Chapter 9

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Chapter 9 In order to travel from the outer wall into the city, we rode a train along a monorail. When we got off at the Ba Sing Se train station, we stepped out onto a busy platform. My thoughts drifted back to Appa. I'd been so caught up in getting to Ba Sing Se, then in stopping the Fire Nation attack and destroying the drill, that I didn't allow myself time to think about my buddy. But we're here now, where he's been taken, and I promise I'm NOT going to leave this city without him. At the station a woman came up to us and introduced herself as Joo Dee. She already knew who we were. She said it was her job to show us around the city, and so off we went in a fancy carriage pulled by a team of ostrich horses. As we rode, Sokka tried to explain to Joo Dee that we had important information for the king about the Fire Nation. But each time he brought it up, she changed the subject or ignored him. "You're in Ba Sing Se now," she said. "Everyone is safe here." Actually, before I got here Ba Sing Se was about to be invaded by the Fire Nation and their giant drill, but she just won't listen. Ba Sing Se is turning out to

be a really strange city. There are three different sections: the lower, middle, and upper rings. They are divided by classes; the poorest people live in the lower ring and the richest live in the upper. I don't think I'm comfortable with that. I mean, I grew up listening to the monks teaching about equality and sharing. Anyway, Joo Dee brought us to the upper ring. She pointed out the king's royal palace, and the Dai Li agents around it. Apparently the Dai Li is the cultural authority of the city. Then she showed us our new house. I wasn't planning on staying here long, but she said we have to wait a month before our appointment with the king! We decided we'd spend the time looking for Appa. We had hoped that Joo Dee would leave us alone, but she insisted on escorting us all over. It didn't matter anyway; we didn't get very far. I had such a strong feeling that Appa was there, but nobody we asked seemed to be able to help us find him! After a totally frustrating day, Joo Dee finally dropped us off at our house. We met our next-door neighbor, Pong, hoping maybe we could get some answers from him. He was friendly enough, but as soon as we mentioned the war, he began trembling and looking around to see if he was being watched.

"Listen," he said, obviously frightened. "You can't mention the war in Ba Sing Se. And whatever you do, stay away from the Dai Li." Then he ran into his house and slammed the door behind him. No one in this city will talk about anything important. It seems like some kind of conspiracy or something. "We have to see the Earth King," Sokka insisted. "That's the only way to straighten this out." Sokka's right. The king HAS to help us. I'm sure of it. And I'm NOT waiting a whole month in this weird city to see him! A little while later, Katara was reading the paper and discovered that the king was having a party. She suggested that we sneak in and try to talk to him there. So she and Toph get to dress up like fancy society ladies, while Sokka and I have to pretend that we're busboys. The things I have to do sometimes! We snuck in and spotted the Earth King, but on our way to him we were caught by Dai Li agents and taken to a library inside the palace. Then this guy approached me. He said his name was Long Feng, and that he was the grand secretariat of Ba Sing Se, cultural minister to the king, and head of the Dai Li. I asked him why he wouldn't let us see the king, and

told him about the Fire Nation drill and the solar eclipse, but he didn't seem to care! He just said that the king had no time to get involved with politics or military activities, which makes no sense! What else does the king DO? All that stuff is his job. ESPECIALLY during a war. He said that silencing talk of the conflict made Ba Sing Se a peaceful, orderly utopia. Talk about crazy—this guy's nuttier than General Fong for sure! Unfortunately, yelling at Long Feng just made him angrier at me. He told me he knew I was looking for Appa, and made it seem like he had the power to help, or to make it impossible.… Does he know where Appa is? I think Long Feng knows a lot more than he lets on. I need to find out what this guy is hiding, but it's going to take a little bit of planning. Right now, I just have to be calm. And now there's this strange woman who wants to escort us home. "What happened to Joo Dee?" Katara asked. "I'm Joo Dee," the woman said, smiling. "I'll be your host as long as you're in our wonderful city!" Just when I thought things couldn't get any stranger. What in the world is going on in this crazy city?