Alright, this chapter might reveal a bit to those readers who are brighter crayons than the others… Please Enjoy! Sorry again for not updating in so long!
Disclaimer: Doctor Who and AtLA are two completely different things. If they weren't, and I had the rights, saying that I owned them both, this story would most likely be playing on your TV screen at this very moment. Is it? I think not, so would you please try to catch out someone else who has not put a disclaimer in their chapters. :)
Zuko could have screamed. He could have torn his hair out, and kept on tearing. Katara and Toph had escaped, while he had just lain there, unconscious, oblivious to what was happening right under his very nose. He did not fear though, the worst was yet to come; he knew that for a fact. The plan was working, for Katara had showed how he could get to her, without realising it. Zuko could not help himself. He smiled.
Zuko stood up, and walked out of the throne room; he followed the halls into the gardens, passing portraits of previous royalties. He stopped at his mother's.
A twinge of regret ran through Zuko. All Ursa's wishes, all her hopes and dreams for him. He had stood against them, ruthlessly, without even realising it. Zuko stared at the painting; a tear almost came to his eye. Almost. Zuko turned and strolled on, reminding himself, that he was doing it for her anyway.
He walked back to the throne room, a pounding headache accompanying him, and walked straight down the long hall towards the throne. He sat, crossed his legs, and meditated. Something had been bugging him, and he was determined to find out what.
Zuko focussed on his heartbeat, it pounded slow and steady; good. He was calm. The memories could penetrate his defences.
Zuko sat in the throne room, in front of the map, and next to his uncle. His heart pounded so hard here, he felt as if it was about to burst out of his chest, or that all the noblemen would heard it. Including his father.
Although Zuko regularly visited the throne room, he still peered around curiously at his surroundings. Zuko stared at the pillars, studying the intricate designs of dragon spiralling up towards the ceiling. His gaze wandered throughout the hall, viewing it from a completely different perspective to normal. Artefacts lined the walls, obscured by the shadows that hung over them, and more precise illustrations of dragons filled the wall's perimeter.
Zuko looked farther down the hall, and he found himself drawn to the throne. Zuko didn't view it as massively spectacular, but it radiated respect and nobility, that of which he could give.
He focussed his eyesight on the painting behind it, of two dragons, one blue, one red, spiralling around each other. Zuko found himself now drawn towards the eye of red. He thought it glistened slightly, and as he looked closer he was sure that it-
Zuko turned his head, enraged at the thought of being disturbed at such an important moment. He lit a flame in his hand, turning it blue with hatred and spite, and then stormed across the hall, taking long, menacing strides.
"Why are you here?" he bellowed at the silhouetted figure in the doorway, which he could make out to be a guard, "Who sent you?"
The guard stuttered as Zuko neared, "A hawk has been retrieved, it was sent by the division heading towards the prison, sir."
Zuko softened enough to let the flame return to the crackling red and orange, "What did it say?"
"They are nearing their destination, and have confirmed sightings of scouts."
"How many scouts?"
"I'm sorry sir, I do not know. If you talk to one of the more informed men in the hierarchy, I'm sure-"
"Get out of my way," Zuko snarled as he stormed past the guard. He turned right, heading towards the battlements where the generals held the morning calls. Zuko zigzagged his way through the halls until he came to some large double doors, but he didn't even think about stopping. Zuko pushed them open and flew in, robes flying out behind him. He walked straight up to the general.
"How many scouts?" Zuko asked for the second time that day.
"Fire Lord Zuko," the general bowed, "I am sorry, but pardon your majesty?"
"How many scouts are there? How many scouts did the division confirm sightings of?"
"Ah, you mean the division heading towards the prison, sir? They report sightings of around 20 scouts, 4 towers, and heavily guarded walls lined with around 5 benders on the inside and out."
Zuko frowned in thought, "We are obviously not going to penetrate them by force. Send a hawk back telling them that I, Fire Lord Zuko, shall be accompanying them with a small party of my own. It is not going to work if we battle straight on like mindless rhinos. We shall sneak into the prison, and sneak out."
The general nodded, "Of course sir, I shall get right on it. Good day."
Zuko turned and strode off, back to the throne room. He pushed open the great double doors and cross the length of the hall again, then climbed the steps to the throne. Zuko didn't bother to sit this time; he sidestepped the throne and walked to the wall, where the painting of the dragons hung. He looked up at the eyes of the red dragon, and grinned as one of them glistened. Zuko propelled himself up with a roaring flame at his feet and hands to get a closer look. They were definitely gems, and as he looked, he saw that the blue dragon's eye were gems too. Zuko slid his hand across the surface of one, and the light touch pushed the gem in. He moved back slightly, hoping as to not have damaged the intricate work, and then glanced down as rumbling erupted from below.
The canopy over the throne had cleverly dismantled itself, and Zuko saw that the throne had moved back to reveal a passageway leading downwards. He lowered to the ground and peered more closely down the hole. It was dark and gloomy in there. Zuko lit a flame in his palm, then let it fall, penetrating the darkness. It dropped a couple of metres, before igniting a rug laying down there.
Zuko waved his hand, expertly extinguishing the rug. He dropped down into the darkness, stumbling on impact. Recovering gracefully Zuko lit another flame in his palm, and, as if on cue, the room filled with light from braziers placed around.
Zuko let the flame go out and analysed the room. It had a low ceiling but was long and thin, training dummies lined the room, and swords hung on the walls; the hilts encrusted with gems.
He looked around curiously, and spied a table laying off to the right. A portrait hung above it, and a note lay on the table, written in the most decadent handwriting Zuko had ever seen. Zuko tentatively moved over to the table, cautiously stepping in case of any traps ready to be strung. If Katara and Toph jumped out from hiding, he swore...
He made it to the table and picked up the note. Still cautious, Zuko read it.
To My Dearest Fire Lord Zuko,
I do not know when you may receive this, or whether it may even be you,
or someone who shares my views, but this is my last hope at stopping the war
brewing against the other nations.
I am aware that I am still banished from the Fire Nation; Ozai's restraint cannot be
undone unless I am sought out in person, and declared welcome again. I
cannot bear to regard him as a husband anymore, so I expect that I will not resume
my old title and role as Fire Lady.
Please find me Zuko; I can explain everything to you, more if you want. My location
is unknown, even to me, but I am somewhere off the coast of the North Pole. I believe it
to be one of the Air Nomad Temples, as I am on an Island floating high in the sky.
Use this room, so you may train in the oldest methods of Firebending, descended
from the dragons themselves, and try to face everything you have been through.
Scrolls on the shelves around the room, contain moves and procedures, ways
to turn your element colours other than blue and red, and much, much more.
Use them wisely.
Your Uncle should be ideal to train you, as he already knows a lot about these
methods. Please, treat him well, as he is a wise and noble man, who has a lot of
things you don't know about him. Some of them may be revealed whilst in here.
If you look around the room now, you can see that it has an aroma of respect,
that of which you should give. It is said that this room was made by the
dragons themselves, and then the palace was built on top of it deliberately.
Perhaps you should look in the palace library, and do some research.
I still love you with all my heart Zuko, I always did. Understand that you may have done
regrettable things in the past, but I still accept you as the best son I could ever have.
From your Loving Mother,
Ursa
Zuko put the note down with shaky hands, he walked to the middle of the room, and sat cross legged.
One part of him was furious. How did mother get that note here? How long ago did she write it? He asked himself, but there was a nagging right at the back of his brain. What if she is right? What if the war shouldn't have started and I was overreacting? Zuko suddenly felt exhausted, like he was going to pass out at any minute. He glanced around the room quickly, and noticed a thick mat in the far corner. He wobbled over on unsteady feet and unrolled it. It was comfy, and soft, and adjusted to his shape. Zuko's eyes lolled shut, and dreams filled his thoughts.
Ooh, this is interesting, is it not? I'm not sure whether this did explain stuff, but believe me when I tell you that this chapter is VERY important in the storyline... Muhahahahaha! *I am not Toph, I am Melon Lord!*
So why is Zuko going to the prison? What is he doing there? Why can't he just waltz in, like every Fire Lord should be able to? Because there's war on, and the prison is ran by the Earth Kingdom, so the Fire Nation didn't think about letting some of those prisoners out...
Thanks for reading this far! Please carry on if there are more chapters to be read!
Kyoshi xx