Adventures of a Metalworker

Captured

Shun sat in a cell on a Fire Navy ship. Her hands and feet were in shackles, with her hands bound behind her back. They had also gagged her. She couldn't see Iroh, but she knew he wasn't in the cell next to her because she had tried kicking the wall and received no answer for her trouble. The Fire Nation sailors seemed worried that the two of them might escape again. They were right to be worried. She had been in the Fire Nation's custody for a few weeks now, but no more. She had listened carefully until she knew when the guards changed shifts and counted down between meals so she'd know the time of day. It was night now, and the guard was nearing the end of her shift and would be tired and slow. Shun stretched her arms out as far as they would go, then stepped backwards into them, carefully bringing her arms up to be in front of her again. She removed her gag then reached up and removed one of her hair pins to pick the lock with. Because her hands were too close together, she had to hold the hairpin in her teeth while she picked the lock for the shackles on her wrists. When that clicked open, she took the hairpin out of her mouth and used it to pick the lock on the shackles around her ankles. Then she reached her hand through the bar and picked the lock on her cell door.

"Hey, what's that noise?" the guard asked. She came over to look at Shun, and Shun grabbed her and pulled her helmeted head hard into the bars. It seemed to have been enough, because the guard slumped to the floor, looking dazed. Shun opened the door and stepped out to look around. She couldn't see Iroh, so she thought he must be on another ship. She quickly and quietly made her way through the ship, ducking just out of sight whenever someone passed by. She made it up to the deck and poked her head out just enough to search for something, anything she could use to escape. There was nothing. She had been hoping they might have a smaller boat she could steal, but if they had one, she couldn't find it.

Then the alarm broke out. They had discovered her escape. Shun didn't know where to run, but it made little difference. She was grabbed from behind and re-shackled so fast it made her head spin.

"You think you're clever, don't you?" a man who looked like he might be the captain said. "Well, you're not. There's nowhere for you to escape to, so be a good girl and sit in your cell until we're ready to deal with you." he motioned for the sailors who were holding her to take her away.

Shun was dragged back to her cell and tossed in unceremoniously. She landed hard on her shoulder and winced at the pain. She lay there, thinking about her next move. Unfortunately, the captain was right. She had nowhere to go. She would have to wait until she was back on land to escape. So she didn't try to leave again. She sat in her cell and closed her eyes, deciding to get some sleep.

On another ship, Zuko was staring out at the water, watching it reflect the moonlight. Mai joined him.

"Aren't you cold?" she asked.

"I've got a lot on my mind," Zuko said. "It's been so long, over three years since I was home. I wonder what's changed. I wonder how I've changed."

Mai yawned and smiled slightly as she said, "I just asked if you were cold. I didn't ask for your whole life story."

Zuko frowned at her, but Mai giggled a little and held his face in her hands. "Stop worrying."

They kissed.

Mai left, but Zuko stayed, staring out at the water again. It didn't feel right.

—∞—

The next day, in the Fire Nation Capital, Li and Lo, Azula's two elderly advisers, spoke to the crowd below them.

"Your Princess Azula, clever and beautiful, disguised herself as the enemy and entered the Earth Kingdom's Capital," Li said. "In Ba Sing Se, she found her brother Zuko, and together they faced the Avatar..."