The night brought an unusually dim bleakness.

No light could escape this abyss. The fires and even the stars were not at bright as usual. The clouds, hinting at a possible shower of rain had blocked out any light that would guide those during the night. So as three people, sharing a commonality had met, not a single person was nearby.

The citizens had long gone to sleep, even bandits or thugs would hesitate before operating in the middle of this kind of night.

When Naoko and Aki finally saw Tadashi walking towards them the two almost cried in relief, glad to see that the young boy was not harmed in any way.

"We didn't know where you'd be, I couldn't even…." Aki stopped as she recounted her attempts to track Tadashi using firebending.

The technique that Tadashi had taught to her and the others of the Intelligence Division two years ago had not gone unforgotten by the captain. Her attempts to find him had almost drained her energy completely, his location must have been further away than anticipated.

"I was in the forest…. reflecting." Tadashi calmly replied.

"I'm just glad you're safe." Naoko spoke softly, inspecting the boy very closely.

Tadashi, trying to hide his increasing discomfort, coughed lightly before stepping back and bowing slightly.

"I need to…..well…." Tadashi sighed, unsure how to continue, "I did it again…. right? I went over the top and lost my cool. I need to act more like the Fire Nation Prince that I am….I-"

"No!" Naoko, cut him off before he could finish speaking." This is all my fault. If only I hadn't mouthed off in the way I did. I've gotten too relaxed in my position that I've forgotten my place."

Tadashi flinched slightly, unable to accept that sort of explanation yet he did his best to mask the rising emotions behind a wall of acceptance.

"I….well….." he mumbled slightly, trying to find the right words to say.

"I know." Aki cut in, "Why don't we camp for the night and let what's happened stay in the past?"

Naoko, pleased to hear the idea nodded however both girls where surprised when Tadashi took several steps back, a serious expression on his face.

"I can't."

"Why?" Aki asked, her expression a mix of shock and caution.

"There has been a change of plans. I need to set out on my own….no rather I need to learn more about myself and my abilities. I…..well, I believe that I've let all this power and technique rule me rather than master the patience needed to act properly. This is something I can't do around you two."

"Surely that doesn't mean you need to leave now?" Naoko asked, reaching out to grab Tadashi's arm.

"I-I have to. You both are… I'm too relaxed around you guys. I need time to focus on my inner strength." Tadashi shook his head as he gently pushed her away, taking out a small piece of paper that he had managed to write on with the writing set he kept in his pack.

"Take it," he said, handing the paper to Aki.

Although it was dark, Aki lit a small fire to allow her to read the paper easily. Although there was a risk of being caught by someone, no one was worried about such a thing at that moment.

"I see," Aki said after several moments.

She looked up, confirming the conviction that Tadashi held in his eyes and gazed back towards Naoko with a saddened expression.

"Let's go, we'll be quite busy soon."

"What! Why?" Naoko asked, turning to face Aki. "You should at least explain it to me now. Tadashi is still our…."

As Naoko turned to face Tadashi she was met by a disturbing lack of his presence. In fact, as both quickly scanned the area they could not locate the boy, Aki too tired to attempt to seek him out again using Tadashi's tracking method.

"How did he do that?" Aki asked aloud.

"I don't know…. but what did he say?"

Aki glanced at Naoko who was clearly unhappy with their situation, the way she'd fidget with her clothing and bit her lower lip were clear indications that she was upset yet not angry.

"He told us to start tracking the Avatar's movement again, we're to act independently but not actively as Fire Nation."

"So, does that mean we're done hiring mercenaries?"

"It seems so, I wouldn't put it past him to have considered this our next step anyway."

"Do you think he'll be ok?"

Aki paused for a second, squashing the reply that would have betrayed her real feelings.

"This is the Director we're talking about, he may have his shortcomings but we've seen what he's accomplished in the past….right?"

"I suppose so," Naoko agreed, stifling a yawn.

"Hmm, let's head back to our camping grounds." Aki chuckled quietly, "I'm too tired to think properly anymore."

On his way back Tadashi didn't know what to think.

The meeting between the three was brief, enough time that the young prince could make it back to the strange Earthbender within the limit set. But that didn't satiate the anger that was currently warping his mind.

Just who was that stranger?

After all, he knew who the young prince was, but anyone that did outside of his small circle was certainly a threat. Tadashi thought long and hard whether any information could have leaked from one of his comrades, whether someone paid the man and this was all some sort of elaborate trick to lure him out by himself.

But at the same time he felt a sense of secretiveness that he hadn't felt since his days at the palace. A gaze that spoke the truth yet held many hidden secrets. Something that reminded him of his mother.

"Boy you came back rather quick."

Tadashi grunted, acknowledging the words of the stranger yet not properly responding. In turn the Earthbender shrugged and picked up a small parcel that was on the ground. He gently undid the bindings that held the paper together and revealed a bundle of small dried fruit, one of which he threw to Tadashi.

"Eat this, you'll need the energy."

Sceptical at first, Tadashi used his fire to properly inspect the fruit and after deciding it was safe to eat he bit into it, allowing the juices to reach his taste buds.

"Eugh." The young prince groaned, the bitter taste not to his liking.

"Ha, I'm surprised you didn't throw up. Where I come from these fruits are hard to eat but we have little else."

"And where exactly is it that you come from?" Tadashi asked sceptically.

The man for the first time gave a wry smile, looking at the young prince with the eyes of an aged warrior.

"With time you may know, but for now I have something more important to ask you."

"What?"

"Why are you trying to partner with the Avatar?"

Tadashi gulped, forgetting about the bitter taste of the weird fruit he had eaten. Not only did the strangers question come out of nowhere but the way he spoke was enough to make the young boy wary of angering the Earthbender. From the glare he gave to the way he tightened his fists Tadashi could tell there was more to the question than the warrior wanted to let on. In fact, the man could barely hide his displeasure as he said the title of the one who could bend all elements.

"You have something against the Av-"

"Don't change the topic! Answer the question!"

Although it wasn't intentional the Earthbender had stood up and shifted his surroundings slightly, though the changes were barely visible Tadashi could certainly feel the ground shake.

"I see."

"What?" for once the warrior was confused.

"Your control over the earth isn't as great as I thought it was, which tells me you had no proper teacher…..however thinking like that would be wrong. Your movements are crisp, precise and at times fearsome, so it's better to say that you specialise in close combat right?"

The Earthbender grunted, surprised but acknowledging the summarisation of his abilities.

"Fine I'll tell you…..it doesn't matter anyway if you know." Tadashi mumbled, his eyebrows furrowing slightly. "I don't plan on simply befriending the Avatar."

Tadashi stepped to the side as he watched the man, wary of any sort of attack. He noticed that the expression on his face relaxed slightly.

"However I do not know how you came about that particular information but it is clearly wrong, your sources need to be chained up for reporting such inaccurate news."

Tadashi chuckled quietly and breathed in deeply, relaxing his mind.

"I plan for many things. That's what is expected of me after all. This war, the people, future allies and enemies. Those are all things that need to be considered." Tadashi paused for a moment, thinking to himself before continuing, "Fat- the Fire Lord and the ones before him tried to lead purely with their own might and they failed….no they are continually failing because of it."

Tadashi took a moment to pause, swallowing the rest of the fruit with little difficulty.

"The Avatar is a tool to ensure we get what we need. After all my primary concern is for the people of the Fire Nation. I want to create a country where all my people can live without the fear of this war that my…. predecessors created."

"Interesting choice of words there…."

"I'll do what I must, whether I need to distance myself from him or not."

"Is that the Avatar or you Father."

"…both."

"Good."

"Good?" Tadashi asked, somewhat confused.

"Where I come from family is nothing more than another avenue of possible disappointment. You shouldn't expect anything from them."

"I don't."

The man stared for a few seconds before turning and walking off.

"Let's go."

Tadashi followed, several paces behind the man and wary of a possible ambush.

"Where are we going?"

"A place where we can train properly?"

"And this place is?"

"You'll find out soon enough."

Tadashi grit his teeth as he grunted in acknowledgement. After studying the Earthbender for longer he was sure that his intentions could only be one of few scenarios. But it meant he had to lie. There was no way he'd ever exposed his affection for the parts of his family that he cared for, that was too risky.

The two travelled in the darkness for hours, guided by clearings and short instructions given by the Earthbender. By the time the morning came the two were in a barren field, surrounded by large bounds of earth.

"What is this place?" Tadashi exclaimed.

With his Fire Bending he couldn't feel the presence of anything nearby.

"Never mind that. How do you want to fight? Bending or Swordplay?"

Tadashi quickly turned to face the man as a sword was thrown in his direction. It landed in the dirt but he picked it up, testing its weight with a few swings.

"So, you are trained." The main explained, seemingly amused.

"Of course, just what is th-"

As Tadashi spoke the man attacked.

He charged directly, bringing his blade down from above in a fearsome attack. Tadashi, relying on his training, managed to step to the side at the last moment and avoid the swing, utilising the momentum to reposition himself and fall into a battle stance.

The opponent didn't waste any time and shifted his sword grip before swinging to the side, forcing Tadashi to duck and roll to the left. The boy kicked the older man in the leg to no avail, the opponent had legs of steel and wouldn't budge. For a few moments, their eyes met as the older man brought his sword above his head and thrust downwards, aiming for Tadashi's body. The boy put all his strength into deflecting the strike, leaving his opponent open for an attack. Barely giving it any consideration, the young prince put all thoughts of swordplay aside and instead used his firebending, turning his body and kicking upwards with the back of his heel. The move, sending a burst of flame upwards was unsuccessful. The earthbender, even in a state of disadvantage, was easily able to dodge the attack. He repositioned himself before smirking, the whites of his teeth barely visible in the night.

"Yes! That's what I wanted to see." He spoke aloud, his voice taking a tone of elation. "There is no honour in a fight to the death."

Tadashi didn't respond, instead punching forward with his sword still in hand. A red-hot flame made its way towards the sword-wielding earthbender who simply slashed at the incoming projectile and walked through it.

"You'll have to do better than that."

In response, the prince threw a greater ball of fire only for it too to be slashed aside.

"How are you doing that?!" Tadashi asked.

Against the backdrop of the moon, the man looked like a demon slowly approaching its prey. The blade was razor sharp, reflecting the moonlight like a mirror. A simple mistake would be the end of his life.

"No questions, just fighting."

Those were the last words spoken as the man continued to thrust, swing and bring down his blade upon Tadashi. If it weren't for the training of Master Piandao the young firebender would have died long ago, but at his current level he was able to block, parry and dodge incoming attacks. This battle of swordplay and bending lasted for ages, the silence of the night prolonging each movement as it occurred.

After several bouts of near misses, the clash of blades and bending Tadashi's breath grew ragged. His skill and general abilities were surely above average, but it wasn't something that could last forever. The opponent, sensing the fatigue in the boy pressed on, using large slashes before feinting into a quick slice that threatened to catch Tadashi off guard. The young boy would use the hilt and base of his blade to those attacks, but too often would they cause him to be thrown back.

"This is fun."

Surprised by the sudden words his opponent spoke, Tadashi let down his guard momentarily. It was that instant that Tadashi lost his footing, hit his head on a slab of rock and blacked out. The earthbender, centring himself after having just bended, looked over the boy before picking him up and walking off into the night.

The Offices for Imperial Intelligence had great views of the island and surrounding ocean, Hideki's office was no exception. The room he worked in was furnished to his tastes, streamlines and organized furniture but of a high quality. The desk he was currently sat at was piled with many documents, however his attention was focused on an unlocked box that held the royal stamp.

Birth Certificate, Training Results, Diary Entries and other documents all relating to one individual.

Prince Tadashi.

It was no simple task to collect these documents. The acting director massaged his forehead as he thought of the things he needed to do and the number of people he paid off just to collect this information without others knowing. Only very few members of his own organization knew about this plan, men within his own team that he knew he could trust were sent on this task.

"There must be something…"

Without realising it he had spoken to himself again.

Over the past days it had become a growing habit, even occurring during meeting with other officials and nobles of the Fire Nation. However, the time he had spent searching and collecting would so pay off.

There was a certain family, one that according to the scrolls used to be a royal faction but turned noble long before the start of the war. Information regarding this family was strangely missing and that which could be found was seemingly altered or inconsistent with other records. Such manipulations were common for those that dealt with the ruling family in some form.

Hideki sighed, just as one of his more trusted men came into the office.

"Sir, I have confirmation from our contact out in the sticks…. they say they saw something, but it's not credible."

"Thank you, we'll follow up with a standard investigation." Hideki replied.

"Are you sure? I mean it's such a… far away location."

"Yes, we need to do this. It's the only lead we've found since the battle at the northern water tribe. We'll have to take it. Not to mention it's vital we find her."

"Do you think the Dir- I mean Prince Tadashi will be happy we're searching for his mother?" the officer asked.

"Of course, but I have other things to focus on right now."

With those words, the man left the room leaving Hideki to himself yet again.

The smell of leaves burning filled the air, a faint smell of fruits being simmered filled the senses of the young boy who was currently waking up. Tadashi was greeted to the sound of an ongoing fire. Barely able to open his eyes, he saw the blurry image of a figure squatting nearby, however he had no strength to fully confirm it.

"So, it seems you wake, I'm surprised." The man spoke, his voice as gruff as it was the night before.

"What… did… you do…to me." Tadashi barely managed to say.

The young boy attempted to rise but found he couldn't, he still needed to gather more strength first. Several moments passed as the fire went on and only as it's flames started to die down did the earthbender reply.

"Wrong. It is not what I did but what you failed to do."

"What?"

Feeling his pride take a hit, Tadashi used the anger building up within him and the warmth of the sun to energize his body. As he got to his feet, the young bender contemplated what had occurred. Memories of the battle flooded his mind as he tried to analyse everything that happened and piece together some useful evidence.

"It was you! At the last moment, you started acting out of character and cheated!" Tadashi pointed to the earthbender who was in the midst of eating a soft fruit.

"Ha! The boy speaks with the tongue of a squirrel-hog. You forget the first rule of battle, use your enemies' weakness aga-"

"I know that!" Tadashi shouted, interrupting the bender. "You just…. I…. ugh!"

In frustration Tadashi shot a flame towards the ground, scorching the few strands of grass that were shooting out of the dirt.

"Heh"

In that moment, something overcame the boy. The idea that he would be looked down upon like a fool was a feeling he had not felt in many years. Before his mind even registered what was going on, several shots of fire had been let out, all in the direction of the lone earthbender.

The fire, a cold and dangerous blue.

"Hahaha! That's what I wanted to see, the fire that can take down even the Avatar!"

Disregarding the words of man who seemed to be enjoying himself, Tadashi focused on attacking. His flames turning anything they touched into a husk of its former self. Strangely enough, the earthbender was able to move faster than he had before, avoiding the flames with ease.

Tadashi mentally cursed his luck, the exhaustion from his previous bout already kicking in.

"You've lost your way boy."

A rock, no larger than a fist hit Tadashi in the right shoulder. The next attack came from the left but the young prince was able to step out of the way, only to be met with another attack that knocked him off his feet.

"In that condition, you can't beat me."

Tadashi let out as much smoke as his body could create, intended to create a wave of fire that the earthbender could not avoid. However just before he was about to ignite the smoke his head was brought under the earth, his vision blocked until he found himself unable to breath and faint from a lack of oxygen.

"A fire can't live without air, earth can make sure of that." The earthbender said, his voice softer than usual.

With a twist of his foot, he brought Tadashi out of the dirt and dragged him closer to the fire before returning to his meal.

Author Note: Am I back? Probably not...haha. I was able to do this in the free time I had. It's not perfect but hopefully the next chapter conveys a little more depth than this one (actually a lot more). In regards to this story, I'll try to update when possible since I still have everything planned out till long after the events of the first series ends. Till next time.