𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚃𝚠𝚘

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La'kea had only been at sea for a week and she had already learned three things.

One; the Crown Prince of the Fire Nation, Zuko, had been banished by the Fire Lord. Which is why they were at sea, to chase down a long dead legend. The avatar. The prince could not return to the Fire Nation until he had captured the avatar. 

La'kea had no idea someone who could bend all four elements was even possible, but apparently they did exist... Over a hundred years ago. The prince's father had sent him on a wild goose chase, he might as well have killed him. Which is why La'kea was here actually. 

Two; she wasn't really here to be a guide, or a navigator, or a healer. The Fire Lord had fully expected her to destroy the ship and it's crew as soon as they reached open sea. A tragic accident, they would call it, a rouge slave gone mad, who could have predicted this? The ship's crew knew this too, they seem torn between giving her space as to not upset her and wanting to turn her into a pile of cinders. 

They hated her, but they were afraid of her, even in chains. Good, La'kea thought bitterly, part of her did want to summon a wave so large it would snap the ship in half. But she couldn't bring herself to do it, as much as she fantasized about it, she could already hear her mother chiding her. How would that make you better than these people?

Three; the prince absolutely hated her guts, for no conceivable reason other than she existed. General Iroh, the only person who showed her kindness since she was stolen from her home, insisted that it wasn't the case at all. That he was just going through a hard time, that she should give him the chance to show her that he really was kind.

Hard time? La'kea wasn't one to believe whatever excuses people made for royal brats, which is exactly what the prince was. How could someone who had probably never had to lift a hand for anything in his life being going through a hard time?

The burn. It flashed through her mind against her will. But the prince was the only soul on the ship that spared no expense expressing how much he wouldn't mind incinerating her. There was no fear from him unlike the other crew members.

Perhaps he wanted her to strike back.

There were nights like tonight, standing on the edge of the ship, where La'kea tried to judge if she could survive jumping overboard. But the chains prevented her from swimming, let alone bending a bubble to breathe in, and she had no idea where land was. Waterbender or not, everyone needed the land to survive. There would be no escape, at least not tonight, so she leaned against the railing, eyes closed and head tilted back to feel the breeze.

A week at sea and she still could not take the fresh air for granted, or the spray of the sea, nor the sight of the moon hanging low in the sky. What was probably years alternating between a dry prison and a dark mine shaft, that night she was brought to the palace was the first time she had breathed properly. Opening her eyes, La'kea looked over the sky, connecting the stars, and only recognized a few patterns. She was far from home but not as far as she thought, maybe a month's voyage, the thought was comforting.

She wanted to stay out here longer, but dawn was approaching and the shackles on her wrists were starting to become unbearable. They had to come off, but only once she was safe in her quarters. Even if the crew feared her, that same fear might make them take her out on the spot if they saw her without chains. To the crew, the chains were the thin wall between them and death.

There was no sneaking around the ship with the racket the chains made when she walked down the dark hallway. She hoped that it woke up the soldiers if only to spite them. Even if officially she was logged as the ship's healer slave, she had no such official duties besides the stray accident and the prince's irregular healing sessions. Her mother would have been proud of the progress she had made, the once fatal burn had been reduced to only an unsightly scar, but more work would have to be done for his hearing in the burnt ear.

Closing the quarter doors behind her, La'kea quickly pulled out the key hidden in her shirt and unlocked the shackles. Setting them aside, she rubbed her sore wrists, after who knows how long of wearing the too tight chains the area had become numb, but that didn't negate the damage they had caused.

When she had unlocked the chains for the first time since they had been latched on, the skin was alarmingly red.

And then she saw bone.

Thank the spirits she wasn't squeamish, even if she was staring at her own wrist bone. The nerves were completely frayed, maybe because it had happened so slowly, but now she was noticing the persistent lack of feeling in her fingers.

The frustration she felt from the loss of dexterity was almost enough to tip her over the edge, along with the embarrassment she felt when the crew watched her struggle to simply pick up a spoon. She had to force herself to look on the bright side.

It was a miracle it had missed the tendons, or that her hands hadn't fallen off, after she finished healing what she could, she was left with a gnarled mess of scar tissue. Her mother could have done a better job.

The scars weren't the only evidence of her imprisonment, there was a mirror in her quarters and she wondered if someone had put it there just to torment her. She had stripped off her dusty uniform, intending to scrub the dirt out of her hair and off her skin, instead the sight she was greeted with made her knees wobble.

She knew that she had lost weight being overworked and starved, that her bones stuck out more than they used to, but she hadn't expected her rib cage to protrude so much. When she had eaten a full meal for the first time in years that first night, she had emptied her stomach right after. After so many years upon years of being underfed, her gut wasn't used to holding the proper amount of food.

It was getting better, she was eating a little more day by day, taking strength from the water pushing the ship underneath them. And her back was adjusting to the abrupt plushness of the cot compared to the stone floor she had become used to.

With every simple luxury she regained that she didn't know she took for granted until she was kidnapped sparked a flare of anger. La'kea had to control her breathing, letting the ocean currents sweep away her emotions and thoughts until she had sorted them out.

But there would be no need to meditate tonight as she collapsed onto her bed, pushing the pillow meant for her head under her lower back. Unless there was a medical emergency, she would sleep well into noon, and she did.

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They had finally reached their first destination, these wonderfully ornate "air temples," La'kea leaned against the ship rails, neck craned in awe at the building hanging upside down from the mountain shelf.

Although different from the Fire Nation buildings she could still pick apart some similarities. Of course, she had been forbidden from stepping off the ship, she could only wait for the prince and his company to scour the temple for this avatar.

Even with the crew all eyeing her nervously, she wasn't missing this chance of seeing the world she had been forced into. If it hadn't already been confirmed that it was an island she might have made a break for it. This world was proving more and more fascinating, although La'kea might have enjoyed it more as a free person.

"Enjoying the sights?" A gentle voice asked beside her, she turned to see Iroh smiling brightly, a pair of soldiers setting up a table behind him. "The air nomads built this temple so it could only be reached with air bending."

"Air nomads?" La'kea couldn't stop herself from echoing, knowing Iroh was playing into her curiosity.

He gestured to the table, "Care for some tea?"

She weighed the choice of maintaining her dignity or learning more about this world, and decided if she was going to escape at a port someday she would need to know more about this place. How did the people dress? What formalities would help her blend in on the run?

"I hope jasmine is alright," Iroh never seemed to stop smiling, he handed her a cup that she took carefully, clumsily wrapping her shackled hands and numb fingers around it.

"It's fine," She muttered into the brew, surprised to find herself enjoying it. "What are the air nomads?"

The general hummed, "The air nomads were people detached from the material world, they were wanderers and naturally very spiritual. Every person born into the nomads were air benders."

La'kea paused, "You say 'were'."

"You are not mistaken, my dear," The usually jolly man took a more somber tone, effectively unsettling her, "Unfortunately... The air nomads are extinct."

A pit settled in her stomach, "Extinct... Killed by who." It wasn't a question.

"...By the Fire Nation."

"I see," La'kea sipped her tea as that pit was burned in the sea of anger she had been trying to subdue.

Iroh sighed heavily, "You know, the Fire Nation wasn't always as it is today. A hundred years ago these four nations existed in harmony."

La'kea looked up at the air nomad temples, at the team led by the prince climbing down the cliffs on rope into the probably sacred spaces. She thought of the way they would probably tear the place apart looking for this avatar. "A hundred years is a long time."

As Iroh drank his tea sadly, she wondered if he was ashamed to be fire nation, if anyone with morals was ashamed to be fire nation. La'kea finished her tea and set down the cup, if there were such people...Good.

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The prince was in a rage.

La'kea was just making her way to the deck from the mess hall when she discovered that the prince had returned empty handed. To say he wasn't taking it well would be an understatement.

The air on the deck had been heated to a blistering temperature as fire was spewed in every direction. This was the first time she had seen the prince firebend, and frankly, she'd be happy if it was the last time she ever saw it.

While the other crew members were ducking out of the way, Iroh was simply trying to talk to the prince. "Prince Zuko," He pleaded, "Clearly the Avatar is gone, you should stop this foolish quest."

The prince only roared in answer, "I will not rest until either the Avatar is captured or I am dead! I will regain my honor!"

La'kea didn't care about either outcome, all she wanted to do was rest in her quarters. Tiptoeing around the fire breathing beast was proving to be impossible as every step she took caused the chains to rattle.

Of course, luck wasn't on her side.

The prince whipped around and halted at the sight of the prisoner crouched in front of the rails, looking up at him with wide eyes. Zuko paused, it wasn't fear glaring up back at him from those dark eyes.

"What're you doing here," He spat, fists smoking.

La'kea slowly stood, one hand clutching the rail as she said slowly, "I was just walking back to my quarters."

The prince just stared at her for a moment before turning his back towards her. "Get out of my sight."

She resumed her shuffle, thinking that his father probably banished him because of his attitude. "Spoiled brat," she hissed under her breath, not intending for the prince to hear.

He did hear.

The scream of anger was the only warning she got to jerk her hands in the air. A thin wall of water condensed into a shield in front of her. It stopped the burst of fire that was thrown at her, but in her panic to lift her arms she also lifted the chain connecting her hands to her feet.

La'kea landed on her backside with a grunt, hurriedly rolling out of the way as another tunnel of fire barreled towards her.

"Prince Zuko!" Iroh barked, uncharacteristically harsh as he lifted the princes fist towards the sky, saving the slave from his wrath. "There is no honor in attacking those who cannot defend themselves."

The prince eyed the puddle of water on the deck, and then the girl lying tangled in her chains, glaring up at him with unbridled contempt. "She's not defenseless."

La'kea was frustrated, lying on the ground with her pride damaged, she narrowed her eyes up at the prince. Imagining forcing water into his ears during the next healing session.

Zuko turned on his heel and stormed down into the quarters hallway. Iroh cast an apologetic glance to her before disappearing after him. Catching her breath as she slowly got to her feet, she gauged how long she should wait until following down the hall to her quarters.

A crew member paused walking by her, clicking his tongue, "You should watch your tone, girl."

La'kea waited until she was certain the soldier was out of earshot this time before grumbling.