#((Feel free to inquire more about them from chi if youre curious))

[chimerical-waters]

Do you think you could regrow your arm? Like an amphibian?

"With magic and a long period of time, maybe a limb could be made to regrow. Maybe. I don't have a good grasp on magic either way, so it's not really an option. There aren't really any still around that I could ask."

[grither55]

The Princess and the Peasant - (An Azula Epic) - Chapter 98 - On the Other Side

The highborn girls gradually opened their eyes to find themselves gazing on in alarm to see that they were in the back of a vehicle.

One unlike the which that they have ever seen.

And most infuriating of all, was that they could barely move!

It was if their bodies had been…chi blocked!

And their wrists and ankles…were in shackles!

The princess spun around with her furious eyes sweeping about to find herself behind a steel cage in the corner of the armored car.

Across from her was her captain seated in a similar cage.

Zoe gazed back at her with alert hazel eyes while the angered noblewoman tried to sit up only to find that her body had been…numbed.

"I can't move…my body." Azula snarled with her teeth clenched together while her enraged eyes rapidly glanced about the car.

Before she stared out from the back of the car to find herself facing her three companions also in restraints sitting on benches outside of her cage.

Her golden eyes narrowed dangerously when she saw her young girlfriend passed out beside the seated acrobat.

With her frigid eyes already burning with fury as she silently scanned the sleeping girl's face for any sign of injury.

While both Mai and Ty Lee sat in their seats with looks of anger in their eyes as they quietly listened to the sound of the military vehicle driving through the snow.

"They disabled our chi." Zoe spoke with frustration lacing her stony voice while she gazed out at her companions faces.

And if the cages that they placed herself and the princess in were anything to go by.

The soldiers had correctly deduced who could and could not bend.

"I'm…I'm sorry Azula. This is all my fault." Ty Lee muttered as she gazed down into her lap while Azula sat glaring daggers out of her cage.

"Is the girl unharmed?" The princess asked in a hardened voice with her cold eyes staring back at the teenager's dozing face.

"She's okay Azula. Although I have a suspicion that none of us will be if we don't figure something out quickly." Mai remarked in a low voice with a scowl on her lips while Azula seethed with her lips pursed into a regal glower.

While they listened to the sound of the strange vehicle rolling through the cold ground.

All the while as they gazed back at one another with alerts looks in their eyes as they tried to think of a way to escape their bonds.

"When we get out of here…I don't want to hear one word about mercy!" Azula snapped with her cold eyes glaring ahead while her two childhood friends flinched as they quietly nodded in understanding.

And then in that very moment the older girls heard their young friend beginning to stir in her seat.

While they all turned to gaze in the teenager's direction with concern in their eyes while the handmaid came to.

"Are you alright Elle?" The brown-haired woman asked in a tender voice as she gazed down at the younger girl's face from where the serving girl sat beside her.

Only for Elle's amber eyes to immediately fill up with unhidden worry as she peered back up at the taller female.

"They…they took my backpack but otherwise I'm okay. They didn't hurt you did they oneesan?" Elle pondered in a fretful voice as her lip curled up while Ty Lee managed to crack a loving smile.

"Don't worry about me little sister. I'm fine!" Ty Lee assured in a sisterly voice while Elle bit her lip as she adorably nodded her head.

Despite the gravity of their situation, having the young girl seated next to her served to offer a small sense of comfort.

Although, judging by the cold stare that Azula was directing their way she had a feeling that her possessive friend was not pleased by the seating arrangement.

"This technology is unlike anything that I have ever seen before." The captain commented in a focused voice with her hazel gaze glancing about.

While the mighty princess's lips creased into a furious scowl as she glared out with frigid golden eyes.

All the while as Elle sat in her seat with her amber eyes gazing down in nervousness.

"W-we use automobiles…cars and trucks for most land travel in place of steed and carriage. Even the poorest of commoners have them." The blonde-haired girl spoke up while her four highborn friends listened in an astounded silence.

"Wow. Even commoners have them Elle?" The brown-haired woman pondered in a taken aback voice while the princess listened with an elegant brow arching upward.

"They do oneesan. Unlike in the Fire Nation, vehicles aren't restricted to only military use. My parents had one as well." Elle explained in a helpful voice while her highborn friends listened in growing intrigue.

While the princess's lips pulled into another scowl after hearing that peasants of all people are able to afford a faster means of travel than even the best of Fire Nation steeds.

Yet even still.

She couldn't quell her curiosity to learn more about the mechanical inventions of her serving girl's homeland.

"Servant." The princess stated in a stern voice with her callous eyes gazing back at her pet's adorably devoted face.

"Yes princess?" The blonde-haired girl answered in a faithful voice while the older girl stared back at her in boundless approval that sent a delightful shiver down her spine.

"As our servant it is your duty to act as our representative with these foreign officials. Is that understood Elle?" Azula ordered in a voice of absolute dominance with her controlling eyes gazing back at her little admirer's pretty face.

Only to gaze back with satisfaction in her cold eyes when the girl tried her hardest to bow her little head in reverence.

"As Her Highness commands! I will not let you down Azula-sama!" Elle cried out in a lovable voice while Azula's frigid eyes reflected a pleased gleam that made her heart speed up.

While Mai and Ty Lee just sighed as they rode on the bench in silence.

Even when chained up and stripped of her bending, Azula still took pleasure in dominating their little sister.

"Good. See to it that you don't Elle." The princess stated in a glacial voice with her cold eyes glaring ahead while a tight scowl graced her lips.

Before she turned her head with her golden eyes narrowing once more when she heard the vehicle begin to slow down.

"They're slowing down." Zoe remarked with an edge to her stony voice while she too glared at the closest wall.

"I know you don't know Elle. But if you had to guess. What country would you say we are in?" The markswoman inquired as she glanced down at her little sister's thoughtful face through the corner of her eye.

"Um. It's really hard to say. The nations here aren't divided up by elements, because of that there are more countries here than back home in the Fire Nation." The blonde-haired girl replied in a soft voice while her highborn friends listened in a fascinated silence.

And it had not failed to escape the notice of the four older girls that the teenager had referred to the Fire Nation as 'back home'.

It was a small detail. But it was oddly pleasing to the Fire Princess all the same.

"But…going by the frigid climate. It could be Russia…or Canada. Or perhaps a smaller northern country." Elle spoke in a worried voice as she shivered in her seat while older girls gazed back at her in captivation.

"Russia…or Canada…" Azula stated in a ruthless voice with her golden eyes gazing on in ire while her breath visibly formed in the air before her face.

All the while as she took carefully controlled intakes of air in the hopes of preventing her body from freezing over.

"I see. How many nations do you have here Elle?" The captain questioned in a curious voice with her hazel eyes never losing their guarded gleam.

While the other girls still gazed back at their young friend's timid face with both concern and curiosity in their eyes.

"W-well before the great war there were almost two hundred nations scattered across the globe…" The blonde-haired girl trailed off in an awkward voice while her friends stared back at her in disbelief.

While the sound of the military vehicles pulling into a building resonated into the girls stunned ears.

A tense pause filled the air while the princess gazed on with her golden eyes expressing her incredulity.

"Two hundred? Elle!" Ty Lee blurted out with apprehension in her shocked voice while her little sister tried to nod her head.

"How does your homeland have so many countries?" Mai asked in a bewildered voice with her tawny eyes taking on an even more wary stare.

Their situation was sounded all the worse by the minute.

"I…I think it's because here nations are not formed under the basis of fire, earth, water or air. I feel like that allows for the development of more nations than if it were otherwise." Elle explained in a mousy voice while her companions listened with a numbed look in their eyes.

All the while as Azula clenched her teeth together with even greater fury burning in her callous eyes.

'I must gain control of that gateway at all costs! I cannot allow so many nations to invade my domain!' The princess thought with her cold golden eyes glaring imperiously ahead while her cage shook as the transport drove into the base.

"By Agni…that gateway is an even greater security risk that I ever imagined." Zoe spoke in an alarmed voice with her hazel eyes gazing about in search of a way to break free.

While Mai and Ty Lee could only stare on with their eyes wide in great surprise as the gravity of their dilemma sank in.

"B-but that was before the Third World War. I don't know how many are left now…." The blonde-haired girl murmured while her highborn friends listened intently.

"What…happened during the Third World War Elle?" The brown-haired woman queried in a hesitant voice while the teenager gazed down with a saddened look in her eyes.

"A weapon was released into the air that killed off a large percentage of the worldwide population." Elle revealed in a barely perceivable voice with her amber eyes staring down in a depressed silence while the older girls' eyes grew wide in shock.

Not a single member of Team Azula said a word as the car shook once more while they gazed back at their young friend in a speechless quiet.

"Nothing was ever the same again after that. We ruined much of the world beyond repair." The blonde-haired girl muttered in a glum voice as the sound of engines still roared into her ears while her friends sat in a stunned silence.

"I…I am sorry Elle. That is horrible." Ty Lee stated in a solemn voice with new realization in her brown-gray eyes while her chains rattled as the vehicle drove inside.

While Mai gazed on with a newfound look of grimness in her tawny eyes as she processed the young girl's words.

It just made it all the more horrifying to her to know that the girl had lived through such a war-ravaged world.

And now she was once again being subjected to another war for their sake.

And she couldn't help but find that it left a highly unpleasant taste in her mouth.

"A-anyway. I am quite certain that they want the unspoiled resources that your land has to offer. And we can't let them do that." Elle stammered as she peered up back at her master's cold countenance while Azula's merciless eyes glared ahead.

"Your Crown Princess has heard your council servant. And worry not. They will not be attaining the resources of the Fire Nation." Azula declared in a tone of absolute authority while she gazed out at her loyal serving girl's emotional face.

Before her lips pursed into a scowl as she pondered what the girl had just told her.

'While these nonbending nations may possess a technological advantage…. from the sound of it their land is war-torn and their countries are in a state of disarray.' The princess thought with her intelligent golden eyes taking on another calculating gleam.

Perhaps there is a way that she can turn this situation to her advantage?

And then before the five girls could say another word at long last the vehicle began to roll to a stop.

While the sound of other vehicles slowing followed soon after.

Before the four highborn women exchanged a guarded look with one another as they listened to the sound of soldier's voices drawing nearer.

"Did the other squad come back yet?" A male voice questioned as footsteps drew closer while the sound of heavy equipment being unloaded echoed into the air.

"T-they're speaking English…so it's probably not Russia." The blonde-haired girl stated in a quiet voice while her friends listened warily.

"Not that I heard." The second voice said as he strode closer.

"Any word on what the commander wants done with the lot of them?" The first man asked while the princess glared out of her cage with murderous golden eyes.

"He said that he wanted the little blonde intact." The second man answered with his words causing Elle to whimper in her seat while her friends stared on with dangerously protective looks in their eyes.

"And the others?" Robert queried while the young girl sat shivering in both fear and from the horribly cold air.

While the acrobat and the markswoman swallowed as they exchanged another look with one another.

"Fuck if I know." David responded in a tone devoid of pity while the serving girl stared on with her amber eyes agape in worry for her friend's wellbeing.

All the while as the princess and the captain rapidly continued to scan their surroundings in search of a means to break free.

Only for the girls to find their eyes spinning around when the door of the military transport was opened up at long last.

And now Team Azula found themselves glaring furiously out at a large platoon of armored soldiers while Elle shook in fear.

"Just bring them in." The lieutenant ordered as he gazed out from underneath his helmet while the princess glared imposingly out at them from the inside of her cage.

"I demand to speak with your monarch." Azula announced in a naturally authoritative voice while her cold eyes stared hard at the soldiers as they moved to open her cage.

Only for her golden eyes to stare on in rising fury when she found that she was still unable to move her limbs even as they began to unlock the cage.

While the three noblewomen gazed on with wary looks in their eyes as several men wordlessly seized the now shouting princess by the arm.

"A-Azula-sama! Please don't hurt her!" Elle cried out in a fretful voice with her kind eyes growing wide in worry while her big sister's listened in anger beside her.

"I said you will take me to your monarch." The princess ordered in an indignant voice as she was pulled forward while her captain watched with a narrowed look in her eyes.

"Azula." The brown-haired woman stated with unhidden anxiety in her voice while she watched her childhood friend get dragged out of her cage.

After all of the years that she has spent fearing Azula.

There was something utterly frightening about watching someone as powerful as her get reduced this.

"Unhand me right now peasant! I am Princess Azula of the Fire Nation and you will treat me with respect! You should know that detaining me is an act of war!" Azula bellowed in an enraged voice while her body remained limp as she was raised into the air.

While she angrily made eye contact with her worried companions before her icy eyes settled on her serving girl's distraught face.

Only for her cheeks to turn red with bubbling fury when the soldiers broke out into raucous laughter.

The team gazed on with uneasy eyes while the proud princess seethed in the laughing soldiers' arms while they pulled her up by her shoulders.

"Do you hear that boys! We got a princess!" Another soldier howled in mocking laughter while the royal woman glowered with her callous eyes now burning through his skull.

All the while as the rest of the team sat there in an unsettled silence while they watched the soldiers all break out into uncaring laughter.

Before the princess began to shake in even greater rage when she felt a hand touch her hair.

While her eyes narrowed into slits as she stared imposingly back at their jeering helmet covered faces.

"Well, I guess we better give her the royal treatment then." David chuckled while his fingers lingered in Azula's dark hair while she glared at him through the corner of her eye.

"Take your filthy fucking hand out of my Crown Princess's hair right now. Or I will cut it off the moment I regain my mobility." The captain threatened with a dangerous edge to her hardened voice while she glared out at the laughing soldiers.

And for the briefest of moments the Fire Princess turned her eyes to gaze back at her warrior with a look of recognition in her cold stare.

Only for her approval to fade away into outrage when a gloved finger brushed against her cheek while she trembled in boiling fury.

"Your Majesty." The lieutenant stated in a voice that was laced with mockery while he performed a pretend bow before the princess's seething face.

While his fellows laughed as loud as can be behind him.

And then not a moment later the princess was sent hurtling face first into the damp ground of the garage.

'Those idiots won't be laughing when Azula gets free.' Mai thought with her tawny eyes grimly observing her childhood friend's rare moment of degradation.

Azula slammed into the concrete with her entire face agape in humiliation while she shook on the cold floor with her captors chortling above her.

While her breath continued to visibly pour into the air before her reddened face while her golden eyes grew wide with murderous intent.

'The moment I regain my mobility I am going to kill every last one of them!' The princess thought with pure rage boiling over in her eyes while she clenched her jaw in indignation.

Only for her young servant's angered voice to shout out into her ears while she swallowed as she attempted to turn her head to gaze in the young girl's direction.

"S-stop treating her like that! She's the first dignitary from her land to ever step foot beyond that gate! Her visit here is historical! You should be receiving her with honor! Not degrading her!" The blonde-haired girl shouted in a distressed voice with her amber eyes wide in panic.

While the princess listened with a rare appreciation in her eyes from where she lay with her face against the floor.

All the while as the three noblewomen gazed at their young friend with a sense of gratitude in their eyes.

Only for the foreign soldiers to pay the young girl no mind as they walked forward to collect the others.

"This isn't about history kid. And we don't give a shit how your friends feel. Get the others!" David commanded in a dismissive voice as he pulled Azula up by her shoulder plate while the princess's seethed as she hung in the air.

While the highborn women watched with tense looks in their eyes as the soldiers rushed in to apprehend them.

And not even a second later Mai was being pulled out by the arm while the noblewoman glared daggers at her captors.

"P-please don't harm them!" Elle pleaded in a frantic voice with her eyes agape in worry while the acrobat scowled beside her.

"Will someone shut this kid up?" Robert stated with annoyance in his voice while the princess's golden glare increased by tenfold.

And soon after that the noblewomen were staring on with fury in their eyes when the teenager was roughly dragged out of the transport.

"Leave her alone!" Ty Lee yelled with great anger in her voice as she was yanked forward while Elle's petite form was coldly shoved out of the vehicle.

"If…if you have to hurt someone…hurt me. Just don't hurt my friends." The blonde-haired girl spoke in a gentle hearted voice as she was shoved forward while her four friends listened with affected looks in their eyes.

While Zoe scowled as she was pulled out of the transport last by her elbows.

All the while as she glared at the soldiers with coldly narrowed hazel eyes as her breath blew into the frigid air.

And not a moment after that the Fire Nation women found themselves watching with their blood boiling when their young friend was pushed down onto the frigid pavement.

The teenager cried out as she hit the concrete while several of the soldiers chuckled in amusement above her.

While her four highborn friends now stared on with furiously narrowed eyes.

None more so than Azula herself.

In the very instant that Elle's face hit the floor.

The princess's golden eyes narrowed into predatory slits while her lips shook in a bloodthirsty glower.

While Naoki's words from their earlier meeting replayed in her mind.

 They don't deserve any mercy.

"I suggest you worry less about them. And more about yourself." The lieutenant stated in an uncaring voice with his eyes gazing down at the young girl's fearful face.

Before another soldier pulled the frightened teenager to her feet and then began to drag her across the cold garage.

"Bastards." The markswoman snapped under her breath with her teeth clenched as she was carried forward by the armed soldiers.

While the captain kept silent as she was hauled along by a soldier flanking her from each side.

All the while as her hazel eyes stared icily after the soldier's backs.

"You commoner…what's your name?" Azula hissed with the flames of purgatory burning in her golden eyes while she stared back at the would-be leader's helmet covered face.

Before the man turned to briefly glance back at her through his visor while he paid the highborn girl's glares little mind.

"David." David answered with a snort while Azula's monstrous golden eyes glared back at him.

"David. I am going to kill you." The princess declared in a matter of fact voice with her chilling words causing her two childhood friends to shudder as they were dragged along.

"You ladies won't be moving for quite some time. They gave you the same compound that they used to bring down Twenty-One. If it shut down her good. It'll do the same for you." The lieutenant replied in a scoff while the two firebenders stared furiously back at him.

While the princess was hauled along with her livid golden eyes glaring ahead of her.

All the while as she bared her teeth much like a wrathful dragon with her cold gaze keeping a close eye on her terrified girlfriend.

While all of Team Azula exchanged wary looks with one another as they were escorted through the depths of the frigid building.

And Elle was carried along at the forefront with her amber eyes staring ahead in unconcealed apprehension.

'No matter what it takes to save them…I will do it. Even if it costs me my life. I'll do it for Azula-sama…for my oneesans…for my friends.' Elle thought with her emotional eyes squeezing shut while she pulled along by the soldiers.

And then soon the four highborn women were dragged past many strange parked military vehicles.

While they gazed on with both anger and fascination in their eyes as they surveyed their foreign conditions.

All the while as countless alien light structures lit the entirety of the military garage as they gazed up at the bizarre beams in amazement.

Just before they all found themselves being guided through double doors that opened up automatically with a mechanical hiss.

And then soon enough they were being led down a long underground tunnel corridor with tube pipes running down the length of the overhead ceiling.

And bright lights shined above them while the team gazed up in grudging intrigue as they took in all of the sights and sounds around them.

'This is all…powered without bending?' Azula thought with her golden eyes sweeping about in fascination much like a predator taking notes on her surroundings.

While they passed by many turns and passageways that were filled to the brim with far too many armed soldiers to count.

Until finally at long last the team was shoved to a stop before an open doorway.

Just as they all turned their eyes to find themselves gazing back at a large stationary platoon of soldiers.

And standing at the front was the same scarred man that had taken the acrobat hostage from before!

While the Fire Nation women now narrowed their eyes as they glared at the uniformed man as he turned to smile coldly back at them.

"Welcome. I hope that you ladies are enjoying yourselves." The colonel greeted in a voice that was laced with mockery as he stepped forward while the princess's golden eyes burned through his forehead.

Before the princess pursed her lips into a haughty sneer while her subordinates mustered nasty glares of their own.

All the while as the teenager quivered with a fretful look in her amber eyes as the man sauntered towards them.

"I presume that you're the leader of this base?" The princess questioned in an ever-dignified voice with her callous eyes gazing at the approaching man much like a feline eying her prey.

"You presume correctly. I am Colonel Reynolds. Judging by your demeanor and uniform I take it that you are the commander of your group." Reynolds stated as he strode forward with his gloved hands folded behind his back.

While he stared back at the older girl's distrusting faces with harsh blue eyes before he turned his gaze to Elle's fearful face.

"Indeed. I am Princess Azula of the Fire Nation. And be assured that I am the master of everyone in this group. That and so much more." Azula spoke in a sanguine voice with her head held while she gazed coldly back into the man's seemingly amused blue eyes.

Before the commander came to a stop before the group with his gaze turning from one to the other.

While the captain too stared back at him with remarkably fearless hazel eyes.

All the while as the acrobat and the markswoman exchanged looks through the corner of their eyes.

While they too stared icily back at the scarred man's smirking face.

"Princess Azula…" The colonel trailed off with a gleam in his eyes as he gazed back into the princess's sadistic golden eyes while another soldier stepped up behind him.

"Sir. The holder girl aside. We performed a scan on these four, these two here…have an abnormally high-power reading." A soldier stated as gestured to the two firebenders while the two women's eyes flashed with an unmistakable look of great pride.

'Power reading…is that a measurement of our chi?' The princess thought with her golden eyes taking on a calculating stare while her lips almost curved into a proud smile.

"And the other two?" Reynolds asked in a cold voice while he turned his eyes to the other two noblewomen's scowling faces.

"Not so much. By their readings they don't seem to be aura users. But from what we've seen they are still highly dangerous and it could simply be that their power is untapped." The officer concluded as he gazed back at the two noblewomen's partly insulted faces.

"I see. The nation that you hail from…you say that it is called the Fire Nation." The colonel continued in an emotionless voice as he gazed from one female to the other while the captain met his gaze.

"That's right. And I am the Crown Princess's second in command." Zoe informed in a stony voice with her hazel gazing at the man's mildly curious face while two soldiers held her up from behind.

"How fascinating…you are from another land entirely…but your clothing resembles that of Imperial Japan." Reynolds stated with his blue eyes scrutinizing the group while the highborn women raised their brows in bewilderment.

Not only had their young friend disclosed that she was one fourth Japanese.

But on top of that they have since learned that it was a country ruled by the mysterious woman called Rieko.

And yet most baffling of all was the fact that this man was stating that their attire bore a similarity to that of this Japan!

Azula's golden eyes flickered with intrigue as she tried to gaze in her young servant's direction for guidance.

All the while as Elle chewed on her lip as she gazed back up at the imposing man.

'Where…. have I seen his face before? And why does he look so familiar?' The blonde-haired girl thought with her lips curling into an apprehensive frown while she quietly studied the commander's scarred countenance.

"And yet…all of you speak English." The colonel spoke in a curious voice while he gazed back at the Fire Nation women's increasingly puzzled faces.

"English? We call it the common tongue." The captain replied in a composed voice while the commander paused to glance her way once more.

"The common tongue���how curious. I would like to know more about your Fire Nation. That…if you care to enlighten me…princess." Reynolds remarked in a taunting voice as he turned to gaze back into Azula's ruthlessly glaring golden eyes.

"I would be glad to do so. We are a nation of proud conquerors that have no rival. And if you do not release us, your nation will be burned to ashes in retaliation." Azula announced in a tyrannical voice with her merciless eyes staring right back into the commander's unblinking blue eyes.

While her four subordinates remained silence as they gazed back at the uniformed man's emotionless face.

Only for many soldiers throughout the room to break out into a round of loud laughter.

All the while as the team stared on with angered looks in their eyes.

And the powerful Fire Princess still gazed ruthlessly back at the commander's laughing face with a scarily cold look in her golden eyes.

"Proud conquerors. And you bring an army of five, with swords and knives, absent an armada." The colonel commented in a tone devoid of respect as his chuckles died down while he stared back into the princess's seething golden eyes.

While the team remained silent as they silently shivered after they sensed their leader's palpable rage.

'Laugh while you can worm. Because I am going to make you scream.' The princess thought with her glacial eyes narrowing into an utterly monstrous death glare at the man's still smirking face.

"There is nothing to burn that we haven't already burned down ourselves." The colonel stated with sadistic amusement in his voice while the older girl's eyes briefly flickered in a flash of interest.

All the while as Elle turned her eyes away with a saddened look in her amber eyes that her highborn friends were quick to take note of.

Before the group suddenly found themselves gazing on in alarm when the commander waved his right hand in the air.

And not a second later the princess was struck from behind by the back of a rifle.

And then Azula was swiftly forced onto her knees while she still stared up with a furious golden gaze.

Only for her callous eyes to widen ever so marginally when Reynolds withdrew his pistol and aimed it directly between her eyes.

And now the team was staring on at the scene with unconcealed trepidation in their eyes.

While Elle's amber eyes were already growing wide in horror for the princess's wellbeing.

"In any event princess. I don't need you. And I wager that killing you will make your comrades…more pliable." Reynolds declared with a smirk on his cruel lips as he stared down into Azula's eyes while the princess clenched her jaw in humiliation.

While Mai and Ty Lee gazed on with their eyes quickly growing wide in worry for their friend's safety.

And Zoe herself watched while she gritted her teeth with anger over their helpless state in her hazel eyes.

Only for their young friend's panicked voice to ring out in protest once more while the princess knelt on the ground with her teeth bared in her fury.

"S-stop! Please no! I'll tell you anything you want! J-just please don't kill my princess!" Elle blurted out in a wildly emotional voice as she shook in the soldier's grip while her highborn friends listened in a heartfelt silence.

While Azula's frigid golden eyes now stared on with a grudgingly moved expression in her gaze.

All the while as she still glared up into Reynold's sadistic eyes while he gazed between her and her frantic girlfriend.

While the commander still had yet to lower his gun.

"The people of the Fire Nation are ruled by a Fire Lord and Azula-sama is the heir to the throne! They speak the same verbal language as us but their writing language seems to be similar to written Chinese!" The blonde-haired girl exclaimed in a frantic voice while she gazed on with a flustered look in her amber eyes.

While the four older girls listened with confusion and intrigue in their eyes as they gazed back at their clearly distraught companion.

'They have a similar written language to ours called Chinese?' Azula thought with her elegant brows furrowing in contemplation while she still glared up at the commander with boiling golden eyes.

"Interesting. And yet none of that information changes the fact that I have no use for her. Or any of them really." The colonel stated in a cruel voice with his pistol still pushing into the princess's furious forehead while the three noblewomen gazed on in surmounting anxiety.

"P-please. I'll do whatever you want if you just let my friends go." Elle begged in a hysterical voice with her golden bangs shadowing her eyes while her friends glanced at her in rising alarm.

"Elle no!" The brown-haired woman shouted with fury in her sisterly voice while she shook in dread over the thought of leaving the girl behind.

While the princess sunk forward with her teeth ground together as she snarled up at the commander's smirking visage.

'Foolish girl! Don't offer that!' The princess thought with her icy eyes narrowing in a bloodthirsty wrath while she glared into the man's arrogant blue eyes.

"Why would I ever agree to that when I already have half of what I want…that being you." Reynolds answered in a pitiless voice with his harsh eyes still gazing down into Azula's enraged golden eyes.

"I-I'm begging you! I can't stand the thought of her coming to any harm!" The blonde-haired girl cried out as she sunk forward in her captor's arms while her misty amber eyes gazed up in hysteria.

All the while as the highborn women of the Fire Nation listened in a speechlessly moved state of silence.

And for the most fleeting of moments Azula's merciless golden eyes flashed with a tiny sliver of long buried emotion.

Before the mighty princess once again pursed her seething lips into a glower as she defiantly glared up into her new enemy's sadistic blue gaze.

Until at long last to Elle's great relief Reynolds finally lowered his gun to his side.

While the group gazed on in a floored quiet as the man gazed coldly down into the princess's proudly livid golden eyes.

"For the time being I will leave them unharmed." The colonel agreed with his blue eyes staring mockingly down into the royal woman's humiliated eyes.

"T-thank you." Elle breathed in a barely perceivable voice while her highborn friends still stared hatefully at the commander's monstrous face.

"Don't thank me. I have no doubt that while I have no use for them. That they will be of great interest to the researcher." Reynolds announced with a small smile on his cruel lips while the team fell their stomachs drop.

And that was all the confirmation the Fire Nation women needed to know that the man was only playing a sick game with them.

"R-researcher?" The blonde-haired girl asked in a horrified voice with her amber eyes already growing wide in distress once more.

Before the commander turned to smirk at the three snarling noblewomen before turning his cold gaze down to the princess's simply murderous countenance.

"He is a scientist…with a fondness for human experimentation. And I am quite certain that he will be delighted to acquire such a beautiful royal test subject." The colonel remarked in a heartless voice as he took the princess's seething chin in hand while the group stared on in horror.

While the team gazed on with their eyes filled with dread as they recalled the old sage's words.

 He is a beast who is obsessed with knowledge…a deranged scientist.

"N-no! No! Please no!" Elle cried out with returning hysteria in her voice while she was hoisted up by the soldiers from behind.

And then not the princess was pulled up by the soldiers while she stared at her captor with her predatory golden eyes narrowed in bloodlust.

While the three noblewomen glowered as they found themselves being pulled back by the soldiers.

"Just you wait…Reynolds. I will destroy you!" Azula hissed with venomous fury lacing her refined voice while her callous eyes glared back at her enemy's smirking face.

"And that is a promise." Zoe spoke with frigid agreement in her stony voice while the commander let out a dismissive chuckle.

Just before a soldier rushed out from the crowd with an alert look about him.

"Sir! The senator has arrived!" The soldier yelled out in mid salute while the commander's blue eyes flickered in recognition.

While the highborn women exchanged an uneasy look with one another before they found themselves being hauled forward once more.

"In the meantime, put them in with our other guest." Reynolds commanded with a dark smirk on his lips while he gazed back into the princess's bubbling golden eyes.

And just like that the team was escorted out of the room while they gazed ahead with a shared apprehension in their eyes.

While Azula and Zoe exchanged guarded look as they glared at their captor's through the corner of their eyes.

"O-other guest?" The blonde-haired girl questioned in a fearful voice while her highborn friends stared hatefully at the soldiers that surrounded them.

And for reasons that she couldn't fathom.

The closer they got to their destination the more her spine began to tingle with a terror that she knew all too well.

"It's time that you attended a family reunion." David commented in an uncaring voice as Elle's amber eyes grew as wide as humanly possible.

"F-family…reunion?" Elle pondered in a terrified voice while her companions gazed with rapidly growing alarm in their narrowed eyes.

Just as she heard a frighteningly familiar voice call out from the other end of the hall.

And that was all it took for the color to drain from her aghast face.

Which did not go unnoticed by her four furious friends.

"I would like a cigarette…and a steak… rare." Felix called out in the distance in an eerily casual voice while the team listened with bewildered looks in their eyes.

Until they turned to their young friend's hauntingly petrified eyes while the girl noisily swallowed the lump that was in her throat.

"W-what…what is Felix doing here?" The blonde-haired girl asked in an apprehensive gasp while her princess's golden eyes widened in surprise.

"Same as you five. He was captured." The lieutenant stated in a dismissive voice while the highborn women stared on with stunned looks in their eyes.

Before they all turned to gaze at an approaching prison door with their eyes staring on in a rare state of shared hate.

The mere fact that the girl was more afraid of her own brother than an entire base of ruthless soldiers spoke volumes about the boy's cruelty!

"Captured? That…that is just what he wants you to think!" Elle insisted with her amber eyes now wide in paranoia while her heart began to beat rapidly in terror.

While Azula's golden eyes now stared violently at the door as she bared her fangs in dominant fury.

All the while as Mai and Ty Lee gazed with protectively narrowed eyes at the steel door.

And Zoe gazed on with a narrowed look in her stony hazel eyes while she quietly scanned the surroundings of metal fortress.

"Please. The boy is nothing more than a trigger-happy delinquent." David scoffed as he unlocked the door with a click while Elle trembled in her captor's arms.

"Please put us in another room!" The blonde-haired girl protested in a wildly anxious voice while the acrobat watched with a vigilant scowl on her usually kind lips.

Only to find herself being carried forward by the guards despite her protests.

And then the guarded team gazed on with loathing in their eyes as they observed the prison door open up before them.

While the four older girl's eyes grew wide with pure unadulterated wrath as they gazed back at the lone prisoner seated in the prison.

All the while as Elle's heart continued to violently pound in her chest as she now stared back in horror at her older brother's face.

Felix sat with his back against the wall with his hands cuffed behind his back.

Just as he turned to gaze back at their surprised faces with his amber eyes expressing a sense of delight at the sight of his little sister's paling face.

While his amused amber eyes momentarily swept over each of the highborn women's enraged faces before he settled on Azula's smoldering golden eyes.

Before he turned to smile back at his terrified sister as they gazed back into each other's eyes.

"Hey there, Sis." The brother spoke with his lips pulling into a smirk while he stared back into his little sister's horrified amber eyes.

And then the sound of the steel door slamming shut echoed throughout the halls of the military fortress.

And finally, in the control room.

Reynolds stood before a private monitor screen with his arms folded over his chest.

While his lips curved into a smug smile when a face appeared on the screen.

A woman of high military rank now stood on the other end of the connection.

Her coffee brown hair was tied in a bun and her sharp gray eyes were now staring back at the man on the other side.

Her body was adorned in shimmering combat armor and a long green cape flowed majestically behind her.

Her face was by all accounts lovely yet her facial expression conveyed an unparalleled arrogance that could put even a certain princess to shame.

"Air Commander Andromeda. It pleases me that you accepted my call." Reynolds greeted in a cautious voice while he gazed back at the woman's conceited visage.

"What is it that you want Colonel Reynolds? Moreover…why should I even care about what you have to say in the first place." The air commander spoke in a hubristic voice as she turned up her nose to the smirking man.

"Send a message to your Lord. I have several gifts for her. Gifts that I know she will be delighted to receive." The colonel announced in a scheming voice with a victorious smirk on his lips.

While Andromeda now gazed back with an intrigued look in her snake like eyes.

All the while as the man's lips still formed a gratified smile.

He couldn't have asked for a more fortunate turn of events.

Everything was going according to his plan.

All that was left was to capture Number Three.

And then everything would fall into place in his favor.