Hostage

Zaya and Bumi were at the commanders' tent planing a method of saving the future royal scream queen. "It will take four days until the generals can reach us and two until the avatar arrives. So far we're facing a group of raiders that have formed into militia with the help of general shin and two unknown individuals." Bumi was the first to ask.

"How do we know they aren't part of the militia?" Luton threw a few pictures toward the table. "Wow, cameras can take a picture in an instant now?" He exclaimed before seeing the man in the suit and the woman in work clothes and a mask. "They're the ones paying for this right?" Luton sighed.

"No, the one in the suit took down an airship, he bent a needle through a window into the controls! We were lucky the crew landed the ship before any real damage could be, Now we believe them to be highly trained mercenaries. The merchants of war were thousands of them during the hundred-year war, mostly worked for the earth nation. The money ran out and they disappeared into the shadows. So we can't near them because they dug themselves in, they build a fort around themselves and they seem to have brought enough supplies to last them weeks!" He yelled with rage as this would be the biggest mission and he needed to finish it before the avatar or the generals came, not because he wanted fame or be promoted but because he knew that shin would already have dug an escape route by the time the avatar came.

Zaya looked at the map. "How about breaking their focus?" Luton turned to Zaya. "If we send multiple airships and send all our ground forces, they will be forced to place all their attention on this attack, while we have a small unit infiltrate and retrieve the hostage." Luton smiled because it meant he could get kill two flies with one strike, prove that his concept works, and save the queen.

"Or we could just launch boulders at the walls." Sergeant mo and then all the sergeants and corporals saw the mad grin spreading on the oldest son of the avatar.

"How about we launch those boulders with the team rescue inside, to save the princess and during the attack?" Everyone in the room went silent staring at the mad man.

In a house that was built less than a few hours ago. The man in the suit took out an Odhner Calculator placed it on a table from a suitcase next to which was a gold/brown powder. The clinging noises came from the calculator, as he did the costs and losses, while the masked woman was eating dinner. "How much is it?"

Looked at the woman. "We are looking at 2,000,000 yuan winning for this operation." He said to the water bender. "But sadly there hasn't been an opportunity to test the wolfsbane."

She nodded. "It's great when you monopolize the entire mercenary business huh? you don't even need to worry about money." He nodded continued his calculations.

Then shin came running. "They're attacking!" The two didn't show any concern. "What are you going to do about it?!" The man in the suit carried a second suitcase, walking out of the house. He bent the earth to launch up to the wall and he looked at the tanks and bent the powder compressed it into a cube, before launching it a tank which on contact exploded. The tank tracks were broken, and people who were standing next to it had a ringing in their ears as they looked around bewildered "What was that?!"

The man in the suit looked at the general. "Years of calculation and precise mixing of chemicals, leading to the creation of an explosive powder substance. Bendable, easily transported, and highly reactive." They saw the tank unmoving and broken. "Now to rain years of work." He Created multiple cubes launching them at the tanks and clusters of soldiers causing many to create defensive walls or be ripped apart.

Shin stared at the destruction this one man lead it was horrific, but that was the reason the man in the suit was here, to destroy. "Who are you?" Shin asked wishing to know the name of such a monster.

The man in the suit looked at the general. He saw an emptiness, no greed, no ego, no beast, he was simply fulfilling orders. "Most of my partners simply call me the chemist." He took out two test tubes with a liquid and clay caps. He launched the tubes at the airships, in a few seconds they started losing altitude. "Acids, simple method of taking those waste of materials down." He smiled as the entire army halted after launching some boulder over the wall.

The general watched with horror, the army was retreating. Not in his year in the military has the one man, made an entire army flee, this explained why hiring them to cost so much! They were fast, efficient, ruthless, and prepared. "Why hasn't your order taken over this cursed world?" He spoke with malice toward the Shaga member.

"Simply because we have no wish to rule the world, if we did, it would be a dictatorship; with leaders only focusing on increasing wealth, instead of the well-being of the people. We are monsters and we know that, why should monsters like us rule this world?" That shocked the general, he presumed they didn't rule the world because they had control from the shadows or some other mad Conspiracy, this chemist wasn't power hungry or controlling, he just wanted to be. "My partners simply wish to exist and increase our knowledge of this beautiful world. Yet nothing in this world is free." The chemist still spoke in a dead monotone even then the general heard the hint of sadness in his voice.

Night came which lead to Zaya's team breaking out of the boulders like worms from an apple. "I love Bumi, but his ideas feel like flipping a coin that either gives you an ice cream or explodes on your hand." Mo nodded looking around as the moon not showing its face, would be a bad time to be a water bender. Aki and landslide were with them and they sneaked through the fort.

Mo looked at the two knuckleheads. "Why did we take them?" Mo asked before the landslide buried two of the rebels and Aki took care of another two with little effort. "Point taken." They changed clothes with the unconscious guards. Zaya walked through the fort being on run thought her how to be discreet, but her partners weren't as good.

"Stop looking around! You just need to move your eyes, you look suspicious." They nodded before the chemist stepped in front of them. "We're just heading to the princess." Zaya didn't look into the man's eyes, mostly because she had her mother's eyes and then the chemist looked into the fire bender's eyes.

They both shared a glare before he nodded and left them. "Tell Javan she can take a break from scaring the princess." The chemist pointed toward the heavily guarded house. They all followed the directions and walked into the house was freezing, the princess was shivering.

Zaya looked at the masked woman eating ice cream. "Javan, you can take a break from scaring the princess." She nodded and left the house. At which Aki started a fire close to the princess to warm her. "We need to start digging, the attack will start once I give the signal," Zaya said looking around. "Block the door and prepare a dragon wall." They did as told and then a needle flew through Zaya's cheeks.

She laid on the floor three teeth shattered bleeding and the world silent. For a moment she was back in her childhood when everything was so much easier and didn't make her feel like she was a walking mistake. Azula brushing her hair but something was wrong, Zaya looked at her mother and she couldn't remember her face. Zaya had been on her own for years, the only family she had were at the circus well jin was more the odd uncle who keeps asking for money. She was alone here and death was trying to take her, but he couldn't she had survived being homeless! She survived fighting against pirates! and she wouldn't let a single needle through the cheeks let that jerk death win!

He woke up seeing that had only been a few second. Her thump and index formed flames which used to cauterize the wounds. "Create a dome around us!" She spat out the blood. "Make sure it's impenetrable!" They nodded seeing her easily getting back up. After the dome was build she sat down. "Sergeant you're the commanding officer, I need to sleep." She was about to fall asleep but was slapped by the sergeant.

"No ma'am! You're not dying here! You will lead this mission and have a drink with us got it?" She sighed standing up.

"You're ruining my nap, fine but have to pay." She looked at the wall as a funnel formed she released a gigantic Fire.

Outside of the house multiple earth benders ran away from being burned alive as a massive blue flame escaped from a wall.

The chemist watched at the flames. Winter sighed. "We really need different codes." The chemist looked at the water bender.

He noticed the humming and multiple tanks moving toward them.

"Winter, I don't know why we would need." Again he spoke with no emotion or tone. "Did collect everything with value?" She showed him the jewels the princess was wearing. "This was a rewarding exercise, with no issues. I hoped the product would be less reactive."

"I don't understand your stance on not killing, I mean we're mercenaries! Our job-killing for money." Winter told the chemist.

"You catch more flies with honey. Plus this was a weapons test, not an actual mission."

Winter sighed. "We could've used our own tanks."

"It was either: damage our own assets and endanger our personal or use a pointless military with little, to no experienced troops?" She pouted even though he was right.

"How about I make us a nice meal? After we're back at a safe house." He bent a pillar out of the ground that tilted west. Multiple soldiers saw the mercenaries on top of the pillar with their feet inside it. "Tell the general our contract has been terminated." The pillar was launched out of the ground flying past the mountains.

Shin was relieved and furious but then a tank rammed through the wall and airships were releasing explosives. "Damnit! Damn the spirits, why have you let this happen to our nation!" He asked falling to the floor crying as he was surrounded.

A day before.

"A night attack, once Zaya gives a signal, and attack will start. The new moon will hide the troops and once we have the hostage protected. While you destroy the militia we will keep her safe." Luton listened to Bumi explaining his plan further.

"Do we all agree?" Some no come but the majority agreed. "Good, take your best men and prepare for a bumpy ride." Zaya sighed and mo sighed.

Currently

The princess of the earth nation was crying into Zaya's chest. "You will be fine, those explosions are just the bad people leaving." The seven-year-old sniffed. "No one will hurt or scare you."

She kept crying in Zaya. "I want my mother! I want my servants! I want to go home and be safe!" Zaya hugged her tighter but not enough to cause the poor girl more pain.

The fighting and then the bombardment stopped. "Looks like you will be going home soon." The earth princess smiled

Landslide made a peephole. "The troops are here." He bends an opening causing multiple fire benders to attack until Zaya blocked and generated a fire to prove she wasn't one of the rebels.

"The princess Lu-Ming is safe!" the seven-year-old came out of the cave still afraid of multiple armored soldiers, she hid behind the fire bender who was the only protection there. Zaya saw Bumi and smiled at him because he didn't notice scares on first look. "Get some healers here right now and." She Ordered before unconsciousness took over and she fell to the ground.

Bumi ran catching her before she hit the ground. "Zaya? ZAYA! Get some healers here right now! Zaya stay with me!" She groaned and was so tired.