Chapter 3 - Midnight Council

II
 
Midnight Council
 
“Come in.” Zuko sighed rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, three weeks prior he had turned seventeen, making him an adult according to his own people.  Among the crew he was treated as one, but his Uncle, still seemed to think he was a boy.  And so when General Iroh stepped through the door, The first two thoughts to cross Zuko’s mind was to wonder what he wanted, and to marvel that Uncle Iroh had knocked at all.
            “Good you are awake nephew.  It seems we have unexpected visitors.  Admiral Ishi has pulled along our ship and requested an audience with us.”
            “Well why wasn’t I woken earlier!” Zuko demanded.
            “Because nephew.” Iroh Sighed.  “If you had been asleep the meeting could have been postponed till morning.  As it is I will not get to finish my evening tea!”
            Zuko nodded. He had no real wish to converse with Admiral Ishi at the moment; in fact, Zuko was convinced the man was a toy to his sister. True he had liked Ishi in his younger years, but in the months leading up to his banishment, things had begun to change. Whispered rumors, and sightings of the man doing things only his sister could have wanted done, had been enough to convince him.  “Uncle how far are we from Fire nation waters?”
            “Far enough that you need not fear arrest.”
 “Alright,” Zuko muttered, “I’ll be ready in a moment.  He began pulling on his cloths, pausing only long enough to tie up his hair before heading up on deck.
 
            It was the dead of night.  They sky was nearly pitch black.  The shadow that covered the deck of the ship was riddled with deeper shadows.  The only light around seemed to be that which came from the full moon its halo of light stretching to give everything an eerie glow. 
            Admiral Ishi stood on the deck of his own ship waiting as his men placed a boarding plank across the railings. “His ship?” Zuko asked.
            “He insisted.”  As they crossed the plank Zuko was incredibly grateful for the breeze that blew around him, cooling his face.  They were lead below into a rather dark cabin lit with candles.  To Zuko it seemed like a giant box.  Had he been in a better mood he would have notice the tapestries were made of the finest silk, that the table and chairs that took up most of the space in the room were extremely well crafted, and the dishes on the table . . . those were Earth kingdom silver.  Perhaps, had they met under different circumstances, Zuko would have been able to enjoy the Admiral’s hospitality.
            The Admiral him self was a tall skinny man.  He was graying at the temples, and the rest of his hair appeared to be thinning.  His features were long; in fact his face uncommonly resembled that of a horse.  How he had ever married Zuko was unsure.  But Ishi’s son had been something like a friend of his growing up.
 
            Admiral Ishi motioned for them to sit and began removing covers from various dishes.  “Pork,” he said passing one to them.  “Chicken, and fresh fruit.
“Delicacies I’m sure they must seem to you.  You can’t have eaten much except fish for the past couple of years.”
Zuko scowled and shifted in his chair.  The truth was Ishi was right.  While fruit was readily available in nearly every port, the other two dishes placed before him were prepared in such a way, that Zuko knew on sight that he hadn’t tasted their like since leaving home.
“Come on, eat up.  It’s the very least I could do for waking you up in the middle of the night.”  Zuko had the gut feeling that this comment was meant more for his Uncle rather than himself, though he couldn’t put his finger on why. Admiral Ishi began filling his own plate, and Zuko, assuming it was safe, did the same.
Uncle Iroh waved the offer away.  “Do you have any ginseng tea? It’s my favorite.”
            The tea was produced along with a pitcher of wine for the Admiral and Zuko.  Once again Zuko waited until Ishi had filled his own glass.  He was accustomed to wine occasionally, and as his uncle raised no objection, Zuko slowly sipped at it.
 
            “Admiral Ishi might you tell us why we are here?” Uncle Iroh asked.
            “Ah yes, you see I need you to watch a prisoner for me.”
            Zuko burst out laughing and Ishi frowned at him.  “I’m in exile, considered a failure.  My Uncle is under suspicion, and yet you want us to take a prisoner for you?  Why?”
            “It will only be for a month or two,” Ishi scowled, “And you, young prince, do not make the mistake of thinking you are my first choice!  It was requested that this particular man be removed from the sight of a man I intend to entertain.  You prince Zuko are the only one with nothing important to do in the current vicinity!”
            “Who?” Zuko asked.
            “What?”
            “Who are you entertaining?”
            Ishi’s eyes gleamed with pleasure in the candlelight, “your father.”
            “Explain to me Admiral,” General Iroh interrupted, “why we should do this.  There is after all a fire nation base on the nearby island of . . .”
            “I did try to make this easy on you!” Ishi snapped walking around the table pulling a piece of paper out of his pocket as he went.  “I wanted to make it seem as though you’d be doing me a great favor . . . But you just had to make things difficult, Prince Zuko.
            “I have orders signed and sealed from the Fire Lord himself.  You’ll have the charge of this prisoner, and you’ll keep hold of him, or you’ll be charged with treason, again!”
            “Very well Admiral,” Zuko muttered, if that is what my father requires of me, than it will be done.”  He remembered now that Ishi had always had a temper, and the man tended to become completely irrational when disobeyed.  Now was not the time to test him.
“Good!” Ishi snapped his fingers and a solder came into the room.  “See to it that the prisoner is brought to their ship, and make it quick!  I want to be out of here as soon as possible!”
 
It was some time before they actually returned to their own ship.  Just when Zuko thought they were about to leave, his Uncle decided that he did want some of the food Ishi had offered.  Zuko was forced to sit and listen to their conversation suffering from a great deal of agitation.  He wanted to get back to bed!  General Iroh however, had decided that this was as good a time as any to be brought up to speed with the war.
            The conversation ended with a rather long monologue, given by Admiral Ishi who was either greatly exaggerating, or greatly understating his own involvement.  Zuko was at a loss to tell which, but something Ishi said did catch his ear.
            “My father is going to what?”
            “The comet at the end of the summer brings great power.” Ishi continued completely ignoring Zuko.  “With it we can crush the Earth kingdom.”  Zuko bit his toung to stop from voicing an opinion which would surly cause trouble, but there was no need.  Uncle Iroh said it.
            “If my brother thinks he can do this, than he is a fool!  If the smallest thing goes wrong he could destroy his own people, rather than the Earth kingdom.
            “You will tell him I said so.”  Admiral Ishi nodded his assurances and Iroh rose to his feet.  “Come Zuko, it is time we were on our way.”
 
***
            It was past midnight by the time Zuko found himself on his own ship, with Ishi sailing safely into the distance.  Even now he wasn’t going to get any sleep, there was a reason Ishi had asked him to play guard, and Zuko was determined to find out the truth behind it.
            There was a knock on the door and the prisoner was escorted in by his uncle.  “I too would like to hear what this man has to say.”  The prisoner standing before Zuko was obviously a water tribesman.  Everything about him spoke of it.  His dark skin, the heavy clothes, even the sealskin boots proclaimed him to be one of their number.  But there was something different about this one, a familiarity Zuko was uncomfortable with.  This man was very like the two fools who ran around with the Avatar, but he was much too young to be their father . . . a close cozen perhaps?
 
Zuko stood, cut the man’s bonds, and motioned for him to sit. “Here, Eat.” He said handing the man a bowl of fish stew that had been brought up earlier.  “I’ll not have you starved.  The man looked at him sighed, than did as he’d been told, eating slowly as so not to spill.
            “Now,” Zuko said sitting down across from him.  “Who are you?”
            The man swallowed, bits of gravy dribbling into his beard, and scowled, “why should I tell you?”
            “Because if you do,” Zuko replied leaning forward slightly, “you will be treated as a guest during your time here as opposed to a prisoner.”
            Uncle Iroh grunted in surprise.  Of all things that could happen this night, his nephew was offering to treat a water tribesman as a guest . . .
            The prisoner nodded, “My name, is Kahlil.”
            “Why do you fight the Fire Nation?” General Iroh asked.
            “Why does any one fight you.” Kahlil retorted.
            “Just answer the question!” Zuko snapped.
            “At the time it seemed like the right thing to do.  We all left, all the men, my nephew was furious at not being able to accompany us, but he was too young.  I envy him sometimes.”
            “At the time?”
            “I was captured about a year ago.  I’ve been in the Admiral’s jail cells for almost all of that time.”
            “You’re hinting at a betrayal?” Zuko was a bit shocked, he’d heard of earth kingdom trading in information, but never a member of a water tribe.”
            “No!” Kahlil said earnestly, “It is not my people he wanted to know about, so it is not betrayal.  He only threatened to take . . .”
            “To take what?”
            “Admiral Ishi came to my cell several months ago claiming that two water tribe children were accompanying a boy believed to be the new Avatar.  He wished to know about them.
            “I told him I could tell him nothing with out names.  The descriptions I was given at the time could have been any child of either the northern or southern tribes.”
            “And?” Zuko prompted
            “A week later he had the names.  The Admiral knew enough about my background to guess who they were by my reaction.  When I refused to tell him anything he grew angry, he said I would come to regret that decision.”
            “Then several weeks ago he came to me again. He claimed that he had captured the children although the Avatar had escaped.  He said that unless I helped him Sokka and Katara would be . . .”
            “What he failed to tell you,” Zuko interrupted, “is that they too, escaped less than a day later!”  Kahlil’s face grew hopeful.
            “What were you to do?” Uncle Iroh asked.
            “He wants me to report to him everything the prince does or says . . . I think you will be charged with treason whether I escape or not.”
            “On who’s orders?” Iroh asked.
            “I don’t know.  I only know what I’ve over heard.”
            “Again, treason . . . ” Zuko mused.
            “He said,” Kahlil replied, “He said that he thought you were going to try and teach the Avatar fire bending.”
            “WHAT!”
            “I’m only repeating what I’ve heard!” Kahlil said holding up his hands defensively.  “If the Avatar learns fire bending to the degree that he can challenge the Fire Lord in open combat and wins, than the entire war can be ended.  We can have peace again!” Kahlil was in earnest now.
            “Treason?” Uncle Iroh muttered ignoring the other man.
            “Why should you even care Uncle?” Zuko growled, “I’ve nothing more to loose, I’ve already lost my honor.”
            “Lost your . . .”
            “My nephew was exiled for directly defying his father.” Iroh explained, “he voiced several opinions that were not appreciated at the time.  Mainly to do with preserving the lives of our troops”
            “And I failed.”
            “There is no failure in honoring life!” Kahlil said, “no you have not lost honor.  You have what you have always had, more even.”
 
            “He’s going to say I was teaching the Avatar?” Zuko asked referring to the earlier conversation.
            “Yes.  I don’t understand it myself, the Avatar must have years yet to learn fire bending.”
            “Uncle see him to a comfortable chamber and tell the guards to give him anything he desires.”  Kahlil rose, but turned.
 “There is one more thing.  The Admiral seems to take quite seriously the advice of a girl who frequently visits him.  I believe she may be a passenger.  I have never seen her, but her advice it is taken as a command.”  He then fallowed General Iroh out, leaving Zuko with his own thoughts.
 
            He paced the room for awhile, voices echoing through his head He paced the room for awhile, voices echoing through his head
‘The entire war could be ended!’ one way or another it would be soon enough
‘Destroy his own people’[/i] not likely, not with his father controlling the power.
‘Can crush the Earth Kingdom’[/i] Zuko sighed what could he possibly do about it anyway?
‘Charge you with treason’[/i] he had already lost his honor.
‘There is no failure in honoring life . . .’[/i] his uncle was right about the comet.
Thousands of people would die either way.  Was there anyway that the Fire nation could truly end this war?  There would always be rebel groups, fatalities from those who disagreed with the ruler’s methods.  Comet or Avatar . . . neither way would the war truly end.  And even if the avatar could save things, he didn’t have the years Kahlil thought he had.  He barely had four months.  And the girl the man had mentioned, there was no doubt in Zuko’s mind that his sister was some how involved
 
Sighing Zuko went back to his bed.  His throat was a bit soar, due no doubt to lack of sleep and cold air.  It would probably be gone in the morning.

 

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