Chapter 128: War is Not a Child’s Play (1)

*Swish*

A slice of air brushed past from the back of Aang's head as he revealed agility befitting monkeys and hopped forward before rotating and creating a miniature storm of snow through wind causing Nik to unfurl his war fans and wave both of them in his direction, blowing away the storm in the process as Aang rode the dangerous gust of wind with a barely visible ball of air underneath his feet as his earthen orange garments whipped furiously.

Soon, the duo stopped with a refreshed smile on their faces.

"Airbending is a little tricky but I think training airbending with you is also helping me practice firebending," Nik smiled as he stuffed his war fans into his personal space.

"Really? Don't you need a firebending master to train?" Aang inquired curiously as Nik grinned and snapped his fingers. With a crisp spark, the tip of his index finger ejected a small wisp of flame that persisted despite the cold, "No, I'm just training based on that manual I shared with you. While Airbending is giving form to the less substantial element, I think firebending is just the same with extra steps from building on the core heat of the body. Or, you know, Chi."

Nik patted his stomach, indicating where he felt the tug when he bent fire.

"But..." Nik sighed as Aang nodded. Both of them grumbled simultaneously.

""Lavabending is hard...""

Although Nik hadn't given up, it would simply take an extraordinary amount of time to practice Lavabending since the closest he got to the act was... well, barely moving a pebble while thinking of melting it.

Sun had revealed that the process of turning earth into lava was similar to turning ice into the water but many times harder. So, while Nik was given a direction to practice in, it depended entirely on his luck when he would get the hang of it. Hack, Sun didn't have any Lavabending master so even he could only reveal the basic thought process and nothing more.

While the cold was definitely a sore sight to Nik's knee, it wasn't so bad. At least, he didn't need a crutch to move about.

The duo returned soon enough. Their training was proving fruitful since airbending was an expression of a free mind and even if there are certain tested moves, of which, Aang knew 36 tiers of airbending. According to Aang, he was nominated a master of the art once he invented the air scooter technique. Of course, being able to perform a few techniques didn't mean Nik was an Airbender already.

Aang also had a variety of abilities. The bald beast could run way too fast, his sneezes pushing him off the grounds, he could even run up the walls in a dash— all these 'passive' techniques were more nuanced than just bending air and Nik needed a perfectly healed body to practice any of them. Heck, he may have a glider but he didn't try flying just yet.

The duo soon returned to the Northern Tribe. While Aang looked quite calm, the truth was something entirely different. The latest message from Zhao revealed that their side was ready to exchange prisoners but he demanded to keep Nik in sight to reduce any foul play while also wishing to discuss something— an offer, Zhao made it seem like.

Their arrival was met with a slightly sparse Water Tribe. The soldiers of the fire nation had families here. While they weren't discriminated against explicitly and personally, these families were moved closer to the prison so that they could be moved easily once the prisoners are exchanged and all these families now had their personal effects packed as they were eager to meet their family members imprisoned for months.

Nik soon reached the palace with Aang and freshened up before meeting up with Suki and Katara who were hanging out with Mai.

"So?" Suki inquired the moment she saw him, "Feeling nervous?"

"A little," Nik admitted with a wry and nervous expression. His own nervousness was understandable. According to Sokka, the archers under Zhao's command were simply unreal and each of them probably boasted a precision similar to Mai. Who knows what else Zhao has hidden to win this war.

It only took two hours to set everything. While a cruiser from the fleet of ships broke off and moved towards the Water Tribe, the prisoners and their families were made to stand on a flat iceberg as they were brought alongside multiple empty boats. Pakku, Yoki, and a few benders came forth with Hama controlling the iceberg alongside a few experienced benders. The threat was clear. The moment any foul play was detected, the prisoners would sink.

Of course, these prisoners didn't hold Hahn and the select few individuals of the water tribe that wanted to free Hahn.

Surrounded by others, Zhao could be seen at the helm of the cruiser, watching a particular boat that held both the Avatar and Nik with a calm expression and his hands behind his back.

The prisoners out in the cold water didn't try to make any sudden movements. In fact, there may have been a risk to it but with their families next to them, the situation was quite serious that required quite a bit of sensibility.

*Pshhhh*

With a heavy burst of steam, the ladder of the ship descended while Pakku froze the surrounding sea so that the ladder may have a surface to set on. Not the least bit fearful of the home advantage the water benders would have and had two personal guards following closely behind.

Instead of Pakku, it was Yoki who stepped out with the loyal students of Pakku following behind and Aang, too. Out of his group, only Aang was asked to discuss terms with the boy.

The predatory glance in his direction, however, told Nik that Zhao wasn't here for mere peace talk.

Still, he could hear things from the distance.

"Hmm, I expected Master Pakku to lead since the traditions of the Water Tribe expect the strongest or the descendants of the chieftain to lead such diplomatic matters. Boy, are you really large enough to fill Master Pakku's shoes?" Zhao commented as he observed Yoki. From the spy and other sources Zhao knew who Yoki was and where his capabilities but giving out such hints for a moment of personal satisfaction wouldn't do so he adopted to question Yoki directly.

Knowing full well Zhao mush know everything about the temporary leader of the tribe, Yoki scoffed internally and frowned, "Keep it concise, Phoenix's scum."

"And there is the world-renowned barbarism," Zhao chuckled, "Anyway, we are here to exchange prisoners. Who you are and what you are shouldn't impede our goals while we chat, right? Avatar Aang, I have a few questions for you."

With that, Zhao looked at the man to his left and nodded. The guard turned back and instantly ordered to let the prisoners out. Though finally feeling things a little bit out of his control, Yoki gestured for Pakku to commence the exchange with others.

While the hostages were exchanged peacefully, Zhao smiled and looked at Aang, "I'm sure that our encounter in Omashu must have filled you with doubts about the mental faculties of the prisoners."

They truly were!

However, at this moment, Zhao's stern but sincere expression morphed into pure malice as he smiled, "Worry not. The Phoenix King doesn't value the old and the stubborn. To use such a mechanism on stubborn fools is a waste of resources. Say, Avatar Aang, wouldn't it be much more efficient to shape the future of the world from the very beginning? Thus, instead of wasting our time on these prisoners, we like to directly interact with the future.

You must feel silly at this point. You got a man capable of rehabilitating the individuals our men go through based on a mere speculation... Think about it. Did we try and control the prisoners in the Makapu Village before that nuisance of a Nik destroyed the prison?

No."

Aang's face had lost all its color but Zhao's words were meant to hurt the most tender spots, "We merely played with the prisoners. I recall a game called Skip or Lava, right?"

Veins bulged around Yoki's arms as he clenched his fist tightly.

"Again, this is nothing personal Avatar Aang. As King Sozin once claimed— Everything is fair in love and war.

However, I'm not here to make a mockery out of your noble attempts at thwarting the inevitable. No. As I said, I'm here to ask a question.

Makapu Village certainly had some children—"

"Don't hurt—" Before Aang could finish, Yoki's tight grip over the boy's shoulder caused Aang to flinch with pain as he spoke deeply, "Avatar Aang, for once, I agree with this scum. Don't speak. Don't decide anything. He will do whatever it takes to bring us down."

"Hmm," Zhao looked at Yoki, his smile widening, "As we speak, another group of prisoners is arriving in this location. Of course, we hadn't gotten a chance to bring a few specialists to see the future of Makapu Village but I'm sure it can wait. If you hold the lives of these prisoners dear, who got into this mess for assisting your escape during the first ambush... bring me Nik."

Yoki narrowed his eyes while Aang gritted his teeth.

"Hmm? Such unity. Amazing. You see, I wanted to give you a problem, Avatar. Would you give up one person for the many?" Zhao chuckled.

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"Of course, we don't even know for sure that your tribe will be afloat by the time the next set of prisoners appears. If any of our ships disappear or we are attacked in any form, the villagers will be executed."

Even Nik couldn't help but feel pressured once the talks were finished as Zhao returned to his ship and the prisoners were exchanged peacefully...

But still, there was no hint of relief in Yoki's expression.

Although they got their waterbenders to a certain degree, they couldn't be sure if they were controlled or not.

---

"Of course, they aren't controlled!" Aang argued, "Why would Zhao wait to attack us then?"

Sokka shook his head with a deep furrow, "But what if Zhao wants us to believe just that? The fact that he had the prisoner from Omashu killed is directly against whatever he admitted this afternoon."

The main hall of the palace was in chaos. There weren't just Aang, Nik, and others but multiple elders were called in, too. Elders who couldn't fight but had survived enough battles to find discrepancies and maybe that's why everyone began to feel more and more pressure.

What is the truth?

How should they ascertain the truth?

If they do isolate the prisoners who just returned to their tribe, it would only sow internal discord and may even motivate them to fight internally without anyone controlling their minds.

Of course, Katara and Sokka also felt annoyed by the fact that their father wasn't present in the group of prisoners.

"Isn't the solution simple?" Hama suddenly chuckled, "We are backed into a corner and are on verge of destruction. Our own people, the new ones, of course, can't be trusted due to circumstances. It's a full moon tomorrow, even the spirits want only one thing from us at this point— overcome the threat. We had set out to bring back our people and removed the soldiers of fire nation from the tribe. It's done. Now we attack!"

"Like hell you will!" Sun shouted, "What about my village?!"

A few frowns appeared when Yoki looked at Sun and questioned, "Can I ask you something? Who made you help the Avatar?"

Sun frowned and refused to reply.

"I think," Yoki mumbled, "That woman, Wu, who mediated between us and the villagers at the time alongside Hara and his men, knew what it meant to help the Avatar. If she risked everything willingly, and you took action yourself, what is the point of backing down now?"

Sun paled.

The thought of Meng and Granny Wu treated horribly... as he may have unintentionally treated the prisoners back then by helping the formation of the lava prison back then filled him with a deep conflict.

While Sun didn't believe in Karma, at this moment, he couldn't help but curse it.

Yoki's words made Sokka, Rena, and Aang guiltier since Sun had helped them escape. This was ironic since it was his own boss who had set an ambush for their team on Zhao's commands.

At this moment, an elder coughed, "This tribe has seen too many wars. Are we sure to not consider Zhao's demands?"

Multiple gazes landed on Nik at this moment.

Surprising others, however, was Nik's own aggressive response since the thought of having his kind actions repaid by betrayal, naturally, to someone like Nik filled with odd but ominous intent which was a first for him.

"It will take a single tap of my hand to make the entire tribe disappear. Don't tempt me to do so," Nik looked at the old man whose eyes widened as he shrunk his neck.

For a moment, Suki, Mai, Pakku, Yoki, Hama, and other 'experienced' warriors couldn't help but narrow their eyes. Yet, they didn't conclude anything to their observation. The entire hall descended into a silence. They were set to lose this time. Even if they did attempt to attack Zhao, as he claimed this morning, it only delayed the inevitable.

And they couldn't easily kill off any prisoner they obtain or it may encourage the enemy to do the same. So, if they wished to keep the balance and hope for a 'cleaner' war then culling the helpless wasn't an option but only capturing them instead.

Although Nik had promised himself to not reveal certain things... at this point, even he couldn't just leave the group helpless as his 'other ability' may be able to achieve certain effects.

"I have something in mind... but it wouldn't just put me at risk but anyone else who volunteers... well, the information is for those I know. So... let's discuss this privately. Especially without this old bastard," Nik pointed at the old man who wanted to throw him under the bus.

Soon, as there were only a few people left, Nik couldn't help but look at Mai as she raised her brow inquisitively, "Any problem?"

"No," Nik shook his head and looked beside her as Tom-Tom was present, too, "It's just that I wouldn't want children to know about this. Tom, you have to be this tall to be a part of this conversation." He brought his hand close to his chest.

"Eh? But Aang is here, too!"

"The previous avatars were taller than this. He can stay," Nik shrugged.

"He is right. Go out and play with others," Mai looked at Tom-Tom as the boy frowned but left nonetheless.

Although Nik wanted Sun to leave, too, he had already revealed his ability to bend multiple elements to learn Lavabending from the youth. Revealing the slightest distrust at this point would only make Sun recall the bad times in Makapu Village and side with someone who agrees with him in a snap.

"So... there is something you should know about me," Nik coughed as he suddenly disappeared, shocking others and then reappeared, "I can do a few more tricks than just vanishing things. But, this ability is only reserved for those in this room and none other, that is non-negotiable."

Nik stated firmly, setting some ground rules from the very beginning since he knew Yoki was shameless enough to take advantage where he may see some weakness.

"How do your disappearing and reappearing help?" Pakku questioned.

"Because you can disappear and reappear together with me," Nik smiled, keeping the explanation as ambiguous as possible to the point that the information received from the Infinity might just be taking notes to do the same later on to other initiates.

***

A/N: Although Nik wants to keep some secrets, I want to quicken the pace and there is nothing more effective to push someone and change them than an external threat which Zhao is firmed as.

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