Fuel To My Fire - Book Two (ATLA Zuko Fanfiction)

Chapter Six

Sakari's POV

The next morning Zuko and I were getting Ben ready to leave when the family approached us, and Sela handed me a package of food.

"Here, this should get you through a few meals." She said.

I took the food gratefully when we suddenly heard a rumbling sound coming up the road; it was the soldiers.

"What do you suppose they want?" Gansu asked.

"Trouble." Zuko stated, annoyance clear in his voice.

The soldiers came to a halt in front of us, sending dust flying up at us.

"What do you want, Gow?" Gansu asked.

"Just thought someone ought to tell you your son's battalion got captured." Gow said almost sounding smug. "You boys hear what the Fire Nation did with their last group of Earth Kingdom prisoners?"

"Dressed them up in Fire Nation uniforms and put them on the front line unarmed, way I heard it." One of the men replied.

"You watch your mouth!" Gansu yelled.

Gow began moving his ostrich horse forward but Zuko and I cut him off on Ben and stared him down.

"Why bother rooting around in the mud with these pigs?" Gow said before him and his men turned and left, a cloud of dust behind them.

I turned back to the family, they were in the middle of an embrace and all looked extremely worried.

"What's gonna happen to my brother?" Lee asked sadly.

"I'm going to the front." Gansu stated. "I'm going to find Sen Su and bring him back."

Gansu and Sela made their way back inside, but Lee approached us before we left for good.

"When my dad goes will you stay?" He asked us.

"No. We need to move on." Zuko stated, removing something from his belt and handing it to Lee. "Here, I want you to have this. Read the inscription."

It was a knife I had never seen before, it seemed to be special to Zuko.

"Made in Earth Kingdom." Lee read.

"The other one." Zuko said while I chuckled.

"Never give up without a fight." Lee read.

And with that Zuko and I sped off on Ben, leaving poor Lee and his family behind. I felt bad for the kid, but I also knew that we couldn't stay here. Zuko was right, we need to move on.

*****

"Azula always lies." I heard Zuko mumble to himself.

"Hmm?" I asked, turning to him, but he was laying on the grass with his eyes closed and didn't seem to hear me.

We had stopped by a river to give Ben time to get a drink and rest for a little while before we continued our journey. Suddenly a cart pulled by an ostrich horse stopped near us; it was Sela and she looked worried.

"You have to help! It's Lee, the thugs from town came back as soon as Gansu left. When they ordered us to give them food, Lee pulled a knife on them. I don't even know where he got a knife." Sela explained the situation to us. "Then they took him away. They told me if Lee's old enough to fight he's old enough to join the army."

Sela was crying now and I know Zuko felt extremely guilty about the knife. We have to help.

"We'll get your son back." Zuko stated.