A/N: I told myself that if I got 1000 hits before Thursday I'd post another chapter! Yay!
The title of this chapter is: If You Want Peace, Prepare for War
My logic is if Zuko believed (or wanted to believe) so many of his sister's lies, then he must care about her to some extent. We begin with Azula figuring out a new way to defend herself…
Chapter IV Sic vis patrem, para bellum
Entrepreneurs are simply those who understand that there is little difference between obstacle and opportunity and are able to turn them both to their advantage.
Machiavelli:The Prince
An arrow fletched with blue feathers sunk into a target in the palace courtyard with a satisfying thunk. Azula smiled to see that it had not only gone through the center, but had also punched through the back. She enjoyed the devilish red glow cast over the city by the early morning sun.
"I've never seen anything like it." The painted leader of the Yu Yan archers told Zuko in a hushed tone. "Three days ago she showed up at practice and now she's probably just as good as any of us." He thanked the man quietly and sent him on his way.
It was almost surreal having his sister in the castle again, like seeing an apparition in a dream. It was no wonder that she was unrecognizable to so many people. She was wearing black today, stripped of the gold trimmed armor that marked a victorious general. The edge of her hair just brushed her sharp jaw line, barely enough to hold her characteristic bun and her simple crown.
"So when I tell you that you're forbidden to firebend on Capital Island…"
Azula glanced at him out of the corner of her eye and did not immediately reply. Zuko began to wonder if she was going to ignore him.
Zuko had politely told hundreds of people that his sister was slowly going mad somewhere far from home. He told them that that she was alone with her jealously, rage, and malice in some unspecified location where she couldn't harm the people of the realm. Now she had somehow reverted to the cool, poised creature he had always known. She was quieter now though, more withdrawn and less outspoken. He privately wondered if it was something to be concerned about.
"You already have them following me night and day. I think it would be wise to learn their art." She said frankly, loosing another arrow. He took a step backward, realizing how close he had been standing to her line of fire. Azula had probably realized it long before he had.
"Afraid I'm going to assassinate you?" She inquired mockingly, as though he wasn't important enough to be assassinated and not just "murdered".
"You always do the unexpected. I have come to expect it of you." He echoed without a trace of irritation. Azula grimaced and let another arrow fly dangerously close to his shoulder.
"Are you ready to leave?" He continued awkwardly, shifting his feet beneath his robes.
"Nearly. I want to get there at dusk."
"The airship will let you off in the valley beyond the city. I can't get you any closer than that."
"Shouldn't be an issue." She sniffed arrogantly. "It's a fool's errand, you know." She added in an exasperatingly light tone.
"What do you mean?" Zuko's voice was precariously patient.
"Trying to keep peace is counter productive." She slung a quiver full of arrows and a finely crafted bow over her shoulder. "There will never be pure, unadulterated peace in this world. If it was even a possibility your friend the Avatar wouldn't exist." She waved her hand dismissively.
"There is peace in the world in the person of the avatar." He answered without having to think.
Azula crossed her arms and quirked an eyebrow at him. "You'll kill yourself trying to change the nature of things. The only way to survive war is to win it."
"There are no winners in war, Azula." He said grimly, watching her saunter toward the exit of the courtyard. "Only losers."
She suddenly pivoted to face him. "Tell that to father the next time you visit him." She slithered toward him once again. "No one was completely victorious in this war because you can't finish what you started." She said quietly and precisely. "As for you and I, well, we are undeniably diametrically opposed. There is no compromise, there can only be one finality- you or me." At a mere five feet five inches she still seemed taller than him. "In the end, your mercy will doubtlessly be your downfall."
"I guess that's the difference between you and me, Azula." His temper had flared at the mention of their father and the insinuation that he had somehow failed.
"Finally." She whispered, looking up at him. "Something we can agree on"
She took off once more into the depths of the palace, leaving him alone with his jealously, rage, and malice. Zuko watched as she became nothing more than a retreating dark spot in the pale glow of the morning sun.
Azula was positive that Zuko was not even considering her request.
"Why should I follow you?" Sokka complained, not unreasonably.
"I lived here for a few weeks after I conquered the city. I got to know the place pretty well before my life fell apart." She sighed, hunching her shoulders.
The last time she had seen Ba Sing Se, she had been its conqueror. Now she had returned as an outsider. Azula doubted that she would ever be the ruler of the great city again because Zuko would never seriously consider her demands.
Long Feng was obviously trying to depict himself as the kindly rescuer of the kingdom by allowing just about everyone into the city freely. The guards didn't seem to notice them as they passed through the massive gates. Azula remembered how desperate she had been to break through them at one point. Now it seemed absurd to simply walk through the front door.
"We'll walk from here." She commanded, hiking the bow up over her shoulder.
"But that will take all night!" Sokka was practically running to keep up with her pace and still coming up short.
"I could commandeer a vegetable cart." She said sardonically, smirking at his obvious discomfort.
He stopped in the deserted street and crossed his arms. "You clearly don't know your way around this city as well as you think you do. How often did you leave the comfort of the castle?"
"Are you trying to insult me?" She said severely, glaring at him.
He smiled at her deviously. "Come on, I'll show you."
The idea of the ruthless princess known for penetrating the impenetrable city taking public transportation was a strange one. That's probably why none of the normal, unsuspecting citizens of Ba Sing Se bothered to give her a second glance.
Azula was uncomfortably curled up on a seat, trying to keep as far away from the other people in the trolley car as possible. Sokka stood beside her seat with his hand in his pocket, grinning to himself and relishing in her agitation. "Maybe next time you visit you should focus on sight seeing and less on conquering the place." He muttered to her. She struggled to keep from garroting him on the spot.
Fortunately, there were not many people taking the earthbender-powered train this late at night. She watched the darkened city disappear in a blur from one of the open windows. The hole her supposedly failsafe drill had made in the 20 foot thick wall had not been repaired and remained untouched. Somehow she didn't think they kept it there to honor the memory. No one had bothered to repair it because the walls were still penetrated; another illegitimate ruler indifferent to the welfare of the city had claimed the throne. It was quite possible that no one could undo the damage Azula had caused.
They reached the platform for the castle and Sokka had crossed his arms as the train sped off to its next location, blowing Azula's hair into a tangled mess in the process.
"See? Isn't taking the lowly transportation of common folk an exciting change from your luxuriant lifestyle?"
"No." She spat, straightening out her loose hair. "I am not a halfwit like Kuei was. It was awfully clever of Long Feng to isolate him, only to have him discover the wonders of the world and never return. He deserted the throne and left it open for the closest person to snatch." Sokka's eyes widened as Azula took off toward the base of the garrison.
They climbed the wall protecting the compound. "A necessary risk." Azula had insisted. They scrambled past the sentries on the wall and reached an unoccupied watchtower with a full view of one of the side entrances. The Dai Li had not dispersed but had returned to their former master shortly after her disappearance. Azula had yet to spot one of them. It was no longer a thriving cultural center, she noted. The entire compound was silent, and no one was walking across the courtyard. She loaded her bow and aimed at the guards standing by the gate.
"Wait, can't you just run up to them and go 'Rawr! I'm a firebender! Let me in or I'll incinerate you!" Sokka made movements will his arms like he was some kind of velociraptor.
Azula slowly turned her head away from her target and looked back at him. He cowered under her gaze. "That is the most misguided, idiotic plan I have ever heard. I think I'll recommend you for the position of palace fool when it opens up."
Sokka shook his head and grew a backbone while trying to articulate his message. "Look, we don't have to kill them."
Azula turned her attention back to her targets. "Oh?"
"I have my boomerang; I could easily take them out."
"Fascinating, but hardly efficient. We can't risk them alerting the castle of our presence too soon. The worst a boomerang would do is knock them out." She adjusted her aim.
"That's a good thing!" He said urgently.
Azula let an arrow fly and the first man fell with the shaft sprouting out of his eye. She made quick work of the second and grinned proudly.
"Sadist." Sokka grumbled in annoyance.
"Pacifist." She retorted.
They descended from the wall and traveled through the shadows. She plucked a key from the belt of one of the dead guards and swiftly opened the door. Sokka slipped in behind her. She expected Long Feng to have made multiple security adjustments but he hadn't. She was all the more cautious as she slid trough the damp corridors that she had once proudly strolled through. The lanterns were made of glowing green crystals, which made it impossible for her to simply put out all the lights.
Her unnecessary companion crept beside her with his sword drawn, waiting to preserve her life from nonexistent hidden attackers. Given the lack of encompassing illumination, he continually bumped into her. (She stopped short once and shocked him so badly that his hair stood up like a boarcupine's quills and he twitched uncontrollably for a full minute.) After climbing what seemed like an aimless flight of stairs and passing through too many doors to count, Sokka was beginning to regret even considering letting her lead him around the castle, even though it was far too late.
When they came across three wayward Dai Li agents on an unlucky coffee break, Azula removed the sword from Sokka's hand and cleanly slit their throats before they were able to sound any alarm or successfully defend themselves.
"We'll have to start running soon. Keep up- or I'm leaving you behind." She told Sokka while wiping the blade off on his shirt, leaving a bloody slit in the cloth.
"Yeah, considering the trail of bodies," He snatched his sword back from her, "you might as well have set off fireworks to announce our arrival!" Azula ignored his barb and peered around the next corner. Almost silently, aside from Azula and Sokka's trained ears, 20 more Dai Li agents emerged from behind them. Sokka would swear later that one popped out from a decorative vase.
She found herself running again, leading her pursuers on a merry chase through the mazes of the castle. Sokka was close on her heels. She skidded to a halt, threw open a linen closet and dragged him in beside her.
The princess had one newly manicured hand clenched around Sokka's mouth and her forearm was pinning him to the wall. There was something gratifying about the fact that she had him in the same position she had been in during the Day of Black Sun, even though that felt like it occurred a lifetime ago.
They were pressed between rock and fresh tablecloths and sheets, some of them were scarlet remnants from the occupation. Unable to contain himself, Sokka ran his tongue along her palm. Azula shocked him with an even more powerful spark than before, and it took all of his self control to prevent himself from crying out in alarm as bright blue electricity coursed through his limbs. Azula looked at her hand with a comically horrified expression and held it away from her like it was cursed.
The unmistakable patter of feet and urgent whispers soon faded. "When I open this door, run as fast as you can." She whispered harshly when their breathing calmed down slightly. Her nails still scraped his skin where she was grasping his shirt. The space was too limited for her to move away. "There are too many of them and I don't have time to convince the entire Dai Li to enter my service once again."
"Why don't you just burn them all?" He snapped. "It seems to have worked for you in the past."
"Anonymity." She answered as though it was obvious.
"Don't you think you should tone it down and maybe pretend not to be a menace to society?" She kept looking toward the door as though it would open.
"The public holds me to a certain standard as far as my attitude and actions go. I would cause a crisis if I stopped acting like this now. And why does everyone just assume I incinerate every problem I encounter?" She rolled her eyes in exasperation.
Sokka scowled, looking somewhat perplexed in the meager light. "Because it's true, at least in my experience."
"Then you had better run." She threw the door open, slipped out from the closet, and flew down the hall as if she was using her feet as rockets. It wasn't long before she heard shouts. Guards were on alert in every corner, and she knew they would be on her in a heartbeat. Stealth would not help her in the rustic castle; there was no where for her to hide. All the palaces' ornaments and antiques had been sold by order of the Firelord. Long Feng had evidently not been in office long enough to replenish them. There were only vast networks of hallways for her to hide in, and even the dark labyrinths couldn't conceal her very well. I hate the earth kingdom. Azula thought spitefully.
The Water Tribe warrior seemed determined to match her speed, and was gliding along beside her with his sword still drawn. His long strides easily kept pace with hers, and a wicked idea struck her. The Dai Li were pressing ever closer, pulling earthen barriers up before them. She easily navigated around them, the faithful Dai Li seemed to have forgotten that she was a seasoned professional.
After a few more turns they lost them for a moment, but neither Azula nor Sokka wanted to be the one caught off guard, so they kept moving. Sokka seemed more nervous than she was. He was looking over his shoulder every few seconds and breathing heavily. Azula had the benefit of knowing where all of the secret passages were. She had scaled the castle from top to bottom when she had first arrived. There wasn't any down side to knowing all the secrets of a fortress, after all. She knew she had to abandon him before they were cornered, and she had to make it seem like it was his fault.
She fell back ever so slightly, and the warrior never suspected a thing. Azula took a sharp turn down another corridor, approached a door she knew would be open, and flung it open.
She snapped the door shut behind her, placing her palms on the damp wood. Azula closed her eyes briefly and allowed a silent exhale to pass through her lips before turning to face the library.
The walls were covered from floor to ceiling with ancient tomes filled with trivial information from days long past. Candles not hazardous to the soggy archives were balanced on every available flat surface. A lanky man sat at the lone table in the room with a steaming teapot.
"Welcome, Princess Azula of the House of Agni: the rising sun, the First of her name, Dynasty of Sozin and Daughter Ozai, Heiress to the Throne of the Fire Nation." Long Feng listed her titles unnecessarily while gracefully pouring tea. "I was beginning to worry that I would not be blessed with the honor of your presence."
A/N: As always, anyone can review. Especially this week. I could use something nice.