Long Feng had just finished his lunch when an agent entered his office and strode to the desk. "There have been some unexpected developments, Sir," the man reported.
Long Feng moved aside his meal but remained sitting. "What is it? The Avatar?" he asked. He hadn't heard anything concerning about the boy or his companions for the last few days, but he was still concerned.
"No," the man replied, his voice firm. "The expected train from the bulwark did not arrive this afternoon."
"What?" Long Feng exclaimed in surprise as he stood up before quickly recomposing himself. "My apologies. Now, explain."
The agent nodded. "This morning, our scouts on the wall reported smoke rising from the direction of Bulwark with an army besieging the fortification, but their flags were foreign to our lookouts, and they couldn't identify them, save they wore green and black. During the attack, they also damaged the rail bridge."
Long Feng looked utterly perplexed, his eyes going blank as he attempted to comprehend what he'd just heard. How is this possible? He thought before shaking his head. "You may go. I have much to consider," the man bowed his head and crossed his sleeves as he gracefully backed out of the room. Once he was gone, the most powerful man in Ba Sing Se found himself baffled by this sudden shift in strategy from the Fire Nation. "Why would they attack the Bulwark? I thought their goal was to overwhelm our logistics with the constant influx of refugees?" he pondered as he put a hand to his chin.
As Tiya walked through the doorway, she couldn't help but feel a sense of dread building in her chest. The man walking beside her was silent as he brought her to one of the rooms in the hallway and gestured for her to stay before he left to speak with one of the other strange soldiers. The room was sparse, though she saw a large wooden table with writing utensils, chairs, and a bed while several crystal lamps provided light. Aside from this, she could see dust marks where other furniture may have stood, but that was all. At least the floor has a carpet. she thought to herself as she kicked the dust from her calloused feet and sat down. Suddenly, she was interrupted when the soldier returned, bearing a small tray with a metal tin, a decorative metal spoon, and a cup of water. "Здесь," the man said as he placed it down before leaving the room.
At first cautious, she slowly, carefully peered inside the tin to find what appeared to be warm buckwheat mixed with meat. As she sniffed at it, she could feel her stomach begging her to eat, so she took a bite. It wasn't anything special, she supposed, but it was by far the best she'd had since she'd "left home," and in no time, she'd finished the whole of it before drinking her water. The taste of the food had grown on her in the end, but then she heard the door open and turned to see the man who'd sent her there. "Ah, enjoy your Kasha?" he asked as he entered and sat on the chair opposite her.
"It was- Nice," she replied, attempting to keep her emotions at bay in front of this stranger.
Then, the stranger smiled. "Hm, I'm glad," he said before he shook his head. "Oh, and I never introduced myself. I am Vassili Sergeievich Alexeev, Lieutenant General of Artillery," he said as he gestured to himself.
"Uh, I'm just Tiya. But you don't look Fire Nation, and your name sounds funny," she said with a slight chuckle as she tried to figure out how to pronounce it.
Vassili chuckled with her. "Yes, I suppose it does. But no, I am not Fire Nation, though we are allied."
Tiya stared at him with wide-eyed awe. "Allied?" she asked, internally terrified.
The General gave her a puzzled look. "Well, sort of. You see, Grand Duke Nikolai, my superior, signed a non-aggression pact with the Crown Princess of the Fire Nation. Thus, we are aligned, at least, for the moment," he explained.
Too uncertain to answer, she merely nodded. "Okay," came her meek reply as the General gave her an appraising look.
"Are those the only clothes you have?" he asked with a cocked brow.
Feeling uncomfortable, Tiya nervously dusted off her rag of a dress. "Yes."
In response, she saw his expression soften as he gave her a look of compassion. "If you come with me, I will place you under my protection and get you new clothes. It is your choice, but I promise, no harm will come to you," he told her.
At first, she was baffled. This man, this stranger, was offering her refuge? Having lived through what she had, she was skeptical of his motives but tried not to appear too suspicious. "I-I don't know what to say," she replied, covering her concerns with awe.
The General nodded. "I can understand that," he said as he stood up. "So I think I'll give you time to think about it. For now, why don't you come with me? I don't want to leave you here by yourself."
Realizing she would have nothing to do, Tiya decided. "Okay," she said as she and the General left the room.
After the surrender, General Galong was brought to his new quarters under armed guard and told to remain inside while they figured out what to do with him. If it had been a day ago, he would have broken himself out and buried these men alive before rushing to rescue his men, but he did not. Instead, his mind was uneasy, plagued by thoughts of the "battle" and the constant ringing in his ears as he rested upon his bed and attempted to rest his weary body. He visited the field hospital before coming here, curiously finding the Ruskians helping the doctors and nurses with his men's injuries. When he asked why, they told him it was the honourable thing to do, and here he thought they had no such honour. Of course, this strange kindness also extended to the civilians, at least from what he saw, as the Ruskians seemed content to turn the immigration center and train station into screening posts of some sort. Still, he kept his guard up, as he had no idea what the next few hours would bring: There were more of them, that much he already guessed, and they seemed too organized for mercenaries. He also recalled something about a certain Tsar Vladamir. Though what that meant, he could only speculate. Suddenly, he was roused from his thoughts when the door opened, and the same man he'd surrendered to entered the room, strangely followed by a young Earth Kingdom girl. "Ah, I apologize for the suddenness, Sir. But I never had the chance to speak with you," he said as he gestured for him to sit at the small table beside the bed, though to the Earthbender, his voice sounded faint.
Standing up, the Galong did as instructed and sat down, made slightly easier by the fact he'd been stripped of his bumianjia (brigandine), leaving him in his trousers and padded jacket, with the symbol of the Earth Kingdom proudly emblazoned on the front and back. "What do you want?" he asked as the other man sat down while the girl stared at the Earth General. "Also, speak clearly. My ears have yet to recover from your attack."
For some reason, the Ruskian chuckled as he gave him a knowing look. "I can imagine. After all, I'm about half-deaf myself!" he beamed before clearing his throat, his eyes steely and cold as he appraised him. "First of all. I don't believe I caught your name or rank."
Straightening his posture, he attempted to match the man's gaze, curiously finding his eyes to be dark brown. "I am General Galong Huchi. I've been commander of the Bulwark for the last two years," he replied, noting that the other man had pulled out a small notebook while he spoke and was writing on it with a small pen.
"What is the purpose of this place? After all, it is strange to me that there are civilians here," the Ruskian asked once he stopped writing.
Knowing this information would leak sooner or later, he decided to speak honestly. "The Bulwark was first constructed to prevent an assault on Ba Sing Se from the sea through the serpents' pass. However, during the war, Full Moon Bay, once a base for our navy, was swiftly converted into a ferry port to aid refugees making for Ba Sing Se," he began, the Ruskian returning to his writing as the girl listened intently. "As a result, the rail network inside the city expanded to reach the Bulwark, allowing the refugees to avoid the barren desert between the lake and the wall. At the same time, we constructed a vast underground immigration center to deal with all the people flowing into the city. Now, does that answer your question?"
The other man nodded before placing down his book. "Yes," he said, stroking his chin. Then he muttered something under his breath before shaking his head and standing up before turning to the girl. "Well, I believe that's all for now," he began before facing Galong. "Thank you for your time, General. Should I think of something to ask, I will dispatch one of my aides," he concluded, taking his hat under his arm and marching out of the room with the girl following him as the door shut behind them.
As Grand Duke Nikolai sat eating his dinner, he was interrupted when his aide, Major Shostakovich, suddenly walked in bearing a letter. "It's from General Alexeev, Sir," he said with a snappy salute before placing the envelope on the desk and marching back outside.
Taking the letter, Nikolai opened it and pulled out the letter inside:
"To His Imperial Highness, Grand Duke Nikolai-
I write to inform you that the Earth Kingdom forces surrendered after a prolonged bombardment, and we have captured the Bulwark and have access to fresh water. In the process, we suffered thirty men killed and a dozen wounded in exchange for 423 Earth Kingdom soldiers taken prisoner, along with some 1386 refugees. We do not know how many the exact number that fell in battle, though it seems it was at least several hundred. I have made the civilians citizens of Ruskia, as per your command. However, we lack the supplies to feed and clothe them, and from what their commander told me, we will likely require even more once we capture the city.
Signed, Lieutenant General of Artillery, Vassili Sergeievich Alexeev-
Of course, this is not all: There are many sick and injured, and we do not have the required medicine in case there is an outbreak for both our soldiers and those soon under our care.
Signed, Senior Surgeon, Major Alexander Konstantinovich Asipov-"
Nikolai sighed as he placed down the message and hung his head in exasperation. "Why does it feel like this is turning into some sort of rescue operation?" he whispered before shaking his head. "Well, I suppose I should make for the headquarters and send another message to the Stavka-" the man paused as an idea hit him, causing him to snap his fingers as his mind filled with vigour while quickly snatching up the note. "Or do I?" he whispered, already scheming as he rushed from his tent, arriving at the HQ soon after.
The Grand Duke cared little for the confused looks of the guards outside nor the shocked Lieutenant who jumped out of his seat to give him a shoddy salute. "Uh- Sir! I was not expecting you," he said, his surprise evident.
Nikolai shook his head as he gestured for the man to calm down. "It is alright. I was not expecting to visit today either," he replied. "Now, I need you to send a telegram-"
"To the Stavka?" the young officer asked, his shock replaced by excitement.
Nikolai chuckled slightly. "No, not this time. Instead, I need you to message a certain Mr. Gusev. He resides in Novogorskino."
"What for?" the officer inquired as he sat down at his emitter.
"I require a large quantity of goods to be shipped here, and he would be the only one I could trust to perform such a task quickly and discreetly," he explained, the Lieutenant giving him a concerned gaze. Knowing this would likely be the reaction he would receive, he handed the officer the note.
"Wait, you're asking for civilian clothes, extra provisions, and medical supplies?" he asked once he finished reading.
"Precisely," Nikolai answered. "Now, what are you waiting for? There are over a thousand more people we have to worry about, and I can't imagine how many more we'll have to deal with once we capture the city."
"Yes, Your Imperial Highness," The officer merely nodded before the tent filled with the dits and daws of the emitter as the officer sent the message to the man in question.
An aging man with a short beard and slicked-back black hair sat idly watching the fire grow and shrink in the intricately crafted fireplace, his elbows resting on his plush velvet chair as he slowly sipped his tea. Suddenly, he heard footsteps in the hall to his rear, followed by the door opening. "Sir!" came the cry of his secretary as he dashed into the room.
The man placed his tea on its holder as he huffed in annoyance. "How many times must I tell you, Fyodor? Don't run inside the house," he said as he put his cup down and stood up. "Now, what is it?"
"Well, Sir. Grand Duke Nikolai sent a telegram," he stated as he approached and handed him the yellow slip of paper.
The older man took it from his hands and read it silently before placing it down, a grin on his lips as he turned to his secretary. "Fyodor, return and inform the Grand Duke I would be pleased to accept his request."
"At once, Mr. Gusev," the man replied with a nod before swiftly departing the room.
"Again, Fyodor, mind the floors. Else' I shall have you sweep the carpets!" he shouted, causing the man to slow as he exited the room, closing the door behind him. Once he left, Mr. Gusev went to his chair and sat down before taking his tea. "I was wondering when my old friend would call me again?" he whispered as he sipped his still scorching tea. "Regardless, this venture will most certainly prove fruitful. After all, it's not every day I am thrown 20000000 Rubles to deliver clothes, medical supplies, and food. Just what are you up to, old friend?"
After their victory, the Russkians redeployed what guns they could fit to face the lake while the rest of them, their General sent back to the main force. In addition, the Pioneers he began to replace with Cossacks, as their carbines would be of more use than the shotguns of the Pioneers. By this point, the sun had fallen below the horizon many hours ago, and the night was almost over. Atop the rampart, the second shift of the night would soon head off to sleep. However, that was when Captain Oleg Yaroslavich Ivanov spotted smoke approaching from the Southwest through his spyglass. "Hey, guys, there's a ship approaching us from the Southwest!" he shouted to his gun crews as they aimed their guns where he pointed as Oleg exchanged his spyglass for a rangefinder. He didn't have to wait long for the dark shape of the vessel to appear in his sights. "Range, roughly 3000m! Speed, 18 knots!" he called as he reported his readings.
"Should we fire, Sir?" asked one of the gunners.
"No!" he shouted before lowering his compass-shaped sight as he turned to the newly erected signal device. "Request identification!" he shouted at the man in charge of the lamp. If he had signal flags, he would have preferred to use those, but he had no choice but to hope it would work. It was a crude thing, no more than a large oil lantern sitting atop the wall, but it served its purpose well enough as the signalman turned the light on and off in sequence, spelling out the word "P-R-I-V-E-T" as the ship drew closer.
Thank you all so much for the support! Also, I wanted to leave a huge shout-out for Whisky over H2O for his support of this story. If you enjoy this, I'm sure you would probably find his story "Gunsmoke and Hellfire" a great read. As always I hope you review, favorite, and follow, as I count all of you, and I greatly appreciate you. Also, if you have any thoughts, don't be afraid to PM me.