Avatar The Other Side Of Light: Chapter four "He who Knows Ten Thousand Things"
Azula, in defiance of enormity of it all, quipped with a dry scene of humor.
"Oh someone does have some explaining to do."
As if on que a great shadow filled the sky in shape of an owl.
Half a world away Avatar Aang sat up in a cold sweat.
Back in the desert the owl landed before the fallen fire princess and lowered his head as if to bow.
"I am Wan Shi Tong, he who knows ten thousand things. I thank you for making the long journey here, and will of course offer my hospitality."
Something inside Azula flickered with that old blue flame. Though her exhaustion, though the battered pride and tormented soul that came with unthinkable failure she dared look the spirit in the eye.
"Actually I'm just dieing to know WHY, you called me here from my inprisonment and bent over to keep custom. I'm truly sorry to insult you Wan Shi Tong, BUT only a fool deals with spirits without asking these things."
The owl looked down on her and she could swear was smiling in some inhuman way. He was looking for something and she just might have it. He spoke once again as if addressing a formal dignitary.
"As you wish. My great collection has in recent years been abused. I was forced to move my study back to my world for its own protection. Their I came to a difficult realization, change and innovation come slow in the land of immortals. If I would expand it, and as such keep it the greatest collection of its kind I would need to return it to THIS world. However examples must be made that those that would destroy or steal from this place that none can do so and not regret it. Your enemy Avatar Aang learned of The Day of Black Sun from my library Princess Azula, and of the Giant Lion Turtle who gave him the secrets to remove your fathers firebending."
Azula's world shifted like the sand under her feet. Her mother had spoken of her father as if something had happened but she'd lacked the ice-cold will to pry it out of her. Now the words "remove your fathers firebending" echoed in her mind like screams off the walls of her old cell. Azula sounded drunk as she spoke.
"S-say that again?"
"You where unaware the Avatar removed his ability to bend?"
Azula almost snapped, but instead answered in a distant soft voice like she was a million miles away.
"That's like saying they where merciful and only took his eyes."
If the owl noticed he didn't let on.
"We should go inside there are people tracking you coming from the west and they are not far off."
Azula answered like he was talking about the weather.
"I need to think, mind sending Hu along later? Night fall should do. . . . "
She began walking off vaguely westward. Hu the fox made a move to follow and the owls great wing blocked his path. The fox gave a short whimper, but moved no further.
As Azula vanished over the horizon the owl began to speak.
"Humans are enigmatic creatures capable of things both fantastic and horrific. Their brief lives are full of moments some great and some small that define who any are and what they will become. Its is a paradox of an existence I will never fully understand, but I do know that at times a human must seek the storm. The wind, the rain, and the fire of lightning is the only way some of them can find themselves. That is where she goes now, to become what she was born to be or die. If she will be of any use, Princess Azula must do this and do it alone."
They came across the sand, with the sun at their backs half-sunk under the horizon.
"An assassination squad, Little ZuZu really had it in him. HaHaHa! What a joke all of this is!"
Though the heat of the waste land, and the torment in her own soul Azula saw her mother standing in front of her.
"It isn't like that Azula, you know it's not. Zuko loves you. . . "
Azula walked though the phantom banishing it into nothing.
"He's a fool with a weak soul."
A strange beast rode up on her a head of the others, bearing a women in black in its saddle. Azula whispered.
"Death."
As the beast struck out with a freakishly long tong, Azula pulled all the scorching desert heat out of the area, and let the thing catch her on the wrist. All of its venom evaporated and the scorching heat made the beasts mouth sizzle as it dropped to its knees writhing in pain. Without missing a beat the rider lept from the saddle, whip and pearl handled dagger in hand.
"NILA! For that you go home in a BOX!"
The whip came down on Azula's face HARD. On reflex she shut her eyes and brought her arms to protect her face. June's knife cut into her reminding her that her armored gantlets where on another continent. She wanted to scream, but she held it long enough to charge her breath rage, and spit fire blindly in front of her hoping to push her attacker back. She let out a roar.
"AAAAA!"
Opening her eyes she saw the tail end of Junes hair as she dodged to her left, and Azula grabbed a hand full fast enough to snatch a fly from the air and yanked. The hair came free as the bounty hunter used her knife give her long black locks a trim, and spat wrath full words at Azula.
"They all talk about you like you're a demon, but if they could see you now!"
As the rest of her pack caught up Azula smiled the slightest of all smiles, and jumped to avoid a charging Rhino, and sent the beasts lethal horns slamming into June. Flipping in mid-air, Azula reached down deep and ripped positive and negative energies apart though force of pure will. The cold-blooded fire rand up her arm and slammed into the ground beside her attackers. The lighting moved thought the ground and into beasts and riders alike and was long gone by the time she landed gasping for breath.
Pant pant"Looks like they'd still see something greater than they could hope to be. A little time to work out, and this will have been easy."
As she put her hands on her knees her heart lifted by the fact that she could still fight on her old level if only for a short while. Then Azula heard footsteps fainter than heartbeats and looked to see the famous Blue Spirit beside a crippled mount as if the masked figure had jumped at the last moment and been air-born when the lighting hit.
Azula's hands shook at the though of more fighting.
"So your HIS CREATURE THEN!" pant pant
The mask fell to the sands of the Si Wong desert just as the sun vanished and day turned to-night, and Azula and Mai looked each other in the eye. Mai spoke.
"You're coming back."
Azula's eyes where wide with surprise, and she couldn't help but flash back to the Boiling Rock, and the deep feeling of betrayal she felt when Mai and Ty Lee turned on her.
"YOU, it all started with YOU!"
Mai voice was that same even emotionless tone she'd heard for years.
"Yea, tell yourself that."
Between heartbeats Azula saw herself chained on her knees in the great palace of Sozin crying like a weakling. She felt her strength drain without the sun, but she locked eyes with Mai anyway and charged.
Hu looked up at the faintest sliver of the moon looking down on the world of mortals. He mad his way on four paws across the sands pondering the enigma of Azula.
[!]So now we learn if their really is more to you. I for one hope there is, but I can smell blood on the wind.[/!]
As he approached he noticed the sand already covering the bodies of the fallen. Riders and beasts alike, with only one empty saddle.
[!]Are you a just a killer that doesn't want to admit you have no soul?[/!]
Further along he found Azula sitting in the sand talking to the night it seemed.
"You where always so damn tall I envied that too. For what it's worth I always figured it would be Ty Lee chasing some butterflies or something."
His now human hand found its way to her shoulder, and she looked up at him Mai's unconscious head in her lap.
"Oh Hu, later then I thought you'd be."
Looking Azula in her face he could plainly see red spots that he knew were not from sun burn.
"My Princess . . . "
"Yes yes Mai and her White jade poison. Relax you don't use that stuff and not carry around a vile or four of anti-toxin. I'll be need help getting out of here of course antidote or not is strong stuff."
He helped her up and spoke though his confusion.
"I . . would . . . . ask why that girl is still breathing?"
"She beat me, not this time of course but that's worth something I guess."
Next: "Waking The Light."