Except for the refugee camp, the army was kept secret from the rest of the spirit world, in case their whereabouts should leak to a realm Guy controlled. Though the bathhouse was closed for the night to avoid encounters with customers, an uninformed worker could still find the humans sneaking into the building… and the teenager making loud noises wasn’t exactly helping.

CRASH!

“Kuzon!” Zuko barked.

“What? I didn’t do-!”

“Keep quiet!” a frog hollered at them.

Kuzon stepped away from the drawer he’d pulled out, its contents- which consisted of weed-like herbs- spilled on the floor. Kuzon’s new cape had snagged on the wooden drawer’s splintery surface, and he’d pulled on it rather hard in an attempt to free himself.

The frog had led them through a passage around the bathhouse, and they were now traveling through the boiler room. This part of the trip took a lot of time, because they had to crawl through the small entrance one at a time.

By the time Kuzon had cleaned up his mess, the crowd had thinned out, and soon Mustang was sliding through the small opening feet first. Zuko slid his cane on the group to the next room, before going through himself. “Come on, Kuzon.”

The teen rushed up to the small door, grabbing the archway as he ducked underneath it and came out in another room. This one had many gears and pulley systems set up for the elevators in the bathhouse. The gears were giant, twice as big as the teen, and the room’s ceiling was hidden in the darkness. The group’s voices, though hushed, echoed off the walls of the room.

With just a small lantern for light, the frog led the group towards a shabby looking elevator. He then went alongside this elevator and up to the wall. He rapped his knuckles against the wall, and part of it shifted backward and then to the side, revealing a hidden elevator.

The frog then ushered the recruits into the elevator, but motioned for Zuko to stop. “Stay here, you three; you’re coming with me to see Yubabba.”

Zuko nodded. “Right.” He turned to Mustang, not knowing whether to bow or offer a handshake, and went with both. “Nice to meet you.”

Mustang smirked, taking his hand and shaking it briskly. “Nice meeting you too… Hopefully we’ll run into each other again.”

“Goodbye, Mr. Mustang, sir,” Arella said with a bow.

“Yeah, bye,” Kuzon said lamely with a short wave.

Mustang chuckled to himself, walking into the elevator.

The frog gestured to the elevator next to the hidden one. “This one leads straight to Yubabba’s office. It was only just built about a week ago, to better convenience the army. Consider yourself lucky it was built, or we might be running around the entire bathhouse.”

“Why?” Kuzon asked with a befuddled tone, as they entered the elevator.

“Not all elevators lead to every floor.” Arella explained. “Some buildings have elevators spread out all over that lead to different floors, especially in Japan.”

“That just sounds confusing.”

“It pretty much is confusing.”

As they ascended, there was silence. Kuzon looked up at his father anxiously, then back down at his feet. He looked up again, opened his mouth to speak, but his father stopped him.

“You can’t join, Kuzon. I understand why you want to, and I know how you feel…” He looked down at him. “But what you really need to do is go stay with your sister, take care of each other and wait until you’re ready.”

Kuzon turned away, glaring at the floor, as if it wasn’t letting him join the army. “I don’t understand.”

“Some day you will,” Zuko assured him.

The elevator slowed, and then stopped. The doors opened, and they came into a dark but elegant room. At the end of this room were large double doors that went up to the ceiling, taking up the space a wall would. On their wall was another elevator, though not the one that led to the base. The room was carpeted, and the walls were made of dark wood. Stepping into the room alone felt calming and refreshing.

Kuzon stared up at the large double doors, awed as his gaze went down to the gold knocker, shaped like an ugly, goblin-like face. “Whoa, pretty fancy…”

“It sure is,” the frog retorted. “Listen up, now- Yubabba is the head honcho of the bathhouse, main investor of the army, and a very powerful witch. You better treat her with respect, and address her as Madam Yubabba, or Yubabba-sama, depending on the language you speak with.”

“Of course,” Zuko replied with a curt nod.

Kuzon rolled his eyes, having never understood the purpose of being respectful to someone you didn’t know or didn’t like.

“I saw that.”

He gasped, looking again at the door knocker, its voice sounding like one speaking at the other end of a phone. It rolled its eyes at him in turn.

“What a punk! At least try not to be disgraceful.”

The teen felt his face burn.

The doors opened, revealing double doors just behind them. Another set of doors was behind these, and another set, and another, and another…

darn, she’s really overdoing it with these doors.

Once all of the doors opened, a voice bounced off the grand hallway. “Come in.”

Taking in deep breaths simultaneously, the three walked down the hall, the frog at their heels.

They came into a room that was much more ornate than the room before. It had red wallpaper with wooden panels on the walls. A small fire burned in a fireplace beside the door. Across from the fireplace was Yubabba, sitting at a desk covered with books, quills and piles of paper. Two frogs stood in front of a door over there, these two looking much bulkier than the other frogs Kuzon had encountered.

Other than the scowl she had on her wrinkled face, Yubabba looked exactly like Zeniba. However, in comparison to her sister’s granny-like demeanor, Yubabba seemed more like a witch.

Zuko strode up ahead of his kids and took a low bow. “Excuse me for interrupting you, Madam Yubabba. I-“

“What in the world made you think you interrupted me, human?” she snapped, her wrinkles doubling as she glared. “I was the one who called on you, wasn’t I?”

Zuko was shocked to find himself in trouble so quickly. “...I... I’m sorry, I thought I was here to-“

“Madam, I apologize,” the frog said quickly, stepping forward. “I misinformed the human. He requested to speak with you earlier, so when I asked him to come with me, he must have assumed that-”

“-that he requested this meeting.” Yubabba finished irritably. “Take care to tell the humans exactly what their business is next time.”

Kuzon and Arella glanced at each other, and then at their father, who was starting to look nervous.

“Whatever business you have with me can wait,” Yubabba added, pulling a cigarette out of her desk. “Someone reported how your children boarded the train. I’d like to make sure you aren’t spies sent by Guy who are trying to infiltrate the army…” She snapped her fingers, and a single flame burned over her index finger. She lit the cigarette, putting it up to her lips as she waved the flame away like an unlit a match.

Kuzon started talking before he could remember to be respectful. “Hey, how come you can firebend?”

Zuko cringed, gritting his teeth at his own son’s idiocy. Arella shot him a glare, mouthing a dark “shut up”.

The Headmistress looked at the boy, and then smirked. Smoke poured out of her nostrils as she exhaled, the smoke reminding the teen of dragons. “Bit of a loudmouth, aren’t you? Allow me to fix that…”

She raised her free hand, pressed forefinger to thumb, and waved her hand in a straight line in the air. As she did, Kuzon could feel his lips interlocking as if she were pulling a zipper. Horrified, he pulled and tugged at his mouth, but couldn’t separate his lips no matter what he tried.

Yubabba chuckled mirthfully, Arella and Zuko staring in wide-eyed shock. “That should keep him busy,” the witch said cheerfully, looking back at Zuko. “As I was saying, I’d like an explanation as to why these two didn’t go to the refugee camp.”

Zuko struggled to look away from his son, at Yubabba. “Arella said that their mother, Raven, teleported them here using magic. She was trying to save them from Guy…”

Yubabba glared. “And how is that possible? No human knows how to teleport to the spirit world by any means other than deep meditation. Where did she get this knowledge?”

Zuko look at his daughter, who shrugged. He turned back to Yubabba wearily. “We don’t know. She didn’t have enough time to explain.”

“But why didn’t she come with them?”

Zuko hung his head. “We… we don’t know.”

Yubabba snorted, more smoke puffing outward. Her expression grew livid, along with her growing suspicions. “An unlikely story. No human could have come here without Guy’s technology, and she certainly wouldn’t have left herself behind to face his wrath. You all must be spies.” She glared at the three of them. “Shall I turn you into pigs, or would you ‘firebenders’ prefer to be burned as lumps of coal?”

Arella paled, starting to shake. Kuzon tore at his face, growing desperate to speak. Zuko shuddered, wondering how they would escape this predicament.

“Wait a moment, Yubabba.”

Everyone turned. Out of the guarded door came a boy. He looked younger than Kuzon, but carried an intense air into the room that a child rarely had. He wore a white robe, with a blue shirt underneath it, his straight, dark green hair falling down to his chin. His light green eyes scanned the three with a steely look, and he stopped on Kuzon.

“You claim to be Raven’s children?” he asked coolly.

Kuzon glanced up at Yubabba, who negligently raised her hand and unzipped his mouth. Once freed, he replied nervously, “Yeah, that’s right. How do you know her?”

Before the boy could respond, Arella made a guess. “Are you the Haku Momma told us to wait for?”

Haku gave a small, bow-like nod. “Yes, I am Haku. I told your mother about the spell she used to send you here. I have to apologize for not meeting you earlier, I was held up with matters here.”

Zuko pulled his cane back to center himself, feeling like he’d literally dodged a bullet. “How did you manage to talk to her if she hadn’t been sent through the Gateway?”

“While Raven was being held captive by Guy,” Haku explained, “She managed to reach out with her subconscious, and we became connected in a dream. She explained her situation and asked for help, so I told her about the teleportation spell. I also assured her that I would help her and her family once they came here,” here he fell into a small bow, “and I plan to carry out that promise.”

Zuko bowed back, Arella following, though she had to pull Kuzon after them. “Thank you,” Zuko said humbly, “for helping us.”

Yubabba snorted at the scene, smoke flaring from her nostrils. “How like you, Haku, for not telling me about this. I suppose I can’t exclude you two for simply coming here by a different route. If Haku is going to vouch for you... then that’s good enough for me.’”

“Still,” she went on, eyeing the scarred man, “I see no reason why we should accept a gimp like this one into our army. Considering the age-range of our army, he’s rather old to be a private, and his leg leaves him weak and frail…”

“Dad’s no private,” Kuzon said quickly, having learned nothing from his mouth-shutting experience. “He’s been in two wars- three counting this one. He was Tamaran’s military advisor in our galaxy.”

Yubabba sighed heavily. “Well, with Ikari being as busy as he’s been, I suppose we could use one of those… Fine then, but you will not be treated like some infant because of your leg. You will have the same training as any worthless human.”

Zuko made another bow. “Just as I would expect from myself. I will not fall behind.”

“You’d better not, or you’ll be punished for such incompetence.” Here she turned to Haku. “See if you can assign the two children to a squad as well.”

Zuko looked up, alarmed. “What?”

A frog beside Haku blanched. “But, Madam, the Recruits’ training begins tomorrow, and registry has-”

“Have them assigned!” she snarled, glowering at the frog, her patience wearing down. “I’m not waiting a whole month for these two to be processed. You!” she snapped, pointing at the girl. “Do you speak any languages other than English?”

Arella gulped, overwhelmed by the sudden attention. “Umm, yeah… I can speak Chinese… and some Japanese…”

“There you are! Toss her into Haruko’s squad, and we’ll see if she speaks Japanese 3.”

Arella quirked. “Japanese 3?”

Haku cut in to explain. “Because of the different developments in different dimensions, people speak many different versions of languages. We’ve labeled all the different versions with numbers. Right now we’ve come up to 50 different versions of Japanese, with 3 being the most popular.”

“Usually it’s not much of a change,” Yubabba added, “so even a spoiled little girl like you should be competent enough to figure it out. Now, for the boy…”

Haku turned to Yubabba. “Might I suggest the Warp Squad? It’s short on men, and they speak Kuzon’s English…”

“Good, then that’s settled. You, foreman, do the paperwork for this and inform the drill sergeants. Haku, take these two to their rooms, once they’ve signed their contracts.”

Zuko felt dizzy as he watched this conversation whiz by, and then felt sick. “Wait! I… I apologize for any misunderstandings, but I never said I wanted my kids enlisted. They can take the first train back to the refugee camp.”

Kuzon groaned, having hoped that, somehow, his father would forget to object. “But, Dad-“

“Kuzon, not now,” Zuko hissed back, giving him a firm look. “Neither of you should be here. Go to the camp, Zeniba will take care of you.”

Arella’s shoulders sagged. “But, Daddy, when will we see you?”

“That’s not important.” Zuko said quickly.

“Like hell it isn’t!” Kuzon yelled back. “I want to get enlisted. I want to help Mom, help take down Guy.”

“You do not want to get enlisted, Kuz-“

“Don’t tell me what I want!” Kuzon snapped, glaring. “I want to make a difference in this war, just like you do.”

A chuckle interrupted this argument, and everyone turned to see Yubabba wearing a broad smirk. A pile of papers fluttered on her desk, and then suddenly two broke free from the pile, flying into the air. What appeared to be contracts floated up to each child, a pen following soon afterwards.

“If the children want to get enlisted,” she chuckled, “they do not need your consent, gimp.”

Zuko’s good eye widened. “What?! Yubabba, please be reasonable! They’re only children…”

“If their father has been in the military, then I’m sure they know what to expect,” she said calmly. “They’re old enough to make their own decisions, and are as smart- or bold- as any human. We recruit children their age all the time, even younger.”

Arella inspected her contract, her eyebrows meeting when she stumbled on words she didn’t understand. “What does it say?”

“To wrap up the important facts,” Yubabba replied, “if you cause mischief, you’ll be subjected to our jurisdiction, and you are expected to do whatever your higher ranking officers tell you.”

“Figures…” Kuzon muttered. He sat down by the fireplace, placing the contract on the floor. “I’m going to sign it.”

“Kuzon,” Zuko pleaded, “you’re making a huge mistake.”

Arella sat down next to her brother. “If he signs it, I’ll sign it. I’m not going to the refugee camp all by myself.”

Kuzon held his pen over the contract, but started to second guess his action. If he signed this, he’d become a soldier for an army that could be corrupt or unorganized… Hell, he had no idea what this army was like at all. He didn’t know how severe the training would be, or what he’d be trained to do… and with his father begging him not to enlist, it seemed like a blind leap of faith in something he became aware of moments ago.

But, once his thoughts went to his mother, of how that menacing shadow had struck her down, he knew he couldn’t go to the camp. Those who had formed this army, those who had faced Guy, must feel the same way. This subtle connection between him and the army seemed as good as any reason to join.

He scribbled in messy handwriting the only word he knew in Japanese. He also signed in English and Classical Chinese, not knowing which Yubabba would prefer.

Once his pen had started moving, Arella had moved hers. Zuko gripped his cane tightly as his mind raced. This couldn’t be happening; there had to be a way he could stop it.

But soon their contracts were zooming up towards a satisfied Yubabba.

Haku stepped up to Zuko, glancing over his shoulder to make sure Yubabba wasn’t looking. “If it makes you feel any better,” he whispered, “you should know that Raven wanted your children to join the army.”

Zuko stared down at the boy, and though his eyes were intense, he could tell they were honest as well. “Why would she want that?”

“Something about the Yin-Yang project,” Haku muttered, turning away just as Yubabba had read their names and placed the papers away.

“Iroh-Kuzon Prince and Arella Prince…” the witch said dryly. “What an odd last name for those of Chinese origin.”

Kuzon pointed at his father. “Don’t look at me; he made it up.”

Yubabba turned to him, smirking. “Made it up, huh? How original of you, considering your original name was Prince Zuko.”

Arella let out a short gasp while Kuzon looked confused. Zuko clenched his cane. “How did you-?”

Another paper whizzed through the air, this one coming from the guarded door. It flew above Zuko and gently drifted down towards Yubabba’s desk. She caught it and read aloud:

“Prince Zuko of the Fire Nation, son of Ursa and Fire Lord Ozai. Known for his heated attitude and temper, powerful firebending skills, and his obsession with finding the Avatar.”

Zuko looked away. “That was me eighteen years ago,” he said darkly.

“How do you have a file on Dad?” Kuzon asked, bewildered.

“It’s not your father, exactly…” Yubabba replied, tossing the paper aside. “It’s a version of your father from a different dimension. Though it’s usually uncommon to discover a dimension with a different version of yourself, it is known to happen, especially on a large scale like this army. But enough small talk- I have work to do, and you all need rest for your first day of training. Haku, take these three down to the base and see that they find their rooms.”

Haku bowed, Zuko and the children following. “As you wish, mistress,” Haku said quietly, and the four of them turned and left.

Kuzon let out a sigh of relief as they entered the hallway. “Man, that was a bizarre meeting… I’m glad we got out of there alive.”

Zuko ignored him, his lower lip curled moodily.

“…Dad, are you mad at me?”

Zuko shook his head. “No… but I am disappointed. I hope you realize what you’re in for. Living in the army isn’t going to be easy.”

Kuzon rolled his eyes. “Yeah, I know that… Could you have a little faith in me?”

“It’s hard to have faith in a child who mistakes magic for firebending so easily.”

“She was doing something, obviously, and supposedly no one can use their powers in the spirit world! Excuse me for wondering.”

“You could have been more polite.”

“…I guess…”

Haku walked up between the two elevators, knocking on the wall. The wall shifted back, revealing their elevator.

“Mister Haku,” Arella began as they stepped inside, “why was Yubabba able to use her powers?”

“She used magic of the spirit world,” Haku replied, gently tugging on a lever next to him, the doors slowly shutting. “It’s the only ability anyone can use while in the spirit world… at least, the only one known in this realm.”

The elevator started moving, Zuko wobbling a bit, but keeping a tight grip on his cane for balance. “What kind of abilities does everyone have in the army? I know Mustang mentioned alchemy…”

“Isn’t that some sort of magical thingy?” Kuzon asked.

Arella rolled her eyes. “Shouldn’t you know? You’re the one who can actually use magic.”

“I’ve only heard alchemy mentioned a few times in Mom’s books and scrolls,” Kuzon said defensively.

“The alchemy your friend was talking about is most likely different than the alchemy of your world,” Haku replied. “In the army, alchemy usually refers to an ability that isn’t magic, but considered a science. There are many different abilities like alchemy in the universe, as well as different kinds of magic. You’ll be running into people with all sorts of fighting styles and powers here. There are some dimensions where people learn skills similar to yours, but the chances of your meeting them are small.”

As they descended, Kuzon noticed that the air was growing warmer, humid even. The elevator doors opened, and they came into a hall deep underground. The walls were made of dark stone, and the hall was lit by fluorescent lights on the ceiling. A frog was leading a small group of people down the hall, supposedly to their own quarters.

“The elevator to the dormitories is at the end of this hall on the left.” Haku explained. “The first dormitory floor also has the cafeteria, which can be found all the way to the right of the dorms. The cafeteria has a map with the layout of the base, which you can use if you need to get anywhere else, like the arenas.”

“Arenas?” Arella repeated.

“That’s where you’ll be training.” Haku said, just as the next elevator came into sight.

“Will we be fighting against other kids in the arena?” Kuzon asked, thinking of Greek coliseums and of other fighting stadiums.

“That depends on how your drill sergeant decides to train you.”

They entered the next elevator, and as the doors closed and they sank even lower, so did Zuko’s hopes. If either of his kids wound up with a bad drill sergeant…

The doors opened, revealing a hall with numbered doors. At first glance Zuko was reminded of his prison for the past month, but the doors weren’t bolted or locked, and seemed much friendlier.

A woman in pink robes was scrubbing some Japanese graffiti off one of the doors, looking at them over her shoulder and smiling. “Hey, Haku! More recruits? They certainly are late...”

Haku nodded, and smirked at her, despite her tired appearance. “Hello, Lin. If I didn’t know you already, I might think you were a human; you certainly smell like one.”

Kuzon blanched, and then lifted his arm to smell himself, but found no particularly bad odors.

The worker wiped her sweaty brow, running a hand through her long brown hair. “Yeah, you get used to it after a while. I’ve been working down here so often Yubabba thinks I should move here.”

“You are aware that working for the army is completely voluntary, right, Lin?”

She nodded. “I know… but I’m adjusting to it. At least down here I don’t get bossed around by frogs all the time. Anyway, I better get back to wiping this off- that shinobi punk’s out to get me, I swear…”

Haku nodded back. “Speaking of the shinobi, where’s his room? This boy is the newest member of his squad.”

Lin looked at Kuzon, still smiling. “I’m sorry to hear that… His dorm is number 205, I think.”

“Thank you. See you later.” Haku said with a nod, and continued down the hall, the recruits on his heels.

“Let’s see…” Haku murmured, as he turned down a corner. “Number 205… Here, this is it.”

Kuzon looked at the numbers written in blue paint- and again in kanji below the numbers- on the wooden door. He looked to his sister, then at his father.

“Well, at least this isn’t goodbye forever, right? We’ll be seeing each other a lot… right?”

Haku nodded. “You all should have plenty of chances to meet up. We have many friends and families that wind up spread out across the army, so there’s choice sitting during meals and break-times. I can’t say the schedules are on your side, however…”

There was a pause. Arella suddenly tackled her father, hugging him tightly. “Group hug!” she declared.

Kuzon rolled his eyes. “This is so corny. I don’t wanna hug.”

Zuko shrugged, sharing his daughter’s embrace. “Your loss.”

This comment had Kuzon reconsider, and eventually he joined the hug. He was suddenly glad he joined the army, deciding that he couldn’t possibly regret it if it meant they’d stay together.

He pulled out of the hug, giving his father a weak smile. “G’night.”

“Good night, kiddo,” Zuko replied, ruffling his son’s hair.

“‘Night, Kuzon,” Arella said, smiling back.

They walked off, Haku leading the way. Kuzon watched them for a moment, and then turned back to the door. Realizing he was on his own, he took a deep breath to calm any nerves before they appeared, and then opened the door.

The lights were out in the room, but enough light poured in from the hall for him to see seven beds, four on one side of the room and three on the other. Each had a bedside table, with a drawer and a lamp on top. Only one of these beds was occupied by an actual person, though the rest had the covers messed-up or objects lying on top of them. Only one bed was free, this bed being at the front of the room, across from the person slumbering.

Kuzon shut the door and let himself fall on the bed, flopping down onto his back and staring at the ceiling, waiting for his eyes to adjust to the dim light. He felt so tired, despite that all he’d done was run around for ten minutes, fly around nothing for a while, and then sit around all day. He supposed his exhaustion was caused from processing the events that had happened that day.

His stomach growled angrily. He hadn’t eaten much, other than that small piece of bread to stop himself from disappearing.

Kuzon groaned, and then sat up, pulling off his boots. He looked around the room, then at the person snoozing across from him. All he could see of this boy was his long blond hair, most pulled back in a braid while long bangs covered his face.

Would this guy be a friend? A bully? Why was he here? What sort of world was he from?

Kuzon shook his head, which was sore from such questions. He tore off his clothes, for once, shoving them into the bedside drawer. Despite just being in his red boxers and white undershirt, the room was still suffocatingly stuffy.

He burrowed under the covers, shut his eyes, and let himself fall to sleep. He hoped that this time his dreams wouldn’t be as frightening as the world around him.

~*~

End Chapter 1

Full creditz for chapter 1: Zuko from Avatar: The Last Airbender; Gluttony, Gate of Alchemy, Roy Mustang from Fullmetal Alchemist; Guts from Berserk; Sakura Kinomoto, Light Card from Cardcaptors; Raven from Teen Titans; DC Mini from Paprika; Zeniba, Conductor, Frogs, Yubabba, Lin, Haku from Spirited Away; Jet Black from Cowboy Bebop; Robin from Witch Hunter Robin; Am I missing someone? Lemme know.