Capítulo 20: Chapter 20 Earthbender Rebels
The Mo Ce Sea Prison Rig was an offshore Fire Nation Prison and shipyard used for the internment of Earthbenders during the late stages of the hundred-year war.
Prisoners were taken captive mainly for resisting fire nation rule in the Earth kingdom or attempting to perform bending in disallowed regions.
Such internees were forced to build, repair and refuel ships for the Fire Nation that docked here while their imprisonment was indefinite.
It was a towering, highly secure facility located several miles away from the coast of the earth kingdom, supported by multiple bars which elevated it above sea level.
With the world's ancient era and primitive technology still relying on swords and arrows, it was a marvel how they managed to build this structure at all.
In the series, Aang and team Avatar carried out the first successful major prison revolt this place had ever experienced.
Liberating the earthbenders from years of slavery.
Decked out in an Imperial Firebender Uniform, Luca took a good look at the massive steel prison as his riverboat drew closer.
'…. Alright … Showtime ….'. He took in a deep breath seeing the Fire Navy ship being dispatched in his direction.
This was good. Meaning that they had no plans to fire at him, destroying his ride and himself in the process.
At least, he hoped it was.
It could also mean his identity had been discovered, and they were coming to apprehend him while laughing at his stupidity of handing himself over on a silver platter.
'…. Damn …. Why am I thinking of this now?'
Luca could tell that all these random, unnecessary thoughts were as a result of his nervousness and fear.
This was a common reaction within humans during tense situations that could result in incoherent speech, trembling, sweatiness and so on. Forget about his current situation, people would feel worse while being under circumstances way less intense.
He resisted the urge to shake his head as he stood on the riverboat deck. Legs planted firm, hands behind his back, body posture straight and upright.
This was it. The defining moment that decided whether he would leave this place smoothly or not. Hence, not knowing whether his every action was currently being scrutinized, he needed to give his best performance and display what he felt an Imperial Firebender should be like.
Strong, imposing, commanding authority, and carrying an oppressive presence.
Like an experienced actor in an audition, Luca mentally prepared himself to perform for he judges currently approaching.
His hand placed not far from the Longsword strapped diagonally behind his waist. Ready to attack the moment things went south.
The sound of ship at sea resounded through the air as Luca's boat was covered in a large shadow.
'… Yep, much bigger than Zuko's cruiser…'. The thought was fleeting as a ladder bridge was pushed downwards.
Clang! It touched the river boat with a loud metal collision.
Luca remained unperturbed. The Canister holding the fake scroll was in his right hand as he waited.
Under his gaze, they appeared. Fire Navy officers, three of them to be precise, with two holding spear weapons with helmets that revealed their faces.
The other stood at the forefront of the group, dressed similarly to them, but his head sported no helmet, but long gray hair tied up at the center of his head and falling back towards his neck. The other half moving forward was completely bald. Quite similar to Kay-Fon (Elder Wu) back in Senlin village.
Come to think of it, even Iroh sported a hairstyle completely alike with this old man who looked to be in his early fifties before him.
Was this a general Fire Nation military trend?
Thud! Thud!
The sound of footsteps hitting against metal fell into his ears as the three boarded the riverboat.
Luca's hand moved towards his sword handle .....
Walking towards him, they stopped a good distance away and then ..... Lowered their posture for a bow.
That's right. Three fire Navy soldiers bowing towards him. Seeing this, Luca's hand relaxed and half his hanging heart with it.
"It is an honor to be in your presence, Sir". The man in the lead uttered respectfully.
"I am Warden Jin ... Overseer of this Shipyard ….". He said while standing upright. A trace of cautiousness and anxiety flashed through his eyes, but he kept it hidden as best he could.
"I'm aware". A deep, distorted voice resounded from the man in bright red uniform. His tone curt and composed.
"The personal guard of the royal family and the Fire Lord are welcome guests anytime. What brings you to these waters".
He asked, gesturing with his hand raised.
"... That is none of your concern…".
The following answer made the Warden's face change. The expression grew unsightly for a split second before returning to normal.
"It is nothing that you or your men should worry about. As my stop is not your Prison rig. I'm merely passing through to the Fire army based at the Omashu outpost".
Luca's plain voice fell.
"Really ….?" The eyes of the warden narrowed. Following which, the moved to take a look around the riverboat.
"Forgive me asking, but …. Is it just you?"
Riverboats were mainly used to travel within narrow waterways like rivers, not to sail the seas. That was what Fire Navy cruisers were for.
Imperial Firebenders were tasked with protecting the royal family. Hence, they would usually only make appearances when Fire Nation royalty were present.
An imperial Firebender appearing without a member of the royal family around was one thing.
And sailing towards the Earth kingdom alone on a riverboat was another. These two anomalies alone were enough to create a great deal of suspicion.
After all, why would he sail a riverboat on the seas instead of a standard Cruiser? And why was there no crew?
The Warden's frown deepened even more as he examined the surroundings.
Seeing this, Luca's falling heart went back up. Sure enough, it wasn't that easy.
"Yes, it is. A crew is unnecessary as my orders are to work alone".
Following which, he took out the canister from his back, bringing it to their notice.
The Warden's pupils shrank at the sight before him.
"The sigil of the royal family ….".
"Indeed". Luca smoothly returned the canister behind him, not letting the Warden's gaze linger for too long.
"My …. Apologies". The warden bowed again, his back soaked with cold sweat.
Prying into matters of the royal family? What the hell was he thinking.
The sigil gave this cruel and arrogant warden a wake-up call. He was just a warden managing a prison rig. Not to mention the big fuss that just happened a few days ago, one wrong misstep could plunge him into an abyss.
"Please forgive me if my inquisitiveness offends you".
Fire Lord Ozai was not a benevolent leader. If he did something that stepped out of line, the officer before him could report this to the Fire Lord.
It might be nothing more than a mere mention, but it could destroy his life's work of, Ozai decided he was in the mood to want to do something about it.
"I just assumed that for someone of your position, a messenger hawk would be sent out to inform us of your arrival".
"A messenger hawk isn't needed. I never planned to stop at your shipyard, as what I carry is of great importance to the Fire Nation's advancement on the conquest of the Earth kingdom. It's release into the wrong hands would be disastrous".
"Yes …. Yes … Of course. How inconsiderate of me ….". Seeing the warden nodding like a pecking chicken, Luca remembered some information from the series.
Apparently, this overseer was a proud and arrogant man. Quite cruel to his subordinates and the Earth benders he supervised over, with quite a mouth on him.
However, he begged for mercy when he was defeated and Tyro was about to drop him into the sea. Saying he couldn't swim.
A typical coward who feared the strong and bullied the weak.
"So … Warden…". His emphasis on the word "warden" was heavy with a bit of sarcasm within it.
"How long do you plan to keep me here? Rest assured that I will be sure to report to the Fire Lord if my delay causes the Fire Nation's advance to be inconvenienced in any way".
"That .....". This was the killer move. Luca's words fell, and the Warden's face turned pale.
"Of course. Forgiven my insolence".
The warden uttered while cupping his hands and bowing once more.
Luca remained unresponsive, maintaining his act.
'…. He must be displeased .....'. The warden thought, seeing he didn't reciprocate the customary bow.
Then he turned to his soldiers. The meek, cowardly expression suddenly morphed into something ferocious.
"What are you still standing there for? A written note? Move". The soldiers similarly bowed and hurriedly moved up the ramp, to depart.
Seeing his men flee, the old warden quickly regained his composure, turning back to the imperial Firebender and uttered with a flattering smile.
"Is there anything I can do for you before you depart, sir?"
"...". Silence reigned on the deck. Receiving no response, the warden felt a hint of embarrassment coming up for the awkward silence.
"I…".
"Yes. You can answer one question for me".
"Ah? Yes, of course. Whatever might that be?"
At the moment under the helmet, a deep frown had made its way onto Luca's features.
He raised his hand, pointed into the distance and spoke. "What ..... Is that?"
"Huh?"
The warden was dumbfounded. Following the direction, he saw Luca's finger pointing into the distance.
"I don't... Wait ….". The Warden's eyes widened as he got a clearer view.
In the distance, four black dots could be seen moving towards their direction.
The time was getting late in the day and the sky was already plotting its course for nighttime.
The sun shone brightly on large pitch-black machines with red flags at the top of their tower masts.
On the sea, there was only one thing that sailed on these waters.
'…Fire Navy cruisers ….'. Luca thought inwardly. This was why his frown was prevalent.
Four cruisers were moving in this direction for unknown reasons, leaving Luca feeling slightly nervous.
"..... Those are ….". The Warden's words were interrupted.
"Fire Navy ships. Are you expecting company Warden?" Luca asked, hoping that was the case.
Instead, he saw the old man's expression crumple.
'Wait. Why .....'? Before the ominous premonition in his heart was fully formed.
"Sir! We have trouble!"
The ship captain of the cruiser before them suddenly ran to the side and yelled loudly.
"What is going on? Who are they?" The warden yelled back angrily.
"It's the prisoners. They've come back".
"What!" The warden exclaimed in disbelief as he rushed back up the stair ladder to the ship.
Running on deck, he rushed towards the captain, roughly grabbed the spyglass in his possession and looked into the distance.
The first thing that came into sight was the stern looking expression of the head prisoner who lead the rest of the Earth benders out of the prison rig a few days ago under the Avatar's influence.
Tyro.
Yet before he could utter any words, he saw something else that made his heart sink. On the deck of the ship, was earth. Massive amounts of it.
These earth benders didn't just come back, they came back with enough ammo for a big battle.
The Entire rig was made of metal. And metal bending at this point wasn't even a thing yet.
Since there was no earth for them to bend to their advantage, then they simply improvised and brought their own.
All through the same fire nation cruisers they used to escape their imprisonment in the first place.
"Ready!"
"Ha!" Tyro's words were answered by a large battle cry, as the earthbenders on deck immediately entered a firm stance. They moved their hands and a large amount of coal that had been carried back through the shop moved under their command.
On each Fire Navy ship, dozens of earthbenders in groups of three to four stood facing each other while channelling the coal.
"Be strong, my brothers and sisters!" Tyro yelled at the top of his lungs. His voice so loud that it could be heard by others on different ships despite the roaring of rushing water.
"A few days ago, we struck back at these Ash makers and let them know the real strength hidden within our bones".
He reminded them how Avatar Aang, Katara and Sokka helped them to escape the Mo Ce sea Prison Rig.
"Today. We attack them right at their doorstep, just like they did to us so many years ago".
With their combined efforts, each group worked together as they bent the earth material into one large boulder hovering over their heads.
"This is the moment. The moment we take back what's always been ours and drive out these invaders from our lands".
The ships grew closer. Meanwhile, the Fire cruiser of the Warden had already docked at the Prison Rig Shipyard.
"The enemy is approaching. All men to your battle stations".
The warden roared thunderously as officers began rushing in all directions.
These earth kingdom bastards dared to come back after escaping. He would certainly make sure they paid with their lives.
Or so he thought.
"Warden!" However, a deep, distorted call that wasn't so loud came from behind the old man, causing him to freeze in his tracks.
Turning around, he saw the "Royal Guard" standing at a distance while looking at him.
"Your shipyard is under attack?" Although the voice gave off no hint, Warden Jin was sure that the man before him was gloomy.
In truth, he was right. At the moment, Luca's face behind the mask wasn't the slightest bit good-looking.
It was almost there. He had almost gained smooth passage.
Now what the hell was all this about? Although he already had his own guesses, he didn't want to believe it.
Unfortunately... "We .....". The warden uttered with some difficulty.
Luca's eyes narrowed even further.
"Who are they?"
".... The escaped prisoners".
"Escaped?"
"There was a revolt a few days ago. …. All prisoners managed to escape thanks to the intervention of the Avatar". The warden immediately gave a brief description of the events, pushing out the Avatar's involvement to shoulder a large part of his incompetence.
Perhaps he feared that he as an imperial firebender would go tattletale to Ozai.
Luca already knew all this, and with his false identity, cared little for the Warden's attempt to cover up.
It was briefly stated in the series that Haru, Tyro and the rest of the earth benders formed a resistance to battle the Fire Nation. They were there alongside others at the battle on the day of black sun. (The eclipse episode)
It never showed how they got to that point. Now, Luca was discovering how.
Apparently, after Tyro, Haru and the rest escaped, they returned not long after Zuko left the rig and attacked it.
Judging from the fact that they still appeared in book 3, then it was clear that their efforts didn't go to waste.
In the original fight, the Firebender's had no advantage and were easily suppressed by their captives.
Most likely, this outpost, the warden, as well as his soldiers, would be defeated.
Deducing this, a burst of annoyance welled up in Luca's heart.
'... What bad timing'. And so he turned away, sparing the old man no further heed as his gaze moved to the sea where the Fire Navy ships drew closer and closer.
"Hold!" Tyro shouted as the ships drew closer to the rig.
"Ready the catapults!" Large catapult contraptions were hastily pushed out from the prison rig in an attempt to make an unprepared defense.
"Hold!" The old earthbender had his eyes narrow.
Everyone's hearts, minds, and limbs were tense.
Just when they reached a certain distance ….
"Release!"
Tyro, Haru and two other earthbenders besides him simultaneously swung their arms forward.
The giant rock condensed above their heads flew towards the prison rig at rapid speed.
There were four ships with dozens of earthbenders. Each group simultaneously released their attacks towards the shipyard.
Fire Nation soldiers raised heir heads to see massive rocks flying towards them at rapid speeds.
"Take cover!"
Bang!"
...
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I will also post a pic of the main characters and images of the supporting characters under their names from now on if there are any from the series.
For a more immersive read and for those who may have forgotten their pictures due to the passage of time since watching the series.
I might forget at times so please remind me every now and then.
Anyway, Here are the images.
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