Dai Li's Personal Spy

Chapter 8: The Avatar

I woke up early morning to find out Zuko had located the avatar and where he was hiding. I was ecstatic, to say the least. My tracking was correct! I may have, at one point, thought my tracking was a shot in the dark, but it didn't matter now. I was right.

I threw on my black coat and pulled up my fur-trimmed hood. As I ran up the stairs, I slipped my gloves on. Heading up to the captain's control room, I burst through the door. Captain Lee was startled and looked back at me in confusion.

"What is it?" He asked, surprised at my giddy mood.

I smirked. "I was right! The Avatar is in the South Pole!" I goaded. He laughed haughtily. 

"So I've heard Raven; I shouldn't have doubted you." He admitted. I smugly smiled and made my leave, happy at my one win in this lifeless metal hull. It was seriously the only interesting thing to happen in weeks.

Before long, our ship was approaching the village. I was nervous but also eager to see the hidden avatar, gone for 100 years. How old would he be now? I clutched onto the railing, hair blowing into my face.

The village got closer and closer. I had to say, the southern water tribe was diminished from what it once was. It saddened me to see a once thriving tribe so dwindled in numbers, and with their men off in the war, they were even smaller. My heart felt for them. Just like me, they, too, had been hurt by the fire nation.

Our ship rumbled and surged as we began to cut through the ice. I looked to the captain, trying to get him to stop. We were about to crash into the village. He kept going, and I noticed he was following Zuko's hand, telling him to keep going. I could barely clutch the railing in time as we ripped through their wall. Such a small tribe did not deserve this treatment.

I suddenly felt guilty. I had brought the fire nation here.

I looked back and glared at Zuko, angered by his disregard for life. He only sneered back. The ramp slammed down, and I joined Zuko and the rest of the soldiers down it. The villagers looked up at us, scared. Many women and children were left to fend for their own. A boy about my age kneeled in the snow before us, painted in warrior makeup. We trudged down the ramp, and the boy began to charge at Zuko.

I stopped in my tracks, but Zuko kept going. Effortlessly, he pulled the club from the boy's hand and threw it away, kicking him into the snow in the process. I winced but had to keep going. Zuko looked for the avatar, but he was nowhere to be seen. He approached a girl no younger than 14 and her Grandma no younger than 80.

"Where are you hiding him?" Zuko questioned angrily. The tribe stayed silent, which only angered Zuko even more. Then, suddenly, he grabbed the old woman by her collar and held her up.

I shouted out, "Zuko!" in hopes he would let her go, but I don't think he even heard me. Zuko began again, his voice frustrated. "He'd be about this age, master of all elements?" he finished off, waving the woman around like she was a ragdoll. He thrust the woman back into the crowd. Zuko, aggravated, sent a fan of fire into the crowd, scaring the villagers.

They all gasped, and so did I, and stepped back in fear. The boy from before began to charge Zuko again with a war cry. His war paint was smudged and worn out, but his spirit wasn't. He swung at Zuko, and Zuko easily ducked. He hurled the boy forward, and he landed on the floor. I looked at the boy with pity and guilt. Zuko blasted a fireball at the boy, and he was forced to roll over.

I watched the singed snow melt quickly to become water. The boy spins to the side and hurls a boomerang at Zuko's head. It sheerly missed Zuko but disappeared into the distance. Zuko huffed, pissed off at the near hit. A little boy, either 3 or 4 years old, suddenly yelled out.