And now it is time to go deep into the Fire Nation... the hottest place in the world, literally of course. And thankfully, we don't have to disguise ourselves as the Avatar and his friends once had to do, because thanks to the Avatar and Fire Lord Zuko, peace has been restored to the world. So let's go on a journey to a new world, and perhaps to a time long passed...
The Fire Lord's New Groove
It is true that there are people who are reckless, hotheaded and completely full of themselves, not unlike a certain Prince Zuko before becoming Fire Lord. Thankfully he's matured greatly since then, but could something similar be said about a distant relative who lived several hundred years before him? (Well, keep reading to find out!)
Fire Lord Kuzco grew up in a relative time of peace, and was just a baby when he came to the throne, and so there wasn't much work to do that he couldn't just leave for his underlings (that is to say, everyone else). He spent his days being pampered by his (supposedly) loyal servants, skipping his firebending lessons and getting away with it, throwing parties that were only ever fun for him, and giving public displays of his (fake) fire bending prowess (he hired some guards to work in the background). In short, he had only one firm belief in his life: "It's all about ME!" Naturally, no one would dare point out that perhaps the world didn't have this... quality of perfection that began and ended with him. In fact, no one dared to even throw off his groove or he would have a guard throw them out the window. (You see, even if Kuzco wasn't so ignorant in firebending that he could barely light a candle [why would he need to do that when he had servants?], he was simply too lazy to even take care of unruly peasants himself.)
Little did the young and arrogant Fire Lord know that there was a plot to overthrow him (because who would dare to want to overthrow complete perfection?) This was the workings of his (ancient) adviser Yzma and her rather dim-witted henchman Kronk, who, although he was a fire bender, most thought that it wouldn't be safe to leave him alone with even a spark. Their plan was to use magic potions (which, apparently were so common they could be bought for the same price as a cup of tea) from a secret lab (that everyone knew about), to turn Kuzco into... something not human (how specific) and then kill him. When Plan A failed, they moved on to Plan B, which was to simply kill him and make him die until he was dead.
So Kronk got some poison (which was surprisingly difficult to buy in comparison to the magic potions) and used it to flavour his palace-made home-made cuisine (he was rather upset that he couldn't taste it himself). But the plan didn't exactly go as planned, since instead of dying, Kuzco just turned into koala sheep. Kronk thought that this was rather weird, but being the optimistic one, he gleefully reassured Yzma that at least the first part of Plan A had worked out. Yzma was not amused.
That night, Kronk travelled through the fire nation capital, trying to think of ways to kill the Fire Lord koala sheep. He considered setting him on fire (Kronk had far more expertise in firebending than he was thought capable) but decided that it wasn't the appropriate time to make himself hungry for koala lamb chops. He then tried to toss him off a cliff, but the bag got caught in a tree branch and many painful hours were spent retrieving it. When he finally came up with the sensible plan of tossing the bag into the river, Kronk just couldn't bear to do it. After all, he may have been a villain's firebending henchman, but that didn't mean that he lacked that compassionate heart that had always made him proud of himself. Besides, if he had gone though with killing Fire Lord Kuzco, we would not have any more story to tell and Kronk was well aware of the fact. To keep the plot going, he conveniently tripped down some stairs, letting the bag fall onto the back of a peasant cart. And so, gladly, our story may continue. Kronk, however, had this feeling that Yzma was not going to be amused about this either...
The owner of the cart was a peasant named Pacha, whom Kuzco had been his usual jerk self to earlier and, when he had realized just who the talking koala sheep was, was all too happy to just let him wander into a forest filled with animals that were hungry for koala lamb chops (and unlike Kronk, not caring whether it was appropriate or not). But one change of heart and ride down river rapids later, the two decided to work together to get Kuzco back home. The Fire Lord koala sheep had made a promise not to confiscate his entire village (for himself) and put everyone in prison (for life) if their journey was successful.
(Kuzco: Okay, you do realize that that whole bracket thing is getting annoying, don't you? Think you can put a stop to that or am I going to have my guard toss you out a window or something?)
Due to a couple of roadblocks and detours, Pacha thought it was best if he and Kuzco stop by at his home for a while before continuing on their way. Pacha's family were currently entertaining some guests, distant relatives apparently. Of course, this was just Yzma and Kronk on their search to find the talking koala sheep and kill him for good. But everyone in Pacha's family was clever enough to um... keep them tied up for a bit while giving Pacha and Kuzco get a head start to the palace. As for something else worth mentioning, Pacha's kids named Tipo and Chacha were both firebending prodigies, and would surely surpass their father within a few years. This came in handy when it came to holding off our villains in their pursuit of our heroes. And so after one hilariously epic chase scene, Pacha and Kuzco finally made their way to the palace. Pacha advised the young Fire Lord koala sheep that perhaps he should actually learn how to firebend once he became human again. It could also come in handy later.
Well, for reasons unexplained, Yzma and Kronk had made it to the palace long before our unlikely heroes and a hilariously epic climactic battle ensued. Of course, it'd be no fun if things didn't work out for our now much-nicer Fire Lord koala sheep, and so with the help of Pacha and his unique style of firebending, the villains were defeated and the magic potion for turning human was acquired. Our Fire Lord koala sheep was now Fire Lord Kuzco once more, and a great ruler at that. Yzma and Kronk were demoted from their high-ranking positions (and to make use of this final bracket, I will mention that Kronk eventually became a leader of the Flame Scouts [a group for nature lovers and firebending prodigies] and Chacha and Tipo, Kuzco himself, and even Yzma, became members [the former three whole-heartedly, the latter quite unwillingly]).
And so from then on, Kuzco was a compassionate Fire Lord. He was studious in his firebending and other learning, was helpful to peasants and nobles alike, and eventually passed a law to prevent animal cruelty, especially to koala sheep. And he lived happily ever after, and so did his descendants, until they were overthrown by a distant relative, who eventually became the great-great-grandfather of Fire Lord Sozin. But despite it all, please don't worry about Kuzco's descendants. Even in exile, they followed their ancestor's footsteps and helped out all less fortunate people around them, and soon became quite content living as shepherds of koala sheep. Sure, some people thought they were a little crazy when they would talk to them in koala sheep language, but hey, they were happy throughout the generations, and they are still happy, so I guess we just can't complain, can we?
(The End. Gets tossed out a window.)
And now for another journey back in time to see the Air Nomads, long before their genocide...
Pocahontas
Back in the time of Avatar Yangchen, there was a man from the Fire Nation known as John Smith. Ever since he was a child, John loved the idea of travelling around the world and seeing new places, and when he grew up, he acquired his own boat and began his journeys. While he originally wanted only to see sights such as the great wall of Ba Sing Se or the ice city of the Northern Water Tribe, he met people along the way who taught him about their different cultures and traditions. Within time, John soon felt himself wanting to learn about the peoples of the lands he travelled to, and it got to the point where he just had to learn everything about everything that had to do with the places he went to. And even though John Smith became well known as a traveller, there were a few places that he had not come across – the Air Temples. John had seen one or two airbenders as a child, but he had been too young to ask any questions about them. He became determined to reach one of the air temples and find out for himself what sort of lives these people lived.
Meanwhile, in the Western Air Temple, there lived a woman named Pocahontas. Pocahontas was a few years younger than Yangchen, and had looked up to her as a child, but on Yangchen's sixteenth birthday, it was revealed that she was the Avatar, and therefore had to leave for her training. Pocahontas then began to spend her time roaming the areas around the Western Air Temple and practising her airbending. The Air Temple and its surrounding areas was the only home Pocahontas had ever known, and soon she made the decision that she wanted to leave the secretive Air Temple and travel around the world with some friends. But she didn't even travel as far as three hours away when her little group met a non-air bender for the first time, a citizen of the Fire Nation known as John Smith!
John had been attempting to climb up a cliff when he saw the airbenders, and was so amazed that he loosened his hold on the cliff and began to fall. Quickly, the airbenders swooped down and flew him up to the top of the cliff where it was safe. John, unfazed at yet another near-death experience, was delighted at the chance meeting with several airbenders at once, and instantly began to ask questions so rapidly, that neither Pocahontas nor any of her friends could understand him. Upon calming down, he asked the questions more slowly. What does your Air Temple look like? How do air monks and nuns live? Are all of you monks and nuns, or just some of you? How did you get those tattoos? What can you tell me about your lives in general? I want to know everything!
Pocahontas desperately wanted to answer the stranger's questions, but remembered the promise she had made to the head nun before leaving – "Never give away information that could be harmful to our culture when put in the wrong hands". She and her group of friends explained this to John, who respected what they said, albeit reluctantly. The next day, the airbenders continued on their journey to see the world, leaving John behind. But soon, Pocahontas found herself wanting to know more about the strange man, and told her friends that she wanted to continue travelling alone. After many protests, Pocahontas said goodbye to them, saying that they would meet up later. And so once the others were out of sight, Pocahontas flew on her glider as fast as she could in the other direction, hoping that she could run into John again.
Soon enough, Pocahontas did come across John Smith, and he smiled when he saw that his new airbending friend had come back. John had set up a camp for himself in a cave surrounded by all kinds of plant life, and quickly received his first lesson on the Air Nomad ways from Pocahontas, who explained to him what the names of the plants were, and what they could be used for. She even took the time to make a couple of meals from the most delicious ingredients she could find in the area, and the two of them enjoyed every bite. John insisted on gathering all of the plants they could find in order to take them back to the Fire Nation to show his friends and family the new kinds of food they could eat, but Pocahontas insisted even stronger that he did not. If John were to take all of the plants, not only would there not be enough for those back at the temple to eat, but the plants would surely die long before he could get anywhere. John was eventually persuaded, but he was still as curious as ever about the Air Nomad ways. After all, not too many outsiders knew anything about, let alone seen any of the Air Temples and the people who lived there.
Pocahontas and John Smith wandered the mountains and hills for weeks on end, and sometimes they even shared the air glider to get to places faster. Pocahontas began to trust John more and more with information on her people's lifestyle, but was careful not to tell him the locations of any of the air temples. John quickly learned to appreciate the knowledge he did acquire, since he now knew more about the Air Nomad's ways than nearly any other outsider. To return the favour, John offered Pocahontas a ride back to the Fire Nation, where she could learn about the ways of his people, and the airbender gleefully accepted. In the Fire Nation, Pocahontas was fascinated with everything she saw. Because things weren't nearly so strict in the Fire Nation as they were for the Air Nomads, John Smith was able to tell Pocahontas everything she wanted to know about anything. By now, their friendship was beginning to turn into something more...
However, a single mistake can be enough to ruin everything. Even though John had the utmost respect for Air Nomad culture, he didn't really stop to think that not everyone would be as respectful as he was. One night when at a fancy dinner with his Fire Nation friends, John let out some of the things that Pocahontas had told him, how "rich" these people were. While John had been referring to a rich culture, his friends saw this as meaning that the air temples were filled with gold and artifacts that would have them set for life with their value. They were also able to piece together this information to figure out the possible location of the Western Air Temple, and immediately began their plans on how to reach it. Neither John nor Pocahontas were aware of this, and eventually left the Fire Nation to continue on their travels.
But soon, rumours began to spread that a large group of powerful firebenders had managed to find the location of the Western Air Temple and was causing havoc for those who lived there. Several airbenders who heard this news dropped everything and rushed to the Western Air Temple to help their sisters, including Pocahontas and Avatar Yangchen. John Smith was then forced to admit to Pocahontas that he had revealed information he shouldn't have, but Pocahontas knew that she was also to blame for this. By the time Pocahontas and John arrived at the temple, Avatar Yangchen had also arrived, and had gone into the Avatar State. The force was so powerful that the invaders were swept off their feet and blown off the edge of the cliff, making it impossible for there to be any survivors.
At first, it seemed like things were going to be okay from then on, but then someone noticed John Smith, and Avatar Yangchen immediately prepared to have him meet the same fate as his friends. And he would have too, had Pocahontas not interfered, throwing herself over him as a shield. Pocahontas sobbed that it wasn't John's fault for what happened, but her own, and begged that his life be spared. The Avatar then showed a mercy that she would never show again in her life – she spared both John and her former friend, but on one condition – the two would never be allowed to see each other again.
Yangchen saw to it that Pocahontas could not leave the Air Temple, while John Smith was flown to a remote village somewhere in the Earth Kingdom, blindfolded so that he would not know the way back. John spent the rest of his life there, while Pocahontas stayed in the temple, becoming a nun and airbending master. But neither of them forgot each other, the friendship and love that they had felt, and the ways they had changed each other for the better.
Well, I don't know whether I'll upload any more chapters now that I've covered all the nations, but if you have any ideas, feel free to let me know, and I'll see what I can do. But if not, still keep a lookout for my (hopefully) upcoming Ghibli in the Four Nations... Plus Republic City!
