The Black Mask: Chapter One -- Intelligence Reports
Title: The Black Mask
Rating: PG-13
Characters: Mai, Zuko, Zhao, Ty Lee Pairings: Mai/Zuko
Word Count: ~22,000; eight chapters plus epilogue. Chapter One: ~2,400.
Summary: While searching for the Avatar, Prince Zuko stops at Whale Tail Island. He meets the Governor's daughter, Mai, who shows him around the most boring Fire Nation colony in the world. But things start happening when Captain Zhao arrives to investigate a report of an air bender living on the island, and both Mai and Zuko get pulled into his hunt.
Notes: Written for the Maiko Big Bang hosted at banked_flame. Many thanks to nuitsongeur for making an awesome video to go with my fic, which I will link to soon! Many thanks to ice_of_dreams as well, for organizing the whole thing!
One: Intelligence Reports
Zhao was writing in the captain's log when a knock sounded on the door to his quarters. He called, "Enter."
Lt. Quan approached, bowed briefly, and held a scroll out to him. "This just arrived for you, sir."
Zhao accepted the scroll and dismissed the lieutenant. As he read the message, his brows raised in surprise, then furrowed in thought, then straightened to their normal position.
Admiral Shang had an very unusual mission for him.
He memorized the letter, then burned it to ashes in his hand. From the safe in the wall of his quarters, he retrieved the latest debriefing on current events in the Southern Ocean. He had read the report when he received it, of course, but he read it again, searching for anything that stood out in light of the Admiral's suspicions.
There was nothing out of the ordinary in the debriefing. The Southern Ocean had been one of the quietest theaters of the war for decades, ever since the strength of the Southern Water Tribe was broken. Two weeks earlier, a Fire Navy ship had a brief fight with pirates in the Jagged Strait, from which the pirates escaped, but this was not unusual. The band of sparsely populated islands between the southern Earth Kingdom and the South Pole was a haven for pirates and smugglers.
Zhao's destination was Whale Tail Island. His mission was to find out whether or not there was an air bender living there.
Frankly, he doubted the reliability of the report. Rumors of air benders circulated occasionally. But when Fire Nation investigators showed up, they inevitably found someone spinning a hoax for money or attention, or someone who was drunk or mad imagining things. Air bender sightings were like Abominable Lava-Man sightings.
Still, Whale Tail Island was close to the old Southern Air Temple. Perhaps some monk had fancied a local girl once upon a time, and air bending had passed down through the family. The possibility was remote, but Admiral Shang took the report seriously enough to ask Zhao to investigate, and so he would. Shang wisely did not trust the Southern Raiders with the job, because their commander, Yon Rha, was a loose cannon. While that was useful for keeping what remained of the Southern Water Tribe in check, he couldn't be allowed to rampage through a Fire Nation colony that was home to several prominent noble families and one of the largest copper mines in the world.
Zhao returned the debriefing to the safe. This would probably turn out to be a wild pheasant-goose chase, but it was his duty to be thorough in securing the peace and prosperity of his country. The trip would only be a short detour from his patrol route and an opportunity to re-supply with food and fuel.
And even if there were no air bender, there could be some other situation on the ground of which he could take advantage. Apprehending smugglers, spies, or subversive agents--it would all be to his credit and further his chance of promotion. He had learned to keep his eyes and his mind open, because sometimes opportunity dressed oddly when it knocked.
Like the time he had searched a library in the desert, looking for some hidden way past Ba Sing Se's great walls, and found a much greater prize. He alone in all the world knew the key to destroying the Water Tribe forever. Burning Wan Shi Tong's collection on the Fire Nation--thus ensuring his country's enemies would never see it--was a bonus. The old owl had been so angry, he couldn't help laughing.
Zhao had learned something else important at the library.
Spirits are not to be feared.
A new thought crossed his mind as he left his quarters for the bridge. Perhaps the Avatar had been finally found…
He dismissed the idea. The Avatar was over a hundred years old, and the person he was looking for was still a child. Plus, there had been no report of the suspect being able to bend other elements, or of being a true Air Nomad. Just an unfortunate individual who could bend air, and who likely wouldn't know any more about what happened to the Avatar than he did.
Zhao entered the bridge. Lt. Quan bowed to him.
"Set a course for Whale Tail Island," he said.
------
Zuko focused his spyglass on the dark, distant outline of Whale Tail Island. On the left of his field of vision, a series of tall, gray cliffs with high, yellow-green grass at the top and sharp, foam-speckled rocks at the bottom jutted out into the sea. From the closest cliff top, treeless, green brush-covered land sloped steadily down to the water. The wide harbor sheltered by the cliffs was split in two by a long, low spit of land dotted with green trees and gray tile roofed buildings.
Many small fishing boats sailed to or from the twin harbors, taking advantage of the good weather. On shore, he could make out a network of wooden docks and piers bustling with cranes, stacks of shipping containers, rhinos pulling heavy wagons, and other signs of a busy port. The place looked, from this distance at least, orderly and well-kept.
Iroh came to stand by Zuko. "In all my travels, I have never been to Whale Tail Island before. But I have heard many good things about it. The people are friendly, the weather is fine, and they have excellent seafood." He smiled broadly and patted his belly.
Zuko stepped away from the spyglass and retrieved his map of the island from a pocket. The corners of the paper flapped in the breeze as he traced possible routes with a finger. He said, "When we arrive, we'll start canvassing the capital immediately. Then we'll take the road along the coast and look for sea caves or other places someone could hide."
"That is an excellent plan, Prince Zuko. Very sound strategy."
Zuko looked at his uncle in surprise. "Really?"
"Of course! The spring tides are the best time to look for sea shells."
Zuko stared at Iroh for a moment, then crumpled the map in his hand and headed toward the bridge. "I'm going to tell the crew to get ready to go ashore."
"Oh!" His uncle called after him. "Before we look for shells, we have to pay a visit to the Governor. He is an old friend of mine who I have not seen for many years."
Zuko stopped and scowled. "Everywhere we go, you want to visit someone or see some stupid tourist attraction or spend hours shopping. How many times do I have to tell you we're not on vacation?"
Iroh held his hands out in a mollifying gesture. "Everyone needs a little rest and relaxation sometimes, Nephew. The visit will not take long."
"That's what you always say."
"Taking a few moments to pay our respects to the Governor will benefit us. It will be much easier to poke our noses around the island if we have his blessing." He pointed at his nephew. "You remember what happened when we went wandering in Chengzhen without telling anyone. The Governor thought we were Earth Kingdom spies."
"He was an idiot!"
"True. But you still shouldn't have set his hat on fire."
Zuko crossed his arms over his chest. "You go. Talk to the Governor as long as you want. I have work to do."
His uncle insisted, "You should come too."
Zuko gritted his teeth. "Don't say it'll be fun, because it won't be."
"No," Iroh sighed, "It probably won't be, for you. But I do not want to have tell my host, 'My nephew Prince Zuko is here as well, but he is too busy with his own affairs to pay his respects to you.'"
Zuko exhaled in exasperation. "All right. I'll go. But we're not staying for more than an hour."
"Very well." Iroh smiled. "We'll just stay for a cup of tea."
------
Mai sat on a blanket in the shade of the tall trees, lazily twirling a short knife around the fingers of her right hand. A little distance off, her mongoose lizard sprawled in the afternoon sun, absorbing the heat. The weather was a perfect spring combination of gentle sun and cool breezes. Lush, bright green grass was dotted with cheerful yellow and orange dragon flowers. The energetic singing of birds filled the air, and the sky overhead was clear blue.
She sighed. It was just like every spring day on Whale Tail Island.
There was a whoosh over her head. Glancing up, she spotted Ty Lee in the tree branches above. Her friend chirped, "And now for the dismount!"
Ty Lee soared out of the treetop. She flipped through the air five times, straightening her legs just in time for the landing. Triumphant, she raised her arms above her head and bowed deeply at the waist. She turned to face the opposite direction and repeated the bow, possibly to acknowledge the squirrel mice and gopher chipmunks that had no doubt been watching the show from the other side of the meadow.
Mai stopped her knife between her thumb and forefinger to clap. She asked, "Do they even say 'Bravo' at the circus?"
Ty Lee somersaulted over to the blanket and dropped to the ground beside Mai. "They say 'Bravo' sometimes," she said, "but when they really like you, they mostly wave their arms and yell 'YAAAAAAAAY'!"
She waved her arms around so vigorously Mai thought she might sprain something. The dozing mongoose lizard sat up and squawked at the noise.
Mai covered her ears with her hands and asked, "Do they have to be so loud about liking something?"
Ty Lee laughed and flopped onto her stomach, kicking her feet in the air. She tucked a few flyaway hairs behind her ears. "It's the circus. Everything is loud and colorful and fun and wonderful! It's why people go there. They want to see spectacular stuff they can't see anywhere else."
Mai smiled slightly. "Well, you're perfect for it."
Ty Lee beamed. She rolled over onto her back, stretching her arms and hands out. "I need to be ready to audition when they come back in the summer."
Mai flipped her knife into the air and caught it by the handle on the way down. She said, "You know, you've been coming out here to practice for a while now. I think you should be a little more careful."
Still lying down, Ty Lee arched her back so she could give Mai an upside-down quizzical look.
Mai added quietly, "You know."
Ty Lee sat up. "You worry too much, Mai. No one suspects a thing."
"Still, you should tone down the jumps and the leaps and the…" she twirled an index finger in a circle, "loopy-loops, or whatever. It'll attract attention."
"But I want to attract attention!"
"I know," Mai answered. "But you don't want the wrong kind of attention. Like, attention from the military."
Ty Lee pursed her lips. "Do you really think they'd arrest me? I mean, I can't help it! And I'm as much Fire Nation as anyone else. I was born in the capital, like you."
"Look," Mai said, holding up a hand, "I don't care about this whole bending thing. I think you're all weirdos anyway." Ty Lee stuck her tongue out. "But the military considers other benders to be a serious threat. You should have heard the stuff that super creepy guy from the Southern Raiders said when he visited my Dad." She shook her head. "'Lock them all up and throw away the key.'"
Ty Lee's brow furrowed slightly. "I'm not going to tell anyone. I just want to join the circus and entertain people. And…it just feels so free." She hopped up, standing high on her toes and stretching toward the sky. Then she looked down at Mai, her hands on her hips, her expression more serious. "How would you feel if you had to hide the thing you're best at--the thing that is really cool and makes you special because no one else can do it--from everyone because people thought it made you bad?"
Mai ran a fingertip along the flat of her blade "I know, it's--really hard. But I just want you to be careful. You don't want to end up in a cage."
The reply was teasing. "Now who's the one being dramatic?"
Mai huffed. Ty Lee sat back down, leaning against the tree, her head resting on her hands. "People expect professional acrobats to be able to do amazing things. Have you ever heard someone see an acrobat and say, 'Well, that must be air bending!'"
"I haven't seen that many acrobats."
This statement did not deter Ty Lee. "And everyone knows the Air Nomads are all gone. They won't think to look for an air bender."
Mai looked at her nails. "Hm."
Ty Lee leaned her head against Mai's shoulder. "But don't let me, you know, keep you from being gloomy."
Mai jerked her shoulder upward, brushing Ty Lee off of her. Ty Lee rolled around onto Mai's legs, resting her head just above the knees.
"I am not gloomy. I'm realistic."
Ty Lee's eyes widened suddenly. "You don't want me to go because you'll miss me!" She jumped on Mai in a hug, saying, "I'll miss you too."
Mai sighed. She would miss Ty Lee, but she doubted whether the girl would ever actually run away to join the circus. She'd talked about it for two years and hadn't done it yet.
Ty Lee added, "You could come with me, if you want. Some circuses have knife-throwing acts."
Mai patted Ty Lee's shoulder. "Thanks, but I'm not really the cheerful and fun kind of knife-thrower."
Ty Lee let go and sat back on her heels. "You're always saying you want to get off this island."
Mai shrugged. "Nothing ever happens around here." The local government and the copper mine security went to great lengths to make certain nothing unusual happened. In addition to the miners, there were fishermen on the coast, sheep-herders in the hills, and a bunch of wealthy elderly people, retired from something or other, who mostly stayed on their own estates playing pai sho and reminiscing about the old days. It wasn't a mix of people who tended toward doing exciting things. Ty Lee being a secret air bender was the most interesting thing about the whole island.
Ty Lee asked, "Well, what are you going to do?"
Mai flicked her knife between her fingers. "I don't know."
--end Chapter One
Two: Welcome to Whale Tail Island
Rating: PG-13
Characters: Mai, Zuko, Zhao, Ty Lee Pairings: Mai/Zuko
Word Count: ~22,000; eight chapters plus epilogue. Chapter One: ~2,400.
Summary: While searching for the Avatar, Prince Zuko stops at Whale Tail Island. He meets the Governor's daughter, Mai, who shows him around the most boring Fire Nation colony in the world. But things start happening when Captain Zhao arrives to investigate a report of an air bender living on the island, and both Mai and Zuko get pulled into his hunt.
Notes: Written for the Maiko Big Bang hosted at banked_flame. Many thanks to nuitsongeur for making an awesome video to go with my fic, which I will link to soon! Many thanks to ice_of_dreams as well, for organizing the whole thing!
One: Intelligence Reports
Zhao was writing in the captain's log when a knock sounded on the door to his quarters. He called, "Enter."
Lt. Quan approached, bowed briefly, and held a scroll out to him. "This just arrived for you, sir."
Zhao accepted the scroll and dismissed the lieutenant. As he read the message, his brows raised in surprise, then furrowed in thought, then straightened to their normal position.
Admiral Shang had an very unusual mission for him.
He memorized the letter, then burned it to ashes in his hand. From the safe in the wall of his quarters, he retrieved the latest debriefing on current events in the Southern Ocean. He had read the report when he received it, of course, but he read it again, searching for anything that stood out in light of the Admiral's suspicions.
There was nothing out of the ordinary in the debriefing. The Southern Ocean had been one of the quietest theaters of the war for decades, ever since the strength of the Southern Water Tribe was broken. Two weeks earlier, a Fire Navy ship had a brief fight with pirates in the Jagged Strait, from which the pirates escaped, but this was not unusual. The band of sparsely populated islands between the southern Earth Kingdom and the South Pole was a haven for pirates and smugglers.
Zhao's destination was Whale Tail Island. His mission was to find out whether or not there was an air bender living there.
Frankly, he doubted the reliability of the report. Rumors of air benders circulated occasionally. But when Fire Nation investigators showed up, they inevitably found someone spinning a hoax for money or attention, or someone who was drunk or mad imagining things. Air bender sightings were like Abominable Lava-Man sightings.
Still, Whale Tail Island was close to the old Southern Air Temple. Perhaps some monk had fancied a local girl once upon a time, and air bending had passed down through the family. The possibility was remote, but Admiral Shang took the report seriously enough to ask Zhao to investigate, and so he would. Shang wisely did not trust the Southern Raiders with the job, because their commander, Yon Rha, was a loose cannon. While that was useful for keeping what remained of the Southern Water Tribe in check, he couldn't be allowed to rampage through a Fire Nation colony that was home to several prominent noble families and one of the largest copper mines in the world.
Zhao returned the debriefing to the safe. This would probably turn out to be a wild pheasant-goose chase, but it was his duty to be thorough in securing the peace and prosperity of his country. The trip would only be a short detour from his patrol route and an opportunity to re-supply with food and fuel.
And even if there were no air bender, there could be some other situation on the ground of which he could take advantage. Apprehending smugglers, spies, or subversive agents--it would all be to his credit and further his chance of promotion. He had learned to keep his eyes and his mind open, because sometimes opportunity dressed oddly when it knocked.
Like the time he had searched a library in the desert, looking for some hidden way past Ba Sing Se's great walls, and found a much greater prize. He alone in all the world knew the key to destroying the Water Tribe forever. Burning Wan Shi Tong's collection on the Fire Nation--thus ensuring his country's enemies would never see it--was a bonus. The old owl had been so angry, he couldn't help laughing.
Zhao had learned something else important at the library.
Spirits are not to be feared.
A new thought crossed his mind as he left his quarters for the bridge. Perhaps the Avatar had been finally found…
He dismissed the idea. The Avatar was over a hundred years old, and the person he was looking for was still a child. Plus, there had been no report of the suspect being able to bend other elements, or of being a true Air Nomad. Just an unfortunate individual who could bend air, and who likely wouldn't know any more about what happened to the Avatar than he did.
Zhao entered the bridge. Lt. Quan bowed to him.
"Set a course for Whale Tail Island," he said.
------
Zuko focused his spyglass on the dark, distant outline of Whale Tail Island. On the left of his field of vision, a series of tall, gray cliffs with high, yellow-green grass at the top and sharp, foam-speckled rocks at the bottom jutted out into the sea. From the closest cliff top, treeless, green brush-covered land sloped steadily down to the water. The wide harbor sheltered by the cliffs was split in two by a long, low spit of land dotted with green trees and gray tile roofed buildings.
Many small fishing boats sailed to or from the twin harbors, taking advantage of the good weather. On shore, he could make out a network of wooden docks and piers bustling with cranes, stacks of shipping containers, rhinos pulling heavy wagons, and other signs of a busy port. The place looked, from this distance at least, orderly and well-kept.
Iroh came to stand by Zuko. "In all my travels, I have never been to Whale Tail Island before. But I have heard many good things about it. The people are friendly, the weather is fine, and they have excellent seafood." He smiled broadly and patted his belly.
Zuko stepped away from the spyglass and retrieved his map of the island from a pocket. The corners of the paper flapped in the breeze as he traced possible routes with a finger. He said, "When we arrive, we'll start canvassing the capital immediately. Then we'll take the road along the coast and look for sea caves or other places someone could hide."
"That is an excellent plan, Prince Zuko. Very sound strategy."
Zuko looked at his uncle in surprise. "Really?"
"Of course! The spring tides are the best time to look for sea shells."
Zuko stared at Iroh for a moment, then crumpled the map in his hand and headed toward the bridge. "I'm going to tell the crew to get ready to go ashore."
"Oh!" His uncle called after him. "Before we look for shells, we have to pay a visit to the Governor. He is an old friend of mine who I have not seen for many years."
Zuko stopped and scowled. "Everywhere we go, you want to visit someone or see some stupid tourist attraction or spend hours shopping. How many times do I have to tell you we're not on vacation?"
Iroh held his hands out in a mollifying gesture. "Everyone needs a little rest and relaxation sometimes, Nephew. The visit will not take long."
"That's what you always say."
"Taking a few moments to pay our respects to the Governor will benefit us. It will be much easier to poke our noses around the island if we have his blessing." He pointed at his nephew. "You remember what happened when we went wandering in Chengzhen without telling anyone. The Governor thought we were Earth Kingdom spies."
"He was an idiot!"
"True. But you still shouldn't have set his hat on fire."
Zuko crossed his arms over his chest. "You go. Talk to the Governor as long as you want. I have work to do."
His uncle insisted, "You should come too."
Zuko gritted his teeth. "Don't say it'll be fun, because it won't be."
"No," Iroh sighed, "It probably won't be, for you. But I do not want to have tell my host, 'My nephew Prince Zuko is here as well, but he is too busy with his own affairs to pay his respects to you.'"
Zuko exhaled in exasperation. "All right. I'll go. But we're not staying for more than an hour."
"Very well." Iroh smiled. "We'll just stay for a cup of tea."
------
Mai sat on a blanket in the shade of the tall trees, lazily twirling a short knife around the fingers of her right hand. A little distance off, her mongoose lizard sprawled in the afternoon sun, absorbing the heat. The weather was a perfect spring combination of gentle sun and cool breezes. Lush, bright green grass was dotted with cheerful yellow and orange dragon flowers. The energetic singing of birds filled the air, and the sky overhead was clear blue.
She sighed. It was just like every spring day on Whale Tail Island.
There was a whoosh over her head. Glancing up, she spotted Ty Lee in the tree branches above. Her friend chirped, "And now for the dismount!"
Ty Lee soared out of the treetop. She flipped through the air five times, straightening her legs just in time for the landing. Triumphant, she raised her arms above her head and bowed deeply at the waist. She turned to face the opposite direction and repeated the bow, possibly to acknowledge the squirrel mice and gopher chipmunks that had no doubt been watching the show from the other side of the meadow.
Mai stopped her knife between her thumb and forefinger to clap. She asked, "Do they even say 'Bravo' at the circus?"
Ty Lee somersaulted over to the blanket and dropped to the ground beside Mai. "They say 'Bravo' sometimes," she said, "but when they really like you, they mostly wave their arms and yell 'YAAAAAAAAY'!"
She waved her arms around so vigorously Mai thought she might sprain something. The dozing mongoose lizard sat up and squawked at the noise.
Mai covered her ears with her hands and asked, "Do they have to be so loud about liking something?"
Ty Lee laughed and flopped onto her stomach, kicking her feet in the air. She tucked a few flyaway hairs behind her ears. "It's the circus. Everything is loud and colorful and fun and wonderful! It's why people go there. They want to see spectacular stuff they can't see anywhere else."
Mai smiled slightly. "Well, you're perfect for it."
Ty Lee beamed. She rolled over onto her back, stretching her arms and hands out. "I need to be ready to audition when they come back in the summer."
Mai flipped her knife into the air and caught it by the handle on the way down. She said, "You know, you've been coming out here to practice for a while now. I think you should be a little more careful."
Still lying down, Ty Lee arched her back so she could give Mai an upside-down quizzical look.
Mai added quietly, "You know."
Ty Lee sat up. "You worry too much, Mai. No one suspects a thing."
"Still, you should tone down the jumps and the leaps and the…" she twirled an index finger in a circle, "loopy-loops, or whatever. It'll attract attention."
"But I want to attract attention!"
"I know," Mai answered. "But you don't want the wrong kind of attention. Like, attention from the military."
Ty Lee pursed her lips. "Do you really think they'd arrest me? I mean, I can't help it! And I'm as much Fire Nation as anyone else. I was born in the capital, like you."
"Look," Mai said, holding up a hand, "I don't care about this whole bending thing. I think you're all weirdos anyway." Ty Lee stuck her tongue out. "But the military considers other benders to be a serious threat. You should have heard the stuff that super creepy guy from the Southern Raiders said when he visited my Dad." She shook her head. "'Lock them all up and throw away the key.'"
Ty Lee's brow furrowed slightly. "I'm not going to tell anyone. I just want to join the circus and entertain people. And…it just feels so free." She hopped up, standing high on her toes and stretching toward the sky. Then she looked down at Mai, her hands on her hips, her expression more serious. "How would you feel if you had to hide the thing you're best at--the thing that is really cool and makes you special because no one else can do it--from everyone because people thought it made you bad?"
Mai ran a fingertip along the flat of her blade "I know, it's--really hard. But I just want you to be careful. You don't want to end up in a cage."
The reply was teasing. "Now who's the one being dramatic?"
Mai huffed. Ty Lee sat back down, leaning against the tree, her head resting on her hands. "People expect professional acrobats to be able to do amazing things. Have you ever heard someone see an acrobat and say, 'Well, that must be air bending!'"
"I haven't seen that many acrobats."
This statement did not deter Ty Lee. "And everyone knows the Air Nomads are all gone. They won't think to look for an air bender."
Mai looked at her nails. "Hm."
Ty Lee leaned her head against Mai's shoulder. "But don't let me, you know, keep you from being gloomy."
Mai jerked her shoulder upward, brushing Ty Lee off of her. Ty Lee rolled around onto Mai's legs, resting her head just above the knees.
"I am not gloomy. I'm realistic."
Ty Lee's eyes widened suddenly. "You don't want me to go because you'll miss me!" She jumped on Mai in a hug, saying, "I'll miss you too."
Mai sighed. She would miss Ty Lee, but she doubted whether the girl would ever actually run away to join the circus. She'd talked about it for two years and hadn't done it yet.
Ty Lee added, "You could come with me, if you want. Some circuses have knife-throwing acts."
Mai patted Ty Lee's shoulder. "Thanks, but I'm not really the cheerful and fun kind of knife-thrower."
Ty Lee let go and sat back on her heels. "You're always saying you want to get off this island."
Mai shrugged. "Nothing ever happens around here." The local government and the copper mine security went to great lengths to make certain nothing unusual happened. In addition to the miners, there were fishermen on the coast, sheep-herders in the hills, and a bunch of wealthy elderly people, retired from something or other, who mostly stayed on their own estates playing pai sho and reminiscing about the old days. It wasn't a mix of people who tended toward doing exciting things. Ty Lee being a secret air bender was the most interesting thing about the whole island.
Ty Lee asked, "Well, what are you going to do?"
Mai flicked her knife between her fingers. "I don't know."
--end Chapter One
Two: Welcome to Whale Tail Island