Chapter Forty Nine

It Hurts

"On behalf of he who carries the Earth Kingdom on his back, the beating heart of the world, and lord of the impenetrable city, his majesty Earth King Kuei, I welcome you to Ba Sing Se. My name is Joo Dee."

Azula eyed the woman through the now mandatory face paint she wore. She and her friends had infiltrated the Kyoshi Warriors, and had been garbed in their traditional regalia and makeup. It was uncomfortable. The rough wool was a step away from the silk clothes and steel armor she usually wore. Ty Lee was of course ecstatic for the change, as it provided a rare glimpse of Mai wearing makeup that 'wasn't totally depressing'.

"Oh, uh, thank you, Joo Dee." Suki said, "We are the Kyoshi warriors. We've come to offer our services to the Earth King and join the war effort."

"The Earth King is aware of your arrival and has been expecting you for some time."

"The Earth King is expecting us? But we didn't send word ahead of us." Suki said, confused.

"His royal highness is aware of all things in his kingdom."

"Okay…" Suki spoke the word slowly.

"I see that your journey has made you tired and worrisome. There is no need for such stress. Now that you are here, you are safe. The dangers of the outside world do not exist in Ba Sing Se."

"So when are we going to meet the Earth King? Or one of the generals?" Sara asked.

"Your request for an audience with his majesty has been submitted, and should be processed in about two months!" Joo Dee answered.

"Two months?" Azula asked, eyes narrowed. "You just said that he has been expecting us."

"He has been expecting your arrival, yes, but he is a busy man. He cannot clear his schedule simply for your arrival." Joo Dee beamed at them, obnoxiously. Azula rolled her eyes. They were being handled.

What followed was a needlessly long tour of the slums of Ba Sing Se, followed by their deliverance to a decently kept building in the middle ring of Ba Sing Se. This would evidently be their quarters for the duration of their stay. Joo Dee explained in detail the rule that must be obeyed during their stay, yet Azula's attention was drawn away from her. A movement in the shadows caught her eye; a soft rustle of cloth, the subtle scrape of stone against flesh reached her ears.

She flicked her eyes to Mai and Ty Lee, and with a discreet flick of her fingers gave them orders: Watch, listen, be ready. Giving nothing away, Ty Lee stretched and yawned. She pulled off her gloves under the pretense of fixing her hair. Mai rolled her eyes at the acrobat and stepped to Azula's other side, leaving against the carriage wall, keeping a constant vigil at their rear.

They stayed on guard as Joo Dee finished her speech and led them into the house. The moment they were through the door, Suki pushed Joo Dee out and slammed the door.

"Form up." She barked, and the Kyoshi Warriors fell into a line and knelt. Azula didn't hesitate and joined the line, with Mai and Ty Lee flanking either side of her.

"We're being watched." Suki addressed the group. "From the moment we set foot in Ba Sing Se, they've been tailing us, watching our every move."

Azula had expected as much, but hadn't found any signs to indicate until they were outside their quarters.

"The earth king has been expecting you." Suki said, "Somethings not right. If he had been expecting us, why wait for months to process our request for an audience? And why put a request in to the king directly? We could just as easily meet with one of the council of five."

"Forgive me for speaking out of turn," Azula said, "But this merits investigation."

Suki looked at her oddly for a moment, "We don't really take turns to speak, just don't interrupt when someone is addressing the group."

"I didn't mean that liter- it's not important," Azula said, waving her hand in a vague motion, "Perhaps there's something insidious in this city."

"I won't pretend to understand what's going on," Suki said, "But I don't like it. From now until we leave, we're going to move in pairs. Sara, you're with Haruhi. Himari, you stick with Akara. Mai and Ty Lee are partnered up, and Azula's with me."

Azula bristled at being given orders by this backwater rube who couldn't mentally perform the simplest quadratic equations. She maintained a cool outward facade as Suki kept speaking, "You will bunk with your partner, you will eat with your partner, you will not leave this building your partner. Do you understand?"

The Kyoshi Warriors answered in unison.

"Good." Suki said, "We're going to take a lesson from the Southern Water Tribe. Haruhi and Sara, you're on watch. I want one team here at all times to keep watch, eight hour shifts. Mai and Ty Lee, you're next, followed by me and Azula, then Himari and Akara."

"We're going to split up and head around the city, see what we can find out. Mai, Ty Lee, search the middle ring. Azula and I are going to the outer wall. Himari and Akara will search the lower ring. You've got five minutes to drop your gear."

The Kyoshi Warriors broke formation and split into their assigned teams. Azula followed Mai and Ty Lee up the stairs and into the first room they came across. Speaking quietly, Azula said, "We don't have much time. Find important infrastructure, wells, bridges, foodstores. Note the time and locations of any patrols that you pass. Ask the cityfolk about the Earth King and the war, bring something back for Suki, so she doesnt grow suspicious. Meet with our contact at Ye Olde Chin's Noodle Empire."

Azula turned on her heel and left the small bedroom, and saw Suki entering another room. She followed and dropped her pack on the bed opposite the window, before drawing the shutters. She turned to Suki and said, "Impressive. I only noticed we were being watched when we arrived here."

"You saw them too then?" Suki said, sliding her pack under the bed opposite Azula's. "I noticed a pair of men in dark green uniforms watching us when we met Joo Dee. I wasn't sure if we were being followed until we were just outside."

"Dark green robes, wide hats?" Azula had seen them atop the outer wall as they approached the city, but they turned away once she used her spyglass. Suki nodded in confirmation, and Azula told her what she had seen.

"It's no secret that we're friends with the Avatar," Suki said, "But I don't see why that would be reason to keep us under surveillance."

Azula shrugged, keeping her thoughts to herself. She wondered if Zhao's contact had been caught. Perhaps the Earth Kingdom knew she was here, and was bidding it's time until it could be sure of her identity?

"Come on," Suki opened the door, leading the way out of their room, down the stairs and out of the building. Over the course of the next couple of hours, the pair made their way to the outer wall of Ba Sing Se. Azula took a map of the city's rail transport system, conveniently printed in pamphlets and stacked on a table inside the station. She was taken aback at the lack of security, that a nation at war would leave sitting in the open maps of vital infrastructure and the quickest ways to get to them in the open. More than that, they even distributed them freely, encouraging people to take them.

Even Bumi, the mad king of Omashu, kept such information underwraps. It made the ruling of the conquered city almost impossible, until the Fire Nation had managed to successfully mapped the streets and sewers. Why then, she wondered, did Ba Sing Se not take precautions? Did not the city know they were at war? They must know, else why would they be under surveillance? She had seen them, never far off. Sitting and drinking tea, watching from an alley, They were everywhere.

When they arrived at the outer wall, along the western edge of the vast tracts of farmland surrounding the inner city, they were just… allowed up to the top. Nobody asked them to prove their identity. The soldiers on duty just took them at their word, and brought them to the top. Azula found the security laughable, until she considered that despite this her nation had failed to subjugate Ba Sing Se.

As they reached the top, Azula surveyed the city. SHe thought it beautiful, in a simple and rustic sort of way. It was nothing to the towering heights of the buildings in the caldera, with the mere beginnings of industry her people had mastered a century past. She turned away from Ba Sing Se, as the wind ripped past and tore at her clothes she looked upon the western horizon. A cold wave of emotion, not quite fear but not far from it, poured through her.

Far below and to the west lay the drill, with the might of the Fire Nation assembled around it. A force reminiscent of the power set against the north at the siege of Agna Qel'a, the capital of the northern Water Tribe. A force that no mere army of the lesser nations could defeat, but she saw that it would fail. For beyond the drill, and over the mountains and in the horizon she saw a shape. It was no more than a spec, a faint outline, but she knew in the marrow of her bones. The Avatar had come to Ba Sing Se.

Despite the howl of the wind, the snap of cloth and the half caught mutter of words, Sokka felt the world to be in silence. He knew it wasn't the case of course, as the evidence of his ears and eyes told him what was true. No, the silence he felt was within. Wrapped in the void, the vast empty place he had cultivated inside himself, all was still and quiet. He would be disturbed by the slaughter, he was sure. Once he left the void, as he knew he would, he would shudder and shake, he would wretch and weep with the villainy of what he had done. He would be affected as surely as Zuko had.

Zuko. A banished prince, the Fire Lord in exile. Scarred and disowned, shamed and then cast out by his father. A man who had wandered the world for years, before finding the light of truth and breaking the chains of cruelty and joining with the Avatar. Sokka glanced over at the scarred man, seeing him there still. Zuko had placed himself between Toph and Sokka, as if he feared what the First Son might do.

Since they had left the desert, Zuko had made sure to stand between Sokka and the girl with broken eyes. In time, Sokka knew that Zuko would come to see that what they had done to the sand benders was necessary, and that he had the strength to do it again.

Sokka opened his third eye, with less thought than it takes to move your arm, and looked at Zuko. Looked inside of him. He saw there a kind of quiet strength, the strength of steel and fire, a power born through years of long suffering and quiet resolve. The kind of strength that wouldn't break or bend. More than this, Sokka saw love. A fierce burning love for his people, and friends. It instilled in Zuko a desire to protect, and to destroy any who dared threaten those that were his. His was a dragon's soul.

Zuko had caught Sokka staring. "What?" He asked, with more aggression than he meant.

"Do not be afraid, it is nothing." Sokka said.

"Is he doing that creepy thing again?" Toph interjected.

"Which creepy thing?" Aang asked.

"The one where he's basically a dead guy."

Everyone looked at her, with a mix of raised eyebrows and confused expressions, save Sokka who tilted his head and continued staring at Zuko. Being blind, and on the back of a flying bison, Toph noticed none of this.

Realizing that Toph was purely blind, Katara spoke. "What are you talking about?"

"There's this thing he does." Toph began, "He gets heavier, and his heartbeat slows so much I can barely feel it. His voice sounds weird and I can't tell if he's lying or not. It's like if a stone could talk."

"I think she means when he's entered the void," Aang said, glancing at Sokka from the corner of his eye, "And yeah he's been doing that since the Library."

"What does entering the void mean?" Zuko asked.

"It's an ancient airbender technique," Aang said, "It was created by Guru Laghima, the greatest air bender who ever lived. There's this poem about it, it goes 'let go thy earthly tether. Enter the void, empty, and become wind.' ."

"But Sokka's not an airbender," Toph said, "He's more of a sarcasm bender if anything."

"No," Aang continued, "He is not an airbender."

"Then what's the point of this void thing?" Zuko asked.

"It gives me strength." Sokka answered, breaking his silence, "The strength to move when my body is broken, to act when otherwise I would hesitate. To do that which needs doing, when otherwise I would balk at the idea."

"Okay" Zuko said, "I don't know what that means, but if it works."

"Look around you," Sokka gestured at the open sky, "You are filled with distraction, emotion, toil and despair. In the void there is nothing, only reason. It is a vast, empty place that makes everything clear."

Zuko looked around at the empty sky. It went on without end, further than he could see. It was a cold and empty place. He turned his gaze again to Sokka, and felt pity.

"Why would you do that to yourself?" He asked, looking at the First Son.

"These are hard times," Sokka said, "Hard choices must follow."

"Okay, drama queen," Katara said from her seat atop Appa's head. "If you're done being angsty, mind telling us why we're going to Ba Sing Se?"

"What?" Toph said, "I didn't know that! I hate Ba Sing Se. it's a city of walls and secrets."

Sokka, paused, decided that Toph's input was pointless, and spoke. "In the library, I found something that will help us defeat the Fire Nation."

Aang perked up, "What did you find?"

"In forty seven days there will be an eclipse. The sun will be bloted out by the moon and the firebenders will be rendered powerless."

"What?" Zuko asked.

"Like the lunar eclipse," Sokka said, "This will remove the bending ability from the Fire Nation, and if we strike fast and hard at the capital we can end the war in a single blow."

"So," Zuko said, "We can go in, beat my father and be done with it. Why involve the Earth King?"

"For an invasion force."

Zuko was silent, "No."

"Yes," Sokka said, "Should we take out the Fire Lord, just the five of us, who is to say you would be appointed in his place? If the people learned that you were part of the destruction of your father, why would they let you take his place? A man who went willing with the death of his own father to rule a nation? There will be riots, at the very least. Most likely they would put Zhao or Azula in his stead."

"How would an invasion change that?" Zuko asked, anger coursing through him.

"It is simple. An army of both the Water Tribe and Earth Kingdom invade bent on righteous destruction and retribution, tearing through the capital, itching to take vengeance on the countryside. Brought to heel not by the Avatar, but by Zuko. Banished for the love of his nation, disavowed and disinherited, scarred and beaten yet unbroken. Without you, the war will continue without end. Without an army the war continues. We need both."

"How can I follow an army bent on destruction? How would they, the people of the Fire Nation, follow someone who came on a river of death?" Zuko countered.

"There need not be a river of death," Sokka said, "You have declared yourself Fire Lord in exile. With the backing of the Avatar and the First Son, The Earth King must listen to you. You are the only one of us who knows the Fire Nation, the only one who can guide our mission. You are the secret, the key to victory. The flame that lights the darkness."

"Flame that lights the darkness?" Aang said, with a confused expression.

Zuko stared into space for a moment, before clenching his jaw and nodding once.

"We will need all on The Day of Black Sun.", Sokak said, as before them blossomed the walls of Ba SInge Se, and before the wall they found an army striving to invade.

Azula listened to Suki snore. It wasn't much of a snore, to be fair, but enough to tell Azula that the warrior was asleep. She sat up, glancing briefly at the girl. Suki, who was a mere peasant of the Earth Kingdom, an inferior culture. So far beneath Azula's station that under any other circumstance she would not be worth noticing, of a caste that is nearly sub-human. And yet, despite all reason and effort on her part, Azula could not helo think of her as a friend.

Azula left the shared room in silence. She walked down the hall and tapped onc, scraped with her nail, and tapped once again. There was nothing for a moment, and then a reciprocating sign. The door opened and Azula ducked inside.

Mai and Ty Lee were within, the window shuttered and a single candle gave light.

"Well?" Azula asked.

"We met with the contact." Mai said.

"And?" Azula pressed.

"It's Hahn."

Azula froze.

"Are you serious?"

"Yeah." Ty Lee said.

"They could have sent someone smart. Like a corpse, or a pig-chicken."

Ty Lee snickered behind her hand, and Mai cocked a half smile.

"What happened on the wall" Mai asked.

"The drill and sixth army are outside." Azula said, "But they won't succeed. The Avatar has arrived, and it's likely the army has been beaten already."

"Are you sure?" Ty Lee asked.

"Yes," Azula said, "My brother and his pet earthbender have likely joined them by now, and the 'Emperor'" She said mockingly, "Has a mind for strategy."

"So what do we do?" Mai asked.

"We wait and watch." Azula answered. "For now. Until the time is right."

"Hahn wants to meet with you." Ty Lee said, "Tomorrow night, at the bridge near the metal working district."

Azula nodded. "I might as well. At the very least, I could find some information."

"She didn't show herself?" Long Feng asked.

"No sir," Hahn answered.

"Did you set up another meeting"

"Yes," Hahn said, head bowed. "Tomorrow night on the bridge leading to the metal working district."

"Good. My Dai Li will take her then."

"She is powerful," Hahn explained, "It will take more than a few earthbenders to-"

"It will be more than enough," Major Wen said, "We have a score to settle, her and I."

"Indeed you do," Long feng said, "and make sure that when you take her you extend his majesty's invitation."

"What invitation?" Hahn asked, confused.

"In his wisdom, the Earth King has invited her to Lake Laogai."

Team Avatar stood upon the wall of Ba Sing Se, looking out at the utterly defeated Earth Kingdom advance force."

"It was the rough rhinos." Zuko said.

"Who are they?" Aang asked.

"A special forces unit. My uncle worked with them alot."

"I see," General Sung said, "In light of the Tera Team's defeat, I humbly ask the Avatar to assist."

As if the man had not rudely denied their offer mere minutes before.

"Is Azula with them?" Aang asked, as the wind blew from the west.

Sokka cocked his head, inhaling deep through his nose. "No."

"What was that?!" Zuko asked, "Did you just sniff the wind?"

"Sokka has a super sense of smell!' Katara interjected, "He can pick out scents from miles away."

"Why do you know what Azula smells like?!" Zuko asked.

"She's taken me prisoner a few times."

"It's not as creepy as it sounds." Aang offered.

"It's pretty creepy." Toph said, "Creepy spirit powers or no."

Sokka took on Koh's mantle, and his shadow exploded outward and towards the sun. His voice echoed as if two people spoke at once, "It doesn't matter. We have work that must be done."

"Would you stop with the melodrama for ten minutes?" Zuko asked, "And don't sniff for my sister."

"Aang, Katara, you and I will infiltrate the drill and find a way to shut it down from inside. Toph and Zuko will keep the Rough Rhino's distracted."

"Ok." Aang and Katara said, climbing onto Appa. Sokka joined them.

"You guys go ahead," Toph said walking towards the edge of the wall, "I'll find my own way down. You coming, Zuzu?"

"Zuzu?" General Sung snickered behind his hand.

Zuko glared at the general. "I'll meet you down there. First I'll grab their attention. We're a distraction, right?"

Appa took off and Toph vaulted over the side of the wall, dragging a hand through the stone with her earthbending to slow her descent. Zuko leapt onto the ramparts. He waited for Toph to be halfway down before sucking in a sharp breath. He focused on the drill. For a moment there was nothing, and then a line of fire split the air. It burst fourth from Zuko's ruined eye. The Prince took all the pain and frustration, the toil and suffering of his short life, and focused it into a beam of destruction. It struck the head of the drill in a burst of fury that the soldier below had never seen.

Meanwhile, Toph exploded onto the battlefield. She hit the ground in a wave of earthbending, churning the dry and barren plain as if it were the sea in a storm. She dove beneath the surface and propelled herself forward, navigating her way beneath the footsoldier battling with Earth Kingdom troops until she found the Rough Rhinos.

Zuko leapt from the ramparts, using his firebending to propel himself forward. He considered after he jumped, that he had never tried this before and that doing so off of the wall of Ba Sing Se and into a battle was beyond foolish, but by that point he had already jumped and all he could do was try not to die. He blasted away from the wall and toward where he made out the rhinos. As he approached, he used his firebending to slow his descent, while keeping his forward trajectory. It was really hard, but his alternative was falling into a battle and dying so he kept going. As he neared, he saw Toph erupt out of the ground. All five rhinos rounded on her, and so Zuko focused his energy and used his combustion bending to throw Mongke from his mount. Zuko touched down and battle ensued.

Sokka, Aang and Katara flew past the drill, ducking under it as they went. They soared beneath it until they saw Toph, Zuko, and a group of men on komodo-rhinos fighting. One of the men, a Yuyan archer, was thrown from his mount by Toph. While in the air, he drew and knocked an arrow and loosed it towards the earthbender. Sokka saw, and the world seemed to slow around him. He leapt from appa's back, pushing himself away with enough force that it sent the bison of course. He rocketed through the air, doubting that he would be fast enough. The distance between the girl and the arrow closed, with Toph unaware, for the archer had been separated from the round and thus outside of her awareness. Mere inches separated her eyes and the blade when Sokka's hand grabbed that arrow. It's momentum halted, yet a spattering of Sokka's blackened blood sprayed across Toph's broken eyes. Toph grunted in pain, though no arrow pierced her flesh.

Sokka's hand, mutilated and yet strong, drew his regret and dispatched that archer, though no body touched the ground. Sokka nodded to Zuko and took off, sprinting with an unholy speed toward the end of the drill. There Katara and Aang waited, clinging to a broken entry portal.

"Sokka," Aang shouted, "We need to get inside!"

"Then by all means do so!" He shouted, "I'm right behind you!" Aang swept into the drill, Katara following after. Sokka lagged behind, struggling to climb the ladder of the moving drill. A rope of water wrapped around his waist and pulled him in.

Inside was a maze of catwalks and pipes. Dial, gauges and measuring devices of all manner were abound.

"How do we bring this thing down?" Katara asked.

"If I had to guess, I'd say it runs on steam. That's just really hot water, so make it less hot."

Katara grinned and started freezing everything she could.

"Aang, there has to be some kind of support structure," Sokka said, " We need to destroy it."

The avatar nodded his agreement.

Zuko and Toph fought with the rhinos, but were being overwhelmed. They battled, and even in the absence of the archer, they could barely hold their own. The rhinos soon had the support of the infantry, which made matters worse. Zuko and toph fought, and were determined to keep fighting until the drill went down. Things changed when unexpected allies appeared.

A pair of hooked sword appeared, blocking the spear coming for Zuko's stomach. Zuzu punched fore towards the rhino, causing him to retreat. He looked and saw, of all people, Jet.

"Jet?!"

"Hey Lee." Jet smirked, "Sorry about how things ended last time." He jerked a thumb at the Earth bender fighting nearby. "That's my friend Haru, he claims to know the Avatar. We saw you were in trouble, and figured you could use the help."

"Toph needs help," Zuko said, "Something happened to her eyes."

Jet looked at the girl fighting alongside Zuko. Her eyes were squeezed shut, with black and red blood running from them, and tears flowed after. "What happened to her?"

"I don't know." Zuko used combustion bending on a line of cavalry coming their way, "But if it hadn't happened we'd have won by now."

Jet nodded, and ran towards the earthbending girl. As he approached, he recognized the man she was fighting. A firebender, with a mindless cruelty behind his eyes. A man from his childhood, a monster. A murder. A man who had made Orphans.

"You!" Jet said, bearing his swords, "Do you remember me!?"

Mongke paused, looking at Jet as the world grew still. At first his mind was blank, but then he remembered. A night of fire and blood. Of joyous slaughter. A man and a woman burned and butchered, and a boy with tearful eyes.

Mongke smiled.

"Yes," He said with hunger, "I remember you. And your father. Your mother most off all."

"I am glad," Jet said, "So you will know why."

"Why?" Mongke said, beginning to laugh. His laugh was cut short, when Jet's sword plunged through his heart.

"That's it?" Jet asked, holding Mongke up. "After all these years? You laugh, and drop your guard?"

Mongke coughed, stunned. He shook his head, graspings at the sword. "That's war, boy."

"One mistake, and you're done." Mongke shuddered, he twitched, and he died.

Jet pulled his sword. He looked at the darkened blade. Half his life he had dreamed of this, of his vengeance. It was his, he had won it. But he hadn't expected it to be so easy. So empty. Around him, the battle waned. The drill crumpled, and the girl cried in silence, clutching at her broken eyes. Lee, or Zuko, or whoever he was held her as she wept.

"It hurts!" She whispered, and Zuko held her close to him.

"I know," He said, before he bellowed, "KATARA!"

Jet looked at Haru, who stood guard. Once their leader had perished, the rhinos surrendered. Now bound in earth they stood still. Jet moved towards Zuko and the girl. He stood over them, his swords drawn.

In time, three people came. A boy with arrows tattooed across his skin, girl in blue and a young man with dead eyes. They raced across the battlefield as Zuko called for Katara, whoever that might be. Jet glanced down at the girl who Zuko held so desperately. Steam seemed to trail from her eyes, and her hands were twisted in agony.

"What happened?!" Katara asked, her hands coated in glowing water.

"I- I don't know!" Zuko said, letting Katara minister to Toph's eyes. "Her eye's started leaking black blood!"

Katara stiffened, and her eyes jerked to Sokka. "Did you bleed on her?!"

"There was an arrow." Sokka said, "I caught it but it pierced my hand. It was inches from her face."

Katara paled, before drawing a vial from around her neck. She pulled the water from within and it began to glow with light brighter than any she had made before. "This is water from the spirit oasis, if anything will heal her this will."

"I don't understand," Aang said, "Why does Sokka's blood hurt?"

"It's from his bond. It's like liquid fire. It burns metal and melts flesh."

Zuko, numb from panic at the suffering of his best friend, desperate for a distraction asked, "What happened in the drill?"

Sokka looked at him, and then at the swordsman and the mustachioed earthbender before speaking. "The drill ran on steam. Katara froze the water in the pipes and shut the engine down. Aang sliced through the supports holding the outer shell up, and it crumpled."

"I'll call Appa," Aang said, "We should get behind the wall befo- Haru? What are you doing here?"

"I'm on the wall guard." Haru said, "Same as Jet." Haru jerked his head towards the swordsman.

Aang introduced himself to Jet, and Katara worked on Toph.

"I'm better now," Toph said, staggering to her feet. She leaned on Zuko, and then punched Sokka as hard as she could. "Thanks for grabbing that arrow, but eat less spicy food."

"Toph, you need to wear the bandages for a while, a couple of weeks at least."

Begrudgingly, Toph let Katara Bandage her eyes. Appa landed beside them, and team Avatar, along with Jet and Haru, climbed on appa's back as the moon rose.

Azula walked under cover of night towards the metalworking district. She had waited for Suki to fall asleep, and bade Mai and Ty Lee stay behind. She could handle Hahn, of that she was sure.

She came close to the bridge, but saw a vaguely familiar woman stand upon it. As she grew close, she recognized her.

"Major Wen." Azula said.

"Princess Azula," The major replied, " I must congratulate you on your infiltration of the city. How did you manage it?"

"Oh, just devilish wit and girlish charm."

"I see. Who is your contact?"

Azula thought furiously. So they didn't know about Hahn, she was reasonably sure. That they didn't know how she had infiltrated the city she doubted very much. Azula prepared for battle.

"I suppose it doesn't matter." Wen said, "Princess Azula, The Earth King has invited you to lake Laogai."

Azula punched out with a bolt of blue fire, but a dozen figures swarmed around her. She fought furiously, but in moments she knew only darkness.

Author's note

Heyo! Sorry I'm late. I don't really have an excuse, time just got away from me.

I've decided to condense things. This one has about four or five chapters worth of stuff in it.

04/06/2025