Western Earth Kingdom.....

The trees swayed, blown with the evening wind as they were pulled and pushed in any direction it willed.

It was barely nighttime and the moon shone brightly in all her beauty, illuminating the lush greenery thousands of miles below her.

The forest was quiet, as it should be during this time.

And it was within this silence that a Messenger Hawk crossed into what was once Earth Kingdom territory straight from across the Mo Ce Sea.

Flying above the wildlife below it, the domesticated avian creature soared through the air for nearly an hour after leaving the sea area before eventually reaching its destination.

It promptly descended from the skies, landing in the one place it was needed.

On top of a tower like structure which served as a receiver for Messenger hawks for this Fire Nation Outpost.

The communication tower had been built in an unnamed location of the Earth kingdom.

This area served as an outpost for a small fire nation division tasked with ensuring the conquered earth kingdom territory remained under the Fire Nation's control.

In nicer words, they were the caretakers.

In other words, they were the babysitters.

The place was managed by a low rank captain with very little chance of military promotion due to his work designation as such outposts usually weren't tasked with important duties, hence hardly ever receiving instructions from superiors.

It was due to this reason that the arrival of a messenger hawk could be considered a rare occurrence and was hence treated with urgency.

- Captain's Command Tent -

A pair of light skinned hands opened the canister carried by the messenger hawk and took out its contents.

A scroll.

Opening it, he proceeded to read the information recorded within, his face growing increasingly darker with each passing second.

“.... That Damn Zhao!” A dignified voice could be heard in the small yet luxuriously decorated tent.

It wasn't low at all, allowing the guards at the entrance to hear the anger within it.

“.... Is something wrong, Captain?”

The lieutenant sitting at the table asked with a puzzled expression.

“Orders”.

“From the Fire Lord?”

“It's Zhao”.

Imagine for a moment a stereotypical short, fat, expressionless church priest from a fantasy world.

Now take that picture and squeeze it into a Fire Nation army uniform that was just big enough for him to fit into, and …. Shazam …. You have “Captain Han”.

The lieutenant was even more puzzled.

Zhao? The Captain in charge of Ketu Harbor?

“Isn't he a captain? Your ranks are the same sir”.

Both Zhao and Han were Captains in the Fire Nation, the difference being that Zhao was posted to the Navy while Han was in the Army.

Nevertheless, their ranks were the same regardless of which branch of the military they worked under.

No military branch was favored over another, so it was impossible for someone of similar rank to order another in the Fire Nation military. Hence, the lieutenant's confusion.

“Not anymore. It's Commander now”. Han uttered gloomily before tossing the scroll at his valued lieutenant to read its contents.

— To Captain Han…

It has come to my attention that the Fire Nation Traitor has been spotted within your side of the Earth Kingdom colonial lands. I believe your unit among others, has received the Fire Lord's orders to recapture this individual dead or alive. And this scroll holds mine.

You are to make sure he is captured and inform my regiment the moment you do. I have received orders from the Fire Lord to personally interrogate this scum and extract all useful information I can on the whereabouts of his treacherous superior.

You are to inform no one else after his arrest. Failure to keep word of his capture at bay will lead to considerable consequences -

- Signed -

- Commander Zhao -

At the bottom of the scroll was a black and white portrait of a young teenager.

Seeing this, the Lieutenant's eyes widened.

“Sir ..... This ….”.

“Exactly”. The picture on the portrait wasn't vague.

A similar picture could be found on a wanted poster visible right on Han's desk.

Similar pictures were being spread all over Fire Nation territory. Even within the Colonies.

Luca…

Two months ago, news had spread that the accomplice of a traitorous general had escaped from the Prison Tower at the Fire Nation Capital (Also known as capital city prison).

Some found it unbelievable that a prisoner escaped the structure where highly prioritized criminals were detained.

Others didn't take it to heart.

Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

After all, there were many who had successfully defected from the Fire Nation. However, there was only one widely believed to have done so and survived to this very day.

That thought deepened even more upon discovering that this defector was nothing more than a seventeen-year-old brat.

An escapee still within Fire nation territory, wouldn't differ from the others.

At least Han thought so.

Hence, it was with great surprise that a messenger hawk had arrived just this morning informing the outpost that the criminal on the run for the past two months had fled the fire nation islands and crossed into former Earth Kingdom territory.

Apart from Jeong Jeong, only four rebels had managed to accomplish such a feat.

One of them being this rebel's former commanding officer.

Only then was the profile of this seemingly young deserter dug up to be placed on Captain Han's desk.

Ex-Captain Luca….

You heard that right.

Upon opening the scroll, Han thought his eyes were deceiving him.

There were different ranks in the Fire Nation military. Each branch had similar ranks with some major differences.

In the Fire Army, the ranks were as follows.

General

Colonel

Captain

First Lieutenant

Sergeant

Drill Sergeant

Private.

With the position of a General being the highest and a private being the lowest.

Different ranks had different levels of power depending on their stationed posts, family influence, connections and more….

Han was a soldier in the Fire Army with close to twenty-six years of service.

Years of accruing affluence, merits, contributions, as well as family influence, had pushed him to the position he had now.

And while he might have very little possibility of receiving a promotion in another ten years due to his current positioning in the Army, his status as a Captain wasn't low.

As a Captain, he could command hundreds of Fire nation soldiers and was stationed to watch over an outpost overseeing a large portion of conquered land.

It took him nineteen years of hard work from the day he attended military school at age thirteen to reach his rank. He had stayed stagnant for seven years till this very day making him thirty-nine years old.

And now he was reading a report telling him that a boy not even an adult yet held the same rank he did before imprisonment?

Then he checked the records to verify.

The result astounded him.

Luca …. Aged seventeen …. No, he should be eighteen at this point….

Orphan….

Military Branch, Army ......

Status… Nonbender …

Fire Army Intelligence and Assassination Division .....

..... Attained numerous merits through procuring of useful Information and Espionage .....

Attained rank of Captain Late Summer 98 AG….

… Charged with suspicion of conspiracy following the Defection of close superior, High General Onomu to the Earth Kingdom ..... Sentenced to indefinite suspension within the Hari Bulkan Prison (Same prison) until evidence is procured to clear him of all charges ….

…. Imprisoned since Winter 98 AG to Mid-Summer 99 AG.

(Basically from August in one year to September the following year)

…. Charged as an escaped convict from Fire Nation Prison Tower Mid-Summer 99 AG — Date….

The resume was certainly dazzling, Han would admit that.

At the same time, it cleared up his doubt, shock, and disbelief at how a teenager so young was capable of achieving a position he spent almost half his lifespan to get to.

The military had different branches, and those branches similarly had branches.

The Fire Army was subdivided into numerous departments and units that dealt with various tasks and missions.

Such as the main battle army charged with conquering Earth kingdom territory and the advancement of the great, glorious cause of the Fire Nation.

The Logistics division charged with the supplier of provisions, resources, rations, and weapons.

The conscription department that dealt with the intake of new recruits before assigning them to various other departments.

There were also much smaller divisions that dealt with many things that would greatly inconvenience the large fire Nation army.

Colonel Mongke and the Rough Rhinos were one such division.

A group consisting of five elite warriors with various skill sets that were assigned diverse tasks by Generals and the Fire Lord himself. Such as the destruction of Earth kingdom outposts, disintegration of Earth kingdom forces by infiltrating between enemy lines, pursuit of rebels and wanted traitors of the Fire Nation, and of course, intelligence gathering.

Which brings back to the Intelligence and Assassination department.

Officers in different Departments may possess similar rank but had different spheres of influence and so therefore, different promotion standards.

Commander Zhao, while he was still a captain oversaw a major stronghold of the Fire Nation Navy. Ketu Harbor.

While Captain Han was responsible for a vast area of Fire Nation colonial territory.

The power their spheres of influence granted then was roughly the same; hence Han could easily and freely ignore Zhao's orders and demands while they had the same rank.

Their positions held great weight in the army, but as a result, promotion to higher positions usually took long periods of work and effort. Unless there was a major contribution during the hundred-year one and the merit was stolen by superiors in their stead.

Other departments such as the Intelligence and Assassination Division had different promotion criteria.

They were typically tasked with information gathering on the movements of Earth Kingdom forces.

These tasks involved quiet infiltration within enemy lines, and they had numerous officers hidden among Earth Kingdom nobles.

In essence, it was the Fire Nation's spy organization.

As long as there were no major slip ups, it was considered one of the easiest departments to gain promotion during the hundred-year war.

However, its entry requirements were surprisingly strict.

Luca's past merits recorded in the scroll were quite impressive.

Graduating early from the Fire Nation Military academy.

Assigned to such a division, alongside the favor of a general, it was easy to rise rapidly through the ranks within two years.

Similarly, his position as a Captain didn't have as much power and influence as it would in more prominent departments.

Of course, he could easily command those lower in rank, as they were unable to refuse an order.

But his significance in the fire nation military was much weaker than other captains.

Realizing this, Han's emotions returned to balance.

'Of course. …. How could my life's effort be upstaged by a simple brat in such a short time'?

Reading the scroll listing his achievements, Han was slightly surprised.

Unfortunately, such a favored young man was hit with misfortune.

The superior officer, General Onomu, defected from the Fire nation. As a result, all those with relations to her had been greatly implicated.

Luca alongside numerous officers were imprisoned on grounds of aiding and abetting with an indefinite suspension.

The document read that he would be released as soon as investigations were completed and suitably evidence was found.

When reading the last part earlier today, Han resisted the urge to scoff.

What was the difference between indefinite suspension and a lifetime imprisonment?

A year had passed and he was still in prison.

The so-called evidence being found was just a ruse. Unless a miracle happened, this boy would have been left to rot in the caged cells of the Hari Bulkan for the rest of his life.

And even if he was released, he could say goodbye to his former position …. Or any position in the military for that matter, for good.

Now he was a rebel, forever on the run.

When placed against life imprisonment, Han didn't know which one was worse.

For a moment, the thirty nine-year-old captain felt a trace of sympathy.

Compared to many others who defected from the Fire Nation for different reasons, this boy's situation was probably the most pitiful.

He was accused with no clear evidence and forced to accept one of two choices. Escape or live out the rest of his days in a cell.

He chose the former.

Nevertheless, sympathy was sympathy. One should always leave personal emotions out of their work-life. Captain Han was a staunch supporter of this notion.

Not just because he wouldn't do something as stupid as trying to aid a branded rebel with no relationship with him, but also because of the said instructions within the scroll he received earlier today.

The orders from the scroll were simple. Find the traitor, Luca, at all costs.

Although there were no explicit rewards, this statement alone made his eyes widen at the mere mention.

Opportunity….

Han was already thirty-nine years of age and had been in the Captain position for seven years now.

Meanwhile, Zhao who was only thirty-five had gone a step ahead of him and become a commander.

In your place of work, nothing was more infuriating than seeing a coworker who joined the company later than you successfully become your superior while you were still slaving away in the same position.

Zhao was promoted, so why couldn't he receive a promotion as well?

Han was an ambitious man with a craving for power. And this scroll before him presented an opportunity.

Defectors of the Fire Nation were intolerable. To the point that after so many years, less than a handful were still alive.

And that was only because they were so deep in hiding that the fire Nation wasn't sure they were still alive.

The manhunt for defectors always existed and would continue to look for them until the very day their corpse's could be seen.

While this defector was a young boy, he was still an Ex-Captain of the Fire Nation. As long as he was captured, then the merit would all go to his name.

Coupled with his many years of loyal service and long time in his position, a rank advancement wasn't out of the question.

And so, with the possibility of a promotion before him, the Captain immediately carried out his orders and dispatched dozens of search parties to hunt down the rebel.

That was hours ago.

Unfortunately, it seemed that Han wasn't the only one with such ideas.