"Lunchtime General!"
It was Ming, a very sweet and kind Fire Nation prison guard. Iroh couldn't help but smile as she entered the room. Ming had always been kind to him, and her kindness would be repayed shortly…
"Thank you Ming, your little gestures of kindness have made my days in prison bearable… I think you should take the rest of the day off," Iroh said casually, fixing Ming with a meaningful stare through the bars of his cell.
"What," Ming asked, looking rather confused.
"You don't look well," Iroh said, grabbing the bars of his cell and staring Ming with an intense gaze, "maybe you should go home and rest."
"No, I feel fine," Ming said, unsure of the Generals strangely stern tone.
"Trust me," Iroh said, "it is better that you are not here this afternoon."
The General's amber gaze transfixed the prison guard on the spot for a moment before she nodded and left his cell, intending to go to her superior and take the remainder of the day off.
'It is for the best,' Iroh thought to himself, 'I do not wish for her to be caught up in what I am about to do…'
Time passed, and no one else came to his cell. Iroh was pleased; this meant that Ming had not stirred up any awareness as to his strange behavior, which he had feared she might report. He could feel his firebending as the sea of chi in his stomach began to waver. It was, to say the least, an unpleasant sensation. The usual fire that burned in his belly seemed to dim and wither as the eclipse came to pass. When he felt that the flame would soon be snuffed out, Iroh stood from his cross legged position upon the floor of his cell and he disrobed until he wore nothing but a pair of baggy trousers and foot wraps to ward off the cold nights. Even so, he looked far different than he used to. His gut had disappeared, and he smiled at the transformation his prison sentence had brought upon him. His abdominals were toned and bulging, replacing his gut with a firm set of muscles. His arms and legs also bulged with muscles and his shoulders, which had always been rather wide, were now round and large, like a bodybuilder's. The time had come for him to leave, and before he left he had a few things to do…
"Too early for that," Iroh said to himself, "first things first, let's get out of this cell."
Lightning enveloped the general's hand as he gripped the lock of his cell. His muscles bulged and rippled with effort and with a grunt, he melted the lock and the hinges swung open easily. The door to the room was a different story. It was heat treated steel, and very difficult to melt. Even so, Iroh had studied the door, and the weak point was its rather squeaky, unoiled hinges. Iroh heated the hinges until they were cherry red, and he ran a flame along the other edge of the door to melt the locks before he stepped back threw his shoulder into it, taking the door off the hinges and sending it flying into the wall opposite, stunning the guards outside his cell.
Both of them were young men, likely just merchants' children trying to earn an honest wage without following the family business. Even so, Iroh scowled at them, and with the last dregs of his bending, he blew flames from his nostrils, making the young men flinch before they ran off. No doubt they would alert someone, but as the effects of the eclipse washed over the Fire Nation, they would no doubt find Iroh to be more than a match for them. Still, Iroh moved with stealth rather unbefitting a large, muscled man, and he avoided fights where he could. He snuck through the prison until he found a large door that he though must have been an exit.
"Freedom is such a fine thing," Iroh said to himself as he opened the door and found-
"Hey, it's the Dragon of the West!"
"Prison break!"
"A prisoner's escaping!"
An entire mess hall, filled with guards, old and young. And there, amongst some of the more veteran staff was Warden Poon, a rather asinine man whom Iroh disliked very much.
"Back to your cell, Dragon," Warden Poon said, taking a traditional firebending stance.
Go figure, the warden of the prison was a firebender, it seemed like those in power were primarily benders, and those young recruits Iroh had scared off would likely always be overlooked by authoritative figures for lacking the power to manipulate the elements. Iroh pushed these thoughts to the back of his mind as an entire mess hall of people took a stance, ready to attack should Iroh resist the Warden's efforts. He cast an eye over Poon's lazy stance, his cocky smirk and his air of confidence… it was clear he had no clue of the eclipses effects, and as he was not quite as attuned to those matters, Iroh was correct in his assumption that this was the perfect time to free himself.
"I said go back to your cell, you mongrel!"
"You are in no position to tell me what I can and cannot do," Iroh said sagely.
"I have an army of firebenders at my disposal! What can you possibly do," Poon spat.
"I do not need an army," Iroh said, "when one knows oneself he does not need an army. He needs only his freedom and the power to defend it from those who seek to wrest it from him."
"You and your inspirational gibberish," Poon said, "I'll show you true power!"
Iroh stood, resolute, waiting for Poon's attack. Iroh had heard that line, so many times, and he knew that men like Poon were the reason there was a war going on in the first place. But even with the General's disdain for men like Poon, his primary objectives were not in the prison, and so when Poon's firebending did nothing, Iroh couldn't help but smile at the look on Poon's face.
Pop, pop, pop.
Iroh cracked his knuckles and his neck, his amber eyes burning with intensity as he stared down the stunned people before him.
"Let's get this over with," Iroh said quietly.
He charged, and with a few well-placed punches, Poon hit the ground, crushed beneath Iroh's incomprehensible might. And then an army fell upon him. He fought for what seemed like hours, but in truth, it was minutes. With an entire mess hall of guards now knocked out and bruised, Iroh made his escape, pushing open the actual exit doors.
"It's so beautiful," Iroh said, a tear coming to his eye.
Even with the darkness of the eclipse, Iroh found the scent of fresh air to be a blessing. The way the grass and flowers outside the dark prison waved in a light breeze made Iroh's soul feel absolutely blessed. Not for the first time, he wished Zuko were there, but he knew his nephew was busy finding his own destiny, and he hoped that wherever he was, he was feeling the same peace that Iroh was.
"General Iroh!"
Iroh turned to looked at the entry to the prison, where Warden Poon stood, holding his gut and looking outraged about something.
"You'll be back here soon, traitor."
"…"
"Did you hear me? You're a disgrace to the Fire Nation and you should be put down, the only reason you're still alive is because you used to be royalty."
"You know, Warden, I am usually a peaceful man…but for you, I am tempted to make an exception."
Iroh turned and slowly walked back to the dark prison. A fire burned in his amber eyes as he quickly broke through Poon's feeble attempt at a defense and seized him by the scruff of his shirt, dragging him back through the halls and back to the cell where Iroh had been caged. Before Iroh could drag him into the room, however, Iroh stopped. He took a deep breath and he let his love for Zuko and Lu Ten fill him. Poon probably had a son as well, and Iroh did not want to hurt him so much as to keep Poon from his family.
'Brave soldier boy, comes marching home.'
Iroh smiled and took a deep breath before he landed a blow to Poon's gut, knocking him out cold and laying him against the wall outside his cell. Time was wasted, however, and so with quick steps, Iroh made his way out of the volcano that housed the Fire Nation capital and palace. Instead of going down the heavily guarded zig-zag road, where the invasion was currently taking place, he simply went down the mountainside as fast as possible, going through the wilderness on his way to the great gates of Azulon, where his main adversary of this battle waited. The wilderness was thick with brush and thickets of brambles outside the main port, but Iroh made his way through easily enough. He remembered his time in prison, where he constantly played out the battle in his head, and he knew that this was a critical aspect of the invasion, for if they should be routed, as the General predicted, the invading forces would need a quick and easy means of escape, and the Guardians of the Great Gates of Azulon would show no mercy in dealing with the encroachers.
Iroh made his way quickly about the port. He could certainly swim, but it would deter his firepower, and he would need all of his strength if he was to take down the Guardian. Iroh heard a great commotion, and as eerie as the silence had been, the great collective outburst of the Fire Nation's benders rent the air as they regained the use of their firebending. Iroh turned and ran onto one of the outcroppings of carved stone that acted as a docking point for large Fire Navy ships. He found a suitable vessel though, a small, nondescript ship of little import, and it was completely deserted. It was made of the same heavy iron that usually comprised the Fire Navy's fleets, which made it perfect for Iroh's plan. He quickly set about piloting the ship, single handedly. It was hard work, doing the jobs of roughly fifteen to twenty crew members while still managing to steer the ship straight at the billowing flames that engulfed the Gates of Azulon, but Iroh decided that little else mattered aside from keeping the ship on course. After all, it would likely sink as soon as it collided with the flaming net of barge rope. As he drove the ship directly into the net, he climbed through the hatch in the bridge's roof and readied himself to dive through the mouth of the dragon, the most direct path to reach one of the Guardians of the Gate. The ship hit the rope, and Iroh used the momentum to propel his launch from the ship as he dove for the golden dragon's gaping maw.
But even as Iroh jumped, he knew it was no good, his muscles made him incredibly heavy and so he took a breath, clenched his fists, and stiffened like a board. Flames rocketed from his hands and feet, and the General shot right into the dragon's mouth. Immediately, he set upon several of the soldiers therein. It was a relatively plain room which seemed to currently be used for storage, but there were about ten soldiers inside, all of whom quickly fled as fire scorched their armor and clothes. One man, however, did not flee. He bent the fire that Iroh had projected at him and sent it careening into thin air, spiraling into nothing as he took a defensive stance.
"Sho Ten," Iroh said, nodding lightly to the man before him.
The man was dressed in robes that showed fire nation nobility, but his shaved head and lack of family crest made him look more along the lines of a monk of some sort. And indeed he was, the Guardians of the Gates were a prestigious pair of firebending twins that were said to look nearly identical.
"I'm Ren Li, actually," the man said happily.
"My apologies, but we have never formally been introduced," Iroh said casually, never dropping his form as he slowly began to circle Ren Li.
"Indeed, but we are very aware of who you are, Dragon of the West."
From behind Ren Li appeared an exact replica, whom Iroh knew must have been his twin, Sho Ten.
"The both of you are here," Iroh asked, as the Twins tried to flank Iroh, "what are the odds of such an occurrence?"
"Slim to none," Sho Ten said, "but when we saw your ship charging this side of the gate, we knew we both needed to be here to head you off."
Both Sho Ten and Rin Li stripped the top half of their robes to reveal muscles just as large and impressive as Iroh's, which was to be expected.
The Guardians were chosen from birth to train in the most advanced forms of firebending in order to light the Gates, to keep them lit, and to protect the borders of the Fire Nation capital against threats. They were given intense physical and mental training and their skills were legendary. Indeed, few received such extensive and thorough training in firebending, save perhaps royals and a few of the more wealthy noble families. Even then, there were two of them, and only one of Iroh.
"Did you truly believe that you could just take down the gates without being reprimanded by us," Rin Li asked.
"Not at all, in fact I came here for the both of you," Iroh said, "the Avatar must not have his escape route cut off."
"Ah, so you, too, have seen the fault in this invasion," Sho Ten asked.
"There is no fault in fighting from the freedom of the four nations, but this invasion force is ill equipped to deal with the two of you, should they retreat," Iroh said simply.
"Well then, we will be sure to welcome them with open arms just as soon as we take care of you!"
With one twin upon either side, Iroh heard fire tear through and feast upon the air around him as the twins created great flames and pressed them inward, crushing Iroh between two flaming walls. Instead of fighting their firepower, Iroh used his rocketing technique to shoot upward. He flipped and hit the ceiling with his feet before he kicked down hard, shooting at one of the twins. He raised a fist to smite Iroh, but the Dragon of the West rained down like a comet and sent one twin sailing out of the dragon's mouth and into the salty ocean water of the port.
"He can swim," a voice behind Iroh said harshly.
Fire lashed out at the General, but he swiftly cast the flames aside and counterattacked with a flurry of strong punches. Each punch was followed by an inferno, but even after that barrage, the other twin looked no worse for wear, indeed he smiled and breathed as if he were having the time of his life.
"I must thank you for the entertainment, General Iroh," Sho Ten said, "but I'm afraid I can no longer go easy on you. I will end your little escape and send you back to the prison, where you belong."
Sho Ten held his arms out and from them four whips of flame appeared. With long, heavy blows he swiped at Iroh, who sidestepped each blow, coming closer and closer to Sho Ten with each strike. Finally, Iroh was right upon the Guardian of the Gate, and with a roar, he breathed a pressurized flame that went off with the sound of a cannon, throwing the twin back into the wall.
"While your fire is most impressive, it comes from the wrong power source," Iroh said, clapping his hands to remove the dust of battle from them.
"What do you mean," Sho Ten asked, scratching at his bald head.
"You use firebending for your work, but have you ever paused to consider where the source of your firebending comes from?"
"Your sea of chi," Sho Ten said, giving a rather textbook answer.
Iroh shook his head.
"That is little more than energy that is burned up by your firebending, like wood is fuel for a fire. I am asking you what you use for kindling, what is the spark that drives you?"
"Perhaps… well, separation, I suppose. I am always separated from society, me and my brother were torn away from our parents, singled out because we were firebending twins born to a noble family."
"And that anger is what sparks your fire," Iroh said, nodding wisely, "but that is not a healthy source for your fire. I draw my power from the direct source, the original source."
Iroh crouched in front of Sho Ten, who leaned back against the wall, looking slightly fearful. A small pillar of flame appeared in Iroh's hand, and it burned with a variety of colors that reflected in Sho Ten's eyes.
"This is the secret of fire," Iroh said, "it does not originate from hatred, nor any other emotion, it comes from life, for fire is life. The fire that keeps you going, even though you suffered separation and other trials, this is the fire you must draw from in order to master firebending. Do you understand?"
"Completely."
But Sho Ten's eyes were no longer upon Iroh, they were on a hulking figure that was approaching him from behind. Rin Li had climbed the flaming gate and was now firebending right at Iroh's turned back.
Iroh saw this and ducked, allowing the fire to pass over his head and burn right at Sho Ten. The fire was quickly sidetracked, however, as Iroh seized it in his fist and pulled out around, landing the flaming blow directly into Rin Li's gut, sending him flying backward into the opposite wall.
"That was an excellent sneak attack, though your brother spoiled the surprised," Iroh said.
There was a crunch as the ship Iroh had piloted into the gate finally made some headway, and the great ratcheting spindle used to raise and lower the gate was nearly torn from its position upon the floor as the boat tried to push through.
The two stood once more, and they charged Iroh from opposite sides of the room.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Iroh said quietly as the two firebenders raced at him from both sides, their teeth bared and their fists flaming.
Iroh sighed and just as they were about to collide, he sidestepped, allowing the brothers to run full force into each other. Iroh took a pile of rope sitting in a dark corner of the room and threw it over the head of the two brothers, tying them together before they could recover. He then bound the rope to the burning barge rope holding up the Gate, and with a kick to the lever holding the crank he allowed the Gate to fall. Sho Ten and Rin Li recovered in time to see the rope pile connecting them to the Gate quickly unwind as it was pulled out of the dragon's mouth and into the salty spray.
"Think on what I've said," Iroh said, waving, "I'll come back when the Avatar has freed the world from my brother's tyranny."
And with a single look at each other, the twins were pulled out of the window with a holler.
"Such strong young men," Iroh said with a smile, lifting the trapdoor that lead down to the main port landings so that he could commandeer another vessel and escape to the Earth Kingdom.
Hello, fanfiction! Nice to see you again! This is just a short one-shot about Iroh's escape from prison during the day of the eclipse, with a couple of OC's (the Guardians of the Gates of Azulon). It was just a random idea that Iroh did what he could to make sure team Avatar could live to flee another day. Plus, Iroh is the frickin' best, like, ever.