To You, From the Other Side of the World

by SpamMusubiii

What started out as a mission to find Zuko's mom ends up into a cascade of tragic events. Team Avatar and Azula gets stuck in Paradis Island with no other option but to join the scouts as an escape route. From what appeared to be an accident at first turned out to be something that was predestined in the first place, a divine will, a mission.

6. Battle of Trost District Arc (Part 1)

A/N: Well, this took a while. I apologize for the delay! Honestly, Chapter 139 really messed me up big time… Well, this chapter covers their graduation night and at least half of the Battle of Trost District. I know 15k+ words might be too overwhelming, but this is a multichapter update. I also separated the chapters so it's not confusing. I just wanna ask, would you prefer one-chapter updates, or will it be okay if there are multichapter updates every once in a while? I wasn't really sure about this particular update, I honestly don't want to leave you guys hanging after every chapter so I decided to drop it all in one go.

There is also a certain topic from atla that I would like to tackle in this chapter; which is the air nomad genocide. I kind of always considered it as a plot hole. This will be discussed in detail somewhere along the chapter, as well as in the endnote.

Re (Ba Sing Se's Walls): hi, vianca! Thanks for this! I also had this thought when I was writing the fic, that the drill may have revealed the presence of titans inside the walls. But then, if you think about it, it's also kind of the same when Bertholdt breached both walls of Shiganshina and Trost. Both the drill and Bertholdt only breached the lowermost portion of the aforementioned walls. And when Bertholdt did breach Shiganshina and Trost, it didn't reveal anything about the Colossal Titans making up the walls. It only became apparent when Annie scraped off the upper part of the walls in Stohess. Moreover, I think the walls in Paradis might have no colossal titans inside the portion where the gates are placed. An example of this is shown in Season 1, episode 2, I believe. When Reiner breached the inner wall, it showed that the Garrison had a small operation base inside the walls, particularly when they were starting to lower the gates. With this analogy in mind, it can be possible that earthbenders in Ba Sing Se can lower the walls to serve as gates without revealing anything about the Colossal Titans. These are only the possible explanations I can think of for now. I hope I explained it well though, but I'll definitely add more explanation for this throughout the story! With regards to Ty Lee's name, she meant that her 'real name' is what she grew accustomed to, it's not necessarily her real name (if this makes sense huhuh because Ty Lee Tybur does sound kinda funny hahah). I'll be adding more backstories though! If you have any more questions, feel free to type them in the reviews!

I also believe the events in this fic would differ a lot from aot, since the Gaang and Azula would be playing a huge role in the sequence of events. There will be similarities for now, but as the plot progresses, it'll deviate further from the s1-s3 arcs in aot.

There are four chapters in total with this update, enjoy reading!

Also, thank u for your reviews and insights on this. I appreciate it a lot! Reviews really do help with my writing and it motivates me, so thank you!

---

Humanity's Comeback (The Wildcards)

"Funny how you're threatening to kill me and all… yet you can't even control your titan form that well. I even had to tear your nape open," Annie scoffed as she towered over Azula, the red marks that marred her porcelain skin making her sound more menacing. The two of them had just emerged from the napes of their worn-out titan forms. It wasn't just a while ago when Annie defeated Azula in a one-to-one combat, immobilizing her later on after she had lost control of her titan form.

They were in the middle of this desolate desert, halfway between Chrolva and Trost, as well as halfway between Wall Rose and Wall Maria. They were practicing within titan territory, at least 35 kilometers away from any known civilization. It was carefully planned, today was their rest day and the scouts were out on an expedition on the other side of the wall from Karaness District.

Annie jumped out and finally got on her feet, she crossed her arms and continued speaking, "It's pathetic I guess, you're no different from those mindless goners roaming outside, the only difference is that you could spew out some fire and that's it…"

Azula then extended her neck, ripping off the remaining flesh attached to her cheeks beneath her eyes, she now sported the same red lines that Annie had on her face. She then plucked her arms away and pulled herself up from the thick strings of titan flesh merged with the rest of her body while she spat back, "Who says I need to use my titan form to kill you, huh Annie?"

"Tch."

Azula then began circling the carcass of her own titan form, hot steam billowing out of it, embers drifting along with the direction of the wind. She scrutinized its hideous appearance before it completely vaporizes. She guessed she could never get used to seeing it, although she agreed upon with herself that it gives off a striking resemblance to her personality; monstrous. Its eyes were as red as rubies, it had horns protruding and curling upwards from its temples, its cheekbones were pointy, ears elf-like, and its teeth as sharp as its claws. The only similarity it had with her human form is its raven hair. The most striking feature it had, however, were these vein-like streams of lava marbling its pale skin; its glow undulating, as if almost mimicking respiration with a steady rise and fall.

"You said titan shifters can have unique abilities matching the personality and traits of its current holder, right Annie?" Azula recalled, pacing around with her hands clasped behind her back.

Annie nodded in confirmation and followed her from behind, responding, "Yeah… Have you thought about it yet?"

"Ahh, about that…" Azula was about to answer the question, but her voice trailed off as she caught sight of Katara approaching near, "you're late," Azula apprehended Katara as soon as she dismounted from her horse.

"No kidding…" Katara deadpanned, briefly looking at her before the disintegrating remains of their titan forms caught her attention again. It just never ceases to amaze her... how it looked like, despite seeing it already twice. It always baffled her, how could they not know back then that they hold this much… power?

"So, it's my turn now, right?" Katara asked Annie, turning around to face her.

Annie explained, "I can't train you right away, Katara. Repeated transformations can make you lose control of your titan form. Not to mention, it can also decrease its power and size…" She then presumed, "So Azula inherited the Wrath Titan, then you, judging by your element… you must be the holder of the Blood Moon Titan."

Despite having practiced their titan forms already at least once, this was both Katara and Azula's first time hearing what their abilities are called.

"Blood Moon Titan?" Katara reiterated the term, this sparked up her curiosity further. She then asked, "how many elemental titan shifters are there?"

"Five." Annie answered and elaborated, "Similar to the Eldians, you guys also have a founding titan of your own. Then there's the Reaper Titan, and the Storm Titan."

"I assume the Storm Titan corresponds to air, and the Reaper, earth. Correct?" Azula interjected.

"Yes," Annie confirmed, then proceeding to ask them back, "how did you guys find out you're titan shifters anyway without knowing anything at all? Well, Fire Lord Sozin did erase everyone's memories when the war started, but inheriting titan powers should've negated that. How much do you know?"

So Azula's assumptions, in the beginning, were right, they do exist in the same world. How come they didn't notice this sooner? How come Annie knows who Fire Lord Sozin is? And what was she talking about Fire Lord Sozin manipulating people's memories?

"We already told you, we barely know anything," Azula restated, simply telling her the truth before following up with another question, "and what does Fire Lord Sozin have to do with this?"

Annie recounted and summarized everything she had read about Sozin's Letter and their history books back in Marley. She went on and told them, "These island devils, including your people, have tormented the world for god knows how long. The two founders have made a deal with the devil, utilizing both titan and elemental powers to promulgate an era of oppression and bloodshed that lasted for millennia. Then, both Fire Lord Sozin and King Karl Fritz came, realizing the gravity of what their forefathers have done. They wanted their people to atone for the sins of their ancestors, believing it was the right thing to do. King Karl Fritz erased the Eldians' memories and locked them up here in Paradis. Fire Lord Sozin, on the other hand, pledged allegiance with Marley to protect his people. He waged a war to retrieve the three other missing elemental titan shifters. He created a comet to annihilate everyone except for firebenders. In exchange for sparing the firebenders' lives, they'll serve under Marley once Sozin's mission is fulfilled. Obviously, it failed, considering you guys are still here."

"But that doesn't end the cycle of war and violence, now does it? I thought the hundred-year war was our biggest problem, but it certainly goes way more beyond that because apparently… the world is against us benders and Eldians," Katara voiced out her sentiments, her reaction all mixed up. She then presumed, addressing Annie, "Hey, if you're a titan shifter, doesn't that mean that you're an Eldian yourself too?"

"Yes." Annie answered briefly, correcting her, "an Eldian born in Marley, an honorary Marleyan."

"Why turn against your people?" Katara put it out quite plainly.

"So that they don't hurt our families back home," Annie responded, a lump forming in her throat. She then dismissed those thoughts and spoke rather quite indifferently, a corner of her lip turning into a slight frown, "I honestly don't know what to think about it... You see, I'm just a warrior playing out my duty… Ever since Karl Fritz retreated behind these walls, every Eldian scattered around the world has been trampled and stepped on. The same goes for benders too. You see, fighting for Marley is a sacrifice we have to pay, so that we could gain at least an ounce of respect from them, so that the world would stop hating us."

Katara understood and knew where Annie was coming from. Still, the reasoning behind all this just doesn't sit right with her. There must be another solution.

There has to be.

"There are benders in Marley?" Katara asked.

"Yeah," Annie answered, "A few benders were left behind in Marley before the hundred-year war started. Nonetheless, they weren't considered any lucky, it's pretty much the same for them. In fact, maybe even worse. Benders are being hunted down across the globe to near extinction, treated like dirt, sinners. Impure, that's how they called them, committing a crime just for merely existing. Some got lucky though. If your abilities are considered exemplary, they draft you into the military and place you on the frontlines. Then again, that's no different from a death sentence."

Well, this just took on a whole drastic turn. It's funny how non-benders are treated inferiorly back home when the exact same opposite happens outside of it. Azula asked, "what happens now that Sozin's plan has failed?"

"You see, Marley already gave Fire Lord Sozin a generous hundred years to annihilate people of your kind, which is why he created a comet in the first place. And when his descendants failed to do that, Marley sought for another option."

"And... what was that option?" Katara asked cautiously, dreading what is soon to come out of Annie's mouth.

"Before we left, I heard they were developing a nuclear weapon to fulfill Sozin's plan. They said those bombs were potent and strong enough to obliterate cities. It's been at least four years since then, and it's been two years since you got here. So I don't know, maybe you should thank the heavens that you got stuck here after all, because you guys just got saved and everyone you know back home is probably dead by now." Annie meant well though with that last statement of hers. Had she only chose the right words and didn't end it with a derisive chuckle, it would've been well received.

Katara didn't take any of it lightly. She aggressively grabbed Annie's collar, "how dare you! Innocent lives are at stake! How dare you speak like it doesn't concern you or it doesn't matter to you?! How dare you!"

Azula hated it all. She, of all people, is not big on trust and she hated having her mouth kept shut. She hated being the dumb person. She listened intently from the start as Annie narrated what she apparently doesn't know. Well, if it makes her feel any better, it seems that there was truth after all in some of her words. She wasn't being lied to, at least somehow. She could at least confirm that with the fragments of memories she saw from her vision, most of them did align with what Annie just told them.

Still, it baffled her to a great extent that the truth was kept away from them, considering that Fire Lord Sozin was heavily involved in all this.

Azula was not one to play by the rules. But for now, there was no other option.

"So, what now, Annie?" Azula asked, "what do you want us to do?"

Katara breathed sharply, looking at Azula with her brows furrowed as she shoved Annie and let her go. Of course, why does she even expect her to care? She was a murderer after all.

Annie brushed off the wrinkles in her uniform, slightly irked, as she answered, "for now, our goals align. We retrieve the Coordinate and the Attack Titan. Then we can all go." She emphasized, "you guys can go home and save everyone, if there's even anything left to save, that is."

With that, they began to draft a plan.

---

In a span of three years, the 104th South Division Training Corps have now officially graduated.

"Hands on your hearts!"

"Yes, sir!"

"For you trainees graduating tonight, three paths now open before you. You can defend the cities as members of the Garrison, put your lives on the line as members of the Scouts, or serve the King by protecting order as members of the Military Police Brigade. Of course, only the top ten cadets announced earlier will be allowed to enter the Military Police Brigade…"

In front of the crowd of fresh graduates, stood tall and proud the top-ten cadets from right to left in descending order: Mikasa Ackerman, Azula Aliev, Reiner Braun, Zuko Brandt, Bertholdt Hoover, Annie Leonhart, Sokka Wolff, Eren Yeager, Jean Kirchstein, Katara Dover.

Sokka smiled proudly to himself, his right fist resting atop his left chest, as he thought of finally coming home soon. If only he knew it wasn't as simple as obtaining omnidirectional gears and obtaining proper training. If only he knew how even proclaimed veterans kneel at the mercy of those monsters.

The same thoughts have been lingering in Katara's mind, but in contrast to Sokka, she looked quite bothered and she couldn't hide it no matter how hard she tried. She couldn't stop thinking of something else. She couldn't keep herself at ease, and it's because they were about to wreak havoc on Trost District tomorrow morning, and she's a part of it. Many people are going to get killed, and it doesn't matter if she's involved directly or indirectly because the blood is still on her hands.

A brief celebration for the new graduates was held that night.

"Hah," Jean let out a short laugh before he began gloating, clasping his fists together with a look of satisfaction, "I can finally live comfortably inside the interiors, just how I always planned…"

"You're so lucky! Jean… Azula…" Sasha gushed as the four of them sat together at one table, tugging Azula's clasped fists, "You guys are finally in the Military Police now! You'd never have to worry about food ever again! I wish I can be with you guys…"

"Had we only trained harder, we wouldn't have placed eleventh and twelfth! We were so close, Sasha!" Connie groaned in utter disappointment.

"Cheer up, you two. Eat up or else the food will get cold." Azula said, her voice rather uncharacteristically bleak, especially for someone who just graduated as second-best among their batch. Her hands grew cold and clammy as unwanted, intrusive thoughts began to consume her, rendering her inattentive to everything around her.

She had prepared herself well enough for this, didn't she? So she shouldn't be… this worried about the lives of innocent people. She's even murdered a person once with no remorse and she's even proud of it herself.

Nothing should be able to hold her back. Nothing.

She's not supposed to care about anyone but herself.

"I'll miss you, Azula! No one's going to spoil me with these quality foods once you're finally gone! Pay me a visit, will you?" Sasha exclaimed, but the lack of response prompted her to wave her hand in front of Azula's face, "Azula, are you okay?" She asked, sounding a bit worried.

Azula blinked, muttering in response, "yeah."

"So, Connie… Sasha… What are your plans now?" Jean asked to combat the dead air.

"Eh, the safest choice we have now is joining the Garrison…" Connie told them.

"Yeah, only that suicidal maniac over there is too intent on joining the scouts. Just look at him persuade and lead the others to their deaths… that bastard…" Jean growled in annoyance as he peered over his shoulder to watch Eren blabber again about his keen desire to defeat the titans.

"To think of it, being stationed around the walls is plain boring to me," Sasha added, reasoning out, "I might consider joining the scouts just for the thrill. I was born and raised to hunt anyway, so I'll put my skills to good use. I think Eren's right, I also wanna explore and see what's out there…"

"Yeah, and you die right from the very first moment you step outside of the walls. Forget about it, don't listen to that bastard, Sasha. I'll teach him a thing or two…" Jean opposed, slamming his palms on the table. As much as he tried refraining himself, the damn bastard just wouldn't stop spitting nonsense. With that, finally stood up and stormed over to Eren.

Azula sighed to herself after she listened to their conversation in silence. It's no use. Whether they choose to enact their plan on another day, their comrades' lives will still be endangered either way. Whether Sasha and Connie both choose to join the Garrison or Scouts, their safety still wouldn't be guaranteed.

Still, why does she even care? Why 'should' she care?

Azula shook her head, berating herself for such a weak display, berating herself for letting emotions get ahead of her and take control of her decisions. She clenched her fists, blaming her mother's influence for how she's been acting out lately.

Playtime's over now.

They have already talked about the possibility of their comrades dying. More than anyone else, she, out of all who's involved in their plan, shouldn't be bothered by it.

She's not supposed to care about anyone other than herself.

The lives of her comrades, which is mere collateral damage, aren't supposed to be enough reason for her to desert their mission.

It's as if her personality took on the form of the moon and its phases; constantly waxing and waning. One day she's convinced that she has already made up her mind, then suddenly, she doesn't.

She couldn't afford to become weak, especially right now.

She then abruptly stood from her seat, garnering confused looks from both Sasha and Connie.

"Azula, what's wrong…?" Sasha asked.

"I just need some air because those two bastards are fighting again," she answered flatly, "Connie, take care of this brat here," she said as she playfully patted Sasha's head and ruffled her hair, "make sure she doesn't eat everything on the table."

"I hate you, Azula," Sasha cursed with her mouth full.

"I'll be back," she said before she went on to find the others.

From what was once a heated argument has now turned into a full-blown fight. Aang, Sokka, Zuko, Sasha, and Connie, as well as the others, ran up to Eren and Jean to stop them before any of their instructors found out. Azula thought this was a great opportunity and distraction for them to discuss their final plan without drawing too much attention.

Azula strode over to Annie who sat alone from across the room. Katara, who remained left behind as the rest of the Gaang attempted to de-escalate the fight, raised an eyebrow as she saw the two together. The next thing she knew, Azula looked at her right in the eye, signaling her to tag along with them.

Katara stood from her seat and began walking slowly, keeping her distance from the two as she followed them into an empty hallway.

"I'll join Bertholdt," Katara heard Azula tell Annie with a loud whisper, "if you want to force the coordinate out of its hiding, you need to cause more disturbance with a trump card,"

Katara then crossed her arms and leaned against the wall. She listened to them carefully while remaining on high alert for any uninvited ears.

Annie raised an eyebrow, prompting Azula to explain more about her sudden proposal.

"By now, I assume their military has already developed some sort of countermeasures against both the colossal and armored titans," Azula outright explained, "but with a titan they've never encountered before..."

"Alright, I get what you're saying," Annie said, "it makes sense," she admitted.

"What are you planning to do then?" Katara asked.

"I'll set the entire district aflame once Bertholdt breaches the outer wall. If there's more time, I can also destroy the inner wall." Azula answered.

"Isn't that… too much?" Katara nervously asked, she argued, "destroying the walls is enough to summon whoever possesses the founding titan. We don't have to go overboard with it."

"Not really," Azula begged to differ, "if the incident in Shiganshina wasn't enough to summon the coordinate and the Attack Titan, then I'm afraid we might have to push harder."

"All the more reason to not repeat the same mistake," Katara debated, "Clearly, if wiping out a third of their population didn't work, that means the royal family in these walls doesn't care about its people. Destroying more walls wouldn't make that of a difference because you're doing them a favor. If the royal family wants these people to atone for the sins of their ancestors, they wouldn't mind getting them killed."

"Who says I care about these people?" Azula scoffed, "I'm doing this to buy ourselves some time, to create a huge distraction while we gather some intel-"

Katara shoved Azula up against the wall, cutting her off, "how dare you! How dare you kill… more innocent lives, you monster! Isn't murdering A-" Katara got so carried away and careless with her words that she forgot Annie was there, "Isn't murdering him enough?!"

Annie raised an eyebrow. Well, this got more interesting.

Azula smirked as Katara pressed down on her shoulders harder in defiance, she countered, "what's wrong? I thought we already agreed to this? You agreed to Bertholdt destroying the outer wall of Trost District in the first place. If you knew back then that people are gonna get killed, then why did you fucking agree to it? Make up your goddamn mind, Katara."

Katara forced her eyes shut, sighing in efforts to calm herself down, but Azula was rather keen to fan the flames, "or I'm guessing that wasn't you last year when we first planned it, huh Katara? Just let your previous successors talk some sense into you. You just have to watch me. You don't even have to do anything because I'm already doing most of the dirty work here."

Katara suppressed a gasp, taken aback, releasing Azula from her clutches, her lips trembling as she began to recall everything on that day. She felt as if she could almost hear her own voice.

It's true.

It was different the first time around.

The two of them were in each other's shoes. Azula sought for other alternatives to lessen the casualties, which was unlikely of her to say.

She, on the other hand...

"I'm just being careful and efficient is all, we need to gather more intel. With the incident in Shiganshina, I doubt the royal family, along with the Coordinate, is still in Mitras. I'm certain they've relocated somewhere else, which is why we have to wait a little longer before taking any further actions," Azula told them, proposing that they should wait for at least 2 more years before they could make a move.

"You can't make us wait that long. I already told you, we don't have much time," Annie argued, emphasizing further, "you guys don't have much time."

"Then leave her out of it." Katara told Annie, "Proceed with the plan. Once Bertholdt breaches the outer wall, I'll flood the entire Trost District, I'll drown everyone. Let's see if that's not enough to summon the founding out of its hiding."

"Katara…" Azula's voice trailed off, "are you hearing yourself right now?" She then let out a scornful chuckle, "I just find it funny, being here has finally forced you to contradict yourself, hasn't it? You got so infuriated when you first found out that Marley's gonna kill everyone back home, but now you suddenly agree to a plan that involves killing the people around here? Eldians and our people are no different, the whole world is against us. You said that yourself."

Well, that didn't sound anything like Azula at all, didn't it?

Katara clenched her jaw, shaking her head to fight it off. It's as if her mouth had a mind of its own. She then bit her lip, her eyebrows furrowed as she blurted out in defense, "Well, you're one to talk… I just want to get this over with. I'm tired, Azula. And please, you're not in a position to lecture me about being humane. We've been at war for years, we're veterans at this. As much as I do care about the lives of others, it just can't be helped."

"Then let me guess, going overboard with the plan is your way of fighting off your mother's influence, isn't it? A compensatory mechanism to show everyone that you're still ruthless and that you haven't gone weak yet," Katara deduced, it's as if she could see right through her. She then addressed Azula's assumption of her further, "you're right. I was weak back then, both my decisions and actions were heavily influenced by my predecessors, and the same goes for you. That day, when you disagreed with the plan, it wasn't you who was speaking; it was your mom. I do admit that my predecessors may have gotten into my head before but now, I can finally control those thoughts. I have a mind of my own again, you, however…"

Judging by the silence and how Azula began to look unsettled, Katara knew she had struck a nerve. She then continued, "Don't worry, I'm not gonna stop you. I'll let you do whatever the hell you want. We're all running out of time here anyway."

Annie crossed her arms as she listened to their conversation, her own voice began to play in her head, telling her what her father had always told her, "What must be done, must be done. No matter what. You were born into this world so that you could complete your mission." After minutes of silence, she then urged the two to finally make up their minds,

"So, what now?"

Azula spoke, "Then it's settled. I meant what I said, my point still stands. We need to put out a trump card. Bertholdt destroys the outer wall, I'll scorch and burn everything to the ground."

Katara sighed in defeat, thinking of a way to lessen the casualties. The river on the west, she could use that to put out the flames, couldn't she? She can ask for Aang's help, but then, is she really doing this to save lives, or… is she doing it to wash the blood off her hands? To make herself feel better? Whether she'll save lives later on, she's still a part of the reason why many will lose their lives. It wouldn't make her that much of a good person, now wouldn't it?

Annie nodded in agreement. They were now about to leave when Azula reluctantly told them, "In exchange for that, keep those three idiots safe for me."

Azula already made up her mind about their inevitable deaths when she got here, and now she's contradicting herself again.

"Alright," Katara replied, "but if both Bertholdt and Reiner know about this already, then why can't we tell Zuko, Aang, and Sokka?"

"Not yet," Azula answered, "even if we did tell them, do you honestly think they'd agree to any of this? They'd only slow down our progress. The best thing to do for now is to execute our plan and explain to them everything once it's all been done. Look, I'm not stopping you from telling them. But if anything goes wrong when they do get involved, don't say I didn't warn you."

---

Later that night, the Gaang and Azula decided to hold a meeting in an empty alley adjacent to a busy tavern.

"Aang, if you sense someone lurking nearby, inform us immediately," Azula instructed.

Aang nodded, taking off his boots to expose his soles to the ground, enabling him to detect any unusual movement in the area with his seismic sense. Fortunately for him, most of the establishments around the area are made out of stone, which also allows him to detect if there's anyone spying on them from the rooftops.

"Alright, you already know how it turns out," Azula started, "Katara and I will join and infiltrate the Military Police, you guys join the Scouts just as initially planned."

"We already know that," Zuko told her, he then raised a question that Azula wasn't expecting from him, "is there something you're not telling us?"

Azula crossed her arms, glaring at him, "what do you mean, Zuko?"

"You and Katara have been close with Annie lately," Zuko answered.

She let out a half-suppressed laugh, "it's mostly girl's talk, Zuzu. Mind your own business."

"Cut the crap, Azula," Zuko snapped, not convinced with her pathetic excuse of an explanation. "you're not one to engage yourself with trivial matters," he argued.

Azula let out a deep breath before she found herself caught up in an outburst, "if there's anyone here who's not telling us anything, it's this one!"

Aang, who was tasked on the lookout, was abruptly taken aback as Azula aggressively grabbed him on the shoulder, "A-Azula…" he stuttered, but before he could even speak further, Azula finally asked him the question that bugged her from the very start.

"Say, Aang, you knew they were there… Three years ago, you knew we were being watched… You have a seismic sense with your earthbending after all, didn't you? So why the fuck did you still let us get caught?"

Katara was about to step right in, but Azula had already let Aang go, shoving him away from her as she waited for a response.

"Right…" Sokka muttered in realization, urging Aang to address Azula's accusation, "why, Aang?"

Katara stood there in silence, hoping her assumptions about him were wrong, watching everything unfold as everyone patiently waited for Aang's response.

"What even made you think I sold us out? I didn't think of using my seismic sense that time, I didn't know they were there. I didn't know any better, I was just recovering from an injury, Azula." Aang answered, sounding rather stern than usual, "how could I possibly be logical and think of using my seismic abilities when Appa just died that day?! Give me a damn break."

"Okay, point taken," Azula replied, before she spat out another question right after the other, "how about the Air Nomad genocide?"

What the hell is she talking about?

The furrow in Aang's brows grew deeper, as he sounded more impatient, "what about it? What do you mean by that question, Azula? Your grandfather killed my people, isn't that enough for you? What the hell do you want from me?"

"Tell us the truth, Aang," Azula demanded, "there wasn't any genocide that happened, am I right?"

"Kill her."

Katara tensed up, as she didn't expect Azula to bring it up too soon. She observed Aang carefully, his stare glued to the ground, breathing erratically.

"Genocide?" Annie raised an eyebrow as the three of them exchanged information, she told them, "from what we were taught back home, the Air Nation didn't go extinct because of some genocide. If you don't believe me, there are a few airbenders in Marley who serve the military. That's what they told us. It was no genocide that nearly drove them on the brink of extinction."

"What are you talking about, huh Annie?" Katara retorted in disbelief, before defending what she believed was the truth, "I went there and saw it for myself; skeletons piled on top of the other. The Fire Nation burned the Air Nomads to death."

"You said the 'genocide' prompted the hundred-year war, but the Fire Nation already waged a war before the 'events' in the Air Temples even happened." Annie explained, clarifying herself further, "as I told you, there was no genocide. Fire Lord Sozin scourged the Eastern Air Temple first in order to obtain the Storm Titan, but before he even got there, it was a full-on pandemonium already."

Katara cut Annie off, hoping Azula would vouch for her, "Azula, does this even make any sense to you? And you keep calling them 'Air Nation,' they're nomads, Annie."

"I think we should let her finish, Katara," Azula told her.

"Well, based on the accounts of the Air Nation refugees in Marley, they're definitely not nomads. They even had an army of their own. However, they were highly religious and less aggressive than Eldians and the other Oriental nations, which might've led you to think that they were nomads in the first place," Annie argued, before continuing, "Now, the Storm Titan, before the vow of renouncing the war, was known to generate and unleash hurricanes by sucking the air out of its victims' lungs at a large scale. While the Storm Titan is capable of creating a full-scale weather disturbance by solely manipulating the air temperatures, collecting the air from its victims' lungs can boost its power further by a wide margin. More than that, it is also capable of wielding multiple lightning strikes simultaneously, which makes it efficient for killing masses. That's how the joint Oriental-Eldian Empire used the Storm Titan to dominate the world and colonize territories. But ironically, that's also how the Air Nation's population nearly got wiped out,"

Katara still wasn't buying any of it, while Azula, on the other hand, began to analyze.

Annie explained further, "the survivors said that the new inheritor of the Storm Titan by that time had lost control. Most of them got killed by having their lungs crushed with the negative air pressure, whereas others were burnt to death by the fire caused by thunderstorms. A few airbenders tried fleeing, but with the cyclone surrounding the Eastern Air Temple, many have failed and died on the spot. Although a few managed to escape and ask help from the western and southern territories, unfortunately, those who came to help only received the same fate. After that, the Western and Southern Temples were left abandoned out of fear."

Katara didn't know what to think about it. It doesn't make sense to her at all.

"To clear things up, this happened before Fire Lord Sozin decided to alter everyone's memory, which explains the presence of a few airbender refugees outside the Orient," Annie added as an afterthought.

"It makes sense, Katara." Azula said, inserting her analysis to Annie's previous explanation, "if you think about it, both Western and Southern Air Temples remained intact while the damages were only evident in the Eastern Air Temple. Another is that airships and war balloons weren't invented until Fire Lord Azulon's era. You can only access the Air Temples via air transportation. Unless the Fire Nation cultivated Sky Bisons to get there, which isn't the case, then that means there's no genocide that happened at all."

"Now, if you're going to use dragons as a counterargument, it's just highly unlikely that the Fire Nation would use that for a genocide. The dragons are elusive, they're basically solitary creatures. Not to mention, the dragons are also intelligent creatures and they can't just be easily tamed to do someone's bidding," Azula added to further reinforce her claim.

"Of course you'd defend the Fire Nation, Azula." Katara argued back, pointing to the flaw in Azula's premise when she asked, "what about Sozin's Comet then? Didn't the Fire Nation use that to assault the Air Nomads? Firebenders are capable of sustained flight with the comet's influence, that's probably how they got there,"

"I can't blame you all for being so clueless. You're right, Katara. They used the comet to get there," Annie said before divulging the part she left out from her previous explanation, "Well, I did tell you that many airbenders were already dead when Fire Lord Sozin and his army got there, which subsequently led them in attempting to subdue the Storm Titan that was still on the loose. Their main objective was to obtain the Storm Titan in the first place. Even with the comet's influence, they still failed. Many Fire Nation soldiers got killed in the process, and the Storm Titan vanished all of a sudden," Annie then presumed, "judging by the tattoos, I believe Aang is an airbender, isn't he?"

"Yeah, he is…" Katara answered, her voice almost reduced to a whisper, overwhelmed, as she tried to process the information. It's not that she doesn't trust Aang, she would never think of Aang that way. But something's telling her, she just had this strong feeling, that Aang might have something to do with this...

"Are there any other airbenders in the Orient aside from him?"

"No…"

"What now, Aang?" Azula pressed, "tell us about the damn genocide."

"Hey, Azula. Stop that. Whatever you're trying to do, it's not funny." Zuko warned.

"I'm not joking around, Zuzu."

"Kill them."

Sokka went up to Aang and patted him on the back to de-escalate the situation, he then went on to offer him a few words of consolation, "Aang, just don't-"

Sokka was cut off when a gust of wind swept and whirred through the alleyway. It was strong enough that they couldn't stand still, forcing them to lean sideways. The next thing they knew, they could all feel their chests and throats constrict as if they were almost being crushed.

They were being choked to death all while the violent gusts of wind increased in intensity, creating more tension in the atmosphere than there already was with the sound of empty barrels and wooden scraps hitting the ground. The moon is nowhere to be found, for the skies above began to grumble.

Their eyes widened in response, gagging, choking their necks, and covering their mouths to stop the air from escaping their lungs. Sokka then immediately thought of a way to snap Aang out of it. With his body, he slammed and knocked Aang over to the ground, successfully releasing everyone from his clutches.

Sokka, Katara, Azula, and Zuko coughed and tried catching their breaths. Aang, on the other hand, just sat there on the ground, absentmindedly staring at his own palms. Realizing what he just did to them, Aang stood up, anxiously taking a step back, before he ran and disappeared into the streets.

Azula was about to ask something more about the day when they got stuck here, but with what just happened, perhaps she'll just save it for another day. Aang could've just bent the debris that was about to fall on her, rather than just diving in. Either he's just dumb or perhaps there might be something else that led him to do that.

"Aang, wait!" Katara exclaimed as she sprung on her feet and followed him.

"I'm out here. Offer me a better plan, I'll wait. Otherwise, if you can't do that, then you have no choice but to cooperate with me." Azula said to Sokka and Zuko before she left, who were still both dumbfounded by what just happened.

---

The New Moon

Azula got back to their headquarters. After noticing that their graduation party still wasn't over, she went inside to look for Sasha, Jean, and Connie. It didn't take long enough before she was able to spot the three.

There she was again. How many times does she have to tell herself that she shouldn't bother with them? That if they die tomorrow, it won't be any of her fault? How many times does she have to remind herself to not give in to weakness, to not care?

As much as she fought off the urge countless times already, she found herself approaching them.

"Sasha, you said you're interested in joining the scouts, right?" She asked from behind.

Azula was met with a pair of confused eyes as Sasha turned around to acknowledge her presence, she then answered unsurely, "You're back… Yes... why, Azula?"

"Forget about it," Azula outright told her, "forget about joining the scouts or the garrison. Or better yet, just go home."

Sasha furrowed her eyebrows in response, "Why? We just graduated tonight," she reasoned out, sounding a bit pissed as she asked further, "what do you mean by that, Azula?"

Azula crossed her arms and glared at her, "Go back to the woods or something, just go back to where you came from. You're an underachiever, everything you've ever done here is slack off. You don't deserve to be called a soldier, taxes shouldn't be wasted on people like you."

Azula tried to keep composure, but as soon as she noticed Sasha's eyes glistening in tears, it's as if her chest began constricting against her own will. She sighed in exasperation and kept her cool nonetheless.

Connie stood up and positioned himself between the two, holding Azula back, "Oi, Azula. Stop it."

"Get off me, Connie."

Jean, on the other hand, still tired and worn out from his fight with Eren a while ago, silently remained in his seat as he watched Azula and Sasha argue. For him, it was just like any other ordinary day.

Azula fanned the flames further when she added, "ever since from the start, when Shadis apprehended you for eating a damn potato during the commencement ceremony, I knew you weren't built for this. You graduating is nothing but a mere fluke, so if I were you, I'd rather go home and save myself some dignity while I still can."

"I just don't understand what made you say that… What the fuck am I to you? I thought we were-" Sasha stifled a sob, "fuck you, Azula! You don't get to tell me that!"

Why did Azula even let one vision from the future dictate her actions? Dictate how she feels? Why did she even associate herself with these three idiots when she knew all along that she could neither gain nor benefit anything from them?

"I meant what I said," Azula replied sternly, she then blurted out, "I'm sure Mr. Braus would be a lot happier seeing you alive than seeing you as a corpse, so just go home while you still can."

Jean balled his fists. Now he's mad. Azula took it too far. What has gotten into her head?

Sasha's lips began trembling after hearing her say that, the dam finally broke.

"Okay, that's it! You crossed the line, Azula!" Connie shouted, grabbing her tightly by the shoulders as he angrily pushed her away, "what the hell is wrong with you?!"

"Don't touch me, Connie." She growled lowly. Great. Now that got everyone's attention. Mikasa, Armin, Eren, and the others began to gather around them.

"What's going on here?" Armin asked. Unfortunately, that question fell on deaf ears.

Jean couldn't take any of this anymore, he abruptly stood up and grabbed Azula's arm, clenching it, "watch your mouth, Azula. Apologize to Sasha, you bitch!"

"Geez, give me a break," Azula uttered in annoyance, finding herself ganged up by two men. She then forced her eyes shut, sighing coolly as she yanked Jean's hand off of her arm, then brushing past Connie. "It was nice working with you people, good luck out there," she then told them dismissively, walking out as if nothing happened.

No matter how far she already was, she could still hear Sasha's sobs resonating through the hallways.

Azula had really let herself go, didn't she? She hated herself more by the second. It was supposed to be an insignificant vision about a person she never cared about. Then, no matter how hard she tried to ignore and fight it off, she did eventually… care.

She cared, at least somehow. Well, perhaps a little too much.

In a not-so-distant time ago, the 104th cadet training corps were tasked to complete a snowstorm training exercise. The sun had completely sunk on the horizon already an hour ago. Nearly all the trainees have already made it back to the mountain base when they realized that five people were still missing; Ymir, Christa, Daz, Sasha, and Azula.

Sasha dragged herself through the blizzard, shivering, rubbing her arms to keep herself warm as she slowly trailed behind Azula because of her wobbling knees. She then rubbed her palms together, placing her cold, numb hands over her mouth as she breathed warm air into them. Still, it was no use.

"I… I don't think I can make it."

Hours ago, when no one else volunteered, Sasha lent her parka to one of their squadmates who fell in a frozen lake to prevent him from getting hypothermia. The sweatshirt she wore underneath was enough to keep her warm for the time being, but since then, Sasha lagged behind everyone else. She thought she could bear the cold, she was a huntress after all.

By now, she found her body on the verge of shutting down.

"It's your fault for caring about someone else. If you want to survive, the lives of others shouldn't matter to you."

"Eh, so why are you here?" Sasha jokingly retorted, "you're contradicting yourself, Azula. You should've just left me to die then, shouldn't you?"

Azula bit her lip in annoyance as Sasha didn't appear to take her seriously. How dare her to crack a joke when both their lives are on the line in this harsh training, "Listen here, you little shit-"

"I'm starting to feel dizzy..." Sasha admitted, cutting Azula off and sparing herself from further lecturing. She then pleaded, "can I at least just wear your parka for a while?"

"I kept offering it to you a while ago, but I guess you're so busy acting all tough, don't you?"

"I-I'm sorry, okay! J-just hand me the damn p-parka…" Sasha stuttered as the cold was beginning to get the best of her. She then blinked hard in an attempt to prevent her vision from completely blurring out.

"Fine, whatever," Azula said, ready to remove her parka when she suddenly heard a thud from behind. She slowly turned around to check and to her horror, Sasha laid on the ground unconscious.

Azula hurriedly ran to her, "shit. Shit!" She muttered in distress, teary-eyed, as she knelt beside her, not knowing what to do first. She then removed her parka and quickly dressed it onto Sasha.

This couldn't possibly be… the one she saw from her vision, right? It was too soon for that...

This can't be the exact time Sasha dies. The scenery looked so different and…

Azula quickly grabbed Sasha's wrist to check for a pulse, but it turned out to be faint. She then placed her ear over her mouth to check if she was still breathing; she was, but then again, it was rather weak and shallow.

"Don't fucking die on me," she cried, her voice shaking. She held Sasha's hands tight to transfer some heat with her firebending while she carefully scanned their surroundings. Fortunately, there was a cave nearby.

With a grunt, Azula carried Sasha's body in her arms like a bride. She then began to walk quickly towards the cave.

Azula then placed Sasha in a sitting position. With her firebending, she wrapped her in an embrace and allowed the warmth to radiate from her body to hers. By the time Sasha's temperature began normalizing again, Azula went out of the cave for a short while to gather some makeshift firewood out of branches. That time, a lightning bolt had struck not too far away, startling her. Though Azula didn't think anything unusual out of it, because it might just be from the blizzard itself. With that, she decided that they probably needed to spend the night in the cave because the storm outside was just too strong and violent. They might not be able to make it back had they continued any further. Even if Sasha regained consciousness anytime from now, it was still a huge risk to go out in the storm, since Azula nearly got lost in a whiteout on her way back to the cave.

After setting up the fire, she sat there quietly, watching over Sasha as she slept on her lap, thinking to herself. Those thoughts took her back at the Boiling Rock.

From that day onwards, she spent the rest of her life wondering where she went wrong. It's not that she cared about it, no. It's just that... she...

Well, she's not doing this to become a better person. Certainly not. She's a monster, just like her mother told her so, which actually makes sense now. She was a monster, both figuratively and in a literal sense.

She was never a good person, let alone allow herself to become one. She's selfish. Call her inherently evil, she'll even agree to that.

Azula doesn't need to redeem herself. She doesn't need any saving. She's just here to carry out what the Fire Nation has failed to do.

However, while she does acknowledge all that, she was human still; flawed. It's ironic how spending years on this island of monsters and devils eventually turned her vulnerable; weak. Her former self would've laughed at her now for this. It's as if she could almost hear her father loathe her, that she's been reduced into this pathetic person.

"To hell with that,"

"Azula…?" Sasha groaned, seeing Azula look down on her the moment she woke up, her head was resting on Azula's thighs. She then blinked and yawned, shifting her body to a more comfortable position while checking her surroundings. Sasha also noticed that she was so warm and wrapped up; it appears that Azula had dressed her in her own parka and sweatshirt on top of the one she was already wearing. Meanwhile, Azula wore nothing but a camisole top, exposing her entire arm for her to see.

Still laying down, Sasha mindlessly traced Azula's forearm that laid on top of her stomach, feeling the ridges on her skin with her fingers. The faint glow from the campfire made the plethora of scars all over her arms visible. She then asked, "Where did you… get this from? Are you… hurting yourself?"

"I was locked up… in an asylum… because I hurt people..."

Well, that was a stupid mistake; a Freudian slip. Azula suppressed a gasp, biting her inner cheek for being so careless with her words.

Luckily for her, Sasha didn't seem to mind, "I'm sorry to hear that..." she whispered, "and thank you, for helping me out there…"

Azula frustratingly chuckled to herself, finding it funny how one single vision from the future about a person she never cared about in the first place, coerced her to have this ridiculous savior complex, whatever they even call it.

Their personalities don't even match, Sasha is too frivolous for her liking. But then, as they spent more time together, she realized that there was something more to her. Maybe Sasha doesn't need any saving. They don't give the girl that much of a credit; it was Sasha who taught her archery, how to survive in the wilderness, and how to hunt for food all by herself. It might appear that Sasha's vulnerable, but the truth is, she honestly wasn't. And Azula knows that herself.

She admired her for that.

What is she even trying to do here? Why does she even bother anyway? Why does she go out of her way, through all that trouble to-

"Hey, are you deaf? I said thank you." Sasha spoke, snapping her out of her thoughts, tugging her arm to get her attention. Azula looked down at her.

-Well, maybe, just maybe, this time... She guessed she wanted to live for somebody else.

"Don't just smile at me like that, say something."

Azula woke up to the sound of someone knocking on her door. She then sat up, stretching her arms and spine before walking over to open the door.

"Aliev-san," the soldier greeted before handing her an envelope, saying, "Commander Pixis has sent you a letter."

"I see, tell him my regards. You may now leave."

She then closed the door behind her back as she opened the envelope and read the letter; it was nothing important though, just a brief congratulatory remark from the commander, at the bottom of the letter was a reminder of their agreement.

Well, that was a waste of time.

Azula didn't think twice about burning the piece of paper into ashes. She watched silently as the ashes slipped away from her fingertips, dispersing into the air before slowly falling to the floor. She immediately regretted how mindless it was of her. She clicked her tongue in annoyance, looking at her hands in disgust because her fingers were now covered in filth.

"Oh well," she sighed to herself, staring right back at her unsightly reflection from the windowpane, noticing how in three years, she never let her hair go past her chin. It was also simply frightening how she was beginning to see her own mother in her face.

Until the reflection talked.

No. Not today. She abruptly pulled the curtain back in, panting.

With that, she decided to go to the restroom to freshen up. On her way there, she walked past Sasha's room. As much as she controlled the urge and repeatedly told herself not to, she walked back and stood by the doorway, practicing her rehearsed apology.

After gathering some courage to finally enter her room, Azula was rather disappointed, yet relieved at the same time, to see that Sasha wasn't there.

With that, she went on with her morning and braced herself for what's about to come. Today will be the day she proves to herself that she hasn't gone weak yet. She tried talking them out of it already.

She was ready to throw it all away.

She's no god. If Sasha does die today, she is ready and more than willing to accept it and let it all go.

---

The Battle of Trost District Part 1: Humanity's New Threat

The Gaang, Eren, Connie, Sasha, and the others were tasked to clean some of the garrison artilleries and equipment on top of Trost's outer wall. While everyone else was having a casual conversation as they completed their tasks, Katara remained on her feet, apprehensive, as she dreadfully anticipated Azula and Bertholdt's attack.

Katara knew the reason why she had to comply in the meantime. Katara wouldn't easily agree to a plan that involves killing innocent lives in the first place if there wasn't an acceptable reason behind it. She knew well that she needed to aid these Marleyan Warriors for the time being so that they could return home and save everyone before it's too late.

Time was running out for them.

Alas, after five years, the Colossal Titan came into life again.

The Gaang was stunned and overwhelmed. Despite hearing several accounts from Eren and Armin about the fall of Shiganshina, they still weren't expecting to have the Colossal Titan appear suddenly right in front of their faces. Despite hearing the word 'colossal' beforehand, its size exceeded way beyond their expectations. They never thought it was even logically and 'humanely' possible to be that huge. For Katara, it even scared her to a larger extent, knowing it was Bertholdt who was hiding behind its nape.

The ground beneath their feet quivered, making them lose balance, as the Colossal Titan successfully breached the outer wall with a kick in one fell swoop. After that, Bertholdt released columns of hot steam on the uppermost surface of the wall, but to his surprise, it appears that the steam was deflected and dispersed into thin air.

"That's weird, we were almost consumed by the steam and now it's suddenly… gone," Armin uttered, voicing out the shared sentiments of his comrades.

In a split second, the Colossal Titan's hand scraped against the surface of the upper wall, destroying the canons and rails that laid atop of it. There was no time for caution, and so the cadets were swept off of their feet, making them fall back on the other side of the wall.

Everyone else hanged by a thread, saved by their omnidirectional gears. While the others were about to flee, Eren plunged himself right back up the wall as he charged against his old foe.

"Eren, do not engage!" Zuko warned, but of course, Eren wouldn't listen. With that, he, Sokka, Armin, Connie, and Samuel followed and tried to stop him.

Azula watched Bertholdt in astonishment from a distance. He was done destroying the artilleries, which now marks her cue to transform. She consequently pricked her index finger with a safety pin, then pinching it to draw out some blood. But then, she stopped for a while, as she saw someone attack Bertholdt from a distance. She didn't think twice about who it was, she scoffed, "of course, the suicidal maniac tries to save the day,"

Meanwhile, Katara frantically searched for Sasha, as she remembered Azula's condition.

"But in exchange for that, keep those three idiots safe for me,"

"Sasha!" Katara shouted, calling her attention as she saw her from the corner of her eye. It appeared that she was holding up an unconscious Thomas with one hand while her grapple hook was launched to the wall to support themselves up and to prevent them from falling.

Katara gritted her teeth in nervousness, with the weight of two people combined versus one grapple hook, it wouldn't take long before they all plummeted to the ground. She quickly began thinking of a solution.

"He... got knocked out… by the debris, and Mina… Mina fell!" Sasha explained with an exhausted grunt, panting in between words as she could feel her muscles about to give up anytime soon.

"Got her!" Katara and Sasha looked down below in surprise as they heard Aang shout. Sasha let out a sigh of relief, as Aang and Mina were able to recuperate and swing back to the upper surface of the wall.

"Wait for me, I'll pull you guys back up!" Aang yelled in reassurance, as he rappelled down to Sasha's level on the right. He then instructed Katara, "go back up and rappel down to Sasha's left and hold her free hand. Sasha, keep on holding Thomas's hand while I hold the other one. On my count, we pull the trigger and propel ourselves together back up."

Aang also took note of the length of the wire that held up both Sasha and Thomas; it's long enough and its hook is latched near to the upper wall, which is favorable to his plan. Had this not been the case, the shortfall would have prevented the four of them to catapult back up, and Sasha would have needed to unlatch the hook first, which again, would be all the more impossible since her hands are full from holding Thomas's hand and Katara's.

Katara nodded in response to Aang's instructions, immediately doing what she was told. After rappelling down to Sasha's level on the left, Katara then held her hand and waited for Aang's further signal, "3, 2, 1!"

After Aang and Katara simultaneously pulled the retraction trigger, the four of them were able to make it back up. Despite Aang's plan working, Katara immediately contemplated its feasibility. With the weight of four people combined versus two grapple hooks, it wouldn't have worked unless Aang used some form of airbending to boost the recoil of their grappling hooks. Not to mention, Thomas's deadweight would've made it even more difficult had Aang not used any airbending at all. Still, Katara is more than thankful that the two were saved.

When the four of them got back up, Thomas finally regained some consciousness. But then, they got more things to worry about as they heard Connie utter in disbelief, "He's… he's really doing it,"

With that, they slowly turned their heads and saw that Eren's piston grapple hooks were already latched onto the Colossal Titan's nape, ready to slice him up at any moment. As he reeled himself forward, the Colossal Titan abruptly vanished into thin air. Eren floated in mid-air fleetingly, before he started falling. He then pulled the trigger and launched the hook at the wall to save himself.

"Did you defeat him?!" Sokka exclaimed as Eren finally landed back on the wall.

"No, I didn't…" Eren told him regretfully. He was that close to defeating the Colossal Titan. Had he acted sooner, he might've actually done it. He then started to think of a logical explanation as to how the Colossal Titan suddenly vanished, but he wasn't able to come up with anything. It was just like last time, both the Armored and Colossal Titan appeared out of nowhere, only for them to disappear without a trace.

Eren and Armin expected the Armored Titan to show up any time by now, and it didn't take long enough before cadets felt another tremor when a lightning bolt had struck nearby from outside the wall. From the smoke came out another strange-looking, even monstrous and devilish, titan that approximately stood eighteen meters tall.

"What… is that? Is that.. the Armored Titan?" Connie gulped, eyeing the abnormal titan that stood from a distance.

"That can't be the Armored Titan," Armin spoke in realization, stunned as he recalled what he saw back in Shiganshina, "it looks so… different."

"Hey, I told you guys, let's go back before they get in! We have to-" Zuko stopped as he ducked reflexively when an uprooted tree flew over their heads, missing them by only a few inches.

"Samuel! Thomas" Aang shouted in shock, his arm reaching out to them, but then he wasn't able to do anything but cover his mouth with his trembling hands. Everyone was in a panic as both Samuel and Thomas took a direct hit and were thrown off to the ground. He could still scale down the walls with his airbending to save them, but why wasn't he doing it? Why couldn't he move? He breathed sharply, clenching his jaw as he soon felt the responsibility weighing down on his shoulders.

It was another grim reminder, that their lives are nothing but insignificant in this cruel world; they graduated yesterday and yet lives were being taken already.

All the cadets were forced to lay flat on their stomachs that they could neither move nor stand up, fearing that they might receive the same fate as Samuel and Thomas.

The next thing they knew, the devilish titan hunkered down, half-kneeling. It then slammed its palm to the ground, creating more tremors as fissures crept radially outwards from its fingertips, ripples of molten earth are now headed towards their way. It was nothing like these Eldians have ever seen before; it was fire, but in liquid form, viscous and flowing slowly, akin to a branching out stream. The cadets were rendered shocked that they couldn't even react to the imminent threat right in front of them.

"We have to go, now!" Sokka snapped, as he prompted the others to make a run for it and flee back to the headquarters.

The Wrath Titan unleashed more of her power, its eyes glowing red and its mouth releasing columns of sulfuric smoke. She clenched the soil with her fingers, creating a blast that scorched everything within a three-hundred-meter radius. From the bird's eye view, the streets that outlined the outer portion of Trost District were now converted into veins that glowed reddish-orange.

As the cadets maneuvered back to the headquarters, they felt another tremor. They dared not look back and kept moving forward, but when they did, hot molten rocks spurted and spewed out sporadically from the fissures on the ground. Despite their agility, those fountains of hot magma were hot on their trails, consuming everything from behind. And just when they thought they'd get caught up in it, fortunately for them, the attack just suddenly stopped.

Still, they shouldn't be any more complacent. The fire has spread at an alarming rate, and it wouldn't take any longer before the titans came. When the cadets finally made it back, the molten earth lining the streets had already subsided and was reduced into embers that were burning dimly, pure titans were now finally entering the breached wall.

It was a real mess out there, and it hasn't even been thirty minutes since the Colossal Titan appeared, yet the casualties are high already. The Garrison stationed in the walls didn't even have the chance to use their artillery and defend themselves, everything was destroyed right on the spot. The putrid stench of burning flesh, mixed with the poignant smell of sulfur, lingered in the air. Civilians and soldiers wailed and were crying for help. The skin on their faces melted off like goo, eyeballs bulging out, as the fire slowly ate away their flesh, trickles of blood oozing out of it. Their injuries were so extensive that even their clothing burnt and stuck to their skin, blisters all over their bodies. The pain was just unfathomable. How lucky it must be, they thought, to be near the blast and just die off instantly, rather than spend the last few moments of their lives in suffering.

Sunset came earlier than expected.

Petals of daffodils were set ablaze, heaps of them blown by the gentle breeze, resembling fireflies, but in daylight. The heavens were painted red, orange, and yellow that bled into one another. It was a sight to behold, raw beauty in all chaos and destruction. Right in the center of the field stood a girl with raven hair, her locks flowing freely.

She finally did it. Azula was now a full-fledged mass murderer. Her ancestors would be proud, her father would be proud.

---

The Battle of Trost District Part 2: Road Where the Two Ends Meet

Somewhere along the labyrinthine streets of inner Trost, children playing outside looked up in awe as ashes fell from the vermilion skies like snow, formed by myriad burning embers drafted by the wind.

Meanwhile, Katara and Sokka stared at their palms absentmindedly, eyes unsteadily oscillating and glistening, feeling a lump in their throats, as a flurry of black snow fell from the sky and touched their fingertips. Just when they thought that they had already moved on from it, the water tribe siblings were then harshly reminded of the Fire Nation raid that haunted them in their childhood.

The instructor stepped on the pedestal and spoke up front, coughing as the ashes irritated his airway. Once he's done clearing up his throat, he begins to address the crowd, "it's estimated that by now, half of the population has already been wiped out and half of Trost District has been reduced to ruins. The fire is still spreading, and plenty of titans are now entering the breach."

He then paused at the commotion, waiting for the crow to simmer down before continuing any further, "Now, rescuing any survivors from near the outer wall and evacuating the remaining civilians will be our top priority. Today, the Scouts are out on an expedition and as graduates, you are left with no choice. You are now all capable and handed down the duty to protect humanity."

He stopped again, trying to keep a straight face amidst informing them regretfully, "Two of your comrades, Thomas Wagner and Samuel Klein, had just died from the attack. Nearly all of the Garrison protecting the vanguard were also killed as they took the direct hit from both the Colossal Titan and the Demon Titan. Now for our operating scheme: both the Training Corps and the remaining Garrison will take the vanguard and middle guard. The elite squad will help defend and evacuate the remaining citizens at the rearguard. Remember, desertion equates to punishment by death, and also, let us not put the deaths of our fallen comrades in vain," after his elaborate explanation, the instructors placed their right fists on their left chests, prompting the frantic cadets to salute amidst being paralyzed in fear, "offer your hearts!"

After that speech, the crowd of cadets had gone haywire as they didn't expect to be placed on the battlefield right on their first day. What's even more unsettling was that two of their comrades were gone already.

While preparing their omnidirectional gears, Sasha and Connie halted in their tracks as they bumped into Azula.

The fire princess couldn't even look at her in the eye, seeming remorseful as she stuttered away, "Sasha… I…"

Sasha sighed in exasperation, "What now, Azula?"

Why does she consistently contradict herself? It's as if her brain is splitting in half. Azula then bit her lip, dismissing her emotions and regaining composure as she glared at Sasha, warning her, "nothing. Just don't get in my way. We're in the same squad, so I don't want you slowing me down."

"Fuck you," Sasha spat, as she was about to charge right at Azula, but Connie held her back.

"Sasha, we'll deal with her later, let's go."

"Zuko!" Aang called out, following him as they were now about to head into their respective stations distributed within the district.

Zuko turned around, slowing down his pace to match Aang's, waiting for what he had to say.

"I'll do it now," Aang told him, blaming himself for the loss of many lives, "it's my fault, many deaths could've been preventable but I was so carried away earlier that I wasn't able to think clearly, I-"

"Aang, slow down," Zuko told him and offered him some words of consolation, "we were all carried away. We're encountering those monsters again after 3 years, no one's blaming who." He then asked, "what is your plan now?"

Aang took a deep breath, calming himself down as he eagerly divulged to Zuko his plan, "I'll seal the breach. I don't know if I could still activate my avatar state, I've lost contact with them since I got here and it hasn't come back. But still, I'll try my best. I don't care if we haven't gotten orders from Pixis yet, but I just can't stand here and do nothing."

"So it was you a while ago, huh? The steam?" Zuko presumed.

Aang nodded in response.

"Well, I'm not going to stop you," Zuko told him, "but right now, our squad needs us. Let's focus on the mission first, Aang. We have to kill the titans within the vicinity and rescue the survivors. After that, you and Katara can put out the remaining fire using the water from the west river, then you can seal the wall."

"Roger that," Aang hastily agreed as they were now running out of time. He and Zuko finally parted ways as he went on to find his squad. But then, he felt the urge to act out on his own.

He realized that Zuko's proposal was flawed, certainly a rushed decision.

If anything, he needed to seal the breach first so that more titans could be prevented from entering Trost. He was faced with a dilemma, if he leaves now, his squad will lose manpower, which can consequently endanger their lives. But then, if the walls aren't sealed immediately, more lives will be taken.

He then forced his eyes shut as he began to weigh out the options he was left with. But then, Aang stopped right in the middle of a now empty hallway.

He looked over his shoulder and nodded.

It didn't even take twenty minutes before Zuko stood by himself on a roof, slowly taking a step back and quivering in fear, watching in disbelief as his comrades were getting eaten by those... creatures. He could hear their screams all loud and clear,

"Help me! Zuko, help me!" Franz cried out, his entire lower body already stuck inside a titan's mouth. With one chomp, blood splattered everywhere and Franz no longer screamed. The titan's teeth were now stained red as his lifeless upper body fell to the ground.

"Anyone, please! Save me!" Zuko heard Hanna shriek. He then ran and tried following her voice, but when he got there, he saw the titan pinching and crushing Hanna's head. It then stuffed her lifeless, decapitated body into its mouth.

Zuko then turned around to his left, forcing his eyes shut. When he opened them again, he was forced to watch in horror as Daz was lifted from the ground, screaming as his limbs were being plucked away one by one. As the titan slowly amputated him, he could hear him repeatedly call for his name, "Zuko! Zuko! I don't wanna die, Zuko!"

"Daz… Hanna… Franz…" That was all that he could do; whisper their names as the guilt crept up and consumed him whole. He shook his head violently, slapping himself hard repeatedly for being so useless. He could've saved them, he had enough time. He knew all too well that he could, but why… Why couldn't he move?

He slumped and dropped onto his knees, clinging onto his blades tightly. He could only do so much but watch his comrades face their deaths. He could only do so much but let himself get filled with regret while he watched those titans walk away freely.

He couldn't even bring himself to avenge their deaths.

His vision began clouding up as tears filled his eyes to the brim, gritting his teeth as he called himself a coward. He then realized, with what he is right now, maybe he wasn't meant to rule in the first place.

Everything he ever achieved meant nothing now.

Being a Fire Lord meant nothing, standing up to his Father meant nothing… In the end, he was still nothing but… a mere… coward.

The clouds have gone gray, the skies crying along with him, finally putting out the widespread fire across the entire district. The rainwater washed out the blood from the pavements but intensified the pungent odor of burnt flesh, it's as if he could almost taste it.

He then threw up and forced himself to stand up. This nightmare is far long from over. He reminded himself what he was fighting for in the first place; he had to go home. He wanted to go home. He wanted to see Uncle Iroh again, Mai… he also wanted to find his mom.

If he wanted that, he realized that the very least he could do now is stay alive and keep moving forward.

So he did.

Zuko was then able to find the others; Armin, Eren, Sokka, Sasha, Connie, Jean, and Azula were gathered together in one roof. Ymir and Historia arrived right behind him after he came. He was surprised to see that Aang was there among them as well.

Eren asked him, wondering why he came alone by himself, "where are your squadmates, Zuko?"

Ymir stepped forward and spoke to him, "let me guess, they're dead, aren't they?"

"Oi, Ymir. Watch your mouth." Connie warned, while everyone still waited for Zuko's response.

However, that was followed by a long period of silence, therefore confirming Ymir's assumption. She then shook her head and clicked her tongue in disappointment, letting out a scornful chuckle as she told him, "it's pathetic, isn't it? We both saw how you ran away and avoided those titans…"

Historia tugged at Ymir, trying to stop her from causing any more trouble, but the latter was rather persistent, "to think that you came in fourth in the rankings… Someone more deserving could've taken your place," Ymir then hooked her arm around Historia, playfully ruffling her head, "like Christa here. Right, Christa?"

"Ymir…"

Azula's lips curled up in amusement as she watched Zuko get insulted by their comrades.

Zuko couldn't speak, he couldn't even lift his head to look at them. He found himself wallowing in humiliation, instinctively touching his scar as he was reminded of that day, as he was reminded once more about how it felt like to be humiliated in front of everybody. But then, he wanted to prove her wrong. He wanted to prove them wrong. Badly. There was Azula's judgeful stare again. He clenched his fist, his lower lips trembling, as the words escaped from his mouth, "just watch me. I'll show you. I'll make you eat what you said."

Ymir scoffed in response, "if you insist."

It didn't take long enough before the other squads recuperated and gathered along with them. Katara, Marco, Annie, Bertholdt and Reiner came there last.

"What's going on here?" Annie asked.

"The supply headquarters is under attack. We're also almost out of gas," Jean answered.

"Zuko, Aang…" Azula called them as she thought of a plan, she then asked, "how much gas do you have left?"

"Uh… quite enough to make it to supply headquarters, I guess," Zuko answered briefly.

"And you, Aang?"

"I still got plenty left…" Aang said, to which Azula immediately understood, owing to the fact that Aang might be using his airbending instead to conserve some gas.

"Alright, remove them." Azula instructed the two before she went on and proceeded to address the others, "if anyone needs spare gas, get them here."

Zuko and Aang looked at each other and readily agreed, for they both knew what Azula had meant. They were going to use their bending to propel themselves instead.

"Are you guys, sacrificing yourselves?" Armin asked anxiously.

"Not really," Azula answered as she began removing the compressed gas cylinders from her vertical maneuvering gear, then handing it to Sasha without a word.

"I don't need your help," Sasha spat.

"Oh, believe me, you do," Azula insisted, rolling her eyes, gently pushing Sasha's chest with the cylinder on her hand, "just take it, you idiot."

Sasha sighed in defeat, finally taking the cylinder from her. She then asked worriedly, "Azula, what are you going to do?"

Azula didn't give her a response. Instead, she confronted the Gaang and offered them a plan, "Aang, use your earthbending to stall and immobilize the titans in one place, so that we can easily kill them and buy the others some time. Wrap their feet with rocks or sink them at least knee-deep down to the ground. Katara, use the rain to your advantage. I believe water blades can be made sharp enough to slice their napes. You can also help Aang immobilize them by encapsulating their feet with ice using either rainwater or waters from the sewage system. Zuko, Sokka, and I will slay the titans." She then added as an afterthought, referring to Pixis, "we'll deal with the consequences later."

The Gaang readily agreed with her plan, whilst they were met with confused looks from the others because of the terms Azula just used in disseminating the plan. Meanwhile, Annie, Reiner, and Bertholdt weren't any surprised as they were already well aware of their identities. As for Ymir, it was her first time encountering benders ever since she turned back into a human. She also never expected them to exist here in Paradis.

Jean came out front and boldly asked his squadmate, "Oi, Azula. What's going on here? What are you talking about?!"

Azula looked right back at Jean, Sasha, and Connie. Her stern expression gradually softened as she told them, "just... trust me." She then turned around and began addressing everyone, "Get to the headquarters immediately and resupply. Do not engage with any of the titans to conserve gas. The five of us will stay behind to kill any of the remaining titans in the vicinity." She then raised her blade, signaling the Gaang to proceed with the mission, "let's go!"

Nearly everyone on that roof, were left stunned as Zuko, Aang, and Azula fled and jumped from one roof to another without having to use their omnidirectional gears. What even baffled them more was that both Zuko and Azula were propelling themselves in the air by releasing streams of concentrated fire from their fists, their curiosity and interest all the more piqued to see Azula wielding blue fire. Nevertheless, they all geared up and headed towards the headquarters.

The cadets passed by the Gaang in awe as Azula's plan seemed to work and fall into place. Aang got on his stance, placing his hands out front and twisting his forearms to manipulate the cobblestones that make up the pavements. He then struck his foot to the ground and lifted his arms into an upward motion. With that move, the rocks were morphed into cuffs, encapsulating the shins of three titans within their vicinity, trapping them in one place. As Aang formed fists and bent his wrists downwards, the three titans were sunken to the ground at least knee-deep. It was now Katara's cue to move; she collected the droplets of rain, turning the mass of water into three separate ice spears that were floating midair. She then swung her arms in an arc repeatedly, slashing a titan's nape with one spear after another.

Katara got down to the ground, she then sensed and noticed that there was enough water in the sewers to feasibly create an ice floor that was thick enough to trap several titans simultaneously. As the Gaang and Azula moved further to the streets, Katara ordered as they ran, "Aang, your turn on the roof."

Aang nodded, as he got off the ground with an air scooter, allowing him to vertically scale a wall to get back on the rooftops.

With that, Katara splayed her fingers wide open, gaining control of the rushing waters inside the sewers. As she lifted her arms, she flooded the entire street except where she stood. The flood was deep enough that the titans' ankles were submerged underwater. She then froze the water, successfully trapping the feet of five titans within the area. It was now time for Zuko, Aang, Sokka, and Azula to attack.

Aang used an air swipe to cut through the titan's nape, while Sokka had no choice but to use his maneuvering gear. Although Sokka might be lacking in terms of being able to bend, he is still formidable and skilled enough as he is that he was able to slay two consecutive titans swiftly. Zuko and Azula both utilized a fire blade against two titans, their fire projections condensed and narrow enough to cut deep through the napes.

With how everything's been going on right now, and with how they're currently managing the situation. They realized that they might be wrong when they first got here. They all thought that the only way to kill those titans was to first obtain some maneuvering gears, that their bending wouldn't work on them. But seeing how they adapted and fare now without it, everyone is more motivated than ever.

Aang then targeted a titan right ahead of him. He got on the ground, running towards it as he built up a succession of ascending steps with his earthbending. Finally gaining some height and distance close enough to slash the titan on the nape, he jumped off the step, keeping himself momentarily afloat with his airbending as he unsheathed his blades. In a diagonal motion, he cuts deep through the titan's nape, successfully killing it before he falls and lands down to the ground softly.

Soon, the Gaang and Azula began to catch up with the others as they were approaching the supply headquarters. Still, there were a few stray titans along the way that need to be dealt with.

As Azula ran on the roof, she began to focus on her chi. She proceeded to internally separate the positive and negative potential energies in preparation for channeling them from her stomach out to her arms. In a circular motion, she stretched one arm out to the side, concentrating the yin on her index and middle fingertips. She then did the same circular motion with her other arm to extract the yang. She locked her eyes on her target as she kept on running to gather sufficient distance; enough to let her aim with precision. Once she had that, she finally let her fingertips meet, letting the yin and yang collide, unleashing a stream of lightning that struck a fourteen-meter titan on the nape.

After that move, Azula then realized just how stupid she was, that what she just did was extremely dangerous. She found herself lucky that nothing went wrong with her lightning despite herself being drenched in the rain; that she didn't get herself killed.

As the fatally slain titan slumped to the ground in front of her, she met eyes with Zuko and her squadmates.

Sasha, Jean, and Connie all looked at each other, recalling what happened to them earlier in the mission. They were met with this huge obstacle when they knew that they had to kill titans despite maneuvering through burning houses. Killing titans on the loose was already a tough challenge by itself, but avoiding the flames and avoiding getting themselves burnt while doing that, they all knew it was going to be a lot even harder. But then, every time they were about to land on a roof, every time they would have to enter houses to look for and rescue any survivors, the flames would weaken and subside. They thought the reason that they made it out unscathed without any injuries was just because of some mere luck, but thinking about it now, it wasn't that.

"So it's you, huh?" Connie verbalized their thoughts out loud, addressing Azula as she landed on the roof they were standing on, "You tamed the fire this whole time to… protect us?"

Azula crossed her arms and looked away, letting out a half-suppressed laugh, "Don't put words into my mouth Connie, I was only looking out for myself. The hell I care about you three idiots…"

Zuko listened intently to their conversation. First, it was saving Sasha in that snowstorm. Now, this. As much as she tried to deny it, Zuko could sense an outright lie. He knew Azula wouldn't do such deeds without an ulterior motive, without having something in exchange. But then, thinking about it, what could she possibly gain in return by helping Sasha, Jean, and Connie? She could've easily deserted them and still went on with their mission, but she didn't.

Although Zuko and the others honestly thought that Azula had gradually changed, with what she had done earlier with Bertholdt, perhaps they are gravely mistaken.

"Tch," Jean scoffed in response to Azula's explanation, refusing to feel any more vulnerable. He was capable enough himself, he didn't need help from anyone, especially from her. "You crazy bitch…" He muttered in annoyance. He asked out of curiosity, referring to her abilities, "what the hell are you?"

Azula smirked, intending to spite him further. She answered, "a crazy bitch."

"Oi, Azula!" Sasha called out before roughly pushing Azula's shoulder from behind.

Azula's eyes widened in response, putting out one foot forward to regain her balance. She then gritted her teeth, annoyed as she turned around and faced Sasha, "How dare you-"

As always, Sasha cut her off and spared herself from being scolded, "Saving us back there doesn't mean I'll forgive you, Azula."

Azula scoffed, making herself all the more clear, "I said I was just protecting myself-"

"Say that you're sorry for last night," Sasha demanded.

Azula let out a scornful chuckle, "What did you say? Stop being delusional, Sasha."

"I said, say that you're sorry."

Azula curled up her lips into a prideful grin, "never."

Sasha went on to firmly grab Azula's shoulders, giving her a final warning, "say it."

"Nev-" apparently, that was Azula's big mistake. Before she could even finish the word, Sasha clinched on Azula, locking her arms around her nape as a stabilizer, she then jammed her knees vertically, giving Azula a harsh blow on the torso.

Despite knowing how brutal it could be whenever Sasha and Azula had fought, Jean and Connie still didn't see it coming. The three of them just witnessed Azula firebend and take a titan down with her lightning, so how could Sasha just muster up the courage to boldly hit and talk to Azula like that?

Zuko looked at Sasha in disbelief, giving her the props for standing up to Azula. Even he, the subject of Azula's antics ever since they were kids, never got enough courage to stand up to her like that.

"Oi, stop it you two!" Jean interfered, standing between them.

Azula was catching her breath, wincing and leaning forward with one hand on her stomach as the pain still throbbed and radiated. She spat, "F-fuck you, Sasha!"

"Sasha, stop that!" Connie warned as he tried to prevent Sasha from charging towards Azula again. But then, the latter was rather eager and he was pushed away to the side.

Sasha grabbed one of Azula's shoulders again, straightening her up, demanding her, "say it."

Azula's lower lip trembled in frustration, her jaw clenched and eyebrows furrowed as she finally gave up. "Fine! I'm… I'm sorry! Are you happy now?!"

"Thank you for helping us back there, Azula!" Sasha smiled from ear to ear, suffocating Azula with a hug, ruffling and playing with her hair.

"Get off me, you idiot," Azula said, pushing her away to prevent embarrassing herself from Zuko any further, whom she almost forgot was with them. Apparently, that even prompted Sasha to squeeze her more tightly. Azula could only do so much but grunt in cringe and pure disgust, eyeing both Jean and Connie for help.

Unfortunately, the two were no help. Jean crossed his arms and scoffed, while Connie smiled and gently patted Azula on the shoulder, "yeah, Azula, thanks for protecting us back there."

"I hate to be the party pooper here but the mission's not over yet, we still have to head to the HQ and resupply," Jean said.

"Right, of course." Azula nodded, finally breaking off from Sasha's hug and regaining her composure. She then looked at Zuko, nodding at him.

"Let's go."

Meanwhile, Aang, Katara, and Sokka dealt with the remaining titans surrounding the headquarters before they could go in. The other cadets were there to help them as well.

They were still using their previous strategy. Aang utilized his earthbending to trap the titans at their feet. But then, something unexpected happened. Aang failed to immediately notice that of them got loose, as the rock cuffs disintegrated and didn't hold up well to contain its ankles.

Sokka unknowingly went in for the kill. To his shock, the titan turned around and before he could even react, it grabbed him. His whole body from the neck down was restrained that he couldn't move, and all he could do was cry out for help.

"Aang! Help! Aang!"

Aang immediately looked for Sokka upon hearing his voice, and when he did, he got flustered. His hands were full as he held up the rock cuffs that restrained three other titans in the vicinity. If… If he lets go of those, then it might cause more trouble. More of them might get killed. What's even harder for him is that the titan is facing him, which means he can't kill it right away. He would have to at least cut its arm off to set Sokka free.

He had to at least try.

He then finally let go of the rock cuffs, rushing in towards him after he warned his other comrades to not engage with the other titans momentarily. Using his airbending, he increased his speed and momentum, vertically scaling upwards to reach the titan's arm and slash it with his blade.

He successfully did it. The titan's arm fell to the ground, but…

Its hand was empty. Sokka wasn't there.

He then looked up slowly, only to see Sokka's feet before the titan slurped, swallowing him whole.

What did just…

He was… too late. Had he done it earlier… had he not hesitated at first, he could've… He was the avatar and yet… He has done far more great things and even saved the world once… and yet…

"Sokka! Sokka!"

Azula, Sasha, Connie, Jean, and Zuko then arrived on the scene. Wondering what was going on.

"Sokka! Sokka!" Katara heard Aang scream. She was just done shooting her ice blade to kill a titan on the opposite side of the building. She then rushed to them, strongly hoping her assumptions were wrong.

"Aang, what happened here?! Where's Sokka?"

Katara grew even more frantic after she noticed the despair written on his face. "Where's… Sokka?!" Katara yelled louder, refusing to believe any of it. "Where the fuck is he?!" She punched Aang limply, burying her face on his shoulder, wailing.

"He's… gone."

Zuko couldn't take any of this anymore. It was just too much for him to handle all in one day. He turned around and walked away from them as he felt that he was about to puke again. He didn't even see what happened, but he could picture and imagine vividly how Sokka got… Was Sokka really…

He then saw a lone Eren standing absentmindedly on another roof right from across the street, looking just distraught as he was.

Zuko stared down at his palm, instinctively bringing his trembling hand up in front of his mouth, inspecting it carefully.

He then looked back at Eren, who was looking right back at him. It's as if he was staring right through a mirror, their movements are an exact reflection of one another.

A strong gust of wind whirred in, sweeping right through them, establishing the tension in the atmosphere. The skies began to mourn the deaths of their fallen comrades, the weather now turning into a full-blown storm. The raindrops fell with increasing intensity, drowning out the screams that echoed through the streets. Then soon enough, the sound of nothingness was all they could hear, overtaking their senses. It was shrill, piercing.

And then, it happened.

Mikasa turned around on her back, peering far out into the vast district, her visibility compromised by the hard downpour. She was guessing where the others might be while she held and clung onto her scarf tightly, as the howling winds forcefully tugged it away from her. Then there was this bright flash, her pupils constricted, as two adjacent lightning bolts struck from a distance at the same time.

Without a word, she drew in near without knowing what's about to come.

---

A/N: I know this is a lot to take in. There might be things that aren't clear, but as always, I'm ready to answer/ clarify them for you.

Kindly let me know what you think about these chapters in the reviews so I could improve my writing further heheh :)) Also, I would like to know your preference about inserting flashbacks because it might be confusing; would you rather like to have me write a linear way of storytelling, or are these flashbacks fine with you?

I thought about not explaining their plan in detail, but that might make things more confusing. Nonetheless, I'll try to keep things more secret in the succeeding chapters since this is supposed to be a 'mystery' genre fic. Moreover, I had a hard time writing Azula's character. She's always a hard character to write. I do hope I made her conflict and inner monologues believable and realistic. You can also comment down your thoughts about this :))

Also, more hell is about to break loose in the succeeding chapters, so stay tuned for that.

Another is that I believe the technology in AoT, particularly Marleyan technology, fares close to World War 2 tech. This led me to believe that they are somehow capable of developing nuclear weapons such as an atomic bomb.

Re: Air Nomad Genocide:

Well, I always see this as some sort of plot hole because the only access to air temples is of course, via air transport. War balloons and airships weren't invented at least until late in Azulon's era. Moreover, dragons are elusive/ very hard to find. As solitary and intelligent creatures, I can't imagine how the Fire Nation would use them for a wide-scale assault. Also, Sozin started the tradition of dragon hunting, which subsequently led to their 'extinction.' With regards to the comet's influence, while sustained flight is actually possible, I've only seen prodigies and well-trained individuals do it such as Ozai in the season finale. Nonetheless, I used the comet instead for the plot, since this is the most believable out of all the possible options. Tell me what you think about this. I actually sort of took advantage of this 'plot hole' to insert the plot about the Storm Titan.

Well, that's all. Thank you for reading and hope to see you soon!