Chapter 1: The Cell
PRINCESS Azula of the Fire Nation sat in her jail cell, thinking about the events that had happened this past week. Her only two friends, Mai and Ty Lee, had betrayed her, she had barely survived at the Western Air Temple, she had been appointed Firelord by her own father, she had been defeated in an Agni Kai by her own brother, and she had been cursed with a vision of her own mother.
Her mother… those two words haunted her like never before. She looked around her at the condition of her cell. It was dark and cold. The bricks making up the wall were chipped and moldy. The stench of the cell was unbearable. It was so small that there was only room for her to sit on the ground: no bed, no chair.
As she looked out into the darkness, she saw her mother's face again. The face of Princess Ursa: a loving mother that gave all she could to protect her two children. Azula jerked back and closed her eyes. When she opened them again, the face was gone.
Azula's mind began to race. She thought about what Ursa had said to her in her vision. Had Ursa really loved her? How could that possibly be? No, that couldn't be true. Azula was a monster that couldn't be loved. She could only be feared. Fear was the key to her own sanity.
She then remembered Mai and Ty Lee. She thought she had control over them: that they feared her enough to do whatever she would say. But it turned out that she didn't have enough of their fear to control them. They had turned on her and betrayed her "trust". The two people she had been able to rely on for help had stabbed her in the back. No one could be trusted…
And then she thought of her dad. The one person who had been proud of her… for being evil. She was evil, after all. She had only the thoughts of a victorious, war-mongering Fire Nation in her heart (if she even had one).
And last, she thought of Zuko. Her brother. Her enemy. And now, her ruler. He had defeated her for the throne. How, was the question. How could he, a mere firebender, beat her, a firebending prodigy, who uses careful tactics, blue flame, and lightning while fighting? It wasn't possible! How could she have lost? She was obviously stronger than him. He couldn't beat her. What did she do wrong?
Some voices interrupted her thoughts. They were faint, and they seemed to be in her head. They were saying: Azula, Azula, you must restore balance to the Fire Nation. You must break out of this cell! You must redeem yourself! You must become Firelord and kill your brother!!
At this time, Azula begins to think… Yes, this is what I must do. Now, all I need is a plan…
While she is figuring out a plan, she hears a second group of voices. This time, however, they were real, and coming from a different jail cell. They were even fainter than the other ones, so she had to put herself up against the wall to hear them. She heard two voices, and this is what they were saying:
1st Voice: I should count myself lucky that the new Firelord has graced me with his presence in my lowly prison cell.
It sounds like Zuzu is visiting somebody… but who?
2nd Voice: You should count yourself lucky that the Avatar spared your life.
Zuko is visiting Ozai??, she thought to herself. This should be interesting…
Zuko: Banishing me was the best thing you could have done for my life. It put me on the right path. Perhaps your time in here can do the same for you.
Yeah right, it's not going to make a difference for me, she thought again.
Ozai: Why are you really here?
Zuko: Because you're going to tell me something: Where is my mother?
At this point, Azula gasped. Did Ozai really know where her mother was? She quieted down and listened for another voice, but it wasn't coming yet. Finally, she heard a last, extremely quiet voice.
Ozai: The Southern Air Temple…
Azula once again gasped, and heard the slamming of a door. She returned to the center of her cell, and her mind once again began to race. This was a perfect chance to find her mother. But what was she to do? She was stuck in a cell that was driving her crazy. Her surroundings were bad enough to make her do anything to get out of there. And then she realized: firebending! Her ticket out of that terrible jail cell, and onward to finding her mother, was firebending herself out of the cell!
But what was she going to do once she got out of there for good, and what would she do when she finally got to her mother?
As she sat there and thought, the cell around her began to influence her thoughts. It only made her think of dark thoughts, thinking of what she would do to her mother once she found her.
And then a thought came to her: the only way to make her truly redeem herself and to regain her own power and honor would be to kill her own mother, and then to kill her brother for the crown. Only then would she be able to restore her sanity and her power on the throne.
Finally, the time was right to take back what she saw as hers: her honor, her power, and her sanity.
And as her full plan began to make itself come through, the cell she was in was watching…