Dawn of a New Prince (Star Wars/Avatar Crossover)

Toph held her tongue. She had almost, almost, told Aang the truth. After the last fiasco with Appa--where he had blamed her for the sky bison's kidnapping--she was a little too eager, perhaps, to make sure the same thing did not happen again. But she listened to Sokka's silent request.

She knew it was the wisest decision. They could not stay here. Not for much longer.

Of course, good old Twinkle Toes would probably blow a gasket and hate them once he found out the truth.

Katara helped Aang into the tunnel Toph had started. "I hope they're here soon," she said. "Can't you hear it? The entire base must know we're free."

Aang

"Ok, that's good." Aang replied, giving a sigh of relief. His look of relief transformed to an expression of horror as a very familiar sound, almost like breathing, was heard. He knew without even going back up into his cell who was causing that sound.

"He's here."

Mara

Mara swiftly followed Zareal. She pushed some pursuing agents back with the Force, but that didn't keep them away for long.

"We need to find the Avatar now! We can't face those Dai Li agents and the Sith apprentice with just the Force."

Zahanna

"Maybe. We'll see soon enough. You ready for some action, Ty Lee?" Zahanna asked, turning to the other girl.

Fi

"I am sorry if I have acted hostile to you. I should not have treated you poorly. I...just don't look upon regular humans in the military with much favor. But...you have changed my views, some. You've proven to me you're as brave as any clone I've ever served with." Fi admitted.

"Then we have to go now!" Sokka told Aang with a shiver, pushing the boy into the tunnel that Toph had dug out before following him inside. He turned to the others, "We have to go now. Vader's too dangerous!"

*

"I can't wait! I hope that the Avatar still has that cute guy around..." he told her with a perky grin.

Toph paled. Fear darted across her face, but then she scowled and drew in a tight breath. "You make it sound like a bad thing," she said. "We won't let him beat us."

"Toph..." began Katara.

The small earthbender grunted and pushed out her arm. The ground shook all around them. Two large walls shot up, one on each side of them, and slammed into the ceiling above. They were sealed within a small space, the tunnel just before them, and closed off from the rest of the base.

For now, anyway.

"Sweetness, listen to your brother, and get your rump in gear already!" said Toph. "Get Aang down that freakin' tunnel!"

Katara helped Aang along it, and down into the depths, without another word. Toph followed after her.

Mai

Mai rolled her eyes at Ty lee's comment. "Whatever, lets just get this done before they escape."
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Lilith

"Thank you....I mean...that means a lot to me."

Fi

"You're welcome." Fi replied sincerely. He heard some commotion outside of the room and took a peek outside. He saw Dai Li agents every which way, running to and forth. He frowned and came back inside the room.

"Looks like there's been some trouble. I suppose we need to go suit up, in case we're needed."

Zahanna

"Agreed. Ty Lee? When you see us brandishing our weapons, make sure to get out of the line of fire. Now, Dai Li, where was the Jedi last seen?" Zahanna asked. Once the agent pointed her in the right direction, Zahanna went off.

Aang

Aang quickly got into the tunnel with Katara's help, and began to traveling in it.

"Where exactly is this supposed to take us?"

"I don't know," said Katara. She continued to help Aang walk down the rough tunnel. "Toph didn't say."

"Just keep moving!" shouted Toph, from just behind them. "You'll find out when you get there!"

"Hey! I can fight! I'm not just good-looking, you know!" Ty Lee argued, putting her hands on her hips.

*

Erv frowned as he led a group of Dai Li down a corridor, deciding that the Avatar took priority over the others. In any other situation, he would have appreciated the Dai Li's swift and efficient response, but now he was worried. The Avatar wasn't in his cell and he couldn't find the bald one anywhere. He cursed.

"You! Take a squad and goto the Jedi's cell! We can't let every prisoner escape," he ordered one of the Dai Li, half of his squad following his orders.

*

Sokka nodded in agreement, thinking about what he was going to say to Aang when he found out about his lie. He didn't like doing this, but he couldn't let the others be captured for that monster to torture.

Zareal

"I have an idea," Zareal said at last. "The Bison, where is Appa?" If they could get to Appa, they might be able to bust their way out with his force. He could feel the apprentice slowly gaining on them, despite all the turns they were taking. He tried to search for the bison, who also had a strong connection to the force.

Iroh

"Zuko," Iroh muttered, and for a moment looked like he was gone. He came back and put on a determined face. "That means the metal man is here too. But what is it you want now? From us?"

Azula/Anwar

Azula sat at a booth and clasped her hands together as she looked at her Uncle. "Peasant, why don't you make yourself useful and get us some tea?" Azula asked, earning herself a glare from Anwar.

"No."

Azula sighed in response and shook her head, acting like she was dealing with a petulant child. "Very well then... Uncle I want to make sure that the man in the metal suit is killed. He's a threat to the Fire Nation, as shown by how easily he turned Zuko against us... And of course, the power he demonstrated in the Desert months ago."
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Lilith

"Yeah, you're right." Lilith agreed as she finally stood up. The Girl quickly ripped her clothes off and began to change. Five minutes later, she was back in her Storm Trooper uniform.

Mara

"This way!" Mara declared, heading down a southern corridor. As they swiftly traveled through it, they could both feel a light thumping through the floor. No doubt Appa struggling against his chains, Jade thought.

Zahanna

"You're welcome to use those jabbing move things that Mai told me about to help use fight. However, you've got to make sure we don't shoot you by accident. If the blaster bolt doesn't kill you, it'll make you hurt like hell for quite a while." Zahanna replied to the young acrobat as they traveled the corridors.

Aang

Aang nodded and continued to travel through the tunnel, though he started to wonder what they would do from here on out. After all, Ba Sing Se was under the tight control of Long Feng, and they didn't have very many allies here in the city. Who could they turn to to help take Long Feng (and especially that mechanical man) down?

"Once we find Appa, we probably need to get out of the city. We don't have any allies here to help us fight that mechanical man, Zuko, or Long Feng, and against all their forces combined, we don't stand a chance." Aang said.

Fi

Fi left the room to go back toward his, and quickly changed into his stormtrooper armor. He went back to Lilith's chambers and ducked inside.

"Personally, I have no idea where we should go, but following the largest group of Dai Li agents seems to be the best bet."

"I agree," said Katara. "We need to get out of here as soon as possible. And..." She spared a glance over her shoulder, where Sokka and Toph followed them. "I think we all need some rest."

"If we ever get the chance, I'll eat dirt," said Toph. She pushed past them. "We're almost there, by the way. The end of the tunnel, I mean."

"Good," Sokka commented with a nod as he followed Toph, thinking about what he was going to tell Aang once they were out of the tunnel. He didn't want a repeat with what happened in the Desert. Well, he noted wryly, at least Aang going berserk would help them fight their enemies. He'd just have to hide.

"I'd even eat vegetarian," he muttered.

Zareal

The thumping was getting more noticeable, and he could feel the Bison moving and struggling. "He's just up ahead," he said, the chamber getting closer as they ran. Could they get free before they were caught up with, Zareal didn't know, but he would find out soon enough.

Iroh

Iroh knew Zuko had never sided with his sister, but she wanted to appear sympathetic. He sighed and said, "I would like nothing more than to rid the world of the metal man. He's a threat to life, not to any one nation, but he is too powerful for anyone to defeat."

Toph continued to lead and guide her friends down the tunnel. She could sense the end of it just ahead of her. One easy push of bending, and they would find themselves out and away from the Dai Li base. She did not know exactly where the tunnel came out, other than it felt like a patch of forest, but anywhere was better than the base.

But her exhaustion and wounds were catching up to her. She found it hard to breathe and think clearly. She stumbled forward and almost fell flat on her face.

"Toph!" shouted Katara.

"Toph!" Sooka cried out, in unison with his sister. Instinctively, he stretched out his hands and caught her, his heart thumping in his chest. Vader couldn't have hurt her some other way, could he? Were her wounds worse than he thought? He checked her arm for bleeding.

He looked around the forest, as though he'd find a healer's hut or something.

Azula

"Which is precisely why I am here Uncle. We'll have to work together if we want to take him down." Azula replied. It was true of course. To be honest she would even work with the Avatar and Mai if it meant she could kill the metal man, after what he had done to her....
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Lilith

"Sounds good." Lilith replied as she checked her blaster to make sure that it was still working.

"Sorry..." mumbled Toph. "I'm just... I'm just tired." She held on to Sokka with her good arm as she tried to find her feet again. "I'll be okay, though."

Sokka shook his head, frowning a little. He recognized signs of exhaustion from what his dad told him about it. He spoke, "I'll carry you. Your wounds and all that bending are catching up to you."

He frowned, anticipating her stubbornness and hatred for appearing weak.

"Even the strongest bender needs help sometimes," he pointed out.

Toph did argue, but not in the way Sokka had expected. She shot a glare at his shoulder. It was tempered with worry.

"You're hurt too," she said. "Some of your ribs have to be busted or bruised, 'cause you're having trouble taking in a full breath. And your back is bothering you again, thanks to Vader. You shouldn't have to carry anything at all! It'll just make it worse."

Sokka frowned a bit. He had been hoping that he'd be able to hide his pain from her, but it seemed that her senses hadn't dulled with her own exhaustion.

"But what about you? You're just as hurt, if not worse," Sokka told her, grimacing a little at his own aches and pains.

"I'll live," she said, shrugging. "Don't worry about me. Just look after yourself."

Toph shoved off Sokka and continued on her way.

They soon came to the end of the tunnel. The ground rumbled beneath Toph's feet, and it rose up, taking her with it. She pressed her hand against the low ceiling. Her bending took care of the rest.

Moonlight pored into the tunnel, as did fresh spring air.

Sokka smiled just a little as he emerged from the tunnel, jumping out an collapsing in soft, green grass. He looked around. They weren't anywhere familiar. He could see a large lake close by. That didn' matter though. They were free.

"Did I ever tell you how glad I am to have you on our team?" he asked Toph.

Toph just nodded as she climbed out of the tunnel. She was pale and wan, more tired than she had ever been before.

"We have to keep moving," said Katara. She still supported Aang as they stood away from the tunnel entrance. "This place... It can't be far enough away from them, can it?"

The small earthbender shook her head and pointed at the lake.

"We were... under the lake?" Sokka asked, a bit shocked at the thought before shaking his head and getting up. He had learned over their adventure that benders were incredibly powerful. He wouldn't put it past the Dai Li earthbending a base beneath the lake.

He got up, "Come one. We need to hurry. We have a long way to go," he said.