For the Want of the Sun • Zuko

chapter 17: Onwards

The Misty Palms oasis is less like an oasis, and more like a water hole. More like a puddle in the sand. It's evening, the sun low but still impossibly hot. My skin is damp, and I'm dragging my feet as I follow Iroh and Zuko through the small town.

Zuko scours our surroundings, the men cooped up in corners, the people leering from the scarce shade. "No one here is going to help us. These people just look like filthy wanderers."

I roll my eyes. "We're filthy wanderers, Zuko."

Iroh stops suddenly, and with my mind foggy from exhaustion, I run into him. He barely falters. He raises his arm, pointing. "I think I found our friend."

It's an old man, sitting at a table and fiddling with what looks like a cheap Pai Sho set.

"You brought us here to gamble on Pai Sho?" Zuko hisses.

"I do not think it's a gamble," Iroh muses, and walks forward. Zuko meets my eyes with a tired expression, one I'm sure I'm matching.

"I don't know if I can make it through this," I mutter, watching as Iroh takes a seat across from the man.

"Me either," Zuko groans, but nudges me along. We go to stand beside them.

"The guest has the first move," the stranger says, and Iroh places a tile, the lotus, in the center of the board. I see the man's lips quirk up, a curious and pensive expression overtaking his face. "I see you favor the white lotus gambit. Not many still cling to the ancient ways."

Iroh nods. "Those who do can always find a friend."

Zuko and I share a look. Huh?

The two place their tiles on the board, one after the other, until a shape emerges. I look at the pattern: like a flower. A lotus.

"Welcome, brother," the man says. "The White Lotus opens wise to those who know her secrets."

"What are you old gasbags talking about?" Zuko exclaims.

Iroh glances at him. "I always tried to tell you that Pai Sho is more than just a game."

"Hey!" A yell sounds from behind us. Two men, dressed in Earth Kingdom clothing, are walking towards us quickly. "It's over! You fugitives are coming with me!"

The Pai Sho man whips around in front of us and grabs my shoulders. I'm too startled to pull back. "I knew it! You three are wanted criminals with a giant bounty on your heads!"

"I thought you said he would help!" Zuko yells, pushing the man away from me with force. He stumbles on his heels.

Iroh places a hand on his shoulder. "He is. Just watch."

The stranger rights himself up and points at the two intruders. "You think you're going to capture them and collect all that gold?"

The effect is instant. Suddenly, from every direction, men and women are coming out of their places of hiding, knives, chains, and swords gleaming.

I step near Zuko. "This is helping?"

Someone yells, and the people run towards each other into a mob. I'm shielding my face, ducking, when Zuko grabs my arm and lifts me away. He pulls us behind Iroh and the stranger, and we duck inside a small door.The man closes it behind us, latching the lock.

Zuko is still gripping my arm, so I nudge him. He looks down and releases it quickly.

"It is an honor to welcome such a high-ranking member of the Order of the White Lotus. You must know may secrets."