Adventures of a Metalworker

The Jade Dragon

Shun was riding on her ostrich horse next to Zuko and Iroh, who were on theirs. It was a peaceful, uneventful ride. Shun even saw a butterfly flutter by. She was enjoying just having company again, when she heard a sound like distant thunder.

She recognized it. It wasn't thunder.

Shun looked around quickly for a place to hide and spotted a cave. She looked at the ground. Fortunately, it was dry and hard where they were, so there were no tracks.

"This way! Quickly!" Shun said, leading the others into the cave.

"Why do we have to—?" Zuko asked.

"I think we should do as she says," Iroh said, also recognizing the sound of thunder for what it really was.

So they hid in the shadow of the cave, watching with bated breath as Hanzou and his cavalry unit caught up and rode past them.

"Wait!" Isamu said, stopping. He dismounted and picked something up off the ground.

Shun squinted to see what it was, then her eyes widened in horror, and she covered her mouth to stifle the gasp that nearly escaped her.

Isamu was holding her jade dragon hair stick up for the General to see.

"This is hers—she's been here!" Isamu said.

"Are you sure?" Hanzou asked, steering his ostrich horse back to have a closer look. His eyes suddenly widened, and he looked like he had seen a ghost. "This is... hers?" He took the hair stick from Isamu.

"I'm completely sure," Isamu replied seriously. "I got close enough to her last time to see it up close. It's definitely hers."

"We need to find her," Hanzou said with a grim determination, still looking shocked. "Remember, we want her alive! Don't hurt her if you can help it!" he ordered his men.

Shun was surprised. The second part of that order seemed new to her. They had no problem with trying to maim or injure her in the past.

Isamu seemed confused, too, but he mounted his ride and rejoined the formation as they continued on.

Shun, Zuko, and Iroh waited in silence until they could no longer hear the sound of the ostrich horses' feet thundering down the road.

"That was close," Iroh said.

"That was my mother's..." Shun said, depressed. "I can't believe they have it now..." She checked her bag. Sure enough, there was a small hole in the corner where the stitching had come undone. She was going to have to fix it quickly before something else fell out.

"I'm sorry to hear that," Iroh said kindly. "But at least they didn't find you."

"That's true," Shun said glumly, trying to look on the bright side. She supposed she should be glad it wasn't her gun that fell out.

The rest of the day was uneventful. They traveled some more, made camp, ate, and slept under the stars.

—∞—

The next day also seemed like it would be a continuation of this uneventfulness. They rode their ostrich horses for hours and hours, until Iroh decided he wanted a break. He began moaning and pretended to be in pain at every step the ostrich horse took, clasping his injured left arm.

"Problem?" Shun asked with a suppressed smile, recognizing what he was up to.

"Maybe we should make camp," Zuko said.

"No, please, don't stop just for me," Iroh groaned. Zuko tried to continue on, but Iroh moaned dramatically.

All three of them dismounted, and Iroh sat down on a rock to rest. Zuko and Shun were looking for a place to tie their ostrich horses, when the ostrich horses both made a noise and tensed up. They were clearly alarmed by something.