"Why did you want me to see the fortune teller?"

"I wanted to know if you'd ever make me an aunt."

"Why not Sokka?"

"Ayaan, you exist. What woman in their right mind would choose him over you?"

Ayaan was dumbfounded, "Katara?!"

"I take personal offense at that," Sokka said, appearing from around the corner, "even if I can't deny it."

"Sokka?!"

•───────•⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☾☼☽∘∙⊱⋅•⋅•───────•

It did not take long for the ferry to reach the rig. 'Officer Lee' tied his hands with rope, pulling him along. He took special care to take him on the most 'scenic' route, giving him a perfect view of the guards and their stations along the outer rim of the prison.

Ayaan could see where each searchlight, guard, and possible entryway for those guards were located. There were also the shortest routes to the docked ferries on the scene, levers for the gates, and other necessary bits of information. The guards were none the wiser to their true plot, greeting 'Officer Lee' while simultaneously shooting glares at the newest 'prisoner'.

"Oi, Lee. Is this the trash the message was about?" A snobbish, middle-aged soldier spat.

"Yes, sir. I need to get him inside." 'Lee' stated softly, yet urgently. Before prisoners were taken in, a report about their 'crimes' is given to the warden on scene. It was to let the soldiers in escort know who or what they would be potentially dealing with, as earthbenders and strong individuals were tough to deal with initially.

Not anymore, though. Now, they were cowardly and easy to threaten and push around. And this brat was no different.

"Attacking officers, eh? Thought you could fight for your freedom, slave? Look where it got ya. Tied up and worn down like the filthy mudstain you are." He ranted, smirking as the 'prisoner' said nothing to refute him.

He wrongly took this as a sign of submission, continuing his berating rant.

"Look me in the eyes, rat. Or did your parents not teach you manners? Wait, you probably don't have those anymore. Is that what set you off? Pfft- They were probably pathetic trash anyway—"

"You."

A calm, too calm, velvety deep voice cut him off. Piercing blue eyes stared down at him, eerie in their brightness.

For some reason, the soldier felt a chill. It was then that he noticed the lingering blood on this prisoner's face and fists. He hadn't cleaned up at all, the evidence of his assault (massacre) clear on his uncovered skin. That led all of the guards watching to one conclusion about him:

This prisoner didn't use earthbending to attack, he used his bare hands. And by the amount of blood, it was brutal and prolonged. How many soldiers did he hurt to have that amount of blood on him? So many warning bells that they'd been ignoring were going off, now loud enough for them to hear.

"I'll remember your face."

Instead of a young slave, a snarling white wolf stood before him. One that he had thought to berate and tease while it was still in its corner, bloody from its most recent kill.

Ready for another.

The soldier felt ice creep down his spine as the prisoner was quietly led away by Officer Lee. 'Lee' handed the prisoner off to another who was to walk him into the encampment. His job as an escort was done.

"W-wait, Officer Lee." The middle-aged guard put a hand on his shoulder, stopping him from leaving.

'Lee' looked back at him, eyeing the vile hand on his person and the one it belonged to. Seeing this, the guard wisely and swiftly removed his hand. It was quite well known that 'Lee' was not a social person. While he did not shy away from people, he didn't let others get close, either.

"What." 'Lee' was careful not to let any of his emotions into his voice. As upset as he was at this soldier for his words, he had to ignore it and simply leave.

He needed to prepare for his departure from this place anyway.

"That prisoner... are you able to give us the specifics of his crime?" It was the first and only time he'd ever asked such a question.

"You received the messenger hawk. You know already."

"But, you were there, weren't you? All the message said was that he assaulted an officer. But that blood..."

"Ah." Beneath his helmet, 'Lee' had an almost feral smirk as he answered, "It was a massacre. A one-sided beatdown. An absolute sh*tshow."

'Lee' didn't feign his fear, but he did have to reign in his awe at the memory.

The ice down guard's spine got colder. If 'Lee' was saying this, the usually stoic and quiet 'Lee', then it really was an absolute nightmare. He was one to usually give bland details whenever he was asked something. For him to go into any detail, especially describing it like that...

'And I... just insulted him? A prisoner that could scare this Lee?'

"And you had the nerve to start insulting him? Tsk." 'Lee' repeated as if reading the guard's thoughts. He didn't have to feign his annoyance or his apprehension.

'Everything is set. In the next three days, this place will be history.'

And that soldier? Why didn't he berate him for his words that not only insulted the 'prisoner' but also some of the other guards who'd been orphaned in this horrendous war?

'What's the use of venting anger at a soon-to-be-dead man?'

That soldier was f*cking screwed.

"You are a f*cking dumb*ss." With that, he left the rig, and had a formal form that 'requested' his transfer. Within the next few days, he will have quietly left, and no one would ever suspect he'd been a spy.

The guards that were on duty felt the need to watch the now-closed walls of the enclosure. They'd just gotten a dangerous prisoner, one of the first in a very long time. The anxiety that died out with the broken spirits of their captives revived suddenly.

The guards who were smart made sure to keep their distance from their middle-aged comrade from then on.

'Lee's right. I'm a f*cking dumb*ss.'

•───────•⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☾☼☽∘∙⊱⋅•⋅•───────•

Katara was chatting with Tyro, Haru's father, when the large metal gates suddenly opened. It left a sour taste in her mouth as that meant that another prisoner was being brought in. Everyone in the yard was silent, awaiting their arrival.

Her bitterness transformed to shock when she saw who it was, running towards him when the gates finally closed again. "Ayaan! What are you doing here—What happened to you?!"

There was blood on him. The knuckles of his fist, his covered clothes, and even his face had splatters of blood. Katara, in a fit of worry, grabbed his hands to have a closer look. While there was bruising, the blood wasn't his, though the inside of his palm was injured with nail marks.

"Ayaan... what did you do...?"

"I beat up officers."

"Whoa~" Haru whistled, impressed, "I told you, Dad. Her brother is bad*ss. How many did you take out?"

"Four, including the one that usually harrassed your mother. Most of the blood on me is his."

The boy's eyes widened at that, "Thank you for teaching that guy a lesson." There was an uncomfortable lump in his throat, unable to ask the question he wanted to.

His father knew, though, and asked him, "...How is she? How is my Hala?"

"She is strong enough to pick up the pieces and is currently rallying the villagers to fight," Ayaan told him, shocking the old man. "As you should prepare to, as well. I'm getting you all out of here."

"What?"

"This had always been the plan."

"...Plan? You planned to get captured, too?" Katara spoke up. It was then that his anger returned to full force and he actually gave her a stern glare.

"Yes. Katara. This was the plan that, if you had waited one d*mn day, you would have known about in detail." At this, she winced and looked down, but he was not done.

He had some choice words for her.

"What if something happened to you here? What could you have done?"

"You've been training me! I can fight well now."

"Yes. You can. But did you know that these men are trained as well? That's why they are stationed here, in a prison meant to hold earthbenders. Most of the prisoners here are able-bodied earthbenders who had seen battle before. Your combat skills aren't at this level yet."

At this fact, she bristled. "I still have my—"

"Don't even mention your waterbending." He cut her off with a growl, honestly done with that being a part of her arguments. "Can you even feel the water flow from this high up? What? Were you going to use the bits of water from the minimal drinks and food they give you? Your sweat?"

"I-I could try!"

The deadpan that she got from him and the extended silence left her feeling absolutely embarrassed by her remark. What he said next made it even worse.

"The hell do you mean 'try'?" He was honestly flabbergasted by her. Gobsmacked. Befuddled. "How are you this ignorant?"

"I've been improving! I'm not as weak as you think I am!" Now she was the one getting angry, but it was met with even more confusion.

"I never said you were weak, but you aren't at that level, Katara!" He was so confused one could see the question marks floating above his head, "You only barely got your water whip to work and suddenly you're a master waterbender? What were you thinking? No, where was your thinking??"

At all of his logical points, Katara went silent. Taking in a deep breath to calm himself, he asked again, "Please explain your thinking, because I can not understand you."

His face, frowning deeply, was looking at her like she was a damn alien. Where had their communication gotten this bad to the point it was like she was speaking this gibberish nonsense? He knew he was bad when he came to explaining his motives. He knew that talking with his sister was becoming more and more difficult.

But what the hell was this situation? What led her to think this was okay?

Ayaan was confused, and upset, and he needed answers. "Why did you come here, Katara?"

"I..." She was sure that she could take on these guys, at least the few guards that she'd encountered during her stay here. She was confident in her skills on that front. She didn't know that there was anyone to be wary of, and in that event, she could just waterbend or even flee on Appa. She knew that they would be there for her, including her brother.

She had no idea that her being her was adding unneeded baggage to his load. Attacking something? That was easy. He could beat something to a pulp all day long. But now he had to do that while protecting her from possible dangers. He'd seen strong opponents here, and he didn't want a lapse of focus on his part put her in danger.

It wasn't like he wasn't going to include her in his plans. All of his siblings had a role to play, one that wouldn't put them in danger that they couldn't easily handle. He had faith in their skills, contrary to what his sister was clearly thinking.

And she could see it too, her own misunderstanding. Once again, she'd misinterpreted his intentions.

"I..." One could see shame and self-regret wash over her, "It was my fault Haru ended up here. If anything, I at least wanted to fix the problem that I caused. Then I thought, if I could rally them like you were doing the villagers, we'd have more of a fighting chance, but..."

She gestured to the prisoners within eye-shot. "As you can see, that isn't working too well, either."

Their expressions were hollow, worn-out, and tired from their extended stay in this place that was akin to hell for them. They lost their will to fight back.

Something in Ayaan was straining as he watched them lifelessly sit on the ground.

<The black, ugly snow was mixing with the familiar white of his home. Falling from the sky, an omen of disaster.>

<A twelve-year-old boy found himself running, running as fast as his legs would carry him. Running to his home, hoping he wasn't too late.>

They gave up on the idea of escaping. They gave up on the idea of seeing their family again. They resigned themselves to this life, trapped in a metal cage. Did they abandon their hopes, their home, and their backbone for this hell?

<Ayaan, please! You have to run away!>

<Never! I promised to protect you!>

<What do you mean 'another'? My mother is innocent! Leave her alone!>

<I'll just kill you both then!>

Ayaan couldn't identify the horrendous emotion that was overtaking him. But too gone in his thoughts, he let it, and addressed everyone who could hear him. Every single one of them had the nerve to have that expression while their bodies were fully functioning.

"You aren't dead, so why the f*ck are you acting like it?"

"A-Ayaan?!" Katara was shocked by his sudden shift in attitude, but the boy didn't heed her at all.

"When did you let yourselves become this pathetic?"

At this, one of the prisoners got up, "Who the hell are you to say something like that to us?!" He bellowed, righteously angry.

This guy just showed up, who was he to say anything about their mindset, the mindset of those who'd been trapped here? How would he understand what they went through as a people? How would he understand their hardships?

"Yeah!"

"What the hell do you know?!"

There was no way for him to understand what they went through, so to them, he had not one single right to call them such.

Yet their glares were met with his own, and it was a vicious one.

His scar was burning. A painful, familiar ache was shooting through it from memories he wished he could forget. To their question, he gave them an answer, "Nothing."

Women, children, and even the elderly were working their asses off to get these prisoners home to them. They were burying their fear for the hope of a better future.

"I know nothing of your pain at all."

They had the resolve to face the consequences should it all go wrong. They had taken to Hala's words like a lifeline, to live their life standing on their feet.

"Yeah, you don't. So—"

"I only know that you gave up, and your families haven't. They are fighting for you right now."

"...What?"

They chose to stand, bearing the weight of their hopes on their shoulders. They were just as scared as these people were, oppressed in different ways. But right now, they were fighting through it. Young teens and elders learning to defend themselves, mothers taking up arms, they all found hope and were doing their best to hold on to it.

"Why are you, who they are fighting for, on your f*cking knees?"

Ayaan knew that their mindset would have taken a hit due to this situation. He understood that not everyone could be strong all the time and that moments of weakness happened. But this... this was ridiculous.

They still had a chance to take everything back.

There was no one with a broken body here. There was no one who couldn't stand up for themselves. Even the young children and the older generation had able bodies. He was certain that they had trained in some shape or form before being here. As someone who'd trained, he could tell that at a glance.

If they had the gall to glare at him, then they still had their right mind to think.

So what the hell was this submissive atmosphere? Nothing that could make them physically like this was present. They had relative freedom, and no physical chains. They were just surrounded by metal walls and floors. That only left one reason why they were sitting here, like quiet mice eating their disgusting slop.

The emotion filling him made his irises lighten to that icy blue one again. He didn't notice his hair bristling slightly, nor the sudden drop in the temperature around him.

There was no way for him to notice that droplets of water on the sea's surface began to float, or that the soup in many discarded bowls was doing the same.

He was too focused on the reason he found for their submissiveness.

They. Gave. Up.

"Does their resolve mean nothing to you?" His voice was almost a growl, looking at the meek man who'd shouted at him prior.

"Of course it means something!" The man said, a sense of unease flooding him suddenly, "W-why would they... why are they... how would you know that?!"

"I've been training them."

"What...?" They weren't sure what they were hearing. Their surprised and anxious expressions did not deter Ayaan, though.

If anything, it made whatever he was feeling grow more. "Your wives and husbands, your parents, your children, you've just resolved yourself to never see them again? Why? They've been working so hard to give you a home to return to, and you've just been sitting here?"

Ayaan could never understand such a mindset. Of all the thoughts he'd had, abandoning his promise to protect those dear to him was never one of them. The only reason that he would ever fall that low was if his reasons for holding on suddenly turned on him.

If he had nothing to hold on to... If he had nothing to reel him in when his emotions got too hard to handle... If he didn't have his family, then would he be like these people? Lost without the will to carry on?

No. He'd be worse off. If he'd lost everything, then what would be the point of his life? There wouldn't be one.

There would be no reason to hold anything back, and no reason to keep himself sane.

He quickly reigned in these dark thoughts. That hadn't happened. Katara was safe. Sokka was safe. Aang was safe. He hoped that his father and the other men of their tribe were safe wherever they were. He prayed for the health of his grandmother every night and the safety of the village children. Everyone he had left was here, they were okay.

And these people's homes and families were waiting for them, as well. They probably said these same prayers for their loved ones, and they were working to get them home to them. They were working to make their home how it used to be.

Currently, the mining towns were preparing an absolutely sh*tshow for the firebenders stationed there. They were only waiting for them, the people currently acting like lifeless slaves.

As far as he knew, these people had not truly lost everything. So why the hell were they acting like this then? He couldn't understand it. The kids here, sure, had a right to be scared. Everyone could allow themselves to feel fear. But letting that dictate your actions is where the line must be drawn.

"Of course, I want to see my Hala again!" Tyro spoke up, a fierce expression on his face. "There is nothing in this world I want more than my family to be together again."

"Then why did you give up? Why let yourself get even the slightest bit comfortable as a prisoner?"

He remembered that torturous agony as that soldier enjoyed beating him down. He remembered the feeling of his bones breaking, and his body bruising. Those eyes, he would never forget the sadistic glee that shined in them.

"Are you afraid of pain? Is that why? It is normal to fear something like that."

A glee that made itself known as he burned them. Burning, burning away they were. Every nerve set alight in sunset color flames, skin melding with his parka within the blistering heat.

That man's laughter as it happened.

"Pain creates hesitance. You hesitate because you do not ever want to feel a similar pain. I understand that."

He'd said these words before. And he'd say them again.

"But these metal walls? They aren't your true cage. You've let yourself believe that."

They were creating their own cage through their growing cowardice.

"Your wife said that she would rather die standing firm than live the rest of her life on her knees." He turned to Haru, who was listening to his words with rapt attention, "She wanted a free life for you, Haru."

The boy had to hold in his tears. Of course, he knew that. There was no way for him not to know that. His mother was probably the strongest woman he'd ever have the privilege to know. When she took up the mantle and trained with them, he got to see a side of her that she'd kept hidden for his own safety.

Her willpower was something to admire. And that will sparked the will of others, a chain reaction that brought them all together in their darkest moment.

And it was this young lord, Ayaan, who ignited that.

"I know," Haru said. "And I'll do everything I can to make sure her effort isn't in vain."

"Haru..." Tyro watched his son, his pride as tall as a mountain in him. His son had truly grown up to be a fine man, indeed.

"Is this the same for you, Mr. Tyro?" Ayaan's gaze found Tyro again, standing above him like the giant that he was. His gaze met the older man's, both unwavering.

"Are you willing to fight standing, or die kneeling?"

He would rather be beaten, broken, and burned alive than give up on his loved ones. He'd proven that when he was but a twelve-year-old child. No one felt they needed to ask what his answer would be to that question. It was astoundingly clear with the blood still on his form and the almost murderous gleam in his eyes.

Silence. The entire courtyard was silent. Lots of bombs had been dropped by this newcomer, and a lot of thinking was being done. It was too soon for them to properly give their answers, and Ayaan understood that. He didn't press further, easing his nerves before he found his place at Katara's side again.

'Ayaan...'

Katara didn't know what to say to what her brother had spoken. She had tried to raise their will to fight since she'd gotten here but never had she been so... harsh about it. So blunt with it. But neither had she connected with it like her brother seemed to. The way her brother spoke, it was as if he'd experienced pain and fear just like they did.

Except he didn't give in to any of it.

He fought, and fought more, even as his body was broken and bruised.

It was the complete opposite of what these people had done, and everyone could see that.

They asked 'Who was he to tell them that'? He was someone who, though having experienced different things, had the same emotions as they did.

A youth with a will that rivaled the hardest stone.

Katara wasn't able to understand the depth of his demeanor and words, but the prisoners could, and that is what left them in silence. All she could understand was that there was a shift were there previously wasn't.

'Is this the bigger picture that Sokka was talking about?'

It was then she realized that the picture she was seeing was still only a small corner. A subtle frustration grew within her, but she answered it with silence.

"Finally, someone with a f*cking backbone!"

The sudden boisterous voice cut through the tense atmosphere. A woman with white hair was sitting leisurely not far from them. Under the ugly brown rags that they were forced to wear, bandages covered her. Only her face held none. With rare pink eyes and full lips, she was a beautiful lady to behold. Though one could clearly see the definition in her form if her muscular arms were anything to go by.

"I guess introductions are in order. Call me Yon, blessed child."

Ayaan's eyes widened in surprise before he schooled them back to normal. Huh. His search for her ended quicker than he expected. Qī did mention that finding her wouldn't be hard. In fact, he said that it was more likely that she would find him instead.

She got up from the ground, standing to her full height which was a full head and shoulders above Ayaan. Qī wasn't exaggerating about her height. A confident smirk graced her features, only growing more as Ayaan met her gaze without even the slightest apprehension.

Usually, men were put off by her being so much taller than them. Her muscular and lean body did something to their pride. A bunch of chicken-livered whelps.

She was glad to know that this child wasn't one of them. But of course, this young lord was a blessed child. A spirit would not show love to just anyone, especially a wimp. This kid was legit. He was a warrior. She could tell at a glance.

"If you're 'bout to wreak some havoc," her confident smile became vicious, her eyes glinting with undisguised anticipation, "count me in!"

•───────•⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☾☼☽∘∙⊱⋅•⋅•───────•

Hi guys. I hope you've been doing well. Just so you know, I now have a Patreon. It's just $3 if you wish to support me! Though I will still post chapters here, they will definitely be there first. As I ease out of my Hiatus more things will be there.

Thank you, and see you soon!

Your Author,

-Jenna

•───────•⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☾☼☽∘∙⊱⋅•⋅•───────•

The next chapter is available on my Patreon: www.patreon.com/Jhstories101