Avatar: The Legend of Azula, Book 1: Air

Long Feng:

The Emperor of the Earth Empire sat upon his throne, thinking upon recent events that had occured. Today was the one year anniversery of his daughter Toph's banishment. It seemed so long ago now, when it wasn't that far in the past. A lot had changed in the year she had been absent. Progress had been made in the Fire Nation. Most of the Outer Islands had been taken, and they were advancing in the Main Island. While those savages were fighting hard, it was only a matter of time when they took the new Fire Nation Capital.

They had taken original a few decades ago, when Fire Lord Azulon was still ruler. Out of the Royal Family, only a select few had escaped. Ozai, Azulon, and Ursa were among the counted dead. Fire Lord Iroh and his son had escaped the destruction. Shortly afterwards the Fire Nation set up a new capital, with Iroh as its new leader.

The Southern Water Tribe was all but destroyed. They had no more benders, for they had been taken. All that reminded were old woman and young children. All the men had left to fight with its sister tribe, which had yet to fall to Earth Empire control.

The Southern and Northern Air Temples were empty, its inhabitants dead. Killed by Avatar Kyoshi herself. The Eastern and Western Temples were still thriving, and had a heavy resistance against Long Feng's armies. The thought made him frown, but he reasoned that it wouldn't be long after it fell to his might. After all, they were inhabited by women. They were far less superior then men. Unless, of course, they were an Avatar. And even then, an Avatar was not truely human.

A messanger came into his throne room, and held out a scroll. Long Feng read it briefly before dismissing the man. Hmm, this was troubling news. The Council would not like it either. Long Feng scowled. After all the limits that had been lifted on the People, they still chose to resist. They had their own council now, which they elected. It should have been enough for them. But no, some of them still wanted a democracy! The very idea sickened Long Feng.

"Guards, find my son and bring him to me. I have a new mission for Prince Haru." Long Feng ordered. The Dai Li guards nodded and left.

Chief Hakoda:

"Guards, please get my children. I have a matter I need to discuss with Prince Sokka and Princess Katara." Hakoda asked his guard. The warriors nodded and left the Chief alone. Hakoda sat deep in thought, clutching a scroll to his left arm. This news...it was...interesting, to say the least. At last, that traitor had been found.

He had been the greatest waterbender in the the Tribes. He trained the best of the best, and even trained his own daughter. A seemingly loyal Water Tribe member, he had been the very symbol of the Northern Water Tribes. Its great White Knight. He had been a major factor in defeating the Earth Imperial forces that had attempted to destroy the Tribe eleven years ago.

There had been no signs whatsoever that he would betray the Tribe like this. Hakoda slammed his fist to the wall in anger. To attempt to take power, to try and kill the Chief and his family, was one of the most dishonorable things to do. To go so far, just to gain power...it sickened Hakoda.

His bid at power had been defeated. He had been forced to flee the Water Tribe, in the face of what would happen to him. But even that wasn't what made the Chief the most furious.

Kya...his beloved wife had been killed by that monster. He had taken her away from them, before her proper time to leave this world. She had never gotten to see her children grow up into the adults they were becoming. That bastard had taken her from him, and he would pay.

Pakku, the traitorous bastard, had been spotted in the city of Omashu. He would see to it that he be brought to justice, once and for all. Kya would be avenged.

Toph was on the deck of her ship ordering some troops around. "I want the ship ready for the Avatar when we find him!" She had said this for the past year when they were near civilizations. She was going to find this Avatar whether he liked it or not. A year ago had been her banishment, the day she had lost her arm. No matter she was still a master at her art. Toph would find this coward and regain her honor. That was that. There would be no other option...she needed to get her honor back.

Aang

They weren't really supposed to be out this far, but Aang didn't mind that now. This was exploring, and he couldn't be held back by those superstitious water tribe women. He was too curious about what lay out here, since the Earth Empire had lost ships out here. Besides, the monks had always told him to detach himself from the world, why not start with the rules?

"Hurry up Yue," Aang called back over his shoulder to his water tribe friend. She always seemed to be falling behind him, never as excited as he was about things. He liked her though, she protected him and never tried to stop him from having fun, unless it was something he knew was dangerous and shouldn't do but wanted to anyway.

Sokka

"Boomerang," Sokka shouted as he threw his boomerang and hit the targets standing in front of him, made out of snow. They were severed and the top halfs fell to the ground as the boomerang returned to him. "It's always nice to have a weapon that returns to me," he commented to himself, being the only one training. He wanted to become a warrior very much, to make his dad proud of him and to be able to protect the rest of his family. He hadn't been able to protect his mother, even though he hadn't been in any position to do so, and he would protect the rest of his family with his life now.

Of course, he was a Prince, so they would have protection, but what good would that do if his family were ever alone? No, he needed to become stronger, especially since he would someday take over the tribe, or so he hoped. That was what he wanted to do since he was little, to lead the Water Tribe, and to triumph over the Earth Empire. Just thinking about them made him angry, and he kicked over the rest of the snow targets before hearing someone behind him.

"Prince Sokka, your father, Chief Hakoda of the Northern Water Tribe, has requested your presence," a messenger said as Sokka turned around. "Ok, I'm on my way," he replied and put away his boomerang, and ran down the cold streets to the building his father would be located. He wondered what his father wanted with him this time, he had been working hard and doing his best to be inspirational to his people, trying to set an example, and not being so goofy, though that was a personal goal to keep from making his father look bad. He knocked on the door once outside his father's working space, his mind still spinning with the posibilities, both good and bad.

Bumi

"Nyah hehehehehe," Bumi laughed, with a snort or two added in, as his granddaughter prepared her ship to be docked. "You really are confident, but that could be a weakness. You shouldn't bet your life on finding the avatar, after all, he's been long gone for 100 years," he told Toph. "Waiting for the right time to return I'd bet," he added, and laughed again. Of course he was slightly senile, so that made his wisdom hard to trust for most people, but underneath all that crazy was powerful and wise man, though not in the normal sense.

"He's right you know" Enakue added on to the wise, But seemingly senile, old man. Enakue had awoken to cold air and a hangover...not a great way to start his day. "Why don’t you relax more? Do some training, drink tea, WHATEVER! The avatars not going show up any time soon..." Enakue said. He felt sorry for the kid. She was thrown out of her home and treated like dirt by her father. Anybody would be anti social at this point. He plopped down on the cold deck of the ship and opened a bottle of rice wine. "To the Avatar...The coward that left so many people to die." He said. "And hair of the dog too."

Toph clutched the railing on the side of the ship. "He's near. He has to be! And why should I listen to a senile old man?" She turned her glare to Enakue. "And his friend." Her glare was harsh and cold.



Bumi

"How should I know," Bumi asked. "You've gotta make your own decisions in life, without worrying about what a old man like me thinks, but you ought to listen to my advice, I am old and I've lived longer than you and your father. After all, I'm your dear old grandad!" He laughed aloud again, in a good humor despite his grandaughter's bad attitude.

IC: Katara

"That's it, Katara. Focus and- hyah!" Katara unleashed several mini ice discs at the training dummies. She was practicing her aim on some more advanced, precise moves and was relieved when the a little over half of the discs hit their intended target square in the "chest." The rest missed the targets by mere centimeters, which was also an improvement. She was proud of herself - and she knew her mother would be, too, were she still here.

Katara brought her hand up and tenderly touched the necklace around her neck. It was her mother's, and Katara wore it every day now to remember her by. She missed her mother so much.

"Princess Katara." A man's voice abruptly interrupted her thoughts, and Katara turned to face him, her hand falling back to her side. "Chief Hakoda is requesting your presence. It is very important."

Curiosity flashed across the princess's face as she replied, "Alright. Thank you, Yuan." The man nodded politely in response, and Katara left, quickly heading for the place where she knew her father would be.

Cheng stood guard at the side of Princess Toph and Bumi. He gave Enakue a warning look. It wasn't wise to upset the princess when she was broading, though she needed to be brought out of it at times, if only for her own mental health. He bowed and spoke, "Your highness, we are in enemy territory. I know the Southern Water Tribe is nearly at its knees, but if the Avatar is here, he will have protection. Doubtless he or she is hiding behind someone dangerous. We should be cautious."

"Please, come in you two." Hakoda said. He waited for Sokka and Katara to come in and sit down. He glanced at his children and the scroll in his hand, still thinking. They had a right to know, after all. Besides, he was going to send them after Pakku. There were only two people in the entire tribe he trusted to go after the traitor: his children. Hakoda would have gone himself, but he was needed with his people.

He knew that both his children had a deep hatred of the former Tribesmen, Pakku. He knew it must especially hurt for Katara, since Pakku had been her teacher. To have been betrayed by one that had taught her everything she knew...it must have been a horrible feeling. He himself had felt similar pain, when Pakku betrayed them. He had been a great friend, once. Sorrow filled him as he remembered what Pakku used to be. Where had things gone wrong?

The images of Pakku killing his wife dismissed those thoughts. Even if he had been a friend, nothing that traitor would do would ever make up for it. Hakoda took a breath, and held the scroll for one of them to take.

"Pakku has been found."

Momo followed behind Aang hesitantly, his feet flying over the cold ground. The small lemur followed his human diligently, but was still doing his own thing. He skidded slightly as he tilted his head looking at Yue and knowing that it was Aang's friend. She always seemed slightly more hesitant but did keep Momo's human safe, so Momo never had any problem with the white haired girl. It was strange how the bald one and the white haired one were friends--an odd coincidence, perhaps? The lemur skidded closer again, sniffing the air. He was intuitive like most animals and smarter then humans had really ever treated him.

IC: Katara

"What?!" Katara demanded, snatching the scroll immediately from her father's hand. She took a few moments to quickly read through it before grumbling to herself, "Yeah, he better get as far away from the North Pole as possible. I'll kill him if he sets one foot within a hundred miles of our border." She wanted to crumple the scroll up in her rage, but she managed to restrain herself. She knew they needed it right now. She held it out for either Sokka or her father to take, so she wouldn't accidently rip it or take any other drastic action.

Sokka

Sokka grabbed the scroll, and looked as if he was studying it. "Dad, we finally know where he is," he said, with anger in his voice. "We can't just let this information slip away. We have to send someone after him, not just for us, but for the safety of our people, he could give information on us to the Earth Empire," he said, trying to make his father see sense. He wanted to be the one to go, but he wouldn't say that right now, just trying to have Pakku aprehended was the goal now, even though he wanted to end him.

Hakoda:

"I know. That is why I'm sending the both of you after Pakku. There is no one else I trust more to handle this situation then you two. You've both grown into fine warriors, which your mother would be proud of. Katara, you're the best waterbender I've seen in the North Pole for years. You're just as good as Pakku, if not better. Sokka, you've grown into a great warrior. You're an expert with your weapons, especially your meteorite sword. With the both of you working together, I am confident we can bring Pakku back and see that justice is dealt." Hakoda said.

He had faith that his children could do it. Not only were they going because Pakku needed to be stopped, this was an important test for them. This would be the first them they would leave the Northern Water Tribe. They'd be going deep into enemy lines. There was a great possibility the Earth Empire would capture them. However, he had faith in them, not to mention that they could handle themselves. And most importantly, Pakku needed to be stopped.

"You'll be going deep into enemy lines, so you'll need to be careful. I'm going to send Bato, to keep an eye on the both of you. I have a ship ready, and the proper supplies are in it. You can leave today if you wish. I have faith in the both of you." Hakoda said, giving his children a hug. He felt some pain in his heart, not knowing when he'd see his children next. But he trusted them, and knew that they'd be alright.

"Oh, and Sokka, keep an eye on your sister. Make sure she keeps her distance from the boys." Hakoda joked, trying to lighten the situation.

((Hello all. Before getting to my post, I want to clear a few things up, since some of you probably don't remember me ever posting in this RP before, asking for an OC or an Avatar character. You see, Magus1108 talked this RP idea over with me before he made it. I asked for Yue, he said I could have her. He accidentally forgot about that when he made the RP, and promised Yue to roman_tic_kataang. When I reminded him, he explained the situation to r_t_k and settled things out. So, I now have Yue. Now onto the post!))

Yue:

"I'm coming Aang!" Yue shouted, running to catch up with her friend. She glanced around the area as she did. They had never been this far before. Her grandmother had always warned her about this place, since the remains of a few Earth Empire ships from the Invasion of the South were still here. Their crews had died long ago, but the ships were said to be a frightening sight. Her grandmother had also said that ghosts still lingered in the ships, doing their duties for all eternity.

"Are you sure we should be coming this far out, Aang? My grandmother warned me to not come out here. She said it was dangerous here. And I'm sure I remember Monk Gyatso telling you the same." Yue mentioned to her friend. If Aang did want to continue, she'd go along with him. Monk Gyatso trusted her to look after the young Air Nomad when they explored. Not to mention she didn't want anything bad to happen to Aang. He always was like a younger brother to her.

Sokka

Words failed Sokka as he stared at his dad, pride and appreciation welling up in his eyes. "Thank you dad," he finally managed to say. "We won't let you down, we'll bring him back to face the consequences of his actions." Nothing seemed impossible to him at that moment, he firmly believed that the two of them would retrieve the traitor and their mother would finally be avenged.

He turned to face Katara and said, "we should leave soon, I'll go get my weapons, and I'll meet you at the ship." He quickly left the room, and ran to his room, not able to contain his adrenaline. When he got their, he started grabbing everything he could think might come in handy, including his own charts and maps of the waters around the Earth Empire. His sword, his club, and boomerang were his three favorite weapons, and always took them whenever training or on assignment somewhere, so he grabbed those too.
--------------

Aang

"Aw, what's the worse that could happen," Aang asked, twirling his staff the monks gave him slowly. "It's just some old ships, there's nothing out here besides them," he added. "I bet there's something really cool out here!" He continued forward again, toward the remains of the ships. He knew he shouldn't be out here, that nearly everyone back at the village had warned him not to, but he chose to take that as advice, and not really rules.

As he approached the ships, he started feeling doubt. What if there are ghosts here? I don't want them to take me away to the spirit world. Maybe we should turn around now and go back, he thought, then shook his head. There's no ghosts here, that's just silly to think that there are.

Yue:

Yue continued with Aang, looking around. She could see the remains of an Earth Empire ship not too far ahead. It was split in the middle, with one part laying on its side. Yue started to walk towards it--

--and the ice beneath her crumbled, causing her to land in the freezing water under it. The entire section of ice that Aang and Yue were previously on started to crack all over it, breaking off into more sections.

[[Oh, by the way, Momo is with Aang and Yue...]]

Momo continued following Yue and Aang, until he saw exactly what was going on. The ice was cracking beneath their feet--and paws, in his case. He was stuck with them too, in just as big of a mess.

((End Page 2))

"Great I'm being glared at by a blind girl and her man servant." Enakue thought. He sat up and stretched. "
Call me when something interesting happens" He said thinking he get to sleep for a few hours.

Aang

Aang heard the ice crackling and a splash of water, so he turned around in time to see Yue in the freezing water. "Yue," he shouted, and used airbending to hop to each piece of ice before landing on a bigger one and kneeling down on his knees, reaching his hand into the water to grab her. He started to pull her up, but he noticed he was also slowly sliding toward the edge, and might go in at any second. I wish this place had ghosts now, he thought as he struggled to help his friend.

Yue:

Yue grabbed Aang's hand and put her other one on the unstable ice, attempting to pull herself up. Her soaking coat was very heavy now, making it more difficult for Aang to pull her up without going in himself. She struggled, trying to pull herself up. After a little while, she barely managed to pull herself up with Aang's help.

The block of ice they were on started to float away. Not to far away, a large iceberg floated in the water. Two figures could be made out in it...

((Hope you don't mind me doing that.))

Toph nodded at the guard. "This coward will be caught. No matter who he's hiding behind." She turned back to the water, waiting for the Southern Water Tribe to appear.

IC: Katara

Katara's hatred for Pakku faded quickly the moment her father told them he was sending them after him. As much as she hated Pakku, the honor and appreciation she felt then from her father's trust in them overwhelmed any other emotion. She smiled softly and hugged her father. "Thank you, Dad," she said at the same time as Sokka. She nodded in agreement with Sokka's response and then, before she left, added, "I promise I won't beat him up too much before we bring him back." Then she ran off to pack a few things for the journey.

She really didn't need much, she knew. She had a water skin on her back from her earlier training, but she put another on her back and a second in her bag just to be safe. Katara put an extra pair of clothes in her bag as well. (She would have put in a second pair as well but one was all that would fit.) That was all she could think of that she needed to take with her. Besides her mother's necklace, which she was already wearing anyway.

With one last glance around her room, Katara headed for the ship.

Cheng nodded back at the princess. He knew that the Avatar would be caught. Toph was the best earthbender he'd ever seen, except for her father.

Aang

Aang sighed in relief when Yue was safe and noticed that now they were not near any other block of ice. It didn't worry him, he could always fly back, but he wasn't sure if he could fly with Yue holding on, but if he didn't try then they were stuck together, because he wasn't leaving her. He then noticed the iceberg coming closer to them, and stared as he thought he saw something in it. "Hey, is there anything in that block of ice," he asked Yue, who might be able to tell better than he could.

Bato:

"Good, you're here Princess Katara." Bato said as he saw the Princess approach the docks. He stepped off of the ship and went to greet her.

"In case your father didn't already tell you, I'm going with you and Prince Sokka to Omashu, to make sure you two don't get into too much trouble. And to help capture that traitorous ba--er, sorry. Hakoda warned me not to curse in front of you two." Bato said, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. He scanned the area for a moment.

"All we need is to wait for Prince Sokka to get here, and then we can leave."

Sokka

"I'M HERE, I'M COMING," Sokka shouted toward the boat as he ran with this arms full of the supplies he was bringing with him. His maps, charts, and weapons lined his arms, in his haste he had forgotten to arrange them in an easy way to hold. He reached the ship and skidded to a halt in front of Katara and Bato. "I'm... here... sorry... I'm... late," he said, breathing heavily, having run all the way from his room to the docks.

Yue:"I...I think there is. It looks like a....person?" Yue asked aloud, squinting to help her see better. The block of ice continued to float towards the iceberg, and as they got closer the object within the berg became clearer. In the center of it, was a person-shaped object in a meditative position. To Yue, the person's eyes were creepy. They were completely blue. Next to the figure, was another person. Unlike the person next to him (or was it a her?), he was in a standing position, holding his hands up in front of him. "Spirits...I think those are people trapped inside the iceberg." Yue whispered in horror. She had heard that, once in awhile, a member of the Water Tribes ended up getting lost in the ice wasteland, and was later found frozen to death. Were these such people?



Aang

"Well I'll free them then," Aang said, and he jumped up high into the air. He held his staff out in front of him, and used airbending to send him toward the iceberg, impaling it with his staff, which amazingly didn't break. It didn't seem to do anything though, so Aang tugged on his staff, trying to bring it out of the iceberg. After a few tugs, it finally came out, and he landed on his back.

The iceberg started to crack, and suddenly exploded. A giant beam of blue light burst forth from the top, casting the area in a bright flash. When the flash was gone, a blue-colored figure walked out of the iceberg, and started to approach Aang and Yue. Then, the blue glow disappeared and the person--who could now be identified as a girl--dropped to the frozen ground. Another person could be seen in the remains of the iceberg, seemingly unconscious as well.

((And now Azula and Zuko are introduced.))

Aang

"AH! Evil spirits," Aang shouted and jumped back to the block of ice, but stopped there and watched as the two figures weren't moving. He jumped back to the iceberg and landed near the one that had been glowing. He set his staff aside and turned the girl on her back, looking at her face. "I think this girl is still alive," he said to Yue, as he held two fingers against her neck, feeling for a pulse. By her clothes, she seemed to be fire nation, but how did a Fire Nation girl come to be frozen in a block of ice in the South Pole?

Yue:

Yue rushed over to the other person, seeing that Aang was taking care of the girl. Yue took off her glove and felt the boy's pulse. Yep, he was still alive. That was good. But how had he and that other girl survived? And, by the looks of their cloths, they were to be Fire Nation. That was strange. How had two Fire Nation teens come to be stuck in an iceberg in the South Pole?

[[ Question, how does Toph see the blue light? ^^" ]]

Azula felt the ice crack around her and she slowly started to come to. She groaned and opened her eyes cautiously. Her eyes found a boy with an arrow on his head. Huh, I thought all airbenders were dead...well male at least. "Who are you?" Azula asked. Wow, that was a stupid introduction. No I didn't go for an even more complex statement such as, 'You're an airbender I thought they were all dead!' or 'Am I in the South Pole? No way!'

((Just thought of that myself. Well, Bumi or someone else could point it out.))

Zuko:

Zuko groaned, and opened his eyes. He was shocked to see the face of a beautiful girl staring back at him. What the....what was going on? The last thing he remembered was....a storm? It was still fuzzy to him. At any rate, how had he gotten here? Where was here?

And then the freezing cold caught up to him.

He lurched forward, to get his back off of whatever was cold--and ended up slamming his forehead into the girl's. Zuko cried out from the pain and his back went back to the ground. He rubbed his forehead, where he was sure a bruise was forming.

That was definitely not a good first impression...

Aang

Aang, who hadn't been expecting her to be able to talk so quickly, was a little stunned for a moment, but it wore off quickly. "Me? My name is Aang, and I'm an airbender," he said, grinning slightly now. "So who are you, and if you don't mind me asking, why were you and that other guy stuck in a giant iceberg in the South Pole when you look like you're fire nation?" He saw the guy and Yue hit their foreheads against each other and winced, that didn't look comfortable.

Bumi

"Well, would you look at that, a bright blue light shooting up into the sky. You don't see that everyday," Bumi said nonchalantly as if he were talking about the weather. "Usually you can only see light like that in the north pole."

Haru was in the courtyard practicing his bending and working out the frustrations of another day when the guards found him. "I will be there shortly." Was all he would reply. Why say more to mere peasants that were already too close? Rolling his eyes he put his shirt back on and turned around to make his way toward the throne room... the throne he should be sitting on instead of his incompetent father...

Cheng's eyes widened at the bright blue light and said in amazement, "It looks like something the spirits could cause..." After a moment's pause, he asked, "Sir, your majesty, could that be the Avatar?"

Yue:

Yue hissed in pain when Zuko's head connected with her's. She landed onto the ground, massaging her throbbing forehead. That didn't go so well. Yue was meeting a (cute) boy other than Aang for the first time in her life, and said boy ends up hitting his forehead against her's. A bad first impression, but not the worst she had had.

Once the pain started to subside, Yue stood up and held her hand out to pull the other boy up. "Hello. Sorry for the bad first impression...my name's Yue."

Zuko:

"Yeah, sorry about that...I'm Zuko." Zuko greeted, taking her hand. He checked his surroundings. Ice, everywhere their was ice. Where was he? In one of the poles? But how had they gotten here?

"How in Agni's name did we end up in this desolate wasteland? Um, I mean, not to offend your home or anything." Zuko quickly amended. Great, he had just met the girl and he had already insulted her home (at least he assumed it was her home). Nice.

He looked over at Azula, seeing she was still on the ground. "You alright Azula?" Zuko asked his sister.

He suddenly remembered something, and dashed up the remains of an iceberg. "Feng, you here buddy?" Zuko shouted out.

A loud rumbling was heard, and something poked out of the ice. A head. To be more exact, a dragon head. The ice shifted and shook more, and the entire body came out. The dragon spread its wings, lifted its head and roared, spraying fire into the air.

Feng stopped, and gazed at the children for a moment. It dropped its head low, and stared at Aang for a second before moving onto Yue, then Momo. The dragon stared at Momo longer than he had at the other two. It opened its great mouth and--

--licked Momo.

Long Feng:

"Good, you are here Haru. I have a mission for you, that needs to be done." Long Feng informed his son. Over the past few years, he had sent Haru across the Earth Empire to do various missions. One reason was to prove his son's worth. Another was to test Haru's true abilities. The most important reason was...

"A rebel cell has risen in Omashu. I want you, and a team of your choosing* to infiltrate the cell, and take it down. General Fong will help you should you need it." Long Feng continued.

((* means that the team of Haru's choosing should be Jet and Suki.))

When Enakue got back to his bunk (a rather large one he had only to himself) and was about to start drinking (surprise) when he heard Bumi talking about a something or other of light. He turned to his lone window to see what he was talking about (he's only hearing bits of the conversation) "By the Gods”. Enakue Ran out the bunk. He pushed along some of the men who were staying below deck. “Up top boys...We found him" he said maybe jumping the gun a little

Momo shook himself. What was this great thing that had just...erm, licked him? Whatever it was, it seemed friendly. He took a few steps back to see this creature better then decided it seemed harmless, at least for the moment. He approached again, with a slight bit of laid back caution. It was nothing like what he had ever seen before but it seemed at least, alright. Besides for its giant tongue...

((End Page 3))

Toph grumbled as she couldn't see the light, but her heart leaped when she heard the about the Avatar. "Head a course for the light!" She pointed in the direction everyone was looking. Hopefully they weren't looking the wrong direction or she'd look really stupid.

"Well hello, Aang. I'm Azula." She quickly brushed herself off and stood up. She looked over at Zuko. "I'm okay, Zuzu, you?" Ah his nickname. As she saw Feng, their dragon, she crawled up to pat his head. "Hey, Feng!"

Yue:

Yue froze when the dragon revealed itself, and hardly breathed when it stared at her. She let out a sigh of relief when she saw it was friendly. She had never seen a dragon before, but had heard it in the stories her father told before he left. They were fearsome creatures, that could eat a man whole. They could breathe fire from their mouths, and destroy an entire army in a matter of seconds.

"So...that dragon is your, ah, pet?" Yue asked cautiously keeping her distance from the dragon. She was still nervous around that thing, even if it did appear friendly.

Aang

"Wow," Aang said, awed at the sight of the giant animal. "I've always wanted to see a dragon," he said excitedly, and then it licked Momo. "He seems friendly," he said, grinning. He had been fascinated by giant animals, and had wanted a sky bison, but the temples had been attacked before that could happen, so he never got the chance. He had heard from others that dragons were monsters, but this one seemed like a nice one, so the others must have all been wrong, or never seen a friendly dragon.

Zuko:

"Yeah, he is. So, where are we? The South or North Pole?" Zuko asked. He went over to Feng and patted his nose. The cold started to catch up with him, and Zuko shivered. How could people live in this frozen nightmare? Even the Fire Nation winters had never been this cold. It was times like this he wished he was a firebender, like his sister.

Feng glanced at Aang shifted his head towards him again, sniffing him. He then licked him too.

IC: Katara

Katara laughed softly at the jumble of belongings Sokka held in his arms. "You know you could have packed some of that in a bag," she said. "We would have waited for you." She reached to take some of it. "Let me help you with that."

Cheng smiled despite himself, seeing that the Princess was pointing in the opposite direction. He gently tilted her arm towards the light before realizing what he just did. He hoped Toph didn't get too mad at him. He spoke, a bit nervous, "Right away, Princess."

Toph grumbled and blushed. "Yes, right away." These were the sad parts of being blind. She couldn't see outside her own ship, which at times, like this, was bad. She waited to see what her crazy grandfather would say next.

As Azula turned back to Aang she chuckled as Feng licked him. "Whatever pole it is it's cold, but that's the nature of the poles." She quickly rubbed her hands along her arms, first for friction. Then she quickly heated them with fire. She sighed as the fire warmed her.

Cheng smiled in relief that she wasn't angry but felt himself blush in embarrassment when he heard one guard snick and others smile. It figured that this was how they found the Avatar.

"Captain..." Enakue said appearing from the bowels of the ship. "No doubt that the locals have seen that light as well...They will be reluctant to hand the Avatar over. Rather than barging in fist blazing I suggest we negotiate with them..." Enakue was a terrible solider, but great at public relations. He developed this skill growing up as a monk. He knew what people wanted in a deal. In this case it would most likely be to have their village and people spared. Plus if this was the avatar he would get the first chance to talk to him/her. Win win on his part but he thought that Toph would be reluctant to allow such action on his part.

Aang

Aang felt the tounge hit him and he fell back after being licked, covered in slobber. "Ew," he said, laughing slightly, and airbended around him, making the spit fly. "This is the south pole," he told the two. "I live here now since the Earth Empire destroyed the North and South Air Temples," he added, not really thinking about whether he should trust the two enough to tell them such things.

Bumi

"So tell me, my granddaughter, how do you plan on capturing the avatar? You may be a powerful earthbender in your own right, but the avatar will have had decades to train with the elements, and all four of them could overwhelm you," Bumi said, in his usual annoying way. He was almost certain though, that the avatar was gone, or else he would have heard about it, any snippets of mad conversation claiming it, but no, nothing had reached his senile ears.

Sokka

"Thanks, but I was caught up in the moment, I really wasn't thinking," Sokka said. "I can't believe I didn't think of a bag! Oh well, at least I didn't hold things up." He let Katara carry some things and headed to his sleeping quarters on the ship, where he could stow the rest of it.

"Surely, sir, with the combined strength of the earthbenders, soldiers, and yourself and the princess, we can be a match for the Avatar. And, like Enakue said, we could negotiate with the locals, maybe get them to help us," he told the older man, before kicking himself, realizing who he was talking to. He sometimes forgot how experienced a general the crazy old man was.

Zuko:

Zuko glared at his sister, envious at her ability to firebend. It sure would be welcome in this situation. He was freezing. He'd ask Feng to warm him up, but he was afraid of getting burned. He was surprised when Aang displayed his airbending abilities. Far as he knew, all male airbenders were dead.

"So...do you guys live near here?" Zuko asked. He would like to find some shelter from this cold. Zuko heard his stomach growl. And getting some food would be nice. What did they eat in the Water Tribes?

Memories of the storm suddenly came back to the Fire Nation Prince, and Zuko remembered what had happened. Azula had run away, the pressure of being the Avatar too great for her. He had tagged along, to keep an eye on his sister. Then that storm had happened...

How long had they been in that iceberg? A few days? Weeks?

Bato:

Bato left the two to set up their things, and got everything ready for the boat to set sail. Soon the boat left the harbor of the Northern Water Tribe, and headed in the direction of the Earth Empire.

Yue:

Yue blinked in surprise when Feng licked Aang, and when the girl--Azula, hadn't Zuko said?--warmed herself with firebending. She had never seen a firebender before. Or anyone from outside of the Tribe. It sure was turning out to be an eventful day.

"We live not too far from here. Though, it might be hard to get back..." Yue said, noticing that most of the ice blocks were far away from them now. Aang might be able to make it, but she wasn't sure of Zuko or Azula. And how were they going to explain the dragon to the Tribe? She knew her mother would have a heart attack just from the sight of the beast alone.

I plan," Toph started. "To catch that coward. It's been 110 years, he's old and most likely weak. All we need to do is corner him." She even believed it to be that easy. But what if this old man were like her grandfather. For his age he was still a very powerful bender. And this was the Avatar. She shooed the thought away trying to think of something else.


"We could just ride on Feng." Azula said as cooly as possible. As she looked at Feng again she remembered what had happened...yesterday right? And this whole Avatar thing, she'd have to continue. She wondered what her parents thought. Did they know where they were?

Aang

Aang's face lit up as if he had just heard the war was over and the Earth Empire had lost. "Could we really ride on him? That would be the coolest thing ever," he said, almost shouting in his excitement over the opportunity to ride on a dragon. He had to resist the urge to jump up on top of it right then and there, remembering that he had been taught to control himself, in order to detach himself from the world. He may be spiritually free from the world, but he could still be hurt by not respecting its rules, and he was sure that it wouldn't be good if he jumped onto a dragon's back, though that hadn't stopped him from riding other giant animals in his time.

Bumi

"True, he is old, but then again so am I," Bumi said. "I'm sure that things will work out in the end, anyway." Even though most might think he was talking about the present situation, he was really referring to the end of the war, or at least, some might think that, but it was most likely the senility talking at that point, though there might be some wisdom there.

Haru

Haru narrowed his eyes and looked at his father. "I won't need anybody to help me on my quest. But since it is is your wish- and I have been taught to obey- I shall gather my group and report straight there." So saying he bowed and didn't wait for his father to excuse him before leaving. He should NOT have to bow to that old man who couldn't even defend himself without those stupid Dai Li. It made him want to destroy something just thinking of that. "GET MY MOUNT READY!" He cried to the first servant he saw walking down the hall.

Zuko:

"That's a good idea. I'm sure Feng won't mind. Besides, he hasn't eaten you yet, so he must think you're friendly." Zuko mentioned. He glanced at Feng, and saw that he had already lowered his body for the children to climb on to. Strangely enough, she seemed to be staring at Yue. Zuko glanced at Yue, and back at the dragon. What did that mean? If Feng liked someone, he usually liked them at least once. If Feng didn't like someone, he'd try to eat them. He'd never seen a reaction like this from Feng.

The Fire Nation Prince stopped thinking about the matter, thinking that was it probably nothing. He wondered what the Southern Water Tribe would be like. He and Azula had been told stories about the tribes when they were young, about how strong and fierce waterbenders were, how similar they were to firebenders. If he remembered right, his father Ozai had discovered the way to deflect lightning when visiting the Southern Water Tribe, from just studying a few moves.

From his father's stories, the Southern Water Tribe city was a majestic sight to see. It might have changed some since his father visited it when he was a decade younger, but it should still be the same. Last he heard, the SWT was still bravely holding off attacks from the Earth Empire.

Long Feng:

Long Feng scowled when his son left without being dismissed. That boy would be trouble in the future. No doubt he already had dreams of overthrowing his father and taking the throne himself. That rebellious streak needed to be destroyed. Or at least he needed to occupy his son long enough to set everything up without interference. For his plans to succeed, Haru needed be busy for the next few months...

Yue

"Are you sure it will be safe?" Yue asked nervously, looking back at the dragon. For some reason, it seemed to be staring at her. Why? Had she angered Feng in some way? At least it wasn't trying to attack her or anything. That was a relief. From the stories her parents had told her, dragons were very temperamental creatures and could be set off by the slightest thing.

Cheng nodded at the princess' words, gripping his sword. He really hoped that he was with Toph when she caught the Avatar. It would be a bit of a disappointment to come all this way and miss the action. He shook his head. It'd be more likely that she'd take someone more experienced with her...

"I am here, Haru." Suki said, coming up. She had been listening for a while before she heard that she had been called. "I'll go." She could sense something was strange in the plans but knew to follow Haru, as usual. There was no reason for her not to, after all. Her fan skills were quite...powerful, after all.

[[ Sorry I haven't been on. Tonight I had a Science Fair and tomorrow I have an infectious disease thing. I have to teach a whole bunch of people about Botulism. Not the most exciting topic. -.-" ]]

"Oh yes. Feng is very tame. Not like most dragons, though he is excellent in battle when you need him." She looked at Feng, hoping he was good in battle. There hadn't been very many times when they had needed him. Though they were soon to come... She quickly walked over to Feng as he let everyone get on. She hoped none of them actually expected anything out of them...her. Azula also hoped that no one expected her to be the Avatar. She couldn't. It was too much pressure.

Aang

"How often do you need him," Aang asked, wondering exactly how many times to young kids could possibly need a dragon to fight. Wouldn't it just scare the people away, though the Earth Empire would probably still try to fight a dragon if they had to. "Well anyway, let's go back to the tribe," he said, and walked closer to Feng, not sure if he should climb on now or wait until given permission.

Zuko:

Zuko climbed onto Feng and motioned for Yue and Aang to climb aboard too. He remembered the first time he had flown on Feng. He had been scared to death. Though his cousin Lu Ten and Uncle Iroh had been there to make sure he didn't harm himself, the experience was still frightening. Over time, he had gotten used to flying on Feng. Now it didn't really affect them at all. Zuko wondered what Yue and Aang's reactions would be to flying on Feng.

"Oh, once or twice. Not very often actually, just to scare people off mostly. He's still very good. Aren't you Feng?" Azula patted his head. "Well why are you just standing there get on!" She herself hopped on casually after Zuko did. It reminded her of times when she had thought that everything was fine, times when she hadn't known she was the Avatar. Ugh. She needed to get this Avatar stuff out of her head.

Yue

Yue glanced nervously at Feng, not sure if it would be safe to ride on the dragon. When she looked at Zuko motioning for them, she felt more reassured for some reason. She cautiously approached the dragon and more cautiously climbed onto him. Yue let out a sigh of relief when Feng didn't try to throw her off.

Maybe this wouldn't be so bad. When he was a child, her father had visited the Fire Nation and had gotten to fly on a dragon. Arnook had said the experience had been like nothing he had ever had before, that it had been exciting and frightening at the same time. Maybe it would end up being fun.

((End Page 4))

Aang

Aang let go of his hesitations as the two from the iceberg climbed on, and then Yue did as well, who was more nervous than he was, and hopped on as if nothing could be more easy than leaping feet into the air and settling on the back of a dragon. He was excited, the dragon was sure to fly differently from the way he did, or a sky bison would. He wondered if he would like it as much as a passenger rather than the pilot.

Momo

The small lemur jumped aboard his new friend, now not covered with the saliva but his hair poofing out from shaking. Oh, that's just great. "My fur is a total mess, just great." Momo said, but of course it sounded like annoyed chirping to those that did not speak lemur. He looked over at the newcomers, Azula and Zuko. They seemed like an interesting enough pair, and probably very strong. This could be interesting, very interesting.

Haru

So, Suki had been listening. How obvious! Did she think she could hide that fact? Oh whatever. "Good thing you are so prepared to follow me. But this will be easy." He strode past on his way to find Jet. That particular idiot was going to meet them in Omashu, seeing as he wasn't staying in the castle with them... And of course Suki would follow. Just like a dog... where there such things as dogs? There were eelhounds... But that wasn't important at the moment. He banished the thought.

Zuko:

With a load roar, Feng spread his wings and with great gush of wind, lifted into the air. He continued to do so until they went so high that the ice blocks back on the ground were little specks. Feng continued to flap his wings and went towards the northern direction with great speed, where the Southern Water Tribe convinently lived.

Zuko gripped the saddle on Feng's back (his father had it placed so it would be easier for Azula and him to hold on) tightly. He opened his mouth to scream, but a bug suddenly flew into it, and accidentally swollowed it. He coughed a few times, and remembered another thing about Feng: he liked to show off to guests, and flew incredibly fast when he did so.


Zuko:

With a load roar, Feng spread his wings and with great gush of wind, lifted into the air. He continued to do so until they went so high that the ice blocks back on the ground were little specks. Feng continued to flap his wings and went towards the northern direction with great speed, where the Southern Water Tribe conveniently lived.

Zuko gripped the saddle on Feng's back (his father had it placed so it would be easier for Azula and him to hold on) tightly. He opened his mouth to scream, but a bug suddenly flew into it, and accidentally swallowed it. He coughed a few times, and remembered another thing about Feng: he liked to show off to guests, and flew incredibly fast when he did so.

Cheng jumped when he heard a roar. It was like something he had never heard. Fierce, powerful, and something not to trifle with. He looked in the distance and saw a vague outline of a flying creature heading north. He spoke, trying not to tremble as he spoke, "S-something is flying north." He gripped his sword, if only to calm himself.

Yue

Yue let out a loud scream when Feng started to fly higher and higher into the sky, and started to increase his speed. She held onto the saddle to stop from flying off of the great beast. This was what it was like to fly on a dragon?! Yue could feel she was turning green in the face, and felt sick to her stomach.

When she was over, she swore to never ride a dragon again, no matter what. Nothing would make her ride this dragon again.

Toph whipped around. "What is it?" she wished she could see it. "Is it the Avatar?" If anything were flying it would have to be him. He had mastered airbending so what else could it be? Maybe he even had a legendary Sky Bison. They would have to capture the beast. Azula laughed in glee. She loved it when Feng went faster then normal, it made her feel free like she could do anything. The feeling of being so high in the air was terrifying and thrilling at the same time. She wished she could do this. Just flying around. Well she could, but she wouldn't think of that.





Cheng squinted as the distance between them and the figure closed just enough for him to identify it. He calmed him, saying, "It's a Dragon, Toph. The Avatar has a dragon." In his astonishment, he forgot to address the girl by his title. He stared at the horizon, taking in the sight. He would have smiled in excitement had he not realized that they might have to fight the dragon.

Aang

It was an odd feeling, riding on the back of a speeding dragon, it felt as if anything was possible, and Aang felt so exhilarated. At the same time, he felt that this flight was not what he flew for; it wasn't for speed, but for the peace of being in the air. While he was excited about this, it wasn't what the monks had taught him. Still, how often did you get to ride on the back of a dragon? This might be the only time he could do it, so he put the matter from his mind.

Enakue was never stunned easily. Even as a child when wondering magicians would come to the temple and perform trick to entrain the younger monks he never joined because he knew a slid of hand for flick of the wrist wasn't magic. But see something that large flying left him awed... But the amazement didn't last long. " FOLLOW THAT BEAST!!" Enakue yelled at the helms men " FULL SPEED. NO EXCUSES!" He barked as the crew scattered. Procedure was procedure... "We should be at the village in minutes Princess..." Enakue said. " Ill get the grunts armored up.." He said walking to the armory

Toph grumbled. "We need to go faster then full speed!" She wished she could see what this 'beast' was. It was probably a bird. She smiled and snorted. It was probably a wolf bat...did they come down here? Who knew? Who knew anything in this changing world?

Cheng smiled despite himself at Toph's grumbling and said wryly, "I could jump into the sea and push. Of course, my armor would drag me down."

"Is that your village?" Azula asked. She hoped that Yue and Aang heard her. Feng was approaching a very small little town. If this was the South Pole it was very sad, very small. There were probably what ten little hut things? Though sometimes the best gifts were in small packages. That sounded Uncle Iroh-ish.

[[They do know Iroh right?]]

Feng:

It didn't take long for Feng to arrive at the Southern Water Tribe, considering how fast he was going. The dragon slowed his speed, and glently descended. They landed just outside of the settlement. Feng lowered his body to allow the children off. The villagers of the SWT hid inside their ice huts, scared of the creature. It wasn't until they spotted Yue and Aang on it that they slowly approached it.

Zuko stepped off of Feng, a little dizzy from the experience. He hated when Feng decided to show off. His father had always complained the same thing, and joked that Feng would be the death of him one day.

"My my...a dragon. I haven't seen one of those since I was a young child." an old man mentioned, walking forward towards the dragon. He was dressed in Air Nomad robes, along with a fur coat to help protect against the cold. As he walked forward, it became clear to Aang and Yue that it was Monk Gyatso.

And if one didn't notice it before, Monk Gyatso had no arms.

((Yue and Aang are not to react to Gyatso being armless. It is a normal sight for them. Azula is free to react. An explanation of his armless ness will be written in a few posts. And of course, they know Iroh.))

Azula jumped off Feng gratefully. She loved the thrill of flight, especially fast flight, but she also loved being on the ground. "Nice job, Feng." she complimented as she patted his nose. She turned as she heard the old man. "Really?" she asked in astonishment. Weren't dragons very common? Maybe dragons just never went to the South Pole. She understood why. Then when Azula took in the man's details did she notice he was armless. She tried not to stare. "Um..."

Aang

"Monk Gyatso! Yue and me found these two in an iceberg," Aang said, excitedly, as if he was telling his mentor and friend about finding a treasure chest full of gems and gold. "And they let us fly on their dragon! It went so fast I thought I was going to fall off! But when did you see a dragon, did you tell me about that?" He really was a child at heart, he got excited and liked to tell people about things he had done.

Yue

Yue got off of the dragon as fast as she could, thankful for the end of the trip. She would never fly on that thing again, no matter what. She was lucky she hadn't fallen off the beast.

"Hello, Monk Gyatso. As Aang said, we found these three trapped in an ice berg." Yue said. She smiled at Aang's childness, glad he was the same as ever. At least someone had enjoyed the trip. Hopefully the other villagers would accept the dragon's presence, and not faint as she hoped.

A villager gasped at the dragon, foamed at the mouth, and fell to the ground.

Ok, maybe Yue had hoped too much...

Gyatso:

"I was a young child when I last saw a dragon, around your age Aang. Back then dragons were in greater numbers, and had no need to fear from the Earth Empire, before it started the War. Fire Lord Sozin was visiting the Southern Air Temple, for reasons I cannot remember all that well. He had brought a dragon with him. It was a beautiful creature, and I even had the chance to ride it. Never in all my years would I think I'd get to see a dragon again." Monk Gyatso said, smiling at the beast.

Zuko himself couldn't help but stare at the armless Air Nomad too. What had happened to him? Whatever it was, it didn't look like it was recent due to Yue and Aang's lack of reactions.

Gyatso seemed to notice Azula and Zuko's stares. "It is alright to ask me of my disability, children. I lost one arm to the Earth Empire, when the Southern Air Temple was attacked. The other I lost to frost bite ten years ago. So, who are you two?" the elderly monk asked.

"I'm Zuko, from the Fire Nation. This is my younger sister Azula." Zuko informed. He didn't really want to tell them they were royalty, or that his sister was the new Avatar. His family never really told people of his royalty when they went on trips, unless it was necessary. And Azula being the Avatar was a private thing, that she should tell if she wanted to.

He glanced around the small settlement, disappointed. What had happened to the glorious city his father had told him about?

"Oh, sorry." she replied to the Monk. "As my brother said I'm Azula." She would never get entirely used to seeing a person with no arms, but she'd get close...hopefully. She wondered how the war was doing, it probably wasn't that much different from yesterday. It was yesterday that she had left right?

Toph scowled. "Just get ready to get on land." She hoped he didn't take this the wrong way; she actually had a little soft spot for Cheng. Which was weird. "Speaking of which, how much longer?" How she wished she wasn't blind! Missing an arm wasn't as bad as this. She needed sight to command a ship, but yet she still pulled it off.

Suki

The girl glared at Haru. He was so ungrateful for those that helped him, not understanding that they would need to work together to capture the Avatar. It was the only way that it would work--well, at least. She turned towards Long Feng and sighed, looking away towards Haru again. They would need other's help even if Haru would be so ungrateful for it. It was strange, definitely strange, but that was what Haru was like. I guess you have to know him.. She looked away again then returned to her thoughts. Omashu eh? Interesting.

((End Page 5))

"A dragon?" Toph asked. Since when were there dragons? "Just get to the village." This Avatar may be more powerful then we thought. No she would corner him and due to his old age, she would attack him and capture him. That was how it was going to work, the Avatar would not escape her.

"Yes, ma'am," Cheng said, bowing slightly before relaying her orders to the helmsman. He gripped his sword and thought, If Toph is so determined to fight now, I'll have to beside her. I won't let anything happen to her. Not again.

Feng started to growl, standing up to his full height and baring his sharp fangs. The other villagers back away from the beast, frightened. Monk Gyatso turned around to see what the dragon was growling about, and paled."I-it's the Earth Empire...a ship from the Earth Empire is coming!" Gyatso cried with alarm. The other villagers immediately went into their ice huts to hide. Most of the older women remembered what had happened the last time the Empire came to invade, and even if they wanted to resist it would be futile.

Zuko drew his twin swords from behind his back, prepared to fight. The Earth Empire was coming?! Just their luck. Wait...did they know Azula was the Avatar? He glanced at his sister, knowing he had to protect her if they came. Hopefully Aang, Yue, and the other villagers wouldn't get hurt.?

Lady Kyo

"Milady, I am sorry to disturb you, but I have important information I need to tell you." a guard dressed in black and red armor informed the older woman meditating on the floor. The woman waved her hand for the man to continue.

"The men on duty were watching the statues in the temple, as you requested. And...something happened this time. All the Avatar statues light up for a moment. They were not sure what it meant, but--"

"The Avatar has returned." the woman interjected. She stood up to her imposing height and stared down at the guard.

"You are sure of this information, guard? You have better not be lying, for you know of the consequnces." the woman threatened.

"I am not, Lady Kyo. Forgive me if you thought I was lying." the guard said, bowing.

For a few moments, the woman was silent. "We must go to Roku Island. Knowing the Avatar, he will arrive there to seek guidance from Roku's spirit. The war has changed much these past decades, since the Avatar disappeared. Alert the men we leaving now. The Order of the Black Dragon will continue its hunt for the Avatar."

Aang:

"The Earth Empire," Aang shouted in alarm. "What are they doing down here now?" He was worried that they would take him and Monk Gyatso away like the others at the North and South temples, or kill them. He ran to the older Monk, to seek comfort and guidance from the source he had since he could remember. He spared no thought to think that a dragon might take the Earth Empire's attention more-so than he and his older master.

Azula grimaced and looked at Zuko, a look of panic on her face. Were they here for her? What was she suppose to do? Not firebend? They would know that either her or Zuko would be the Avatar if they were in their Fire Nation clothes... "Do you guys have any extra parkas?" She didn't know if it would work, but it was worth a shot.

Fear crept into Yue's heart when she heard Gyatso exclaim that an Earth Empire ship was coming. No, not now! Why did those monsters have to come here again?! They'd already taken her sister...what more did they want? And how had they found out the location of the village? Had they seen that strange light Azula had been engulfed in? Or perhaps seen Feng when they were riding on him?

Toph felt that the ship was nearing the village. She could tell it had slowed down. "Men, get ready to land!" She barked. This was it. The ship was about to land and she was finally going to get the Avatar. Then she could return home to her father, and her honor could be restored. "Cheng and Enakue, your coming with me." She needed to skilled men and they were the ones she could use. Her grandfather could stay on the ship."Quick! Do you guys have any extra Water Tribe clothes?" Azula asked them again. That was their only chance of not being caught. Zuko would enjoy it because he could actually stay warm down here in this frozen world. Maybe it wouldn't work, but if they were disguised in Water Tribe clothing they would be harder to find. It was too late though for the ship had lurched to a stop, cutting through the ice to make its way through.Toph inhaled deeply and motioned for Cheng and Enakue to follow. It was time they caught the Avatar.

Cheng nodded at Toph and walked after her, a bit excited and nervous about the fight ahead. He stood behind the princess and gripped his sword, ready to unsheathe it at the any second.

The ship opened up in the front, a piece of metal that fit perfectly was what the door pretty much was. It was lowered and Toph stepped out. She hated wearing shoes, but if she were to not lose her toes to frostbite then she'd have to wear them. She hoped they stared at her missing arm, it would only make her feel more proud. Her armor glinted in the sun as she stepped onto the snow and ice. Her senses dulled a bit, but she did not show it.Azula stood motionless as she saw an armless girl walk out, well missing a arm. What was she doing down here? She was also blind. How could she see? Maybe the man behind her was her eyes? Since she had left there had been no blind-missing-an-arm important people in the Earth Empire. This would be very interesting. She waited to see Zuko's reaction.

Zuko, while the ship had been landing, had snuck around the ice huts and hid behind the nearest one to the ship. When three people got out, one being a blind, one-armed girl, Zuko got out from where he was hiding and let out a battle cry, rushing at them with his swords.He wasn't an expert with swords, but maybe he'd get lucky and defeat them. If not, Feng could always scare them away.

Cheng followed Toph off the ramp silently, the light from the sun reflecting from his armor as well as the snow around them. He has his sword half-sheathed, sending a clear message to comply or else, like he was taught to. He didn't particularly like doing this when entering a village that looked to contain mostly old people, women, and children but if it meant that the Avatar would surrender sooner, then it could save those same people from being hurt in the crossfire. He watched Toph's figure shift slightly, probably from stepping on the ice and snow but he didn't try to steady her like his instincts told him to. That would make her look weak and the princess hated looking weak, especially in front of the enemy.

He raised an eyebrow at the sight of someone in Fire Nation clothes charging at the princess. Silently, he stepped in front of Toph and aimed a light slash to disarm the swordsman

Azula smacked her palm to her forehead as Zuko ran out from behind the huts. He just totally blew their cover. If they didn't react they could've stayed hidden. Then another thought struck her, if they didn't know who the Avatar was they could probably take Zuko as the Avatar. Not good, not good at all. She waited for the girl to show signs of reaction. Though it wasn't the girl that reacted it was the man behind her. That solved it. She couldn't see and the man was her eyes. How weak she had to be then.

[[ What is Toph able to bend at this point? She's on the snow and ice... ]]

((Rocks can be on the ship to bend. And they could have brought a barrel full with them.))

His swords went flying out of his hands, and Zuko fell to the frozen ground. This wasn't good. It was times like these he wished Uncle Iroh had finished his sword-training. Feng walked foward towards the earthbenders, barring his teeth at them, growling lowly.

Cheng's smirk in victory was short-lived when he saw the dragon. He held his sword in front of him and took a defensive stance. He spoke, "Call your dragon off, Fire peasant. If he gets in the fight, this village will be destroyed in the crossfire."

Toph quickly turned to a barrel that had been brought with them. The barrel shattered and the rock flew out of it. She wrapped it around the boy and brought him over. He was taller than her, but that made no difference. "Call off your pet, peasant." Her voice was very menacing.Azula gulped as the girl made the rock encase her brother. She held her breath silently begging Feng to back off, for Zuko's sake. "Feng," She growled lowly. "Back off. He'll be fine." Hopefully no one else heard her, chances were not very good.

Reluctently, Feng backed away and stopped growling at the trio. He continued to stare at them, waiting for any sign of them hurting his masters so he could attack. Zuko struggled against the rocks that binded him, but it was to no use. He was no earthbender, and he was in no way as strong as his Uncle or Father. He glared at the girl, and also wondered how she was able to bend. Wasn't she blind? If so, how was she able to bend?Gyatso motioned for Aang and Yue to go hide in a hut, and walked forward to the leader of the group. "Why have you come here, earthbenders? You have all of this tribe's waterbenders. You killed the last one when you raided this tribe seven years ago. All the men are gone, fighting you in the Air Temples or in the Fire Nation. What reason have you to stop by here?" Gyatso asked calmly, as if not intimidated by them.

"The reason," Toph said. "Is the Avatar." She released the boy, the earth crumbled around him. "We've received information that the Avatar is hiding in your village. If he comes out peacefully then no one will get hurt." The earth that had bound the boy turned into spikes. She wouldn't use them unless absolutely necessary.Azula looked at Zuko as he was released. Many questions flashed through her mind. Should she reveal herself? She waited to see what Gyasto would say first, then she would decide.

Enakue walked down the ramp. He had stood behind Toph and Cheng to provide cover fire if they needed it. When he was satisfied that Toph had everything under control he walked down the ramp. He looked at the boy Toph had pervously encased in the rock. “Bit scrawny for a fire nation lad isn’t he, Tophy?" Enakue asked Toph using his nickname for her.

Cheng felt himself smile despite himself. Maybe he'd use that nickname for Toph himself, someday, though he didn't see the point. Her name was perfect the way it was, without adding to it or making it shorter. He frowned. Since when did he think that much about a name. He spoke, "Can you at least respect the chain of command in front of the enemy. It's Princess Toph to you."He smirked. The title had worked in intimidating opposition before and he had no reason to doubt it would work on the villagers in this frozen wasteland.

Toph smirked at the men's conversation. She spiraled the spikes, making her message clear. She was getting impatient. Of course she wouldn't actually use the spikes. "I would hate to see one of your huts destroyed..." She said nonchalantly.

Zuko fearfully glanced back at Azula, mouthing at her to not reveal herself just yet. Their was no way he'd let those monsters take his sister, if he had a choice.Gyatso snorted. "The Avatar in this village? Please, the Avatar has been gone for nearly eighty years, since that vile woman Kyoshi died. The Cycle most likely ended with that woman's death. What would make you think the Avatar is here?" Gyatso questioned.

"Don't play games with us, old man," Cheng said with a frown. He hated it when people were stubborn enough to allow their people to be harmed, "We saw the light and the dragon. The Avatar is here."

"Cheng, we understand." Toph put on a surprised look. "Avatar Kyoshi broke the cycle? There is no Fire Nation Avatar here?" She could not tell if any of them were Fire Nation because she couldn't see details in the clothes. "Cheng, Enakue, find the Fire Nation peasants." The spikes started twirling faster. "Oops," One of the spikes was let loose and it went clean through a hut, making it collapse.Azula winced as the hut was destroyed. Her clothes would so give her away. She went into the middle of the crowd. "Get over here, Zuko!" She stuck her head out and motioned for him to come over here. It would take them longer to find them if they were in the middle of a group.Toph felt the sudden movement of people and targeted them. Making sure they never left her sight.

Cheng inclined his head at the princess and strode into the village, heading towards what sounded like a girl talking to the Fire Nation peasant. He smiled in triumph when he saw that it was Fire Nation girl. He unsheathed his sword again and spoke, "You're coming with us, Avatar"

((End Page 6))

“You know Cheng it’s never polite to hold a sword to a person who maybe innocent..." Enakue said. He eyed the girl. She was a little on the small side for her age but she pulled it off rather nicely in his mind. "And at any rate were looking for an old fool/ hag. Not a girl barely our age." He said while winking at the girl with a playful smile.

Cheng nodded slowly, lowering his sword, "True. But she should know who the Avatar is.." He turned to the girl and spoke, a bit more gently, "Can you please tell us where the Avatar is? The coward must be found before this village suffers even more."

"Tell you where she is? Well your looking at her." Azula said innocently. The sword did not bother her. Fire burst from her feet and she flipped over the man. Where she had been standing the snow had melted then refroze, making it very slick. "I was just leaving anyway."

Toph was amazed to find that the Avatar was a girl. The leftover spikes melded into a large chunk. She split it into three sections and shot them at the Avatar.Azula's eyes widened as she caught sight of the boulder chunks. She fell on to her stomach and felt the boulders just miss her.

Gyatso and Zuko:

The old Monk sent a gust of wind at the man holding the sword towards Azula. "The Avatar is not here. I do not know of the light of which you speak of, but that dragon, while unusual for the South Pole, is not unusual for the rest of the world. These beats room all over the Four Nations. Or used to, at any rate. I warn you, do not harm anyone here, or you shall face my wrath. I my have no arms, but I can still airbend." Gyatso threatened. He turned towards Azula with surprise.

"Wait, you are the Avatar?" Gyatso asked.

Zuko came and stood in front of Azula and the other three. "Stop! If we continue any further, this village will be destroyed. Azula, I'm sorry to say this but...we have to surrender ourselves, for the time being."

Cheng threw Enakue a look that told him 'I told you so' before charging at the Avatar. He didn't exactly expect the Avatar to be so young but he was going to capture her anyway. He was about to slash at her but the old man's gust of air sent him away from her. He was grateful fro his amor as he slid on the ground and got up slowly. He smiled a bit when he heard the Fire peasant's voice. He sounded like he had some sense.

Azula hung her head, but she raised it again. "The keywords there are 'For the time being.'" She raised her hands in the air, waiting for them to bind her.Toph beamed widely. "Thank you for your cooperation." Her voice was smug and confident. "Cheng, Enakue, bind them up, and take them into their new hiding place, a prison cell." She accented the prison cell part. This was it. She was going home. She would finally regain her father's love.

Aang

"No, don't do it," Aang yelled, running back from the hut he had been standing outside to watch after Gyatso sent him away. He didn't want to see those two end up in an Earth Empire ship, especially since he was the one who had let them out. "Fly away on Feng!" He felt so helpless now, and responsible for their capture.

Cheng nodded and took bound the Avatar's wrists in a pair of manacles he kept on his belt, careful not to have them too tight but tight enough to make sure she didn't escape. He led her towards the ship and spoke, "You must think lowly of the Earth Imperial Navy to assume you can escape so easily, Avatar."

Zuko:

"I'm sorry Aang, but we have to do this. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if we ended up destroying your village.....don't worry about us. Just take care of Feng until we come back." Zuko said. This was the only way he could see that they'd be able to not end up destroying the village. Besides, they could always break out later.

Wait a minute....hadn't Gyatso said that the Avatar had been gone for 80 years? How...how long had he and Azula been in that iceberg?

Azula snorted. "I certainly don't think highly of you." Her heart rate spiked when she heard Aang's pleads. He sounded so desperate.Toph quickly walked over to Cheng and the Avatar. "So, Avatar, have you mastered the elements yet? How old are you?" Her joy of actually seeing the Avatar overwhelmed her.

Azula looked at the Princess and said, "Why do you need to know?"

[[ Azula would be 14 correct? (Not including the years in the ice berg.)]]

Yue

Yue stared at Azula and Zuko in shock. Azula....Azula was the Avatar? How? Most people assumed that the Avatar Cycle had ended when Kyoshi had died. So how could Azula be the Avatar? Did that really matter, though? What did matter that, if Azula was telling the truth, she was the world's only hope against the Earth Empire. For the sake of the world, their was no way they could allow those scum to take Azula and Zuko away.Yet...would they be able to stop them? Their were no waterbenders left, and Gyatso and Aang were the last of the remaining airbenders from the Southern Air Temple. The village was full of old women and children. What chance did they stand against the earthbenders?

"And what does that make you? Someone captured by someone you don't think highly of?" Cheng retorted before shutting his mouth, remembering from his training that he wasn't supposed to banter with prisoners. That distracted him and gave them the chance they needed to escape.

"Wow. That was a great comeback. I'm so amazed, even I don't have a comeback." Azula said sarcastically."Silence!" Toph barked. She stepped onto the metal and she relaxed a bit. "Load her up,"

The ship looked like a metal monster. It looked like if you went in, you never came back out. Azula gulped as she walked forward.

As Zuko was lead into the ship, he glanced back at Feng and the other villagers. The dragon made a great effort to keep himself from launching at the earthbenders. It looked like Feng would snap any moment and try to rescue them. Zuko motioned for the great beast to stand down. Reluctently, Feng did.

He glanced at Yue and Aang, and wondered if he'd ever see them again. Would he ever see Feng again too, if they couldn't escape? What about his father, mother, cousin, or uncle? What had happened to them in the supposed decades that they'd been frozen in that iceberg? Well, at least he would have Azula with him. That would be good. Maybe together they could form an escape plan. As he was brought into the ship, Zuko made a mental note to talk with his sister about how long they'd truely been gone...

Toph gruffly shoved the boy forward too. "Load him up too."

Azula glared at the girl. How could she just storm in and take them? They could escape though, she knew it. The Princess would regret she ever searched for them. Why had she come down here in the first place? First of all how could she bend if she was blind. That was just plain weird. And how did she lose her arm? There seemed to be a lot of armless people around here...

Cheng nodded at Toph as he led the Avatar into the ship. He asked her, "Do you want them in separate cells, Princess?"

Toph thought for a moment. "Yes, separate cells." That way the couldn't plan anything. And if one escaped they could be caught before they got the other. "As far apart as possible."Shoot. Okay, so now what were they suppose to do? She didn't know if Zuko could escape. Azula's face crinkled in concentration as she thought of how to get her and her brother free.

Cheng nodded and told the guard that had the Fire peasant in manacles to take him to the front of the ship while he took the Avatar to the back. He smiled as they approached the cell, knowing that once the Avatar was in there, she wouldn't be able to escape. He spoke, "The Earth Emperor will be pleased to meet you, Avatar."

"I'm sure he would. It's a shame though that he won't ever see me." Azula replied. She'd stay in this cell for a while. It would be that long until she thought of a plan. She couldn't think of any way that firebending would be of use in here...

Cheng smirked, "You have a good sense of humor. Should help you on the long voyage home." He unlocked the cell and gently shoved the prisoner into it.

(I'm presuming that the ship has already left.)

Yue

Yue watched as the ship left the village, growing smaller and smaller until it disappeared from her sight. Would they ever see Zuko and Azula again? Would those two be able to escape from the Empire? So many questions, and their was no way she'd be able to answer them. Unless...

"Aang, we have to go rescue them." Yue spoke up. If Azula really was the Avatar, then she was the only hope against Earth Emperor Long Feng and the rest of those monsters. If Zuko and his sister weren't able to escape, then they'd have to break them out.She glanced at Feng, a plan forming in her mind. While Yue never wanted to ride that beast again, she'd make an exception to rescue Azula and Zuko. With Aang's airbending abilities (though he wasn't as good enough to her liking at this moment), her rusty fighting skills her parents had taught her, Feng, and heck, even with Momo they might be able to pull it off.

Zuko:

Zuko winced as he was roughly thrown into his cell. He cursed Agni for having them put his sister and himself in different cells. How were they going to escape now? Zuko definitly wasn't as smart as his sister was, as much as he hated to admit it. Nor was he a firebender, or a good swordsman for that matter. Without Azula to help him formulate a plan, could they escape from the earthbenders before they arrived at Ba Sing Se?

Azula thought frantically as she stumbled into her cell. What could firebending do in here? Think think think....um...The ship was made of metal...metal is purified earth...And I haven't learned earthbending yet. Ugh, what can I do? Suddenly something popped in her head. She would wait for the cell door to close before she tried it out.

Cheng grinned as he locked the door to the Avatar's cell, making sure to leaving the manacles on her, and left for the bridge of the ship. Perhaps Toph would be in a better mood now that the Avatar was captured.

Azula pulled her hands apart, yanking at the chain hoping it would break. It didn't. Could she touch the chain? No, but she could touch things behind her. She backed up to the cell door and put her hands on the handle. She inhaled deeply and started to super heat her hands. The next time a guard opened the door, they'd get a severe burn...if this worked.

((End Page 7))

Aang

"Shh! Keep it down, we don't want the adults to hear and stop us from going," Aang said as he ran over to her. "We'll wait until everyone is calmer and back into their ordinary routines, then we'll sneak on Feng and go rescue them," he said quietly. He could only hope that Monk Gyatso wouldn't notice something odd about him before they left.

"Did you say you were going to rescue them?" Gyatso asked, seemingly coming from nowhere. He looked hard at Aang and Yue, and looked like he was about to scold them or tell them they couldn't do that when he broke out into a grin and had one of the other villagers hand the duo a few packs."You'll need some supplies if you want to rescue and help the Avatar get to the Western Air Temple. You can both go with my blessings. Aang, Yue, do your best out their. With you helping the Avatar, I have a feeling that everything will be fine, and that balance will finally be restored. Oh, and make sure not to forget Momo. He'll want to go with you." Gyatso said, his eyes twinkling.

Yue

Yue let out a breath of relief when Gyatso said they could go, instead of telling them to stay here. It was good of him to let them go. At least now she wouldn't feel bad for leaving the Tribe without telling Gyatso or someone else."Thank you Gyatso. I promise I'll look after Aang during this. And we will make sure not to forget Momo." Yue said, taking a few packs from the other villagers. This was it...she was actually going to leave the Tribe. She'd never left the South Pole before. What would the rest of the world be like?Well, she could think upon that later. Right now they needed to rescue Zuko and Azula.

Aang

"Seriously," Aang asked, shocked that his mentor was actually saying that. He didn't know why, Monk Gyatso had never really given him reason to think he wouldn't allow him to leave, but it just didn't seem like something he would do. "Thank you Monk Gyatso," he said and hugged him, expressing not only his gratitude, but his sadness about leaving his friend behind.

"It is no trouble, Aang. I hope that the next time I see you, the world will be a better place. No go, rescue Azula and her brother." Gyatso said, ushing them towards Feng. He gave the them one last smile before the dragon lifted into the air, and went towards the direction of Toph's ship.

Enakue had left Zuko in his cell. He wanted to talk to Azula. "Yo Cheng. Take a break. Ill guard her you go get something to eat man." Enakue said. He wanted answers for things and she (as far as he knew) could provide them.

(sorry i have posted much today. Just assume that Enakue had Zuko and Cheng Azula. ..blasted community survice keeping me awway from my dear internets)

Yue

Yue gave a scream when Feng lifted off of the ground and flew into the air. Thankfully, he didn't seem to be flying as fast as before. Well, she might be able to live with flying on Feng if he didn't go so fast. Though, how were they going to rescue Zuko and Azula? Feng could tear the ship apart....but that might end up hurting them."Have you got a plan to rescue them?" Yue shouted over the roaring wind.

"It's fine," Cheng told Enakue with a smile, "I want to see the princess smile now that we have that Avatar in custody." It was for that reason. It was not because he had a thing for Toph like so many others teased him about. Besides, he liked being out on the bridge. The ship made him claustrophobic.

Toph was up on deck. She had felt a thousand tons lift off her when she said, "Head for Ba Sing Se." This was great. She was finally going to be home, her honor would be restored, and she'd have her father's love again. "I told you it was going to be easy." Toph said smugly to her grandfather.

Aang

Feng wasn't going as fast this time, but his speed was still remarkable, and Aang couldn't help but feel exhilerated, forgetting about everything except flying. This was where he belonged, in the sky, with the wind roaring past him. His mind drifted back to Azula, and his stomach flipped slightly, she was in the Earth Empire's custody because of him, he needed to free her, and her brother.Bumi"Yep, I guess this means nothing stands in your way of going home now," Bumi said. "I guess the Avatar has lost a thing or two since Kyoshi. Well anyway, I'm going to go take a nap, my old bones need some rest." He left to go to his quarters on the ship, leaving Toph with the crew.

It didn't take them long to catch up with the EE ship. Feng slowed his speed and lowered as they approached the ship. At the moment, no one seemed to be on deck. Hiding from of the bridge, Feng put his body next to the deck to let the children on.

Meanwhile, with Cheng out on the bridge, an Empire guard came over and watched the Avatar. "Not so threatening, are you girl? You look like you could barely harm a fly. You're no Avatar. You're just a helpless little girl." the guard mocked.

"So, what are you going to do when we get back to Ba Sing Se?" Cheng asked Toph cheerfully, "My little brother must have discovered girls by now." He chuckled a bit at the thought.

"So....What are you guys gonna do when we get back?" Enakue asked. " I'm probably gonna start gutting the old air bender temples. You know? Start up some temples... spread the word and all that good stuff." Enakue hated to admit it but it was gonna be boring not being around Toph and Cheng. Seeing the world, tasting exotic foods. He was gonna miss this.

"I'm going to take the Avatar to my father. That's what. How old is this brother of yours?" Toph never really chatted a lot anymore, but she felt a sort of... connection with Cheng. Hopefully it didn't turn into anything more or it would get in the way of things. Toph looked at Enakue then. She shrugged. "After the Avatar is in chains at Ba Sing Se I could do whatever I wanted." Azula smirked. This was it. "You wanna see how helpless I am? If your not chicken you'd come in here and fight me like a man, instead of insulting me from afar!" She heated the handle even more. He'd have to unbolt and unlock the door, then when he touched the handle Azula would open the door. Simple as that, hopefully.

Aang

Aang jumped from Feng to the ship when they were close enough and no one was looking. The ship was full of Earth Empire guards, and as much as he hated to admit it, he just wan't good enough at airbending to keep them away. Maybe an airblast here or there, but nothing that could stop a group. Well, then, he just would have to be stealthy enough not to get caught, and hopefully Yue could pull it off too.

"My brother turned 11 last month," Cheng said thoughtfully, "He's a very bright kid. My father hopes to get him into Ba Sing Se University. That's where a lot of my pay for serving in the army is going to." He looked away and felt himself flush in shame. Toph was a princess. She probably didn't want to know about the lives of poor peasants.

Yue

Yue quietly got off of the ship and landed on the deck. So far no one was there, but that might not last for long. They needed to get below deck fast, and break Azula and Zuko out. Hopefully it wouldn't be too hard to find them. After all, how hard could it be finding two Fire Nation citizens, one being the Avatar, on a ship filled with Earth Empire soldiers?....ok, that was a bad example.Motioning for Aang to follow Yue, as quiet and soundless as she could, went below deck and started to look for the prison block.

Feng flew away into the sky, high enough so the soldiers on the ship wouldn't see him. He slowed down some and followed the ship, waiting for the children to come back on deck and rescue them.

The Imperial guard scowled at Azula and swore at her. He unlocked and unbolted the door, grabbed the handle-And let out a powerful scream, letting go of the burning handle. The guard bashed his head against the metal wall and became unconscious. Meanwhile, a guard had been giving Zuko a meal when they heard the scream. The guard turned around in alarm, letting his defense down. Zuko immediately jumped the unprepared soldier and hit his forehead against the wall to knock him out. He ran down the hall to find his sister and free her.

Once that was done, they would need to go to the armory. He needed his swords back, and whatever had been taken off of Azula too.

Haru looked back before climbing aboard his eelhound. "Come on, Suki! We have to meet Jet in Omashu! NOW LET'S GO!" He sighed and rolled his eyes. That girl took forever to do anything, though he knew she would. Of course she would because she had nothing better to do... and it might just benefit her down the road. Yes, Haru thought to himself. I've got her figured out.

((Ok, one last time, to make everything clear: Haru and Suki have not met Jet yet. They don't know him yet. They will meet him in Omashu.))

Username: Nightmare13
Name: Jet
Age: 17
Gender: male
Bender: no
Personality: To make things easy. Jet is bat sh*t insane. He only cares about fighting, and a little about getting stronger.
History: Jet's parents were killed when he was 7 for being unloyal to the EE, and helping with small rebelions. He was left alive but was forced to watch his parents being killed.

This was a turning point for him. He has been the member of many rebelions against the EE, and why? He has no purpose but to fight and win, and because of his parents unloyalty was not accepted into the army, so he decided to fight the EE just for the fun of it. And thus he became well known for his ruthlesness, and his power. He is oftened asked how watching his parents' death changed him, he would always reply "I liked it."

He has now found himself in his most "exciting" rebelion yet. He has joined forces with the Omashu rebelion. He was deputy of the operation because of his fame, until he was fighting with the leader to take control of Omashu, and the leader had been killed by a Dai Li assasin, whom Jet tracked and killed. He is now the leader of the Omashu rebels.

Appearance: http://fc12.deviantart.com/fs22/f/2007/351/4/f/Avatar_Jet_by_togatsuko.jpgWeapons: two hook swords, and his mighty bird calls (which do nothing.)
Other: He lacks style.

"Yes my lord!"

(Sorry, I forgot to put that in earlier.))

"Cool." Toph said with interest in her voice. "But I don't think he'd be getting into girls that early." She mocked. Then she too heard the loud scream. "GET GUARDS DOWN THERE AND DON'T LET THEM ESCAPE!" She yelled the the crew. And she herself ran down.

Azula slammed the door open and saw Zuko running down the hall. "C'mon, Zuko! They'll be down here any minute!"

((Accepted, Nightmare.))

Zuko went into a nearby room, which just happened to be the armory, and got his duel swords back. "Ok, let's go. Do you have a plan to get off this ship?" Zuko asked as he and Azula started to run down the hall, heading towards the deck.

Cheng ran after Toph, cursing himself for underestimating the Avatar. How did she even escape? He didn't know but if, when they caught her again, he'd make sure to be more careful with imprisoning her in a cell. He drew his sword when the Fire Peasants came into view and smiled in anticipation.

Aang"Drat, something's happening," Aang said, looking around as the clamor grew and guards were swarming. "We've gotta hide somewhere or they'll take us prisoner too!" He was starting to panick, he didn't want this adventure to end so suddenly and so badly, not when they hadn't even found Azula and Zuko yet.

((End Page 8

Zuko:

"This way Azula!" Zuko cried, heading towards the direction he hoped the stairs to the deck was. He dashed down hallways, hoping he picked the right directions. Two guards came at them, but Zuko leapt over them and smashed their heads together. He rounded a corner----and ran straight into Yue, bumping his forehead to her's. Again.

Yue hissed with pain when Zuko bumped into her, once again hitting his forehead against her's. Spirits, why had this happened again? Wait a minute...Zuko and Azula were free! That made their job a whole lot easier. She immediately stood up."We have to get out of here now. Feng's waiting for us."

"Any kind of plan or are we just gonna wing it?" Enakue asked Toph rounding the corner. "Why are the cute ones always trouble makers?" He asked to himself thinking of the Avatar. He pulled a earthen glove out of his pocket and molded it into a make shift whip. He flicked the whip experimentally to see if it would work. He was satisfied with it.

"We're just winging it, but make sure there are people on deck if they get up there...you know I'll wait for them up there. You guys go get them." Toph thought aloud. She then quickly dashed up the steps to the deck.

Azula scrambled after Zuko yelling, "Are you sure you know where we're going?" as Zuko leaped over the guards Azula simply barged through, for they were distracted by Zuko. Then she saw Yue. Aang should be around here. "We can't just stop here we need to get moving!" She wanted out of this ship. It was very dark and small, easy to escape, but small.

Cheng nodded at Toph and said, "As you wish. They shouldn't be too hard to capture the second time round." With that said, he continued searching the corridors of the ship.

Aang

Aang saw as Zuko and Yue hit foreheads again, and winced, it looked just as painful as the last time they did it. "How did you guys free yourselves," he asked, looking at the way he and Yue had just come from. "Feng was somewhere around here, following the ship, we just need to get to the open and we can escape on him."

Zuko:

"I don't know how Azula escaped, but from what I heard it wasn't pleasant. Let's go now! I don't feel like fighting an entire ship of earthbenders right now." Zuko said and started to dash the way Aang and Yue had come. Well, this was convenient. And very lucky for them. Now they could ride on Feng and get out of here.

Yue

Yue followed Zuko and went towards the way they had come. A few hallways away she could hear the clanking of several dozen feet chasing after them. If they didn't hurry, they might all get captured. Then they'd be worse off than when they started.

Azula smirked at the thought of how she got out. "Oh it wasn't that bad...at least not for me." Her grin widened. She then ran behind Zuko. She thought she could see the steps leading up from here. Or maybe they had just found another dead end. No it Aang and Yue had come through here then this had to be the way out.

Aang

Aang followed, looking over his shoulder to see if the guards were within sight. If they could keep ahead of them, then escape would be simpler. He was betting alot on Feng's appearance scaring them though, there weren't any villagers to threaten this time, and they were on a small boat in the middle of an ocean. He couldn't suppress a slight grin, even with all the threats around, they were going to escape, and Azula was coming with them, and Zuko too, but Aang didn't spare him too much thought at the moment.

Cheng had spent what felt like no time at all, frantically searching for the prisoners, when he ran into someone. He looked up to see it was the Avatar. He drew his sword and asked her and her companions, "You're not going to come quietly, are you?" He took a step back, and dropped into a defensive stance.

Azula laughed and rolled her eyes. She motioned for the others to stop. "So your finally going to take it like a man?" She said referring to when she had first been thrown in the cell. "Your not insulting me anymore?" She fluttered her eyebrows, and then she waved her arm in front of her and a wave of fire went toward the guard. Use a sword to dodge that. She growled.

Zuko:

Zuko grabbed a smoke bomb, which he had acquired from the armory, and threw it to the ground. Smoke instantly started to fill the hallways. "Come on guys, we need to get out of here now! We don't have enough time to waste to fight them." Zuko cried out.He dashed up the stairs to the deck. Feng swooped down and lightly landed on the deck, waiting for the children to get onto him.

Cheng smirked and held the sword in front of his face. It was unfortunate for him that he didn't know what different colors of fire meant. He assumed, like ordinary fire, it'd just make his sword glow red from the heat, not melt as it did on his face. He cried out and fell to the ground covering his face, tears of pain running down his cheeks.

Azula winced as she heard the man, but continued to run. It was for the better, it was for the better, she repeated in her head. She got to the steps and stopped when a spike nearly caught her on the arm. She ran up the stairs to see who had thrown the spike. The blind princess stood there. She also shot a rock at Zuko.

Toph didn't care about the boy. All she wanted was the girl, the Avatar. The name sounded so sweet on her lips. "Come peacefully and no one will get hurt. This includes your pet." The dragon did not disturb Toph. Her kingdom had slain many of them, it would not be too terribly hard if it was needed.

Aang

He was too late to block the spear, but Aang sent an airblast toward the rock, and it blew away into the water instead of nailing Zuko. He stared at the girl, taking in for the first time she was blind, not having noticed when she was in the south pole. "Ignore her, let's just get on Feng," he said, not wanting to confront the princess, especially when her guards were somewhere around here.

Yue

Yue stopped short when the Imperial Princess confronted them. Great, they were being stopped by her. Did the Spirits just not want them to make a quick getaway? She gasped as the sharp rock was sent at Zuko, but breathed a sigh of relief when Aang sent a gust of wind to block it. Yue had hoped he wouldn't be hurt. For some reason, she didn't think much about Azula almost getting hit by the spear.Yue sprinted towards Feng at Aang's suggestion, getting onto the great beast. Aang was right, they needed to get out of here now.

"Tisk, Tisk. It’s not nice to ignore people kid." Enakue said. He flicked the whip around the boy’s neck. He turned to Azula. "You hurt my friends.......I hurt yours." He said pulling the towards him. “It is nothing personal kid”. He said to the young monk. Pity, Kid would have made a good apprentice if he was an earth bender. He pulled the whip of the boy’s neck roughly. “Just business”

((I asked Lol to allow me to write the parts where Azula went into the Avatar State, and she agreed. She PMed me a post where Azula went into the Avatar State, and I said it was ok. However, Lol got off line before she posted it. So, hope you don't mind me doing this Lol. I want the RP to get rolling along, and you can post Azula going in and coming out of the Avatar State when you get back on.))

Zuko:

Zuko gasped in horror as Aang's neck was roughly gripped by the rock-whip of an Imperial earthbender. Azula looked horrified, and incredibly angry. As did Feng. Suddenly, Azula's eyes lit up a bright blue. She launched a massive wave of fire at Enakue's whip, melting it instantly. She sent a ball of blue fire towards the earthbender, and went on to defeat the soldiers coming onto the deck, burning several of them badly.

Azula turned towards Toph, but let out a loud scream and clutched her head. Four spirits came out from Azula, and flew to the air. Two of them held the struggling third spirit back."The Avatar Spirit is rightfully mine! Let me go, traitors! I must bring balance to this world, I must become the Avatar again! Let me go, so I can kill the girl and restore my body!" the held-back spirit shouted, cursing at the two holding her back and the one in front of her.

"Silence Kyoshi! You had your chance. Instead of bringing balace back to the Earth Kingdom, you ruined everything by starting a war! You have brought nothing but unimaginable chaos to the Four Nations. Azula shall restore everything you tore down! Now, serve your sentence in the Underworld and leave the girl alone!" the spirit in front of her cried.

A portal opened behind Kyoshi and the two Avatars holding her cast her into it. "This isn't over, traitors! I will return. Every time that girl goes into the Avatar State, I get closer to her mind. Soon, my reign will begin once again and the Empire shall be victorious under my rule! This isn't over, Azula, this isn't over!" Kyoshi cried as she was thrown into the portal. It closed up and the three Avatar spirits returned into Azula's body.

Azula stumbled a few steps before hitting the hard metal floor, seemingly unconscious.

[[ I don't mind. :3 I was suppose to be back earlier, but we had some car troubles. ]]

She had to make sure she was feeling right. This girl had just taken out all the guards on deck. She had gone into defensive stance when the Avatar turned toward her, but Toph cocked her head at the noises when they started. She couldn't feel them, but she could definitely hear them. Kyoshi? Wow, that was weird. She then turned to the girl when she had finally fallen to the ground. Now was the time.

Aang

Aang watched wide eyed as Azula took out everyone on the deck, and then the strange thing with the spirits happened. He didn't understand it, but he felt afraid when Kyoshi was vowing revenge, she was truly frightening. Azula fell, and Aang hurried to pick her up and jumped onto Feng, placing Azula in front of him. "Come on Zuko, hurry up," he said, still shaken up slightly from Azula's entrance to the Avatar state.

Zuko:

Zuko didn't need to be told twice. While he was still at awe at Azula's awesome display of power, and fear from seeing the spirit of the infamous Avatar Kyoshi, Zuko didn't plan on sticking around any longer. He jumped onto Feng, made sure everyone was on, and shouted for the dragon to go. Feng lifted into the air (destroyed the bridge of the ship with his tail), and flew away as fast as he could.

((End Page 9))

Cheng groaned in pain as he listened to a commotion above deck. He knew instinctively that something was happening. In his pain, however, he couldn't remember what could be doing that. He crawled desperately down along the corridor before collapsing with a yell as his wound stung yet again.

Yue

Yue was silent as they fled from the Earth Empire ship. The events that had just happened amazed and frightened her. That was how powerful the Avatar was? Simply amazing....but what was up with the four spirits that had come out of Azula? And had one of them truly been Avatar Kyoshi? Just the name of the brutal Avatar made Yue shuddered. Back when the South Pole was more majestic, children had often been told that Kyoshi would get them in their sleep if they didn't behave. Yue just hoped that Kyoshi's appearance was a one-time thing.At least they all made it. She was especially glad that Zuko and Aang were alright. Monk Gyatso would have killed her if Aang had gotten harmed, and Zuko...well, he was kinda growing on her, even if they had just met a few hours ago. Azula and Feng as well. "So," Yue began, turning towards the others, "What's our plan now? We can't go back to the South Pole."

Toph winced as the bridge of the deck was destroyed. With the deck left her prize, her honor, her father's love. She cussed as she realized now they'd have to find someone to repair it. They'd have to go pretty far with the bridge wrecked. That messed up a lot of things. And they'd have to hunt down the Avatar. Then she heard the groan of pain. She turned around searching for it. There was someone below deck. She scrambled down and felt that it was Cheng. But it couldn't be... could it? "Cheng?" She asked.

Yue's voice startled her, Azula moaned and grabbed her head. She had a massive headache. She steadied herself as she found herself on Feng. Azula could remember most of it. Her getting mad, then the yells of that cursed spirit. It had been Kyoshi vowing for revenge. She rubbed her temples trying to get the memory come back again. It came and it scared her. The Avatar State was not to be messed with. And she could never go into it again for fear Kyoshi would get closer to her mind. But she knew that was impossible. The Avatar State was a tool and could be controlled. She'd have to find someone or something to get the spirit out of her.

"We'll go to the Western Air Temple, I guess. Azula needs to learn airbending first, and it's the closet Temple. Besides....Azula, we've been gone for nearly 66 years. Who knows what's happened to Uncle Iroh, Cousin Lu Ten, and our parents. We need to go to the Fire Nation while we're traveling." Zuko mentioned. His spirit saddened at the thought of how long they had been gone. What had happened to his family? What had changed in the Fire Nation? So many questions, and no answers. Yet. Zuko hoped that his family were alright and still alive, but considering how long they'd been gone...well, they'd find out sooner or later.

((After a few more posts, we'll do a time-skip and move to Episode 2.))

Azula looked up. "66 years? It can't be! Can it? It was just yesterday that we got trapped in that storm. Yesterday! How could it be 66 years?" This was impossible! She hoped Lu Ten was at least alright. She couldn't stand it if they were both gone. She could barely stand the thought of Uncle Iroh being gone. No. This couldn't be! She quickly put out the flame that was growing on her hand.

"Toph?" Cheng questioned as he heard the princess' voice. He tried to smile but he couldn't. The metal of the sword had melted on the left side of his face and he couldn't see with the eye on that side. He was grateful the metal had dripped off sometime ago but he still burned.

Toph almost laughed. This couldn't be real. Someone had drugged her tea or something. She fell to her knees and felt Cheng's face. Her head cocked to the side. "What happened to you?"

"It was a mistake on my part. The Avatar's fire is hotter than normal. I underestimated it and my sword melted in my face," Cheng said with a frown, "I'm sorry. I failed to stop her."

Enakue had been thrown from the ship into the freezing waters below. Needless to say this was not the greatest day he had ever had. As the grunts were pulling him out of the water he had enough time to see the Avatar flying away. "Darn..." He mumbled as he took a drink from the gourd on his hip. He spit it out when he tasted the water. “How’s officer Cheng?” Enakue asked a private in a voice that could kill. “Uh, Err, I d-don’t know…sir” He said. Enakue gave the private a stern look. “Well don’t you think you should find out…NOW!!!” He barked. As the private fled Enakue stared at the dot that was the fleeing avatar. “…Well its about time you did something…” He said slightly happy that the avatar was back. He didn’t have all the answers he wanted but he was happy with what he got out of their encounter. The Avatar was back. And she was no cowered.

(OOC: He blamed the avatar for the destruction of his temple and sudo-family. Just in case nobody got that before. also this is his last action in ep.1 )

Toph grimaced. "It's not your fault. I have faith that you would've captured her." She kept her anger under control. She wasn't angry at Cheng, she could never be, she was angry that she'd let the Avatar escape. A mere girl had been unconscious at her feet and she did get her. Oh well. Toph reached a hand to Cheng to help him up.

Aang

"66 years? You're the avatar? Man this is confusing," Aang said, trying to make sense of the coversation and what he'd seen. He had thought he'd just released two fire nation people, not the Avatar and her brother. It was so much to take in, but he was easy to bounce back, soon he'd be able to think of it without the shock affecting him.

Bumi

"Ah, what a nice nap," Bumi said coming onto the deck of the ship, and looked around at the chaos. "Hmm... it appears that I've missed something big happening. The Avatar escaped, it would seem."

Zuko:

"Yeah, this is all confusing...I think we should just rest for now. We have a long way to go before reaching the Fire Nation." Zuko said. He checked one of the packs on Feng, and discovered four sets of sheets for them. Zuko thanked the spirits for that. He didn't want to sleep without something to cover him over the roaring (and icy cold) wind. The sky grew darker as the sun started to set. As Zuko drifted off into sleep, he wondered how much his nation had changed...

Avatar: The Legend of Azula, Book 1: Air.

Chapter 2: The Lord of New Roku

Two days of endless sea had made Zuko very bored, to say the least. Luckily, a map had been in one of the packs, so they had an idea of where they were going. However, he had begun to fear they'd taken the wrong direction, as the Mainland of the Fire Nation hadn't appeared yet. And suddenly, an island appeared up ahead. But more importantly, Zuko recognized the island. It was the City of New Roku, named in honor after the last Fire Avatar, who had killed Qui-Zen the Terrible, a mad-man that had threatened (and nearly destroyed) the Fire Nation. His grandfather had taken them to the island several times, to visit his cousin Lu Ten. Zuko and his sister had always been delighted to see their cousin, who had helped in the Liberation of Roku three years previously, freeing the city from Earth Imperial control.

Lu Ten had even been made Lord over the island town, if he remembered correctly. Lu Ten...what had happened to him during the decades they'd been gone?

"Azula look, it's New Roku!" Zuko cried, bringing Feng to land nearby behind the city walls.

Earth Empire Port:

Meanwhile, Toph and her crew came to the nearest Imperial Port to have their ship repaired from all the damages done to it. While Toph and Bumi were outside of the ship, someone approached them.

"Well well well, if it isn't the exiled Princess Toph. How nice to see you again, Princess." the man said, briefly bowing to her. It was Xin Fu.

((Hope you don't mind me placing Toph and Bumi outside of the ship. For those who don't remember him, Xin Fu was one of two bounty hunters hired by Toph's parents to get her back.))

Cheng was one of the guards that were accompanying Toph and Bumi in the harbor. He was glad of it. He wanted to keep an eye on Toph, knowing that she could become over-obsessed with capturing the Avatar now that she appeared. The Avatar... He felt the left side of his face or, rather, the bandages covering it. He was lucky his eye wasn't damaged but he would forever be squinting and everyone would be staring at the half of his face that was burned.

Yue

"New Roku? Good, we've finally found somewhere to land..." Yue mentioned. Spirits was she glad that they could get off of this dragon now. For the past two days she hadn't been able to strech her legs, and Yue had been getting sick and tired of staying on Feng. It was also good that they had arrived, since already they were running low on food. They definitly needed to remember to buy some food today.New Roku....it oddly sounded familiar. Wasn't that the place where her father had mentioned he was at, when he last wrote her a letter? Yes, Yue believed it was. Arnook had written that the town was wonderful, and had an interesting Lord.

"While we're here, we need to get supplies. We're already running low on food." Yue reminded the others.

((Suki and Haru are leaving to Omashu, as are Katara, Bato, and Sokka. They will arrive in Omashu when Episode Three begins, so you don't have to write for Suki for awhile. Mai and the Roku Warriors will be appearing next episode. Momo is with the Gaang, and just rescued Azula and Zuko and escaped from Toph two days ago. Toph is getting the ship repaired at an EE base, and she and her grandfather are outside of the ship. They've just been approached by Captain Xin Fu, our Admiral Zhao. We are now at the beginning of episode two, where Zuko and Azula will meet Lu Ten later on.))

[[ Sorry I wasn't on yesterday. I wish I could've, but my parents had me busy all day. ]]

"Huh. Xin Fu. I wasn't expecting you here." Toph would've crossed her arms over her chest, but she only had one so it looked a little weird. She tried not smirk. She had found the Avatar and she could brag. But she (She still couldn't believe it was a girl) had escaped. So it was probably best to keep that to herself. Toph just hoped her Grandfather didn't mention anything.

Azula almost fell of Feng trying to get a good look at the island. "Isn't this the place where Lu Ten lives?" Or lived. No. Lu Ten would be alive as she knew Uncle Iroh would be too. She hoped that her Uncle was here with him so she could see if he was alive. She couldn't take the suspense anymore. Plus she was cramped from being on Feng for two days. Feng was not very comfortable. If she were to learn to airbend she could fly along with Feng. Her and Aang both could. That would be great just flying along with Aang by her side...Azula looked to the island impatient to see if her cousin would still be there.

Aang

"Hmm, I've never been here," Aang said, as he jumped off of Feng and landed beside him, looking around. "Of course, I didn't go many places except when Monk Gyatso took me when he traveled." He looked over to Azula and Zuko and asked, "who's Lu Ten, and why is this city called 'New Roku' anyway?" They seemed to know about it, or more than he did anyway.

Bumi"Ah if it isn't captain Xin Fu," Bumi said, and laughed again, for Xin Fu had gotten that rank while he was still leading the Earth Empire. "Last I heard you were leading an assault on the Fire Nation, how did that go?"

Xin Fu:

"It's Commander Xin Fu now, and the raid was a complete success. Another port town has fallen to the Earth Empire. It won't be long now until we have enough forces to take down both the Capital and the Western Air Temple. I see your ship has acquired much damage. How did this happen? Oh, and how's the useless hunt for the Avatar coming?" Xin Fu asked.

Zuko:

"Lu Ten's our cousin. He helped liberate New Roku back when it was under Imperial control. He was a great man, and..." At this, Zuko's voice faltered. Lu Ten....could he be dead? After all, they'd both been gone nearly seventy years. Who knew how many members of their family were alive, if any of them were?

No. Zuko had to keep up hope that at they were all alive. If not for his sake, than Azula's. They had been very close to Lu Ten and Uncle Iroh, as well as their parents. He had favored Mom more than Dad, and Azula vice-versa. But still, he loved them all. He needed to keep up hope that they were alive. But if they all were truly dead...

"It's called New Roku because of Avatar Roku, whom it is named after. Hundreds of years ago Avatar Roku helped save the Fire Nation from Qui-Zen the Terrible, a madman that nearly destroyed our nation. When this island was settled, the citizens decided to name it after Roku, after all he had done." Zuko said, deciding to change the topic.

They all approached the giant walls of New Roku, where firebenders patrolled the top of the wall, looking for any incoming Earth Empire vessels. Up near the entrance into the city, an amusing scene seemed to be unfolding.

An older man was weeping at the feet of Fire Nation guards, who seemed to be burning a cart of cabbages."Get out of here, Imperial scum! We don't accept your kind of merchants. Now leave, before we burn you as well!" the guards threatened.

"My cabbages!" the older man weeped, seemingly not able to say anything else. He was dragged away by two guards.

Zuko tried not to laugh at the sight, but calmed down when he approached the guards.

"Business or pleasure, and reason?" a sentry asked.

"Erm...pleasure, I suppose. We're, ah....suppose to meet up with my parents in New Roku." Zuko answered.

"Names?"

"These are my....cousins, Aang and Yue. This is my sister....Lin, and I'm....Lee." Zuko lied. It would be best not to use their true names while here, since they were suppose to be still missing. It wasn't like they'd believe them anyways, but it might end them in a lot of trouble.

"Very well, you don't look like Imperials to me. Go on ahead. Open the gate!" the sentry shouted. Seconds later the massive gate started to expand, and Zuko and the other were allowed into the city. The city itself was grand. Beautiful buildings that dated all the way to Roku's time filled the city. Dozens of mail-delivery system shutes spread across the city, half of them being used constantly. Merchants haggled over prices with citizens in the Market District, and a massive Palace was visible near the center of the city.

"Welcome to New Roku, guys."

Yue

Yue stared with wonder at the grand city of New Roku. It was...magnificient. The South Pole didn't even come close to looking like this. To think such a city existed...she'd never imagine it. Her father had been true to his word. New Roku was a marvelous city. "What are those?" Yue asked, pointing to the mail-delivery shutes. In her letters, Father had spoken of them, but Yue had long forgotten what Arnook had written about them.

"It's different from last time we were here." Azula said after they were through the gates. "Isn't it...Lee?" She snickered at the name. Of course Lin wasn't any better. She didn't want to burst into full sprint and see if Lu Ten was there, but she did rock on the balls of her heals. She wanted to make sure Lu Ten was alive. It would be too much if he wasn't. She then responded to Yue's question. "Those deliver the mail. They put them in the boxes then send them down the chutes. It's actually very neat."

To add more detail she said, "When New Roku was liberated, the Imperials left behind the mail-delivery system. Instead of getting rid of it, Lu Ten kept it because it was very useful. While it doesn't work as well when earthbenders use it, it still does."

[[ Hope you don't mind I used your exact words. ^///^ ]]

"It was an engine failure, sir," Cheng told Xin Fu quickly, disliking the arrogant man at once and not wanting him to know about the Avatar, "I was in the boiler room when it happened." He gestured to his face.Lu Ten stood precipice of his palace, overlooking the city. Today, he felt reflective. He thought about his family. More specifically, his cousins. He missed them a lot and grieved them greatly when he first heard of their disappearance. The worst part was that the Avatar hadn't been reborn. He feared that without the Avatar, the Earth Empire would eventually conquer the rest of the world.

Zuko:

This place held a lot of memories for them, Zuko reflected. They'd had great times with Lu Ten when they visited him. In fact, that palace was where Lu Ten used to live. It was Roku's summer home several hundred years ago, and had been made into Lu Ten's home when the city was liberated. Even if he was alive though, their was no telling who might be living in it now. The chutes....Zuko had fond memories of those. He sighed at the memory of when Lu Ten had convinced them to ride them, it had been one of the most exciting moments of his young life. The ride had scared him to death, but it had been worth seeing the look on Azula's face during and after it. While she wouldn't admit it, he knew she had been frightened as well.

"Would you guys like to do something fun?" Zuko suddenly asked. He needed to take his mind off of Lu Ten, and what better way than screaming his lungs out on that death-trap? Besides, he knew Aang would get a kick out of it. Not to mention seeing Azula's priceless face again would help him.

Yue"What do you have in mind, Zuko?" Yue asked curiously. The mail delivery system was amazing to her. It might be useful to the South Pole, when they rebuilt the city. Of course, that would have to be after the war ended, and who knew how long it would take Azula to master the elements, and take down Earth Emperor Long Feng?

((End Page 10))

"Yes, an engine failure. It was a terrible shame." Her sightless eyes stayed firm in place, but she was focused on Cheng. Then her attention turned to Xin Fu. He held himself differently; his pride in his title was what drove him. He didn't care who or what he stepped on to get where he was. All he wanted was the glory. A terrible shame.

Azula saw Zuko's gaze and knew his plans. Oh Agni. No. "Do I know what you're thinking?" Not waiting for a reply she said, "The chutes. We're going to go down them; aren't we?" Her face showed a mix of excitement and fear. Last time she had had the same expression.

Bumi

"What engine failure? When did that happen? I thought the avatar did that to the ship," Bumi said, though whether on purpose or accidentally was not clear. "Or did I just imagine you bringing those prisoners on the ship?"

Aang

"Fun? Like how," Aang asked, smiling in excitement. Zuko didn't seem like the type to have much fun, but if he liked something, maybe it was overly awesome! He was getting worked up now, he really wanted to just explode and run to whatever Zuko was suggesting to do. He heard Azula and looked at the chutes, and a broad grin broke his face. "I wanna ride the chutes, let's go," he said loudly.

Xin Fu:

"The Avatar?!" Xin Fu cried, loud enough to be heard all around the dock. He glanced around and lowered his voice."Former Imperial Emperor Bumi...why don't the two of us have a little...chat about the Avatar? I'm curious as to how you found him, after nearly eighty years in hiding..." Xin Fu said, demanded really. Several of his troops came over and surrounded him, outnumbing the three. If the Avatar was truly alive, Xin Fu would get his information. Either from Bumi, or torturing a crew member...

Zuko:

"Alright then, let's go do it." Zuko said, not waiting to here what Azula or Yue thought of the idea. He had no idea when he'd ever be able to do this again, so it was best to do it now. Besides, he had a feeling that they'd both agree anyways.Five minutes later, they were all cramped into one of the delivery boxes. A tight fit, but that might make it easier for someone not to fall off. "Everyone hang tight." Zuko said, and pushed them forward. The box slid forward and down it went, gaining speed every second.

Yue

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Yue asked, having seconds thoughts about this. Too late, the cart was pushed by Zuko and they were off. Yue let out a loud scream as the cart picked up speed, going quicker and faster with each twist and turn the ramps had. Zuko had thought this was fun?! More like something she'd force an Imperial solider to do for punishment. How could he consider something as frightening as this fun?

Toph laughed. "The Avatar? The Avatar is dead, he has been for almost 80 years. I told you," her voice turned to a growl. "The ship was damaged from engine failure." She nudged Bumi. "Isn't that right, Grandfather?" But Toph knew her efforts had failed. Xin Fu knew the Avatar was alive. Maybe Cheng would back her up? No. The senile old man would have to think of something clever when he was talking to Xin Fu, he would need to.

Azula was already yelling with glee. This was both terrifying and thrilling at the same time. Hopefully Aang and Yue were enjoying it. From her position in the front she couldn't see anyone. Oh well. "Here comes a big one!" She yelled back as she saw a huge drop ahead.

"I believe that he might have imagined that, sir," Cheng told Xin Fu, "Even the finest minds can become a little strange in their old age. I have the injuries to prove that it was the boiler." He touched his bandages hesitantly. He didn't want to reveal the wound. Not yet. He would show them to help Toph in her mission and to keep Xin Fu away from their mission.

Zuko:

Zuko screamed with joy and fright as the cart dropped more, and continued on its journey. This ride brought back great memories with Lu Ten, and the one time Father and Uncle Iroh had ridden with them. This was absolutely great! The cart picked up more speed as it veered to the left, and crashed through the stone, flying off from the track. Zuko screamed more, this time with actual fear. How in Agni's name had this ha-?!

A tall building loomed ahead, with only one small window opened which would barely fit the cart. However, they were steadily losing altitude..."We're not going to make it!" Zuko cried.


Aang

"Yeah we will," Aang yelled in response. He had been loving this, yelling with delight the whole time, enjoying the rush of air. He put his hands out the sides of the car and used airbending to give them a height boost, now heading toward the window. "We'll be fine," he yelled out again, confident that they'd make it through the window now.

Bumi

"What avatar? I never said anything about an Avatar," Bumi said, with such conviction it was hard to tell if he was lieing or not. "But let's chat anyway, it's hard to find a good chat on a ship full of soldiers and disrespectful youth." He walked toward Xin Fu now, a goofy smile upon his face again.

The visible half of Cheng's face was clearly showing astonishment. He looked Toph and Enakue's way, as if to say, Is this man insane? He sighed inaudiby. He had the feeling that their mission was about to become much harder.

Yue

Yue screamed with complete terror as the cart broke through the stone and went flying off of the track. She hadn't thought this of all things would happen when Zuko started the ride. Oh no, they weren't going to make it, they were gonna-!

Aang's blast of air suddenly increased their altitude, and the matched the window's height once again. That was a close one. Now to survive this-

The cart barely fit through the window, and continued flying, smashing a bewildered potter's clay pot. They went out the other window, and, to Yue's great alarm, started to lose more height with each passing second. Oh no, now what? Aang wasn't a master of airbending yet, and she didn't know if he'd be able to save them again.

((Got Magus's permission to have them crash through the window in my post.))

Enakue shot Cheng a Don’t look at me as if I know look. Enakue was tiring of this odd scene decided to take a long drink for his newly refilled gourd and singing the 4 seasons of love quietly. A habit which could drive anyone who heard it mad from having it stuck in their heads for hours. He was hoping to annoy Xin fu out of their personal space...

(ooc: sorry that I havnt posted any thing of late...)

Azula yelled as the cart went through the window. Fright had filled her when it went off track, now they were falling. Great, what was going to happen now? Surely Aang couldn't save them again...but possibly firebending could... No, it would only make them gain more speed. She screamed.

Xin Fu:

"Yes, let us go chat, Bumi. I believe we'll have much to discuss...care to join us, Princess? I'm sure your father would love to hear what you're hiding." Xin Fu asked, smirking with triumph. Now, to get them to talk. That wouldn't be too hard to do...

Zuko:

The cart continued down towards its descent, gaining more and more speed. "Brace for impact!" Zuko cried. The ground rushed towards them, and the cart crashed into another cart full of...

"My cabbages!"

"These are the trouble makers, Sir. They caused much property damage, and abused the mail-delivery system." a guard reported, bringing Zuko, Azula, Aang, and Yue before the Lord of New Roku.

"Off with their heads! One for each head of cabbage!" a cabbage merchant cried, fury evident on his features.

"Didn't we throw him out of the city?" a guard asked his fellow. The man shrugged in reply.

Lu Ten took in the sight of the troublemakers. When he first heard about some people riding the mail delivery carts, he was amused since he had done so in his youth with his cousins. It took all of the training he received in hiding his emotions from his political enemies to keep recognition or surprise show in his face when he saw Azula and Zuko.

After a moment he spoke, "Throw them," he edged his face froward to emphasize his next words, "A feast." He laughed a little in amusement of his guards' expressions of surprise and resignation. He would have some fun with his cousins and their friends for a bit.

Cheng gripped his sword and scowled. How he would have loved to wipe the smirk off this man's face. He whispered a bit heedlessly, "Just hiding it from glory-hounds..."

Yue

Yue stared at the man in shock. Wait...after all they had done, he was throwing them a feast?! What kind of ruler was he? Or perhaps his crown was on a little too tight...At any rate, they were in the clear for now. As long as they didn't do anything to upset the man, everything would work out fine.

Azula was amused. This man was someone she'd love to hang out with. But it wasn't Lu Ten. She shoved that thought aside. She looked over to see Zuko's reaction. Her adrenaline rush was just coming to a stop. She also found it funny that the Cabbage Merchant had wanted their heads cut off. That was a little extreme wasn't it? Besides there wasn't enough of them to make up for all the cabbage heads they had destroyed. Oh well. It was fun while it lasted.

Toph gave a look of surprise. "You would invite me, a lowly princess, to come with you, almighty commander, into your quarters? For my sake I'll gladly decline." She turned to head for the ship. But she hesitated waiting for Xin Fu's reaction. He might not sense the sarcasm dripping out of her mouth. If he didn't...well...to bad for him.

"Forgive the lack of skin on the meat," Lu Ten said well into the feast, "The people in my city have grown fat from too many feasts." He took a sip of his water before eying the four of them, "So, what did you say were your names?"

Cheng smirked at Toph's wit, fighting to keep himself from snickering. Toph's wit was one of the things he loved about her. He frowned as that though passed through his mind. That was a thought that was against protocol but so was the thought that a superior officer resembled an hog-ape.

Zuko:

"I'm...Lee, and this is my sister...Lin. That is Aang and Yue." Zuko quickly said. Whoever this man was, he sure was...interesting, to say the least. Who throws a feast for a bunch of children that damaged a lot of things? The man also seemed oddly familiar to him, but Zuko couldn't put his finger on it. He'd never met anyone like that back in the day. Then again, if he did know him, the man had aged much. Who knew what he used to look like? "So, ah....we haven't heard a lot about the war lately. Do you know what's going on?" Zuko asked, trying to make conversation.

Xin Fu:

"I'm afraid you don't have a choice in the matter, my dear. Even if you are royalty, you are a banished Princess. By Imperial Law, I have higher rank than you for the moment. So, I ask again: come join me. We shall have much to talk about." Xin Fu said, trying to keep on a polite face. This girl was testing his patience. If she still refused to come, then he'd give her a reason to. After all, she (probably) cared for the people on her ship. How would she feel if he had them taken in for questioning?

Toph sighed an over-dramatic drawn out sigh. "I guess I'll come." When Xin Fu had said 'banished' she had flinched, just a bit. She would capture the Avatar to get her honor back. That was that. That was how things were going to turn out. She turned around to Xin Fu and in a serious tone said, "I suggest you keep your men off my ship." She would've said something like, 'Or I'll get that annoying 'Four Seasons Four Loves' tune stuck in your head.' (Which was stuck in her head from stupid Enakue.) But she took her troops seriously and would let Xin Fu know that.

"Yes, I'm Lin." Azula muttered. She would have to get used to that. She didn't really eat anything, wary of the food and what might be in it. She nodded her head in agreement with Zuko. Seriously though, what had happened in the last 80 so years. There had to be some major changes.

"Nothing much has happened. The new Fire Nation capital, well, new to my old mind, has held off an Earth Kingdom attack," Lut Ten stated before tossing a bone at her. If memory served, she would use blue fire to block it.

Cheng gripped his sword when he listened to Xin Fu rub Toph's banishment in her face. This man was exactly like how he feared him to be. An arrogant man with a rank he didn't deserve, flaunting his authority over whoever had the misfortune to have a lower rank from him.

Azula panicked and made a little shield. The bone bounced harmlessly off. She was tempted to ask, 'What was that for?!?' But kept her mouth shut. He had to have reason. You can't just go around throwing bones for no reason.

"It would seem we have an extraordinary firebender in our midst," Lu Ten said in satisfaction, noting the surprised looks from his guards with a laught, "The Avatar. Only she can produce blue flame at such a young age. Anything to say about that, Lin?"

"Yes! I am the Avatar." Azula blurted not thinking, "And I was just doing my daily rounds checking for threats of any kind. So we'll just be on our way!" She stood up and started to walk off, motioning for the others to do as well.

The guards blocked her exit, a few staring accusingly at her. Lu Ten spoke, "I'm afraid you can't just leave now. Throw them into the dungeon!"

"Which dungeon?" the guard captain asked him, "The bad dungeon or the good dungeon."

"I was thinking of the refurnished dungeon," Lu Ten said.

"Which dungeon?" the guard asked.

"The dungeon that used to be bad, before we refurnished it, that is," the lord said, "Of course, we've been calling it the New Dungeon but we really should number these things. Ahem. Take them to the dungeon that was once bad!"

Azula stifled a laugh. Of course if it was once bad it couldn't be too bad... could it? A mental image popped up of a couple beds with a bunch of food laid out on some tables and a bunch of other luxury stuff. It wouldn't be that good either. But I don't think you know with this one. He's kind of a loony.

((End Page 11))

The guards saluted their lord and led them through the palace and into an average-looking room with a red carpet and bed big enough for the Avatar and her companions to share. On the foot of the bed, was a book called You're Not a Bad Person.

Azula walked into the room very casually, as if she had been here before. She walked over to the bed. "It's soft,” she stated. Okay, so what was he going to do to them? Put them in a luxury suite then tell then give them a night of massages so that they'd die of relaxation? She glanced over at the book. Oh great. This really should be interesting. Maybe he's going to torture us with that book.

Aang

"Uh, that guy is kind of... out there. But he's a wicked genius too," Aang said. "Even though he tricked us and threw us in a newly refurbished dungeon, he was pretty entertaining... even if there was more meat than I'd like," he added. He sat down on the floor, looking around, and said, "and it doesn't look like there are any means of escape."

Yue

"This is a dungeon?" Yue asked, looking around the incredibly nice room. Well, the senile man had said it was a 'refurnished' dungeon. Still, why would he need something like this? Well, the old man was crazy, so did he need much of a reason? At least, Yue guessed the man was crazy based on what he had done.Something still bothered her, though. How had he known Azula was the Avatar? She'd been gone nearly 66 years. No one would know what the Avatar looked like (yet).

Zuko:

"Well, it doesn't look like we'll be leaving tonight. We have no way of contacting Feng, and Momo won't fit through any of the vents. Might as well get some sleep." Zuko said, looking around the room. So, it seemed their was only...one bed. Yeah...that might make things awkward. Well, they had no other choice and he didn't feel like sleeping on the floor. So Zuko picked the far right point of the bed and got in.

Xin Fu:

"I'm glad you saw things my way, Princess. Please, follow me. Bring a guard or two with you if you wish." Xin Fu said, turning around and walking back towards his quarters. Two guards followed him, whom motioned for Princess Toph and her grandfather to follow.

Knowing Cheng would follow she followed Xin Fu. Hopefully this wouldn't be a gloating session. Or she'd get bored fast. She was bored just thinking about it. "Let's get this over with." She muttered as she walked into the quarters.

Azula looked around the room more intently now. Then her gaze turned toward the bed...the bed. "Oh great." Maybe the floor would be unoccupied. Maybe the guards would bring a couple cots? She gave up and said, "I'm gonna go sit in that corner." Out of boredom she grabbed the book and started reading.

Cheng followed Toph into the Commander's tent and rolled his visible eye at her. He whispered so only she can hear, "It can't be that bad. He'll just huff and puff about his power like the other idiots in High Command. Except you, of course." He never really considered Toph exile, disagreeing with the Emperor's sentence. Training kept him from revealing it though, even to himself.

"Um, sir," a guard asked Lu Ten, "There's only one bed in the dungeon they were put in."

Lu Ten laughed, "I know that. Let them figure out their sleeping arrangements."

((I'm going to go ahead and skip to the next day with the Gaang, if that is alright. So Azula can wake up and Zuko, Aang, and Yue are Lu Ten's prisoners.))

Xin Fu:

"Please, sit down." Xin Fu said, taking a seat. He gazed at the Toph and her grandfather for a few moments, gathering his thoughts. If what Bumi had said was true...that the Avatar has returned...then everything in the Earth Empire would change."Now tell me, how goes your quest for the Avatar. And this time, tell me the truth." Xin Fu demanded.

General Narrative:

The next day came soon, and Azula would be woken up by guards of Lord Lu Ten. She would notice her friends and brother gone, and demand an explantion of where they were. The guards would not answer, and escort her to Lord Lu Ten. They would arrive near the one volcano of New Roku, with Zuko, Aang, and Yue inside a cage of fire.

Toph sat against her will. Her arm was behind her making sure Xin Fu wasn't lying when he started talking. "We went down to the South Pole. The village is very small and very dinky. Even if the Avatar was there he wouldn't have been able to hide behind all those old women and children." Her casual attitude made this sound very easy to talk about. It was actually very painful, the Avatar had slipped through her fingers.

Azula looked around desperately for her friends. She found them and gasped when she saw the cage. She bit her lip and turned to the old man. "Why are you doing this?"

Lu Ten felt a little bad but pressed it aside and grinned at his cousin, "Simple. It's part of your training. You will perform three tasks for me. For every hour that passes by, the cage will shrink. They will be freed when you accomplish the tasks."

Cheng felt some sympathy for Toph. After looking for the Avatar all this time, she managed to slip through her fingers and she was almost admitting it to Xin Fu.

Azula looked back at her friends. "Fine. I'll do it. Now give me these three tasks." This old man certainly wasn't any real danger. What could he think up? 'Oh no! I've lost my crown. Could you go find it?' But, maybe this man could think of some insane things.

"Well, it would seem that I have lost my crown, young Avatar," Lu Ten told Azula with a smile, leading them up into a tunnel that led to the volcano behind the palace, moving the cage with them so her friends and brother could continue watching them. He stood before the volcano, taking in its heat and gestured to a crown hanging near the bottom of the volcano, "Will you fetch it for me?" Of course, Azula would be in no real danger. He could bend lava easily, something that he struggled with when Azula and Zuko last met them.

Azula almost laughed when he said, 'I have lost my crown,' But then as she saw where it was, she gulped. Bending lava was not easy. She could just barely do it. She took a deep breath and concentrated on the lava. Could she harden it on top? No, most likely not. She'd have to bend it away in spots and jump down to the bottom. This could be tricky.

Yue

Well, this certainly wasn't turning out how Yue expected things to be. She had thought they'd have left the island by now, on the way to the Western Air Temple. They would have gotten more supplies in the town market, and would be eating breakfast on Feng (or with New Roku's Lord, had he decided to give them breakfast). But no, fate seemed to be against that plan.

So instead of flying on Feng, Yue was trapped with Zuko and Aang inside a cage of fire, which would shrink every hour it took Azula to accomplish the three tasks. Just what kind of madman was New Roku's Lord, making them do something like this?! If looks could kill, Yue's stare would have turned the Lord into a burnt pile of ashes by now. However, to Yue's disappoint, her glares did nothing to end his life. Much to her chagrin, she could do nothing else but hope that Azula finished these tasks soon, before the cage of fire burned them alive.

When this was all over (and they hopefully weren't burned corpses), Yue swore to give the Lord a piece of her mind. He'd think twice before doing this again, she'd make sure of that.

Xin Fu:

Just at that moment, a guard came into the room. "We've interrogated the crew, sir. They've confirmed that Princess Toph had captured the Avatar, but allowed him to escape."

Xin Fu nodded and dismissed the guard. His gaze turned towards Toph, thinking upon the information he had just learned. The Avatar was alive? This...would change everything within the Empire. "So, let me get this straight: the Avatar, who would be an old man by now, escaped from you, an Imperial Princess?! Looks like your father was right; your brother Prince Haru is much better than you are. Well, with the Avatar alive, things will change greatly." Xin Fu spoke, grinning victoriously. Glorious visions filled his head: capturing the Avatar, being rewarded by the Earth Emperor, gaining a seat as the Emperor's most trusted advisor, and more.

And all that stood between him and his goal (besides the Avatar himself, of course), was an exiled Princess and her senile grandfather. "I think that Emperor Long Feng will agree that this task is too much for you, Toph. In fact, I think I shall pursue the Avatar from now on." Xin Fu said, glancing at Toph, daring her to challenge him.

If he knew the Princess right, she would. And then she'd face a humiliating defeat in an Ares Kai, and would be forced to back down.

Zuko:

"You can do it Azula! Just try not to think about the great chances of dieing in that volcano!" Zuko shouted, trying to be supportive of his sister. And failing quiet miserably.

By Agni, how had this happened? Last thing Zuko remembered was falling asleep, and an hour ago had waken up in this cage of fire. Once again, this would have been a perfect moment for Zuko to have been a firebender. He could have bent the cage away, or at least tried. But no, the Spirits had decided to make him a non-bender. Now he was stuck in this cage with Aang and Yue, their only hope of not burning to death being Azula. All because some senile old man wanted to test Azula's abilities. Overall, this was not turning out to be a good day for the Prince of the Fire Nation. Zuko sighed, knowning it was best not to complain about the matter. He didn't want to anger the Lord now, did he? All he really could do was cheer his sister on. Boy, did he feel useless...

"First of all I told you to keep your men off my ship!" Toph yelled as she stood up. "Second, I'm perfectly capable of capturing the Avatar! Third, I'm just as good as my brother and somewhat better. Fourth and lastly, you are going to back off and forget the Avatar. Got it?" Xin Fu needed to back off or he might not live to see the next day.

"Thanks, Zuko, that makes me feel so much better." She inhaled deeply and pushed the lava out of the way in one spot. She proceeded to jump in the hole and make another one, repeating this process. She'd be surprised if she had any eyebrow left after this...any hair. It felt like all her hair was being scorched off by the heat.

Lu Ten raised an eyebrow at the sight of Azula bending lava. Granted, she wasn't bending that much of it but it was still an achievement. He smiled a little proudly. His cousin was more powerful than he thought.Cheng frowned at the Commander's words and Toph's less than tactful ones. He decided, however, to lend emphasis to Toph's words and half-unsheathed his sword, conveying that he'd join the fight on Toph's side if one broke out.

Xin Fu:

"Really now? If you were so capable of capturing the Avatar, then how did he escape? Through blind luck? Or are you incapable of defeating an old man? As long as the Avatar is still around, I will pursue him, Princess. As I said, you have no official rank, being in exile. You still have the honor of being First Princess and being the Second Heir to the Throne, but no power to back up that honor. I dare you to stop me." Xin Fu taunted. He wouldn't call the challenge himself. No, he was too smart for that. He'd enrage Toph until she called an Ares Kai herself. When he defeated her, the Princess's humiliation would be all that much sweeter. It was only a matter of time until Toph called the duel, and his plans would be set forth into motion.

Enakue stayed quit. He had stopped humming when Toph started Yelling. He had been on the end of her anger once....That was more than enough for him. But he couldn't stop himself from arguing with Xin Fu " I apologize Xin Fool... But when encountered the Avatar and his allies he activated the avatar state. Even lord Long Feng wouldn't stand a chance...." He said careful to avoid saying that the avatar was a girl and young for that matter...

(sorry for restating the obvious... Ill be able to post more often on spring break...WHEN IM FREE)

Toph took a deep breath trying to calm herself, but it didn't work. She listened to what Enakue said. "Yes, the Avatar State is a very powerful weapon and he used it well." Se wanted to brag and say, 'Hey I got the Avatar! I have a rank higher than you know!' But she couldn't. All her power was gone. And with that was respect from people like him. As her anger boiled up these words blurted from her mouth: "I challenge you to an Ares Kai! Whoever wins gets a head-start on the Avatar." Azula jumped out of the last hole in the lava and onto a rock platform. Pausing to catch her breath she continued off again. The crown was just in sight...WOOSH! She yelled and fell back onto the platform. A column of lava had just shot up into the air. Patting herself to make sure all of her was there she jumped into another hole, as she jumped into the next one another column of lava shot into the air. Again it nearly missed her.

(OOC: Where's Bumi in all this?)

Cheng stayed silent, watching the scene before him. He had only been in one Ares Kai in his life and that was when he saw the Earth Emperor crush the arm of his own daughter and banish here. He knew that if this duel went badly for Toph, he wouldn't be able to stand aside and watch Toph get hurt again.

Lu Ten continued watching his cousin, noting with concern the lava bursts. He spoke, "I hope this isn't too difficult for you, Avatar."

Xin Fu:

"I will gladly accept, Princess. As per tradition, we both have an hour to prepare. I will meet you in the Arena when you are ready. Now go." Xin Fu dismissed. This was going exactly as planned. Now the moron had challenged him to an Ares Kai. Perfect. With his soon-to-be victory over the Princess, Xin Fu would rise higher in power and honor. He gave a dark chuckle, knowing the look on Toph's face when she lost would be a priceless one. He'd wipe the floor with her.

It never even occured to him that their was a possibility he'd lose...

Toph smirked and walked out of the quarters, motioning the others to follow. "This is going to be easy. He's so caught up in his pride he won't think he can lose. Well he's in for it." She talked lowly so that only the ones near could hear her. She quickly thought about what to bring. She would stretch a bit that was for sure. Maybe some armor? No, she'd go without it for Xin Fu was unlikely to take any either.

Azula heard the man's call. As she landed on another platform she replied, "Oh no not at all! I'm just getting warmed up!" The crown was on the next platform. All she had to do was jump. When she landed she felt the whoosh of air as the lava shot up again. Now she had to get the crown back without it getting singed.

"Just be careful, princess," Cheng told Toph as he followed her out of the commander's quarters, "You do remember the last time you dueled a master earthbender." He looked away, berating himself for mention that incident, "Sorry. It's not my place."

Bumi

"You're right, it's my place," Bumi said. "Toph, I know you are determined, but Xin Fu is skilled, I saw that in him when I promoted him, and he's only gotten more powerful. You must stay focused, and wait for him to make the first move. Insulting his pride would most likely cause a premature strike." He laughed, and shook his head, after the display in there between an arrogant military official and his granddaughter.

((End Page 12))

"Xin Fu isn't that much of a challenge." Toph replied to her grandfather. "He's so swelled up with pride he won't even think he can lose." She wasn't going to admit it, but she was going to use her grandfather's advice and insult him. She had already been thinking of insults for him, but hadn't thought about using them to make his anger well up.

Azula grabbed the crown and put it on her head. It was way too big, but that didn't matter. As quickly as she could she jumped across to the rock platforms and finally up to the crazy old king. She took it off her head and panted, "What's the next challenge?"

Lu Ten smiled at Azula and bended the heat out of the crown so that it was nice and cool on his head. He motioned her to follow him as he bent the cage to move so that Azula's friends and brother could follow them. After about 15 minutes of walking, they arrived in his personal park and he gestured at a ditch that held a rabbit-weasel, "It would seem that I've lost my pet, Flopsie. Can you bring him to me?"

"It shouldn't be hard to find insults for him. Personally, I think he looked like a giant ape in Earth Imperial armor," Cheng told Toph, hoping she'd take Bumi's advice.

Toph smiled. "Yes, he kind of did." She needed something better though, something that struck home. "What should I take to the Ares Kai?" She asked to distract them from the insulting. She wanted to make something up on her own.

"Erm...sure." Azula raised an eyebrow looking for the catch. Flopsie was such a cute name. She carefully climbed down into the ditch and walked carefully over to the rabbit-weasel. "Here, Flopsie." she called to the animal.

"A shield maybe," Cheng told Toph with a shrug, "I'm sorry, but I don't know much about bending battles. Only that you have to break the enemy's root so that they're unable to bend."

Lu Ten smirked when a komodo rhino appeared at the sound of his name. It charged at Azula, excited about this new visitor. Of course, it would appear that it was charging out of bloodlust to a stranger.

"Ahh!!!!" Azula screamed as the komodo rhino charged. She ran up the side of the ditch and went to jump on the rhino's back. As she landed on it the rhino jumped back seemingly trying to buck her off. The rabbit-weasel started to hop away. She jumped off the rhino and ran for the rabbit. "Flopsy, come back!" Again the rhino started to charge her.

Hearing his name, the komodo rhino started chasing after Azula happily. Lu Ten shook his head. Azula needed to learn that things aren't always how they appeared to be.

Azula successfully scooped up the rabbit-weasel. "Flopsy!" The rabbit cocked it's head. As she quickly replayed everything that had happened she turned around to the charging komodo rhino. "Flopsy?"

Flopsie immediately stopped and sniffed the stranger girl. He hadn't smelled her before, but, deciding that he liked her, he licked her face and made a grunt that sounded like he approved of her.

"You've passed the second task," Lu Ten said with a grin, "Things are not always what they seem. You have to look at all the possibilities."

Azula put down the rabbit-weasel just as the komodo rhino licked her. She spluttered. Then she turned to the man, patting the rhino's head she asked, "What's the next challenge?"

[[ Just thought I'd give a heads up, Track and Field starts at my school tomorrow so I won't be on till 5 at the earliest. That'll be Mon-Fri. My events are Triple Jump, Long Jump, and Sprinting. This is when long legs come in handy. :3]]

(OOC: Okay. Thanks for telling us.)

"Nothing too complicated. Just a duel," Lu Ten told Azula as he started moving the cage again and led them to a balcony overlooking an arena where two men were waiting. Both were big men, one wielding two swords and the other wielding a large axe. He stood in front of them and said, "You can choose from those in front of you who you want to fight. Choose wisely."

Azula thought of a loop hole instantly. "I can choose anyone in front of me." She looked at the two men then her final gaze rested on the old man. "I choose you!" She pointed and hoped for the best. She desperately hoped that she could pick the old man. Besides, he lost his crown and his pet! How hard could it be to beat him?

Lu Ten grinned and tore his robes, revealing his muscles. He was in incredibly good shape for his age, "Wrong choice." He sent a stream of flame at Azula, "So you thought I was a frail old man? I'm the most powerful firebender you'll ever come across."

((If it's alright with you Lol, I'm going to go ahead and do a mini-timeskip and begin the Ares Kai.))

General Narrative:

It didn't take long for the hour to pass, and the time of the Ares Kai to begin. When Toph, flanked by Bumi and Cheng, arrived at the arena Xin Fu was already there, ready to fight. A few other soldiers from Toph's ship came as well, to watch their Princess in battle. A fair number of other Imperial soldiers from the base came to see the fight, mostly to see Princess Toph take on their Commander. It was a rare occasion when a Royal Family member, even one in Exile, come to visit their port, and to fight their commander. The last time something like this had happened was when Prince Kuei visited them three years ago. As per tradition, each fighter was allowed to bring a weapon and a shield to the Ares Kai, if wished. Xin Fu brandished a long spear and no shield, confident enough that he wouldn't need one. A few of the soldiers in the crowd shook their heads at Xin Fu's bold insult to the Princess.

A soldier, chosen by Xin Fu to oversee the match, stood inbetween the two, making sure the opponents were the proper distance from each other. After the customary bows were traded, the soldier raised a white flag and dropped it.

"Begin."

Toph -who had brought a small shield and two daggers- stood motionless. She waited for Xin Fu to state something, so that she could insult back...or maybe she should start the insulting. "What's going to happen when you lose, Xin Fu?" She taunted. "Gonna go cry to your momma? You poor wittle baby." Toph personally thought this wasn't very good, but maybe Xin Fu would take offense.

Azula fell backwards and dodged the flame quickly. "You didn't say anything about changing your mind! I want the guy with the ax!" She jumped down onto the arena floor. This would be great, just great. The senile old man actually had muscle and skill. Just peachy.

Xin Fu:

"Please, is that all you got, Miss I-Couldn't-Defeat-An-Eighty-Year-Old-Man? You're worse than your uncle Prince Kuei...and that's saying a lot." Xin Fu taunted back. While he normally would have started the fight by now, he decided to humor the Princess. Besides, getting her mad would play to his advantage.

"Don't let his words get to you, princess!" Cheng shouted when he saw that Xin Fu was unfazed, "He's got half the braincells of a brain-dead ostrich horse!""No take-backsies in my kingdom," Lu Ten said with a grin, jumping down into the arena to fight Azula and thrustinng his foot forward to send a stream of flame at her.

Toph lifted an eyebrow. "Oh?" She wouldn't tell him the Avatar was a girl or very young, but she could find something. "I bet I could think of a better name to call myself. I bet you couldn't even spell what you just called me." This was a horrible comeback, but it would have to do.

Azula jumped and threw three fireballs in his direction. "Are you sure? There's always a first for everything." As she landed back on the ground she readied herself in a defensive position.

Lu ten grinned when he saw the fireballs and blocked, adding part of his opponents' attacks' energy to his own. He grinned, "I know." With that said, he sent his own set of fireballs at Azula's feet.

Xin Fu:

"Now that was just horrible, Princess. What, can't think of any good insults? Your insults are worse than the smell of Kyoshi's feet." Xin Fu said. These girl's insults were getting just downright sad. Her insults were just about as worse as Prince Kuei's. Xin Fu realized that Toph must have been trying to anger him. He gave a smirk. Well, two could play at that game.

Zuko:

"Try to tire him out Azula! He's old, he might not be able to keep up with you!" Zuko shouted, trying to help out his sister. The cage had grown smaller in the time it took Azula to complete the other tasks. Within another hour or two, things would start to get dangerous. He hoped Azula would be able to defeat the surprisingly strong old man.

"Kyoshi's feet? What about yours? I bet they'd beat them." She 'gagged.' "I can smell them from here!" C'mon get angry. It occurred to her that he was also trying to make her angry. It wasn't going to work. She'd fight it at any cost. Xin Fu was going to make the first move and that was that.

Azula swiped the fireballs from the ground and shot them back at the old man. She had no time to reply to Zuko. Quickly she shot fire out her feet and sped to the other half of the arena. There she produced fire that covered her arms and she could whip around.*

[[ *It's like in the Crystal Catacombs when Zuko and Katara are fighting. ]]

Bumi smiled at the sight of the fire whips, "Ah... You have improved." He produced fire that covered his own arms and flicked his flames towards Azula's with a smile.

Xin Fu:

"I tire of these word games, Princess. Time to fight. I hope you're better at bending then you are at insulting." Xin Fu said. He lifted several bolders of earth, and sent them at Toph. He disguared his spear, figuring he wouldn't need a weapon to beat her.

How does he know if I've improved? It's not like he's seen me at all... This sent Azula thinking. She quickly blocked the whip and sent one to curl around his foot. He hasn't seen me at all. I've been gone for at least 80 years... How old is this man? Could he have seen me before? "You may find an improvement." Toph had the small shield on her single arm, but she 'forgot' about it. She lifted a chunk of earth to block the boulders. Then she divided the chunk of earth and shot it at him.

Lu Ten raised an eyebrow and was barely able to escape Azula's whip by shooting his whips towards the ground and flying into the air. He spoke, "First rule of physics. What goes up stays up." He laughed, snorting a little. The laugh he was known for when he was younger. With that said he shot a fireball from his mouth at his cousin, "Wow, that's spicy!"

Xin Fu:

Xin Fu skillfully dodged the chunks of earth by rolling to the side. He sent a wave of earth at Toph to knock her off of her feet. Meanwhile, he secretly grabbed a dagger from within his robes and flung it at Toph's chest. If he knew the Princess's abilities, she wouldn't see anything in the air. Then he could end this competition, and as a bonus that wound would keep her from hunting the Avatar for a few weeks.

((End Page 13))

"Toph! Xin Fu threw a dagger!" Cheng shouted, panicking. He knew that Toph saw through the earth and that meant that she might not be able to see the dagger. He felt his stomach churn as he saw it head towards her.

"So uh.... why aren't you at the fight sir?" Ask a underling from Toph ship that Enakue had taken to get a drink at a local pub. "Don't need to be...I already know whose going to win..." Enakue said. "Yeah...Xin fu is a very impressive earth bender...” said generic underling #1. "Who said anything about Xin fu?" Enakue smiled thinking it wouldn't be to long before they left port again.

Toph smirked playfully. She shot herself up into the air to avoid the wave of earth. As she watched for Xin Fu's next move she heard Cheng's cry. Quickly she sunk herself into the ground by making the earth sink below her. She closed it over top and tunneled under and past Xin Fu. As soon as she was out of the tunnel and on the level earth she shot a wave of earth similar to the one Xin Fu had shot at her.

Now it was Azula's turn to laugh. She dodged the fireball that came from his mouth and tried to stop giggling. Oh no it wasn't from the horrible pun. It was from Lu Ten's laughter. Yes she was sure of it. She was laughing because she hadn't even thought of this old man being Lu Ten. It just didn't seem possible! Then as she recovered she swung her fire whips and sparks flew of them in every direction.

Lu Ten twisted to the side as he dodged Azula's attacks. He then brought himself to the ground and sent fire from his foot at Azula with a grin, "Is that all you got?"

Xin Fu:

Xin Fu, not expecting Toph to tunnel under the ground and appear behind him, was caught by the wave of earth. He tumbled to the ground. Quickly, Xin Fu grabbed his nearby spear and flung it at the Princess, now not caring if he seriously injured her or not. He was in it to win, no matter the costs.

Zuko:

That laughs...it seemed so familiar. Was it possible he knew this old man? No, it couldn't be. Zuko had never really been outside the Palace until he ran away with Azula, and had had very little friends during his youth. But how-And everything suddenly clicked into place.

"C...cousin Lu Ten?" Zuko shouted, shocked. This old man...was actually his cousin?

"Would you like to see more?" Azula shot fire out her feet and went into the air. As she spiraled back to the ground she sent three fireballs for his head, two for his feet, and one more above his head so that if he jumped he would get burnt also. This took a lot of concentration and left Azula wondering how she had even thought of it. Maybe my past lives are helping me...? She left the thought dangling, thinking of Kyoshi.

As Xin Fu tumbled she smiled with glee. But she couldn't see the spear. But she did feel the wind as it whizzed by her ear. She quickly wiped the surprised and fearful look on her face and replaced it with a mocking sort of face. "I thought a Commander would have better aim."

Lu Ten smiled and produced a shield of flames, protecting himself from Azula's attacks. He grinned and bowed, "I concede defeat. This battle would take too long if one of us didn't and it seems your friends don't have much time left." He gestured to the cage and dispelled the flames with a grin; "There is one last test before I let your friends go, though. What... is my name?"

Azula blanked. "What is your name?" she asked in disbelief. "You mean all I have to say is that your my cousin Lu Ten and then I can go?" She took a deep breath and walked over to the man and embraced him in a hug. "Hello," She couldn't think of anything else to say. All the pieces suddenly were put together. Her mind could rest in peace that at least Lu Ten was alive. She was afraid to ask about her other family. Right now though, she was focused on Lu Ten.

Xin Fu:

Xin Fu growled in fury. He jumped up and sent a series of a boulder at Toph, intending to squash her like a bug. Without realizing it, his moves were getting sloppier thanks to his burning hatred at the Princess. Xin Fu was planting the seeds to his own defeat...

Zuko:

Zuko rushed forward as the flames dispelled, hugging his old cousin. His cousin Lu Ten...it was hard to believe he was actually here, in the flesh. He was...alive, and not dead like he had feared. Zuko hugged tightly."It's good to see you, Lu Ten."

Lu ten laughed and hugged his cousins, feeling tears run down his face, "It's good to see you two again. I had thought you were dead for many long decades."

Yue

"He's...he's your cousin?!" Yue shouted with surprise. This senile old man was Zuko and Azula's cousin?! That...was strange. Some things made sense now. So that was why this senile man had put them through this ordeal...well, at least they hadn't been in any real danger. Yue walked forward to Lu Ten cautiously. While he was Zuko's cousin, she was still a bit weary of him.

Zuko:

"I thought you were dead, Lu Ten. I was so afraid...we were trapped inside that iceberg for so long, I was scared that everyone I knew was dead. How's Uncle Iroh? And Mom and Dad?" Zuko asked, a rush of questions coming into his mind. He had tons of things to ask Lu Ten; about what had happened in the sixty six years they'd been gone.

Aang

"Wha," Aang said, not really getting the recent turn of events. "Your cousin trapped us in a cage and put your life in danger?" Fire nation families were really different from the Air Nomads then, or even the water tribes. Of course, it might just be the guy was crazy, but still, it was really odd. He kept quiet as they reunited further though, not wanting to intrude much on their moment, though he still wasn't sure the old man was trustworthy or not, but then again, he was pretty entertaining.

"You were never in any real danger. Azula is an incredible bender and I'd have never allowed anyone to die from my cage," Lu Ten told Aang with a grin before turning to Zuko and Azula, "Your father and mother is in the new capital and my father is alive and well, still reigning as Fire Lord. It is prophesied that he will die after the war is over and he's had one day of peace."

Azula looked over at Zuko. Why'd he have to bring up those questions? What if Mom and Dad and Uncle Iroh really were... dead? Like they had feared Lu Ten would be? She gulped hard and waited for the answers as she let go of Lu Ten.

She easily ducked the flying earth. "Your getting sloppy." Toph mocked. She could feel his anger radiating off of him in waves. "Maybe if you get a bit more neat you could actually win." She could do this.

Zuko:

"That's good to hear." Zuko said, relief flooding into him. They were all alive and well. That was very good. More than he could have hoped for, really. Though he was disappointed that they'd have to leave soon, he knew it would be for the best. After all, Azula needed to go to the Western Air Temple to learn airbending.Unless..."Lu Ten, do you think you could come with us?" Zuko asked hopefully.

Xin Fu:

"Die!" Xin Fu shouted with venom in his voice. Using a great deal of strength, he lifted up a massive boulder and threw it at her. Try dodging that.

((Ok, time to wrap things up. Zuko and the other need to leave soon, and we need to finish the Ares Kai so we can move onto episode three.))

Toph did not dodge it. She was pushed back, but she semi cut through it. Her hand was still connected to it. "So violent." She swung it back at Xin Fu.

"Yes please?" Azula begged, though she knew the answer. But the good news was her family was well. She'd be able to see them again. She desperately hoped it was soon. Very very soon.

Lu Ten shook his head, "I would like that. I really would, but I can't. I have been the Lord of New Roku for decades and I cannot up and leave now. The people depend on my leadership. That is part of what being a leader means. Remember that, Azula, as you take on the mantle of the Avatar and you, Zuko, when you are crowned Fire Lord."

Xin Fu:

The boulder hit Xin Fu, and the commander was sent flying away. He roughly hit the wall of the arena and stayed their. He struggled to get up, but failed.

"The Ares Kai is over. The victor is Princess Toph." the announcer cried.

Zuko:

He was saddened by this news, but understood Lu Ten's reasoning. He was right New Roku did need him. While he was sad that his cousin wouldn't be traveling with him, he knew he'd see him again when the war was over. "I understand. Well, I'm sorry to say this, but we need to go. Feng's probably worried sick about us, and we need to get to the Western Air Temple as soon as possible." Zuko said.

"Yes, you should," Lu Ten told Zuko with a frown before continuing, "Beware. Much has changed since you two have disappeared. The Earth Empire occupies more land than ever."

Cheng grinned, applauding with the rest of Toph's crew that supported her. He shouldn't have worried about Toph so much. She was, after all, the best earthbender he'd ever seen.

Azula nodded. "Agreed." She looked at Lu Ten. "Thank you for the training...and advice." She bowed a customary bow and put on a smile. Her family was alive and well. As Lu Ten gave his warning Azula frowned slightly. "That blind princess is most likely to follow us."

Toph beamed. A feeling of joy overwhelmed her. She felt like going over there and asking Xin Fu how it felt to be beaten by a blind girl with one arm, but she didn't. For some reason she felt a pang of guilt. But that was soon washed away as she heard the applause from her crew.

Xin Fu:

Pure hatred filled Xin Fu's very being. No no no! This child would not beat him! He would not! A sudden burst of adrenaline filled Xin Fu, and he quickly got up and picked up his spear.

"This is not over!" Xin Fu cried, and thrust his spear at Toph again, seeking to impale her.

General Narrative:

After an exchange of goodbyes and getting some supplies, Azula and the others left New Roku. Feng greeted them happly when they arrived, but seemed strangely cold to Yue. Once they all got on, Feng lifted into the sky and flew off. Their journey continued, and they were on the way to the Western Air Temple.

Kyo:

It had taken them several days, but they had arrived outside of the shores of Roku Island. When they sent a scout to Roku Island, they found that the Avatar had not yet arrived. This angered Kyo, but she knew that sooner or later the Avatar would show up. And when she did, the Order of the Black Dragon would strike...

Bumi

A pillar of earth rose up and snatched the spear in mid-air, and Bumi lifted the earth beneath Xin Fu, to disconnect him with the earth. "How cowardly, attacking an unwary opponent from behind. How could one of my captains fall so low? Even in exile, my granddaughter has acted more honorably then you have," Bumi said, for once taking a serious tone with the man.

Xin Fu:

Xin Fu snarled at Bumi, but did nothing more. As the former Earth Emperor, he still had quiet a lot of power and honor. And it was dangerous to attempt to kill Toph again, least he face Bumi's wrath. "Very well. You win...for now, Princess. But mark my words; you shall not capture the Avatar. I will. As victor of the Ares Kai, I can attack you no more. The next time we face...you shall not be so lucky. Your grandfather will not always be here to protect you." Xin Fu warned before storming off.

Cheng smiled at Toph and walked over to her, forgetting his training for a moment, "That was amazing, Toph. You earthbended circles around him."

((End Page 14))

Toph grimaced. "What a sore loser." She mumbled. She rubbed the back of her head at Cheng's comment. "It was nothing." then she asked, "Should we head back to the ship?" We have an Avatar to capture. She wanted to add, but kept her mouth shut. Wonder how drunken Enakue is by now. Maybe by some miracle he wasn't drunk at all... She let her mind wonder. Right now she was victorious and soon word would spread to her father.

"For you, maybe. Still, a victory over an earthbending commander is quite a feet," He flushed a little, feeling a bit awkward, "I suppose we should head back to the ship and fetch the men. I just hope Enakue isn't too drunk..."

Bumi

"You should exercise some caution, Xin Fu, your ambition could be the end of you," Bumi said, before letting the spear go and walking back to his granddaughter. "You've improved much, Toph, but you still have some training to do." He laughed again, a sign he had returned to his normal, senile state, wondering if he could get a drink on the ship.

Toph laughed. "I was just thinking the same thing...you know about Enakue." She blushed a tad. Then she responded to her grandfather, "Why thank you." She ignored the part about training. That could wait 'till later. Maybe they could damage Xin Fu's ship so he would be delayed from catching the Avatar... Nah, he'd gone through enough today.

"At least there aren't any barmaids for him to flirt with here," Cheng told her with a grin, glad to hear her laugh. This duel and the Avatar's appearance seemed to cheer her mood up. He was grateful for that. She deserved some happiness.

Avatar: The Legend of Azula, Book 1: Air

Chapter 3: Roku Island

Another day was spent flying on Feng. Like before, it had been boring and pretty dull. As Zuko ate some lunch, he spotted an island on the horizon. He immediately had Feng had towards the island. It didn't take Feng long to arrive, and he gracefully landed on the shores of the island.

"We can stretch our legs for a moment, since mobility is limited on Feng. We could stay and swim if you guys like." Zuko said.

General Narrative:

A day had passed since the ship had been repaired. Princess Toph had immediately set off to find the Avatar. Rumors traveled to the ship that the Avatar had visited the island-city of New Roku, but was already gone. As much as she tried, Toph and her crew found no more rumors of the Avatar's whereabouts. For the moment, they stayed at the Fire Nation port of Kia-Chi, a city under Earth Empire control.

Bato:

After several days of traveling by sea and land, they had finally arrived. The journey had been long and dangerous, but they were finally here. Up ahead, the city could be seen.

"Katara, Sokka, welcome to the city of Omashu." Bato announced.

General Narrative:

It had taken them several days, but now they had arrived at Omashu. Prince Haru and Suki were now in the city, and were being greeted by the Governor. He had them both brought to his home, and a magnificent fest was prepared.

"Greetings, Prince Haru, Lady Suki. I welcome you both to the grand city of Omashu." the governor greeted as they entered.

Toph grumbled while wondering the deck, going from side to side. She wanted to get off this port. She wanted to get that Avatar for good. They had heard she was on the island-city of New Roku, but it had only been rumors so they had stayed put. She wanted to go there even if it was a rumor, but they had said she had already left. Finally she stopped and looked around at the men lounging about. She envied them. They didn't have anything to stress about.

Azula gratefully climbed off Feng. She went to his head and patted his nose. "How's it going Feng? I bet flying isn't boring to you." Then after talking to her pet she turned to Zuko. "Swimming seems okay." She pictured Aang in a bathing suit. Then she mentally slapped herself.

Aang

"Yeah! Swimming," Aang yelled as he jumped off of Feng, pulling off his clothes, and dived into the water, resurfacing suddenly. "COLD," he yelled, holding his arms around his body, but then dived again, looking around for some of the giant fish he heard lived around here. He was dieing to ride one of them, he'd heard it was fun, but because of the war, hadn't been able to come around this area yet.

Cheng stood at the deck, looking at his reflection on the water. Today, he had just gotten his bandages off and he still couldn't grasp that the face that was half-scarred was his. He felt a surge of anger, both at himself and the Avatar. The Avatar for burning his face and himself for letting her.

Enakue pulled himself out of his sleep. During the Ares Kai he had, indeed, stayed sober. Unlike most people who drank when nervous the monks didn't drink when nervous, but, due to almost constant intake of alcohol, they suffer from massive withdrawal sickness. He has been trying to recover since then."Why is it..." Enakue mumbled to Cheng "That we had to dock in the one port that is prohibited from serving, consuming, or distributing Liquor of ANY KIND???" Enakue could just scream from the migraines and stomach pains he was having. His personal stash was confiscated when they dock.

"You can stay sober for one day," Cheng grumbled to Enakue. He felt his scar, grimacing at the pain produced by that action. He wasn't in the mood for any of Enakue's antics, "Just go to sleep or something."

Toph stood beside Enakue. "Seems like your in a good mood." She took her hand and rubbed her temple. She noticed how Cheng shifted every time he touched his scar, which he did a lot. It must hurt. I bet it doesn't hurt worse then when I lost my arm. She thought, also in a sour mood.

"It's a wonderful day," Cheng told Toph with a shrug, turning away from his reflection. He knew that it would only bother him if he kept looking. It was how he looked now and brooding on it wouldn't help.

"Yeah...I guess it's ok...." Enakue said thinking idle conversation might get his mind of his withdrawal. ”How is your wound healing?" Enakue asked immediately regretting going in that direction.

Yue:

Yue eagerly stripped off her clothes (she had underclothes on) and jumped into the water, following Aang. She shivered as she survived, the water being cold, but became used to it as she swam. Yue loved the water, but didn't get to swim much in the South Pole due to the waters being freezing. But here, the water was much warmer and there wasn't the fear of freezing to death.

Yue floated along the water happily; now glad they had stopped here. Being cramped up on Feng had been extremely boring. Now, this was just the thing to relax her. All the stress and fears that she had seemed to melt away as she continued to float.

Zuko:

Zuko blushed as he saw Yue in her bathing suite, trying not to stare at her too much. He himself didn't want to swim, just walk around a bit to stretch his legs. They'd have to leave in another few hours if they wanted to maintain their schedule. But for now, they could just relax. Which was unusual, considering what the past few days had been like.Suddenly, a giant purple-scaled serpent rose from the water with a great roar and headed towards Yue and Aang.

"How do you think?" Cheng asked with a scowl. He was hoping that conversation would take his mind of his scarred face, not rub his face in it.

Yue:

At the sight of the serpent, Yue immediately swam towards shore. What in the world was that thing?! And why now, of all times, did it choose to come here and try to eat them? Thankfully, she hadn't drifted too far away and didn't take long to reach the shore.

"Aang, get over here before that thing eats you!" Yue shouted.

Aang

Aang looked out at the serpent and yelled out in shock. He jumped up and began to run, using the air to speed him up so he could actually run on top of the water, but that serpent was catching up to him. When he thought he felt the beast's breath on his back, he suddenly crashed into Zuko, landing on the boy, sprawled out and panting.Sokka"Wow, it's so... dry, and not wet looking," Sokka said, looking at the big Earth Empire city. "So now that we're here, how exactly are you and I supposed to get in there," he asked Katara, looking over at her now. He had been thinking about that, and had decided to wait until he saw the city, but it looked pretty airtight.

Bato:

"Your father thought of that. He gave us some official looking Imperial documents that say we're traveling merchants. Our skin color may be a bit too dark for Imperial peasants, but we'll mostly fit in. As long as we don't wear anything that screams Water Tribe...which reminds me, I have some outfits for us to change into." Bato said, lifting up a sack of clothes.

Zuko:

Zuko barely had time to cry out in surprise before Aang crashed into him, making him land hard on the rocky ground. He lay there for a moment before rolling Aang off of him. A bit shakily, Zuko stood back up. Looking back at the water, he saw the serpent glare at them before sinking back in."All in favor of leaving now?" Zuko asked, not willing to stay here any longer with that monster around. Before the others could answer, a series of red flashes landed around them and took each of them down. "What the-?!" Zuko started to say, but was cut off with a blindfold tied to his eyes and a piece of cloth stuffed into his mouth. Feng rose to attack the strangers, but a canister was tossed near the creature. Smoke pored out from it, and the gas knocked out Feng.

Yue

Yue turned her head to the direction of the voice. What was going on here? Why were they captured? Was...was the Empire on the island? She tried to remove her hands from the bindings, but they were on pretty tight. Just who were these people?

"Who are you?" Yue asked.

Azula stayed where she was. The voice was coming from beside her, but she wasn't about to turn to the person who had captured them. She wondered why they had been captured. Did they know she was the Avatar? Did they know anything about them? What had happened to Feng? So many questions, but no answers. Toph sighed. "This is going to be a boring day..." Another day waiting for news, not going anywhere. If they didn't leave soon she might go crazy; if she wasn't already that is.

"I suppose we could go into port, find something to do. Or we can spar with one another," Cheng told Toph with a shrug. Anything would be a welcome distraction from his face.

"Comrade Jet! Comrade Jet!" Jet rolls his eyes as one of the messenger boys comes into the base of operations for the rebellion. The Jade Beetle Tea Shop. "What is it boy?!" he demanded moving his legs from the table he had rested them on to the floor. He leans forward eyeing the boy. He didn't trust the child. Then again he didn't trust any of the troops. He knew that anybody could be dangerous, even this little punk. The only person he trusted was himself, and nobody else. The boy flinched at the sharpness in his words. "The forces in the western part of the city have broken out into fighting!" said the boy. Jet glared at the boy. "Come closer and tell me more." Demanded Jet. The boy came closer, and Jet watched him move. "Interesting,” he muttered.

"Boy, tell me your name, and how the forces came." Demanded Jet. The boy nodded. "I am Lee, and the forces came through the city of course!" said the boy. "Come closer Lee.” said Jet. The boy took a step closer, and made one out of sync hand movement, then quick as lightning a hook came through Lee, and jet stood there sword plunged into the assassin child.

All of the rebels in the teashop rose and drew swords. "Jet! Why did you just kill that child!" demanded one of the soldiers. Jet chuckled, blood splattered on his clothes and drops on his face. The child chuckled with him. "You truly deserve the name Jet the Madman." he said through gasps for breath, and chuckling. "I under estimated you." he continued. "A mistake you'll never live to make again." laughed Jet. This sight made it seem like he and the boy were old friends. "How did you know?" asked the boy. "You were sloppy. The western region is very safe. It would be difficult to make your way through the city rout, and on the other side of the wall you would need to come by sea. So I would have heard of an attack long ago. You also called yourself Lee, and all too common cover names for assassins. But your age still puzzles me." said Jet. "It shouldn't Jet the Mad. You of all people should understand." said the boy, gasping at his final breaths. "Tell me your name boy." demanded Jet. "Hi-ro-shi." he said gasping, and then life left his body.

Jet closed the Hiroshi's eyes. "Rest well Hiroshi." he said, the blood on his face, and the soldiers in awe.

((End Page 15))

Toph

"I think going into the port sounds better, how 'bout you guys?" Toph didn't exactly want to spar. She was a tiny bit sore from sparring with Xin Fu. That just meant more training. Maybe they could do some training drills. Yet just thinking about it was boring. Something interesting needed to happen. And quick. She might just die of boredom.

Cheng

"Anything is better than standing around being bored," Cheng told Toph with a shrug. He hoped the port inhabitants were friendlier to the Earth Empire than conquered people normally tended to be.

Enakue

"Agreed" Enakue said. "I wonder if the poroxide in the med bay is drinkable?" Enakue thought."Must get wine..."he said quietly.

Cheng

Cheng's unhurt eye twitched a little, "You have a problem, Enakue..." He shook his head before continuing, "I think we should make him go cold-turkeyduck. Stop giving him alcohol..."

Toph

"That would be fun to watch." Toph said smugly. "I think he'd die though. Because alcohol has to be part of his blood by now." She playfully shoved Enakue. "What do you think? Could you quit cold-turkeyduck? You probably couldn't even go a week." She sighed. At least she was in the mood to tease people. She wanted to tease a certain individual, but that individual had escaped and left them empty handed. Darn Avatar...

Cheng

Cheng smirked, smelling a challenge. He grinned at Toph mischievously, "Are you willing to bet on it, Princess?" All thoughts of the Avatar or his scar were put aside as he pondered on a possible wager. He knew Toph couldn't resist a challenge.

Toph

"That depends...what are we betting on?" Toph knew nothing fancy would be put on the line. Maybe she could put the first hit on the Avatar. That would be good. When the Avatar was in custody the man (or woman) who won would get the first questioning/hitting session. She wouldn't want to damage the Avatar to much though...

Cheng

"If I win, you have to wear a dress in front of the men," Cheng told Toph with a smirk, "Of course, whatever penalty is to be inflicted on me if you win, is entirely up to your imagination." He shivered a little and muttered, "Oh Aires what have I got myself into?" He grinned, though, confidant in his wager.

Haru

Haru said nothing as the governor greeted him. Aides ushered him and Suki into the dining hall, as a glorious fest was prepared for them. Haru resisted the urge to snort. Long Feng, even if he was an idiotic father, had better feasts at the palace than this. As the governor sat down, Haru decided to get straight to business.

"You must know why my father sent me here, right? Then give me a brieifing of the situation with the rebels." Haru ordered. The governor looked unsettled talking about the rebels with the Prince, but did so anyways. As the governor did so, Haru noticed a nearby aide looking nervous. He made a mental note to interrogate him later.

Prince Kuei

"Well well well, if it isn't my young niece." someone said, walking up the planks to the deck. Surrounding the man were two fiercesome looking guards, seeming to dare anyone to mess with the man they protected.

Small glasses adorned the young man's face, and he wore the robes of royalty. If one did not recognize him immediately, they would by the family crest on his robes--the one of the Kyoshi Family. Following the man was an odd animal, the rare bear.

"Aren't you going to give your uncle a hug?" Prince Kuei asked, smiling.

Toph

Toph grinned. She didn't think she owned a dress. Well at home she did, but certainly not on the ship. She tried to find something horrible then she had it. If she had to wear a dress, he would too. "So if you win I wear a dress in front of all the men, and if I win you'll wear a dress in front of all the men." She paused for his reaction. "Deal?"

Cheng

Cheng paused for a moment before nodding with a grin, "Deal. If Enakue should have a sip of alcohol within a week, I shall wear the dress. I'm sure you'll look very cute in it, though, when I win."

Toph

"See there's a problem though," Toph started dramatically. "I'm not sure I own a dress. How about I pick yours and you pick mine?" A grin spread across her face. "We'll just go down to the market..." She turned her head as she heard a familiar voice. She shifted her foot to make sure it was him. "Kuei?"

Cheng

"Sounds good to me, Princess," Cheng said with a grin before seeing Kuei and bowing his head in respect. The Earth Emperor's brother was, after all, part of the Royal Family and demanded respect.

Enakue

"Why do you two do these things to me?" Enakue asked pitifully using his trade mark puppy eyes. He was tempted to throw Cheng overboard for suggesting this. "......Toph....make sure the dress is pink and has lots of frills." Enakue said determined to make Cheng pay for this. "Ok. I’ll try it." Enakue said in defeat. He honestly didn’t want to break his addiction. For one thing it was a religious tradition to drink daily. But he knew all to well what it does to his body. His fellow monks would have had about a 30 year life expectancy.

Cheng

Cheng gave Enakue a cheeky smirk, "Because I care for your well-being, my friend. Seeing the effect alcohol has on you was what convinced me never to drink." Despite his occasional arguments and even fights with Enakue, he did care for the monk.

Prince Kuei

"It's good to see you too, Toph. My, you've grown since I last saw you. You may get up...Cheng, was it? There is no need to bow. I am only the brother of the current Imperial Emperor. Now aren't you going to give your uncle a hug? I came all the way over here to see you." Kuei greeted. Bosco ran over to Toph and happily licked her.

Cheng

Cheng straightened himself, liking Kuei already. He raised an eyebrow at the mention of his name. He was only one of the soldiers on his niece's ship. He spoke, a bit confused, "How do you know my name, sir?"

Toph

Toph quickly wiped the slime off her face and hugged Bosco first. "The bear's more important than you." Toph said right before hugging Kuei tightly. Kuei was her favorite relative, (Besides Grandfather of course.)

Prince Kuei

"Really now? Does Bosco bring his favorite niece presents?" Kuei asked, chuckling. With his free arm, he produced a small box. Upon opening it, Toph would find a necklace and a hairpen. Attached to the necklace was a beautiful blue crystal.

"I hope you like the gift. It's very special."

Toph

Toph took the box in her hand. "No, he may not, but he's fuzzy and soft." She grinned. She crouched down on the ground and carefully dumped the content of the box on the floor. She then picked up the jewelry and hairpen, leaving the box on the floor. (Only having one arm was very frustrating at times.) She felt all the edges of the jewel. Then she felt all the designs on the hairpen. "It's beautiful." she murmured.

Prince Kuei

"It belonged to your mother, before she died. I've been meaning to give it to you for quiet some time. I know that your mother would want you to have it, Toph." Kuei said, his voice taking on a somber tone. The death of Long Feng's wife had been a tragic one indeed. Shortly after giving birth to Toph, the Empress had died. Something had gone wrong, and she ended up losing a lot of blood. Kuei had long suspected the hatred given to her by her father and brother was deeply rooted in the Empress's death.

Suki

Suki listened to the conversation as she picked at the food. It wasn't very appetizing. She wondered how Haru could take it...of course it didn't look like he was eating. It probably looked a lot less appetizing to Haru. He was in the palace and everything. So feasts should be like an every day thing to him right? She only had a feast every now and then and it was still better then this food. Though the desserts here were very good...

Toph

"Oh," Toph said simply. She hadn't known her mother because she had died when she was very little. But she could sometimes imagine her. She imagined her as a very kind lady, a bit shorter than her father and with bright green eyes. The face changed all the time except for the eyes. She wished badly for her to have lived. But what happened had happened. There was no changing it. She clutched the jewel even tighter.

((End Page 16))

Cheng

Cheng frowned when he saw Toph clutch the necklace. He could usually read the tone of Toph's voice, whether she was angry (which was a lot), sad, happy, or in a mischievous mood. He supposed this was special, though. He had heard about Toph's mother's death, gossips always paid close attention to the Royal Family, but he never thought about it that much. He wanted to say something but the only thing he could come up with was, "It looks like it fits you perfectly, Princess."

Bumi

"Is that my youngest son I hear," Bumi asked, walking down to the others from the ship. "Kuei, it's been quite some time since I've seen you." He gave one of his senile laughs, as he approached them.

Toph

"It probably fit my mother more." She wondered. Did she look anything like her mother? Should she ask? She heard her grandfather approaching. She could ask. But that would probably bring back painful memories. Toph shoved the thought aside and made her face show no emotion. This necklace had been worn by her mother. Held by her mother. Wonder who gave it to her? Or did she buy it on her own? Did she... Toph's mind wondered.

Cheng

Cheng flushed, trying think of something else to say. He couldn't really think of anything so he said lamely, "Your mother would have wanted you to have it. "

Kuei

"It sure has, Father. It's good to see you as well. Long Feng sends his reguards. And Cheng is right, Toph. In fact, I remember Sera mentioning once that she'd like to give this necklace to her daughter when she was a fine, beautiful woman. That necklace has been passed down her family through generations. And now it is yours." Kuei said, smiling at Toph. Bosco went over to Bumi and began to lick him.

"So, are the rumors I've heard true? The Avatar is indeed alive?" Kuei asked suddenly, his face growing serious.

Toph

Toph blushed and then at the mention of the Avatar her face turned grim. "Yes, the Avatar is indeed alive and as clever and agile as ever. But I intend to capture he-" She was about to say 'her', but quickly changed it to, "him. He can't hide forever." Hopefully her mistake didn't show. She didn't want the information that the Avatar was a girl to be spread around.

Kuei

Kuei raised an eyebrow at Toph's slip of words, but said nothing of it. "I see. Well, I wish you the best of luck in capturing him. I've heard that Commander Xin Fu is searching for him as well. Now, how about we go tour the town? The Fire Nation is lovely this time of year. They've also got great food. It'll be my treat." Kuei said, smiling. He wanted to lift his niece's spirits and get her mind off of the Avatar.

Cheng

Cheng raised an eyebrow at Toph continuing to hide the Avatar's gender, but didn't comment. It wasn't his place to comment after all. Besides, the Avatar reminded him of what happened to his face. He touched the bandages that were roughly wrapped around half his face. The injury would be a constant reminder of his failure and stupidity.

Toph

Toph thought for a moment. "Sure!" She said almost too cheerfully. She would get off this ship at any cost. Maybe she could pick out Cheng's dress. She smiled at Cheng wickedly. "Remember, lots of frills."

Cheng

Cheng was once again interrupted from his brooding by one of his friends. He grinned at Toph and said mischievously, "Duly noted. A frllly dress for the princess to wear. I'd suggest green. Brings out the color of your eyes." It was strange how she could change his mood like that. He was reminded of the first time he met her. She had gotten him so angry then that he didn't quit until he was the best swordsman in his unit. Similarly, he was determined to win their bet. He smiled at the thought.

Kuei

"Good. Would you mind watching Bosco father? Now let's go, this town happens to have some fine landmarks I can show you." Kuei said, without waiting for an answer from Bumi. A guard from Kuei, previously unnoticed, had slipped into the lower deck and was now steathedly coming back up. He approached the Prince and whispered something in his ear. Kuei briefly nodded and the guard went back to his side. Kuei grinned again at Toph and walked down the plank, his two bodyguards following.

"If you'll please follow me, Princess Toph."

Mai

"I believe that we are the ones that should be asking the questions," Mai told the strangers sharply, "We are the Roku Warrirors and this is our island. We've stayed neutral in the war and plan to stay that way. Who are you? Earth Imperial spies?"

Azula

Azula tried to turn toward the voice this time. "No. The exact opposite...More like...Water Tribe and Fire Nation tourists...?" That was stupid very very stupid. She wondered who the Roku Warriors were. Back in her day there had been no such thing... Or had there? She racked her brain for some answers.

Toph

Toph followed Kuei wondering what the guard had said. He had whispered to quietly for even her to hear. Surely nothing bad. She trusted Kuei completely. Except for the gender of the Avatar. That was a secret too valuable to give up. She again turned to Cheng. She pretended to study him for a moment. "Pink, frills, and lots of lace. That'll do you good." She smirked and again started to follow Kuei.

Mai

"We still cannot take that chance," Mai told Azula with a frown on her face as their blindfolds were taken off, revealing that the strangers were tied to trees. Mai and the other women were dressed in black and red ninja outfits, some of them wearing masks but all of them wielding fans and knives. She spoke, "Feed them to the Unagi."

Cheng

Cheng gagged, "You know I hate that color. At least choose something tasteful." He shook his head, "Not that it will matter. You'll be wearing the dress."

Toph

Toph laughed. It was a bell like laugh that sounded through the port. Some heads turned, but most ignored it. "Do you think Enakue will really last more than week? He's barely lasting a day!" She smirked.

Azula

"That's what that was?" Azula asked. "I've always wanted to see a Unagi!" Maybe playing stupid will let us live longer... She thought. The girls looked very skilled. Now was probably the time when one of the guys made a fuss about being captured by girls... It would come any minute now.

Cheng

Cheng smiled, enjoying the sound of her laugh. He had to admit that he liked to make her laugh. He cocked his head, "Really, princess, you must have more faith in your friends. I know he can last a week."

Mai

Mai smirked, "Good. That will be your last mistake." She signaled for the others to untie the prisoners and bind their hands before they led them to the ocean.

Enakue

"Thanks for the vote of confidence." Enakue said. "I'll be sure to jot that down for later insperation..." he joked while nursing his ever groing headache.

Cheng

"You're welcome," Cheng told Enakue with a smirk, "But just to make sure, I'll make sure you don't buy any alcohol when we go into town."

Toph

"Yes, and I'll make sure to buy a whole big crate of it and put it in his room. I'll find some somehow." Toph grinned. She was confident she would win.

Cheng

"I'll dump it overboard," Cheng told Toph, unperturbed. He smiled, "And I doubt you have that much booze money."

Toph

Toph lifted an eyebrow. "Oh? Who says I don't have a secret room in my quarters that's full of money?" Though her thoughts lingered on Cheng's thought. If she spent money on the dress today, she wouldn't have enough to buy Enakue any liquor.

((End Page 17))

Cheng

"But you wouldn't really use it all on liquor, would you?" Cheng asked Toph victoriously. He coked his head, "Say, can you lend me a copper or two some time?"

Zuko

Desperate times called for desperate measures. "Wait, don't feed us to that beast! My...my sister's the Avatar!" Zuko cried, trying to think of ways to save them. The Roku Warriors...they sounded familiar. Hadn't he heard about them from his private tutor, in his lessons of the Fire Nation history? Yes, he had. They were named after the famous Avatar Roku, who saved the Fire Nation from a mad-man that nearly destroyed it.

Azula

Azula frowned, but hastily nodded her head. "Yes, I'm the Avatar." She didn't think that the Roku Warrior Leader had been serious, but she actually was. What? Did she throw every single intruder to the Unagi? What if it was someone important? Like her Uncle Iroh for instance. What if he came here and they threw him to the Unagi. They would be in for a treat. She smirked.

Kuei

"So, would you both like to look around, or go someplace to eat?" Kuei asked, looking over to the both of them. They were now walking through the town. A few of the Fire Nation peasents glared at them, but did nothing to attack them. They all recognized the robes of the Kyoshi Family, or rather the Royal Family that controled the Earth Empire. Even if they killed one of them, the Empire would strike down two-fold upon the town. Many would die in that retribuation. It wouldn't be worth it.

"Your boyfriend is a nice guy, Toph." Kuei added, looking over at the two. He was glad she had found someone she liked during her exile.

Toph

She was about to reply to the first question when a huge, deep red blush went across Toph's face. "H-he's not my boyfriend. We're just friends." She crossed her fingers that Cheng wouldn't take this the wrong way. She also hoped the blush would disappear. She liked Cheng, just not that much... Or did she? This sent her thoughts spiraling. But her face showed no sign of this. It only showed her blush. Then she went back to the first question. "I would like to look around for that dress for Cheng, I don't know about Cheng though."

Enakue

'I must be hallucinating...' Enakue though see Toph...TOPH of all people blushing. "I must be going insane...” Enakue said to himself. He hadn’t been paying attention to the conversation. He was more interested in the Shop windows with exotic wine and beer. 'Just five more days. Just five more days.' He as he started the mantra in his head.

Mai

Mai raised an eyebrow, "Liars. The Avatar disappeared years ago. Probably because Kyoshi herself cursed the cycle with her evil deeds."

Cheng

Cheng felt his face heat up. Him, Toph's boyfriend? He did like her and he was loyal to her, but not that in that way. Did he? His thoughts turned to what it would be like but he shoved them away with a blush. She didn't like him that way. He was a common soldier after her. He spoke, "T-Toph's right. We're just friends." He cocked an eyebrow at Toph, "So certain you'll win? I'll have a dress for when I win."

Azula

"No, really I am! How would you like me to prove it to you?" She couldn't think of anything to do so she asked the Roku Warrior leader.

Toph

"I was going to pick out your dress." Her head turned back to Cheng even though she saw with her feet. She wanted to know if he was blushing. Her own face was still burning. Then she turned away again walking behind Kuei.

Mai

"Fine," Mai told Azula, "If you aren't lying, then bend two different elements. Only then, will we believe you."

Cheng

Cheng grinned competitively as he followed after Toph. He hope his face wasn't burning. For once, he was glad that half of his face was hidden by the bandages. He looked at Toph before looking away instantly, feeling his stomach act up. She was blushing too.

Azula

"But I haven't learned all of them!" Then Azula thought about what Lu Ten had said. Something about only the Avatar being able to bend blue fire at such a young age... "But I can bend fire!" With that she made some fire come out of her hands. Her hands were still bound so she had to make sure she didn't burn
herself. As usual the fire was blue.

Toph

A store appeared ahead with a sign titled Old Ying's Dress Shoppe. "Hey, Cheng, look at that store." Without waiting she pushed open the door and headed inside. She knew Kuei would either follow or wait outside.

Mai

Mai and the Roku Warriors gasped as the Avatar bended blue fire. She inclined her head, "I am sorry for doubting you, Avatar. Welcome to Roku Island." She turned to the other warriors, "Free them!"

Cheng

Cheng said nothing as he followed Toph into the store. Now that he thought about it, how was he going to explain about him buying a dress? He decided that he'd think of something when the time came. He looked through the dresses before spotting a dress about Toph's size. It It was a dark green sleevless one, not too dressy but practical, as was Toph's nature. He decided to buy it.

Toph

Toph looked through the racks. She wasn't sure what one to pick. She actually didn't want to embarrass Cheng that much. So the pink one was out. She grabbed one off the rack. It was a simple blue blouse that where it would end as a shirt was extended and turned into a deep green at the bottom. The whole dress was made out of a light cotton. That wouldn't be too bad. Of course she should've gone for the pink frills she went up and gave the clerk her money. The clerk folded it neatly and without speaking to her put it in a box and handed it to her. "Thanks," Toph murmured. The clerk ignored her muttering something about the 'pesky Earth Kingdom Royalty.' She then leaned on the door frame waiting for Cheng to come out. She hoped Cheng didn't pick out anything to frilly.

Azula

Azula rubbed her wrists as she was freed from the ropes. "It's alright." She grinned at the leader. "My name is Azula and this is Zuko my brother. And these are Aang and Yue." She motioned to each as she said their names. She didn't know if she should be introducing them to the Roku Warriors, but she did anyway. Besides it wasn't like they were Earth Kingdom.

Cheng

Cheng gripped his sword as he exited the dress shop. He had heard the clerk say something about Earth Kingdom royalty under his breath but he didn't pursue it. He approached Toph, with the dress paid for. It cost him all the money he had with him at the moment but the other dresses looked too embarrassing to wish on anyone, let alone one of his friends. He grinned at Toph, "This week's music night will be a night to remember, Princess."

Mai

Mai bowed her head, "I am Mai, leader of the Roku warriors. Allow me to escort you to town. You must be tired from your journey."

Toph

Toph grinned. "It sure will. Now what do we do? Make sure Enakue buys some exotic liquor?"

Azula

Azula nodded. She wasn't necessarily tired, but they could stock up on supplies in town. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Mai."

Cheng

"No. You're not going to torture Enakue with something he can never have," Cheng lectured Toph with a grin. He sighed, "But I don't know what to do now either."

Mai

Mai nodded and the Avatar and her friends were led to the main settlement on Roku Island. It seemed that news of the Avatar's return preceded them and the crowd gathered around them. There was even one guy that was foaming at the mouth from excitement. Mai sighed. What was the matter with that guy? She just hoped the Avatar wouldn't have fanboys or, Agni forbid, fangirls.

Toph

"If only we knew where the Avatar was... I wonder if Xin Fu went crying to his mommy yet." She really had wondered what had happened to him. All she had heard was that he had left port.

Azula

Azula looked at the crowd. Her eyes caught on one that was foaming from the mouth. This was certainly different. She had never been very... noticed back home. Well that was probably because they hadn't told anyone she was the Avatar. This trip could get interesting.

Cheng

"I have a feeling that the good commander will be more resolute than that," Cheng told Toph with a shrug, "And if I were the Avatar, I'd go somewhere safe, perhaps an island full of warriors or monastery of warrior monks, before traveling to an Air Temple."

Toph

"If I were the Avatar I'd hand myself over to the Princess
thats needs her honor back." Toph said. "What islands are near here? We could go searching." They could,but something told her to stay put. A gut feeling of sorts.

Kuei

Kuei walked inside the shop and waited for Toph and Cheng to finish shopping. "Ah, my mistake. Seeing the two of you together, I figured you were boyfriend and girlfriend. My mistake, then. Though you would make a good couple." Kuei said, grinning. Being an uncle, he sometimes loved to embarrass Toph. Though it was all for good fun.

A servant came up to Kuei, and whispered in his ear. Kuei nodded at the news and dismissed the servant. The Imperial Prince looked around the shop and sighed. At the moment of his entrance, everyone had stopped moving and were giving him horrified looks. A few even fainted. The shop owner was deciding whether or not it would be in his best interest to kick out the Prince.

"It seems my past once again comes to haunt me." Kuei said.

General Narrative/Zuko

Word spread quickly among the Rokuians about the Avatar's arrival. A crowd had gathered to witness the young girl, amazed that after so many years the Avatar was back. Rather quickly, a group of fanboys (and some fangirls) surrounded Azula. Being the Avatar's brother, even Zuko got a few fans. Yue and Aang were largely ignored.

The fanboys were asking Azula all sorts of questions, ranging from where she had been all these years to even marriage proposals. As for Zuko, the fangirls were asking him what it was like to be the Avatar's brother and whatnot.

"Azula, I think we need to go somewhere...less crowded!" Zuko shouted over the roar of the crowd.

Aides

While Prince Haru was interrogating the governor, and Suki eating, two aides had slowly approached the table, making sure not to call attention to themselves. In the blink of an eye, they appeared behind the Prince and Suki, holding daggers to their necks.

"It would be in the Rebellion's best interest for you to come with us, Prince Haru. Now."

Aang

"I don't like this place that much," Aang commented to Yue as he watched as a lot of boys started gathering around Azula. Not only was no one giving him a second glance, he felt a little jealous that Azula was being bombarded by other guys, and was a little afraid she'd like them more than him. Also, being tied up and almost fed to a giant serpent, as exciting as it had been, did not seem too friendly.

Prince Haru

The Prince was a little less than started to find a dagger at his neck, more along the lines of being impressed by their nerve and their daring to attempt to threaten him. Though he could free himself at any time from them, he smiled, deciding to play along for a little while. "Well, govenor, I'm not impressed with how you're running Omashu at all, but I will consent to coming with you."

Aides

"Zhong, Lin, I trusted you! After all these years...this is how you repay me?!" the governor cried, outraged. The aides showed no visible reaction. Guards now surrounded the table, watching the tense scene play out. Normally, they would have attacked by now. But with Prince Haru's life in danger, they were less willing to do something that dangerous. The wrath of Emperor Long Feng if Prince Haru died here was unimaginable.

"Excellent choice, Prince Haru. What say you, Suki?"

Yue

"I agree." Yue said, not liking all those fangirls surrounding Zuko. She felt somewhat jealous, though she didn't completely understand why. After all, she liked Zuko as only a friend, right? Yes, that was it. She was just watching over a friend. Friends looked out for each other, and Yue didn't want Zuko to get his heart broken by those girls. They only liked him because he was the brother to the Avatar. She hoped they wouldn't stay here too long.

Cheng

Cheng felt himself blush bright red at the Prince's comments. He didn't know why, he was blushing. He saw Toph as only his friend and commanding officer, right? She did look cute but still.

Mai

Mai sighed at how excited her fellow Rokuians were behaving. They were already fawning over the Avatar and his brother, though, she did admit that the Avatar's brother, Zuko or whatever his name was, was cute.

((End Page 18))

Suki
Suki lifted an eyebrow at Haru as he said he'd go, but following orders she replied, "I go wherever Prince Haru goes."

Azula
Azula looked over all the heads. She saw Aang and Yue. Then she saw Zuko with a bunch of girls surrounding him. She replied to her brother's yelling she said, "We need to get supplies first!"

Zuko
"Screw the supplies, we need to get away from this crowd, or would you rather wait for more of them to arrive?!" Zuko shouted back. Thankfully, the other Roku Warriors approached and managed to drive the crowd of fangirls and fanboys away, saying that the Avatar and her brother needed rest.
Zuko gave a sigh of relief once that was over. "I was afraid they might jump me...so, how exactly were your warriors able to defeat us so quickly?" Zuko asked Mai, turning to her.

Kuei
"Get out! Get out of my shop, you monster! I will not have someone of the likes of you scaring my customers! I don't care if you're apart of the Kyoshi Family, get out!" the shop owner finally shouted, enraged that Kuei was here. After a moment, what he said caught up with his brain and a look of fear crossed his face.
Kuei's guards growled and prepared to kill the shop owner, but Kuei stopped them. "No, you will not harm this innocent man. I'm afraid we'll have to leave now, Toph. Pay for what you're going to buy, if you haven't already." Kuei said cooly.

Aides
"Wise choice, Suki. Now come, Prince Haru. Our leader wishes to see you." the aide instructed. Once Prince Haru and Suki rose, the two aides slowly walked out of the room, making sure to show the daggers were still at their necks. After leaving the house and going through a series of secret passage-ways, they lifted the daggers and bowed before them.
"We are sorry to have done that, Prince Haru. But it was too dangerous for you to stay with the governor. The conspiracy goes larger than you think. The governor himself is working with the rebels, and was planning to assassinate you tomorrow. Most of the town is in full support of the traitorous swine. I am the Grand Master of the Dai Li, Tyren. This is my daughter, Song." Tyren introduced.

Cheng
He answered Toph, "I don't know, we could-" He was interrupted by the shopkeeper's exclamation as well as the chaos that ensued. He looked at Toph's uncle in surprise and in newfound respect, "Most of the nobles of the Empire would have had his tongue cut off for that."

Mai
"We're good warriors, unlike you," Mai told Zuko with a smirk, "Plus we heard you from miles away. You and your companions make too much noise."

Zuko
"Hey, I'm a good warrior! You...you just snuck up on us, didn't give us a chance to fight back. I bet I could easily defeat you in a fair fight!" Zuko challenged. Truthfully, he wasn't so sure. But he wasn't about to back down now.

Mai
"Is that a challenge?" Mai asked Zuko with a smirk, "Because, to me, you look like an untrained peasant."

Zuko
"I am not!" Zuko protested. While it was true he had received little sword training from Uncle Iroh and Father, it had been because they were busy with the war. Still, he was never going to admit that to Mai. Besides, maybe he'd be lucky and she wouldn't do all that well in the fight.
...and he might was well wish that he and Azula had never been frozen in the iceberg, or that Kyoshi hadn't started the war in the first place.

Mai
Mai smirked, "Very well then. After you and your companions gather what supplies you need, meet me at the Roku Dojo."

Prince Haru
Prince Haru did not respond immediately, he clasped his fingers and thought for a moment. "The govenor did not look like he was being completely honest, and seemed more tense than a man who was supressing a rebellion," he said, thinking out loud. "The fact that you have lowered your defenses now, after threatening my life, tells me that you are the honest ones, or believe I'll fall for a trap. For now, I'll chose to believe you, Tyren of the Dai Li. Lead me to the rest of the Dai Li, there I will hear what you have to say." He paused for a moment and added, "It would also be in your best interest not to hold another dagger to my, or Suki's, neck."

Katara
"Dad thought of everything, didn't he?" Katara said, smiling a little. She took the sack of clothes from Bato, set it on the ground, opened it, and began digging through it. "What's mine?" she asked, pulling out each item of clothing one by one to see what it was.

Bato
"The darker colored green ones are for Sokka, and the lighter green ones are for you. The brownish colored clothes are mine. Also while in the city, you two will be posing as my children." Bato explained. He bent down to get his clothes and went behind some rocks to change. Once he came back out he was dressed in Earth Empire clothes, his Water Tribe outfit bundled up in his hand.
"We can put our Water Tribe clothes in the bag and bury it out here, so they won't be found. Uh...I'm afraid Katara, your necklace..." Bato trailed off. He knew the necklace was very important to her, ever since Pakku murdered Kya. But it screamed Water Tribe, and it would be too dangerous to hide on her person.

Tyren
"Of course, Prince Haru. I would not dream of doing that again. I'm afraid it was the only way we could safely get you out of the mansion. Now come, follow me." Tyren said, as he and Song began to lead the duo through a series of passageways.
"These tunnels were once used as secret hideouts for bandits and other criminals, back when the Empire was once a scattered collection of kingdoms. Some of Omashu's dangerous criminals have used these tunnels as their base of operations. Now the Dai Li shall use it to take back the city." Tyren explained. He stopped at a wall and Song pushed a stone further into the wall. The wall slowly slid open.
A large carved out room layed ahead, with ten men and women occupying it. They all snapped to attention immediately and at the sight of Prince Haru, bowed.
"Counting myself and Song, there are twelve Dai Li agents altogether in Omashu. Once your father got aware of the complete situation, he sent me here to take back Omashu. It has proven...more difficult than I could imagine. So now you are here, Prince Haru. We await your command. We have several leads to the identity of the Leader of the rebels." Tyren explained further.
If Prince Haru did not realize it before, he would now. Long Feng had not explained the entire situation, because he wanted to test his son. See if he would be able to figure it out, and take back the city.

Katara
"Oh...yeah..." Katara said slowly, bringing her hand up to touch the blue necklace. "I guess it's pretty obviously Water Tribe, isn't it?"
She picked out the clothes Bato said were hers and went behind the rocks to change. She came back a few minutes later, her Water Tribe clothes folded under one arm, her mother's necklace held delicately in her hand. Katara had put her hair back in a simple braid minus the hair loopies, as they were attributed to the Water Tribe.

Sokka
Sokka examined the clothes and went to change behind the rocks after Katara. He let his hair fall flat against his head, looking more like Earth Kingdom, and came back, looking somewhat different. "Bato, is there anything else we need to know about the situation here before we head inside the city," Sokka asked.

Prince Haru
"Very well. Give me their identities, and tell me, they are extremely organized, are they not? Do the rebel masses draw strength and courage from the leaders? Who is it that has the greatest influence on them," Haru asked. "And what is the true situation on the city? I assume the rebels have quite a bit more ground than the govenor was telling me."

Bato
"Well...only this: your father has heard rumors of a rebellion growing within the city. That is all we know, the Empire keeps its lips sealed tight on internal matters. Now that you're both ready, we can begin." Bato said. Using a shovel he brought from the ship, Bato buried the bag and hid the shovel behind a rock.
Bato began to walk down the path towards the city, motioning Katara and Sokka to follow. It didn't take them long to reach the gates of the city. Standing guard were two fierce-looking soldiers.
"Name, occupation, and reason for visiting." the guards ordered.
"I am Tenji, and these are my children Lien and Ren. We are merchants, coming from Ba Sing Se. We are on official business." Bato reported. The guards studied them for a moment before nodding. They shouted for the gate to be open. Slowly, the stone walls parted and the city was open for them.
"Enjoy your stay in Omashu."

Tyren
"Very well, my Prince. The main leaders are the following: Ju-Don, a wealthy merchant in the city, Lei, the general commanding the garrison, a local hero by the name of Yen, the governor Ty-Shue, and a young man named Jet. Out of these five leaders, Yen and Jet have the most influence. Jet is a young boy, around your age. He is said to be ruthless, but an efficient leader. Yen is a former soldier, turned rebel after her parents were killed in a protest of the taxes being raised. Unlike her counterpart, Yen is kind and good, but also an effective leader.
We estimate that over sixty-five percent of the city is in full support of the rebellion, a large majority of them being peasents and other low-class citizens. The local garrison is in full support of them, as is the governor. Most of the merchants and other wealthy citizens are in secret support of the rebellion, giving them money that the governor cannot, least he attract the attention of the Treasurey. The Middle-Class is evenly divided. We have evidence that the Rebellion is planning something big, but we know not what it is." Tyren reported.
Another wall slid open, and a darker-skinned man came in. The Dai Li did not react to his presence, indicating he was an ally.
"Greetings, your majesty. I am Pakku of the Water Tribe. I recently came into the city, seeking to ally with your Empire. Once the Dai Li found out my reasons for coming into the city, they recruited me immediately." Pakku introduced, bowing as well.

Prince Haru
Haru nodded as Tyren gave him the information, and eyed Pakku as he came in. "Water tribe, presumably a bender," he said. "We will need to flush Lei, Ju-Don, and the govenor into the open, exposing their allegiance. Yen appears to be easiest to deal with, she does not seem important enough to be troubled with too much. Then Jet, ruthless, but young. He's a wild card, you've given me little to go on him. I may need to deal with him myself. I want Yen assasinated, and I want Jet brought before me. We will also need to infiltrate the traitors' homes and find evidence of their betrayl."
He turned to Pakku, and asked, "What were those reasons for coming to the city?" A waterbender on his side may be an invaluable tool against the rebels, who would not expect him.

Sokka
Once past the guards, Sokka was on the lookout, studying the lay of the land, or the buildings and people. Obviously, this wasn't where rebels were, otherwise Imperial guards wouldn't be on duty at the entrance. He wondered if they might be able to use the rebels to help find Pakku, but first they would need to find them.

Mai
"You're welcome to come along," Mai told Azula, "It's the safest place in the island."

Kuei
"I am sorry we had to leave so soon, Toph." Kuei apoligized as they all left the shop. As they walked down the streets, Kuei's two guards stayed behind a few feet. Kuei looked back at them and started to pick up the pace, motioning for Cheng and Toph to keep up with him.
"When I say the word, we will all run as fast as we can and go through several allys. I have something important to tell you Toph, something that cannot be heard by your father's men." Kuei said.

Tyren
"At once, my prince. Your will be done." Tyren said, bowing deeply. He motioned for the Dai Li agents to go into action.
"To join your glorious Empire, of course. Yes, I am a waterbender. A master waterbender. Up in the North Pole, I figured it would only be a matter of time until we fell. So, why not go join your people sooner than that? When the North is conquered, I will want complete authority over it, of course. But I can discuss that with your father. Until then, I am your humble servant, my Prince. Do you have anything special in mind for me?" Pakku asked.

Bato
"We need to be discrete in our search for Pakku. Enemies lurk everywhere, and there is no telling if he has joined the Empire yet." Bato whispered. As they rounded the corner into the market district, they were suddenly ambushed. Shadowy figures jumped them, and quickly captured them before any fighting could be done. Katara, Sokka, and Bato were knocked out and the figures took them away.
"I am sorry to be calling this meeting so soon, but we have an emergency." Ju-Don spoke. The other leaders of the Rebellion had been brought here by soldiers, and all working on the secret project had been called off for the moment."As you all must know, Prince Haru has arrived in Omashu. But that is not why I have called this council into session." Ju-Don announced. Three large sacks were dumped into the room, and its contents were removed.Katara, Bato, and Sokka were its contents. They were tied, but not gagged.
"It seems Northern Tribesmen have entered into Omashu as well."

Zuko
Zuko nodded, and went to prepare. He headed back to Feng and explained the situation to the dragon, to insure he didn't attack the villagers. Zuko asked Yue and Aang to go collect the needed supplies, and he went off towards the Roku Dojo, his duel swords in hand.
"Alright, I'm ready." Zuko called out.

Mai
"Good," Mai told Zuko with a grin as she led them to a building on the hilltop which was made of white wood and the tiles on the roof were a bright red. She entered the room and stood on a red matt, knives out, "Ready?"

Jet
Jet eyed each of the Tribe members. "Explain your buisness here travalers." Demanded Jet. "Preferably from the lady." he continued, a flirtatious smile on his face.

Kuei
"Now!" Kuei shouted, and ducked into a nearby ally. He made sure Toph and Cheng were along, and ran full speed. The two guards attempted to pursue them, but easily got lost in the maze of allyways. After five minutes of running, Kuei stopped and motioned for Cheng and Toph to do that same. Kuei caught his breath before attempting to speak.
"I am sorry about this, but it had to be done. Had your father's men heard what I am about to tell you, they would have killed me on the spot. Now, are you ready?" Kuei asked.

Zuko and NPCs
"Of course." Zuko replied. He unsheathed his swords and rushed at Mai, and swung them both at her, though he was a bit clumsy. Meanwhile, an older woman approached Azula.
"Care to have your fortune told, dearie?" the old woman asked.
And as Yue and Aang were in the market purchasing supplies, a man dressed in black robes with the symbol of a dragon on his robs went over to them. "You are friends of the Avatar and her brother, are you not?" the man asked.

Mai
Mai held out two of her knives and expertly blocked the swords, "Very swampy." She smirked.

Yue
"Yes we are, sir. How can we help you?" Yue asked the strangely dressed man. They were just about finishing up the shopping when the man had approached them.

Toph
"Something that you'd be killed for?" She muttered. She looked up at Kuei. "Well? What is it?" Hurry too. The guards could come at any moment...

Azula
Azula looked up at the old woman. She thought over it for a second. What could it hurt? "Sure." She said and stood up.

((End Page 19))

Zuko

Zuko growled and broke off the stale mate, and attempted to strike at Mai again. There was no way he'd let this girl beat him!

Seer

"Excellent. Please, follow me to my shop." the Seer said, leading Azula to a small tent in the corner of the market district. The Seer sit down and motioned for Azula to do the same.

"Anything specific, dearie? Your future, your love life, anything?"

Kuei

"I have taken a Spirtual Bond with my brother that if I should mention this, I would die. However, the conditions did not state that I couldn't hint at it." Kuei said, not bothering to explain what a Spirtual Bond was. He probably assumed Toph knew what one was. Kuei took another breath and started to sing,

"The King and his men
stole the queen from her bed
and bound her in her bones
the seas be ours and by the powers
where we will, we'll roam

Yo-Ho, all hands
hoist the colours high!
Heave-Ho, thieves and beggars
never shall we die

Now some have died and some are alive
and others sail on the sea
with the keys to the cage
and the devil to pay
we lay to fiddler's green

Yo-Ho, haul together
hoist the colours high!
Heave-Ho, thieves and beggars
never shall we die."

Kuei finished the song, and stared at Toph. "I have risked my life at even hinting at this subject, Toph. I pray to the spirits that you figure out the meaning, otherwise this would have been in vain."

Cheng

Cheng frowned thoughtfully. He liked riddles but he disliked getting them when he wanted to know about something serious. He thought abou the first part:

"The King and his men
stole the queen from her bed
and bound her in her bones
the seas be ours and by the powers
where we will, we'll roam."

Could the queen be Toph's mother? And what about the part about the sea? Who took the sea? The Earth Empire, he knew, since it was winning the war, but what does that have to do with anything?

Toph

Toph's eyebrows knitted together as she thought this over. "Thank you, Kuei." The first thing that popped into her mind was that her mother was the Queen. Which could mean that... she was possibly alive? That was the second thing that came into her head. She was afraid to say it, afraid that it would sound outrageous. It sounded unbelievable even to her and she was the one thinking it!

"Now some have died and some are alive
and others sail on the sea
with the keys to the cage
and the devil to pay
we lay to fiddler's green."

If it was her mother's bones that they were talking about then maybe she was in a cage somewhere. That could be possible. But who knew?!? This was so confusing! She wished Kuei had never taken the Spiritual Bond and that he could just tell her, but Spiritual Bonds were Spiritual Bonds, and she definitely didn't want Kuei to die.

Azula

Azula followed the woman into town and sat down when told to do so. Anything specific... "Not really... Could you do all the major topics?" She actually wanted to do love the most, but she'd let the woman decide.

Mai

Mai felt herself frown. This boy was a beginner, there was no questioning that, but he was a natural at that. She felt herself smirk however. She'd just have to wait for him to make a mistake. She gestured towards herself with a grin, "Giving up already?" She held her knives out in a defensive stance.

Zuko

"No way in Agni." Zuko said. Zuko sent another poorly aimed and clumsy strike at Mai. He would not let this girl win, if he had a choice in this duel.

Seer

"Very well, dearie. I see many possible love interests in your future...in fact, I believe one travels with you already. However...your future is on a rocky road. As the Avatar, you will face many threats. The Earth Empire is one, but...dear spirits, their is another, even worse!" the Seer cried, now in a trance.

"Beware young Avatar, for their is a future traitor among your group. One of your friends will sell their souls to your greatest enemy, for revenge. Beware of the Hidden One, for he shall strike when least expected. He is your true enemy within the Empire. Beware of the Order of the Black Dragon, for they hunt you as does the Exile." the Seer continued.

?

"Ah, it is nothing much. I only have a simple question: have you ever heard of the Order of the Black Dragon?" the man asked, smiling. Two men dressed in similar robes come forth, joining their fellow.

Lady Kyo

"Send word to the Exiled Princess, the Avatar is here. Prepare men for the strike against Roku Island. Once the Princess arrives, the Black Dragon Order shall attack." Lady Kyo ordered her men.

Kuei

"You are welcome, my niece." Kuei said. He guided them back out of the alleyway, and back into town. The guards immediately found them, but did not seem angry. "Princess Toph, Prince Kuei, we have received word via messenger hawk of the Avatar's current whereabouts. She is at Roku Island, not too far from here."

Aang

Aang didn't trust this guy, and the two other guys suddenly appearing did nothing to alieviate his concerns. "Uh... I don't, never heard of them before," he said, which was perfectly true, he had never heard of the Black Dragon Order. He also thought that if he said no, then maybe the guy would just leave them alone.

Azula

Azula's eyes widened. A traitor? It couldn't be Zuko, or Aang, or even Yue! But she did say there would be one. She'd have to be careful not to do anything to anyone, so no one could take revenge. Then it wouldn't be possible. But yet again Uncle Iroh had always said something about one faces his doom on the path he takes to avoid it... something like that.

Toph

Toph followed Kuei silently, memorizing the song on her way. Also trying to decipher every line. Then her heart skipped a beat at the sound of the news. The Avatar was on Roku Island! She waited for Kuei to say something though. She didn't want to leave without his permission, as much as she wanted the Avatar.

Kuei

"I wish to go with you, Toph. To see the Avatar for myself." Kuei asked kindly. His seriousness from before appeared to be gone. So, the Avatar had been found. Excellent. Perhaps Toph could regain her honor now.

?

"Good. My...partners and I would like you to come with us, please. Our master wishes to speak with you." the mysterious man said. Two more man dressed in the same robes appeared, and they all started to form a tight circle around Yue and Aang.

Seer

"You will have a long road ahead of you, Avatar Azula. Your life will be endangered many times, but it is possible you will succeed. However, beware of Kyoshi. For she will attempt to return, and steal the Avatar State from you. Even if you fail to defeat the Empire, balance will be restored eventually. However...if Kyoshi succeeds in getting the Avatar State...then all hope will be lost." the Seer said, her voice taking on a demonic tone.

"Beware of the betrayer, for they will surrender their soul to receive unimaginable power, to deal revenge towards those who betrayed them. Their is still time to save them. Prevent the Death of a Loved One, and they may be saved. Beware of the innocent and kind, for their is more to the Hidden One then meets the eye. All our hope is upon you, girl. And beware...of Chin's Comet." the Seer said. She suddenly broke out of her trance.

"Spirits girl, you have a destiny unlike any I've seen before!"

Cheng

Cheng tensed at the mention of the Avatar. He nearly forgot about her with this talk about Spirit Bonds and riddles. He glanced at Toph and spoke gently, "We can capture her before we leave, Toph."

Toph

"Well? What are we standing here for? Let's go!" Toph said simply. "The Avatar isn't gonna be there forever!" She turned toward the direction of the ship, but didn't move, waiting for Kuei and Cheng. She wondered what he thought of all this.

Azula

Azula just stared. She gulped. This was so... strange. She hadn't thought about any of this and now she had like 20 bazillion riddles to unravel! Ugh! When was her torment going to stop? Never because in a million in one chance I became the Avatar!

Kuei

"I'm ready." Kuei said, and began to walk towards Toph's ship. Who knew how exciting this day would become? He was actually going to meet the Avatar. Now that would be an interesting encounter.

Seer

"Shoo, get out of here girl! I don't want you bringing any of your complex destiny onto me!" the Seer said, shoving Azula out of her tent.

Cheng

Cheng gave Toph a half-smile, the best he could do with half his face still bandaged. He spoke to her, "Wherever you go, I'll follow." He meant it and not just in her quest to capture the Avatar either.

Mai

Mai grinned at Zuko and grabbed at Zuko's right arm intending to send him back towards a wall. He needed to refine his technique.

Yue

Well, this wasn't good at all. Just who where these men, and what in the Moon Spirit's name was the Black Dragon Order? It was times like these Yue cursed that she was neither a bender or good with a weapon. Maybe she should have accepted that training from her father...

"Aang, can you blow them away with a gust of wind?" Yue whispered desperatly.

Aang

"And then what? We can't run off the island," Aang whispered back. "Let's just go with them. Who knows, maybe they're friendly." He turned back to the men, and nodded, without waiting for Yue's response. "Sure, we'll go with you," he said, being more naive than sensible.

Enakue

Enakue ears perked up upon hear that there was a chance to put the smack down on some local would-be warriors."He he. I call first shot on the cute avatar girl." He said to his comrades as he darted for the ship. And hey, if they found some booze on the island it would be their job to "liberate it from the locals" Enakue thought for once glad to be on a military ship.

Zuko

Zuko was easily sent flying backwards, and hit the wall with a hard thump. He glared at Mai before springing back up and rushing at her again. In his anger, he didn't even think about switching stratigies, or even trying to jump over and attack Mai from behind.

Mai

Mai smirked. He was angry, good. That meant that he wasn't thinking straight. With a grin, she attempted the same move, seeing no reason to change strategies.

Zuko

Zuko swung his swords, sending them both in different directions in an attempt to defeat Mai. He knew he was outclassed and outskilled, but by Agni's Will he'd try his best! He'd fight until his dieing breath....ok, now he was getting a bit carried away.

Mai

Mai grinned, moving herself to Zuko's center and aimed a kick at his chest. She loved it when opponents left themselves wide open for their attacks.

Zuko

Zuko, instead of trying to roll to the side or avoid the kick some other way, instead chose his first instinct and tried to jump over Mai's kick. However, she was faster than he had anticipated, so the kick still managed to land it's mark. Only, it hit him there of all places.

Zuko crumpled to the ground, moaning in pain.

Mai

Mai grimaced at the sight of Zuko clutching his... area. From her understanding, being kicked there incredibly hurt a guy. She said, "I think I win."

Zuko

"No....fair....you....cheated." Zuko exclaimed inbetween gasps of pain. Damn you Agni! This had certainly not gone as he had hoped. He'd get his revenge for Mai doing that, Zuko swore to that. She wouldn't get off so lightly.

Zuko got up to his feet, the pain now thankfully subsiding, though still hurting like hell.

Mai

Mai cocked an eyebrow, "You jumped into the kick. If you
stayed still, you would have been kicked in the chest."

Azula

Azula stood outside the tent for a while. Then she scowled. Her life had to be the complicated one. Why couldn't it have been one of a normal kid? Just her dumb luck that was it. She started back up to the arena to see if Zuko had got his butt kicked yet.

Zuko

Zuko ignored what Mai said and merely glared at her. That girl...

"Listen here-!" Zuko started to say as he walked over to her, but ended up tripping and falling onto Mai, sending them both onto the matted floor.

((End Page 20))