CHAPTER 16: BETRAYAL

“What if what he said is the truth?” Suki demanded.

“The threat of an even bloodier war coming is not something we should ignore!” Katara backed her up.

“We are not ignoring what he said!” Sokka shot back. “We just think that we can do this without his help.”

At the moment, the rest of Team Avatar along with King Bumi and his council were gathered in the palace on the regards of the capture of the Fire Nation Prince.

“We cannot trust Zuko!!” Aang reiterated the point made by Sokka.

“From the very beginning I never trusted him and I always had the intention to capture him. I just needed someone powerful enough to help me.” Sokka explained.

“When I told Sokka about my friendship with Bumi, he mentioned he was waiting for a chance to capture Zuko for good.” Aang added. “I quickly agreed because I never trusted the guy to begin with either.”

“Listen girls,” King Bumi spoke and the whole place went quiet. “We cannot allow the Prince of the Fire Nation to walk around freely while his people continue to terrorise our people.”

“I don’t care about Zuko!” Suki corrected.

“What we cared about is that we had a mission!” Katara added. “The threat of a war even more terrifying than the Fire Nation!”

The council remained silent. King Bumi turned to Sokka and Aang and nodded.

“We never said we cancelled the mission.” Sokka corrected. “We just decided to do it without Zuko. We can use Appa to fly over the blockade and to the crescent shaped island. We never needed Zuko in the first place.”

“Sokka is right,” Aang agreed. “I am the bridge between the physical and spiritual worlds. All we need is me. On the winter solstice, we will travel to the island. I will talk to Avatar Roku and see if what Zuko said is true.”

The girls had to admit that the boys appeared to have thought through before acting. It was unfortunate for Zuko but Aang was right. The atrocities Zuko and his family commited still needed to be answered. It didn't matter that he was now exiled. He was still a Fire Nation Royal. Not to mention, potentially the next Fire Lord. This was the best course of action and everyone agreed to that.

“So what do we do now?” Suki asked.

“Your plan was succesful so what happens now?” Katara added.

“Nothing,” Sokka answered. “Zuko will be kept with the rest of the POW’s in the army. We will continue with our original plan of traveling north. Even if what Zuko said was true, it will not change the fact that we have to travel to the North Pole for Aang to start his water bending training.”

“Even if the war is true, we need the Avatar to master all four elements if we are to stop and win this war. Not to mention the other war.” General Tamutae explained.

The old General was of course a part of the King’s council. He was the highest ranked General not in Ba Sing Se. The council comprised of 3 other lesser Generals and 2 noble elders. They handled the day to day activities of the city and the wider war effort.

“I almost forgot but what about his uncle?” Suki asked.

Her very innocent question send everyone silent.

“What do you mean uncle?” Tamutae asked with a look of horror in his eyes.

“Well Zuko introduced us to his uncle,” Suki explained. “The brother of the Fire Lord.”

All the Generals jumped to their feet. Panic suddenly filled the chamber.

“General Iroh, the Dragon of the West huh?” King Bumi muttered with a wide smile.

“That old fat guy was his uncle?” Sokka asked.

“Didn't you recognize him from the South Pole?” Aang asked.

“Well I was kind of burried in the snow by Zuko,” Sokka replied.

“If the General is in the city than we must act quickly.” Tamutae said.

“What we need to do is secure the Fire Nation Prince quickly,” King Bumi added. “Iroh is not one to go around attacking people. He will simply intent on rescuing his nephew.”

“That would mean he would have to be kept here in the palace and not in the POW camps,” another General added.

“There is no need,” King Bumi suddenly said in a very serious voice without his usual giggle high pitched voice.

He had this very straight and concentrated look on his face. A strained look.

“He is already here,” he said and disappeared into the ground. Suddenly Aang ran out the chamber. The rest followed but he disappeared into the maze of hallways.

What they thought was that Aang was headed for the front of the palace but he was actually headed for the chambers beneath the palace that housed Zuko. The special chambers were surrounded by underwater canals and acted as barriers that prevented Fire Benders from escaping. Specially cooled air was also pumped in to reduce the temperature to below freezing. This prevented the prisoners from having to create their own fire. The lighting was done by special rock crystals that illuminated by their own chemical reactions. Thus there was no combustible element to aid the Fire Nation prisoners.

Deep within the maze of tunnels. Within the coldest reach of the chamber. Amongst the highest POW s of the Fire Nation. Was the young Prince Zuko. He laid shivering on the ice cold floor.

This was the last thing he expected from Sokka and Aang. He never saw any of this level of cunning and malice from the pair. Although he didn't know if they were the ones who betrayed him, it was the only logical conclusion. The way Katara acted just before King Bumi appeared was evidence enough. They were all in it together. As much as he wanted to blame them, he had to admit that some of the blame lay with him. His naivety and trusting of the characters in a kids animated show added to his false bravado. It was now more obvious than ever that this was not the same universe he grew up watching. Obviously there were similarities but his sheer presence had altered events and much more. To a level he had even to realise himself.

“Are you awake?” A menacing voice suddenly spoke aloud.

Zuko didn’t bother to answer and continued to lay still. Trying to hide his cold and shivering body. He immediately recognized the voice as that of Aang. He now had to take a step back. He was working on the same assumption that his intellect was still kin to that on earth. It made him behave rather foolishly and in a great rush. If his brain wasn't as good and as fast as before. It simply meant he had to slow down. He had to take extra precautions. The best way to do that was to remain silent and play it like fifa. Make the opponent show his intentions and act upon those intentions.

It might be too late by now but he was not going to act in haste anymore. He was going to have to resort to the type of man he became back in the city. Working for a soul sucking corporate company awakened inside him a villainous side that took matters into his own hands. He let go of his morals and became something, someone different. So much so that not even his own family recognized him. He hated what he became in the big city. It still however did not change the fact that it was a necessary change of mentality to survive. Once again he had to go to that dark place.

“I heard your uncle is here for you,” Aang teased again.

Zuko however had made up his mind. He did not show any reaction. It wasn’t that he didn't care but that he simply controlled his reaction.

“I guess its your turn to escape,” Aang suddenly said.

“Ccrrrknrkrnrckrknrkcnkrrkn!!!*

Suddenly the door pushed open. The cell was encased by a wall of ice and water. So thick that no firebender could escape after being kept here just a few days. There was only one entrance, a heavy block of ice and rock mixture. It was this very block that Aang appeared to push open with his bending. With the aid of a few earth bender guards however.

“Take him toward the lowest level on orders of the King,” Aang revealed.

The curiosity became too much for Zuko as he sat up and looked at what awaited him. The gathering of at least 3 dozen earthbenders of all size and ages. Those were just the ones he could see. More were out in the large tunnels. This was the greatest test of the City since the war began.

A veteran of a guard walked to up Zuko and tied his hands and feet in a way he couldn't move an inch. His body was already so cold that he couldn’t even firebend even if he wanted. Truthfully he didn’t wish he could at that point in time. He wished to think some more of this course of action. Without an actual purpose, his bending couldn’t be as powerful. Fire was fueled by desire to accomplish your goals and at the moment, he didn't really know what he wanted.

---

The front of the royal palace was an open space used for training and large gatherings. At least 200 elite earthbenders were gathered just at the front. They were arranged in perfect formation upon news of the arrival of a certain famous fire nation General.

“AAAAHHHHHHHH!!!” Voices could be heard screaming at the top of their lungs. A few bodies of guards and benders were sent flying into the sky.

*BOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!*

The front gate blasted open as a flurry of flames shot through. Beyond the gate was nothinģ but burn marks, boulders and earth bended into all kinds of shapes. Not to mention all the smoke and fire that engulfed the entire area. Walking out amidst the smoke and dust was a short fat elderly man.

He wore a large brown robe that greatly hid his physique. He had a long white beard and a thinning top of hair. This was the infamous Fire Nation General. The first son of Fire Lord Azulan. The man who sieged Ba Sing Se for 600 days. The man who slayed the last Dragon on the planet. The Dragon of the West, Iroh.

He slowly stepped across the open field and towards the horde of earthbenders waiting for him in perfect formation.

“Where is my nephew?” He called out in a calm and clear voice.

Without a hint of any threat or ulterior actions. No answer came from the earthbenders. They silently looked at the old man and stood their ground as he drew closer.

“Your nephew is now a Prisoner of War,” a brave voice suddenly answered from the back.

Iroh turned to see a tall lean man walking infront of three other veteran looking men. This was General Tamutae and his lesser Generals. The group of four walked to the front and stood face to face with Iroh.

“It was a mistake to come here General Iroh,” Tamutae began. “As citizens of the Earth Kingdom and the participants of this war we cannot let you just live.”

“We did not come here to get involved in the war with the Fire Nation,” Iroh defended with his usual tone. “We are fugitives from the Fire Nation and thus pose no threat to the people of the Earth Kingdom.”

“We are well aware of your situation but it still does not change what you and your family have caused.” Tamutae defied. “You and your family are the entire cause of this war and should thusly by punished by the 2 other nations remaining.”

“I see... well I can’t say I am surprised.” Iroh began. “Well than I should say the same thing. Where is Prince Zuko?” He had a bit of menace in his voice now.

“The Fire Nation Prince is not leaving this place,” Tamuate defied and took a fighting stance. “Neither are you.” The other three generals also took a fighting stance and spread out to surround the former Crown Prince of the Fire Nation.

“What makes you think you can handle the might of one such as myself,” Iroh voice went deep and growly. His aura and demeanor changed. “Especially in the middle of the day!” The air started to heat up exponentially. Making it hard to breath in the entire front area for any rookies not familiar with fighting firebenders.

“They don't!” A high pitched voice suddenly said.

Suddenly a fast moving object decended from the sky and landed right infront of Iroh. The sheer impact created a massive crater that spanned some 10 meters in diameter. Dust and smoke shot up high into the sky. As the winds cleared the smoke, it revealed another tall elderly man standing in the center of the crater. He rose from the bottom of the crater on a stone pillar.

“King Bumi,” Iroh recognised the old man. “It’s been some time.”

[A/N: So a few things. The next few chapters have a lot action. Lots of fight scenes that completely change things. The conclusion of the first arc is fast approaching. I do promise a few twists and turns however.

I found a way to make this arc end in a way to derail from the original series. Hope you like it.]

[A/N: Read 5 to 10 chapters ahead on my patreon available now. 

patreon.com/ImperialFantasies]