Listen to the thunder

– Wild Bill Hickok: Deadwood –

If there was one thing I'd learned since first becoming stranded in this world, it was this:

The Fire Nation had no use for subtlety.

Whether it was their clothing, their architecture, or the armored war machines that burned everything in their path, every last aspect of these people's culture seemed to have been designed to both impress and intimidate.

That was certainly the sense I was getting as I followed my two companions towards the ironclad monstrosity that now loomed before us.

The ship was an absolute beast; a steam-driven, coal hungry behemoth of iron, steel and brass, complete with an enormous pagoda that rose imperiously over the rest of the ship like a crimson spike. It dwarfed even the smokestacks which seemed almost puny in comparison. The ship itself seemed to be all spikes and rivets; sharp curves and jagged edges, all merging into harsh contours and unforgiving angles. Every inch of the ship's surface was emblazoned with the gold, black and red of the Fire Nation's colors, all of it looking as though it had been cleaned and polished just that morning.

Of course, me being who I was, the only thing I saw were self-made diagrams and speculative blueprints. With my bag slung over my shoulder, I devoured every detail I could lay my eyes on, studying the ship's otherworldly design, from the clawed prow to the jutting steam pipes. I took silent notes and mentally broke down base components, my mind already working out solutions to flaws that may or may not have been there.

I pulled myself away from my silent tinkering to glance between Zuko and his Uncle. The old man's usual jovial nature was now replaced by something far more cautious. He was like an old alley-cat quietly observing his environment as though he were expecting it to jump out at him.

I'm honestly not sure which was worse, the old man's paranoia, or the prince's sickening optimism.

Zuko being in a good mood was actually kind of unsettling, to be perfectly honest, seeing as how he seemed to spend most of his time either brooding, complaining or verbally abusing his uncle.

And of course, we certainly can't leave out all the times I had to listen to him stomp and rage about his ship (when he still had one) shouting: 'I'll get you next time Avatar! Next time!' while shaking his fist in the air.

Christ, I really hoped the sister was at least nice enough to give us separate cabins.

I swear to god, If I had to listen to one more second of Zuko pissing in my ear about the Avatar, his father, his throne or his fucking honor…

…I probably would have gotten my ass kicked.

One does not casually tell a fire bender to shut up; not unless they happen to be holding a very big fire extinguisher.

Once we reached the ship's upper deck, the two guards blocking our way suddenly stepped aside with a sharp clatter of their crimson armor. Their faces lay hidden behind the grillwork of their visors as they watched us make our way past.

Iroh darted his old eyes between each guard, frowned deeply. His posture was stiff and his mouth tightly shut. For a moment, I could've sworn that I even saw the hairs of his gray whiskers bristling.

Something about this whole thing definitely had the old man on edge.

Surprisingly enough, it was actually pretty quiet above deck, despite being all but teeming with armed guards and fire bending soldiers. Their large numbers were a little unsettling but the sight was something that I had come to expect whenever I encountered anything related to the Fire Nation's military.

With everyone waiting for our young host to make her appearance, I used the opportunity to take one last look at the mainland. My free hand shaded my eyes from the rising sun as I stared out across the waves. I listened as they crashed against the rocks and cliffs that rose up from the shore, their sun-bleached crags and crevices broken by patches of pink shrubbery.

I was actually kind of sad to say goodbye to the place. Kokyu (which I would later learn was old Fire Nation for breathe deep and seek peace) may not have been the most exciting place in this otherwise extraordinary world, but the little spa-village had its charm. It had also more or less been my home since the day Iroh had shoved that small pouch of coins into my hand and sent me on ahead.

It had been just after that sideburned prick, Zhao had commandeered Zuko's crew for his big invasion of the Northern Water Tribe, and both me and Iroh had agreed that a war zone was the last place for someone like me.

Much as I may have hated getting temporarily ditched by my two traveling companions, the General's decision to send me on ahead would later turn out to be a blessing in disguise.

And when the first stories started drifting in about what had supposedly happened during that delightful little excursion, I was all the more glad to have sat that one out.

As for Kokyu itself, I would miss its beaches and its tide pools; would miss the sweet smell of the cherry tree groves and the way the sound of the crashing waves would sing me to sleep nearly every night. I would miss hearing the laughter of the local children as they played and chased each other through the streets and the food stalls that always smelled of seasoned meat, spices and garlic.

But most of all, I would miss the cute fisherman's daughter that I had somehow made friends with over the course of my stay. Miyu, I think her name was — she really wasn't much for talking; especially those nights when she would quietly slip into my bed and wrap herself around me like an affectionate little octopus — or was it pentapus?

But I think two and-a-half months was time long enough to cool ones heels. And now that my own were good a chilly, I was ready to get back on the road and continue my not quite hopeless search for a way home; to a universe where people who control elements are regulated to comic books and animals don't look like something from an old game of Sim Life.

And so, after enjoying a nice little rendezvous with Miyu the previous evening; one involving a bonfire for two on the beach, I was soon told about Zuko's supposed redeeming in the eyes of his father, the Lord of Fire (or whatever the hell the title was.)

This unexpected news had apparently come straight from the mouth of Zuko's creepy little sister, whom I had briefly encountered the previous evening. In addition, she had also brought with her a very generous offer to shlep all three of us back to the Fire Nation's Capital.

And aboard her luxurious private barge, no less!

The whole thing had certainly been enough to lift the prince's spirits. He had even seemed to have completely forgotten my blowjob comment from earlier, which was just fine by me.

Jesus H Christ! I still couldn't believe that I actually got away with that!

Iroh on the other hand just looked discerned by the whole situation. It was as if there was something that just didn't sit right with him, like a smell that only his nose could detect.

I had watched as the old man spoke to his nephew at length about his doubts. Zuko, of course, had quickly responded with his usual bad attitude, shouts and accusations all culminating in the young Fire Prince pretty much telling his uncle to go to hell before storming off.

Why Iroh continued to stick by the little punk, was a mystery that I knew that I would never really understand. The man was, if nothing else, a pragmatic old codger. And if he thought there was something up with the girl's offer, then there must've been something to that.

Unfortunately, like Zuko, I didn't really have the luxury of being suspicious.

I needed to get out of this world and a ticket to the Fire Nations capital and all its library's was probably the best way to go about doing it.

Fuck the risks! I had told myself, reasoning that I would just have to worry about all of that when I had to — or, as they say in the Fire Nation 'We'll burn that bridge once we've crossed it.'

"Brother!" a smooth yet commanding voice called out from across the deck, pulling me from my self-indulgent musings. "Uncle! I'm so glad that you've decided to come!"

My two companions suddenly halted in their tracks, bowing at once to the approaching figure of our host and apparent rescuer, the girl named Azula.

Flanked by a small phalanx of bodyguards and dressed in a set of dark, ornately fashioned armor, Princess Azula moved with a sense of authority that radiated with well practiced arrogance. Hands clasped behind her back, the girl took her time as she made her way towards us, her wide-legged stance adding an extra bit of swagger to each step.

My ears twitched at the tap-tapping of her boots as I watched her, silently amused by the sight of a teenage girl in command of a crew of trained soldiers nearly twice her size and age.

The closer she got, the more her resemblance to Zuko became apparent. Same golden eyes, same high cheekbones, same proud chin. The sister seemed to favor a less aquiline nose than her older brother and the fullness of her red, painted lips were something she had no doubt inherited from their mother.

I tried not to laugh at just how tiny she was; just barely five feet tall, even with her hair pulled back into a tightly fashioned topknot. Her skin was fair, her heart shaped face framed by two raven locks the hung sharply past her chin. She wore no jewelry, save for a simple gold headpiece shaped in the likeness of a flame, or a claw, or perhaps even both.

There was a cold beauty to her features, regal and full of treachery, the kind of beauty that a fly might notice only after they've stepped into the spider's parlor.

I'm not sure how long I had been standing there, gawking at her like some dumb-ass tourist on a cruise ship. It must have been long enough because I was swiftly pulled from my wandering thoughts by a nudge from Iroh.

And it was only when she turned those predator's eyes of hers in my direction that I realized I was the only asshole on this ship not bowing to her.

I was very quick to rectify this, followed my companion's example and bowed as well. The last thing I wanted was to be the one who screwed things up for everyone else because I didn't know when to mind my fucking manners.

After enough time had passed with us staring at our shoes, Zuko was the first to rise, followed closely by Iroh and then finally myself.

The princess of the Fire Nation extended both hands, regarding all three of us in a grand gesture of greeting. I couldn't help but inwardly shrink at the sight of her nails, sharpened to resemble dragon's claws; a style supposedly favored by the ladies of Fire Nation nobility. Only in this case, it was a style that the princess had taken to a far more vicious extreme.

I flexed my hand, skin crawling at the unpleasant memory of being held by those cruel little digits of hers.

"In the name of the Fire Nation, it's people and our beloved Fire Lord, I bid you both welcome!" Her tone practically oozed with insincere sweetness and I honestly couldn't tell if she was being gracious or condescending.

Something in my gut told me that it was probably a lethal combination of the two.

It was at this time that one of the officers suddenly broke away from the others, his armor and commanding manner instantly marking him as the ship's captain. Though slightly droop-eyed, a satisfied smirk was spread across his mustachioed face as he placed himself between us and the princess.

"Are we ready to depart, Your Highness?" he asked, bowing before Azula who favored all of us with a gentle smile.

"You may tell the crew to set a course for home, Captain," she answered, putting extra emphasis on the word 'home.'

"Home," I heard Zuko repeat the word, the usual rasp in his voice sounding almost subdued.

At first, I'd wanted to roll my eyes, a natural reaction I'd picked up as a result of being forced to listen to Zuko talk for extended periods of time.

But then again, what right did I have to mock him? Much as I hated to admit it, the prince and I were more or less in the same boat; just a couple unlucky schmucks who were desperate to get home.

And so I let it go, opting to just look on ahead and saying absolutely nothing as I'm sure The General would have preferred.

The captain bowed once again. "Very good, Your Highness," he said before turning to address the rest of the crew with a wide sweep of his arm. "You heard the Princess!" He shouted. "All hands prepare for departure! Raise the anchor! We're taking the prisoners back to the capit..."

He stopped talking, the last word dying on his tongue as a look of horror quickly took hold of his features.

Something flashed across Azula's face before she fixed the captain with a fiery glare.

"P-p-princess," he spluttered, all the swagger and arrogance now gone from his posture. I watched as he all but crumbled under the cruel look of unbridled fury that was now directed at him.

"Shit!" I muttered under my breath.

The whole damn thing had been a setup.

And all three of us had just walked our asses right into it.

I'm not really sure who it was that made the first move; Azula, Zuko, Iroh or the fucker standing behind me. Maybe it was all of them at once. All I know, is that before I had a chance to fully realize what was happening, Iroh had launched himself at the two guards nearest to him while Zuko went straight for his sister.

The old man made quick work of his two opponents, moving with a swiftness that none would have expected from a man his age. He ducked and slid to one side, dodging blasts of fire aimed for his head and feet before a kick to the groin and stomach sent both men flying backwards.

"You lied to me!" Zuko screamed towards his younger sister, blind fury burning in both his eyes. His scar crinkled under the weight of his glare.

"I always lie, Zuzu!" Azula replied before moving to intercept the first blow. "Is it my fault you haven't figured that out, by now?" She spun around and slashed her hand downward, sent a spinning disk of blue fire hurtling toward's Zuko which exploded where his feet had been just mere seconds prior.

And me? I had tried to make a run for it but the guy standing behind me had other ideas. A hand grabbed me by my arm while my feet were swept out from beneath me, knocking me on my ass. From there, I was quickly forced onto my stomach with my arm twisted behind my back.

When I cried out, my head was suddenly shoved down against the deck, courtesy of another guard's boot. I'm honestly not sure which was worse, the smell of komodo-rhino dung coming off the boot or the rivet that was digging into my cheekbone.

The sounds of fighting continued, moving from one end of the deck to the other with a swiftness and fury that I wouldn't have been able to follow, even if my face wasn't being pinned against a metal plate.

Across the deck I could just barely make out the sound of Zuko and Azula's voices as they continued to engage each other. Though I couldn't make out the words, I could recognize the sound of angry desperation from Zuko and chiding laughter from his sister.

That's when things took a very unexpected turn.

Something behind me snapped loudly; a sharp, ear-piercing crackle that hissed and hummed in an unpleasant cacophony of lacerated sound. The air suddenly became dry and for the briefest of moments, I swore I could feel the hairs on my arm stand on edge.

Blue-bright light flashed above us in jagged lines, followed swiftly by a terrible booming of sound that all but shook the entire ship to it's smallest rivit. The light jerked and jackknifed in a vicious torrent that arced overhead before striking the side of a nearby cliff.

There came a second explosion and I could hear the splash of falling rocks hitting the water. My nose wrinkled at the strange smell — like freshly burnt ozone — that now filled the air.

A girlish yelp suddenly broke through the rest of the noise which was quickly followed by the sound of something much bigger than a few rocks hitting the water.

"Zuko, let's go!" I heard Iroh call out to his nephew and I was just able to catch a glimpse as they both made a dash for the gangway, knocking aside the soldiers who attempted to stop them.

Zuko was the first one over, with Iroh following close behind.

"IROH!" I shouted, managing to lift my face off the deck before it was quickly pushed back down again. "For fuck sake, HELP ME!"

Upon hearing my voice, the old man suddenly stopped and jerked around, a look of horrified realization on his face as he stared into my pleading eyes. He started forward at once, let loose a wave of blazing hot projectiles that caused the men standing between us to scatter.

A weak but hopeful smile spread across my face as Iroh shouted for me to hold on.

But before he could advance any further, his one-man rescue operation was brought to a sudden halt as another blast of fire was sent his way.

Dozens more swiftly followed as another phalanx of soldiers came piling out of the row of hatches that had suddenly blinked open along the length of the deck.

I called out to Iroh again, this time from behind a forest of armored legs as my captors sent more bolts of red and orange fire screaming in the old man's direction.

Within seconds, the entire deck was completely overrun.

I watched as he slapped more of the flaming projectiles aside before returning with his own. When our eyes met once more, he looked at me with the most pained expression I had ever seen on a human face, before slowly shaking his head.

He then lifted his hands, palms held outward and empty.

"Forgive me."

I saw him mouth the words before turning around and making his own escape, disappearing from sight as he headed down the gangway.

"IROH!" I called out to him one last time.

There came no response.

He was gone.

They both were.

For a long, drawn out moment, I felt as though my insides had collapsed upon themselves. It filled me with a cold, sickening sensation that was already starting to creep its way up the back of my throat.

I'd been left behind… abandoned.

My whole body was now shaking and for a moment, I'd even forgotten how to breathe.

I wanted to cry.

I wanted to scream.

I wanted to tear myself apart, down to the smallest particle of my existence and just keep tearing and tearing until there was nothing left of me.

"Idiots!" I suddenly heard the captain shout. "What are you standing around gawking for? You there! Go after the traitors! And you! Go help the Princess! Quickly now before—"

A white column of steam and boiling water suddenly exploded somewhere off the ship's port side, launching a small dark shape high into the air. From where I lay, I was just able to catch a fleeting glimpse as it arced through the air, trailing water and jets of blue flame before slamming into the deck with such terrible force that I'm certain the whole ship felt it.

The soldiers around me stiffened, some even faltering as the deck itself seemed to buckle beneath their feet.

A spray of hot water soon began raining down upon all of us.

What sounded like a girl's scream suddenly tore through the air; a furious, inhuman whale of fury that was swiftly drowned out by a blast of scalding hot steam that ripped across the entire deck.

I cried out as the burning torrent passed over me as well, felt my skin parch and blister where the superheated air touched it.

When the chaos had finally subsided, I listened as the captain hastily made his way over to where the impact had originated.

"Your Highness!" he called out to her. "Are you alright? Do you need the physician to — hrggkhgg!"

The man's last words never made it passed his mouth as they were quickly replaced by the inaudible gargle of someone being choked.

"Do you…" I heard Azula hiss. "Have any idea what you've done?"

Even from a distance, the girl's voice was terrifying.

"I had them, Captain! I had both of them right in the palm of my hand!" There came a sudden rustling of leather, a scraping of armor against the deck, followed by another pitiful gurgle.

"And now, because of your idiocy! Your incompetence! Your… mouth! Not only have my brother and uncle escaped our trap, they now know exactly what will be waiting for them should our paths ever cross again!"

I flinched at the sound of something being violently thrown to the deck and the muffled crunch of something else breaking under the force of the impact.

I heard the captain shriek.

But it seemed as though the Princess was far from finished with the poor bastard.

"And now…" she went on. "I have to decide whether my brother and uncle were able to escape because you're either an idiot or because you're a traitor."

"Your Highness!" The man was practically sobbing. "I swear by the sacred light of Agni's Fire! By the Eternal Flame of the Burning Throne! I will see this mistake is rectified!" He took in a final rasping breath before adding, "I… I swear… on… on the life of my wife and daughters that… that I will… make this right!"

A brief silence followed the man's pleads before Azula finally responded.

"No captain," she said, her tone softening. "I will be the one who makes this right, starting with you."

My blood went cold when the gruesome sound of ripping flesh touched my ears; a warm splattering of organic noise that spilled wetly onto the deck. It was as though someone had kicked over a bucket of old soup. I listened to the last sickening gurgle of the captain's dying breath as it came bubbling out of him.

But it was the slump of a corpse falling against the deck that finally brought the horrific symphony to a close.

My throat clenched. Water pooled beneath my tongue as my nose wrinkled at the rising smell of copper and voided bowel. I could feel my heart thumping against my ribs and judging from the cold wetness that now covered the front of my pants, I had already managed to piss myself.

I felt like throwing up.

That's when I heard the familiar tap-tapping of approaching footsteps, moving in a slow, unhurried pace.

Tap… tap… tap…

I listened as the sound grew louder, helpless as each new footfall brought the Fire Princess that much closer to where I was being held down.

Tap… tap… tap…

She was so close now. So close, that each step was like the dull thumping of the executioner's drum announcing my impending slaughter. The sound hammered against the inside of my skull until I could feel it in my eyes. I squeezed them shut, haggard breaths so rapid that even the man holding me down was feeling it.

At that moment, I wanted nothing more than for this nightmare to finally end.

The footsteps finally ceased and when I opened my eyes I found myself staring down the pointed tip of Azula's boot, perfectly positioned to kick my teeth in the moment I made the first wrong move.

Something dripped.

My eyes went to the little red splotch that had suddenly appeared a few inches from my nose. From there, I slowly directed my vision upward, traced the contours of a trousered leg until I was looking at Azula's blood-drenched hand which hung loose and dripping at her side.

I watched as she flexed her fingers, claw tips catching little scraps of sunlight like shards of broken glass, every stretch and curl of a digit sending more little red droplets raining towards my face.

"Stand him up," she ordered.

The boot was lifted from my head, and I was given just a brief moment of sweet, merciful relief before I was roughly yanked to my feet. The two guards that had been holding me down were now holding me up by my arms, strong hands pushing my head forward until the bones in my neck were crying for mercy.

"Today has proven to be a tremendous disappointment," I heard Azula say to me. Her tone was surprisingly calm, despite having just murdered one of her own men. "And if there is one thing in this world which I simply cannot tolerate, it's being disappointed."

When I was finally allowed to look up, I saw that the Fire Princess was now standing as close to me as she had been when I had first met her. Her hair was damp and disheveled, the two stylized locks now frayed and uneven. Her makeup was smeared and dripping and her once pristine uniform now smelled of boiled seawater.

Her gaze was now level with mine, lips pursed, her cruel eyes burning with lethal intent. "Do you know why the Fire Lord chose me for this little errand of his?" She asked. "It's because I have never failed him. No matter how great or small the task, no matter how important or trivial, I have always fulfilled it with nothing short of perfection."

She turned her back to me and looked out across the deck, the telltale signs of her fight with Zuko and Iroh still smoldering like doused campfires. "This will be the first time in which I have failed my father and I simply cannot have that. I would just as soon cast myself into the nearest volcano! No, my brother and uncle will have to be hunted down like the worthless little rabbit-dogs they are, a task that now seems to have fallen upon myself to see completed."

She finally turned her attention back to me, heel grinding against the deck's iron-heavy surface as she spun about. Her eyes once again found mine. "Which just leaves me with one remaining question… What am I to do… with you?"

The girl liked to talk. More than that, she liked to hear herself talk.

And to think I once thought Zhao was a bloviating cunt.

"My father's instructions were very clear: Find my brother and uncle and bring them back to The Capital, so that all of the Fire Nation can see them marched through the streets in disgrace." She raised an eyebrow, her smirk taking on a whole new level of unwholesomeness. "He never said anything… about you."

I was too tired to formulate a response — Not that it would've mattered if I could; seeing as how this sadistic little klafte had no doubt decided what to do with me, long before she'd ordered the stormtroopers to stand me up.

"So as far as I'm concerned, you…" Azula reached out with her blood-stained hand and pinched a grain of dirt off my shoulder, "…are nothing but excess baggage. And if my time out at sea has taught me one thing, it's that there's only one way to deal with excess baggage."

She flicked the dirt from her finger, her eyes not once leaving mine. "Throw him over the side."

As soon as the order was given, the guards yanked me round, once again twisting both my arms behind my back and grabbing handfuls of my hair. They dragged my soon to be corpse towards the edge of the deck where a section of the guardrail suddenly dropped open with a dry scrape of metal.

I honestly can't remember if I begged or struggled.

The sound of waves crashing against the ship's hull filled my ears.

Within seconds, my entire world became nothing but an endless stretch of blue sky and ocean before I was shoved over the side.

(A/N) I would like to extend my thanks to everyone who favorited/followed both this story and myself. If you've made it this far, then I thank you even more. please continue to fav and follow if you are enjoying The Iron Dream and please feel free to leave a comment or review if have an extra moment to spare. I'm very interested to hear your thoughts.

Until next chapter, this is DDL wishing all of you to be safe and stay healthy during these Resident Evil flavored times we seem to be living in!