Daughter of the Moon - Book Two: Earth

Chapter 7.2: A Brief Reunion

- Elara -

Surprisingly enough, it didn't take us too much longer to find the tank train after we had discovered Azula's plan, but that could have been due to the fact that it was no longer moving upon our arrival. We found it just sitting in the middle of a forest next to a large stream, and nothing on the train indicated that it would be moving any time soon. Zuko and I approached the threatening machine cautiously, exchanging our ostrich horse in favor of our more reliable, less noisy feet so that we could remain unseen in the shadows of the forest foliage as we tiptoed our way around the backside. Once we were within spitting distance of our target, we crouched behind a tree to survey the area for any signs life. Once again, we were met with nothing. It was like the train had been abandoned.

"Where is everybody?" I wondered out loud, my voice ringing through the silent landscape. It was quiet; almost too quiet, like the tank train had scared off all the creatures and critters for miles.

I heard the gentle crunch of fallen leaves and dead pine needles as Zuko maneuvered himself to look over my shoulder, the heat from his body radiating towards me as he crouched way too close for comfort.

"Azula must've caught up to the Avatar," Zuko answered.

Without even skipping a beat, Zuko stood up from our crouched position and sprinted over to the body of the tank, pressing himself against the outer wall before beckoning for me to follow. I scanned my surroundings one last time for intruders, then sprinted over to the place next to him as he began to inch his way around the metal beast. As we slithered around the outside, we turned a corner and stumbled upon a large platform that led to the main body of the tank. Two guards were stationed outside the entrance, most likely with the responsibility to keep intruders (like Zuko and myself) from sneaking onto the vehicle.

Unfortunately for them, Zuko and I were both exceptionally skilled in the art of combat, so it was only a matter of moments before they were completely out cold and tied to a nearby tree. Zuko and I then stole their uniforms, making sure to properly conceal ourselves before walking up the gangplank in hopes that we could simply stroll through the halls of the train without raising any suspicion. As expected, the two of us marched forward without interference, stalking right up to the main doors of what we assumed to be the control room, and we didn't even break a sweat.

As Zuko prepared to burst through the door, he paused for a moment, looking to me through the small eye-holes in his mask. I nodded curtly in response as I pulled some water out of the water skin hidden under my armor, signaling to him that I was ready for whatever battle would commence.

Once Zuko was confident I was prepared, he kicked down the door and jumped in front of me, blocking several blasts of fire as they came hurling towards us. Once the flames had dissipated, I froze my water into dozens of tiny ice daggers and hurled them at the men in the room, pinning them to the controls, the walls, and the floor in a manner that made it impossible for our enemies to attack back or to flee in any way. Once the few guards and engineers were all taken care of, all that was left was the captain. Without hesitation, Zuko knocked the mouse-like man to the floor, grabbed him by the collar and held a fist up to his face, issuing the silent threat that if the captain even thought about lying or trying to escape, he would be on the receiving end of a lot of heat.

"Where's Azula," Zuko barked as he drew the man closer. "Where's the Avatar?"

"I don't know!" the captain replied quickly, not even the slightest hint of remorse crossing his face as he went to betray his employer. "The Princess went to follow the Avatar's trail and hasn't returned!"

Zuko didn't utter a word as silence settled on the room, and I knew exactly what he was expecting me to do. He had somehow figured out during our few years together that I could tell when someone was lying, although I wasn't quite sure if he understood how I was able to do it . And by that point, I had used this skill so many times during our travels that I had refined to a science, meaning I no longer needed to be in close contact with my victim to feel the blood flowing through their body. And that is exactly what I did with this poor captain, reaching for the water in his body to catch even the slightest tremor of a lie.