Chapter 42: Weakness

The temple beneath Si Wong Rock proved to be truly impressive in size. Exploring every room would take a considerable amount of time, possibly months, if not years. It resembled not so much a temple as a full-fledged underground city that people had abandoned long ago. The hall with the Avatar statues was just the crown of this city. Below that were what appeared to be administrative buildings and the homes of wealthy citizens. Realizing we could be stuck here for a very long time, Azula decided to abandon the place. Moreover, there were few valuable items. Either everything had been plundered before us, or the city’s inhabitants had simply taken everything of value with them.

The question of why they undertook such a massive relocation remained open. Perhaps the population of this city suddenly realized they were living in far from favorable conditions for humans. The locals, incidentally, had a legend that they descended into the Si Wong Desert from the back of a Lion Turtle, which housed an entire city. The descending people split into several groups, and many left the desert in search of a better life. That is how the Earth Kingdom was populated. The remaining people who did not want to leave their ancestral home founded permanent settlements in Si Wong.

But I didn't entirely believe this legend. If such a large turtle truly existed, some traces of its life would have remained. For instance, it would have been mentioned in the legends of other peoples. Though, I shouldn't completely exclude the possibility of people living on the backs of Lion Turtles in some ancient time. As practice has shown, legends and beliefs in this world don’t arise from nowhere.

The temple dedicated to the Avatar’s incarnations contained several dozen scrolls. They were very old, so old that they crumbled to dust at a single touch. This was disappointing. After this, I myself had no desire to linger in this place. There was no point.

The ascent to the surface was much faster than the descent. This was because the Princess and I didn't have to kill the countless Buzzard Wasps climbing towards us. The vast majority of these predators had been exterminated by Captain Zhao’s group. We only encountered severely wounded wasps that, for some reason, were still alive. Finishing them off took but a pathetic moment.

“Is the ore really that valuable?” I asked the Princess when we found ourselves somewhere inside the rock, which was actually a meteorite.

“The metal made from this ore would certainly be better than what the Fire Nation currently has. But organizing expeditions for it into the Si Wong Desert? No, it’s definitely not that valuable. If this meteorite was even one-thirtieth the size of the Si Wong Desert itself, then the Fire Lord would consider it. But he won’t open a new front for one small rock. The available ore here wouldn’t even be enough for a complete set of armor for the capital’s elite guards. You couldn’t forge swords for all of them from the local reserves. I don’t know what Zhao was counting on…” Azula shook her head. “He probably just overheated in the sun.”

After a while, we emerged onto the surface through one of the many holes in the rock and found ourselves at its summit. We were greeted by the sight of the setting sun. That meant we had been in the tunnels and the underground city for almost a full day. Realizing this, I felt tired and wanted to sleep. But the stench immediately drove that impulse away. The corpses of the humans and Vulture-Wasps smelled absolutely terrible. Inside the rock, only the rotten honey of the wasps was noticeable, but as soon as we left Si Wong, that undoubtedly strong scent no longer masked the awful smell of recently deceased bodies.

“Rest is canceled,” Azula declared, pinching her nose. “Until we’ve walked at least two kilometers, I refuse to sleep.”

We had to climb down from Si Wong and continue our journey.

“Should we return to the ship, Princess?”

“Yes, we should return, but only briefly. We’ll find out the latest news and then set off on our own journey again.”

I agreed that we should find out the latest news. What if the Avatar was already storming the capital and overthrowing the Fire Lord? But to travel alone again? I had followed Azula because she had the resources to find the Avatar, yet she wasn't keen on using them. I didn't like this.

“A small mobile squad will be better than a large group of people,” the Princess continued. “Just the two of us won’t be enough, though.” She briefly chuckled. “That’s too small for a small squad… But I have acquaintances who would be happy to help us. I went to school with them. I could even call them my friends.”

I became slightly interested. Azula would not be friends with mediocre people.

“Are they as exceptional benders as you are, Princess?”

“No, they don’t wield Firebending. But they can definitely put on a show in a fight.”

Can put on a show… I glanced at the Princess walking beside me. Knowing Azula, that means they are truly strong fighters.

Hmm, if a small, elite group could quickly receive information about the Avatar’s actions and know his route, there truly was a chance to track down the Master of All Elements. And Princess Azula could definitely provide such information. Her quarrel with Ozai is known only within the palace walls. Even if word of it leaked, there was no public banishment of the Princess. Azula can still boast a high enough position that many generals and admirals of the Fire Nation army would hang on her every word. The same cannot be said for Prince Zuko. He was publicly disgraced. He became an exile. Doing business with him now would be an indelible stain on the reputation of any high-ranking army officer.

Leaving the Si Wong Desert took much less time than reaching the settlement where we had met Zhao. This was due to the Captain’s order to patrol the desert in search of our duo. This worked out favorably for us. One such patrol stumbled upon our pair, and we simply captured the entire squad, forcing them to head in the direction we needed.

Of course, we encountered other Sandbenders along the way who started chasing us, but… they were frankly weak. They became good training dummies for advanced Firebending techniques. Lightning shattered the pursuers' sand-sailers almost instantly. No sand walls could save them from it.

Small difficulties arose only when we emerged from the Si Wong Desert. We had to spend a full two weeks circumventing Omashu. It turns out they hadn't forgotten about us in that city. They had posted numerous wanted posters with a rough image of the Princess and me along the roads and in all the surrounding villages. The benders from Omashu had managed to catch us once before, so we decided not to risk it and bypass the city in a wide arc. Even so, we ran into an Earth Kingdom soldier patrol that was interested in the Princess and me. Our pair resembled the people on the wanted list too much. The soldiers were certainly stronger than the desert dwellers. But this time, the group of five Earthbenders was still defeated by us. And for the victorious battle, we received the reward of a pair of Ostrich Horses. Our speed significantly increased with these animals.

Galloping to our rendezvous point, we headed north and… simply waited. Our ship's crew was supposed to appear at this location every week. It had been declared the evacuation point. This was where Princess Azula and her squad were meant to be picked up.

“Long, please remind me, who burned all the messenger hawks on the ship?” Azula reminded me of my lapse for the umpteenth time. “Including mine, which I could have used to contact the remaining crew on the ship and order them to sail to us immediately.”

I remained silent. Remembering my mistake, Azula recalled her own.

“Just in case, Long, I generously left my squad of soldiers with Captain Zhao, because searching the entire Si Wong Desert is very difficult with his forces…”

Well, yes. I understand Azula’s desire to hide her losses. It would undoubtedly damage the Princess’s reputation if the information that she lost her entire squad right from the start surfaced. The Fire Lord might become even more disappointed in her. Though, brave souls would first have to be found who would dare ask her where the squad she left the ship with went… Perhaps I myself would have to share the misinformation, accidentally dropping the news. Just in case, I clarified with the Princess if I understood her plan correctly.

Azula nodded. “That’s right. Let Father think that the men allotted to me are under Zhao’s command… That way, their loss will be his, not mine. Especially since no one will question him.”

“The dead are generally quite silent.”

“Exactly. We saw Zhao,” the Princess continued the fabricated version. “He achieved no success. Why it’s impossible to contact him after our meeting? Unknown. Maybe the Library was found after all, or there was a bloody clash between the Captain’s forces and the local nomadic tribes, in which Zhao’s entire squad perished…”

We ended up waiting five days for the ship. Nothing interesting happened during this time, but I wouldn't say I was starting to go crazy from boredom again… I was quite comfortable with Azula for the moment. The thought even crossed my mind that I wouldn't be able to simply kill her right now, even if I wanted to. My hand would tremble. That thought made me sad.

What had changed in the time we were traveling to this place? In the Si Wong Desert, I was ready to kill her. Have we really been together long enough to cross some critical point in our relationship, making it harder for me to get rid of her now? Did I become attached to her? Did I start to feel affection? Damn it. Or was I lying to myself and wouldn’t have killed Azula even back in the desert? It’s so difficult to live…

“Are you so sad because we’ll have to pretend to be the superior and the subordinate again?” the Princess asked, placing her palm on my cheek. This was another one of Azula’s demands: to play the soldier and the princess. If the Fire Lord finds out about our romance, it will be bad, because the Princess is already promised in marriage to some official. “Don’t worry. Soon, the Fire Lord will be proud of me, and I’ll gain my freedom. We will become a proper couple, Long. I will marry you.”

“Of course, Princess,” I forced a smile, gently stroking her palm. “Of course…”

I need to meditate. A lot of meditation. To detach myself from foolish feelings and…