You expected an updating author? Too bad! It was me, author sick in bed!
17
At least half of the island gathered for the giant, ironclad which towed a much smaller ship into port. It stood twice the height of any of the other junks which were pulled into the harbor at the sight of the pirate vessel. Technically, it was a former-pirate vessel, but markings on its hull were still clear as day under this sunny weather for anybody to see. For such a small place untouched by the war raging on in the world—aside from the rise in taxes—it stands to show the Fire Nation's propaganda machine kept people so ignorant of the truths of war that over one thousand people stood gawking in curiosity rather than running in fear. Guangzhou, like its Earth counterpart, is one of the smaller harbor islands that stood as one of the merchant gateways into the greater Earth Kingdoms. Many citizens of the Fire Nation stood around chattering, though from their fashions we could tell the influence of Earth merchants ran deep.
There were at least twenty guards standing by, but they were mostly there for show. They much have been well accustomed to keeping rowdy sailors from causing property damage, but what interested us was how they behaved. This must not be the first pirate vessel to pull in.
Guangzhou's culture is different from that of the Fire Nation, as it was an island that used to be ruled by an independent king before the island was annexed by the Fire Lord some time after our family had taken power. Because of its location, more people moved out of the island than in, even though it was a trade terminal for the Southern Water Tribe, the South-Western Earth Kingdoms, and for the southern islands of the Fire Nation. The reason for this was often multifaceted, but it could be concluded as 'lack of area for growth'. There have been talks of moving the port directly to the south western shores of the Earth Kingdom, though with General Fong and King Bumi at large in the region, that was just a far-away dream.
We were the first to step on the stairs as the ironclad docked. Of course, we had cleaned ourselves up beforehand, but materials were nowhere available as they should be. Besides, without Li and Lo over our shoulders, there was no reason for us to appear… pretty. We weren't a glass flower, after all.
Still, with the looted pirate cargo, we decided to approach with intimidation. Our heels clacked real loud as we swayed down the steps. A confident smirk was at our lips, knowing that we commanded the attention of the whole island.
One of Ty Lee's sisters was there to greet us. Remember that this island had its own culture? One of the things that this culture believed in was that families should always have at least five offspring. It was something that had migrated over from the southern Earth Kingdoms, since the Fire Nation had no ability to support such a growth of population (before the War, of course). Another funny aspect of their culture was their names; their family name came after their given name, as strange as it sounded. This particular sister was one year older than Ty Lee, which meant she was well within the age range for Azula to recognize her.
"The Lee Family greets Princess Azula," she intoned with an awkward bow. We had not announced we would be visiting, of course, but she knew us from the Royal Fire Academy for Girls.
At the sound of our name, more than one person gasped in the crowd. Yes, that sounded about right, we nodded in response to the greeting, but there was no reason for us to be formal. After all… this was just a friendly house visit. "Do lift your head, Kei Lee. Where is Ty Lee?"
"It's amazing how you can tell us apart," Kei Lee grumbles good-naturedly as she approaches, since we have given the silent permission. Her face wrinkles in a cute manner that reminds us of Ty Lee as she speaks of her sister, though it was no surprise since the seven sisters were practically identical in appearance. "Ty Lee is at home, trying to be a boy. Ugh."
"And your fascination with ships isn't? Color me surprised, because rock oil always did seem to do so much for the complexion." We studied her features before adding, "You always did have a smidge of it on your hands, no matter how you tried to clean it off."
"What? Where?" Kei Lee twirled about cluelessly.
Far be it for us to tell her that it was the way her dimples showed when she smiled; Ty Lee never had that. "Never mind that," We moved on, letting our eyes sweep over the crowd. As if by sheer force of will, our gaze caused every person to look away and seemingly get on with their jobs. Oh, we knew they'd still stare at us from the corner of their eyes.
That's natural, after all. We are Azula.
"Never mind how I can tell your sisters apart, why are you here?" Knowing how absentminded the Lee sisters all appeared to be, we know better than to let them linger on any single topic. It wasn't that they were dumb, they were all actually very intelligent. It was all about appearances after all, but sometimes an act can become the truth.
"I recognize that ship anywhere! Its engine is a beauty!" Kei Lee was about to rant on and on as Ty Lee would, but she stopped after remembering something. "But last time I saw it, it was a owned by a… well, a naughty man."
"It could be a different one."
"No, see, the way the hull is shaped? I was the one who had that fixed that way after…" She remembered herself then, "Oh! I'm sorry, Princess. W-Would you like to go see Ty Lee now?"
"Hm, I wasn't going to hide it," We spoke loudly. "This is a former pirate vessel, belonging to a pirate by the name of Jolt. I'd appreciate it if you would tell me more about his operations."
"… But, he had over two hundred men," Kei Lee asked. Unlike Ty Lee, most of her sisters were more orthodox in their behaviors, in accordance to what was acceptable for girls to do. Even if Kei Lee fiddled with engines, she still was primed up for marriage, which was what society expected of her. None of Ty Lee's sisters more than dabbled into combat, though I did hear good things about her mother.
"A master bender is more powerful than you know," We replied.
"B-But, Jolt was a…" She trailed off, realizing what she was saying. "Erm…"
"For now, take me up to your home. It's been too long since I've spoken with my friend." We knew the way well enough, so we walked ahead, leaving the stammering Kei Lee behind us. Even if we didn't, the largest, most opulent house of the harbor could only be the one belonging to the island's governor. "Afterwards, you can tell me all about the pirates of the region."
Clack.
Clack.
Clack.
No one stood in our way.
Even if they did not know who we were, they knew better than to stop us. Whoever said it was lonely at the top didn't know how good it was to walk the road that all would follow. More than one person whispered at our passing.
For a pirate, Jolt was well known, in the harbor. While official policy is to never deal with pirates, I did not begrudge anyone of it when the gains outweighed the losses. With such an outfitted, disciplined crew, I had no doubts he was more than just a well known name in this region too.
But now that it's just as plainly spoken that I took out Jolt and his two hundred, I can see the tension in the air. I could taste the fear in their eyes. I could touch the trembling morsels around me, and they knew I could swallow them whole without pause.
Yeah, it felt great to be the most dangerous beast on the island.
Clack.
Clack.
Clack.
We watched them shiver helplessly as we prowled. We've applied the iron fist. We felt great doing it.
Now it was time to apply the velvet glove.
