Yula glared at the floating prison. The entire vessel was made of wood, with a guard tower at each corner. Dragon Imperial Guards provided lookout in each of the towers, while more guards patrolled along each side of the deck. A single wooden cage sat in the center, containing a shadowed figure within.
"So, this is the place?" Yula leaned against the railing of the ferry, watching intently as they neared the prison.
Captain Han nodded. "Yes, Empress, as requested."
"Good. Have there been anymore reports from Spirit Island?"
"One this morning." The captain hung his head. "They still haven't found Shin Tsang."
Yula frowned. During the mayhem that Zuko and Anraq had caused when rescuing Azula at the temple, Shin Tsang had slipped away and most likely disappeared into the jungle. Since then, she'd had a team searching the entire island for him. Now that she had Sen's essence within her, she couldn't have that ancient spirit's servant running free. She would not end up like Azula. "Keep looking. He had no other way off the island, and it's not that big. He's hiding somewhere."
"Of course."
"Have you located Azula and the others yet?"
"Some of our scouts in the Earth Kingdom said they saw a dragon flying east," Captain Han replied, looking towards the port side of the ferry. "We have troops scouring the land for them."
"East..." Yula's eyes narrowed. There were only two major cities east of where they were now. No doubt which one they were traveling to. "Zaofu."
"Empress?"
"I believe they've gone to Zaofu," she clarified. "That's where Kuvira and the Avatar live."
"Do you want us to send a team?"
"Not yet. We'll get there. For now, I want to take care of this." Yula waited for the ferry to dock alongside the prison, and made her way down the gangplank. An entire line of Imperial Guards followed behind her in formation, while the prison guards greeted her with a salute. "How is the prisoner?"
The warden of the single-cell prison approached her with another salute. "No problems to report, Empress. He's ready for you."
"Good," she stated. "Everyone else wait here. I want to talk to him alone."
Yula approached the wooden cell with rigid poise, hands held behind her back. The man inside grunted at the sight of her, remaining seated on the floor. His hair had become knotted and disheveled, while his mustache had grown thick into a full beard, long and unkempt. One hand, he held calmly against his knee. The other wasn't there at all, as his wrist ended in a rounded stump.
"This is a surprise," he muttered, in that distinct, gravelly voice of his. "Haven't had a single visitor since they threw me in here."
Yula stepped up to the wooden bars and leaned close, staring at the man within. "Hello, Avan."
The former Dai Li commander and Red Lotus agent glanced up at her, his eyes squinting with vague recognition. "You're that mousy little firebender who was with the Avatar. What are you doing here?"
Yula glowered, and pushed a fist through the bars. Flames erupted from her knuckles in the form of a long blade, burning mere inches from the man's face. "Call me that again, and you lose your eyes. I'm the Dragon Empress, is that understood?"
"Of course," he said, undeterred by the threat. He maintained his glare. "Dragon Empress."
"Good." She withdrew the fiery blade, and held her hands gently against the wooden bars of the cage. "Now, I'm here because I have a request. I may rule the Dragon Empire, but the current Earth Queen will remain loyal to her father, who is now a fugitive of the empire. That doesn't work for me. I need someone running the Earth Kingdom I can control."
Avan raised an eyebrow. "And where do I fit in?"
"I want you to be that person," she stated. "Serve me, and I'll let you out of here. You wouldn't be Earth King or anything, of course, but you would keep Ba Sing Se and the rest of the Earth Kingdom in line for me."
Avan narrowed his glare. He was studying her, trying to discern her motives. Pointless. He could look all he wanted. He wouldn't get anything out of her. "Of all the people you could have for this job, why me?"
"Because, I understand you're very good at control." Yula leaned closer, pressing her face close to the bars. "Avan. how would you like to reinstate the Dai Li?"
At this question, Avan sat up straighter. He remained silent, but couldn't hide his lips from growing into a wide, eager grin.
Azula thrust her fist, huffing out an even breath at the same time. Perhaps this time she would see fire. A spark, maybe. A dim ember. Anything. Same as before, a single puff of smoke emerged, only to dissipate seconds later. No matter how hard she tried, no matter what style she utilized, she could not produce fire.
This didn't make any sense. The smoke clearly indicated she was creating something, which meant she had to be firebending in some form. Why was it so pitiful? Why couldn't she make fire? Or lightning? Or anything useful at all? With a frustrated grumble, she leaped into the air with a desperate spinning kick. She overextended the strike, landing awkwardly on her feet. Her balance stumbled, and she fell to the ground.
"Damn it!" she exclaimed, smacking her fists into the grass of the Beifong estate garden. "What is wrong with me?"
"Hey, you want some company?"
The voice belonged to Annie. She'd heard him approach, but didn't bother looking at him. Maybe if she ignored him, he'd go away. No one should be seeing her like this, so weak and pathetic. Least of all him. "I don't care."
Anraq lowered himself to the ground next to her. "I'm sorry about earlier. I really thought Korra would be able to help you."
"Oh, you're sorry? Gee, I feel so much better now. Why, I've completely forgotten I can't bend anymore!" Azula turned her head and scoffed. "It's easy for you to be sorry. You still have your bending."
"I know, I didn't mean..." He sighed, bowing his head. "Sorry."
"I got my hopes up," she muttered. "I thought that the Avatar would be the answer, too. She wasn't. Just another disappointment. Another failure. I still can't bend." She squinted her eyes shut, and tightened her fingers through her hair. "I'm hopeless."
"Hey, you're not hopeless. I mean, you were looking good with those swords."
She shot a glare towards him. "Don't patronize me."
"I'm not," he insisted. "I mean it. Azula, you're incredibly talented, even without your bending. If there's anyone who can overcome this, it's you."
She frowned at him, studying him. He certainly sounded earnest, and the look in his eyes seemed genuine. More than that, he was right. She was incredibly talented, always had been. That didn't mean she didn't want to bend again. Losing her bending had significantly reduced her lethality, and put her at a massive disadvantage compared to how she used to be.
Her gaze lowered to her shoulder, noticing the handles of the swords strapped to her back. One way to find out. Flipping back to her feet, she turned a challenging glare towards Anraq. "Fight me."
Anraq blinked. "Uh, what?"
"Right now, fight me," she said, drawing the dual blades from their scabbard. "I want to spar, and I don't want you holding back."
He raised a tentative brow at her, as he returned to his feet. "Are you sure that's a good idea?"
Azula promptly swung her swords at his chest, forcing him to jump backwards out of the way. "What's the matter, Annie? Scared?
Without missing a beat, Anraq shifted into a bending pose and pulled the water out of his flask. "Okay, so that's how it's going to be, huh? Fine, let's go."
Azula darted towards him, swords spread out to the side. Anraq slid one his feet backwards and guided his arms forward, causing the water to coil and drill towards his opponent. Azula shifted to the side, evading the strike so closely the water grazed against one of her sleeves. Not enough to slow her down.
When she closed the distance, Azula lunged with her blades. Anraq spun to the side and swatted the swords away with a whip of water. The motion pushed her off balance, opening an opportunity to wrap the water around her ankle and yank her off her feet. A grunt of frustration burst from her throat as she flew through the air, but she managed to twist herself and regain control before crashing into the ground. She landed on her feet, and immediately ran at him again.
Anraq swirled the water around himself in the form of a sphere, and began rapidly striking his arms back and forth. A storm of icy projectiles burst from the water, forcing Azula to switch directions. The projectiles followed her. She ducked beneath a few, spun away from another. The barrage intensified. She stood her ground and hacked at the ice chunks, cutting them out of the air with her swords.
Running low on ammunition, Anraq ceased his icy bombardment and called the water back to himself. Azula took the momentary lapse to close the distance. Fast enough to outpace the water. Fast enough to strike before he could restore his defenses. Anraq stepped back, shifting his focus to the arcing swords so he could evade. He never saw her leg whipping around from the side. Azula's boot cracked into his jaw, knocking him clean off his feet.
Azula leaped forward with her swords poised to strike. As the swords came down, Anraq pulled water over his arms and hardened them into a pair of ice blades. With a few deft parries, he pushed away and rolled back up to his feet. She never relented. Planting her feet firmly against the ground, she whirled forward with a vicious onslaught of sword cuts. Anraq fell back on the defensive, deflecting her attacks with his ice blades.
Anraq's focus shifted frantically between her swords, desperate to keep track of her attacks. Azula smirked, breaking through his guard with a snapping kick to his jaw. While Annie was an excellent waterbender, his hand-to-hand skills needed work. A second kick sent him tumbling to the ground. She lunged forward, mounted atop him, swords pulled back for a finishing blow. Victory would be hers! She didn't notice the torrent of water spiraling out of the nearby fountain until it crashed atop her, violently throwing her backwards. She hit the ground with a rolling thud, swords scattering from her grasp.
"Damn it!" Azula coughed out a mouthful of water as she pushed herself up to her knees. "I should have had that!" Another cough, and she wiped her lips dry. Heated frustration drove her fist into the wet ground beneath her. "I'm just not as good as I was before. I never will be."
"Hey, considering this is only like your third day with those swords, I'd say you did pretty well," Anraq said, holding an arm down to her. "Besides, your reflexes are top notch. I could barely touch you."
"But you did. That's the problem." Azula grabbed his arm and pulled herself up to her feet. She started wringing the water out of her hair, only for Annie to simply bend away every drop from her body, leaving her bone dry. "I might be skilled in non-bending combat, but it doesn't matter. Put me up against a master bender like you, and I'll lose."
Anraq frowned, giving her a stern glare. "Now that does not sound like the Azula I know." She huffed and looked away from him, but he remained adamant. "The Azula I know is confident in herself. She'd say I just got lucky and then demand a rematch. The Azula I know wouldn't stop until she had me flat on my back and at her mercy."
Azula shot her gaze towards him with a lifted eyebrow. "Was that supposed to be an innuendo?"
"Uhh..." He paused, mulling over exactly what he had said. "I mean, did you want it to be?"
She blinked at him, unable to fully hide the grin that threatened to spread across her face. Taking a moment to retrieve her swords, she flipped them around in her grip and took a combative stance. "Let's go again."
Kuvira leaned over the balcony railing, watching the two sparring down below. Korra stood at her side, holding an arm around her shoulder. "It's strange, don't you think?"
Korra looked at her. "What's strange?"
"How close those two are. Or at least how Anraq feels about her. I mean, it's Azula. You think he's right about her? That she really is trying to change?"
"I don't know. He certainly seems to think so." Korra returned her focus to the gardens. "Granted, judging from what we know about her, it would be pretty hard to believe."
"I'm sure that's what a lot of people said about me, too," Kuvira muttered. "Plus, he's right. We really don't know anything about her. On the other hand, he's spent the last year with her. He would know her a lot better than we ever could."
Korra lowered her head with a deep sigh. "After what he and Zuko told us... I know the Spirit World can be a nice place to visit, but to be trapped there for so long? And to have actually died? I wouldn't wish that on anyone."
Kuvira nodded. "I guess the only thing we can do now is trust what Anraq says and hope for the best."
Korra looked up at the sound laughter. Anraq had fallen into the fountain at some point, now crawling his way back out, soaking wet. Azula was the one laughing. Not in the mocking way she usually did. This laugh was happy, and genuine. "And maybe give her a chance?"
"I suppose." Kuvira watched the pair down below. Azula pointed at Anraq with an arm held over her stomach as she laughed, only for a wave of water to surge out of the fountain and swiftly silence her. "I just hope this doesn't come back to haunt us."
"I'm sure it won't."
"Anyway, we have other things to concentrate on right now." Kuvira pushed herself away from the balcony and turned towards the sliding door that led back inside. "We need to get a message out to the United Republic and both Water Tribes to let them know what's going on in the Dragon Empire. If Lord Zuko's concerns are correct, Yula could be planning to attack other nations soon. We have to be prepared."
Korra eased a heavy sigh, following her inside. "I still can't believe it's the same Yula we knew."
"I know, but people can change, we both know that." Kuvira reached out to hold her girlfriend's hand, giving a comforting squeeze. "And not always for the better. "
Izumi finished signing her name on the last of her stack of documents for the evening. Setting down her pen, she flexed her fingers and cracked her wrist. Spirits, her wrist had been cramping far more often recently. Perhaps age was finally starting to catch up with her, as she neared sixty years old. Granted, the problem might also extend from the scars that consumed her right arm. They might only be scars, and yet her hand had only begun cramping this badly after Azula had burned her. The scar on her face, too, continued to tingle every so often with dull, lingering sensations of pain. Nothing serious, but enough to annoy her.
The door to her office opened, and a young woman with long dark hair poked her head into the room. "Earth Queen, do you have a moment?"
"You know you can call me 'Izumi'," she said, with a sigh. "We're still friends, Yira, same as when I was Fire Lord."
Yira was a good, if somewhat shy person, and had served as her secretary for years back in the Fire Nation. Ever since Izumi had been made Earth Queen, Yira had made the trip to Ba Sing Se to continue working for her. She was a dedicated worker, and an even better friend.
"Oh, right, Izumi," Yira said, as she slipped into the office. "Anyway, I just got some reports from Captain Xhu. She said that there have been more protests down in the lower ring."
"I see..." Izumi pinched the bridge of her nose and eased out a steady sigh. While the large majority of Ba Sing Se had been perfectly content with the Dragon Empire running the nation, several small groups had been cropping up lately to protest. Nothing that couldn't be handled, but the growing frequency had become unsettling. Before long, they might well start mimicking those Sun Warriors who had attacked Azula a few months ago. "Tell Captain Xhu that as long as the protests remain peaceful they may continue uninterrupted, but have guards on standby in case any rioting breaks out. I don't want unrest in the streets."
"Of course, Izumi." Yira paused, her expression darkening with a grim seriousness. "There is one more thing. We've just received word that the head of the Dragon Empire—that is to say, the Dragon Empress—is no longer Azula."
"What?" Izumi sat up straighter, blinking at the young woman. Azula wasn't the empress anymore? Questions surged through her head. Something dire must have happened. An empress didn't fall out of power overnight on accident. Her mind settled on the most basic question to start with. "Well, who is?"
"It's that Yula woman," Yira replied. "The previous Fire Lord."
"Azula's student? What on earth happened?"
Yira shifted awkwardly, offering a small shrug. "We don't know. The only information we received stated that Azula had been removed from power and Yula had taken over. Well, that and..."
Izumi lifted an eyebrow at the woman's hesitation. Whatever she was about to say couldn't be good. "Spit it out, Yira."
"It's your father. He's been branded a traitor of the empire, along with Azula and her bodyguard. They're wanted fugitives now, on the run somewhere in Earth Kingdom territory." Yira bowed her head. "I'm sorry."
"I don't believe this," she uttered, sinking back against her chair.
Izumi's mind raced, contemplating the most likely scenario that would have led to these events. Her father would never do something so outrageous as treason without there being no other choice. Yula had undoubtedly taken power by force, which would have made Azula an enemy of the state by default. Zuko would have stood by his sister, as would her bodyguard, if he was loyal. From there, they would have fled, most likely on Druk. That would explain how they'd made it into the Earth Kingdom so quickly.
"This isn't good." Izumi pushed out from behind her desk and marched out of her office, into the large hall of the Ba Sing Se royal palace beyond. Yira scurried after her, close behind. "If Yula staged some kind of coup, she may be even more tyrannical than Azula. In that event, we need to start making plans to counter her. I've been working as Earth Queen to maintain peace and order in the Earth Kingdom, and I am not going to help a madwoman invade other nations."
"Do you want me to send orders to the general?" Yira asked. "I could—mmmpph!"
Her words cut out with a muffled scream, as an earthen projectile flew through the air and clamped around her mouth. A glove. Another pair of stone gloves sprang out from behind a pillar and latched onto the secretary's wrists. With a quick jerk, they dragged her into the shadows.
"Yira!" Izumi called, igniting a flaming dagger in her hand.
The glow from her fire lit up the darkened corners of the hall. She recoiled, a startled gaps lifting into her throat. Several figures emerged from behind pillars, gliding across the floor like shadowed ghosts. A dozen more figures appeared near the ceiling, clinging to the walls with their earthen gloves and boots. Their uniforms gave her the most pause. Flowing green and yellow robes with baggy sleeves, and wide-brimmed hats that hung low over their faces. She knew those uniforms.
Dai Li.
Impossible. The Dai Li had been disbanded six years ago after the election of the prime ministers, when the Earth Kingdom had become the Earth Republic. The nation may have since reverted to a kingdom, but the Dai Li had never been reinstated. She would never have given such an order. So what were they doing here?
The Dai Li descended upon her, each agent thrusting their hands forward to shoot their earthen gloves through the air. Izumi spun her body and ignited a searing whirlwind of fire that incinerated most of the projectiles. She ducked and weaved around the ones that survived, countering with several swift blasts of fire towards the agents near the ceiling. The Dai Li skated along the walls, out of range.
The agents at ground level slid out from behind the pillars and launched their gloves at her. Izumi flipped backwards and kicked two solid fire blasts to knock them out of the air. She shifted her stance, ready to defend. A glinting projectile raced out of the shadows behind her. She turned, and snapped out a jet of fire. It didn't stop. The metallic hand wrapped around her throat and tightened.
"Earth Queen Izumi," said a deep, grating voice. A new figure emerged from the shadows. The man wore his hair tied back in a long braid, with a thin mustache that curled around his lips. He reached one of his arms forward—an arm with no hand. The metal hand around Izumi's neck squeezed tighter and lifted her into the air. "I'm afraid you are no longer needed. By decree of Dragon Empress Yula, you are hereby stripped of your power and under arrest as a threat to the the empire."
