Little Soldier Boy (Iroh II)

Chapter 24

Iroh stood above deck with the Unit.

For the first time since they picked up the Earth Kingdom Unit, Bumi stood tall, his posture firm, and his face incredibly serious.

"I don't think I've seen him so serious before," Pelo whispered.

Iroh nodded faintly. He's seen his father in intense moments before, but never this serious.

Iroh felt his heart speed up when the Great Gates of Ran and Shaw came into view.

The gates used to be the Great Gates of Azulon, but Fire Lord Zuko renamed them for the dragons when the statue of Azulon was destroyed before Iroh was born.

Bumi had already given his orders and the soldiers were just waiting to dock.

Iroh felt his heart racing. He was home before deployment was even over and now his family will know how to remove him.

Iroh blew out a breath as his lungs tensed up.

He felt the boat stop and his hands went numb as his head began to swim.

The soldiers made their way to their destinations.

Bumi led them towards the palace, "Look alive soldiers! They're probably expecting us, so be ready to fight!"

Iroh felt like he was about to pass out when they reached the outter wall of the palace.

Pelo, Nin, and the rest of the Earthbenders took to the same bending stance. They used their bending to open a gap in the wall wide enough for the unit to enter the courtyard.

"Spread out," Bumi ordered. "Be alert. Be ready. Report if you find the captives."

Iroh and his group headed towards the garden, which was their designated scoping ground.

Bumi put Iroh in charge of his friends as a unit, since they needed as many groups as possible and they had limited leaders. He was feeling like he was about to pass out.

"Iroh," Pelo whispered.

Iroh looked at him.

"Isn't that the Fire Princess?" He asked, pointing to a pillar under the balcony.

Iroh felt his stomach drop. He was expecting to see his mother, but instead, he saw Suki creeping around.

"P-Princess Suki," Iroh said, hoping she would play along as well as wanting to scream at her.

Suki looked in their direction.

"I'm Seaman Apprentice Iroh of the United Forces," He approached. "We're here to save your family."

Suki darted away.

"Princess!" Cho shouted.

Iroh growled, "Cho and Hano, follow her, keep her safe."

The two saluted and followed Suki.

"Why would she run?" Chi asked.

"She's probably scared," Nin said. "Who knows what these people have been doing to her and her family."

"But wouldn't she recognize Iroh as a former servant?" Chi asked, and Iroh was relieved she was willing to play along with the servant thing.

Iroh knew what she was really asking when she looked at him.

"She's probably just nervous and doesn't want everyone to get in trouble," Iroh shrugged.

Kayoda frowned at him.

"Come on," Iroh ordered. "Commander Bumi ordered us to search the garden."

"What about inside?" Sin asked. "They're not going to hide their captives out in the open."

"Sin's right," Kayoda said. "We won't find anything out here."

Iroh looked at the palace, feeling his stomach roll. His family was in there.

"We have to go inside," Nin said. "It's the only way we'll find anything."

Iroh looked at the group, "I know where we can go."

Before they knew it, Iroh had led them through multiple secret passages and they were in the underground tunnels of the palace.

"How did you know about this?" Kayoda asked.

"He's a servant's child, remember?" Yuku said.

Kayoda nodded faintly, "I know, I just thought--"

"Not the time," Iroh snapped, leading them up a narrow staircase.

He pressed against the wall and it moved forward.

Iroh peeked out the opening in the wall, finding that he led them to the throne room.

He waved them forward.

Iroh slipped into the room.

The throne was extinguished which gave Iroh an unsettling feeling for some reason.

Iroh jumped off the platform of the throne.

Pelo jumped off. He turned around and helped Nin down.

The rest of the group followed.

"Is there anywhere they might be holding the Royal Family?" Sin asked.

"There's multiple hidden rooms around the palace," Iroh said. "We should split up to look."

The group split up.

Pelo and Nin snuck to the left wing.

Pelo peeked around the corner, seeing two men in red standing on either side of a door.

"I think they have someone in that room," Pelo said.

Nin looked around the corner, "It would make sense. What should we do?"

"Follow my lead," He said.

Pelo bended a tile of stone into a shield.

Nin did the same.

Pelo stomped on the ground, causing a boulder to jump out of the ground.

He kicked it into the hallway, catching the attention of the men.

"Lee," One said. "You're starting to get ridiculous."

Pelo heard both men approach.

Pelo and Nin took the same stance.

Before the men could react, the Earthbenders threw them across the room with their bending.

The two slammed into the wall, falling unconscious on top of each other.

Pelo smiled at Nin.

Nin turned her head away, feeling her cheeks grow warm.

Pelo ran to the no longer guarded door.

He lifted the locking rod and opened the door.

Pelo shouted when a knife embedded into his sleeve, pinning his wrist to the wall.

Nin quickly took a fighting stance, but almost immediately found herself on the floor, with a woman pinning her down.

"I warned you people that if I got my hands on you--"

"Fire Lady Mai?" Pelo cut her off.

The woman snapped her head towards him. Her eyes widened, seeing his suit. She looked down at Nin and backed off.

"You're from the United Forces," Mai breathed.

"Privates Pelo and Nin of the Earth Kingdom," Pelo said.

"Is my grandson with you, he joined the Forces?" Mai asked. "He's in as much danger as the rest of us."

"I'm afraid I don't know," Pelo said. "But if you come with us, we can take you to Commander Bumi and he can help you locate your grandson."

Mai nodded, pulling the knife out of Pelo's sleeve.

"Come on," Pelo helped Nin up. "Let's find the Commander."

"No, I need to find my daughter," Mai said.

"Do you know where they're keeping her?" Nin asked.

"In her room," Mai said. "Taru's been keeping her captive there."