Jet

They arrived that morning. 230 something civilians with an entourage of Earth Kingdom soldiers. Rumors spready quickly when we had first observed the Earth Kingdom cruiser approaching from the south, no shortage of us worrying that the Patriot would immediately label us a target.

It seemed, however, that they had been informed of just who the ship had belonged to, and thus refrained from opening fire.

So that's why Kiu had sent Boss out. It all made sense to me now, why he had slipped out in the middle of the night 2 days ago. Most of us had assumed it was to be beside his comrades in the coming battle of Jingping. Hell, no shortage of us would have liked to join him had we been given the chance, but alas, it was something he had done on his own.

Minimize casualties in case things didn't go our way?

We had considered the possibility the morning after. Aboard the Patriot, the impromptu departure of the skiff hadn't really been a secret from anybody. While Boss may have managed to sneak to the lower deck without anybody being something the wiser, the roar of the engine upon him leaving was far less of a secret. Naturally, the bulk of us had spent the morning wondering just what it was.

None of us had considered the possibility of him turning coat.

Over the last few months he and his men had been here, they'd proven themselves. There'd been ups and downs, of course, but over time, they had become one of us, Boss especially. We had all grown used to calling him by that name, none of us any longer thinking it the conceited trait we'd once viewed it as, but more as what he had meant it—a reminder of his loyalty to his people.

And we were his people now as well.

Such had guided our theories as to why he had left, the common consensus being he had left to assist the defense of Jingping. We all figured he would be back shortly, and that we would convene in Jingping to discuss what would come next. But that morning, he did not return, and, in time, news reached us of Jingping, telling us that it no longer stood, but that we had still held on.

Naturally, we expected damage, perhaps even high casualties, but we had stood, so it couldn't have been that bad. Or so we all told ourselves.

Nothing could have prepared us for what we saw that day when the refugees of Jingping came pouring out of the Earth Kingdom cruiser. If it wasn't the blood, the bruises, the ash that gave away the hell they had gone through, then it was the look they carried on their faces—a look I recognized all too well. A look that I myself had worn for so long after it had happened, after I had lost my home.

There would be no mistaking then what had happened at Jingping. Absolute and total annihilation, a miracle the only thing that had stood between the remaining survivors and death.

We were, of course, all elated to see Boss when he emerged from the ship alongside the hundreds of refugees and dozens of Earth Kingdom soldiers. No lack of our own were quick to rush to Boss to greet him with no shortage of exclamations of relief upon seeing he was alright, Keerick giving him a friendly pat on the shoulder, Longshot simply nodding at him from a distance, and, of course, Zadok and Kosah rushing out from the now-operational Patriot to greet their old friend.

Some of our freedom fighters even were keen on providing the others: Luke, Zek, Ka'lira, and Gordez with the heroes' welcome we believed them deserving of. They, however, seemed less inclined to share the sentiment.

"They've seen a lot, guys," I had to tell the others when they seemed no doubt discouraged by the lack of friendliness in return. "Let's get them some space."

I couldn't begin to imagine what it had been there in person. I could scarce believe what I was seeing now, just the aftermath of it all. Even the soldiers, men I had come to idolize the way they always seemed to stand above the rest of the world in their ceremonial armor, now looked as though they had just walked through hell.

They had. Hadn't they?

Half of the Patriot's force stayed behind to secure the landing zone of the Earth Kingdom vessel, not too concerned, however, given that our area of the sea was now relatively secured by Revanchist tribals. The other half escorted the refugees and soldiers to our camp.

I know a good amount of us embraced the degree of empowerment we felt at being in such close proximity to the army of the nation we had been fighting to protect for so long. These were the real deal, I knew a lot of them were thinking. Others, however, myself included, we did not feel prideful. We felt afraid, for these selfsame men we idolized looked on the brink of death. Worshipping a god isn't quite so easy once you see him bleed.

Housing was established as best as it could be. At the very least, the new space of the recently constructed platform was finally being put to use, the forest floor as well now being filled with no shortage of tents designed to help accommodate our new arrivals.

A number of us scrambled to try and help, Kiu having not yet arrived to greet the newcomers. However, it would be the commander of the Earth Kingdom forces-Cholla was his name, who would instantly be recognized as the type to command loyalty and respect, working to coordinate the establishment and distribution of shelter until our own commander, Kiu, eventually did arrive himself.

His coming was marked first, however, by the rushed embrace of Jadoh to meet his comrades from whom he'd been separated for over a month now. He, of course, embraced the closest individual he spotted, that having been Zek.

"For fuck's sake. We thought you'd all been killed on the other side of the sea."

"Aww," Zek responded. "Come on, Jadoh. Amount of times I've kicked your ass in training, you should know I don't go down that easily."

"Only because you have Ka'lira to look after your ass."

"Hey, Jadoh," she nodded to him with a smile.

The greetings continued to be exchanged. From an outsider perspective even, it was easy to tell that they were glad to be back with one another. As much as Jadoh had certainly come to be well-integrated within our freedom fighters, old friends were still old friends. And seeing as how they were with us now, there was no harm in any of it. It was the bonds we shared that made us strong. That's what separates us from them.

"Luke!" Jadoh turned to the boy in question now. Been behaving well?"

"Well as can be expected," he shrugged.

I realized now just how long it had been since I'd seen any of them as well. I couldn't help but think back to my initial encounter with Boss's men—everything that had happened with Luke and Ka'lira. I had wasted no time in apologizing to them for all that had happened there. Kai had been…less eager to admit to his mistakes…but I knew he regretted what had transpired. Still, perhaps it was for the best Kiu was out on a supply raid rather than here to greet the returning family. I knew a good part of him was still bitter about what Boss had done to his arm. While I still did believe Boss's measure had been rather extreme, I would be lying to claim that it hadn't been effective.

Alongside him was a man of similar stature, one who had arrived alongside the other water benders. As such, he bore water tribe attire, but that befitting the foggy swamp tribe. I realized then that I did indeed recognize the man as Karnook—Chieftain of the Revanchist Water Tribe. So they're all here. Everybody of note.

It was by this time that Kiu now appeared, trailing behind Jadoh, a blatant look of relief in his eyes upon seeing all those he had sent out having returned, still in one piece for the most part.

It seemed as though he was about to join in the chorus of greetings, Boss having already turned to face him, before the Earth Kingdom commander stepped in. A big man with a voice befitting his strength, he said, "Wonderful as reunions are, I'm afraid we don't have much time for pleasantries." He turned to Kiu. "You? You Kiu?"

The commander, half the age of Kiu, seemed to take no care in addressing him as an elder, but rather, simply another individual. It was difficult to discern whether it was out of respect, or lack thereof. Kiu, however, did not seem fazes, not resorting to a salute, simply bowing where Cholla had failed to do so, and said, "Yes. That is me. And these are my men around you, as you can see, dedicated freedom fighters of the Nip Sea Separatists. You have already met my second in command. Over there is Jet, a trusted leader of the men here, as I'm sure you will come to learn." I had not been expecting the call out, but I quickly stood to attention at Kiu's reference to me, saluting the commander as I felt appropriate in the moment before Kiu continued, facing Cholla, "And you are the commander of the Earth Kingdom forces here?"

"That's right. It seemed we have no misconceptions of who is who here, then. Good. Then let's get this out of the way. I want you, your 'second in command' here, and these 5 over here up somewhere private. We have business we need to go over."

The 'five' he had referred to were the selfsame five he returned with: Luke, Zek, Ka'lira, Gordez, but somebody else too. Somebody I didn't recognize. She was girl, bit older than I was. Auburn hair, green eyes, and, to be frank, not bad looking at all. Where the hell did they find her? That aside, however, it was difficult not to notice that those he had selected out were only those of Boss's entourage.

As Kiu, seemingly possessing little to not control over the situation, simply followed the Commander along to whatever it was they had in mind, only indicating to me with the cock of his head to follow, a number of those beside me noticeably seemed to carry with them a number of complaints citing 'favoritism' and the like.

"He's known them longer than he's known us," I replied to them, attempting to serve as a voice of reason in a situation that otherwise made no sense.

Of course, simply believing wasn't enough. I would follow, rising into the platforms of the trees, arriving at the war room where I knew Kiu would lead them only to find the door already closed and locked behind them. To my surprise, however, both Ka'lira and the new girl weren't inside, but rather, waiting outside.

"What are you two doing here?" I asked, indeed surprised to see them.

"Oh you know," Ka'lira chimed in, arms crossed where she was leaning against the war room wall. "Earth Kingdom traditions and all. 'Women aren't fit for the war room.'"

The reality did not surprise me. If there was one thing the Earth Kingdom as a whole wasn't famed for, it was its tolerance, even in the most desperate of times. I wasn't prone to disagreeing that women were best left away from the frontlines. That was a man's job after all. However, it'd be foolish of me to claim that we should abandon their use as soldiers during desperate times.

I couldn't help but let loose a chuckle at her attempt to mimic Cholla's voice. She was charismatic, I had to give her that. It made sense for her to have found somebody such as Zek. The two went well together, but I couldn't help but feel rather envious of the man. A woman as attractive as her, it was quite the accomplishment. The other on the other hand, I would be loathe to state that she herself wasn't attractive. Minus the scar across her eye and the clear look of somebody who just went through hell, she wasn't half bad looking. And closer to my age too.

For fuck's sake, Jet. Is now the time? I shook my head, attempting to dispel the thoughts. There were far more pressing matters. Getting to introduce myself without thinking of anything else among them.

And I don't believe we've met," I said, extending a hand to the other red-haired girl. "My name's Jet. I'm with the freedom fighters here."

Despite the care free manner in which she had been presenting herself, it was clear that she had been listening to my exchange with Ka'lira, and thus was quick to react upon my introduction. She turned to face me, noticing my hand, and took it in hers with a shake. "Zare," she responded, as simple as that.

Zare, I pondered, the name stuck in my mind, notably Fire Nation in origin. Who the hell is this woman. I considered asking her such, but almost no time had passed before she turned back away, listening still, I was sure, but seemingly focused on something else entirely.

Not very talkative this one.

I turned to Ka'lira, who had been watching the exchange with bemused interest, prodding for an explanation, only for her to shrug. Hey, I barely know her either, seemed to be her response.

Figuring there was nothing more to accomplish, I shrugged, leaning back against the wall of the war room, trying to see if I could listen in on what was occurring within.

Constructed as it was, I wouldn't be hearing what it was that was being discussed on the other end any time soon. I could only stand sentry at the door, and wait. A closed door meeting like this, it had never been the type of thing we practiced. We were open, transparent, did not hide anything. For that to change so suddenly, it made no sense. The others, my family, they had a right to know just what was happening, just how their lives were being discussed.

I would get no answers where I was, however, and as sneaking inside was out of the picture, I can only stand guard and deal with the hand I was dealt. The only indication I would receive of the tide that conversations were taking was a brief raising of voices, enough so for me to tell that tensions had risen. Just how, I could not say, only that they were.

In time, however, they did, of course, cool down, another few minutes following until the door opened finally, snapping me to attention. Kiu was the first to leave, followed by Boss, and his people in turn, Ka'lira joining Zek as he left, and Luke last behind them. It was upon his exit that Zare herself would retreat from the wall to approach the rest of her comrades, Luke apparently wasting no time in proceeding to elaborate on what had transpired within.

Perfect.

I considered approaching to attempt to learn of what had transpired inside before a firm hand clasped me on the shoulder.

And the last one out of that war room. Commander Cholla.

An immediate cold shiver down my spine-the sort one received at the presence of an unknown presence behind them. A presence one knew not to say 'no' to.

"You're Jet, is that correct?"

"Y-yes, sir."

"Hmm. Kiu mentioned you're a trusted leader of the others here, is that right?" The hand on my shoulder moved, prompting me to turn to face the man as I answered his question.

"Yes, sir. I've been here a while. They've come to trust me."

"You've been here a while, good. Then I have a question for you. Why do you call yourselves the 'Nip Sea Separatists'? Separate from who? The Fire Nation? Earth Kingdom? Both?"

A question I had not been expecting. Far from it as a matter of fact. What is this? A test of my loyalty? Our loyalty? Who am I speaking on behalf of? "We are…loyal to the Earth Kingdom, sir."

"During this conflict, of course. But what of on the grand scheme of things?"

"I…I can't speak for the commander's personal beliefs, sir, but I'm positive that he-"

"Then speak for your own."

"My own-?"

"Your own personal beliefs. Where do your loyalties lie?"

"With the Earth Kingdom, of course, sir."

"Hmm. Of course. Then let me ask again. Where do your commander's loyalties lie?"

"With his home, sir. But his home is the Earth Kingdom."

"I'm afraid not all see it that way. How long have you been fighting, Jet?"

"For 4 years, sir. Since I was 9, when my village was burned to the ground by the Fire Nation."

"4 years." He shook his head, as though disapprovingly, forcing me to wonder if I had answered something wrong, if I had made some mistake, until he continued, "Then you know what it takes to win a war, do you not? How, sometimes, unpleasant deeds must be done to achieve victory?"

What the hell is he getting on to? What is this?

"I'm not…I'm not sure what you're referring to, Commander."

"Do you wish for the Earth Kingdom, for your home to win this war for the Nip Sea, this war that you have been fighting for so long."

"Of course, sir."

"Are you willing to do what must be done to ensure that your home achieves victory here?"

"Of course." Not just me. Speak for the others. You are their voice. Show that you are loyal. "All of us are. We're ready to do whatever needs to be done."

Cholla's hand on my shoulder loosened, then let go. He only looked down on me now, a soft, but satisfied smile painting his face. "Good. Then there's something I need to discuss with you."