Disclaimer: Avatar: The Last Airbender is the sole property of the people at Nick.
Synopsis: Chronicles Zuko's life since birth through the perspective of his father. Note: I had to make up a lot about Zuko's childhood, the war, and basically things Nick didn't give us information on.
They're Coming: Chapter One - Birth
It was a beautiful morning in the Fire Nation. The sun was shining; the leaves were changing from the lush green of springtime to the brilliant hues of red that came with autumn. Red. Red like fire.
All was right with the world, if you ignored the war. For Fire Lord Ozai, there was no need to ignore the war. It would end soon. Very soon. Within this year most likely. The Water Tribes would be eliminated in a week. Or at least, if not eliminated, pose only the shadow of a slim possibility of being a threat. The Earth Kingdom was a different story. They were still strong and still fighting. But they would break soon. The Fire Lord's brother, the older more cunning Dragon of the West, the Great General Iroh, was working out the details of conquering the Earth Kingdom capital of Ba Sing Se.
As for the Fire Nation, it was perfect. Or so Ozai liked to think. Yes, the civilians and merchants were tired of the war. Sure, thousands upon thousands of men and women had died. But that was the price of war. However, none of it really mattered to Ozai. Today was the day. The day his lovely wife, Lady Aiko, would give birth to his heir.
The only thing left to do was name his soon-to-be prince. Ozai would not stand for having his son named something idiotic, something people could laugh at. No, his heir's name would strike a deep terror into the hearts of all those who saw him. But what?
Ozai made his way down the magnificent hallways of his magnificent palace to his magnificent wife. He half-walked, half-strutted around like he owned the place, which was fine really, because he did, in fact, own everything. A lot can be told from the way someone walks. From the way Ozai walked, one would be able to see that he was a man of great importance, extremely busy, and did not wish to be bothered. Upon reaching the room Aiko gave birth to his heir in, he was stopped by some lowly servant girl. Ozai glared at her. She squeaked.
"Move" he spat.
"I...I'm terribly sorry my lord, but I cannot let you enter. Lady Aiko just went through labor…" The girl's voice trailed away as Ozai made the flame on the candle next to the girl shoot up. "I'll go ask Kana." She slipped through the door before she even finished speaking.
Ozai sighed. If his son turned out to be a daughter, he was going to torch someone. He waited outside the door for twenty seconds, but it seemed like an eternity to him. Not only was he anxious to see Aiko and his heir, but he was simply not used to doing this…this waiting thing. He was the Fire Lord! That alone entitled him to getting what he wanted, when he wanted. If he wanted a new palace built, all he had to do was say so. If he wanted a new heir, all he'd have to do was screw some other woman.
"My lord? Kana said it would be all right if you went to see Aiko. However, I must warn you, she's in pa---" Ozai pushed the girl aside. He entered the room and saw more blood on the floor and bed than on a battlefield. The scent nearly drove him out, and he would have left, had he not heard Aiko call out to him. "Ozai…come see your heir…"
Ozai disgustedly made his way across the room to her bed, his eye only slightly twitching. She help up a bundle of blankets to him. On close inspection, he could make out the form of a baby. The heir to the Fire Nation. There had to be a mistake. No son of his could possibly be so weak and fragile. Ozai handed his son to the nurse and left. He needed to meditate and take a bath. He reeked of blood.
As he walked down the long hallways to his room, he thought about his son. True, his son was but a few hours old, yet Ozai had incredibly difficulty in picturing the delicate glass-like baby as Fire Lord. Before he made it to his room, a soldier ran up to him, breathless and panting. "My…Lord…" He attempted to bow, as was custom.
Ozai stopped him. "Stop. What is it?" he sensed a great urgency in the solder's voice.
"Earth Kingdom battleships just sailed past the blockade unharmed. Some cannons were fired, but it did not look as if they made much effort to stop the ships."
Ozai narrowed his eyes. This was bad. In blunt terms, complete shit. "Who informed you?"
By now the soldier was able to compose himself. "The helmsman on blockade ship A."
Bathing was no longer a priority. Ozai briskly walked down the hallways, heading towards his brother's quarters. "Go to the docks and assemble the other soldiers."
The soldier saluted before running off. Ozai resisted the urge to run. Running was cowardly. And cowards could not possibly weasel their way to becoming Fire Lord.
At long last, the door to his brother's room appeared. Ozai knocked on the surface of the elaborately carved door, giving his brother time to acknowledge someone was there. "Enter." Hearing Iroh's voice, Ozai pushed upon the heavy doors.
"Why hello brother. What brings you hear?" Iroh asked. The Great General Iroh, the Dragon of the West, was around fifty years old. The average age of a general in the Fire Nation Army. His hair a dark brown, with trace amounts of graying. The armor he wore told the world his position.
"Earth Kingdom battleships just sailed past the blockade unharmed." Ozai found himself repeating the soldier's exact words.
"Oh? And how could they have accomplished such a feat?"
"I believe it was either bribery or the men on the blockade ships were traitors." Ozai stiffened at this thought. He hadn't really consciously thought about how the Earth Kingdom ships could have gotten past, they did and posed a threat.
"How should we defend ourselves? Attack head on? Capture the ships?" Asking his brother, the former Fire Lord, was something Ozai was rather reluctant to do. Their father had only made him Fire Lord because Iroh expressed that he would much rather be a general in the army. Still, he had no other choice. General Iroh was a military man, and good at what he does.
"No. I would advise you to fire from a distance. The battleships may be loaded with explosives. If we risk capturing the ships, we would need to get rather close to it. And if it is filled with bombs, then not only would we fail at capturing them, but we'd kill off a good number of men." Of course. Absolutely ingenious. Why hadn't Ozai thought of that?
"Thank you brother for your words of wisdom. I'll inform the navy." Ozai turned to leave.
"You're welcome. Try not to let my words influence your thoughts Ozai. I could be wrong." For some reason, that thought angered Ozai, even if it was only for a split-second. Who was the one on the throne?
But all Ozai said was "Don't worry. Please inform Aiko that I'll be gone for a while, and that she has the honor of naming my heir." Iroh nodded.
Ozai left his brother's room, and told a passing servant to prepare the fastest horse from the stables for him. By the time Ozai reached the front gates, his horse was ready. He quickly jumped on and rode off to the docks.
Once there, the troops saluted him. They were already organized in their proper divisions. He headed towards the podium.
"Men! Women! As you may have heard already, several Earth Kingdom battleships have passed through the blockade dividing the Fire Nation from the rest of the world. I have already consulted General Iroh on what to do. We both believe it is in everyone's best interest to attack the ships from a distance, as we believe the ships are filled with explosives and we cannot risk getting too close. Firing from a distance is against normal procedures, unfortunately, we have no other choice. Commanders, choose your most accurate and loyal cannon-men. Prepare 10 of your fastest ships. Generals, meet me in the conference room. Dismissed!"
As Ozai walked off, he could hear orders being given and soldiers chosen. Once everyone was in the conference room, Ozai began speaking again.
"What information do we have about where the ships are headed?"
A newly promoted general answered him. "Sir, a transmission from blockade ship A told us five battleships were headed towards the port city of Minako."
Ozai rubbed his temples. Why today? Today was supposed to be perfect. "Alright. Send the five fastest ships to Minako. And send three ships to Hiten and Dori. I want ten ships three miles from the shore of Lyoko. And two ships patrolling the distance between each city, including five miles past Dori and Minako. Understood?"
The generals didn't say anything. Which meant that they agreed. "Head out then!" Everyone left the conference room, but Ozai. So that made thirty-one ships. He sighed and started walking towards the docks.
In the end, the ships sailed past Minako, past Hiten, past Dori, and were headed towards Lyoko, the capital. Volleys of fireballs were fired. What took the Earth Kingdom a year to design and build was destroyed in ten minutes. There were no survivors. One week later, divers explored the ruins and found there were absolutely no explosives. None. There were hardly any weapons on board at all. Instead, there were Earth Kingdom dignitaries.
Another week later a letter from those same dignitaries was read by Lady Aiko. They requested a meeting with Fire Lord Ozai. They would sail into the Fire Nation in two weeks. The letter was supposed to have arrived three weeks ago, but it never came. Ozai left on The Huo Hitomi for the Earth Kingdom on the day the battleships were destroyed.
The Huo Hitomi, the most formidable ship the Fire Nation Navy had to offer. And it was headed for enemy lands. Aiko couldn't help it. Tears trickled down her cheeks, and onto the boy she held in her lap. Zuko, the future of the Fire Nation. And instead of inheriting a prosperous land, he would be left to deal with an unpayable debt, and he would feel the hatred meant for Ozai, and those before him.
Three years later, Ozai returned. He returned not in glory, but in mourning. Lady Aiko had died. And the last place he saw her was in a bloody bed.
It was autumn once more, but not really. It was the time of year when the brilliant red hues of the leaves changed to dead brown. The sun wasn't shining. The world was not all right, whether or not your ignored the war.
So how was it? Good, bad, meh?
Next time:
The details of Aiko's death will be revealed. Some father-son bonding.