Avatar - Conquering the Elements-Chapter 103. The Seizure

Ba Sing Se.

A long carriage slowly approached the towering walls of the capital city, which were striking in their grandeur. Looking at them, it sometimes felt as though they were pressing down on your shoulders. Inside the carriage were ten of the finest conquerors from King Bumi's personal guard.

"Just to see these walls, it's worth visiting Ba Sing Se," one of them murmured in awe.

"About a hundred meters tall and thirty meters wide," another voice added. "They say the walls themselves contain entire houses and passages that allow the guards to move quickly and unnoticed along the entire perimeter."

"But here's my question: will they definitely let us through the gates?" asked another member of the group, looking somewhat sleepy.

"If you hadn't slept through our meetings, you'd know that General Hau, responsible for the city's overall defense, will turn a blind eye to our actions. He won't let General Sang, Long Feng's man in charge of the outer walls' defense, notice us."

"Better prepare for a fight. Long Feng doesn't accept even average recruits into his police force. Every member of the Dai Li is either already a master or close to it," their commander said, cutting off the budding conversation.

"With all due respect, Commander, but I don't think they'll be a problem for us," the youngest among them shook his head. His tone was steady, and he adjusted his slipping glasses several times as he spoke. "From what I know, they've never been known for their large numbers. Besides us, three other squads are approaching Omashu from different routes. And let's not forget Mr. Lao's people, who aren't weak either."

"Still, my heart feels heavy somehow," the commander sighed. Everyone turned to him. It's worth noting that this seasoned warrior had survived where many others had perished. His instincts were trusted unconditionally. "Their actions in the old city trouble me. They've definitely prepared something sinister..."

"The Beifong family has already searched the entire underground space but found nothing. Maybe we're worrying for nothing," someone tried to ease the tense atmosphere in the carriage.

"Time will tell," the commander said, closing his eyes.

No one else wanted to speak. Somehow, they all shared an ephemeral feeling, as if they were rolling straight toward their own graveyard.

*

Wan. Ba Sing Se. Lower Ring.

"Here's the Lower Ring, my stop," I muttered, shuffling near the doors until the passengers in front exited.

Looking around, I noted the distinctive architectural style of the station—everything here screamed the Earth Kingdom. From books, I knew the monorail was built during the reign of King Yuei Ming. He was often called a genius but an impatient ruler. Once, he grew tired of spending two whole days traveling from one end of the city to the other. So, he ordered his subordinates to invent something.

Ba Sing Se alone spans an area as large as an entire province. To understand its size, consider that King Yuei Ming took two days to travel through it on a riding animal. Walking would easily double or triple that time.

Tonight, a coup would take place in the capital. Slightly altering my features, I calmly boarded the train. Lao's people were already waiting for the signal to attack. They would be joined by Bumi's guards, who should have passed through the gates by now. They were to swiftly sweep through all Dai Li bases and patrol areas. Orders were clear: if there was a serious threat to the squad's lives, kill without hesitation. Honestly, it's unlikely we'd get any agent to talk—their minds are clearly already brainwashed.

My target is the Dai Li's main base beneath Lake Laogai. I don't like to boast, but with my abilities, I could handle the entire Dai Li contingent if they were gathered in one place.

There were still a couple of hours until the operation's start time, so I decided to observe the lives of the common people in the Lower Ring.

Wandering through the endless streets and alleys—which somewhat resembled those in Hong Kong—I saw many beggars. Quite often, they were perfectly healthy individuals. From overheard conversations, I learned there was simply no work.

From other dialogues, I pieced together most of what was happening. In short, the Lower Ring residents serve the entire city. A long-established system is at play. Cunning people from the Middle and Upper Rings run all their businesses here. Brilliant! They can pay pennies—or nothing at all. Their connections allow them to threaten locals with expulsion from the city.

Several times, I discreetly prevented gang activity. Clearly, there are plenty of them here. Sometimes, entire districts are divided among gangs. As a result, some small business owners have to pay for "protection" twice a month.

"Where's the army looking?" I shook my head at such lawlessness. Especially since two generals are based here.

Something else troubled me. My heightened intuition wasn't "screaming" yet, but it loudly warned of impending trouble. The closer the time came, the stronger the unease grew. Uncertain of the issue, I mentally reviewed our plan but found no mistakes or oversights.

"Well, in the worst case, I'll merge with my other bodies," I thought, no need to dwell on a bad outcome.

Checking the sun's position, I decided to head to the location and wait out the remaining time there. Soon, I stood before a large body of water, eyes closed, using my earthbending to explore the space below. In my mind, I saw countless rooms and tunnels—a whole labyrinth. The Dai Li's main base stretched almost across the entire lake.

"It's time," I whispered, quickly descending underground. I stood directly beneath one of the rooms in the catacombs.

With a swift drop, I was underground. The room was empty, save for some rusted chains attached to the wall, hinting that someone had once lived here. Pushing aside the stone door, I broke into a run. My life energy surged toward my eyes, helping me perceive the entire space.

"A textbook villainous base..." I thought. They must have used the same architect as Shimura Danzo.

Soon, the first Dai Li agent peeked around the corner. However, they almost immediately fell unconscious. A stone hurled at high speed into their forehead doesn't encourage staying awake.

Soon, more of Long Feng's minions emerged from various crevices. The stone gauntlets they sent my way turned into harmless dust before reaching me. My control over earth particles had improved, allowing me to destroy their long-range weapons before they touched me. Of course, it depends on the enemy's energy quality and how much they invest in the attack, but there were no obvious monsters like King Bumi here.

Not a second passed before another agent fell, either unconscious or dead. There was no time for sentimentality—I attacked as I was attacked.

"Time to kick some ass!" I tried to encourage myself, as my intuition wasn't silent. By now, I'd learned to understand some of its signs, and this time, there was definitely no danger to my life. So, there was a chance our plans would fail, or our people would die...

"Still, it's too late to change anything," I thought, kicking open a stone door behind which I sensed a powerful bender.

"Mr. Roku, how can I help you?" came a friendly, calming voice. Soon, I saw the speaker, who had pushed aside the door I'd sent flying.

In the center of the small room stood a man whose conscience, like any politician's, was atrophied. Long Feng had a classic Asian face with minimal facial hair—a few whiskers. He was almost an exact copy of the character from the animated series, except for slightly sharper features that altered the overall picture.

"You know why I'm here," I began, approaching cautiously. Who knows what he might do. With power-obsessed psychopaths, you must be vigilant.

"Yes, I know, I know very well!" he started raising his voice. A vein bulged at his temple, his face reddened, and his fingers trembled. "You and Lao forced me to do this!" he screamed, pointing at me. "You destroyed our peaceful city! Yes, you're to blame, not me!"

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"I won't even listen to your ravings," I said, now just meters away.

"It's too late," he suddenly calmed down. "Very soon, Ba Sing Se will cease to exist," he continued almost triumphantly, freezing me mid-step. He clearly relished his words. "You probably know there's an entire underground city beneath the current capital. Its columns hold Ba Sing Se up... It would be quite tragic if someone destroyed them," he said, shaking his head as if in sorrow.

"Tell me what you've done!" I grabbed Long Feng by the collar. "Now!"

"One hundred and forty-one explosives! That's how many load-bearing walls there are, and each contains one extremely powerful device that will bury this city!" he said with a joyful laugh.

Ignoring him, I began intensely probing the area. My sensitivity allowed me to encompass thirty percent of the Lower Ring. It was devilishly hard to find small objects embedded in the walls. But after some time, I located one, from which a cord ran inside the wall.

"Mad bastard! Is he really willing to kill hundreds of thousands?" I glared with hatred at the calmly seated Long Feng, who continued speaking. Time was running out—I needed to learn how to deactivate the explosion!

"Want to take my city? If it's not mine, it won't be yours either! You thought you were so smart, didn't you? I learned of your approach the moment you descended, and he possesses seismicsensitivity? Immediately, I ordered my people to detonate! Four minutes exactly, and boom!" He kept talking as I prepared to interrogate him. "You can't stop it! There's no cancel command! He's already pressed the button!"

"Scum!" I thought, knocking him out with a punch. He had no reason to lie, so I needed to figure out how to save the city. Think, think, think. I could damage the wires—then they shouldn't detonate... But my sensitivity won't cover the entire city, maybe thirty percent at most. But with vibrations, I could try to extend the range!

Without hesitation, I got to work. Tuning into the earth's waves, I adjusted my vibrations to match them. The idea worked! With each moment, I felt more and more of the space. Soon, the entire city was under my surveillance. Next, I searched for explosives, damaging the connection nodes.

Sweat broke out on my forehead—the concentration was immense. I had to constantly adjust to the waves and "see" the projected image in my mind. But the hardest part was controlling the earth over such a vast distance. Yes, damaging a channel required only a small "nudge" of the rock. But I'd have to make one hundred and forty-one such "nudges"...

I started with the Lower Ring, then moved to the Middle Ring. A mental clock ticked, roughly guiding me on the remaining time. The Upper Ring was seventy percent cleared when a loud explosion sounded, and the ground shook.

"Only three minutes have passed since I descended..." I kicked the unconscious body and cursed loudly. Technically, I'd saved most of the city, but I could have scouted underground earlier to see what the Dai Li were up to. Trusting Lao's people, I hadn't considered they lacked seismicsensitivity.

The worst part was that I hadn't disarmed the King's Palace and several streets. There hadn't been time—my brain had simply directed me to the nearest explosives. Knowing King Kuei's character, I could have easily gotten him to personally hand the throne to Lao. Now, there'd be a bit more red tape.

"Still, this world is changing me faster than I'm changing it..." I grew more concerned about plans than the lives I couldn't save. "I hope I don't become like one of these scumbags in the future..." I looked at the Dai Li leader lying at my feet.