| By Waterkai and Vaznock | Part of the Kyoshi Revolts continuity. |
The Murder at the Boiling Rock was a failed escape attempt devised by select members of Team Avatar. The escape, however, resulted in a failure, as Princess Azula killed Sokka, Suki, Chit Sang, and Hakoda, though Zuko was still able to escape.
History[]
In the later stages of the The War, Fire Lord Ozai built the Boiling Rock to sustain traitors and other enemies of the Fire Nation. The prison contained the most advanced and up to date technology of any other Fire Nation prison. Not a single successful escape attempt was made from the prison, giving the Boiling Rock a record of being inescapable.
Weeks before the Coup of Ba Sing Se, Suki and the rest of the Kyoshi Warriors were defeated and later captured by Princess Azula and her friends, Mai and Ty Lee. Suki, being the leader, was in turn separated from the rest of the warriors and shipped to the Boiling Rock prison.
On The Day of Black Sun, a small invasion force, led by Chief Hakoda attacked the Fire Nation Capital in hopes of ending the war. This resulted in a failure, and the entire invasion force was imprisoned. This weighed heavy on Sokka's mind, as he felt it was his fault his father was imprisoned.
Prelude[]
Sokka and Zuko crash into the island
One night at The Western Air Temple, Zuko notices Sokka seems upset about something, and goes over to talk to him. Sokka asks Zuko where he thinks his dad and the rest of the warriors were captured. Zuko guesses that they were taken to the Boiling Rock, and tells Sokka how the prison is inescapable. Sokka states that he just wanted information.
That night, however, Sokka attempts to sneak away on Appa. Zuko catches him, and after some arguing, Zuko decides to travel with Sokka. Together, the two of them travel to the prison on Zuko's War Balloon. After a day of traveling, Zuko and Sokka finally make it to the prison. However, because the air outside of the ballloon is just as hot as the air inside, the balloon is unable to continue flying.
The Escape[]
Infiltration[]
When Zuko and Sokka entered the area above the boiling lake, their balloon crashed into the island's shore. To make sure know one suspected who they were, they were forced to sink their balloon into the lake. They then infiltrated the prison and disguised themselves as prison guards.
While Zuko questioned the other prison guards if the prison holds war prisoners, Sokka was called to the prison yard as back up to help with a scuffle. In the prison yard, one of the guards was bullying a prisoner, Chit Sang, because he did not bow down to him. While Chit Sang was walking away, the Bully Guard launched a Fire Whip at him, which forced Chit Sang to redirect it back at him. The Bully guard then slyly stated that Firebending is prohibited, and, upon seeing Sokka, told him to help take Chit Sang to the cooler. Without a choice, Sokka was forced to cooperate.
Sokka sadly watched as Chit Sang shivered in the cooler, but the Bully Guard disregarded his concern. At that moment, The Warden arrived to harass Chit Sang. He told Chit Sang that he should not have tried to escape. Chit Sang denied this, but The Warden ignored him and then told him to continue his shivering. Later on, Zuko informed Sokka that he asked around, and that there were no new war prisoners. Just when all hope seemed lost, Sokka spotted his love interest, Suki.
When Suki returned to her cell, Sokka sneaked into it, while Zuko watched the door. Sokka tried to mimic what Suki did upon reuniting with him in the ferry port by Ba Sing Se, instead, however, he was punched in the gut, throwing him across the room, knocking his helmet off. The minute Suki recognized him, they embraced and kissed each other. Their reunion was quickly cut short when a guard tried to get into Suki's cell. To prevent Sokka from being exposed, Zuko attacked the guard until Sokka was able to sneak out of the cell. When the guard saw Sokka, she told him to arrest Zuko. Unable to say no, Sokka was forced to arrest Zuko.
Zuko was soon interrogated by The Warden. Much to Zuko's surprise, The Warden revealed he knew who Zuko was, and that he is also Mai's uncle. Later on, Sokka, Suki, and Zuko gathered around to hatch an escape attempt. Chit Sang, however, overheard the plan, and told them that unless they let him in on the escape plan, he'd tell The Warden. Realizing they had no choice, they let Chit Sang in on the plan.
First Escape Attempt[]
Soon Sokka came up with a good escape plan; to unbolt the cooler that Chit Sang was in and to use it as a boat to escape. To make the plan work, Zuko and Chit Sang pretended to fight, and Zuko Firebent at Chit Sang. The guards fell for the charade, and, as Sokka predicted, threw Zuko into exactly the same cooler that Chit Sang was in earlier.
While in the cooler, Zuko used his breath of fire to keep himself warm, and unbolted the entire cooler. Sokka soon let him out, but they could escape, Zuko and Sokka overheard some guards talking about the prison's new arrivals, including war prisoners. Zuko and Sokka realized this may be Hakoda, which left Sokka distraught over whether he was stay or escape.
Chit Sang is burned by the lake's waters
That night, Sokka and Zuko finally arrived with the cooler, and Chit Sang told them he also decided to bring his girlfriend and best friend along. Before they could leave, however, Sokka came to the sudden conclusion that he should stay at the prison, as there was a chance of him finding his father. Zuko told Sokka he would stay with him, and even though Sokka urged Suki to leave to keep her safe, Suki refused and told him she would not leave without him. Chit Sang, however, eagerly jumped into the cooler. Realizing they had lost their chance of escape, Sokka, Zuko, and Suki snuck back into the prison.
Meanwhile, Chit Sang tried to move the cooler faster by ripping of a piece of the side to use it as a paddle. In the process of doing this, he accidentally burned himself, causing him to scream very loudly. The guards heard him, and the cooler was soon dragged back to the prison.
As Chit Sang was captured, Sokka, Zuko, and Suki watched as the new arrivals left the gondola. The gondola seemed to be empty after most of the prisoners exited it, and Sokka felt distraught and upset, as he realized he had made a huge mistake. However, much to Sokka's joy, Hakoda did step out of the gondola.
Second Escape Attempt[]
At dawn, The Warden went to greet the new prisoners. He told them that as long as they obeyed him, they would be treated fairly. As The Warden passed by Hakoda, he ordered him to look him in the eye. Hakoda refused. Amused, The Warden pushed him to the ground. He told Hakoda he knows exactly who he is, and that he'll lose his strong will after some time at the prison. Hakoda finally looked him in the eye. Satisfied, The Warden walked away, but Hakoda tripped him with his handcuffs. Angry, The Warden ordered the guards to get the prisoners out of his sight.
Later, Sokka creeped in to Hakoda's cell to greet him. Hakoda, like Suki, threatened to punch Sokka, but Sokka revealed his identity before Hakoda could hurt him. Hakoda and Sokka then embraced in a hug, and immediately started to think of a good escape plan.
Meanwhile, The Warden interrogated Chit Sang on who thought of his escape plan. Chit Sang refused to talk, but The Warden had him tortured by having his bodyguards holding Chit Sang's head upside down. Chit Sang eventually confessed that it was someone disguised as a prison guard. The Warden condescendingly patted him on the head, and left the cell to apprehend the impostor.
Sokka and Hakoda reunited
Sokka later sneaked by Zuko's cell to tell him the plan. Two guards came, however, and stated that they had direct orders from The Warden to transport Zuko to the interrogation room. Sokka asked the guards for ten seconds to "rough up Zuko". The guards gave him ten seconds, and Sokka told Zuko to meet him in the yard while punching a pillow. The guards then transported Zuko to the interrogation room. Instead of finding The Warden, a bewildered Zuko found Mai waiting for him.
Sokka soon sneaked into Suki's cell to tell her the plan; to commandeer the gondola by distracting the guards with a prison riot and to use The Warden as a captive. Suki was both doubtful and worried, but Sokka assured her it would work.
As Sokka left Suki's cell, he was found by two guards, and was taken to the yard. The Warden then tried to get Chit Sang to show him the impostor. Instead of Sokka, Chit Sang instead pointed to the guard who bullied him. Satisfied, The Warden then took the guard into custody for interrogation. Much to The Warden's surprise, his interrogation was soon interrupted by Princess Azula and Ty Lee. Azula told The Warden that the guard was not the impostor, and left.
Later on, Sokka tried to trick a guard into letting the prisoners out, saying he had direct orders from The Warden. The guard hesitantly let the prisoners out despite the lock down. Sokka, Suki, and Hakoda then entered the prison yard. Hakoda attempted to start a prison riot, unsuccessfully. At that moment, Chit Sang appeared and told Sokka that his generosity of not ratting him out to The Warden came with a price, and that he wanted to escape with them. Sokka asked if he could start a riot, and Chit Sang did just that by shouting "HEY, RIOT!".
Zuko, Sokka, and Suki battle Azula and Ty Lee
In the interrogation room, Mai angrily berated Zuko for leaving her. Zuko argued that its about the Fire Nation, not her. Mai sarcastically told him that she then felt all better. Zuko tried to tell her he never meant to hurt her, but to no avail. Just then, a guard entered the cell with orders to protect Mai because of the riot. Zuko saw his opportunity, Firebent at the guard, escaped, and locked Mai and the guard in the cell. He quickly made his way to the yard, and soon met up with everyone else.
While Sokka and Zuko argued about how to capture The Warden, Suki took the initiative and went after him on her own. She ran on the heads of the rioting prisoners and scaled the walls of the yard with an amazing display of acrobatics. She disabled the guards protecting The Warden, tied him up and gagged him. The escapees soon all met up, The Warden their hostage, and made their way to the gondola. The group then made it onto the gondola, and Zuko broke the lever so the guards could not stop them.
Battle on the Gondola[]
As the group moved across the lake, they soon found Azula and Ty Lee in hot pursuit. Azula propelled herself to the gondola with Firebending, while Ty Lee ran on the rope. Azula then fought Zuko and Sokka, while Ty lee fought Suki. Ty Lee was able to get a lucky punch on Suki, defeating her and allowing her to advance to Sokka. Without Sokka's help, Zuko could not face his sister on equal footing, and Azula soon gained the upper hand. Sokka and Ty Lee fought evenly, but Sokka was distracted by his concern over Suki, allowing Ty Lee to paralyze him. Two seconds after Sokka fell to the ground, Azula engulfed his body in blue flames, killing him.
Azula and Ty Lee leave after their victory
Now, outnumbered by the two girls, Zuko prepared to fight as hard as he could, but Suki told him that he should escape by propelling himself to a cliff, and that the world needed his survival in order to maintain hope. Zuko refused, but Suki told him it was her dying wish. Zuko, heartbroken, did just that, though he could not execute the technique as well as his sister, he was able to make it.
Azula then killed Chit Sang and Hakoda, though The Warden was not happy that Zuko escaped. Azula silenced him and told him that Zuko "doesn't count" as an escapee, and then left the gondola with Ty Lee.
One Escapee[]
Zuko climbed across the cliff as fast as he could, though he had to avoid the firepower of the guards. Azula thought about going after him, but realized that with his friends dead, Zuko's emotions would tear his psyche to the point where it would destroy his Firebending powers as well as the Avatar. Mai saw that Zuko had lived, yet her anger at his betrayal made her not want to help the prince, and to let him fend for himself. Zuko was eventually able to escape by hijacking Azula's airship.
Aftermath[]
Team Avatar's failure at the Boiling Rock inevitably resulted in the Fire Nation's victory in The War. After Zuko told Team Avatar of Sokka, Suki, and Hakoda's death, they all blamed him, and Katara even suggested that Zuko murdered them. Avatar Aang started going insane after hearing of the loss, and Zuko and Katara also suffered mentally. The kids' bending abilities also suffered due to the effect the loss had on their mentality, resulting in their losses in the final battles of The War.
Appearances and References[]
- The Supreme Realm (flashback)
See Also[]
- Escape from the Boiling Rock (canon article)
See more
For the collective works of Waterkai, go here. For Vaznock, go here.
| v - e - dKyoshi Revolts War |
|---|
| Participants |
| Fire Nation - Earth Kingdom - Water Tribe - Team Rebel - Team Avatar † |
| Engagements |
| Murder at the Boiling Rock - Final Agni Kai - Duel in the Plaza - Battle of Ba Sing Se - Destruction of the Water Tribes - Recapture of Omashu - Siege of Kyoshi Island - Battle at Kein Forest - Conspiracy of Kein Forest - Invasion of the Avatar Temple - Battle in Phoenix City |
| See also |
| Conspiracy of Ba Sing Se - Omashu Rebels - Water Tribe Rebellion - Kein Forest Rebellion |