Zhao

The dim glow of a candle on the desk I had chosen to do my work on illuminated the scrolls as I tore through them, one after another, in the quest of what I was looking for. Whatever that was.

I was situated in a small segment of the library, far lower than any of the others, deeper than any other segment, its antiquity revealing itself-chipped walls, faded masonry, and dusted over artifacts more than clear indicators of this wing's age.

Every scroll I found appeared on the verge of falling apart in my hands, each requiring to be handled with the utmost care lest I lose a millennia's worth of information because of a careless mistake.

I'd followed down the well-kept stairs until they led into more catacomb-like tunnels, leading deep into the library's inner structure, the air becoming staler the further down I went, eventually coming across the general area where I was now.

Splintered wooden shelves lined the walls of the narrow halls as I passed down them, a number of scrolls written in a text I couldn't even read, some in styles of calligraphy so antiquated that I could barely make out what they read.

Following whatever reference I could, any lead I could find, I traversed deeper and deeper into the foreboding tunnels, images in my mind arising of bedtime stories I'd hear as a child back in the Fire Nation, rumors spread of the skeletons of the Fire Lords of the past that rested in catacombs beneath the palace, rising from the dead during the Summer Solstices to punish those disloyal to the Fire Nation.

I pushed the repressed memories aside, focusing instead on the task I had, on my loyalty that I was here to prove beyond all shadow of a doubt.

It took a while for me to come across a truly useful reference, myself, notwithstanding, having still collecting whatever I thought might even have a chance of pointing me in the right direction-accounts as modern as paranormal spiritual sightings to ones as told talking in detail of human expeditions into something known as the "Spirit Wilds."

What felt like hours had passed until I found across something I believed would truly set me in the right direction-a scroll speaking of the process by which a spirit transmuted itself into a mortal form, and I followed it along, reading until the end, a station for myself set up in a cramped study room, my chosen desk beneath a map of the Earth. I read through it in it's entirety, but it still said nothing of any use.

I had the vaguest idea of what I was looking for. Spirits did exist in our world. Some of them at least. There was a chance, though a slim one, that perhaps the same could be said of the Water Tribe's personal spirits.

And so I continued my search, digging through shelf after self, the piles in my study growing with each trip I made over the course of hours, and then, after all that time spent chasing after something which may not have even existed, I believed I finally came upon something real, something concrete, a scroll speaking of spirits who inhabited the physical realm.

This was it. Either confirmation that there was hope, or definite proof that there wasn't. And if there isn't? I pondered it for a moment before willing myself to read the text, wondering then and there, What if they're not? I considered that I'd just have to start over, abandon this chase, and go after something new, find a different lead, something, anything.

I looked back down at the scroll before me, terrified of opening it, mortified at the thought of what I may see within, or, perhaps, 'not see' was more accurate.

I took a deep breath before opening it, awaiting whatever would be the case.

I saw numerous illustrations, numerous examples, "Ran and Shaw," the "Kemurikage," the things of nightmares as a kid for me, "Hundun," an old myth of the Kings of Chaos that I now learned to be true, and lastly, that which caught my interest more than all else, "Tui" and "La."

My eyes settled on the reference of these final two, looking through the section of the scroll dedicated to them, reading many times over the text beneath the image of two Koi fish swimming in close proximity to one another, giving off the appearance of Yin and Yang, and so wrote the description beneath their names: "Tui" and "La", "Push" and "Pull." And all it took after that was one final reference to confirm it, to give me the validation I so desperately sought, to finally put this question to rest, the reference of the only words that mattered: "Moon" and "Ocean."

I've found it.

They were real.

They existed in our realm, and unlike many of the previous examples, no reference was made of their departure to the spirit world, but only their departure from.

They still resided in our world.

They can be found.

And if they can be found, they can be killed.

I was reading through the text for what must have been the 50th time over between a chilling shriek echoed through the halls, some unearthly howl that was in no way human. What the hell?

I immediately bolted directly outside the door, expecting to see whatever it was that had made that noise standing right there judging by how close it had sounded to be.

But alas, there was nothing there, the hall outside of my study completely empty. What is going on here?

I looked back into the study, wondering just what to do. The sound didn't come again, but notwithstanding, I had the gut feeling that something was incredibly wrong. I rushed into the study, grabbing my chest plate which I had taken off in light of the constant running back and forth that I was doing, and bolted out of the room as I grabbed my pack and was still tying my armor pieces together.

What in Spirits' name is happening here?

I was already backtracking through the halls, going past the rows of bookcases I had been tearing through in search of answers only moments ago, racing up ever-widening stairs as I left the catacombs of the library's lower levels.

As I rose, the noises only became stranger and stranger, the screeches of some horrific-sounding creature rising above the usual deathly silence of this grand building.

I rose even higher, pausing in my footsteps as I heard a sound I recognized all too well-a Fire nation grenade.

I skidded to a halt as I'd been running through the halls, now in the horticultural wing of the library.

Are we under attack? Did a band of Sandbenders find us?

I rushed all the quicker, not knowing what the hell was happening, especially as a second bang ran out, shaking dust from where it had been settling on the ceiling atop my head.

I raced all the quicker as the sounds of whatever was occurring reverberated through the central abyss of the library, until one stood above all the rest-one final explosion, all the louder from my closer proximity, followed immediately by a loud screech, even more horrific and pained than the first I'd heard.

It sounded close, just a few levels above, and so immediately rushed to the railing that led into oblivion above, craning my head up just in time to watch the figure fall-the owl's form, fires dancing upon it as it barreled down below into darkness.

What in spirits' name just happened?

I rushed up further, finding the nearest flight of stairs to ascend.

Harzek, Zaik, where the hell are you two? What the hell is going on?!

I was storming up the stairs, intent on getting to where the action had been unfolding just moments past.

Up one level.

Another.

Almost there!

I nearly crashed into him as I turned the corner, finding Harzek just feet in front of me.

"Zhao!" he let out amid pants, his breath labored, eyeing me up and down as though surprised to see me. "You're-"

"What's going on!" I demanded, wasting no time on pleasantries. "I heard explosions!"

"It's the spirit. Wan Shi Tong! He learned about what we were trying to do. He turned on us."

Turned on us? I immediately thought back to my last interaction with him, when he'd questioned my going through military archives and accounts of battle. He'd mentioned his disdain for our warfare on more than one occasion. I guess he finally got tired of watching. Decided to take matters into his own hands.

"And the explosions?"

"Zaik and I held him off, got him off our tail." It was then that I first noticed Zaik wasn't among him, scolding myself for only noticing now. My expression must have registered my confusion at not seeing Zek here, though with each half second of Harzek's silence, the realization of what had likely happened slowly dawned on me. "Zaik," Harzek started. "He was killed."

I sighed, looking to the stone-cold floor, grimacing at his lost. I'd saved him in the mountains on our march to the Swamp. He'd tagged along with me in making my deal in the desert that would end up granting us the information we desperately needed to bring us here. He'd fought by my side in the desert, saving my life on more than one occasion. And so he'd been killed. "I see."

"He died a hero. He saved my life, and he gave our Nation a fighting chance. He was a true soldier"

I breathed in and out. I suppose there's no better way to go.

"Please tell me that you found something," He said to me, seemingly desperate for some value to be given to the sacrifices of this mission, of all of this. At the very least, I had something for him. But no location. Nothing more than that they were out there. What good would that do him now?

Notwithstanding, I spoke, saying, "I think I did. The Water spirits. They're on our Earth. Hiding as two fish. Tui and La.."

I hadn't noticed Harzek's eyes flash open, myself only seeing them when I looked up from the ground to face him in the eyes as he exclaimed, "Wait. What?"

I nodded. "The Moon and Ocean spirits. They live on our physical plane. Hell if I could tell you where though."

He said nothing, and it was here that I saw him simply staring at me as he said, "I know where they are."

"What?"

"I saw reference to them, in the Earth Kingdom wing of the library. It mentioned them, but I thought they were only cultish animal of worships. I didn't know, I didn't-"

"Where are they?!" I asked, practically pulling him towards me as I clung onto his shoulders, desperately seeking the answers to make this all worthwhile.

"Agna Qel'a. The Water Tribe capital. It's more than a capital. It's a fortress meant to protect them in their spirit oasis. It's the heart of their tribe."

"It's more than that. It's the heart of their life."

"What do you mean."

"The moon and the Ocean, the physical manifestations of who they are, of their bending. If we kill them, the waterbenders lose their power."

His eyes were wide, staring at me in disbelief. "You mean, permanently?"

I nodded. "Not that it matters," I grimaced. "Agna Qel'a is years of conquest away. We're still bogged down fighting them in the Nip, no end in sight there, nothing I learned here helping with that."

"That's not the case."

I looked up. "What do you mean?"

"Zaik and I, we found another way. A more temporary solution. The waterbenders, they lose their abilities during the lunar eclipse."

And suddenly, it all made sense. Everything I'd been reading from before. The losses, the massive casualties, the humiliating Water Tribe defeats during full moons, because they weren't full moons, it was-

"The Red Moon," we both spoke as one.

"Not that it does us much good," Harzek said. "We have no way of knowing when the next will come around, and we can't just expect to be able to tell Shu to wait around until the next lunar eclipse. We have nothing definitive, and no way of finding out. This library may have everything on the past, but for the future, it hasn't got shit."

The planetarium. "That's not the case. Follow me."

And so, I led him back down the flights of stairs, to the place in question, pleased to find the door to it still open, the two of us, all the while, keeping our eyes open for Wan Shi Tong. Neither of us believed him to be out of the picture that easily. Zaik, as Harzek had told me on the way here, had injured the beast, but killing it was another matter entirely, one that I was afraid we had no time for.

We had more pressing matters to attend to.

"What-what is this place?" Harzek let out in awe at the sight of the room, the domed roof still displaying the scene of Harmonic Convergence.

"A planetarium," I said. "One that will allow us to see all dates of the past, and all dates of the future."

"So, we'll just go through dates from today's until we find an eclipse?"

"That's exactly what we'll do."

"And if the owl comes back?"

"Then-" I considered for a moment. Harzek was a nonbender. He wouldn't be able to put up the same fight I could. I had a better chance of getting out alive. "Then I'll distract him. You find the date, and you get it back to command."

"No."

"What?"

"I said no. I'm in charge of this mission even if you outrank me. It's my call."

"Your command only extends to the mission. As the parameters said, when it comes to my men's lives, it's my call, and you're one of my men. They'd believe you more than they'll believe me anyway. This is your mission. It's only right you finish it."

As though on cue, we both heard the screech again. It was close. Back so soon? I thought, a cold sweat rolling down my forehead.

"No rest for the weary, huh?" Harzek chuckled. "Well, you do what you need to do. What you learned here, get it back to the Fire Nation. We have a chance of finally ending this forsaken war. We can't let that die in this tomb. You understand?!"

I didn't say anything for a moment, saying soon after, "I'll meet you outside once you're done, alright?"

"Of course."

I nodded, not believing the sincerity of what he said, but having nothing else save for his promise that I prayed he'd fulfill, and he nodded back. "Good luck, Lieutenant Zhao."

"Good luck to you too, Lieutenant Harzek"

And with that, he left the room, the back of his figure the last I feared I'd ever see of him. No. He'd make it. I had to have faith in him. And even if he didn't, I had to focus on the present.

I turned to the mechanism in front of me, and so I set to work, moving each date at a time, watching as the world twisted and turned around me to the groan of machinery, day after day, night after night, watching the sun and moon rise and fall and rise and fall.

I went one after another, waiting, begging, praying, until finally, the room lit in an unearthly red. I found it. And it's only a month away!

I couldn't suppress the smile on my face, nor the chuckling that ensued. I got it! We can do this! Now just to get the hell out of he-

"In one month," I chuckled to myself, "The Revanchists. In a few years, the last of the waterbenders."

I turned around after having written the date on a piece of parchment and stuffing it in my bag, and standing in the room behind me, bathed in the red light of the room's simulated lunar eclipse, was Shilo.

"Shilo?"

He was simply standing there, eyes facing me, his aged face wearing new life, the only expression to be observed on it, however, being shock, the age revealing it once more as his expression settled into something far more dismal, far more sorrowful. "I guess I should have known all along, huh?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Don't. No more lies, Zhao."

My face hardened. So he knew.

"I never lied about anything. You knew full and well I was seeking information on the war, on how to win. You told me yourself, and tried to help me."

"And what you're doing now? That's winning a war?"

"Yes!"

"No! That's exterminating a people! You were down in the catacombs. I went down after you left; I saw what you were reading. You're going to kill them, aren't you, Tui and La, the Water and Moon spirits."

"I don't see how that's any of your concern."

"It's all of our concerns! What, you think you're just going to rip the world apart at it's foundation and only expect your enemy to be those who suffer?! What you're doing, you are not only fighting a war to an inhumane degree. You are not only tearing apart an entire culture of people. You are threatening to tear apart the fragile balance of the world. You're going to destroy everything!"

"I'll do what I have to for my Nation!"

"Forget about the bloody Fire Nation and think! You'll destroy the world, Zhao. Is that what you want? Is that what you want your legacy to be?"

And I thought. I did. Long and hard. I thought of how I wanted to be remembered, of what I wanted to be known as, of what I wanted my children to think of me after I was long gone. Zhao, the Conqueror, the moon slayer, the man who ended the war, who finished the fight, who brought peace.

"Yes," I said, staring him down. "That's exactly what I want my legacy to be. That, is my destiny."

"Then you don't leave me much choice."

I hardly noticed the stone shift beneath my feet, but before I could realize, I was on the ground, sliding to my side to avoid a boulder sent my way, crashing into a hundred tiny pieces immediately to my side.

I scrambled to my feet, firing a shot of fire at him, the blast being instantly absorbed by a funnel of sand he shot, dissipating the blast, breaking right through to lunge at me, clasping me by my shooting arm, and throwing me to the ground, my attempt to get up foiled by a pillar of Earth that rose from the floor, knocking me straight in the chest, knocking any and all air out of my lungs.

I was out of my element. Everything around him, made of stone. And so he stalked towards me, sand hovering around him, manifesting itself slowly into a weapon by which he'd end my life.

"I'm sorry, Zhao. I didn't want it to end this way. I promise you that your men in our village won't be harmed. They'll be sent home safe and sound."

"You're a coward, Shilo!" I let out. "You don't have what it takes to achieve victory."

"Maybe not," he confessed. "But I will do whatever it takes to defend those I love."

He raised his hands, and my eyes shut, ready for the end that awaited me. And so our hope for victory dies in this tomb. How anticlimactic.

Except it didn't. I heard the squelch of blood, and a sudden gasp, and opened my eyes to see Shilo, a sword emerging from his chest, bloodied, and Harzek standing directly behind him.

He's alive.

The blade left its position, and Shilo dropped to the ground, the red blood still spilling from him indistinguishable from the rest of the room bathed in red light, the poor man still gasping for air where he lay.

Harzek looked down at the body, and dropped the sword he'd been holding in his left hand, his right clutching his side, blood oozing out from beneath. My eyes drifted to Shilo where lay on the ground. You poor, naïve fool. My eyes then drifted back up to Harzek.

"You're injured."

He allowed his hand to leave his side for a brief moment, exposing the gnarly wound he'd suffered. He chuckled softly. "Damn owl got me pretty good, but I got him tied up in the catacombs. It'll be a while before he gets out." He looked at me, then to the ceiling, clearly making note of the red all around. "Did you find it."

I nodded. "We have it. The date, the information, everything we need. We're done here. We can go."

"No. There's one more thing."

I turned to him, the sudden relief in me put on standby once again. "What do you mean?"

"The same way we found a room on the Water Tribe, Zaik found one on the Fire Nation. All the information in the world on us and our weaknesses."

"What weaknesses?"

He gulped. "Their lunar eclipse, our solar eclipse."

And so I understood. If anybody found out, we could be destroyed.

And so, only a few moments later, we stood in front of our banner, dragons standing sentry at the doorway leading into our wing, and a beautiful ring it was, decorated in banners, memorabilia, and more information on our Nation than I'm sure was stored in the sum total of all libraries across the Fire Nation.

If you want those libraries to stay there, if you want the children of your nation to have the chance to read what limited information they have on their nation, if you want to give them that chance, then you know what needs to be done.

I nodded to myself, swallowing, Harzek standing directly behind me as he watched, and I summoned everything within me: the hatred I felt for the enemy, the Anger I felt at Zaik's death, the fear I felt at having our future stripped from us if the enemy found this place, merging it all into one beautiful flame that danced through the room like the sea poured int the breached hull of a shit.

The shelves caught fire, the books and scrolls igniting as the perfect tinder, our Nation's banner at the rear of the room going up in smoke and flames as well, myself keeping up the onslaught of pure hate, anger, and fear as swirls of red, yellow, and orange danced around its entirety, not stopping until nothing was left save ash, and I stood there staring blankly at what I had left in my wake, at what I had done.

And I knew why I'd done it. There was no questioning that anymore

Everything I'd done, it was for my Nation. It used to be about me, but it was more than that now.

If I became a legend in the process, so be it, but I would do whatever it would take to serve my Nation, to end this war, and so Harzek and I departed from that library, Zaik's body in tow, coming back the way we'd come, smoke still swirling out of the tower's opening, the two of us knowing that we'd done what we had to do.

And so we stood in the light of the full moon overhead, at the top of the tower, and the two of us looked up as one, all that was left of our mission into the desert.

And so we finally knew how to bring this war all the closer to its end. For the first time in my life, I finally knew for a certainty where my destiny would take me. The moon stared down at me, and I stared back