CHAPTER 17: KING BUMI VS IROH

 

It was a nice and sunny morning in the city of Oma Shu. The war was still evident but the works of the king and his generals brought great peace of mind to the people. The people enjoyed the peace that was created and thus the city had a bliss like aura around it.

 

Manori was one of those citizens who enjoyed the peace. She was the 3rd daughter in a well known family around the city. She knew pretty much everyone and everyone noticed her too. She always had this aura of calm and moral. She always seemed to do the right thing. She never really appeared to get angry at people and always dealt and spoke with someone in a cheery voice with a wide and bright smile that just lit up a room. She was known around the city as the ‘Angel of Oma Shu’.

 

Manori however had a secret. A secret that no one in the entire city knew. Not even her closest friend Diya knew of it. Manori was a very deadly assassin that went by the name of White Banshee. While away with her father’s family she met a rogue group of mercenaries. While her father was busy around the city she would go out for days on end and train with the misfits. So much so that she became one of the strongest in the group. Eventually her father finished his business in the southern provinces and she returned to Oma Shu. She however did not stop her business and started working as a vigilante targeting corrupt politicians and government officials profiting from the war. Of course she wasn’t just a vigilante for good, she did her fair share of crimes.

 

There was one particular person she was interested in, a young man she heard about from Diya. She was sitted in the same tavern where Diya met the young man along with Sheya and Dolo. Dolo was as usual busy silently observing the situation while Sheya was greatly interested in the gossip. She was particularly glad that Manori showed interest in someone for the first time.

 

Unbeknownst to Sheya, Manori had more than just love on her brains. She only got a slight glance at the young man. He wore a very typical and unremarkable all dark brown clothes very common towards the East of the continent. He wore his long hair down and had a vicious burn mark right over his left eye. He had a long narrow almost egg shaped face with dark caramel skin. Manori got a weird feeling just looking at the guy.

 

Infact it weirded her out so much that she left Suki and Katara because of it. She wasn't sure why or exactly what she was feeling. It just had her stomach twisted.

 

“So he was here with his uncle?” She asked Diya.

 

“I have never seen him around the city before but his uncle seemed like quite the Pai Sho player.” Diya recalled. “He seemed quite bored and annoyed at the game. I didn't really ask about their past though.”

 

“No it’s okay,” she eased the obvious disappointment Diya had on her face. “I just saw a glance of him when I was with Katara and Suki so I was curious.”

 

“You mean the two girls that joined us later?” Diya made sure. “I think they all came from somewhere south. Zuko and Iroh were used to the heat of the city but the girls were having a hard time adapting to the temperature difference.”

 

“Zuko, did you just say Zuko?” Manori recognized the name. “Was Zuko the uncle or the nephew?”

 

“The nephew?” Diya recalled.

 

Manori was absolutely stunned at the revelation. She had heard the name before and knew exactly who it was. The Fire Nation Prince and heir to the throne. During her trips to the southern provinces with her father, she heard of the Prince from her mercenary group. From what she heard the Prince was exiled from the Fire Nation to capture the Avatar. Infact her mercenary group had a very violent encounter with the crew of the young Prince. Although she didn't meet him face to face, they had a slight glance among the fighting.

 

Her group suffered terrible loses at their expense and so she vowed revenge of the highest order. This was finally her chance to get some semblance of payback from the losses.

 

“You guys can talk with Diya right?” Manori suddenly asked the twins. “I just remembered that there was something I had to do.”

 

Upon those words she got up and left with a hurried pace. Everyone was a bit confused by her sudden change. That only lasted a second however as Sheya started bombarding Diya with questions about Zuko and the two other girls. Sheya had noticed the change Diya had when speaking of a particular girl by the name of Katara. Dolo couldn't care less about any of this. He was too preoccupied thinking of a way to ditch Sheya and find a way to meet his older sister Suki.

 

***

 

King Bumi stood tall against General Iroh. The two both stood in an aura of absolute power that dwarfed any rival aura. On one side was King Bumi, the strongest earthbender on the planet. On the other side was Iroh. Arguably the strongest firebender on the planet.

 

Tensions started to rise as nothing but silence be. The 200 something earthbenders and the generals all wondered what was happening. Their questions quickly got answered as the ground started to rumble. Like a quake the Earth shook.

 

In the blink of an eye, Iroh punched hard into the ground. The punch created a wave of seemering hot fire that spread out and send everyone within a 20 meters radius flying. Except of course for the generals and Bumi. They bend forth walls of earth that shielded them from the flames.

 

To counter, Bumi send a large chunk of his pillar flying at Iroh. Iroh quickly dodged the chunk of rock and charged his chi. He send a massive flurry of flames straight at Bumi. The earth king effortlessly summoned a boulder the size of a large house. The sheer intensity of the Fire burnt the boulder into tiny rocks but that was what Bumi wanted. He pushed out his hands opened palmed and send the pebbles heading for Iroh like bullets from a machine gun.

 

As the pebbles rained down. Iroh closed his eyes and calmed his mind. In that brief second he charged a massive amount of chi and raised his arms and hands. Suddenly a massive vortex of flames shot up surrounding him and burning everything within a meter. The pebbles turned to a mix of dust and smoke. There was not a second to wait so he started running straight for Tamutae while Bumi was still airborne. He started sending fast jabs of flames at the General but the other Generals started hurling rocks at him. While dodging and punching through them he arrived right at Tamutae.

 

Tamutae wasn't a 5 star General for nothing though. He jumped high into the sky. Iroh was about to follow him with a boost of flames on his feet but a disk of rock suddenly came at him flying from nowhere. He noticed it in time to just use some flames to slow it down but he was still send flying from the impact. As typical of a master he caught himself in the air and did a back flip to land in perfect shape. The attack wasn’t over however. Tamutae descended from the sky with a hard fist that punched into the ground. From the sheer impact the Earth started to shift and slide. It started to tear in places while sending up rocky spikes in others. All heading for Iroh who was standing a few meters away.

 

Iroh was no slouch however as he easily dodged all the coming earth. The path of destruction followed him for some 100 meters. He was now separated from the fight and back at the gate he entered.

 

“You seem unusually firey today!” A cackle like voice suddenly said from behind him. “It is very unlike you,” the voice added.

 

Iroh turned to see Bumi standing high atop the palace gates. He looked down at Iroh with his usual wide smile.

 

“Things have changed since we last met,” Iroh answered with a bit of annoyance in his voice. He was just barely breathing heavily.

 

Understandable since he hasn’t been caught in a serious fight in quite some time.

 

“Havin trouble catching your breath?” Bumi asked with a curious gaze. “You have grown complacent Iroh. You are no longer the same man you were back when we met in Ba Sing Se but then again neither am I. It’s not age that has done this but your own naivety. You should not be struggling against fresh meat like these here boys. At your best those boys should have long gone to sleep.”

 

“You have changed as well,” Iroh shot back. “You were never this upfront.”

 

“Well I had to get a fresh perspective on things,” Bumi defended himself. “It would seem that a threat even more terrifying than the Fire Nation is approaching. It was the right time to act and so I did act.”

 

“As I told your younglings, I am well aware of that.” Iroh revealed. “It still however does not change what I have to do for my nephew.”

 

“Well I cannot allow that,” Bumi denied. “I still have to do what is best for the people of my city to stop the tyranny of the Fire Nation.”

 

For a few moments they both just stared at each other. Both trying to out think each other. This was not a battle of bending prowess but the battle of the mind. One small slip and you could lose your life.

 

Slowly Iroh took a fighting stance. He had his left leg stretch out and bend while his weight rested on his right leg. His left hand was held with a bend elbow right above the leg. His right hand was tugged to the side of his waist ready to fire.

 

Bumi also took a fighting stance. Instead for him, both his arms were slightly stretched out while his hands were folded into fists. Like he was about to double fist pump some one.

 

Iroh took a long hard deep breath. With the release of his breath he punched out his right hand with absolute force. Creating a massive ball of fire the size of a tank. The massive ball of fire blew through the palace walls but Bumi had already escaped. He had jumped to the West of the wall but before he could settle. Iroh took another deep breath and shot another massive blast of fire but this time with his left hand. He attacked 2 more times each with one hand but Bumi simply evaded and dodged. Eventually he had to come down to ground though. This played into the hands of Iroh however. As Bumi descended to the ground he tugged in his arms by the side and dashed forwards. A stream of fire acted as propulsion that boosted his airtime and speed to send him flying for Bumi.

 

Just as Bumi landed on the ground he pushed out both his hands to shoot out a surge of fire that rushed for Bumi. He expected Bumi to create a wall that he knew would easily be blown through by the sheer intensity of the flames but Bumi was not king for nothing. The moment his feet merely touched the ground the solid ground instead turned into sand and then into a hole that let him slip through. The flurry of flames shot through and destroyed the wall behind him. Creating a massive whole the size of a small house.

 

---

 

“You really got yourself in a pinch didn’t you boy?” A voice suddenly asked.

 

Zuko looked around to suddenly find himself in a very familiar looking lush green forest.

 

“Betrayal is a very human thing to do isn't it?” The mysterious voice suddenly asked again.

 

“If you're not going to help, just shut up!” Zuko screamed in frustration. He recognized the voice as the same mysterious spirit that refused to show itself to him.

 

“We had a deal boy,”continued the voice. “You were supposed to report back on the matter of Vumala to me.”

 

Zuko got more annoyed at the sudden confrontation.

 

“As you can see I have been quite busy,” he answered. “I have not even heard a thing from that monkey since the first time I met him.”

 

“Oh really?” Asked the spirit. “Quite interesting wouldn't you say?”

 

“Are you going to help me out or not?” Zuko demanded.

 

“Why should I? If I do help you then your favour is null and void.”

 

The spirit had a point. He might need that favour which ever day it may come. He so wanted to cash it in now but he had a feeling things would work out.

 

“So how come I came here?” He instead asked. “I was headed for the prison chambers under the palace?”

 

“Hey, who are you talking to?” Another voice suddenly asked.

 

Zuko suddenly found himself walking in a barely lit tunnel with what looked like an army of earthbenders. The owner of the mysterious voice was Aang.

 

“Nothing, nevermind,” Zuko answered.

 

Aang wanted to know more because he sensed a weird presence but he thought it was just the weird creepy chambers. The escort continued on for a while until they came to a checkpoint.

 

“Are you Captain Tsui?” Aang asked.

 

“Indeed I am,” answered the elderly man.

 

“You know what to do right?” Aang asked with a menacing voice.

 

“Escort the Fire Nation Prince and place him in our coldest and deepest chamber,” answered the elderly man. Well he wasn’t an elderly but in his late thirties. He was responsible for the most heinous and high profile prisoners.

 

“Well my part is done,” Aang said with a forced smile and turned back towards exit.

 

Captain Tsui and a young woman took custody of Zuko along with the rest of the 5 dozen or so army. They started heading down towards the lowest level of the chambers.

 

“Wait who are you?” The elderly man suddenly called out.

 

Before he could react, his head was send flying and blood shot out like a spritzer. The young woman suddenly grabbed Zuko and pulled him to her side before throwing something on the ground. It exploded into a powder and suddenly the whole tunnel was filled with smoke and dust.