Post by Deleted on Aug 5, 2010 19:39:49 GMT -6
((This is quite lengthy. So um, yeah))
Lower Ring
“Lieutenant, I would like you to continue practicing the techniques that I have just shone you. I doubt you will need my presence for such and endeavor, and so I will be leaving you to your training,” said Long Feng to his younger pupil, and with that he off to attend to his business until the appropriate hour for deviance came upon him.
He waited until nightfall before he left. The streets were easier to manage then, and he had the added bonus of getting his target without much trouble. Thusly, as darkness crept in, he bade goodnight to his comrades and departed.
From what he had heard, the Fire Nation did have patrols out after hours. It was not too surprising. Were he in their shoes he would have done the same, especially considering how much they were loved. At least, when he was in charge, he could trust that culture kept some people from becoming anarchist. Hopefully, he would run into an agent before he met up with a firebender or anyone. With ease, he wandered through the areas that were most likely going to be monitored. However, just as he did this, he also made sure that he was headed in the direction of the wall, and that he had a clear view of the monorail’s rail. Although he was sure that he could never get lost in this city, he did not want to risk that possibility. Too much hinged on him getting to his study and seeing how it was being guarded, if at all. Hopefully, they weren’t any guards to be found. The last thing he wanted was more setbacks.
As he made his way through the silent, filthy streets of the Lower Ring he made sure to note the small changes to various things. Where once green was laid to signify some sort of national pride, there was now red and orange. In addition, off in the distance the buildings that towered over the other buildings were almost completely redone. It was strange to see a red tiled pagoda, with an exquisitely curved yellow trim surrounded by dull, plain looking green tiled shacks. That being said, he knew well the meaning. Looking out to the skyline, if you missed the gigantic red banner or the soldiers clad like monsters, and then you would know well who was in charge by the buildings themselves. The Fire Nation’s newly refurbished buildings stood proudly around the smaller, quainter Earth Kingdom ones. It wasn’t hard to denote who was running this city and the world.
With a heavy sigh, he turned his head away from the tall structure and continued in his search for a Dai Li agent. Hopefully, if and when he found one; he wouldn’t have to fight him. Although it was much too much to ask in terms of good fortune, he hoped that he could find one who was busy about the city; with his back turned to his former leader. That thought triggered him to uncap the compound Mahone had given him, and made him prepare for the future. Carefully, he placed the cloth he had in lieu of the former cap and hoped that by the time he struck at an agent it would be soaked in the solution. However, when that time came, he would need to act quickly. The time in prison had certainly led to his diminished weight and strength. Long Feng wasn’t hoping for a fight, he was hoping for an opportunity to strike. When everything got into position, he would place the cloth into his hand, and then launch the rock gloves, he had just made himself, at the agent, his left would strike the agent in is gut while his right would bring the chloroform soaked cloth to his mouth, there the gloved would force him to inhale the fumes and hopefully collapse, and thusly, giving him an attire that would grant him free reign in the city. Given the luck that he had had, back at the prison, it should not have been a surprise that he was worried about his current success. That being said, his eagerness and anxiety made his disregard the instructions that he was given by the apothecary. Hopefully, that slip up wouldn’t do him too much harm.
His search continued, with no avail. He past the sweaty shops, passed the empty marketplace, and made sure to avoid a few Fire Nation patrols which weren’t very difficult to do. For starters, they were parading around with lanterns; any person with half a brain knew that when there was a faint glow off in the distant that it was the Fire Nation. From experience, he knew that the Dai Li did not walk around with any sort of light source. Such a tactic, while potentially damaging, made their whole patrol routine useful. After all, the Fire Nation Patrols were not going to find him; he was not that stupid.
Minutes passed, and still there weren’t any Dai Li in sight. In order to increase his odd, the gaunt man picked up his pace and despite the resistance from his wiry frame he continued to push himself forward. Eventually, the night’s stillness was shacked by a familiar sound. Footsteps. Muffled and almost inaudible, he was sure that they belonged to an agent. He bit his lip, and then approached the source with a feline’s silence. They belonged to a single pair, and that meant that only one person was their source, then when he finally neared their source he smiled brightly at the shadowy, calm man walking a few yards away. There was his target, here was his chance, and all he needed to do now was to wait for the most opportune moment.
Bitterly, he hoped against the odds that the agent would head into an alley or someplace where he could silently get at him without the risk of being caught. Because of this, he kept his pursuit going for a good ten to fifteen minutes. Unfortunately, this couldn’t go on forever. There was a time limit. He needed to reach the palace, before it was alive with motion and properly alert eyes. With that in mind, Long Feng picked up his pace.
The agent rounded the corner, and Long Feng made sure to follow him. This pursuit went on for quite some time until it became clear that the agent would never make his way into an alley or any place like that. Damn, he was hoping for some privacy! But if that wasn’t an option then he could still get his prize out in the open, that was, unless of course, Mahone hadn’t given him the proper compound. No, it was too early for that woman to suspect anything else out of him. She hadn’t sabotaged him because there wouldn’t be anything to gain from it, in fact there was only loss to be inherited from his demise.
But still, back at the point that mattered. The woman was an apothecary; she obviously knew her craft, as made apparent during their escape. This would work; all he had to do was time himself accordingly. His rock gloves were already made and plating his hands. The compound was already soaking into the cloth so he didn’t have to worry about making any noise by removing the cap. As he continued to trail the agent, he waited for the perfect moment. There needed to be an alley nearby, or at least some small enclosure that offered him privacy.
The moon still hung high in the sky, and thankfully, like the escape there were clouds keeping it from further lighting up the darkness. Now, thought the former grand secretariat as he quickly pulled the cloth from the bottle, and then launched both rock gloves at the agent. He watched, nervously, as they headed for their target. As planned, the left fist would strike first, and then right over his mouth. Long Feng narrowed his eyes as he watched his gloves reach his target. The agent wasn’t turning around; he wasn’t fighting back, and looked inebriated for lack of a better term. Then after a few seconds, the body went limp and collapsed. With a grin, he slid over, and then dragged the traitor into a nearby ally. He still wasn’t done, he motioned for his right glove to return to his hand, and then he quickly dipped the cloth back into the substance and then placed it over the agent’s mouth and nose. With his left hand, he then began to force the man’s diaphragm to contract accordingly; he needed to breathe in more. With care, he pulled his sinewy right hand’s fingers out from the rock gloves and then felt for the agent’s pulse near his neck’s artery. The force and rate was erratic, but slowly it began to diminish in strength and number until it finally ended all together. Inside he laughed a little, but outside he quickly went to work.
He removed the dark green li, and then placed aside. Unfortunately, the rest didn’t go as he had hoped; the former Dai Li commander struggled as he removed the agent’s robe, as well as his under dress. Likewise, he did the same to himself, making sure that as soon as he was down to his skivvies; the clothing he had removed from the agent was quickly on his bare flesh. Then he directed his attention to the agent’s queue and removed the end strip of green silk, and he attached it to his own. When at last the li was placed on his head, he buried the corpse underground with his bending. Another agent down. Although this method was easier and less dangerous than the other one, its results weren’t immediate. By taking the fight directly to the Dai Li’s base of operations; they could easily take out a huge chunk of them.
Clad in new attire, the former grand secretariat made his way to the monorail track that he had made sure stayed within view. Like an agent, when he reached the tall stone columns that supported the monorail’s track, he quickly began to scale it as he remembered his agents always had. It was basically rock-climbing only faster considering he was practically scaling a flat surface. When he reached the top, he heaved himself into the track. Should a train make its way to him he could easily avoid it. With care he assumed the usual stance, and then sent his arms behind himself and quickly slid across the surface. This was the way to travel this city. Surely, this would make up for the lost time spent walking.
It felt nice, the wind against his skin, the feeling of freedom. Long Feng stayed silent the entire time. He had to remain incognito, and as an agent of all things. They were always silent, even under his rule. They were a strange group the Dai Li; not even he, their former leader, knew how they fully thought. The greatest mystery about them was how they communicated. With just a single glance, it was like they immediately conveyed their message. A hive mind if there ever existed such a thing. But maybe that was the end result. They were trained like copies of one another. Chosen at birth by himself, and then raised with other agents in the same environment with the same stimuli; perhaps those experiences shaped them all to be equals in thought. That could properly explain it, if they thought the same way, then each of them would come up with the very same idea given a certain scenario, and then with a glance they set out to do what they would in that scenario. It was tricky to explain. They were tricky to explain.
Given the situations that occurred the previous days, one would expect Long Feng to be unable to continue, but that night’s event had forced so much adrenaline into his body that he wasn’t able to sleep. The only thing that felt right with his current chemical imbalance was to keep on moving. With each breath, he felt more alive, and with each deep inhalation of the cold night’s air he was further propelled to keep on track, and to do a little more.
Up ahead, the rail split into three, two headed for other stations around the Lower Ring and the center once headed for the Middle Ring. With enthusiasm, he gently followed the track on the right. Clearly, he wasn’t correct railing, but no matter, with the adrenaline that surged through his body he was itching for something exciting. Just before the track made the full turn to the right, he leapt, and with the help of his bending he was soaring through the nighttime sky. He wanted to laugh and scream at the sensation, the thrilling blood churning sensation, but he remained silent. With joy, he landed on the center rail and then continued toward the Middle Ring.
Middle Ring
At first sight, the Middle Ring looked quite a bit more different than he had remembered her. Like the Ring under her, she too was different with a Fire Nation banner covering the Earth Kingdom insignia which once towered over everything. Along his right, there were quite a few new additions to the otherwise well kept Ring. For starters, the new additions to the scenery didn’t even try to hide their nation of origin. Constructed out of metal, they looked like the prison watchtowers the Underground had taken out not to long ago. The difference being that these were sturdier. From what he could tell, there was one per ten mile circumference. Still, this posed the bigger question of why the Fire Nation chose this ring out of all the others to build so much in such a short amount of time.
There was a part in him that felt hurt at this sight. This was where he was born, and where was raised. Within those two walls, he was shaped by his merchant father and strict mother. Looking on at the quiet houses he was reminded of his old home, sure he was raised in the northernmost part of the Upper Ring, but generally speaking it all looked the same. And it didn’t matter because the site of these building still brought back those memories of being forced to learn to read and write at home well before he was supposed to enroll at school. He could still hear his mother’s nurturing voice yelling at him for not remember the proper stroke order for the radical of linen. His parents were good people who only wanted him to succeed. While his mother reared the six of them, as she was supposed to, his father worked his tongue to sell the various wares made in the Lower Ring. It was tragic, that out of their entire family only one would survive.
Upper Ring
The Upper Ring’s vista was quite as he had expected it to be. He knew these people, they were sheep, and as soon as a new Shepard presented itself they flocked to them without hesitation. What made it worse, more so than it already was, was how radical the transformation was. When he arrived at the end the rail, at a monorail station, he quickly got off of the tracks and onto the well paved floor. He agilely walked down each step and then came to better see the red washing that had overtaken this Ring.
Whole buildings were given new rooftops to reflect their change, and from an empty carriage stationed just before the gates to the Hua estate, it was made apparent that everything was redone to reflect their new position. It wouldn’t be surprising if the people were dressed as they were. This was sickening to say the least.
Sourly, he made his way to the Royal Palace, and along the way was reminded of the fickleness of these people. All over the same story was shone; most of these people had accepted their change. Hopefully, this was just an isolated incident. After all, he was in the area of the landed gentry, these people probably knew well to just go with the change rather than fight it. He prayed that that was the case, and not the alternative.
With fast feet, he nimbly raced his way across the somewhat empty, well kept landscapes that belonged to a single house. And then after some thinking, he felt it safe to slide the whole way there, and as had done before, he did again.
Eventually, he arrived near the Royal Palace, and to remain inconspicuous he stopped sliding and began to walk the promenade around the Palace walls like so many people did.
This was certainly strange. Along the walls surrounding the Royal Palace, there weren’t any Dai Li agents to be found. Instead, lanterns illuminated the Fire Nation soldiers that marked the forbidden center of the city. From his position, he tried his best to count the men. Like he had imagined, the current situation offered the reality the Fire Nation was facing here. Per lantern, there was but a single soldier, and they weren’t lined up that well either. They wandered about the high orange wall as expected. They moved one way and then another, back and forth along the same invisible line. Trying their best, each of them did what they could, but it really didn’t matter. There was just too much, and they were too few. Even though the Fire Nation controlled the city, and the occupation looked successful; it was just too much for them to hold onto. Unlike the Underground that figuratively speaking, was taking enormous bites with its plan; the Fire Nation looked to be nearly choking as they tried to swallow it all down. It really was a joyous sight to behold, but at the same time; it wasn’t that inspiring. This nation, the most powerful in the world, could not hold onto her spoils.
As he continued along the finely paved streets of the luxuriously crafted Upper Ring, he made sure to note the potential blind spots in the guards’ movements. Sure enough, there were many, some turned too soon, and others just stood there not really doing much. Chances were this constant nightly watch was far from the splendor that was the Lower Ring. Here, the people behaved themselves, and there really wasn’t that much they needed to fear. The surrounding was proof to that fact. The luxury homes and family estates were retrofitted to resemble something from the Fire Nation. The orange tiles that once lined the roofs were red, and even the guards now sported a new attire, courtesy of the city’s new rulers. It was really quite outrageous, but proved a point, the rich were pawns; the nobility was less noble than the pauper. Out of all the places that had changed the most, this no longer resembled its proper continent. It really was quite astonishing. Then again, what else was expected, all these people cared about was their image, their wealth. Earth King, Fire Lord, nobleman, baron, lord, nothing really matter as long as they had their gold. These people were probably the first to accept the new rule.
But no matter, they would be dealt with come the end. They would be rewarded much like the Dai Li were going to be rewarded. Surely, the poorest among the Lower Ring weren’t going to mind filling their claws in these people’s coffers. With a look of disdain on his face, Long Feng continued his way to the palace. If the Dai Li were as he imagined they were, there would not be much resistance to him just walking in through the front door. However, when he was to return, he would need a little more care than what he was going to do. With his rigid posture, and his queue, he knew he looked just as his agents did. And with his haughty air; he knew that he could fool the six men that stood guard by the gate into the Royal Palace. With each step, he was able to get a better view of the men that were soaked in the bright light of the lantern held above their heads. Two of them were holding spears, and the others wore the monstrous armor of firebenders. When he came into view, he knew that they were watching, but in order for this to work, he needed to keep up the charade.
When he reached the center of the group, the two spearmen crossed their weapons and signified him to halt. This wasn’t good. With his hands held patiently behind his back as all agents did, he could strike or do anything without first being cooked by the four firebenders that surrounded him. No, no, he needed to stay calm. An agent was above these; he had to be, their Princess stole them from him. The man to his right then asked him a question about where he was headed. Long Feng stayed silent. Hopefully, the Dai Li still acted as they once had; his business was his own, and not theirs to know. The man asked again, and Long Feng made sure his face was hidden by the shadow of his li, and turned to face the one asking the questions. He remained like that, it was the only thing he knew to do. He could not fight them, he was surrounded. It was the only thing to do, the most probable action an agent would take, given this situation. Thusly, there he stood for nearly half a minute, not flinching and barely breathing. Eventually, the guard gave up, the spearmen retracted their weapons, and Long Feng continued to walk forward as if nothing happened. It was a very different story to what was actually going on; his heart was beating, like crazy, and all over his body he could feel his sweat clustering together. Truly, it was a horrible sensation. But the worst was over; he fooled those guards, and had made it into the Royal Palace.
Tilting his li up, he took note of the men on the wall. They all continued their strange guard patterns, and seemed disconnected from the real world. From what he could count, there were over fifty of them, tiny, nearly invisible men only made clear by the light cast by the lanterns that were suspended above their heads. If they were going to take the city back by force, this would be the hardest part to take back. It was designed that way. As he walked on the pale stone toward the palace, he couldn’t help but think about hard the inevitable reconquest would be. It was only made even more apparent as he looked around. There was so much space here, the Fire Nation could hold back and wait out until the Fire Lord sent supplies back. With a sigh, he tried to banish the dark thoughts out, but his mind would not yield, and those thoughts about the Underground’s fate continued to grow.
In time, he made his way to the stairs. No way was he going to walk each and every step. Turning right, he made his way to the solid straight stone that the stairs were carved out from. By raising his forearms, he quickly raised a column of earth from beneath his feet, then when he made it to the top; he stepped onto the block of earth and sent his column back into the earth. The bender repeated this maneuver once more, until he finally reached the top and the actual entrance to the palace. Like the many obstacles before him that day, he slowly reached the door and entered it without any hesitation. Inside, the palace remained relatively unchanged. Sure, the colors were different, but there wasn’t any radical structural change. Well, there was one dramatic change in the center of the room, where the circular insignia was once inlaid; there was now a red trident to be found. Surprisingly, only two men stood guard inside, firebenders by the looks of them. They didn’t nod or act all, they just stood there, seemingly empty.
Thusly, without delay, he made his way to right corridor and followed its path. Like the room before it, it was draped in red, but still relatively unchanged. As he furthered his journey to his private library, he made note of how quiet the palace was. Sure it was night, but he was sure that there would at least be some kind of hustle and bustle. Or at least some sign that there was life in this place, but alas, there was relative silence. A few steps could be heard in the distance, but in its entirety the palace was empty. He expected a little more security, but then again, given how many guards there were before then, it wasn’t a surprise that there weren’t any guards walking the corridors. That being said, getting someone else in there with him would prove to be a liability. His attire was the sole reason he was this far, it was the reason he passed so many checkpoints unscathed. Whoever else accompanied him on his return trip was going to be in for some serious sneaking. Hopefully, come that time, he could make things easier for them. How and which way, he still didn’t know.
Turning left, Long Feng thought about how positive this whole trip had been, all around the city there were only signs of how badly managed this occupation was. Even here, at the center of it all, the halls were empty and ripe for people who didn’t belong. In time, he made it to his private study. Quietly, he opened the door and entered the room, to his left the green flame that he much loved was dead, and all around the many shelves of his study lay barren with their contents scattered on the floor. He closed the door, and then made his way to the fire pit; the darkness didn’t bother him, it never had. Once there, he felt the right side and upon finding the pair of spark rocks, he quickly started up the flame. He had to do this quickly; he had to make sure that the things were here. The fire pit it still stood as he had left it, so its contents were still beneath it. The map was the only thing that could have been lost.
Earnestly, he rushed to the nearest pile of paper and searched for a dark green tome. Thankfully, he found one. Ba Sing Se’s name was etched on its cover and inside its contents remained. It was a single piece of parchment that was meant to be unfolded and then linked together with the other pieces of parchment and thusly form the entire city. The one he held in his hands was part of the Middle Ring with part of the Upper Ring on the bottom. The bender sighed in relief and then placed the parchment back into the tome. He knew the others were in this mess, somewhere. But they would have to find them themselves when they came. Quietly, Long Feng got to his feet and then, using the appropriate blanket, he smothered the green flame dead, and left his study.
As he exited his study, he noted a familiar voice echoing on politely. He narrowed his eyes and noted that sounds were not that far away. Quickly, he made his way to where the woman’s echo was most likely originating from. Sure enough, a few feet away from him was a small group of people chatting with a familiar, chipper face.
From the looks of it, she was headed to sleep. This late, he would have doubted this fact were she not standing just a few yards away and in a fancy light green, sleeping gown.
At this part in the palace, and judging by the direction of the travel, they were headed to Queen’s Consort’s room. Without a moment’s hesitation upon realizing this fact, Long Feng darted to that room. Silently, he entered the chamber where non castrated men were once forbidden to enter. He had never set foot in this room, but judging by the fine green linens that hung from the ceiling and the large cozy bed, it hadn’t changed much. After shutting the door, he quickly made his way to its side, removed his hat, and then waited for the room’s occupant.
Sure enough, the door slowly crept open, and just before it swatted him in the face and announced his presence; he used his big toe to slow its advance and made the end of its motion seem more plausible. Her voice was just a chipper, and her bidding goodnight was as he had imagined.
Behind the fancy door, he waited until she finished her farewells, but still he couldn’t strike. They had to be some distance away before he could do anything. He waited a few moments before he made move. Quickly, he pushed the door shut with the foot that kept it from closing on him, and then launched his rock gloves at Joo Dee’s mouth. She fell, trying her best to scream and to call for aid. She wriggled and squirmed like a trapped animal that knew death was imminent. Around her face her veins began to show as she tried her hardest to escape, but it was all in vain. It was a little comforting to be honest, and with a sinister smile Long Feng approached his former servant.
“Please, Joo Dee, calm down. There is no need to scream, after all, the Earth King has invited you to Lake Laogai.” The veins about her face relaxed, and she fell into the typical robotic stupor. When he heard her mouth the required reply, the rock gloves slid off of her pale face and onto the verdant carpet. With a hand motion, they flew back into their former place, “Good.”
He walked closer still, to the hypnotized woman who know kneeled before him, and then made sure his voice was near a whisper.
“What happened to the Avatar?” He asked, and immediately she responded with something that sounded prerecorded. Apparently, the Fire Nation Princess killed him, in some underground battle. “The caverns?” According to her, no. They were still a secret, even from them. “The occupation, how goes it?” As seen from his travel, the Fire Nation was indeed struggling to maintain a grip on the city. As she continued to speak, she continued to spill information that his was not the only insurgency group fighting against the Fire Nation. No real surprise there. But it meant that these groups would have to be found so as to better their offenses. “Who is in charge of the city?” Her reply was what he expected, but still it astounded him. She was the Supreme Bureaucratic Administrator, appointed by that princess. “And the Dai Li?” She too was given control by the princess. So, as he already knew. The Fire Nation princess owned them, but under her was Joo Dee. However, unbeknownst to anyone, he owned Joo Dee. So he still had some control, however veiled it really was. “Back to the city, how long until the reinforcements arrive from around the Colonies?” It varied, great. That being said it meant that the Fire Nation was indeed in deep troubles. For the supplies to arrive in disjointed clumps, it meant that as soon as they were found they were sent over. Subsequently, they were indeed struggling to maintain a hold over this city. From what she further added, just about every resource was being diverted to the city; even from other cities, like Omashu. “What about my private study? What happened?” He guessed about as much. Once he was gone, and the city Azula’s; she had his private study ransacked for any good information, but with the bad came the good. They failed to get the things he came for. They ignored his maps as well as the fire pit.
Turning to other subjects, “Instruct the Dai Li that they are to station less agents to guard the bases. In addition, your position is a folly. Begin asserting yourself more; use the Fire Lord’s daughter’s name, should any doubt your legitimacy to rule. Also, have all information regarding possible insurgency groups sent to the Dai Li’s headquarters under Lake Laogai, and give them more power when it comes to such matters. In the event that such a place no longer exists, dispose of it.
“Now, you can further help me by eliminating a few, radical individuals. The following people will trouble me if they are not dealt with: The Earth King, The Council of Five, every scribe in the royal palace or any who had contact with the king. See to it that they find their morning cup of tea laced with an eager heir’s tonic, use the Dai Li if you have to.”
Slowly, he began to make his way back to the door. “Oh, and I was never here,” he added just before he left the room. His conscience was absolved, clean of any guilt. The city’s map was still intact; his hidden fortune still hidden, and most important, the underground was still safely underground. A sinister smile soon curved its way around his flat, chapped lips, and he calmly began his journey back to the Underground’s head quarters with his mission a success.
FYI, I meant disagree instead of agree. Of course Suki would agree to being able to match the Dai Li *faceslap* sorry about that mistake.)))
FYI, I meant disagree instead of agree. Of course Suki would agree to being able to match the Dai Li *faceslap* sorry about that mistake.)))