The Black Mask: Chapter Two -- Welcome to Whale Tail Island
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 Two: ~3,200.
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.
Two: Welcome to Whale Tail Island
Zuko stood at the west window in the Governor's sitting room, watching the sun sink below the horizon. One cup of tea, his uncle had said. One cup of tea had turned into a tour of the house and garden, and the tour had turned into dinner. And yet another of his uncle's distractions swallowed a day. At this rate, Zuko would be a hundred years old himself before he found the Avatar.
Iroh's laughter erupted behind him, a rumbling bass accompaniment to the high-pitched squeals of the Governor's infant son. The conversation had settled on how the General and the Governor had met.
Many years ago, before the Governor's hair had gone gray from worry, he was posted in the southwest Earth Kingdom. He was a member of the Royal Fire Engineers, who were building a major supply bridge over the Blackbird River when they were ambushed by earth benders. At the time, Iroh's troops were in the area, but were hard-pressed by Earth Kingdom forces themselves. How could the engineers be rescued without compromising the ongoing fight?
In the middle of the night, Iroh and his adjutant left camp to free the engineers themselves. Their surprise attack was so furious, the earth benders thought they were an entire brigade and fled. Naturally, this successful mission was followed by much drinking and celebrating.
As the dusk gathered, a servant lit the lamps on the verandah facing the west garden. Zuko leaned his hands on the windowsill, feeling homesick. Being in a Fire Nation house with a Fire Nation family was an odd, almost alien experience for him now. The domestic sounds of a family enjoying a cheerful evening meal together--a murmur of conversation spiked by laughter, the clink of cups and dishes as people savored tea and fruit--made him think not of his honor or his throne but of his mother.
A polite, languid voice suddenly cut through his memories. "Would you like more tea?"
He turned and saw the Governor's daughter standing by his side. Mai was her name. Her hands were tucked inside her voluminous sleeves in front of her chest. He hadn't heard her approach.
"No," he answered.
She peered out the window into the deepening night. "Sorry my parents are boring you," she said. "I've heard that story about General Iroh rescuing the engineers ten thousand times."
"I'd never heard it before."
She looked mildly surprised. "You hadn't?"
He shrugged. "My uncle doesn't talk much about his military career."
She glanced back at Iroh briefly. "It's kind of weird finally seeing the guy who's the big hero in the story. I thought he'd be taller." Zuko noted that she was taller than his uncle herself--almost as tall as him. "I suppose if he hadn't rescued the engineers, I wouldn't be here today."
He didn't understand that comment. If it was some sort of obscure joke, he didn't see what was supposed to be funny. But then he had never been good with humor. He returned to looking out the window.
It was dark enough that the lights inside the room obscured the view outside. He saw his own reflection briefly, but he didn't care to look at his own face for too long. Averting his eyes, he saw her reflection.
She was looking at him. He was used to people sneaking peeks at his scar when they thought he wouldn't notice, but she wasn't facing the side with the scar. Still, she was looking at him intently. It made him slightly nervous.
He turned to face her. Her eyes slid away from him and she took a slight step back. As she drew her hands out of her sleeves, he glimpsed a glint of metal.
Instinctively, he grasped her right hand--not hard, but firm enough that she would have to make an effort to break the grip.
"Hey," she said. A slight warning in her voice, but her face remained impassive.
He pulled her sleeve halfway up her forearm, which was entirely wrapped in a brown leather sheath. Shapes suspiciously like short arrows and daggers protruded from it--a lot of arrows and daggers.
She said, "If you want to hold my hand, you should ask first."
He dropped her hand. "You didn't tell us you were armed."
She looked confused for a moment, then laughed. For a girl with a low, kind of raspy voice, she had a surprisingly girlish laugh. "I'm not trying to assassinate you." She resumed her straight face. "If I were, I wouldn't do it while you were in my own house."
"I didn't say you were trying to assassinate me," he answered shortly. "But people don't usually wear concealed weapons in their own homes."
She shrugged. "I live in a rough neighborhood."
"This is not a…" He realized she was being sarcastic, and just shook his head.
Iroh approached them at the window, saying, "Nephew, since it is time for the little one to go to bed, we should take our leave."
"Finally," Zuko muttered.
Mai's father was not far behind. "I'm sorry I can't join you in a trip around the island, General Iroh. I could use a few days vacation myself."
Zuko growled, "We are not on vacation. We are searching for the Avatar, who is, if you remember, the greatest threat to the Fire Nation."
The Governor looked startled for a moment, then apparently decided to quietly ignore the outburst. "But, if you'd like someone to show you around, Mai has the week off school."
Zuko started, "We don't need--"
Iroh cut him off. "That would be very helpful. Most of the time, when we arrive somewhere, we discover that our maps are outdated and we end up blundering around lost." Zuko felt his face burning.
The Governor smiled. "Well, then, it's settled. Mai will join you tomorrow and give you a tour of our fair home."
Zuko expected the girl to protest, since she seemed to have taken a dislike to him, but she simply bowed and agreed.
The Governor showed them out. While he and Iroh discussed local restaurants, Mai said to Zuko, "I'll see you tomorrow."
"You don't have to do this if you don't want to," he responded. "We don't need a guide. And we don't blunder around lost. We perform thorough searches over wide areas."
"Oh, I'm sure you're very thorough," she murmured. "Look, my dad wants to go, but he can't. And Mom hates tromping around in the woods. So I'm going." She held up two fingers. "Fire Girl Scouts honor, I promise I won't assassinate you."
He frowned. Iroh called to him, and the two of them finally left the Governor's house. Zuko walked around North Harbor, studying buildings and occasionally asking people questions. No one knew anything about the Avatar, or air benders, or indeed anything unusual going on in town, except for one middle-aged man who was convinced that cat-gators lived in the sewers. When his uncle began yawning dramatically, he returned to the ship.
Oddly, Zuko found himself thinking of the Governor's strange daughter--with her black-tipped fingernails and many hidden knives--as he fell asleep.
------
Mai was ready to go by sunrise the next morning. She stood at the second-story window overlooking the street, watching for Prince Zuko and General Iroh.
If her father hadn't suggested she go with them, she would have volunteered. The Prince was hunting for the Avatar--for an air bender--and she needed to see if he was a threat to Ty Lee. She knew the story of his banishment and quest, but she hadn't expected him to be seriously searching for someone who disappeared without a trace a hundred years ago. He could have simply given up, and devoted his time to drinking, gambling, and general carousing. Or perhaps worked to overthrow or assassinate his father. Most people would have done something like that. Yet, here he was, hunting for the Avatar.
Of course, Ty Lee wasn't the Avatar, but if Prince Zuko were desperate enough and unscrupulous enough he might decide to take what he could get. If he were cunning enough, he might even be able to pull the deception off.
The sun had not been up for long when she spotted a group of rhinos lumbering toward her house, with Prince Zuko and General Iroh at the front. Mai went downstairs, and was already making tea when the maid showed the Prince and the General into the sitting room.
General Iroh eagerly accepted a cup of oolong, complimenting her brewing. His nephew refused tea. He slapped a map of Whale Tail Island down on the table, hard enough to rattle the lid of the teapot.
She sipped her tea and said, casually watching for his reaction, "You know, I kind of wish the Avatar were here. Then something interesting would happen."
Prince Zuko only shot her an annoyed look. He asked, "Can you ride a rhino?"
"No. But I can ride something better."
"What?"
"A mongoose lizard."
He said derisively, "They're not better than rhinos."
"Rhinos stink," she answered. "And they're slow and stubborn."
"They're much more powerful than mongoose lizards."
"That's great, if you're hauling a bunch of heavy stuff. But for getting around fast, lizards are what you want, especially here. Most of the island is steep and rocky."
"Fine." He threw up a hand. "Ride a hog monkey if you want. Just don't slow us down."
Her lips curled slightly. "Make sure you don't fall too far behind me."
Frowning, he turned his attention to the map, outlining his plan for the day. They were to go up into the wooded hills outside of town, and, as far as Mai could tell, look for elderly people with blue arrows tattooed on their heads. Or anyone who knew an old person with a blue arrow tattoo. Or…anything else out of the ordinary.
She had the feeling this was going to a long day.
After hearing the itinerary, General Iroh said with disappointment, "Prince Zuko, I thought we were going to go to the shore today."
"You can collect shells later, Uncle Iroh."
"I suppose." The old man's face suddenly brightened. "Today I shall pick berries."
Prince Zuko pinched the bridge of his nose with his fingers.
When the tea was finished, the three of them went out to the stables. A housemaid appeared with a picnic basket, which she secured to Mai's lizard saddle.
"This isn't a picnic," Prince Zuko barked.
His uncle eyed the basket appreciatively and said, "It doesn't matter what kind of mission you are on, Nephew. You have to stop to eat eventually."
The boy rolled his eyes. He was about to reply, when a flash of bright pink appeared next to him.
Ty Lee chirped, "Hi!"
Prince Zuko yelped and jumped.
Mai said, "Hey, Ty Lee." She observed the Prince closely, but he showed no sign of anything except being very startled by Ty Lee's sudden appearance.
Ty Lee looked excitedly between the two strangers. "Who are your new friends, Mai?"
Introductions were made. Ty Lee's eyes went wide on learning she was talking to royalty, and she bowed deeply. Then she glanced at Mai slyly.
Mai sighed--she knew that look. Every time they met a boy who was even halfway good-looking, Ty Lee teased her about liking him.
"I was going to ask Mai to come with me out to the meadow," Ty Lee said, "since it's such a nice day. But she already has company."
General Iroh said, "We are going out to the forest. Perhaps you would like to come along? The more, the merrier, I say."
Prince Zuko looked appalled.
"That sounds fun!" Ty Lee cleared her throat and fibbed, "But I have to be back home early."
Prince Zuko broke in quickly. "That's too bad. We've got to get going." He grabbed his uncle's arm. The older man waved goodbye to Ty Lee, allowing himself to be pulled toward their rhinos.
When the visitors were out of earshot, Ty Lee asked, "When did they get here?"
"Yesterday. You know who they are, don't you?" Ty Lee furrowed her brow, and Mai prompted, "The Dragon of the West? The banished prince?"
Ty Lee's mouth formed an 'o.' "That's them?" She stared at the retreating figures. "The scar is kind of gross, but even with it the Prince is not bad looking."
"Don't bring it up," Mai warned.
Ty Lee teased, "The scar or the other part?"
Mai swatted her friend's arm. "They're in a hurry." She explained her job for the day: showing them around places where they wouldn't find the Avatar.
Ty Lee looked thoughtful. "So the story's true? He can't go back home unless he finds the Avatar? That's…really sad."
Mai leaned in close to her friend and whispered, "He needs to find an air bender."
Ty Lee looked sharply at Mai. "You don't think…"
"No. Not yet, anyway. Just try to keep a low profile. I'll make sure they don't find anything interesting." The two men had settled on their rhinos, so Mai said, "Well, if I don't get going, His Irritable Highness is going to start yelling."
Ty Lee giggled. Mai said goodbye and mounted her mongoose lizard. When the lizard neared the rhinos, the animals all spent a few moments snuffling and sniffing each other cautiously, the lizard flicking its long tongue. But the beasts settled down quickly.
Mai rode out of town with a young man who may very well try to kidnap her best friend. But not if she could help it.
------
At noon, Zhao arrived at the rendezvous point to meet Admiral Shang's informant. The place was a country crossroads a few miles outside of North Harbor, bordered on all sides by dense trees. A pole with weathered signs indicating the directions of the island's main towns stood at the intersection of the roads. By the pole waited a man matching the description of the informer: average height, stocky, thinning black hair and mustache, wearing a red light jacket and dark gray trousers.
Zhao dismounted from his rhino, saying, "Tong." The man nodded, looking nervous. "I am Captain Zhao. I believe we have business to discuss."
"Yes, sir," Tong replied, bowing awkwardly. "If you come with me, I will show you."
"This had better be worth coming all the way out here," Zhao warned, as the men tied up the rhinos.
"Oh, it is, sir." The man licked his lips anxiously. "Like I said in my note, I saw the…" he glanced around, although there was no one else around for miles, "person heading into the woods a little while ago." He took a breath and added in a low voice, "It's air bending. I'd bet my mother's ashes on it."
"If you are right, you will earn the honor of capturing a traitor. And a generous reward." Zhao frowned. "But if you are wrong, you will earn my personal displeasure."
Tong swallowed nervously and started along the path through the woods.
The walk was quiet. There were no signs of any other people, no one watching them or waiting in ambush. Just the usual forest sounds of birds singing and small animals rummaging. But as the group trekked further into the woods, Zhao began to hear branches shaking and leaves rustling in the distance, as though a large, hyperactive monkey were swinging around.
Tong stopped, and Zhao and his men followed suit. The informer held a finger to his lips. The thrashing in the treetops came closer.
Suddenly, a high-pitched voice cried, "Wheee!" Several of Zhao's crew members jumped, then quickly pretended they hadn't.
The noise moved away and the group proceeded forward, silently. After a few hundred yards, the trees broke, revealing a cheerful clearing dotted with dragon flowers. Zhao halted his men just inside the treeline.
Tong pointed up. A bright pink shape was moving rapidly through the branches, to the left--the alleged air bender.
It was difficult to see the girl clearly, since she was moving fast and sometimes upside down. But she was slender, with a long, dark brown braid, and wearing an extremely girly outfit. She leapt from tree to tree as easily as an experienced sailor could climb a ship's ladder.
The girl sprinted along an alarmingly narrow branch, then jumped about ten feet up straight up to another. She gripped the second branch and ran smoothly through a series of complicated moves: hanging from one hand, flipping over to hang from a foot, then spinning.
Zhao would have thought she was simply an extraordinary acrobat, if not for how she finished the routine. Leaping off the branch, she tucked her knees to her chin, rotating one, two, three, four, five times, without falling any closer to the ground. She hung in the air like a bobbing pink balloon at a child's birthday party.
The girl was an air bender.
Finally, she stretched out straight and fell to the ground, landing just too neatly, too softly, too quietly. She bowed, as though to an audience.
She didn't yet know she had an audience.
Tong cast Zhao a satisfied smile. Zhao nodded. Pushing tree branches aside, he marched into the clearing, his men following.
The girl gasped, her eyes wide.
"I am Captain Zhao. You are under arrest for air bending."
The happiness on the girl's face cracked like ice under a hammer blow. For a brief moment, Zhao almost felt bad for her.
His fire benders swiftly surrounded her. She stared at each of them in turn, lip trembling and eyes welling with tears.
Zhao said, "Come quietly and we won't hurt you."
He reached out to seize her arm. Moving so fast he barely saw her, she struck his arms with a series of surprisingly hard, focused jabs. Snarling, he tried to grab her again--but he could no longer move his arms.
Before his men could fire, the girl repeated her attack on them. One by one they dropped to the ground like sacks of coal. When the last one fell, she cast a wild, frightened look around the clearing, then leaped high into the trees.
She quickly vanished.
Tong hesitantly emerged from hiding behind a massive fire oak. He looked even more afraid than the fleeing girl had. He stammered, "I--I didn't know she could do that."
Zhao snapped, "Idiot!"
"I will get help, sir," the man said, already running away before he finished the words.
Zhao scowled up at the trees. He didn't know what the girl had done to him, but it felt like his arms had instantly fallen asleep. He hoped the effect would not last long.
One thing was clear. The air bender was far more dangerous than he suspected. She had to be apprehended, quickly.
Zhao would be happy to catch her. He just had to figure out the most effective method.
--end Chapter Two
Three: Under the Surface
Rating: PG-13
Characters: Mai, Zuko, Zhao, Ty Lee Pairings: Mai/Zuko
Word Count: ~22,000, eight chapters plus epilogue. Chapter Two: ~3,200.
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.
Two: Welcome to Whale Tail Island
Zuko stood at the west window in the Governor's sitting room, watching the sun sink below the horizon. One cup of tea, his uncle had said. One cup of tea had turned into a tour of the house and garden, and the tour had turned into dinner. And yet another of his uncle's distractions swallowed a day. At this rate, Zuko would be a hundred years old himself before he found the Avatar.
Iroh's laughter erupted behind him, a rumbling bass accompaniment to the high-pitched squeals of the Governor's infant son. The conversation had settled on how the General and the Governor had met.
Many years ago, before the Governor's hair had gone gray from worry, he was posted in the southwest Earth Kingdom. He was a member of the Royal Fire Engineers, who were building a major supply bridge over the Blackbird River when they were ambushed by earth benders. At the time, Iroh's troops were in the area, but were hard-pressed by Earth Kingdom forces themselves. How could the engineers be rescued without compromising the ongoing fight?
In the middle of the night, Iroh and his adjutant left camp to free the engineers themselves. Their surprise attack was so furious, the earth benders thought they were an entire brigade and fled. Naturally, this successful mission was followed by much drinking and celebrating.
As the dusk gathered, a servant lit the lamps on the verandah facing the west garden. Zuko leaned his hands on the windowsill, feeling homesick. Being in a Fire Nation house with a Fire Nation family was an odd, almost alien experience for him now. The domestic sounds of a family enjoying a cheerful evening meal together--a murmur of conversation spiked by laughter, the clink of cups and dishes as people savored tea and fruit--made him think not of his honor or his throne but of his mother.
A polite, languid voice suddenly cut through his memories. "Would you like more tea?"
He turned and saw the Governor's daughter standing by his side. Mai was her name. Her hands were tucked inside her voluminous sleeves in front of her chest. He hadn't heard her approach.
"No," he answered.
She peered out the window into the deepening night. "Sorry my parents are boring you," she said. "I've heard that story about General Iroh rescuing the engineers ten thousand times."
"I'd never heard it before."
She looked mildly surprised. "You hadn't?"
He shrugged. "My uncle doesn't talk much about his military career."
She glanced back at Iroh briefly. "It's kind of weird finally seeing the guy who's the big hero in the story. I thought he'd be taller." Zuko noted that she was taller than his uncle herself--almost as tall as him. "I suppose if he hadn't rescued the engineers, I wouldn't be here today."
He didn't understand that comment. If it was some sort of obscure joke, he didn't see what was supposed to be funny. But then he had never been good with humor. He returned to looking out the window.
It was dark enough that the lights inside the room obscured the view outside. He saw his own reflection briefly, but he didn't care to look at his own face for too long. Averting his eyes, he saw her reflection.
She was looking at him. He was used to people sneaking peeks at his scar when they thought he wouldn't notice, but she wasn't facing the side with the scar. Still, she was looking at him intently. It made him slightly nervous.
He turned to face her. Her eyes slid away from him and she took a slight step back. As she drew her hands out of her sleeves, he glimpsed a glint of metal.
Instinctively, he grasped her right hand--not hard, but firm enough that she would have to make an effort to break the grip.
"Hey," she said. A slight warning in her voice, but her face remained impassive.
He pulled her sleeve halfway up her forearm, which was entirely wrapped in a brown leather sheath. Shapes suspiciously like short arrows and daggers protruded from it--a lot of arrows and daggers.
She said, "If you want to hold my hand, you should ask first."
He dropped her hand. "You didn't tell us you were armed."
She looked confused for a moment, then laughed. For a girl with a low, kind of raspy voice, she had a surprisingly girlish laugh. "I'm not trying to assassinate you." She resumed her straight face. "If I were, I wouldn't do it while you were in my own house."
"I didn't say you were trying to assassinate me," he answered shortly. "But people don't usually wear concealed weapons in their own homes."
She shrugged. "I live in a rough neighborhood."
"This is not a…" He realized she was being sarcastic, and just shook his head.
Iroh approached them at the window, saying, "Nephew, since it is time for the little one to go to bed, we should take our leave."
"Finally," Zuko muttered.
Mai's father was not far behind. "I'm sorry I can't join you in a trip around the island, General Iroh. I could use a few days vacation myself."
Zuko growled, "We are not on vacation. We are searching for the Avatar, who is, if you remember, the greatest threat to the Fire Nation."
The Governor looked startled for a moment, then apparently decided to quietly ignore the outburst. "But, if you'd like someone to show you around, Mai has the week off school."
Zuko started, "We don't need--"
Iroh cut him off. "That would be very helpful. Most of the time, when we arrive somewhere, we discover that our maps are outdated and we end up blundering around lost." Zuko felt his face burning.
The Governor smiled. "Well, then, it's settled. Mai will join you tomorrow and give you a tour of our fair home."
Zuko expected the girl to protest, since she seemed to have taken a dislike to him, but she simply bowed and agreed.
The Governor showed them out. While he and Iroh discussed local restaurants, Mai said to Zuko, "I'll see you tomorrow."
"You don't have to do this if you don't want to," he responded. "We don't need a guide. And we don't blunder around lost. We perform thorough searches over wide areas."
"Oh, I'm sure you're very thorough," she murmured. "Look, my dad wants to go, but he can't. And Mom hates tromping around in the woods. So I'm going." She held up two fingers. "Fire Girl Scouts honor, I promise I won't assassinate you."
He frowned. Iroh called to him, and the two of them finally left the Governor's house. Zuko walked around North Harbor, studying buildings and occasionally asking people questions. No one knew anything about the Avatar, or air benders, or indeed anything unusual going on in town, except for one middle-aged man who was convinced that cat-gators lived in the sewers. When his uncle began yawning dramatically, he returned to the ship.
Oddly, Zuko found himself thinking of the Governor's strange daughter--with her black-tipped fingernails and many hidden knives--as he fell asleep.
------
Mai was ready to go by sunrise the next morning. She stood at the second-story window overlooking the street, watching for Prince Zuko and General Iroh.
If her father hadn't suggested she go with them, she would have volunteered. The Prince was hunting for the Avatar--for an air bender--and she needed to see if he was a threat to Ty Lee. She knew the story of his banishment and quest, but she hadn't expected him to be seriously searching for someone who disappeared without a trace a hundred years ago. He could have simply given up, and devoted his time to drinking, gambling, and general carousing. Or perhaps worked to overthrow or assassinate his father. Most people would have done something like that. Yet, here he was, hunting for the Avatar.
Of course, Ty Lee wasn't the Avatar, but if Prince Zuko were desperate enough and unscrupulous enough he might decide to take what he could get. If he were cunning enough, he might even be able to pull the deception off.
The sun had not been up for long when she spotted a group of rhinos lumbering toward her house, with Prince Zuko and General Iroh at the front. Mai went downstairs, and was already making tea when the maid showed the Prince and the General into the sitting room.
General Iroh eagerly accepted a cup of oolong, complimenting her brewing. His nephew refused tea. He slapped a map of Whale Tail Island down on the table, hard enough to rattle the lid of the teapot.
She sipped her tea and said, casually watching for his reaction, "You know, I kind of wish the Avatar were here. Then something interesting would happen."
Prince Zuko only shot her an annoyed look. He asked, "Can you ride a rhino?"
"No. But I can ride something better."
"What?"
"A mongoose lizard."
He said derisively, "They're not better than rhinos."
"Rhinos stink," she answered. "And they're slow and stubborn."
"They're much more powerful than mongoose lizards."
"That's great, if you're hauling a bunch of heavy stuff. But for getting around fast, lizards are what you want, especially here. Most of the island is steep and rocky."
"Fine." He threw up a hand. "Ride a hog monkey if you want. Just don't slow us down."
Her lips curled slightly. "Make sure you don't fall too far behind me."
Frowning, he turned his attention to the map, outlining his plan for the day. They were to go up into the wooded hills outside of town, and, as far as Mai could tell, look for elderly people with blue arrows tattooed on their heads. Or anyone who knew an old person with a blue arrow tattoo. Or…anything else out of the ordinary.
She had the feeling this was going to a long day.
After hearing the itinerary, General Iroh said with disappointment, "Prince Zuko, I thought we were going to go to the shore today."
"You can collect shells later, Uncle Iroh."
"I suppose." The old man's face suddenly brightened. "Today I shall pick berries."
Prince Zuko pinched the bridge of his nose with his fingers.
When the tea was finished, the three of them went out to the stables. A housemaid appeared with a picnic basket, which she secured to Mai's lizard saddle.
"This isn't a picnic," Prince Zuko barked.
His uncle eyed the basket appreciatively and said, "It doesn't matter what kind of mission you are on, Nephew. You have to stop to eat eventually."
The boy rolled his eyes. He was about to reply, when a flash of bright pink appeared next to him.
Ty Lee chirped, "Hi!"
Prince Zuko yelped and jumped.
Mai said, "Hey, Ty Lee." She observed the Prince closely, but he showed no sign of anything except being very startled by Ty Lee's sudden appearance.
Ty Lee looked excitedly between the two strangers. "Who are your new friends, Mai?"
Introductions were made. Ty Lee's eyes went wide on learning she was talking to royalty, and she bowed deeply. Then she glanced at Mai slyly.
Mai sighed--she knew that look. Every time they met a boy who was even halfway good-looking, Ty Lee teased her about liking him.
"I was going to ask Mai to come with me out to the meadow," Ty Lee said, "since it's such a nice day. But she already has company."
General Iroh said, "We are going out to the forest. Perhaps you would like to come along? The more, the merrier, I say."
Prince Zuko looked appalled.
"That sounds fun!" Ty Lee cleared her throat and fibbed, "But I have to be back home early."
Prince Zuko broke in quickly. "That's too bad. We've got to get going." He grabbed his uncle's arm. The older man waved goodbye to Ty Lee, allowing himself to be pulled toward their rhinos.
When the visitors were out of earshot, Ty Lee asked, "When did they get here?"
"Yesterday. You know who they are, don't you?" Ty Lee furrowed her brow, and Mai prompted, "The Dragon of the West? The banished prince?"
Ty Lee's mouth formed an 'o.' "That's them?" She stared at the retreating figures. "The scar is kind of gross, but even with it the Prince is not bad looking."
"Don't bring it up," Mai warned.
Ty Lee teased, "The scar or the other part?"
Mai swatted her friend's arm. "They're in a hurry." She explained her job for the day: showing them around places where they wouldn't find the Avatar.
Ty Lee looked thoughtful. "So the story's true? He can't go back home unless he finds the Avatar? That's…really sad."
Mai leaned in close to her friend and whispered, "He needs to find an air bender."
Ty Lee looked sharply at Mai. "You don't think…"
"No. Not yet, anyway. Just try to keep a low profile. I'll make sure they don't find anything interesting." The two men had settled on their rhinos, so Mai said, "Well, if I don't get going, His Irritable Highness is going to start yelling."
Ty Lee giggled. Mai said goodbye and mounted her mongoose lizard. When the lizard neared the rhinos, the animals all spent a few moments snuffling and sniffing each other cautiously, the lizard flicking its long tongue. But the beasts settled down quickly.
Mai rode out of town with a young man who may very well try to kidnap her best friend. But not if she could help it.
------
At noon, Zhao arrived at the rendezvous point to meet Admiral Shang's informant. The place was a country crossroads a few miles outside of North Harbor, bordered on all sides by dense trees. A pole with weathered signs indicating the directions of the island's main towns stood at the intersection of the roads. By the pole waited a man matching the description of the informer: average height, stocky, thinning black hair and mustache, wearing a red light jacket and dark gray trousers.
Zhao dismounted from his rhino, saying, "Tong." The man nodded, looking nervous. "I am Captain Zhao. I believe we have business to discuss."
"Yes, sir," Tong replied, bowing awkwardly. "If you come with me, I will show you."
"This had better be worth coming all the way out here," Zhao warned, as the men tied up the rhinos.
"Oh, it is, sir." The man licked his lips anxiously. "Like I said in my note, I saw the…" he glanced around, although there was no one else around for miles, "person heading into the woods a little while ago." He took a breath and added in a low voice, "It's air bending. I'd bet my mother's ashes on it."
"If you are right, you will earn the honor of capturing a traitor. And a generous reward." Zhao frowned. "But if you are wrong, you will earn my personal displeasure."
Tong swallowed nervously and started along the path through the woods.
The walk was quiet. There were no signs of any other people, no one watching them or waiting in ambush. Just the usual forest sounds of birds singing and small animals rummaging. But as the group trekked further into the woods, Zhao began to hear branches shaking and leaves rustling in the distance, as though a large, hyperactive monkey were swinging around.
Tong stopped, and Zhao and his men followed suit. The informer held a finger to his lips. The thrashing in the treetops came closer.
Suddenly, a high-pitched voice cried, "Wheee!" Several of Zhao's crew members jumped, then quickly pretended they hadn't.
The noise moved away and the group proceeded forward, silently. After a few hundred yards, the trees broke, revealing a cheerful clearing dotted with dragon flowers. Zhao halted his men just inside the treeline.
Tong pointed up. A bright pink shape was moving rapidly through the branches, to the left--the alleged air bender.
It was difficult to see the girl clearly, since she was moving fast and sometimes upside down. But she was slender, with a long, dark brown braid, and wearing an extremely girly outfit. She leapt from tree to tree as easily as an experienced sailor could climb a ship's ladder.
The girl sprinted along an alarmingly narrow branch, then jumped about ten feet up straight up to another. She gripped the second branch and ran smoothly through a series of complicated moves: hanging from one hand, flipping over to hang from a foot, then spinning.
Zhao would have thought she was simply an extraordinary acrobat, if not for how she finished the routine. Leaping off the branch, she tucked her knees to her chin, rotating one, two, three, four, five times, without falling any closer to the ground. She hung in the air like a bobbing pink balloon at a child's birthday party.
The girl was an air bender.
Finally, she stretched out straight and fell to the ground, landing just too neatly, too softly, too quietly. She bowed, as though to an audience.
She didn't yet know she had an audience.
Tong cast Zhao a satisfied smile. Zhao nodded. Pushing tree branches aside, he marched into the clearing, his men following.
The girl gasped, her eyes wide.
"I am Captain Zhao. You are under arrest for air bending."
The happiness on the girl's face cracked like ice under a hammer blow. For a brief moment, Zhao almost felt bad for her.
His fire benders swiftly surrounded her. She stared at each of them in turn, lip trembling and eyes welling with tears.
Zhao said, "Come quietly and we won't hurt you."
He reached out to seize her arm. Moving so fast he barely saw her, she struck his arms with a series of surprisingly hard, focused jabs. Snarling, he tried to grab her again--but he could no longer move his arms.
Before his men could fire, the girl repeated her attack on them. One by one they dropped to the ground like sacks of coal. When the last one fell, she cast a wild, frightened look around the clearing, then leaped high into the trees.
She quickly vanished.
Tong hesitantly emerged from hiding behind a massive fire oak. He looked even more afraid than the fleeing girl had. He stammered, "I--I didn't know she could do that."
Zhao snapped, "Idiot!"
"I will get help, sir," the man said, already running away before he finished the words.
Zhao scowled up at the trees. He didn't know what the girl had done to him, but it felt like his arms had instantly fallen asleep. He hoped the effect would not last long.
One thing was clear. The air bender was far more dangerous than he suspected. She had to be apprehended, quickly.
Zhao would be happy to catch her. He just had to figure out the most effective method.
--end Chapter Two
Three: Under the Surface