The Return

by tubendo

The ice of the South Pole hides many things, and when Azula and Sokka are confronted by something far greater than themselves, the strength of their relationship is tested, and the Princess has to decide whose path she will follow: the path of her father or the path of freedom. (Sequel to Into The Fire)

42. Chapter 42

Aang admittedly didn't pay all that much attention to the plotting that had been going on around him, but he was lost for words when he found out that Toph had purposefully gotten herself beaten up by a disguised Jianren. The streets were filled with angry commoners, who were speaking of enacting reprisals against the people that supposedly ruled the city. A 'poor little girl' they called her, and that made Aang laugh; she was anything but. He knew that they were in the city to sway people to the Coalition's side, but he hadn't expected their plans to move so fast. They hadn't even been in the city for a week, and they already had people dressing up as Dai Li agents to defame them.

He knew they had already done things like that before, back when they were in Shengchang; however, that had been Sokka, tricking a few Fire Nation soldiers, who they wanted to make allies of. That was very different to playing out a scene and having Jianren dress up as a Dai Li agent. But it wasn't the Dai Li they were tricking, but the people themselves; he didn't doubt the Dai Li would do something like that, after the stories he'd heard, both from his friends, and from whispers on the streets, but it was a bit extreme.

He knew that they would probably figure out it wasn't just a rogue agent, but a trick; that couldn't be good, and when he broached the subject with Katara and Sokka, both of them agreed. The Dai Li would now be looking for fake-agents, knowing that they were out in the city. Sokka seemed to think they would have been better served going and using the disguise at a more opportune time, such as against the Dai Li themselves in the palace, where they would be running things from.

That was where they could actually try to overthrow them, which was the ultimate goal; even if he abhorred violence, he was still in agreement that it was the best solution. The Earth Kingdom had no way to choose its own future under their grip, not even considering the fact they were allowing the colonists to keep their power in the city, which stood in the way of peace, just like it did in the other colonies. Every angry face, every poor, frustrated person that he saw, it made his resolve all the more stronger. Their war was going to harm those people, and as much as he hated it, he knew that he had to help end it as fast as possible; it was going to happen whether Aang liked it or not.

When they arrived back at the entrance to the tunnel, Aang was still nervous that city guards or the Dai Li would come after them; they hadn't directly confronted them at any point, due to their distraction with the protesters, but he couldn't help but be afraid. They were going to be mad, and he didn't blame them for their feelings, but felt more afraid for everyone else. Wherever those labour camps they had heard about were, those people who were angriest, and most justified to hate the Governing Council, that was exactly where they were headed.

"Hurry up." he heard Toph demand of them, and she grabbed Aang by the wrist, "Get down." she told him, and he stepped around the corner into the entrance, which connected to the sewer tunnels beneath the streets; that meant they were able to get inside out of the way, under the cover of alleyways and the tall buildings that lined them.

Once he jumped back down, he turned his eyes over to his friends, who were whispering among themselves, except Toph, who just seemed frustrated with them, "I'll explain things when we get to the base." she assured them, "Just hurry up. We don't know when the actual Dai Li will sweep through."

Everyone got out of the way of the entrance, which was closed back up, and everyone started walking down the tunnel, which was a lot better than the other ones he had had to deal with recently; unlike the one they dug under the Outer Walls, or the smuggling tunnel through the Inner Walls, they were much better designed for people to use, which made sense, given that the Dai Li apparently used them to sneak all around the city. He kept his pace, and followed after Katara and Sokka once more, the two siblings having a heated, but whispered discussion.

"Guys, are you okay?" he asked them, and both of them turned back to face Aang.

"Yeah, we're fine." Sokka reassured him, "I just- urgh, I really feel like we need to be a little slower here."

"I think it was stupid." Katara gave her own opinion, "And yes, Toph, you were meant to hear that."

"I realise, Sugar Queen." Toph quipped back, "Come on, I still have to get through a closed-off part of the tunnel, and you can't earthbend."

"Aang can." she reminded her, and the blind girl scoffed, before continuing on down the tunnel without a word.

Once she was gone, the three of them kept moving down the tunnel; Aang could see that both Water Tribe siblings were annoyed, but they were calm enough not to start accusing Toph of things. He was equally uneasy about the plan as it stood, but knew that they had to act sooner or later. It was just a matter of what they did, not when they did it; he just thought the trick was something a step too far, making them seem like liars and tricksters, rather than actually trying to help the people. Direct action was sure to get them in trouble, so he could at least understand why Toph had done it.

When they reached the closed off part of the tunnel, which looked to have been caved in on purpose, he noticed that Toph had left the rubble clear, allowing them to easily step through; once they were past, he closed up the rubble behind them, and then continued on after his friends. The tunnel was dimly lit, only from narrow cracks in the roof that allowed air and a sliver of light to seep through. Even though he did know he could firebend, he wasn't confident he could do it safely just yet. He hoped Azula would provide him with some training, but he knew her attention was elsewhere. Toph and Katara would have to do for the moment, assuming they didn't butt heads too much.

He could see torchlight further down the tunnel, and as they approached it, he identified it as being one of the Water Tribe warriors, guarding the entrance into the base. He acknowledged them with some nods.

"Chief Hakoda is inside." he told them, and the siblings both nodded, and glanced at the door.

"I wonder what Dad will have to say about all of this." Katara spoke her mind, and Sokka cringed.

"He knows that we have to move against the Dai Li... and trickery isn't anything new to the warriors."

"Sorry, what are you talking about?" the warrior asked them, presumably unaware of what had gone on topside.

"Jianren and Toph did something stupid." Sokka answered his question, "Maybe it will help, or maybe it will get the Dai Li scouring the district for us."

"Ah." the warrior mumbled, before glancing down the tunnel, "I'd really prefer if they didn't."

"We all agree." Katara assured him, before she knocked on the door, which was opened after some earthen blocks were moved to ensure that it couldn't just be forced open; an earthbender had to operate it, meaning somebody was guarding the entrance at all times.

He gestured for them to go inside, and they did; before the door was shut off behind them, and Aang let out a yawn, a bit tired after putting up all the posters, "I hope that people are reading those. That was... a lot of paper."

"I feel worse for the people who had to spend all night printing those." Katara gave her own opinion.

Hakoda was sitting at the table that sat in the main room of the hideout, where they did most of their discussions, cooking, and preparations. The printing was done there as well, and they had large stacks of paper, and jars of ink, sitting ready to be used with the machines, which were currently unoccupied, as they had finished the task of printing out all the posters they were spreading around the district.

He waved to them with a smile, "Ah, you're back. I assume you've put up all the posters." he guessed, and Katara revealed the rolled up bundle of posters that she hadn't had a chance to put up.

"Not exactly." she admitted, "Things went... badly. Not for us, but for the city guard."

"Oh." his eyes widened, "What exactly happened?"

"We don't know how it started, but some officers trying to press men into the army were... well, refused. The commoners ganged up on them, and chased them out. The guards had to protect the officers, and then they started getting violent. I think it was mostly shouting, and less beatings, but the people out there are mad."

"That... that sounds good. The people must have read the posters, and figured that fighting the Coalition is pointless."

"Or the officers were mean idiots." Katara gave another possibility, "We'll just have to wait and see if the posters are any help."

Aang let out a sigh, and sat down at the table, wondering what good all that effort would achieve. Katara cleared her throat, and for a moment, Aang was perplexed, thinking she was frustrated with him for sitting down. He glanced around, but realised she was looking at Toph, who had laid herself down on an old wooden bench they had taken out of the rubble to use in the hideout.

"Toph." she addressed the other girl, "Mind explaining what you did?"

"It was Jet's idea." she retorted, before sighing, "Jianren dressed as a Dai Li agent and tossed me across the street for dramatic effect. I thought it worked pretty well."

"He must still be running around, seeing that he hasn't come back yet." Hakoda realised, sounding afraid for the other man's sake, "And why did Jet think that was a good idea?" he asked her, "I know you-" he began, before holding his tongue; Aang was confused, but Toph scrunched her face up for a moment, before shaking her head.

"Because people like to hate bad guys. We just made sure they knew who the bad guys were." she explained the rationale behind it, and crossed her arms, "Don't you start complaining too." she mumbled, and the Chief snickered, seeming impressed and a bit bewildered by the story.

"I won't complain... it's just a bit of a step up." he observed, presumably thinking the same way Katara and Sokka had about it, "An escalation this early isn't going to help us, even if it gets a few people on side."

"A lot of people saw it." Sokka clarified, "At least, I think they did. The point is, the word is going to spread fast."

"Yeah, and the Dai Li will learn about what's going on in this district, and they don't seem like the types to ignore somebody mocking them." he argued, before gesturing over to Toph, "And where exactly did- oh no." he gasped out, before looking down with a face of disgust; whatever he had realised, it couldn't have been any good.

"What?" Aang asked out, "What did you-"

"Don't bother asking." Sokka warned him, placing a hand on his shoulder, "It's... something nobody wants to talk about."

"I know I'm a kid, but I can-" he tried to argue, knowing that he had the right to hear about whatever had happened; he was just as part of the movement as the rest of them were.

"No, Sokka's right. We're not going to talk about it." Hakoda took his son's side, "Please Aang, understand that there are things that are... just horrible."

"Uh..." he mumbled, his mind going over the feelings that he had undergone when he learnt about the destruction of his people, and accepted as fact.

He didn't want to feel horrible again, and nodded cautiously, accepting his explanation, even if it told him nothing.

"In any case, we're going to have to deal with the Dai Li sooner or later." Sokka reminded them of what had happened, "Now it's definitely sooner."

"We're leaving this district soon anyway. So I wouldn't worry if I were you." Toph gave some advice, though neither of the Water Tribe siblings seemed to agree with the sentiment.

"No." Katara refused, before sighing, pacing over to the sleeping quarters allotted to herself, "I'm going to rest for a bit. Wake me up if we have to leave again."

"Got it." Sokka accepted her request, even if it wasn't particularly directed at him; once she was gone, Hakoda turned his gaze back over to Toph.

"I don't mean to tell you what to do, but I feel that bringing plans like that to the group would be better next time." he suggested, and the blind girl scoffed.

"Yeah, that's what Sparky said."

Hakoda seemed confused by the nickname, if only for a moment, before he laughed, seeming very amused by her choice of nickname for Azula; a few moments of silence passed after his laughter ended, and he seemed more reflective, and almost pleased, "That's... a cute nickname."

"Exactly!" Sokka exclaimed suddenly, showing a burst of excitement as he agreed, "Azula's gonna lose it if she hears you say that." he added with a smirk, as if he wanted it to happen, for his own amusement; given Azula and Hakoda were like family, Aang couldn't imagine her being that embarrassed unless he said in front of everyone.

"As much as I am tempted to, I would prefer not to sow any further discord here." he admitted, eyeing each of them, before glancing over to the door, "But when will she be back?"

"Soon." Sokka assured him, "Did you need to speak with her?"

"About that, probably not... but we will need to figure out how to deal with these protests. I feel that this is an opportunity to prove that we are on their side."

"We can't out ourselves in public." Toph reminded him, before humming, "But then again, we don't even need to show our faces."

"What, like wearing masks instead?" Aang asked, and scrunched his lips, "Like when we were in that village, fighting Bahen's bandits?"

"Yes, exactly like that." Toph snapped a finger at him, "You still have your mask?"

"Uh, yeah, I do." he nodded, before cringing, realising that it was in Appa's saddle bag, back at the farmhouse, "It's in the saddle bag."

"Hah, so you don't have it." she countered, and Aang shook his head.

"I can just fly over and grab it tonight." he argued, knowing it wouldn't take him all that long to reach the farmhouse; it might have been a fair distance by glider, but that was much, much faster than going by foot, as they had done when they first came to the city.

"I am a bit jealous that you can fly." Sokka admitted, "That must be fun... I mean, more fun than riding on Appa's saddle."

"Yeah." he nodded, "Flying is great. I feel most like myself when I'm up there. I don't have to worry about holding back my airbending."

"Y-yeah." he mumbled, before scrunching his lips, "How much do you usually have to hold back?"

"Well, I don't want to accidentally hurt people, or myself." he admitted, "I did that a few times when I was little, so I always try to keep control."

"I guess the firebenders mustn't be any different." Hakoda observed, and glanced over to Toph, "How about you, did you ever have to learn how to manage your strength?"

"I always had to hide my abilities from my parents, so I've been pretty good at it the whole time." she answered his question, before all their attention was drawn by some Water Tribe warriors stepping through the doors from one of the quarters.

"Hakoda, did you want to play this card game with us?" he asked, "One of the Earth Kingdom kids was teaching it to us... it's actually pretty fun."

"Alright." the Chief accepted the request, "That sounds better than just sitting here waiting for Azula."

"Yeah, she'll take her time... watching as the flames are fanned." Toph commented with a smirk, "She loves her chaos."

After Hakoda had stepped through the doorway to join the other warriors, Sokka's lips turned to a smile, and he gestured to the girl, "Not as much as you love your dirt." he retorted back.

She seemed nonchalant, and unimpressed by the retort. She shrugged, before shooting up a pillar beneath him, smacking him in the butt lightly, but fast enough that it made him lose his balance and fall head first towards the ground. Aang was watching, and unwilling to see him slam his face right into the hard ground, he airbent beneath Sokka, lifting him enough that he had time to break his fall. When he recovered, he eyed the earthbender with a frustrated glare.

"Come on, I thought you could take a joke." he grumbled, sounding offended by her reaction, "Aang, did you want to come up with me?" he asked, and he raised a brow.

"Up?" he asked, and Sokka pointed to the door.

"Yeah, up. I want to actually make sure Azula's alright, and now that I've been standing here for long enough... I admit, I am curious to see how things are going."

"Really?" Toph asked him, "Are you really that eager to see her again?"

"Hey, you know where we are." he reminded him with an uncharacteristically stern face, "I think I'm right to be a bit worried that she isn't back yet." he justified himself with a thumb to his sternum, and Aang stood back up.

"You are right." he agreed with him, and paced over to the door, unlocking the pieces of stone that kept it shut, before pulling the door open.

Sokka followed after him, and waved back to Toph before he stepped outside, "Thanks a lot." he sarcastically acknowledged her lack of help, though Aang was unsure if he was talking about the door, or the problems she might have caused them by agreeing to Jet's plan.

Aang pulled the door shut, and earthbent the locks back into place; after that, he gestured above them, "Want to take a short cut?"

"Are you sure nobody will see us there?" he asked, and Aang nodded.

"It's under a tarp." he clarified, before raising his hands up, ripping a hole through the tunnel to the surface; glancing up, the light of the afternoon sun was indeed blocked out by the tarp he referred to.

He gestured for Sokka to come closer, and he cautiously did so, "How fast are-" he began to ask him, before Aang shot a pillar out from beneath them, launching them to the surface.

Sokka let out a scream, but muffled it with his hands as they stopped moving, and Aang had a grip on his arm, making sure he wasn't flung up into the tarp when they came to a halt.

The Water Tribesman stumbled back and sat himself down on the ground, looking terrified and disoriented, "Shit... Is Toph teaching you how to be crazy?" he asked the Avatar, who laughed.

"No, I knew that wasn't dangerous. You've got to earthbend fast, then slow down so you don't go... fwip." he gestured up as he made the sound, and the other boy seemed unconvinced.

"Crazy." he muttered under his breath, before getting back up to his feet, "Let's go-" he began to suggest, before both of their attentions were drawn by the sound of some crashing, and the ground rumbling beneath them, "Shit."

"That was a lot of earth." Aang guessed; his seismic sense was nowhere near as attuned as Toph's was, so he could only assume based on the vibrations and the noise that somebody had collapsed a building, or dropped a boulder on the street.

"That can't be good." Sokka gave his opinion, before striding through the ruins to get out towards the street, "We need to find the others. They can't be far away now." he explained, before stopping himself, "Wait, can you sense heartbeats, like how Toph can?"

Aang paced out to where he was, and cringed, "Uh... not very well." he admitted, "I have to know the people well to do it."

"So, Azula, can you sense her?" he asked, "Or Ty Lee?"

"I think so." he nodded, and closed his eyes so he could try and hone his sense; he could make out lots of heartbeats, which was no surprise, given they were in a bustling city, and the base was just beneath their feet.

Further afield, he sensed more, but they were becoming harder to distinguish from each other; he did eventually recognise Azula and Ty Lee's, around a block away. They were near a lot of people, who he guessed were protesters.

"That way." he pointed to the nearest street running towards where the people were.

"Well don't just stand there." Sokka demanded, smacking him on the back before he dashed down the street.

Aang took off after him, afraid he might run into someone; he couldn't even count the number of times he had accidentally done that when exploring places. Now, they might run into somebody and get thrown in prison, or worse. When Sokka turned a corner, Aang sped up, though he tried to make sure his running seemed normal, not wanting passersby to suspect his airbending abilities; Azula had drilled it into his skull enough times. He needed to use his airbending sparingly when he wanted to hide himself, because he was the only person who could do it, and meant it immediately identified him as the Avatar.

When he got to the corner, he turned, and saw the mass of protesters, and right by the side, he could see some of the fighters moving along, trying to head back towards the hideout, led by Smellerbee. In the thick of it, that was where he saw Azula, accompanied by Renshu and Ty Lee. Sokka reached them quickly enough, and though Aang couldn't hear what he was saying over the chaotic shouts and chants the crowd was making, he could see their faces. Neither of them was very happy, and Sokka was obviously afraid of what might happen.

Aang's attention was drawn further down the street as he saw people running along the rooftops; he thought for a moment it might be more fake Dai Li agents, but he realised quickly enough that they were the real deal. He could make out that they were shouting at the people, along with the guards on the other side of the crowd, but their words were muffled by all the noise. He doubted any of the protesters would have had any idea what they were saying.

After a few moments pause, they earthbent up some walls to restrain everyone, presumably so they could force the protesters to disperse; he couldn't see them arresting all the people. There were just too many protesters and not enough of them; that was if they weren't going to resort to fighting them. He knew that was dangerous, because the guards' reactions had already whipped up a storm. Suddenly he saw some dust and dirt spurt up, obscuring the crowd and the walls, and a few moments later, he heard more shouts, thumps, and crashes; Aang could no longer stand by, and ran into the dust, relying on his seismic sense to figure out what was going on.

He could sense that Sokka and the others were still all together, and though the Dai Li were trying to contain the crowd with their walls, they weren't targeting anyone in particular. That made him hopeful that they might be able to slip away. Once he reached his friends, he could finally make out what they were saying.

"I can't see a thing." Ty Lee exclaimed, "How are we gonna-" she asked, before Aang broke through the stone wall with his earthbending, and grabbed her by the wrist.

"Everyone grab somebody else, I'll lead you out of the dust." he explained his plan, and he heard positive hums; his eyes were shut so he couldn't actually see their responses, and he'd prefer to avoid getting dirt in his eyes.

He bent a bigger hole in the wall, allowing the others to walk through it, and then, he slowly made his way to the closest alleyway, feeling the dust getting stronger as it was whipped out more. he could sense that a few agents had been knocked from the roof, and Aang realised that it wasn't the Dai Li responsible for the dust storm, but some earthbenders in the crowd.

As they reached the alleyway, the dust settled around them, allowing Aang to open his eyes; he turned around, and saw one of the agents on the roof, limping from some injury, trying to reach cover on the other side of the roof. He noticed that Azula was watching intently as well, and she turned to face him with a smirk.

"Well, that's better than I could have hoped for." she commented on the positive outcome; the protesters had continued their defiance, but Aang was sure it couldn't go on for much longer.

"We need to go back to the hideout, right now." Sokka demanded, "The fact the protest is here means it's spreading."

"Exactly, and that is what we wanted." Azula declared, "Jianren should be commended for his bravery to have run through the streets dressed as one of them." she added, seeming impressed with his achievement, and the fact he had apparently not been caught.

"Sorry, you've seen him?" Aang asked, and she nodded.

"We came across him as we were coming back this way. He had stashed the disguise just before he found us." she clarified, "He must be-" she turned back around towards the crowd, "Where is he?"

"Here." he identified himself; Aang saw that he was covered with dust, and seeming a bit sore, hunched slightly with a sour look on his face, "I'd like to wash myself."

"Fair enough." Azula acknowledged, "You got it even worse than we did... I assume you might have played a role in that just there." she gestured to the rooftop, and he shrugged.

"Well, I help where I can. It's not like they could have told who it was through the dust."

"You there!" he heard a guard address them, and Aang cringed, knowing that they didn't want to deal with the authorities.

"Shit." Sokka muttered under his breath, "Aang, you're fast, can you-"

"Got it." he understood his request even before he made it, "Time to play a little game." he declared, striding towards the guard, who was looking at them with suspicion.

"You should all be moving away from here, back to your homes. This assembly contravenes the statutes laid out by the Governing Council." he declared, his legal mumbo jumbo meaning nothing to Aang; he just shrugged, and smiled as he approached.

"I don't know what any of that means." he honestly admitted, "But, do you know what this is?" he pulled out his sky-bison whistle, showing it off to the guard, who leaned in to inspect it.

"What kind of... I'm confused." he admitted, and Aang kept up his smile.

"Yeah, that's the idea." he assured him that he was doing exactly what he wanted, before he swept the man's feet from underneath him; he fell flat on his face, and Aang laughed at him, "Hah! I thought you'd be better at this!" he mocked him, channelling his inner Toph as much as he could; that seemed to anger the guard, who grumbled and pulled himself up at once, earthbending at Aang.

The Avatar, with his seismic sense, was able to see it coming, and weaved right out of the way, which surprised the guard. He looked at him slack-jawed for a moment, before pulling another pillar out, which Aang easily dodged, given how he broadcast his movements. The guard was more angry than confused now, and rushed at him; that was exactly what Aang wanted, and let the guard take chase; he glanced back to see that the others were quickly slipping away, before the guard would have any idea where they went.

"Come on, slow-poke!" he prodded the guard as he turned a corner, heading back into the street where the fighting was going on; another guard stepped out, seeming confused by what was going on.

Aang raised his hands up and waved, "Hey! I'm over here!" he got their attention, before sprinting off down the street.

The guard was accompanied by a few more men, and formed a group of three; they chased Aang down the length of the street, in the direction of the Inner Walls, which towered high on the horizon. He had no intention to go that far, and turned a corner as soon as he came across another major street, doing a loop to try and confuse them and head back to the hideout. When he was heading down the alleyway, he could sense one of them coming down by a shortcut to try and catch him, so Aang just scaled up onto a small extension at the back of a building, before climbing up onto the roof.

"So, uh, can you guys climb?" he asked them, and when the guard reached him, he was frustrated, and didn't try to follow, instead pulling some rocks out of the ground.

"Get down if you know what's good for you, boy." he warned him, and Aang just grinned.

"No." he refused, dashing across the roof before he leapt over to the closest building.

He landed with a bit of force, breaking some of the roof tiles, before stumbling forward, "Ow." he grunted, and glanced down, "That's what no airbending does, huh." he whispered to himself, before shaking his head and sprinting across the next roof.

He kept himself on the highest points, running as fast as he could to leap across the alleyways and other smaller gaps with as much speed as possible. Quickly enough he had crossed the block, and easily scaled back down to street level by jumping on a few lower rooftops. Then he made his way back down some more alleyways; once he had reached the new construction sites, he knew he was close to the ruins, and slowed himself, making sure no guards were around to see him access the entrance. He cautiously approached one of the points they usually used to enter, which was the collapsed remains of another building's basement. He had to climb into the ruined building, but he found himself spotted.

"Hey, where did you come from?" he heard somebody ask, and he turned around to see that it was The Duke, sitting on a fallen beam with a bag of snacks.

"Oh, hi." he waved to him, surprised to see him just sitting there, "I had to make the guards chase me around."

"Hah." he laughed, "How are they gonna catch a- uh, I'm not allowed to say it, am I?"

"No, we're not allowed." he confirmed, before stepping down the staircase into the collapsed basement, "Uh, I guess I'll see you later."

"I guess this means all that poster stuff is done now?"

"Yeah, it is, you can head back inside if you want... I'm guessing you were guarding here." he assumed, knowing that they needed people to check all of the entrances, in case other people thought to try and squat in the ruins.

"Just sitting, making sure nobody's snooping on our turf. My turf." he declared, pointing at himself with a cocky look; he seemed less threatening and more like a kid doing a decent impression of Jet.

The Duke did stand up, and followed Aang down into the basement, where they had to duck under a fallen beam to reach a wall, which Aang earthbent apart to reveal a tunnel; it led back towards the sewers and their hideout. Like the rest, it wasn't really connected to the rest of the tunnels, with all the ways through collapsed. He glanced down the tunnel anyway, unable to see all that much beyond a bit of light emanating out from the end that opened out at the sewers.

The Duke stepped through and glanced around, "This place... stinks." he mumbled with a snide look, before pacing down the tunnel, "Don't forget to close it up." he gestured to the hole he had carved through the doorway.

Aang did so, before pacing off after him; it didn't take long, winding through the tunnels, heading back over to the entrance, which he could easily find by sensing where people were with his seismic sense. When he arrived, he earthbent the locks of the door open again, and stepped inside. Unlike last time, it was full of people; not everyone turned to face him, but a few did.

Jet was there, and smiled when he saw The Duke, "Buddy, you're off guard duty now?" he asked, and The Duke tilted his chin up.

"I was bored." he explained, and strode past him, "I wanna go make some proper food."

"Fair enough." Jet mumbled, before eyeing Aang, "So, you were... uh, chasing the guards off?"

"Yep." he confirmed, and glanced around, "Where are-"

"Oh, the others? They're off in the other room talking about stuff... plotting and all that." he explained, and Aang stepped closer.

"But I thought you were helping find us some more allies." he recalled, "Why aren't you in there?"

"I think I've pissed off enough people today." he admitted with a sheepish look, "I don't want Katara to smack me with her waterbending."

"I'm sure she wouldn't. Katara's polite." he assured him, before stepping past him, "I guess you got what you wanted."

"The Dai Li getting pelted by rocks? I did get that." he admitted with a smirk, and raised a fist, "Isn't that right?!" he asked the room, and everyone else cheered.

Aang made his way to the other room, where he could see his friends, as well as Hakoda, Renshu, and Jianren, those being the more important decision-makers around. There were other leaders, but most of them weren't even in Ba Sing Se yet. A few of the others might not have thought themselves important, and excluded themselves from the meeting; either that, or Azula didn't bother to invite them, which he thought would be rude, given they were all putting in the effort to help the Coalition. They were all about equal voices, after all.

He approached the table, and everyone looked at him with impressed faces; Sokka leaned forward with a smirk, "So, you did it?"

"Yeah, I made them run around... then I got on the rooftops and ran away." he explained what he had done, before striding over to a free seat, "So, yeah, we don't need to worry about them finding the hideout." he reassured them.

"That's good." Azula acknowledged his help, and gestured around, "We were just discussing how the ploy was successful. The public is angry with the Dai Li, and they know they have the power to resist." she explained with an eager look; she was usually not in such a good mood, reserving it for more non-serious occasions where she could let go, "I would say today has proven we can achieve our goals, even from the shadows."

"But that can't be kept up forever." Hakoda warned her, before sighing, "The Dai Li will eventually find this base. I think it's just a matter of time."

"No, you're right." Renshu agreed with him, "We need to start planning our next move. I know we all just got settled in, but this base is cramped, and the Dai Li must at least be... guessing, if not knowing that we are here."

"The Coalition needs to spread out its influence then." Azula decided, "Their attention shouldn't be solely on this district."

"Then, I say we find a way into the Middle Ring." Jianren suggested, "That's where the university is. All of the intellectuals, and those who can actually read."

"We could use their aid, though, I realise they might better serve as a distraction in the meantime. The Dai Li might assume I intend to conventionally coup them with the elements of the city that they derive their support from."

"They think we'll use the intellectuals, the merchants, the nobles, and try to turn them against the Dai Li." Toph realised, "But, that involves actually persuading them. How are you gonna do that?"

"Actually, I think you might be better suited for some of those tasks, Toph." she admitted, "Given the Mechanist isn't here to fill their hearts and minds with pragmatism and logic, we have to rely on somebody with eloquence and familiarity with the... finer parts of Earth Kingdom society." she argued why she was best suited for the task, and the blind girl just sighed, resting her chin in her palms as she leaned on the table.

"If you say so, your majesty."

"You don't have to." Azula clarified, "I am simply observing the fact that you are best suited for it."

"No, I get that. You're a noble from another country... these people aren't gonna demand duels if you insult your honour."

"Heh, no, they'll probably just call the Dai Li on you for some made up treason." Sokka joked, and Toph's uneasy expression suggested that might actually be accurate, "Wait really?"

"It's an easy way of getting rid of your opposition." she acknowledged, before sighing, "The Dai Li are more the imprison first, take questions later type."

"Yeah, you'd know, Toph." Katara added, referring to how she had gotten tossed around by Jianren.

"Hey, I based that off of what I'd heard them do." Toph clarified, "Jianren, tell them I'm right."

"I went with whatever you and Jet had for me." he conceded, before turning to face the Princess, "Azula, I apologise for... our brashness, once more."

"It was brash, but it was the right idea." she countered, "We just need to wait out this storm for a few hours, and then we'll try and find a way to direct this energy the way we need it to move." she argued, and Katara snickered at that phrasing.

"So, waterbending people?" she questioned what she was suggesting, and Azula looked more confused.

"Metaphorically." he clarified, "I am not suggesting anyone could..." she began, before suddenly falling silent.

Her face told Aang that she was actually considering the idea, though he was unsure if that was possible; she momentarily eyed Sokka, and then turned her gaze back to Katara.

"That's something to look into." she suggested, "I have never heard of it, but then again, I was never taught anything beyond the basics of how the other bending arts worked."

"The Northerners would know of it, if it is possible." Hakoda gave his own opinion, "Not that I recommend such a thing... it's... disturbing, to say the least."

"Back to the matter at hand." Azula spoke up again, directing their attention back to their goals in the district, "We will need to find more allies, beyond this part of the city. I am sure Jet will have pointers... and going to the Middle Ring will surely help us draw the Dai Li's attention away from the Lower Ring."

"And what if that doesn't work?" Jianren asked, "Do we start the fight here?"

"We will do what we can." Azula acknowledged, "The other districts need to be brought on side before we'd have a chance... and once our other allies arrive, we might have the manpower to directly face the Dai Li. Not their conscripts, nor the Fire Nation soldiers stationed inside."

"I mean, at this rate, we might be able to actually get conscripts to desert for our cause." Hakoda suggested, before turning his eyes over to Aang, "Actually, Aang, you might be able to help there."

"How can I? I'm just one airbender." he admitted, "Even if I can bend the other three elements, I can't fight armies."

"You don't need to." Ty Lee raised a finger, "We've employed this little tactic before called a decapitation strike." she argued, before gesturing out the door, "Out beyond the walls, where their army is, they're away from the Dai Li's threats of brainwashing and imprisonment."

"Precisely." Azula smiled at her friend's comments, "Defeat their leaders and offer them a chance to take back their city, and back they will follow. You're the Avatar, after all." she explained a path forward, "But, I don't know if they'd be willing to desert. Their families are here, and under the Dai Li's watchful eyes, they're effectively hostages."

"Then who isn't held back by their ties to the city?" Jianren pressed, "Who can we bring to our side on a show of force alone?"

"Probably the Fire Nation soldiers." Katara mumbled, "I mean, if it worked in Shengchang, it will probably work here as well."

"They're spread out, so we'd need to-" Azula began to ferment a plan, before it looked like something sparked within her mind, "We need to find out their loyalties first. If we can prove our point to enough officers, they can lead a revolt against the Governing Council."

"That would surely fail." Jianren retorted, and Azula shrugged.

"Well, I don't need them to succeed, I need them to weaken the government. That's how we can make our alternative seem all the more favourable to the people." she argued, and her Captain of the guard seemed very uneasy with the idea.

"As much as I appreciate and praise your strategic wits, your majesty... I can't say that betraying your own citizens to their doom will go well with the rest of the Fire Nation." he warned her, and that was probably the biggest act of defiance he'd heard from the man since he met him, "You want to rule them, not just win here."

"Then we must balance our plans." Hakoda decided, "Put pressure on the Dai Li to crack down, without forcing desertions and an open revolt. The only way that will work is if they're fighting on multiple fronts. You can't protect your face and your back at the same time."

"Then what are the fronts?" Ty Lee asked, "The Fire Nation, and the commoners?"

"They are the best choices... unless we can really fool the Dai Li into attacking itself out of a revanchist desire to expel the Fire Nation occupiers." Toph argued, before tilting her head, "Given how most Earth Kingdom fighters speak about the ash-makers, it might work... but I wouldn't trust those people to be real allies."

"I think we agree they're not our allies, but using them to batter the Governing Council, it might work." Azula spoke her mind, "We need to make sure whatever we do allows for the people to rise up. That is the ultimate goal."

"What if they don't accept your 'provisional government'?" Katara asked, the idea making Aang tense up; they had been acting under the assumption they would be ultimately victorious, with the public supporting their plans to reform the Earth Kingdom; perhaps they would establish their own government over the city, and ignore the Coalition's plans.

"That is why we need the local leaders on our side." she reminded the table, before raising a finger, "So, let's just wait and see what they do, and make our moves. Once they know we are on their side, they will surely see the Coalition is their path to victory."

"Maybe you should bring out the other leaders with you." Aang suggested, "There's other people here right now, who aren't in this meeting."

"Because they prefer to wait for the opportunity to strike out alliances." Jianren spoke up, "They are here with us, not for us."

"Aang is right." Hakoda agreed with him, "They will need to come along, and make inroads with the locals. There's enough people here that we could spread across the districts and find friends in all of them."

"That is the plan." Azula nodded, before rising to her feet, "Then, I say when the dust has settled, we will see who is worth our attention. We do not want rats infesting our house."

"I can help, but I won't be interviewing everyone... that's not practical." Toph added, and Azula shrugged.

"Then we will be vigilant. I will not put in all this effort to be felled by some idiots who got themselves brainwashed, or fools who took a bribe thinking it would save them." she declared, "We can only save ourselves."

"Us in the room?" Sokka asked her, and Azula raised her chin.

"Humanity." she corrected him, "Either we end the war, or we will suffer for as long as we live."

Aang was not for conflict, but for the lack of it; he could not stand injustice, or the needless suffering of the innocents of the world. His people might have been gone, but there were so many people he could still help.

"For peace!"

---

There weren't many large, open spaces in Ba Sing Se, especially in the very cramped Lower Ring, which was already full of buildings before the refugees bolstered the population of the district; Jet knew that because of this, there were only a few places the public could assemble. In the district, there were two possible places: the cleared out ruins of the slums, which formed a rather large open area, and the local community square, right by the Inner Wall gates, which was both a public space and one of the Earth Kingdom military's mustering grounds before they were defeated.

It no longer served that purpose, beyond being a meeting point for groups of conscripts before they were to be sent to the front lines. There were military barracks located nearby, which were occupied by both the Fire Nation professional soldiers and the new conscript soldiers, meaning that anyone who was assembling would quickly have to deal with them. However, now it was full of commoners, and banners streaked the crowd, reading 'conscription is slavery'; he could not disagree with that, and other banners were even more provocative. One read 'they are us', and another even read 'the Avatar will destroy you', and it didn't take a genius to understand who 'you' were.

He had learned about the assembly by word of mouth, and when he first arrived, the first thing he noticed was that the expected soldiers were nowhere to be found. It seemed that they were either on duty, or had other issues to attend to. He was accompanied by the others, but they purposefully spread themselves out to try and find as many people to speak with. Jet was less concerned with making more allies but rather finding those he knew, and left the other task to the others.

The assembly had been organised in the aftermath of the violent protests, after which there was a day-long lockdown to prevent further violence; he was surprised by the measured response, though from his understanding, a few people were arrested by the Dai Li for leading the violence against them. That wasn't enough arrests to actually cause the people to revolt harder, but as their grievances were not met, a public assembly was a logical conclusion. There had to be at least a few hundred people in the square, and more people were pooling in; more banners were being raised, and a makeshift podium had been built in the middle of the square, facing away from the gates, towards the rest of the city.

As he moved through the crowd, he made sight of Adu, along with a few of his friends who worked on the cleanup and reconstruction of the slums; he knew some of them, but others were new faces. Adu immediately noticed Jet, and smiled at his presence.

"If I was a betting man, I'd say you had something to do with those posters." he addressed him, and Jet shrugged his shoulders.

"I've done a little more than that." he whispered, "Did you hear about the girl getting thrown around by the Dai Li?" he asked them, wondering if they had heard what had happened, and how fast the news had spread.

"That was bloody terrible." one of the men spoke up, "I can't believe they'd do that, and I think they're a bunch of scum."

Jet decided to hold his tongue, not knowing if he could trust them all with the truth that he was behind that all.

"So, you're Jet." another of them, a younger woman, addressed him, "We've heard a lot about your deeds... and that you're a wanted man."

"They don't even know who I am." he countered, "I'm just one guy. It's the others they'll want."

"The Avatar?" the first man whispered to him, and Jet nodded cautiously, "Really? If he's here, then maybe we'll really have a chance." he admitted with a pleased look, before turning his eyes towards the podium.

"You're here to find more people to aid you." Adu commented as he stepped closer to him, and Jet just chuckled.

"I can't say no to that." he conceded, "Whoever's willing to stand against them is worth my time."

"There's a lot of people in Ba Sing Se." the woman noted, and eyed him suspiciously, "So, are you gonna get us killed?"

"What makes you-"

"Don't play dumb." Adu chided him, "Maque here is right to ask." he warned, and Jet glanced around, nervous that other people would be listening to them.

"I'm only asking people to help, not to put their necks on the line. Not yet." he argued quietly, and she kept her eyes on him before slowly nodding.

"I have no choice but to believe you." she mumbled, before gesturing up to the podium, where he could see an older man climbing up.

He had some serious burn scars on his body, and wore an outfit that he had seen before; it was the ceremonial uniform Earth Kingdom soldiers wore. A parade had come through a town he visited before the 'end' of the war, and they wore the same outfits then. That told him that the man was a veteran, and given that he was in Ba Sing Se, he probably fought in the siege, which would explain the burns; it was either that, or he had actually been part of the brave fighting force that had failed to hold off the Fire Nation during the passing of the comet. Now that he thought about it, most of the soldiers who fought then were captured by the Fire Nation and sent to camps across the Earth Kingdom, so they couldn't coordinate any kind of resistance. He imagined most of those men were free now, with the chaos across the Fire Nation's empire, but he hadn't actually met any so far.

"Hear me, people of Xiqi District!" he called out to the crowd, "I was once young like most of you. I thought there was a great honour in fighting for our nation, and I still do. What the Governing Council is doing to this city... it is despicable. Forcing us to fight our own countrymen? This has been unheard of in a century. It is the lowest act!" he decried the actions of the government, and pointed out, "How many brothers, how many sons, how many husbands, how many will have to fight and die, against those who only seek to do as they have been forced to?" he asked, and raised a hand up, "They are only trying to serve our great nation!"

Cheers erupted from the crowd, and he raised his fist, "Do not let these liars and fools from the other Rings fool you. They only want to line their pockets and keep power for themselves. They have stooped so low to let the Fire Nation remain in our city. This is a stain on the honour of every man who has fought against them!"

"Traitors!" he heard more people chant, and Jet began to join in, agreeing with the sentiment.

"Some friends of mine have come here today, to tell you about what they have seen out there, on the front lines... these are the men who have returned, and done their duties." he argued, "They have kept their promises, but I ask you, have our rulers?" he pointed up, towards the Inner Walls, "They have kept us down. I count three hundred years of suffering, for what? We are no stronger than we were then. We are weaker!"

"Traitors!" the crowd chanted again, and the man let another take the stand; this man was far less battle-hardened, with only a few scars and scrapes, but he was wearing bandages, telling Jet he must have only just returned to the front.

"I thank Sergeant Major Tiezhi for his long service to our nation." the soldier addressed the man who had just spoken, and bowed to him out of respect, "Just last week, I was out there, fighting our supposed enemies. Among them, I saw not a single firebender. Not a single red banner. Only men and women of our nation, brave warriors and earthbenders. They were helped by those from the only nation we can call our friend, the Water Tribes. They were merciful and begged us to return home." he explained, his words seeming genuine, "I only fought because it was demanded of me. If I had not, they would have conscripted my brother instead."

The crowd cheered for the soldier, who saluted them, "I will not fight my brothers and sisters!" he declared, "If the guards are watching, and they want to arrest me, they can, but they cannot deny the truth! We are the Earth Kingdom, not them! A pack of traitors and ash-makers who only serve their peace. Their power!"

The crowd cheered again, and the man stepped away, and another replaced him; this man was a little older, and more grizzled, "My name is Lieutenant-Major Jiaoxin, and my standing here, I am forfeiting my rank, my pension, and perhaps, my life." he identified himself, his bravery clear; unless he was some kind of tool for the Dai Li, then he was probably right; he was dooming himself to toil and suffering with his words.

"I have come to realise that this war is wrong. We are attacking our fellow countrymen, and for what?" he asked, "I have been sent to the east, to the south, to the west, and I do not fight the Fire Nation, like the Governing Council promised us. They promised justice, but all I have to show for it are dead men who rightly resisted the rule of these traitors!"

Tiezhi returned to the podium after the cheering died down, "There are many more who want to make their voices heard, but do not wish to risk their lives." he clarified why there were only two men coming forward to speak with them, "These two men were brave enough to stand forth and stand with us against this injustice. But there are so many more like them." he explained, and he pointed back towards the centre of the city.

"So, march with us... in a week, we will go south, through the other districts, through the walls, all the way to the palace. The protesters who were arrested, they will be freed, and no more sons of the Earth Kingdom will be forced to fight this war. If anyone else has anything to say, I say you step up here, and let the people hear your words!" he called out, and Jet hoped that somebody took up the offer; another man climbed up onto the podium, presumably also a veteran, given his burns and other scars of fighting, but he was wearing plain clothes.

"These men speak the truth. There is no honour in this!" he declared, "Any man who thinks of our war against our own people is right, against people who want to help us depose these... rats, then they should run for the Upper Ring and beg for their aid. Because we will not be silenced." he argued, pulling out a poster that he had torn off a wall, "For the Earth Nation!"

"For the Earth Nation!" he heard what sounded like a thousand voices cheering back, and people began to chant it.

Jet grinned, knowing that their works had borne fruit, and earlier than he thought they might. They were not chanting for death, for war, for peace, but for themselves; they chanted for their nation, not a kingdom, and certainly not for their masters.

"We will stand together!" Tiezhi shouted out, "March with us, and they will know that the people are stronger than they could ever hope to be!"

Even more people cheered, and Jet turned to face Adu, who seemed more than pleased.

"It seems you're in luck, Jet." he admitted, his voice barely audible through the cheering, but he could read his lips.

He glanced around, looking at all the people, before he eyed up onto the rooftops; he could see from heads peeking over the ridges of roofs, and there were a lot of roofs, and many more heads. Even if they were in more plain clothes than usual, the hats gave them away; the Dai Li were silently watching the assembly from afar, and they would act quickly enough. Some soldiers had just outed themselves as 'traitors' to the Governing Council, and that could only mean one thing; they would be seized, sooner rather than later. Jet had no intention of letting that pass.

So, he pointed them out to Adu, knowing he might have some thoughts about that, before he paced off over towards Aang and Toph, who had been a little further afield, closer to the podium. He had spotted them through the crowd, and knew he'd need their help, or more accurately, that the soldiers would. Jet knew that they were far more useful as allies than as martyrs; they were trained, capable, and obviously defiant to the powers at be: the perfect rebels. Jet was admittedly not the humblest of men, but he knew experience and strength when he saw it, and he wanted more of it on his side. The more they could deprive their enemies of it, the better a chance they would have of achieving their ultimate victory.

"Toph." he called out to the blind girl, who turned around, presumably sensing him before she heard him; when he reached a hand out, she pulled it down to draw less attention, and snapped a finger at him.

"What are you doing? Are you trying to get people's attention?" he asked, and Jet gestured backwards.

"Sense the rooftops." he told her, and Toph's lips scrunched up for a moment; when he saw her eyes widen slightly, he knew that she had sensed them.

"They've probably been here the whole time." she realised, before turning around, "They'll want to-" she began, before clenching her fists, "Aang, I'm gonna need a dust storm."

"Why?" he asked, and he pointed up; unlike Toph, he could see, and Aang's face shifted to one of fear.

"Oh no." he gasped out, "There's... a lot more than last time."

"So, do you think we can get them out?" he gestured to the podium, and Aang sighed.

"Toph, you're the only one who will be able to see." he warned her, and she scoffed.

"I'm well aware." she assured him, and Aang raised his hands up into the air.

"Close your eyes." he told Jet, who did so at once.

A moment later, he felt the wind whip up around them, first a light breeze, but it quickly became a thundering gale, and the crowd cried out. He felt the dust flinging up into his face, and Jet scrunched his eyes further shut, not wanting to hurt them. He reached for his belt and took out a piece of fabric he'd sometimes use to tie a knife to his belt, and tied that around his face.

"Toph." he addressed the blind girl, who reached a hand out and grabbed him by the wrist.

"Stick with me. Aang will keep the storm up, and we'll make sure these patriots don't end up wherever Teng's friends did." she told him, though it was hard to hear her voice over the shouts and the sound of the wind itself.

People were running about frantically, presumably unaware that an airbender was causing the chaos; a sandbender might be able to, but not even Adu was strong enough to muster something like the whirlwind Aang had formed. As they made their way closer to the podium, Toph called out as loud as she could.

"Sergeant Major!" she called out to him, and as they stepped closer, he heard him call back.

"Who is it?"

"Nobody you know, but you need to come with me!" she called back out, "The Dai Li are going to arrest you and all your friends."

"We will suffer so the people don't have to." one of the other soldiers shouted out, and Toph didn't seem impressed in the slightest.

"Don't be stupid! We can help you!"

"Who are 'we'?!" Tiezhi called out, and Jet stepped closer to the podium, now feeling the wooden planks beneath his feet.

"I am Jet, and we're the people you've been commanded to destroy." he declared their loyalties, "Come with me." he offered out a hand, "We don't have much time!"

"If that's true... then you must know where the Avatar is." Tiezhi realised as he approached, his voice becoming clearer.

"Who do you think is blinding everyone?" he asked him rhetorically, and Tiezhi clapped.

"Such power!" he exclaimed with approval, and accepted his hand, "I will gladly help the Master of the Elements."

"Master of two elements." Toph added, presumably as a joke, though that was accurate; Aang was yet to master earthbending, and from his understanding, hadn't even started to learn firebending.

"Come with me, brothers. I know we were standing here with sacrifice in mind... but if this is true, we might have a chance to destroy the traitors."

"Fighting is better than surrendering." Jiaoxin declared, "Let's go!" he agreed, and Toph audibly began earthbending, carving out a hole right in front of the podium; Jet pulled the fabric from his eyes, and saw it, even with the dust whipping up around them.

"Go!" she ordered, and he didn't wait, jumping down into the pit, which he realised connected to the underground tunnel system.

The tunnel was unlit, but safe from the dust, and once the soldiers were down with him, Toph climbed down and covered the hole.

"By the spirits... I didn't even realise." Tiezhi gasped out, "Are these the Dai Li's tunnels?" he asked, and Jet nodded.

"Yes. We can't use these for long. They know these paths. As soon as we're away from the square, we'll take the streets instead." he explained, and grimaced, "You'll have to get rid of any signifiers of your positions in the military." he warned them, and the men hummed, seeming not to approve.

Toph snapped her fingers to get all their attention, "Let's not waste any time! I know you can't see down here, but I can, so follow in my footsteps, got it?"

"She can-" Jiaoxin asked, and Jet raised a hand.

"We can explain how that works later. Just follow."

Even if it was muffled, he could still hear the footsteps of the attendees of the assembly, and he could just make out their shouts and the sounds of thumping. Earthbending, and perhaps, melee combat; there was no way that the Dai Li wouldn't intervene once Aang stopped his storm, and he guessed they had already started. With their earthbending, they could at least try and part through the dust, as to apprehend whoever they deemed necessary. Aang might have been one of those people, but he would make a break for it when he got the chance, and unless they had something as fast as an airbender, nobody would be able to catch him.

The group walked as fast as they could, and Jet was glad he was just wearing robes instead of his armour; sometimes he'd wear it underneath his robes for safety, but given they were just expecting to observe at the assembly, he hadn't prepared for a fight. He didn't even have his hook swords, preferring a large dagger which he had fastened to his lower back, with a smaller one in his left boot. The tunnels felt stuffy, but not necessarily warm; more humid than anything, which he guessed had to do with the fact they were connected with the sewers.

When he saw light in the distance, he was relieved, and Jet let himself smile; they must have reached one of the entrances, which would have been under some metal or wooden covering on the street. However, he realised it was a little too light; the sun was shining down into the tunnels, and he grabbed Toph, stopping her from getting any closer.

"What?" she asked him, and smacked his hand away.

"One of the entrances is open. That isn't normal, right?" he asked her, and Toph shook her head.

"Just wait a moment." she requested, and stomped her foot down; she stood still for a few moments, before shoving Jet back.

He was confused why she had done so, but realised when he saw a pair of stone gloves flying towards them; the gloves shattered against a wall Toph raised up, and suddenly, the light was gone. She hadn't raised the wall up to the roof, but instead, she must have covered the entrance. Either that, or the Dai Li did. He heard some grunts and groans, before a loud thump struck the ground in the distance. The wall audibly gave way, and Toph began moving forward again.

"This is our only chance." she explained, "This agent can tell what they're plotting."

Jet nodded, and let her go ahead, knowing she could sense him doing it; when she got close enough, the agent groaned more loudly, and let out some frantic cries, "W-w-wait!" he screamed; the tunnel was blocked off, so he doubted anyone would hear him.

"You can guess who we are." Toph addressed him, "So, tell us what we want to know, and we'll let you go." she assured him, and Jet was about to argue against that, but held his tongue; she was right to offer that, given he would be less willing to tell them anything.

"How can I believe you?" he asked, and she hummed with amusement.

"What colour is my hair?" she asked him, and he snickered.

"What kind of question is that? I didn't even see your hair, just the silhouettes." he argued, and she sighed.

"He isn't lying." she admitted, and Jet knew to trust her; however, Dai Li agents were well trained, and probably were expected to lie all hours of the day, when they were undercover, when they were interrogating people, and even when they were dealing with their superiors, the Governing Council, "Was this set up? Are these men under your influence?" she asked, and Tiezhu scoffed.

"How dare-" he began to accuse her, and Jet grabbed the man by his tunic.

"Shut up. You know Ba Sing Se... trusting anyone is a foolish move." he reminded him of where they were, and he understood the implications of his words.

"I- sorry, I just don't want to be accused of something without evidence."

"Answer the damn question!" Toph demanded, and Jet heard her punching him in the gut, not even bothering to use her earthbending.

"No! No! The military has an agreement with the Ministry of Cultural Heritage." he assured them, and Jet scoffed.

"Wait... that's what you call yourselves?"

"That is what we are." he retorted, "The Dai Li is the name of our agency, but we are merely bureaucrats. That is our role."

"Yeah, and I'm the Fire Lord's personal tour guide." Jet sarcastically commented, before pointing at him, "Where are you hiding the prisoners?"

"What prisoners?" he questioned back, and Toph punched him again, this time a lot harder, as the agent sputtered.

"Don't lie!" she demanded, "I will break a bone for every lie you tell me." she gave a rather serious threat, and Jet didn't think she was trying to play up her violent intentions; she genuinely sounded angry, if not afraid, given the circumstances.

"Okay! Okay!" he exclaimed fearfully, "The Ministry operates a prison at Lake Laogai, but it is just a place for transfers." he explained, "People seized... but not worth being... inducted, they are sent to the camps. The Fire Nation set some of them up when they seized power. The Governing Council has taken over them... that's where prisoners are held. Non-benders, firebenders, and earthbenders are all separate."

"Where?!" Toph demanded, "You're just wasting our time." she told the agent, before she stomped a foot down; a pillar shot out of the ground, or at least, that's what it sounded like.

The man let out a wheeze and then groaned, before she spoke once more, "Tell me now."

"One is in the Lower Ring. It's not hiding." he explained, "That's for the non-benders. The earthbenders are kept in a metal prison in the Upper Ring, where the Fire Nation garrison used to operate from."

"And the firebenders?" she pressed, the man scoffing.

"Wh-what? Why would you even-" he asked her before he was cut off; Jet heard a bone snap, and the man screamed at the top of his lungs.

"Answer me!" she demanded, and the man panted for a few moments before responding.

"They're... they're being held in the Crystal Catacombs. The Ministry won't let the Fire Nation defectors within a mile of them." he explained, and she remained silent, before another bone snapped, "Argh!" he screamed out again, only to be muffled by Jet, who had had enough of listening to him.

"By the spirits, he's not going to tell you if he passes out." Jiaoxin warned her, and Toph snapped a finger at him.

"Let me do my job. You can do yours once you're safe." she told him, and once Jet had let go of the man's mouth, he panted once more.

"Please... please... don't."

"What did you do to them?" Jet asked him, guessing from Toph's reaction that he had been lying.

"Do I really need to say?" he asked; they had been brainwashed, and were presumably spread around the city to serve as agents of the Dai Li; perhaps as a way to frame the Fire Nation in case they had to break up the Governing Council and seize absolute power.

"A false flag." he guessed, and the man hummed with amusement.

"You won't stand a chance." he declared, and Jet shrugged, finding his words to be nothing but a distraction.

"Is that enough?" he asked Toph, and the man laughed.

"They'll be down in a second. You idiots better run."

Jet drew out the knife from his right boot, and cut the man's throat right open. The others didn't realise what he had done before he grabbed Toph by the shoulders.

"We need to go, now!" he told her, "He wasn't going to say anything else, and he couldn't have been lying about that last part." he argued.

She pushed him out of the way and broke apart the pillars around the now dying agent, "Follow me!" she ordered the soldiers, and they did.

The group made their way further down the tunnel before he could hear Toph stop; he realised when he reached a hand out that they had made their way to a dead end. She slid her foot on the ground, and suddenly a hole opened up to their right, lighting up the tunnels; a moment later, some stairs were created out of the walls, and she shoved Jet forward.

"Don't do anything else stupid, you maniac." she ordered him sternly, and Jet cautiously nodded, not wanting to piss her off any more than he already had.

"You offered him mercy." Tiezhi addressed Jet, pushing him against the wall, "How can we trust you?" he asked, and he sighed.

"Just follow Toph. She'll honour her word, and I'll do the dirty work."

"Your parents would be ashamed of such behaviour. It is not befitting of a soldier of the Earth Kingdom."

"I never said I was." he clarified, before spitting onto the ground, "And mention my parents again, and I will kill you." he bluntly made his own position clear; the soldier whose name he didn't know grabbed Tiezhi by the collar and pulled him back.

"For fucks sake, old man." he chided him, "The boy's family are dead." he told him what he had been unwilling to say aloud.

With that, they remained in silence, and followed Toph up onto the street. They made their way down the alleyway, and as soon as they were up the stairs, she earthbent the hole she had carved shut. He could hear shouting coming from the square, which still wasn't very far away, and as they approached the next street, running crossways, he saw people moving away from the square frantically. Instinctively, Jet checked the roofs as they reached the end of the alleyway, and he was relieved that nobody was there waiting for them. When he looked down the street, he did recognise somebody; it was Smellerbee, who was accompanied by the Fire Lord's companion Ty Lee.

"Jet!" she called out to him as she approached; her expression shifted to one of surprise as she saw the soldiers with them, "Shit... that's where they went." she realised, before pointing down the street, "We need to get moving, the Dai Li are ripping the place up looking for these guys."

"I figured." he nodded, and Ty Lee stepped past them.

"Well, come on. You guys need to get off the street and out of those clothes." she told them, before pulling off the cloak she was wearing and handing it to Jiaoxin, whose officer uniform stood out the most, "Take this."

He accepted it, and put on, tying it at his neck and pulling a hood over his head to obscure his face; Jet didn't wait any longer, and ran down the street with the rest of them. Toph led the way, taking them down a winding route, away from the Outer Walls and into the recently rebuilt slums. The buildings were wider apart, offering less cover from prying eyes, but there were few guards about, as all of them must have massed near the assembly to handle any outbursts of violence. When they finally made sight of the ruins, Jet gestured for them to stop, as he spotted a few Dai Li agents making their way across a nearby street; because there was only rubble in the way, he could make out that they were chasing somebody, and from the speed, it didn't take him long to figure out it was Aang.

"Lead them right to the base why won't you, Twinkletoes." Toph groaned in frustration, before turning around, "Just wait for them to pass through." she told them, and gestured over to an alleyway where they could cover.

Jet saw a few of their posters hanging up there, though some had clearly been ripped down; he was unsure if they were taken down by guards, or by locals who wanted to spread the word. He guessed the latter, given the guards weren't stupid enough to leave the rest of them up. When Toph snapped her fingers, they had to continue; and made their way into the ruin. The road was clear, making it a straight path to the collapsed house, where the slipped down into the basement. Once everyone was there, Toph opened the wall up, and revealed the tunnels.

"Wait, we're going back into the tunnels?" Jiaoxin asked her, "But we-"

"No, don't worry, the Dai Li blocked off these parts, they're... 'useless', I assume. Nobody lives in the ruins."

"If you say so." he mumbled, not sounding very convinced; she led them into the tunnel, while Jet remained at the entrance, waiting for everyone to enter.

Smellerbee waited with him, and when everyone else was inside, he slammed his hand on the wall, "Close it up, we'll keep watch." he told Toph, who scoffed.

"Yeah, don't kill anyone else while you're at it." she warned, and closed the wall back up.

"What's that all about?" his friend asked him, and he cringed.

"Don't worry, we just... well, the Dai Li did find us." he admitted quietly, and she almost screamed; he muffled her with a slap to the mouth, and she stumbled back, now a little annoyed, "You don't usually take me as the screaming type."

"Well that's fucking terrible news." she countered, before her eyes lit up in realisation, "But you dealt with them."

"It was just a single agent, checking the tunnels. It might have been pure luck on his behalf... we got some information about the prisons where the rebels are being kept, but I couldn't let him inform the Dai Li about our movements." he explained what he had done, "Plus, a dead agent is a good agent."

"I'm not gonna disagree with you... but uh, you know, Toph." she elbowed him, and Jet rolled his eyes.

"I do what's necessary." he declared confidently, "I know she might not like me executing a guy in front of her, but what else was I meant to do?"

"You don't need to persuade me... but uh, maybe just let her decide next time, given she's the one who can tell if people are lying. For all I know, he might have stayed silent."

"He wouldn't have. They're all liars. That's basically half their job." he countered, before striding back over to the staircase, "Let's keep a lookout. Maybe Aang will come back without the Dai Li on his arse."

"Hopefully." she added, "If they come back, they'll have to start suspecting we're hiding here."

"I think they'll start suspecting any day now. That's why we need to move out at the first opportunity. I want to go southwest and check around there for some places to use."

"We can do that tonight. Just us, the gang. We know the way."

"I know we do, but I don't want the Fire Lord to think we're just running away." he admitted, and she scoffed.

"Why would she think that?"

"Because she knows I hate her." he reminded her, "We're working with her because it's the best way to save our country."

"So, somebody needs to stay?" she asked, and Jet nodded, "Fine, let it be me. Ty Lee trusts me... and she and the Fire Lord stick together like fur in sky-bison shit."

"That's... a graphic image." he admitted, disgusted by the thought, and belched a little before taking a deep breath, "Now, let's just wait." he told Smellerbee, who sat herself down on some rubble while he remained standing, arms crossed and eyes squarely set down the road, waiting for their comrades to return.

Not long after he had taken that spot, he saw Bato, alongside a few Water Tribe men, come up the street; when he recognised Jet, he raised a hand to wave, and he returned the favour.

"Good to see you're safe." he commented as he approached, before gesturing further up the street, "We'll take another entrance... we have some more work to do."

"No, we'll go ahead." one of the warriors suggested, "You and the kid can catch up for a bit."

Bato laughed, and nodded, "Fine, go on." he agreed to the proposal, and stood beside Jet, waiting for the others to return.

"So, how many people could you make in-roads with?" he asked the Water Tribesman, who raised a finger to his cheek, and tapped in thought.

"Well, there were a few we made conversation with, and we directed some of those who were resisting the Dai Li that the sewers were a good place to hide." he answered his question, "That's where the men are going now. They'll bring them inside once they've been properly checked."

"How, exactly?" he asked, and Bato pulled out a piece of paper.

"This phrase." he showed him, before wincing, "Oh sorry, I forgot you can't read." he apologised, "It says 'the Earth King invites you to Lake Laogai'."

"What... what exactly does that even mean?" he asked, "Is it an actual- no, you wrote that."

"When we were getting out of the square, I saw some agents corner some people." he explained, "I was watching from the cover of an alleyway, and they said that phrase. When they did, the people went... crazy. Some of them started attacking the others. The Dai Li restrained those who didn't go mad, and took them away."

"Shit." Jet gasped, "That must be it." he realised what exactly he was talking about, "It's the conditioning phrase. I've heard about brainwashing all around, but nobody's ever been able to tell me how they activate it. That must be it."

"It sounds a bit weird." Bato commented, "The Earth King? Isn't that a bit dated?"

"Yeah, it would be. They must have been taken by the Dai Li, those ones that freaked out, years ago, before the Fire Nation arrived. I'm guessing they would have changed it now." he explained what he thought about the phrase, "But I'm guessing you're gonna make the warriors say that phrase in front of the people you helped, to see if they... go wild?"

"Basically." he nodded, "I don't know how we can help those who have been taken by the Dai Li. There must be some way to break the conditioning... somehow."

"I can't imagine it would be very pretty." Jet mumbled with a grimace, "That's something you need to tell-"

"Jet" Smellerbee addressed him as she smacked his back, getting his attention; he could see that Azula, Sokka, and a few of Azula's disguised guards had come out from the cover of an alleyway.

"Ah, you're here." Azula acknowledged their presence, "After the chaos you stirred with Aang, I can only guess you took the speakers to safety." she guessed, and Jet nodded.

"Yes, we were able to get them here safely." he assured her quietly, noticing that people were still running down the street, away from the protest; Azula gestured into the collapsed house, "Let's speak inside."

They all made their way down, and Azula sat herself down on a fallen over set of shelves; the guards remained by the entrance, while Sokka, Bato, and Smellerbee stood around. The younger Water Tribe warrior was right next to him, and tapped his arm to get his attention.

"So, how exactly did you get away?"

"Through the Dai Li's tunnels." he clarified, "They ran right under the square."

"But those tunnels are still in use... or at least, they should be." Azula realised, before narrowing her eyes at him, "Did you encounter agents inside?"

"One." he answered truthfully, "We dealt with him."

"I hope you just didn't kill the man on the spot. The information he could-"

"Yes, Toph took charge and interrogated him." she reassured the Fire Lord, who smiled.

"Good. What did you get?"

"Some general locations for the prisons. Supposedly, they don't even have a prison for firebenders." he gave one of the more interesting revelations, "They're all brainwashed and across the city. Where exactly, I'm unsure, but I assume the Dai Li want to use them as a false-flag to get rid of the Fire Nation defectors in the Governing Council." he explained, and Sokka scoffed.

"And what evidence do you have for that crazy idea?"

"The agent didn't deny it." he admitted, before sighing, "But then again, I think he was more thinking about his fellow agents coming down to save him and kill us."

"From the looks of things, that clearly didn't happen." Azula observed, "Well, then is that it?" she asked, and Jet elbowed Bato.

"Bato has something to say." he clarified, and the warrior stepped forward.

"I witnessed brainwashed civilians being... activated." he explained, "They helped suppress some violent protesters who were fighting off the Dai Li."

"Huh." Azula gasped, seeming surprised, if only for a moment, "And how were they activated?" she asked, and Bato revealed the piece of paper, "A phrase... that tracks. However, I didn't hear anything like this being said to activate the Governor and the other brainwashed men in the palace."

"Maybe they were already activated." Sokka suggested, and Bato scratched his scalp.

"I mean, that might make sense, but it's possible that they've changed the codes. Maybe they have one specifically for Fire Nation agents."

"Well, we can be sure those commoners weren't Fire Nation, right?" he asked, and the elder warrior nodded.

"That leaves the possibility open that this code is useless with the Fire Nation, but not with Earth Kingdom civilians." Azula concluded from what she had heard, "I think this will be immensely helpful."

"I do too." Jet agreed with her, "We need a way to try and see through their lies and tricks. This is a start."

"Infiltrating this Lake Laogai would be better, but we actually need to reach the place. It's on the opposite side of the city. Unless we plan to take Appa from the Agrarian Zone, we'll need to go by train." she explained what would be required to achieve such a goal.

"We'll eventually head south." Jet reminded her, "So, I say we wait for now. The prisoners who aren't brainwashed will be more useful."

"That's true... at least in the sense that we can rely upon them." the Fire Lord conceded, before tapping her chin, "Where are the prisons?"

"The one for non-benders in the Lower Ring. He didn't specify the district. The other one for earthbenders is near the palace." he explained, and she sighed.

"So one of them we will struggle to find, and the other we will struggle to reach." she observed with a frustrated tone, "Well, I think I'll need some papers sooner rather than later."

"I'll see if Teng can help with that. I know she has contacts that can help us with that."

"Assuming she isn't working for the Dai Li." Smellerbee spoke up, which was pretty harsh given how well the two of them got along, "Though, I doubt she is. They would have caught us when you raided that teahouse."

"Maybe they're playing the long game." Bato suggested and sighed, "I'd prefer to just not worry about that."

"None of us want to, but we all have to." Sokka gave his own thoughts, sighing as he looked back up the staircase, "They will come for us... it's just a matter of if we can see them coming."

---

Sokka remembered the last time he was on a train in Ba Sing Se; it was when they were leaving the palace for the ship that would ultimately take them to the colonies. That was before he and Azula had realised their feelings for each other, and before she had faced defeat at the hands of her brother. So much had changed since then, to the point that he almost felt like a different person; he had learned so much, and struggled for so long, and now, things seemed to be going full circle.

Inevitably, they would go west again to the colonies, to destroy Ozai's forces, unite the rest of the Fire Nation against him, and then, onward to the Fire Nation homeland. Azula would take her throne, and he would be by her side; Sokka had not expected to become her consort when he last left Ba Sing Se, but now, it was just another simple fact about his life. Now, however, he felt that history was repeating itself, and that idea terrified him, because Azula lost the last time they went west.

They had gotten through the gates into the district's train station, their forged papers passing inspection; supposedly they weren't actually forged, as they were made in the actual place where the Earth Kingdom's passports were printed, though they gave them identities that were not real. He was now Langba of Xiqi District, and everyone else had new names: Toph was Fen, Jet was Ri, Renshu was Xizi, and Azula was Canghou. Those were the names they would use while dealing with anyone they couldn't trust, and he was struggling to 'stay in character'. Sokka didn't know who to trust, so decided that he would use the names until they returned home to the base.

The others were discussing the military plans that the defectors knew about, and then, how to send a message through the walls to their allies, who were either preparing to enter the city as well, or mustering at their base on the coast. He knew that he might have been of more use there, discussing military strategies and ways to move people into the city, but Azula wanted him by her side, and he could not deny her. He wanted to keep an eye on her, and she argued that she could only really afford the effort of making documents for one of her guards: Renshu, being Renshu, demanded that he be the one to come along. Toph and Jet came with them, the former because of her familiarity with high society, and the latter due to his great experience in travelling around the city.

Sokka had his body turned to the window, so he could easily observe the sprawling city below them; when he was on the ground, Ba Sing Se felt like an endless maze already, but from above, one could truly appreciate its majesty. The Middle Ring was more orderly than the Lower Ring, presumably because they had stricter building permits. The Lower Ring was a mess. Sokka thought to give the Governing Council credit where it was due, as their plans to rebuild the slums as well-planned out tenaments was a much better idea than letting things regrow naturally. However, that seemed to be more a Fire Nation thing than anything the Dai Li or local bureaucracy thought out.

Azula was sitting beside him, eyeing across the carriage they were in, perhaps because she suspected the other passengers; most of them just seemed to be servants, off duty guards, and the odd Fire Nation colonist or two. None of them seem overly suspicious in that regard. After the story Jet had told him about the potential brainwashing of captured enemy soldiers by the Dai Li, he felt a little uncomfortable around colonists. He was sure that if it was true, those former soldiers would easily blend in with the colonists, and be the eyes and ears of their new Dai Li masters, watching the general population, as well as their rivals, the Fire Nation colonists and soldiers who had joined them in forming the Governing Council.

"This is a bit awkward." he admitted to Azula, who scoffed.

"Silence is never nice when you're afraid of being watched." she gave her own opinion with a whisper, turning her face so nobody but him could read her lips.

"Do you think it worked?" he asked her, and she scrunched her lips.

"The guards accepted the papers. There's not anything else to say." she admitted, "Unless you want to go into the field of conspiracies and secret orders... which might be possible, but why would they suspect us."

"We're an odd bunch." he bluntly observed, "A bunch of foreigners and an Earth Kingdom peasant." he reminded him of who and what they were.

"There's a reason we're all wearing our hair down. It's to keep their focus off of our eyes." she reminded him of the specific hairstyles she had told them to wear.

Sokka's hair hung down nearly to his shoulders, and much of his face was obscured by the hair that fell over each side. Azula's hairstyle was comparably covering, though her hair was thicker and longer than his, with a partial braid at the back, similar to how Katara liked to wear her hair; he guessed she may have actually braided it, not Azula, as she had been helping them dress into their disguises.

He turned his gaze over to the window once more, and was unsurprised to see their destination fast approaching; Ba Sing Se University was a massive, sprawling complex of buildings, which were divided up by gardens and greenery, making it stand out against the rest of the Middle Ring, which had much less greenery, and was mostly divided up into small plots of land, densely packed into row houses with shared gardens behind them. Azula noticed it as well, and seemed a little impressed.

"Hm, it's larger than any school I've seen in my homeland." she commented, before rising to her feet, "Our stop." she told the others, who got up after hearing her address them.

When he didn't get up, Renshu tapped him on the shoulder, and gestured for him to rise; Sokka just smiled, reminded of when they had first gained a sense of camaraderie with each other, fighting against the Dai Li, "Why do I feel like I've been here before?"

"You have." he retorted, and the Water Tribesman stood up, and slowly approached the doors that would lead them out onto the platform.

The train was very smooth, and came to a gradual halt, before somebody called out, "Disembark!" they allowed them to exit, and the doors were pulled open; Azula took the lead, and everyone followed after her, Sokka spending a few moments to eye the vaulting roof above them in the station.

The place had a few people waiting around, but given it was long after the peak times at which people would be arriving, and before they would be leaving, there wasn't a huge amount of traffic. To his relief, that would make it easier for them to come and go, even if the guards might pay a little more attention to them individually. Between them and the exit was a gate with guards waiting to inspect them; they seemed rather bored, perhaps due to the lack of traffic through the station, and when they approached, the guards hailed them.

"Halt." one of them addressed them, "Come ahead, one at a time." he gave directions, and Azula took the lead, letting herself be inspected first; the guard quickly checked her bags and made her empty any pockets that she had, but he found nothing.

They weren't stupid enough to bring any weapons with them, and Sokka personally didn't need any, and neither did the three benders among them. Jet was the odd one out, but given that he was there to guide them, he wasn't expecting him to fight. Knowing him, he probably had a knife hidden in his undergarments or something, waiting for the moment to use it.

Then Renshu stepped ahead, and the check went through without issue; Toph followed after, and she was a bit frustrated by the whole affair, but let them check her robes. Sokka allowed Jet to go before him, feeling that they might be more thorough with the last person they would inspect, and he felt that his fears about the Freedom Fighter hiding a blade on his body were justified. They checked Jet's bag and his robes, and didn't check anywhere where he could have tied weapons to his body; he was unsure if they really didn't care, or if they were that lax with their procedures.

Sokka approached last, and handed them his bag willingly; it just had a waterskin in it, along with some snacks that he planned to eat if he got hungry before they returned to their hideout. They didn't find any issues, and handed it back to him, though one of the guards made sure to pat up his robes, checking him for anything that could be hidden inside.

"Go on ahead." one of the inspectors told him, allowing him to leave.

Then, the group made their way through an archway, leading them out to the front of the station, which was connected to the city below by a wide staircase. The design reminded him of the stairs in front of the main hall of the palace, which he had only remembered so well because he had to walk up and down them to go between places.

Between the staircase and the university proper lay a large public square, even bigger than the one where he had seen the assembly, with a road coming through it. Carriages, carts, and people with ostrich horses moved through, going about their business, while a crossing lay right in the middle, where they would be able to go through without any concern of getting hit by a cart.

When they reached the base of the staircase, Azula stopped them, "Now, I haven't been here before, so J- Ri, I want clear directions." she requested, "Where will we need to go to find whatever political groups exist at the university."

"Ah, that's simple." he assured her, "I've only been here a few times, but they always have posters and such around the university. Technically they're not allowed, but people keep putting them up anyway. Those posters will give you the directions you need. They've always got meetings going on, though they might just say they want to have 'discussions', you can be sure it's... more than that."

And what do I do?" Renshu asked her, and Azula tapped her chin.

"You are my eyes and ears. Observe, and consider threats. I don't want to end up in one of the places we're going to have to break into as an actual prisoner." she warned, and the Captain seemed concerned, but nodded resolutely.

"I will." he declared, and with that, they all began moving across the square towards the entrance of the university.

The building in front of them was massive and sprawling in and of itself, and it was only one of many. Reading the sign in front of it only identified the place as the university, but didn't specify anything about the purposes of the building itself. As they got closer, he noticed that though there were guards at the university, they seemed to be under the authority of the university itself, wearing different uniforms and armed with only batons, rather than the usual pikes that the city guards used. He expected them to be just as much of a threat, given how the Dai Li would have almost certainly infiltrated the university's administration, and that was before they were openly wielding power.

People would likely be unwilling to say much publicly about the political situation, unless they were under the auspices of broader discussions, perhaps philosophical or economic, that would not explicitly threaten the Dai Li's authority. However, in a place like Ba Sing Se, people must have had a way to weave around the restrictions placed upon them.

When they moved through the archways under the building, leading them into the campus proper, he made note of some posters he spotted on pillars inside. Some were marked out, but others were still legible, and he stepped closer to them as they were walking through. The posters were supposedly for a rally to give support to the war effort against the 'barbarians' they were fighting, which explained why some of them were marked out, as not everyone would agree with the fight against the Coalition. Further afield, he saw a few different posters, those ones calling for the reform of the current government, which had promised the local people that there would be more representation.

"That sounds like our kind of people." he whispered to Azula and gestured to the poster; she looked for only a moment, before turning her head back towards the path they were taking.

The path led out into a large garden, which lay between the building they had walked under and some other, larger buildings that must have housed whole departments and schools. He didn't know much about universities, beyond what Azula herself had told him while they had been making their way there; he knew they were places of higher learning, where the best and brightest honed their skills and did research. The people there, staff and students alike, were all well-educated, and clearly, they were ripe candidates for their movement.

"Did you get a destination from the poster?" Azula asked him with a whisper as they reached a crossroads in the path.

"I couldn't make it out." he admitted with a sheepish smile.

"I did." Renshu spoke up, and the Princess crossed her arms.

"I'm glad somebody's eyesight is functioning here." she acknowledged, and Toph struggled to hold back a laugh, perhaps because the joke was not at her expense; Azula hushed her, and the Captain stepped closer to them.

"Supposedly they've got a meeting at a place called 'Kyoshi Square'." he explained, and Sokka hummed.

"Hm, so they named it after her." he observed, before glancing around, "I can't find a map."

"There's one over there." Jet gestured to one of the nearby buildings, in front of which was some kind of notice board, and beside that was a worn, but intricate looking map.

Sokka approached as fast as he could without seeming suspicious, and eyed the map, scanning over the names to find 'Kyoshi Square'. Luckily, the map indicated his exact location, in front of the Engineering and Mechanics Building, and he was able to spot that Kyoshi Square lay further afield, north of their position, in a relatively central portion of the university.

"I think it's just down that path." he indicated to the way they had been headed, and Azula nodded.

"Then we'll go there. I doubt we'll be able to immediately... participate in whatever meeting is going on. We'll have to make observations first."

"Then let's do it now. This meeting was scheduled for midday today. There's two every week.." Renshu explained, and Azula's eyes widened.

"That's... lucky of us." she admitted, "Was there anything else on the poster beyond this meeting?"

"A planned protest in a few days. Same as in the Lower Ring, it's about conscription and the war effort." he clarified, and the Princess' face shifted to one of near delight; she looked as if she was struggling not to show her elation, and raised a finger up towards Renshu.

"Our plans already bear fruit." she declared, before pacing back over towards the path, "Let's get a move on. If we're lucky, that meeting will still be in progress."

Everyone allowed after her, and Sokka's gaze remained cautious, focusing on those to their sides and behind them, wondering if anyone might follow them. He knew that they weren't as subtle as they would prefer to be, and if any Dai Li agents had been stationed around, he was expecting them to follow them, even if they had no idea that they were working for the Coalition. When they made their way through another archway, he turned his attention back ahead of them, and spotted what had to be Kyoshi Square.

It was not, however, what he was imagining; the square was a construction site, with the ground torn up and a large statue in the centre being repaired. Unsurprisingly, that statue was of Avatar Kyoshi; venerating her made a lot of sense, given that she was the founder of the Dai Li, and made a massive influence on the history and politics of the city, perhaps even more so than the Fire Nation had by conquering the place. Azula seemed unimpressed, her arms crossed and footsteps heavy.

"This doesn't make sense." she grumbled, "Xizi, you said it was here."

"I know." he assured her, seeming a little concerned, but his eyes were darting around the areas that surrounded Kyoshi Square.

From Sokka's observations, that consisted of a few gardens bisected by pathways, with ponds and large gazebos, where he could see people sitting, perhaps doing their schoolwork together.

"I wonder." he mumbled, thinking that one of the groups might be those responsible for the posters; Sokka elbowed Jet, getting his attention, "Maybe you can go and ask some of these groups if they're part of the... uh, National Reform League." he recalled the name he had seen on the poster.

"Why me?" he asked, and Sokka sighed.

"You're better with people than I am." he conceded, and the Freedom Fighter grinned, before turning his heels.

"I've got you." he reassured him, and the rest of them were left standing there in front of the construction site while he went to sleuth out where exactly the meeting was taking place.

"Maybe it's underground." he guessed, knowing that since they were in the Earth Kingdom, people might try something like that."

"There are tunnels here, but I don't sense anyone down there... and definitely no big meetings." she reassured him, before scrunching her lips, "I can sense groups, but it's hard to tell from here whether they're classes or what we're looking for."

"Inside?" Azula pressed her, and the earthbender nodded.

"Yeah, all the groups out here are pretty small."

"Well then, let's have a look around." Sokka decided, "I'm sure if we go to the places she's sensing, one of them will be marked out as the meeting we're looking for."

"Outwardly showing their loyalties doesn't sound very smart... not in this place." Renshu gave his own opinions, "People that do so, I doubt they are worthwhile friends to our cause."

"Don't be so dismissive, Xizi." Azula gave her own opinion, "We at least need to see what is on offer before we reject anyone."

Toph led the group over to one of the nearby buildings, and Sokka glanced through the windows that lined the walls, seeing what looked to be a class inside; they continued along to another room, and that was the same, with a few less people, but still clearly looking like a class. They crossed past the front door of that building, before eyeing into another room. That room had a decent number of people in it, and they were mixed, not just all students and a teacher or two; that told him it was a meeting, but he could not be certain it was the one they were looking for.

"Here." Azula agreed with his own observations, "We need to find a way inside without seeming too suspicious." she decided, and they turned around; Sokka made sight of Jet, who was walking alongside a tall woman, who wore robes that told him that she was a student.

The two of them were chatting about something, and he hoped it was the meeting; when they reached each other, at the front door of the building, Jet gestured to them.

"Ah, these are my friends." he identified them to her, "This is Huixin. She's just been telling me about the League... I mean, the Nat-"

"We know what you're talking about." Toph cut him off, and cleared her throat, "Sorry, I mean, it's a sensitive topic."

"Oh, of course." Huixin nodded in agreement, and gestured to the door, "There's a meeting going inside right now." she explained what they already knew, but Sokka decided to play dumb.

"Really, well, I'm sure- uh, Ri told you that we're interested." he spoke up, hoping that Jet had got the story straight; he felt like a moron for stumbling at his pseudonym, but just hoped the stranger would chalk it up to him being nervous about the situation.

She smiled, and glanced at them, "I don't want to be rude, so I feel I ought to ask your names."

Sokka glanced along at the others, and it seemed that they had implicitly decided to let each of them identify themselves at a time; he went first, as nobody else was willing to, "I'm Langba."

"Fen." Toph gave her name.

"Canghou." Azula gave hers, leaving only Renshu.

"And I am Xizi." he answered, and she eyed him up and down, seeming suspicious of him.

"So, you're a mature aged student, then?"

"Uh, no- I'm-" he began, and Azula cut him off.

"Xizi is Fen here's protection." she answered for him, before gesturing to Toph, "She's blind." she told her all she needed to know, and Huixin looked down at the earthbender with a sympathetic face.

"Oh, well, that's good of you to have somebody to watch your back... no pun intended." she acknowledged, before raising a finger, "That would make you-"

"A noble, yes." she answered her question before she could ask it.

Toph had done her hair up, and was wearing finer robes that usual, so she looked cleaner and far more like the noble she used to be; he was unsure if he could call her one when she was travelling far from home, with no connection to her family, nor enjoying any real privileges from that status.

"I am pleased to see that even somebody from the Upper Ring has shown interest in the affairs of state." Huixin acknowledged, and she gestured back to the door once more, "Please, come with me. I'm sure you'll all want to hear what's being discussed. With things as they are now in the Lower Ring, we are more obliged than ever to look at how we can try and bring our city away from the brink."

"The brink of what, exactly?" Jet played dumb, and she looked at him with an uneasy face.

"I need not say it aloud. You would have seen all the inspections and heavy guard presence when you arrived here today." she gave vague directions about what she was referring to; they all knew what she meant, but they couldn't act as if they did, because that would make them seem all the more suspicious.

She stepped over to the door and opened it for them; Jet and Azula stepped through after her, while Sokka watched as Toph played up her blindness, having Renshu grab her by the hand to help lead her inside. He was a bit amused by it, but understood that it was an important act to make sure nobody suspected Toph's immense earthbending skills, which would make her a target in the eyes of everyone who feared infiltration by spies.

Sokka followed them in, and stepped over to the door that led into the room; there somebody was standing guard, though he was just some student, checking people before they came inside; he was speaking with Huixin, but he only caught the tail-end of the conversation as he arrived.

"-and all I need to tell you is that these strangers are fine. Two of them are clearly from the Lower Ring... they will have things to say about what's been happening down there." she explained, presumably referring to Sokka and Jet, who were far more tanned than the other three, making them look like ordinary Earth Kingdom commoners, rather than burghers or nobles.

"Yeah, I can see that." he glanced over to the two of them, before turning back to Huixin, "Fine, go on inside." he allowed, before glancing at the group, "You should register with the one league's offices. That way we won't have to check you if you come to a meeting again."

"Where are those, exactly?" Azula asked, and he sighed.

"Our local one at the university is make-shift, but it's in the old Department of Warfare and Strategy." he explained, and Soka raised a brow at that; he imagined that department might have been closed when the city was taken over by the Fire Nation, or perhaps even before that.

"Alright, we'll go there when we're done here." Toph assured him, and with that, they all followed Huixin into the meeting.

The room was large, but it was at full capacity, with barely any seating left, despite the fact the entire room was basically a ring of seats; they had to stand by the edge with some others, looking into the circle to the centre, where there was somebody speaking. He had to be some academic, an older man with grey hair and fine robes, though they were worn and not in the best condition; if he was some well-mannered, etiquette focused type, he would certainly have dressed with better clothes. He seemed more like a slightly off, but intelligent man, like the Mechanist.

"And believe me, there is no better way for our nation to rebuild itself than through growing our industries and making use of our great population." he spoke up, presumably having been talking about the topic before Sokka had walked inside, "The Fire Nation's greatest advantage over the Earth Kingdom had been their industrial might. That was the source of their strength, not firebending."

"How can we hope to ever build what they have?" somebody from the group asked, "How can we stand against them?"

"Treating it like a war is the first mistake." the man clarified, "Trade is a matter of exchange. Before the war devastated our country, we were the main producer of raw goods for the Fire Nation. Their very wealth came from our earth, our fields, our labour." he explained; Sokka was not very well versed in history, but did understand that trade between the Four Nations was quite common before the war, and the Earth Kingdom was the centre of that, given their massive landmass and huge population, "We can benefit from that trade, but if we return to what we had before, the Fire Nation are the only ones who will truly benefit."

"Then we must look outward." one of the crowd members declared, "Ba Sing Se is closed off from the world. We can never hope to rebuild our nation if we do not reach beyond the Outer Walls."

"That is true." the man agreed, "As long as this internecine conflict continues, our hopes of building our nation will remain just that, hopes. I can only hope that the Governing Council sees reason and makes peace with the rebels."

"That won't happen!" somebody shouted out; Sokka was surprised it wasn't Jet, given he was surely thinking of a way to insert his own stance into the conversation, "All the news that's trickling in from the frontlines... we're going to lose this fight, or the masses will rise up before we can win."

"Do not confuse us with the Governing Council." the speaker reminded them all, "We are but humble citizens, speaking our minds... and I hope that you will all realise that this violence will only harm us."

"Is he lying?" Sokka whispered to Toph, who shook her head, though she seemed cautious to do so.

"It's a matter of belief." Azula commented with a hushed voice.

"No!" somebody else stood up, "We cannot just stand idly by while the people of the Lower Ring are subjected to further repression. Their men are the ones being conscripted, not us. We would be cowards if we did not at least acknowledge it."

"Which is exactly why these parties should make peace." the speaker argued, raising his hands up, "I cannot fathom to ever meet with anyone in charge, but we should make our voices heard. The Governing Council should negotiate at once. That is the only way that those men will not be forced to fight."

He received cheers for that, and another person stood up, this time an older woman, who seemed like a fellow staff member or academic, "We should not forget that this is not the Earth Kingdom any longer. The Governing Council does not claim to serve as some kind of regency, while they await the Earth King. They rule only because the occupiers and the remnants of the old guard made peace with each other. We are living in times never seen before... their claims of legitimacy should only derive from the people."

"They need to hear us!" somebody shouted out, and more people cheered.

"What about this Coalition?" somebody else stood up, this person also clearly some kind of academic; he wasn't as aloof looking as the others, and seemed to have a cold, hard look to him, like the warriors Sokka knew all too well, "If the rumours leaking out of the Lower Ring are true... then we are not warring against some mere rabble of fighters backed by the Fire Nation, but an army of patriots. People are drawn from the provinces to our city, seeking to overturn the status quo entirely."

"The end of the monarchy has brought great uncertainty to our nation." the woman spoke up once more, "If this movement believes they have more legitimacy than the Governing Council, then they ought to prove it to the people."

"There's only one way to do that." the man declared, "They will have to destroy the very idea of Ba Sing Se. The three divisions of our city have stood for centuries, in law at least. In practice, even longer." he reminded them of a history that Sokka had little understanding of, "They want a government for the people... the masses. Not just for the nobles, or those bureaucrats who weasled their way into power."

"And who here thinks we ought to rule based on merit, and not on the basis of one's heritage?" the first speaker asked out, and most raised their hands, "As you should."

"So why should we just ask our 'masters' for respect? We should be the masters!" somebody else questioned him, and others cheered.

"We are the ones with power!" another shouted out, "We just need to seize it!"

"Don't be so eager!" the man warned them, "The fight you seek is not a fight we can win alone. The National Reform League has worked tirelessly, since before the city fell to the Fire Nation, struggling to gather the momentum to change things." he put their efforts in context, "Even if the unrest at present helps us push for our goals, we should not lose sight of our intent. We are not here to mindlessly start a conflict with the Dai Li of all people... we need to bring those in the Lower Ring to understand the possibility of change."

"Then we should march with them." Huixin spoke up, drawing attention to herself, and by extension, the rest of the group she had led in, "The people in the Lower Ring don't need us to tell them what to do, they need our aid. We have the resources to spread the word, so we should. It is not treason to merely demand that your nation respect the will of the people."

"Hear!" somebody shouted out, raising a fist, and more people cheered out the same word.

Huixin gestured to Jet, presumably wanting him to speak; the Freedom Fighter stepped forward and raised a fist, "I've seen the injustices first hand. Soldiers spoke up against the war with the rebels... just like you have. They just wanted to make peace with their supposed enemies... and the Dai Li tried to apprehend them for it." he explained what he had seen; it was no lie, for Sokka had seen it all the same, though it left out the fact Jet and Toph had whisked those soldiers away to the safety of the base, "If they can see what is wrong, then everyone should listen. They are not our enemies!" he declared, and received even more cheers than the others had.

"Then who are our enemies? Do you think peace can be made between them?" the first speaker questioned him, and Jet raised his hands up.

"War is war. One side wins, and one side loses. If it drags on for long enough, the only losers are the people." he argued, "If you want to see the changes you desire... Why allow your leaders to continue fighting?"

"We cannot force them to stop." the man warned him, and Jet scoffed.

"And I'm sure you've heard the story of the 46th Earth King." he reminded him of something Sokka felt like he had heard before.

"Why, well, yes, I am a student of history. He was a brutal ruler, who wanted to assert the authority of the crown over all lands, and all people, from the Mo Ce Sea to the Eastern Sea." he acknowledged that historic king's drive for power; Sokka could only guess what happened, but he imagined that he was stopped, either by the masses of the Lower Ring, or by the provincial rulers he would have to face to achieve his goals.

"And what did the people do?" he asked, and the academic seemed more nervous now.

"They rose up... and the fighting did not stop until the Avatar put an end to it. She made peace." he explained, Sokka realising the story was that of Kyoshi making peace in Ba Sing Se, which Azula had regaled to him as it was the starting point of the Dai Li as an organisation, and thus, the source of all their woes.

"And where... where is the Avatar?" he asked out, and everyone fell silent, before the older woman stood up, raising a finger into the air.

"The Avatar stands with the rebels." she observed the fact of the matter, "So, we must accept the truth: the Governing Council will not withstand him. A boy or an old man, it would not matter; the Avatar is the Avatar... and he comes from a society far kinder than our own. Spirits willing, our nation might finally see a path out of this endless cycle of intrigue and mindless squabbles."

"Airbenders are no warriors." one of the crowd members accused, "He'll never fight them."

"But he can lead." the first speaker admitted, sounding as if he was conceding defeat, "And if rumours are to be true, he will show himself soon enough."

Sokka didn't think they would use Aang like that, at least while they weren't sure of the support they could gather in the Lower Ring, let alone the forces that had yet to cross through the Outer Walls to reinforce them. They had met many rebels in the northern mountains, and some people who had even claimed to still serve the Earth Kingdom military. He was sure that with their aid, they could turn the tide, but Aang's presence would surely help turn even those loyal to the Governing Council astray. The memory of Kyoshi was ancient, far beyond living memory, but Ba Sing Se itself was defined by it, and her successor would send shockwaves into their morale.

"Then he will show us the path." the woman declared, "This may be the moment we have all been waiting for."

"Then we should not waste it." Huixin declared, "Let us march in solidarity with those in the Lower Ring, and show them that we will not be silenced."

"That may be brave, but it does not make it any more dangerous." the first speaker warned them all, before sighing, "But I see... there is only no danger if we do nothing."

"March!" they all started to chant, and Sokka smirked, feeling that even if they had little say in exactly what was going on, things were moving in the exact direction they wanted them to.

Whether the National Reform League had been infiltrated by the Dai Li was besides the point, as the general membership clearly wanted to go along with the sentiment that was brewing in the Lower Ring, no matter how much they might be dissuaded against it. Only action would force the government to listen, and he knew for a fact that they wouldn't. They were too afraid, and rightly so; if a revolt was the cause of the Dai Li's creation all those centuries before, then a revolt would be the thing to finally tear it down.

The Fire Nation was too disinterested in actually changing the city to have done anything about them, but the Coalition, their goals extended beyond the squabbles over the throne of the Fire Nation; they were there to sweep out the old, and build something completely new. Part of him felt that the longer she thought about it, the more likely it would be that Azula would lead them to do something similar in her own nation. A mere purge of her father's loyalists would not do; it would be a revolution, and Sozin's order was doomed.

---

The street was full of people, and they had posters, flags, and everything they could possibly need to make their voices heard, short of weapons to actually make good on their goals. Azula felt that things were progressing too fast; not because she genuinely thought that a quick victory was bad, but because she knew that the Dai Li's reactions would become harsher. They would certainly try and find them now, making it all the more necessary for them to leave the ruins and find another hideout at once.

After returning from outside the walls once more, Aang had brought news of the arrival of their allies; a few hundred rebels more had come to the base, helping rebuild it and prepare it for another potential attack by the Governing Council's forces. More importantly for them in the city, the Water Tribe forces had begun their march to the Outer Walls, accompanied by some of the rebels that had remained behind with them to protect the base. In a matter of days, they would be with them in the Lower Ring, and their strength, over a thousand strong, would certainly help their efforts in sabotaging the Dai Li's rule, even if they had no immediate intention of trying to launch a coup.

That news kept her positive, even if she was afraid of what might result from the protesters' march. Eventually, they would face the guards, and then the Dai Li; even if they could avoid a direct confrontation, the protesters would reach the district's town hall, and demand that the local administrators give in to their demands. It was not like they could easily refuse them, but they served the Governing Council: to disobey them would lead to even worse outcomes for them and their families.

She and the other Coalition members were hiding amongst the protesters, some on street level, while others took to the rooftops, keeping a keen eye on the protesters, and even more focused upon the guards who were silently watching them move through the streets. Things were orderly at that moment, but she knew things could go sideways at any time. The fact that the march was going ahead in the first place was impressive, but she imagined that as there were protests in more than one district, it would be hard for the guards to suppress each and every one of them.

She was walking with Ty Lee, Katara, and a few of her guards, while the others were spread around; Sokka assured her that he would keep a keen eye on things up on the rooftops, though she was a bit worried he might fall and hurt himself, he assured her that the Freedom Fighters were finding paths for them to take to avoid such accidents. She tried to push her worries about him to the side, and focus on her far more important concern, which was whether the Dai Li would attack the protesters, or worse, try to seize them. That would put Azula's allies in danger, and if any of them were captured, it could spell certain doom to their movement.

The sound of chants filled the air, and the people around her seemed eager; they genuinely believed that their march might force some changes, though Azula had her doubts that it would amount to anything. The Dai Li, and the Earth Kings before them, had spent a large amount of effort repressing the political power of the Lower Ring. The fact that the Lower Ring was now swelling with refugees, veterans, and general discontent meant that their efforts would have to be intensified.

That very fact made her feel more confident in her own plans, where she intended to abuse the chaos that came about from the protests, riots, and potential uprising to seize control of the city from its current occupiers. The intention was for the Coalition to organise all that discontent into a unified movement, and at least outside of the capital city of Ba Sing Se, their efforts had materialised into a massing of men and women willing to fight for their nation. It was only one more step to do the same in the Lower Ring, the Middle Ring, and then finally, to turn those in power against each other.

"The town hall is just up ahead." Katara observed, "I can see a lot of guards." she explained as she stood on her tiptoes, eyeing over the heads of those in the crowd.

"Then they must believe things are going to get violent." Azula whispered, and Ty Lee shrugged her shoulders.

"Maybe they're just afraid the people here are gonna find the guy in charge and... uh, well, I'm unsure what they'd do."

"Nothing nice." the Water Tribe girl muttered, seeming disturbed by the images the words conjured in her mind; Azula preferred not to think of some stupid man getting dragged through the streets and beaten to death, all because he was chosen to enact the Dai Li's will in the district.

She could sympathise with those who were commanded to do unjust things, because she had been faced with that own dilemma, and worse, she had been in the very position the Governing Council found themselves in, and she did not envy them in the slightest. As they drew closer to the town hall, she could more easily see it, and the guards that were closing in around them. The protesters were getting more agitated with the moment, and some started picking up cobblestones; Azula didn't say anything when she saw it, but she realised she couldn't easily avoid the rocks if they started getting thrown at the guards, given that they were not just in front of the hall, but also on the side streets, blocking potential avenues of movement, but also, the ways they would otherwise escape by, if things turned against them. She was certain they would.

Azula felt the people around her close in even tighter, and that squeezed her, Ty Lee, and Katara into each other, Azula deciding to step in front of the other so it wasn't so tight. Her guards remained right behind them, and even shoved a few people out of the way so they could keep as close as possible. She felt a tinge of guilt by having them around, as they were forced to follow her everywhere she went, even when that was more of a hassle than simply watching her from afar. Unlike when she was just travelling around the district, the threat of being attacked was much higher, if not expected, given the rowdiness of the protest, and that was before it had even reached its destination.

"Let us through!" she heard somebody shout out, and others cheered in agreement.

"The administrator has cordoned off this area. Entrance is a contravention of district bylaws." one of the guards declared in return, "If you try to enter, we will respond with force!" he warned, and nobody seemed all that intimidated.

Azula heard a grunt, followed by a few more, and ducked down as soon as she saw a rock flying over the crowd. The protesters were already starting to use their strength rather than their words, and she didn't blame them. If they could not get an audience with the administrator, then they would have no chance of having their demands met.

"Well, that happened quicker than I thought it would." Ty Lee commented with a surprised face, before she lowered herself down, obviously not wanting to get hit by a stray rock.

She felt a little bad for Sergeant Major Tiezhi and the other soldiers who had joined her side, as they were forced to remain in the hideout, as they were wanted for desertion and sedition by the government. Their faces were too well known with all the wanted posters up and about, but she expected in a matter of days, they would be the least of the Governing Council's concerns.

More rocks flew overhead, and Azula remained low as she heard the grunts and shouts intensify ahead of them. It wasn't long before they all started moving again, telling her that the protesters had pushed the guards out of the way, and were making their way closer to the town hall. The shouts turned to cheers, at least around her, as everyone realised they would be able to reach their destination. As they drew closer, she could see that the guards were moving to hold the doors of the place instead of trying to form a line on the street. More rocks were thrown about, and some of the guards raised up stone walls to block the protesters off. However, they didn't try to attack, and just remained behind their defences.

Azula guessed that they had been ordered to remain passive against the protesters, as responding with force would only intensify the protesters' own violent responses. The rocks wouldn't do much against the walls of stone, but she realised that the earthbenders in the protest were pulling out bigger and bigger masses of cobbles, and tossing them against the walls. The other protesters cheered upon seeing this, and eventually the walls were broken apart. By the time that happened, the guards were nowhere to be seen; they must have gone inside, or just fled to the sides. In any case, there was nobody blocking their way.

"Halt!" she heard somebody address the crowd, and her eyes darted around before she realised that there was somebody up on a balcony above the front of the town hall; the man might have been the local administrator, but it was hard to tell, as all the government officials wore the same kinds of robes.

"I understand that you are aggrieved about the conscription of the young men in this district." he explained, "Somebody has come to explain things to you!" he told them, his tone forceful despite clearly seeming afraid of the crowds below; he stepped back inside the building, before a man stepped out.

He was wearing slightly finer robes, which had golden trimmings, and held a scroll in his hand; he was flanked by two Dai Li agents, which told her that he might have been some higher ranking member of the organisation. His lack of equipment or a distinct Dai Li uniform told her that he must have been one of their 'bureaucratic' members, who didn't serve out in the city, but rather directly under the Governing Council. However, the presence of the agents did not make it certain that he was actually a member of the organisation.

"My name is Undersecretariat Hou. I have been sent here by the glorious Grand Secretariat, the protector of our city." he explained exactly who he was; she guessed that the Grand Secretariat was Long Feng, or his chosen successor, making the man before him his underling and errand boy, "His excellency was informed of your grievances, and has decided to take immediate action to ensure peace within our great city."

Azula tensed up, realising that she might have just been outplayed; she turned to Ty Lee, who was intently waiting for the man to speak.

"The Grand Army of Ba Sing Se is to be reformed at once. Unpatriotic soldiers have cost us a great deal in the fight against the rebels, so the Governing Council has written this following command, which I reiterate to you now for the sake of honouring the great sacrifices many men have made for our city."

She could see that his verbose manner of speech was disguising his intentions; he wanted everyone to listen to him, so they might be appeased by whatever changes the Governing Council had decided upon.

"The emergency conscription of men employed in sectors excluding government, agriculture, health, and transportation is henceforth revoked. All men who have yet to receive their full training will have the opportunity to return to their homes and prior employment, but may continue to serve in the Grand Army if they chose to. The wages of conscripts will be raised by fifteen percent, in line with inflation of common goods caused by the lack of trade with extra-urban regions." he read out the scroll, and Azula clenched her fists.

They were offering more than a sweet deal, especially for those who were still fighting for them, against her Coalition; she realised that meant there had to be even more desertions than she was led to believe. That was perhaps the only good news she could take out of that.

"However, the Governing Council still requires manpower to fend off the rebel threat. The re-establishment of a professional soldiery will be enacted in the coming weeks, with the recruitment of any former soldiers to serve as trainers to new enlistees. Enlistment will require a contract of five years, with duties taking place for six months at a time. These soldiers will be provided with arms, training, and benefits as equal to the Fire Nation's military personnel. Any resident of Ba Sing Se is open to apply, no matter their national origins, as long as they swear an oath of loyalty to the Governing Council." he further explained her enemy's plans.

They were not stupid, that was already obvious, but she had not realised they were willing to go so far to try and suppress her movement; she had been expecting brutality, not honeyed words and deals to try and sway the common people to their side.

"New ranking officers will be freely promoted from enlistees; the only requirement of potential officers is literacy and training in arms and tactics." he added, which was a bit more surprising than the other declarations; she assumed they wanted to build rapport with the inhabitants of the Lower Ring, who would surely benefit from the wages and power officers were provided with, "Any conscript that wishes to enlist may do so, but they will be required to finish any current operations before they are provided the required training to serve."

The crowd had remained silent, telling her that they were listening well, and some seemed to actually approve of the plans; it didn't surprise her, given that they were frustrated with forced conscription, and not generally angry with the government as a whole.

"I hope that these changes are clear to you all." Hou concluded his words, "If you have any further grievances with current laws or policies, please speak with your local administrator, and he will ensure that these issues are dealt with expediently by the Governing Council." he explained, before clearing his throat; Hou's face shifted, and Azula wondered what else he had to say.

"However, I must be clear, the war with the rebels is our primary focus. We will do everything in our power to ensure that this conflict does not interfere with your daily lives, but I will warn you. If the enemy breaches the walls, en masse conscription will be mandated once more, and lethal force will be unanimously applied to any defectors, deserters, or resisters." he clarified, "This is what will be necessary to protect you all from those who seek to destroy our great city. That is all." he definitely concluded his speech, and turned his heels, pacing back inside the hall.

Azula could see that the atmosphere had changed, and the protesters were confused; some remained ready to keep marching, with their banners and posters at the ready, while others seemed satisfied, if a bit disappointed, and turned around to leave. However, she knew it wouldn't be that simple. A few moments later, the administrator stepped back out onto the balcony.

"Disband at once, or the guards will be forced to arrest those who resist." he made the situation clear to them.

Somebody was eager or crazy enough, and threw a rock right at his head; it landed, and knocked man right out, slumping back onto the balcony, before the Dai Li agents grabbed him and dragged him back inside. The guards, formerly passive, readied their weapons. Even those who were along the sides, and out of the way of the protesters, readied their arms.

"Disband!" they demanded, "Go back to your homes!"

The protesters seemed unnerved, and some began to run away, back down the street, the way they had taken towards the town hall; many remained standing, however, and picked up cobbles.

"You think his words will stop us?" one of them asked the guards, "We'll tear that building down!" he pointed to the town hall, and others cheered out in support.

Azula turned her gaze to her friends, wondering what they ought to do; Ty Lee grabbed her by the wrist, and the two of them locked eyes.

"Do we leave?" she asked, and the Princess scrunched her lips.

"I cannot just run away." she admitted, "We need to see this through."

"I recommend you do not." Yi warned her softly, "There are a lot of guards... and they are not going to play nice."

"That's exactly what I'm hoping for. The more you blow on a fire, the faster it burns." she gave a proverb that fit their circumstances quite well.

Within a few moments, rocks were flying across the street, and protesters rushed at the guards in front of them, tackling them and beating them with rocks and fists. Blood was dashed across the street, both that of the guards and the commoners. Nobody was safe in the street, and she decided to move further ahead, between two of the crossroads, where there were no guards to directly threaten them. She glanced up to the rooftops, and could make out Sokka and Aang, who were watching the brawl from above; both of them gestured to her, before moving out of sight. She guessed they had fermented some plan to try and disrupt the guards, but she was not privy to it.

Azula readied herself, knowing that even if firebending was not viable, she could still face off against guards with her own hand-to-hand training; she was not as good as Ty Lee or Sokka, but she could stand against a few poorly trained city guards.

"Disperse!" she heard another guard shout out, and as more people ran down the street, away from the fighting, Azula could see the guards closing in, and behind them, more Dai Li agents.

They would take whoever they could, and Azula would prefer to not let them take a single person. So, she whistled out, hoping to get Aang's attention; she didn't even look up to see, but just pointed down the street. Her request was answered a few moments later as she felt the ground shake around herself. She hoped Toph would catch the message and intervene; she was a street off from them, watching with her feet for the right time to intervene. It was coming to be that time, and she could only hope their strength would match against their foes.

The shaking stopped when a few pillars shot out the ground, right in front of the Dai Li agents and the guards, throwing them back. The protesters cheered, and they took the chance to start pelting them with rocks.

"Find that earthbender!" one of the guards shouted out, and they broke through from one of the side streets, and out right in front of Azula and the others.

The Princess took a deep breath and raised her hands; if anyone in the Coalition doubted she was unwilling to openly face her enemies, those fears would be silenced in a matter of moments.

"Where is the earthbender?" one of the guards asked out, pointing a polearm at them.

Unintimidated, Yi reached out, grabbed the shaft of the weapon with both hands, all while the blade was facing his chest, and snapped the head of the weapon clean off.

"Typical." he mocked his opponent, who stumbled back in fear, the other guards readied their weapons.

"Take the tall fuck. He has to be a-" one of the guards tried to order the others, but Azula kicked him in the side, before grabbing the disarmed man and put him in a headlock.

"Wha-" he gasped out, "Let go of me, lady!" he demanded, and Azula smirked, before shoving him towards his comrades, forcing them to lower their weapons.

That gave Ty Lee the perfect opportunity to run in and jab them from behind, paralysing their lower bodies. They slumped over, confused and probably terrified. More guards swept in, and readied their weapons against them.

"So... we're the distraction." Katara realised, and Azula nodded.

"I feel like I could go for a steam bath, how about you?" she suggested, and though the Water Tribe girl seemed confused, that only lasted a moment; a devious grin formed on her face, and she hardened her stance, closed her eyes, and gestured her hands out.

"Keep them busy, and you'll get your bath." she reassured her, and the Princess turned to Ty Lee and her guards.

"Are you just going to stand there?" she mocked them, though it was really just an implicit order; they all understood what was going on, and they all rushed at the guards.

Her guards were physically strong enough to beat down on them with their fists, but Ty Lee and Azula were forced to be more evasive, and use their agility instead. The Princess leapt around, forcing the guards to try and attack her with their polearms, only for their legs to fall beneath them; chi-blocking was fast, and even if it wouldn't keep them down indefinitely, the fact that they were left open to being knocked out by the guards, or even just other protesters, meant that it was more than effective.

The guards figured out Ty Lee's abilities quickly enough, and cornered her with their polearms, locking them together to try and keep Ty Lee in one spot. However, being so focused on her meant they had no way of protecting themselves from the guards as they tackled, punched, and kicked their way to victory. More guards poured into the street, and before they could try and corner them, Katara's efforts finally made a result. Steam burst up from all the drains, and filled the air; it was voluminous enough that it obscured everyone's vision, but that just meant that Azula could quickly gather her party and make their way out of danger.

They rushed down an alleyway, heading alongside the building she had seen Aang and Sokka on top of, and Azula immediately spotted a ladder. She whistled out again, and when she turned the corner, she could see Sokka landing on the street, having leapt from the rooftop via a few tarps and balconies. Dusting himself off, he bowed in a braggadocious fashion, with a cocky look on his face.

"And what else do you need from me?" he asked her in a false tone of submission; Azula rolled her eyes, before pointing in the direction of the town hall.

"We need to force the guards to disperse. Once we prove the protesters can fight back, they'll know that victory is possible." she argued, and Ty Lee placed a hand on her shoulder, stopping her from making a move.

"Do we really wanna get in a fight with them? That was-" she began to explain, before suddenly, a rock was thrown between them; Azula's head turned left, seeing that the rock was thrown at a guard, smacking him right in the face.

"Good aim." she commended whoever had thrown the rock, and she heard Sokka laugh.

"Yeah, I know." he agreed with her assessment, before tapping her on the shoulder.

"Ty Lee's right. We don't want to get the Dai Li on our butts already." he warned her, and the Princess' lower lip stiffened; she was not pleased to be refused, but she understood their rationale.

The fight was only just beginning, and they needed to keep themselves out of the Dai Li's hands at all costs. Their lofty goals would amount to nothing if they were thrown in jail and brainwashed.

"No, I think she's right." Katara surprisingly enough took her side, stepping beside her, "We need to take this advantage and push it. The people need to know who we are... even if they don't know who we really are." she argued quietly, before stepping back down the alleyway, "Toph!" she shouted out, "It's time to show these idiots who's really in charge!"

Before she could question who exactly she was calling idiots, , the ground began to shake violently. Reflexively, Azula grabbed Sokka by the side, and though she only realised that after a few seconds, the embarrassment had already set in. Ty Lee was looking at them like her child taking their first steps, and the Princess shoved her away, before steadying herself.

"What the fuck is she doing?" she asked, and the acrobat seemed to be more cognizant than she was.

"She must be going for all the guards at once." she realised, and Azula glanced down the street, noticing that one of them was pinned against the wall by pillars, and another, who was trying to run away, found his feet stuck in a pit that opened up beneath him.

"That's... one way to handle it."

"Maybe... maybe we should go for that Undersecretariat guy." Sokka suggested, and the Princess cringed at the idea.

"I don't want that much smoke from the fire." she refused, and gestured for the others to follow her, "Let's just kick the guards out of here, and then we'll figure out an escape plan." she gave her final decision, and rushed down the street, following Katara.

The waterbender was quick to bend the steam back from the air, causing it to condense down as water, pooling on the ground quickly enough. All that water appearing out of nowhere was obviously quite strange to those unfamiliar with waterbending, but it was subtle enough that the guards didn't realise that she was going to mess with them even further. Even if a lot of the guards had gotten ensnared by Toph's earthbending, it wasn't very effective against other earthbenders, who broke themselves free, before freeing the non-benders.

As they tried to move into position to block them off from returning to the street, Katara swiped her hand across, and every single one of them slipped over, falling on their faces, backs, and sides. Some of the guards were agile enough to break their falls, but none of them were much good when they were getting kicked in the gut with a steel-heeled leather boot. The guard she kicked sputtered, and the others fared no better, getting jabbed by Sokka and Ty Lee, who were able to quickly chi-block most of them so they wouldn't be able to get back up to aid their comrades. She spun herself around and kicked another guard across his face, making him strike the ground hard enough to knock him unconscious in a single blow. She felt a tinge of guilt about that, given it was far harsher than merely punching him.

However, Azula was used to violence, and her firebending would have been much worse; a small mercy, but a necessary one. She readied herself to face the next few guards, who rushed out to face them. They swung their polearms in synchronisation, forcing the group to move back. But just like the others, they made the mistake of stepping where Katara had laid the water. It caused them to make subtle mistakes, but they added up over the whole group, leaving just enough of an opening for Azula to abuse.

She leapt through the gap, and jabbed two men in the sides; she couldn't chi-block very well, so didn't bother to try that, but instead just aimed for the usual weak points, trying to wind them with as little effort as possible. The guards stumbled around, and the new openings were abused by the others. Her guards, being as physically strong as they were, didn't need to rely on agility, but simply shoved them to the side before knocking out anyone who was stupid enough to resist.

Once they had control of that crossroad, they then made their way back down the street again, heading towards the town hall, where the guards and Dai Li were struggling to fight off what had to be Aang and Toph earthbending at the same time, both attacking from the shadows. The asymmetric nature of the fighting made it nigh impossible for their enemies to hold them off, forced to attack around wildly in hopes of disturbing their focus. She guessed Aang was on one of the rooftops, but Toph was more of a mystery. She had been within earshot of Katara, but not in sight.

"Toph, where are you, exactly?" she asked out, and a moment later, one of the walls broke apart, revealing the earthbender surrounded by a suit of stone armour.

"Doing what I do best. Waiting for my chances, and taking them." she argued, before pointing down the street, "Once we force the guards to leave, I'll distract the Dai Li. They wouldn't deny the challenge. They're even showier than me... and that's saying something."

"If you say so." Azula accepted her proposal, not wanting to refuse the master earthbender; she clearly knew what she was doing, perhaps even more than she did.

After all, she had been blindsided by Undersecretariat Hou, and now, she was forced to deal with the consequences of her inaction. She ought to have set up another false flag with Jianren or another capable earthbender, but didn't think to do so, as she thought that merely aiding the protesters in achieving their goals would be enough.

"Wow, letting somebody else take charge, that's new." Ty Lee observed, and given it was her, and not Katara, she wasn't trying to make fun of her.

"That's what happens when you make enough mistakes. You realise that you don't have all the best plans." she argued, before pacing after the heavily armoured girl, "And this is the kind of bombastic crap that I love." she admitted, knowing that even if she could deny it, there was no point; the earthbender had the spunk, the guts, and all the intellect and skill to back up her arrogance.

A worthy rival, if they had faced each other in different circumstances. She might have denied any calls to be a great leader, but whether she liked it or not, she was making one of herself, and Azula could only feel pleased. No matter if she lost the small fight, she would win the war; her pride was nothing in the face of total victory.

Some more guards rushed towards them, and Toph completely ignored the threat, stepping past them as if they were nothing but a gust of wind blowing in her face. The guards were clearly hesitant to attack her, and instead went for the rest of them. Azula's guards took formation behind her, Katara, and Ty Lee, while they all readied themselves for a fight.

She glanced back, wondering where Sokka was, though her question was answered at once; a boomerang flew past their line, and struck one of the guards in his helmet; he didn't fall over, but his disorientation was abused by the Princess, who sprinted at him, kicked his legs out from underneath him, and then shoved him into another guard.

"Come on, make this more challenging." she mocked her opponent, goading them into putting as much focus on her as they could; Azula was fast enough to get out of the way of whatever attacks they sent her way, while the others could pick them off one by one.

Her ploy worked, and half of them tried to attack her, while the rest ran forward to deal with the rest of the group. Azula did not even need to hit them, simply weaving around their polearms and forcing them to manoeuvre. That tired them out, and by the time she was cornered up against a wall, the rest of the guards were already dealt with. It only took a matter of moments for Ty Lee and Sokka to chi-block them while they thought they had grasped victory.

The Princess gestured further down the street, where Toph was handling the Dai Li squarely. Guards were strewn about, and the protesters had recovered from any restraints that had been imposed on them; now, it actually seemed like they would have victory. However, she knew that the victory would be short lived; more guards would pool into the area, and the Dai Li would surely call on reinforcements to deal with a threat as big as Toph.

"We need to draw back!" Katara called out, "The guards won't stop!" she warned them, and the protesters looked upon those downed enemies with disgust.

"You might be able to bribe some, but most of us are here for the long run." one of the protesters declared, picking up a polearm before he gestured for others to follow, "She's right! We need to get out of here before the Dai Li beat this girl."

"They ain't beating me, skinny!" Toph shouted out, before she let out a roar as she ripped up the road and threw all the agents off their feet, "Go!" she told them, and the protesters began running down the street.

Azula felt the urge to intervene, to show her strength, but she knew that was foolish, and exactly what the Dai Li would want her to do; they wanted to find them, to corner them, and to destroy their movement. The commoners knew their strength, and that was good enough. Most of them were running away intact, bearing new weapons and more confidence than they would have had coming there.

It was sure that many who left upon hearing the Undersecretariat's words would not return to aid them in future, but they were not siding with the Dai Li, but merely, accepting that it was not worth fighting. She intended to prove them wrong. The National Reform League in the Middle Ring might not have been as radical as the Coalition or any of the commoners who had joined them, but they proved that the people were hungry for change, and knew that their society was deeply flawed. It was not a matter of commoner versus the wealthy, but the dispossessed versus the powerful. The Governing Council only ruled for themselves, not for the people of the city, no matter who they were.

She turned around, grabbed Sokka by the wrist, and forced him to follow. She ran as fast as her feet would take her, and watched nervously as the guards tried to get back up, and take pursuit. Azula wouldn't fight back, not unless it was absolutely necessary, as bogging herself down only furthered the chance that they would be caught out by the Dai Li. Toph, as a master earthbender, could handle herself, but the rest of them were in serious trouble.

She heard a thump behind her, and glanced back to see that the guards had been knocked to the ground once more, but not by Ty Lee, Sokka, or Katara; it was Aang, who had returned from the rooftops, and was ready to leave with them.

"Did you think I was just gonna let them chase you?" he asked, before pulling out some stone walls from the street, blocking it off, "Let's go!"

The protesters cheered upon seeing his aid, and the rest of them followed after Aang, who ran faster than any of them could ever hope to. She doubted anyone had realised he was the Avatar, but eventually she imagined somebody would catch on. As useful as a propaganda tool he would be, Aang was the most powerful among them; he had the possibility to bend all the elements at once, something no other living person could boast, and even at twelve, he was already learning three of the four elements, and she was sure he was ready to learn the fourth.

They all ran around a few corners, following the street where it ran wide, as it was going to be a struggle to get so many people through narrow streets, where the guards or Dai Li could easily corner them. As they reached a crossroads, she glanced around, turning to Sokka, who she trusted to recall the directions needed to reach their hideout.

"Which way?"

"We don't want to go straight back." he warned her, "That'll mess things up fast."

"True." she conceded, before gesturing at Katara and Ty Lee, pointing down the street she thought was the right way, "Go as fast as you can. I want the others to be ready... in case we can't get back fast enough." she directed them, and both turned to each other, seeming concerned.

"But won't they follow us?" she asked, and Azula shook her head.

"Aang will block off the street we're going to take, and they'll suspect that's the way we're going. It will be, but not for long." she explained, "Go! We can't waste any time chatting about this!"

They both ran down the street, following her orders, and the rest of them ran down the street she had already chosen; Aang pulled up some stone walls, which would only delay the guards momentarily. However, their presence would tell them which way to go, giving them a chance to draw the enemy away from the slums, and thus, away from their base of operations.

Azula ran as fast as she could, and didn't stop until they reached another crossroads, "Everyone split up." she told the group of guards. We'll meet at the next crossroads, to the north of here." she gestured to their left, "If anyone gets the guards... deal with them or keep running. We can't wait forever." she gave her directions, and Aang nodded.

"I'll keep them on me." he assured her, and Azula dashed down the closest alleyway she could spot, which wound around haphazardly with the buildings that lined the neighbouring streets.

Sokka followed after her, as she expected he would, and when they reached the next street over, she stopped herself. She had to catch a breath, and listen out for the guards. She had no idea how many of them were following them, let alone Dai Li agents. She had certainly heard their shouts, but the footsteps weren't getting any closer.

"We might have lost them." her boyfriend admitted with a smile, and grabbed her by the shoulders, "You did good."

"I thought my combat was lacking." she admitted honestly, and he scoffed.

"The fact nobody's faces were burnt off... that took a lot of restraint."

---

The city of Ba Sing Se felt different at night; the streets still bustled, but away from the hives of activity, the city felt eerie, as if a miasma had fallen over the place. The city already felt uneasy enough during the day, with the guards prowling the street and the Dai Li watching from the shadows, but nighttime was far worse, as those watching were far more elusive. She had never actually encountered Dai Li agents who weren't already out in the open, and was always cautious, trying to make sure she didn't seem suspicious, at whatever time, wherever she was going.

That night, however, they were not the ones who were being watched, but those who were watching. Some of their scouts had spotted Fire Nation troops returning from the front lines, entering the gates of the city. They were being housed in the barracks near the gates. The opportunity of gathering intelligence was something Azula claimed they couldn't ignore; she had entrusted Ty Lee and Toph to do much of the legwork, and sneak themselves into the barracks, so they could figure out who was there, what their plans were, and importantly, if they could be swayed to her side.

The barracks were heavily guarded, but with Toph's earthbending that was little issue. However, she was sure that would make things more dangerous once they got inside. The others were outside of the barracks, keeping watch and waiting out any opportunities. People were moving about, in and out of the barracks, and in numbers that it meant that somebody might go missing without anyone really batting an eye. Even if they could find somebody, away from the other soldiers, it would be a challenge to have a one-on-one, face-to-face meeting with a Fire Nation officer. That would mean he wouldn't be speaking with any of them out of his own free will.

She and Toph took a Dai Li tunnel under the base, and climbed out of it as quickly as they could, exiting out in a part of the barracks dedicated for storing arms and other equipment the soldiers would use. She thought that maybe stealing some of it might help them arm any new allies, but there weren't enough of them yet to start a revolt, so doing so would only have the Fire Nation soldiers hunt them and whatever supplies they stole down. That was obviously not what Azula wanted; she wanted at least some of them to side with her, and given that they probably joined the Dai Li thinking that she was dead, she imagined that there was a possibility that some would turn to their 'sworn leader', if she dared to show her face.

"So, what exactly are we looking for?" Toph asked her, and Ty Lee raised a brow.

"Uh, I thought you were briefed." she admitted, and the blind girl sighed, stepping over towards the door that led out of the armoury.

"I'm asking because you're her majesty's number one lackey."

"Hey." she pouted, offended by the title she gave her; she was Azula's best friend, not her servant, "I'm not a lackey."

"But you know who we're looking for, don't you?" she asked, "You went off to that camp. I remember."

"Y-yeah." she nodded, recalling how she had infiltrated the army's encampment north of the walls, and learnt about the officers and their views on the conflict.

She still held out hope that some of them could be swayed back to Azula's side, as she would much prefer a faster end to the conflict that was brewing in the city.

"There's a few officers we should look for... if these guys are from the army. The high ranking ones will be way to well guarded... we might be able to listen to what they have to say, but that's about it."

"Alright." she nodded, "What are their names?"

"General Giji was one of the Fire Nation officers commanding the army." she explained, "Major Shin is one of his lieutenants." she recalled who she had encountered, "There was another, but I never got his name." she admitted, before glancing down at the note sheet Azula had given her, summarising the names of the important officers in the garrison forces, which she had retrieved from the base of loyalists.

By a process of elimination, and by considering who served who, she realised that the other officer had to be a man by the name of Lieutenant-Major Senshu. He and Shin served under the General, and she guessed that they were his foremost lieutenants in the field, though there were probably other important officers holding posts in the city itself.

"Alright, so we look for them... and then what?"

"If we can get one of them alone... we take them to Azula." she told her exactly what she intended to do, "You can sense where she is, right?"

"Yeah, over there." she pointed blankly towards a wall, though she trusted that Toph was being accurate, despite the buildings and walls that lay between them.

She stepped over to the door, and followed Toph out of it; they weren't disguised, but just wearing black robes, to make them blend in with the dark of night. The blind girl was especially terrifying, as she had her entire face covered, with a small gap only for her to breathe through; she seemed like a dark spirit out of some story, and the way she moved, using her earthbending to silence her own footsteps, made her seem quite ethereal. Ty Lee could not hope to be so silent, but she was already light footed, so she was not afraid somebody would hear her.

Toph led them down past the armouries and supply warehouses, and she was relieved to see nobody around. Given that the sun had already fallen, most people would have tried to have finished their duties so they could rest. She knew people would be guarding the premises, but they had the walls around the barracks to hold, not the interior itself. When they reached an open area of the barracks, Toph stopped herself, and raised a hand.

"There's a few guards stationed around here." she warned her, "We'll need to walk around if we want to get inside the compound." she gestured over to the large building that stood in the centre of the barracks.

Ty Lee nodded, and slid into the cover of darkness, and slowly made her way along the sides of the buildings, making sure to listen out for anyone or anything that might be moving around. She could hear voices inside some of the buildings, which she guessed were some of the barracks used as sleeping quarters. However, the voices were quiet enough that she could barely make out any words, let alone figure out what they were conversing about.

She led Toph over to the side of the compound, which had some windows looking out on the higher floors; the building was of Earth Kingdom design, meaning that it didn't have the usual tiered roofs, and triangular shape favoured by her nation. That would make it harder to scale the wall, but Toph seemed to have realised that, and used her earthbending to subtly draw out some steps for her to climb via.

"Thanks." she quietly acknowledged her help, "So, I go in one of the windows... then what? Can you sense anyone around?"

"The building's full of people. I'll find a spot where I can safely dig through the wall without being noticed." she explained her own intentions, "When you find somebody of importance. Make this gesture." she explained, and made a motion with her hand before thumping her chest, "I'll know then I need to catch that person... if the opportunity arises."

"Got it." she nodded, before she began scaling up the stone outcrops that Toph had made for her.

When she reached the first floor, she reached over to the window, and pulled the wooden covering open, revealing the interior; there was nobody out in the hallway, and Ty Lee took the chance to leap through the window and eye around for somewhere to hide herself. She stepped over to a nearby door, pushed it ajar, and noted that it was an unused office, as it was dusty and full of stacks of paperwork. She ignored that and moved further down the hallway, opening another door slightly, and she could hear some noises inside, meaning she had to be more careful.

It was some kind of room for printing out commands; she could see an officer overseeing some men, who were efficiently setting up prints to make more copies. She wondered what exactly they were doing, but seeing that nobody was saying much, she would have to actually peek at the orders, which she knew was not a good idea, given her lack of a disguise. She continued on, approaching a stairwell, where she could hear more voices, this time more distinctly.

"Now, we need to employ smaller groups. The earthbenders can smash us if we have too many men together, and we can't always rely on the conscripts to actually be any good at bending." somebody was explaining his ideas to other soldiers; she presumed he was an officer, and she heard other voices humming in agreement.

"That will be good for scouting, but not against any defensive positions." somebody else argued, "We need more artillery."

"The General said that the factories were already working on making more mechanised catapults, but it will take time." the first man argued, and she stepped behind the cover of an internal beam, keeping her hidden as the men continued up the stairs, unable to notice her presence.

"We don't have all that much time. If the scout reports are correct, the enemy is massing even more men. They'll be able to break through the walls in a matter of weeks, even if every earthbending conscript was lining the Outer Walls to keep them from being breached." another soldier spoke up, "Another offensive is the only option."

"That's exactly what the General has been saying." the first man declared, "But if that's our only option, then how many men are we going to lose before they break?"

"Too many." another soldier added poignantly, "This whole war is fruitless, but somebody has to break, and we have the numbers."

"The city does. Our forces are barely enough to occupy a proper city, let alone the largest one in the world." the first soldier warned him, "Don't forget that we're only free because we chose to cooperate."

"I'd rather be alive and fighting than dead and useless." another soldier piped up, the voices getting quieter as they rose up the stairwell.

Ty Lee glanced out momentarily, and made sure they were out of sight, before she stepped out of cover and made her way further down the hallway; she would have to deduce where the officers were, but from her experience with the compound back west, she had a good idea where they might be. An obvious possibility was whatever mess hall the men inside the compound used, but she guessed that it was getting a little too late for dinner. Another was that they could be having a meeting, either in a room designed for that purpose, or one of the larger offices, which, like in the compound, she expected to be higher up in the building.

So, Ty Lee cautiously walked down the hallway, listening for any voices; there were other conversations going on in the rooms she passed by, but none of them interested her that much. They were speaking about various things they had done in the conflict, or about their plans while they were on leave. She guessed that soldiers were being rotated around, so they wouldn't be back in Ba Sing Se for very long before being forced to go back to the frontline. When she didn't hear anything useful, she approached another stairwell, and listened out for footsteps.

She didn't hear anyone, and decided to quickly make her way up; the wooden floors rang and creaked less than the metal ones in Fire Nation military buildings, but she could still clearly make out the creaks of footsteps. Toph would be much more confident than her, but Ty Lee was sure that she was enough to move out of sight if she did find somebody. When she reached the next floor, she glanced out into the hallway, but didn't hear anyone. So, she moved higher up; the next floor seemed a bit better furnished, and there were guards stationed around by some of the doors. That told her that higher ranking officers were about, and that was where she was meant to be.

Ty Lee knew she couldn't approach the guards, as they would alert everyone before she could knock them out. So, she elected to cross over the hallway to another door, open it, and glance inside. She found an empty room, which she guessed was meant to be used for military records; only some of the shelves had scrolls on them, while the rest was empty, and covered in dust. She guessed that the Fire Nation had cleared them out when they took over, and had only recently started using the records room again. She thought to steal some of the scrolls, but ignored that idea, knowing that the Coalition was in dire need of manpower, not just information.

She stepped over to the window that was closest to the office she wanted to reach, and pulled her legs out the window. Just as she hoped, Toph pulled out some stone for her to step on, allowing her to quickly scale across the side of the wall towards her target. She tapped on the wall, knowing that would get her attention, and Toph provided her with a ledge to walk across. When she finally got over to the window, she leaned as close as she could to the window, so she could listen out to whatever the men inside were discussing.

"If those reports were accurate, then we are not just dealing with a mass of rebels outside the walls." one of the voices spoke up; she recognised that voice as belonging to Major Shin, the croaky voiced officer who served under General Giji, "The airship bombarded one of the major artillery positions, and according to the post-combat report, the defenders encountered some earthbenders. That means they have been able to infiltrate the walls... it is only one more step to suggest they are already in the Agrarian Zone."

"The Dai Li have been making sweeps with their undercover agents for the past two weeks. They only found a collapsed tunnel. That is all... it's possible that they retreated back out into the wilds." somebody else spoke up; this voice was new, but she felt that he sounded self-important and confident, "I trust their reports on this matter. If they feared infiltrators were approaching the city, then they would tell us. We were assigned to keep them out... not to simply destroy the naval base."

"They destroyed it themselves... the fools." General Giji spoke up; she recognised his voice at once, "However, the fact they withdrew from that position does not mean they aren't intending to halt their efforts to break through the walls."

"Scouts reported a Water Tribe army massed in the wilds just west of the loyalist territories." another officer spoke up, "I believe they might try and impress them to join Fire Lord Azula."

"That is possible, but they lack the manpower and resources to effectively aid her." the General argued, before she heard a sigh, "I intend to put an end to the threat these Northern interlopers pose."

"We could ask the Governing Council to send a delegate north. There are places where a ship could be hired... we could force them to demand the return of those warriors." Shin suggested, "I am sure the North would prefer to keep peace with us, even if they agreed to aid the rebels."

"That would be a lot of effort for little gain." Giji retorted, "I will not waste precious manpower on a diplomatic venture. There is no point trying until the seas are cleared of enemy ships... which will not happen while the Fire Lord lives."

"Then, are you proposing another assassination attempt?" Shin asked, and she could hear whispers and muttering in the room; then, something slammed against wood, and she heard a chair shunt on the floor.

"Stop it with the damn conniving!" the General shouted at the other men, "Do I look like the Grand Secretariat to you? We are soldiers. We don't need plots to destroy this coalition of rebels, all we need is time. They do not have the numbers to stand against the Grand Army, and once we corner them, we will capture their leadership."

"Scouts have reported that the Fire Lord was not present at the base." one of the officers told the General, "I think we should assume that she has moved to infiltrate the city."

"We have already discussed the matter of infiltration. All the positions that the Dai Li found were abandoned." the General reminded them once more, "So, if she is here, the force must be small, or very well hidden." he argued, "The Dai Li will deal with them as soon as they catch a scent of their trail."

"Weren't we called back to deal with the protests?" Shin asked him rhetorically, "I mean... we're technically here for leave, but we know the Governing Council will not stand for dissent."

"I am aware." Giji replied, before tapping on what must have been his desk, "If she is here, she might be behind it... but it's possible she is just waiting with the Water Tribe forces. To sully herself with such dangers... that is unbecoming of a royal."

"You forget your history, General." Shin retorted, "General Iroh and his son spent nearly two years sieging down this city, fighting on the frontline. Fire Lord Ozai might be a coward, but you cannot say the same for the rest of the royal family."

"The Major is right." the confident-sounding officer spoke up once more, "I hope that this theory is disproven... because it means that either the Dai Li is incompetent, or they want her here."

"What... are you suggesting they'll brainwash her and use her to achieve the Governing Council's goals of world peace?" Giji asked, sounding sceptical, "Even if they could, what's to say that would work? She has the Avatar with her."

"Which is exactly why we should be afraid. If the masses find out about his presence, then they are sure to start revolting... not merely marching about conscription." Shin warned, and the other officers laughed.

"The Avatar was gone for a century!" one of them declared, "Even if the boy can fight, the people would be more likely to hate him for his incompetence, not rally behind him."

"You underestimate the cultural status of the Avatar. We do not think highly of him,because that is what we were taught as children: that he is our greatest enemy, the enemy of progress, but you can't reasonably believe that commoners here would think the same." Shin argued, and the General sighed.

"There is no point arguing about it." he chided them, "I will have to return to the front tomorrow. I expect you all to prepare the men for their next round of duties... if we are not organised, we will not be able to finally push the rebels into the sea."

"That's not as useful when they've got waterbenders and ships, sir." another officer spoke up, Ty Lee recognising that voice as belonging to the younger officer who was in the tent the last time she encountered the officers: the Lieutenant-Major, who she assumed was the man called Senshu.

"I'm aware. That's why we have to get rid of the benders, and the ships." he argued, "There's certainly prisons good enough to cage waterbenders here."

"That won't go down well with the North." Shin warned him, "I say we exchange them back at once in hopes of forcing them to stand against Fire Lord Azula."

"They won't do that. I prefer having some useful hostages... if they were stupid enough, they might have sent somebody important with them." Giji argued, before he audibly got up, "Lieutenant-Major Raimei, I want you to go retrieve the representative from the Ministry."

"For what purpose, General?" the officer asked, identifying him as the Lieutenant-Major she had heard before; it seemed that he wasn't Senshu, and that man was somebody else, perhaps the overconfident sounding man who had been speaking.

"We need a more accurate report of the events on the walls. I have been forestalled by these bureaucrats for too long." he explained, and the Lieutenant-Major seemed to accept the orders, and went over to open the doors.

Ty Lee considered whether he was somebody they could take; even if he didn't sound all that confident in the Governing Council, from what she had heard him say last time. So, she remained where she was for a bit longer; glancing behind herself, she knew nobody could see her, given the whole exterior of the compound was unlit, and it was quite dark outside of the grounds and walls, which were lit by lanterns.

"If it is no issue, General, I will take my leave now. If you have any orders, then send somebody to my quarters." Major Shin requested, and she heard a hum; that meant that Shin would be leaving, and would most likely be alone.

"Go on, Major. I expect that you will send me reports while I am at the front of your dealings here."

"Of course, General. Friend or foe... nothing will slip past me." he assured him, and she heard the door open and close.

She knew that he seemed more sympathetic to their side, and decided that he would do for their goals. If he wouldn't agree to their plans, he wasn't even going to see their faces, so he had no idea who he would be dealing with. Ty Lee stepped along the ledge Toph had made for her, and then climbed back through the window, back inside. Then, she dashed over to the doorway, listening out for Shin's footsteps.

She could hear footsteps heading down the staircase, so she elected to follow right after him. She remained a floor above, so he couldn't see her, and wondered if Toph was still paying attention. She decided to make her intentions clear by doing the gesture she had told her to. With that, she slowed her pace, and glanced around the stairwell to see that Shin was leaving the stairwell on the first floor.

"Sorry." she whispered under her breath, and ran at the officer; before he could scream, shout or do anything, she grasped a hand over his mouth, and chopped him in the back of the neck, knocking him unconscious, and chi-blocking him well enough that he would have been paralysed if he didn't pass out.

Shin was a middle aged officer, making her think he was a bit old for such a low rank; she didn't think too much into that, and grabbed him under the arms, and dragged his body towards the window she had taken into the place, walking backwards slowly to try and minimise the noise his body would make. She heard a whistle as she got closer, and glanced over to see that Toph was at the window, peeking through.

"Who's the guy?" Toph asked her, and Ty Lee smiled.

"The General's top lackey... and he seems pretty reasonable." she explained, and the other girl grabbed him by the arms, while Ty Lee held his legs, pulling him out of the window.

When she climbed through, she realised that Toph had earthbent up a platform, though it quickly lowered back down to the ground, before Toph pulled open a hole, revealing a section of hidden tunnel. She had bent out a ramp, allowing them to essentially slide down into the tunnel, before it was closed shut.

"That... that worked better than I thought it would." she admitted, before they continued along, dragging Major Shin down back towards the walls.

Azula was already waiting in the tunnels for them, and approached as they turned a corner, along with Sokka; both of them seemed surprised, and Azula made sure to cover her face up before their captive regained consciousness. They sat him down, and Toph closed up parts of the tunnel, just in case the Dai Li tried to come through while they were getting down to business.

"So, who is he?" she asked Ty Lee, who just smacked the man lightly; when he regained consciousness, he was a bit startled, and let out a frightened shout, which didn't help him, given they were underground.

"Who- who are you?" he asked them nervously, "Wait- no, you're-"

"Yeah, it's funny." Ty Lee admitted, kneeling down beside him, "You guys were just babbling on about the rebels, and how they couldn't have possibly gotten into the city. Well, here we are."

"Why are you giving away our identities?" Sokka asked her, and she shrugged.

"He would have guessed it anyway." she argued, before she tapped him on the shoulder, "So, who are you?"

"I- I... I am Shin, Major Shin." he gave his name and rank, and Azula seemed interested.

"Major, what exactly do you do?"

"That is not for anyone except the Grand Army and Governing Council to know." he retorted, "And seeing that you belong to neither, then I have no reason to tell you anything." he argued, before glancing down at his restrained hands, "If you're going to kill me, just get on with it."

"Why would such effort be put in restraining you and taking you here?" Azula proposed a rhetorical question; Shin's face shifted from one of dejection to one of unease.

"I am not that important." he warned them, "You probably want the General."

"General Giji?" Azula guessed correctly, and he seemed surprised that they knew his identity, though after a few moments, it clicked in his head.

"You know more about us than we do about you." he realised, and Ty Lee snapped a finger to get his attention.

"We're not here to make you a hostage or anything, if that's what you're thinking." she tried to explain their intentions, and that seemed to annoy him.

"Then you must think I'm... what, going to betray the Governing Council?" he asked her, and she cringed.

"Well, will you? I can tell you don't think the same way as the others out there." she argued, and he glanced around at them all, before sighing.

"You're... you're right." he admitted, "But that doesn't mean I'll freely just tell you everything you want... or be your rat. I am better than that. I am a good soldier. An honourable soldier."

"You're old for a Major." Azula brought up the same thing she observed, "Why?"

"I was denied a promotion." he clarified, and Ty Lee scrunched her lips.

"You don't seem to be incompetent. Why?"

"I have a few theories." he admitted, and Azula gestured for him to elaborate, "The first one is because I served under General Iroh during the siege. Fire Lord Ozai made sure that nobody who served the former Crown Prince received promotions. He could say it was because we failed in the siege... but he was probably just afraid of a coup." he explained his thoughts, quiet openly; Ty Lee felt reassured that she had made the right choice in choosing him; not because of any loyalty to Iroh, which wasn't really relevant at that moment, but more so because he seemed to be truly frank, "The second theory is merely due to a lack of renown. I have not achieved any great victories in my time as an officer, at least those that would earn me a quick promotion."

"Is that due to a lack of courage?" Azula pressed, and he scoffed.

"I have courage, but I will not needlessly sacrifice men when there are less flashy, less 'glorious' ways to win a battle. That was what we did with the siege. It was gritty, it was slow, but it would have led to victory eventually."

"So... who are you loyal to? Obviously not Ozai." Ty Lee asked, and the officer sighed.

"I am loyal to my nation, as I have always been. I followed General Giji's command and helped depose her highness' government, but only because I knew that the Dai Li were going to do so anyway. At least we share power now... it could have been much worse for us all. Soldiers, bureaucrats, and colonists. All targets of the natives' ire." he explained his reasoning for even siding with the Governing Council, "I had hoped that Fire Lord Zuko would have marched east. At least then we might have been able to negotiate an end to this conflict. That never eventuated, for obvious reasons."

"You're an open book." Azula observed, before sighing, "Well, it's only fair-" she began, before Sokka suddenly pushed her back towards the wall, forcing her away from the Major.

"No fucking way." he warned her, and Ty Lee understood the problem at once; she wanted to reveal her identity and intentions to the Major, to try and sway him to their side, but if she did that, he could inform his superiors, as well as the Dai Li, of her presence in Ba Sing Se.

"What is it?" the Major asked, before turning his gaze back to Azula, "Are you trying to recruit me or what?"

"Recruitment is for people who are willing to fight the Governing Council to the end: patriots." the Princess clarified, "You are but a Fire Nation citizen who has made a flurry of bad decisions. We ought to let you fall with the rest of them... but there is another way."

"Go on." Shin prodded, and the Princess raised a finger.

"The Fire Lord may offer amnesty to any citizens who aid the Coalition. That merely means overthrowing the Dai Li, not killing your countrymen." she explained, her offer seeming as if it was coming from an underling, when in fact, she was the Fire Lord.

"How can I trust the word of a few spies?" he asked, and Sokka turned to the Princess once more.

"Please don't. There has to be another way." he pleaded, before gstruign down the tunnel, "What about him?"

"What, Twinkletoes?" Toph asked, and he nodded, "I don't think a Fire Nation soldier's gonna be swayed by him."

"No, he seems to be very afraid of him." Ty Lee clarified, and it took a few moments for Shin to realise who exactly they were talking about.

His face paled, and he tried to get up, "W-wait, you're telling me here's here? In the city?!" he exclaimed, "No... no... he needs to leave." he warned, "I can stand to serve under the Dai Li... but I am a mere man. If they get their hands on him... the world is doomed. He has to leave."

"He's not afraid of them." Toph declared, "Not as much as you seem to be."

"I am a soldier. Dying in battle is something I expect... and if they were able to make me into a puppet, I couldn't do nearly as much damage as the Avatar... let alone the Fire Lord." he argued, before Azula grabbed him by the collar.

"Shut up." she demanded, "You are underestimating our power."

"Our power?" he asked, seeming confused, before his face paled even further, as he must have finally realised her identity, "Y-y-your majesty." he gasped out, "Please... I beg of you."

"Shut up." she demanded again, "I will not have you beg. I want results... and if I don't have them, you will die." she took a very different tactic than she had before.

"Spirits, I thought- we're- why would you come here yourself?"

"Because we are going to destroy them." Toph declared, "The Governing Council is going to fall."

"If you- you cannot be captured." he reminded her of the danger she was in, "You are in tremendous danger."

"The benefits outweigh the risks. I am about to undo three hundred years of corruption in a single stroke." she declared, "If you still have any belief in the mission that our nation swore to complete, then you know that I must do it."

"You failed before." he reminded her, "We could not stop them."

"I had to leave." she retorted, "Because my brother decided to overthrow my father... and put us all in this mess. I am bringing us out of this chaos."

"The Earth Kingdom will not accept you as their ruler."

"Yeah, no shit, buddy." Sokka scoffed, "That's why the Coalition exists. We are going to rebuild the Earth Kingdom... because the Governing Council sure isn't gonna do that any time soon."

"You think you can achieve your goals without bloodshed?" he asked, and Azula sighed, before pointing a finger at him.

"If you do not help me, more people will die." she warned him, "And if we fail, what do you think the Avatar will do?"

"Air Nomads are-" he began, and Ty Lee scoffed.

"Cut the pig-cow crap. I heard what you were saying in that meeting." she warned him, "You know exactly what he's capable of."

Shin's expression shifted to one of terror, and he looked down, "Our nation has made terrible mistakes... and the worst of which was making an enemy of somebody so powerful."

Azula seemed less annoyed now, and knelt down in front of him, "How well did you know my uncle?"

"I- well, I served under him. I did my duty... and I will admit, he is a kind man, and a great commander. Forfeiting the siege might have been wrong, but he was doing right by saving the lives of all those who would have otherwise died." he explained, before narrowing his eyes, "If you bring your fight here, you would be forgetting that lesson."

"Only if I lose." she retorted with a smirk, before leaning closer, "And I will not." she declared, before sighing, "If you provide me with intelligence on military operations, and the Dai Li... I will provide you with amnesty, and if you are exceptionally helpful, a promotion will be in order."

"To colonel?" he asked, and she scoffed.

"To general." she corrected him, "I will need somebody to command the Fire Nation forces in Ba Sing Se when I bring them back to the colonies."

"You- you intend to bring everyone to your side?" he asked, and she nodded.

"That is why I want your help. I might be here for the sake of the Earth Kingdom, but I do not forget my duties as Fire Lord. No Fire Nation citizen will needlessly die on my watch."

"That is honourable of you." he nodded cautiously, before turning his eyes away, "I feel that I do not have a choice. I would much prefer to continue serving my General."

"But would you like to see your brothers in arms die for nothing?" she asked, "That is all you will receive if you do not aid me."

"If the Dai Li finds out... they will take me, and probably kill many of my comrades, for good measure." he warned her what would happen, "I can't have that."

"Then I will be fast." she assured her, "Provide me with what I need, and you will be able to leave Ba Sing Se with every soldier here."

"What about those who might still profess loyalty to your father?" Shin asked, "Will they be spared?"

"Spared from death, yes, but not from duty. If they do not seek to serve me, they can toil for our nation's sake until my father is dead. Then they may live in peace. You have my word." she assured him, hand on her heart, before she stood back up, "I imagine people will start looking for you soon, so I need your decision. If you do not join us, I will still let you live, but I warn you, I will not make things easy for you."

"I would prefer to have neither side trying to kill me." the Major admitted, before sighing, "How can I even provide you with intelligence? You can't tell me where you're based, because that means you would have to kill me or hold me hostage."

"Smart of you to realise that." Azula noted, "Leave a letter in the warehouse this tunnel leads to." she explained, "My friend here will show you the way to it." she gestured to Ty Lee, "We will retrieve the letter... and before you think of setting us up, my other friend will be able to sense any Dai Li agents." she warned, indicating to Toph, "And she can tell if you're lying."

"So, what's the decision, frog?" Toph asked him, and he scoffed.

"Frog?" he asked, and Ty Lee cringed.

"Your... your voice." she admitted why she had given him the nickname.

"Urgh." he sighed, seeming frustrated by the insult, but his eyes turned back to Azula, "Yes."

"Yes, what?" she pressed him.

"I will do it. I cannot provide you with highly sensitive information that might link back to me, but the things I can discover while undertaking my duties, I certainly can."

"He's not lying." Toph assured them, and Sokka smiled.

"Ah, that's good to hear that you aren't a rat... you're just a realist." he acknowledged his mindset, "Thank you, honestly, I much prefer this over actually kidnapping people."

"You did kidnap me." he retorted, and Ty Lee waved off his claim.

"We're gonna let you go, dummy." she reminded him, "Now, do I take him back?" she asked, and Azula nodded.

"We best not keep whoever's waiting for you waiting."

"He's actually just going to bed." Ty Lee revealed, and the Major cringed.

"Why are you telling them that?"

"Because lying doesn't help anyone." she argued, and gestured to the closed off part of the tunnel, "Toph." she requested, and the blind girl flicked a hand over, getting rid of the covering, before bending apart all the restraints she had placed on Shin.

He got up, and followed Ty Lee through the gap, and turned around momentarily, "I... I don't know if I ought to say this, but I am honoured that you thought I was worthy of serving you, your majesty."

"Don't thank me. Ty Lee's the one who decided." she clarified, and the acrobat cringed.

"Yeah, it was either you or that Raimei guy."

"He's a dutiful soldier." he acknowledged, "Perhaps in time he might be able to aid you." he added, and Azula raised a finger.

"Don't tell anyone else about this... not even your family, assuming they're in the city."

"No, my family's back in the homeland. Spirits willing, the Fire Lord hasn't had them punished for my treason."

"I doubt he'd be willing to punish every family that has a traitor. Half the country has turned on the other half... it's just not practical." Azula clarified, though Ty Lee knew that was just a guess; she tensed up, realising that if Ozai knew about her presence with Azula, he might have tried to punish her mother and father for it.

She didn't want to think about that, though she thought such a ploy was impractical; even without Ty Lee's help, Azula could surely seize the throne, so punishing her parents made no sense. It only served to anger her, and Ty Lee was already furious with what had happened to Mai. She pushed the thought out of her mind, for better or worse; she had the immediate danger of the Dai Li to worry about, and Ozai's ploys would only serve as an unhelpful distraction.

She turned to Shin, "Are you ready?"

"Yes." he nodded, and with that she led him down the tunnel, back towards the warehouse entrance.

It was quite dark without the aid of lanterns or firebending, though Shin apparently was a bender, as he lit a torch for them as they left the others. When she reached the exit, she climbed up the ladder, before pushing out the panel that covered it; she then stepped out, and gestured for Shin to follow. He cautiously did so, and she pointed to the door.

"Just head back to your quarters. This never happened." she gave him what she thought to be sufficient directions.

The Major looked at her with unease, "How can you trust I'll do what you want?"

"Because you're smart." she argued, "You don't want to spend the rest of your days in some prison in the homeland once Azula wins, do you?"

"With a few words to the right people, she would lose. I could scream out right now." he argued, and she scoffed.

"Yeah, you could, and I'd snap your neck." she argued, raising her hands up, "I've never done that before... but I'm strong enough."

He seemed terrified, "You're... you're only a girl."

"A master chi-blocker." she corrected him, "I would really prefer not to." she added, emphasising her desire to not kill him; she would only do so if she found it absolutely necessary, and that went for anyone, even Dai Li agents.

"I know... I'm just... well, how can I know the Fire Lord will keep her end of the bargain?"

"Mutual trust is required." she argued, "I think you can trust her. You might not know everything we've gone through, but believe me, Azula wants to make peace. With the people who betrayed her, and with the rest of the Earth Kingdom. The Dai Li are the ones who need to go."

"I hope you're right." he admitted, "If you're not... the bloodshed will be immense. Many of your fellow countrymen will die, and many of your allies... whoever they are, they will die as well. The Water Tribe fighters... not even fighting for their own country."

"And neither am I." she reminded him, "This is about more than national loyalty. You should understand."

"I do." he conceded, "I am... I am afraid."

"We all are." she assured him, "Just... do what you were doing before. If the Dai Li do try anything against you, I promise we'll try and free you."

"That is not as reassuring as you think it is." he acknowledged, "Do not let the Fire Lord... let alone the Avatar, sacrifice themselves for somebody as unimportant as me."

"I said we would try. I know what's at stake." she stressed, and Shin turned around, pacing over to the door.

Ty Lee was unsure if she just made a terrible mistake or the greatest strategic victory in her life; she was not Azula, and even the Princess couldn't predict the future. She was even more uncertain, but hope glimmered above all that. She could see the path, the way out of the terrifying maze they had before them. The colonials, the soldiers, the commoners, the conscripts; everyone could be turned against their 'masters'. It was either that, or certain doom. She would not accept that, so she would fight. She let out a laugh, realising who she was thinking like.

"I'm not the Fire Lord... but if I can be anything like her, then I promise we'll win. For the sake of everyone who is going to suffer if we don't."

"There are a lot of people in this city." Shin warned her, and Ty Lee raised a finger to emphasise her point.

"I'm not talking about Ba Sing Se. I'm talking about everyone who lives, and everyone who will live after them. Every single person." she stressed her point; the Fire Nation, Water Tribes, and Earth Kingdom would all suffer if the war was not ended, and the only person who was capable of doing that was Azula.

"You say that as if the world will become unlivable." he observed with an uneasy voice, seeming genuinely afraid.

"You're afraid." she noted, and stepped back over to the hole, knowing that she had to leave before anyone else saw her, "Good. You should be. Everyone should be."