General Galong sat despondently after his Ruskian interrogator informed him of the disastrous way the siege had begun and the massacre which followed. Yet, despite what he knew, he still felt guilty for the small part he'd played in their supposedly stunning victory. "If only we'd held for longer," he told himself bitterly, considering his options. On the one hand, there was the possibility they'd lied about the battle or the figures they provided. On the other, if they had told the truth, he knew it was only a short time before Ba Sing Se capitulated. But, considering his captors had allowed him to walk around while under guard, he stood and knocked on the door, his mind made up. "Yes?" the man asked from the other side.
"May I survey the field of battle?" the General requested.
Silence reigned before he heard the door unlock, followed by the guard opening it. "I am not sure why you would want to, but be my guest," the man replied as he stepped out of the way and allowed the General to exit before both headed toward the battlements to get a better view.
As soon as Galong saw the fields full of corpses and the broken wall beyond with the Ruskian flag waving atop it, he found no words to describe the sight. At first, he blinked several times to ensure he was dreaming, but as realization set in, Galong felt a pit forming in his stomach as he watched the shapes of Ruskian soldiers walking among the bodies. "Is this truly the end, my beloved Country?" he asked as tears threatened to spill at the edge of his vision.
As Toph remained in the box, she swore she could feel massive tremors moving beneath her, and it certainly wasn't the ostrich horse pulling the cart her box was on top of. "Hey, what's going on!?" the pre-teen bellowed as she hit the cage with a fist.
Suddenly, the cart stopped, though she wasn't sure if it was her or the tremor they had stopped for. "Shut up!" Shouted Xin Fu as he rapped on the metal in turn. "I'm trying to listen!"
"Listen to what!?" she shouted in response, but there was only silence from the man. Sure, she'd heard the loud booms that had echoed earlier that morning, but hearing it for the second time gave her pause. The only nation she knew of that consistently used explosives was the Fire Nation, which could only mean Ba Sing Se was under attack again. "Ugh, I need to get out of here and see what's happening," she said as she tried to think of how to escape- Suddenly, Toph felt the cart begin to pick up speed, and the next thing she knew- "Woah!" She'd fallen on her side as the box fell over and hit the ground hard. "Oof!" Toph grunted as she tried to stand up. "Hey, what's the big idea!? What did you do!?" Yet, she received no response. "H-Hey, this isn't funny!" Still no response. Then, her eyes widened as she realized she was no longer moving. "D-Did they seriously leave me for dead!?"
After arriving in the Lower Ring, Katara set out on foot as she waded through the crowd, attempting to get into the Middle Ring. But this was not all, as explosions rocked the city, and she could see more smoke pillars than earlier as bright objects rained down before exploding in a flash of smoke and fire. "The city's under attack!" she shouted as she instinctively began heading toward the danger, passing civilians and soldiers alike as she zig-zagged through the masses. Sure, she didn't have the others, but she felt confident she could deal with most threats by herself, as her element was more adaptable, and she was already deemed a Master. Even still, she found herself concerned by how many Earth Kingdom soldiers she saw fleeing in panic, with their Officers either leading them away or trying to rally them to stay in place as the bombardment grew ever louder. However, when she reached about mid-way between the gate of the Middle Ring and the Lower Ring's outer wall, there was a mighty crack, followed by a massive plume of dust and debris as a large section of the outer wall collapsed, immediately followed by the crowd's intensifying as everyone seemed to be trying to get as far as possible. Still, she struggled onward, determined to do her part in defending the city as she squeezed between the bodies of the human sea flowing in the opposite direction. "Excuse me! Coming through!" She shouted, wading through until no one remained in the street but her.
However, instead of continuing toward the wall, she overheard the cries and moans of wounded men, and she turned and saw several shops on the opposite side of the street with nurses and doctors flowing out of them, carrying the injured away one by one as others hobbled along beside them. "Quick, get them out of there!" shouted a soldier before he turned and saw her.
"Can I help?" Katara asked as she ran up to him, with the man nodding and gesturing to one of the stores with a tea sign above the entrance. Yet, when she entered, it more closely resembled a hospital than a teashop, with the tables used for operating on severely wounded soldiers.
"Oh, excuse me, Miss-" she heard a masculine voice say, one she could swear she'd heard before. Then, when she turned and saw his half-burned face and amber eyes, she remembered. After all, how could she forget the man who'd chased her and her friends halfway across the world? Sure, he may have changed his hairstyle and now wore a waiter's apron, but she could NEVER forget that face. And, to her frustration, it seemed he recognized her as well. "-What are you doing here!?" he shouted in shock.
"Well, I can ask you the same, Zuko," she said as she uncapped her waterskin, ready to square off with him- Only to pause as she heard shouting and small explosions outside. Rushing to the window, she and the banished Fire Prince gazed out to see several squads of Earthbenders raising barriers and throwing stones at an unseen enemy before immediately ducking behind as many small explosions sounded further down the street. As this happened, she watched in horror as about five or so fell to the ground, convulsing, while others screamed in pain as unseen projectiles slammed into them. Katara was devastated as she watched them attempt to withdraw toward the Middle Ring while leaving the wounded behind, only to be injured themselves as more projectiles hit. Who's doing this!? Well, as it turned out, she would have her answer sooner than she'd have liked: First came the steady beats of foreign drums, slow at first but quickly picking up pace, growing louder and louder, until-
"УУУУРРРАААА!"
Came the cry as hundreds of tightly packed soldiers dressed in strange green uniforms came rushing through the street like a tidal wave, throwing back the defending Earth Kingdom soldiers, benders, and non-benders alike with terrifying shouts and violence. She'd thought she'd seen it all, but as Katara watched Earth Kingdom soldiers be trampled underfoot, bludgeoned, stabbed, and hit with the projectiles from their strange spears, she couldn't understand it. There were no elegant forms, no duels, only sheer brutality as these foreigners cut their way through to the point the defenders turned and began to flee. However, as this happened, Katara's eyes widened in realization as a thought occurred to her: If the Earth Kingdom was retreating, what did that mean for her? She didn't have to think very hard as several earthbenders crashed through the wall, followed swiftly by their enemy. The earthbenders threw up barriers as the teens backed off, watching as the Earth soldiers threw stones at the entrance, knocking over some of the foreigners before those behind them raised their weapons and- "BANG!" the Earth soldiers were riddled with holes before collapsing to the ground as the remaining wounded limped out of the way or got hit by stray projectiles, and those who remained raised their hands in surrender. Katara, insensed, prepared to slap them away with a swift water whip, only for Zuko to grab her arm. "Do you want to end up like them?" he asked her in a whisper, causing her to rethink her chances and stand down.
Once the conflict ended, the strange pale men came and took the less wounded and surrendered soldiers away, with most of them leaving, save several led by a man in a slightly more ornate uniform with a long slender blade at his hip. "Who is in charge here?" The man began, his accent oddly thick.
"I am," came a mature voice from the back, another she recognized, though for much better reasons than his nephew. As the heavy-set older man strode forward, he smiled at the man, though his eyes betrayed a slight hint of suspicion. "What are you doing here? Who are you?"
The man nodded at him and took off his headdress. "I am Captain Andrei Balkovsky, Sir," he replied as he gazed around. "As for what I am doing here, I suppose it's rather complicated, so I'll spare you the details. The only thing that should matter is this city is ours. You understand?"
The aging Fire National appeared stunned by this revelation as he glanced between Andrei and his bodyguards. "I- What?" he asked, his eyes narrowed.
"You heard me, good Sir. Now, this wouldn't happen to be a restaurant, would it?" the man asked as Katara and Zuko continued to watch, equally dumbfounded as Iroh. "Is that a yes?"
"No, this is a teashop," Iroh answered as calmly as he could muster.
The man clapped his gloved hands together. "Splendid. I could certainly use some herbal tea."
Iroh nodded before turning to the Earth Kingdom's dead and wounded being removed by the foreigners. "What are you doing with them?" He asked, concerned.
"Isn't it obvious? We're going to give them proper medical treatment," the pale man responded before turning to Zuko and Katara, giving them a good look at his face. He appeared young, not much older than either of the teens, with short hair, a trimmed black mustache and hard brown eyes. "Now, who are these two?" He asked, gesturing to them.
"These are... My employees, my nephew Lee and-" he paused as he gestured to the Waterbender before grinning widely. "Yin, my newest hire," he lied with Katara silently sighing in relief. She didn't know why he had covered for her, but she was immensely grateful. "Now, Lee, why don't you and Yin make this nice man some herbal tea?" Despite her questions, the two nodded, and Zuko showed her to the back room.
"Why are you here, Zuko? The last time I saw you was when your crazy sister hurt Iroh," she questioned as the older teen sighed.
"Uncle thought it would be safer here," he replied before his gaze turned serious. "But, if you think I have any plans, you can forget it. I have nothing to do with this," he stated pointedly.
Katara chuckled. "Oh? And how do I know this isn't some ploy to capture Aang again? I mean, you did chase us halfway across the world."
Zuko shook his head and exhaled. "Yeah, I guess you're right. But things are different now," he replied, his head tilted away from her.
"How so?" She questioned with a glare.
"Ugh, they just are, okay!" he shouted, causing her to back up and prepare to block any incoming attacks from the young man who'd caused her and her friends so much grief. But it never came. "We don't have time for this. Come on, I'll show you how to get this ready," he said, taking a teapot and placing it on a small stove before he poured water into the pot and lit the stove with Firebending before standing back. "There, now all we have to do is wait."
"Wait for what?" Katara asked.
"For Uncle," he replied with a sigh before facing her. "Now, what are you doing here?"
Katara shook her head. "Fine, I guess I can tell you," she began. "You see, not long after the last time we saw you, we went through the Si-Wong desert, and we managed to gain some pretty valuable information, but we also lost Appa to a tribe of Sandbenders. That's what brought us here. Since we figured Appa would probably be in the city based on what they told us, and we needed to come to tell the Earth King what we learned, as it might-" she paused before shaking her head. "Nevermind. But that pretty much sums it up," she finished, thinking it best to hide the invasion plan from him.
"So that's why I didn't see you guys flying overhead until the day before Yesterday," he said, though, for whatever reason, his words seemed... unconvincing. As if he already knew Appa wasn't in their custody. "So, uh, do you know who these guys are?"
"You mean the Foreigners?" she asked as he nodded. "No, not really. Though they-" she stopped as the doors opened, and Iroh walked in, followed by the men from earlier.
"Oh, I hope we aren't intruding," the Captain said as he coughed into his gloved hand before turning to Iroh, who approached the teens.
"I'm sorry, the Captain wanted to see how I make tea," he explained as he started gathering supplies and carefully placing them in the boiling pot as the Captain and his men watched with interest. As they did, Katara decided to keep an eye on the Captain, though he seemed not to mind or notice. That was, until his eyes shone with realization, and he snapped his fingers before turning to one of his soldiers. Yet, nothing could've prepared her for the words that came out of his mouth: "Эй, сержант, не могли бы вы позвать майора и сообщить ему о нашем местонахождении?"
For a moment, she was puzzled, unsure of what she'd heard. Barely leaving her time to register the soldier's response as he turned to the man and saluted: "Так точно, сэр!" came the man's firm reply before he turned and marched out of the room.
"I'm sorry, what did you say?" Iroh asked as it seemed Katara wasn't the only one who noticed.
The Captain nodded in understanding. "Oh, right, I almost forgot," he said with a slight chuckle. "I was speaking Ruskian, my mother tongue," the man explained before clapping his hands together. "Now, I suppose I shall leave you to your tea making. After all, it would be rude of me not to greet my commander," he said politely before he and the remaining soldier departed into the dining area. Once he left and closed the door, Iroh, Zuko, and Katara turned to each other with looks of uncertainty.
"So what do we do now?" asked Katara as Zuko sighed while Iroh puzzled.
"I don't know. Uncle?" he asked as more explosions echoed further up the street.
General How could hardly believe his eyes as he exited one of the infirmaries inside the middle ring. So many bodies with wounds the likes of which he'd never seen. Sure, he would argue burns were worse, but what he saw before him came very close, with many missing body parts while others appeared almost intact, save for the blood and one or more small holes going through a vital part of their body. Of course, as a Commander who'd lived through war his entire life, it should've done little to phase him, yet the sheer cost left him feeling fatigued in a way that nothing else had. He'd already lost one of his good friends, General Yiwen, whose body his men discovered after he fell to his death. As for the other members of the Council of Five, each was currently leading what remaining forces they had to hold back their relentless foe. Yet, as he looked on from the top of the wall, his depression only worsened as How beheld General Sung's forces in full retreat as the foreigners rapidly advanced. "Sir, what shall we do?" asked one of his aides.
The General sighed, knowing he only had so many units ready to fight after the disaster earlier that morning. "Send in the 2nd Regiment of the Royal Guard and tell Generals Khieu and Duanmu to reinforce Sung," he said, pinching his nose as the officer bowed and departed to relay his orders.
General Boskovsky watched the street battles from inside the breech as more and more units poured in through the gap. However, despite the incredible progress, he knew he would have to stop soon to avoid overextending their logistic network. Sighing, he lowered his spyglass and turned to one of his aides. "Major Benigsen, ride on and tell our forward units to hold their positions while we get the rest of the army here," he ordered one before turning to another. "Major Trukovsky, bring up the sappers and widen the breach. We need to make way for the artillery," both men swiftly departed to fulfill their orders, and Boskovsky shook his head as he wondered where Nikolai could be.
As the battle raged outside, Than and Yin struggled to keep little Hope quiet as the pair tried not to make things worse by crying themselves. They'd struggled for so long after leaving their home, and the small family thought they had made it, only for everything to fall apart a week after their arrival. Now, they were scrambling to prepare what scant belongings they had in their possession so they could flee-
*KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK*
"Откройте дверь!" came a shout from the door.
Their newborn began crying even louder as Than stood up and rushed for the door while Yin attempted to soothe her child. Upon opening it, he came face-to-face with a giant of a man with pale skin and hard blue eyes, attired in a tall black headdress adorned with a golden badge and a tall black plume, while in his hands, he held a strange offset spear with a triple-edged point. "Wha-" was all Than said before the man brushed him aside and entered the building with several other identically dressed men entering after him. As the men began making their way through the house, Than tried to get back to Yin and his daughter, but he found his way blocked by the strange soldiers as they rushed through the house, making a mess as they went, with the dust from their boots falling on the floor as they moved aside the dining table and flipped up the carpet to find nothing there before continuing onto the bedroom. "Wait, stop my-" he began, only for one of the men to turn to him and block his way.
"Не мешайте!" he shouted, stopping Than in his tracks. After about a minute, the other soldiers returned and began filing out of the building one by one, their hands empty save for their weapons, with the man blocking him being the last to leave. Once he recovered from what had happened, he quickly ran to the bedroom, finding Yin holding Hope in her arms. Across from them was the bed, which was displaced, the rug rolled up, and their single cabinet opened and moved from its place against the wall. But aside from that, nothing appeared disturbed. Shaking his head, he ran up to the pair and embraced his wife and child, uncertainty filling his mind. Just who were those men, and what had they wanted? Nothing appeared stolen from what he'd seen, and Yin and their daughter looked unharmed. "Yin, what happened?" he asked when he finally broke the embrace.
His wife, who still had some tears, shook her head. "I don't know. Those men barged in here and put me and Hope out of the way before they did-" she gestured to the room with one hand while the other clung to her child. "This."
He sighed in relief before kissing her. "I'm just happy you and Hope are alright. Why don't I arrange the bed and pack while you rest?"
Ivan paced outside the room, his face a mask of impatience as he waited for the Doctor to finish his assessment based on the new symptoms. However, he was also concerned about the Fire Nation's response, as General Xang departed when he heard of her illness. "If you keep doing that, I swear you'll catch something worse than she has," Pyotr chided across the narrow hallway.
Ivan turned to his friend with a hardened look but continued pacing as Mai and Ty Lee watched from the sidelines. He'd been like this for the past few hours after they separated him and Azula, and despite his platitudes, they all seemed to know what was going on in his mind. Even in the short time Ivan had known her, Azula proved herself to be unlike any girl the Grand Duke had met before, going far beyond her Firebending. For one, she was the only girl he'd met who shared his interests and at least could relate to his responsibilities, and for another, she didn't seem that interested in his titles and inheritance. Yet, most of all, he found that, despite her intensity, he enjoyed spending time with her, and now all he could do was worry and pray that her illness wasn't as bad as it looked. These were his thoughts when the door to Azula's room opened, and the Doctor and his Father exited the room. "Is she going to be okay?" Ivan asked as the others looked on expectantly, and the Doctor took a deep breath.
"To be perfectly honest, Your Imperial Highness, I'm afraid I don't know the answer," he began in Ruskian, his expression pensive. "I believe she caught a virus from being in contact with us. However, it seems the virus was very mild, as she was hardly affected by it."
Ivan and Pyotr both seemed taken aback by this. "Well, if she's almost recovered, then how do you not know the answer?" the Hussar asked pointedly.
The man sighed. "I was getting to that," he shook his head before inhaling deeply. "It's not the virus I am referring to. Rather, what it left, as it seems to have created an infection in her lungs," he began as both men recoiled in fear, knowing how deadly that could be thanks to their courses in Officer School. "When I inspected her earlier, it was so faint I couldn't even detect it. But it has gotten far more severe since her incident," he said, nodding to the blood stains still visible on Ivan's uniform. "Therefore, while she may yet overcome the virus, I am not sure she will recover in time to heal the infection. Had she been vaccinated, it would be easier, but unfortunately, it's too late now that the virus has already entered her system. I'm sorry," he said with a bow before departing as his father came up and patted him on the shoulder.
"I'm sorry, my boy. But remember, the Lord doesn't always do what we want him to, but if you ask, you may receive revelation," he said with a sad smile. "Now, why don't you and Pyotr aid me in giving her a blessing?"
By this point, Ivan's eyes had begun tearing up as he embraced his father. "Yes, I would like that," he said before breaking the embrace and wiping his eyes as Nikolai turned to the girls.
"If you wish to join us, you may. But please, be reverent," the Elder Grand Duke told them as the two looked at each other before Ty Lee turned to Nikolai.
"Will Azula be alright?" she asked, reminding the Ruskians that neither she nor Mai understood the previous conversation.
Nikolai shook his head. "It's too early to know," he replied. "Now, are you coming or not?" he asked before both girls nodded and followed as the Ruskians entered the room. On the bed, Azula's breath had grown ragged, and her body seemed restless, as though in the midst of a bad dream. "Come, Gentlemen, let us begin," he said as he drew out a vial of yellow liquid from his jacket and poured a drop on his hands as he and the others drew closer and carefully tried to keep her still long enough to begin. "Be still," the elder Grand Duke uttered softly, which seemed to do the trick as she began to calm down, Nikolai rubbed the ointment in her hair and firmly but gently placed his hands on her head, followed by the others before they closed their eyes.
"Azula Sozin, by the power of the Holy Priesthood which I hold, I place my hands upon your head and give unto you this blessing of healing. Our Father watches over us, and I pray that as you go through this trial, you may turn to Him and His Son in humility and that your body will receive its strength, and your mind will know peace. You may not know Him, but He knows you, far better even than you, and He knows the thoughts and intentions of your heart. He knows your every pain, for He died for your sins so that you may be forgiven. But, for now, I shall depart from you with this: Thou shalt live, my daughter, for thy time is not yet come. Amen."
Azula found herself again confronted by her mother, only this time, there was no reprieve, no respite from the onslaught of her barbs. Then she awoke in the palace, and Father joined in, criticizing her judgment for allowing the Ruskians to capture Ba Sing Se with no attempt to outmaneuver them or spoil their plans. She'd pleaded with him, begged him to understand, but he refused to listen. "I see you've grown weak, Azula. And after all I've done for you?" he asked as he stood before her, his fist igniting. "There is only one punishment for weakness, you ungrateful welp, and you should know it well enough by now," his words were barely a whisper, yet she couldn't help but tremble as he spoke. But, of course, she knew the reason. What he said was true, as she had seen what had happened to Zuzu when he'd acted out of turn. After all, she was there when it happened, and Azula had watched with a smile. But she certainly wasn't smiling now.
"Father, please! I haven't betrayed you! I ensured peace-" At these words, he lunged forward and grabbed her by the collar before plunging his fist forward, yet, as she prepared to receive the blow-
"Будьте спокойны."
Suddenly, he was gone, and she was no longer in the palace. But she instead found herself in the empty void where she was before when Ivan had spoken to her- "Wait, is this all a dream too?" she asked, though she received no response save her echo. Yet, suddenly, a dense mist came upon her, and a cold chill ran down her spine, and her heart filled with fear of a kind she had never known. In desperation, she tried to Firebend at the darkness, yet it seemed to swallow her flames. "Hello? Is someone there?" she asked as she tried to stop her trembling. Yet, through the mist came two voices, one that was familiar and another that was not. The former was the voice of Nikolai as his native tongue rumbled through her ears. The other, however, while much fainter, spoke from the inside, yet she couldn't understand it either, not due to a language difference, but because it was too quiet. "Hello!" she shouted, but instead her answer was silence.
As the Ruskians finished, Mai couldn't help but release the sigh she'd been holding as they stood up and exited the room, with her following. However, when she turned to leave, the dreary girl realized she didn't hear anyone behind her, and she looked to see Ty Lee staring slack-jawed at the bed. "Ty Lee?"
She shook her head before pointing at the bed. "Did you see that?" She asked as she turned her head to Mai.
The girl shook her head. "I don't know what you're talking about. But let's go, I don't want to be here anymore," she said as she turned to leave, making sure Ty Lee followed her.
"Okay..." the brunette replied, visibly deflated as she followed her friend out of the room and closed the door. Yet, she couldn't help but be astonished at what she'd seen in that moment. Their auras were so bright they were almost blinding.
Sorry for the long wait guys, but I'm back! And once again, I am truly humbled by your favor toward this story in particular, as it encourages me to continue. Anyway, I will likely be slowing down, as I am starting on a new project, but I will still try to write a new chapter every week or so. Anyway, I will see you all later!