AN :
if we hit 250 power stones, there will be an extra chapter guys .
...
Two hours after midday, the first ship breaches the outer wall.
It's almost a relief, after waiting, watching every fiery projectile that hits the wall almost melt through it before it is stopped, and sealed. Every time, there was the worry that one would make it through, with the knowledge that one would.
That was how we intended it, after all. But the anxiety was close to driving me mad as I remained calm on the outside for the benefit of the others. And myself, but it was the concern for the city and its inhabitants that kept me waiting instead of joining Hiraku and the others.
The front of the ship is pushed into the air by the secondary wall. Soon, the defending benders have skewered it. The second one manages to get the soldiers and some rhinos onto longboats to make for the city, but the traps all over the bay do their work. By the time the tenth ship has unloaded its contents into the bay, the wall is a construct doomed. The Fire Navy also seems to have figured out the degree of the angles their trebuchets need to go over the wall, but also hit the city.
From my vantage point on the inner wall, I can see Hiraku and half of the wall-unit work tirelessly to repair it, and finally, switch into combat mode. From here, wind biting at my face, it seems almost like stick figures are playing games with one another.
It is so far from this impression that the dissonance leaves me feeling as though I were acting outside of my body.
Part of me is with Yue, searching for the Avatar. I heard Yugoda herself, and Buniq went with them. A good team of healers and experience outside.
Another part is wondering where all my panic went.
Probably somewhere outside of my body as well, just waiting to take control of it.
The stick figures of my wall-unit take over control of the wall as other waterbenders distract the enemy inside of the bay. It manages to crush about seventy battleships beneath the powerful wave of water and metal. They even manage to raise the secondary wall as high as the first one was.
The original strike teams, rested and fed, spread out across the city wall to man the inbuilt defences until the exhausted men return. Then, they and a few hundred warriors spread out into the bay, onto the platforms we crafted for this last night to renew the traps and take on the incoming longboats.
Once the sun sets, the secondary wall is just as doomed as the first, and takes another forty ships down. Things aren't going too badly. The sharks will feast for days.
The remaining ten battleships attempt to plough through the traps the longboats got stuck on, but Hiraku and the men are the ones who set them up and the beauty of water is that it is changeable. Soon, the Fire Nation is shrouded with mist and attacked from all sides. Two make it to the city.
Both breach the wall. But the defenders are nothing if not determined.
I spot Zhao and Iroh. I manage to get in close enough through the fighting to hear what they're saying over the sounds of violent confrontation all around.
"We are following this map to a very special location. And when we get there, we are going fishing," Zhao says and smiles a bloodthirsty smile.
I meet up with Hahn and the others for one last time.
"Their target is the Spirit Oasis."
Eyes widening, then narrowing, their determination to fulfil this mission successfully rises tenfold. Hahn and I decide on two ambushes. One to take the place of Zhao's escort, the other to take him out however possible.
We have the other disguised bender lie in wait closer to the palace with two more warriors for the actual takedown. The three warriors and I will have a squad of undisguised ambushers lead an attack, during which Zhao and Iroh are distracted, so that we can replace at least two of the guards.
It's a complete mess, but I manage to get in position on one of the rhinos, shedding my Watertribe coat as I do so. Hahn does the same. The rest of our unit die.
Which, fuck. Inacceptable.
I've seen more death in the last hours than ever before in my life. And I'm pretty sure I should feel more than slight disappointment. Hahn does, I can tell with the way he sits. He's horrified by their deaths.
At Hahn's signal, the second ambush takes on the remaining guards and another bender takes on Iroh. Hahn holds his own against two of the benders by sicking the rhino on one and swiftly taking down the other.
I take care of Zhao by way of beheading him while he's busy making a warrior dance. Iroh surrenders.
It's all quite anticlimactic. Or I'm just functioning on the basest of instincts.
Then, Hahn is killed by one of the guards. A roar tears itself from my throat. How the fuck could I just assume with these two out of the fight, it'd be over?
Just as I step up to avenge my friend, the spirit of the moon is killed.
It is like a punch to the heart. I falter, stumble. The same happens to my fellow bender who just finished encasing Iroh in ice up to his neck. The moon turns a lovely shade of red. I gasp.
A failsafe. Zhao had a failsafe.
Why did I think he wouldn't trust anyone else with his knowledge, his quest to make history? Above all else, he wanted to be known for defeating the Northern Watertribe, defeating powerful spirits themselves. Why did I believe that he would be the incompetent Disney villain? Ah, Nikelodeon more like.
"No…", Iroh whispers as he stares into the blood red sky. I've landed on something sharp.
The guard I was about to skewer turns on me. It is only years of training with Hahn that save my life. I roll on the ground, pick up a fallen sword to brush aside the flames he punches at me with a flick of the wrist. Ah, this is going to be a pain. I only hope Iroh won't decide to join in on the new game of 'who can hit the defenceless waterbender?'. I'm also quite glad that the Fire Nation uniforms ward off flames. I'd have second degree burns all over my arms if I wasn't wearing one.
He's pretty good, never letting me in too close, but I manage to herd him towards a fallen rhino and he falters. Finally, I get a clear shot in. I disable his attack, swipe at his knee and once he's down… I know the neck armour is sturdy, so I shove my entire bodyweight behind the strike. The firebender dies by way of open throat.
I collapse to my knees. All my energy feels like it's been drained. I never knew I depended so much on my bending. The only reason I'm not flopping on the ground like my fellow waterbender does, is because I've lived thirty years as a normal human.
I look at Iroh, who is still staring at the moon, shell-shocked. I take off the faceguard and spit out some blood. That can't be good. Finally, he notices me. His eyes take in the bloody sword in my hand and the dead guard.
He melts the ice trapping him away in a matter of seconds.
"Gonna finish me off?" I ask and give him a bloody smile.
Iroh shakes a tired head.
"Ha, the Dragon of the West, showing mercy. How kind," I laugh, then cough and more blood lands on the ground. "Fine then. Help me to the Spirit Oasis, would you?"
He moves to help me up in a daze. An arm slung across his shoulders, I shove the helmet off. It was awfully restricting. It's a good thing we set up the second ambush so close to the palace. That means we don't have a long way.
So short and yet so far. I refuse to allow myself to believe the worst is already in motion. I can still stop her.
I hobble a little faster, and the kind old enemy complies with a grim visage.
We make it there just in time to see Yue give her life to the Moon.
...
Don't forget to throw some power stones :)
...
If you want to read ahead of the public release, or just want to support me.
you can join my p atreon :
[email protected]/Numera