The seas were calmer now after the storm and it seemed that the rain began to wash away some of the tension on Zuko's ship. Though the young prince still didn't treat the soldiers on his ship in the nicest way, he didn't treat as horribly as he did before.

Zeraphina however, was no longer seen as just the DragonBorn to the crew anymore. She was seen as a more respectable young woman, even though the crew still called her Lady Dragon or DragonBorn, not that they knew her real name anyway.

Just as she was getting ready for bed, she heard a knock on her door. She knew right away who it was. She stood up from her bed and opened the door to reveal a tall man with a blue ogre mask over his face to conceal his identity. Crossed on his back were a pair of dual swords and he was dressed all in black.

"Well, if it isn't the legendary Blue Spirit of mischief. To what do I owe such a visit?" Zeraphina chuckled and allowed the man to come into her room. He sat down on the edge of the bed and removed his mask, revealing himself to be Prince Zuko.

"Where have you been for the entire evening?" Zerpahina asked.

"Nowhere." Zuko asked with a huff.

"And I'm supposed to believe that you got all dressed up in a blue ogre mask and black clothing while holding your dual swords on your back because you wanted to go on a midnight stroll? Like I would even try to believe that, My Prince."

Zuko stayed silent for a moment, staring at the white flames in the small dish on her nearby table. HE couldn't help but give a small smile at the sight of the pure fire. Ever since he was kid he enjoyed seeing her fire, not just for the vision it gave him, but for the way it moved unlike any other flame he had seen burn.

"I found out some information and I didn't want to get caught. So I snuck out." Zuko answered, never tearing his eyes away from the white fire lighting up the room.

"Well, then, what'd you find out?" Zerpahina asked.

"Zhao's planning something. He's been promoted."

"Good for that creep." Zeraphina grumbled, "And that's even worse news for anyone who's going to get in his way. Anything else you found out?"

"He's recruited the Yu Yan archers, the greatest archers in the world for a mission of his. It must have something to do with the Avatar, I just know it."

Zeraphina walked over to the bed and sat next to Zuko.

"He won't get him, My Prince, you know this." She smiled, "I have not seen Zhao at the end of this war."

"You've had dreams?" Zuko asked and Zeraphina nodded.

"The same dream as usual, where you're on the throne. He wasn't there in the end, so that means that he will not get the Avatar."

Zuko sighed in relief, but he was still nervous about what may come. Zeraphina didn't say anything about the Avatar being in his grasp either. They sat in silence for just a little while longer before Zuko excused himself to his own room to sleep through the rest of the night.

"The Young Prince is anxious. I can tell that you sense it as well."

Zeraphina hummed in agreement, "My dreams are becoming much clearer, but that one with the fire covered figure.... I cannot make any sense of it. What do you think it means?"

"That I cannot say. Dreams are always confusing, but if you continue to look at them in several different angles, they will allow you to see much clearer than before."

"But where was I in the dream? I have never seen a pond like that."

"You have. Just once, when you met an old friend for the first time."

"What are you talking about? I don't remember a place like that."

"Please, be careful about what secrets you wish to reveal, Young DragonBorn. Some secrets are better left in the dark, and I do not wish to see you harmed all over again. Get too close to the fire and you will be burned."

Zeraphina sighed as the voice disappeared from her mind, leaving her alone with her alone with her thoughts of the most confusing dreams she's ever had.

Where was she in that dream? Why was Zhao holding a damp bag? Why did she call out a spirit? So many questions, so little time for answers.

~~~~

The next morning came quickly for Zuko's ship as they continued to discuss their next course of action as for tracking down the Avatar.

"We haven't been able to pick up the Avatar's trail since the storm, but if we continue heading Northeast..."

Suddenly, a large shadow blanketed the ship in darkness, drawing everyone's attention towards the outside. Their small ship was being overshadowed by a much larger Fire nation vessel passing by and stopping near their own ship.

"What do they want?" Zuko asked annoyed by the appearance of the ship.

"Perhaps a sporting game of Pai Sho." Iroh suggested sounding happy about the idea of another game member.

It didn't take long for several Fire Nation soldiers to board Zuko's ship. They bowed in respect towards Iroh and somewhat towards the Prince, but they knelt down on one knee when they saw Zeraphina.

"Lady Dragon." The captain said, "It is an honor to be graced by your presence. I trust you have been well and continue to pray for your continued good health."

"Skip the suck up routine." Zeraphina snapped and looked out at the ship next to theirs, "Considering the make of your ship, you are fairly far from your designated area of protection. Why have you come here and so rudely boarded our ship?"

The men stood up while the Captain turned towards Zuko and unrolled a scroll. The scroll was plastered with a picture of Aang, an order of great importance on the side and securement details of all information regarding the young airbender.

"The hunt for the Avatar has been given prime importance." The captain said, "All information regarding the Avatar must be reported directly to Admiral Zhao."

"Zhao has been promoted? Well, good for him." Iroh said, moving a piece on the table causing some of the men to groan at their lost game.

Zuko turned his head to the side, "I've got nothing to report to Zhao. Now get off my ship and let us pass."

"Admiral Zhao is not allowing ships in or out of this area." The captain said,

"Off my ship!" Zuko shouted, but they still wouldn't leave. Zeraphina sighed and walked over to the Captain.

"Captain, if I may ask as small favor of you." She said smiling under her hood.

"Of course not, Lady Dragon. Whatever you wish consider it done." He replied without hesitation.

"Tell the Admiral that the DragonBorn has had a terrible dream about his wellbeing. He will not live to see the end of this war and that is set in stone. And you should warn him to stay away from the cold. Who knows what may happen if he were to slip in icy cold waters because of his arrogance and greed for the young Avatar."

She looked up at him, allowing the Captain to see her eyes for just a split second. In that simple second, the Captain stepped back in fear. Though many respected the DragonBorn, it was of course mostly out of fear because of the many folktales that have been passed down throughout the Fire Nation.

"I see... what an interesting soul." Was all Zeraphina said before walking over to Zuko's side, the men all walking away with that lingering sense of fear that shook them to the core. Zuko turned away and looked out the window with a glare in his eyes.

"You worry far too much, My Prince." Zeraphina said, but he didn't reply.

Throughout the rest of the day, Zuko dedicated himself to training on the deck, but he was distracted. Even when Zeraphina offered to train with him, he told her to stay back and watch, something that was never like him.

As the sun began to set in the distance, Zuko continued to train only stopping when he heard his uncle speak behind him.

"Is everything okay?" Iroh asked, "It's been almost an hour and you haven't given the men an order."

"I don't care what they do." Zuko answered, the tension in his voice so easily detected.

"Don't give up hope yet. Did you not hear what Zeraphina has said before? You can still find the Avatar before Zhao."

"How, Uncle? With Zhao's resources, it's just a matter of time before he captures the Avatar." He turned away, "My honor, my throne, my country-- I'm about to lose them all."

"You will not lose them, My Prince." Zeraphina said, "A DragonBorn does not lie about these kinds of things, and you've seen my dreams through my fire. You will be Fire Lord one day. Whether it is from capturing the Avatar or by another method, you will take back the crown that belongs to you."

Zuko looked over at his friend and nodded, knowing that her dreams always came true in the end. He knew that from past experiences as a child.

~~~~

Later on that evening, Zeraphina stood on the deck of the ship, enjoying the cool night air, when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned around saw Zuko dressed the same as he was the night before, only his mask wasn't on his face.

"I'm going." He said.

"Where to?" Zeraphina asked.

"To find the Avatar. If Zhao is in this area, then he has to be be close enough to the Avatar. Why else would he not allow anyone in or out of this area?"

"Hmm.. good point. Then why not have me join you?"

Zuko looked surprised for a moment, but was even more surprised when he saw what was under her cloak. She was dressed all in black, the same kind of uniform that Zuko was wearing at that moment. On her waist was a mask that depicted a phoenix with bright red wings. It kept her eyes revealed, but as she placed the mask on her face, many of the colors of her eyes faded so that only gold remained making her even more terrifying in the eyes of others.

"I am coming with your whether you want me to or not, My Prince. It is my duty to protect you and stay by your side until you gain the crown of the Fire Nation."

As Zeraphina smiled at him, Zuko couldn't help but be a little bit happy and grateful that his friend was coming along with him. He nodded and the two snuck off the ship onto the mainland.

~~~~~

The two snuck about, trying to find where Zhao was last seen, scaring people into telling them whatever information they could about where Zhao was. Finally, they found a large compound where it was said that Zhao was keeping the Avatar.

They snuck around through the forests, waiting for an opportunity to come passing by. And just as they wanted, a storage carriage passed by and they quickly snuck in underneath it, gripping the bottom of the cart to get a free ride. Shortly after, the cart stopped at an inspection checkpoint.

"All clear." A man said waving a torch to search around the cart. HE came closer and closer to the ground to inspect the bottom of the cart, but the two were quick and snuck into the inside of the cart to hide.

"All clear. Go on in." The guard said and the cart continued to move forward into the compound. When the cart stopped, Zeraphina and Zuko snuck away from the cart and ran over to an open staircase.

"We are the sons and daughters of fire, the superior element." The two heard Admiral Zhao's voice echo throughout the air at the many soldiers on the bottom ground standing in attention, "Until today, only one thing stood in our path to victory-- The Avatar! I am here to tell you that he is now my prisoner!"

The people cheered at the news.

"This is the year Sozin's comet returns to grant us its power! This is the year the Fire Nation breaks through the walls of Ba Sing Se, and burns the city to the ground."

As the people on Zhao's words, Zuko and Zeraphina snuck along the top of the walls, lowering a rope so that they could get back down to the ground. Once they did, the two jumped down into a sewer grate and crawled through the pipes to get inside. They came back out of the pipes through another vent and raced down the halls to find the imprisoned Avatar, taking out several guards that blocked their way.

"This way." Zeraphina said barely above a whisper as she led Zuko down the hall. Just then, they heard strange croaking sounds nearby. They followed and saw a guard coming from around the corner. Zeraphina used her quick reflexes and agility to kick down the soldier with ease. After the soldier was down, Zuko tied him to the ceiling with a nearby chain just as two other soldiers came down to see what had happened. 

However, Zuko and Zeraphina were already on the ceiling and jumped down to take them out just as quickly as the first soldier. They rounded the corner and saw the last remaining soldier grabbing a horn to alert the other soldiers within the area, but Zuko was much faster and threw a dagger at the horn.

The soldier tried to stop them with his firebending, but Zuko came prepared with a bog of water that soaked the soldier to the bone before Zeraphina finished the job and knocked him out.

The opened the door to find the Avatar tied to two pillars, one chain on each hand so he couldn't bend and one chain on each ankle so he couldn't run. He looked at the two shock and even screamed when Zuko took out his blades to cut the boy loose. When the chains were cut, Aang looked down at his freed hands while Zuko cut off the cuffs around his wrists and ankles. Zeraphina walked over to Aang and patted his back, a silent signal to move forward.

"Who are you two? What's going on? Are you guys here to rescue me?" Aang asked, but Zerpahina continued to push him forward.

"I'll take that as a yes." Aang said and began to follow the two out of the room and through the compound.

"My frogs!" Aang exclaimed seeing several half frozen frogs crawling on the floor, "Wait, come back! And stop thawing out!"

Without a moment to spare, Zeraphina and Zuko pulled Aang away from the half frozen creatures.

"Wait! My friends need to suck on those frogs!"

With that out of the way, the three traveled the same way that Zuko and Zeraphina came in from, sneaking through the watery pipes and up out through the outside water grate.

Just then, as they were beginning to climb the rope towards freedom, chimes rang throughout the compound alerting the soldiers within.

"There. On the wall!" A soldiers shouted pointing out the three. A soldier on wall patrol heard it and cut the rope, causing the three to fall. Aang gave them a safe landing using his airbending but the soldiers were running closer to them.

Zeraphina pointed towards the gates, their only way out.

"The Avatar has escaped! Close all the gates immediately." Zhao ordered.

"Stay close to me." Aang said as he ran ahead of the two. He blew air at the barricade of soldiers standing near the closing gates, blowing them all away. Aang and Zeraphina ran ahead as Zuko took care of the lingering soldiers near the gate.

But before they could get through, one of the soldiers almost rammed a spear through Aang. Zeraphina caught the weapon and kicked the soldier away just as the gates had closed. She broke the end off the the spear and handed it to Aang. Before he could say anything, she was already running off to help Zuko fight.

The soldiers all tried to gather around her, but she was fast and slid down to the ground doing the splits and spinning around on her hands to kick several of the soldiers in the face. She then pushed herself back up on her feet and caught one of the spears and ran to help Zuko, not that he needed much help. Aang had already blew away the other soldiers and lifted Zuko onto the wall with his bending.

Zeraphina and Aang flew up to the wall, where Aang wrapped his legs around Zuko and Zeraphina held onto Aang's back as they flew off across the sky to the next wall. The soldiers were persistent and continued to throw their spears at the three while they were still airborne. They succeeded and the three fell onto the stone wall. Soldiers came out and started to attack them, but the three fought back. Zuko helped Aang take out one while Zeraphina took out two more on the other side with fast punches.

It didn't take long for those soldiers to be defeated, but then other soldiers came up the walls climbing up ladders to reach them. Aang made quick work of them and blew them off the ladders. Zeraphina saw an opportunity and pulled up one of the ladders.

"What are you doing?" Aang asked. She pointed towards the last gate and then at the ladders. Aang got the idea and grabbed the second ladder, running across the wall towards Zuko.

"Take this." He said to the masked prince and jumping onto the final ladder.

"Jump on my back!" Zeraphina and Zuko did as told and jumped, using the ladders as stilts to get away from the fire nation soldiers on the ground.

"Give me the next one." Aang said, taking the last ladder from Zeraphina. However, before they could get to the last gate, the ladder was set on fire and the three came crashing back down towards the ground. Zuko unsheathed his swords ready to fight, but Aang both him and Zeraphina behind him as the soldiers let out all of their fire. They were protected by a dome of air that Aang created, but a voice caused the soldiers to stop.

"Hold your fire!" Zhao commanded causing the soldiers to stop, "The Avatar must be captured alive."

Thinking quickly, Zuko took his blades and crossed them over Aang's throat, a silent threat of death towards the Avatar, and a bad move for the Fire Nation. If Aang were to die there and then, the search would end with the airbender and everyone in the water tribes would be in danger. It was too much of a hassle for the Fire Nation.

After a brief moment of silence, Zhao conceded.

"Open the gates." He ordered.

"Admiral, what are you doing?"

"Let them out. now."

The gates opened behind them and slowly, the three walked out and away. However, that wasn't the end. When they thought that everything was clear, an arrow shot at Zuko, knocking him out cold as he fell back towards the ground and released the Avatar.

Aang and Zeraphina were stunned at what had happened. Zeraphina quickly knelt by the Prince's side and examined him for any injuries. Aang, curious after seeing a bit of burned skin from underneath the mask, created a dust cloud that covered the three of them. He reached over to Zuko and took off his mask, revealing the unconscious prince.

In his shock, he scooted away and wanted to run.

"No wait, please." Zeraphina said, removing her own mask, showing off her concerned eyes.

"Help me with him. Please, he can't stay here." She said, almost pleading for help.

Aang thought for a moment, and agreed to help Zeraphina carry Zuko away into the forest. They searched for a little while until they found a large enough nook in a tree's roots for Zuko to rest comfortably until he regained consciousness.

Zeraphina sat next to the young prince while Aang sat on the raised tree root. They all sat in silence for what seemed like hours, until the young airbender broke it.

"You know what the worst part about being born over a hundred years ago is?" He asked, "I miss all the friends I used to hang out with. Before the war started, I used to always visit my friend, Kuzon. The two of us, we'd get in and out of so much trouble together. He was one of the best friends I ever had... And he was from the Fire Nation, just like the two of you."

Zeraphina chuckled, "I told you before, didn't I? I'm not from the Fire Nation. I wasn't born there, just taken there at a young age." She said.

"Oh, right. I almost forgot. Then where are you from?"

"A place that belongs to no nation, and yet accepts all. That's it."

Aang looked at Zeraphina confused for a moment.

"Say, if we knew