Note: Thank you for clicking, and thank you for showing interest in my work. I hope you enjoy.
I first started this project back in 2012 when I was given the plot request for Lu Ten to be captured instead of killed at Ba Sing Se, and then later rescued during Aang and the group's time in the city. I made it a good ways in, before the project had to be cancelled for various reasons. But I am back, ready to have a second go at this and hoping that ya'll will bear with and support me as I attempt this.
This is written specifically for every person who has commented reminding me that I cannot just abandon something that I started. This is for you all, and all the support you guys gave when I was silent.
Disclaimer: I do not in any way shape or form own Avatar the Last Airbender. Never have. Never will.

-oOo-
-oOo-
-oOo-

The shadows inside Ba Sing Se's walls shifted as men moved through them. They moved like ghost. Many people believed them to be so. They were the dark, dangerous creatures behind the absences late at night. No one spoke on those rumors. No one dared to breathe a word against the cities great protectors. They wanted it that way.

"We have confirmation on the Dragon, sir." Dai Li agent Ichiro's ears picked up the voice; rough and low, coming from the silhouette hidden in the shadows. The man lifted his eyes as the man stepped from the dark alley, his face hidden under the shade of his down casted helmet.

"Excellent" Ichiro kept his grin in check as the young man slipped back into the shadows. He crossed his arms behind his back as he silently glided down the streets of the lower ring of Ba Sing Se. Frightening silhouettes danced at his feet from the light of the full moon, his shadow casting menacing shapes against the closed up houses as he moved with the sound of a ghost.

On the other side of the Outer Wall, the Fire Nation army was pushing farther, closing the city off from any outside contact. The campaign was threatening the life for those inside the walls. It was threatening Ichiro's hold over the city and over the king. He had enough to deal with, and an advancing Fire Nation army was not making it any easier on him.

-oOo-

Lu Ten cut through the collection of men, his focus on his father's tent. A rage was building inside him as he pushed the flaps open. Officers Hiroshi and Katsu, as well as Lu Ten's father lifted their gaze at the entrance of the young soldier. While the elder prince smiled tensely at the presence of his son, the other two merely stifled their frowns.

"We need to talk father," Lu Ten spoke, directing his gaze onto the man at the head of the small table. "It's important."

Iroh chuckled. "Everything is important to you, my son."

"This is of upmost importance." Lu Ten protested.

General Iroh muttered a few hushed words to the other men. They exchanged glances before submitting to superior orders. The stood, bowing to both princes before stepping from the tent. Lu Ten could hear them muttering something beyond the tent flap.

"I am sorry, father. I thought you were alone."

"It is alright. We were wrapping up anyway. Now my son," Iroh rose slowly from the table, a warm smile on his lips, "what seems to be the problem? I did not get the chance to ask you earlier how Mullen was."

"It was fine," responded Lu Ten. "Report was filed this morning."

"The rebels?"

"Just rumors. That's not what I wished to discuss though."

Iroh sighed, shifting through a stack of papers. "What seems to be on your mind?"

"The Rough Rhinos? Have you heard what they have been doing?"

Iroh sighed. "I have heard rumors."

"They aren't rumors. Father, I have seen for myself what those men are doing. It's horrible."

"It's war Lu Ten."

Lu Ten's lips tightened as he looked at his father. He placed his hand on the stack of papers, preventing his father from looking at them further. "I don't mean to be disrespectful, but you don't seem to understand. Father, those men are vile. They are setting villages alight for not reason."

"I am sure there is more to the situation than you know. And it really is not yours to worry about." Iroh pinched the bride of his nose, looking at his son. This wasn't the first time he had needed to discuss the horrors of war with his son, but he had hoped by now that the young man would learn to accept them. Blood was spilled, there was nothing that could be helped.

Understanding that his son was not going to let this matter slide, Iroh simply smiled. "But I will discuss with General Zhang concerning their conduct."

"Thank you, father."

"Was there anything else you wished to discuss?" Iroh asked. From the look on the young prince's face, Iroh already knew the answer.

"I don't wish to speak out of turn," the young male spoke, "but I have to wonder father, how many more lives must be given? How many more innocents must die before this is over."

Frowning, Iroh placed a hand on his son's shoulders. The young man had just celebrated his twenty second, but he still looked so young in his father's eyes. There was still a spark of innocents that Iroh wished would remain. But that innocents bordered on naivety in too many cases.

"I know it must be hard to understand, but what we are doing here is important. We are bettering the lives of all involved."

Lu Ten looked away, not daring to look his father in the eye. "You can't better the lives of people who are dead, father."

Iroh squeezed his son's shoulder. He knew there was nothing he could do to talk his son through these thought. It was almost a passage of right for those at war. Iroh himself had come to similar terms during his first few years at war. He had quickly understood that the bloodshed and loss of life would be worth it in the end.

Lu Ten was still working through those thoughts. Iroh just hoped the boy would work through them quickly.

-oOo-

The night moon soon set from the sky as early dawn took the land. Ichiro watched with trained eyes from his location at the topmost tower of the outer wall as the encampment outside his walls slowly rose with the morning sun. Fire Nation soldiers bustled about, oblivious to the deep glares of detestation that heated the outer wall.

As the morning rose, Dai Li agents quickly filtered around the pathways carved into the top of the wall, and took their positions, unseen and unknown by the enemy soldiers below them. Silent as a bird of prey, they waited for their signal to strike without mercy and remorse.

Ichiro's eyes followed the aging General's movements through the scoop. Dark brown eyes stayed trained on the man as the Fire Nation Prince moved about his routine day. It would be another few hours before the general would order his men back towards the base off the wall.

Impatience rose in him as the Dragon of the West stayed in the large tent at the center of the camp. The wait turned to hours as no changes were made in the enemy's lines.

When the prince finally left his tent, hand on the shoulder of a young solider, and calling attention to him, Ichiro lowered his scoop. He raised a hand, shifting his wrist in a signal.

He watched as the mass of red began funneling into formatting. His own agents were moving into position. They stood before Ichiro – young and old men all ready to give their lives in stopping the incoming forces. They looked at him, dark shadows cast upon their face from their helmets. The man had to smile at that loyalty.

"We stand together, the first line of defense against the savages that dare attack our homes," Ichiro shouted over the rushing wind. The Dai Li agents stood still as stone against the breeze which passed before them. "I pray to the spirits that we are also the last. That we are the last front that must fight to protect this city."

A grunt of agreement ran through the men.

Ichiro smiled tightly. "I am aware that most, if not all of you, were looking forward to killing as many hot heads as possible today. But there is an added focus that must not be missed."

The men did not speak against, but a spark past through many of their eyes.

"I assure you," Ichiro continued, "that you may still knock as many Fire Nation heads together as you wish. But with this mission we have another goal. The Dragon of the West has finally showed his face to us. He is marching alongside the front. He is our main target. Kill as many of those damn firebenders as you wish, bring back any prisoners you can, but the General must be one of those to fall here tonight. He falls, so does the army. Our freedom, our homes, our families rely on the death of the Great Butcher."

An echo of understanding followed.

-oOo-

Among the burning ground Lu Ten just couldn't find the desire. He moved through the motions, flames trailing from under his nails and across the ground. He watched an elderly earthbender drop to his knees, a victim of the flames.

Screams of pain and rage danced through the air around him. It made Lu Ten sick to hear. He knelt beside a young man in red. Blood was pooling from the boy's leg as he gasped through the pain. A pool of blood dripping from his lips was drowning him.

"Stay with us Kazuo." Lu Ten turned the man's head to allow his airway to clear. He coughed up the blood that was no longer threatening to strangle him. "I'm going to cauterize the wound."

Kazuo closed his eyes, panting heavily through the pain. "It's not worth it my Lord. Protect yourself."

Lu Ten chuckled darkly, his hands pressed against the bloody gash in the man's leg. Heat coursed through his fingers as he directed his inner flame. He ignored the scream of pain that the young man gave as the fire began to seal the wound.

There was so much blood. Too much blood.

It wasn't as if he hadn't seen this much blood before. Four years he had been moving along the war front drawing blood of his own. Four years he had brought death and destruction to this world. Four years he had believed that this was all for the best. All for the glory of the Fire Nation.

He knew better now.

"Kazuo?" Lu Ten ran a hand over the male's face. He looked far too young to be in this place. Lu Ten knew Kazuo had just turned nineteen. Drafted into war in his father's place. He had a betrothed at home. A young woman, Kimiko, who from what he had heard from the young man, was so beautiful that the sun seemed to rise and set around her.

"Kazuo?" Lu Ten tapped his hand against the young man's cheek. He wasn't going to allow this. People died, but not this kid.

There wasn't a response. Soft brown eyes stared away from him. Lu Ten leaned back, the destruction of the fight around him as he closed the eyes of a young soldier.

A sharp stone slammed into Lu Ten's shoulder. He feel forward from the pain. Kazuo's body lay under him, already growing cold with death.

He placed a hand over his injury, which was bleeding slowly, the stone having penetrated his armor. Turning to see who had attacked him, Lu Ten locked eyes with scared green.

The young prince rose to his feet. The Dai Li agent, shorter and stockier than he was, stood frozen in an offensive stance. His face was difficult to make out under the blood and dirt. A ring of stones hovered in the air like puppets being controlled by his fingers.

"At least I got one monster," the agent spoke, his eyes on the fallen Fire Nation soldier. His voice was touched with youth. A young man who had just killed another young man.

Breathing heavily, Lu Ten shifted into a solid stance. He didn't want this. He didn't want to be out here fighting. He didn't want any more blood on his hands. It wasn't a chose though at this moment.

War was a struggle to survive and in that moment, Lu Ten really wanted to live.

Flames sparked against his fingers. More than survival, he wanted revenge for his fallen comrade – for his fallen friend.

A snarl in his throat, and flames at his command, Lu Ten attacked the agent. He understood in that moment how war progressed the way it did. Anger and revenge were powerful motivations for man.

-oOo-

In the smoke of a quickly downward turning battle, Dai Li agent Arata found himself struggling for breath in the dust that filled the air. Fire and stone raced passed his head as the eighteen year old struggled to continue his own battle before him. The firebender was quickly advancing upon the young agent.

He knew now that he shouldn't have pushed his luck with this fight. He should have taken the death of the soldier and rejoiced in that instead of trying for a second. Taking on a seasoned solider had been a mistake for the young man. Arata was bleeding and bruised from the beating he had taken. His helmet had long been lost, and his uniform was a burnt mess. He was still alive however. The firebender seemed to be taunting him in this fight.

Jerking his foot suddenly, and sliding it across the ground, he brought a solid stone mass from beside him. The attack collided with the firebenders chest, but the impacted seemed to do nothing but send him stumbling back a few feet. Rage darted in his opponent's ember eyes; his fist quickly engulfing in flames as he made advancement back towards his earthbending prey before him. With a swift kick from the firebender that just barely missed his chest, Arata found himself tumbling backwards and landing painfully on the ground.

Arata's green eyes searched franticly around him as the soldier stood above him. The man's boot clad foot pressed itself down on his right arm, trapping him on the ground and preventing him from attacking. The earthbender stared up into a face plagued with too many emotions.

The heat from the soldiers flames radiated around the two men as the Dai Lee Agent waited for his final moments to come at the hand of the enemy. Hatred boiled inside him as the firebender continued to stand there, with an almost remorseful look plastered alongside his rage.

"Do it already!" Arata screamed, amazed his voice managed to escape his lips.

The firebender's eyes widened at the words. He seemed to momentarily snap from the rage that had been driving him. The golden orbs quickly letting pity and remorse fill the anger that was there moments go. The pressure on Arata's arm let up considerably, but not enough for him to get his ground.

"Just do it!" he yelled again at the older man. He was not going to allow some firebender the chance to pity him on the battlefield. He didn't need it. Young and rage filled eyes narrowed furiously at the tired, but not much older pair, of the enemy before him. Green met golden, as dust fell around them.

"What are you waiting for?" Arata asked.

The pressure on his arm disappeared as the firebender stepped off of his limb. Arata remained lying flat on the ground in a daze for a few extra seconds before lifting himself into a sitting position. What trick was this soldier playing on him?

"Stand up." The firebenders voice was unreadable, as if he was struggling to speak. "I will not kill a man while he is down on his back. I am no monster."

"A firebender with a sense of honor," Arata chuckled without realizing. Lifting himself from the ground, he bent his knees in a fighting stance. "Like a monster with a soul. Shall we resume were we left off?"

Before either could advance upon the other, an explosion shock the ground below their feet. A cloud of fire began to swarm over the field.

Arata didn't see the spray of fire that quickly engulfed around them until it was mere inches from his body. He threw his arms over his face, breathing in what he expected to be his last breath. A second flame circled around them, the reds mixing into each other.

Both him and his own opponent were covered in ashy soot and had been shoved to the ground with the force of the blast. As the fires smoldered around him, the charred bodies of both Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom soldiers littered around him came into views.

Arata stared with horror at the battlefield before him. Soldiers from both sides of the war looked identical when all was but a charred mess. The clothes off their bodies were nothing but an incinerated remainder. For one brief moment, Arata thanked Oma and Shu that the flames had not taken him.

His good fortune soon wore off, as the sickening smell of burning flesh filled his nose as he tried to peel himself from the ground without success. He was finally feeling the pain of his injuries. The left side of his body felt like a blistering mess; the stone glove around his hand doing little to protect the scorched skin underneath. An agonizing sensation danced its way through his nerves.

He reached towards his legs, searching for the injury. His hands grasped painfully through the dirt filled air.

His green eyes searched around him in vain in an attempt to spot where his left leg had been moments ago. Blood matted the tattered remains of his pants leg as realization took hold.

Strong hand wrapped under his underarms as he was lifted from the ground. A loud scream vibrated from the earthbender lips as the entire left side of his body felt like it had been set ablaze again. Lifting his tear threatened eyes; Arata's vision met the determined stare of gold. He tried to cringe from the man who moments ago had nearly laid him in his death dead, but was unable to move with his injuries. No words were spoken as the young agent allowed the man to carry him from the charred center of the explosion.

From between the sinking dust, Arata's straining eyes could make out a set of Dai Li agents nearby. Their eyes lifted towards the slow scratching sound of his and the firebenders steps. Before he could open his mouth to speak, the agents' gloves were flying towards them. The stone wrapped around the enemy's shoulders, prying his hands from supporting Arata.

As the firebender collided with the ground, the stone gloves pinning him into the Earth, Arata quickly lost his balance and fell forward. His head struck against the cold ground in a sickening snap as the agents moved in to assess the situation.

-oOo-

Ichiro grinned at the lineup of seven kneeling Fire Nation soldiers before him; all with their hands tied painfully behind their back, a large cloth bag placed over their heads. They had lost their chance to capture General Iroh, but this would do. Seven prisoners of war, and a mass of charred Fire Nation bodies outside the wall were a victory. The invading army pulling back and the likelihood of surrender made this a triumph despite the heavy losses on their own side.

"Take the bags from their heads!" He ordered. Seven bags were pulled from the captured soldier's heads simultaneously as all seven men blinked in quick repetition as their eyes adjusted to the dim light of the Lake Lougi headquarters. They looked at one another. At one point through those next few seconds, each of the men managed to glance at the one at the end of the line. A tall man, golden eyes peering through the dirt on his face. Ichiro moved to stand in front of the man. A smirk pulled at his lips as he recognized those eyes. It seemed the rumors were true.

"Welcome gentlemen," Ichiro spoke deeply, watching a shiver run down the spine of the men. He grinned wickedly as six of the seven soldiers trembled in the cold; the defiant one in front of him unmoving and unflinching. "I'm sure you all have heard the rumors of the Dai Li. I'm sure you are wondering if such rumors are true. I assure you, they are all very true for those of you who hold that defiant breath in you."

Ichiro moved to the other end of the line, eyes trained on the small form. The Fire Nation soldier was a head shorter than the man kneeling next to him.

"State your name soldier!" His words held no room for discussion as his glance at the young Fire Nation soldier hardened. The hazel brown eyes of the boy, clearly just at draft age, trembled almost as much as his thin body did. His pale face jerked to look at the man, this short black ponytail jerking behind him, with a pleading expression.

"Hu-Hu-Hu- Hough." The boy answered through clinched teeth. Ichiro nodded approvingly before moving to the next soldier.

"Jayen." The soldier, at least thirty, responded with a much more solid voice than the boy before him. Ichiro nodded as well before moving down the line up, receiving one Fire Nation name after the other, each voice either hold a terrified or frightful tone.

Standing in front of the last remaining soldier, Meyers waited for the name he wanted to hear to be spoken from the man's mouth. The soldier in his mid-twenties let his golden eyes trail casually around in curiosity. Dark ashes clung to his tattered uniform; dark red scars were beginning to form over his body and face, an angry burn running the length of his neck. The man's ebony hair was half still in its topknot, while the majority hung down around his scared pale face. A sort of royal and majestic glow seemed to radiate off him as he remained kneeling and bleeding on the cold stone floor.

"Lee." The final soldier shrugged his shoulder as he answered with a casual tone. "Just Lee." Ichiro's hand collided with the young man's bruised and slightly burnt face in annoyance and anger at his remark. He wrapped his stone covered hands around the firebender's chin, and pulled so the man had to look at him.

"Don't fool with me, Prince Lu Ten," the Dai Lee agent grinned at the defiant gleam in the Prince's eyes turn to surprise. "I know exactly who you are. The Fire Nation royal eyes are hard to hide from someone who knows them. You're resemblance to your father is uncanny."

"In that case," Lu Ten lifted his eyes to meet the man's cruel dark glare, "does diplomatic immunity count in this situation? And if so, I'd like to extend it to my men. Because Agni knows, I'll need all six of them to help me find my way back to camp."

"Silence!" Ichiro's voice held a clear level of rage that left every present person in the room cringing; minus the man speaking and the one being spoken to. He let go of the Prince's chin. "You are my special prisoner now, Prince Lu Ten. You will do well to remember that."

"You do realize once my father realizes that I'm gone, he'll tear Ba Sing Se to the ground to find me." Lu Ten struggled against the stone bonds holding him. "It's only a matter of time before he discovers your little underwater club house and breaks in."

"Your father is not a problem for us at this moment." Ichiro answered with narrowed eyes.

"What are you talking about?" Lu Ten's voice held a dangerous tone to it. "What did you do to my father?"

"Nothing yet little boy," Ichiro was beginning to get the upper hand in the standoff. The young Prince had left a weak spot in his defiant manner. "But as we speak, your father is cleaning up camp and moving soldiers out. I highly doubt he, or anyone for that matter, will be looking for you any time soon."

"You're lying," Lu Ten narrowed his eyes in suspicion, "my father would never leave me behind. Much less leave six others behind as well."

"Not unless he thought you to be dead." Ichiro allowed the enjoyment he felt playing this cat-owl and mouse game with the young prince. "With so many charred bodies out on that field, any number of them could be yours. And when there's no possible way of telling the difference between who's whom out there. So I assure you, your father is not looking for you."

Lu Ten's shoulders sank as the man's words struck home to him. Mournfully he lifted his golden eyes to face the six men beside him, an apologetic expression over his face. "Let them go."

"Excuse me?" Ichiro's narrowed his eyes even farther at the young man as he turned his pale face towards him. "Would you care to repeat that?"

"I said let them go," Lu Ten shifted to stand, but found a sturdy hand holding him down. "You have me, what do you need of them? My life for theirs?"

"You seem to be under the impression," Ichiro could have laughed at the young man's attempts, "that you have a choice in this matter. But let me remind you Prince Lu Ten, you have no control, no rule in my land. I am the one who decides rather you and your fellow soldiers live or die. And I alone hold that power. So before you begin demanding anything-"

"I was merely asking." Lu Ten interrupted. His confident and cocky demeanor quickly evaporating as he pleaded for his fellow soldiers lives. "I was merely asking for you to spar their lives. I am responsible for these men, and whatever you wish to put upon them, I will take on my own back for their safety. They have done nothing to you. Having the prince of an enemy nation should be a big enough prize for you, don't let six innocent men suffer any more than they must."

"No, my prince." Every eye in the room landed on the kneeling Hough who seemed to have regained his voice as he looked at Lu Ten with a loyal smile. "We will not allow you to sacrifice yourself for us. We will not abandon you down here while we walk free. I gave our nation my oath that I would protect you. I made my mother a promise that I would bring honor to my family. To abandon you now would be a disgrace to everything I stand for. I will not leave you Sir."

"Nor will I," the soldier beside Lu Ten chimed. The Prince's eyes gleamed with pride at the loyalty of the soldiers beside him.

"If you go down Sir," Hough nodded at the prince, "than we will go down right beside you."

Slow clapping forced the Fire Nation soldiers to withdraw the understanding eye contact they held, as they laid their gaze once more on Dai Lee agent Meyers, his stone covered hands echoing his claps in a sickening thunder.

"Now that we are all on the same page," he stopped his claps and nodded towards the agents behind the seven men. "I want their hands crushed immediately and throw them into the lower cells. Let's see how long your loyalties last, when we take your precious sun away."

-oOo-

Ichiro pinched the bridge of his nose as he dropped into his chair. He didn't have any remorse for crippling the firebenders. They were dangerous monsters and preventing them from fighting back was for the best.

He couldn't get the face of the youngest firebender from his mind. The boy was just barely a man. He was only a year older than Ichiro's youngest son. He uncorked the bottle of mead and poured himself a glass, hoping the liquor would get the past events from his mind.

General Iroh had pulled back from the wall. The city was safe. But at a cost.

Forty six of his men died in this battle alone. Young Arata, merely a child in their ranks, had been brought back broken and burnt and barely breathing. He was still in the infirmary, six hours into surgery and the healers didn't know if he would make it. He wondered if saving the young man was even worth it. He would never walk again. Never bend again due to the injury to his hands. He was now a crippled. An invalid. There wasn't much for him in this world.

The young prince had been with Arata when he'd been brought in, though what he had been doing wasn't clear.

Nor was it clear who had triggered the explosion. It hadn't come from his command. Judging from the death toll the Fire Nation army suffered from it, they hadn't been prepared either.

Taking a swig from the goblet, Ichiro leaned back in his chair.

The door to his office opened, a lone figure stepping into the space. Helmet lifted, dangerously driven eyes stared at him.

"Long Feng," Ichiro smiled tightly his second in command. "How is news from the palace?"

"Good." The man spoke sharply. His steps were quick and calculated as he entered the room.

"What can I help you with then?"

"I heard you brought back prisoners," Long Feng stood in front of him, hands clasped behind his back.

Ichiro downed the rest of his glass, already pouring himself another and making his way through it. "Nothing for you to worry about. Now is there anything I can help you with?"

Long Feng sat his hand on the desk, eyes moving around the room. "There is talk you are growing weak."

Ichiro sat his goblet down, watching the young man. "I would watch yourself, Long Feng. I know exactly what you are doing. You do not want to cross me boy."

Long Feng's eyes shifted into darker tones. "I am no boy."

A sharp pain struck at Ichiro's gut. He bent over, grasping his side as something attempted to dig through his skin. He lifted his tunic, gasping at the mass moving under his skin. Lifting his eyes, Ichiro stared at the young officer.

"What are you doing?"

"Taking what is mine." Long Feng shifted his wrist, the mass under Ichiro's skin shifting with it. "You should really watch what you drink. A few specks of dirt can do a great deal of damage."

With a snap of his wrist, the solid mass of dirt ripped its way through Ichiro's skin. The older male bent over, cupping his hand over the bleeding wound. "What are you doing? This isn't a game boy."

"You're right," Long Feng smirked. "It isn't a game."

The ball of dirt shot forward, embedding itself into Ichiro's neck. Light green eyes growing wide, and a thin trail of blood dripping from the side of his mouth, Ichiro tried to speak. He reached forward, hand knocking the goblet of wine to the ground as he tried to claw at his assassin. He slumped from his chair, eyes growing cloudy quickly.

Long Feng stood over the body, a smile on his lips. This was his now.

-oOo-

Lu Ten held his bleeding and broken hands to his chest as the energy faded away from him. Fresh bandages had been placed on his newly damaged hands by a young woman who called herself Jo Dee hours before, but the girl in her mid-twenties was no doctor and could do little to stop the bleeding and bruises forming. An intense pain throbbed though his body as both his new injuries and his old caught up to his tired and beaten frame.

He didn't know how long he had been down in this cell. It had to be hours by now. Maybe days. He couldn't tell.

Eyes trained on a low burning fire down the hall, Lu Ten leaned against the bars of his cell.

-oOo-

-oOo-

-oOo-

Well, there we are. I hope you guys liked, and are planning on sticking with me on this endeavor. I'm really excited to be writing this. I should have an update soonish. Please leave your thoughts to let me know what you guys think.