luck. The Chūnin had assumed that the effects of Long Feng's mind control would cease as soon as Jet was rendered unconscious. Because of his educated, yet incorrect guess, Smellerbee could die any moment now. She was trembling like a gazelle calf with its neck stuck between the jaws of a lion; all it took was a simple closing of the maw to crush the life out of its prey.
That allegory caused the Ozuma to become aware of an important detail, one that only he could've noticed thanks to his previous scuffle with the leader of the Freedom Fighters. 'Before the others arrived, Jet was dead-set on killing me. He tried to slice my head off and kept going at it after he failed, so why is he holding Smellerbee hostage instead? Where's this self-restraint coming from? Is it because he subconsciously knows that Smellerbee is a friend or is it something completely different?'
For whatever reason, it was evident that Jet was feeling some degree of reluctance, which suggested he was aware of himself and of his actions up to a certain extent. The Chūnin no longer knew what to think; he just knew that Smellerbee's life could be snuffed out at a moment's notice if her captor didn't come back to his senses. Furthermore, allowing this standoff to drag on would almost surely result in the arrival of enemy reinforcements to their position, and then all hell would break loose.
To avoid that, Jet had to stop… or be stopped. Gingerly, the Ozuma opened his back pouch. His fingers rummaged through the content inside until they found what he was looking for: The hole of a shuriken.
"Jet, drop the weapon and let her go," Sokka spoke slowly and with as much calmness as he could employ in his voice. Given his current condition, he wasn't sure what Jet might or might not perceive as a provocation, and with the shuriken so close to his hostage's jugular, provoking him was the last thing he wanted to do. "Don't do something you'll regret for the rest of your life,"
'This would be so much easier if I had Shikamaru with me. His Shadow Paralysis Jutsu would solve this mess in the blink of an eye,' Shujinko thought, glancing sideways to check if anyone had seen him grab his weapon. 'Should I try to dissuade Jet by warning him first? No, that's not a good idea. If I make my intentions known, not only will I lose the element of surprise, but it might also drive Jet over the edge and cause him to lash out. Besides, in the state that he's in right now, trying to reason with him would be pointless. My attack has to come out of nowhere if I want to save both him and Smellerbee,'
"Have you forgotten what the Dai Li did to you? They dragged you here and screwed with your head like you were a toy. That's the only reason you're acting this way," Toph added her own plea with the vehemence she was known for. "Don't let those monsters control you. Fight back! Show them who's boss!"
'Hand, forearm, bicep, shoulder, neck, and head. Those are the options I have. Throwing my shuriken at his hand or forearm would definitely hurt him, but they're both too close to Smellerbee. Even a knee-jerk reaction could end up with Jet slashing her throat by accident. The neck and the head are ideal targets in a situation like this, but I can't save Smellerbee by killing Jet. I can't go for the shoulder either; my shuriken won't pierce through his shoulder pad. This means I can only aim for the bicep,'
Despite his rigidly impassive expression, Shujinko could feel a lonely sweat drop traveling down his left cheekbone. He was unable to tell whether his friends' words had any effect on Jet, but he needed them to keep talking in order to stay clear of his line of attention. With the speed of a limping tortoise, the Chūnin carefully stepped to the left where he could get a better shooting angle.
'If Jet sees I'm about to do something, he'll kill Smellerbee before my shuriken ever touches him. My arm has to be faster than his eye. However, if my aim is off even a little, I might end up fatally wounding him, so I can't skimp on accuracy in favor of speed. Like Tenten once told me, it's all about finding that perfect balance and letting it guide my hand,'
The Ozuma spent a minute visualizing everything that was about to happen, anticipating every move, every motion, and every reaction: Once his shuriken reached its target, there would be a small window of time between Jet feeling the pain and him overcoming it. Shujinko would have to make use of those couple of seconds to dash towards Smellerbee and get her away from Jet in the same fashion a ninja would rescue a civilian from a paper bomb that was about to go off. Compared to that, the second step of his plan, which was to neutralize the leader of the Freedom Fighters, would be a cinch. He repeated the scene a thousand times over in his head and predicted every possible outcome with equal regard.
The golden-eyed boy proceeded to arch his upper body forward and positioned his left leg a step behind his right as if he was about to break into a run. This was a basic stance that the Academy taught its students who were starting their shuriken-throwing training. Useful enough for beginners, perhaps, but highly impractical in real combat as by the time you got into position, the enemy already knew what you were up to and would either move out of the way or attack you first. In this instance, however, Shujinko wasn't hindered by such limitations, so there was no harm in making use of it.
Like a cunning cat ready to pounce upon its prey, Shujinko kept his stance and waited…
'… Now,'
"Jet, remember everything we've gone through together. Remember everything you've done for us," The words of Longshot left his lips just in time to halt Shujinko's hand, reducing his attempt to an awkward jerk of the arm out of which came nothing. "You found us at our lowest and took us in when nobody else would. You welcomed us with open arms and gave us something to live for. This isn't who you are. You're Jet, the leader of the Freedom Fighters. Our leader… Our friend,"
The Chūnin looked at Longshot askance. In the short time he'd known him, the archer had proven himself Shino's superior in terms of keeping quiet. Shino at least spoke when spoken to or when a situation warranted his input, though most would agree that the young Aburame was better at holding conversations with bugs than with people. On the other hand, Longshot behaved as though he had no tongue. In fact, Shujinko had thought him mute up until recently, so hearing him string sentences together caught the Ozuma off-guard.
…
*KLING*
The shuriken slipped from Jet's fingers and fell to the floor, landing at his hostage's feet.
Smellerbee, who was sucking in breath at this point, noticed the sudden loosening of her captor's grip, his arm growing lax. Seconds later, Jet slumped forward with his entire body gone limp. The swordsman would've fallen face-first to the ground and gotten every single one of his nasal bones broken if not for Smellerbee, who managed to get ahold of Jet as he fell, dropping to her knees with him in her arms.
"Jet! Jet, can you hear me? Please, say something!" Jet looked beyond exhausted. All of his skin was drenched in sweat, his face had suddenly turned pale and gaunt, and he was bleeding from his nose. It was as if a whole week's worth of exertion had struck him at once. His fluttering eyelids and his labored breathing indicated he was still awake, albeit on the brink of falling unconscious.
While the others hurried to gather around them, the Ozuma remained frozen in his place. As he tucked the shuriken away in his pouch, he accidentally pricked his thumb with one of its edges, something that hadn't happened to Shujinko in a long while. Upon inspecting the tiny cut, the first thing he noticed wasn't the trickle of blood sliding towards his wrist, but the shaking of his hand instead. The Chūnin looked at his other hand, which shared its sibling's trembling.
Seconds later, he started gasping for air, feeling as though he had just performed a lengthy sprint at full speed, and only then did he realize he'd been holding his breath this entire time.
000
The rescue party ventured into the same passage Long Feng had used to escape, which led them to discover a series of underground tunnels that connected the base to several parts of Lake Laogai; a man-made burrow of sorts. Because of this, they forgot about tracking down Long Feng as doing so was almost impossible and not worth the effort, and instead focused on abandoning the secret base alive, guided by Toph and her ever-useful seismic sense.
The tunnels' paths were long and narrow and poorly lit, and while the lack of lightning was inconsequential to the young earthbender, it made the journey frustratingly uncomfortable for the others, who had to walk with a cautious gait and keep their hands raised to the sides in case they made a false step and tripped. On top of that, Jet, who kept slipping in and out of consciousness throughout their journey to the surface, had to be lugged by Smellerbee and Longshot. Those two carried their leader around from start to finish, refusing to let go of him no matter how tired they grew. This resulted in the rest of the rescue party having to march at an even slower pace as well as having to stop every once in a while so that the Freedom Fighters wouldn't straggle too far behind the group.
Upon reaching the surface, they were greeted by the tenuous warmth of a cloud-shrouded sun and the fresh air of an early morning breeze. It was a significant improvement over the cold, damp darkness of the underground that made Shujinko's teeth chatter, and the light of the dawn offered Team Avatar a much brighter picture of their surroundings. The good part was that they could now see everything around them with perfect clarity. The bad part was the Dai Li could now see them with perfect clarity, which the Chūnin was quick to point out.
"What do we do now?" Smellerbee asked, a worried frown on her sweaty dust-covered face.
Katara's response was swift. "Long Feng has eyes and ears in every nook and cranny of this city. He'll know where we are soon enough, probably before the end of the day. We must leave Ba Sing Se at once,"
"It'd take us a couple of hours just to reach the Outer Wall from here," her brother pointed out. "And what would be the point of leaving anyway? We have no food, no supplies, and no means of transportation other than our legs. Not to mention, we haven't had any rest since yesterday. We'll be easy prey to whoever comes after us,"
"So basically, we're screwed one way or the other. So much for suspense, I guess," the earthbender commented as she frantically rubbed her eyes. Even as a child, Toph was used to staying up late. She would often wait for midnight to arrive before sneaking out of the Beifong Manor to go meet with her Earthbending masters; the Badgermoles. Still, she'd never been awake for this many consecutive hours before, and she'd be lying if she said she wasn't exhausted. "Whatever we do, we gotta act fast. Shujinko, wanna weigh in on this?"
The Ozuma pinched the bridge of his nose and removed the accumulated gunk from the inner corner of his itchy eyes. He could feel the stress slowly drilling a hole through the back of his head, numbness spreading over his face like anesthesia. Shujinko tried to kick his gray matter into high gear, but after staying awake for so many hours, the cogs inside his brain had grown rusty and slow to turn.
Lack of sleep was like poison; some could resist it better than others either naturally or by building up a certain level of tolerance, but everyone succumbed to it in the end. Fighting; running; jumping; and any activity that kept your heart pumping served as a provisional remedy against the urge to lie down and nod off. In moments of stillness, however, the effects of sleep deprivation were that much harder to ignore as your body no longer had any incentive to push past its concentration grew feeble, your memory started failing you, and your senses lost their edge.
"Sokka is right. If we try to leave Ba Sing Se now, we'll probably fail in the attempt. It's not worth trying," the Chūnin concluded once he finally got the analytical juices inside his noggin flowing. "That being said, there's no way Long Feng will leave us alone after this mess. Luckily, we still have an ace up our sleeve: The Council of Five is on our side. We must reach out to them, inform them of what we know, and ask for their help. They might be able to spirit us away without alerting the Dai Li,"
Sokka seconded the idea and Toph expressed no objection either by word or gesture. Katara, however, wasn't all that convinced. "If we do that, the generals might forget about our arrangement and launch their attack behind our backs. Aren't we supposed to do everything in our power to avoid bloodshed? We need to think this through; consider other options,"
"What other options are there to consider?" the brown-haired youth asked in a tone of voice that lacked malice, yet not impatience. Lack of sleep did tend to take a toll on one's mood. "We have to go to the Council of Five, Katara; even if doing so gives rise to an early military coup. At this point, I don't think there's anything we can do to prevent it from happening, so why delay it?"
Katara looked at him with sullen dislike. "That's not a-"
"You said it yourself: Long Feng has eyes and ears in every nook and cranny of Ba Sing Se. If we don't make haste, his hunting dogs will track us down. Care to guess what they'll do to us if they take us prisoner? They won't just send us home after a slap on the wrist and a stern talking-to; they'll kill us all. It's the most efficient way to silence people who know more than they ought to, and we know pretty much everything there is to know about the Dai Li,"
Dread filled the waterbender's face. The fear of dying at the hands of Long Feng and the men under his command was enough to make Katara reconsider her stance. It was hard to argue against his reasoning; the Dai Li had proven themselves ruthless in their dealings if nothing else. She then recalled Long Feng saying that they would've gotten rid of Jet had they failed to warp his memories during his 'Joo Dee-fication' process, and at the time, Jet didn't even know half of what they did now.
Smellerbee and Longshot exchanged wary glances with one another. From the sound of it, Team Avatar seemed to be embroiled in some other government conspiracy aside from the current one, something about the military and a forceful seizure of power. At this point, the members of the Freedom Fighters were better off plugging their ears with their forefingers and forget what they'd just heard. Getting dragged into more political schemes and life-threatening nonsense was about the last thing they wished for after today.
"Can we beat the Dai Li in a straight fight? Yes, we can; we mopped the floor with them not two hours long ago. We'll most likely do it again if they take us on a second time. But we can't keep the dance going forever. No matter how many we fend off, Long Feng will just keep sending more and more of his men after us. He can probably hire an entire army of mercenaries and bounty hunters if he doesn't trust his own men to get the job done. Eventually, we'll run out of strength to fight and they'll bring us to our knees. As for what comes after, you already know. That's why we must clue the generals in and let them handle this. I'm sorry, but this is a situation we can't fix. Not how we'd like to, anyway,"
Shujinko's argument was solid enough to vanquish any doubts as to what course of action had to be taken, though Sokka still had the courtesy to wait for his sister to nod her head in convincement so as to not make her feel like her thoughts and concerns weren't worthy of being heard or taken into consideration. "It's settled, then. We're paying the Council of Five a visit," he declared loudly, feeling a bit more relieved now that they had a plan they could stick to. "Did you hear that, Aang? We're going to…"
The son of Hakoda went quiet mid-sentence, his face adopting an expression that danced between commiseration and awkwardness as he stared at Aang. He had seen the Avatar sulking in a corner by himself before the start of the discussion, but only now did the sound of his sobs reach their ears.
Feeling everyone's gaze on him, Aang raised his head high enough to expose his clenched teeth, his squeezed-shut eyes, and his tear-stained cheeks. "I thought… I really thought we were gonna get Appa back," the airbender said, sniffing back snot. "He was held down there, I'm sure of it. But… he's gone now. They've taken him again and I couldn't do anything to prevent it," Choking on his own helplessness, Aang made a fist and smacked the ground while fresh tears welled up in his eyes. "How am I supposed to save the world when I can't even save a friend?"
As he continued to weep, the airbender felt an arm wrapping itself around his shoulders. He turned his head left, expecting to find Katara's compassionate gaze, but to his mild surprise, he found the same compassion in the eyes of Shujinko, who was squatting next to him.
Sniffling, he waited for the Ozuma to gently remind him they weren't out of the woods yet, that the Dai Li could arrive at any second, and that this was neither the place nor the time to give in to emotion no matter how much he felt for him. Shujinko surprised him yet again, however, for he said nothing of the sort. In fact, not even a single vowel abandoned his lips. He simply pulled the monk into a one-armed hug and wordlessly encouraged him to let it all out, and so the airbender did just that.
Touched by this, the Water Tribe siblings and the Blind Bandit approached the two boys with the intention of comforting the young monk. Before they could do that, however, Team Avatar suffered a most unexpected interruption at the paws of another member of the group. For no discernible reason, Momo broke into a chirping fit and started flailing his arms around, screeching as if he were stepping on hot cinders.
"What's wrong, Momo?" Katara asked as she tried to get ahold of the lemur, but Momo was having none of it and jumped out of her arms before she could do much of anything. A second attempt on her behalf was met with the same result, only this time Momo inadvertently slapped her in the face with his tail, hitting her lightly but startling her a great deal.
"No, don't do that! Bad lemur!" Sokka went to grab the screechy ball of fur by the scruff of the neck, but all he ended up grabbing was a handful of empty air as Momo dodged him at the last second. The boomerang-wielding teen looked determined to chase him around. The Winged Lemur must've thought as much given how quickly he crawled up the nearest boulder he laid eyes on, staying well out of Sokka's reach. "Hey, get down from there right now!" he shouted, only for Momo to do the opposite of what he was being ordered. With one last chirp, he leaped off the top of the boulder and flew off into the sky.
The members of Team Avatar were speechless, unable to make sense of Momo's outburst. Even Aang, who was still sniffling and sobbing, couldn't help but stare at the sky in utter confusion. Momo was a curious, playful, and lively little guy. Even for a specimen of Winged Lemurs, perhaps. Nevertheless, unprovoked bouts of agitation or excitement weren't part of his nature.
It wasn't long before they spotted Momo gliding high above them in a sequence of loops and spins that would've sparked the interest of every circus in the Earth Kingdom. He was little more than a moving dot in the sky, fairly easy to miss… unlike what came into view soon after.
A moment of scrutiny preceded what felt like a lifetime of astonishment to Team Avatar. Shujinko rubbed his eyes to make sure they weren't deceiving him, wondering if he was caught in a Genjutsu or a fatigue-induced hallucination. For a second, he could've sworn he saw a cloud chasing after Momo, yet the Ozuma didn't need to be told what a ridiculous notion that was. Clouds didn't fly around like cranes, nor were they as small as the one following the lemur's lead. And, unless there were thunders involved, they most certainly did not let out roars.
Were those limbs hanging on the sides?
It embarrassed the Chūnin how long it took him to recognize the airborne creature headed towards them, not least because he himself had traveled across countless leagues on its back before. When he finally realized who it was, Shujinko's jaw fell open and hung slack in disbelief, his voice nowhere to be found. As for Aang, his cheeks were once again soaked with tears, only these were being shed out of raw, unmitigated happiness.
"… APPA!"
000
|Meanwhile, on the other side of the lake|
"You made the right choice, my nephew. You liberated the Avatar's bison, and in doing so, you liberated yourself. I am immensely proud of you,"
If his uncle's words were meant to uplift his spirits, they had no such effect.
Standing at the end of a narrow dock, Zuko contemplated his decision to break the chains of the Avatar's bison and set the beast free, knowing full well such an opportunity would never again present itself. Maybe Iroh's speech got through to him; maybe he realized he had the means to escape with the bison but not the means to try anything else with it; or maybe he was just tired and didn't have it in him anymore. It could be any of those things; it could be all three of them or none of them at all; or maybe there simply wasn't a reason and he had taken leave of his senses at the worst time imaginable.
He didn't know, and frankly, he wasn't sure he even wanted to. The scarred firebender did, however, know this much at least: He hadn't felt this much fear since the day he saw his father step into the combat arena to engage in a duel of Agni Kai against him, a duel that left an unerasable mark on his life as well as on his face.
"Ever since I left the Fire Nation, capturing the Avatar and reclaiming my honor have been my only goals. They kept me pushing forward no matter the odds and gave me something to believe in… Now I have nothing left,"
"You misunderstand yourself, Zuko. Capturing the Avatar and regaining your honor were not goals; they were obsessions that tricked you into believing you were allowed to pursue nothing else," Iroh replied. "A cup needs to be empty before it can be filled again. You have emptied your cup, which leaves you free to fill it with whatever your heart desires,"
Whether he liked it or not, the Dragon of the West knew him better than anyone else in the world. Not surprising considering how long they'd been traveling at this point. All the same, it still disconcerted Zuko how easily his uncle was able to tell what he was thinking as if he could read his mind like an open book. It was almost as impressive as his ability to come up with metaphors for everything on the spot, and this one in particular felt strangely accurate.
But even so, there was one pungent emotion in Zuko's heart that not even Iroh was able to detect: Resentment.
The banished prince couldn't help but feel as though he'd been cheated out of his destiny, or rather, that destiny had made a fool out of him. He had struggled; he had endured; he had faced one tribulation after the other relying on his pride, drive, and grit, only for him to surrender halfway through. If he was never meant to capture the Avatar, then what was it all for? Why had he been given a purpose he'd never be able to fulfill? Was this really his fate, to abandon his quest for honor and be forced to live out the rest of his days in anonymity?
It certainly seemed so, and at the end of the day, it was what he had chosen for himself by letting the Avatar's bison go free. Perhaps it was for the best. Perhaps he deserved no better. "What happens now?"
Iroh placed his hand on his nephew's shoulder and offered him the warmest of smiles. "Now? Now we return to our apartment, help ourselves to a nice cup of tea, and kick up our feet. I think we've earned that much. As for what awaits us in the future, that is for our future selves to find out, not us. Before we go, however, there is but one last thing you must do,"
No more words followed, nor where they needed; Zuko instinctively knew what the old firebender was talking about.
When he was young, young enough to still be blessed with innocence, Zuko would spend his summers at Ember Island with the rest of the royal family. Each time, his mother Ursa would take him and Azula to see Love Amongst the Dragons, a widely popular play that was centuries old. The story was about how Noren, the mighty Dragon Emperor, was able to defeat the Dark Water Spirit with the help of his soulmate, the Dragon Empress, with whom Noren fell in love during his time as a mortal man.
Even as a kid, Zuko had never liked Love Amongst the Dragons. The play was just too corny and silly for him to find it entertaining. It didn't help that Azula always got to be the Dragon Emperor whenever they re-enacted the final battle of the play later at the beach, leaving her older brother stuck with the role of the villainous Dark Water Spirit, so he never got to win any of their make-believe duels. Complaining about such a thing now was frivolous and meaningless, but in retrospect, it was prophetic how those instances foretold the nature of their relationship early on: His sister would always be above him.
But neither of them was aware of that as children, and that was what made him treasure those memories so fiercely.
The mask he was currently holding was a replica of the mask worn by the Dark Water Spirit from the play, which was why he picked it in the first place. It reminded him of a moment in his life when his mother was still around, his sister still had some innocence in her, and his father… Well, Ozai had never been an affectionate man to begin with, but at least his son was too young to fear him back in those days. He even recalled the evenings he spent building sandcastles with Iroh and his son; Lu Ten, whom Zuko viewed as an older brother growing up.
It might've been brief, but that was a time when Zuko felt happy, loved, and acknowledged. Those were the memories of a family, a real family, and no one could take them away from him… So now he would have to surrender them himself. His uncle was right; he needed to empty his cup, and that included getting rid of what little good came from his life as the son and heir of Fire Lord Ozai.
'So be it,' Zuko thought as he held the mask with his right hand and tossed it into the lake.
The water soon swallowed the mask and started dragging it to the bottom until it could no longer be seen from the surface. It was with uncertain apathy that Zuko watched the last remnants of his past sink out of sight and disappear from the rest of the world as if neither the mask nor its owner had ever existed in the first place.
"Come, Zuko. The sooner we leave, the sooner we can put our minds at ease," Zuko very much doubted that, but there was no reason for them to stay any longer either. With slumped shoulders and a pit of emptiness in his stomach, the young firebender walked away from the shore and followed his uncle back to their apartment.
As they made their way, Zuko looked over his shoulder and stared at the lake one last time without Iroh noticing. As soon as he did, emotion invaded his conflicted heart once again. He thought he was already regretting his decision, but then he realized what he was feeling was not regret. He then thought it was fear, but that wasn't it either. Confused and tired, it wasn't until later that Zuko finally understood what unfamiliar emotion had struck him upon casting his eyes on the waters of Lake Laogai, and why.
It was grief.
The Blue Spirit and the prince of the Fire Nation had both died today, and Lake Laogai was their resting place.
Long ago, during Aang's many years of absence, not even the kindest of travelers would describe Aoshang in favorable terms, and for good reason.
Aoshang used to be a two-bit town whose population was almost exclusively comprised of thieves, bandits, traffickers, and other individuals of equal or worse character. In fact, calling Aoshang a "town" at all would be far too generous. It was more like a combination of a settlement and a filthy ghetto, founded and run by criminals who turned the place into a safe haven of sorts for all those who earned their bread through immoral, illegal means. Of course, this didn't prevent locals and outsiders alike from plying their trade against their outlaw brethren from time to time, in which case there was no way of settling the matter other than by one's own hand.
Due to the Fire Nation's constant military expansion, it was only a matter of time before Fire Nation troops came across this settlement and took it by force. However, the colonel who conducted the raid was unaware of Aoshang's ill-repute and damnable residents, all of whom fled with their tails tucked between their legs almost as soon as the invaders arrived. This resulted in Aoshang becoming a ghost town from which the Fire Nation could extract no tribute. It didn't help that its infrastructure was in shambles either, and its geographical location offered no tactical advantages whatsoever.
All in all, there was as much merit and value in conquering Aoshang as there was in besting an illiterate farmer in a spelling bee, so the colonel ordered his men to loot anything worth looting (what little there was) and move on, abandoning the place to its luck.
The settlement remained deserted until a decade ago when it was rediscovered by war-torn wanderers from all walks of life, who saw in the malnourished, dust-coated Aoshang the opportunity to build a new home for themselves.
With time, patience, and hard labor, these new settlers managed to turn a rotten den of lowlifes into a townlet with an austere community of residents who earned only what they could afford with the sweat on their brows. Acts such as thievery and extortion were foreign to them, not only because they owned so little, but also because everyone knew each other, and those who didn't know each other, almost certainly knew someone who did.
For these reasons, it was no wonder that the visit of Team Avatar and the Freedom Fighters to Aoshang was very much noticed by its people.
The fact that six adolescents, all strangers of weary aspect, arrived at the secluded townlet was enough to attract the locals' attention, especially since they didn't seem to be accompanied by a proper adult. However, what was almost scandalous was the amount of money these young outsiders spent on food, provisions, and equipment: They entered stores with empty bags and backpacks, and left with those same bags and backpacks filled to the brim with what they bought. More ludicrously still, they had gold pieces at their disposal to pay for whatever they wanted. Only a handful of Aoshang's residents had ever laid eyes on them before, and yet these pubescent travelers had gold pieces pouring out of their ears.
More than one merchant shooed them off, thinking them to be swindlers trying to pull off a scam. They simply didn't buy the idea that a bunch of brats had that much coin on them even though nothing about them suggested they were from an affluent background or that they had a wealthy benefactor. Other folks had no such misgivings about the youngsters and were only too happy to let them browse their wares, ramping up the prices of some of their products and offering discounts on others. The Spirits knew they needed business.
Kwon Tzu, a well-known farmer who frequented Aoshang, claimed to have sold a whole cartload of watermelons to one of the young foreigners while he was on his way to the market. It was hands-down the most bizarre transaction he had ever partaken in, Kwon Tzu assured, though the weight of the coins inside his pockets reminded the spry old man he had no cause to bellyache. Little did he know, all twenty-seven of his watermelons were devoured in less than a minute.
A meager appetizer for a famished Sky Bison.
000
Broadly speaking, few were the perks and benefits of being stuck in a completely unknown region of the world, uncannily far away from everything you love, know, and understand. Shujinko could attest to that, which was why he had learned to appreciate each and every single positive surprise that destiny was kind enough to toss his way, even the small ones. No, not even the small ones, but rather especially the small ones given how painfully infrequent the big ones were.
Today's surprise wasn't big; it was huge.
After concluding their shopping spree at Aoshang, Team Avatar and the Freedom Fighters left the townlet in search of a place away from prying eyes where they could rest and get their Turtle Ducks in a row. They flew around for a while until they stumbled upon a hidden valley and waterfall enclosed by limestone cliffs. Unbeknownst to them, the place was called Uru's Lament, named after Avatar Uru, the last Earth Kingdom-born Avatar before Avatar Kyoshi. Shujinko was currently sitting on one of the site's many megaliths, peeling what would soon be the fourth apricot he would have for breakfast. With bloodshot eyes and a slight headache, he kept stealing glances at Aang as the monk bathed in the river with Appa, showering him with hugs, pets, and belly rubs while also cleaning him up.
His days of captivity had left the Sky Bison filthy and undernourished, having lost quite a bit of muscle along with some fat. Lack of space had taken its toll on Appa's hygiene as well, causing his shedding to stagnate. As a result, he was covered in continuous tangles of matted fur, with rotting hairs pulling on most of his skin. A sour bodily odor of feces and urine clung to him like ivy on a wall, and both his massive tongue and his big flat teeth sported stains due to him being forced to subsist on garbage well outside a Sky Bison's regular diet.
Yet, Team Avatar's furry companion seemed unbothered, almost unaware of the sorry state of his health as he bathed calmly in the waters of the valley. No matter how weak Appa's body had grown thanks to the Dai Li's negligent treatment of him, being able to fly again, to feel the wind rushing across him filled his spirit with vitality and strength. But that wasn't all; after being separated for a long, long while, Appa had finally reunited with his herd of humans, including his oldest, bestest buddy in the entire world. Sickness and hunger were but fleeting afterthoughts compared to the blissful joy of getting back the two things he had missed the most; his friends and his freedom.
…
…
…
Shujinko grimaced, the apricot's sweet taste turning bitter as gall inside his mouth. The sight of Aang and Appa together did not make the Ozuma happy; not if he was being honest with himself.
He wanted to be happy for them. Truly, he did. This was a gleeful moment for Team Avatar and the Chūnin was sincerely relieved that Appa had found them. But although relief and happiness were related, they were scarcely synonymous with one another, and in spite of his efforts, he simply wasn't feeling much of the second. The fact that he had to try to make himself feel happy in the first place said it all.
Having Appa back was good for Team Avatar in every way imaginable, so even though Shujinko wasn't whooping with elation and breaking into a celebratory dance, both brain and heart dictated he should be feeling anything within the positive side of the emotional spectrum at the very least… And yet it still wasn't the case for him. He was not filled with optimism, hope, or tranquility, nor was he riddled with sadness, anger, or fear.
He was feeling nervous; impatient; restless.
"Right now, finding Appa is our top priority. Everything else can wait. But once we get him back, I want you to… I need you to use that technique on me,"
…
"…I'm sorry for being difficult, but I can't take it anymore. It's always the same: We travel around looking for answers, and as soon as I start getting my hopes up, something comes up and we're back to square one. I'm sick of it. I don't want to visit other places or meet new people, not when you can help me restore my memories here and now,"
…
"…I know I'm putting you in a difficult spot. I wish I didn't have to, but… I just… It's been so long. I'm begging you, Katara. Don't keep me suffering like this,"
…
"Thank you, Katara. I won't forget this,"
The Chūnin never would've thought himself capable of such egoism and emotional detachment, but the truth was that having Appa in front of his eyes didn't mean the same to him as it did the rest of Team Avatar. While his friends celebrated the return of a loyal companion that had been taken from them, Shujinko could only think about what had arrived along with the Sky Bison: The time for Katara to make good on her word and help him get to the bottom of the mystery that was his presence in this side of the world.
Unfortunately, it was more complicated than that.
"…I understand the danger that comes with what I'm asking for, and I'm willing to go all in with you by my side. Are you?"
"Always,"… "But what about the others? We can't do this behind their backs. It's bad enough that I already did just that in order to restore Jet's memories. We have to tell them about this beforehand, and I'm sure they'll weigh in whether you want them to or not,"
"Don't worry, I promise I'll let them know. If they support my decision, that's great. If they don't think it's worth the risk, I won't try to convince them of the contrary…"
Shujinko frowned as he removed the stone inside the apricot. Telling the rest of the gang about the Ice Shattering technique as well as his decision to go through with it was guaranteed to kill Team Avatar's morale and cause no small amount of shock, concern, and even animosity. No matter which words he used or how delicately he delivered the news, nothing would soften the impact of the message, and whatever fear, disappointment, or anger they expressed over his choice, Shujinko had no other choice but to take it all in stride and accept any and all consequences that came out of it. A disheartening prospect indeed, yet the Ozuma had made his peace with it.
… But once again, it was more complicated than that. Seeing the airbender so elated and full of life as he tended to Appa reminded the golden-eyed boy of how much pain his capture and subsequent absence had caused the young monk, how dearly he'd missed him, how he was forced to soldier on without his partner and friend while wondering if he would ever see him again.
Shujinko was unable to celebrate his return and reciprocate the merriment of the occasion due to personal circumstances, but regardless of what it meant to him or what emotions it evoked in him, there was no denying that having Appa back was truly wonderful. Team Avatar was whole once again, and the Ozuma wanted this moment, this sensation of relief and hopefulness to last just a little longer for the sake of his friends, even if it meant having to endure the painful bite of the fanged beast known as anxiety.
Because they deserved it.
Because they were worth it.
'Two days,' he decided, tossing the apricot's stone over his shoulder. 'I'll keep my mouth shut and play pretend for two whole days before I let the cat out of the bag… At least, I will try my hardest,'
"You know, something just occurred to me," Toph said all of a sudden, holding her chin pensively with one hand. "Now that we made it to the top spot on Long Feng's enemy list, the Dai Li will stop at nothing to find us, and that includes the three of you,"
Jet shrugged his shoulders in response. "It is what it is. Better to be a wanted criminal than Long Feng's plaything. I swear, if I ever see his face again…" The mere thought of that twisted, pompous little maggot filled the leader of the Freedom Fighters with an intense desire to grab his hook-swords and hack something to pieces, but the surge of anger was short-lived. He was too emotionally drained to feel rage and too physically drained to act out in it. "… He and his agents have a lot to answer for. Not just for what they did to me, but for what they've done to countless others before as well. At least we gave the Dai Li a nice kick in the rear today, and we did it together,"
"Exactly, so how would you guys feel about joining us? Officially, I mean,"
"E-Excuse me?" A slap across the cheek would've warranted a calmer expression than the one on Katara's face after hearing the earthbender's suggestion. "Toph, you can't just propose something like that without running it by us first! We're a team, remember? And what makes you think it's a good idea anyway?"
"Hey, we could use the extra help. And besides, these guys don't feel the need to plan for everything before jumping into the action. Our merry little band could do with a healthy dose of recklessness,"
"As much as we'd like to come with you, we can't. Or rather, we shouldn't. You have enough on your plate to burden you with our problems as well," Jet said. "Besides, we're not new to the fugitive lifestyle. Upsetting the establishment and running away from the authorities is what us Freedom Fighters do best,"
Sokka gave him a nod of understanding. "Fair enough. You're going your own way, then. That's all well and good, but if you don't mind me asking, what are you going to do from now on? Will you be going back to raiding Fire Nation camps or something like that?"
…
"We came to Ba Sing Se looking for a second chance. All I wanted was to start over again with a clean slate, to leave my past behind me and build a better life for myself as a changed man. That sure worked out great, didn't it?" Despite being a rhetorical question, Jet went oddly quiet after asking it, as if waiting to hear an answer. When he spoke again, his tone betrayed no emotion, yet his eyes glimmered with a peaceful understanding. "… I think I get it now,"
"Get what, exactly?" Katara inquired, her voice exposing more curiosity than she would've preferred.
"That there's no such thing as starting over again. That no matter where I go, nothing can change or erase what I've done. I gave our group the name 'Freedom Fighters' so that everyone would know who we were and what we did, but looking back on it now, I wasn't fighting for freedom so much as seeking revenge. Even though we did make some folks' lives better along the way, it was really about making ourselves feel better by getting back at the Fire Nation, and whatever good came out of it was a bonus. We couldn't see our cause for what it truly was: An excuse,"
Because in the end, was there anything more human than having an excuse to do or not do something? What was history if not one never-ending chain of excuses?
Man and beast were more alike than either of them realized, and such similarities weren't limited to mere biological needs. Intelligence, emotions, social attachments, instincts, communication; they shared these and other traits to a greater or lesser extent depending on the case, but there was one thing an animal would never understand nor have need of: A reason; a motive; a justification for whatever they did. A farmer might hate a fox for preying on his chickens, but he wouldn't think of the fox as evil for doing so, and he certainly wouldn't waste his time wondering what caused the fox to go after his chickens in the first place.
People, on the other hand, couldn't live without excuses. It didn't matter whether they realized it or not, whether they admitted it or not, and whether it made sense to others or not. Love, pride, hatred, duty, greed, respect, anger, lust, boredom, devotion, fear, pleasure, self-interest, kindness; humans had excuses for everything because anything could be an excuse for them.
Some people lied to others as well as themselves in order to mask the true nature of their deeds; others had no problem letting all and sundry know the reason for their actions without caring what others thought of them. Some people were perfectly aware of what drove them to commit one deed or another; others didn't have the faintest idea and spent their entire lives wondering about it.
"Most of the former gang is gone, but I know where we can find some of our old friends, starting with The Duke, Pipsqueak, and Sneers. We'll seek them out, try to get them to rejoin us, and accept new members along the way. Together, we'll go around helping the people of the Earth Kingdom like we should've done from the start," A gust of wind passed by. Soon, the sunlight shone with renewed vigor. "Many innocents, especially children, have lost everything to the Fire Nation. If I can prevent one of them from going down the same violent path I walked, then I'll know I'll have done something right with my life for once,"
Shujinko, whose mind was currently elsewhere, felt no different listening to Jet's words than he did listening to the lyrics of a pretty melody in the background. 'Good on him,' he thought, paying no further attention to the matter. Toph was less apathetic than the Chūnin, but she wasn't wonderstruck either. She was simply glad to be in the presence of someone who was determined to turn his life around and make the world a better place.
Aang and Sokka, however, were in awe of Jet. Unlike the earthbender and the Ozuma, these two had history with the leader of the Freedom Fighters. The day they left Gaipan, they did so with quite a poor image of Jet, convinced that he was a lost cause. Even Katara, who always held Jet in the lowest of regards ever since his betrayal, couldn't help but feel a spark of admiration towards him at that moment. It was as if Jet had suddenly turned into the rebellious young hero she first saw him as.
Of course, promises weren't worth the breath it took to swear them aloud without deeds to back them up. Nevertheless, hearing him talk with such fervor and desire for good made Katara actually want him to succeed. She wanted the leader of the Freedom Fighters to earn his redemption, to prove to the whole world that he was more than the total sum of his mistakes.
For Spirits' sake, she was cheering for him! She was cheering for Jet of all people! What was the world coming to?
No heartfelt farewells were exchanged after Jet's vow. Instead, the two groups of teenagers kept it short and sweet by wishing the other good luck and waving their goodbyes. The relationship between Team Avatar and the Freedom Fighters simply didn't merit any theatrical send-offs or melodramatic words of departure. Both parties went their separate ways knowing that concord between them had been achieved even if not everything had been forgiven or forgotten. It was by no means perfect or even relevant in the grand scheme of things…
… but it was enough.
|Ba Sing Se, Upper Ring|
"I don't know about you, my nephew, but all this walking around has left me drained," Iroh commented as he entered his apartment and hung his hat on the coat rack while Zuko left his swords by the door. "Not that I'm complaining; my heart benefits from the exercise, and the thirst will only make the tea taste better. I'll take care of everything; you just make yourself comfortable,"
Instead of waiting for his uncle in the living room or going upstairs to his bedroom, Zuko stayed in the small entrance foyer. The young firebender felt oddly feeble for some reason, almost as if he'd aged years in the time that took him and his uncle to get to their apartment all the way from Lake Laogai. The distance between the two places wasn't exactly short, but for him to feel this tired after a few hours of walking made no sense whatsoever considering the strenuous lifestyle he was used to.
A bit lightheaded, Zuko placed his hands on a nearby console table and looked in the small mirror in front of him. His cheeks were hollow and his face had acquired this waxy complexion that was anything but healthy. Despite the light fabric of his pants and shirt, it was as if he was wearing winter clothes under the sun of a hot summer day with the way he was sweating. He tried to catch his breath, but the air around him felt hot and thick; he might as well be trying to breathe whilst standing next to the fire of a forge's hearth.
"Now then, what kind of tea would you like to drink? Choose one and I'll prepare it with extra care just for you," In response, Zuko let out a loud, tired grunt all the way from the foyer. The Dragon of the West took that as a 'surprise me' and eagerly accepted the challenge. "Ginseng tea has always been my favorite. However, nothing relaxes the soul quite like lychee nut tea with a pinch of honey. Yes, I think I'll go with that. Is it okay if I add honey to your tea or would you prefer some vanilla instead?"
*CRACK*
A shattering sound reached his ears, followed by a heavy thud. "Nephew, was that you?" the old firebender asked out loud, yet all he heard were the weak raspy breaths of someone whose throat was as dry as a bone. A wave of apprehension washed over Iroh as he put the ingredients down and hastened to the foyer.
When he got there, he was greeted with the sight of the scattered shards of the flower vase that had fallen off the console table, along with Zuko's body sprawled face down on the floor, lying as still as a corpse.
Aaaaaand that was chapter 31. Hope you all liked it.
I wanna start this author's note by saying I'm disappointed with myself.
I know how much I hyped this chapter up in the last installment, but because of my poor planning, this chapter ended up being nothing like what I had in mind. The scenes here were supposed to be a lot shorter and the chapter itself was supposed to include the scenes from chapter 32 (which is nearly finished just so you know), which is why it's taken me this long to update the story. Basically, I've been working on two separate chapters at once this entire time, and this one ended up being the boring one that had to be uploaded first.
I could go on and on about the mistakes I made and how I'll try not to screw up like this again, but this author's note is long enough as it is, so please accept my apologies and try to enjoy this chapter for what it is. That being said, let's continue.
I have mixed feelings about Jet's death in the show, but one thing I definitely didn't like about it is the fact that it was never confirmed in-universe, only hinted at. I know, I know, Nickelodeon can't show a teenager dying on-screen *cough couch* Princess Yue *cough cough*. Even though he was a minor character, Jet´s fate carries what I think it's a super mature and somber lesson: Not all those who seek redemption always succeed, and those who do, don't always get a happy forever-after or even a heroic, poetic ending like we hope. So while I do understand why the creators of the show purposefully did what they did with Jet, I still think it cheapens the aforementioned message to some extent.
Also, if Smellerbee and Longshot stayed behind to accompany Jet in his last moments, wouldn't they inevitably get caught by the Dai Li? Because I don't see how they could've made it out of the base carrying Jet's body without reinforcements catching up to them. I know I'm nitpicking, but it's still worth pointing out in my opinion.
So instead of him dying, Jet and his freedom fighters are on the path to redemption. Will they succeed? Will we ever see them again? I have no idea, and honestly, I don't think it matters all that much. The Freedom Fighters are tertiary characters at best, never all that relevant or influential outside their respective chapters/episodes. I think what does matter is that I gave them a different ending, one that's not necessarily better or worse than their canon ending, but that befits their characters all the same.
Side note: You may or may have not noticed that I slipped in the word "shit" at the beginning of the chapter, which might come across as odd and slightly off-putting given the absolute lack of swearing in A:TLA. While I have no intention of making a habit out of it, I do feel I'm justified in this inclusion of foul language given that: A) It was used in the context of a fairly tense situation, and B) Teenagers tend to swear quite often in the real world.
As you can tell, I extended the original scene where Zuko throws away his Blue Spirit mask and added in a ton of thoughts and introspection, as well as some dialogue between him and Iroh. I'd like to clarify that this is just my personal take on Zuko. He's quite a complex character, and as such, a lot of what he says and does is open to interpretation.
I'd love to hear your opinions on Aoshang and its little background. I really enjoy coming up with my own non-canon locations and adding them to the story, even if they only appear once.
Just to clarify, the whole "people need an excuse for everything they do" part is NOT meant to be taken as a personal belief of mine. It's simply a philosophical/existential thought that occurred to me while writing this chapter, and because of my unhealthy tendency to dive deep into themes and subjects that aren't quite essential to the story, well, I couldn't resist exploring this thought. Please, don't think of it as an omniscient narrator revealing some universal truth to the audience because it is not, nor is it intended to be so.
The reason I'm putting this out here is so that none of you feel the need to debunk this bit in the reviews. It's just not worth it. If you think it makes perfect sense, great; if you think it's a fat load of baloney, that's totally fine. However, since we're on the subject, please let me know in the reviews if you'd like me to include more of my, shall we say, "meta musings" in future installments or if I should cut them out entirely lol.
Chapter 32 is currently over 11.000 words long. Normally, I'd say it shouldn't take me long to finish it, but writing this chapter has taught me not to make statements like that even if they come from a place of good faith. I don't want to embarrass myself any further, so just know I'll do everything I can to complete it as soon as possible.
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Peace!
