Chapter Text
The pale sliver of the moon appeared from behind the thick clouds as Zuko made his approach.
Beyond that faint glow, the only visible light was the lanterns carried by the Earth Kingdom sentries. They cast shadows down from the fortress wall onto the surrounding land, jagged shades like great teeth biting into the tall grass. More of that light came from Zuko’s left; he tilted his head to get a proper view of the gatehouse. At least four guards nestled beneath the overhang of the gate, their own lanterns casting shadows that intersected with those of the wall.
It was into those overlapped shadows, the darkest on this already dark night, that he sprang. He flattened himself against the wall, looking up as the unseen soldier moved away from the gatehouse. Once he was away, Zuko opened one of his flasks.
He pulled the water free, backing up slightly to allow for more of the wall to be visible. It swirled around his hand, and with a deft punch, he sent it flying into the smooth stone. It froze on contact, blown out to create a handhold.
He repeated the process another couple of times until he had a series of handholds to move up. He sprang off the ground, grabbing one of them before pulling himself up to another. Soon, he was on top of the wall, using the pommel of his Dao to knock out one of the sentries.
With a wave of his arm, the ice melted back into water and was called up to him. It swirled around his arm like a coiling serpent, before being forced back into his flask. Eyes darting to either side, checking to see if his infiltration had thus far been noticed. When he was sure he wasn’t, he began to move along the wall towards the gate.
Only one more sentry was in the way, and he was silenced by a series of quick strikes before he could even utter a noise of shock. Soon, the blocky gatehouse was in front of him, a basic wooden door separating him from the guards inside.
He peeked through the small gap between the door and the wall, eyeing the three soldiers playing some kind of car game around a low table. A pair of torches illuminated them, as well as the great slab of rock that acted as the only real way in or out of the fort.
Water once again wrapped around his arm, two tendrils circling one another around his forearm. He kicked the door open, twin water whips flying and striking the torches. Steam filled the room as the torches spluttered and died, darkness falling on the soldiers before they could react.
The thick vapor of steam hardened into ice that enshrouded one soldier before he could even rise from his chair. He stepped forward with a lunge, spearing another with the water that still coiled around his arm. The blast sent the soldier sprawling, knocking over the table and spilling the cards and coins across the floor.
The third soldier stood and assumed an Earthebending stance, though froze up as he got a good look at Zuko. Or, rather, at the fang-filled grin of the blue mask incorporated into his helmet. “T-t-the Bl-b-blue Spi-” Zuko silenced his stammering with a pair of quick punches to his gut and throat.
Zuko once again drew his blades, stepping around the neutralized Earth Kingdom soldiers to the gatehouse window. The moon gave off little light, but there was just enough to send pale flashes into the darkness that encircled the fort.
From behind a hill, a cart began to approach. Ostrich-Horses trotted alongside the cart as it calmly approached the gate, drawing the attention of the soldiers below. The lantern attached to the cart sputtered, the soldier next to the driver shifting his spear from one shoulder to the other. The signal to continue.
Zuko sprang from the gatehouse building, racing across the perimeter wall. The sentries he met in his sweep of the wall were universally sleepy and unprepared, and none of them were benders. A sudden strike or a few quick slashes were enough to silence them. The only time he needed his bending was when one of the sentries was close enough to another to see what happened. Zuko froze his mouth shut, before using more water to bash him against the ramparts.
By the time Zuko had finished his rush of violence, his troops were in position. Grey armored soldiers spilled out of the back of the cart, while the Earth Kingdom sentries lay scattered around the gate. Grappling hooks thrown up to him nestled around the ramparts, the attached rope ladders being yanked up seconds later. The drivers and riders had started to shuck off their Earth Kingdom uniforms, revealing the same grey armor underneath their heavy coats.
With practiced ease, they climbed up onto the walls. More ropes were affixed to the walls as Zuko angled his swords to catch the faint moonlight once again. The tall grass surrounding the fort wrestled and shifted as shadows rose. As one, the 41st advanced towards the wall, only a faint whistling of shifting grass signaling the advance.
Those already on the wall made haste towards the stairs, descending into the inner courtyard. Daggers and arrows made quick work of any Earth Kingdom soldier caught outside their barracks. Months, if not years of these Nighttime Raids showed in the swift movement towards the designated objectives.
Off to his left, someone cried out before being silenced. Voices, some bleary with sleep while others were wide awake and laced with panic, came from the barracks that ringed the yard. Zuko scowled beneath his mask, before lifting his hand in a signal. Weapons were readied and fire danced from the fingers of his units benders as they met the barely awake Earth Kingdom garrison.
Zuko himself uncorked both of his flasks, all of the water he carried on him answering his call. The water seemed to dance beneath the silver glow of the moon as it enveloped his form. His heart pounded in his chest as he began to send the water in all directions, lancing out and striking down his Firelord’s enemies.
XXXXX
Zuko watched from the smoldering remains of the Commander’s quarters as the Earth Kingdom prisoners were dragged into the center quartyard. Stripped of their armor and helmets, the soldiers were forced onto their knees by the surrounding 41st soldiers.
“Colonel Kuzon?” The question signaled the arrival of Major Teruko. He turned towards her, the name that his father had given him after being sent to the 41st drawing his attention. His second in command had removed her helmet, revealing the jagged scar across her cheek; a reminder of their first battle.
“Major”, he replied, careful to be out of earshot from the Earth Kingdom prisoners. He had a reputation to uphold, after all. “What are our casualties?”
Major Teruko nodded gravely, before bowing to her superior. “Thirty-two wounded… fifteen dead.”
Zuko nodded back to her, before once again looking towards the prisoners. Few of the Earthbenders had the sense to surrender, mostly scared nonbenders throwing themselves at the mercy of their superiors. Scared raw recruits, for the most part; caught off guard and thrown to the wolves of a superior force. Like the 41st would have been. Like it almost was.
(Sunrise over Gi Wai Zifao reflecting off of the muddy ground. Not mud; blood. Torn up earth and half-buried bodies. Some places dried and charred black with unrecognizable, scorched corpses. Only a few soldiers in red stood, boots smeared with mud and blood and rain. Too few. You failed again; you couldn’t save them, you miserable disgrace. All that effort, the disgrace of a night attack, you still couldn’t live up to your father’s-)
“Sir”, Teruko said, pulling him from the quagmire of his thoughts. “Sir, we won. General Yoka’s men will be here soon. Should I get the men ready to move?”
Zuko nodded. Teruko put back on her helmet and marched down the steps to where the bulk of the unit was stationed, shouting orders and directing the men to prepare to give up the fort to the regular army.
Zuko took a few moments to breathe and calm himself. Obviously, his Father did care about him and his successes. The 41st was making headway on the Omashu front, the city itself not far from the frontline now for the first time in the war. Soon, he would help take Omashu, crushing the resistance in the Southern Earth Kingdom. Even if he wasn’t earning the honor for his name, surely his Father would see his worth after such a victory.
The pounding of boots foreshadowed the arrival of the regular army. The gate of the fortress had been blown open after the last of the resistance had been cleared. A column of Firebenders and Komodo-Rhino Riders entered through the gap, regular infantry following in after them.
His troops stood out even more when normal Fire Nation forces were in the same area. The dark reds of the normal army stood out against the slate-gray and short-cut uniforms of the 41st. The nonbending troops of the Fire Nation were uniformly armed with glaives, while a mix of swords, glaives, axes, Earth Kingdom warhammers, and bows, were equipped by even the benders amongst his troops.
What most divided his men were their helmets. Normal troops wore conical helmets with protective aventails down the backs of their necks, while Firebendres wore skull-faced helmets. To a man, all of his men wore helmets resembling his own. A different color and nowhere near as intricate in design, but fang-filled grins were sent out at both allies and foes from the 41st Battalion.
General Yoka greeted him at the gate, still mounted atop his Komodo-Rhino. Zuko bowed, hands pressed together in salute. “Excellent work, Colonel Kuzon”, the General said, inclining his head in return. “Most excellent.”
Teruko came up next to him, bowing towards their superior as well. It got easier now that they were no longer under Bujing's command. “Almost the entire fort is intact and we have four hundred prisoners.”
Yoka nodded at Teruko’s report, finally sliding down off of the saddle. He was at least three times the age of either of them, but moved with a surprising vigor in his step. “Take them back with you when you return to our previous position. Oh, and Colonel?”
With a wave of his hand, a soldier came around the Rhino. He bowed towards Zuko, holding out a simple scroll. A scroll with a small black band tied around one side.
“You have new orders”, the General said. “Straight from the Firelord himself.”
XXXXX
Zuko read through his new orders. Then did it again. And a third time. He… he just couldn’t believe it.
His scar itched as he read the note at the bottom of the page, beneath the signature and stamp of confirmation. Unlike the rest of the orders, which had clearly been penned by the professional, large hand of a scribe, this was small, orderly, and neat. His father’s handwriting.
The Avatar, the mythical master of all four elements and the last great threat to the Fire Nation’s destiny, had returned. He’d been sighted by some naval commander named Zhao in the South Pole. No doubt he would head north to find masters, if the report of him being a child was accurate. And, in addition to Zhao’s taskforce, the 41st had been given the honor of hunting the Avatar.
He swirled his coffee with a lazy hand, his bending causing ripples and sprits in the dark liquid. It really was an honor. A real chance to prove his worth and that he was capable of serving the Dragon Throne. The Firelord could only trust something like this to someone who was capable. And, if a cynical part of his brain was to be believed, someone expendable.
Well, to be fair, he was. The Waterbender son of the Firelord; who better to prevent the Avatar from destroying all that the Fire Nation had worked for? He looked up, staring into the eyes of his helmet. Into the eyes of the Dark Water Spirit that now served Dragon Emperor. Well, the Waterbender that served the Firelord.
“Sir?”, Teruko spoke, still outside of his tent. Zuko quickly pulled on his helmet, stepping out to greet her. “Then men are ready.”
Zuko followed her towards the raised bit of earth that separated the tents of the officers that separated the tents of his men. Three columns of his men stood at attention, eyes on that rise. He had a view of all six hundred of them, a far cry from the two thousand that had been there when he first took command.
(Bodies thick as grass that littered that damned hill. Crushed and hacked to bits and half buried and some burned. Bare patches of green from dead Earth Kingdom, but more red. By far more red, both uniforms and so, so much blood. Darkness fell away before Agni’s light showing just how much of it there was, making his scar and his arms and his chest burn-)
A hand on his right shoulder. Teruko. The only officer to make it out of their first mission alive besides him. He looked down again, specifically at the first sections. Red stripes down their shoulders and horns on their helmets that framed the red demonic faceplates. A hundred of them, the only survivors from his first mission. The rest were replacements, enough to bring the 41st up to Battalion strength.
He took a deep breath, removing her hand from his shoulder. “Attention!” Every single soldier went rigid at his call. “Three years ago, I was placed in charge of this unit. I have strived to lead you as best I can. And even if I have failed in that sometimes, you have all done exceptionally well. Who would have thought that a Battalion of Colony Brats and a Waterbender could do all that we could!?” The men banged their weapons and armor in assent.
“Every single one of you, from those who fought with me at Gi Wan Zifao to those whose first mission was last night have proven yourselves true sons and daughters of the Fire Nation”, he continued. Not himself, obviously. This was his chance to prove himself. “And now, we have been given a mission from the Firelord himself!” That silenced whatever lingering jubilation was in the air.
“The Avatar has returned!” Gasps and shocked whispers. “He has already attacked a Fire Nation ship, nearly slaughtering the crew. We have been given the honor of hunting for the Avatar! Of snuffing out the last threat to the Great March of Progress!” Cheers and more banging of weapons. “You have all done well last night. Get some sleep. We head for Ju-Jing Port tomorrow. Dismissed.”
As his men returned to their tents, Zuko looked up at the bare sliver of moonlight that remained. The new moon would be up tomorrow, and there would be no moonlight to light the march towards their embarkation point. “You should sleep too, Colonel”, Teruko said; Zuko just nodded and retired to his tent.
He dreamt of a blood-red moon, and twin streaks of black and white.