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Chapter Thirteen: Jin Guo


"You have got to be kidding me."

Cade looked over her shoulder at the prince, her face and his hidden by the cloaks, hoods, and face masks they wore. Her eyes glittered with amusement over the top of the mask, "What?" she asked innocently.

Zuko just gave her a look of impatience and shook his head.

The Chimera and prince were making their way through a rather crowded street near the center of Jin Guo. The street, and all others that they'd traveling in the city, was littered with people smoking strange pipes, scantily clad woman and men, and many shops with questionable purposes. There didn't seem to be any healthy people as far as Zuko could see. The whole city left a bad taste in his mouth.

"Why would the Matriarch's apprentice be in a place like /this/?" he asked Cade.

"The Shai Li make a mastery of exploiting a man's greatest weakness. What better place to do so?"

Zuko scowled. "This place is disgusting."

"It isn't called the Forbidden Fruit for nothing. Come on." Cade cut into an alleyway and started to climb a precarious ladder hanging from the side of the building. Zuko followed her quickly; glad to be off the street.

When he reached the roof, Cade was already bounding across the next rooftop. Zuko grimaced at how fast she moved and ran after her.

She stopped on the third roof, allowing him to catch up to her. "Sorry," she said. "I've been working mostly on my own for the past few weeks. I forgot I wasn't working alone tonight."

"Where are we going anyway?" Zuko asked, trying not to be cross with her, but finding it very difficult.

"The Caterwaul."

"What?"

"You'll see." Cade went to the middle of the roof and opened a trapdoor. "This way," she said, slipping inside. Zuko climbed down and found himself in a small, sloping corridor. He and Cade had to stoop to walk in it. It led down to a small room that wouldn't fit more than three people in it.

Cade went to the left wall where there was a thin slit in it. When Zuko looked through it as well, it became clear that the slit was for observation. They had a perfect view of a stage running through the middle of the large room below. "She should be performing tonight," Care murmured. "See the man sitting on the left side of the stage? The one with his back to us?"

"Yeah," Zuko said, trying not to look at the activities going on in the dark corners of the room. "What about him?"

"Just keep an eye on him during the performance."

"What performance?" Zuko asked crossly.

"You'll see," Cade said once more.

"You know, I'm really beginning to hate those words, /Chimera/," Zuko snapped under his breath, expecting her to rise to the bait. To his surprise, Cade only grinned. Zuko opened his mouth to snap at her again, but his words were cut off as music began to play. Zuko felt the corners of his mouth dip down to form a disgusted grimace.

The music was loud, bawdy, and tasteless. But in truth it fit with what the women pouring onto the stage wore as costumes. Skirts that barely fell to mid-thigh made from thin layered silks in bright colors, with brassieres made from the same. A few had bracelets with silk scarves hanging from them. All wore their dark hair up out of their faces with bejeweled pins and ties. They wore thick stage makeup, making them all seem more sophisticated than they were, yet at the same time adding to the bawdiness of the whole set. Soon they were all dancing to the music, their bodies moving as one seducing group. Zuko bit back a snort of disgust again, as the men of the audience began to whoop and holler at their tawdry performance.

Just as he was getting fed up of the whole thing, the music changed. It became smoother, richer melody, though still held a hint of the seductive mood. Another dancer appeared on the stage, obviously the main feature of the night. Zuko frowned and took a closer look at her.

And his jaw dropped.

The woman was /flawless/! Draped in richer colors and silks than the other girls, with real jewels set in the costume and intricate design her black hair was twisted into, she would have stood out anyhow. But it was so much more than her costume. The woman had smooth, light golden skin over lithe supple muscles, her eyes were a dark and rich honey sort of gold, and her ruby lips and eyelids were dusted with gold dust. She was the most beautiful woman Zuko had ever seen.

Then she began to dance to the richer music and Zuko felt his heart completely abandon him to pursue this goddess. She was absolutely the most graceful, lithe, sensual dancer in the world! He felt the sudden urge that he had to meet her somehow.

He realized quickly that his jaw was still on the floor when he heard Cade stifle a laugh. Zuko blinked several times and tried to gather what was left of dignity. The Chimera was smirking at him knowingly, making a faint blush rise to his face. He mumbled an apology and turned his head from the stage.

But Cade only chuckled darkly at his mumbled 'sorry'. "It's quite all right," she said lightly, with a feral sort of grin. "Mihara is very good at what she does. Just keep in mind that that drop dead gorgeous woman is literally to die for."

Zuko sobered immediately as the realization hit him. "You mean she's.../that's/...?"

"That's her," Cade replied. "Mihara, Madame Kosuke's apprentice and future Matriarch of the Shai Li."

Zuko turned back to the stage and watched Mihara dance further. It was hard to believe, but he didn't doubt for a minute that Cade was telling him the truth. ..."Whoa."

"Keep watching. See if you can catch it."

"Catch what?"

"Just watch."

Zuko was all to glad to oblige. As he watched, Mihara slipped elegantly to the floor and practically slithered to the edge of the stage. She grabbed the collar of the solider sitting closest and pulled him into a deep probing kiss. Zuko started in shock, for that was the same man Cade had pointed out earlier. Mihara prolonged the kiss to an almost uncomfortable amount of time, but pulled back and rejoined the rest of the dancing girls, leaving the soldier completely stunned by his apparent good fortune.

"Watch," Cade said once more.

Zuko did and he almost missed it.

Another dancer twisted sinuously around Mihara and slipped something into the woman's mouth. Zuko frowned in confusion and looked back at the man Mihara had kissed. His eyes and face were glazed; he wasn't even paying attention to the show anymore. Zuko was certain that no one else saw either.

A dark understanding came to the prince. "She's...she's poisoned him."

"Very good," Cade said. "He'll be dead by morning. It was his presence in the dancehall tonight that prompted Mihara and several other Shai Li to perform tonight. He butchered the last Earth Kingdom village his troops went through, and the several before that, earning him a place on the Shai Li's infamous hit list."

Zuko stared at her a moment before nodding, his face dark. As beautiful as Mihara was, it was going to be hard to forget how easily she killed a man.

"Time to go," Cade said, as the music stopped, moving to a small door on the other side of the room.




The second door led them to the alley next the dancehall. They had only waited a moment before the backdoor opened to reveal someone dressed similarly to them, though without the face-mask. Dark gold eyes glittered under the hood as the door closed behind her. "Evening, Chimera." Her voice was smooth and clear, with a sensual touch to it.

Cade smiled, though it was hidden by the mask she wore. "Heyla, Hellcat."

Mihara threw back her hood and made a face at Cade, but her eyes still shone with amusement. Zuko hung back, not really sure if he wanted to be noticed. Now that he saw her up close, he realized she wasn't perfectly flawless, but she was very close. Her nose had a small bump in it, as though it had once been broken. Zuko wondered briefly how it had happened, but kept that thought to himself when he realized what a stupid question it was. This was a Shai Li. There was little doubt that she'd been in her fair share of fights.

Without the stage makeup and her hair pulled back by a simple band, she looked a great deal younger than he'd assumed. Her skin was a few shades darker as well.

"So," Mihara said, "are you the cavalry?"

"Uh huh," Cade said. "Zuko, allow me to introduce the heir to the Shai Li Matriarchy, Mihara." Zuko bowed his head slightly in her direction, but said nothing. "Mihara, this is Zuko."

"The banished prince," Mihara murmured, fixing him with a now familiar piercing gaze.

"Are you ready to leave?" Cade asked, breaking off Mihara's stare.

"Naturally," Mihara replied coolly. "How's the recruiting going?"

"We'll know when we reach the rendezvous point," Cade told her. "And we should get there as soon as possible. Madame Kosuke is waiting for you there. Are any of the others coming with us?"

"Nah," Mihara said. "The girls are going to remain here. There are a few more hits to be made that they can handle on their own."

"Good," Cade said, glancing at the busy street. "We'll be less likely to be noticed if it's just the three of us."

"I'll bet Madame Kosuke just loved taking orders from you instead of dishing them out herself," Mihara said with a soft snicker. "How'd she react when you said you'd becoming to get me yourself?"

"Keep that attitude up, Hellcat, and I'll tell her it was all your idea," Cade threatened. "We need to go."

Mihara nodded and slipped a mask of her own over her mouth and nose. Cade entered the main street first and Mihara after her. But before the assassin disappeared among the crowd, she favored Zuko with a wink. It threw him a moment, but he hurried after them. After all, this was the last place he'd want to be lost in.

But he was finally tired of the strange stares he was getting from every Shai Li. He was going to find out why they were all so interested in him, if it was the last thing he'd do!




"Dragon!"

Iroh winced and set his cup down on the ground beside him. "Good evening, Hawkling," he said to Kosuke as she put her hands on her hips and glared at him.

"We need to talk, Dragon."

Iroh blinked in surprise. "Oh?"

"Now."

Iroh hesitated a moment longer, apprehensive of whatever Kosuke wanted from him. Though he believed he truly had her forgiveness, there was always a certain chill to her voice when she spoke to or about him. Iroh sighed and got to his feet, following the Matriarch away from the campfire and the rest of the Shai Li.

"What is this about, Kosuke?" he asked when they were alone.

"Your nephew," Kosuke replied evenly. "And the Shai Li."

"What does Zuko have to do with your assassins?" Iroh queried.

"More than you think, General," Kosuke said sharply. "The truth is, Iroh, that I had more than just the recent events to hate you about. My dislike of you goes a bit farther back. Back to about, oh say, when your brother became Fire Lord."

"What exactly are you talking about?" Iroh asked gently, though he was beginning to feel annoyed.

"When Mimiko came to the Shai Li, she brought a new hope with her," Kosuke said. "Didn't you ever wonder why the Shai Li were becoming more and more known to the world about then? We believed our time was coming at last. For now, we had an honorable man to take the throne."

Iroh looked stricken, as though he had come to understand something at last.

"Our little Firefly was convinced that when you came to the throne, the war would come to an end," Kosuke continued. "If you didn't end it at once, she would have come to you and tried to bring you to do so. You were the Shai Li's hope/, Dragon," Kosuke practically snarled. "But you lost your heart when your son died at Ba Sing Se. And your /brother took the throne from you in your moment of weakness. And the world has remained at war."

"I hadn't realized," Iroh said softly, in an apologetic tone.

"The Shai Li returned to the shadows once more, some of us fleeing to Hakuhatsu, others just hiding in plain sight in places such as Jin Guo," Kosuke said. "Then our Firefly sent word a few months ago that you had arrived on the island, and you weren't alone.

"No, you had brought your beloved nephew with you, and Firefly and the rest of us felt another small stirring of hope. She wrote in detail about young Prince Zuko and how his father and sister viewed him. How honor was so very important to him. Madame Akilah volunteered to see the boy for herself and brought back her impression of him to the Shai Li." Kosuke paused, seeing a slight smile on Iroh's face. "You see what we see, don't you, Dragon?"

"I do," Iroh said. "You want to replace my brother with his eldest child. I think it is a marvelous idea."

"Yes," Kosuke said, an icy edge to her voice. "But there's only one problem."

"What?"

"The boy still loves his father," Kosuke reminded him. "Cade told us that much when she arrived on the mainland. His loyalties are in question, Dragon, though his heart is in the right place. I have a task for you," she said softly. "You failed the Shai Li once upon a time, Iroh, not to mention all the people who've lost their lives since Ozai took the throne instead of you. Now you have a chance for redemption in our eyes. You are the only one Zuko really trusts. It is up to you to shape him to become Fire Lord."

Iroh held her gaze firmly, thinking about all she had said. She was very right, as far as he could see. He had a lot to make up for. What better way than to give them the leader that they needed? The leader that the Fire Nation truly needed. "I will do my best," he told her. "But my nephew has a mind of his own. If he does not want to oppose his father, then nothing I could say will change his mind."

"Your best is all that we can ask, Dragon."

"Then it is all you will get, Hawkling."

The ice melted once more and Kosuke smiled. Iroh smiled back, "Now, why don't you tell me what all this 'recruiting' is about?" he asked her as they started back to the camp. "What has Cade been up to?"