The Officer and the Princess: The Flames Of War

Chapter 18

Sung's assessment from Yesterday had been correct, after the rain had passed the area had become muggy. Being in a Literal Jungle didn't help. Steam hung in the air, rays of sunlight shined through the canopy. Birds called all around. Since the "scream" they had heard last night Sung had kept his head swinging more than he usually did when he was in a place he wasn't familiar with. He couldn't help but have a gut feeling that at any moment something was going to come flying out of the trees at them. Ranger training manuals said in Jungle environments such as these Ambushes could happen any time anywhere, attackers usually focusing on thick foliage and dug outs called "spider holes" to surround their opponents a quickly as possible. It was best to approach such Situations with caution, stop every so often an listen.

The jungle would tell you when something was about to happen, birds changing their songs to warn others of their kind of threats. A distinct human smell that didn't fit, bent twigs like something had been moving through the underbrush. All signs that he hadn't picked up on yet but it didn't stop him from trying.

Sweat poured down him as he swung his sword, chopping through branches. His lungs burned, his arm was tired. Apparently he was more out of practice than he thought. He let out a huff of air as he pressed his back against a tree. "I-huh-need a minute." Sung told the two as he pulled his bag off and sat down on the ground. Setting his sword down Sung rolled up the sleeves of his shirt until they reached his elbow.

Azula kneeled down in front of him, putting a hand on his knee. "Are you alright?" She asked, concern clear in her voice.

Sung Breathed in deep, his lungs burning. "I'm fine." He said with a gasp. He couldn't take it any longer, he brought his left hand up and removed the glove. The burns on his hand that had once been a deep red had faded somewhat as the years passed, but they were still visible. Azula looked down at the hand, sadness flashing across her features for a moment. In those last days of the war Sung had taken to wearing the glove to hide the burn from Azula. He had never blamed her for that, but still he knew it helped her if she couldn't see it. When the war ended and he went home he just continued to wear it though he didn't know why. But now as his sweat covered hand felt the breeze it felt like heaven.

He tensed up as she put her hand on his face. "Don't lie to me." She said sternly. "I know something is wrong." He tensed up even more as she stroked his cheek with her thumb and looked at him with those beautiful eyes of her. The eyes that would have caused him to jump off a cliff if she asked him too.

Sung looked over at Ty Lee who stood just in the corner of his eye. She had a look of concern too. They were worried about. In his current state he was slowing them down. He was becoming a liability to the mission. "Since the Boiling Rock..." as he spoke and looked back to Azula. "I have trouble breathing sometimes, it doesn't happen often but when it does I need to take a break, I think this heat has something to do with it...I'm afraid I'm not the fighter I used to be."

"Why didn't you say anything before now?" Azula asked, the concern gone now stiffness replaced it. Like he had just told her a terrible lie. She removed her hand from his cheek.

Sung took a few moments to breathe, that burning sensation was almost gone now thank the Goddess. He hated when those sensations hit him. "I didn't want you two to worry about me, think I was going to slow you down."

Now Ty Lee was kneeling beside him. "We'd never think that. "You're an important member of this team."

He gave a small smile, opening his knapsack and pulled out one of his two canteens and unscrewing the lid, taking a long sip. The water was lukewarm, a metallic taste. But it was certainly better than nothing at all, but he would have loved a long drink from a well, the cool underground water that was out of his reach singing to him like a sirens song. "Can you two not crowd around me like I'm a man on deaths door and you're waiting to see who gets what in my will?" He asked in a joking manner, a tired smile on his face.