Author's Note: Hey everyone! Thanks to every one of you for the continuing support and interest in this story. I'm really proud of it, we cracked 65000 words in the last chapter, which makes it my longest story by far to this point, and it is still ongoing. But enough praise. In this chapter we'll finally melt our two stories back into one, but we'll still switch a bit between the characters as usual.
Western Air Temple, 100 AC
Zuko was serving everyone tea as they sat around the campfire in the evening. He knew, the tea was not as good as his uncle's, but it wasn't as bad as it once was, concerning that everyone drank it without expressing distaste. Before, he had embarrassed himself a little, failing to deliver his uncle's favorite tea joke, and the laughter slowly faded, but it was not as hostile as he knew it from home, but friendly, he was not laughed at, not called out, but felt welcome and accepted for once.
As he came to Sokka , the Water Tribe boy stood up and asked, "Hey, can I talk to you for a second?", he nodded, and they went a bit away from the gathering.
"So, what's up?", Zuko asked curiously.
Hesitantly the other teenager asked, "If someone was captured by the Fire Nation, where would they be taken?"
Zuko stopped in his tracks for a moment, raising an eyebrow at Sokka, "What do you mean? Who was captured?"
The other boy looked at the ground and closed his eyes for several seconds, "When the invasion plan failed, some of our troops were taken. I just want to know where they might be."
The banished prince thought about it for a moment. He was never really interested in the prison system of his own nation; he didn't really know where certain groups of prisoners would go. Then he remembered overhearing two officials talking about prisoners of war and a certain prison, the Boiling Rock. He didn't remember what they were saying exactly though. But could he tell Sokka? The Boiling Rock was famously inescapable. If his friends were there, there was hardly any chance of freeing them. So, he said, "I can't tell you."
Sokka looked at him, clearly irritated, "What? Why not?"
Zuko shook his head, "Trust me. I'm not certain anyway, but if my suspicion is correct, knowing would make it worse.", he started to walk back to the group, but Sokka's hand on his shoulder held him back.
"It's my dad. He was captured too. I need to know what I put him through.", the Water Tribe boy said in a serious tone.
"It's not good, Sokka.", Zuko tried to evade the topic.
"Please.", the other boy begged.
"Well, I'm not one hundred percent sure, but when I was at the palace, I heard someone talking about prisoners of war in the Boiling Rock.", Zuko said truthfully.
Sokka raised an eyebrow questioningly, "What's that`?"
Zuko sighed, the Water Tribe boy really wanted to know everything, "It's the highest security prison in the Fire Nation. It's on an island in the middle of a boiling lake. It's inescapable."
"So, where is this place?", Sokka asked determinedly.
The banished prince raised an eyebrow at him, it dawned on him what the other teen wanted to do, and it was not good. "Why do you need to know? What are you planning?", he asked demandingly.
"Nothing. Boy. You're so paranoid.", Sokka shrugged his shoulders, but Zuko didn't believe a word he said.
"It's in the middle of a volcano between here and the Fire Nation. You guys actually flew right past it on your way here.", he said, crossing his arms.
Sokka yawned, "Thanks, Zuko. Just knowing makes me feel better."
Sarcastically Zuko answered, "Yeah, I'm sure it does."
Later that night Sokka sneaked between the sleeping forms of his friends towards the sky bison. He climbed onto the saddle, but shrieked back and fell when he saw Zuko sitting there, "Not up to anything, huh?"
Picking up the contents of his bag that had spilled out when he fell from the bison, he said, "Fine, you caught me. I'm going to rescue my dad. You happy now?"
With a serious expression Zuko looked down on him, "I'm never happy."
Sokka sighed, "Look, I have to do this. The invasion plan was my idea, it was my decision to stay when things were going wrong. It's my mistake, and it's my job to fix it. I have to regain my honor. You can't stop me, Zuko.", he began to climb the bison again.
Zuko looked up at him, "You need to regain your honor? Believe me, I get it. I'm going with you."
The Water Tribe boy shook his head, "No. I have to do this alone."
"How are you going to get there? On Appa? Last time I checked, prisons don't have bison daycares. We'll take my war balloon.", the banished prince said decisively. Sokka sighed but followed him without further objection.
While they flew, an awkward silence filled the air as Sokka found himself sitting idly by with not much to do while Zuko kept the balloon running. Anxiously he bit his lip. There was something he hadn't told the banished prince yet, and he wasn't sure if he should. It could get him thrown off of this balloon.
Zuko noticed the other teen's tenseness and couldn't help but ask, "Hey Sokka, what's on your mind?"
Startled the Water Tribe boy stared at him, "N-Nothing, Zuko, really. It's nothing."
Zuko raised an eyebrow and glared at him, making it clear that he didn't believe him. So, Sokka looked down and began to speak in a somber, almost quiet voice, "There's something I haven't told you. When Lu Ten got stabbed by Azula, … it was my fault.", Zuko stopped in his tracks and stared at the other boy, shocked, but before he could do anything Sokka continued, "The blow was meant for me, your sister said something about a girl that means a lot to me, Suki, and how she captured her and that… that Suki gave up on me after a while. Your cousin said I should ignore her, but at some point, I couldn't, so I attacked her. He must've seen the knife, because he threw himself in between us, shielding me. It somehow found a gap in his armor. I-I just wanted to say, it's my fault, my fault alone, and I'm, I'm sorry, Zuko. I know you meant a lot to each other and, and…", Zuko saw that the other boy wiped a tear away. He thought about what he should do now. What would his uncle do now? Or his cousin?
In the end he laid a comforting hand on Sokka's shoulder, "Sokka, it's not your fault. If my cousin shielded you, it was his decision. And only one is at fault for this, Azula. And Sokka, look at me, we don't know what happened to Lu Ten. He could just as well be alive.", he tried to sound as comforting as he could. In the end, the other boy nodded slowly.
A little while later, Zuko decided to break the renewed silence, "About my cousin, how did you even meet him?"
Sokka blinked a few times, then he began to tell the story, "Well, I think it was really a coincidence that Aang found him. Maybe found isn't the best word for it, but…", he sighed, "You know that the Dai Li had captured Appa at one point, right?", Zuko nodded, he had freed the bison back then, "Well, Long Feng, the leader of the Dai Li lured Aang into a trap with the promise to return Appa to him. He then drugged him somehow to disable the Avatar state and led him down into their headquarter at Lake Laogai and into their cell blocks. He was thrown into one of them, where there was absolutely no light, no windows, nothing. And in the next cell was Lu Ten. They talked for a while before we came to rescue Aang, and you know him, he wanted to free Lu Ten as well, even though, your cousin himself had doubts about him making it out of there. Last time I saw him was no comparison to how he looked when we freed him. He was very thin, I bet they had let him starve for a while, and he had a long beard and long hair. He couldn't really walk on his own, so I helped him, and, well, they had crushed his hands. You have no idea how that looked, indescribable, I don't know what to compare them to, but they didn't look like hands at all. The Dai Li attacked us again, but we were able to fend them off, mainly because your cousin set Long Feng's clothes on fire. Still, he was in a very bad state and collapsed against the next wall. Toph then basically dragged him out of there. So, we took him in and Katara began to heal his hands. Must've been really painful, the first few sessions. Lu Ten actually passed out during the first one, my sister had to break all the bones again that healed in a false way, then reattach the muscles and so on. Even though his hands got more and more moveable during our travels, he only took the bandages off a day before the invasion, he didn't want to risk that the muscles would possibly rip apart again. I have been skeptical of him at the beginning, because he was Fire Nation and formerly imprisoned and everything, but we quickly became friends. He became more like a big brother for the whole group, maybe even a father figure at times. He gives very good advice sometimes."
A small smile appeared on Zuko's face for a moment, more to himself he mumbled, "Like father, like son.", then something in the distance caught his eye. "There it is! There's plenty of steam to keep us covered. As long as we're quiet, we should be able to navigate through it without being caught.", but as soon as the balloon entered the steam column it began to sink rapidly. And although, Zuko tried to keep it in the air by frantically blasting more fire in the tank they crash-landed on the island, barely making it onto firm ground.
The banished prince looked at the destroyed balloon, "How are we going to get off the island if the balloon won't work?"
"We'll figure something out! I suspected it might be a one-way ticket.", the Water Tribe boy said, shrugging his shoulders.
"You knew this would happen and you wanted to come anyway?", Zuko asked in disbelief.
Sokka walked over to the destroyed balloon and started gathering some parts of it, "My dad might be here! I had to come and see!"
"Uncle always said that I never thought things through. But this … this is just crazy!", Zuko complained, throwing his arms in the air.
"Hey, I never wanted you to come along in the first place! And for the record, I always think things through! But my plans haven't exactly worked, so this time, I'm playing it by ear. So there.", Sokka said, kicking the remains of the balloon into the lake.
Shocked Zuko asked, "What are you doing?"
Sokka shrugged his shoulders again, "It doesn't work anyway, and we don't want anyone to find it."
As they went over to the big iron-made building Zuko mumbled, "I hope you know what you're doing. There's no turning back now."
A while later they came out of a storage room, both clothed in guard uniforms which, thankfully for Zuko, included matching helmets that would hide his scar. "I hope these disguises work.", he whispered to his companion.
"We just need to lay low and find my dad as soon as possible.", the other teen answered.
Just as they wanted to enter the next floor, a group of guards ran by, one of them stopped and looked at them, "Guards! There's a scuffle in the yard. Come on.", quickly the teenagers shared a look, then hurried behind the other guards. They came to a halt on a higher floor with a stair leading into the yard. A lot of prisoners were gathered in a circle around one tall man and a guard.
The man was very calm. He said, "I didn't do anything! I'm going back to my cell."
The guard formed a fire whip and swung it at the ground, but in the direction of the prisoner, "Stop right there, Chit Sang. I've had it with your unruly behavior."
The other man turned towards him and asked, "What did I do?"
Tauntingly the guard turned towards Sokka and Zuko, "He wants to know what he did. Isn't that cute?"
"Uh, very cute, sir.", "Super cute.", the teens replied hastily.
Then the guard turned to the prisoner again. "You didn't bow down when I walked by, Chit Sang."
"That's not a prison rule.", another voice said. It seemed familiar to both teens, but they needed a moment to identify the man that stepped now in between the guard and Chit Sang. His voice was calm, yet decisive. His face was very serious, showing no sign of fear.
Zuko felt his heart step a beat, they hadn't exactly searched for him, but there he was, his cousin. His uncle's words echoed in his head, "You know what's better than to find what you searched for, to find something you've not searched for.", he wanted to step in, together the guard wouldn't prove a challenge, he was sure of that.
Sokka had also seen Lu Ten, but he also noticed his companion's reaction, the slight step forward, and quickly held him back, "Zuko, stop. We can't blow our covers.", the banished prince shot him a glare, but took a step back again.
The guard hadn't changed his tone, but was now speaking to Lu Ten, "Ah, the special prisoner. Feel the need to step in and play the knight in shining armor?"
"You should show us more respect. We've fought in this war, and not just in a fairly secure prison.", Lu Ten threw back at him.
"I should show respect? You're the prisoners here, if anyone should show respect it is you. You're always so proud, so defiant. But you're nothing but a traitor. I'll teach you some respect.", the guard said, raising his voice. It echoed in Zuko's head, those were almost the exact words his father had said when…
But his thoughts were interrupted by his cousin, who in a tense, but still calm voice said, "Do it.", almost inviting the guard. The guard seemingly turned and walked away. Everyone stared at the people in the circle, how exactly was this not resulting in a fight? Then the guard turned around again and whipped fire at Lu Ten, who quickly blocked it and fired another blast at the guard, who also blocked. Observing this, Zuko realized that his cousin hadn't intended to hurt the guard, if he had, the blast would've been stronger, he thought.
The guard suddenly stood there, shaking his head slightly and sporting a cruel grin, "Tsk, tsk. Firebending is prohibited. You're going to the cooler. You!", he pointed at Sokka, "Help me take him in."
To Zuko's and Sokka's surprise, Lu Ten didn't struggle as he was chained and led away. Before he was too far away from him, the banished prince heard his cousin say, "I'm going to the cooler every day anyway, so I thought I might as well give you a reason.", Zuko just stood there for a long moment. The amused undertone in his cousins last words… That he was even here. He wondered how that came to be.
Back inside the building Sokka led Lu Ten to the coolers, together with the other guard. As they closed the door behind him, the guard told Lu Ten, "The warden will deal with you soon.", then he turned to Sokka, "Can you believe this guy?"
Remembering to play along, Sokka said, "Prisoners! Am I right?", unbeknownst to him, inside the cooler, Lu Ten's eyes shot towards the little window in the door. Maybe the iron walls changed the tone, but he was somehow sure, the voice was familiar. Sokka? What was the boy doing here?
The other guard answered, "Ugh, tell me about it."
Sokka opened the little window in the door and looked through it. There sat Lu Ten, knees pulled up to his chest, slightly shivering, while his lips started to appear more blue than red. The Fire Nation prince didn't look at him, and Sokka wondered if he had recognized him at all. After he closed it again, he asked the other guard, "Hey, I've been only here for a short time, does he really get sent to the cooler every day? What did he do?"
The other guard shrugged his shoulders, "Yes, he gets sent in there every day. Apparently, the Fire Lord himself is very angry at him, to say the least, so …", he gestured towards the cooler, "I don't know what he did exactly, but apparently, he somewhat contributed to the failed invasion and from the rumors, the Fire Lord himself interrogated him and was fuming afterwards. Thus, he joined us here."
"It sure looks cold in there.", Sokka said.
"That's why we call it the cooler. He won't be firebending there.", the guard said with a smug grin. Then he noticed something and quickly stood at attention, "It's the warden! Look alive!"
The guard then opened the door of the cooler for the warden, a tanned, brown-haired man around the age of Sokka's father, maybe a little bit older. The warden bowed down towards Lu Ten. Mockingly he said, "Prince Lu Ten, ts, ts. I hear you used firebending to try to escape. Pretty pathetic in my eyes. You should know better."
Lu Ten shot him a glare, "I wasn't trying to escape."
"He's lying! I saw it with my own eyes.", the other guard interrupted, but was pushed aside by the warden's body guards.
The warden continued as if nothing happened, "No one has ever, ever escaped from here. I'd sooner jump into the Boiling Lake myself than let that record fall. I'd suggest you don't forget that. Now, go back to your shivering.", he said as he closed the door again.
A while later, he had, like almost every time, lost track of time in that capsule, the door finally opened again and in front of him stood the guards who brought him in, one of which he suspected to be his Water Tribe friend. Figure and skin color would match. "Stand up! You're going back to your cell.", the other guard commanded. He followed as fast as he could, his body was a little stiff after the time in the cold. Now, how could he confirm if that guard really was Sokka? He couldn't think of anything that wouldn't cause suspicion or could have him end up in the cooler again. Maybe if he would wait, the boy would reveal himself. And really as they had him back in his cell and the other guard already walked away, the younger one turned around quickly, raised his visor and winked. Yep, definitely Sokka. Lu Ten walked to his mattress and sat down, what was the boy doing here? Was the whole group nearby? What on earth were they thinking, coming here?
Back in the yard, Zuko approached a guard he suspected might be Sokka, "Hey there, fellow guard, how goes it?"
"Zuko?", the other guard asked, lifting his visor to confirm the banished prince's suspicion.
Swiftly, Zuko moved closer to the Water Tribe boy, "Shh! Listen, I asked around the lounge. There are no Water Tribe prisoners. I'm afraid your father's not here."
"What? Are you sure, did you double-check?", the other boy asked desperately.
With a quick nod, Zuko answered, "Yeah, I'm sure. Now, what is with my cousin?"
Sokka's expression got a little lighter, "Yeah, maybe he knows something. I know where his cell is, and I think he knows it's me. I guess, you want to talk to him?"
Zuko looked down for a moment, did he really want to talk to Lu Ten? He could understand if his cousin was still furious at him, so maybe it wasn't the best idea… but then he nodded and followed Sokka into the building.
Lu Ten heard two sets of steps approaching. There were a lot of possibilities what the reason that for was and who just stopped before his cell door, so he hid himself in the corner by the door, just in case. It wouldn't be the first time a random guard would come in and try to beat him up. The door opened and a guard stepped in, from his silhouette, still pretty young, but from his skin color, not Sokka. The door closed behind the guard, and the guard looked around, seemingly confused to see an empty room in front of him. Lu Ten attacked before the guy could think of the only place where someone could hide and in mere seconds, the guard was pressed against the wall, hands behind his back. The guard struggled, but to no avail. He whispered in the guard's ear, "Now, what are you supposed to do here?"
Zuko was panicking, this didn't go as planned. He expected that his cousin might be angry, but he hadn't expected being attacked right away. Still pressed against the wall he choked out, "Cousin, Sifu, please...", a moment later he almost fell to the floor, because all pressure against his body suddenly vanished.
He could hear his cousin whisper, "Zuko?", two hands grabbed him by the shoulders, pulled him back up and turned him around. Then his helmet flew to the ground and his cousin's hands cupped his face. Amber eyes locked as they smiled at each other. "Baby Cousin, it's really you.", no hint of anger was in his cousin's voice, "What are you doing here?", before he could answer, Lu Ten pulled him in a tight hug.
Zuko was taken aback, so he just stood there, motionless for a moment. Then he hugged his cousin back and buried his face in Lu Ten's neck. He felt his cousin slowly stroking the back of his head like he did when Zuko was small and only then realized that tears were streaming down his face. Confused he sobbed, "But, but why aren't you angry with me?"
Lu Ten pulled away from the hug and looked at his cousin, holding him up by his shoulders. Then he ruffled Zuko's hair, "I was. After I heard what happened in the catacombs, I was angry, I just couldn't wrap my head around what you did and why. And I was angry at myself for not being there to stop you. But over time, I think I began to understand, why you did what you did. I saw that you had lost your way, that you were struggling, and all I could do was just hope that you would find it again."
Zuko smiled at his cousin, wiping the tears out of his eyes, he said, "After the invasion I followed Aang in a war balloon and joined their group. I had expected that you would be there, but you weren't, and everything went different than I had planned but…"
Lu Ten interrupted him, "You've joined Aang's group? How are they? What were you up to in the meantime? Wait…", he suddenly stopped, "We might not have that much time. But tell me later. There are some things I need to tell you too. For now, I guess, Sokka's standing guard outside? Are the others here as well?"
Zuko shook his head, "No, the others aren't here. We two just took the war balloon and came here. We've been looking for Sokka's dad, he doesn't seem to be here, but at least we found you."
His cousin laughed shortly, "Yes, at least, you've found me.", then he was silent for a moment, seemingly thinking of something, "About Hakoda…"
Zuko interrupted him, "You know him?"
"Sure.", Lu Ten said simply, "Well, in my time here I heard about a few things. There aren't many war prisoners here, but there are some. Apparently, they're singling out the leaders and bring them here to avoid riots in the normal prisons. There's a girl about your age here, I think Sokka mentioned her before, her name's Suki. She was the leader of the Kyoshi Warriors. I guess you know about them?"
He raised an eyebrow as Zuko rubbed the back of his head, "Kind of…"
"Don't tell me…", Lu Ten started.
"We had an encounter while I was hunting Aang and I sort of… burnt their village.", the banished prince admitted.
Lu Ten looked really disappointed. He let out a long sigh, shaking his head before he continued, "I don't know where her cell is, but you should apologize to her if you meet. But what I meant was, they will most likely bring Hakoda here too. I suspect, as soon as his injury has healed enough. Shouldn't be too long. If we wait a few days, he might join us. Tomorrow I can get some information about the next arrivals, I think."
Zuko looked surprised, "How are you going to do that? You're…"
"Imprisoned? Yes, but there are ways, Baby Cousin. Some inmates know more than the most guards. Also, there's an old friend from my time in the army imprisoned as well. He'll help, I'm sure.", Lu Ten explained.
"The guy you saved in the court?", Zuko asked curiously.
Lu Ten nodded, "Yes, Chit Sang. But I didn't save him from the guard. He's perfectly capable of defending himself. I just saved him from going into the cooler, because I get there every day anyway, mainly because your father has taken a liking in me.", and as he saw Zuko's downcast expression, he added, "Don't be too hard on yourself, what your father did is not your fault, Zuko.", he lifted Zuko's chin up and smiled at him.
But Zuko looked at him questioningly, "You really think so?"
Lu Ten nodded, "Yes, of course I do, Baby Cousin.", he picked up Zuko's helmet and put it back on the boy's head, "Now you should go and tell Sokka about Suki. I think he'll want to bring her along. Don't forget that we need to be patient and careful. Don't blow your covers, alright?", Zuko nodded, "Okay, then meet me tomorrow around lunch in the yard, at the stairs where you saw my intermezzo with the guard today, yes? Then I'll know if Hakoda will arrive here soon or not.", Zuko nodded again, "And Baby Cousin?", he pulled the banished prince in a hug, "Do me a favor and try to stay out of trouble, yes?"
Zuko pulled away, with a slight grin on his face, "I'll try, but I can't promise anything."
After his cousin had left his cell Lu Ten sat down on his mattress and thought deeply about everything. Now that the teenage boys were infiltrating the prison, the tiles on this Pai Sho board were suddenly changed. Before there were mainly Chit Sang, himself and a few other former army members, the mass of prisoners, and of course, the guards and the warden. It seemed to him like the times he had played the board game with his father, and Iroh pulled a White Lotus tile out of his sleeve only to turn Lu Ten's well-thought tactics into mere child's play. Now they maybe had a better shot at trying to escape this prison.
His gaze shot up as he heard guards run down the hallway, yelling, "Impostor!", he grimaced. Didn't I told you about an hour ago to keep out of trouble and not blow your covers? Hopefully it wasn't his young friends, or at least, not both. A quick struggle echoed through the hallways, before everything went silent again.
Lu Ten waited patiently for whatever would happen next. What else could he do from inside his cell? Then somebody knocked on the door, whispering, "Lu Ten? Are you in there?", it was Sokka. He looked through the window in the cell door.
He stood up and walked over to it. "Of course, I'm here Sokka. This is a prison, not a spa. It's not like I can go wherever I like.", he hissed.
"I just wanted you to know that they caught Zuko. He's now a prisoner too. But we'll still meet tomorrow as you said. Then we'll make up a plan to get all of us out of here.", the Water Tribe boy continued.
Lu Ten nodded and Sokka closed the window in the door. He sat down again and leaned against the iron wall. These kids… he wondered if he had been like that back when he was their age. The thought made him feel old. Maybe he had been, okay, but at least he hadn't broken into a high security prison without even knowing if who they were searching for was there and without any plan how they could escape. He let out a long sigh. There was nothing left today than to wait for tomorrow. He forbit his mind to think about his family, his son, his wife, his father, but instead to focus on the task at hand. Together with Chit Sang they would find out if Hakoda would be sent here soon. Then they needed an escape plan. His mind trailed over the structure of the prison, the amount of people inside it… Then a smile formed on his face, there are more of us than there are of them.
The next morning, he felt more energetic than he had in weeks. Finally, there was something to do, and his hands tickled in anticipation. As soon as the iron doors opened, he stepped out quickly and began searching for his friend Chit Sang. It didn't take him too long to find him, since the short haired man was easily a head taller than most other inmates. Chit Sang stared at him for a moment when he saw him, he hadn't seen Lu Ten this happy since their time in the army. Cheerfully the prince approached him, "Good Morning, Captain! I hope you had a good night's sleep. Finally, there are news and, more importantly, something to do as well.", he pulled Chit Sang's head a bit down by slinging his arm around the tall man's shoulders before he whispered in his hear, "My cousin and a friend of ours have infiltrated the guards. My cousin has been discovered, but our friend was not. We will finally make a plan to escape. But there is some information we still need. Maybe you could help with that?", the other man smirked and nodded, then Lu Ten explained, "Can you find out who the next arrivals are? There's a chance that a friend of ours is among them. Also, can you get the other former army members on a meeting? Preferably somewhere where the guards don't see us. We might need their help.", again, Chit Sang nodded.
"I think they will flock to your banner, Sir.", he said in a low voice. Lu Ten nodded, then he let go of the tall man and watched him disperse into the crowd.
Around lunchtime Sokka found Zuko and Suki and all three of them headed towards the stairs, where Lu Ten sat in the shadow next to a very tall man. Zuko's cousin smiled at them and gestured for them to sit alongside him and the other guy. As everyone sat down Lu Ten began to speak, "Good to see all of you. Suki, you already know all of us, but Sokka and my cousin do not. So, Sokka, Zuko, this is Captain Chit Sang, formerly of the 31st division, Captain, these are my friend Sokka and my cousin Zuko.", he gestured to everyone accordingly. "Now that you all know each other, the captain has acquired some information about your father, Sokka."
Chit Sang nodded, "Indeed. It wasn't that easy, but I managed to find that he'll be one of the next arrivals. They will set foot on this island tomorrow morning.", the Water Tribe boy's face lit up in an instant.
"That's great! Thank you, Captain!", Sokka cheered.
Lu Ten nodded knowingly, "Yes, that is great. But we still need an escape plan. Does one of you have an idea?"
Sokka thought about it, "Hmm, maybe we could retrieve one of the coolers and use it as a boat to get over the boiling lake."
Everyone looked at him, slightly surprised. "And how exactly are we going to get one of these out of the prison, you know, without anyone noticing it?", Zuko asked.
"One of you just has to unscrew it while being inside.", the Water Tribe boy explained, causing the banished prince to let his head fall into his hands.
Lu Ten chuckled slightly at his cousin's reaction, then he added, "Also, I'm not sure that these things float, besides, who is going to help us up the wall of the caldera once we're over the lake?", as he saw the boy's slumped down shoulders and sad expression he reached out and laid a comforting hand on Sokka's shoulder, adding in a warmer tone, "It's going to be okay, Sokka. I'm sure, your father and you will come up with a better plan once he's here."
The Water Tribe boy looked at him half-questioning and half-reassured. Lu Ten nodded slightly, "Alright, for today, we're going to keep our heads down. Whatever you do, don't act suspicious. When Hakoda is brought to his cell, you, Sokka, will go and talk to him. Only you can do that. You two then work out an escape plan and we'll meet here tomorrow at lunch again and discuss it. Then we'll destroy the warden's record. Now we should disperse, it won't be good if a guard sees us all together. See you tomorrow.", with that he stood up, brushed the dust off his prisoner garb and the others quickly followed his example and everyone except for Chit Sang disappeared into a different direction.
The tall man grinned at Lu Ten, "You still got the same tone I remember from Ba Sing Se to you. This "I'm in charge and no one dares to discuss my orders"-one. Ready to face the troops, sir?", wordless, Lu Ten nodded. They headed off to a particular spot in the yard. It laid between two tall iron walls and hardly could any guard look down on them from the walls nor straight at them from the yard. Around thirty to forty men stood more or less suspiciously in and around it. They all looked different in appearance, yet they had one thing in common. The look in their eyes, they were all deployed in the war, they all had seen terrible things, did terrible things, and had now ended up here.
Lu Ten stood confidently in the middle of the hidden spot. He raised his voice a little, so the men could hear him, "Greetings, dear comrades! I suspect Captain Chit Sang has already told you who I am?", they all nodded, some mumbled accordingly while others even bowed respectfully. "Good.", he smiled, "I think we can all agree on a few things. We've all seen what war is like first-hand. I think, we all want this one to end rather sooner than later. And concerning we're all here, I guess, no one of us want my uncle to win it.", again, some of the prisoners nodded, Lu Ten continued, "And I think all of us want to leave this place and see our families, our wives, our children again, am I right?", the nods got more decisive, while others agreed verbally, "So, listen. I and a few other people want to escape this place so we can help the Avatar end the war. The plan is not waterproof yet. But I think, we might need some kind of distraction, someone to keep the warden and his men from following us or stopping the gondolas. So, my proposition to you is the following. Once I give the signal, you storm upwards to the gondolas and suppress the guards, until we made it to the other side. Then you take the next gondola while Captain Chit Sang and I provide cover. Then we flee together. How does that sound? Afterwards you can decide for yourself if you want to follow me and help the Avatar or just go into hiding until everything is over. I won't judge you on your decision.", he looked from one man to another, waiting for their reaction. The men looked at their comrades for a few moments, then they bowed all at once. Lu Ten's smile widened, in a warm tone he said, "Thank you, comrades."
Chit Sang laid a hand on his shoulder, "Well done, sir. I told you, they flocked to your banner.", Lu Ten let out the breath he had been holding and smiled at Chit Sang's comment.
The following morning, he was early out in the courtyard. He didn't go up to see the new arrivals, he didn't want to raise suspicions. Lu Ten knew, Sokka was there, and his cousin was with him to prevent any telling behavior from the Water Tribe boy. He sat calmly in an almost meditating position, Chit Sang standing next to him with an unreadable expression. If they were lucky, this day would be their last day on this island. Throughout the prisoner crowd he made out a few of the former soldiers he had met up with the other day, they all did what they usually would, just sending short glances towards one another once in a while.
All of sudden, Chit Sang sat down next to him. The tall man looked at the ground as he began to speak in a low voice, "Prince Lu Ten, before we enter this fight today, there is something I wanted to get off my chest upfront. It has been following me for quite some time in the last years."
Lu Ten raised an eyebrow at the man, but then smiled, "Sure, whatever it is, please go on."
Chit Sang was silent for a short moment, then he cleared his throat, "Back in the Earth Kingdom, it was my job to protect you. But when that wall exploded, I was not even remotely near to you. Ever since, I made myself responsible for your fate, I still do. I'm very sorry what happened back then, it should've been me."
Lu Ten's smile had vanished, he immediately felt pity for the man, just looking at his guilt-stricken expression. He reached out and laid a hand on Chit Sang's shoulder, "Captain, it was not your job to protect me, you just always thought it that way, but I am, and I was capable of defending myself. You're by no means responsible for what happened to me, nor Zhang, nor anyone else. If anyone of us bears the responsibility for what happened back then, it is me. Zhang should not have died, I should have.", and as he saw Chit Sang's surprised reaction he continued, "Walls don't just explode randomly. Throughout my travels with the Avatar, I found out what happened on that day. There was an assassin, he was sent for me. I've met him again, and he confirmed it. He uses a special kind of firebending that relies on a concentrated beam, exploding when it hits the target. I'm somewhat sure my uncle was behind it, now, I don't have proof for that, but I don't see anyone else with a motive, and everything, starting with my supposed death, just fell in line so easily for his power grab that it'd make me wonder if he hadn't set it all up."
The tall man looked at the ground for some time in complete silence, just processing everything he had heard. Then he nodded. Lu Ten too, was silent, then he thought of something, "I might have a special mission for you though, captain.", Chit Sang's head shot up, "I usually don't tell that to everyone, but I know I can trust you. Before we went out to war, I had secretly married a woman named Jeong Lian. We do have a son; his name is Taiyo. I don't know their exact location, the last information I got was that they were hiding in a village called Lomong, near Ba Sing Se. My uncle too has gotten wind of it and sent the Rough Rhinos after them. Now, with a little bit of luck and maybe with the help of the former admiral Jeong Jeong, who is Lian's father, they might still be alive. For your mission. If everything goes south, and I mean, if my uncle wins this war or if I should perish at some point, would you search for them and protect them on my behalf?"
Chit Sang nodded, "Of course, Sir. If it comes down to it, I'll protect your son with my life.", he stood up again, smiling at Lu Ten, who smiled back, "Thank you, Captain. This means a lot to me."
As Lu Ten's gaze flew over the crowd, he saw his cousin and Suki walking straight towards them. Both teens sat down in front of him, his cousin started talking, "Hakoda arrived, Sokka is at the moment talking to him in his cell. I don't think anyone is suspecting us."
Lu Ten smiled at his cousin, "Great. So, everything we've got to do is wait for lunch."
All of sudden they all went silent when a shadow fell upon them, it was a guard. He gestured towards Zuko, "You there! You're coming with me!"
In mere seconds Lu Ten stood between the guard and his cousin, "Where do you want to take him? If you want to send someone to the cooler for no reason, you can take me instead.", Zuko just sat there, mouth agape. He hadn't thought that his cousin would defend him like that, even if he had forgiven him.
The guard stared into Lu Ten's eyes for a second, then he said, "Back off, prisoner! There's someone who wants to talk to him specifically.", he shoved a surprised Lu Ten out of the way and pulled Zuko up, forcing him to follow. The cousins shared a last worried glance before Zuko disappeared behind the prison's iron doors.
The small group waited in the yard for lunch time, just sitting around, not talking much. Chit Sang thought, one could see that Lu Ten was worried about his cousin, but he suspected, from the usually controlled demeanor of the prince, that he was inwardly freaking out about what was happening to the boy. He too, found this very unusual. Then again, the last few days were everything but normal in any way.
A while later Lu Ten was sitting in the shadow of the stairs where they wanted to meet. His hands were clenched together, his elbows firmly on his knees, his head on his hands and eyes closed. Chit Sang knew this pose. He knew it from the war, especially one occasion when their unit was trapped between three groups of earthbenders. Lu Ten's mind was racing, mainly about what was just happening to his cousin and how this would influence their plans. Chit Sang remained silent. He knew, if he would disturb Lu Ten for no reason now, the prince would most likely snap at him. Then again, if he would not disturb him, Lu Ten might come up with a solution in some time. So, he just scanned the crowd around them. Suki leaned on the wall next to them. She seemed calm, but it was the calmness of a predator that could easily spring into action at any second.
Suddenly Lu Ten's head shot up. He smiled at the new prisoner joining them, but Hakoda immediately the tension in his friend's smile. The Water Tribe Chief smiled back as he and his son, who was still clad in a guard uniform joined the small group. Sokka spoke up, "Hey everyone! Good to see you. Hey, where's Zuko?"
The other three shot a quick glance to one another, then Lu Ten answered, "A guard came and took him with him. Apparently, someone wants to interrogate him. I don't know who or why… Anyway, he hasn't returned since then.", then he looked at Hakoda, "Hello my friend, good to see you."
Hakoda nodded with a warm smile, "Good to see you too, Lu Ten. I heard you don't want to stay here?", all of them chuckled as the Chief and his son sat down among them.
After Sokka introduced his father to everyone, Hakoda started to explain what they had thought of, "The way I see it, the only way from and to this island is the gondolas, there is no way around it.", Lu Ten nodded slightly, "So, we need to capture one and make it across. Yet, they probably won't let us do that out of good will."
Sokka then took over, "Thus, we'll need an argument for them not to cut the rope. And I think, the best argument for that would be to take the warden with us. He'll hardly order his own death, or at least, his subordinates will be hesitant to follow that order."
Lu Ten nodded again and smiled, "Okay,", he looked over to Chit Sang, "We might have a surprise for them up our sleeves as well.", and as everyone looked at him questioningly, he explained, "There are some other former army members in here. After our talk yesterday, the Captain and I talked to them, and they will help us as well. So, we just need to find my cousin and the warden and then let's go."
Sokka interrupted him, "First of all, we need a distraction, so we can move freely. A riot would come in handy."
To Lu Ten's surprise, Hakoda stood up, "No problem.", the Water Tribe Chief grinned smugly. Lu Ten raised an eyebrow as everyone stood up and followed Hakoda. The Chief shoved an unsuspecting prisoner, who let out a little yelp of pain and surprise.
"Hey! What'd you do that for? That hurt my feelings.", the small man whined.
"Aren't you mad at me?", Hakoda asked perplexedly.
"Uh, normally I would be, but I've been learning to control my anger.", the prisoner explained as Lu Ten couldn't stifle his laughter, earning himself an angry look from his Water Tribe friend.
"I'm sorry.", he said apologetically, wiping a tear from his eyes, "But that was hilarious."
"Well, it wasn't working as I hoped it would.", Hakoda said grumpily, almost muttering to himself.
"Indeed, my friend.", Lu Ten agreed, still in an amused tone, "But we still need that distraction. Captain, would you help us out."
Chit Sang nodded, smiling, "My pleasure, Sir.", he went over and took the man Hakoda shoved up above his head, roaring loudly, "Hey!", and as everyone looked at him, "Riot!", and from one second to another every prisoner fought with everyone else, be it a guard or another prisoner.
"Impressive.", Sokka peeped up, a shocked expression on his face.
"Indeed.", Lu Ten added, smiling proudly.
A guard appeared out of the fog, the fighting had created, but was taken down by someone from behind him. "Zuko!", Sokka exclaimed happily, "Good, we're all here. Now all we need to do is grab the warden, and get to the gondolas!"
"And how do we do that?", Zuko asked, still catching his breath.
"I'm not sure.", Sokka admitted.
"Ugh! I thought you thought this through!", Zuko hissed angrily.
"I thought you told me it's okay not to think everything through", Sokka looked pleadingly to Lu Ten for help, but only saw him with a sceptic expression, eyebrow raised at them, arms crossed.
"Guys, this is leading nowhere. We just need to get up there and grab him, it shouldn't be that complicated.", he intervened. They couldn't waist this opportunity with two teens bickering after all.
"Uhm, folks, I think, your girlfriend is taking care of it.", Chit Sang threw in, making everyone stare at Suki, who was running above the heads of the rioting prisoners, like she did that all her life. The Kyoshi warrior then rapidly climbed the iron building until she was on the same balcony as the warden. She quickly tied him up using the man's headband and pressed him against the wall. Suddenly the group snapped back into action and ran into the building to get up on her level.
As they arrived, she said, "We've got the warden! Now let's get out of here!", while everyone else tried to catch their breaths.
"That's some girl.", Hakoda said admiringly.
"Tell me about it.", Sokka smiled proudly, before they hurried after her and towards the gondolas.
As they approached the gondola platform, they were stopped by some guards. The guards attacked right away and Zuko and Lu Ten immediately went in front of the group, blocking the blasts. "Back off! We've got the warden!", Zuko yelled at them, making the guards stop attacking and clear their way to the gondolas.
"Let's go!", Lu Ten motioned for everyone to go on, while he watched the guards closely for any suspicious move, be it ever so little.
The group entered the gondola that was docked at their end of the rope and just as Sokka closed the door, Lu Ten saw that his cousin still stood on the platform, clearly thinking about something. Then he started to kick the handle that was used to start and stop the gondola moving. Lu Ten was shocked for a moment, what was that boy doing? He didn't give himself the time to answer as he saw the guards approaching Zuko, who was still kicking that damned handle. Quickly, Lu Ten leapt out of one of the gondola's windows and blocked the fire blasts coming at his cousin.
Zuko hadn't seen the guards firing at him, until there was movement at his side, and he saw Lu Ten shielding him. He shot his cousin a surprised look, earning an angry one in return. "Whatever you're doing, get it done already!", Lu Ten shouted over, while he continued to protect Zuko. After a few more kicks, the handle broke off with a loud clang. Zuko nodded to Lu Ten, together they shot two strong fire blasts at the guards, who ducked under it, while the cousins jumped over to the gondola, barely making it, both being grabbed by their Water Tribe friends. Together with Chit Sang they hurled them in.
"What were you doing?", Sokka asked them as they were safely inside.
"Making it, so they cannot stop us.", Zuko answered quickly.
"Way to think ahead.", the Water Tribe boy praised.
"Yes, if he would only tell somebody upfront.", Lu Ten added, still a bit disapproving of his cousin's talent to get into dangerous situations, "Anyway, we're on our way."
Hakoda watched the platform beneath them getting smaller ever so slowly, then he noticed something, "Wait, who's that?"
The others quickly came over. Lu Ten was the first to respond, "Trouble."
Zuko sighed, "It's my sister and her friend, that's going to be a problem.", they watched grimly as the princess and Ty Lee made their way over the cable towards them.
With a determined look on her face, Suki said, "This is a rematch I've been waiting for."
Zuko nodded, adding, "Me too.", as the teens swiftly climbed out of the window and onto the roof of the gondola.
Chit Sang looked at Lu Ten a bit perplexed. "Shouldn't you give the signal now?", earning a questioning look from Hakoda.
A knowing smile spread on Lu Ten's face, "Not yet."
"Are you not going to join them up there?", Hakoda asked worriedly.
Still smiling, Lu Ten closed his eyes, "In a moment."
All of sudden the warden freed himself enough to lean out the window and call over to his guards, "Cut the line!", before Chit Sang could restrain him again. Lu Ten had to admit, he had almost forgotten that man.
The guards on the platform hastily slammed metal bars into the cable mechanism to stop it, bringing it to a screeching halt. Before the gondola could regain its balance, Lu Ten was out of the window and jumped up on the roof, catching everyone by surprise. Azula just wanted to land a flaming kick at Sokka and everyone behind him when her foot was suddenly locked in her cousin's tight grip. Lu Ten allowed himself a short smirk at her, "Greetings, Cousin. Missed me already?", and as her expression changed from surprise to fury he shoved her away, almost throwing her off the gondola. Before anyone could react, Lu Ten created lightning, supposedly aiming at his cousin, which honestly shocked Zuko. First, how quickly his cousin managed to do that, the only one he had seen create lightning at this speed had been his father, but also, that Lu Ten would be capable of doing something like that, meaning, attempting to kill his cousin.
However, the lightning missed Azula by more than a meter, continuing past the gondola and going over the roof of the prison. Still, Lu Ten smiled as if he had landed a strike. Azula laughed humorlessly in defiance and mockery, "Ha, cousin, you're getting old and rusty! You should practice your aiming."
Lu Ten shook his head ever so slightly, calmly he said, "I don't think so, it went exactly where I meant it to.", Zuko looked as confused as Azula.
Suddenly they heard Ty Lee call, "They're about to cut the line!"
Azula and Ty Lee quickly made their way to a passing gondola on the parallel rope. Azula called out to them, "Then it's time to leave. Goodbye Zuko, Cousin Lu Ten."
Hastily everyone climbed down into the gondola again. Wondering how his cousin could be that calm, Zuko yelled, "They're cutting the line! The gondola is about to go!"
Hakoda commented, "I hope this thing floats."
Lu Ten was still smiling calmly, he even had his eyes closed. He seemed to listen closely for something, saying, "I don't think we will have that problem, my friend."
Seconds later they heard a roaring sound, they weren't sure what it was, but Chit Sang was by now smiling too. Lu Ten and him knew that sound, and plenty of Earth Kingdom soldiers too. It was the sound of an attack, of a military style ambush, Fire Nation style. They all looked out of the rear window and saw about forty men attacking the guards, quickly overwhelming everyone on the platform. Azula managed to injure a man as she arrived, but she was quickly surrounded.
As Lu Ten and the others had made it safely across, him and Chit Sang stayed back. He shot a quick fire blast in the air and the former soldiers retreated slowly into the other gondola in an organized manner. Azula and some guards wanted to stop them, but were held back by Chit Sang and Lu Ten shooting blasts and lightning at them from the other side of the rope, only stopping once everyone was across. Lu Ten quickly went over to the injured man, who was supported by two of his comrades. The prince looked at the man's wound, it was quite a large burn on his side. "What is your name, comrade?", he asked.
"Pao. Yun Pao, sir.", Lu Ten could hear the pain in the man's voice.
Empathetically he took over for one of the soldiers supporting the injured, telling him calmly, "Don't worry, Pao. We're going to bring you to a healer soon. Her name is Katara, she healed me too.", it was not an empty promise. He knew, they would return to the Avatar and his group, and Katara would be there to help Pao.
Pao answered with a tight-lipped smile. Sokka and Zuko ran up to them. "Hey, Lu Ten,", the Water Tribe boy began, "What do you think, should we take Azula's air ship for our escape?"
Lu Ten chuckled, "Sounds fitting, doesn't it?"
A while later he stood next to Hakoda in the steering cabin of the air ship. Sokka and his father were talking about a lot of things, mostly personal, so Lu Ten quickly excused himself and went to search for his cousin. He still needed to talk to him, but where to had the boy vanished?
He looked around nearly the whole ship, but only found some of the former soldiers, that where now acting as the crew of the air ship. He asked them if they had seen Zuko until one pointed to the very back end of the ship. There he found him, sitting quietly next to a large window, the setting sun coloring the scene. The banished prince looked out at the horizon, seemingly deep in thought.
With a content sigh, Lu Ten sat down next to him, "What's bothering you, Baby Cousin?"
Zuko jumped slightly. He hadn't noticed Lu Ten coming at him. He thought for a second, then he looked back out the window, "A lot, actually.", Lu Ten said nothing, but laid an arm around his cousin's shoulders, Zuko turned towards him, smiling briefly, he allowed himself to sink down a bit, laying his head down on his cousin's shoulder. They sat like that for a while, before Zuko said, "You know, I'm glad you're still alive, I really am.", Lu Ten raised an eyebrow, where was this going? "But I can't help feeling like I'm just the fifth wheel now. Aang now has his firebending teacher back, and uncle will have his son back, nobody needs me anymore. Uncle's going to hate me anyway."
Lu Ten couldn't say that he was surprised at this, maybe if so, then at the last sentence. He ruffled through his cousin's shaggy hair, before answering him in a warm tone, "Baby Cousin, that's not true. I don't think Aang will discard you, just because of me. He is not that type of person. Also, I look forward to seeing to your training again. We are not many people, even if we add the soldiers, so, we need everyone. And I'm sure, you're as valuable to the group as you could be, being Aang's Sifu or not doesn't change that. Also, I noticed that you have visited the Dragons, haven't you?"
Zuko nodded, a bit surprised, "Yes, Aang and I visited them, because my firebending was all of sudden visibly weaker after I changed sides. But how do you know?"
Lu Ten chuckled and held his palm out, creating a small flame. Zuko marveled at the fine texture it had and the almost golden elements in it, "I noticed your fire changing, just like mine had begun after father and I visited Ran and Shaw.", Zuko stared at his cousin, and Lu Ten laughed, "Please don't stare at me like I have a deadly virus. It's just a thing that happens after you visit them, it's neither good nor bad, it's just a thing, a process. Speaking of my father, that I'm still alive won't change his feelings for you, Baby Cousin, he'll love you just as much, like he did when you were small, like I'm sure he does now and I don't think he'll change that."
"But, he told me, that after he lost you, he thought of me as his own. Won't that change back now that you're alive?", Zuko unsurely asked.
Lu Ten shook his head, smiling. He ruffled through Zuko's hair again, "I don't think so. I think, he'll just see himself then as the father of two sons, rather than one. I must admit, I thought of you as my little brother as well.", this earned him a surprised look from Zuko. Lu Ten chuckled at him, "You're more important to us than you realized, am I right?", Zuko nodded as Lu Ten pulled him closer.
"Also,", he added, "If he's mad at one of us, it's going to be me anyway, so don't worry about it."
"Why should he be mad at you? He thought he lost you, but you're still alive. I'm sure he'll be overjoyed to see you.", Zuko threw in.
Lu Ten shook his head, "I'm not that sure, there's a lot to be mad about. I mean, okay, for the most part, I was imprisoned and couldn't change that, yes, but there were multiple occasions where I could've seen him, but didn't or even decided not to reveal myself. Like when you saw me standing just a few meters behind him in Ba Sing Se. I also could've joined him in the catacombs, I was fighting in the Earth King's palace that day. But I chose to stay with Aang. Then again, I could've chosen to free him from prison on my own, there are a lot of things I could've done, but didn't. Also, there's the thing with Lian…", he trailed off, now looking out of the window himself.
A confused Zuko looked up at him. "Lian? Who is Lian?"
Lu Ten smiled, but it had a hint of sadness to it, "Ah, you're a bit too young to have witnessed that. But I'm sure you remembered how I was often two or three days absent, the last few years before I went to war?"
Zuko nodded, "Yes, I've been told you had important matters to discuss with some admital."
Lu Ten chuckled, "Well, that's what my best friend Zhang and I told everyone. Actually, I went there to, well, date his daughter, Lian.", Zuko stared at his cousin, surprised, maybe even shocked. He never thought that Lu Ten would do such a thing, "A year before I went to Ba Sing Se, I asked grandfather for his blessing to marry her. But he rejected, because she is no noble. Father was present there too, I had hoped for his support, but he would not disobey our grandfather. Grandfather then ordered me to end the relationship. But I refused. I defied grandfather's and father's orders and married Lian in secret, with only Zhang and her father as witnesses. Baby Cousin, please close your mouth, you look ridiculous.", Zuko blinked twice, then he did as his cousin said.
"And well, the night before I left for Ba Sing Se, Lian told me that she was pregnant. Our plan was, I'd help father win the siege, we'd rename the city to New Azulon and to top it off, now we could also lay his first great-grandchild in his arms, then he would surely approve of our marriage. Maybe we were naïve, but we were still young.", he went silent, again, looking at the horizon.
Zuko needed to wrap his head around all of this for a long moment, then he said, "So, you have a wife and a child?"
Lu Ten smiled, "Yes, hopefully.", at Zuko's questioning look he answered, "Well, the child was born after my presumed death, so I never met my son. Before you ask, I didn't know anything about them for the major part of the last seven years, and I still have no idea where they are. They went into hiding as soon as they were sure I wouldn't return and they had the opportunity to. Which was probably very smart. But, well, apparently, my son misses me. At least enough to write me a letter. Unfortunately, your father had it before he handed it to me.", Lu Ten closed his eyes for a moment, his smile vanishing, "He has sent the Rough Rhinos after Lian and Taiyo.", looking at his cousin, he could see the sympathy in his eyes and the regret for his father's action, in a more bright tone he added, "Now, with a little bit of luck, they'll still be alive. Maybe my father-in-law was there or something else saved them."
Zuko looked doubtfully, then his eyes filled with shame as he looked at the floor. Lu Ten laid a finger under his cousin's chin and lifted it up, "Zuko, don't blame yourself for your father's actions. Whatever happened is not your fault. Even if my worst fears should come true, it was not your fault. Do you understand?", Zuko gulped, but then slowly nodded. Lu Ten then hugged him tightly and they continued their travel silently.
Later that night they arrived at the Western Air Temple. Immediately, Aang and the others came closer to the air ship, wondering what that meant. Sokka and Zuko went off the ramp first, as Katara asked them, "What are you doing with this thing? What happened to the war balloon?"
"It kind of got destroyed.", Zuko admitted a bit sheepishly.
"Sounds like a crazy fishing trip.", Aang popped in.
Toph asked, "Did you at least get some good meat?"
Sokka smiled, "I did. The best meat of all. The meat of friendship and fatherhood."
Hakoda exited the ship and Katara immediately ran up to him, "Dad?"
"Hi, Katara.", Hakoda greeted his daughter as they embraced each other.
Katara stammered, "How are you here? What is going on? Where did you go?"
"We kind of went to a Fire Nation prison.", Sokka hesitantly said as his father pulled him into the embrace.
"Seriously? You guys didn't find any meat?", Toph asked disappointedly. Then Lu Ten and the others also exited the ship. Only the soldiers stayed on the aircraft.
One of the soldiers called over to Lu Ten, "We're going to park this somewhere safe and hidden, yes, sir?", Lu Ten turned to him and nodded, smiling.
"Sifu Hotman!", Toph exclaimed, running up to him and hugging his waist, before Aang could reach him. "Great to see you on your feet.", the blind girl bubbled happily. Lu Ten laughed, hugging both, her and the young Avatar.
"Yes, it turned out, my cousin chose just the right prison.", he chuckled while gesturing for Zuko to join the hug, which the teen reluctantly did. "I hope you didn't slack off in your training while I was away, student?"
Aang smiled a bit nervously at him, "No, of course not. I had Zuko as my substitute teacher, and he even gave me homework while they were away."
"Oh, really, he did?", Lu Ten said in an amused tone, glancing over to his cousin. Then he got serious again, "We brought about forty men with us, all are former soldiers. They will help you with anything if you ask them. All of them are here on their free will, don't worry, you can trust them.", Aang nodded, still a bit unsure how to deal with that.
Then Lu Ten looked over to Chit Sang, who carried Yun Pao. Thus, Lu Ten walked over to Katara, asking, "Katara, one of the soldiers was wounded during our escape. Would you try to help him? His name is Yun Pao.", he gestured towards Chit Sang and his wounded comrade.
"Of course, good to see you again, by the way, Sifu Hotman.", the waterbender answered, still with tears in her eyes from her father's return. She quickly led Pao to a room and begun healing him.
Lu Ten closed his eyes for a moment, smiling. Back on track, he thought. Everything was back in order.