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( - )

(Last Time)

The pair of newcomers glanced at each other again, and then the man nodded with a sigh. They both took seats at the bar.

"Percy," the man nodded, offering his name.

It was an unusual one too.

"Suki," the girl added.

That one wasn't as unusual.

"Two beers," she said, glancing at the grumpy barkeep, who grunted and did as requested.

Taking a sip of her drink, June smirked as she gestured for them to tell their tale.

She was hopeful that it was a good one.

( - )

Chapter 22

( - )

(With Aang)

The great, fabled city of Omashu had fallen.

Closing his eyes Aang took a deep breath to centre himself.

The rumour of the city's fall was on the lips of every trader and merchant.

Looking forlornly up at the smoking remains of the recently sated volcano, Aang couldn't feel any joy or satisfaction at a job well done. They'd managed to save the villagers from their own foolishness, and reliance on prophecy. They had protected the village itself from the volcano's fury. Safeguarding its ancient infrastructure from the lava that had very nearly consumed it. Yet, despite their achievements, he just felt hollow.

The news that had come from the south had swiftly soured any feeling of victory.

Omashu had fallen to the Fire Nation. But not through violence. Not in the end. Instead, the rumours all made out that Bumi had surrendered the city. That his old friend had forsaken his honour, betrayed his people and the sacrifices of his soldiers, and sold the city out to the Fire Nation. All to save his own skin, and to secure his position in the new regime.

It left a bitter taste in his mouth.

He didn't want to believe it.

No, he refused to believe it.

That was not the Bumi he knew.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

He could taste the bitter tang of sulphur and ash in the air.

He was lying to himself, and he knew it.

Despite his self-professed faith in his old friend, he still had his doubts.

The Bumi he had known had been a child. Peculiar and half mad, but still young, innocent and naïve. A hundred years had passed since then, and unlike him, Bumi had grown up. Only he'd grown up during a time of constant warfare and tension. He fought and clawed his way up from being the son of a simple cabbage merchant to being a powerful Earthbender and the Provincial King of Omashu. He had achieved a lot in his life. But not just through rigorous training and fighting, but also through political manoeuvring and manipulation.

Looking up at the still-smoking volcano and the now solidified wave of lava that had once threatened to bury the village, he shook his head.

The Bumi he knew didn't exist. Not anymore.

He might be young, and probably naïve – he had learnt that much through bitter experience. But even he knew that people changed over time. War for better or worse affected everyone.

"Aang," Katara's soft voice broke him from his thoughts.

"Katara," he whispered, his voice strained even to his own ears.

Turning around, he felt his heart clench and his eyes begin to water.

Katara's blue eyes met his own. He could see the compassion swimming within them, even as she stepped forward and pulled him into a hug.

Unprompted, he buried his face into her shoulder.

"I'm not crying," he whispered, "it's just the smoke getting in my eyes."

"It does tend to do that," Katara said softly, her arms enveloping him.

Looking up he could see the villagers in the distance already returning to their village. Their faces were wrapped up in shawls or whatever cloth they could find as they waded through the ash with buckets of water.

Although they'd managed to protect the village from the worst of the volcano's rage, some embers and burning ash had gotten through, and already he could see some of the roofs of buildings starting to smoulder. It would take them time to recover. But the people would live, and slowly but surely things would return to normal as they rebuilt their lives.

"At least we saved this village," he whispered.

The fortune-teller had claimed the volcano wouldn't erupt, she had lulled the villagers into a false sense of security with her platitudes and lies. Had it not been for Sokka's scepticism and both Katara and his own growing sense of cynicism, then they probably would have moved on after resupplying.

"They'll be fine," Katara said, "What was once broken can be fixed. Even if the merchants are right and Omashu has fallen, that doesn't mean that it won't rise again. The people are alive. Maybe that's why Bumi surrendered in the end. Not to save himself, but to protect his people."

He closed his eyes.

The thought was nice, but he wasn't filled with confidence.

The actions of Zuko on Kyoshi, and the lengths the besieging forces had gone to at Omashu had already shown just how callous and brutal the Fire Nation could be. Zuko had attempted to burn Kyoshi to the ground and murder all its residents just to get at him. At Omashu, they'd set the surrounding forests on fire, poisoned the water supply, and then attempted to flood the city. Before that, the Fire Nation had attacked the Air Nomad temples unprovoked and slaughtered them to the last man, woman and child. And as Katara had told him, they'd spent decades savaging and pillaging the Southern Water Tribes.

He didn't hold out much hope for the innocent citizens of Omashu.

"We need to go," he whispered. The sooner they got to the Northern Water Tribe, the sooner he could master waterbending. They didn't have time to waste. This war had been going on for a hundred years. A hundred years of atrocities and hardship, and all because he had run away from his responsibilities.

No more.

Exhaling and steeling himself, he broke the hug and turned away.

Rubbing furiously at his eyes he scowled up at the volcano.

"Aang," Katara said.

"It's fine Katara, I'm fine," he said, his hands clenching into fists. "Let's go get Sokka. It's time we were moving on."

Hardening his heart, he turned back to the village and headed for where they'd stabled Appa.

Had he taken a moment to look back at Katara, he would have seen the sadness on her face as she watched him go.

( - )

(With Azula)

She could hear the people singing the Fire Nation's national anthem as she strode through the crowded and stinking streets of Omashu – the remaining citizens and Fire Nation soldiers lined the street on both sides. The soldiers looked weary and weathered. The Fire Nation's newest citizens were completely despondent.

Continuing forward as the music swelled around her, she almost missed a step as casually listened in to the ongoing dirge. Normally she could practically taste the reverence and passion as her countrymen enthusiastically sang their anthem. It always made her heart swell with pride at being a part of the greatest nation the world had ever seen or ever would see.

Yet, as she walked up the cracked and dirtied steps to Omahsu's formerly grand palace she could hear the anger in the voices of those singing.

It was the music of a people who were clearly not happy, and it wasn't just the citizens either….

With every step she took, she could feel the beating of the nearby drums, it echoed the sudden beating of her heart as continued up the steps.

They'd captured the city. Her forces had been badly hurt during the siege; thousands had died on both sides. Yet despite their significant losses they'd still taken the city and rather bloodlessly in the end too as King Bumi had up and surrendered the city after only a few hours of bombardment.

It seemed that what little fight the city had once had, it had been expended in their brave but ultimately futile counterattack. The city's Earthbender corps had been all but decimated and their non-bender forces were crippled.

By the time Bumi had surrendered and her own beleaguered forces had secured the city, the true cost of their defiance had become clear. The city was in the grips of rampant disease and hunger. Much of its infrastructure had been damaged if not completely destroyed by her force's bombardment. But more than that, the thousands of refugees and citizens that had once flooded its streets were absent.

Before her final offensive and during the lull that had occurred following the vicious battle in the forest the king had expelled the refugees and large swathes of the city's populace. They'd all been packed onto carts, alongside the ill and injured, and sent off into the wilds. Those that remained, although seemingly great in number, would not be enough to bring the city to rights.

It left a bitter taste in her mouth.

All that effort and bloodshed, and it turned out that the mighty city she thought she was capturing wasn't the logistical asset and stronghold she had believed it to be, but instead a broken shell of its former self – a ghost city barely clinging to life and propped up by the skeletal remains of its population. It was now just another heavy burden that the Fire Nation would have to bear while they brought some semblance of order and utility back to the city.

The fields and surrounding forests that her forces had so eagerly burned during their siege were no longer able to produce the food the city needed to sustain it. The water sources that had once flowed into the city were fouled and poisoned. Meaning that new sources needed to be found while her pet waterbenders did what they could to fix and cleanse the existing supply.

The people who had once run the logistics and bureaucracy across the region were all dead or had fled leaving a skeleton staff behind, enough to maybe keep the city limping along, but not enough to secure the region.

Worst of all the people of Omashu and worse yet her soldiers seemed to have realised the poisoned chalice that they had fought and died to obtain.

Hastening her steps, she felt a knot forming in her stomach as she quickly joined Mai and Ty Lee at the top of the steps.

Ty Lee looked tired. Her usual cheerfulness was completely absent. It was as if the misery of the city had somehow drained away her once never-ending optimism leaving nothing but brittle bitterness in its wake. Despite how annoying she sometimes found her old friend, seeing the poorly hidden despondence in her eyes as she looked out over the shattered city actually hurt her. More so than she had ever believed it would.

Mai likewise seemed gloomier than usual. In the run-up to the fight, she'd been angry and vengeful. It wasn't healthy, but it was the most passionate she'd ever seen her friend, and just like they'd learned at the academy, Mai had channelled her passion into her fighting. During the battle, she'd taken her first life and had practically relished in it, even as she hunted down the bastard that had murdered Zuko.

Yet now the battle was over, she appeared… diminished. Her skin was chalky white. Her eyes had dark bags under them. She was also thinner and looked frailer. Her heart clenched at the sight of her friend.

Wetting her lips, she looked out over Omashu and let out a soft sigh.

This was not the moment of triumph she had thought it would be.

What was the point in being a victorious conqueror when what you ended up ruling over was little more than ash and despair?

"Come," she said softly, her voice lacking its usual fire. "Further reinforcements are on the way and with them a new governor who will oversee the rebuilding of the city. Until they arrive, we will do what we can to secure the city and maintain its stability."

"What of the Avatar?" Ty Lee asked, turning to look at her as she led the way into the palace.

The palace's entrance hall was gigantic bordering on cavernous, it was also completely empty.

Listening to the echoes of their footsteps for a moment, she looked back at Ty Lee. "It'll have to wait."

Admitting that hurt more than she thought it would. But it had to be said. Already she'd had the city and its populace searched. Only to find no sign of the errant Avatar – Percy according to the few who had met him. Instead, after a thorough search and a few rounds of interrogation they had found that he had not only survived his injuries from the battle but had been one of those forced out of the city.

He was in the wind and could have gone anywhere in the intervening weeks.

For the moment, the trail had gone cold.

It was galling, rage-inducing, and definitely embarrassing.

But it was also the truth of the matter.

She'd lost his trail for the moment and until she got a clue about where he was, she had no other choice but to wait.

"For now, we will secure the city. We will forge Omashu into the Fire Nation's strategic and logistical base for the area. Once further reinforcements arrive, we will secure our grip on the region, and from there expand." She said raising her voice, "This was a victory, no matter what anyone else says or thinks. This was a victory. We have captured the great city of Omashu and claimed it in the name of Fire Nation. We have seized this citadel and will use it as a beachhead for the invasion of the western Earth Kingdom. Our victory here brings us several steps closer to ending the war and establishing peace across the world!"

At her side she could see Mai and Ty Lee sharing a look, even as her proclamation reverberated through the palace, echoing a similar speech she had made to the citizens of Omashu and her soldiers not long after they had first taken the city.

"Your father will be pleased," Mai said after a moment.

"Y-Yeah, the history books will like totally remember this as a turning point in the war," Ty Lee added.

She knew they were putting a positive spin on things, and in their own ways, they were trying to massage her bruised ego. Just as she knew that her words were meant to assuage her own worries, just as much as they were meant to repair the morale of her soldiers.

Capturing Omashu would be a great victory… in the long term, once enough resources and time had been funnelled into rebuilding the city and its infrastructure and establishing it as the centre of operations she'd originally envisioned.

But in the short term, it was a disaster. Thousands of soldiers and over a hundred veteran firebenders lay dead. Siege engines had been destroyed, and the supply lines were stretched thin. The invasion force which had reinforced her had been all but blunted and would be barely enough to keep hold of the territory they had already captured let alone expand outward.

Even the additional reinforcements that were being sent in response to her missive detailing her capture of the city would be little more than a temporary fix on what would end up being a long-term wound. The momentum she'd been hoping to build had stalled, vast amounts of resources had been lost, and now they would have to divert even more manpower and resources just to bring the ruined city back to some semblance of functionality.

She wet her lips; her father was echoing her proclamation of victory. But that was only outwardly. She knew how the court politics worked. On the surface, he would laud this as a great victory. Behind closed doors however he would be furious, and that fury would not diminish with time or distance, instead it would only fester.

Exhaling loudly, she pushed on through the empty throne room. She needed to salvage the situation. She needed some quick and easy victories that she could use to redeem herself in the eyes of her father and his generals. And with both prospective Avatars missing – Percy and the as-yet-unnamed airbender she'd heard rumour of – and the invasion force temporarily stuck in Omashu, she needed to find something else that she could latch on to.

Her eyes narrowed as her mind shifted to a recent message the commander of the fleet based in Quinlan had received and passed on to her from the newly appointed Admiral Zhao. The ambitious lickspittle was trying to requisition as many ships and marines as he could, all for some new campaign known only to the Fire Lord and his war council.

Maybe there would be opportunities for fresh glory? It was possible, and given time, and with new victories to her name, the situation in Omashu could be rectified, and what was currently an embarrassment could instead be rebranded as a great success.

Yes, redemption and fresh laurels of victory were still possible.

But first, she needed to consolidate her position in Omashu and embed her influence and her version of events in the collective conscience before the dark pall that had currently settled over the city fomented into something worse than angry muttering and dark glances.

Maybe she should make an example of their former king? It would certainly be a bold statement, and it could help with pacifying the populace and bringing her soldiers back in line. Everyone loved a good public execution, she certainly had as a young girl.

( - )

(With Percy)

Their newest and somewhat unwelcome travelling companion was… certainly a character.

June was what she called herself. But whether that was her actual name though… honestly, he had no clue. The slightly older woman was difficult to read at the best of times. Her moods alternated between flirty, sneery, snarky and sarcastic, and seemingly switched at random.

Capricious was a fancy way of describing her.

An edgy, flaky, gothic pain in the ass was a slightly cruder but just as accurate description, or at least in his mind it was.

Unfortunately, after their initial chat. Which had basically been a brief summation of all the shit they had gone through post-Kyoshi, with several details redacted – essentially all things Avatar and dead Fire Nation Prince related. The price for the tale had been a few drinks and a hot meal of questionable quality.

He had thought their interaction would be entirely transactional. They keep her entertained for a bit, and she buys them a round. Something simple without any strings attached. And so it had seemed when he and Suki turned in for a mildly uncomfortable night sleeping in the stables. Only for it to then turn out that it wasn't a one-time thing.

Just why the black-clad mercenary with a suspicious interest in tight leather 'armour' and whips had decided to latch onto them when they left the dreary and overcrowded logging town he didn't know. Either way, as they had headed further north – they were acting as a last-minute addition to the guard detail for a small convoy of trade caravans that were headed for the northern coastline – she had elected to accompany them. She and her weird part-anteater, part-mole, part-eldritch abomination-thing, Nyla.

Every time either he or Suki had attempted to question her on just why she'd latched on to them she had either deflected, laughed the query off, or shot back with a flirty remark that made Suki flush and him feel awkward.

Either way, it appeared that they had a new travelling companion whether they liked it or not.

Not that she was entirely intolerable. She pulled her weight when needed, and despite the pithy remarks was easy enough to talk to even if they had both decided to keep some details to themselves. After all, June had described herself as a mercenary and certainly acted the part as she tried to sting their employers for every coin she could, even as she skated by doing as little work as humanly possible. But at the same time, something about her had him on edge.

"You never did tell me where you came from."

Flinching slightly as June's sultry voice cut into his thoughts, Percy mentally shook his head and looked around at the dark-haired woman.

Currently, she was lolling about on the back of Nyla, her arms behind her head and her legs kicked back in relaxation as she rested them on the back of her saddle.

He meanwhile was walking, or rather trudging, along the muddy road helping to lead one of the oxen-bull-hybrid animals that pulled the caravans. They'd been on the road for a while now and had been making good progress. Or at least they had been until the storm hit the night before, turning the previously hard-packed ground into a muddy slurry, even as it agitated the swarms of bitey insects that had previously been hiding in the undergrowth.

Suffice it to say, it had stalled their progress somewhat.

Initially, he had used his powers to dry out the mud, but that only ended up making the ride very bumpy for the wagons – the dried mud was not flat but instead looked like an earthen sea on a rough day – which in turn ended up further delaying them after one on wagon's axels broke. Turns out suspension wasn't a thing in this world.

Sighing as he heard the question and knowing from experience that she would continue prodding him until she got an answer or a reaction, he glanced over at June.

Unlike everyone else in the convoy, she never offered to help out. Not unless there was some kind of monetary incentive. Instead, she tended to just watch, and throw out the occasional pithy comment or gossip. That, and when she was bored, she'd mither Suki or him until she got a reaction or some conversation from them.

It was annoying, but for the sake of a peaceful journey, it was something he tolerated.

Plus, every now and then she did turn out to be good company.

"Percyyyyy, did you hear meeeee," June sang, a languid smirk spreading across her face.

"I did yes," he replied after a moment. She wouldn't shut up otherwise.

"Then where are you from?" She asked.

"Around," he replied.

"Around where? Are we talking about the Earth Kingdom or the Water Tribe? Come on, narrow it down a little. You have the look of an Earth Kingdom yokel – green eyes, tanned skin, big broad build…. But you wield water like a Water Tribe savage, and the way you speak… it's difficult to place. You're a bit of an annoying contradiction, you know." June pressed on, her eyes roving up and down his form. "Are you an islander? From the same archipelago as Kyoshi? Might explain why you met up with the fangirl."

Percy held back a smile at the fangirl comment – Suki had pretty much instantly regretted mentioning in passing to June – while discussing fighting styles – that Kyoshi Warriors traditionally learned how to wield ceremonial bladed fans.

"I could see that. There are quite a few islands out there, some more isolated than others. It would definitely explain your weird accent. Probably the waterbending too, if your dad was a merchant or something from the Water Tribes." June pressed on. "Or are you one of those weird inbred waterbenders that lurk about in the Great Swamp? Never met any of them before. But you hear a lot on the road, and a few folks I know headed that way and came across them. Did you know they wear loincloths and shag their cousins? Usually, I'd be a bit like eww, gross. But I don't know, I reckon you could pull a loincloth off…."

He gave her a flat look.

"No," he said.

"Is that no to the islander, no to the swamp person, or no to the loincloth?" June grinned.

"I was born on an island," he said after a moment – he was born on Staten Island.

"Oh finally a bit of backstory," June grinned. "How about your dad, where was he from?"

"He was a mariner," Percy replied.

"A mariner?" June asked curiously, her head tilting to one side. "A colloquialism I assume, and something to with the sea?"

He nodded curtly.

"Interesting, though you're still being cagey on the details," June smirked. "I wonder why."

"Because I barely know you, "Percy said bluntly. "And you also annoy me."

"Ah, now if that was true, you'd just ignore me," June laughed.

"If it were that easy I would," Percy muttered.

June grinned but didn't reply. "So, your mother. Am I right in thinking she is from the Earth Kingdom?"

"Nope," Percy replied, popping the 'P'.

"No eh, so where was she from?" June pushed.

"The same place as me, though her parents, my grandparents were from much further away," Percy replied, deliberately teasing the details, but not giving her much to work with – his mother's parents were Dutch and emigrated over while his gran was pregnant.

"Well, isn't that mysterious," June hummed. "So, I'm going to guess that your mother was an islander, but her parents were Water Tribe, hence where you get your waterbending from. Your father meanwhile, was from the Earth Kingdom but worked as a merchant of some sort and met your mother while doing merchant stuff. Well, am I right?"

"Completely wrong," Percy replied with a sideways glance.

June's smile slipped, and a slight frown ghosted across her face.

"But more's the point whereabouts are you from?" Percy continued, locking eyes with her. "You love asking questions. But you also like to play at being a mysterious mercenary. So maybe it's your turn to answer a few?"

"Oh, someone is getting feisty, has Suki not done a good enough job at taming you?" June laughed, skirting around his question.

At the mention of Suki, Percy looked up ahead and smiled as he caught her eye.

As their eyes met, she cocked an eyebrow and glanced at June.

In response, he rolled his eyes.

This in turn provoked a smirk and her sticking her tongue out at him.

Grinning he shook his head.

"Oi, enough with the silent communication, it's not as cute as you think it is," June cut in sourly.

"Hm, what, sorry did you say something?" He asked, deliberately feigning surprise.

Rolling her eyes, June shook her head. "Really, you really want to sink down to that level?"

"Eh, why not," he shrugged. "Not much else to do."

"Hmm," June hummed. "So, what is it you two lovebirds are planning on doing when we reach the coast?"

"Not sure, we'll probably decide when we get there," Percy shrugged.

June's eyes narrowed a fraction. "Once again, so cagey. It's almost like you have something to hide."

"And what exactly would we be hiding?" Percy met her gaze levelly. "And why would you care?"

"Simple curiosity is all. You two survived that mess in Omashu and then instead of heading to Ba Sing Sei like the rest you stuck around a shithole village at the ass end of nowhere, and signed up with a convoy heading north. One that pays fuck all. You have to admit, it's a bit odd." June said, her dark eyes locked on him.

"Money is money," Percy shrugged her off, "And honestly, I can't be doing with big cities. Or with the climate. I need something a bit fresher and less humid. But I suppose that does raise the question of why you're here? Why would you trek all the way up north for such shit pay?"

June's smile widened. "Maybe I was just heading this way anyway and decided to catch a ride and a little pay on the way."

"And what in the north would catch your interest. The main front of the war is to the south, and the new front in Omashu is far off in that direction," he vaguely pointed in the direction he knew Omashu to be, "what kind of jobs would a mercenary be looking for up north?"

"Well, I guess I won't know until I find out," June shrugged innocently. "And hey, since you and Suki are mercenaries, admittedly not great ones considering how shit your gear is and the fact that you're missing an arm – which you've still not told me how you lost…. Surely you should be grateful that a seasoned veteran like me is sticking around and helping you out."

"And totally out of the goodness of your own heart," Percy added dryly. For supposedly being a seasoned veteran, June was of a similar age to himself, and so only a few years older than Suki.

"Exactly, now you're getting it," June grinned.

Exhaling loudly, Percy looked ahead, the forest was still dense, and the foliage overhead was thick. Yet despite that, his innate senses could feel the sea. It was still quite far off. But with every step they took, they drew closer to their destination.

( - )

(With Suki)

Percy was getting annoyed, and the reason why wasn't hard to guess.

June was… a character.

Honestly, she didn't know what she thought of the mercenary yet.

A large part of her liked her rough personality, her snarky barbs and her sarcastic jabs. She reminded her of the rough-around-the-edges sailors who had occasionally visited Kyoshi. They were interesting company and fun to listen to and talk with in small doses.

But over time they did become tiring.

More than that, however, beneath her snark, there was something about the older woman that rubbed her the wrong way.

Only a part of that was due to jealousy.

A grimace flashed across her face as she looked away from where Percy and June were talking.

That wasn't something she wanted to admit, even to herself.

Yet despite that, she knew it was true.

June was older than her, had a very shapely body, and a striking look, and more than that she was very worldly. She had travelled a lot and seen far more of the world than her. In comparison to the fashionable June, she felt like she was little more than an Earth Kingdom peasant. It wasn't a good feeling.

Biting her lower lip, she tried to force down her traitorous thoughts.

She might not trust June, but she trusted Percy.

Sparing another glance back at the pair, her brow furrowed.

No, there was definitely something off about June.

The questions she threw out, sometimes when they were least expecting it, they felt a bit too pointed, a bit too intrusive than was casual. Yet every time either one of them attempted to redirect her, or ask questions of their own, she deflected them with a mixture of humour, insults and yet more questions – often raunchy or inappropriate ones.

It made her uncomfortable, especially the longer she spent in the older woman's presence.

Why did she follow them?

The convoy was paying them pocket change,. But then again, the main incentive for them tagging along was bed and board, and a guide who could take them through the dense forest and direct them to the coastline, where they could hopefully find a ship head north.

June shouldn't have the same motivations as them. She didn't seem to have a particular goal, nor did it make sense for an experienced mercenary – as she purported to be – to take on such a low-paid, menial job. A part of her suspected that June was just coming along for the ride, and hoping for some entertainment. But she was also suspicious.

That said, at the same time she was only one person, and although Nyla looked pretty vicious, she was pretty confident that Percy and herself could take a non-bender and her pet shirshu.

Taking comfort in that thought, she pulled herself out of the boggy mud and up onto one of the wagons, taking her seat alongside the old man currently driving it.

The air wasn't as humid now, and although it was still sticky and hot, it was nowhere near as intolerable as it had once been.

Looking down the track and over the top of the lead wagon as her own wagon breasted a slight undulation in the land, she could see the path stretch out for several miles further. Trees were lining it on both sides. In the far distance though, so far off it was difficult to measure, she could see a blueish-grey blur.

A grin spread across her face.

She could see the sea.

( - )