My eyes widened at the news Aang had just shared with us and my heart started racing at the prospect of this entire battle being pointless. I tried to listen as Aang continued, "It's over. The Fire Lord is probably long gone. Far away on some remote island where he'll be safe during the eclipse."
"No," Sokka held a hand to his chin and thought for a moment. "My instincts tell me he wouldn't go too far. He would have a secret bunker. Somewhere he could go and be safe during a siege, but still be close enough to lead his nation."
He turned to me and raised an eyebrow, expecting me to know if there was one. I raised my hands in mock-surrender and shook my head, "Sorry, but don't look at me for answers. Me and The Fire Lord weren't exactly 'close besties' so there's no way he'd have told me if he had some underground secret bunker."
"Don't worry about it. If it's an underground secret bunker we're looking for, I'm just the girl to find it," Toph pointed to herself and smiled.
Sokka reached into his pocket and pulled out a small object, "The Mechanist gave me this timing device. It looks like we've got about ten minutes until the full eclipse. Ten minutes to find the Fire Lord."
"We can still do this. We can still win the day," Aang spoke enthusiastically, trying to keep a positive spin on the situation.
"Wait. If they knew we were coming it could all be a trap. Maybe we should use the time we have left to make sure we all get out of here safely," Katara tried to reason. I couldn't help but feel crestfallen at the idea of retreating without at least trying to get to Ozai, but knew deep down that the other's safety mattered more.
Hakoda, still clenching his side, spoke up from his sitting position, "Everyone who's here today came prepared to risk everything for this mission. They know what's at stake. If there's still a chance and there's still hope, I think they would want Aang to go for it."
"What do you think?" Sokka turned to Aang, "You're the one who has to face the Fire Lord. Whatever you decide, I'm with you."
Aang looked over to me and I placed a hand on my heart and nodded, confirming that I'd support whatever decision he made as well. He then looked to the ground and stood up, facing the volcano battlefield before us, "I've got to try."
Without a second of hesitation, Sokka stood and began getting ready to board Appa. Katara insisted she stay back to help fight and take care of her father, to which we all agreed was the best idea for now. Toph and Aang boarded Appa and I hoisted myself up to steer when everyone was on board.
When I sat down, Sokka turned abruptly to face me, "What are you doing?"
"Coming with you? If you think this is going to be another North Pole situation where you go off without me, you're sorely mistaken," I didn't even glance up and instead took the reins in my hands.
"No need to get defensive. I just meant that Aang already offered to steer," he gave me a shit-eating smirk. I rolled my eyes with heated cheeks, handing the reins over to the smaller boy beside me with a grumble.
The flight was a short one and soon we landed on the side of the mountain that served as the barrier into the Fire Nation. We all hopped off and Toph began feeling around for any sign of a bunker.
After a few moments, Aang called over to her, "Toph, do you feel anything down there?"
"Yep, there are natural tunnels through the inside of the volcano."
"Anything else?" Sokka prodded, "Is there a structure somewhere?"
Toph did some hand motions before clenching her fingers into the ground below, "There's something big, dense, and made of metal deep in the heart of the volcano."
YOU ARE READING
Traitor - Zuko X Reader
Fanfiction(Y/N) lived in the fire nation most of her life, growing up in the palace where she was close friends with Prince Zuko. She enjoyed her time in the palace, aside from the occasional rude comment from Azula, nonetheless she had lots of fun playing wi...
