Book Four: Air

OOC: I am guessing Suki would be wherever Sokka is. As far as Toph knows, they are still on Kyoshi Island. It is entirely up to you when it comes to Hakoda, but as Chief of the SWT, he might be at this meeting or back in the SWT.

And I will add your character to the list, Fire Lord.

Also, I kind of mentioned it in a previous post, but about six months have passed since the end of the War. It is spring, so Toph is about thirteen now.

***

IC: Toph

"Sounds like you finally made it, huh? I was beginning to wonder if you guys hadn't gotten lost, or something."

A pair of soldiers, both dressed in the Fire Nation livery, walked up the dock towards Wuong. They escorted a girl dressed in a fine set of Earth Kingdom clothes. She wore a hakama rather than a dress, so it was obvious she could do some fighting even in the attire of a young noble, if a young male noble.

Toph gave a small bow.

"Welcome to Whaletail Island, Representative Wuong. I'm Toph Bei Fong, and I'll be your escort while you're here."

Which was just a fancy way of saying she was his appointed bodyguard.

Curse your powers of drawing me in, Big T! I simply cannot resist the siren song! I shall have a character up in no time!

OOC: Sounds good, Plague! We'd be glad to have you onboard. Just post the character sheet when you can, and I'll add him or her to the list. ^_^

And my awesome powers are awesome.

Wuong

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Miss Bei Fong. I have heard great things about you. It will be an honor to have you as my guard." Wuong said, bowing. Two of Wuong's own guards stepped off of the ship to join the escort.

IC: Toph

She waved a dismissive hand. "You can call me Toph. On second thought, you'd better call me Toph. None of that "Miss Bei Fong" stuff. It's kind of annoying. Reprentative Wuong," she added, almost as an afterthought.

Toph wasn't trying to be rude, but it was her nature to be a little tactless and outspoken. And she did prefer her name instead of a title. It made her feel more like a person, and not the hidden child of the richest family in the world.

She took in Wuong's own guards. It was her job, after all.

"I can take you to where you'll be staying, if you want. Or, if your hungry, a place to grab something to eat."

Wuong

"Very well, Toph. Please take me to where I will be staying. Tell me, might you know when the meetings start?" Wuong asked. He hoped the meetings would not take long to start. The sooner things were resolved, the better.

NAME: Samanya
AGE: 26
APPEARANCE: http://gordotote.deviantart.com/art/JAGUAR-WARRIOR-COLOR-59822332 (art by the totally awesome gordotote!)
PERSONALITY: Samanya is a normally stoic man thrown into a world of wonders he had never dreamed of. Trusting and gentle, Samanya is quite docile until he feels threatened. Then, he becomes brutal and violent, destroying whatever seeks to harm him with ruthless and savage efficiency.
HISTORY: Born into the Baratta Tribe of the Southern Earth Kingdom, Samanya lived his life isolated from the world just as his people had for many generations. Primitive in most sense, the Baratta tribe simply lived amongst the wildlife and took what it needed from the land. It was a simple, and wonderful existence.

Shortly after the war ended, however, everything changed. Fire Nation colonists discovered one of the tribe’s hunting groups, and were brought back to the village.

The colonists spoke of the world outside the jungles, and of all the strange marvels that existed. The Baratta were amazed and enthralled by the stories, immediately deciding to dispatch men to the far corners of this strange new world, to bring them back the wonders of which the colonists spoke of. Samanya was one of these men. He now wanders the world, seeing the strange sights, and meeting the curious people. His most recent travels have brought him to Whale Tail Island, as there have been strange rumors of a meeting of powerful men. Samanya is determined to see these men, and find out what their talking about.
BENDER (if applicable): Latent Water-bender. (The tribes are of water tribe descent, but have forgotten the ways of water-bending)
WEAPONRY (if applicable): Tribal War Club, Tribal Wood Shield.

I'll have another up soon, if that's alright with you T.

Sokka grinned as his ship approached Whitetail island. It seemed like forever since he saw the others, what with Zuko being Fire Lord, Aang and Katara traveling the world on Avatar business, and Toph staying with Zuko. He was looking forward to seeing everyone again, even if it meant dealing with politics.

"Time to eat, Ozai," called the guard.

The former Fire Lord did not look up from his place in the cell. He was slumped against the back wall, staring down at the stone floor. One might guess he hadn't move since his son came to visit him over six months ago. The guard slid the tray of food into the cell and exited, securing the metal door behind him.

Ozai didn't move for his food. He was tired of it...tired of this...

The sound of door opening a second time did not stir him, although it was unusual for the guard to visit twice a day.

"Fire Lord Ozai?"

The voice wasn't that of a guard, but it still did not even warrent a turning of Ozai's head. He simply continued to stare at the broken floor, and grunted out a reply to his visitor.

"It's Ozai of the Fire Nation..."

His visitor gave a surprised laugh.

"I can't believe it. Has staying in a cell truely taught you humility like your son wanted?"

Ozai only turned his head further away, staring now at the wall he was leaning against.

"What do you want?"

The visitor gave a satisfied grunt.

"But it has not, it seems, taught you manners. I'm surprised; you are tired of being in this cell, yet you're not even trying to get me to release you. I could be your savior for all you know."

Now it was Ozai's turn to give a chuckle, but it was silenced shortely afterward.

"What do I have left?" he asked the visitor.

"My bending has been stolen from me; my honor stripped from me. My Nation has betrayed me; placed my traitorous son on my thrown. And my daugher has lived out her usefullness..."

The visitor moved slightly, by his shadow Ozai could see he was moving closer to the bars.

"You ask me what I want, Ozai," he said, "but the real question is...what do you want?"

Ozai's eyes darted to the corners of his sockets, barely making out the figure of a hooded man.

"I want this to end. I want my thrown back; my bending back...my honor, and I want revenge on those that stole it from me."

There was a satisfied silenece from the visitor before,

"I can give you that."

Ozai now fully turned to face his visitor, eyes slightly wide.

"Give me what?"

He could make out a smile through the darkness of the man's hood.

"A second chance, Fire Lord Ozai."

MAI

"And that is why we propose that-.""Why we propose that...." Mai found herself distracted as she looked up from the letter she was writing. Zuko had left a few days ago to visit Whale Tail Island and had left her in charge, meaning that for Mai almost nothing had physically changed. But emotionally and spiritually, Mai was really, really, really bored.

"That is why we propose that for to be determined amount of seal fat and fur be traded for almost twelve hundred gold piece worth of some of the Fire Nation's finest silk. This would be a profitable agreement for both of our Nations and it could lead to future profitable trades for both of our Nations and People's." The Fire Lady wrote down before looking back up the wall in front of her. At the moment Mai was writing letters requesting trade with the Water Tribes.

"This room is so depressing." Mai commented as she looked at the paintings and murals on the wall. They were currently being repainted with pictures of a map of the entire four nations but one could still see the image of a war torn battlefield leading to Fire Nation victory at the left half of the wall.

"No matter....maybe I'll write a letter to Ty lee, I'm sure she misses me at this point. Hopefully she hasn't kidnapped a child or died or something." The Fire Lady added as she tried to make sure that no one thought that she was writing to her old friend for her own benefit. Of course there was no one there to judge Mai so the added apathy was pointless, but the girl couldn't help but add it.

"But first...the letter." Mai reminded herself with an annoyed sigh as she closed the scroll and put her husband's seal on it. Lady Mai then picked up the paper and walked out of the room, deciding that she migh as well take it to the Hawk carrier tower herself.
-------------------------------------------------------
Aang

It was cold up here, in the sky. The Avatar had been flying with his old waterbending master, now girlfriend, to Whale Tail Island and so far the trip had been a good one. No storms, no birds, no attacks or mobs of people asking for help when they landed at a village. It was just...peaceful, and this made Aang both pleased and slightly disappointed. He had been wanting a small adventure again, a selfish thought he knew, but still a want of his.

The boy looked down over the side of Appa and saw a few islands, but none of them were the destination. "Only a few more hours though, just a few." He reminded himself before turning around to look at Katara, who was the reason why Aang was still enjoying himself up here. "So are you hungry yet!?" He asked, knowing that he would probably receive the same answer he had received five minutes ago but still hoping for a yes so that they could eat.

“2 teas for table 3” One man said followed by another man saying “need 4 more green tea for table 8”.

“I’m going as fast as I can! You can’t push an old man so much” Iroh whined as more of his workers kept putting up more orders.

These days the Jasmine Dragon was very busy. The word of the best tea shop in Ba Sing Se spread quickly by the day. Iroh had many customers, and a little shop. He even put tables in the outside of the shop so it could be easier to handle all the people.

Everything was good for the retired general. His dream had come true, he was living a good life.

Katara

Katara rolled her eyes at Aang's question. "You asked me that 100 times in the last hour. How about I'll tell you when I'm hungry, ok," she suggested. She smiled, it had been nice up here, just her and Aang, and Appa, but he was quiet. With all they'd been doing since the War ended, Katara felt like she never got any time alone with her boyfriend.

"I'm hungry now," she said, as she gave in, since Aang would just keep asking that question.

Aang


The Airbender turned around and smiled at his girlfriend. "So what do you want to do for food? We could have some of the leftovers I guess, or, we could go down to one of those islands and explore them so we can find food there." Aang said as he tried to make the latter option sound more appealing. He had never been on the Crab-eyed cluster of islands but he had heard they were a very beautiful place, and that they were the home to the only known family of Otter-whales.

The Avatar was pretty sure they would make an excellent picnic area, and could provide a bit of fun if they decided to go looking for the Otterwhales as well.

Suki

"Looking forward to seeing the others, are you?" Suki asked as the ship reached closer to the island. It had been a long time since the whole group had been together, and Suki knew Sokka would be looking forward to seeing his friends and family again. If memory served correct, Hakoda would arrive there too. Suki gave Sokka a light peck on the cheek.

Sokka grinned at Suki happily. Things had been good since the war ended. He got to spend more time with Suki and got to train more with the sword. The only thing he missed was his space sword and his friends. He spoke, "Yep. How about you, Suki. I think Ty Lee might be here too." He smiled at her teasingly.

Katara

"Well... we shouldn't spend too much time goofing off, we have to get to Whaletail Island... but what the heck, let's go down to the islands," Katara said. Truth be told she didn't want to hurry up and get back to business either, or eat leftovers.

Zuko

"Fire Lord Zuko, we should be at Whaletail Island within the hour," a member of the crew of Zuko's ship informed him. Zuko nodded in response, thinking about the upcoming meeting. He had known that rebuilding a war torn world wouldn't be easy, but he had hoped that the nations might be able to reason. Apparently, that was not the case, no one seemed to be able to agree on anything, and Zuko had to argue for what his nation needed, while still trying to maintain peaceful relations with everyone else.

IC: Toph

"Well, if the schedule doesn't fall apart, the council comes together tomorrow," said Toph. She easily led Wuong through the streets of Lo Shan. "You've got a full day to rest, Representative."

They came up to the largest building of Lo Shan. The island's richest resident lived here, and had kindly offered to share his home with the arriving ambassadors. The meeting itself would take place in the city hall, which was right across the street from the large mansion.

A walk wound through gardens in the front of the building. The guards stationed there allowed Toph and the others through. A large foyer, surrounded by open balaconies of separate landings and floors, opened up before them. They walked up a winding staircase to the second floor.

To the right, and down the hall, they came to a room. Toph opened it and nodded.

"This is your pad, Representative Wuong. Thanks guys," she added, grinning at the guards. "You can go grab yourselves some sake now."

"As you wish, Lady Toph," said the superior. He and the men left Toph and Wuong to themselves.

Toph walked with Wuong into the chambers. It was spacious, with a bedroom suite and a sitting area, as well as a bathroom. Toph shut the door behind them.

"You probably already know this," she said, without preamble. "But I'm not just your escort here. Fire Lord Zuko asked me to watch out for you. Death threats have a way of putting people on edge."

Suki

"It will be good to see Ty Lee and the other girls again. The Kyoshi Warriors have been so busy these days, helping to rebuild in the Earth Kingdom. Though no offense to Ty Lee, but she is a bit too clingy." Suki said. The ship arrived at the docks of Whale Tail Island.

Wuong

"I'm not surprised. People in the Fire Nation will not want to hear what the colonists want. And there are those who would be glad to see the head of the Fire Nation dead, even if the war is over." Wuong agreed. He bowed in thanks once more.

"Thank you for protecting during this time, Toph. I am most gracious."

"Tell me about it," Sokka muttered. The acrobat had tried to get as much of his attention as possible. Thankfully, she realized it wasn't smart to flirt with her commanding officer's boyfriend. He stepped down on the dock, "So, where are we supposed to meet the others?"

IC: Toph

She shrugged. "Don't mention it. It gives me something to do, at least." Toph returned his bow with one of her own. "I won't let anything happen to you, Representative. Not on my watch."

Toph made for the door.

"I'll go ahead and let you unpack, rest, whatever. If you need me, just call."

She left him and, out in the hallway, stretched her arms and yawned.

Even with threats, she doubted much of anything would happen.

***

IC: ?

"Why are we here?"

The Fire Nation man grinned. His teeth were stained and crooked, but his eyes were lively. He glanced at his companions: a Water Tribe woman, an Earth Kingdom former soldier, a young woman who was also a native of the Earth Kingdom, and a fellow Fire Nation man.

"Why, we're meeting with a client, dear," he said, nodding at the Water Tribe woman. "Chap said he'd meet us here."

"Here" was a catina on the southern coast of the Earth Kingdom. It was busy this time of day, and nearly all the tables were taken. Even the bar was full. But the Fire Nation man led his team through the crowd for a cubicle set off from the rest of the catina. There were several of these small booths, and they were used for private meals and, though no one said so, private conversations.

"Ah, you're here." He nodded at their possible employer.

?

A cloaked man sat at one of the tables, a cloaked woman beside him. He motioned for them all to take a seat.

"Good, you are all here."

Wuong

"Thank you again, Toph." Wuong said as she left. He began to unpack his things. Hopefully, things would go well. It was foolish to think so though. The Fire Lord would not take well to the colonists wishes. Still, he hoped that they would not have to seek war to gain their independence.

"Hear that buddy? Looks like it's time to land." Aang told Appa anxiously with a hint of joy after Katara decided that eating on the Island was fine.
The Skybison slowly lowered down through the clouds before circling over one of the larger more fertile looking islands. Aang quickly jumped off right before Appa landed and hit the ground before looking back up at Katara and extending his hand to help her down, a bright smile on his face.

IC: Fire Nation man

"Don't mind if I do."

The man sat first, and was followed by his companions. They now sat around a small, square table, with the unknown employer at the head. The Fire Nation native bowed his head in a brief greeting, and then flashed his nasty smile again.

"So, what's this job you got for us? I can promise you this. Whatever it is, we'll get it done."

***

IC: NPC soldier

"Welcome to Whale Tail Island, Master Sokka, Lady Suki."

A soldier, accompanied by two more, bowed from nearby.

"I am here to escort you to your rooms at the governor's palace."

OOC: T accepted him via PM.

--------

IC: Samanya

"What on earth is that?"

"Who let him wander around on his own?"

"Who thought savages still existed nowadays."

These words seemed the follow him wherever he went in this odd world. His ocean blue eyes flickered with amazement as they took in the strange sights of the port town, and if one looked closely, they might catch a glimpse of the feral gleam lurking in the dark depths.

His sheild and club were fastened into place on his back, blending almost flawlessly with his war paint. The head of a Jaguar Constrictor covered the majority of his head, revealing only his face between it's jaws. Coming to a stop, the towering man stared at the boat that had just come into port, his eyes wide with amazement. "So big." His voice was gentle, and one could easily detect the unhidden awe that laced his words.

Katara

Katara took Aang's hand and slid down the bison, steadying herself as she landed. "So, shall we go," she asked, gesturing toward the town. She hadn't been around these islands before, it felt like another adventure, back when the Fire Nation was still their enemy.