"What?" Even Iroh's eyes widened. "How? Why would they go back to a place they'd already searched?"
"We've managed to piece together a rough picture from eyewitness accounts," Mai said, joining the conversation again from where she was sitting with Zuko's arm around her shoulders. "Apparently, the Avatar didn't know the prison had a lower level with reinforced security at first. But after capturing our decoy, either he or his girlfriend could easily have learned about it. After all, nearly everyone in the city knows that benders and important prisoners are held separately."
"And that girlfriend decided to pay the place a visit while that little..." Azula repeated several of the colorful titles her brother had bestowed upon Aang, then added a few of her own. Yeah... she'd truly had enough. I'd never heard her talk like that before. "...kept us occupied."
"And care to guess where the prison warden transferred that prisoner after being told he'd answer with his head to the heirs to the throne, the Herald, and the governor's daughter if anything happened to him?" I closed my eyes. It would've been difficult to sabotage ourselves more thoroughly if we'd done it on purpose. "To the deepest level. The one that used to hold King Bumi."
"And to make matters worse," Suki continued while I occupied myself with another cup of tea, "we pulled every last reinforcement out of the prison to help intercept Aang."
"That was the logical decision," the general nodded, looking as though he were painstakingly trying to assemble the pieces in his mind. "Leaving those forces behind would've served no purpose. If anything, that might even have drawn unwanted attention..."
"Exactly," Azula said through gritted teeth. "The only problem is that nobody bothered to explain that to those children. Katara scattered what little guard force remained, broke into the high-security block, rescued her brother, and withdrew. Thank the spirits they didn't release the prisoners a second time. The last thing we needed was a horde of furious earthbenders rampaging through the middle of the city."
"I hate airbenders," Toph concluded darkly.
For a girl who had long since grown accustomed to functioning perfectly well without sight, facing a flying, constantly maneuvering opponent—someone she couldn't sense at all through her earthbending—had dealt a serious blow to her pride.
"This... this..." The old general opened and closed his mouth helplessly a couple of times, utterly unable to find the words.
Or perhaps he was simply very good at pretending.
"It's ridiculous!" Zuko shot to his feet and slammed his fist onto the table. The teapot and cups jumped and clattered plaintively against the wooden surface. "We've been made fools of three times—three times!—by some snot-nosed kid! And every single time, it was only because he chose the stupidest course of action imaginable! The kind of thing no normal person would ever even consider because... because it's stupid!"
The blue flames dancing in the candles instantly reverted to their natural color and leapt nearly five feet toward the ceiling.
"Quite the orator, aren't you, Zuzu?" Azula hissed venomously. She clearly needed to vent, and truth be told, so did the rest of us.
"Azula, you—" Zuko started, but this time I cut in.
"All right, enough." I set my teacup down on the table with a sharp clack. "The last thing we need right now is to start fighting among ourselves."
Both royal siblings turned toward me, clearly preparing to present a united front. I didn't give them the chance.
"This was my mistake as the commander of our group."
I deliberately took the blame upon myself while gently reminding both Their Royal Highnesses that they had been the ones to appoint me to that position—and that no one had relieved me of it since.
"The Avatar got away. Now we need to decide what comes next."
"What do you mean, what comes next?" Ozai's children demanded in perfect unison, instantly forgetting they had been on the verge of arguing only seconds earlier.
"I mean exactly that. Aang was always a secondary objective. We can continue the pursuit. We can return home. Or we can go back to carrying out sabotage operations throughout the Earth Kingdom."
"And you're just going to let the fact that this little brat humiliated us slide?" The indignation in Azula's eyes might as well have been written in enormous letters.
"No. I'd very much like to wrap his guts around my sword. But the world doesn't revolve around my desires alone. Listening to your companions' opinions is often a very useful habit."
"We continue the pursuit!" the royal siblings declared simultaneously.
Amusing. A moment ago they had practically been ready to come to blows, and now they were overflowing with enthusiasm. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Iroh smiling ever so slightly and giving a small nod.
"Very well, then… Zuko, you're in charge of mapping out every possible escape route our flying friend could have taken. I want you to consider even the most absurd possibilities—the kinds of routes no sane person would ever choose."
"I'll do it," the prince nodded.
"Mai, as the governor's daughter, it'll be easiest for you to arrange transportation and supplies for us."
"Understood. I'll take Ty Lee with me."
"What for?" Azula asked curiously.
"If I have to deal with those idiots by myself," Mai replied with deadly seriousness, "I'll die from the crushing realization of just how hopeless and depressing this world truly is. Not that I wasn't already aware of that, but still..."
"Fair enough."
Judging by the way Azula looked away, she'd been entertaining much the same thoughts herself.
"All right, moving on. Suki, you're responsible for our equipment and personnel."
"Consider it done," the Kyoshi Warrior replied.
"And you and I, Azula, are going to start working on plans for dealing with the Avatar's horrifying combination of idiocy and unbelievable luck. Hopefully General Iroh can help us."
"I'll certainly try," the retired general said with a weary smile. "Though I must admit, my entire lifetime of experience is at a loss when it comes to that boy."
"And who ever said it was going to be easy, Uncle?" Azula perked up immediately, flashing him a warm, thoroughly familial grin that looked far more like a predator baring its teeth.
"...Ah." Iroh lowered his head with a sigh. "I think I'll put on another pot of tea."
(End of Chapter)
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