Brief Author's note:
I promise this is the first and only time I'll use that lengthy intro or any real intro at all, I just needed to establish the basis for this AU. For conciseness' sake I'll keep this mostly in just the hunter's (canonically played by Zuko but someone else here) POV for this chapter. I'm taking a departure from my usual fare of crack fics/pointlessly stupid parodies to explore a (somewhat) more serious idea: what if metal bending was discovered early, launching Ba Sing Se into an industrial revolution and causing them to be the dominant force of the 100 years war? This alternative history commentary will explore how this changes everything. Also, I'm arbitrarily bumping Toph to 14 years old, just think of it as part of the cosmic shift. Note that I'm mostly going to skip Aang's POV in this chapter because it's more or less identical to canon.
Standard Disclaimer: I own nothing and make no profits off of this
Chapter 1: The Boy in the Iceburg/ The Avatar Returns
Water, Earth, Fire, Air.
My Grandmother used to tell me stories about the old days, a time of peace when the Avatar kept balance between Water Tribes, Earth Kingdom, Fire Nation, and Air Nomads. But that all changed when the Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom forces plunged the world into total war. Only the Avatar mastered all four elements. Only he could stop the feuding metalbenders and firebenders, but when the world needed him most, he vanished. 100 years have passed and the Earth Kingdom is nearing victory in the war. Two years ago, my father and the men of my tribe journeyed the Fire Nation, the lesser of two evils, to fight the metalbenders, leaving me and my brother to look after my tribe. Some people believe that the Avatar was never reborn into the Air Nomads and that the cycle is broken. But I haven't lost hope, I believe that somehow the Avatar will return and save the world.
A beam of incomprehensively bright light shot up and lit the dreary grey skies with a brilliant pure white hue. A soldier in metal armor dashed to a teenage girl wearing a thick metal tunic standing at the Captain's helm.
"Captain, did you see that?" the soldier asked.
"Do I look like I saw that you moron?" the girl replied, pointing at her own milky white eyes.
"Forgive me Captain Toph. There was a massive beam of light that shot into the sky with more intensity than a thousand suns!"
"A beam of light? It could be... hmm, it's not like I have any leads right now. Lieutenant, set the course for the light. There's no escaping this time...
"Escaping what?" an elderly man snorted as he stomped out of the cabin. "Ooh, a light show! I'd always wanted to see the Southern Lights!"
"Master Bumi!" Toph exclaimed in frustration "Do you not understand what that light means? It means The Avatar's returned. And I'll be able to use him to clear my family name."
"Now be careful young one. The Avatar is said to be the most powerful bender in the world, you wouldn't want to fall into the same mistakes as your parents would you?"
"Then stop lounging around and help me train for this encounter. I'll need more than untested metalbending if I'm going to defeat The Avatar."
"Oh very well. But after I have my nap. The frosty weather isn't doing my old bones any favors," Bumi yawned before slipping back into the cabin.
Toph positioned herself carefully in the center of her four sparring partners. She adjusted the thick metal boots fastened to her feet out of necessity in the cold and stomped down to get a better view. She lowered her stance and swung her arms and feet in four separate directions, launching a hailstorm of sharpened metal bullets flying from her arm and leg guards.
"Hmm, almost perfect. Just a little shrew mouse hair's off," Bumi snorted as he bit into a slab of jennamite.
"Then I guess we're not finished," Toph growled as she extended her arms, pulling the metal darts back to their sockets, nearly impaling at least two of her men.
The bald boy darted cautiously through the ruined husk of the Earth Kingdom barge, followed by an apprehensive looking girl.
"Aang, I really think we should be going back now!" she cried out.
"Come on Katara. We've only just seen the first level!" Aang retorted. He rounded the corner and stumbled onto the armory. He gaped in confusion at the small mountain of steel spikes, swords, and a bright green Earth Kingdom emblem.
"This ship has haunted our tribe since Gran Gran was a little girl. It was part of the Earth Kingdom's first raids."
"Whoa, back up. I have friends all over the world, even the Earth Kingdom. I've never seen a war."
"Aang, how long do you think you were in that iceberg?"
"I don't know, a couple days maybe?"
"I think it's more like a hundred years. Think about it, the war is a hundred years old, you've missed it because somehow, you were stuck in that ice the entire time." Aang let a startled gasp escape his lips as he stumbled to the ground. "Come on, let's get back." Aang nodded as he took Katara's outstretched hand and stumbled into a nearby weapon rack. The entire rack fell to the ground, rattling loudly and tripping an imperceptibly thin string. The string pulled a series of pulleys and levers until a massive flare shot out of the ship's chimney, unnerving the two children.
The solid metal ship plowed quickly through the makeshift 'wall' marking the Southern Water tribe village. Sokka faced off anxiously against its broad metallic hull as it tore through all of his snow structures with ease. He could hear Katara's pleas to get out of the way and was forced to acquiesce as the ship's massive metal doors burst open, blasting him with soot and sand. A pair of burly earthbenders erupted and shot their arms out, covering the entire ground of the village in a copious layer of rock before solidifying it, cutting the tribe off from water.
"Just like the previous raids..." Sokka mumbled. The earthbenders stood regally with arms in defensive stances as a second party emerged from the ship's pitch black interior. Four more muscled metalbenders encased in a form fitting suit of steel and a slightly shorter teenage girl in similar garb marched towards the hapless village. Sokka drew his machete and charged at the girl, determining her to be the ringleader. She effortlessly slammed the weapon out of his range before lifting him by the neck and throwing him aside. She stood in front of the villagers and stomped her foot, keeping her eyes concealed by her thick, jet black bangs.
"Where is he?" she growled. She thrust a metal glove out and bent it around Gran Gran's neck and pulled her in. "He'll be about this age and master of all elements!" When she was greeted by silence the glove threw Kanna mercilessly forward, only being caught by a frightened Katara. "Don't even think about lying to me, I can root one out faster than a lightening bolt." Sokka let out a battle cry and charged at Toph from behind with a spear. She reached backwards, shooting a metal glove at his neck and grabbing it before he could get closer. She bent the glove up and out, knocking Sokka even further away and dazing him.
Aang zipped toward the village and straight into the teenage earthbender, knocking her flat on her back as he gracefully landed with airbending.
"Looking for me?" he asked.
"You're the airbender? You're The Avatar?" Toph exclaimed incredulously.
"Yea," he replied remorsefully. Toph smirked as she sensed his sincerity and lobbed a volley of metal bullets in his direction. He easily dodged with the grace only an airbender could.
"I've spent all my life preparing for a battle like this. Beating countless sparring partners senseless. You're just a child!"
"Well you're just a teenager," Aang retorted. Toph scowled and roundhouse kicked the air, shooting a much wider volley of bullets which Aang barely dodged. He heard the terrified screams of the villagers and noted the rock beneath him snuffing out their much needed campfires. "If I go with you, will you leave the people alone and let these people light their fires?" Toph nodded in consent. Her escorts quickly bound their new prisoner in rock cuffs and hoisted him up.
"Aang you don't have to do this!" Katara's voice cried out.
"It'll be okay. Take care of Appa for me while I'm gone!" he yelled back. Katara lowered her head to hide her incoming tears as the earthbenders withdrew the earthen floor on the village, reverting it back to snow.
"Helmsman, set a course for Ba Sing Se, I'm headed home!" Toph yelled as she boarded the ship. Aang gave Katara as reassuring a smile as he could but found it faltering as the heavy metal doors clanged shut.
The earthbenders threw Aang into a solid metal cell and unbound his earth cuffs before sealing the hole into a solid wall with metalbending. Aang pounded on the door repeatedly with his fists in desperation. He was about to punch the walls again for the umpteenth time when the wall abruptly opened and his fists were gripped tightly by an old but firm hand, lifting him up several feet.
"So... this is the great avatar my adopted granddaughter's been harping about the whole time," the old man exclaimed.
"Let me... go! I need to get out of here!" The old man simply cackled and snorted in amusement as he bit into what looked like a very hard green crystal.
"Poor choice of words laddy." Bumi released his grip, causing Aang to fall flat on his bum. "So, what is this strange contraption of yours? My granddaughter gave it to me but didn't bother to explain, how rude of her," he said as he held up his glider. Bumi set the long object against the wall and raised his arms up to stretch. Aang took his chance and blew him down with airbending before snatching his glider and making a run for it. "See you again old friend!" Bumi snorted as he gazed out at the fleeing boy. Aang dodged guards left and right as he made his way out to the deck and opened his glider. He was about to throw himself into the air when he felt a steel glove clamp around his right ankle. Aang groaned and strained but felt himself be dragged all the way down to the deck. The glove detached from his leg as he stumbled upright.
"You'll have to try harder than that boy!" Toph roared as she shot her second glove at him. Aang sidestepped the projectile easily but found himself treading further and further towards the edge.
"Appa!" he yelled as he saw Sokka and Katara guide his companion onto the deck, fighting off earthbender reinforcements. Toph jumped into the air and slammed her foot into the deck, sending a wave of metal hurtling into Aang and tossing him overboard.
"Aang, no!" Katara yelled. Aang's body fell deeper into the cold water for several seconds before his eyes launched open, glowing in pure white along with his arrow tattoos. He launched himself up onto a tall water column and used his immense power to topple all the earthbenders on deck overboard with a single whip.
"Now that's some waterbending..." Sokka said distantly.
"Come on! Let's get outta here!" Aang yelled as he leapt on Appa's head. The bison took off right as Bumi sauntered over and heard Toph's terrified screams for help. He quickly went to the edge of the ship and rescued her from the ocean before bending a bundle of metal chains to pull up the rest of her crew.
"Pull out the turret and aim for the bison, I know he's not on the ship," she ordered. The crew obeyed and bent the floor of the deck, pulling up a long steel tube with a conical shaped projectile lodged at the back. A pair of earthbenders bent the tube in the direction of the fleeing bison and thrust their arms out, shooting the bullet out.
"Incoming!" Sokka yelled in panic as the bullet lobbed towards them. Aang leapt off his seat on Appa's head and swung his glider with a grunt, deflecting the bullet with a powerful gust of wind, sending it hurtling into the nearest glacier and burying Toph's ship in ice.