Gabriel's Horn

Chapter 1 – Ten Thousand Years

Story: a modern fantasy AU with the flair inspired from angel-related works like the Mortal Instruments, Gabriel, Legion etc. Yes, my head is weird.

Rating: T for violence, magic, and the combination of the two.

Disclaimer: I own nothing but a headache.

Archangel Iroh, wielding his blade of flame, with grime of war staining his silver armor and white robe, flipped his wings as he ascended to the ground where the wounded angel knights were tended. The battle on the Wulong Forest has been going on for weeks but the forces of evil were still going strong. His brother Ozai led the charge as Iroh fell on his knees in despair.

The Hellhound Sammael, a creature of skinless and furless canine body with alien long-snouted head that looked to be a cross between a squid and a wolf with tentacle-like six-foot long tongue, galloped at the front of the vanguard of the demon armies. Scamps, little simian-like creatures with four eyes, wide pointy ears like a Chihuahua, and rows of hook-like fangs, crawled through the feet of demon knights. The ranks of the demon knights behind Vaatu, the demon lord riding Sammael, wore the same black armor he did, the one seemingly made of melted stone, with sharp ridges and full-face masks, bearing blades of the same rough quality, all with shining burning magma inside the crack. The were-creatures that had sided with the evil charged behind them.

Archangel Ozai, standing high on the top of a rock pillar of the Forest, spread his wings and pointed his white spear, allowing the light of Heaven to shine on the tip, inspiring courage on his visibly smaller forces of angel knights, humans, and several kinds of supernatural creatures who had sided with the good, and signaling the charge.

The two armies clashed in one bloody battle. Sammael galloped through the ranks of the Light, snapping its tongue at nearby angels, poisoning them with acid. Vaatu cleaved through two angel knights and a leg of a treeman before Ozai nose-dived at him with his spear. Vaatu raised his claymore in time to hold against the brunt of the attack and evaded being gored by Ozai's spear although they two of them did end up tumbling down to the rocky ground.

Numerous angel knights ascended upon Sammael and circled him, armed with their shields and burning blades. Ozai and Vaatu disentangled themselves and stood up facing each other. A second passed and the mortal combat between the two began. Vaatu roared and slashed his claymore downward, shattering the ground Ozai was standing on a few seconds ago and raised it just as quickly to deflect Ozai's spear thrust. The Archangel fought with a calm demeanor despite his cruel flurry of thrust, all of which Vaatu expertly deflected. Then, Vaatu stepped forward to the incoming thrust and trapped Ozai's spear with his free arm; his sword wielding arm brought the blade down on the shaft, breaking the white weapon in two.

Ozai dropped the shaft and raised his hand; a blade of flame appeared and they clashed again. Ozai took advantage of his smaller frame against Vaatu who was twice bigger than any man, and he scored several hits on Vaatu but his dark armor was impenetrable. Vaatu's sweeping blow, Ozai tried and failed to defend with his flaming blade that shattered at the impact. Ozai was hit by the flat of Vaatu's blade and was sent crashing towards the base of the earth pillar near them.

Vaatu growled lowly like a beast and stepped towards the fallen Ozai, ignoring the combat that was going on around them. Halfway over, Archangel Jeong Jeong landed with twin flaming swords and began his flurry of slashes and, leaping and twirling horizontally for momentum, he landed a powerful dual slash on the chest of Vaatu's armor, leaving hot burning gashes. Vaatu ignored the gashes and swung his blade overhead and brought it down in a vertical slash. Jeong Jeong swerved to evade it but Vaatu swung his clawed gloved hands at him, scoring two vertical gashes on his right eye. Screaming in pain, Jeong Jeong suffered a blow from Vaatu's swinging arm.

With his way cleared, Vaatu resumed his march towards Ozai.

The cloudy stormy sky suddenly parted and Lights of Heaven shone down, washing the battlefield in light. From the pillars, a shining figure of a female floated down. Tall and slim, draped in silk robe with six wings of snow white feathers and wearing a mask of ivory with blue markings, Seraphim Raava spread her arms slowly as if to embrace and grief of their loss washed over the thousands of angels, including Iroh.

Their teardrops fell to the ground and turned to droplets of light. The droplets floated like shining pearl and, at the gesture of the Raava, they swept the battlefield like an army fireflies and hurled towards the giant Hellhound Sammael. The Hellhound growled and tried to claw the light but the light solidified and trapped it in a cocoon of blinding light.

The Hellhound's defeat sapped the demonic army of much of their strength; the lava-like glow of hellfire on the cracks of their weapons of armors slowly died down.

Iroh dived down with a battlecry and his blade at Vaatu and—

-0-0-0-0-0-

"Are you sure that's what happened?" Azula interrupted her mother's story. Ursa, ever so patient, caressed the side of her teenaged daughter's face.

"Yes, dear", Ursa smiled. "That's what the scroll says."

Azula narrowed her amber eyes. "So… Uncle basically stole Dad's thunder."

"Azula", Ursa chuckled, tugging on the girl's blanket. "Your father was wounded by Vaatu. And besides, the story didn't end there. Your father got up and fought by your uncle's side. He… uh… got beat down again while your uncle finished the fight and banished Vaatu back to hell."

"Uh… huh…" Azula still did not look convinced.

Ursa smiled again and tucked her daughter in. "Now sleep, honey. Tomorrow is an important day", she said, leaning down and kissing the girl on her forehead.

And important day indeed it was…

The next morning saw Azula setting off early in the morning. She flew from the cloud that was their mansion and was soon joined by Mai and Ty Lee. The latter looked rather giddy.

"I heard Sammael was trapped by the tears of a thousand angels", she gulped. "And the seal has to be renewed every ten thousand years or he will get loose and Vaatu will regain enough power on earth to wreak havoc again."

"And today happens to be the Harmonic Convergence, the ten thousandth day, the day where the veil between the three realms is at the weakest", Mai added. "So, today, a thousand angels will renew that seal."

"A thousand angels will cry?" Ty Lee's shoulder slumped. "That will be so weird."

"More than a thousand, actually", Azula did a little twirl as they flew towards the majestic castle in the center of the Celestial Realm. "They've gathered as many angels as they could, not just a thousand."

"I wonder how they are going to collect the tears of a thousand angels, hmmm…." Ty Lee put the thinky face on. "What do you think Azula?"

"Oh, I'm sure they have thought of something to achieve that purpose. They have ten thousand years to do that", Azula shrugged. "A rune that enables the user to harvest tears, maybe? Or some heavenly holy magic doodah? I'm sure it won't be something stupid."

Half an hour later though…

"This is stupid", Azula commented dryly as she sat on a stool in a small square made of white cloth screens. After standing in a line for what felt like the better part of the day, which it was, she found herself behind the screen and face to face with an elderly female angel who presented her with several options to harvest her tears.

Cutting onions seemed plausible but Azula and knife was a bad combo, everyone knows it. Cheap romance novels would have worked wonders on Ty Lee, but not Azula. Tweezers… ng, Azula was sure they were kidding and she did not really have hair aside from the hair on her head and her eyebrows, which would not yield a tear even if they tweezed every single strand off. There was also a big burly menacing looking knight who cracked his knuckles every time Azula looked his way, but Azula chose to pass on that option. All other options looked just as bad.

"Can't you just poke my eye or something? And put those tweezers away, you creepy old woman!"

Five minutes and much struggle later, Azula emerged from the other side of the screen to open field, rubbing her stinging left eye. From the box next to her, a knight came out bearing a large jar of tears and another one arrived with an empty jar. "She's still going", the first knight whistled. "Boy, that girl can cry."

"Waste not, want not", the second knight said before he entered with the fresh bottle.

"Oww…" Azula griped, rubbing the eye that the old lady sprayed with pepper. "I think I should regret not being more girly. Reading sappy novels would have been less painful."

"Beats having your armpit hair tweezed", Mai said as she joined Azula, about the same time the box behind her echoed with the scream of a male. "Ouch…" Mai deadpanned.

Ty Lee finally emerged from the box that needed a change of jar, still sobbing. An elderly male angel embraced her as they walked out, offering her candies. "There there, little one. It's over now", the old bearded angel cooed, patting the girl's head.

"B-but, it's so sad…" Ty Lee sobbed. "They can't be together because Oma and Shu are from different villages and… and…"

"It's just a story, dearie", the old man smiled patiently but eyed Azula and Mai for help. "Just some romance novel. A hit bestseller, though only God knows how", he added rather flatly.

"Come, Ty Lee", Azula saved the old man by dragging Ty Lee away. "I'll buy you ice cream."

The three girls flew towards the center of the Celestial City, a heavenly place (pun intended) that looked like any prosperous medieval cities on the earth below them, only cleaner and… white. The buildings seemed to be made of white marble and the road bricks of gold, the roofs blue as the sky and the place was clean and radiating a sense of peace. Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee found themselves, ten minutes later, at Jasmine Dragon Teashop, enjoying servings of ice cream and cookies.

"I dunno what they do to the ice cream here, but it's so yummy! Here, try blueberry", Ty Lee shoved a generous spoonful to Azula who let the gray-eyed girl spoon-fed her.

Mai watched the exchange with sharp eyes. "And you two wonder why people think you're gay."

Azula merely smirked as she straightened up and flipped her newspaper. "Oh, look… they made another movie about us."

Oh, yes… the human interpretation of angels had gone very astray indeed, although they still retained some general and rather accurate features. There used to be a time where angels admired the paintings of men depicting them, and then admiration turned to many giggles when the interpretation slowly evolved; Azula had not been born yet but she had heard of the great jocularity that spread through the Celestial Realm during the era where angels appeared in paintings as nude creatures with nothing but a magically or coincidentally floating piece of clothes that barely covered their genitals, if at all. And then, motion pictures came to being.

"I'm bored!" Azula declared, which was usually the sign that she intended to sneak down to the Mortal Realm and have fun. Ty Lee squealed happily and Mai sighed.

It was barely noon and the three girls were walking down the street in Republic City. No longer were they in their simple white robe, with their long hair untied, and a pair of wings and heavenly light emanating from them; they had assumed human disguise and hidden their wings. Azula was in a comfortable shirt and dark hoodie, dark capris and a pair of sneakers, and her hair she tied in a simple ponytail with two flocks of hair framing the sides of her face. Mai was in tight leather jacket, boots, and pants, with studded cuff on her wrist and ornamental chain with shiny long and thin arrowheads dangling on them. Ty Lee contrasted the two with a pink tank top and blue jeans, her brown hair tied in a long braid, and a big smile on her face.

They made their way to the movie theater and made a stop at the concession stand for food and drinks. As they made their way into the growing lines among the humans, Ty Lee suddenly gasped and turned her back on the line, facing the girls with a strained smile. Loss for word, she simply gestured towards the amber-eyed messy-haired sixteen-year-old who was manning the stand.

Azula narrowed her eyes slightly at the boy. "Oh, hello… brother", she muttered.

Zuko served the customers with an obvious lack of cheery smile, unlike the female co-worker of his. "Next", he called after the big obese man got his two buckets of popcorn. Ty Lee stepped forward before Mai or Azula could. "Hi!" she greeted cheerfully.

Zuko simply stared at her blankly.

"Umm… what do you recommend?" Ty Lee grinned sweetly, trying to drag the encounter as long as she could.

"Popcorn", Zuko said as he scooped popcorn onto a big paper container. "And for your friends?"

"Just water", Mai said quickly before Ty Lee could.

They paid for their purchases and left for the theater. Once inside, Ty Lee giggled. "Is it just me, or did Zuko get cuter than the last time we saw him?"

"Are you seriously asking me?" Azula grumbled as she eased into her seat.

"No, I'm asking Mai", Ty Lee countered coyly.

"Hush, the movie's starting", Azula made a grab for some popcorn.

"It's the pre-movie advertisement", Mai pointed out.

"Yes, the best part."

-0-0-0-0-0-

Zuko sighed in relief as the rush died down at the start of the movies. Jin, his co-worker, smiled. "Glad that's over", she said, leaning back on the counter in a slightly seductive way that accentuate her… bountiful assets.

Zuko was oblivious to such (not so) subtle approach.

"So, I heard you got an advanced offer to Uni Uni?" Jin asked.

"Don't call it that", Zuko cringed a bit. He took a hotdog and a can of soda from the counter and joined Jin out to have their lunch. "They don't like being called Uni Uni", they sat down on an empty couch. "United Republic of Nations University takes it as an offense to be called something as cutesy as Uni Uni", Zuko opened his soda.

"Hmm… United Republic of Nations… can I call them URN Uni? URNU?"

Zuko nearly spat his soda.

Jin laughed. "Relax", she pinched Zuko's cheek playfully. "You're so easy to tease."

Zuko sipped the drink from his can and said nothing. Jin went on asking about his acceptance, what he was going to major in, and many others questions he answered half-heartedly. His mind, for some reason, flew towards that amber-eyed girl in a hoodie.

She was… she looked familiar to him. The girl was extremely beautiful, Zuko admitted, but that was not what pulled his mind towards her, which was weird because Zuko was a growing boy of sixteen with healthy attraction towards the female of the species. Maybe she was a former classmate of his, Zuko guessed even though he could not bring himself to believe that.

…Azula…

Like a whisper it came to Zuko, accompanied by a trail of short but intense headache. He grunted and pinched the part between his eyes.

The well-meaning Jin touched his shoulder. "Are you alright?" she asked with concern.

"Yeah…" Zuko muttered. "We… better get back to the stand. Next wave is coming."

Zuko tried to ignore the girl and the headache that had been coming more frequently, and busied himself with serving wave after wave of customers; having a chatty Jin as a co-worker helped. He completely missed Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee's leaving the theater among the crowd after their movie was over.

The girls continued their excursion well into the evening, undeterred by the Republic City's cloudy gray autumn sky. At Rose Garden, Mai and Azula decided to pay a visit to Aunty Wu while Ty Lee opted out of this particular visit, choosing instead to wait in the pet store across the street where she could play with puppies. While Ty Lee did not have anything against Aunty Wu, she disliked having her misfortune foretold by the Seer.

Aunty Wu herself was not very fond of unexpected guests, but higher beings like the angels must be accommodated by the rules of common sense. The elderly lady, clad in colorful gypsies dress and beads, with streaks of gray marring the side of her hair bun, sat down across from the guests at the circular table in her cramped fortunetelling parlor, with a deck of Tarot cards.

"I would actually prefer tea leaves reading right about now", Azula pointed out though Aunty Wu did not stop arranging a deck of upturned cards in front of her. "Kinda thirsty."

"Pick a card", Aunty Wu commanded.

"We're just here to check up on you", Azula lazily turned a random card. "It's been awhile and all. Mom says hi."

"No, she doesn't. You three snuck out again", Aunty Wu pulled the card closer to Azula. "The King", she said. "Pick another one."

Azula obeyed.

"The Devil", Aunty Wu frowned. "Interesting", she said. Aunty Wu then picked the next card herself. The Chariot.

Aunty Wu nearly dropped her card. She then began muttering to herself; Azula caught words like "…not possible… banished… would've known…" but not much else.

Tentatively, Aunty Wu dealt another deck and flipped her first card: the Joker. Her frown went deeper at this. The next card she flipped was the Hanged Man, and the third one was Death. Shaking her head and going visibly pale, she dealt two more cards and Azula, being an angelic being and thus was able to tune into the sincere prayers originating from the Mortal Realm, sensed a prayer for good fortune Aunty Wu was wholeheartedly praying in her heart.

With a shaky hand, she flipped the card to her right: the Sun.

Azula cleared her throat, "Well, that was intense."

"What did the cards say?" Mai asked.

"Something impossible", Aunty Wu slouched back and actually looked shaken.

"Tell me", Azula asked.

"Nah, it's silly", Aunty Wu let out a nervous laugh as she swept her hand on the cards, shuffling them off their neat position.

"Amuse me", Azula tried again.

Aunty Wu narrowed her eyes somewhat at the impudence of the girl but she knew Azula enough to recognize her sometimes crass attitude. "If you insist", the fortuneteller sighed. "The King, the Devil, and the Chariot: the army general of the demon king", she said.

"Vaatu?"Mai frowned.

"The Chariot here also signifies an advance", Aunty Wu explained. "According to the cards, Vaatu would return."

"But he's too weakened", Mai said. "With Sammael, the Hellhound, the conduit of evil sealed, no demon can manifest physically on the Mortal Realm for too long."

"I know that!" Aunty Wu unexpectedly snapped. "I was there ten thousand years ago, girl!"

Azula came next. "But the cards say he will return."

Aunty Wu turned her glare at the shorter of the two girls. She chose to ignore them and resumed with her interpretation of the second row of card. "The Joker: a dark horse, a hidden player, an underestimated force", she said. "He or she will have to make a sacrifice", she picked up the Hanged Man.

"What kind of sacrifice?" Azula arched a brow. Aunty Wu's reply was her picking up and showing them the next card: the Death.

"Only with the sacrifice, will the Light triumph", Aunty Wu picked up the last card: the Sun.

Azula and Mai simply stared at her like she was mad.

Ten seconds later, Aunty Wu decided that she had had enough of the staring. "Get out!"

-0-0-0-0-0-

Zuko put on his leather jacket and hopped into his beat up red convertible. It was almost dinnertime and he had to go home quickly before his Aunt Noriko went all mother hen on him again. He fixed the rearview mirror, smiling a bit at the commemorative bunny-shaped reusable soda container that he bought for Kiyi. Aunt Noriko would probably kill him for buying Kiyi soft drinks again, but he did have to cancel on his promise to bring Kiyi to watch that new bunny… CG Pixar movie thingy.

How Zuko hope Uncle Noren would make it home for dinner tonight… he'd make a good buffer.

A loud thunder echoed overhead, so close and so loud, Zuko practically jumped on his seat. He was in his parked car in the underground parking lot and the sound echoed in the enclosed space. Patting his thumping chest, Zuko got up and put on the tarp before he drove out into the streets. The sun was shining still with quite an integrity but the cloud was a thick disk overhead. Zuko found it strange. Never before in his life had he seen cloud such as that on the sky of Republic City.

…Azula…

Zuko was barely able to step on the brake and stop the car before he hit the garbage truck in front of him when the flash of pain hit his head. Pelted by the peal of honks from nearby cars, and a curse word or two, Zuko skulked lower in his car and opted for an alternate less crowded route home.

Azula…

The name rolled on his tongue very comfortably. His thought flew to the petite amber-eyed girl in dark hoodie. She was very beautiful, Zuko admitted, but he did not think of her like he would any other girl with that level of beauty. She felt like… like a hug, like a blanket. Zuko did not imagine him and her rolling on top of each other on a beach naked when he thought of that girl.

…Zuzu..

Zuko felt irked all of a sudden as he continued the drive home.

Up above the tall building of Republic City Central Bank, Azula and her friends had their eyes set on the ominous sky above. Azula felt slightly uneasy. Ty Lee chewed her lip and suggested. "Should we call home?"

"No", Azula said, eyes not leaving the mass of cloud above. "We should arms up, just in case."

"Arms up?" Mai narrowed her eyes. "For what?"

Azula did not answer; she simply gripped the Joker card in her hand tighter.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Zuko stepped out of the bathroom with his damp towel draped on his shoulder. Kiyi was waiting outside with big smile. They established eye contact.

Zuko gave in first. "Alright, come on, lil squirt", he said, leading his squealing cousin to his room. In there, Zuko gave Kiyi her new bunny soda container. "Don't tell your mom", Zuko warned her, keeping the item off her reach.

Kiyi nodded enthusiastically and snatched the gift once Zuko lowered his reach. She ran out of the room heading downstairs, screaming. "Mom, look what Zuko got meeeee!"

Zuko cringed but melted into a fond smile. He dressed up and joined the family for dinner. Aunt Noriko made her world famous spaghetti with meatballs and Uncle Noren made his world famous attempt at fixing Zuko up with a girl. This time, it was to be the daughter of one of his co-worker at the office.

"Suki is a very sweet girl", Noren said.

"She's also my classmate and dating my friend", Zuko replied, dabbing Kiyi's messy mouth with a napkin.

"Yes, true", Uncle Noren sipped his water. "But, according to her dad, it won't last long. He said that Sokka boy is a clown."

"Funny you mention clown—"

A sudden very loud thunder exploded and rattled the chandelier above, making Kiyi scream. Instinctively, the little five year old made her way to the nearest bigger body; Zuko. The boy patiently patted the girl's back. "It's just thunder, Kiyi. It's okay."

"Are you sure about it?" said a dark figure clothes in a hooded cloak that looked like he was from a movie.

Uncle Noren shot up to his feet. "Who are you? How did you get in?!" he demanded. Aunt Noriko quickly moved to Kiyi and scooped her into her arms. Zuko too stood up.

Zuko felt strangely hollow…

It was scary, or it was supposed to be. A stranger in a cloak whose face was completely hidden under his hood broke into their house and with Aunt Noriko and Kiyi, his family there… Zuko could not think. And it made absolutely no sense when the stranger, with his raised hand, telekinetically lifted Uncle Noren and slammed him to the wall behind him.

Aunt Noriko and Kiyi screamed, Zuko lunged at the attacker only to receive the same treatment Uncle Nored did. With the pain on his back from the collision and the strangers looming closer to his and his family, Zuko's mind went completely blank where fear should be.

And one name came to his mind…

Azula…

-0-0-0-0-0-

Azula gasped audibly.

"What?" Ty Lee asked, reloading her handgun.

"I have a bad feeling. I don't like bad feelings", Azula said as she cocked her Beretta. "Are bad feelings always this… bad?"

Mai was too busy sighing and making echo with it. The empty church they were in, where hidden caches of weapons were stashed by the mortal agents for their use, had good acoustic. They got out soon, armed quite heavily. Azula had a jian strapped on her back and a short sword on her waist, with a pair of handguns holstered to her thighs, and she was holding a recurved bow and a quiver of arrows. Ty Lee had a small machine gun in each hand, also with a handgun on her back, while Mai had rows of throwing knives strapped on her under her jacket and a rifle she held in her hand.

"Which car?" Mai asked as they walked towards the nearly abandoned church parking lot.

"Black SUV always, in the corner", Azula said.

They arrived at the said car, one of the three cars in the parking lot, and Azula held the handle. Her hand glowed a white light and the car was unlocked. They entered and Azula drove them into the night.

-0-0-0-0-0-

There was another thunder, closer and louder this time. Aunt Noriko and Kiyi shrunk tighter and screamed in the middle of the dining room. The table had collapsed under Uncle Noren's weight when the stranger slammed him on it with his powers, and despite Zuko's protest, he did not stopped bouncing his poor uncle off the floor, the ceiling, and the nearby furniture.

"I told you, I don't know what you're talking about!" Zuko screamed, trying so hard to break out of the supernatural bond that held him glued to the wall.

"Do not lie to me", the figure spoke with a harsh cruel voice. "Tell me where the Key is and I will let you live", he shrugged. "It's simple."

"I don't know what key you are talking about!" Zuko shrieked.

"Hmm…"the figure raised the bloody and half-conscious Uncle Noren, suspending him in the air like a marionette. He then flicked his wrist and Uncle Noren fell into a heap on the floor. The teary-eyed Aunt Noriko and Kiyi quickly crawled to him. "Perhaps you will be more sympathetic towards the little one, hmm?" he said as he used his hand to telekinetically pick up Kiyi. Aunt Noriko screamed and tried to reach for her daughter but a blast of invisible power sent her slamming to the wall behind her, knocking her unconscious.

The little girl could not even scream.

Zuko gripped his fist and willed every aching muscle in his body to break free. "STOOPPPP!"

The whistling sound of the bullet was faster than the breaking of the glass it made. The figure held his hand aimed at Zuko but his other hand that held Kiyi he had to use to stop the long sharp bullet from hitting his head. Kiyi fell to the floor and she was too petrified to move.

A girl in pink tank top and jeans ran into the room and slid on her bent legs, grabbing Kiyi and rolling towards Aunt Noriko. She set Kiyi down and crouched there, pulling two small machine guns from behind her, ready to protect the two.

To Zuko's surprise, Azula walked in next, calm as ever with a bow in her hand.

"Attacking random mortals now, Zhao?" she asked with a mocking tone. "This isn't like you."

Zhao the figure growled and it sounded animalistic. "Little angels from Heaven. It has been awhile."

"Oh, look, courtesy from a demon", Azula mocked, dragging a feet back slightly for a simple and subtle stance. "Shall we?"

Zhao dropped his hold on Zuko and pushed a palm on Azula; his nearly invisible blast of energy, Azula evaded by bending her knees slightly and twisting her hip. Simultaneously, she drew an arrow, notched it, and fired it with extreme speed and accuracy. Zhao was faster though and deflected the arrow with his power. At this point, it would be wise to point out that the Kais' dining room was quite spacious.

Zuko slid down to the floor when Zhao released him and was now watching Azula and Zhao gradually switched from long-range exchange of arrows and energy blast to close quarter combat, and he turned to Uncle Noren who had at some point crawled to Aunt Noriko, holding her unconscious self in his arms with the sobbing Kiyi cringing in her other arm, protected behind the still crouching small girl with braided brown hair and in slightly out-of-place bright pink tank top.

The girl in black hoodie leaned sideway with impressive reflex and flexibility to evade Zhao's hand chop and she used that momentum to prop herself on her hand and her leg shot up in a kick that resembled a capoeira move. Zuko was a practitioner himself. The kick scored Zhao a glancing hit on the side of his head that did little to no damage but Zhao's whipping head threw his hood off, revealing the man beneath; neatly combed brown hair with receding line above his forehead, with thick, nearly bushy sideburns on the side of his otherwise clean-shaven face, with creepy eyes that were all black adorning the face of a stern looking middle-aged man. Zhao's face and sideburns under the hood reminded Zuko of the Wolverine from X-Men.

Azula spun gracefully, whipping the lace of her hoodie and twirling her bow above her head before she smashed the end of the weapon on Zhao's face as she stopped. It only served to anger Zhao more. Roaring, Zhao made a motion of throwing his arms to the side, again, much like the scene where Wolverine first emerged from the tube after being imbued with adamantium. Zuko had worked in the movie theater for awhile now and it did worry him how everything seemed to remind him of various movie scenes.

And that girl… Azula, if indeed that was her name, clearly looked like someone who belongs in a movie.

Zhao blasted a cocoon of energy around him, blasting Azula back thought the girl managed to land on her feet and in a spilled bowl of the Kais' spaghetti dinner. The squishy sound was quite unsettling.

Zhao took the chance to escape. Azula tried to catch but her second step nearly saw her slipping due to the sauce clinging to her shoe. They heard more sound of a sharp whistling that precluded cracking of wood or breaking of pots by a split second. Azula rubbed her shoe furiously on the carpet before she gave chase. Ty Lee eased up a bit and turned to the frightened Kais, offering them comfort. "It's going to be okay, don't worry", she smiled kindly. "I promise you all, we deal with this quite often and— Hey, don't go out!"

Too late though as Zuko had already bolted out to the door. He stopped at the door and was hit on the front by a strong gust of wind from outside. The sky was dark and the street was strangely abandoned. But then again, two cars were haphazardly parked right on the middle of the street and the drivers were there, appeared to be sleeping with their headlights still on. Zhao was once again battling the girl in dark hoodie in what appeared to be a mini windstorm that had swept the neighborhood.

Azula…

Azula fired arrow after arrow; Zhao deflected all but one that he evaded. Zhao's blast of energy cracked the asphalt and nearby fences but Azula seemed adept at avoiding them. A whistling sound sang through the night again and Zhao screamed as a bloody hole was punched through his arm in the middle of him aiming a blast at Azula by a bullet that ended its journey by hitting the walkway to the Kais' just a few feet away from where Zuko was standing.

Azula smirked and took her time notching an arrow. Zhao, doubling over, charged a blast with his healthy hand. Zuko realized that Azula did not notice that.

Azula…

… "Zuzuuuu!" the little girl threw her arms up with big grin…

… "Don't worry, Azula", Zuko said, hugging the crying scared little girl. "I'll always protect you!"…

The next thing he knew, he flew towards Zhao and everything went slow motion as Zhao quickly threw his palm out to send the blast away, but not fast enough as Zuko tackled him around that time and Zhao missed his blast.

Zuko felt relieved and a bit proud for a second there, until Zhao grabbed his neck and lifted him up until his feet were dangling. "Damn you, nephilim!" he spat. Zuko replied with a very panicky. "I don't understand that swear word!" before Zhao, with superhuman strength, threw Zuko to the side. Zuko landed on the daffodil bush on the Nakaharas' lawn across the street.

Azula shot her arrow but Zhao dissolved into a dark mist; her arrow sailed past the puff of mist and Zhao was gone.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Seraphim Iroh looked down on the Mortal Realm on a great circular pool in the spacious white room that was completely devoid of any furniture. He had aged a lot since the fateful battle ten thousand years ago. His hair no longer black, he had wrinkles now, and he… might have let himself go a little. His robe was white and spotless, with white wings folded on his back. He watched Azula making her way back to the Kais and waved his hand on the pool. The pool cleared up and was, once again, clear water.

He turned and faced his brother Ozai and the other archangels. Jeong Jeong, who had also aged, with saggy white hair, two thin moustache and a small goatee, and two scars running down his right away, a souvenir from his short battle with Vaatu, looked thoroughly upset with this recent development.

"We are now effectively at war", Iroh straightened up and spread his wings, all six of them, for a seraphim possessed such feature. "Let the Gabriel's Horn sound once more! Hark, the looming sound of war!"

-0-0-0-0-0-

It was an awkward exchange indeed in the living room of the Kais'. The room that Zuko usually associated with movie or game nights with his family was now invaded by three heavily armed girls. Ty Lee looked content enough to let the heavy conversation stuff in the hands of Azula and Mai while she tried to play with Kiyi who was still too scared to even speak, safely tucked in the possessive arms of Aunt Noriko who did not seem to fond of the prospect of the strange girl in pink playing with her baby girl even if the said strange girl in pink had just saved her and her family.

"Alright", Azula uncrossed her legs and her hand went to the bow and quiver of arrows she rested on the couch near her feet and caressed them. "Like I said, that thing was a demon."

"I find that a little hard to believe", Uncle Noren said bitterly, pressing a bag of frozen peas to the side of his head.

Mai felt the need to jab. "He just threw you around the kitchen without laying a single finger on you."

"Well, maybe he's on steroids! Or… some weird drugs!" Uncle Noren persisted.

Azula narrowed her eyes sharply at the man. "It's time you stop protecting him", she said, eyes flickering briefly to Zuko. "He has the right to know."

"What?" Zuko sat straighter. "Know what?" he turned to Uncle Noren.

His uncle and aunt exchanged a look and looked uneasy. Aunt Noriko nodded and Uncle Noren sighed. "Zuko… I don't know how to tell you this…"

"Tell me what?" Zuko was beginning to get impatient.

"Uh… how should I say this?" Uncle Noren rubbed his head. "Zuko…" he began with firmer tone. "You… you are not our biological son."

Zuko felt like he had just been punch on the gut. "Yeah… I call you 'uncle'. I know that", he was beginning to suspect that he was being pranked and this was all just a very elaborate and extensive, the most massive joke ever!

And probably for buying Kiyi that giant soda container with soda in it!

Uncle Noren blinked twice. "Oh… right", he slumped back to his seat and pressed the bag of peas back on his head. "I must've hit my head harder than I thought."

"They're not your real family", Azula said impatiently. "Though, if it makes you feel better, I am…" she added rather gruffly. "I'm your sister."

"Oh, God…" Zuko gawked. "This is just like Star Wars… like with Luke and Darth Vader, but if it was Princess Leia instead of Darth Vader… I have a sister?!"

"Well, half-sister", Azula shrugged. "Same dad, different mom."

Zuko collapsed back on his seat and rubbed his throbbing head. "And… what are you?! You went toe-to-toe with that… that demon!"

Azula and Mai turned to each other and exchanged a look. "I swear, it's the human in him… makes him dense", she muttered to Mai then turned to Zuko. "I went toe-to-toe with a demon, but I'm not a demon", she hinted. "So, I must be an aaa…?"

"Aaaa…?"

"Ang…"

"Angel?"

"Atta boy", Azula stood up suddenly. "Now that we've straightened that out…" she flattened the front of her outfit. "… You said Zhao was looking for a key and he seemed to be convinced that you have it. You must come with us then. We will take you to a place where you can be protected and kept away from harm."

"You don't have wings", Zuko frowned.

"Shush and go pack your things. Bare necessities only", Azula commanded and turned to the rest of the Kais too. "All of you, too."

When they made no attempt to get up, Azula snapped. "Go! Now!" and it worked wonder.

Azula moved to the door and peeked through the small side glass on the sides of the door. The ruckus caused by the awoken citizens who broke free from the enchantment Zhao had put on them to make them sleep seemed to have died down. The good people of Chestnut Street had been perplexed as to why they had all seemed to wake up at the same time from a mass unconsciousness. Some were woken up in a car or in front of a burning stove and other dangerous or strange circumstances and it brought many question. Added with cracked road and fences and one totaled car, it brought many mysteries indeed.

They had calmed down and seemed to have resumed their evenings, although the police had been called and had come and made some inquiries. An officer had knocked on the Kais' and Azula had cast a spell on him, making him give up after a few knocks and reported that the house was empty.

Upstairs, Zuko was busy stuffing his shirts in his rucksack and was still in a daze. He could still not shake off the strange feeling of being lifted off his feet by an invisible force that he could only describe as something similar to a giant claw… like those claw machines on the malls. He did not hear Azula arriving.

"So…" he voice surprised him. "This is your room?" she asked, leaning on the doorframe with her arms crossed.

"Y-yeah…" Zuko gulped and tried not to stare at the pair of handguns strapped on Azula thighs and the short sword on her waist. "You can come in."

Azula narrowed her eyes. "I'm an angel, not a vampire. You don't have to invite me in."

"I wasn't… uh…" Zuko stammered.

"I'm just kidding Zuzu", Azula stepped in and perched on Zuko's bed.

"Don't call me that!" Zuko snapped without meaning to and he suddenly felt the mixture of embarrassment and surprise. "I'm sorry… I don't know what came over me."

Azula cracked a smile, a genuine one that quickly faltered and was replaced by one that seemed more distant and calculative, like something she rehearsed in front of a mirror. "You never did like it when I call you that."

Zuko smiled weakly and resumed his packing. "So, you're really an angel?"

"Yes", Azula leaned back on his hand and scanned Zuko's bedroom ceiling where the boy had hung many small plastic and paper airplanes, like the ones you get from cereal box, on the ceiling, hanging on thin threads, and the walls that Zuko had covered with posters of movies and nothing but. "And, yes, I do have wings. They're white and fluffy and I can fly with them."

Zuko turned to the girl and smirked. "Can I see them?"

"Nope", Azula yawned and turned to Zuko with lazy eyes. "Angels hide their wings when they are in the Mortal Realm. It's customary."

"Not a rule? So you can break it?" Zuko smirked wider.

"How very human of you", Azula smirked back.

Their eyes held for a second more before they both broke into a chuckle. Zuko felt lighter and… despite fear never setting in even once during the whole ordeal, or, now that he thought about it, all his life, he felt… better.

"So, I'm an angel too, then?" Zuko asked, zipping his bag. "I will grow wings?"

Azula laughed a short laugh. "No, you're not an angel", she said, crossing her legs. "Your father, our father, is an angel; your mom was a human. You're half-angel: a nephilim."

Zuko frowned. "That Zhao called me that. I thought he was insulting me."

"In a way, I supposed he did", Azula thought aloud. "The term comes from an archaic word from the demonic dialect 'ney-fae-licnm', which literally means 'fallen male organ'. It has something to do with the first nephilim being the offspring of a male angel and female human and the demons were like, 'oh, how far his fae-licnm must have fallen'. By the way… fae-licnm… phallic…" Azula hinted with a smirk.

Zuko frowned. "Are you sure you're an angel?"

"Meh, shush", Azula waved it off. "By the way, will you not need anything from… inside that locked drawer?" she smirked mischievously.

Zuko's face went beet red. "I'm done, let's go", and he strode out of the room, trying hard not to think about his naughty movies collection hidden inside that locked drawer. "How do you even know about—"

"I'm an angel", Azula shrugged as she kept pace with her brother.

-0-0-0-0-0-

It was sunrise when Zuko yawned behind the wheel of their speeding SUV on the empty highway going north. He rubbed his eyes and checked on his sleeping family on the rearview mirror. Aunt Noriko rested her head on Uncle Noren's shoulder and Kiyi was spread on their laps, cringing and tightly wrapped in a blanket with her small doll in her grip and traces of her silent tears on her face. Ty Lee and Mai sat behind them and while Mai looked alert with her sniper rifle on her embrace like a lover, Ty Lee was positively sleeping like Azula was beside Zuko on the front seat.

Kiyi slowly roused up and her sleepy eyes caught Zuko's on the rearview mirror. Zuko smiled kindly and mouthed 'sleep'. Kiyi blinked once weakly and fell back to the warm embrace of sleep, lulled by the whirring of the car machine.

They had been driving all night and Zuko saw a road sign, announcing a rest stop ahead. Zuko decided to stop there for food and water, and to stretch their legs maybe, and a brief stop to the bathroom would be a good idea too. His butt had gone completely numb hours ago and, sweet god, he needed to pee.

Zuko drove the car into the entrance of the small diner and parked the car in front of it. He stopped the engine and it roused Uncle Noren up. Azula stirred but she remained asleep. Zuko sighed and suddenly noticed a soft purr coming from his sleeping sister.

His sister… that would get some time to get used to…

Zuko got down from the car and nearly buckled down because his legs were numb. He took care to close the door as softly as possible but Uncle Noren had no such care. Zuko shot his uncle a furious look and turned around to check his *gulp* sister. Azula was still asleep or Zuko thought she did. The hoodie made it difficult to make sure.

Together with Ty Lee who had also gotten down, Zuko and Uncle Noren entered the 24/7 diner. Zuko made a beeline to the restroom while Uncle Noren rubbed his stomach and browsed the scant selection of the buffet that early in the morning. Zuko washed his face rigorously after he was done relieving himself. His mouth felt bitter and he spat on the sink before he rubbed his nose off any traces of sweat and oil with the cold water.

He looked into the mirror and the sight of his face that was so familiar to him felt so distant to him… because he was no longer someone he recognized.

He was a nephilim… half human, half angel.

Sighing, he dried his face with a paper towel and got out. The rest of the family has gathered at a booth with Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee sitting at a booth next to them. Zuko would have joined the girls if not for the fact that Aunt Noriko had laid out his plate for him.

"Come, Zuko, eat", Aunt Noriko said as Zuko sat next to her, squeezing his shoulder once.

Zuko picked up his fork and was about to dig into his waffle when he caught the sight of the pale-faced and bloodshot-eyed little Kiyi, refusing to eat whatever it was Uncle Noren was trying to feed her with a spoon.

Without taking his eyes off the little girl, Zuko asked his family. "Did you guys know about this nephilim thing?"

Uncle Noren and Aunt Noriko exchanged that uncomfortable look once more, only this time, Aunt Noriko was the one who spoke. "Zuko, we thought it would be best if we wait until you are old enough", she said sadly.

"So, you knew", Zuko gripped his fork tighter. "Why… are you even my aunt and uncle? Are we even related?"

"You are our nephew!" Uncle Noren snapped. "No matter what!"

"Zuko…" Aunt Noriko still held to her soft tone. "Listen, sweetie, we love you and we are your family. You know that, right?"

Zuko stared at his waffle with an anger he could not explain. "I guess I don't."

-0-0-0-0-0-

Seraphim Iroh walked into the Hall, carrying his spear. Archangel Ozai was already there, standing by the pool, looking down on the scene that was unfolding that fine morning. Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee were on the road again with the Kais, with Uncle Noren driving this time, looking all kind of uneasy with Azula on the front seat.

Iroh hummed and stroke his goatee as they watched Zuko sleeping on the backseat. "You have a fine son, brother."

Ozai's jaw hardened and he waved his hand over the pool to dismiss the Farview. "He is no son of mine", he said bitterly before leaving.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Around noon, the SUV reached North Republic and, at around 5 PM, they stopped in front of what looked like a medieval stone gate that led to a medieval castle hidden in the heart of the forest up north. The weather was significantly colder and wetter in the autumn of the North Republic and, while it had not snowed yet, the cold temperature was enough to turn their breath to vapor and forced the Kais, who were more used to warmer climate, to wear their jackets.

Azula, who had insisted that she drove next after their lunch break, honked at the closed gate with an annoying pattern. A head popped out from the rampart of the roofed posthouse directly above the gate and yelled at her to stop. Azula honked twice petulantly. Thankfully, the gate swung open shortly after.

The girl, who was technically fourteen and was not allowed to legally drive, drove the car in and through the street of what looked like small traditional settlement inside the castle that had the look of a traditional Eastern Earth Kingdom settlement. After everything that had transpired last night, Zuko would not be surprised that they had travelled back in time and would be jumped by some samurai warriors. They were in a car too… Back to the Future, anyone?

Zuko smacked his head when another movie reference came to him and then he realized that the houses they drove though had modern amenities like light bulbs and cars in them although, some actually had carriages and horses parked inside their front yard. Zuko reassured himself that they had not gone back to the past.

They stopped in front of the castle. Large white building with black slanted roofs that made it looked like a giant house. A tenshu –main castle- as Zuko recalled the old movie he once watched about the samurai warriors, in its original Eastern Earth Kingdom Japanese.

Azula turned off the engine and they got down from the car. The Kais could barely take their eyes off the grand architectural design before them and simply led the girls herd them inside. The gate to the castle was opened and two rows of men and women clad in ancient armor over their modern clothing, bearing spears and shields, stood along the way to the castle's main door.

"Welcome", Azula turned and began to walk backward towards the front door. "North Republic Branch of Nephilims Fort, or just the Fort", she said, looking at Zuko. "Thoughts? Comments? Concerns?"

"I… uh… um…"

"My thought exactly", Azula smirked and stopped right in front of the opened front door. "Once you step through this threshold, your world will never be the same. Still wanna go?"

Zuko could not understand that glint in his sister's eyes. He breathed in calmly, not feeling a shred of fear, but it was normal for him, and he stepped one foot inside the castle.

The rest of him soon followed.