Darshi had no problem getting the soldier to talk after their little conversation. He offered facts without even being prompted to give them, and the things he told her were alarming.

Each ship held about five hundred men. There was no way to guess how many had survived after the two skirmishes, or how many from the ships that sunk managed to swim to the remaining one left. Of the approximate five hundred men per ship, four hundred were soldiers. Of the four hundred, less than eighty were slaves bound to the Fire Nation.

The last fact had left her reeling. She didn’t realize the Fire Nation were taking slaves, and everything began to make sense about the South’s captured water benders. When she asked if there were any Southern water bender slaves on board, he told her he wasn’t sure. He never asked before, and he didn’t know the differences between the Northern and Southern Water Tribes.

To an outsider they might look the same. Both wore furs and blues, but the styling of their clothes was very different. The North's were more form fitted and catered to each , while the South’s were shapeless and tended to wear many layers for warmth. Men and women wore the same type of clothing in the South and it wasn’t until someone got close enough to see their face that a person could determine the gender. But in the North women wore skirts and men pants.

Darshi didn’t know what her people would do if they found out their husbands, sons, and fathers could be enslaved to the Fire Nation, so she kept it to herself. When she asked the soldier if she thought the slaves managed to get off the sinking ships he told her it was highly doubtful. Many of them were kept chained in a room. In the chaos someone would have had to unchain them and expect them to listen and go to the next boat.

She struggled when she realized her plan could have killed some of her people. She tried to tell herself it was for the best. The tribe was still alive, and perhaps most the benders would be more content dying than being a slave.

She told herself that, but she didn’t fully believe it.

She had known when she accepted her duty that it would come with up’s and downs. She didn’t think they could fall much further as a people, so had only concentrated on the ups. Her people being alive out there somewhere was news to her. At least with the death of those benders she learned this. Now she knew not to sink the final ship. Not unless there was no other alternative.

This knowledge weighed her down, but it was the price of her people’s survival. Just because the last two battles had ended in their favor didn’t mean the Southern Water Tribe had won the war. She was not such a fool to believe that. One could win all battles but still lose the war. Once the Fire Nation brought the full force of their army none of them would stand a chance.

She hadn’t received a letter like she thought she would about Jimin. It terrified her to think what they were doing to him. If it was just her, she would fight for him and try to break him out on her own. But she was the chief. She had to think of everyone’s wellbeing when making decisions.

She didn’t know what to do with the Fire Nation soldier after getting her answers. She couldn’t keep him here. They could barely feed themselves. She couldn’t let him go either. She refused to contribute to the Fire Nation’s army. Perhaps she should grant her people’s wish, but give him a quick death. It would sate their thirst for blood.

She didn’t like this part of being a chief. All she had thought of before was survival and war. This was something different. It was weighing a life and deciding how much it was worth.

A war horn resounded, and even though that meant the Fire Nation was coming it also meant she could push off this decision.

War was always an excuse to push off the inevitable.

Prince Seokjin stood at the edge of the water, flames flickering up and down his arms. This time he would not be a mere spectator. He had sat down with his generals for nearly a day trying to figure out battles strategies for the Southern Water Tribes outlandish maneuvers. He couldn’t help but think if the South had fought like this when the war began the Fire Nation would have never stood a chance. He walked down the lines of soldiers, tugging the red ribbons around the necks of a select few. At the end of his meeting with his generals there was only one thing all of them were certain of.

The Southern Water Tribe had never fought against earth benders.

Fire they knew very well, water too, but never earth. He didn’t think any of them had met an earth bender, let alone fought one.

Yoongi stood at the front of his army. He would be their commander during this war. He was as much a slave to the Fire Prince’s whims as the rest of them even if he wasn’t shackled. There was only a smattering of fire benders. The main focus was on earth. Seokjin had been worried if the earth benders could even feel land from that deep in the snow, but Yoongi assured him they could.

Just like last time there was no warning. The water benders went shooting up through the ice in teams, attempting to overwhelm them. When Yoongi managed to focus his eyes on them he stilled, becoming as motionless as his element.

“You never said they were children.”

Seokjin eyes met the earth benders dark brown, nearly black eyes. “That shouldn’t matter. War is war.”

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