Chapter 80: Chapter 79
After an emotional reunion, we all had other things to discuss.
"I know it's only been a couple of weeks since we split up, but a lot has happened on my end and I figure it has been equally eventful for you all. Why don't you guys start with what you've been up to?" I ask the original team avatar.
"Well after you left we didn't have anywhere in mind to go. Toph taught me earth bending and we traveled to some vacation spots" Aang started.
"Twinkle Toes hasn't been doing too bad. He's still soft, but he's getting there" Toph added.
"One of the places we stopped was a desert oasis. We met an archeologist there looking for the Spirit Library. We remembered you going there and Sokka decides he wanted to see it too so we helped him find it. Katara continued.
"Let me guess. Wan Shi Tong reluctantly let you into the library. Sokka immediately decided to break the rules and use the library for an advantage in the war. Wan Shi Tong got angry and decided to permanently block humans from using it. You all had to flee the library and during the escape Appa was stolen" I interrupt
"Hey! Don't go making assumptions like that. I didn't 'immediately break the rules. It just so happened that I stumbled upon information that will help with the war" Sokka argued, but Aang started rubbing the back of his head guiltily.
"Ummmm Sokka did kind of convince me to help him look for war stuff," Aang admitted
"Fine. I did do it, but the information was totally worth it. After we left the library we chased after the people who took Appa in the desert. We found them, but they told us they sold him to people in Ba Sing Se. We started to travel here, so we could find Appa and tell the Earth King what we found out. Now that we've found Appa it was totally worth it. We found out that fire benders lose their bending during the solar eclipse and we know when the next eclipse is." Sokka excitedly defended himself however, Azula, who had seemed at least slightly interested in the war changing information, just started to tiredly press the bridge of her nose. At the same time, Ty Lee tilted her slightly as if she's not seeing something everyone else is.
"That's not going to work." Azula simply stated.
"What of course it will. Who even are you?"
"Well since you asked so nicely I am Crown princess Azula, heir to the fire nation." She said smoothly sending Aang, Toph, Katara, and Sokka into battle stances. Which caused me to jump up as well. I placed my hands trying to calm them down.
"Whoah. Whoah. Whoah. Whoah. Whoah, let's just keep it calm."
"Calm down! She's Fire Nation!" Katara yelled while Aang and Toph relaxed slightly.
"Listen, she is outnumbered and she came here because I asked her to. Why don't we keeping going and let us explain why they're here." Aang and Toph shrug and sit back down. Sokka follows soon after with Katara being the last.
"FINE" Katara spits out.
"Alright Suki, I don't want to skip you, but keep it brief."
"Umm. After you all left Kiyoshi Island we decided we wanted to help people. We left the island headed toward Ba Sing Se. On the way, we ran into Appa and while trying to help him, Silva, Azula, and Ty Lee found us. From there we grouped up together."
"Alright, Azula do you want to explain or do you want me to."
"I will thank you" Oh great shouldn't have offered the choice. "Mai, Ty Lee, a platoon of soldiers, and I were chasing after you. Silva stayed in order to stall us only to defeat, then kidnap me and my two retainers. He did so in order to convince me to change sides, help end the war, and to teach the Avatar fire bending. He locked away my bending keeping me from running away. When offered the chance to leave my compatriot Mai left. Ty Lee stayed and was given the ability to fire bend in order to prove that he had the ability to give people bending. We journeyed toward Ba Sing Se all the while he continued to test me and discuss strategy, to make sure I would be a good teacher and ruler. We then found your bison the came here." At several times during her summary, people yelled "What?" Hoping for clarification. But as the story continued the outbursts stopped and they accepted the insanity.
Sokka is the first two rally himself back to coherence. "Three things. First, you want her to teach Aang?"
"Besides the fact that she's a master bender, we're not going to be able to find many friendly and willing fire benders," I told him.
"Aang are you fine with this? He asks.
" I need a fire bending master. This is the first person we've found who's willing to train me. If what they said was true..."
"It is true. I can tell when people are lying and they're not." Toph interjected
"Then I would be happy to learn from her." Aang finished
"Second, she's the princess is that just fine now?"
"The avatar is connected to influential people, and as far as ending the war goes. Having royalty in favor of peace will go a long way" That answer seems to mollify everyone, but Katara.
"Third, you can give people bending?"
"Give and take away. Don't ask it's a spirit thing. I used it to prevent Azula from escaping. I offered to give a bunch of people air bending and teach Aang how to for restitutions to the Air Nomads"
"Really you can do that?" Aang asked hopefully.
"He totally can!" Ty Lee cheers letting out a small breath of fire into the air.
"Yep Suki here will be your first student, and after the war, I can train you so you can do it yourself."
"Sifu Aang" Suki stands and gives a bow toward Aang.
"Pupil Suki" He returns with a huge grin on his face. It's probably the most genuinely happy I've seen him.
With that, some of the tensions are gone. There still some uncertainty in the air, but no one is close to violence. Except for Katara, she's gone from explicitly angry to outwardly fine but inwardly furious.
"Now that everyone has decided to calm down Can I tell you why your solar eclipse plan will fail?" Azula asks
"Ugh. If you must." Sokka relented
"The Fire Nation started the war using Sozin's comet 100 years ago. We plan to use the comet again in the summer"
"Yes, we know your father plans to permanently destroy the balance between the nations what's your point," Katara said rudely, but Azula answered ignoring her tone.
"My point is the fire nation has astronomers. We know about the eclipse, we already have plans in place"
"Plus the army isn't only made up of benders there are a lot of non-benders as well. All the non-bending soldiers will be totally unaffected" Ty Lee added
Both Ty Lee and Azula's added insight floored them. Noticeably sagging as hope left their bodies
"You're right an invasion like that won't work.... An invasion won't work... An invasion won't work!"
"Sokka we get it! The plan won't work"
"No. No. No. No. No, the invasion won't work, but the plan still might. I assume your father will be somewhere else during the eclipse. Somewhere secure?"
"Yes, there's a bunker in the capital separate from the palace."
"How is the security?"
"Its main defense is not knowing where it is. Otherwise, it is significantly less protected than the palace. The palace still acts as a decoy, so a large portion of the guards stay there guarding nothing"
"That's it instead of invading on the eclipse, all of us go to the bunker to face the Fire Lord and defeat him. Azula stays to be coronated and then she ends the war."
"Sokka! The entirety of the plan depends on us trusting her! Someone, we have every reason to distrust." Katara argued.
" I kind of agree. I trust Azula, but even as Fire Lord I'm not sure if she can unilaterally end the war"
"Well, I like the plan. It's quick and efficient. We have some time before we have to decide though, so why don't we put off on deciding. For right now I'll focus on teaching the Avatar. Maybe another plan will come to mind." Asuza announced ending the discussion. For now.
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