Chapter 40: The Vulture (4)

More than a hundred benders and the best warriors under Zhao had gathered dangerously close to Si Wong Rock. The Buzzard Wasps had definitely noticed the congregation of people near their home, but they were in no hurry to attack them. The animals in this world are relatively intelligent creatures. They understand that it’s better not to provoke such a large group, even though their numbers are higher and an average Buzzard Wasp is more dangerous than an ordinary person. Still, some members of the wasp colony could die during an attack on humans. Therefore, the wasps are simply waiting for Zhao’s group to leave completely or at least partially. Only then would they likely try their luck at procuring fresh meat.

A man in all-black clothing, who had recently arrived on a sled, approached Zhao. He was probably one of the Captain's original group, his military bearing made it obvious.

"Captain, no traces of the Princess and her bodyguard have been found. They haven't stopped at any settlements for provisions. They haven't been seen by the teams patrolling the desert."

"Tch, continue the search," Zhao grimaced in displeasure. "If there are still no traces in two weeks, we can assume luck is on our side, and their bodies are buried beneath some sand dune."

Speaking of luck, Zhao was certainly fortunate with his men. They are loyal exclusively to him. They even attacked the princess of their own nation without hesitation. Although… not exactly their own. The best soldiers of the desert also wear black robes. This is a peculiar reward for a distinguished Sandbender or a common warrior. Under Zhao, wearing black clothes became a privilege. If a warrior distinguishes himself in a positive way, the Captain personally presents him with a set of such clothing and invites him into his special unit. Perhaps the reinforcements who rushed at me in that settlement were not only former Fire Nation soldiers but also distinguished local residents. I might not have noticed them due to the wall of fire Princess Azula created almost instantly.

"Captain, is it wise to waste so many human resources chasing across the desert?" the soldier cautiously asked. "It would be better if we brought everyone back to the construction site…"

"A completed city won't help us if people from the Earth Kingdom or the Fire Nation show up here. To prevent that, the search must continue."

If information about Wan Shi Tong's Library and Si Wong Rock were to become public knowledge, perhaps the front line would shift. But as it is... well, a traitor and a fugitive are playing in a big sandbox? Let them. The main thing is that he doesn't interfere with the major players' actions. Zhao is currently like the proverbial Elusive Joe; elusive for the simple reason that no one is looking for him.

Except for Princess Azula. Firstly, she is vengeful and spiteful by nature, so she won't just let the attack on her pass. Secondly, due to her upbringing, Azula is a patriot of her country and considers it her duty to eliminate a traitor.

For these reasons, we are hiding in the most obvious place: in the very heart of Zhao's crowd. I've long noticed that a person can have excellent vision and be quite smart, yet still fail to notice something right under their nose.

Zhao could have been eliminated much easier without disguising ourselves as his men, but I'm curious to know what the Captain found so significant about Si Wong Rock. The question interested Azula as well.

The Princess was currently impersonating a burly swordsman, as such a build made it easier to conceal her chest. And I was an ordinary Firebender. It took some effort for Azula to turn her blue flame into regular fire. Sometimes, out of habit, she would use more chi than was necessary for yellow fire. Therefore, it was decided to play it safe and disguise Azula as a simple swordsman. Fortunately, men with the necessary physique were found among Zhao's subordinates. We quietly eliminated them, first studying their mannerisms, and began impersonating the Captain's soldiers. In a few hours, no one had challenged our acting. And the men were a little too busy to pay us any attention—they were preparing to storm Shi Wong Rock.

The Captain wanted to wait for nightfall before beginning the attack. At this time, the wasps would be sleeping and unprepared for it. When the stars appeared in the sky, fewer creatures were indeed flying around Si Wong Rock. But the buzzing was still audible. The Buzzard Wasps had been smart enough to leave behind several sentries who were watching us closely.

"Forward!" Zhao waved his hand, annoyed. In his place, I would have waited another week and attacked their nest again under the cover of night, when all the wasps were definitely asleep. But the Captain demonstrated that he is still a man utterly lacking in patience.

Zhao's subordinates moved toward the rock. The wasps clearly understood something. The sound of buzzing grew louder. The Buzzard Wasps let out a disgusting chittering sound, as if warning their kin about the enemy attack. Within seconds, more and more individuals were flying out of Si Wong Rock's numerous holes. The sky became completely black. The wasps blocked out the stars with their massive bodies. They were not yet in a hurry to attack; they were waiting for a move from us.

Judging by Zhao’s expression, he was unpleasantly surprised by the number of the enemy.

"There were fewer of them just recently. We’ve been reducing the wasp count for almost a month."

" Buzzard Wasps have a good birth rate and rapid maturity. When the queen realized her colony's population was diminishing, she immediately laid new wasps," the speaker said with a distinct Si Wong Desert accent and an elderly voice. An experienced man. He'll have to be one of the first to be eliminated.

"Why wasn't I informed of this?!"

The desert dweller shrugged: "You seemed quite confident. We thought you knew what you were doing."

"Should we retreat?" a man with a younger-sounding voice timidly inquired. Judging by his accent, he was a resident of an island in the Fire Nation territory. I served with a soldier from that area, so I remember. Hmm, maybe it's him. Some of Iroh’s men did defect to Zhao... In that case, he'll have to be the second one I kill. Despite his timidity, he was a very good swordsman.

"No, by morning this rock must belong to us," I saw the greed in Zhao’s eyes, even in the darkness. There truly is something valuable in this rock if the Captain is reacting this way. "A fight in the open is not to our advantage. They’ll surround us and quickly destroy us. We need to give battle to the Buzzard Wasps in close quarters, in their own hive. That way, we won't have to fear being attacked from all sides, but only defending the vanguard and the rear. When I shout the attack command, you will all immediately start running toward Si Wong Rock and try to get inside. One! Two! Three! Attack!"

I had thought Zhao would organize a more thought-out assault, but this makes it even easier for us. He sent his soldiers into battle without allowing them to ask a single question. This will reduce the number of future opponents and our risk of being discovered. We don't know what formations, unique to his group, Zhao uses, and with that ignorance, we could reveal ourselves.

Princess Azula and I ran close enough to one another to offer assistance in case of danger. Sometimes Buzzard Wasps flew past, carrying screaming soldiers into the sky. A dull thud, barely audible, after which the scream stopped, suggested that the fate of such fighters was grim. Other Buzzard Wasps immediately swarmed the spots where the men fell and began their feast, eagerly tearing open chunks of the already dead person. More often than not, the fighters managed to dodge the Buzzard Wasps' claws or scare them off with jets of flame. The regular fighters had the worst luck. Either the wasps couldn't see the weapons in the dark or didn't consider them dangerous, as they attacked non-benders much more often. 

Again, I was mainly covering Azula now. She was running practically pressed against my back. Her assistance also came in handy. One brazen and fearless Buzzard Wasp, shielding its eyes, broke through my jet of flame and grabbed me. In that moment, the Princess instantly appeared from behind my back and severed the Buzzard Wasp's head. 

With minor losses, Zhao’s squad reached one of the holes in Si Wong Rock and hastily began to enter it, firing flames continuously in front of them and behind their backs to prevent the enemy from getting close. The combined temperature of several Firebenders’ flames was high, so the wasps did not risk flying through such a blaze. If they somehow found a loophole and got through, the Buzzard Wasps were met with a sand strike that sent them back beyond the wall of fire or into the hands of the close-combat fighters, who very quickly turned the living enemy into a dead one.   

The walls inside the rock were covered everywhere with that sticky substance the Buzzard Wasps spat. Fortunately, it turned out to be non-flammable. This was Buzzard Wasp honey, and this substance, even from creatures so drastically different from their counterparts, is not prone to burning. The terrible, rotten smell, however, was inescapable… And yet the locals and residents of some other regions of the Earth Kingdom consider this undoubtedly corrupted honey a delicacy.

The clearing of Si Wong Rock proceeded rather smoothly, although I had doubted it would. Zhao had proven himself to be a mentally unstable man; driven by emotion, he could easily have given some foolish order that would have cost many lives. But the Captain remained silent, which was probably what saved us. Only at one point did the squad suffer a major loss: a multitude of wasps unexpectedly flew out of a honey-covered wall, thinning our ranks. The hole in that wall had been there from the start; the wasps' honey had simply covered it successfully, so no one noticed.

About fifteen men died while running to the rock. The sudden ambush claimed eight more lives. There were no further irrecoverable losses. Zhao’s men sustained injuries, some even serious, but did not die.

The tunnels were not only within the rock itself but also extended deep underground. Thus, the habitat of the Buzzard Wasps turned out to be much larger than anyone had imagined, and their number was also much greater than anticipated, even considering that the Queen had recently birthed a new brood. Gradually, the onslaught of Buzzard Wasps became greater. They began acting more aggressively.

A two-hour descent, the duration of which undoubtedly surprised absolutely everyone, led us into a large, indeed huge, hall that was free of the Buzzard Wasp honey we had become reeking of. But the Captain and his squad did not lose the power of speech because of the long descent or the enormous hall. No. The reason was the structure of the hall itself. Even a country bumpkin would understand that this place was created by human hands. The walls and floor were too smooth. And statues. A multitude of statues of completely different people, arranged spirally right in the center of the hall.

"That's..." Zhao swallowed his words as the eyes of all the statues began to light up in succession.

"He's alive," Princess Azula whispered quietly, but with an utterly serious intonation, so that only I could hear her voice. "And he has now entered the Avatar State."