"Alright, first of all… the best way to put this place to the torch is with fuel" Sokka started, pacing through the barracks with a frown on his face "Are there any lanterns here, or…?"
"There's probably a few somewhere" said Shinya, shrugging "We'll have to look in the storage"
"Good, then. We'll use whatever oil was left for those lanterns to start a fire so bad their firebenders won't be able to stop it easily" said Sokka, nodding "As this is a wooden building, everything should catch fire relatively fast. Of course, once we start the fire, we'll have to be close to our escape route… which is the most important thing to decide on"
"Well… some walls aren't that stable" said the man with the eye-patch, whose name was Fuuma "We could tear one down, maybe"
"Might be risky if we're too loud about it, though. The fire won't cover for our escape if anyone notices we're getting away" Sokka muttered, biting his lip before shaking his head and stepping towards the barracks' walls "Can one of you show me around? I'd like to see for myself if there's any opportunities to get out quietly, near the forest"
"Forest?" said Yukio, the one with the knife. He had stopped aiming it at Sokka as soon as Shinya had decided they should work with him "You said there were trees before, but… there's a forest around here?"
"Yeah, I guess you guys never saw much of what's outside this wretched place, huh?" Sokka said, grimacing sympathetically "Yeah, there's a forest, right behind the fighting pit, from what I could see"
"Then… that's where we'll hide?" said Yunru, staring at Sokka with hopeful eyes. Sokka nodded.
"If we make our escape safely, yes. So, with that in mind… will someone lead me to the fighting pit?" Sokka asked. Shinya nodded as a response before turning to Fuuma.
"Find the oil canisters. I doubt there's much left, but… gather all you can" he instructed his fellow gladiator. Fuuma nodded.
"We'll get to it. Let's go, then" he said, gesturing at the others to follow him to the storage area.
The barracks were separated from the sand pit by a metal grid, rusty and dented, much like it had been in Hui Yi. Shinya pushed it open merely with a shove of his shoulder: the lock had been broken, surely the handiwork of the rebel gladiators back when they had barged into the sand to save Geming.
Sokka cringed at the sight and stench of the corpses: the gladiators had piled up the dead guards and the handler in the center of the arena, amidst the stains of blood on the sand that hadn't been cleaned in ages. He certainly had grown too used to the Superior League, for there had been some elements about Amateur Arenas that he had put away from his mind successfully until now. The ever-filthy sand and that raw smell of carnage were only a few of them.
"Well, this is the sand pit. Where'd you say is that forest?" asked Shinya, stepping into the sand and glancing about himself.
"Let's see. If that's where the public's entrance is…" Sokka said, studying the wooden stands that hugged the fighting area: he could spot an archway that led into a corridor, the only one in sight "Then I figure that's where the vestibule is, right? So, with that in mind, the forest should be…"
After finding the proper angle, he pointed towards the stands in the opposite direction to the vestibule. There were merely three rows of hollow benches, built with old, dry and brittle-looking wood. Sokka's eyes narrowed as he studied the wall behind them.
"Say… we could, maybe, break a hole in the wall, under the stands. And then crawl out through it once we've started the fire" he suggested, anticipation building inside him over this newly identified opportunity.
He jumped over the small wooden railing that lined the stands and separated them from the sand pit, on his way to examine the stands properly. If they were lucky, the building itself wouldn't be all that resilient, and breaking through the wall would prove easy in the pandemonium left in the fire's wake…
"How? Won't we make a ton of noise breaking a hole somewhere?" said Shinya, arms crossed. Sokka bit his lip as he scoured the visible area of the wall over the rows of stands "Unless there's already a hole we can slip through, it's not going to work so well, is it?"
"Yeah. Damn, I have a sword" Sokka sighed, shaking his head "It would've been perfect for this, but I left it at the hot-air balloon, for safety's sake. It's a dead giveaway of my identity, so I couldn't bring it here. But I have a knife, so… maybe I can try to saw through the wood somehow. Maybe"
"You sure?" said Shinya, raising his eyebrows "Won't that take forever?"
"It might" said Sokka, grimacing as he paced closer towards the stands, deep in thought "Well, then… maybe we could set it on fire too"
"Say what?" said Shinya.
"A more controlled fire, this time" said Sokka, biting his lip "If we started the fire at the front, there's a chance the guards will all rush over there. Once they're there… we can try to burn a hole into the wall, and we can slip out through it before the building crashes on us"
"Isn't that too risky? What if the fire gets out of hand here too, or if we get burned on our way out?" asked Shinya, eyes wide. Sokka sighed and shrugged.
"Well, yeah, controlling fire would be easier if any of us were benders, but we're not" he said "Alright, alright, I'll try and think of something else…"
"Right" said Shinya, rubbing his eyes with the heels of his hands "What will we do after we get out, though? If you come up with a plan that works, we'd have to run through that forest to your… balloon, whatever that is?"
"Yeah" Sokka nodded "After we reach it, we'll test if it can fly with, uh, thirteen people on board, I guess, and we'll get away from here as quickly as we can"
"And if that works, what will happen next?" Shinya said "We'll go our separate ways? You can't risk staying with us for too long, or can you? Won't the Fire Lord notice you're missing if you're not at his Palace?"
"I don't live there, fortunately, so no, he shouldn't notice I'm gone" said Sokka "But I do have to return as fast as possible. Anyways, if we escape successfully without getting caught and everything goes well, I guess I'll offer you the best solution I could think of so far. You can take refuge in this very strange island, called the Black Cliffs…"
"Is it far away?" asked Shinya. Sokka shook his head.
"Just outside of the Great Gates of Azulon" he said. At Shinya's puzzled stare, Sokka cleared his throat "It's a big statue that blocks all access into the Capital's port. You can't get through the Gates without clearance or whatever, but we won't be traveling by water so that won't be a problem for us. Anyways, once we're past the Gates we'll see the Black Cliffs, and it's… well, it's a wild place, I won't lie about that. But it's also the only place I can think of where a group of escaped gladiators won't stand out at all"
"Why's that?" asked Shinya "Is it some thrice-accursed, forsaken place like Fazhan?"
"Not exactly" said Sokka "It's a strange island. There's a Superior League Arena there, but it's… a lawless one, pretty much. Wild, free gladiators live there, fight there, do whatever they want there. I've only been to the Dragon's Pit once and I didn't particularly want to return… but I keep thinking no one will care either way if a bunch of escaped gladiators end up there"
"Okay…" said Shinya, frowning "And where would we go from there?"
"Hopefully, you'll be able to find an opportunity to return to the Earth Kingdom through some ship or another eventually" Sokka sighed "But if you can't go back home… then at least you can stay there for a while. I know I'm not offering you the greatest possibility, but it's better than dying here, right?"
"Anything would be" said Shinya, breathing deeply "What are those gladiators like? The ones in these Black Cliffs…?"
"Wild, reckless, crazy" Sokka admitted "They enjoy fighting just for kicks. I'd say you should keep your distance from the Arena itself, but other than that, you guys should be safe. Hopefully. Yeah, I know, it's a lot of maybes and a lot of hopefullies, but that's all I've got so far. I'll let you know if I come up with something else to offer you guys, but if I don't…"
Shinya sighed and shrugged. Sokka raised his eyebrows: the man before him was likely to admit his apprehension of winding up in such a complicated place…
"I don't think we have much of a choice, do we?" he said "But… you say we can try to go home from there? Back to the Earth Kingdom? Isn't it all colonies by now?"
"Well, not all of it, but most of it, yes" Sokka acknowledged "It's not like you'll be able to just go home, and all will be well, it's true. But… I'd guess you'd want to get as far away from the Fire Nation as possible, right?"
"Don't you want that too?" asked Shinya, frowning "As much as you're sponsored by the Princess and whatever, shouldn't you be trying to get away from her just the same?"
"It's… complicated" said Sokka, sighing as he turned away from Shinya.
They could talk about the future all they wanted, but there would be no future for any of them unless they settled on an exit strategy. Sokka took a deep breath before crouching down to crawl underneath the beams that comprised the last row of the stands. The last row had been erected right against the wall: as the stands were hollow, propped up in four legs as a table might be, the space beneath the seats was large enough for Sokka to fit through them to study the wall: he had no doubts the amateur gladiators, all of whom were thinner and smaller than him, would have no trouble sliding in just as he had.
"Complicated? How complicated can it be?" grumbled Shinya, following Sokka with his gaze: he had stayed on the fighting pit, desensitized and unaffected by the stench and gore merely a few feet from where he stood "If that Princess of yours is that much better than her father, as you claim she is, you wouldn't have to stick it out with her if you don't want to"
"Might be I do want to" Sokka replied, finally, raising a hand to touch the wooden wall lightly with his knuckles as he continued to crawl under the stands. Shinya scowled at his answer "Like I said… things aren't as straightforward for me as they are for you guys. I would like to go home one day, but… I can't leave her"
"You make no sense" said Shinya, shaking his head "She trusts you enough to help you save slaves, and it's the perfect opportunity for you to escape along with us, but you'd rather run right back to her instead?"
"She trusts me this much because she knows I'll go back" Sokka said, his voice fainter the farther he went "Really, Shinya, this isn't…"
"The hell, dude? Are you in love with her or something?" he said, scoffing and shaking his head. Sokka sighed and hung his own momentarily before carrying on forward, unwilling to answer now. Shinya froze at his silence "You're kidding"
"I didn't say anything" Sokka grumbled, but Shinya snorted.
"So that's it, then? Because you're in love with her, she knows you won't escape and…! Wait, but then… why would she let you come here to save us? She could've just told you not to go if she knows how you feel, but if she let you do this… woah, man, does she like you too?"
Sokka huffed and shook his head, knowing Shinya wouldn't see him while he was under the stands, no matter what gestures he did. He wasn't about to admit anything to Shinya, but it didn't seem that denying or confirming anything would help his case. His relationship with Azula was weird enough in anyone's eyes, and it wasn't unexpected for Shinya to reach the conclusions he had. They weren't the wrong conclusions, after all.
"Fucking hell, that's… what the hell is wrong with this world?" said Shinya, shaking his head "A slave falls for his royal master, and that's who comes save us. How the hell does anything boil down to that?"
"Would you rather not be saved at all?" Sokka asked, finally, as he continued to crawl under the stands, still touching the wall as he progressed. Shinya cringed.
"I didn't mean it like that, it's just… weird. I wouldn't expect to be helped by someone who's that close to the Fire Lord's daughter" he said "I can't really understand why anyone who's been through all this shit would ever come to love someone who's part of that wretched family… and you put up with the Amateur League for longer than I have, too. This is just… hard to digest"
"The Fire Nation looks a lot worse than it is when you're in its lowest levels, there's no denying that" Sokka said, frowning upon finding a pair of planks that stood out from the rest of the wall: their color was lighter, and they appeared to be sturdier than everything else "I mean, yes, Fire Lord Ozai is a bastard who deserves to pay for all the damage he's done to our world. But there's a lot of Fire Nation people who're no different from the rest of us who were minding our own business back in our own homelands, you know? People who have families, who live their lives without having a damn thing to do with the war"
"That's not your Princess, though, is it?" asked Shinya.
"She had very little to do with it for a long time. Like I've told other people, the worst act of war she ever did was done against me" said Sokka: he had stopped crawling under the stands, kneeling by the wall as he analyzed the two planks, bolted together harshly as they were.
The wood on the walls was humid, much more so than in Hui Yi. Hui Yi had felt like a deserted wasteland, whereas Fazhan was right next to a lake, in the middle of a forest. It would make sense that the humidity allowed mold to weaken the wooden structures, or perhaps termites… which could result in some of the wall wearing off over time. The two planks were new, and a likely temporary solution for what Sokka hoped was a large enough hole in the wall… He bit his lip and unsheathed his knife, carefully sliding it between the first plank and the wall. After applying enough pressure, the blade proved capable of separating the two layers of wood.
"Say, did you guys ever have termites?" Sokka asked "Or mold problems?"
"Uh… maybe? But it's not like we'd know" said Shinya, shrugging "We had squirrel rats sneaking into the Arena once. It was a mess, they startled the public and they stopped paying attention to the fight. I think the villagers gave Shizeng a pretty hard time after that, he was in a shitty mood for ages… but hey, what nasty thing did that Princess do to you, then? Other than turning you into her gladiator, for which you seem to be grateful for…"
"I am" said Sokka, biting his lip, still studying the planks. It was quite possible that the squirrel rats had snuck in through a hole… this hole. And after being scolded by his public, the handler would have invested in a rash, unhelpful solution: not too far from the new planks, the wall still appeared humid and fragile "Say, I think I may have found a way out… without needing fire, at least. Might just work for us"
"Really?" Shinya asked, his curiosity temporarily forgotten upon hearing those words.
Sokka crawled his way back out of the stands as quickly as possible: Shinya raised his eyebrows when Sokka was out in the open again, sitting with his legs outstretched. The Water Tribesman smiled proudly at the amateur gladiator for moments until he realized that there were cobwebs covering his head and shoulders now.
"Ugh, gross!" he grumbled, messing his hair as he rubbed it in a hasty rush.
"You're, uh… you're sure you can help us?" Shinya said, his voice no longer as alarmed or outraged as when he had last asked that same question: now he seemed utterly skeptical. Sokka huffed, and glared at him, dusting off his shoulders clumsily.
"Cobwebs may slow me down, but they won't stop me!" he declared, still frantically trying to rid himself of them, for they clung to the rest of his stolen armor too "Crap, but they sure are persistent… anyways, what's your problem? I'm not the dignified hero you thought I'd be, huh?"
"Well… no" Shinya admitted, with a small grin. Sokka huffed and pushed himself up to his feet.
"Not like I ever pretended to be dignified. You could ask Azula, she'd tell you plenty of stories about how embarrassing I am" said Sokka, now rubbing his arms and back in hopes to do away with the rest of the webs.
"She… likes you but thinks you're embarrassing?" Shinya asked. Sokka sighed and shook his head.
"Listen here, pal. You have enough to worry about as it is with getting out of this place safely" he said, clapping Shinya's shoulder "No point in wasting brainpower trying to understand my relationship with the Princess, okay?"
"I… guess so. Alright" said Shinya, sighing and nodding "Well, then… what did you find?"
"Planks, new ones" Sokka said "They can be dislodged with my knife, looks like, so… we'd all just have to crawl through that hole and run to the forest as fast as we can"
"Won't we leave tracks, though?" asked Shinya "Isn't it going to be easy for any competent soldier to follow our tracks to…?"
"To where a hot-air balloon will have already taken off, if I have my way, by the time they notice the tracks at all?" finished Sokka, breathing deeply "Yes, we'll leave a trail, yes, they'll eventually realize we got away. But the point is that they shouldn't be able to do anything about it by then. See?"
"I think so" said Shinya "But… wouldn't it be better if we could stage our deaths? Pretend we actually killed ourselves?"
"Or that I killed you guys?" said Sokka, with a weak grin "I'm supposed to be a firebender, remember? I thought that, once this place catches fire, they might assume I attacked you guys after you let your guard down or so and that I set everything on fire…"
"Then all the more reason we should have… well, corpses" said Shinya, biting his lip and glancing at the pile at the center of the sand pit. Sokka grimaced.
"You want us to… huh" said Sokka, gritting his teeth "They're probably starting to decompose by now, you know?"
"Yeah, well, I didn't say it wouldn't be gross" said Shinya, sighing and shrugging "But it's better than nothing, right?"
Sokka shrugged too but nodded. It wasn't a terrible idea, even if it wasn't a pleasant one. They probably would gain more time this way, at least until the soldiers realized there weren't enough corpses in the Arena to account for all its occupants…
"The escape route will also be well hidden from view" Sokka said, biting his lip "If they don't notice we slipped out as soon as it's happening, it'll take them a while to realize we escaped and to understand how we did it"
"With enough fire, the building might collapse and it'll be impossible to find the escape route anyhow" said Shinya "It's just a matter of, well… hoping the wood catches fire wildly enough, huh?"
"The wood over at the escape route is pretty humid" said Sokka, grimacing "Not all of it is, but that area may not burn easy. Anyhow… I guess this will be our plan"
"I guess" Shinya muttered "You really think this can work? I mean, so much could go wrong…"
"Yeah, well, we'll do our best to avoid bad outcomes" said Sokka, breathing deeply and jerking his head back to the rusted metal gates "Let's go see if they found enough oil"
Shinya followed Sokka into the barracks, shoulders squared. He wasn't sure it was wise of him to feel this way, especially after hearing that their rescuer might just have some sort of complicated relationship with the Fire Nation's Princess… but hope was starting to rise in his chest, in a place where there was no room for it before. It was just as encouraging as it was terrifying: he didn't want to find hope merely for it to slip out of his fingers when survival and freedom were finally within reach.
Fuuma and his group had found three canisters with oil, one of which was already half-spent. Sokka would have rather had more fuel than that, but it was better than having no accelerants: it would be enough to make the fire too wild to contain, at least until the oil was spent. Afterwards, Sokka instructed half the group to gather all flammable materials in the building, anything that might help boost the fire once it started, while him and the strongest members of the remaining group dragged the corpses into position, some in the barracks, some near the vestibule. Touching the bloody, decaying corpses was utterly disgusting, even if Sokka knew that using them was the best way to fake their deaths… but there were already worms lurking near the eyes and open wounds of each dead body. He had to steel himself not to feel too nauseous, and he tried his best to ignore the gruesome details about each body before dumping them on the hard wood floor.
"Okay… okay" he released a deep breath and turned to the rest of the group in the barracks, where they had reunited once their respective missions were done "Now, to start the fire… first, we have to scatter the flammable stuff everywhere. And then we'll make an oil trail, but we should especially leave it at the front of the building, alright? We want them as far away from the hole by the stands as can be so no one notices our escape until it's too late"
"Alright" said Fuuma, nodding as the group continued to follow Sokka's orders: old rags that once had been clothes, stale food, empty crates, all of it would be distributed through the building and doused in oil within moments "You said the Fire Lord's sent soldiers, right? Do you think they're here yet?"
"If they were, this place would be on fire already and we'd be wasting our time" Sokka said, but he frowned "Still… you pose a good question. We'll have to stay hidden in the forest until Zhao's forces arrive. Only after all his forces are in Fazhan will it be safe for us to run to the hill and… well, things can't be all that straightforward, can they?"
"At least we're planning things well enough so far" said Fuuma "Say, how did you get that uniform? That Princess of yours gave it to you?"
"Uh, no. I stole it from a soldier I tricked, knocked out and then left naked in the forest" Sokka admitted, with a dry grin. Fuuma's jaw dropped "I know, I know, it's very rude but how else was I supposed to get close to the Arena?"
"B-but he could wake up and come running here!" Fuuma exclaimed "If he does, they'll know you weren't really here to negotiate but to help us escape and…!"
"Well, hopefully I tied him up well enough that he won't be able to do that until later" Sokka said, swallowing hard "Anyways, no point in being down on ourselves when we're about to set an Amateur Arena on fire. I never really did dream of destroying one this way, but… it does have a poetic feel to it, doesn't it?"
"Heh, in a manner of speaking" said Fuuma, with a weak grin.
"Let's get to it, then. Savor the occasion, and we'll deal with the loose ends if the need arises, okay?" said Sokka, and Fuuma nodded approvingly.
By sunset they had coated the walls, floors and flammable materials with oil, scattering it carefully so that the fire would be strong enough to engulf most the building, except for the fighting area. Each trail of oil was linked, creating a web much like the ones Sokka had gotten entangled in earlier. The trail ended right at Sokka's feet, by the intersection of the vestibule's corridors. Sokka breathed deeply and glanced back through the passageway that led to the fighting pit: the group of rebel gladiators was near the stands, waiting to crawl underneath them towards their exit point.
"You guys are ready?" Sokka asked "As soon as the fire starts, stay low on the ground and inhale as little smoke as you can. And once there's enough of a fuss outside…"
"Shinya will take down the planks" said Geming, nodding. Shinya was already in position below the stands, with Sokka's knife in hand.
"Well then…" said Sokka, breathing as he raised the spark rocks "Time to light it up"
The spark caught easily, and within moments, the oil began to burn. It was almost beautiful to watch the fire consuming the trail of oil, consuming it to strengthen its power. It took a short time for it to spread powerfully, all the way until it reached the front door of the building and its walls. Once it seemed the fire would be strong enough for their purposes, Sokka rushed to the fighting area, crossed the filthy sand pit and leapt over the last wooden railing in a matter of seconds, joining the others as they waited for the right moment to start their escape.
"Okay, it's done" he announced. Geming nodded; near him, Yunru trembled with anticipation and fear "Wait just a bit longer, Shinya, and…"
Raised voices could be heard outside by now. Sokka swallowed hard and listened intently for the reaction of the townsfolk and the soldiers. He could barely hear anything other than the sounds of cracking wood and the screams of the terrified civilians who begged the officers to do something about the rapidly burning Arena. Sokka breathed deeply, hands balled into fists… the fire only grew stronger: if the soldiers had been trying to contain it, they were failing pitifully at it. Without another second to waste, Sokka shouted:
"Now, Shinya!"
The sound of the wooden planks coming loose barely reached Sokka, to his relief. It didn't seem likely that anyone would notice they were escaping if the fire was as terrifying and spectacular as it seemed to be… and that their getaway was quiet surely wouldn't hurt one bit either.
"Done! Let's go!" he heard Shinya exclaim.
Soon enough the rest of the group began slipping out of the hole through the wall. It wasn't too large a hole, and several of them had trouble getting out, except for the small Yunru who fit through it easily. Sokka, of course, had the most trouble.
"Shit" he growled, extending a hand through the hole to ask for his knife. Shinya placed it on his hand without a word, and Sokka quickly got to work sawing the moldy wood.
"No one's on this side of the building" said Shinya "You think we should…?"
"Run. To the forest, now" Sokka commanded him "Wait for me there, but go now, before anyone sees you"
"Right" said Shinya, nodding promptly. After that, Sokka was alone.
The sound of their footsteps was muffled by all the noise in the crumbling building: Sokka didn't hear any soldiers shouting after his new friends, and that reassured him right away. It seemed his plan was working after all. Azula would be proud… as long as he got out of the wretched, burning building, of course.
The fire was spreading faster than any disease Sokka had known. The roof had already caught flames, the beams were burning and breaking loudly. He guessed being under a lit fireplace had to feel like this: however nice flames might look from the outside, they were rather terrifying when they appeared to consume all the world around him. Whatever efforts those firebending soldiers were making to take down the flames were falling short, to be sure. On the most part, Sokka was relieved for it: fires too strong for a firebender to control them were, without a doubt, a sure-proof way to defeat them. He only hoped it wouldn't defeat him, too, for the wooden wall was starting to prove harder to break than he had anticipated it would be, and dying trapped inside this building definitely would be embarrassing, if anything…
"Come on, you damn… ugh" he said, shaking his head and giving up. Maybe he should merely force his way through that hole, even if it wasn't as big as he would have wanted it to be…
Sokka dug his hands into the ground and tossed some of the earth out of the way, hoping to make more room for himself that way. Once he had dug enough, he plunged in and squeezed through the hole with a lot of difficulty. No one had ever told him being well-fed and muscular could cause these sorts of problems… then again, who would have expected him to ever have to break his way out of a moldy wooden building as he was doing right now? It wasn't exactly something a person could prepare for…
Finally, with one last kick and push, he got through. The screams by the front of the building were more intense by now, but he ran as fast as he could towards the forest all the same. Figuring out the reason why people were yelling so much louder now was nowhere near as important as escaping…
He reached the first tree and slowed down only then, his heart racing. The others were huddled there, trembling in the dark: their careful preparations had taken all day, and it was already dusk by now. Sokka hadn't intended to spend so much time inside the Amateur Arena… but it was for the best. The darkness would conceal their escape so much better than broad daylight ever could.
Still, it wasn't all that dark, not with that building blazing wildly as it was. Sokka swallowed hard as he took in the raging, tall flames, destroying an Amateur Arena with reckless fierceness. The fighting area had caught fire too by now, although it burned slower there than everywhere else…
"This is the most beautiful damn thing I've seen in a very long time" said Shinya, next to Sokka.
The stout man was smiling with genuine pride at what they'd done. Sokka smiled a little too, guessing he'd be even more pleased by torching an Amateur Arena if it were Hui Yi's… but this was as good a start as any. Azula might be amused to hear he had taken a page out of her book and set fire to Amateur Arenas, just as she had burned down that former sponsor's house in Ember Island…
"Okay… it's done" Sokka said, nodding "So now we wait until… wait"
"Well, yeah, that's what we agreed to…" said Fuuma, but Sokka shook his head and pointed at the town…
"There weren't as many soldiers when I got here" he said, gritting his teeth "Zhao's already here. Shit"
"Uh, we should scram then. Fast" said Geming. Sokka nodded and jerked his head so they'd follow him.
"Come on. I know it's been an awful few days, months, years… but just one more push, you guys" he said, encouragingly "Once we reach my hot-air balloon things will be much better, I promise"
Shinya nodded, and ushered the rest of the group to stand up and follow the Princess's gladiator. Sokka kept an eye on the town as he began led the way through the trees, followed closely by Yukio, who eventually clasped Sokka's shoulder with his hand.
"Sorry…" he said "I thought it might be safer if we all hold onto each other, right? I mean, for now the fire's letting us see but…"
"Someone could get lost in the darkness later" Sokka agreed, nodding "Alright, pass on the word to the others. It's a good idea"
Once they were holding onto each other as Yukio had suggested, the long line of gladiators pressed through the foliage and towards the hill. Sokka guided himself by rounding the village until he reached the same trees from which he had first sighted the village: fortunately they bumped into no soldiers by the edge of the forest, whether uniformed or naked: it looked like everyone had rushed into the village at the sight of the Arena on fire. Pleased to find there would be less obstacles in their way than he had feared, Sokka guided the group towards the hill, hoping to find his bearings regardless of the increasing darkness.
The group was silent, tired and slower with every step they took into the moonlit forest. Sokka gritted his teeth, knowing they couldn't be forced to move any faster, but the urgency of the situation wasn't lost on him. If by any chance Zhao wasn't the only one Ozai had sent to deal with this, or if he'd divided his troops somehow, the reinforcements would come across the entire group of fugitives… and there was no way they'd get out of the resulting mess safely, especially if Zhao caught him involved in it.
Why was that man always causing Sokka so much trouble without even knowing it? He had tried to help Azula by setting her up in marriage with Rui Shi, and in the process given Azula and Sokka one of the worst scares of their lives. Now he was the one tasked with capturing the very people Sokka was trying to save… it was as though Zhao was fated to be his enemy in the least straightforward ways, constantly antagonizing him, yet never deliberately. No wonder Azula never knew what to make of the man…
Sokka's eagerness to reach the balloon only increased as the night progressed, whereas his companions grew slower with every passing moment. After an hour of walking, Sokka couldn't help but think that, at this rate, they'd definitely get caught.
"Guys…" Sokka finally said, stopping and turning to look at the gladiators. A couple of them even dropped on the ground when he halted, breathing heavily.
"Look, we know you're… you're a pretty buff dude, but we can't just…" said Geming, gritting his teeth "A bunch of us are wounded, remember? It's… it's not easy going all this way without breaks"
"I get that, but…" said Sokka, sighing as he analyzed the group "Okay, okay. Which one of you needs help the most?"
No one answered, and Sokka glared at them skeptically before walking towards the other two burned fighters. One of them had been breathing very heavily so far, the left half of his body exhibiting burns bad enough to rival Zuko's scar. Sokka looked at him intently.
"I can carry you" he said. The man huffed.
"N-no need for that" he said "I'm fine, I just need…"
"Help. And that's why I'm here" Sokka said, turning and offering him his back "Climb on already, we don't have time to waste. I'll try to carry you all the way to the hill, and then I'll carry you instead"
With that, he pointed at the other burned man. The two of them looked older than Sokka, one with round features, the other with boney, pointy ones instead. The thin one nodded in approval as the other climbed on Sokka's back. Even if the man's body's build was broad, Sokka lifted him with enough ease to startle the rest of the group. Without another second's hesitation, Sokka took to leading their progress onwards once again.
"Come on, then. Let's keep moving" he said "I promise you'll rest, and eat, once we reach the hot-air balloon"
"Eat?" repeated Yukio. Sokka nodded.
"W-what kind of food?" Yunru asked, biting his lip as he held onto Yukio, who now grabbed onto the man Sokka was carrying – though he was careful to avoid his many burns.
"I got as much as I could fit inside the balloon" Sokka said, smiling a little "I just hope no animals got to it, because…"
"As things stand, I'd even eat those animals…" growled the man Sokka was carrying. Sokka chuckled and nodded.
"Hopefully you won't have to" he said, breathing deeply and raising his eyes into the dark of the forest.
He should have been more apprehensive, he knew, of traveling at night amid trees, without knowing for sure where he was going. What little light the stars and moon were providing them with wasn't enough for Sokka to be sure they were on the right track. Nonetheless, he carried on forward, hoping the hill would be looming close enough… and guessing that, after Seethus' murder spree, it wasn't very likely for White Lotus agents to lurk anywhere in the Fire Nation mainland. If just because of that, he could hope they wouldn't show up now to avenge their comrades once more.
By the time the ground started to elevate, Sokka nearly collapsed in relief. He hadn't looked back, not even once, but that no soldiers hadn't followed them so far had to count as a victory. He set down the gladiator he'd been carrying and picked up the other one as promised before continuing to climb the hill, followed closely by the rest of the group.
Shinya, at the very end of the long line, glanced through the forest often, in fear anyone would come across them … including the naked soldier Sokka had left somewhere in the trees. If only he'd killed the guy… but his stomach clenched upon realizing he no longer had to think that way. No doubt it wasn't easy to move on from that mentality after over a year of committing constant murders… but he was free. Or at least, freer than he had been in a very long time. He nearly choked up at the thought, but he shook his head and carried onwards, knowing he couldn't lower his guard no matter what. As promising as this was so far, it wasn't over yet…
The hill wasn't too tall, but the climb was difficult for the weak and exhausted men following Sokka. By the time he reached the hot-air balloon he decided to set down the man he'd been carrying merely to head right back down to help the others. The thin man, called Bojing, was left to stare at the deflated hot-air balloon with utmost confusion… but he was relieved, nonetheless. Their crazy savior had kept true to his promises so far, and he had brought them right to whatever this thing was, away from Fazhan…
"See, Yunru? We're already here" Sokka was saying as he returned to the flat ground of the mountain where he'd left the hot-air balloon. He was carrying Yunru now, and Yukio had arrived along with him, after reassuring Sokka that he wouldn't need his help.
Little by little, the rest of the gladiators reached the hot-air balloon's hiding spot, and they all regarded it with utter confusion. Once Shinya arrived, Sokka opened the basket's small door and checked the crates he'd packed in it. With a happy sigh, he pulled out the first of them and opened it.
"Here we are. Your reward for enduring my crazy plans and coming as far as you have with me" Sokka said, smiling.
The food was cold, but the famished gladiators couldn't have cared less. In a matter of moments, they had split the rations of rice amongst themselves and they ate them as though the had never tasted anything quite as delicious ever before. No doubt Song's rice was good, but Sokka knew fully well that he had been just as relieved to eat anything other than the horrible gruel Huang Li always forced on his gladiators. Even if the rice had been subpar, it would have been the most welcome change anyhow.
Still, it wasn't the moment for Sokka to reflect on how nice it was for his new friends to have something good to eat. He had to figure out what to do about the balloon: would it need to be stronger? Could he build a larger basket if necessary? He could, perhaps, add a few wooden platforms to it, in case all thirteen of them didn't fit inside it… but he wasn't sure that would be the right solution for their predicament. The truth was that, as thin as these men were, it might still be too much weight for the hot air balloon…
"Okay… okay. I know we're not exactly safe…" said Fuuma, after finishing his ration of rice. He looked at Sokka with his only eye and a raised eyebrow "But I think this is where you ought to start, uh, you know… introducing yourself properly?"
"Uh… huh" said Sokka, blinking a few times "I didn't even tell you guys my name, did I?"
They all shook their heads, and Sokka chuckled before shaking his head and pulling out a new food crate.
"I'm Sokka. I'm from the Southern Water Tribe" he said, placing the crate on the ground and opening: it had an assortment of sweet buns, which he distributed amongst the group quickly "I was a warrior, and I tried to force the Fire Nation out of our Pole… they had built a military settlement there, and I wanted to make them leave"
"Anyone would want that" grumbled Yukio, scowling "Bastards they are, taking whatever they please…"
"I had a pretty stupid plan in mind to capture a lot of Fire Nation bigshots who'd show up for a meeting in the settlement" Sokka said, sighing "Turns out, well… amongst them was the woman who'd become my sponsor. And, well…"
"You fell for her at first sight" Shinya declared, and Sokka flinched.
"Hey! I did not!"
"Then… at second sight?" Shinya asked, earning himself and Sokka some very confused and disturbed stares.
"No!" Sokka exclaimed, glad the darkness of the night wouldn't let the others see his blush "That's not… no! The point is, she defeated me like I was nothing! But because I showed her proper respect, she… well, she decided I deserved to live, pretty much. At the time I sure resented her for it, because I was forced into slavery, but as I was badly wounded I hardly noticed what on earth happened to me between being caught by her and winding up at Hui Yi's Amateur Arena, so…"
"So, you weren't in the slave market for long?" asked Geming "That's lucky"
"Is it really?" asked Shinya, grimacing "Means he was killing people for longer than he would've been if he had been in that other hellhole for a bit longer"
"Yeah, well… I don't think I was there for long, no" Sokka said, frowning in confusion "Like I said, I can't remember much of how I got there. I guess her soldiers merely dropped me off at Hui Yi's slave market…"
"They just delivered you at their doorstep, just like that?" asked Yukio, raising his eyebrows.
"Well, yeah" said Sokka, shrugging "Why? Was it any different for you guys?"
"On the most part, no" said Fuuma "But most of us… well, we were handed over to the market by some strange folk. They look like soldiers, I guess, but…"
"They're a lot like the guards, you know? The firebending guards from the Arena" said Geming.
"I always thought they worked together" Shinya said "They have the same uniforms and all, as far as I can tell…"
"Heh. Might be" said Geming. Sokka frowned as he listened to their conversation.
"I guess now that you guys mention it… I never really did stop to think about why firebenders would lower themselves to serve as guards at Amateur Arenas" Sokka admitted "It feels like a job they'd think they're too good for, right?"
"I figured they'd be paid pretty well" shrugged Shinya.
"I'm not sure those crappy Arenas made much money" Sokka said "They're really not that lucrative a business. And if your handler was anything like mine, he'd blow his money on… well, stuff to make his gladiators more miserable, really"
"Yeah? Ours was too greedy for that" said Shinya "He always looked to be obsessed with money to me"
"So… you think a guy as greedy as that would pay decent wages to his, what, six firebending guards?" Sokka asked, remembering how many corpses there had been in the sand pit. Shinya shrugged.
"Truth be told… I doubt it" Shinya acknowledged.
Sokka frowned, his mind drifting as he glared at the rocky ground. For all his years at Azula's side, he'd told her to end slavery and asked her to act on it many times so far, even if he knew she lacked the power to achieve a considerable change just yet… But for the first time he was starting to ponder what forces were truly moving behind slavery. For all this time he had assumed Ozai was behind it, as he was behind everything dreadful in the Fire Nation… but suddenly it seemed things weren't as straightforward as he had thought.
It was true, the firebending guards in Hui Yi had worn some sort of uniform that didn't match most soldiers' uniforms. At the time, Sokka hadn't paid any attention to that fact… but hired muscle, wearing uniforms? Were they mercenaries of some sort? If so, why would the same kind of mercenaries guard the Amateur Arenas and the markets? Did they answer to the same leader, then? Who was that, though? According to Azula, Ozai didn't take much care to design laws for slavery, which was why she had created that massive project of hers… all he wanted was to punish those who didn't acknowledge him as their ruler. But there was a system of a sort. There was, or else the guards in Hui Yi wouldn't have worn the same outfits as the ones in Fazhan. As the ones in the markets…
If this was legal and approved by the Fire Lord, Azula would have known about this. She was one of the people Ozai trusted the most: perhaps their relationship was strained lately, but slavery had been happening officially for around a decade by now. Whatever system existed, it had been implemented for years, long before Azula and Ozai had their falling out over Seethus. Long enough that Azula should be aware of its existence and inner workings if it were something openly supported and backed by the Fire Lord.
But perhaps that was why Azula simply didn't know anything about that system… it wouldn't be all that surprising that this system, whatever it was, would be operating outside Fire Nation laws, nowhere near Azula's sphere of influence.
Ozai had to be connected to whoever was controlling this system, though. Sokka ran a hand through his hair as the thoughts rushed through his mind. No doubt Ozai had to understand what was going on, he was the Fire Lord, he was the one who allowed slavery to thrive as it had… he was the one who had rejected Azula's project, too. Perhaps he had something to gain through slavery other than stroking his own ego. Perhaps…
"Say, you didn't finish your explanations, Sokka" Fuuma said, startling him out of his daze: they had continued to eat and talk while he frowned, lost in thought "What happened after you ended up in the Amateur Arena, then? She had second thoughts and came back for you?"
"Must be she's the one who fell at first sight then" said Shinya again, earning himself skeptical and disbelieving glares from his comrades "What?"
"N-no, no, well… she came to Hui Yi two years later because she needed to get rid of a suitor" said Sokka. The confused stares compelled him to explain himself better, and he sighed "Okay, I'll explain some more in a bit, you guys, but we do need to figure out how we'll get out of here"
"Weren't you going to do it with this… balloon thing, whatever it is?" Shinya asked. Sokka nodded but sighed.
"Yeah, but it's tricky" he said "Ideally, we'd all go on one trip… but if it's not possible, we'll have to take more than one trip to get us all to safety. So…"
He pushed down the last three crates of food, to the delight of his new friends, but before they could dig in, Sokka gestured at the hot-air balloon.
"I'm going to fill it" he said "And once I do, you're all going to get on board, and we'll see if I can get us all out of here in a single haul. If not, then I guess we'll do two or three trips instead. I mean, you guys aren't exactly heavy, so hopefully two or three trips would be enough, even if we'll be cramped in there"
The rest seemed to agree wholeheartedly, and Sokka smiled before opening the crates so they could continue to eat. It was better for them to do away with the food provisions right away, for they would only make the balloon heavier.
As he was getting started with the engine, though, someone yanked his sleeve gently. Sokka glanced down to find Yunru offering him one of the sweet buns from the second crate.
"Won't you eat too?" he asked, with a small voice. Sokka smiled and shook his head.
"Believe me, I'd love to, but… you guys need it much more than I do right now" he said, patting the young boy's head "Don't worry about me. I'll eat when I go home"
"Where's home for you anyhow, Sokka?" asked Shinya "You told me earlier you don't exactly live with the Fire Lord, so… where do you live?"
"A small house near the outskirts of the Capital's crater" Sokka said, watching as the engine sparked to life "I've been living there ever since… well, since I finished my swordsmanship training"
"Woah, you're a swordsman?" Yunru asked, eyes gleaming with amazement. Sokka nodded.
"I learned from the Fire Nation's best sword master, or so I was told" Sokka said "It's not his skill I question, though, but his belonging to the Fire Nation. As far as I can tell, he doesn't care much for his nation and I can't say I blame him entirely, but…"
"There's Fire Nation people who don't like their nation?" asked Yukio "Hard to believe…"
"It's not a lot of them, admittedly" Sokka said "But they exist, yeah. It's only a problem if they become wild extremists, and join the White Lotus, and then try to kill a Water Tribe guy who owed their fancy organization no allegiance yet still saved their members from certain death…"
He stopped his bitter rambling when he noticed everyone else was staring at him in confusion. He smiled guiltily before shaking his head.
"Never mind. Long story" he said "At any rate, yeah, I'm a swordsman. I also make smoke bombs, and the Amateur Arena let me keep the weapons I was captured with at the South Pole: my boomerang, my knife and my club"
He gestured at the knife that now hung on his belt. They admired it, the foreign craftsmanship impressive in their eyes even though they couldn't see it easily in the dark of the night.
"Anyways, once Azula found me again we struck a deal" Sokka continued "She promised that, if I ever became the top gladiator of the Superior League, she'd let me return to the South Pole… so I've been working with her towards that end since then. I didn't really think I had good odds to fulfill her expectations at the start, but…"
"But you do now?" asked Geming, surprised "How does that Superior League work anyhow? All I know is… they don't fight to the death there, right?"
"No, there are time limits and judges" Sokka said "Knockouts can end fights too, so no one has to kill their opponent, but… some still do"
"Well, if you haven't had to kill people to survive every time it's already an improvement from the Amateur Arena" said Geming, sighing in relief.
"Yeah, it really is. So, there's five hundred fighters in the League" Sokka continued "There are earthbenders and firebenders there too, which adds a whole new spin on the matter for those of us who came out of Amateur Leagues"
"Benders? That sounds horrible" said Geming "Fighting benders must be so much worse than fighting non-benders…"
"Well, most the benders I've fought lately aren't that troublesome" Sokka grumbled "Whereas the last non-bender I fought damn near killed me with a crazy poison blend he made, so I'd suggest you don't underestimate non-benders anyhow…"
"Poison?" asked Yunru, eyes wide. Sokka nodded.
"His fighter name is the Mad Alchemist" Sokka said, shaking his head "He was a handful, but heh, I got him somehow. I… can't even remember fully how. But it was bad. Really bad"
"Sounds like things are worse in the Superior League, and better at the same time" said Fuuma "And the five hundred fighters are ranked, then?"
"That's right" Sokka said "As of the last time we could check the ranking, I was… the ninety seventh? Or something like that, I can't even remember…"
"Woah!" exclaimed Yukio, as the rest of the group gasped.
"You're serious? You're that high in a ranking of bigtime gladiators?" asked Shinya.
"Yeah, well, rising gets tougher the higher you go" Sokka said, with a shrug "As things stand, I still have several years before I can actually become the number one fighter, but… my sponsor struck a deal with her uncle, who sponsors a crazy earthbender, my biggest rival in the League: if I could prove I was the best non-bender in the ranking, and she could prove to be the best earthbender, we'd fight and then the winner would go after the actual top fighter in the League, to see if either of us is good enough to be considered number one, even if we don't have enough points to get there yet… it's complicated and messy, but it'd be a way to know for sure whether I'm good enough to be the top gladiator or not"
"Sounds weird" said Shinya, blinking blankly "Is that why you won't escape with us? You're, uh, bound by honor to help her prove you're the best non-bender or something?"
"Well, not really" said Sokka, checking the hot-air balloon now. It was nearly full by now, the dark fabrics hovering around the balloon in that eerie and confusing way the gladiators couldn't quite understand "The Mad Alchemist was the actual top non-bender, and as I defeated him, people now consider me the best non-bender. So it's just a matter of waiting for Toph to be done with her side of the…"
"Wait, what?! You're the best non-bender in the Superior League?!" exclaimed Shinya, eyes wide "Y-you mean, for real?!"
"Uh, so they say, but I admit I have trouble believing it myself" Sokka said, with a small smile "Alright, then! Let's test if we can fly together, shall we?"
The rest of the group seemed fascinated with Sokka, both with the stories he could tell and the ease with which he told them. There was no doubt in their minds that the crazy man who had come to their rescue was extraordinary in countless ways… but it seemed Sokka was too preoccupied with checking if the balloon could fly to think about how impressive he looked in their eyes.
"Uh… I'm not sure we all fit in there" Shinya said, lingering back as he stared at the already stuffed basket. Him, Yukio and Geming were still on solid ground "Let alone does it look like it'll fly anywhere"
Sokka sighed and nodded, knowing that forcing the engine would likely be pointless. He ushered them to get off one by one until there were only six men aboard. By then, the balloon started to rise, and he had to pull at the lid to make sure the balloon would stay on the ground again.
"Okay, then… six people at most for it to fly? Three trips, at least" Sokka sighed "Alright, then, as there's only thirteen of us… four people on each trip, except for the last one, where it'll be five. Now, then, where to…?"
Sokka stepped off the hot-air balloon, picked up one of the empty crates and turned it upside down. He spread his map of the Fire Nation across it, and the gladiators watched intently as he drafted traveling plans quickly. The group continued to eat Sokka's provisions until there wasn't a crumb left in the last crate: most the gladiators couldn't remember the last time they'd eaten until their stomachs were full, and their grateful smiles spoke for themselves.
"Alright, I think the best thing we can do is travel towards… the second volcano, in the northeast" Sokka said, glancing in that direction. He could see the silhouette of the first volcano even in the darkness, looming ahead of them "That way we'll pass by the Gates unnoticed. I'll drop off the first group near the shore, hopefully we'll find someplace free of villages or towns there. After that, I'll come back for the second group, then the third, and once we're all together, three more trips, this time into the Black Cliffs"
"The Black Cliffs?" Yunru asked. Sokka nodded.
"It's your best bet to survive unnoticed, I've already explained to Shinya" said Sokka, with a weak smile "Now, then… which ones amongst you guys are strong and capable of fighting, even now?"
"Uh… Yukio's always ready to fight" said Fuuma. As though to prove himself, Yukio gritted his teeth and snarled, a hand near the knife on his hip.
"Great. I just want there to be a ready fighter per group, at least. I know all of you have been fighting for a very long time, but in case anything happens, I don't want to leave any groups defenseless" he said "A few of you are in no condition to fight right now, so you'll have to separate in full-rounded teams before we take off"
"Sokka… if this pays off, we'll be safe?" Yunru asked, looking at him with uncertainty. Sokka gritted his teeth.
"I don't want to promise something I can't guarantee, Yunru" Sokka said "It's not easy to say for sure that you'll be okay, but… I hope your best bet is in that island. I know it's not too reassuring, but…"
"We can't drop our guard" Shinya said, sighing "But it seems we might get away after all. And that's more than most amateur gladiators can get"
"Yeah. Hopefully, the Princess and I will find a way to change that in the future" Sokka said "But, until then… not having to kill people for a living will, hopefully, be a good step-up for all of you"
The uncertainty of the trip they were about to undertake still daunted them, but the gladiators nodded all the same. Hope that hadn't glowed in their eyes for years was present now, brighter than the moon and stars above them, and Sokka's chest tightened at the sight of it. His smile was earnest as he jerked his head towards the hot-air balloon.
"Alright, then… are you guys ready to go?"
The group smiled too and nodded. They decided on their teams quickly, with Shinya, Yukio and a rugged-looking man called Zian Li, the one who had been proud to take credit for killing Shizeng, leading each group. By dawn, the hot-air balloon was already soaring in the heights of the sky, with excited and terrified amateur gladiators in its basket, and with Sokka expertly piloting his way towards the freedom he had promised for the men he meant to protect.
"We're so sorry, sir. We couldn't extinguish all that fire, we… we tried" the officer said, though he doubted his pleading would serve any purpose. As far as he could tell, Admiral Zhao was more than ready to strip his rank from him and threaten to have him demoted into slavery to make up for the gladiators who had died in the fire.
Zhao frowned heavily at the charred debris in the blackened land where the Amateur Arena had stood before. He had arrived to find the fire in full swing and commanded his men to work towards quenching it. Nevertheless, it had taken hours for the fire to die down, and by then there was nothing left within… nothing but charred wood and burnt corpses.
And yet something was off. He had instructed his men to gather the corpses and count the skulls: so far, the headcount was merely seven. The information Ozai had given him stated something entirely different.
"Twelve gladiators, six guards, and one handler…" he repeated to himself, rolling his eyes and turning towards his men.
Amongst them was a naked soldier, flustered and frustrated in his humiliation. They had found him in his small clothes in the forest, and upon waking up he had confessed to not knowing what had happened to him. He had chased a weird sound through the forest, it seemed, and that was the last thing he knew before Zhao's troops had found him.
Even without the precedent established by the White Lotus' attack all those years ago, it would have been obvious that someone had impersonated the guard, and it became clearer yet when the officer in charge had shared a sad story about some brave soldier who had entered the Amateur Arena and tried to negotiate with the renegades to no avail. If true, the story meant there had to be even one more corpse in the pile… there should have been twenty skulls. And instead, they had seven.
It wasn't that hard to tell which seven they belonged to.
"You do realize…" Zhao said, turning towards the officer "That these rebels escaped?"
"They… they what?" the officer said, breathlessly. Zhao sighed.
"They did indeed, right under your noses. Aided by whoever was hiding under that guard's uniform" he continued. The officer's was speechless at first, but he frowned in outrage soon enough.
"Oh, oh…! That wretched bastard!" he exclaimed "S-so you're saying the fire was a… a cover up? And then they escaped while we were fighting the flames?"
"Indeed" said Zhao, breathing deeply before shaking his head "All the same, it makes no matter. We'll track down the gladiators, and we'll deliver them to the Fire Lord, as requested. Twelve gladiators, yes. That's the right amount"
"Indeed, sir" said the officer, uncertain.
"Then that's what needs to be done" Zhao determined "My troops will find them, this problem is no longer yours to deal with. The Arena is gone, as are all its occupants, and as things stand, I doubt it'll be rebuilt. But it means less problems for you, at least until the Fire Lord demotes you for your incompetence"
"S-sir…!"
"But for now, I need you to find me a messenger hawk" said Zhao, his eyes narrow "And that's an order, officer"
The man trembled before he scrambled to do as the Admiral had asked. Zhao breathed deeply and shook his head, knowing Ozai would be beyond displeased… knowing someone, whoever it was, had gotten away with helping those escaped gladiators.
But as things stood, no one else needed to know that the rebels had gotten away. No, this officer and this entire town would believe Zhao would be successful at tracking them down.
And the Fire Lord would indeed execute the gladiators, just as he intended to.
Ozai summoned the General of the Guards on the next day, after his second full reading of the slavery reform project. Once more, the project lay safely locked inside a cabinet, but this time Ozai wasn't quite as dismissive of it as he had been before. It was a dangerous thing, born from a dangerous mind… the mind of a daughter he had raised into being his perfect heir, and who was slowly but surely turning into a bigger threat to his rule than anyone else could ever be.
But this wasn't about her, at least, not entirely. Ozai waited patiently until Shaofeng finally arrived: the Fire Lord ordered the guards by his study's door to take a walk. What he wanted to discuss with the General should not be overheard.
"I take it you have heard news of what took place in the village of Fazhan over the past few days" Ozai said, his cold glare bearing into the General's own.
"I did, my Lord" Shaofeng spoke, his tone threatening. Ozai wasn't daunted.
"I have sent Admiral Zhao to sort out this particular problem for me" he continued "I await confirmation that he has apprehended the criminals. But until I receive such confirmation… well, even after I do, my thoughts couldn't seem to stop drifting towards you. I suspect you understand already why that is the case"
"My Lord…" said Shaofeng, closing his eyes as he breathed deeply "It was but one mishap. One, after ten years. In ten years, this business has caused you no significant trouble. One slight is meaningless compared with ten years of peace…"
"Ten years of peace indeed" Ozai said, folding his arms over his chest "Because, from now on, I suppose I'll have to brace myself for the opposite"
"They're but slaves" Shaofeng growled "They're no threat to our nation, you know that as well as I do. Slaves… slaves are meaningless. Whatever uprisings they may stage…"
"Do not diminish your responsibility in the unfolding of these events, Shaofeng" Ozai growled "A proper soldier should know better than that"
"My responsibility?" Shaofeng repeated, scoffing "I'm just as responsible for this miserable revolt as I am for all the perfectly controlled and secluded crime towns that you were so relieved to entrust to me. One problem, like I said, isn't…"
"One problem is one too many" Ozai snapped "For, if you may recall, you swore to me that you would handle your business with such finesse that no one would ever notice you were the puppeteer stringing along the slavery system. That you would cause no trouble, that you would put all the resources I've allotted for you to good use. And now Fazhan is in chaos because you got distracted, I assume?"
"It was only a matter of chance, some slaves are more rebellious than others and in this case they were too rebellious" Shaofeng said "Not to mention, this is a perfect opportunity to remind your people that you will not tolerate treason of any sort. It's hardly a disadvantageous situation for you, my L-…"
"Don't patronize me" Ozai interrupted, raising his head as he continued to glare at Shaofeng with scorn "Not a year ago I was nearly at the center of a catastrophic crisis when I almost had a group of homeless fools executed, fools who were but pawns in someone else's game. Hadn't my daughter intervened when she did, I could have made a mistake I might have paid a hefty price for. Am I truly to believe you when you claim that you have perfect control over slavery when I keep finding weaknesses and flaws, both in the slavery system as well as our nation's and city's security, all of which are your responsibility?"
"What are you talking about?" said Shaofeng, scowling "I have perfect control of the trade, of the acquisition, of every stage of the process! You couldn't possibly…!"
"Your reports aren't as reliable as you believe they are, if that's so" Ozai said, pointing at some of the papers on his desk. Shaofeng snarled "You've offered numbers that don't add up. I didn't pay enough attention before, no doubt you knew I wasn't reading them as thoroughly as I was supposed to… but I did this time, Shaofeng. And upon contrasting the actual headcount reported by Fazhan's authorities, as opposed to the one you provided me with, it would seem there are discrepancies. Slaves, unaccounted for. Care to explain why, regardless of where I searched, I can't even find my daughter's gladiator in any of your lists?"
"He was… she dropped him off wherever she pleased" Shaofeng growled "It doesn't mean he wasn't accounted for, merely… I'll need to look through my books. I'm sure he's there somewhere"
"Yet he's not here" Ozai said, lifting the pages pertinent to Hui Yi's slave trade "And that's but one case out of countless, where the numbers in the slave markets don't seem to match the numbers you received through shipments. Why is that, Shaofeng?"
"My Lord…" growled Shaofeng, shaking his head "This is nowhere near as serious as you're trying to make it. What is it to you anyways? It's slaves, slavery has always been a matter you deferred to me and…!"
"And you handled it as you pleased, so long as you caused me no problems" Ozai said, with narrow eyes "Curiously, we're facing problems now. And it brought me to analyze your performance so far in your very coveted role of slave master to end all slave masters…"
"Don't joke around" Shaofeng grunted, and Ozai scoffed now.
"You dare give me orders, Shaofeng?" he asked. But the General's demeanor had changed… into that angry, unruly man he often was when someone else stepped on his toes.
"You know what I'm capable of" Shaofeng snapped "Or do you need a reminder of why you're even Fire Lord in the first place?"
"Mind your tongue, General" Ozai said, coldly, but Shaofeng seemed to have no interest in being moderate today.
"If I felt like it, you could lose everything" Shaofeng declared, slamming his hands down on the desk. A few papers were crumpled under his fingers, others slid off the mahogany table and to the marble floors "You know I have the power to do that. And you know fully well there's only one reason I haven't used it"
"Ah. That's how it is, then?" Ozai asked, before standing up. In his fury, he seemed to rise taller than Shaofeng, even "You'll reveal the truth to the whole world? You'll join forces with the Head Sage, and together you'll arrange a coup to overthrow me? And then what, Shaofeng? What do you think will happen to your fancy side business when my daughter takes over my duties?"
The color drained from Shaofeng's face slowly. Ozai's threatening glare easily overpowered his now: oh, so he hadn't thought of that, had he?
"You've spent years dangling this over my head like a fool, Shaofeng, pretending you have more power than you truly do" Ozai growled "If I gave the order, if I said the word, you would die in this very room, right now. What good would your precious blackmailing resource be by then, I wonder?"
"You're more than questionable enough on your own" hissed Shaofeng "If the General of your Guards died now, just when there's been a slave uprising… you think no one would notice? No one would put it together? Do you think they wouldn't expect you to answer for whatever crimes you think I'm responsible for?"
"Crimes? I'm Fire Lord" said Ozai, derisively. Shaofeng's scowl deepened "I answer to no one"
"Well, I…"
"You, Shaofeng, swore an oath as an Imperial Guard. And as a Royal Guard, before that" said Ozai "And by that oath you will abide, unless you decide you'd rather face the full brunt of my wrath instead of retaining your very comfortable position as General of my Guards…"
"And what of the slaves?" Shaofeng asked, huffing "I'll be allowed to stay your General, you say? Even after this petty failure that you seem to view as something as catastrophic as the Dragon of the West's failed siege?"
"You are, indeed, the one man with control and power over most the slavery system" Ozai said, curtly "But you won't be the only one with such control anymore, Shaofeng. The Fire Nation will change, yet again… and you will either be part of that change, or you will be discarded. There's no middle ground left when it comes to this"
"What is that supposed to mean…?" Shaofeng asked, eyes wide "You're not saying…"
"I'm saying you'll continue to do your business… but with limitations" Ozai said, determinedly "I won't risk new uprisings and revolts. There are promising possibilities ahead for slavery, and I believe this may be the right moment to explore them"
"What are you…? No! You're…! You can't give this to anyone else! You can't set limitations to it, this underworld is…! It simply doesn't work that way!"
"Lawlessness is needed for a healthy nation, you said that to me once" Ozai said, smirking "Healthy indeed, is it not? Homeless people roaming my city, slaves rebelling, the White Lotus doing as it pleases right under our noses, through spies we can't identify yet… even in terms of being General of the Guards you've left more than enough to be desired, but when it comes to your secondary business, you've done even worse"
"What did you expect of me?" Shaofeng huffed, looking at Ozai in disbelief "You wanted me to find these homeless people and turn them into slaves as well, perhaps?! To figure out who the White Lotus spy was just so I could do the same thing to him? Is that it?!"
"Oh, at this point…" said Ozai, sighing and shaking his head "At this point, Shaofeng, I'll just be content to find someone more capable than you to handle this problem. I've been too lenient with someone who offered nothing but mediocrity. To think I've allowed you to profit off this system as freely as you pleased… and this is how you thank me. By shrugging off your responsibility and pretending you've done me a favor when we both know it's the other way around…"
"And yet you didn't think so lowly of me when your old man dropped dead" Shaofeng hissed "Wasn't I your reliable soldier all along, your ally even in the harshest times? Are you sure you'd rather make me your enemy instead?"
The Fire Lord's eyes narrowed again, dangerously so. Oh, he longed to give the order. To put an end to this conversation in the most final way of all… but it was true, it wasn't convenient. As bad a job as he had done in recent times, Shaofeng was still effectively in power of the slavery system, even if it felt like the majority of it was well out of the fool's control altogether.
But once it was safely in someone else's control… ah, by then it would be safe to get rid of him. Ozai had endured the General's blackmailing attempts for much longer than anyone with common sense should have put up with… and that would end as soon as possible, as soon as this bastard was no longer as essential as he had spent years pretending he was. Truthfully, Ozai had trusted him once, but with every passing day, Shaofeng was more of a liability… a problem to be rid of. At this point, Ozai had next to no compunctions about doing exactly that.
"I'll retain control of the slavery system" Shaofeng declared "You can't teach new tricks to old pets, Ozai. It's been ten years, over ten years by now… and the slavery system has worked smoothly enough for all this time. You can't expect to hold it down with whatever solution you have in mind…!"
"And what if I succeed?" asked Ozai, with a small smirk "You say it won't work, that the underworld will continue to thrive as freely as it pleases… It seems you should do just that, then. Your surplus, the revenues you're not accounting for… all that which you keep hiding from me can continue to be yours. But if the person in charge of the new system finds out about you and your dealings, Shaofeng…"
"You're threatening me again?" Shaofeng growled, but Ozai continued speaking regardless.
"You will face consequences. And try as though you might, Shaofeng… you won't drag me into this with you. Not this time" said Ozai, his glare bearing into Shaofeng's desperate eyes now.
"You merely asked me here to inform me of your decision…" Shaofeng said, his clenched fists trembling "To make a fool out of me for sport. One mistake, and this is what I get? An ultimatum, after all this time?"
"I've chosen to allow you to retain your rank, General" Ozai said, raising his eyebrows "Isn't that leniency enough for you? Here I thought I was being far too generous…"
Shaofeng shook his head and stepped towards the door, turning his back on the Fire Lord. One more second in the same room as him, and he would lose all his self-restraint for sure.
Once, they had been allies. Once, Shaofeng had been one of Ozai's steadfast supporters, standing by him with determination, with a promising career ahead of him… until Azulon had taken him into his service. Ozai had hoped, truly, that the years serving his father would only make the former Captain of his Royal Guards more appreciative and supportive of him…
It had been a foolish, childish assumption. There had been no point in trusting him. Trust truly was for fools, and he had learned it the hard way that fateful night where he had obtained everything he wanted, at a much greater cost than he had been ready to pay.
He closed his eyes as Shaofeng slammed the door behind himself. The General would no doubt seethe about this for a while, and he would go right back to his corrupt dealings, be them whatever they were… Ozai frankly couldn't understand it. Why would Shaofeng conceal information about the slavery system from the Fire Lord who had enabled it in the first place? It was ridiculous, and yet it was suspicious, extremely so. Whatever dark dealings he had, they had to be considerably murky if he thought Ozai wouldn't approve of them.
But that was, truly, none of the Fire Lord's business. Not anymore, at the very least. It would be up to someone else to uncover Shaofeng's secrets.
A shape flowed into corporeality near a wall, well out of view from anyone who might glance through the study's windows right now. Ozai's eyes shifted towards Seethus, who bowed his head gently towards his master.
"I thought he might attack you, my Lord" said Seethus. Ozai scoffed.
"I suppose you did" he said "Shaofeng is a fool, and yet I suppose even he wouldn't go quite as far as that…"
"Were you certain he would hold back? If so, why did you ask me to be present for this conversation?" Seethus asked "You had never requested that of me before…"
"Because I've yanked his vanity project out of his hands and I'll be entrusting it to someone else. No doubt, he could have responded in unforeseen ways… but he's a coward in the end. An incompetent coward" Ozai finished, shaking his head and glancing at Seethus "Either way, I want you to keep an eye on him. If he displays any signs of treason, feel free to…"
A knock on Ozai's door compelled Seethus to fade into nothingness once more. Ozai frowned and walked to the door, wondering if Shaofeng had returned. If so, he would have to hope he hadn't overheard him speaking with Seethus.
But on the other side of the door stood an ordinary servant… bearing a not-so-ordinary message in his hands. A scroll with a black ribbon, indicating the message was urgent. Ozai didn't even bother exchanging pleasantries with the man before taking the paper and slamming the door again.
Upon reading the content of the letter, Ozai was outraged… and then confused. Afterwards, he was irritated, disappointed… but soon enough, as he reached the end of Zhao's suggested solution, he found his old friend had the right idea. Oh, of course he did.
"My Lord?" Seethus asked, just as Ozai's lips were drawn into a dangerous smirk.
"Your main services won't be required for the time being, I hope, but remain near the General all the same, Seethus" Ozai declared.
"As you wish" said Seethus, bowing his head.
Ozai closed the scroll again before breathing deeply, revitalized even after the long-winded and irksome argument he'd held with Shaofeng barely moments ago.
Calling for a public execution certainly was a grand way to boost his spirits.
A/N:
I hope you guys have been enjoying the stakes and tension so far. We're still two chapters away from finishing the Slave Riot arc, so hang on tight and look forward to what's coming next! If you're interested in early glimpses at upcoming chapters, I hope you can consider making even a $1 pledge at my P / A / T / R / E / O / N, you'll gain access to snippets and some exclusive art with just that.
I've made this note to announce that I'll be bumping up the update rate starting with the next chapter, as I've promised some readers: I'll be updating every two weeks instead of three! All be it to celebrate the seventh birthday of this ridiculously huge story (it's about two weeks away!). I know it's been a really long journey, but the best is around the corner (I know you may not think much of that, but truly, the remaining arcs of Part 2 are all amongst my absolute favorite arcs in the entire story).
Anyways, hope you enjoyed the chapter and that you continue to enjoy the story! See you in two weeks!