Chapter 17: Republic City Is Falling Down
Sokka brushed off Kre'as' offer of mercy, his voice seething with disdain.
"We don't negotiate with terrorists," Sokka declared, his tone still with resolve. "You've threatened our loved ones and the very balance of the world. You think of us as weak peasants desperate for water, offering us a drink thinking it is pure water, but instead, it is poison, laced with our suffering, I choose to fight till the end."
"Why is it always the weakest with the strongest voice?"Kre'as enquired.
"That is something I wish to know as well" Azula sneered, Kre'as looked at the woman before him, "You are the one who can create, lightning" Kre'as said.
"Yes, my name is Azula, newly reinstated Princess of the Fire nation. Did you find my attacks quite… striking" Azula's lips curled up into a sadistic smile, reminiscent of her glory days, "I did, you seem like a gifted warrior, it will be my pleasure to fight you" Kre'as returned a smile of his own, a weird tension arose between the two.
Sokka was a little offended that Kre'as ignored him, but he was not shaken, his confidence unwavering as he raised a hand to signal his soldiers. "Prepare to attack," he ordered, his voice commanding and authoritative.
As Sokka's soldiers moved into position, Aang hesitated, a fraction of doubt gnawing at his conscience.
He thought of Katara, of their children, and the countless lives that hung in the balance. But it was too late to stop Sokka now, too late to reason with him before he gave the orders, Aang's passive nature creeping back to the surface.
A new roar joined the fray—a sound like waves crashing and rolling into shore, as if the ocean itself had awakened from its slumber.
The water that was pushed back by the Republican City benders crashed against the wall, and cracks began to form, like a dam ready to burst all it took was a hole big enough and the wall crumbled down.
A squad of Atlantean warriors emerged from the water, their bodies pale, sapphire tattoos crawling all over their bodies like conjoined snakes, unlike Kre'as their eyes were blue matching the color of their tattoos.
"Looks like things are about to get more chaotic" Sokka exclaimed, gripping his sword tightly, blood dripping from his clenched fist.
"Stay alert, everyone," Zuko commanded, his dragon circling in the air above, whose scales shimmered like molten gold. Fire seeped from its maw, casting a warm glow against the dark chill that had covered the city.
Toph planted her feet, sending seismic waves through the destroyed city, searching for clarity amidst chaos. "We can't let them get a foothold," she said, her voice shaky and faint.
Aang looked at Toph, his mind still in turmoil, thinking of his wife and children, he knew he had to enter into the Avatar state, he needed to pick the right moment.
"General Kre'as, we are at your command" An Atlantean soldier came forward and kneeled, Kre'as looked over at Aang and the others, "Naka, kill every soldier, enslave any remaining civilians" Aang shivered at Kre'as orders, "Make way for the oceans, may it cleanse the world of the weak and of our past shame, this city will be under water and assimilate with Atlantis" Kre'as continued. His words like a death sentence, absolute and unforgiving.
The Republican soldiers under Sokka's command surged forward, a harmony between bending and fighting skills. They were the heartbeat of the city, the heartbeat of the world, firebenders igniting the sky, earthbenders moulding the earth, waterbenders healing the wounded, those lucky enough to make it alive.
After getting their commands from Kre'as, the Atlanteans moved quickly, like water they moved with fluidity and if a crack in the Republican's defenses showed, they seeped in like water.
The squad of Atlanteans, led by Naka, made quick work of the nearby soldiers, their waterbending not as strong as Kre'as but still far above theirs.
Unlike Kre'as they used bloodbending, controlling the soldiers quickly ending their lives, by twisting their bodies in unimaginable positions, similar to scribes who make a mistake on their scrolls, scrunching it up and moving to the next, that is what the Republic soldiers looked like after the Atlanteans were done with them.
The soldiers once again began to waver, Sokka's earlier words of encouragement like a faint whisper in their minds, being shrouded by the sounds of their comrade's screams of anguish and despair.
Everyone at that moment came to the realization, that Kre'as had not used bloodbending since he arrived. "How could we forget," Aang said in horror, "We never stood a chance" Toph visibly shaking, not from the vibrations of her seismic sense but pure fear.
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The Republic City, where the bustling streets and towering buildings once stood as a beacon of progress and prosperity after the Fire nation's rule, now lay a battlefield soaked in the blood of its warriors. The once peaceful city had become a battleground, desecrated and broken, like the will of its soldiers and inhabitants.
Not even the sky was above reproach, now dark, lit by the constant flames of the fire nation's soldiers, and the smoke of airships falling, their descent slow and painful, casting an eerie glow over the chaos below and accompanied by the screams of Fire nation soldiers trapped in the aircrafts.
Each time an airship made an impact; a rumble would vibrate through the earth. A reminder to those on the ground, that nowhere is safe. A rude awakening that the elements they bent to their own will, a safeguard, an object of security was nothing in front of the cruelty of the Atlanteans. It's like the Atlanteans knew that if they could break their will, they would have no means to will the elements to their commands, the soldiers of Republic City were done for.
Sokka finally came to grips with the situation he was in, fear started to creep in like a thief in the night, unnoticed until it was too late. He awoke from his delusions, and he began to retreat towards Aang and the others, running at full speed before his feet were encased in ice "Where do you think you are going?" Naka asked, as Sokka fell face first into the ground, the soldiers around him all running for their lives, their resolve no longer as firm especially with their commander abandoning his post.
"Are you a chief from the southern water tribe?" Naka asked another question, Sokka broke the ice around his feet with his sword, he looked towards Naka, he was afraid, trembling uncontrollably, like prey staring directly at its predator.
"Answer me" Naka snarled, "I am" Sokka replied quietly, not daring to look Naka in the eyes, "How are you so weak" Naka said raising his hands and taking control of Sokka's body, "Now die."
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