2 Weeks Later
"How much longer?" I had been sitting here for 3 hours now. The sun had gone from just shining over the inner wall to now being about midway between dawn and midday. I couldn't take this. "Screw this. I have to move."
"Just sit still." Said Lu Ten from where he sat a few feet to my side, a humorous contrast to my stress and anxiety. "They already have your outline. They're just getting the details. You can move your head, relax, just stay where you are. They'll be done soon."
I sat back in my chair. Why had I agreed to this? It made sense for him to do this, but me? Why was I even here? All the same, I leaned back, relaxing, closing my eyes as I allowed the painter to get to work on the details of my face. Thank Raava it wasn't a full-body portrait. We would have missed the attack if that had been the case, but at this rate, well, we'd still have time to get some final relaxation in before the assault began, but that didn't alter the question why I was here? The only reason it had even been brought up was because the local painter had offered it to me for free at the same time, he had offered it to Lu Ten. I guess she would have considered it rude if she had only painted him and not me. In what way, though? It makes far more sense to just get him and leave me out of it. If only Lu Ten hadn't talked me into it.
"Chin up, please." Asked, or rather, demanded the painter. I begrudgingly did as I was bid, ceding a momentary position of comfort, raising my chin as I probed the back of the chair for a comfortable position to rest my head on.
"Shit. I can't do this."
"Seriously?" asked Lu Ten. "After one portrait and you can't take any more?"
"One portrait is enough, thank you very much." I soon realized how what I just said could have been viewed as frankly 'dickish' to the people actually putting effort into painting me, prompting me to shoot awake at the realization of what I had said, apologizing by saying "No offense."
"Smooth" chuckled Lu Ten from where he sat
"None taken." Said the painter, who maintained a huge grin on his face. "We're just happy to do what we can after all you've done for us."
"It's nothing." Said Lu Ten "We're here to help. You really don't have to do this for us."
"Please" said the woman painter handling Lu Ten's portrait. "We insist."
"Very well." He surrendered. "Thank you."
He was silent for a while, until he spoke again to me, saying "You really shouldn't be complaining. After this war is done, you're going to be going through this kind of stuff every day."
"What do you mean?" I asked, opening an eye.
"I mean, people in high rankings have this kind of stuff happen to them. Especially war heroes."
I scoffed. "War heroes." I repeated after him. "That's rich."
"I'm not kidding. The public will eat this stuff up. Even people in the Earth Kingdom will love you. They won't see you as the guy who tore down their government. They'll see you as the soldier who ended the 95-year war."
"And that kind of position means stuff like this, what? Yearly? Monthly?"
"Weekly."
"Fuck off."
"Not kidding. You should've seen what the media was like when Zuko was born. Even more so when Azula was born. They were like vultures, gathering at every possible moment to capture their likeness. Of course, those were just civies. But when you're in the Royal Family, they do this kind of crap every week pretty much. Whether it's for new royal outfits, growth spurts, public events, you name it."
"Holy hell."
"So yeah. Be thankful you won't be getting that treatment. I admit, the biggest reason I was glad to get away from the capital, even if it meant coming here, was because I could get away from it all. Away for the capital. Army life is far better than all of that."
"I imagine, but you can't say you don't miss the treatment."
"I most certainly can say that. I don't miss it in the slightest. Servants at every corner, offering grapes, massages, acupuncture, hot towels, mo- no, take that back, I do actually miss the hot towels."
"You're a firebender. Heat them yourself."
"It's not the same. I'm telling you, they do something else to those towels that I can't put my finger on."
"An art lost to the ages." I joked.
"You don't say."
And so, soon enough, all was said and done, and we were prompted to stand up and view our separate portraits.
In that moment, I couldn't remember the last time I had looked into a looking glass. It must've been back at Citadel, because when I saw the portrait of myself, I could've sworn they had gotten it mixed and accidentally given me Lu Ten's. It looked nothing like him, but it looked even less like me, or so I thought.
The man I saw in the portrait was no longer the same boy who had been conscripted into an army he despised nearly a year ago. He was older now, scarred, his eyes were different. His hair was longer, his face was covered in dirt that no sponge could get out. Dirt ingrained in the skin. Remains of battles that would stay with me for years if not decades to come.
"Are my sideburns really that long?" Lu Ten commented from where he had received his own portrait. He seemed less shocked than I had. No doubt he had been doing this longer than I had. He had already gone through what I had just experienced. He already knew who his soldier self was.
I, on the other hand, would need time to grow into it.
"How's yours look?" he asked, approaching me.
I showed it to him, unaware as to how I would transcribe my thoughts of it into words. He looked at it, his amusement growing, and said "Damn good, Danev. That's a keeper."
That didn't exactly make me feel better. In some ways, I was hoping he would say "Look's nothing like you." At least then my shock would be justified. Now, though, it was fact, set in stone. I didn't recognize myself anymore.
The painters were already leaving, gathering their materials, brushes, stands, and all, when Lu ten rushed up to them, reaching into the pockets of his uniform, pulling out 4 gold pieces, attempting to pay the two painter who promptly refused him saying "No. No. You've saved us all. It's the least we can do."
"I know. I know, but this isn't payment. It's a tip."
The painters once, twice, thrice more tried to refuse Lu Ten, but when it became obvious they were no match for the resolve of the Commander of Fire Nation forces, they conceded, and accepted Lu Ten's payment.
So Lu Ten rushed back to me, his portrait painted on a sheet of parchment on which he commented, saying "I should send this to my dad. He'll be glad to know the town's in full support of us."
"He's already gotten your reports." I countered, not for any purpose, but solely to make conversation, saying "I doubt a picture of you, no matter how professional, will offer any proof your messages haven't already."
"Alright. Fine. Then it's a gift."
"Ooh boy. Your face on parchment. What a gift." I said, rolling my eyes, being sure to smile so as not to give any shadow of an impression of seriousness.
"Screw off." He laughed. "What'll you do with yours? Send it to that nurse of yours back in Citadel? For here to show you off to all of her friends?"
"I never should have told you about her." I commented. He laughed. On the ride to Stone's Edge, there had been no shortage of time for conversation. That conversation time had been occupied by personal stories on both ends. I had learned about his growing up as a leading member of the royal family, and he in turn, had learned of the Citadel slums, the academy, and my life as a whole. And there had been no shortage of banters. "No." I answered. "I think I'll keep it."
"Oof. That's grim. They have dog tags for that reason, you know."
"Can't piece my face back together with dog tags alone. Nah. Just for the memories, I guess. When this is over, I won't mind looking back on this to remember, ahem, 'THE GLORIOUS CONQUEST OF BA SING SE'." I put all the effort I could into the showman's voice, lowering my voice so as to emphasize the theatrical value of this campaign as a whole. I had no doubt that plays, books, and other forms of media would come to be based on this war. No doubt they'll skip the months of artillery, frostbite, starvation, disease, and worst of all, waiting, but rather focus on the more cinematic moments, such as the fall of the walls and the battles that had come after. I thumbed my lucky knife. With any luck, today, we'll give the Ember Island Players something to perform. Something good.
"Yeah." Said Lu Ten. "Fair enough. I think I'll send mine over right about now. Got anything more you plan on doing in town?"
"Nothing I can think of at the top of my head. Are we gonna be eating before or after the battle?"
"After. The men'll be pissed, but better to enter battle not loaded with food. I could have them eat an early lunch, but that's not such a good idea either."
"Then I have no reason to stick around. The mayor already knows when to open the gate for us and let us through?"
"Yep. High noon. Exact."
"Not bad. Not bad. Shouldn't be too hot either, what with the clouds."
"And the fact it's almost autumn."
"That too. So yeah. I'm done here. We heading back to camp?"
"Yep. I'll mail this, we'll go over the plan, and you'll relay it to your platoon."
"Sounds good. Want to start briefing me on the way back?"
"Nah. It'll be easier with the map. And it's pretty simple. We just need to time it right. The Crimson Army's assault will be at around 1400, so we need to make sure we leave on time and get to the enemy's position no sooner and no later. We'll go over it at camp, deal?"
"Deal."
So the way back to camp was mostly silent. He continued to look at his portrait as I tried to ignore it as much as possible. I still couldn't believe that was me on that parchment. It looked nothing like Danev of the slums. The muscle who had guarded the Hive from uninvited guests. The executioner who had repaired leaks. The enforcer who had fought Riu's wars. I wasn't that kid anymore. I was Lieutenant Danev, Commander of the 31st platoon, leader of our mission beyond the wall. In the slums, I had had no hope of a future. I was destined to die in a puddle of my own spit, vomit, and blood by one happenstance or another, but I wasn't. I was here now. I had been given a chance. I had survived Citadel. I had survived the Academy. I had survived the 5th Corps. And now here I was, with one final mission to survive. Except. It wasn't about survival anymore. Survival was the past. I wasn't some mere survivor. I was something more now. I was a soldier. A Warrior. And I had a job to do.
And so, soon enough, I was in Lu Ten's tent, guarded by my two most-trusted men who Lu Ten had assigned me to designate. The camp was a ways away from the village, which made it something of a bothersome walk every day, but despite the fact the townspeople had been eager to offer us housing, Lu ten had turned it down, stating we didn't desire to intrude upon them.
As the Icon of the Nation he had been sent to represent, he was doing a damn good job. Today was just further proof of that, but the thing about Lu Ten was, well, it was no act. I had spent over a decade in Citadel watching Zar'un parade around in hi fancy uniform, spouting out propaganda left and right, acting the righteous Commander, but everyone could see past it. He was a damn fine actor, but there was something about the way a liar held himself, something you learned to observe in Citadel, or risk getting your throat cut, but Lu Ten, he was no actor, he was no liar, he was an Icon. The perfect symbol of the Fire Nation not for what it was, but what it could be.
"Tell me how this sounds." He said to me after he had finished the message he was writing aside his head on the parchment to be delivered to his father. He cleared his throat, following it up by saying "To General Iroh:" When he saw my look, he defended himself, saying "What?" I have to keep it formal. We're in the middle of a war!"
"Yeah." I said "But you know, try to make sound more personal. This is the last thing he's going to get from you before both of you head of to war. Send him off with something positive."
"Yeah. Alright. Fine. I'll just add something to the end here." And so he scribbled a few more characters. His penmanship was more than decent, easy to comprehend, but never nearing simplistic. So when he had finished, I was making out the words little by little, but decided to stop myself so as to hear it in his words for the first time as he once again cleared his throat, and said, but more softly and considerate this time "To General Iroh: See you after we win the war. Your loyal son Lu Ten."
He looked at me where I was standing across from where he was sitting the desk between us and asked "So how was it. You think he'll like it?"
"It's great. Your father's going to be happy to get it."
"I hope so." He said standing up. "I still need to find a way to thank him. Guess it'll be easier in person."
"Thank him? What for?"
"For everything, I guess. For raising me alone ever since mom died, always being with me, training me, teaching me, mentoring me, and bringing me along to fight alongside him. Everything I know, I learned from him. I wouldn't have made it nearly this far without him."
"Then thank him by winning this city for him. Thank him by doing as your letter says and winning this war."
He stood there, looking to the ground, grim of expression, thinking, until his frown shifted to a smile and he said, "Sounds good to me." He promptly called in his steward who collected the message and left the tent to deliver it. His scribe was barely through the door when Lu Ten had already placed 3 maps on the table along with 4 reports, and orders directly from General Iroh.
"So." He said. "Let's get started."
He pointed at the map of Ba Sing Se's outer ring, pointing to a small spot marked by a hand drawn Fire Nation emblem. Well drawn at that.
"We are here. 1 kilometer away from Stone's Edge. That's a 10-minute march at most. Nothing to be particularly worried about. We get to Stone's Edge." He said, moving his finger along the map to the small area marked by a hand drawn square, one side more squiggled than the other, the last side, obviously mucked up by an uncomfortable position. Why am I thinking about this?
"Once we're here, Stone's Edge mayor will open the gate for us. It's no means as large as the outer gates, but it's enough for us to march through in a 10 by 10 formation. That's where timing gets difficult." He pointed now to the camp of the Crimson Army, marked by a far larger Fire Nation emblem, marking our true Headquarters of the upcoming invasion. "Our march 2 weeks ago was 8 hours, so usually, you would expect we'd leave far sooner to get to How's camp, but that raises certain concerns, some of which being exposed for too long, but I expect we'll be fully able to pull this off in two hours."
"Right." I said, making sure I was actually being useful rather than just standing around as he handled the logistics. "We're travelling along a smaller circumference and without any pack animals to worry about. So in a forced march, keeping good pace, yeah, we could definitely manage that in under 2 hours."
"I'm of the same mind. If by some chance we're being spied on at Stone's Edge, our exit will lead them to believe the main attack will be later than expected, so when it comes, they would have been too busy readying for us, but then again, that's if they're spying on us. Big 'if', but one we could use to our advantage all the same."
"Pays to be prepared."
"Exactly."
He now discarded of the map of Ba Sing Se's outer district and now pointed to where a line had been drawn on a map of the inner ring so generously provided to us by some eager-to-help citizens of Stone's Edge. Lu Ten continued his briefing, saying "Once we leave Stone's Edge, we'll have to be careful to stay secluded in the inner ring. There are many factors we have to take into consideration. The riots, unfortunately, have been dying down as of late despite attempts to bring them supplies. All the same, the inner ring is a mess. Expect stragglers and civilians asking for handouts. Tell your men not to let anyone get distracted. We're on a tight time frame. We can help the civies once this is over."
"Agreed."
"And tell your men to stay away from the bodies. In times of rioting like this, disease loves to spread. There's been rumors of the Dai Li using biological warfare against the protestors, poisoning food and giving it to the rioters. Disgusting."
"I'll say."
"So yeah. Stay away from the bodies. We'll let our doctors take care of any sick and injured once this war is over, but today, we can't let sentiment get in the way. We'll be running on a tight time-frame, so just tell your men to let nothing distract them."
"Oh don't worry. This lot, many of them are from Citadel. Morality isn't exactly big for them."
"In that case, tell them that there'll be no looting."
"They won't like that."
"Convince them."
"Permission to promise a pay raise?"
"Granted. Odds are they'll all be commendated one way or another. Just say what you have to in order to keep them in line. Understood?
"Understood sir!"
"Good. Tell them what I've said then. We leave for Stone's Edge at 1145. They'll have the rest of the morning to do as they please."
"Yes sir."
"And Danev? One last thing."
I turned around before I could close the flap of the tent behind me, asking "Yeah?"
"I can't have you leading 100 plus men as a lieutenant. Command just doesn't work that way."
What is this? Am I being replaced?
"So only way I can see this working is if you're no longer a lieutenant." He reached into his pocket to grab something as he continued, saying "I was planning on doing this after the battle, but hell, may as well now."
And he set the new rank insignia, that of a captain, on the map in front of me, sitting directly atop where the Dragon's Camp was marked. "Congratulations, Captain, your company awaits. And please, make up a clever name for them. Numbers can get really confusing at times. Good luck out there, Danev."
"I-You-No."
"Yes."
I cautiously moved to pick it up, fearing a trick of some sots despite the fact everything I knew about him pointed to him being serious, and I looked at that new insignia for what felt like hours until I managed to finally cease my incessant blubbering and spit out a measly "I don't know what to say."
"Say 'Thank you, sir.' And 'Good luck to you too.'"
"Uh. Th-Thank you, sir. Good luck to you too. We're counting on you."
So I managed to leave despite nearly tripping over myself about 5 times on the way out, the flap of the tent feeling ten times heavier. The guards saluted me as I walked past and I could have sworn I heard one say "Congratulations, sir.", but I was too dazed to even make a pathetic attempt at a reply.
And so I sat in my tent for about 10 minutes, eyeing that insignia, not yet knowing who to ask to replace my current insignia parading the rank of "Lieutenant" that I had been so proud of up to this moment. That wait ended when I had remembered right then and there, I had a speech to make.
My steward was in the tent the second I summoned him, a quick and loyal 12-year-old, companion to the squire accompanying Lu Ten, the supposed heir to a noble in the Fire Nation. How else could one get their child in such a high place at the side of the Fire Nation's Commander? And so the younger of the companions, not a royal, but a mere child, stood in front of me, awaiting his commands until I said, "Summon the camp to gather for a briefing." Normally, a lieutenant, hell, especially a captain, would have summoned his sergeants to give them the orders to relay to the troops, but I found doing it directly to be far more efficient, but then again, I guess that was meant to be one of the perks of promotion. The higher up you got the less people you had to talk to. Well, it'd be a tough habit for me to break, speaking to the troops at once.
And as my steward turned to leave, already unhooking the horn from his belt, I said "And once that's done, mind sewing this to my pauldron?"
He nodded and left, and soon enough, the camp was filled with the noise of a single blast from the war horn. It reminded me of the bells in Citadel. 1 for recruitment, 2 for execution, and 3 for attack, though I had never heard the latter before in my life. For better or worse. Here though, the horn worked differently. 1 blast meant riders returning, 2 blasts meant we were under attack, and the third meant protocol cinder, the last resort for Fire Nation camps, to burn everything to the ground, leaving nothing for the enemy. Hopefully, much like the ominous 3rd gong, I'd never hear it.
And so I was out of my tent, newly composed, and before I knew it, I was behind the makeshift podium which was just an elevated counter in the center of the camp courtyard in a position where 100 people could just barely wait in front, and they were all waiting for me.
I wasn't here to make a speech. That honor would fall to Lu Ten when the time came for our march. I was here for one thing only. I was here for the plan. A plan I couldn't misinterpret or miscommunicate. A plan not for a simple skirmish, but the end of the war. I was here to make it plain, make it simple, and make it right.
"Men!" I yelled, making sure the volume of my voice was right for the moment. "You know what's going down. We end the war today. We do this fast. And we do this right. We leave at 1145. You will leave the camp behind. You were told to bring along no personal belongings before you left the Dragon's Camp. This is why. We'll be travelling light. We get to Stone's Edge by 1200. From there, we enter Ba Sing Se's inner ring, and we will march right up General How's ass. But to ensure we catch him by surprise, we will move quick, and we will move right. We will not be distracted. I know how good-hearted you all are. Epitomes of human goodness."
That earned a few chuckles from the crowd.
"But there will be no helping the citizenry. We can save such acts of nobility until after the war is done. And I know there are none of you here, that none of you would ever even think of doing this, but there will be no looting. None at all, sorry to say. I'll tell you this though, you lot will be the ones responsible for destroying this fucking city's government. You will be the idiots to bring down the Earth Kingdom. If that doesn't earn you a pay raise, well, I don't know what will. So behave well, and come on, let's be honest, you ain't gonna be finding any good loot out there anyway. It's the slums for fuck's sake. You want to loot, save it until we get to How's Camp. Once we're there, the world is free for the taking. We will march through their ass, into their organs, and fuck everything up we find. We will burn their tents, slaughter their soldiers, destroy their weapons, their food, their camps. We will leave nothing behind but ash and cinder. And by the time we're done, we will be the heroes of the Fire Nation!
And the newly named "Cinder Company" roared in approval as they patted each other on the backs, shot blasts of fire into the air, and cheered "Cinder! Cinder! Cinder!"
And I knew in that moment. We were going to win.
So 1 and a half hours later, we were ready.
We stood, in a 10 by 10 formation, Lu Ten at our front, the wall a kilometer away. The second this march started, the final battle began for us. It all culminated here, one way or another.
None of us were mounted. Lu Ten had insisted we march alongside the men, that neither of us appear superior to them. And as it turned out, it was the morale boost they needed.
All the same, I bore my newly earned markings of Captain on my pauldron. I was proud of it, but here, I was just another soldier. Rank didn't matter anymore. In front of me, there were two new lieutenants, 2 new staff sergeants, but all of them, including me, soldiers ready and willing to end this war.
So when Lu Ten never even left his spot amongst his troops to make his speech. He remained at the front, but only by the courtesy of the soldiers who had moved back for him. He had no higher ground, he was no superior to us in that moment. He was, in every sense, one of us. He really was the symbol of the Fire Nation that we all needed in that moment.
And so it was by sheer respect that we moved out of his way, forming a circle around him, breaking formation. Some knelt, some sat, more saluted. We did as we pleased, but in one way or another, everybody showed their respect for the man that would lead us to victory.
"Friends!" He called. "For the last two years, we've woken up to the sight of these horrendous walls. For the last two years, we've fallen asleep with these walls as the last thing we've seen at night. For the last two years, our days were cut short by the walls that hid the sun from us, the walls that hid tomorrow away from us, in fear of what it would mean for us. In fear of the future."
"Those walls are no different from those insides. Stubborn, strong, resilient, but frightened, ignorant, and hateful. Everyday, they try to bring the sun down as quickly as possible because they know the day didn't favor them. They know that the sooner night comes, the sooner they can live in an ignorant bliss of the future waiting directly in front of them. Every night, they try to hold the sun down as long as possible because they know tomorrow will bring them no solace but will rather bring us a step closer to victory."
"Those doing this, are not the men, women, and children cowering behind those walls, the ones trying to overthrow a tyrannical ruler kept afloat by a corrupt police force that trades morality for obedience and power, working in the shadows for fear of the sun that will bring their crimes to light."
"The citizens of Ba Sing Se are not our enemy. As you can see from what we've been doing these last few months, they are our allies. They want nothing more than the peace they trust us to bring. So we cannot disappoint."
"We leave now for the future, to tear down the shroud that blocks the sun from us, from the frightened devil that attempts to hide the light. That is what we are fighting for. The future. A future of peace and prosperity. And no wall will keep us out! We've done it before! And we will do it again!"
"They believe their cause to be just because that's what their puppet master has told them! But we believe in our cause not because a man sitting on a throne thousands of miles away told us so, but because we have seen it for ourselves! We have seen the horrors of this war. We have witnessed the atrocities of our enemies, but we stand here still because our cause is more just."
"They are stubborn. They hide behind their walls, trusting them to defend them from the future. The fight to the last man in the name of an ignorant king, but we are more stubborn. Because we have stood here still, amidst everything, not in the name of a single ruler, but for a future we must fight for."
"So no matter what is thrown at us, we will survive! And we. Will. Fight! The sun is up now, gentlemen. The Earth Kingdom can hide it no more for it stand directly above us, everlasting, ever-bright, infinite, much like us. We may fall today, but much like the sun, we will rise again, whether be it on the battlefield, or in the memories of those who transcend us. Firebenders derive their power from the sun, and I know there are those of you who haven't been touched by the sun as others have, but today, that makes no difference. It makes no difference. Bender or not. You, we, are all Fire Nation."
"The sun stands high, men. The day is ours for the taking! Will you take it with me?!"
I by no means excluded myself from the roar of affirmation that followed. What could I say? It was a good speech. And soon enough, the chant emerged. "The Sun is with us! For the Fire Nation! For the Future!"
The chant lasted us the entire march to Stone's Edge. It only died down when Lu Ten raised his hand and we stood in organized silence. We were directly in front of the gate. A major entrance into the inner district, not as large as the outer gates, but by no means unimpressive.
The gates rattled open as the portcullis made is ascent, and I found myself thinking of an all-too-similar day.
The streets were empty. Where was everyone? They must have known we were here. Not even a death man could have ignored our approach. The ground shook beneath us as we moved, but the streets were empty.
"Where is everyone?" I asked Lu Ten who was standing next to me, waiting patiently for the gate to finish its movement, as though he would know any better than I would.
"I don't know."
I looked around, and spotted a window's shutters closing, and Luke was back next to me. He was younger. Much younger. Luke? What are you doing here?
I moved my mouth, but no words escaped. I turned to my right where Lu Ten should have been to ask what the hell was happening, but he wasn't there. In his stead was, Riu? No. Riu. You're dead. You were killed back in Citadel.
Then we were marching forward. We passed beneath Citadel's gates. No. Not Citadel. We didn't march through Citadel's gates. We were dragged. Carried.
The shadow moved behind us as our marched continued. We were past Citadel's portcullis. And I saw something pass on a roof. Oh. There they are. The town's not abandoned after all. They're watching. We're fine.
Then I heard the rush of footsteps behind me, and I turned around. Reek? The kid from the Rats. He's here too?
"The fuck are you doing here, Reek?" Luke called from my left. No. No. This already happened. It was all of us, The Hornets. We were entering Citadel, and.
"Lu Ten!" I yelled. "It's a trap!"
And like a ten-ton weight, the gate shut behind me. Luke disappeared. Riu became Lu Ten. And Reek became a random kid who was grabbed by a lone stone hand and yanked into an alleyway. It was all too surreal.
I turned around, and the gate was down. Our company severed in two, a few literally, some poor bastards caught underneath the gate.
A few men on our end rushed to try and open it with the aid of others on the other side when the attack began.
14 men on our side were brought down in the span of 10 seconds from arrows flying seemingly straight from the sky. Those still standing took out their own weapons, and some being firebenders, readied themselves against an invisible attacker. And it began.
A hole above us, within the wall, opened, and a pile of rocks came down, catching 3 men beneath it. 1 more would have been caught under had Lu Ten not pushed him out of the way. The rocks landed inches in front of him, which he ignored, to yell to the men trapped on the other side to "Run! Get out of here."
I didn't stay facing our allies to see if they did indeed run. We were in the open, our only escape blocked, and the battle began.
Arrows came flying out from abandoned homes. The firebenders took cover in the alcoves offered by the gate where any survivors were now huddled and fired blasts into the building not for accuracy, but sheer destruction, aiming at support beams, bringing down the buildings entirely, Earth Kingdom soldiers with them, but they weren't wearing Earth Kingdom Army uniforms. It was a darker green. No.
"Dai Li!" Lu Ten yelled. "Stay in cover. Target the buildings' supports. Bring them down and create a smoke cover. We'll use it as a screen to move into better cover."
"Yes sir!" were the unanimous cries as the remaining firebenders took their targets, doing as they were bid, bringing down buildings, occupied by the enemy or not, creating a screen of smoke and dust for the debris until the entire street was covered.
"Now's our only chance!" Lu Ten yelled. "Follow me!"
And I snapped out of it. I was no longer dazed. I picked up the crossbow on the ground near me that had belonged to some now passed ally of mine as well as his pack of bolts. And we ran into the smokescreen. 2 more Fire Nation soldiers got hit by flying projectiles which I couldn't tell to be arrows, knives, or perhaps shards of earth. All the same, they went down, and I turned to find the two Dai Li agents huddled against the walls readying for a second attack. I sent a bolt into the first one's head, threw my bow at the second, and unsheathed my sword to slice the second across the throat, sending him to the ground.
I rejoined my unit, now missing 3 more men who had been killed by a newly shadowed enemy. I was wasting no time thinking what the hell was happening, just that we were in the thick of it, and we had to get the hell out. And as always, Lu Ten was there, fully composed and in the moment. "Move along the alleyway. Building to building. Move quickly. Don't wait up for anyone. Zoni, Thez, cover our rears. Stay in cover and make sure none come from behind us. Rest of you, cover to cover. Watch the roofs. Go!"
And we moved through the alleyway, cover to cover as ordered, watching the roofs. I was now deprived of a ranged weapon and ran, mortified I wasn't a firebender as the firebenders and archers picked off the agents on the roof one by one as we took casualties of our own."
But as our numbers diminished, theirs grew to the point we were holed up in buildings. I could see the bodies of our rearguard behind me, slumped on the ground. I had no idea where Lu Ten was. The Dai Li behind us were kept at bay only by the firebenders covering the alley as best they could from where they were hiding. It was when one of them took a quarrel through the eye that I knew I had to act.
I looked around the building where I was cowering with 7 other soldiers, and found it, a stairway.
I climbed up it, got to the second floor, and found the window. I was out of it before I could even consider the stupidity of my action. I grabbed onto the ledge of the roof opposite the building where I had been mere seconds ago, and shambled up, and just like that, sword in hand, was face to face with an army of Dai Li. I didn't waste a second.
I shoved my sword into the nearest one and pivoted his still bleeding body to his own men whose weapons collided against his back. AI charged, using him as a human shield, dislodged my sword from his stomach, and sent him colliding into the closest assailant, sending him off the roof as I turned to cut the chest of the agent to my left, sending him to the ground. I was without cover now but wasted no moment as the nearest agent summoned an earth hand from the ground. I, somehow, managed to match its trajectory with my sword and found myself cutting clean through it, sending shards of earth around me as I brought my sword back around and cut clean through his right arm and across his heart, sending him down, dead instantly.
At this point, the men on the ground had seen their opening, and had left cover and were picking off the attackers on the roof who were now too busy with me. They came down like flies.
But it wasn't nearly over. I saw a pillar of earth move to my left where and entire street block had been raised to my level, occupied by 20 agents, quickly approaching.
I dropped to the ground, just barely avoiding a disk of earth that went flying above me, crashing into the inner wall.
I rolled off the roof, landing 2 stories down onto ground level to see the opportunity I provided had been seized.
3 more of ours were dead, but more Dai Li lay motionless. Our rear had been secured and I saw Lu Ten ahead removing his sword from the chest of another agent. He turned back around, face soaked in blood, unsurprisingly so as I imagined we all looked no different. "Zoni! Blow a hole in that building and get us a smoke screen."
"Zoni's dead, sir."
"Somebody then!"
A firebender came up in the dead man's stead and launched a blast of fire I imagined was fueled by fear alone, and blew a hole in the building opposite us, and soon, dust encased that street too. "Move! For the alley!"
We moved, rushing towards it. 3 men made it to the alley when the earth raised itself and they were trapped beyond, their screams implying a lack of success. The alley was blocked off.
I turned and saw the benders, but they were brought down by arrows and blasts of fire before they could make their next play. We couldn't go back. We had lost 2 more men at our rear, so the only way was forward, nearer the center of Ba Sing Se, but there was no other choice. We ran.
And like a magician's trick of illusion, the smoke behind us disappeared, and in its stead stood a line of 10 Dai Li, single filed, who in one synchronized motion, made their attack. 7 allies went down, and no counterattack could be launched as the Dai Li were swift replaced by the same smokescreen once again.
I looked around us. It wasn't good. There were, what, 9 of us left? Every street led to this spot. We were in a town square. And suddenly, every street was blocked by rising walls in every cardinal direction, and at the top of every stood 5 agents, all facing down.
Lu Ten wasted no time, he turned to the nearest wall to his left, and fired a blast of fire so big my vision went white. The wall came tumbling down, debris in its place as well as pieces of fallen agents. He was quick, but not quick enough. Our numbers were now whittled down to 4 before we could get out of that square.
The last 2 men in our squad, both fortunately firebenders, turned to cover our rear, but it quickly disappeared in a newly erected wall, blocking any way back. We were in no alleyway, but a civilian street, plenty of room on each side, totally exposed.
"Get into that building!" Lu Ten yelled, pointing at the nearest shop. And it quickly collapsed to the ground, its earthen structure suddenly reduced to dust, 10 shadowed agents in its place. Lu Ten fired, and they dispersed like fish around a hand entering the water.
From above us, more arrows came down and Lu ten turned to fire, taking out around 2 on the roofs, our firebenders doing likewise. So 2 focused on the roofs while me and another firebender focused on the ground. They didn't come through street or building, no, they came through the ground.
They would rise, fire, then retreat back into the ground.
I did what I had to. I bloodied my blade. There was no denying that. And when the seventh Dai Li slid off my blade and fell to the ground, ignoring the holes in my body, the arrows sticking out of me, and the cuts across my body, I stayed standing. It was just me and Lu Ten now.
I don't know how, but we had managed to enter an alley. I couldn't even remember how we got there, but soon enough, another man was sliding off my blade. I didn't even know if he was Dai Li. He sure looked it.
Lu Ten shot above me from where I had just left a shop, closing the exit off to Dai Li, not that it would keep the earth benders at bay for long, but it was something. So we were trapped in that alley, both of us bleeding out, running on adrenaline alone.
Then the shadows appeared, and the sun itself disappeared.
Like blades of grass, the Dai Li cluttered the rooftops, and jumped down in droves. And we fought.
I felt the fire to my back as Lu ten's back was to mine. I could feel the blasts of fire behind me as I cut at the those in front of me, knocking projectiles aside, severing flesh and bone, removing limbs as I could hear only the faint rumble of screams behind me as Lu Ten set fire to the alleyway, covering our rear, and he was facing my direction now, meaning it was my turn to take the side he had just been covering.
And what I saw was a street of fire, Dai Li still fighting, ablaze. I was fighting hell itself in that moments, against the fire as I cut through burning opponents who were still putting up a fighting, offering them a mercy if anything, ending their pain and suffering then and there.
I heard and felt the fire behind me as Lu Ten set fire to the other street, soon pivoting to clear the roofs. I Heard his call for me to get down, and I did so, crouching to the ground as the roofs erupted into flames and Dai Li fled back into the darkness.
But then, the Fire stopped.
I felt the heat die away instantly. Fire stopped flying through the air and the fire that had encompassed this entire street square, instantly died away.
I turned around as if to ask why he stopped, and of course, he wasn't there. In his place stood Janick, giving me that same smile he did when he killed Riu in front of me, but this time, I didn't wait, I didn't hold back. I didn't let him get his shot on me. I lunged forward, and plunged my sword into his heart, and he was gone, replaced by a damn Dai Li agent.
He stood still, my sword through his heart, and fell with such force my sword went with him.
And I was standing there. Alone. Unarmed. Fires dying around me.
I looked around. I was surrounded by bodies. Bodies of men I didn't recognize. All but one of them. I couldn't even recognize him. His body was nearly gone, but even through all that blood and damage, you could still recognize his face. And somehow, that made it all the worse.
And I fell onto my knees. The world was dark again. The sun was gone, hidden somewhere by either the walls, the dust, or the hundreds of Dai Li agents that stood atop their buildings, looking down on me, dropping to street level with me.
One approached me. I had no idea who he was, but in that moment, it didn't matter. I knew what lay ahead. The same thing that had happened to everybody else. And I wouldn't exit this world without taking one more person with me. So as he knelt down, crafting earthen cuffs to place around me, I shoved my lucky knife into his throat.
It struck gold, one final proof of good fortune, but eventually, for even the luckiest of men or items, luck always ran out. A sad last thought