Chapter 1: The Boy in the Spacecraft
All was silent in the depths of space, as it always was in the airless void.
A bright yellow star hung in the void, alone in this part of the cosmos, with only its collection of planets for company. Four small and rocky worlds were close to the star, four large and gaseous worlds further out, and a myriad of asteroids and comets around and in between. The third planet was soaked in liquid water, accompanied by a large moon that pulled on that water. Constantly in motion around the star, the planets were stable in the cosmic scale of time, and they pulled on all the smaller chunks of rock and ice around them.
From beyond the reach of the star's gravity, hundreds of asteroids passed through the void from elsewhere in the galaxy. Their size varied from the smallest of shards to the largest of buildings, colliding with each other and coalescing together again over and over. Now caught in the gravity well of this star, the asteroids accelerated and fell further in. Every second brought the asteroids hundreds of miles closer to the burning ball of plasma, where they would surely enter oblivion. Yet they would never make it to that particular end.
The third planet was directly in the path of the asteroids, pulling them in for a collision.
It was early morning at Ba Sing Se, the light of the rising sun barely clearing the massive wall that protected the city. The earthbenders on the wall made their final drills, preparing for their first real battle in decades. All of them knew this day had been coming for a long time, having heard the stories of their kingdom slowly succumbing to invaders, and the war would come to the kingdom's capital. If their battle plans succeeded the people behind the wall would never know there was a battle, for everyone knew there was no war in Ba Sing Se.
The Fire Nation army was on the city's doorstep, and it had assembled the largest invasion force the world had ever known. Men and machines covered the land all the way to the horizon, firebenders and tanks that had burned down everything in their path. That army would need every last man to bring down the wall, in a siege that everyone knew would take at least a year to complete. Ba Sing Se was one of the two Earth Kingdom strongholds left to resist the Fire Nation, the crown jewel of the Earth Kingdom, and the only place that could still be hiding the Avatar.
Leading this army was the crown prince of the Fire Nation, General Iroh, a world renowned firebender that had led many campaigns in this war. He had the appearance of a portly old man with a well-kept beard and topknot, but many enemy commanders had fallen for that little deception. His skill and power in firebendering were only rivaled by two other people, his father and his younger brother, both supporters of his efforts to take Ba Sing Se. There was nothing in this world that could stop him, nothing that would prevent him from conquering the entire Earth Kingdom.
"There it is my son," Iroh said. He swept his arm across the view before him, something he had wanted to see for a long time. "The great wall of Ba Sing Se."
Standing beside the general was his firstborn son, an ambitious young man that aspired to be just like his father. Lu Ten had been involved in his father's war effort, but until now had been kept out of any major battles. It had the young man believing he hadn't earned his rank of lieutenant, and he had insisted on joining his father in the fight to claim Ba Sing Se. Iroh knew his son wanted to prove himself, and if he didn't do so now then he never would. This was a siege for the history books, when legends would be set in stone, where a prince would earn the right to one day become Fire Lord.
Together Iroh and Lu Ten cleared the last horizon blocking the view of Ba Sing Se's massive wall, and stopped to take in the impressive view of the last major obstacle to Fire Nation glory. This wall was something out of legend, the cornerstone of the Earth Kingdom, so large and grand that it appeared on every map of the continent. At over three hundred feet high and hundreds of miles long, this wall was widely regarded as impenetrable throughout its existence. It was a testament to the early earthbenders that first built it, and to the later earthbenders that reinforced the wall over thousands of years.
As far as everyone in this army was concerned, this would be the last time anyone would see Ba Sing Se's wall completely intact. They wanted to preserve that view before it would be gone forever, as it would be something to tell the grandchildren long once the Earth Kingdom was only a memory. Once they were in position they would begin destroying the wall, all under the direction of their greatest general and crown prince. Once the wall came crumbling down they would conquer the city beyond, no matter how long it would take to overcome the earthbenders defending their capital.
Lu Ten observed the wall, wondering how thick it really was. "Father, how long do you think they will hold against us?"
"No more than three years," Iroh answered. "They do not have enough earthbenders inside to maintain it longer than that."
"I suppose we will have to wipe them out to the last earthbender," Lu Ten assumed.
Iroh nodded and smiled at Lu Ten. "Would you like to give the command?"
"Thank you," Lu Ten said. He turned around to face a friend of the family. "Admiral Jeong Jeong, give the signal. Begin the siege."
The admiral was here on a personal favor to Iroh, and it was well known that they were close friends. Jeong Jeong may be outside the chain of command here, but his experience was something the army would not turn away. It was also an opportunity for the old firebending master to observe the young prince, who was expected to rule the world as Fire Lord many decades from today. Then there was the other examination for Lu Ten, the one that only the admiral and general were aware of, given their more than personal association.
As a formality, Jeong Jeong followed the order, and turned to face the army. "Everyone! This is the-"
Suddenly a massive fireball fell from the western sky behind the army, coming out of the heavens still in late dawn. The fireball passed through the air at a low angle, leaving fire and smoke in its wake. Almost without warning it slammed into the wall near the top, the impact leaving a crater nearly a quarter of the wall's height and penetrated a third of the wall's width. To the Fire Nation army, it was as if Agni himself had dealt the first blow, for it was beyond the ability of any firebender. Indeed they started cheering, for the spirits themselves were on their side.
But while most of the army cheered at the sight of this unexpected attack, Lu Ten looked at the trail of smoke the fireball had left behind. He followed the smoke back to its source, looking up at a western sky brighter than it should be at this hour, still early in the morning. A moment later he wished he hadn't looked up there, for he had found dozens of fireballs following the path of the first one. They were all heading for the wall, promising just as much destruction as the first, and were spread apart from each other.
Lu Ten had only a second to think, and that thought was a horrifying one. "Father…"
Noticing the fear in his son's voice, something any father would know in his own son, Iroh turned to look at what Lu Ten had discovered. To Iroh the sky looked like the old paintings of Sozin's Comet, only instead of one streak of fire the entire sky was aflame. He saw three fireballs come down, striking the wall and leaving craters just as large as the first one. From those craters cracks spread through the wall, further damaging it as pieces of stone came free and fell. A small part of the wall broke off, taking one earthbender down with it.
The soldiers continued to cheer Agni's name, believing that the Sun Spirit was helping them prevail in the war that lasted generations. Unlike the ignorant masses, Iroh knew that the spirits never directly intervened in mortal affairs, leaving that task for the Avatar. The fact that Sun was still in the East and the fireballs were coming from the West was proof enough that this wasn't the work of Agni. At that time, several fireballs struck the ground in front of and behind the wall, and Iroh realized that everyone in the region was in danger.
"Take cover!" Iroh yelled.
Just a mere thirty feet away a fireball struck the ground, the closest one yet to the Fire Nation army. The impact launched debris in every direction, showering everyone nearby with rock. Iroh shielded his face with his arms, but Admiral Jeong Jeong wasn't so fortunate. A small rock struck the admiral's face, leaving two deep cuts near his eye that bled like a river. Iroh rushed to Jeong Jeong's side, noting that the injury would leave a scar on his face. But there was no time to dwell on that, for all he could do now was try to bandage the face with fabric torn from his uniform.
Taking the initiative in this chaotic disaster, Lu Ten was ordering the soldiers to break formation. He was deliberately having them spread apart as far as they could in what little time they had, even in violation of tried and tested military doctrine. Fireballs were striking just about everywhere now, inflicting heavy casualties on the densely packed soldiers. While spreading out the soldiers would increase the odds of an impact taking lives, it would also reduce the deaths per impact and save lives, and that was a trade-off Lu Ten could accept.
Despite soldiers dying all around him, Lu Ten couldn't help but glance at the wall. "Oh my…"
Fireballs continued to pummel away at the wall, creating extensive damage all the way down its length. Earthbenders were trying to repair the wall during all the chaos, but it was being damaged far faster than they could mend it. Within minutes the wall was weakened enough for one fireball to punch through it, and the rock above the new hole collapsed immediately. More fireballs punched through the crumbling wall and impacted the land within, setting fire to the fields that fed the city. Yet while the wall began to collapse, the Fire Nation army was in no condition to exploit it.
Even with more fireballs falling all around him, Iroh managed to get Jeong Jeong to a field medic. Iroh heard another fireball impact the ground behind him, showering more debris on them. Turning around Iroh saw wall only barely standing, the earthbenders barely keeping from collapsing entirely. But then a group of fireballs struck the wall nearly simultaneously, overwhelming the earthbenders and causing the entire wall to simply fall apart. From one horizon to the other the wall crumbled, and in under a minute only fragments of the wall were still standing.
Beyond the collapsed wall, Iroh saw the prized city beyond it. Ba Sing Se had been struck just as badly as his army, and even from here Iroh could tell that the city was in ruin. Then Iroh saw Lu Ten giving orders to the men, doing what he could to make sure as many people as possible survived. For a moment Iroh considered giving the order to invade Ba Sing Se, but the thought perished with a simple glance at the army. Even if enough troops survived to take the city, they were in no shape to hold it. Another glance showed Iroh that morale had completely broken, even as the fireballs began to stop falling.
Covered in dirt, ash, and blood, Lu Ten was dragging a wounded soldier towards a medic. Along the way he saw his father not far away, and he tried to tell him that he was still in one piece. Screams from the wounded and dying drowned out his voice, forcing Lu Ten to use a hand gesture to signal Iroh that he was alright. The fireballs still falling were fewer and further in between, and with the end in sight Lu Ten breathed a sigh of relief. Lu Ten spotted Iroh looking at him, both of them relieved to see each other alive.
But then a fireball struck the ground where Lu Ten stood.
Iroh could only cry out for his son. "Lu Ten!"
He ran straight to the crater, desperately searching for his son, but only found smoke rising from it. There was nothing left of Lu Ten, nothing to bring home for a funeral. Iroh fell to his knees at the edge of the crater, no longer caring about the chaos around him, even though the fireballs had stopped falling. All that mattered to Iroh was that his only son was dead. Everyone around him had either seen what happened, or could figure it out just by looking at their general. The troops that survived left Iroh alone, respecting their general's need to grieve for his son.
Since the general was in no condition to lead, Jeong Jeong took command, despite his own injuries suffered today. Hours passed and the troops regrouped, doing what they could to save the injured. The worst were loaded onto the few transports still intact, pulled away from the ruined wall by weary kimono rhinos. Late in the afternoon the army started to withdraw, before the Earth Kingdom could even think about attacking them. Jeong Jeong observed the remains of the army, noting that over half of the men were dead and most of what remained was in no condition to fight.
Even as the last of the troops withdrew from the area, Iroh remained at the site of his son's final resting place. He only moved from that spot once, and only for long enough to gather small green stones to create a marker. Iroh arranged the small green stones in the shape of Lu Ten's name, marking the place where his son had been struck down. The crude grave marker was the most he could do for his son, lacking the materials for a proper memorial. A pyre would have been preferred, but there was no body left to burn.
Iroh was still kneeling at the marker when Jeong Jeong approached him, and the admiral put a hand on his friend's shoulder. "It's time to go."
"I'll be along shortly," Iroh said.
Jeong Jeong nodded and turned to walk away. "I understand."
When the sun was barely above the horizon Iroh stood up, ready to leave the devastation behind far him. He took one more look at the city, seeing smoke continue to rise from the ravaged urban landscape out there. That view would not last, as a new wall was already beginning to rise from the ground. Earthbenders were hastily working to rebuild their primary defense, several miles closer to the city proper, well out of range of any firebender attacks. This would have been the perfect moment to attack, if Iroh still had a whole army to attack with.
Just when Iroh was about to turn away, he saw a faint glint of silver, and it caught his curiosity. It was coming from the base of the collapsed wall, where an impact crater had been filled in with rubble, or so it seemed from a distance. Iroh walked over to that crater to investigate, though he stopped at the rim, situated at the former boundary of Ba Sing Se. From there he could see that the crater was only partially filled with rubble, which clung to the sides but left the bottom exposed. And at the bottom was something Iroh never thought could exist, something very clearly not of this world.
"What is this…?" Iroh wondered aloud.
It was a bizarre object, seven feet long with a diamond shaped profile, along with an egg-shaped section in the center of the diamond. Its surface was like polished silver, with only the faintest lines where different components came together. Iroh had no idea what it was or where it had come from, and so he climbed into the crater to get a closer look. He put one hand on the smooth surface, and the center section glowed with strange light. Iroh took a step back, not knowing what it was doing, until the glowing metal slid into the diamond, revealing that it was a container.
Iroh's eyes widened when he saw what was inside. "A child?"
A boy wrapped in a red blanket was sleeping inside, undisturbed by everything that had happened outside. The boy had short black hair and smoothened facial features, and had to be no older than seven. The red blanket had a golden glyph on it, like a diamond with an angled line through it, but its meaning was lost here. For a moment Iroh wondered if this boy was an Air Nomad, perhaps placed in spiritual sleep by the Avatar to protect his people, but they never possessed objects like the one the boy was inside.
The boy's eyes opened and looked around, bright blue eyes of someone still new to the world. The boy started to cry, but stopped when Iroh lifted him from the object, calmed by the reassuring presence of a parent. For a while Iroh simply cradled the boy in his arms, even if he seemed to be a little heavy for a child of his size. It was strangely calming, for both of them, to have someone there in a time of need. Iroh wasn't sure what it was, the feeling in his gut or his faith in the spirits, but it seemed like this child had been sent to him.
"Who are you?" Iroh muttered. He cradled the boy for a while, simply to keep him calm. "You're alright little one."
With the boy still in his arms, Iroh turned around and climbed out of the crater. He had to leave the object behind, and he would never bother to send men in to retrieve it. Having a child appear from nowhere create enough rumors, but there were reasonable assumptions that others could make and Iroh could encourage. But he could not explain the object, and he found it best to simply have no one see it. The soldiers were surprised to see Iroh return with company, but knew better than to question him directly, and Iroh was left alone as he carried the child across the land scarred by meteorites.
"You're safe now," Iroh said. He looked into the boy's blue eyes, which reflected the light of the setting sun. "Taiyo."
At the other end of the world, on one of the southernmost islands in the Fire Nation, the people who lived on Pan Kago were unaware of the army's month-long retreat from Ba Sing Se.
Matters of the war were largely kept outside this island's shores, so that they would not distract the loyal citizens from their contribution. Pan Kago was the largest producer of food in the Fire Nation, with nearly all of its land dedicated to farming crops and raising livestock. The noble family that ruled here managed the lands with tender care, valuing sustainability over maximum growth, to the chagrin of Fire Lord Azulon. Even the island's volcano was carefully managed, with its lava flows diverted as needed to enrich the soil when crop rotation wasn't sufficient.
Looking over the largest farm was the manor of the island, where the governor of Pan Kago and his family administered the island's affairs. Governor Jieyong and Lady Masa treated the people under their watch as part of their family, for they had no children of their own and were unlikely to conceive any. They spend their days in the fields like everyone else, earning the loyalty of the people by sharing in the hard work. They were the exception among the nobility, and only pretended to be above the commoners when other nobles came to visit.
One evening Jieyong was retiring to his study for the night, but when he entered he found someone unexpected sitting in his favorite chair. "Prince Iroh?"
Sitting there with the young boy sound asleep in his arms, Iroh watched the governor bow before him. "Please, there is no need for that. As far as anyone else knows, I am not here."
Jieyong stood up straight, much taller than Iroh, though he was still humbled by the presence of the crown prince. "To what do I owe this honor?"
"I need someone to look after this child," Iroh said. He gently cradled the boy in his arms. "Taiyo needs a family, and right now, I cannot provide that."
"And you trust Masa and I with him?" Jieyong asked.
"I do," Iroh said, giving a crafty smile. "I am well aware of how you treat the people here. My father might not approve of your choices with your lands, but I understand them. I know that you can raise this boy right, with honor and trust."
Jieyong took several steps forward, so that he could get a closer look at Taiyo. "He doesn't look Fire Nation. Where did he come from?"
"That is a story I doubt you would believe," Iroh answered. He stood up, carefully as to not wake the boy, and held him out toward the much taller governor. "Please, I am certain he will be safe here. Treat him like one of your own, and you will have my eternal gratitude."
"I understand," Jieyong said. He accepted the prince's request, and took Taiyo in his arms, and had to steady himself with the unexpected weight. "What will you do now?"
Iroh had turned away, so that the tears could not be seen. "I need to grieve."
Averting his gaze out of respect, Jieyong looked at the boy he was holding instead. "Does he know you are leaving him here?"
"Yes," Iroh said. He walked toward the door, but stopped at the threshold. "I will check in at times, when I am ready to return."
Jieyong nodded to him. "Safe travels."
He watched the prince leave, with no doubts that he would depart just as unnoticed as when he had arrived. Jieyong then looked at the boy placed under his care, completely peaceful while he slept. He carried Taiyo out of the study, walked through the halls of the manor, until he reached one of the guest rooms. There he placed Taiyo on a bed, careful not to wake him, and simply watched him sleep. It was so strange, to the point where Jieyong wondered if he was dreaming, and would wake up any minute now.
"Sweet dreams," Jieyong whispered. "Son."
A year quickly passed, and Taiyo learned the ways of the Fire Nation.
He was formally adopted into Jieyong's family, and granted all the privileges and responsibilities that came with it. Taiyo was welcomed on the island as the governor's son, and he quickly learned the customs of his new homeland. The best tutors were hired for him, so that he could catch up to where a normal boy his age would be in school. He was a quick study, picking up on various concepts with ease, as though they were simple to him. By the end of the first year it was like he had never been behind in the first place, but there was one area he could not advance.
Taiyo was not a firebender, and no amount of instruction could change that.
It was a shortcoming that was quickly accepted, and his adopted parents wouldn't let him dwell on it. Instead he focused his efforts on his education, along with helping out the people of Pan Kago in any way he could. The farms could always use another pair of hands, and in following his parents' example, Taiyo participated in the work whenever other nobles weren't present. From putting up new fencing to tilling the fields and herding the hippo-cows, there was no physical task that he found too strenuous to complain about and delegate to someone else.
Today Taiyo was walking down a road beside a field, and he spotted a wagon stuck beside the road, with a farmer beside it. "Excuse me, is something wrong over there?"
The farmer stood up and turned around, and was relieved when he saw Taiyo there. "One of the wheels broke. I sent my boy ahead to let the missus know I'll be late."
Taiyo walked over and crouched beside the wagon, inspecting the wheel that had split in half. "Do you have a spare with you?"
"Yeah, for all the good it would do by myself," the farmer said, pulling it out from the back of the wagon. "Just had to break down in the worst spot to put it on…"
"Allow me," Taiyo said. He grabbed the side of the wagon with one hand, which was enough for him to lift the wagon off the ground. "Alright, that should be enough."
It still amazed this farmer whenever Taiyo did something like this, and he immediately got to work removing the broken wheel. "Should take just a few minutes."
"That's okay," Taiyo said. "I can hold it that long."
Soon enough the farmer had the spare wheel in place, and he backed away from the wagon. "Okay, it's done. Saved me a whole lot of trouble."
Taiyo put the wagon down, and he dusted off his hands. "Well, it wouldn't be proper to just let you struggle when there was something I could do about it."
With that little diversion taken care of, Taiyo continued on his way to town. There was a small village next to the shore, where most of the Pan Kago's produce was packaged before it was sent to port. There had been delays in recent weeks, a result of vermin getting into the storehouses, which were quite stubborn and difficult to remove. Taiyo had studied up on elephant-rats to try and figure out a solution to the problem, beyond throwing more cats at the problem. If the vermin got out of hand they could ruin several months' worth of food, so they had to be dealt with immediately.
When he arrived at the storehouse Taiyo went inside, and he spotted several elephant-rats scurrying into their hiding holes. They were simply too fast to catch, and there were many places for them to hide from the cats. But the vermin had an irresistible attraction to spoiled cheese, the smellier the better for drawing them out. Taiyo had brought a sealed jar with him, and he found an open spot in the middle of the storehouse to open that jar. The disgusting smell billowed out from the jar, and Taiyo set it down before retreating to the closed door, where he wouldn't have to wait very long.
While he stayed perfectly still, Taiyo spotted the vermin coming out of their holes. "There we go. Just got to time it right."
A dozen of them were out in the open when Taiyo dashed forward, and with inhuman speed, though it was normal for him. Time appeared to slow down for him, and the elephant-rats seemed to be as slow as molasses. The vermin still tried to scatter, in whichever direction they were facing, but Taiyo was already upon them. He grabbed several by their tails and put them into a burlap sack, one that was too thick for the rodents to chew through. Then he returned to the door, where he would wait for the spoiled cheese to draw out more vermin for him to do it all over again.
After a few runs Taiyo had his entire sack filled with the vermin, and their collective screeching prevented more from emerging from their holes. Still, it was a dent in their numbers, and the cats could manage it from here. He left the storehouse with the bulging sack in one hand and the re-sealed jar of spoiled cheese in the other, and walked straight to the closest pasture to dispose of the captured vermin. It was near the far side of town, and there were several hippo-cows mulling about, the closest of them turning when Taiyo approached.
"Alright, open up," Taiyo said. He saw the hippo-cow open its enormous mouth, and he dumped the entire sack of elephant-rats into the mouth, for the beast to eat in a single bite. "Enjoy the snack."
He gave the hippo-cow a nice petting, and then turned around to go home. At first Taiyo wasn't in any particular hurry, but as he walked through the town again he noticed hushed conversations among the people there. Something had happened, and Taiyo knew better than to hear it about it secondhand, and so he picked up the pace to return to the manor. To anyone watching it was like he simply disappeared, though from afar a keen eye could track the blur across the landscape. He stopped at the entrance, fixed his hair, and walked inside the manor to find his parents.
He found both of them in the study, just as a courier was leaving. "Ma, Pa, what's going on?"
Jieyong was holding a scroll in one hand, its broken seal being that of the royal family. "Taiyo, get cleaned up and pack your formal wear. We're leaving for the capital tomorrow morning."
Masa crouched to embrace her son and comfort him ahead of the bad news. "Fire Lord Azulon is dead."
A/N: The long overdue rewrite of The Last Kryptonian is finally here.
Ten years ago, I ended my first fanfic with a promise of a sequel. However, it quickly became apparent that the story wasn't good enough to support a sequel. Too many problems and mistakes that came from being a novice writer. So I started this rewrite of the original story, which was written on and off over the years, alongside the other stories that I was more interested in writing at the time. Many changes have been made in this version, some of which are apparent in this very chapter. I will leave the original story alone, in case anyone wants to compare/contrast the two versions, though given the low quality of the original I do not recommend it.