Blue Mask, Two Swords, and Sozin's Comet
He Who Follows Best
By Pat Squared
Review please,
My muse is starving to death,
Please review and feed her a virtual cookie.
Katara made of mistake of listening to Aang.
What he pointed out to her made sense. The only available fire bending trainer that was not steadfastly loyal to the Fire Nation was Prince Zuko.
However, her heart did not want to accept the truth.
Katara did not want Zuko to burrow deeper into her heart and hurt her again.
The Water Tribe girl has twice dealt with the loss of her love. First, when she heard that Azula killed him. And then she dealt with the agony of lost again when he chose to hunt the legendary ghost bear. Her red string soul mate was dying and chose to go out in a blaze of glory facing an undefeatable enemy. In doing so, he became something that she did not want to understand.
How could she be around Zuko and act like she never saw the deliberate dismemberment of the earth bender? He calmly cooked and ate in front of the man he brutally slain, and it did not visibly affect him. He boasted in that scroll his deed so as to enrage the governor to hire professional assassins to perform the task for ending his unhappy life. He was on a path that she could never follow. To follow him would be like a fish deliberately crawling into the desert.
Aang flicked a lever on his staff and jumped off of Appa to follow the banish prince leaving Katara to her own thoughts.
Iroh, the Dragon of the West, was watching as Madam Chi patiently taught both Ty Lee's (Li's niece and Chi's granddaughter) how to cook. The older Ty Lee's sported a swollen belly. When one put an ear it to, one can hear the heartbeat of a child to be.
The midwives of the village at Kami no Tsuyu, Madam Han and Ty Lee, both confirmed that Zuko's little girl was growing in Ty's womb. Iroh had paid the fortune teller silver to help Ty select an auspicious name as was the custom in both the Fire Nation and the Earth Kingdom. When the child was to be born, she was to be named Lijuan, or 'beautiful and graceful.'
Lijuan was Zuko's daughter and the rightful heir to the throne of the Fire Nation. However, Iroh knew that Zuko's line would probably never return to the Fire Nation, let alone rule it. He missed his nephew. When Ty Lee broke the news to him about Zuko's death, only the fact that she was carrying Zuko's child gave the former Fire Nation general reason to continue living.
Iroh was not that old. He had relatives, though none that ruled the Fire Nation, that managed to die of extreme old age. He vowed to remain on this earth to guide his grandniece. He vowed to teach the child how to play the songi horn, sign beautifully during music night, enjoy a cup of tea, and all the other things that Zuko would not do out of his usual pigheadedness. Most importantly, he had to be there to train Zuko's child in her hereditary gift of fire bending.
"Uncle Li, Lijuan is moving again," Ty muttered as she started to pour some oil onto the hot wok.
Madam Chi smiled. She knew that Li looked upon the child of his departed nephew as his own grandchild.
"They always do at this stage. Soon you can't wait to give birth so she will stop using you as a training bag."
Under Madam Chi's guidance, Ty slid the thinly cut up meat and vegetables off the chopping board and into the wok.
"Remember girls, always sauté the garlic first for ten heartbeats and only then the onions. Let it soften in the oil for twenty seconds. Toss in the meat next, careful to sear the meat. Let the flavors infuse together for a minute before you add the rest of the vegetables. It should take no more than a couple minutes. Keep stirring while I check the rice."
Suddenly a little boy, about three years old came running in the door with a young lady in pursuit. She caught up to the child, picked him up, and gave him a quick swat on the bottom.
"Tom-Tom, you aren't supposed to run into people's houses. It's disrespectful."
The child was brawling that his mom actually swatted him on the bottom.
"I hate you!"
Over and over again the kid muttered the line as he started shaking and threw a temper tantrum.
The young lady bowed in apology to everyone.
"I am sorry for barging into your home, but my son wiggled out my arms and I had to chase hi...him?"
Her face turned white and she passed out right unto the floor.
The sound of a second hitting the floor told Iroh the mystery lady was not alone.
Madam Chi rushed to the expectant mother, while Iroh tended to the child and the strange mother.
Damn, it's...Zuko's finance!
The child was crying out for his mother – The mother that traveled with Azula and mutely stood by when Azula sold Ty.
Instinctively Iroh's fist lit up into flames. His family was in danger and he was not going to let Azula kill off the real heir to the throne.
"Hurry up and get the girls out of here. I know this assassin."
Madam Chi looked on with horror as she realized that her lover Storyteller Li was a fire bender. Her granddaughter started trying to revive the young mother to be.
Using the command voice he cultivated in thirty-five years of fighting wars, Iroh snapped, "Get The Girls To Ty's Room Now! Lock the door and don't open it for anyone but me."
The child was silent with fear and trying to wake up his mother.
If it was not for the child, Iroh would have already slain the woman. Iroh would take no chances where his 'niece' and Zuko's child was concern. He was the only real protection that Lijuan would have until she mastered her birth right - fire bending. Iroh searched the lady carefully and removed everything that could be used as a weapon. With this particular lady, it meant just about everything.
The lady stirred. She looked up and saw her child. She saw the Dragon of the West ready to...
She grabbed the child, rolled over covering the child, and instinctively shielded the boy with her body.
"Don't hurt my boy. Kill me, but don't..."
It is not acting. It could be a trick. If she is here...where is Azula?
"Stop it. Tell me where is Azula."
"Back in the Fire Nation."
"You killed my nephew. Why should I spare you after you killed Zuko?"
The tear ran down the girl's face.
"Zuko is alive. He faked his death so that Azula would return back to cement her power. She doesn't care about the avatar or you. She just wanted Zuko out of the way so she can grab the throne. You should not spare me. I was Azula's pawn. Go ahead kill me if that will make you feel any better. Just promise me that you will find my Tom-Tom a good family who will take care of him."
The door from the room opened and a visibly weakened Ty Lee walked out to confront her old friend.
"Stop it, uncle. Mai is not acting. I known her since I was three and our fathers brought us to the palace to be Azula's companions."
Ty was the one that restored Iroh to his senses. Madam Chi looked upon everyone with shock.
"Why didn't you tell me? I loved you even if you were the Fire Lord," she screeched, "So you must be Iroh and your nephew is Zuko. I would have kept your secret, but you did not even...you are not welcomed anymore in my house, let alone in my bed."
Madam Chi stormed off.
Now the two young ladies stared at the former general.
"You two work things out between yourselves. I have to take care of some very important business."
Iroh ran after Madam Chi.
The two former friends looked at one another warily. Mai was holding her crying son and Ty was holding the bump where her daughter was growing.
"So what are we going to do?" asked Mai.
"I have to finish cooking supper. Then I guess I got to pack. If you could find us, then Azula...She would not hesitate, especially if..."
Mai interrupted, "She knew that your child is Zuko's. He told me everything, Ty. I just pray that I am in the same condition as you are. I will know for sure in a couple weeks."
Ty stared at Mai until things clicked in her head.
"What happened?"
"Let's eat and start packing. It will take a while."
The two girls had a lot to talk about and a friendship to repair.
Madam Chi did not want to believe it. She could live with her lover being a fire bender. There was no family in the border provinces that did not have a couple fire benders in the family tree. She could live with her lover being a fugitive from justice. However, the Dragon of the West would only bring bounty hunters into her town and perhaps put her only grandchild at risk.
"I told you that you are not welcome here."
Chi made a stomping motion and a small slate board that her granddaughter used to practice her kanji floated five feet off the ground.
"I fought against your Fire Nation fire benders in my youth and I will do anything to protect my grandchild. Grab your stuff and leave."
She warily watched as he just sat down. The man that minutes ago displayed the energy to fight off the entire Fire Nation army was mortally tired.
"There is nothing here for me anymore. The one with whom I wanted to grow old with does not want me. Promise me that you would not let anything happen to my niece or her child and I will leave this place forever."
Iroh waited for an answer.
The room was silent for a minute.
"Don't think that you are forgiven old man or even think of touching me. If your niece was not pregnant and in need of your help, I would have already turned the townsfolk against you. However, it's my rules. Agreed?"
"Yes, Madam Chi."
Iroh knew that he lost the right to call her by her private pet name.
"Ty, keep an eye on the girls and don't tell anyone what just happened. Tell Ty, I mean Li's niece that she is not to leave. I will not endanger her child by forcing her to travel now. Should our uninvited guest do anything to try to harm Iroh's niece, sink her in quicksand up to her necks. And baby sit that little boy if need be. I think that our General and I will have a long talk."
Iroh gulped the moment that Madam Chi used the phrase long talk. Especially since she was still levitating that piece of slate and the house had stone tile floors.
Madam Chi's granddaughter left the room in a hurry.
"Now just when were you going to tell me the details about this little problem of yours?"
The former Dragon of the West was in some serious trouble.
Azula cursed the Blue Spirit again.
Jian Li had not only come to the Fire Palace to steal her first kiss and her heart, he stole Tom-Tom right out of the royal nursery. Knowing Jian Li, Mai was probably on his payroll and sharing his bed. Worse, Azula spent a lot of money to build up her own intelligence network and now it was his.
He probably knocked up Mai too.
Being a male made it easy for him so secure the loyalty of females. Divide them. Rut with them and have them bear you a child.
And yet he could not be bothered to give her theheir that she wanted.
Azula launched a boulder sized of blue flame towards one of the servants cleaning her room. The servant was wary enough to have kept an eye on her foul tempered mistress and ducked.
Jian Li was too ruthless, too much like her. He was the first real competition she had. He was her red string soul mate and yet they insisted on playing this cat and mouse game.
She looked at the reports on her desk. Most of them were routine, but one cut her eye.
I know where you will strike next and when you do, you will be mine. Did not you coin the phrase, 'He that follows best follows from the front.' I know that you will be visiting a certain governor. I am going to conquer a province and the world's best assassin in one night.
Azula motioned for the servants to leave her quarters. She dimmed the lights and went into her private room. In her memories, she could still taste his lips and smell his musky, cinnamon scent. She lifted a bottle. Inside of it was a certain aphrodisiac that would wake up any xiao didi and dulled the reason. It would even make a monk rutt like a mink in heat. The problem was that it was lethal if one used too much. The heart will burst, but she did not care as long as she got what she wanted.
She was not going to kill the Blue Spirit. If fact, many men would enjoy being caught in her trap. He was going to give her an heir or die trying.
The Blue Spirit smiled at the challenge before him. The governor of the Earth Kingdom province of Hirakou had doubled his guards and was hiding inside a fortified compound.
Soon Isao Eiji. Your mother named you 'splendid ruler.' I am here to terminate your reign.
The governor was a vile man whose code of conduct was similar to the Blue Spirit's sister. He oppressed his people with extra taxes and levies to support our heroic troops. And yet, the governor stole all the money made from the extra levies. Mothers and wives were having their farms and business confiscated because they could not afford to pay the new taxes and feed their family. Sons and husbands were being sent out to war with no supplies and uniforms stripped off the dead because there were no weapons, food, or cloths being procured for those that protected their homes. All this misery was incurred so that the Isao family can live in decadent luxury. The theft of the governor's wife's necklace was a warning. Tonight, the Blue Spirit was going to turn Eiji into an object lesson.
Even for a prince that still wanted the Fire Nation to win the war, seeing those in power deliberately endanger their own solders to line their pocket was unforgivable. Sacrificing troops for a victory was part and parcel of war, but for money...Eiji earned his trip to Yuanlao's court of final judgment.
The sentry was a young kid, not even old enough to shave. From the way that the child was holding his naginata (Japanese katana blade mounted on a six foot long shaft), the Blue Spirit knew that this child was a servant pressed into duty as a bodyguard.
So you thought that I would be scared off by an influx of guard. Eiji your urge to save money is going to get you killed.
The Blue Spirit waited for the sleepy sentry to pass before he took three steps and leapt upwards. He twisted so his back was flying towards the wall. He cupped his hand so they grabbed the lip of the low lying roof. He swing his legs and curled up so that his body landed prone one the tile roof.
The Blue Spirit inspected the tiles. These tiles were made out of fired clay, rendering it incapable of being used by the earth benders as projectiles.
Eiji is more afraid of his own subjects than the possible threat of a Fire Nation Special Tasks Team.
These teams specialized in hunting down and killing enemy leadership.
The Blue Spirit crawled just below the ridgeline of the roof. There was no moon out and from his observations there was no archers stationed on the roofs. The earth kingdom never seemed to understand the value that a single good archer can deliver.
Slowly the masked assassin uncoiled the rope from across his chest. He removed a padded grapple and attached it to the rope.
Letting out more and more rope with each revolution, the Blue Spirit tossed the padded grapple. The pads muffled any noise that make upon contact with the roof on the next building. The first attempt failed, but the second did not.
The Blue Spirit waited just in case any noise alerted the sentries to his presence. However, they were dull. He tied off the rope. Using the ropewalking skills that Jian Li once learned from Ty Lee, the Blue Spirit quickly made his wait across the sky.
Don't get sloppy. Make sure that the sloppy guard aren't just bait for a trap.
This house had all the tricks one could build into the house to defeat assassins. The exterior paths were made of signing sand and gravel. One step and they will sound out. The floors were nightingale floors designed to chip as one walks upon them. The Blue Spirit was not one of the legendary air benders that could fashion that damn air ball that the avatar seem to enjoy. However, he had a trick.
Rule One: Don't touch the floor.
Rule Two: The most uncomfortable way is the safest way.
The Blue Spirit removed a small tool. It was a small saw blade – one that a toymaker would use. He cut a small hole into the crawl space and slide insides careful to replace the cover over the hole. Using thin wooden strips the Blue Spirit secure it in place.
As expected the crawl space was filled with cobwebs and dust. The Blue Spirit wore a damp cloth over his face to filter it out so that he did not sneeze at an inopportune time.
He crawled his way to the governor's office. He recognized the voices. The governor was negotiating with someone to deal with the Blue Spirit. The voice of the other party was disguised but nevertheless female. The Blue Spirit knew better than to underestimate an opponent because of her sex. He had tasted defeat at the hands of both sexes and knew that if she was skilled enough that she could kill him just as certainly as any male.
The deal was made, but the Blue Spirit could not hear the details. He heard the floor sing as someone walked out of the office. It was his time. He exhaled and launched a fireball that burst through the floor. He followed.
Flames.
He was in a trap. However flames would not hold the Blue Spirit. Fire was his birthright.
However, something hit him and knocked him across the room. His limbs were in agony, but someone he reflexively threw it back.
Something was wrong. He could not hear anything. The roar of the fire was mute.
Then she saw her.
Azula.
The roar of the fire returned as he shook his head.
"So Jian Li, you think that you are immortal? Is that why you taunt your victims? The Kwan's were a piece of work. Fire is your birthright and yet you don't feel any loyalty to the Fire Nation. You are a piece of work. Tell me, what broke you?"
Betrayal, sister. You and father betrayed our mother and me. You cast me out and give me a fool's errand. It was only luck that the Avatar came back and give me hope. I was only one night from slashing my wrists when I discovered that the Avatar was still alive..
The assassin said nothing. Silence and darkness was as much his elements as fire was his sister's.
"I am not upset at you, my love. Thank to you, Isao Eiji surrendered his province in return for my protection and a little gold. Now be a good little boy and come home with me. You owe me for that kiss and I intend to collect on that unspoken promise.
Azula is twisted. She still...Sick!
The assassin spotted the former Earth Kingdom governor standing behind his sister.
Calm, be calm. Deep breath.
Silently, the assassin separated the qi in his body.
He bowed to compliment the Fire Nation princess for setting up a wonderful trap.
Then he stood up and flicked his fingers. A bolt of lightning arced out and struck the governor in the chest. His eyes spoke of surprise.
Azula too was surprised that someone else controlled the forbidden element. Yet she recovered quickly.
"Why settle for the shadows when you can rule the entire world? We are the most powerful fire benders in history of the world. Together, we can overthrow Ozai. You can kill the man who raped your mother…"
Ursa. You don't deserve the honor of being her daughter.
Silence was his reply.
The former governor was obviously dead. The two fire benders circled each other.
"We can conquer the world. You can have your harem and wealth beyond your wildest imagination."
He had to reply.
"Princess, do you know who I really am? I am the perversity of life. I am the vessel of chaos. I am the moth that eat holes into the tapestry of fate. The gods cursed me. However, they did not break me.
"The ones I loved betrayed me and cast me adrift. Now I make my own path. Not your path. Not your father's path. Not the god's path. Why would I surrender myself and agreed to be domesticated like a dog. You seek to make me a sheep in wolf's clothing – the ultimate disgrace. To conquer me is to destroy the thing you seek."
The princess licked her lips.
"I don't expect your surrender or your love. I am going to take what I want and you will try to resist. You stole my heart and I am going to take your soul. It's not that bad, you get all of me."
The look on Azula's face scared the former prince. She was hungry and planed to feast on his soul.
"Not in this life."
She threw a lightning bolt and he threw it bad. Azula ducked it and launched a ball of blue flame.
The assassin ducked and weaved seeking a way out. There was no way out. He would die, live the rest of his short life as her prisoner, or kill his sister. All three options were bad. He chose honor.
The assassin launched a furious attack. His fire, blades, and body became one.
The princess was falling back against the onslaught. She was a fire bending prodigy. However, she did not study unarmed combat and blades like he did. Yet she was not defenseless. She had drawn out a long straight sword.
Flame, flesh, and steel interacted. The air was electrified with the flow of qi. Both sides fought for victory and nether side would give up.
Faster and faster the dance whirled. The building was no fire and yet the pair did not care. Fire was their birthright. Fire and blood unified them and yet they were fighting one another.
He spun and tripped her. She returned the favor. Surrender was not in either contestant's vocabulary.
Silently both fighters separated. Fatigue was now a factor in the balance equation of death and dishonor. Each fighter knew that the next minute would decide the issue.
Azula took the moment to taunt the assassin, "I know where you will strike next and when you do, you will be mine. Did not you coin the phrase, 'He that follows best follows from the front.' Thank you for such a fine education. I do so hope that you will share it with our kids."
She timed her strike with the word hope.
He was prepared. He spun blocking her attacks of flame and steel. He got up close where the longer length of her sword would be a disadvantage. He prepared to knock out his sister.
Suddenly his body failed. Looking down, he saw the dagger in his chest. He had walked into his death.
He fell wondering what would be the fate of his soul upon the wheel of death and rebirth. Then he realized that he did not really care. The gods hated him and so would ensure that he would endure another short life of agony and he will try to defy them once more.
He could hear his sister cry out for Jian Li. Azula was begging him to live, but he did not want to live if that meant being his sister's play toy. He did not bother to comfort her. She had chosen her path and he did his. Now was not the time to complain about the price being too dear.
Unlike his sister, the former prince knew the sad truth about the universe. There is no destiny. There is no god that tells you how you will live your day. You carve out the story of your life one breath at a time. His story lasted eighteen years, eighteen years longer than the healers and surgeons attending his birth predicted. He had lived more in such a short time than men has accomplished in generations. The Blue Spirit will live on for generations as a monument to the truth that the gods wanted to extinguish. The gods may try to break a man with hardship, but in the end they will only make him stronger, like they made him stronger.
With great difficulty he held unto his swords. He was going to need then for one last fight. He was going to going to defy the gods. He was going to...
His eyes closed and he heard his sister scream in rage. He heard the sounds of fighting, but he was too weak to open his eyes. He was going to fight the gods and he would never surrender to his enemies.
Someone grabbed his body and he could feel his legs dragging on the tile floor. He remembered hanging onto the blade. He would never let go. He would never surrender.
Darkness was his element and he returned to the darkness with a fading smile.