I could hear the sewer grate close with a loud clang further in the sewers. When Janick had heard that the Hornets were making a push today, he came to heads with Miro. Miro, on one hand, suggested that we pull any of our guys back to the sewers and wait. He defended himself in saying that once the Earth Kingdom mercenaries were down taking what they needed and securing any assets in the slums, that we would be allowed to leave. That was the deal after all. We hit the Fire Nation, and we hit them hard to the point they were huddling up nice and cozy in the military district. To Miro, all we had to do was bide our time until we got the message that we could leave Citadel.

Janick, on the other hand, didn't like that. He was the second in command of the Rats and insisted, well, more like demanded, that we not let the Hornets get away with what they were doing. When Janick heard about the food stash, that was it. He left without saying anything. I heard he was asking around for volunteers to go with him. I think one or two went with him. With the war that was going on above the sewers on the surface, nobody was particularly eager to step outside and get himself killed.

Hour or two later, we got a message that the blacksmith was hit. The smith himself wasn't there, no. He was with us. The Earth Kingdom was guarding it for him while he worked out a deal with the Earth Kingdom through us. Not everybody who hated the Fire nation was a rat, no. Hell, if that was the case, all the Slums would be bearing our name. No, we had supporters. All over the slums. They didn't openly admit to being one of us, but we had allies. Some of them obvious, some hidden. Yet now, the Hornets were hitting them. Obvious and hidden alike. Hence the concern of Miro and his insistence that we huddle up all safe and sound underground until the Earth Kingdom dug us a nice tunnel under the city and told us we could leave.

So that's where we were when I heard that sewer grate open. Naturally, we assumed it was Janick come back from whatever tantrum he had gone off on. When he came back, none of the Rat volunteers were with him, and he bore a look of defeat, bleeding from too many wounds to count. There was an arrow in his chest as well as one in his leg. He had broken the ends off, but the points still were lodged inside of him. He was bleeding heavily from his side and looked damn near dead. Naturally, I yelled at Miro to get here right away and naturally, he came within seconds, too see a dying Rat.

I had seen Miro when he had received news that some Rats had died. Miro had me reading his reports, said it would me learn how to read. It did, but it wasn't the kind of news I found myself eager to read, but this time, it wasn't hurt on Miro's face, no. It was fear. "Lean!" he yelled across the room. "Get the medicine right now!"

Janick had fallen to the ground a Miro was practically holding him, cradling his head with his left arm while he put pressure on the bleeding wound in his side. "What happened? What the fuck happened?"

Janick was moving his mouth. Trying to get the words to come out, but no words were forming. He kept trying, making attempt after attempt until he finally managed to catch his breath and said, "I made a mistake." He grunted, writhing in pain as Lean pulled out the first arrow, putting pressure on the bleeding hole. "I gathered up other people who hated the Hornets. We tried to fight them." He damn near screamed as Lean removed the second arrowhead, getting it stuck on some muscle on the way out. "The Hornets surprised us. Killed us all. I barely got out."

Miro, still holding Janick, was shaking his head, trying to process what he had just been told. Then came the pained look I recognized all too much. "Who. Who died?"

Janick grunted again, panting heavily before catching his breath and continuing. "Mu, Gared." He grunted again. "The rest. The rest were people I gathered from the slums. People who wanted to fight." He let out a small yelp as Lean wrapped and alcohol-soaked bandage around his first arrow wound, tightening it around the rear of his leg. "I gave them some weapons and led them where I knew the Hornets were. There were only supposed to be a few of them. 5 at most. The rest of them, they just jumped up from the rooftops and shot us down, all at once." He writhed in pain as Lean treated the second arrow wound. "Before I realized it, Gared was lying dead next to me, and arrow sticking out of his neck while his blood made a puddle right next to me. And I had a spearhead stuck in my side an two arrows coming out of me." This time, he actually screamed, and Miro moved his hands away from Janick's side to make room for Lean to stitch it together.

"I'm sorry, Miro. I just-. I just couldn't let them keep on getting away with it." His eyes closed, and his head fell back.

"Janick? Janick!" Miro yelled to his friend. "Lean, what's happening?"

"It's fine. He's fine. He passed out from the blood. He's fine. I stitched him up good enough. He needs time to get his blood back. He just needs rest."

For the first time since the beginning of the encounter, Miro looked away from Janick's face, looking straight at me. "How many died?"

Did he expect me to know? "No, I don't know, I could ch- "

"No. Screw that. Go outside and go to the temple, the market, and the grain street and tell our patrols to get back right now. I don't care if we're leaving any stashes behind, we'll just have to make do with what we have until the Earth Kingdom gets here."

I was already preparing to leave when I asked, "When do you think that'll be?"

Miro didn't look up from Janick this time, he just said "Soon."

I left. I knew what I was looking for and I had to be quick.