"The Fire Nation and Cannabis: An Untold Story of the 100-Year War"
An Avatar: The Last Airbender fan-fic by: OtakuGuy10
DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN AVATAR: THE LAST AIRBENDER. THIS IS JUST A FANFIC!
For mature readers only.
PLOT: Azula, Ty Lee, and Mai are commissioned to help fund the Fire-Nation by seizing vast and valuable resources from the Earth Kingdom.
CHAPTER ONE
"Cannabis? You mean weed?" Questioned Ty Lee in her usual carefree and slightly airheaded voice.
"If you want to use that crude foreign slang, then yes: marijuana." Fire-Lord Ozai responded with a voice exactly opposite of Ty Lee's. Ty Lee turned to her big sis, Mai, for help. She looked away from the acrobat and sighed. She saw marijuana as a dangerous hallucinogen and wanted nothing to do with it, even if it may be of aide to the Fire Nation. She thought if the Fire Nation dabbled in the substance, bad fortune would befall them all, yet for some reason the Fire-Lord himself wanted to see about getting some.
Azula, on the other hand, had smoked the plant quite frequently when it was popular among the bourgeois Fire Nation royalty and before it became illegal due to Ozai's banning of it. Ozai believed that all citizens of the Fire Nation needed their wits about them during this time of constant warfare and strife, and a mind-altering substance was a danger that threatened the Fire Nation, her interests, and her citizenry.
This job, while against the Fire-Lord's previous legislation, was commissioned by Ozai himself so his opinions of cannabis have surely changed. Either way, taking this job may allow Azula to partake in the consumption of her beloved pot once again. Mai was about to protest when Azula cut her off with a hand over her mouth.
"OH! Of course, dear father and Fire-Lord! Anything in service to the glorious Fire Nation! I know I speak for all of us when I say we are all fully willing and ready to infiltrate the Earth Kingdom and take all of the wee-er, marijuana you want!" Ozai didn't like his daughter's enthusiasm for this job. To him, it seemed she liked the aspect of being and doing the pot rather than doing her birthright duty to serve the Fire-Nation. He let it pass though, substituting with an explanation for his double-standard stance.
"You may be wondering to yourselves, why send to get something illegal? Well, I'll tell you. While I still denounce the consumption of marijuana, I do not denounce the use of cannabis. I believe the Fire Nation can benefit from the industrial application of the plant. Rather than imbibe on it, we should utilize it in our industries and, above all, our military. For instance, standard issue Fire Nation foot-soldier armor is sewn together with leather lacing. The leather is strong, yes, but it originally comes from the skin of an animal. It is an organic substance, and like all organic substances, it eventually rots away, leaving a Fire nation soldier vulnerable to attack. And the logistics of sending and shipping new equipment? A hefty cost and tiresome paper-trail results…"
The girls listened intently to their leader's diatribe, Ty Lee in particular. She loved to listen to people talk, especially The Fire-lord on such a fascinating issue.
"Cannabis, on the other hand, comes from a plant. This plant yields a harvestable fiber that's shown to be stronger, more durable, and longer-lasting than leather. If anything, we must take this fiber and use it to keep our troops' armor and morale strong. Do all of you understand?"
Ty Lee was the first to (enthusiastically) nod her head.
"This is why I called you three in here today. You are to infiltrate the Earth Kingdom with a number of soldiers, in secret, and sneak their natural resources out of the country back to the Fire Nation. That resource, obviously, is cannabis."
The Fire-lord took a pause to catch his breath and to take a sip of water from an ornate metallic mug, branded with the Fire Nation insignia. Ty Lee, still full of questions, took this moment to inquire more on the sneaking mission.
"So we just go into the Earth Kingdom, snatch up these plants, and return? Sounds easy enough." The Fire-Lord sat the tankard down and spoke in his deadly serious voice.
"I was just getting to that, but you interrupted me." Ty Lee swallowed in shame.
"Forgive me, Fire-Lord." She said with a respective bow.
"No matter, now listen. You must do this secretly, though. I can't stress enough how bad it would make our glorious nation look if we were to be caught stealing something that we deem illegal at home. Our opponents would capitalize on the issue and turn it into a scandal, saying that we are corrupt and don't even follow our own laws. This will inspire the plebeians of the nations against us. It may even forward the cause of the Avatar."
Azula's ears twitched when she heard Ozai mention the Avatar. It made her remember her brother's efforts to capture him. She wanted to subdue Aang too; he was a great, if not the greatest, threat to the Fire Nation, and he was getting stronger every day. Perhaps this mission would somehow hinder Aang's abilities to stop the Fire Nation, or at least put a thorn in his side. This would be Azula's chance. She would be doing her part for her country by smuggling the marijuana, plus, what would the harm be in smoking a bit of it on the side? Such a small amount would not make a noticeable difference. Azula could have her cake (or pot brownies in this case), and eat it too. With the thought of killing Turtle-Ducks with one stone, she smiled and nodded with a lowered head and a devious smile.
"I understand, now, father and Fire-Lord. We can be ready to depart tonight." Mai made a gesture that implied she obviously wasn't ready yet and Ty Lee was bursting at the seams with excitement at the Earth Kingdom trip. She let out a giddy squeal. She couldn't wait, and neither could Azula.