Adult-FanFiction.org : Cartoons

Borealis: A Zutara Story	By : jaded_priceless Category: Avatar - The Last Airbender > AU/AR - Alternate Universe/Alternate Reality Views: 33524 -:- Recommendations : 2 -:- Currently Reading : 4
Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender, Avatar: The Legend of Korra, any historical figures or events, or easily recognizable persons, places or things. I make no profit from this work of fanfiction

Chapter List
- 116
- 117
- 118
Chapter 115
A week later Appa’s condition had improved and the Ursa was almost back on course. Mu had not found any other signs of parasites among the livestok but two of komodo-chickens on board had died of exposure from nesting in contaminated hay. Chu-Hua continued the zig zag pattern against the currents Bingwen though it best for everyone on board to continue the regimen of a quarter cup of salt water at mealtimes and a seabath each day in case one of those they’d eaten carried the parasite. It was rare but sometimes the eggs were able to survive being cooked and hatched inside a human host.
He also banned the consumption of meat unless it was freshly caught fish until they reached the Earth Kingdom shore.
Tempers were already high from the forced vegetarianism and delayed landing when one of the smaller escorts they’d sent out to scout was towed back by two larger ships from Rear Admiral Qin’s fleet. They had responded to the ship’s distress signal. Katara was only able to gather bits and pieces of information but deduced the ship had been attacked by pirates. If it truly had been attacked by Water Tribesmen as some of the rumor mongers speculated it never would have made it back.
Those two ships and six others remained with them until they got back on course. She had not realized how determined the Fire Lord was to prevent their escape until she saw twenty additional destroyer class ships waiting at the point where they had deviated from their original journey. There was celebration when the Ursa finally showed up.
Apparently they had received orders not to proceed towards shore without guaranteeing the safety of the Ursa.
That night Zuko took both her and Sokka to his bedroom leaving overnight guardianship of Appa to Mu and his subordinates. Katara found out why the next morning. Appa had been branded. Property of Fire Lord Ozai, Clan Volos Custodians could be seen on both sides.
“How could you?” Katara screamed breaking away from Zuko’s grasp and launching herself at Mu but Sokka grabbed her. The crest branded on Appa was an exact match to the one she’d seen on the weapons pouch he’d strapped to his leg the night of the banquet.
“It is a crime to tamper with the royal family’s personal belongings. It is a crime punishable by death to lay a malicious hand on anything bearing the name of the Fire Lord,” Mu said quietly as he turned his back to her to apply salve to Appa’s injuries.
“He’s injured, ill and you burned him! How could you?” Katara screamed as she struggled to get away from her brother.
Sokka shook her and yelled at her in Water Tribe, “Katara! Stop being stupid. Look around you. How many of these people had to clean up after Appa and are mad we’re behind schedule because of him? Appa is a war animal. He fought just like we did the day of the invasion. Do you think any of the people here have forgotten it?”
“But-” Katara protested weakly. She knew what happened to war animals in the hands of the enemy. A komodo-rhino found wandering in the Earth Kingdom was lucky to only be eaten.
Sokka’s voice softened and he loosened his grip, “Appa’s afraid of fire, Katara. Do you really want him to be stuck on a ship full of Firebenders with no protection?”
“But he has us!” she insisted balling her hands into fists and stomping her feet.
Sokka shook his head and let go of her, “What good are we to him when we can’t even protect ourselves?”
Katara opened her mouth to argue but couldn’t. Appa’s illness had been a reprieve for both of them. She knew it was only a matter of time before Sokka went back to being the ship’s punching bag and she was forced back into sexual slavery.
“I anesthetized the area before applying the brand. This salve has painkiller and antibiotic properties. It’s the same as what I’ve been putting on his wounds. His stomach is still too sensitive for most medications but I’ve been feeding him foods with calming and restorative values. You can add chamomile and dandelion tea to the list of things he likes,” Mu explained quietly.
Katara bit her lower lip and nodded. Amayu had given her chamomile and dandelion tea when she was in the infirmary.
Sokka frowned in Mu’s direction. The substance in Appa’s trough smelled familiar so did the salve he was covered in. The veterinarian raised an eyebrow in return, “I take no pleasure in seeing or harming defenseless creatures nor do I understand those who do so.”
“But,” Katara added weakly as Appa pushed his head forward to nuzzle them.
“He can’t do worse than Toph did; the Stringbean can actually see Appa if someone tries to harm him. Besides if Appa gets lost this time we’ll know exactly where to go to find him. We can take Gran-gran and a few of her old lady friends to kick the Fire Lord’s ass while we’re there,” Sokka pretended not to acknowledge Mu’s words or deeds. He shrugged while letting go of Katara to pet their furry friend.
Katara smiled and leaned against her brother’s shoulder as she petted Appa. Going back to the Fire Nation on the night of the full moon and busting Hama out of jail and taking her with them to destroy Soizin City was one of the wilder plans they’d cooked up.

Zuko kept Sokka in the room with them for the next three nights. The improvement in Appa’s condition had only been temporary as the medication traveled from his fifth to the sixth stomach. He used expediting the clean up process as the excuse to keep them in one room. Sokka did not contradict his explanation when Katara asked why they were not sleeping on deck. He had spent more time topside than she did and had started to notice certain things about Fire Nation ships - each night they anchored the direction they were heading.
Several of these new ships anchored in the direction of the Fire Nation. They were shaped more like barges than battleships and had more windows at the lower levels than the other ships. They were prison ships; they were taking members of the resistance, possibly people they knew to the Fire Nation. The crews were more heavily armed than those of the ships who faced the Earth Kingdom. Most telling of all were their boots – clod kickers.
He had been playing with his space sword, sliding it in and out of its scabbard on the way to the invasion and Haru had placed his hand over his explaining the sound brought back bad memories from prison. Hama had told them the worst part of being in the Fire Nation prison was hearing the guards before you saw them. The sound of their footsteps was also distinctinve: thump, squeak, click. The boots were heavy enough to break bone with a single kick. There were retractable blades embedded in the soles that extended every time the pressure was released. The squeak and click were the blades exiting and returning to their sheath with each footstep.
He had seen two such ships earlier in their journey. Each time a new ship stopped alongside the Ursa he’d been blindfolded and had the crap beaten out of him until Chu-hua said he’d had enough. It was time to view the Avatar. He was carried back to his cell and usually remained conscious long enough to see small groups of men and women from the Earth Kingdom standing outside his cell. A few tried to speak to him before being pushed into the room next to his; one by one they saw the Firebenders surrounding a heavily chained and drugged Aang.
There were times Chu-hua’s orders weren’t enough to protect him and his assailants had to be physically pulled off. It didn’t take much for him to know if there were this many Fire Nation ships around he be dead before he reached the Earth Kingdom; it was doubtful he’d last twelve hours. The ones who didn’t listen were always barefoot. He doubted the promise of seeing a captured but untouchable Avatar would be enough to curtail their bloodlust.
Sokka soon decided being in the room with Katara and Zuko was its own type of torture. Each night when he laid on the cot that had been placed next to Katara’s he could not help but notice that when she was tired she forgot it existed. The nights they had to get up multiple times to tend to Appa his sister would shower and stumble to the bed with the Fire Nation prince and fall fast asleep.

On the fifth day of being surrounded by additional ships they received confirmation the immediate threat to Ursa had been eliminated. The half of Rear Admiral Qin’s fleet that had not been guarding them returned with the ship that had attacked the escort sent to scout. Katara and the rumor mongers had both been wrong. It was attacked by Earth Kingdom ships masquerading as pirates.
There was a celebration on all of the ships to mark their capture and the return to normalcy it brought. The Earth Kingdom officers were present along with the captains and ranking officers from the Fire Nation ships when Katara was given a certificate for her service, promoted to Seaman and a pay voucher had been issued in her name.
They, along with several other members of the resistance selected from the prison ships, witnessed her receiving an honorable discharge from the Fire Navy with distinction. If the Zhao twins and Mu were to be believed, sixteen, the two deemed most credible and the two deemed most capable from each prison ship and Earth Navy ship; would be “accidently” transferred to an escort headed to the Earth Kingdom and allowed to “escape”.
Katara did not have to be told they were being set free to unknowingly do the Fire Lord’s bidding and spread news of the Avatar’s capture and her military service to the Fire Nation. They were still watching when members of the Ursa began to make toasts to her. Katara accepted each one gleefully and made several longwinded toasts of her own.
Unlike the Fire Lord, Chu-hua was feeding her prisoners. The longer she took, the longer they, Aang, and Sokka could eat and steal food for later. Captain Yung of Omashu was the only Earth Kingdom fighter present to tip his head in her direction as he stuffed dumplings into his underwear.
- 116
- 117
- 118
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

Borealis: A Zutara Story