now or never || an atla fanfic

𝔡𝔢𝔞𝔣𝔢𝔫𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔰𝔦𝔩𝔢𝔫𝔠𝔢

"T-minus sixty seconds until we trigger the bombs," Sokka stated, more as a reminder to himself than an announcement to the others. He could hardly believe their plans for the invasion--that weeks of their preparation--would be culminating during the fast-approaching eclipse.

Thanks to his submarine invention, powered by several waterbenders from the Southern Water Tribe, their team had successfully bypassed the Great Gates of Azulon. Phase one was complete. Now they needed to clear the front entryway of the palace so that Aang and Zuko could enter.

That's right--the avatar would be sneaking in right through the entrance.

Aang and Zuko were waiting in a secluded alleyway adjacent to the entrance, waiting for Sokka's signal.

Sokka had just finished securing the next product of his genius; stinky smoke bombs that would both obscure everyone's vision and repel any Fire Nation soldiers. He stayed with Appa, somewhat sheltered by the grand pillars of the palance.

Suki met Sokka in the secluded area where stood, monitoring the progress of the invasion. She'd brought in the Kyoshi warriors to assist as ground support. "The West and East wing is secure," she confirmed.  

Secured with stink bombs.

Sokka nodded, his eyes fixed on his stopwatch. His heart raced faster than the second-hand of the timer, running straight off of adrenaline. There was exactly five minutes flat until the actual eclipse began, and he prayed to every spirit that Zuko and Aang would reach the underground layer where the Fire Lord was hidden in time.

Toph led the main unit through the thick of the fight, aiding their efforts to sneak Zuko and Aang inside. Sokka glanced back at the smoke bombs, his thumb resting over the trigger button on the remote in his hand.

"I'm like 75% sure this won't explode."

"I hope you mean they will explode," Suki corrected.

"No, I mean I'm not even sure they will," Sokka explained. He tore his eyes away from the field, meeting her eyes. "There wasn't enough time for me to conduct enough tests before optimizing the chemical formula inside of them. I'm placing all of my trust in Bato's instincts right now that they'll work."

Suki eyed the stopwatch in Sokka's hand. It was rare for Sokka to be unconfident in his engineering abilities. "Well I guess we're about to find out then, I guess."

"You're right." Sokka's thumb hovered over the trigger button. Suki reached for his other hand, holding it as a means of comfort. Without hesitation, Sokka's finger jammed down on the button.

Together they stood, watching the battlefield crumble to pieces right before their eyes. Green, foul-smelling smoke billowed out in the area, disorienting the Fire Nation soldiers in time for Toph and the Kyoshi Warriors to regroup.

Phase two was complete.

- ♚ -

Phase three of the mission was relatively simple.

All Aang and Zuko needed to do was enter the underground layer of the Fire Nation palace, once all outside threats were eliminated and the path was clear for them to infiltrate the inside.

"When this is finished, the avatar will have defeated the fire lord, we will have control over the fire nation capital, and this war will be over."

Hakoda's words echoed in Aang's mind, the sheer pertinence of the situation ringing in his ears. A piece of his heart would always be with Katara, whom they had left to take care of Hama, but he swore he would dedicate his heart to ending the war and bringing peace to the four nations.