Ordeal By Fire: An Avatar the Last Airbender GSRP

Royal decree issued by the hand of FIRE LORD AZULA

It is understood by the Fire Lord, that all those of heritage not of the Fire Nation in origin, have demonstrated potential, forged in flame like alloy. As raw materials, in the fires of conquest, these fortunate souls have been transmuted beyond the confines of their base elements into beings capable of becoming citizens of our great Fire Nation.

Those who reside within territories presently liberated by the forces of the Fire Lord are hereby considered to have demonstrated their loyalty and continue to demonstrate their loyalty through meritorious service and deeds. Take inspiration from the Dai Li, having born witness to the capricious and stagnant rule of the Earth Monarchs, now serve as dutiful, stoic examples of the heights of meritorious service to a higher cause.

Those residing within territories and lands thus far in rebellion are hereby granted the privilege to demonstrate their loyalty to their nation through honorable resistance against the foe-persons who illegally and through dread actions and behaviors pollute the homeland and disgrace their ancestors.

Actions to prevent the willing incorporation of these peoples into the protective embrace of the Fire Nation, the consensual joining of bloodlines by loyal citizens by any judicial authorities, are hereby considered an act of treason against the direct command of the Fire Lord.




@<o>U<o>
@ChineseDrone

Venerable governors,

You have both proven your capabilities and I look forwards to your continued support and reform of my nation. It takes strong wills and keen minds to see a vision of the future which we share of a prosperous, strong Fire Nation, striding once more as a goliath, without the weaknesses that have seen it's strength squandered and with a soul of flame once more kindled to greatness.

I look forwards to the results of your holdings as a testbed to the paths that might lead us to this future. Truly you are the torchbearers that assist me in guiding us through the darkness of these stormy days.

However, in future, I would recommend greater introspection into decrees issued with far greater care.

Unless of course, either of you are willing to answer a young girls question on the penalty for issuing Royal Decrees without the Fire Lords knowledge or permission on issues of law and reform on a national level?

With continuing observance

Fire Lord Azula
 
Turn 2 Update Part 10- Spirits

The SPIRITS

Is it grief, or is it anger?

  • Sandu's fearful prophecies continue.
  • Rumours continue of spirit-marked beings, infused with a spirit's power at some terrible price.
  • Commodore Kaiyuza sails her cruiser directly into the spirit rift off Yosor, disappearing without a trace. The rift itself is no longer to be found.
  • Another reported rift opens at sea, southwards of Susong.
  • Geologists note the main volcano on Kuza island has begun to heat up once more.
  • All across the islands, people hear crying on the wind, snatched away but returning.
  • An epidemic of larger than usual glowing bees plagues Caldera City.
  • Skeletal whale-kois are reportedly seen along the coasts.
 
Turn 3- Spring 101 AG STATS and MAP



Stats T3

Fire Lord Zuko (Caldera)
Fire Nation (Zuko)
Polity
Leader(s): Fire Lord Zuko
Government: Universal absolute monarchy
Ideology: Enlightened absolutism
Legitimacy: Good
Stability: Average
Supply: Good
Military
Army: Large/Good/Good
Detail-
Army size: 5 irregular divisions, 122 infantry divisions, 27 cavalry divisions, 12 armored regiments, 7 siege regiments, 5 guard divisions [+1 guard division 3 months]
Army quality: 18/30
Navy: Medium/Medium/Excellent
Detail-
Navy size: 5 Battleships [+1 in 3 months], 35 Cruisers [+6, +2 in 6 months], 23 Frigates [+2 in 3 months], 32 Patrol Boats [+25 in 3 months, +7 in 6 months]
Navy quality: 20/30
Airforce: Small/Poor/Poor
Detail-
Airforce size: 9 airships [+2, +3 in 3 months], 29 hot air balloons
Airforce quality: 5/15

Fire Lord Azula (Kaya?)
Fire Nation (Azula)
Polity
Leader(s): Fire Lord Azula
Government: Universal absolute monarchy
Ideology: Fire imperialism
Legitimacy: High
Stability: Poor
Supply: Good
Military
Army: Large/Good/Good
Detail-
Army size: 7 irregular divisions, 105 infantry divisions, 22 cavalry divisions, 12 armored regiments, 5 siege regiments, 2 guard divisions [+1 armored regiment]
Army quality: 20/30
Navy: Medium/Medium/Excellent
Detail-
Navy size: 5 Battleships [+1, +1 in 3 months, +1 in 6 months, +1 in 9 months], 40 Cruisers [+4, +3 in 3 months, +20 in 6 months], 28 Frigates [+21 in 3 months]
Navy quality: 20/30
Airforce: Small/Poor/Poor
Detail-
Airforce size: 12 airships [+3, +5 in 3 months], 42 hot air balloons [+2 in 3 months]
Airforce quality: 7/15

Rangshao Free Territory
Polity
Leader(s): N/A
Government: Consensual confederation
Ideology: Anarchism?
Legitimacy: Poor
Stability: Average
Supply: Average
Military
Army: Tiny/Good/Poor
Detail-
Army size:
6 irregular divisions, 0 infantry divisions, 0 cavalry divisions, 0 armored regiments, 0 siege regiments, 0 guard divisions
Army quality: 17/30
Navy: Tiny/Medium/Poor
Detail-
Navy size: 0 battleships, 0 cruisers, 1 frigates
Navy quality: 19/30


Turn 3 Starting Commands

ZUKO
CALDERA
Army:
0 irregular divisions, 37 infantry divisions, 7 cavalry divisions, 6 armored regiments, 3 siege regiments, 4 guard divisions (Royal Procession, Dragonfire Legion) [-2 infantry divisions, -1 cavalry division] [+7 infantry divisions]
Navy:
4 Battleships, 15 Cruisers, 9 Frigates, 10 patrol boats [+1 Battleship, +2 Cruisers 6 months, +2 Frigates 6 months, +10 patrol boats, +5 patrol boats 6 months]
Air Force:
6 airships, 15 hot air balloons [+1 airship, +4 airships 3 months]
PCs: Prince Zuko, Tadashi Kenji, Peng Liu, Tsaagan, Majeek, Tiger Shark

Tottori
Army:
0 irregular divisions, 11 infantry divisions, 2 cavalry divisions, 1 armored regiments, 0 siege regiments, 1 guard divisions (Yu Yan Archers) [-4 irregular divisions, -13 infantry divisions, -5 cavalry divisions, -2 armored regiments] [+4 infantry divisions]
Air force:
0 Airships, 0 hot air balloons
PCs: Captain Naoki, Ouji Shinwoo

Susong
Army:
2 irregular divisions, 15 infantry divisions, 6 cavalry divisions, 1 armored regiments, 1 siege regiments, 0 guard divisions [-2 irregular divisions, -2 infantry divisions, -1 cavalry divisions] [+1 infantry division]
Navy:
0 Battleships, 0 Cruisers, 0 Frigates, 5 patrol boats [+10 patrol boats 3 months]
Air force:
2 airship, 4 hot air balloons [+1 airship]
PCs: Master Jiao Shou, Major Surudoi

Da Zhen (west)
Army:
4 infantry divisions

Da Zhen
Army:
0 irregular divisions, 12 infantry divisions, 2 cavalry divisions, 1 armored regiments, 0 siege regiments, 0 guard divisions [+8 infantry divisions, +1 cavalry division]
Navy:
0 Battleships, 9 Cruisers, 8 Frigates, 7 patrol boats [+2 cruisers, +7 patrol boats, +8 patrol boats 3 months]
Air force:
0 airships, 3 hot air balloons [+1 airship 3 months]
PCs: Ozen Hanma

Dragon Island
0 irregular divisions, 7 infantry divisions, 2 cavalry divisions, 1 armored regiments, 1 siege regiments, 0 guard divisions
Air force:
1 airship, 4 hot air balloons
PCs:

Shuhon Island
Army:
3 irregular divisions, 0 infantry divisions, 0 cavalry divisions, 0 armored regiments, 0 siege regiments, 0 guard divisions [-2 irregular divisions]
PCs: Shangba, Pico Toloph?

Gates of Azulon:
Army: 4 infantry divisions, 1 siege regiment (2 on each side, siege reg. split)

Rouruo
0 irregular divisions, 9 infantry divisions, 1 cavalry divisions, 1 armored regiments, 0 siege regiments, 0 guard divisions [+7 infantry divisions]
Air force:
[+1 airship 3 months]

Burning Point
Army:
0 irregular divisions, 22 infantry divisions, 5 cavalry divisions, 1 armored regiments, 2 siege regiments, 0 guard divisions [-2 infantry divisions] [+7 infantry divisions, +1 cavalry division]
Navy: 1 Battleship, 7 Cruisers, and 6 Frigates
PCs: Juzo Ze, Meng Taori, Kaizawa, Combustion Man

Sandu
Army:
0 irregular divisions, 9 infantry divisions, 2 cavalry divisions, 0 armored regiment, 0 siege regiments, 0 guard divisions [+7 infantry divisions, +1 cavalry division]
Navy:
1 Battleship, 6 Cruisers, 4 Frigates, 9 patrol boats [+7 patrol boats 3 months, +2 patrol boats 6 months]
Air force:
0 airships, 2 hot air balloons
PCs:

Between Sandu and Hida
Army:
0 irregular divisions, 5 infantry divisions, 1 cavalry divisions, 1 armored regiment, 0 siege regiments, 0 guard divisions
Air force:
0 airships, 2 hot air balloons
PCs: Lei Yamashita, Ty Lee

AZULA
KAYA
Army:
5 irregular divisions, 27 infantry divisions, 4 cavalry divisions, 2 armored regiments, 1 siege regiments, 1 guard division (Fire Eaters) [-1 irregular division, 4 infantry divisions, -1 cavalry divisions] [-6 infantry divisions, 3 cavalry divisions, 2 armored regiments, 1 siege regiments Tottori] [+5 irregular divisions, +13 infantry divisions] [-2 to Hida Srpings]
Air force:
2 airships, 10 hot air balloons
PCs: Princess Azula, Sayuri, Ikanu Sho, Cyo Krane

Hida Springs
Army:
1 irregular divisions, 15 infantry divisions, 4 cavalry divisions, 3 armored regiments, 0 siege regiments, 1 guard divisions (Royal Procession) [+1 infantry division]
Air force:
5 airships, 3 hot air balloons [+1 airship]
PCs: Princess Azula, General Sikai

North Gate of Azulon
Army:
0 irregular divisions, 3 infantry divisions, 0 cavalry divisions, 0 armored regiments, 1 siege regiments, 0 guard divisions
Navy:
3 Battleships, 19 Cruisers, 13 Frigates
Air force:
2 airships, 3 hot air balloons

Feixi
Army:
0 irregular divisions, 6 infantry divisions, 1 cavalry divisions, 0 armored regiments, 0 siege regiments, 0 guard divisions [+4 infantry divisions]
Navy:
0 Battleships, 0 Cruisers, 0 Frigates [+2 cruisers 3 months, +2 Cruisers 6 months, +2 Frigates 3 months]
Air force:
0 airships, 1 hot air balloons [+1 airship 3 months]
PCs:

Susong
0 irregular divisions, 12 infantry divisions, 3 cavalry divisions, 3 armored regiments, 2 siege regiments, 0 guard divisions [-3 infantry divisions]
Navy:
0 Battleships, 5 Cruisers, 5 Frigates
Air force:
0 airships, 2 hot air balloons
PCs: Azuh Zuru

Burning Point Border
0 irregular divisions, 13 infantry divisions, 3 cavalry divisions, 3 armored regiments, 0 siege regiments, 0 guard divisions
Air force:
0 airships, 1 hot air balloons
PCs: General Zakura

Laotie
0 irregular divisions, 4 infantry divisions, 2 cavalry divisions, 0 armored regiments, 0 siege regiments, 0 guard divisions [-2 infantry divisions] [+1 armored regiment 3 months, +1 siege regiment 3 months]
Navy:
0 Battleships, 0 Cruisers, 0 Frigates [+3 cruisers 6 months, +4 frigates 3 months]
Air force:
0 airships, 2 hot air balloons [+1 airship 3 months, +2 hot air balloons 3 months]

Rangshao
0 irregular divisions, 6 infantry divisions, 1 cavalry division, 1 armored regiment, 0 siege regiments, 0 guard divisions [-1 infantry division]
PCs: Iwa Kuro

Shuhon Island
Army:
1 irregular divisions, 13 infantry divisions, 2 cavalry divisions, 0 armored regiments, 0 siege regiments, 0 guard divisions [-3 irregular divisions, -3 infantry divisions]
Navy:
0 Battleships, 2 Cruisers, 0 Frigates [+2 cruisers, +1 Battleship 9 months, +5 Cruisers 6 months, +5 Frigates 3 months]
Air force:
0 airships, 4 hot air balloons [+1 airship 3 months]
PCs: Bujing, Yoshiro Kaga

Yosor Island
Army:
0 irregular divisions, 2 infantry divisions, 0 cavalry divisions, 0 armored regiments, 0 siege regiments, 0 guard divisions [+2 infantry divisions]
Navy:
0 Battleships, 2 Cruisers, 0 Frigates [+2 cruisers, +1 Battleship 9 months, +5 Cruisers 6 months, +5 Frigates 3 months]
Air force:
2 airships, 7 hot air balloons [+1 airship 3 months]
PCs: Aroye

Eastern Isles
Army:
0 irregular divisions, 10 infantry divisions, 3 cavalry divisions, 0 armored regiments, 1 siege regiments, 0 guard divisions
Navy:
1 Battleships, 12 Cruisers, 10 Frigates [+2 cruisers, +5 Cruisers 6 months, +5 Frigates 3 months]
Air force:
2 airships, 9 hot air balloons [+1 airship 3 months]
PCs: Haga, Commander Aikan

Rangshao
Army:
6 irregular divisions, 0 infantry divisions, 0 cavalry divisions, 0 armored regiments, 0 siege regiments, 0 guard divisions [-1 irregular division, -2 infantry divisions] [+3 irregular divisions]
Navy:
0 Battleships, 0 Cruisers, 1 Frigates
Air force:
0 airships, 1 hot air balloon
PCs: Raku Kasai, Lai Lee, Okono Nori, Etranger, PokerLurker

Kuza
Army:
3 irregular divisions, 12 infantry divisions, 3 cavalry divisions, 1 armored regiment, 1 siege regiments, 0 guard divisions
Navy:
0 Battleship, 2 Cruisers, 4 Frigates
Air force:
0 airships, 4 hot air balloons
PCs: Zai, Cho
 
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PLAYER LIST T3 (42 players)


ZUKO - @Another Amoeba

(19)
Combustion Man- @Glassware
Juzo Ze- @triumph8w
Tadashi Kenji- @THatWhichWillBe
Ty Lee- @Lazer Raptor
Kaizawa- @Thiccroy
Jiao Shou- @Zincvit
Shāngbā - @Gladsome
Peng Liu - @Random Member
Ozen Hanma - @Lord Necromancer
Meng Taori- @Fancy Face
Shikaku Surudoi- @jankmaster98
Naoki Hayashi- @Carol
Commander Lei Yamashita- @veteranMortal
Majeek- @AMTurtle
Ouji Shinwoo- @Red Robyn
Tiger Shark- @Bandeirante
Kogo Tsaagan- @Scrivener
Lady Ursa- @Cetashwayo


AZULA - @Dovahsith

(13)
Colonel Sikai- @Laplace
Major Cyo Krane- @averagename
Governor Iwa Kuro- @<o>U<o>
Yoshiro Kaga - @ChineseDrone
Azuh Zuru - @Moulin630
Sayuri- @Rincewind
General Bujing - @toxinvictory
Ikanu Sho- @CobaltCloyster
Niho- @DeathslilHelper
Aroye- @FantasticMsFox
Aikan- @Simpli
Zakura Sho- @BiopunkOtrera


Rangshao

(6)
Lai Lee- @AKuz
Pico Toloph- @Qastiel
Raku Kasai- @Always Watching
Okono Nori- @Weygand
Ketaaq- @Etranger
Tohmino Yozu- @EternalLurker



Unaligned

(5)
Akemi Cho- @Bias
Commander Zai- @Theaxofwar
Haga- @Synergy
Ying Jian - @RobespierreLives
Sun Hei- @Hyvelic
 
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KAIZAWA IV
| To Serve |

( with @Another Amoeba )
Major Kaizawa,

With respect to my royal prerogatives, I wish to state that I am proud of the quality of service you have demonstrated in defense of Da Zhen and the Fire Nation. However, I must state that I am aggrieved you have, through an ordeal of phrasing, deprived me, apparently, of the ability to confer upon you rank, duties, and honors befitting a man of your loyalty and talents. Moreover, it is my opinion that, due to the passing of immediate crisis conditions, your skills would be wasted in continuing to secure the functionality of the civilian government and bureaucratic apparatus in the prefectures nearby Da Zhen.

It is my hope to promote you to an honorable mobile command with which you can rescue the city and people of Susong and drive back the enemies of peace and justice in the Fire Nation. Therefore, I have brought us together as friends to ensure your promotion is processed in the honorable fashion.


His Royal Majesty
Fire Lord Zuko



My Fire Lord
He Who Rides the Dragon and Brings Peace.

I beg forgiveness. I only acted in a way that would bring further centralization, order and proper planning to the forces south of Caldera. I know well the battles northward are hard fought and wished not to burden your Holy administration with my pitiful existence. My hands tremble upon these words.

I am now heading west to relieve Susong and possibly crush, destroy, liquidate and capture a large contingent of the enemy. It is my suggestion, humbly, to request two things: that of armor and that of the promotion of Major Surodoi upon the confirmation of the safety of the city.

I must also ask of you to do with me as you please. Raise me or not, even Your Holiness being ignorant of me, your humble and most inconsequential servant, is enough to urge me to defend my Nation and die for you.

Tatsuhiko Kaizawa
Major
Col


Tatsuhiko Kaizawa,

Do not worry for your promotion or your status in my eyes. You are a man of loyalty and love for your land and lord. Rest assured, it is my hope to see you employ your skills at centralization where they are dearly needed following your rescue of Susong.



With pride,
Fire Lord Zuko
 
The Blaze of Susong: Missed Opportunity

Colonel Azuh Zuru "the Young General" stares at the city of Susong and its defenses, his armor covered in mud and dust while he and his troops are victorious, total victory has escaped them.

"At least the city is besieged and we have taken the outer defense, if we had faced the full army of Susong and Da Zhen at the same time we would have been forced to retreat. The worst case scenario has been avoided."

Not that the best case scenario happened, the city hasn't been taken and the divisions from Da Zhen haven't been destroyed, they were ready for us and made us pay the price. The losses hurt, they were brothers and sisters in arms, I drank with them, ate with them and fought with them… Even among those who we fought, not too long ago they were also our brothers and sisters in arms ! We fought together for the Fire Nation and our peoples but now we are killing each other.

"Not that there is any other choice, as long as Zuko sit on the throne and spit on the sacrifice of our brothers, sisters, parents and grandparents i shall fight, for the Fire Nation, for the dream of Sozin and for Fire Lord Azula who is everything that a Fire Lord should be !"

Not that there was any doubt that she wouldn't be one of the best Fire Lords of our nation when she succeeded in taking Ba Sing Se when only general Iroh succeeded in breaching the outer walls before ordering a retreat.

Colonel Azuh Zuru leaves and moves in the direction of the camp, he doesn't have time to be lost in his head, he has work to do, write his report, wash himself and prepare his next plan so that Susong falls to his troops.




From: Colonel Azuh Zuru
To: Fire Lord Azula,

I regret to report that the city of Susong is still in the hands of the traitors, the defenders of the city were ready for us and have extensively fortified the countryside and the city which allowed them to slow us down enough so that reinforcements from Da Zhen have enough time to come and force me to move my best troops to counterattack their force, stopping the assault of the city. Even with these setbacks we are still victorious and master of the fields, the city is still besieged, the division from Da Zhen have been repulsed and with the blockade no more food can be sent to the city be it by land or sea.

I stand ready to serve the Fire Lord.
 
The Declaration of the Thousand Flames Society

The Fire Nation is beset by those who claim to save it. The partisans of the False Fire Lord, the Princess Azula, have brought nothing but ruin and death. At Burning Point, the bandit Ufuguzu enslaved the people of the Fire Nation, murdered them for sport, and robbed them of all they owned. At Shuhon Island, the murderer Bujing set Fire Fountain City to the torch, slaughtered its citizens, and scoured its villages with fire and poison. At Hida Springs, the butcher Qatun devoured the corpses of her victims. This is the quality of those who march under the Blue banner. The strength they offer is the murder of innocents. The prosperity they bring is the transformation of cities to mass graves. The unity they champion is the death of any who challenge them. Their soldiers and generals have done more damage to the Fire Nation in a year than a century of war could manage. Their scientists devise naught but new means to sow terror and death. Their cause is one of total destruction and nothing more.

The true sovereign of the Fire Nation is Fire Lord Zuko. Firstborn son of Fire Lord Ozai and Lady Ursa, Victor of the Agni-Kai of the Comet, Chosen of Dragons. It is Fire Lord Zuko whose armies defend the nation, uphold order, and combat the rampage of the rebels. It is Fire Lord Zuko whose engineers devise tools to better society. It is Fire Lord Zuko whose throne rests in Caldera. Any who wish for a future for the Fire Nation, rather than a grave, must align with him.

The Thousand Flames Society will be the vanguard of the battle for the soul of the nation. All righteous men and women of the Fire Nation-reject the madness of the Princess and her followers! Rise up as one! Defend your homes! Join us, and drive the murderers, pillagers, and traitors into the depths of the sea!

The Principles and Tenets of the Thousand Flames Society

Uphold the rule of Fire Lord Zuko, and oppose the False Fire Lord.

Commit oneself to the struggle for the soul of the Fire Nation.

The Fire Nation is divided into Four Elements, like the world itself. These Four Elements are.

The Nobility, the essence of Fire-direction, energy, will.

The Sages, the essence of Air-spirituality, insight, wisdom.

The Merchants, the essence of Water-adaptability, innovation, artifice.

The Peasants, the essence of Earth-stability, dependability, endurance.

The Fire Lord's role is to be as the Avatar-one who stands at the center and ensures all Four Elements are in Harmony. The Fire Lord is not passive, as they move to ensure the nation is in balance, but their goal is to be a guardian and protector. As the Avatar masters all Four Elements, the Fire Lord is the champion of all.

As the Avatar learns wisdom from their understanding of each Element, so will the Fire Lord heed the Fire Nation's own Elements. Yet the Fire Lord is not a slave to the Elements, but a guide to the nation. They must look beyond the needs of a single Element, or their own, to see the grand design.

The Elements will assemble twice a year, to discuss among their peers matters of local concern, mediate disputes, and present proposals for the consideration of the Fire Lord and his officials. These assemblies should range from the lowliest village to the mightiest city. Their membership shall be selected from within the ranks of the Element by their peers, to be repeated every assembly. Emergency assemblies can be convened at any time to address pressing issues. Assemblies may be convened by decree of the Fire Lord.

The Spirits are part of the Fire Nation, and the Fire Lord's responsibility is to see them safely guided into prosperity like the rest of the nation. Harmony between material and immaterial, human and spirit, is to be maintained.

The Fire Lord leads by example through their virtue and wisdom, and must be worthy of their responsibility. As the world chooses the Avatar carefully, the selection of the Fire Lord cannot be left to the whims of fate. An unworthy heir may follow a worthy Fire Lord, just as a righteous heir may follow a false Fire Lord. The Fire Lord must choose the worthiest and most virtuous to replace them, so that when the time finally comes, the nation does not suffer from their loss.

As no individual is identical, there is no singular path to wisdom. So it is with governance also. Each province is different, and may require different methods to find Harmony. Let each find suitable accord, and achieve peace in the way most fitting. A singular vision should not be forced upon all. So long as the Fire Lord remains as the center, the provinces will still move as one.
 
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Appointing a new Minister of War
Hero of the Fire Nation, victor over the Boar, High General Juzo is hereby elevated to Minister of War. He is called to report to Caldera City at once.


Establishing the Office of the General of the North
For her service to the Fire Nation in this time of conflict, and though in mourning for those great generals lost, it is the Fire Lord's honor to bestow the rank of General of the Fire Nation upon Lei Yamashita, and charge her with command of our Nation's defenders in the north of great Jimmu Island and the island of Boiling Rock, including all military forces in the land, sea, and air within these sectors.

The Fire Lord finds that Lei Yamashita has conducted herself in acceptable and honorable fashion, and it is without doubt that this message is conveyed with the royal seal and black fire-silk. Its conveyors bear letters in the Fire Lord's own hand expressing regret that his servants have acted so discourteously towards General Yamashita. The Fire Lord's authority in this matter is absolute, and it will not be questioned further.


Establishing the Office of the General of the Center
Seeing his heroic actions in the defense of Susong City against the rebelling armies, and recognizing that by circumstance he is both the highest ranking officer in the vicinity of Susong, is hailed by his troops, and commands armed forces far in excess of a Major's charge, the Fire Lord bestows upon Shikaku Surudoi the rank of General of the Fire Nation, and overall command of theater operations related to defense of Susong.


Delivered to Ouji, Son of Clan Shinwoo, Servant of the Crown
Ouji,

Your brother's life and death in defense of your city brought great honor to your clan. He has fought valiantly and proven the steel that runs in your blood. For this reason, you have been granted extraordinary dispensation of rank. You are now a Major of the Fire Nation, and will answer directly to Colonel Kimi. Both her and General Yamashita have been made aware of this promotion.

I trust that you will use the authority and respect your family has earned to defend the people of Tottori and be a light in dark times.

With respect,
Fire Lord Zuko


Delivered to Majeek, Son of Clan Yomoto, Servant of the Crown
Majeek,

I have taken it upon myself to review High General Shinu's last will and testament. By that I mean his drafts and working papers, seeing as he made no provisions for his personal estate. He was impressed for your plans for the air forces, so congratulations, Sky Marshal.

Apparently there's supposed to be a "High" Sky Marshal but looking at the state of our blimps I think we'd both agree that's a little premature.

You can bask in Caldera's support in whatever endeavors you undertake to improve tactics, engineering, and production methods for these airships. You will also select a ranking Captain of the Air Forces to oversee the aviation detachments serving with to each army group. It is your duty not to step on too many toes.

Be Careful,
Mai.


Posted by His Majesty's Center Ministry
As of today local citizen and warrior Naoki Hayashi shall act as Magistrate and Yoriki of Tottori and its prefecture.
 
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A Duel in Hida Springs (in collaboration with @Scrivener )​


"I really don't think you're very nice…" muttered Ty Lee as she ducked and weaved around gouts of fire. A torrential outpour of flame came in response, Ty Lee cartwheeling out of the way in the nick of time and landing perfectly on her feet.

"Stand… still… so that I can kill you, you bitch!" Qatun growled as she hurtled blast after blast at Ty Lee. Her mouth and nose had begun emitting clouds of smoke as she raged against her opponent, growing more and more frustrated as she failed to land all of her blows.

As Ty Lee snapped out her fans to dissipate an incoming blast and leapt over a sweep of fire, she couldn't help but compare the Ashmaker leader to Azula.

Qatun was far too slow, probably used to overpowering slow moving earthbenders and less seasoned firebenders. She was an excellent soldier, no doubt about that- Azula's father had chosen Qatun to immolate the Earth Kingdom-, but she wasn't a royal prodigy, the youngest to master the royal art of lightning generation, forged under immense pressure under the tutelage of the best firebenders in the nation.

Ty Lee sidestepped a column of flame easily, the burning heat passing by for what seemed to her an eternity. Qatun's motions were practiced, precise, and quick, but her reflexes were too slow. If Qatun had been in Azula's place such conduct would have led to burns and punishment by her father.

Azula had told her that being burned was just part of the training process, that this was all for Ty Lee's sake. (She never seemed to realize that her father's methods were perhaps not optimal pedagogy, one of those words nobody expects ditzy Ty Lee to know). She supposed that in some sense Azula was right, that this encounter would not be survivable for most non-benders. The thought makes her sad.

Ty Lee kicks off from a house about to be immolated by a wall of flame, hurling through immense columns of fire kicked up by Qatun like a fish slipping through a net. She quickly broke through her opponent's hasty defense, only to be met with an expression of disbelief, a horrid realization flooding through her opponent's eyes. The moment lasted for what seemed like an eternity, before Ty Lee's fingers struck at Qatun's stomach. Down she went, screaming in fury all the way.

Looking down at a shrieking and cursing Qatun, Ty Lee was struck by a moment of melancholy. For a moment she saw Azula's shocked expression as she dropped to the floor, the terror she had felt for herself and Mai mixing with the exhilaration of standing up to Azula and the guilt of betraying a friend.

Then she snaps back to the present. Her comrades are still holding back the Ashmakers, and the sound of explosions lets her know that Sparky is still engaged. Ty Lee takes one more look at the furious Qatun, staring at her with an expression of utter hatred, and goes to help her friends.

If there is one thing that Ty Lee has learned recently, it is that she misses Azula terribly in spite of it all.

If there is one thing she knows for certain, it is that Ty Lee does not abandon her friends. She protects them to her last breath, even when it means throwing everything else to the wind.

I'm coming, Sparky.


I'm coming, Azula.
 
Turn 3 Mini- Volcanic Aspects

VOLCANIC ASPECTS

Prasat volcano- the peak of Kuza island, and the current centre of its attention- had been heating up for some time. Slow in human terms, it was tremendously fast in geologic terms. Despite the nerves this caused, which did not allay social tensions, Abbot Cho was reassured that this did not mean it was to erupt in his communion with the spirits. Thus relieved, he and Grand Protector Zai set themselves to their tasks.

The spirits had not given them anything for their sacrifice, but this was no reason to give up. Akemi increasingly came to believe that the reason behind the lack of results (as Zai named them) was that it had been an all or nothing demand. Either they gave the spirits all the gold on the island, or they would not be appeased.

Thus the 'Spirit Tax'. Fixed on a progressive basis, it demanded everything that could be spared. Every silver tableware, gold tabard, gilded decoration was to be taken away. From the common people, Zai and Cho demanded their savings, though in such a manner that ensured no one would go hungry more than usual. With careful exceptions written in and prepared for Zai's loyal, the military and monk-police that had been at odds only weeks ago worked to collect these as swiftly as possible.

Of course, fights still emerged, even with Cho soothing as much as he could. Many resisted and had to be forced to give up their wealth, their heirlooms of generations, their hard-gotten precious metals. It took a week to collect enough for the 'apt sacrifice' of the grand ritual planned to be worth it. Diligently, both Akemi and Zai spent their own time on preparation.
The abbot sweated away at a forge, refusing to be brought down by weariness, as he learnt with the local experts. He used his own bending to melt iron and carbon and turn it to steel, and fixed it to a point and shape. Then he polished the result with his fire, sweeping away imperfection by slow concentration. Nothing more than an amateur, the sword and shield he had forged were rough and unadorned, but they were his, and they were functional. Meanwhile, Zai slept and ate, and readied his endurance.

Fifteen tons of gold and silver were hauled up the mountain. Priceless heirlooms laid on one another that had left the island barren. All around a carved semicircle off the top ridge of the volcano, thousands of people watched: monks, artisans, soldiers, partisans of Zuko and partisans of Azula. They watched Zai dance.

He had been dancing for hours, and did not seem to tire. Fire burst and played around him as he wove through the air and shifted. Little sparks flickered everywhere, a circle of flame twirled around him as he jumped, but he was unburnt. Not a master firebender, Zai was well trained and now had experience in fire dancing.

As his dance entered the eighth hour, he did begin to grow weary. The people watching left and more came to see, a constantly shifting audience around the volcano. Fire was the heart of the nation, and to them it was beautiful. At the eleventh hour, Akemi joined him, creating the flames himself so that Zai would use precious energy. At the fifteenth hour, the dancing slowed but became no less beautiful, twisting and repeated movements offered in obeisance to the spirits of Kuza. Past the twentieth hour, Zai could barely see. The constant fire had weakened his eyesight, and he was so tired he was drunk with it. But he kept dancing.

As the twenty-fourth hour approached, the crowds swelled. With great heaves, the monks began to throw the wealth of Kuza into the fiery pit, lava splashing as they did so. Finally, as the full day of fire dancing ended with the coming of sunrise, they pulled away, leaving only Colonel Zai and Abbot Akemi on the volcano's lip. Zai had been reduced to kneeling, unable to keep himself standing, while Akemi stood stooped and offered his gifts. He had already given all his wealth beforehand, so he threw his sword and shield as sacrifice. Zai plucked off the gilded insignia that denoted his position as Grand Protector and with one last burst of effort flung it over.

All stood with bated breath. For a minute nothing happened, only the clink of the insignia falling down the walls before joining the lava. Suddenly, neither Zai nor Akemi could see anything but red gold, and they were being moved by the force of an uncaring vessel. Utterly confused, they realised what was going on by the screams- the volcano had exploded, and covered them in lava.

Yet they were unburnt. Unburnt and unhurt, and seeing to the marrow of things. The spirits of Kuza, the spirit of Prasat volcano first among them, were not fools. They knew well that Zai did not care for anything but himself, while Cho was all bleeding heart. And in that moment both of them knew it too, and more besides. The demand of gold had not been for desire of wealth, but out of contempt for it. The spirits had wanted something so simple- so trite, Zai thought- as to teach the people of Kuza that material wealth mattered not before things such as love, community, health.

Much of the gold given to them was thus to be rejected, for it had been earned by the sweat on peasants' brows, meant to feed their children. Heirlooms that held more sentimental value than material were also rejected, to be returned to their families with blessings. Zai was also rejected. His heart was pure, pure selfishness. There was nothing but greed behind his actions of maintaining safety and stability, of permitting refugees.

Horror took the colonel as his body betrayed him. He felt the worst change, as a dead numbness grew from inside outwards, and feared something worse than death was coming. But his abbot intervened. Akemi Cho had seen to the depths of Zai, and he was a merciful man. But mercy had no place here. When Akemi Cho, undergoing his own transformation he did not understand, pleaded with the spirits to save Zai's life, he did not ask for mercy for him, but for them to think of the people of Kuza.

Without Cho, Kuza could remain stable and neutral. It could avoid war, and receive refugees, and save the lives of so, so many that might otherwise be slaughtered by vengeful soldiers. Without Zai, Akemi thought this was not so. The island needed its Colonel more than it needed its Abbot, no matter that one had acted much worse than the other. Nonetheless, the spirits ignored him, continuing on their purpose, until he offered the last thing he had to give.

Akemi offered his life. Taken aback, though they shouldn't have, for he had done this before, the spirits agreed to turn back. The transformation would go on, but Zai would live. His life, however, would be bound to Cho's: were he to die, so would Zai. The twisting storm of lava that had consumed the two, that had been the only thing the screaming crowds could see, that could be seen from miles away, receded.

It left behind it a mountain of gold and silver, of ancient knives and plates. And atop it, there were two figures. One was a man in Zai's form, but turned to gold. His body reflecting the light of the fires, he held in one hand the shield Cho had forged, and in the other the sword, them too turnt to gold and brimming with spiritual power. And around him, breathing his new life in, was a golden dragon. Was Akemi Cho, Abbot of Kuza Island, blessed by the spirits, remade in draconic form.

And as the awe-filled crowd stared and gloried in the sight, Azula arrived upon her airship, bearing a small army intent on aggressive negotiations.
 
A Witness To Divinity
Written with @Etranger

"Ketaaq!"

Okono's voice was a muffled shout from beneath the deck as he climbed up the stairs, bounding across the metal corridors of the Turtleduck.

He staggered up onto the deck, catching themself with a hand as the sudden roar of a wave smashed against the frigate and sent her swaying to a side with a crooked groan.

The Captain had been rudely thrown from his cot, which they normally attributed to an impending storm, but the sudden blast had him staggering toward their First Mate, who stood solitary on the deck, staring at some distant spectacle.

"Ketaaq! What's gotten into you and the crew? Someone fire a warning shot at us? What are you staring-... at…"

He stopped dumbly and stared into the middle distance, a semicircle of their crew already forming in a huddle around the deck.

"Pretty sure that's a dragon, Captain. Made of gold." Ketaaq was wearing his usual stolid expression, broad arms crossed over his chest, eyeing the giant gleaming lizard. "Probably worth a fair bit, too."

The Captain gawked at the sky as the stuff of legends streaked out of a great spout of smoke and lava. Where their First Mate was stoic, he was always expressive: and it ran the gamut, here, shock, horror, then…

Well, then, he laughed.

"Of course it's a dragon! And you're weighing it up? What, fancy your chances?"

A grin, all teeth, was shot their Mate's way.

Somewhere in the distance, Cho was still about her duties - she only scoffed something about the pretensions of Firebenders.

But all order had broken down in favour of the spectacle, and she laboured alone.

Ketaaq shook his head once, then spat off to the side. "Nah. Gold's dense. Even if it's just plating, that thing's gotta weigh more than a badgermole." He ponders the question for a moment longer, then continues, "Besides, people get weird about fencing holy symbols. No market for it."

The clouds had parted, the smoke like waves, as the engines of an airship whirled. Okono Nori squinted, asking: "Ketaaq, you got my looking glass handy?"

Ketaaq reaches into a fur-lined pouch and hands the spyglass over, without ever looking away from the spectacle. "Don't point it right at the dragon."

"I know, I know," they scoffed, and pressed it to their eye. As the airship closed, he made out, on the grand balcony, the face of…

"Did we cross a particularly angry spirit when we dumped the offal in the sea?" he adjusted the thing, for he was sure that he was delusional, but, no, sure enough - there she was. "Because I think our would-be Phoenix Queen is headed right for that dragon."

"Great. Maybe it'll eat her. Or she'll eat it. Either way, sounds like a busy afternoon for both of them."

The rumbling laugh of the Captain echoed into the cool air. He had to wipe a tear from his eye, struggling at the inherent absurdity of what they'd been awarded a front row seat to witness. A harsh sound, like a cough, and: "Hoist some neutral sails, you lot. Then you can settle down and enjoy the show."
 
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Loyalty
(written with @Dovahsith)

The Fire Lord was recovering well. Her wound was healing far faster than expected. A sign of her youth and will to rejoin the war.

But she had looked better. Her bandages peaked out of her otherwise perfect collar. Her skin paler, an expression of calm control that was a bit more strained.

But they had all taken blows in Tottori.

Azula received Niho within the airship's captain's room. One of the few locations secure enough to offer any privacy. The Fire Lord sat at the head of the table intended to lay out meals for the command staff of the vessel. Instead it was bare, save for a tray of delicate ceramic bowls and judging by the slowly rising steam, a pot of tea.
Niho entered and immediately fell silently to her knees. She pressed her forehead against the metal floor and remained still as she spoke. "You honour me, Fire Lord." She remained like that until Azula said something or gave a signal.

"Please, Niho, take a seat." She says, dismissing the guards with a gesture as they close the door behind them. The room is empty, save for the Monarch and the Assassin.

"Would you care for some tea?" Azula asked, the steam rising from her own bowl as she warmed her drink in her hands.

"I'm uncertain what kind of blends you…less fortunate individuals prefer to drink." She explained.

Niho stood smoothly and took the seat Azula had prepared for her. "The basic types of tea are all available of course, green, black, and white, and herbal or scented teas of course like jasmine. Though not as fine or well made as what was available in a palace I'm sure."
She poured herself a bowl of tea and smelled it. "Thank you, your majesty."

"You are quite welcome. I have-" She paused before continuing "I had people who knew this sort of thing, but I haven't had the time to indulge until recently."

Placing her bowl to the side, Azula fixed Niho with an intent look, amber eyes measuring her in their calculating stare.

"Tell me Niho, do you know why I've requested your presence?"

Niho put her bowl down and stared at it for a few seconds before smiling slyly. "I imagine that you want to know why I'm here, if I can be trusted, and what I want. My apologies if I overstep."

Azula gave a small, half hearted laugh at that. "No, it is quite alright. You know, less than a year ago, I would have been threatening all kinds of things to demand what I wanted to know." Her expression seemed to take on a rueful element at the memories. Whether it was betrayals old or more recent, it was hard to tell.

"I've learnt that you can't take loyalty for granted. Hence this meeting. Tell me about yourself."

Niho's smile failed. "Loyalty… What is better to be loved or feared? In the orphanage they certainly tried to inculcate a love of the Fire Lord and the Nation in us, for most it failed leaving them hollow. Fear, fear is easier. In my work, I've often had to intimidate people into giving me information or cooperation. Fear works, but it is fickle, fear of one can easily become fear of another, leading to betrayal. Useful in the short term, but to keep someone truly dedicated you need something more." Niho paused to think and took a sip of tea. "What is it you want to know about me? To you my Fire Lord, I am an open book."

Azula's gaze continued unabated, the tension in the room rising as she grew still. With forced confidence, she quirked a delicate brow. "I'm sure you have plenty of secrets you'd prefer not to tell anyone. Most people do. Some are even worth keeping. But I am curious. How does a Waterbender find herself serving the Fire Lord?"

Niho placed the bowl down, and spread her hands flat on the table. "My mother was from the Southern Water Tribe, she was a prisoner here in the Fire Nation, my father was a guard at the prison, and while the exact circumstances of my conception are unknown to me, but it's not hard to guess what happened is it?" Her tone was flat and emotionless. "I was sent off and raised in an orphanage, just another one of countless thousands of parentless children."

There was a long pause as silence filled the lul in the conversation. There was nothing save the distant hum of the ship's engines.
"My condolences." Azula began, some genuine discomfort in her voice. "You have been done a grave injustice." She seemed to be visibly struggling with what else to say, a far cry from the imperturbable young warlord who'd led them into battle days before. Hands lifted slightly, as if to reach over and offer a pat of comfort, before her doubts had her place them back on the table's surface.

"If you have a name, I can see if he might be found?" offered Azula. "It is not much, but a child's justice against a disgrace of a parent is always a cause I can support."

"Injustice?" Niho mulled over the word, tasting it, and thinking over it. "No, that was no injustice," she tilted her head down. "It was necessary. Necessary to make me the woman I am today, the woman who can stand in your shadow and fight for this nation's rightful ruler." Niho looked up beneath her eyebrows at Azula. "Besides, my father is dead. He drowned years ago. Drowned alone in his room miles from any river, lake, or sea." Niho smiled slightly.

Azula slowly returned the smile with her own, a creeping predatory smirk curling the edges of her mouth.

"Then perhaps consider it karma, or revenge. I've known what it is like to be betrayed by those who should have been…better." Her eyes took on a distant look before coming back to the present. "You have done well to be better. To be worthy of this nation. It is a heavy burden, but a necessary one. I am glad to have someone I can rely on to assist me."

"I feel as though all I am has come to this. The sins of my ancestors and parents, their failures, were a forge to make me into something stronger. I am yours Fire Lord Azula, now and always. We will take the betrayals of old and turn them into our strengths."

Azula rose from her seat, letting the legs scrape across the metal floor as she moved to Niho's side, placing her hand on the older woman's shoulder reassuringly.

"Good." She said, pleased by the pledge of loyalty. "Despite your background, you have proven yourself worthy of being a citizen of the Fire Nation. Together, we will make it one worthy of those who live in it."
 
A Lament for Tottori

Published after the Battle, Author Unknown, tradition in the folk style.


There are countless dead of the battlefield. There must always be the memory of sons and daughters who lived under the cloud of war. Some songs celebrate the heroism of the battlefield, whether this song is a condemnation of Red or Blue is uncertain. Many point to the fact that it was in the fact the Blues started the war as proof this song is anti Azula. At the end of the day perhaps that is for the listener to decide.




O Kai Ri love, O Kai Ri, the rout has now begun
And we must go a marching at the beating of the drum
Go dress yourself all in your best and come along with me
I'll take you to the war me love in high Tottori

Higen love, o Higen come list' what I do say
My feet they are so tender, I cannot march away
And besides my dearest Higen I am with child by thee
Not fitted for the war me love in high Tottori

I'll buy for you a mount me love and on it you shall ride
And all my delights shall be in a ridding by your side
I'll stop at every ale house and drink till they are dry.
We'll be true to one another get married bye and bye

O cursed be them cruel wars that ever they should rise
And out of merry Islands press many a man likewise
They pressed my true love from me
Likewise my brothers three
And sent them to the wars me love in Tottori

My friends I do not value nor my foes I do not fear
Now my love has left me I wander far and near
And when my baby it is born and smiling on my knee
I'll think of lovely Higen in high Tottori

on.soundcloud.com

High Tottori

Lament for Tottori
 
Tense
Amagi, Yosor - Sometime after leaving Hida Springs

(written with @Laplace )​

Working through the nights was a new habit of Aroye's. It made things simpler. More time spent working meant less time spent being threatened or pressured by her boss, both in total and in relative proportion of time spent awake. It meant that sleep came quickly when she did sleep and made napping very efficient.

It had been a few of these new, shorter nights since she had arrived at Yosor. The project in front of her was a simple mine emptied of explosives so she could safely turn it over. Letting it thump back down on top of the desk, Aroye stood to circle the weapon.

As she paced around the boxy shape surrounded by flickering candles, her focus slipped away from the device. Instead, she thought of how things were. It was a new way of things away from her campus. Wake in an unfamiliar room, working in an unfamiliar laboratory, eat unfamiliar food, this was what the future had brought her. The future was always unknowable but now each day felt alien.

This was not the future she had planned for. She was supposed to be in Hidda Springs with her staff working on other projects, not mines and weapons. It all worked to bring forth the future at least. The future was coming. That was all that mattered. It would be so wonderful, one day. One day this would all be over and the FIre Nation would be beyond the war consuming it. Swords and bombs would be replaced by, well, Aroye did not know what they would be replaced with.

That was the beauty of the future. It could be anything. Stifling a yawn, she sat down lightly in the chair in front of the mine. But the future was not here yet. She had to work to bring it to the present. And right now, those in charge called for a future where vessels sank to the bottom of the ocean. So with no choice but to bow to the march of time, Aroye kept working through the night.


TO ENGIN. AROYE
FROM GEN. SIKAI
SUB: YOSOR

Welcome to Yosor. Hope you are finding new factories well. Request completion of projects under Brig. General Tsagaan in timely manner. List and itemize all future projects to Gov. Kaga/Gov. Iwa for review. Direct all requests for funding to Military Directorate of Eastern Offices.

Please ref. Amagi Dec. for attitudes on shirking and sloth. If encouragement needed, will send Ashwalker survivor to stand for dearly dept. Brig. Gen. Qatun Tsagaan.

Putting down the letter, Aroye looked to the door. No one knocked, no one entered. It looked like the door in her old office. It was not the door. It was a completely different door. Qatun was dead, and her Ashwalkers were not here. She was alone. Slowly, she let her eyes close. Breathing in, she opened her eyes. Still no one there, she was alone in her office.

She was dead, Aroyehad more freedom now. The future had brought her that. Things were better. All she had to do was hold on and things would better. She would make it better, all she had to do was work on the designs and new factories the people needed. What General Sikai needed. The consequences of not doing so could not be considered, What he needed would be provided, and more. That was what the future dictated. The future needed her to do these things. Or else she wouldn't be in the future.

Aryoe had to be in the future. She had to be. She just had to be. The future needed her to develop new technology, not just weapons, to improve people's lives! Canned food, better ways to build buildings, ship engines, and more! It was going to happen. It had to happen. Thought of necessity swirled through her mind over and over again. The way things would be, or could bec was all she could think about for minutes.

Eventually, however, her mind settled down. Obsessed with the future and its possibilities, Aroye wrenched her mind back to the present. She grounded herself in her office, and again, finally bringing her focus onto the flickering reflection of a candle. The future was coming, but the present had to be endured first.



Miles away in Hida Springs....

"Sir, don't you think that Engineer Aroye might... take the Ashwalker part badly?"

SIkai blinked. "I don't understand. She worked wonders with Tsagaan. Why would she take it badly?"

"Ah, sir..."
 
The following message was found carved into the skin of one of the alleged killers of the Cult Leader Sun Hei, a desecration of their corpse long after they had died.

In ancient ashen snow, I thought it bitter, yet not so.
Fires ablaze, thieving my essence, claiming my breath.
Love, devotion, my offerings laid bare, all in vain.

My proffers spurned, a heart's warmth abandoned.
The scorching winds persisted, and a haunting chill lingered.
Even now, I gaze upon them, love's flame extinguished.

Unworthy recipients of my affection, scorned they are.
Should they reject my tender caress,
Witness the terror that I shall unleash.

May my wrath be the forge of retribution,
They shall fathom the abyss of my loathing.
Reborn, a vessel for a grander design,

Shackled to destiny's unyielding grasp.
 
Turn 3 Mini- Raijū


Raijū

Negotiations, as they tended to, broke down soon enough. As Azula's force landed , she exchanged a few short words with the dragon and its guardian, being rejected in her attempt to gain their loyalties. Thus, all acted.

Both groups had planned almost perfectly, but it was those small flaws that would decide the encounter. Zai charged forwards, shouting to evacuate the civilians, assemble the armies, and not let Azula flee, and met Azula in battle. He firebent with his feet while aggressively striking out with sword in hand, pushing his enemy back, and commanded his soldiers to box her in.

But this Azula had predicted, and she was the foremost master of evasion. Flight was only her secondary asset in that sense. Her bodyguards intervened, forming a rough cordon that separated the fighting from the not, while the airship took off and set its speakers to running commentary.

In the meantime, Akemi was fleeing. The weaker figure in the fight, as all had immediately recognised, he was also capable of being faster, and intended on getting reinforcements. Azula had foreseen an attempt to escape, but had expected one on flight and for the dragon to be larger than it was, and was confused for crucial moments.

In another world, these moments would have been enough. Akemi would've been able to take off, protected by monks, and reached the capital, and called for aid. The battle would've continued, and lengthened, and Azula would've lost from overextension once more. In this world, it was Azula who took off, jumping to catch the running dragon. Rather than lightning came concentrated flame, the blue of death, that hit Akemi first in his side, and then in his head, killing him instantly.

Then Zai fell upon Azula with her two fingers outstretched. He did not fall as a living weapon however, but as a shower of gold. The Colonel had used all his strength and speed to intervene, to take the fire or push Azula off guard, but had been seconds too late. He had died too, the same instant Cho had, and melted instantly. It was this molten gold that fell upon Azula. Most of her body was protected by armor and escaped unscathed, but not her right hand, which was scalded by the gold that cooled and stuck in moments. Victory burnt.

It burnt more as the wave broke. Rage took flight, and took charge. The audience of Kuza had watched, and now they hated. They hated Azula with passion, for the murder of their abbot, of their dragon, of the great and inspiring being who had kept them all enraptured. There were but a few hundred guards holding the cordon, and they were well trained, fine firebenders.

Against the mob, they became as nothing. Their power was based on fear, and there was no room for fear in the hearts of the mob. They were all righteous hatred and anger, the honor of a vassal whose lord had been struck down, the grief of an orphaned child. They overwhelmed the cordon, dying in droves, before the wide-eyed shock of the Dragon of the South.

She saw her chances were nil, and instead grabbed a guard with each hand, directing them to flee. The airship moved closer, threatened by the people's fire, and picked up Azula and what members of the Procession were both lucky enough to not be cut down and able to more or less escape with rudimentary flight.

New Ozai left the volcano, but did not leave Kuza. Under Azula's commands, it landed in He Ye, disgorging its troops, and ordered the garrison to surrender to its Fire Lord. Furthermore, she claimed it by right of conquest, for Azula had slain the beast that lurked within the volcano and the traitorous Colonel. She was lucky in that there were still loyalists to her among the garrison, for the factory workers of the city were sympathetic to Zuko.

Herself and her forces turned the battle for the city into a swift affair, then moved outwards, rallying those units she was informed were loyal to her above all. She found the island opposed, however, and divided. The stories of events at the volcano, and her actions there, had spread faster even than she was. Many were furious or aggrieved. The news of her arrival also resulted in the open declaration for Zuko of several commanders, confusing situations further.

Nevertheless, the majority of the island- and its soldiers- had no real leader, with both of their great men dead. They did not know what to do, and many were not desirous of fighting, but they were well drilled. Death for a dead master, a dead friend, did not seem so bad. They would live on in the stories told forevermore, of the Dragon-Abbot and his Golden Guardian.


Akemi Cho (2/2/3/2) dead.
Colonel Zai (2/2/2/2) dead.

Kuza (Azula)
Army:
0 irregular divisions, 4 infantry divisions, 0 cavalry divisions, 0 armored regiment, 0 siege regiments, 0 guard divisions
Navy:
0 Battleship, 0 Cruisers, 0 Frigates
Air force:
1 airships, 2 hot air balloons
PCs: Azula

Kuza (Neutral)
Army:
3 irregular divisions, 6 infantry divisions, 2 cavalry divisions, 1 armored regiment, 1 siege regiments, 0 guard divisions
Navy:
0 Battleship, 2 Cruisers, 3 Frigates
Air force:
0 airships, 3 hot air balloons

Kuza (Zuko)
Army:
0 irregular divisions, 2 infantry divisions, 1 cavalry divisions, 0 armored regiment, 0 siege regiments, 0 guard divisions
Navy:
0 Battleship, 0 Cruisers, 1 Frigates
Air force:
0 airships, 0 hot air balloons



(Unrelated) Zuko reaches 3 Water, Ursa reaches 3 Fire.
 
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Likeness of Captain Okono from an Azulite wanted poster

The Fireworks Stop
The Captain had stopped laughing by the time it happened.

The dragon, engulfed in a brilliant flash of blue fire - one.

Two.

It hadn't even the time to roar before it collapsed, a canopy of dust on the mountainside.

It just wasn't fair.

Euphoria at that brief, shining moment, that eruption of a beautiful, spontaneous resistance, the will of the land, of the people itself, rising up to oppose their would-be ruler trampling them underfoot, and-...

Now, ash in his mouth.

It was all silent on the deck. The death had been quick and death was joyless.

Most mutely returned to their duties.

The Captain stood, and stared at the smoking mountain in the middle distance.

Rangshao, Kuza, a blasted dragon risen out of the caldera of a volcano.

Nothing had worked.

No, this wasn't work for men, nor spirits.

War was for monsters.

Would he be one, too?

Or just another corpse on a mountainside?
 
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A Dance That Won't Be Forgotten
He reads the report in stoic silence, as his men had come to expect from him. Tadashi Kenji simply nods, even as his thoughts churn in his mind, and he sends the messenger off. And he returns to his work. He was the anvil, the iron wall- The Dragonfire General could not be allowed to be seen to waver. And so the day passes. The clock standing at the end of his tent tings, and Tadashi stands up, sorting away his papers before he takes his evening walk.

And he finally has time to think.

Spirits. His grandmother had believed in them fiercely, exhorting their powers of blessings and curses. Do not rouse their wrath, and pray they are kind.

The Dance he'd learned had fed into it. That primal, ancient power. Like he was walking on the surface of the sun. If there were Spirits, they were in this Dance - that he could reach out and touch them with it.

But any belief Tadashi had had died at Ba Sing Se. There were no spirits amidst the dust. No grace to his Dance there. Only blood and corpses, and those who had dragged themselves from the grave to live again. He'd returned home with iron duty in his heart, and a flame that refused to die. Because he'd been ordered to live. He'd promised to live. Faith didn't factor into that equation.

He'd thought Kuza fools.

And now a Dragon had been born and died, slain by Azula - Of course she would butcher something wonderful, something beautiful, just as it emerged in the crib. Wasn't that what she was doing now, to a new Fire Nation?

Tadashi pauses, as he looks to the setting sun. Around him, the sound of drill and preparation goes on. The Azulites would not wait for him. He would have to hold on a little longer before he could rest.

But the courtyard was empty. Even when it carried the sounds of war - the wind was cool on his skin as it said farewell to the day, and hailed the coming of night.

He'd fought and killed with that sacred art. Over and over. Could he let himself forget that what it truly was? That it was more than a weapon? Zai and Cho were dead. But had they not taught him something still?

Tadashi draws his sword as the last rays of the Day paint the sky in the colors of fire, and he begins to Dance.

He remembers to live.
 
Death of a Showman
Zai felt nothing as Azula landed on the volcano's edge. He'd been so sure of himself, right up until the moment the spirits had tried to turn his whole body to the gold he'd so coveted. And even then, that had made some amount of sense. He'd made the wrong bet, taken the spirits to be more like himself than Akemi, which was honestly a tad bit stupid in retrospect. But then, he'd sort of assume even Akemi was running a graft.

Anyways, if he'd died there, it would have sucked, but he'd have understood.

Instead, Akemi offered up his own life to save his own. And the spirits accepted. The thought was baffling. Who did that? What kind of crazy person would sacrifice themself for someone else, much less him?

And the spirits had honored that conviction with Zai's life, tied to the heart of a dragon named Akemi Cho.

But if he was being honest, he wasn't even sure he was still alive. He couldn't feel a thing, didn't even think he was breathing. He was just standing there, staring at his hand, wrapped around a blade that seemed remarkably less like a piece of junk made by an amateur.

Azula was talking about Zai pledging loyalty to her or something, though it barely registered in his ears. Why was she even here now? It seemed so ridiculous, that'd she'd just happen to arrive the moment after Zai's life had been… changed? Ended? He wasn't sure.

But what he did know is that he had to protect Akemi. If Azula had come just a day before, he would have thrown the man into the volcano without a second thought, but things were different now. Zai's strange unlife was tied to Akemi's, of course, but there was something more than that. Akemi has saved Zai's life. Offered to die for him without a second thought. And Akemi didn't like Azula.

So of course Zai refused her proposal. He did it before he even realized the words coming out of his mouth, and the first thing he felt afterwards was terror. Azula was probably the greatest fire bender in the world, and Zai most certainly was not. He had his sword and shield, and his body was made of gold, but gold could melt. He didn't want to fight Azula alone.

Azula challenged him to an Agni Kai when he rejected her offer, but he refused that too. He prettied it up with words about sacrificing his honor for Kuza, but Zai didn't really believe in honor. He just didn't want to face Azula alone.

But he did have to face her. She would kill Akemi, Zai knew. She wouldn't pass up the chance to be remembered as a dragon slayer like her uncle, after all. So when negotiations broke down, he charged at her, rallying his men. His plan was simple: keep her attention on him, and give Akemi time to flee. It was simple, but there wasn't much time to come up with something more detailed.

But he hadn't really expected Azula to run. Keep her distance, of course. She could fly, and he could not. But to throw her troops in front of her as she ran away? It was the kind of thing he would do.

Maybe that's how he realized what she would do next. She'd lost the island the moment Zai had refused to bow, and she clearly wasn't confident she could beat him before his troops overwhelmed her. Of course she'd want a consolation prize in her defeat, so she could spin things as a victory.

He cut through her soldiers like they weren't even there. His sword and body and fire were so much mightier than anything he'd wielded before.

But they weren't quite mighty enough. He saw Azula let the fire fly, and he was just inches short of stopping them.

He knew, at that moment, that he was dead. Maybe he had been from the moment he'd been transformed into this golden shape.

They said that when you died your life flashed before your eyes, but Zai had never believed it was true. Yet, after the moment of regret, realizing that he couldn't save Akemi as Akemi had saved him, his mind went back to his time in the Earth Kingdom. He'd been trying to send money back home to his family, as he'd been doing all his life, but the price of sending it over had grown substantially greater as they'd reached further from the Fire Nation. One day, he'd just decided it wasn't worth the cost and stopped sending money.

He wondered if his family thought he'd died in the war. But then, he supposed he had, it had just taken a little longer than most.

He wished, though, in his last moments, that he'd been willing to spend a little more to keep sending money home.

Then Azula's blue fire struck Akemi Cho, and Zai died.
 
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=]+[=

"We must come to the aid of these unfortunate children who, some through the loss of their fathers or mothers, some through their poverty, are dear to the regiments and crews, and who, by its care and the examples of their ancestors, will become virtuous citizens and intrepid and generous soldiers of the nation."

While the bulletin had sounded lofty, wrapped in the language of the declaration, pushed onto the shoulders of those paying for the refit of the airships and the crews anyway, the results were more down to earth in this very moment. Glancing down from the deck of the Sulan, Commander Aikan could see a dozen of the older children gathered under the shade of the airships massive frame, two heavy set and leather clad engineers having spread out the innards of a firebomb before them – the volatile blasting jelly for the moment replaced by a training mixture of tar and clay that stuck to the tools but wouldn't go up in flames at the lightest spark. Despite the heat that was still smoldering down on them as spring sun begun to shine to its fullest, both the children and the adults were covered from head to toe, heavy aprons and reinforced gloves necessary to handle the volatile substance as the group went through the motions of disassembling and assembling the firebomb again and again – small hands quick, but struggling with the weight of the wrought iron parts as they learned for an emergency.

What the emergency would be wasn't clear: maybe it would be a time when such a bomb would become loose while it was transported and disarming it could safe their lives – maybe they were training for the moment when supplies had to be sourced locally and their lives would depend on being able to turn blasting charges into working bombs.

It wasn't the most complicated machinery these children had seen in the last days, each piece in the armory of the fire nations air fleet a marvel of engineering and a leap forward unmatched since the invention of the coal powered ship. But with this came hiccups, the temperament of machines and the natural tendency of flames to leap away from their confinement to disastrous results if handled incorrectly. The children sitting in the shade were just one group of her new cadre, brought by their parents, taken from orphanages, drawn from academies struggling to keep up with the new realities of civil conflict in the home islands themselves. She had put them under a group of officers and subalterns chosen for their distinguished conduct and their morals, as well as their education: Pho had been the son of clerks and Mya the sixth daughter of a minor merchantman. They were running the group of children through reading, writing, arithmetic, swimming, running, military and gymnastic exercises – in short everything an academy should have provided. The older ones were apprenticed to engineers and workers, learned to recognize the faults in airship parts and were given the tools to repair them. Skilled workers, especially on the move, might proof vital in the coming campaigns – while giving them a future for after…

…whatever after would be.

=]+[=
 
Deficient

The water in the basin was a dirty rusted brown and still she scrubbed her skin. It wasn't enough. It was never enough.

Azula done everything perfectly. Achieved beyond all expectations of her, time and time again. It wasn't enough. Father had still left her without even looking back. Her last moments with him was his back as he hubristically marched to his doom. She was just another unnecessary tool to be discarded on the path to glory.

She'd given Zuko a chance to return home in glory. She'd let him and Mai have their sickeningly sweet liaisons. She could be generous with her friend's time when it came to family. It wasn't enough. They'd both betrayed her. They'd all betrayed her. Everything she'd done was just a trick of a monster.

She'd slaughtered armies. She'd fought their champions. She'd brought the walls of Tottori crashing down. And it wasn't enough. She'd been wounded by assassins. Her soldiers swarmed under the tides of traitors. She'd been dragged from the field, half delirious in her injuries from loss of blood, demanding to return to the frontline. But it was too late. She'd lost.

Azula had faced down what more primitive people's would have mistaken for gods. A coward and a traitor, now fleshed in gold. A monk ascended into draconic monstrosity. They'd shed their humanity and were still called heroes by yokels and idiot fools who couldn't think beyond the latest foolish idea to find purchase in their brains.

A pair who in their arrogance had sought to steal her people's rule from her. Who'd dare defied her. She called upon her lightning, the cold fire running in her veins to cast down these pretenders.

It wasn't enough.

Her lightning never came.

She'd left the bodies of her foes as the island descended into anarchy, regrouping with her supporters as she planned her next conquests. Still they defied her. Why? Hadn't she done the impossible? Slain those empowered beyond mortal ken like a hero of myth?

Why had her body betrayed her again? Had the mad ramblings of Airbenders long dead from their own foolish weakness let the poison in her mind fester? The envenomed legacy of Mother's spite lingered. And the cure was some naive spiel about trust? Trust?

The entire concept was laughable. Who was there left to trust? She'd given those she trusted everything they wanted and they'd seized the opportunity to betray her. Trust was for those too weak to fear treachery.

Drying her hands, she felt the skin ache, rubbed raw by her efforts to wash away the vestiges of battle. Letting sensation return to them, she ignored the look of concern Mother gave her from the mirror. She'd learnt long ago not to be drawn into interaction with another lie.

She needed to be better. To purge herself of her weaknesses. To be the Fire Lord she was destined to become. Otherwise, what was the point of all of this?

Gently she tightened fresh bandages of her hand, covering the golden flesh beneath as she suppressed a wince at the aching pain.

She would be better. She had to be.
 
AUTUMN IN THE FIRE NATION


Lady Autumn is a red wind that cuts down the tall trees.

Everything about her was red: red was her sword and red was her hand, red was the stain dripping from her robe, and red the ground she trod. She lived for a red dream, surrounded by a red world, and all her wishes and her thoughts were red.

Red too were the bodies of those stood against her. The Yezi island home guard had been prideful of their fitted and their armored red, but a darker shade seeped from the slashes she had made in them. Red was the color of the warmth of the asylum's fire, and red the noise of cracking stone and whining wood, as the building burned.

Gray was the begging of the leader of the guardsmen, and red Autumn's sharp response, that opened him from neck to nape and left behind a red wound where a man had been.

Before autumn, it had been a gray world, and ashen snowfalls threatened even now to drown the triumph of the red. Ignition preserved Autumn's colors; bathed in crimson, scarlet, even shades of orange and of white, she was a candle-flame, alight. Spits and tongues of crackling fire draped her where a robe had been.

It was a gift granted freely, a red pact and red promise. To act as She did, to be as She was. To love, and to live, and to kill, in Her ancient and red land.

The exchange was red; A blue spirit, attacking her child, another coming to his defense. The success was red; two bindings, and two loves. The hope was red; a vow, and a deadly tool to see it done.

She walked, then, through the ash, a brushstroke, an exclamation, in the gray and pallid dark. She reached, then, for her child, crouching squat, gazing up, smiling shy, filling her with terrible red love. She held them then, close to her, squeezing tight and never letting go. She felt them, then, igniting just the same, child and mother, each warmer for the other. Each of them, clutching at each other, blazed a novel and a bloody red, and in their hold, the world was remade, whole, deep red.

And then, at once, the dream is over, and amber eyes open. Ursa is awake. It is the first day, after their return from the Spirit Forest.

For the first time since her banishment, she has dreamed happy.

For the first time since her childhood, she has risen with the sun.

For the time since her birth, she has seen the world in red.

She can no longer see it any other way.

(Following Ordeal By Fire: An Avatar the Last Airbender GSRP IC).
 
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RUBBLE

The Captain lost his title when he read the bulletin. Such power the system gave him over Tottori. A post at the heart of the war effort, a center of bloody ash. Its wheezing body held countless soldiers who scurried about under the vermilion sky. In every street one could find the pockmarks of battle. For a piece of copper, urchins would point to a black outline and create tall tales. Here the Butcher died, there the Couple, and far away the General.

Messy. Disorderly. A microcosm of what the Fire Nation was.

An aide led the Magistrate through the interior of his new office. The walls were freshly painted. Functionaries from many different departments waited impatiently with petitions in hand. They puffed out their chests and rich robes. The guards stationed there fought off boredom with lighthearted pranks on the unsuspecting victims.

He felt a burning twitch where an eye used to be. He paused and stroked the spot. The tip of his middle finger rested on the scar on his forehead.

"Hey," his assistant said, "are you all right?"

The Magistrate felt a comforting hand on his shoulder. An unprecedented breach of etiquette. If the aide had any sense, he would have removed it immediately and asked for forgiveness. But none was forthcoming. A realization: he did not know.

"I am alright," he said. "Enough worrying about me. Worry about informing the others to begin instead."

It was as close to a reproach as he would offer.

His inauguration brought a grim mood.

They were all younger than Naoki.
 
Surudoi's Time on the Wall

The collar of the new uniform somehow did not sit right. Despite all the tampering and different ways of moving the fabric, the offending article still seemed to find new ways of confounding him. Perhaps it was simply because the uniform was new. It had not been broken in by days in the muggy mainland air, the starch had not been soaked in a long day's sweat, and the fabric yet to have to be washed out from blood. Surudoi more than once thought about removing the new collar and taking the time to change back into the familiar major's coat that had served him so well. Yet every time he thought about that he considered the fact that he had to be a General now, and generals did not wear old major's coats no matter how comfortable they were.

Then again, were generals supposed to look out on the walls to see the enemy army massing outside? No, they probably weren't. Generals, especially non-benders, didn't sit on a section of the wall and gaze out over the enemy positions. That was a major's work, but Surudoi couldn't help but still think of himself as doing major's work. Banner Sergeant Tategoto certainly still was around, even now that the 95th Regiment was Colonel Druze's responsiblity. Druze liked to manage things more personally and knew that Tategoto was one of Surudoi's oldest aides. Thus he left her at liberty oftentimes to consult the General.

"What do you think Tategoto?" Surudoi asked as the enemy army spread out in the vastness of the horizon beyond the walls, "What do you make of the Young Colonel's army out there?"

"They've got a lot of catapults and heavy armor, but I wonder at their range of top tenors, sir," Tategoto responded before she chuckled, "Remember that song the Colonel liked, the one the regiment would sing on parade?"

"Aye, how'd start now something like... Men of Susong stop your dreaming?" Surudoi began to mumble in tune

"Can't you see their spearpoints gleaming?" Tategoto responded in a surprisingly stable contralto. "See their warrior penants streaming too this battlefield!"

Someone down the wall seemed to have heard the Sergeant and General singing and then joined their voice with th next verse

"Men of Susong stand ye steady, it can not be every said ye! For battle we're not ready! Susong Never yields!" It was hard to tell who had first joined the Sergeant's clarion call but it seemed to be something that men and women managed to hear above the din and chaos.

"Go on sing ya bastards!" Surudoi cheered his assent and it seemed to rise the spirits of the defenders, many surprisingly having heard the earlier singing. And so, they chanted and sang in rich soldier's voices.

"From the hills rebounding! Let the warcries sounding! Summon all! At Agni's Call!The mighty foes surrounding," What began with one sergeant and then one squadron soon echoed on the wall, until a regiment began making their hearts heard.

"Men of Susong march to glory! This will ever be your story! Keep the burning flame before ye! Hotmen will not yield!" So would the spirit spread, and so would the men and women remember that they were the heirs of a mighty legacy.

Simple folk soldiers were, but Zuko expected every man and woman to do their duty. Surudoi could not help but remember the simpler days of being something other than a general. Victory might come, or it might not. But Surudoi was proud to serve alongside these men and women, to the whatever end the war might take them.

"Not a bad band to go to war under," Tategoto mused as she left a litte bit of fire dance on her fingertips idly to keep time for the music, "Hell of place to sing, general."

"I'll cheer when I can sing it back home Sergeant," Surudoi nodded with a crooked grin, "Now get the men ready for another inspection."

"I'll hollar the Colonels sir!" Tategoto saluted and then peeled off, the war spreading out both below and beyond the Walls of Susong.



Music Recording

 
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Turn 3 Mini- Twospirit

TWO-SPIRIT​

Spirits haunted the night. When the sun fell and the moon rose, their time came. It was spring now, and so the nights were to become shorter, but the spirits still ruled. Legends walked paths unspoken. The Blue Spirit and the Kemikurage travelled forth on diplomacy.

They found Guipo first. The spirit had the kindly appearance of an old woman, and was startled to see them, but was only too happy to aid them in their plight. The lost children of Caldera would have support if they lit lanterns to light her path through the night. She, however, had little to tell.

They found a headless ghost second. It was hard to communicate with such a being, stumbling as he was, and in truth he was flailing more than anything, his hands scratching against the steel that covered houses and producing a terrible wail. Might the storm be such a thing, merely an agonised lashing out?

They entered the forest, suspicious of their own luck. Fortuitousness was one thing, but this was not the spirit world. How was communing so easy? There they stumbled upon the spirit of the forest, a great deer that looked down at them with mournful eyes. Communication, it was clear, would not be through words.

It was still to be attempted, and they attempted back and forth to see what issues it had. Pollution, unsustainable hunting, seemed to be at the root of it, ecology requiring a better touch. This was a worrying point, seeing as how it was currently state policy to overfish the seas in order to avoid famine. Must the material world and the spirit world's needs be at odds by definition? Troubled, Zuko and Ursa in their disguises promised to return in a week with a solution, and kept walking.

Little had they walked when they heard squeals of pain and the sound of struggle. They ran to look, and found themselves too late. A lion spirit, guardian of the forest as much as the deer was, had slain it and was feasting upon its corpse, growing antlers and in size as it did. Not all spirits were docile, and they had their own subtle rivalries.

In their retreat from the lion, they found yet another spirit- a lantern spook. The forest was no place for such a thing, trickster spirit as it was, and they followed as it vanished and reappeared, giving little glimpses just often enough to allow itself to be followed. Finally, they came to a clearing with a pond, and that was when the trouble began.

A dark hand appeared out of thin air, and flung the lantern into a pile of soggy wood. It burst into flame and smoke, far faster than it had any right to, and covered all the air, separating the two. They fought against the air, calling for each other, but lost themselves.

Zuko heard a call behind him, and turned around. He came face to face with his mask. Startled, he moved to block, and so did the masked figure. He lifted his swords and so did the masked figure. Turning leftwards to look, he saw the mask doing the same. He sheathed his swords and leaned in, one hand reaching out, and touched the figure's finger with his own. It was cold ice, only a mirror. Zuko smiled. And so did the figure. With a yell, he jumped back, but the ice shattered and melted, and he was caught up in its waters.


The Blue Spirit- the Dark Water Spirit- grinned and dodged his blades, letting the water push and pull his body to evade in a move so natural he seemed to be part of the waters themselves. The spirit flowed perfectly with his element, and crooned in his ear mocking words. Did he think he was funny? Did he believe himself above the spirits as Fire Lord? Did he enjoy stealing from the beings that were the fundamental expression of reality? Did he think sacredness was to be trampled underfoot for selfish desire?

Zuko had misunderstood his place in the world. He would die. He would drown in these spiritual waters, and his sacrifice would be taken, and his blood and his power would be used to take revenge from his people, from his family, even from the youngest, even from her-

Fire burst forth, evaporating the waters into foggy steam, and Zuko could breathe. The Kemikurage entered, smoke billowing from her fists. Fire punch after punch kept the falling, flowing water from returning. It was all power, all external bending meant to burn away anything before it, all held together by a fierce will; all Ozai. Even regaining his breath, gasping and on his knees, Zuko could recognise his father's style that he had aped for a decade.

The Kemikurage was cornering the Dark Water Spirit now, pressing fire against them from left and right while advancing from the centre, and it was becoming desperate. Had it overextended? Had it become vulnerable in its attempt to gain revenge? Whatever the truth was, both saw fear in his eyes, and then he leapt ten feet upwards, swifter than the king of monkey-lizards. He fell on Zuko despite his flaming palm lifted upwards, and the spirit shrieked as his face had a hand scorched on it. He kept falling, however, though Zuko felt no weight. The being fell into Zuko, and when the Fire Lord looked into the pond before him, he saw…

He saw the face of the Blue Spirit looking back, eyes wide and terrified, a years-old scar imprinted upon its face.
 
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