Being a royal bodyguard was supposed to be boring but prestigious work. It was why Qi Song tried so hard to secure the post in the first place. The posting at the palace demanded sharp discipline, prompt obedience, and near-total discretion, but in exchange the pay was better than anything short of working for a noble, the respect earned undeservedly high, and it was as far from the front lines as anyone could get.
Until the royal princess decided to get involved with military matters, anyway.
Now the hazards had increased from practically nonexistent to something to genuinely worry about, but the pay remained the same. Qi Song was not a coward, but he very much liked to stay alive long enough to meet his wife for the first time. It was sheer foul luck that his prearranged union had overlapped with his assignment to guard the princess.
At least the regiment she sponsored was competent. Qi Song would readily admit that the older soldiers scared him almost as much as the royal family did. It was something the royal bodyguards and the newer batch of soldiers initially bonded over.
The veterans of the so-called Defiant 11th were not really soldiers, someone had said, and the bodyguard accepted that truth. The colonel, his officers, the hardened veterans…even the camp followers… Upon closer observation, one might come to realize that these men and women were mislabelled as soldiers.
The young colonel especially was a monster of a firebender, but his inner circle were intimidating as well. Qi Song had witnessed the casualness these veterans had taken to slaughter, how they wreaked bloody carnage without a care in the world. They were more akin to dark spirits, violent, bloodthirsty ones that were shackled by discipline and protocol. Corpses were mutilated without so much as a blink of hesitation, and they gleefully waded into the noxious naphtha fumes just to get at their enemies. Their victims.
Scarier still was the fact that these sanctioned murderers were slowly converting their new comrades to be like them. Qi Song had seen how the first battle with the liquid fire and the casual dismemberment had acted like a sort of tantalizing appetizer to the inexperienced troops. The victory from the night battle had further drawn them in, spreading the infection of vicious grins and dark chuckles.
Pretty soon Colonel Xing would have his regiment the way he liked it, and Qi Song might have to find new friends for the sake of his sanity.
The only consolation the royal bodyguard took from all this was the knowledge that as scary as these psychopaths were to him, the enemy on the receiving end would undoubtedly be scared shitless. After what was done to the poor fuck who was stupid enough to try a false surrender, he wouldn't be surprised if the young commander had other creative means of expressing that death was not the worst thing that could happen to you.
At the same time, the regiment also seemed as capricious as the corrupted spirits. One moment they were incinerating Earth Kingdom soldiers, and the next they were helping the surrendered ones into specially built camps, offering the same quality of food and bedding that they themselves had. The badly wounded prisoners were treated at the same time as those of the 11th, and at the end of the day, the enlisted men were released with a day's ration.
The crazies of the 11th were a close-knit group that cared for those they deemed a part of their group, and that somehow included the prisoners.
And now it included the princess and her retinue as well. It took little time for their stiff salutes to fade into casual greetings, and Qi Song and his colleagues were given considerations like specially reserved side dishes or training tips.
After several weeks with them, Qi Song would gladly admit that these murderous dark spirits in human shells were far better peers than even the many colleagues back in the castle.
He wouldn't word it like that out loud, of course. The princess was already taken into their lifestyle; the last thing Qi Song needed was to insult the people protecting him, and draw the ire of his charge for insulting her new friends.
He wanted to see his wife, and preferably in one piece.
The 11th Regiment encountered a few minor skirmishes with the Earth Kingdom in the following days, mostly reinforcements sent to bolster the already defeated army of Colonel Somsak. They were quickly resolved, and the princess didn't even need to be kept in camp in the last one.
At the same time, Colonel Xing had freed the enemy commander a few days after chasing off a second unfortunate band of earthbenders. Supposedly, Colonel Somsak and his fellow officers were to take a message back to Chenbao. Qi Song thought that it was more to spare the poor colonel from the vindictive needling by General Yama; That old man was acerbic in his verbal lashings, particularly to the earthbender prisoners he unofficially represented. It often took the intervention of the matronly Elder Kilin to shut him up for longer than an hour, or one of the officers of the 11th.
For all that drama, the march north was still progressing smoothly. There was none of the plucky cunning that the 11th was known for before this; no unorthodox strategies that trapped or repelled a much larger force trespassing into the Fire Nation colonies.
There were still unorthodox strategies, but this was no longer a regiment constantly surviving by the skin of their teeth. As far as Qi Song was concerned, there was no sense of the 11th being the underdog now because they simply weren't. The regiment was now a fully rested and recovered monster, finally let loose from its guard polar dog duty. It now was allowed to become the predator after years of suffering as prey.
Eventually, just over a month since their landing, Chenbao City came into view, its daunting walls wedged at the intersection of the mouth of a river and the coastline. Out at sea, Qi Song made out the familiar and rather comforting sight of Fire Nation warships, who were undoubtedly blockading the city's port.
There was also a large camp flying Fire Nation banners at a distance from the walled city, sitting comfortably along the same side of the river, as if sandwiching the city with the coast. It was from there that the regiment encountered their first friendly soldiers since their march north.
A unit of scouts rode in their ostrich horses towards the 11th's convoy, seeking audience with the princess to deliver greetings. "Princess Azula. General Meng is glad you brought your regiment so quickly."
Qi Song almost joined in as the eyebrows of the officers and even the princess rose at the welcoming message. Colonel Xing did not seem insulted by the lack of acknowledgement though, if anything he seemed…amused.
The regiment followed their guides towards the camp, staying clear of the city as they swerved towards a makeshift bridge to cross the river. The welcoming party was impressive; Qi Song could pick out the rank markings of one general, six colonels and a small horde of lesser officers. There was even an admiral there, with his retinue of sea boilers. They were all arrayed in neat lines and fell to one knee as Princess Azula approached.
The scarred general offered a passable salute, but at least had the decency to keep his head bowed. "Your highness. The Northern Army is grateful for your presence."
"I appreciate the welcome, General Meng." Princess Azula glanced around the camp, and then made a show of pausing in thought. "I see you have a sizable command under you."
"The Fire Lord has deemed the subjugation of Chenbao a priority." The general rose, and with him the rest of the other officers slowly followed suit. "This way, princess. I will have your troops sent to their allotted grounds."
Princess Azula did not move, and from the way she tensed in front of him, Qi Song could imagine her eyes narrowing into an unamused gaze. "I notice you've left out my colonel, general."
"What? Oh. My apologies. You can follow us too, colonel."
It was subtle, but Qi Song felt the 11th's dark disapproval suddenly simmering behind him. Colonel Xing didn't say anything, but the princess did.
"Do you have a problem with Colonel Xing, general?"
*****
Meng gave the princess a look, and then shifted his gaze to the boy with a colonel's rank. A stupid joke, typical of the braindead fools in court.
The 11th, however storied it was supposed to be, was merely a force meant to defend against Earth Kingdom raiders. Oversized bands of bandits and marauders, nothing more. Raiders that were led by lesser Earth Kingdom commanders, as it was a fact that Ba Sing Se held back their best commanders to protect themselves.
The Earth Kingdom only still stood because it had the men to throw away, everyone knew that. Their leaders were mostly feckless and too busy fighting for Ba Sing Se's favor or trying to be rid of its hold, otherwise the Fire Nation would not have made the conquests it had made up to this day.
If Meng was given a few hundred soldiers, he could probably have achieved the same results of chasing away an unruly mob of thousands as the Lidai did.
The old fart had just used his image of genteel nobility to embellish his results. And this mere boy, Lidai's supposed successor, either bought into the delusion, or was being propped up by the officers of the 11th, which Meng felt was most likely the case. It'd give them some freedom, allowing the captains to laze about and pretend they were putting up a heroic struggle as they fought off peasants.
Even if Meng could afford them a modicum of doubt, that the 11th had been constantly fighting off Earth Kingdom warbands that were halfway competent, the debacle of Tai Plains was all he needed to know that they were unfit for the true front lines. The 11th was so used to being a defensive force that it practically crumbled in its first aggressive operation. Incompetent general or not, the soldiers routed as soon as Shiluo died, compromising the entire push.
And now this runt was masking his amusement poorly, probably thinking that he could hide behind the princess' favor while he blindly played the part of a mascot or propaganda piece for the court.
The hardened warrior fought down the urge to scoff as he formed a suitable reply to the princess. Royal or not, he was not going to mince words with her. "I meant no offense to you, princess. But I've been in this war longer than this…colonel here was born. Having a mere child put in a rank of command for the sake of propaganda is…foolish, to be frank."
He paused for a second, uncaring for the sounds of shifting armor all around him, instead focused on her narrowing gaze. "Of course, I find it unnecessarily dangerous to have your highness attached to this stunt as well, being forced to come out here for the sake of appearances. If I were back at the capital, I would have argued against whoever it was that thought this a worthwhile idea. Maybe some sort of hysteria has set upon the advisors to persuade your father to agree to such a plan. It is better for a broken regiment to be absorbed by commanders who could use their skill, rather than be turned into…whatever this is."
Rather amusingly, the boy quickly raised his hands to stop his officers and bodyguards from going for their weapons.
Cute.
The princess dipped her head a little, surprisingly taking affront at Meng's words. "I chose to support the 11th Regiment and it's outstanding colonel because their accomplishments, and the accomplishments of Colonel Xing, were vouched for. The 11th have already seen through several Earth Kingdom armies on the way here. I can assure you that my father's confidence is not misplaced."
And here he had heard that she was a skilled and intelligent child.
Or perhaps life on the islands had been so cushy that their perceptions had shifted.
Well, time for the girl to hear some harsh facts. "Your highness is not versed in war," Meng stated bluntly with a shake of his head. "What you've faced were likely roving bandits or peasant mobs. Once we begin the siege, you will see what a proper Earth Kingdom army looks like."
The general ignored the scowls directed at him, just as easily as he'd ignored the protests of his lessers during the strategy meetings.
"I know the differences between conscripts and enlisted soldiers, general," she replied evenly.
Not wanting to waste further time, Meng simply nodded and made way. "As you say, your highness. This way, please."
The boy, to his credit, knew enough about protocols to dismiss his captains, following after the princess with his major and bodyguards.
*****
They reached a large command tent, far larger than what the 11th had, decorated with torch stands and simple stools. At the center of it was a large cloth map of Chenbao city.
General Meng's voice lost whatever warmth it had left as he gestured to said map. "As you can see, princess, we have the city locked down a few days since our arrival. They've walled up their port to prevent the fleet from bombarding it or conducting an amphibious landing."
"And how are you going to take the city?" the princess asked, still unhappy as she stared at the map. Qi Song could still feel the lingering looks of apology from the general's subordinates, directed at both the princess and Colonel Xing.
Probably in an attempt to save themselves in case the princess decided to be particularly displeased.
The general, meanwhile, puffed up a bit. "The warships will attempt to breach the port walls, and send out a landing force. At the same time, we will storm the walls on our end. Chenbao's defenders would be stretched thin covering both fronts to mount an effective defense."
An almost textbook Fire Nation swarm tactic, one that relied on the discipline and determination of the Fire Nation's soldiers to carry the day regardless of high casualties. It had worked against the airbenders a few generations ago, and it worked against most Earth Kingdom cities.
But Qi Song still felt an appalled shiver run up his spine. The admiral was barely biting back his displeasure as well, along with a few of the general's commanders.
Princess Azula frowned at the map for a bit more before giving the general a cold look. "Is there a reason you chose the most costly method to claim the walls, general?"
General Meng reeled back, but the princess returned her attention to the map, pointing at the coastline between the camp and the fleet. "Why not have the fleet bombard this point, to breach the walls and suppress Chenbao's defenders while the army marches in?"
"It wouldn't work," came his immediate, almost growling reply.
"And why's that?"
"The-"
"The general believes that such action would risk his men's lives from our warship's trebuchets," the admiral interrupted in a tone that clearly disagreed with that assessment.
"As opposed to storming the walls without aid?" the princess retorted.
"Wha-" General Meng stopped and forced himself to bow and salute to hide his glare. "Your highness," he began through gritted teeth, "I have been waging war for decades. I have taken cities before." He paused, and Qi Song somehow knew he was holding back the sentence 'don't tell me how to do my job'.
Unfortunately for General Meng, Princess Azula didn't care for such thoughts. She glanced at the admiral. "What are your thoughts on the matter, admiral…?"
With a vindictive smile, the lord of the local fleet gave a deep bow and saluted. "Admiral Daeyang, your highness. I have faith in my ships' abilities to breach the walls, and also keep it open for the army to enter. Without a single stray shot hitting the men on the ground. We can stop the bombardment once the troops close in to assault the breach, or redirect our fire to keep the earthbenders on the walls from utilizing their high ground advantage."
"What are the expected losses like?" the princess pointedly asked the gathered officers.
One colonel dared to answer her despite his general's growing anger. "At the worst, your highness, it would be no more than those expected with a pincer attack. But…ah, assuming that Admiral Daeyang's fleet…um, avoids hitting our men, the expected losses are actually much lower."
Qi Song almost scrunched up his face. So why was the general stewing?
As if sensing his question, Colonel Xing gave a soft cough. "Perhaps, your highness, General Meng is worried that his twentieth successful siege would be…marred by having the possibility of the navy being involved in a critical manner? Considering that an amphibious assault, however distracting, would likely be unsuccessful once the fighting began to move into the city's heart, compared to having the Navy's marines fighting alongside the army."
Admiral Daeyang did not hide his disgusted nod. Now that the colonel brought it up, Qi Song suddenly imagined the fleet's marines making it past the breach, only to be cut off from their ships and any form of help from new walls created in the bowels of the city. In such confines, naval bombardment then would likely risk obliterating the landing troops more than aiding them…
"Shut your mouth, boy!" A roar snapped the bodyguard from his imagination as General Meng rose up and surged towards Colonel Xing, arm raised and ready to strike.
Only to stop as Lieutenant Koshi and his fellow bodyguards, and Major Mozi, drew their blades in warning. That in turn caused the general's own guards to draw their blades, and the tent immediately became thick with tension.
The general stared down the uninterested colonel. "Y-You… Insolent brat…"
"I suggest you compose yourself, general," Princess Azula was saying, but then the commander turned his furious gaze on her, causing her to step back in surprise.
"What do you know, girl!" he shouted, and Qi Song and his colleagues moved to intercept him.
They were too late, however, as Colonel Xing interposed himself between the general and the princess instead, simply raising a hand at the enraged man.
"Please, general. You are about to make a dreadful mistake." Despite the words, Qi Song had the distinct impression that young Xing did not care if the general calmed down.
This time the general's bodyguards did not react when Lieutenant Koshi quickly stepped in to grab General Meng's hand and stop him from lashing out. Not with the clear attempt at trying to assault the royal princess.
The general yanked his hand free with a furious snort, and then glanced around at the room. Only then did he regain some composure as the gravity of his tantrum set in, though he still clearly simmered with rage.
Colonel Xing spoke up again, this time to interrupt the angered princess. "But the matter stands that you had tried to lay your hand on the princess, nevermind the demeaning behavior you directed upon her highness and her regiment." The words were polite and formal, but Qi Song had marched with the 11th long enough to know that behind the Young Dragon's cold mask was a cruel violence just waiting to be unshackled.
"For that, I challenge you to Agni Kai, on Princess Azula's behalf," he finished, and then turned to the princess, whose anger quickly morphed into a dark smirk as she nodded her agreement.
General Meng, the stupid fool, accepted gladly with a savage grin of his own.
Qi Song doubted there'd be anything left of him to bury.