Disclaimer: Anything or anyone you don't recognize from the show is mine. Avatar: The Last Airbender is owned by Nickelodeon.
A/N: I'm aware that in the show, the last we see of Ozai is in prison, but I seriously don't think he and the other war criminals would be let off so easily by the international community.
The Final Testament of Phoenix King Ozai
Prologue: Condemned
The Ministry of Justice in Agnishima, the Fire Nation capital, was bustling with activity as was usual for high-profile trials, the prosecutor, Mr. Yi observed. The main courtroom was a vast circular chamber with the spectator area surrounding the center on three sides with the bench raised on a dais at the far end. In most cases, the defendant would usually have to sit in a chair on a platform in the center for the trials, but as there were many accused persons in this particular case, a sitting area was allotted to them behind the desks of the prosecutor and defense attorney.
During the war's hundred years, alleged dissenters, traitors to the Firelords Sozin, Azulon, and Ozai, prisoners of war stood brief trials and were sentenced to death or to life in one of the country's many notorious prisons, having it much worse than common criminals could dream of. After the war, it became the site of the International Military Tribunal of Major War Criminals, where the highest-ranking living perpetrators of the war were indicted on several charges
The first was general conspiracy, the charge carrying the most damning evidence; documentation. The Fire Nation's own organization skills was their undoing. The second was crimes against peace. Namely the planning, preparing, initiating, and waging of wars of aggression against the Water Tribes and the Earth Kingdom with no regard to the peace and tranquility of said nations. The fact that these men, especially Ozai who had absolute rule over the Fire Nation, could have stopped this war, it was as if they had declared war all over again. The third charge was war crimes. Namely the wanton destruction of cities, towns, and villages; devastation not justified by military or civilian necessity; and the maltreatment and murder of prisoners of war. The Fire Nation destroyed everything in their path to conquest and any enemy soldier they had allowed to live was taken captive and placed into prisons where they were subjected to slave labor, torture, and mass executions. The final charge, crimes against humanity, had caused much outrage all over the world, including the Fire Nation. This indictment carried charges of genocide, murder, enslavement, deportation, and other inhumane acts (such as mass rape and the kidnapping of young girls to be used as comfort women) against the populations of the Water Tribes and the Earth Kingdom. The Fire Nation had also suffered terribly in the past hundred years. Despite the ultra-nationalism that ran rampant throughout the homeland and the colonies, citizens were persecuted, oppressed, enslaved, and murdered solely on ethnic or political grounds.
Mr. Yi, a young magistrate from the Earth Kingdom was chosen to lead the prosecution of the war criminals in a trial that the leaders of the Earth Kingdom, Water Tribes, and the new Fire Nation government under Firelord Zuko carefully put together to make sure these men were tried fairly in the name of justice and peace. It took about a year for him to prepare the case, what with who to charge and what charges to bring against them. The three surviving nations each had their list of criminals, sometimes reaching to over five hundred names each, but after much negotiations, the nations settled on the twenty-six highest-ranking members of the Fire Nation government and military to bear responsibility. The most notorious of the accused was none other than ex-Firelord Ozai himself. The Avatar had spared his life in the Battle of Wulong Forest, only removing his Firebending power, but the self-proclaimed Phoenix King eventually had to answer for his crimes. The others on trial were Prime Minister Yu, the second in command; War Minister Qin, who had a hand in organizing every raid on Water Tribe and Earth Kingdom civilians for the last twenty years of the war; Justice Minister Takahashi, the architect of the prisons in which millions of innocent people from all the nations were subjected to indescribable horrors and brutal murders for the last fifty years of the war; Senior General Nguyen Thanh An, top ranking General in the Fire Nation Army who led many raids on Earth Kingdom civilians, notably the Xu Qiang Massacre*, the most terrible act of genocide since the Air Nomad Massacre; and Education Minister Matsumoto, the corrupter of Fire Nation youth since the days of Sozin, who warped the minds of the children into the old regime's militaristic ideology. There were also twenty lesser known names who had major hand in the Fire Nation's menace such as Financial Minister Mifune who set up the industries that brought the money to fund the Fire Nation war machine; Governor Han Jian, the father of Firelady Mai and the alleged mastermind of the liquidation of Omashu; and Homeland Affairs Minister Koizumi. Princess Azula had been declared insane by the court, thus was unfit to stand trial, despite many angry demands for her head. It was likely that she would never recover from her mental state.
The main focus of the trial for the spectators had been Ozai. There were people who were initially angry that the Avatar didn't kill him in the final battle, but Yi was certainly not. In his opening statement, the prosecutor made a point to mention that he was happy that the deposed Firelord was kept alive, because now he would face justice and the whole world would come to know of his atrocities, purging doubt from anyone's mind. It was was once thought that Ozai would bear all the responsibility. Although he had pleaded not guilty, the former Firelord did nothing to provide a good case for the defense. The only time he spoke in court was in angry outbursts, claiming that he was still the Phoenix King and that they would all pay for subjecting him to this disgrace. He would never answer questions to the point and claimed to have no knowledge of the others' actions. The other defendants all had sworn statements against him, but it was clear that many of them were more than willing to carry out his orders, and the court did not recognize obedience to superiors' orders as a valid defense.
For two years, witnesses from the Three Nations gave their testimonies against the accused. Six of the witnesses included the Avatar and his band friends who all gave strong evidence against the accused. Now it was finally over. The council of judges had reached a verdict after three months of deliberations and it was to be pronounced today.
The guards flanked the accused into the courtroom from the Ministry's dungeon with Ozai in the lead. Jeers greeted the procession as they were led to their seats, Ozai shooting a disgusted glare at the spectators cursing and insulting him. He then shifted his gaze around the courtroom at the defense attorney, Mr. Tanaka, the head of the law department at Firelord Shinji University, had an unreadable expression on his face. The prosecutor stood on the other side of chamber with a hint of anticipation in his eyes. Ozai could only have been described as a shadow of the once intimidating, powerful Firelord that had almost ensured the victory of the Fire Nation. The loss of his Firebending had turned him into a bitter, distant man who did not seem to care what had happened to him anymore. His prison robes were filthy; his hair was a matted cloud, and his beard unkempt, yet he still managed to retain his air of being above all.
The bailiff rapped his staff on the marble floor. "All rise!" The courtroom instantly fell silent. There were eight judges overseeing the trials, two for each of the Three Nations (the Northern and Southern Water Tribes being considered separate). Once the judges took their seats at the bench, the court followed suit.
"Deliberations have concluded," the Chief Judge, a Southern Water Tribesman announced. War Minister Qin shifted in his seat nervously, much to Ozai's distaste. "Before the verdicts are read, I would like to remind the court that the tribunal's decision on whether any of these men standing trial are convicted or acquitted is based solely on the written or verbal evidence presented to the tribunal by witnesses or council. Previous personal experiences play no part in our findings. The International Military Tribunal was put together to make sure the victims of this war are given the justice they deserve and that the men brought up before this tribunal would be given a fair trial. The same applies for the trials taking place in specific locations of the crimes committed in this war and any future trials to take place. Now I shall read the verdicts of each man standing before this tribunal:
"Ex-Firelord Ozai!" Ozai stood up, looking the judge in the eyes in defiance. He was the Phoenix King, he thought to himself angrily. The Chief Judge lifted a sheet of paper off the table, and his brow furrowed as he read off the verdicts."On the first indictment; general conspiracy, we the tribunal find the defendant guilty. On the second indictment; crimes against peace, we the tribunal find the defendant guilty. On the third indictment; war crimes, we the tribunal find the defendant guilty. On the fourth indictment; crimes against humanity, we the tribunal find the defendant guilty. The defendant is sentenced to death by hanging." Ozai felt as though someone had punched him in the gut. They were going to hang him? The former Firelord had known from the beginning that he would be sentenced to death, that his life was over from the minute he stepped into the court room, but this was the ultimate insult.
"Hanging?" he roared over the cheers and the Chief Judge's call for order, barely stopping himself from lunging at the judges. "I am the Phoenix King! I fought nearly to the death! It was a mere stroke of luck that resulted in my defeat and you're going to hang me like I'm some common thief?" In the Fire Nation, hanging was considered the lowest and most dishonorable method of execution. It was only applied to the lowest of common criminals and to traitors within the nation itself. The point of hanging traitors was to subject them to disgrace, so that they would not be seen as martyrs. Most condemned criminals and all prisoners of war were either executed by a Firebending squad if they were benders and- by beheading if they were non-benders, but never by hanging. It was sickening that they would do this to him, especially considering that he was once royalty.
"If you think you deserve an 'honorable death', Ex-Firelord Ozai," said one of the Fire Nation judges, shaking his head and glaring at the defendant, "you are much mistaken. You've done nothing in your whole life that's worthy of honor. Take your seat." Ozai sat down heavily, seething with rage.
"Prime Minister Yu," the Chief Judge began, but Ozai was barely listening. So this was how his story was supposed to end, he thought. Standing in front of a crowd of peasants being hanged like a worthless dog. It was an outrage, a scandal, and there was nothing he could do about it. The deposed Firelord just sat there listening to the Chief Judge reading off the verdicts. Prime Minister Yu, War Minister Qin, Justice Minister Takahashi, Senior General Nguyen, and a dozen others were to be hanged as well. Out of the five others to be convicted, two, including Matsumoto were sentenced to life imprisonment with hard labor, one was sentenced to twenty-five years with hard labor, another to fifteen years, and the last to ten years also with hard labor. The ones to be acquitted were Homeland Affairs Minister Koizumi whom the prosecution could not prove was involved in the war or oppression of Fire Nation citizens, two generals acquitted on war crimes and crimes against humanity charges, and Governor Han who it turned out did not harm any civilians and it was in their own plans to leave Omashu.
"Death sentences will be carried out in thirty days and prison sentences begin immediately at Hulao Prison in the Earth Kingdom. I ask that the acquitted remain in court for a debriefing. The International Military Tribunal has ended."
The Fire Nation had specially designed facilities for people awaiting execution. These were not even referred to as prisons, but as "detention centers", and their inmates were simply called the condemned rather than prisoners. Ozai and the others condemned to death in the Agnishima Tribunals were brought to the detention center on the outskirts of the city.
The inmates were handed over to the guards, consisting of other nations, unceremoniously and were lined up against the wall of the building. The doors swung open, and a high-ranking Earth Kingdom officer, probably the warden, marched out and paced the gravel ground in front of the inmates. "I won't waste time with words," he said shortly. "You have all been brought here because you have been sentenced to death. You'd all just be on your best behavior during your remaining days, and your time here will be easy. However, if you cause any trouble, disciplinary action will be taken." He stopped his pacing and faced the inmates, but Ozai knew that the warden was looking at him in particular. "Either way, it doesn't really matter in the end, but I suggest you behave. Guards, take the condemned to their cells."
Placing the convicts into the cells had taken less than an hour, and Ozai surveyed what would be his final accommodations. The cells here were larger than what they were in regular prisons, and they were private. This was a relief, considering that he had to share a small closet of a cell with three other men during the trials. The cell was virtually empty, save for a mattress in the corner. The steel door had only a small window. Sighing heavily at his situation, Ozai paced his cell for a while. If he was to be here for a month before his execution, then he might as well do something to make the time pass a little more quickly.
The former Firelord made his way over to the cell door, looking out the window into the corridor. "Guard!" he called. Almost immediately, footsteps could be heard. A young Fire Nation guard's face appeared at the other side of the window.
"What is it?"
"I have a request," said Ozai disdainfully. "I would like a brush, some ink, and a pack of papers." The guard arched his eyebrows then nodded wordlessly. It took a while for the guard to return, and the former Firelord expected this, so he sat against the wall doing the one thing a bored prisoner can do; think. Even now, historians would be rushing to write about his downfall at the Avatar's hands. Ozai was not the first Firelord to have been deposed, there were two before him hundreds of years ago who probably sat in a cell very much like this one, recounting their lives to the emptiness of their accommodations. However, Ozai wanted to put his story on paper and have it published to Fire Nation historians. The world needed to know the story of the man behind the monster.
Soon the guard slid the papers, ink, and brush through the food slot and Ozai rushed to collect the items. Dipping the brush in the ink, he set one sheet of paper on the floor close to him and began to write:
I don't know who will read this, or if it will even be released to the public, but I don't care. I feel that my story must be told, and before I die, it must be put on paper. This will be the last and only autobiography I'll ever write. My name is Ozai, the Phoenix King, and this is my final testament.
A/N: This is an idea that just popped into my head. I ask that you nitpick the hell out of it, show no mercy. I didn't like that the Fire Nation capital had no name, so I gave it the name Agnishima. Nguyen Thanh An is a recurring character in my stories and fanfics. The charges are taken from the Nuremberg and Tokyo Trials after World War II.
* Xu Qiang is the (made up) name of the city you see the ruins of in the Blue Spirit. In my stories at least, it was a huge bustling city full of Earthbenders, more benders than non. Not with a big military presence like Ba Sing Se or Omashu, but it was a major cultural and historical landmark with a huge population. Think of the Xu Qiang Massacre as the Avatar equivalent of the Rape of Nanking. The only motive was to wipe out the Earthbending population in the area. Ozai himself had a hand in planning this one, but did not actually participate in the raid.
Until next chapter, Lionheart out.
