Chapter 1: The Nightmare

"I will always be with you." Yue's voice echoed in Sokka's ears. The beautiful moon spirit hovered over him. Her white flowing gowns spilling all along the ground. Her face was sad, eyes devastated. Sokka wanted so badly to comfort her, to hold her in his arms, but as he stretched out his hand, he realized that she was just out of reach.

"Yue." He whispered, tears streaming down his face. "I'm sorry."

"Sokka…" Yue's spirit floated closer to him, her face mere inches away. So warm and so fragile. Yet, as she came closer, Sokka felt his skin begin to crawl. A strange sensation gnawed inside of him. At his very soul. The closer she came, the worse it grew. What was this feeling?

All at once, the sadness vanished off Yue's face. Her kind timid features grew twisted with rage. Her eyes bored furiously into his and Sokka felt his stomach twist in horror.

"You." Her voice boomed through the air. "You failed to protect me!"

"No." He shook his head. "Yue, I tried. Believe me I–"

"You failed!" She screeched. "You killed me Sokka."

"No. No." Sokka began to back away. "I tried to save you, Yue. I would have given my life for you! I loved you." He felt his back press against a wall. There was no escape.

"You failed to protect me, Sokka." She seethed and advanced on his cowering form. "You failed to save me."

"N-no." He covered his head and closed his eyes, desperate to escape. "I tried to save you. I wanted to save you."

"You failed, Sokka! You did this to me!" Her voice was so close that he could feel her bone-chilling breath on the nape of his neck. He tried to back away, to break free from her grasp, but it was all in vain. No matter what he did he could never run away from what he'd done— what he'd failed to do.

"Look at me Sokka." She demanded.

He shook his head, not wanting to see.

"Look at me! Look at what you've done!" Against his own will, he felt his arms drop limply to his sides and his eyelids begin to flutter open. The goosebumps that now covered his body shivered in terror. He could feel shards of ice drifting down his spine and his heart felt like it was about to burst in his chest. When he opened his eyes at last, he could scarcely contain the scream.

Yue's face was shriveled and decaying. Her sunken yellow eyes watched him furiously as her sallow grayish mouth hung open like a corpse's. The white flowing gowns were now tattered and dirty, matching the horrific state of decay with uncanny perfection. Even the air around her seemed to smell of death. And through his trembling skin he could almost feel death's chilling embrace.

Sokka clamped his hand over his mouth, desperately pressing his back against the wall. Every fiber of his being wanted to scream out at once. His conscience tried feebly to reassure him that it was not his fault. That she could not blame him for her death. But deep down, Sokka knew it was his fault. He knew and that made it even worse.

Seeing her hands begin to reach for him once more, Sokka opened his mouth, seemingly to beg for mercy. But no sound came out. His throat clammed up to the point where he could scarcely breathe. All he could do was watch the skeletal aberration as its face pressed closer to his.

"You…failed…me." She was so close now that he could make out the individual holes in her skin. He could see the bits of bone protruding through the openings. Sokka's eyes screamed out in place of his voice. With every ounce of his strength he tried to look away, but his body was paralyzed.

"You killed me Sokka, and now I'll make you pay!"

Sokka shot up in his bed, the dream still hanging over him. The screams that he had been unable to voice until now tore furiously at his throat and seemed to rattle his very lungs. His heart pounded in his head like a heavy war drum. Each beat seemed to echo off the metallic walls of his cabin. For a moment, he saw Yue's corpse lingering in his room, but before he had a chance to blink it was gone.

Slowly, like the rising sun, reality began to sink in and the horrors of his nightmare faded back into the deep recesses of his mind.

It was only a dream, Sokka thought, breathing a heavy sigh of relief. Settling back into his bed, he felt his heart rate gradually return to normal. With his hand he wiped a layer of sweat that had formed on his brow and exhaled deeply. This time it had been almost too real.

He had been having dreams like this ever since Yue died. They had been quiet at first but over time they had grown more and more violent. A few months ago, it had even gotten to the point where he was afraid to fall asleep at night. It was that more than anything that led Suki to break up with him.

Not that I could blame her, Sokka thought with a sigh. It had been selfish of him to start a relationship with her when he still couldn't let go of the past. The truth was that Yue was still very much in his heart. And no matter how much it pained him, no matter how much it tortured his psyche, he just couldn't accept that she was gone. Maybe that was why—

A knock on his door snapped Sokka out of his musings. Who could that be at this hour, he wondered. The knocking grew more urgent.

"Sokka, sir, the Captain wishes to see you." A voice on the other end said anxiously.

"What is it?" Sokka strained his eyes in the darkness to find his clothes.

"There's been an accident, sir. Please hurry, the Captain said to summon you immediately."

Accident? Sokka scratched his head, what the hell kind of accident would require the Captain to summon him? Wearily, he grabbed his pants off the floor and slid them on. He gathered his shirt and slipped his arms through the sleeves and hastily pushed his feet into his boots. As he reached for his sword and boomerang holster, he became aware of the unusual silence in the room. That was when he realized that the ship's engines weren't running.

Captain Daris stood stiffly at the helm of the Reliance. The weariness on his face was mixed with unmistakable ire. He shot an irritable glance at the helmsman and the lesser man visibly quaked in his boots. The one thing Daris hated more than incompetence was being behind schedule. And when the two things were mixed into one, it took every ounce of his self-restraint not to bash someone's head in. Tearing his gaze off the poor man, he glanced at the dark murky waters of the ocean.

To think that once upon a time he had thought serving in the Fire Nation's navy to be the highest of honors. Now, with the war over and the Fire Nation humiliated, he felt his esteem slowly being chipped away along with his dignity. Reduced to the role of ferrying pompous dignitaries, he had contemplated quitting many times. But unfortunately, ideals didn't put food on the table, and in order to survive in this harsh post-war world he had no choice but to endure.

Endure–that very word made him sick and reminded him of just how far he had fallen. Turning back to the helmsman desperately fiddling with the various valves and switches, he sighed. Just when he had thought things couldn't get any worse...

"Ah, Captain." Daris instantly recognized the unmistakable upper-class pronunciation and snobby tone. Upon spotting the rotund man and his pig-like eyes, he felt his fists involuntarily clench.

Turning around to face him, he bowed politely. "Ambassador Chiang, welcome to the helm." It strained the last drop of Daris's remaining patience to keep up this façade.

"So, what is it then?" The Ambassador asked impatiently, motioning haughtily for his aide to come closer. His aide was a tall man with dark hair, a slightly gaunt face, and cold golden eyes. From his expression, it seemed like he too held a great distaste for the Ambassador's antics, but like the Captain he was too well trained to express it openly.

"Lord Ambassador." The aide stood at his side and bowed.

"Ah, Rui, there you are. Fetch me a strong cup of tea from the galley as fast as you can." He paused. "And some dumplings too."

"Yes, my lord." The aide bowed and swiftly headed towards the door. Daris noted the slight irritation in his eyes before he disappeared down the corridor.

Atleast I'm not the only one, Daris thought with contempt. If protocol didn't demand it, he would have gladly kept the Ambassador in the dark about this incident. The matter would most likely be resolved in a few hours, but the Ambassador would probably pester him about it for days. Saying how poorly the ship was being run, how frustrating it was for a person of his stature to travel on military vessels. How if he were in charge, things would run so much more smoothly. As if Daris didn't have enough reasons to resign.

"We've had an engine malfunction." Daris said at last and readied himself for the inevitable barrage of pointless questions. But before Ambassador Chiang could say anything else, the rest of the passengers filed into the room.

"Ugh, what a way to start off my day." Toph said with a yawn. She had grown a lot since she'd first joined with Team Avatar and her Earthbender robes seemed to reflect her newfound maturity. However, despite appearances, she was still the same arrogant person at heart. And while Daris eyed her with growing irritation, she absentmindedly dug her finger into her ear and fiddled it around.

"You said it." muttered a young woman next to her. Her name was Hakumi. She was tall and pretty, with blue eyes, and the dark skin and hair of a water tribesman. The representative of the Northern Water Tribe on this diplomatic mission, her calm and reserved personality was one of the few that didn't bother Daris.

Sokka was the last one to enter. The bags under his eyes and his gloomy demeanor seemed to fit in perfectly with the overall air of unpleasantness in the helm. Daris waited until he came to a halt before beginning his explanation.

"I apologize for waking you all at this hour, but due to protocol I must inform all senior officials in the event of an incident."

"So, what happened?" Toph asked impatiently, like Sokka, she too hadn't slept well.

"I was getting to that." Daris replied with an almost unbelievable calmness. "There's been an accident. Our engines have been damaged. We most likely won't be able to get under way for atleast several hours."

"What kind of accident?" Ambassador Chiang piped in, stroking his stubble.

"I'm not sure yet, I've only just received the report myself. I'm on my way to the engine room now if you wish to accompany me."

Toph yawned loudly, "Not like we have anything better to do."

The engine room of the Fire Nation ship Reliance was dark and cavernous. Every instrument, every pipe and valve, seemed almost sinister in the dim lighting that the few red lamps afforded. For many hours each day, engineers and crew members had to work in this treacherous chamber, laboring for an eternity in darkness. Only the knowledge that they would see the sky at the end of their shifts kept them going. Of course, the darkness didn't bother Toph at all. She was used to it.

Her whole life she had seen only darkness, but perhaps that was a blessing. Thanks to earthbending she could still see the world openly, night and day. Nothing was ever hidden and therefore nothing was ever scary. She had no reason to fear the dark or the unknown. To her everything was a whole lot simpler.

Clearly, however, the others didn't share her ambivalence towards darkness. Through her earthbending she felt the worried glances and the irregular heartbeats of the rest of the group. Captain Daris's heartbeat alone was steady, but she could sense him grinding his teeth. Doubtlessly the man was furious. She had seen him explode many times for minor infractions so she could scarcely imagine his irritation at something serious like this. But the one she was worried about most was Sokka. His vitals and heartbeat were especially unsteady.

He had had one of those nightmares again, she decided. As always, Yue was in his thoughts, slowly driving him mad. Toph wished he would open up to her about the dreams. She was his friend and she was becoming really concerned. But as always, Sokka avoided the topic, preferring instead to bottle up his emotions and ignore the problem for as long as possible.

But how much longer can he hold out, Toph wondered, shaking her head . He'll avoid the problem until it kills him, she decided bitterly.

"We're here." Daris announced and with a sharp turn of a handle he pulled open a watertight door. Immediately a thick grey smoke burst through the opening and the group rushed to cover their mouths.

"What in blazes." The Ambassador coughed through his hand. "Unbelievable."

"Sir!" A man in dark green goggles, fireproof apron, and steel-toed boots rushed up to Daris. The insignia on his uniform identified him as the Chief Engineer.

Daris coughed, waving the fumes out of his face. "What the hell's going on down here, Haro?"

"I'm not entirely sure, sir. One minute the engines were running fine, the next, boom! To tell you the truth I've never seen anything like it, sir. It's almost unnatural."

"Unnatural?" Daris cocked a brow. "Are there any signs of tampering?"

The engineer shook his head, "No, sir. If I had to guess I'd say this was a malfunction in the central steam pipe. Valves one and three are blown clear off. Furthermore, there appears to be serious damage to the turbine. That being said, while there are no obvious signs of tampering, I've never heard of this kind of malfunction on any other Fire Nation ships. Not simultaneously and definitely not to this extent."

Daris cursed, "Great, just what I need."

"Hmph, I expect you'll get this fixed soon, Captain." Ambassador Chiang said impatiently. "I have a schedule to keep and these delays are costing me precious time. If you don't get this mess straightened out quickly, I'll be forced to make a full report of your incompetence to the Admiralty."

Please do, thought Daris furiously, and I'll be sure to tell them what a useless sack of lard you really are. Constantly wasting the military's time and resources in pursuit of your hedonistic pleasures, I'm sure the Admiralty would be very interested to hear all about it.

"Haro," Daris said, burying his frustration, "How long will it take to repair?"

"Hard to say sir…" the Chief Engineer shifted his goggles. "If we were in a drydock, I could get this fixed in no time. But at sea, without the proper tools, it's anyone's guess when we'd be done. I'm not even sure we have sufficient parts to repair the damage."

"Perfect." Daris muttered sarcastically. Just perfect.

"Chief Engineer Haro!" A worker ran up to him. "Urgent message for Captain Daris. The helmsman wants to see him straight away."

"What is it now?" Daris asked testily. "I'm really not in the mood for any more bad news!"

"He wouldn't say, sir, only that he wants you at the helm straight away."

"Fine." Daris rubbed his temples and turned to the rest of the group. "If you'd all please accompany me topside."

Everyone breathed a silent sigh of a relief. The claustrophobic darkness of the engine room had grown a hundred times worse with all the smoke. Even Daris was somewhat glad to be returning to the helm.

The thought of finally leaving this place seemed to put a certain lightness in all their steps. As the other passengers began to follow the Captain back to the helm, Toph grabbed Sokka's sleeve.

"You okay?" she asked quietly.

"Fine." Came the laconic response.

"Liar." Toph yanked him back before he could walk away. "I know you had that dream again." Sokka sighed.

"Why won't you talk to me?" she asked, the concern obvious in her voice.

"Because there's nothing to say." He muttered, before yanking his sleeve out of her hand and falling in step with the others.

"What the hell is that?" Ambassador Chiang asked with disquiet.

"I-I'm not sure." Daris said almost to himself. The air outside had turned very hazy. A thick white fog hung over the water, practically obscuring it. The ocean around their ship had grown very still— almost uncharacteristically so. There was barely any wind at all. Visibility was rapidly deteriorating, but even through the increasingly dense fog, Daris could still make out the massive figure lurking in the distance.

It was huge. Atleast five or six times the size of their Fire Nation cruiser. From the way its outline shimmered, Daris could tell it wasn't an island—it was moving. Furthermore, as the object came into sight, he could make out various structures on it. Whatever the thing was, it was also man-made.

"Helmsman." He ordered, still trying to wrap his mind around what he was seeing. "Weigh anchor."

"Weigh anchor!" the helmsman shouted down the communication tube.

"Rouse the rest of the men." Daris said to a nearby officer. "I want all marines fully armed and on standby. Bring out the ballistas too, but quietly."

"Yes, sir."

"Are we in danger?" Ambassador Chiang asked nervously.

"Maybe." The corners of Daris's mouth curled up slightly. The look of fear on the Ambassador's face was a welcome change from his normally haughty demeanor.

"Shouldn't we go below?" Hakumi asked. "We're dignitaries not soldiers."

"I don't know about you, sister," Toph cracked her knuckles, "but I'm not about to run away crying."

"The helm is made of reinforced steel. Twice the thickness of the crew compartments. You're quite safe here." Daris reassured. He smirked as the Ambassador breathed a sigh of relief.

"Lord Ambassador." Rui walked onto the helm with a small tray. "Your tea and dumplings, my lord."

Chiang waved them away, "Not now, Rui, I've lost my appetite."

"I'll take one." Daris snatched a dumpling and swallowed it without chewing.

It had been a long time since he'd faced the thrill of battle. Unlike the passive officials that he ferried, Daris thrived in conflict. Living in peacetime for him was like being a fish out of water. This was a most welcome change in his day to day drudgery. Maybe this accident would turn out to be the highlight of his "diplomatic" career.

The hulking mass continued to move closer, though at an extremely slow pace. Out on the deck of the Reliance the crew were busy setting up the ballistae. Fire Nation marines in full uniform began to form up in the center, their skull-like faceplates cold and menacing. Even the non-benders began to ready themselves for battle, many grabbing spears and broadswords. There was no telling what they might face and in the worst-case scenario they might need every available hand to defend the ship.

"Captain!" The helmsman shakily lowered the telescope from his eye.

"What is it?" Daris asked.

"See for yourself, sir." He held out the telescope and Daris snatched it out of his hand.

At first he could see nothing, the fog around the object obscured it entirely. Then suddenly, the fog peeled away and the hulking mass came clearly into few. It was an enormous floating station, larger than anything Daris had ever seen. The whole thing was metal, from stem to stern. At its center was a massive conning tower, larger than their entire ship. Surrounding it were hundreds of smaller adjacent structures of varying purpose and design. At the far end of the station was a gigantic metal rig from which scores of hooks on chains dangled ominously. But perhaps the most interesting feature, the one that had probably grabbed the helmsman's attention, was the huge Fire Nation insignia painted black across its side.

For once in his life, Daris was stumped. As far as he knew, there weren't any Fire Nation stations of that size anywhere along their course. More importantly almost all fueling stations and rigs had been withdrawn after the war ended. It just didn't make sense. How did an unknown station of that size, bearing the Fire Nation emblem, end up all the way out here?

As the station pitched and yawed with the ocean, countless metallic groans echoed in the distance. The vessel looked and sounded abandoned, but even so Daris couldn't shake the feeling that there was someone or something on board.

Probably just crabs and seaweed, he thought bemusedly, but even his crude sense of humor could not dispel the ominous feeling that had formed in the pit of his stomach.

"That thing's Fire Nation?" Sokka voiced loudly, the station now visible to the naked eye.

"Who else's could it be?" Hakumi said with clear distaste. "Only the Fire Nation could construct such a monstrosity."

Daris eyed her testily. Now even she was getting on his nerves.

"But why is it here, in the middle of nowhere?" Sokka asked.

"Who knows?" Hakumi shrugged. "The Fire Nation was always secretive about their various projects. This might be one of them. My fellow tribesmen found several abandoned outposts up by the North Pole after the war."

"More importantly," Daris overrode them, "This may well be a way out of our current predicament. A vessel of that size must surely have spare parts."

"You're not suggesting," Ambassador Chiang swallowed hard, "That we dock with that thing? Are you?"

"Why not?" Daris smirked. "It's clearly abandoned. A ghost ship by the looks of it."

"Ghost?" Chiang's eyes fell timidly to the ground.

"Get the chief engineer up here." Daris ordered. "And get a boarding party ready."

"Right away sir." The helmsman scurried off.

"You're not actually thinking of going aboard that thing, Captain?" Hakumi asked.

"Don't tell me you're superstitious, Representative."

"It's not that, it's just…" Hakumi's voice trailed off. By now the station was so close to the Reliance that the entire vessel was drowned in the station's shadow.

"Just what?" Daris eyed her curiously. "Look, Representative, you don't have to come aboard. As of right now this is a military operation and there's no need to involve yours–"

"Just one moment, Captain." Ambassador Chiang said in an unusually boisterous voice. "You don't expect to keep us in the dark, do you? If you're going aboard this vessel then I'm coming too. It's my official duty, after all, as head of this delegation."

"I'm coming too." Hakumi said. Now that the Fire Nation Ambassador had decided to go she couldn't afford to stay on board and lose face. "After all I can't miss this opportunity to see one of the Fire Nation's secret outposts up close."

"I guess I'll come along too." Sokka said. "The chief engineer may need a hand."

"Ditto." Toph added.

"I think I'll stay on board." Rui said calmly. "I wouldn't want to get in the way."

"Nonsense." Ambassador Chiang huffed, "I may have need of you. Besides, it's your sworn duty to accompany me wherever I go. So you're coming!"

Rui pursed his lips and sullenly nodded his acceptance.

"Very well then." Daris said, not entirely sure what had just happened. "Just try not to get in the way."

"Sir!" The helmsman, accompanied by the Chief Engineer and an officer waited in the corridor. Daris folded his arms behind his back and the three of them entered and bowed politely. All three looked uneasy.

"Chief Engineer Haro," Daris began, "You and your engineers will scavenge the station in search of necessary parts. Take whatever you need."

"Yes, Captain." Haro bowed his head, then uneasily. "Uh, sir?"

Daris cocked a brow, "What is it, Haro?"

"Do you think it's safe? Going aboard that…thing?"

"Not you too, Haro." Daris shook his head. "Lieutenant Ai and his marines will be along with us for the ride. If we run into any trouble, they'll be more than able to handle it. Isn't that right?"

"Sir, yes, sir!" The officer barked, his shouting covering up the nervousness in his voice.

Haro nodded his head, "Very well, Captain. I'll do my part."

"Good. As for me and the passengers, we'll take a few marines and see if we can find out what this station is. No matter what, we all regroup back at the ship in one hour. Got it?" Everyone nodded in agreement.

Dropping its anchors once more, the Reliance docked with the station.

Inside the station was the same on the as it was on the outside, Hakumi decided, dark and ominous. They had been walking for around twenty minutes now and every corridor was pretty much the same. All in all, the place was a mess. Water dripped from the ceilings. Seaweed and various muck coated the floors. Everything was in shambles. Whatever the station was and whatever its original purpose had been, it had clearly been abandoned for some time. The deeper they went the more hopeless their search for answers seemed to grow.

"Maybe we should check down there?" Ambassador Chiang asked nervously. His momentary confidence had evaporated the moment they had stepped on board, but he had been too stubborn to turn back.

"Toph?" Sokka turned to the blind earthbender.

Toph slammed her foot down on the floor and tracked the vibrations as they spread out in all directions and gradually disappeared from her field of view.

"Hmm," She bit her lip, "I can't really tell what's down there. All the water in here is really screwing up my earthbending."

"We should check the conning tower first." Daris said decisively. "We'll leave the lower levels to Haro and his people."

"Any sight of them, Toph?" Sokka asked. The two groups had parted ways at the first stairwell.

She shook her head, "Nope. But like I said, all this water's making my vision fuzzy and this place is so huge it'd be impossible for me to see them on the lower levels."

"Let's get a move on." Daris ordered, waving a lantern in front of him. The corridors were very poorly illuminated and sunlight could barely reach them in the bowels of the station. Cautiously, the group followed the Captain's lead. The four marines assigned to protect them warily scanned the surroundings, further adding to the growing sense of unease.

As they descended deeper into the station, it felt like they were moving further away from their world and into another. Light gradually turned to darkness. Noises of the ocean were replaced with metallic clanks and groans. Even the very air they breathed became brackish and foul. What at first had been an eagerness to find answers was quickly becoming desperation to get out.

Turning the corner, the light from Daris's lantern suddenly fell upon a gruesome and horrible monster. The spikes in its head protruded in many directions and its slit-like eyes burned with a ferocity that made all their hearts skip a beat. The marines wasted no time in blasting the creature with their flames.

"Hold your fire! Hold your fire!" Daris waved the smoke out of his face. Bringing the lantern closer to the monster, he smirked.

"It's just an old Fire Nation suit of armor." He said, amused at the looks of fear on their faces. Toph's alone was calm.

"Piece of junk!" Ambassador Chiang shot it a dirty look.

The armor was pressed up against the wall. Its faceplate and spikes had given it its monstrous appearance.

Rui and Hakumi breathed an audible sigh of relief. Sokka warily returned his sword to its scabbard.

"Common, it's not much further." Daris said and the group followed him further into the bowels of the station. As the light from their lanterns grew more and more distant, a shadow flickered behind them.

The conning tower was a gruesome sight. Countless tools and instruments lay in a state of ruin. The reinforced pane glass windows were filthy and cracked. Even the ceiling above was gutted and countless rods and pipes protruded through the various breaches. It was abundantly clear that there were no answers to be found up here.

Daris sighed, all that time wasted and for nothing. Glancing at his pocket watch, he saw that time was running out.

"All right, looks like this is a dead end." He said. "Let's regroup with the others at the ship."

"Hold on a minute." Sokka called from the other end of the tower. "I think I found something."

Daris walked over to him. "What is it?"

Sokka held up a small journal. The pages were soaked and most of the writing had faded away, however, a few words on the cover were still legible.

"Logbook of the Wraith?" Daris read aloud.

"I think that's the name of this station." Sokka said with growing disquiet.

"A strange name. But then again the Fire Nation is fond of giving its vessels terrifying names." Daris said with a smirk. "It's a good scare tactic."

Sokka scoffed and tossed the logbook away.

"We're heading out then?" Hakumi asked, eager to finally leave.

"Yep. Everyone here?" Daris looked around. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine. Nine?

"Somebody's missing." Daris said irritably and he could guess who it was. "Where's Ambassador Chiang?"

"I don't know." Rui glanced around the room. "He was standing next to me just a few minutes ago."

"Ambassador Chiang?" Daris shouted, his voice echoing down the silent corridors. "Son of a bitch." He muttered.

"You see him, Toph?" Sokka asked.

"Uh-uh." She shook her head.

"Perhaps we should spread out and search for him?" Hakumi offered.

"So we could lose even more of us?" Daris scoffed. "No way, we're heading back to the ship right now. You three." He gestured at three of the marines. "You stay here and see if the Ambassador comes back. Stay within sight of eachother, no point in getting lost along with him."

"Sir!"

Ambassador Chiang glanced desperately at the signs on the wall. He'd only walked a short distance from the conning tower. How did he end up getting so lost? Deciding on one direction, he walked aimlessly down the long dark corridor.

He wasn't cut out for this kind of work, he thought decidedly. No, the place where he truly shined was on the political stage. Attending meetings, lavish parties, one-on-ones with those in power. Exploring derelict stations was a job for grunts. It was only because of his foolish pride that he had ended up in this mess.

As soon as he returned to the Capital he would treat himself to a lavish banquet, Chiang decided. Then maybe he would hire a girl or two or three. After all it had been a long time since he'd been in the Fire Nation and those Earth Kingdom girls just didn't do it for him.

These long diplomatic missions away from home were steadily becoming a pain. They were more trouble than they were worth. Having to deal with incompetent buffoons like Daris and unsavory officials like that Harumi girl, maybe it was high time Chiang retired. After all, he had more than enough money. The only reason he had continued to perform the job was because of the prestige it afforded. But as time passed and he grew older things like prestige and titles seemed to matter less and less.

The truth was he'd always dreamt of settling down and having a few kids to carry on his name and his legacy. Maybe he would do that now, Chiang thought. As soon as this mission was over, he would retire from his position with dignity and begin a new life in the opulence of the Capital. He'd never have to trudge through unpleasant surroundings like this in that fine city, that's for sure!

Finding a small room at the end of the corridor, Chiang wandered in and sat down on a small bench wearily.

How long had he been walking, he wondered. His legs felt like they were almost ready to give out. To top it off he hadn't gotten much sleep thanks to Daris's early wake-up call. He could use a small break.

Chiang sighed deeply. Turning his head back to the corridor he realized that he wasn't alone.

Damn that Chiang, Rui thought furiously as the group made their way back to the ship. Being the Ambassador's aide had always been a difficult job for him. The whiny politician was almost never pleased and it took every ounce of strength Rui could muster to get him through an average day. If he had been a normal person, he would have quit ages ago, but alas that wasn't so.

Despite his humble position, he was in fact an agent of the Fire Nation intelligence. His job as the Ambassador's aide was a perfect cover and it allowed him to infiltrate countless meetings and to gather invaluable information that would have otherwise been impossible to get. It was his love for his true profession that had made him persevere all this time.

But now that bloated excuse for a politician goes and gets himself lost, Rui thought with disgust. Spirits forbid anything should happen to the man, for then Rui would be in a fix. To lose a cover as precious as that, the Director would surely have his head.

"Any sight of the Ambassador?" Rui asked Toph anxiously.

"Nope, nothing." The blind Earthbender replied.

"The fat fool's probably gone in search of a snack." Hakumi said with a smirk. Sokka and Toph laughed uneasily.

"Don't worry, Rui." Daris said with a sigh. "I'm sure he'll turn up sooner or later." Then to himself he muttered. "Hopefully much later."

As the group turned a familiar corner, Hakumi suddenly stopped and looked at the wall uneasily. Wasn't this where they had run into the empty suit of armor?

"Hey guys, wasn't there a suit of armor here?" She shouted, the others appeared not to hear her and continued to walk down the corridor. "Guys?"

"Hurry up, Hakumi. Or else we'll leave you behind." Daris shouted irritably. And the Water Tribe representative set aside her fears and ran to catch up.