Located beyond the coast of the largest island within the Fire Nation archipelago, just West of the Capital, was a city known as Ki Lo. It wouldn't be surprising if you've never heard of it before- many share the same blissful ignorance of not knowing the extents of the Fire Nation's territorial claims. Though, it didn't help Ki Lo's case that it was one of the smaller landmarks within Fire Nation territory- especially when compared to some of the more impressive metropolises further in the East. However, Ki Lo was still a part of the land, and the land was still a part of the people; because Ki Lo had something within its walls that most could only hope to dream of in a lifetime: Wealth.
Indeed, the city had become the home of most of the Fire nobilities and sages, a place of comfort and luxury to return to after a long day of dictating the fate of the entire Nation. Although Ki Lo was not a place where war meetings would be discussed or where harsh Capital punishments were to be given out, it still served a great purpose: housing the spouses and children of some of the most important people in all of the Fire Nation.
And among that majority population in Ki Lo was a girl named Koza. As the daughter of Fire Nobility, a well-known lawmaker named Shio Kan, Koza was quite used to living a very comfortable life; and, at that, a life that was devoid of change. It had been the same every single day for the past sixteen years: Each morning she was woken up by the family servant, Uvi- an older but kind woman- ate a breakfast of fresh plums, rice, and komodo sausage with her older brother, then rode on her family's carriage to school.
There, she'd spend the entire day studying the great history of the Fire Nation (which usually included some delightfully graphic stories of how the Fire Armies crushed some poor excuse for an uprising in any of the four Nations), practice her Bending techniques with the school's on-site Masters, then return home to study, train some more, eat dinner, and go to sleep. It was safe, strict, and repetitive; just how Koza was taught to like.
It didn't feel like anything other than another ordinary morning when Koza rose to the sound of Uvi's soft voice in the doorway, just like always. The first thing she saw when she opened her eyes was a harsh beam of sunlight streaming in from her window- the sun always shone much brighter at this time of year.
"Miss Koza, it's time to get ready." Uvi said, before the soft padding of her footsteps faded down the hall. One sentence was all Koza needed to get moving. She rose from her bed and instantaneously, without even thinking about it, changed into her school uniform. It was almost more armor-like than a uniform, adorn in the classic Fire Nation colors of black and red. Koza once read that they were incredibly similar, if not the exact same uniforms that were worn in the schools on Capital Island. Installing a sense of conformity no matter where you were, Koza guessed.
Once she had changed, Koza stared into the mirror hanging on her wall and began to brush her fingers through her long black hair. She always liked her hair down this way; soft, silky, and free of knots or tension. Using the gentlest care, Koza took hold of the jet strands and formed it all into a tight bun atop her head, the way all students were expected to style it. The skin around her forehead was pinched painfully back as she ensured the bun was up to standard. She grabbed a golden hairpin that lay waiting on her shelf and used it to keep the hair in place, looking satisfied with her appearance. Now she looked just like everyone else.
Koza closed her door and exited her room- located on the second floor of her family's house- and descended down the staircase into the dining area. Although, with Shio Kan at the Capital 98% of the time for work, and Koza's mother, Fulay, having "important errands" to take care of late into the night, the long dining table that could easily fit an entire army was usually only accompanied by Koza and her brother. Speaking of whom, Ojin was already seated at the table, halfway through his meal by the time Koza arrived downstairs. He didn't look up once from his plate when Koza slid into the empty seat across from him, a plate of an identical meal placed before her courtesy of Uvi. The two siblings ate in deafening silence, Ojin's face fixated on the table while Koza only looked up at him once or twice.
This was exactly how it always was in their house, day after day; no talking at the table had been the in-place rule ever since the two were young. Their father, it seemed, enjoyed eating a meal in a peaceful quiet. However, as Koza slowly chewed on her bitter plum and took a final look up at her brother, something unexpected came over her. She wasn't sure why it happened, or where it even came from. But before Koza had time to stop herself, she spoke.
"So how have your Bending classes been going?" Koza's lips formed around the words, although she almost felt like it was another person speaking. Ojin's head shot up from its fixed position, staring at Koza with a mixture of utter shock and somewhat disbelief.
"What?" He asked. Koza had definitely gotten his attention; she had almost hoped he wouldn't have heard her, or simply would've chosen to ignore him. No backing down now.
"I just asked how your Bending classes have been going? I know you've been struggling a bit with your leg techniques, so I was just… wondering…" Her voice began to fail under Ojin's hard stare. She swallowed the lump that had suddenly formed in her throat, not daring to take her eyes away from Ojin's identical ones. The impromptu staring match was quickly cut short when Ojin looked back down at his plate, ultimately deciding that his last bits of grease-soaked rice were more interesting.
"Koza, you know the rule. Don't talk to me, especially when you have nothing interesting to say." He spoke, his voice laced with icy callousness. Koza quickly went back to her own plate, half-heartedly ignoring the new heavy feeling in her chest. She almost would've preferred it had Ojin gotten angry or even insulted her; at least showing negative emotions proved that he cared about her, even a little. That even, aloof tone had the same meaning no matter where in the world you went: You are less than nothing to me. They were siblings, barely two years apart, and yet most of the time it felt like they were total strangers. Koza finished the rest of her meal in a hurry, putting on a blank, toneless face in order to force herself to forget about it. This was just how her family was, surely she had learned that by now. There was no point in getting upset or dwelling on what had already happened. It's done, just move on. Don't let them think you're weak.
Koza had managed to bury the morning disaster by the time she and Ojin had grabbed their bags and were standing in the front garden, waiting for the carriage to pull around. Koza avoided looking at him by keeping her eyes on the beaver-koi pond across the street, along with the bright red Sparkpetals that grew around it. She always thought those flowers were incredibly beautiful, even once trying to convince her father to plant some in their own garden. He had shooed her away before the question had left her mouth.
At last, the familiar creaking sounds came into earshot as the family carriage rolled around the corner and stopped at the front gates, pulled by two black-and-brown ostrich horses that pawed at the ground and snorted, seemingly anxious to get moving. Ojin climbed into the dark wood interior first, and Koza clambered in right behind. It was a bumpy, somewhat uncomfortable ride to school that was accompanied, unsurprisingly, more silence. Koza decided to bide her time by staring out the glossy window of the carriage and looking at the grand manor houses that they passed by. On a few of the properties there'd be a worker out in the gardens, tending to the flora with loving care. Koza knew her family had a gardener, although she couldn't remember ever seeing them before, let alone what their name might've been. She thought about asking Ojin, but luckily remembered this time that they weren't supposed to talk.
They arrived at the Ki Lo Fire Academy after a twenty minute ride, which couldn't have ended sooner, Koza thought. The Fire Academy, her mother always griped about, was located in the heart of the city, instead of closer to the wealthy suburbs that Koza's family lived in. The Academy was one of the biggest buildings in all of Ki Lo, an ebony palace of curved arches and multi-layers of flooring designed for students of all ages and skill-levels. The schoolyard was filled to the brim with identically-dressed students, all mingling together before school officially began. As Koza climbed out of the carriage, however, the usually loud and bustling yard seemed to be a much different place today. Students were all huddled together in small groups, whispering among themselves secrets that were too precious for outside ears to hear. Walking into the odd scene, Koza only had a moment to question everyone's odd behavior when a nearby hushed voice spoke her name.
"Koza! Hey, Koza, come here!" It was Min, a young boy who she was fairly acquaintanced with. Maybe in a different world, they could even be considered friends. Nevertheless, Koza was quick in her approach to his beckoning, and found him huddled together with five other students, none of which she recognized. Koza leaned in and joined in the huddle, her face nearly touching Min's.
"What's going on? Why is everyone being all secretive?" Koza whispered.
"Haven't you heard this morning's decree? It's all anyone's been talking about." The boy right next to Koza whispered, looking over his shoulder as if he expected someone to snatch him away right then and there.
"No, I didn't. My mom usually tells Ojin and I this kind of stuff, but she was out all night. What happened?" The other students gazed at one another, silently deciding among themselves who would be given the privilege of sharing.
"Do you remember how a couple weeks ago some of our naval units in the East were reporting tension between them and the Eastern Air Temple?" Min was the one to step up before anyone had the chance. Koza nodded briskly; she had heard that tidbit about a week ago, but it had been of very little interest to her. The Air Benders were all soft, flower-loving monks who cried when they accidentally stepped on a bug. So they were getting antsy about a naval ship, big deal.
"Well, there was a huge fleet of Fire Nation cargo ships that were heading towards the North Pole for trading purposes," Min continued, his voice lowering to such a soft whisper Koza had to lean in even closer to hear him. "And this morning, they found all of them completely obliterated. All the ships were destroyed beyond recovery, goods worth millions of gold lost to sea, and not a single crewman was found alive."
"And guess which landmark the ships were passing right before they went down?" A female student said eagerly. "The Northern Air Temple." Koza's eyes widened.
"So you're saying the Air Benders destroyed a whole fleet of cargo ships?" She was utterly astounded. Wasn't it the point of being an Air Bender to be against violence? Did they suddenly change their ways?
"Exactly. Nobody can really agree on why," Min continued. "But a lot of people think it's because the Monks are just jealous and bitter. Ever since Sozin became the Fire Lord, the Fire Nation's been growing in power."
"The Air Benders have been old news for centuries. They saw us getting big and powerful, and since they knew they'd never do the same, decided that if they can't have it, nobody will." The boy next to Koza said, shaking his head with disapproval.
"So what happens now? What's the punishment going to be?" Koza asked, hungry for information. The students all glanced at one another, failing to hide their glee.
"Complete military obliteration." Min said, unable to hide his huge grin.
"The decree was sent out earlier this morning," another girl whispered, her whole body quivering in excitement. "In repentance for the murder of over 150 innocents, Fire Lord Sozin is sending every soldier we have to attack the Air Bender armies head on. They're going to completely dismantle their power structure and make sure nothing like this ever happens again."
"Ha, those bison-lovers don't stand a chance. The Fire Nation has been winning wars since the dawn of time. Those monks aren't gonna know what hit 'em." Min boasted proudly. Koza felt excitement pulsing in her chest at the prospect of the Fire Nation putting the Air Benders in their place. An army that did wrong deserved justice, after all. Those Monks needed to pay for what they did. However, the hope began to quickly drain from her eyes as she suddenly remembered a crucial detail that nobody had yet to bring up.
"Wait a minute. Isn't the Avatar currently an Air Bender? If it's a political battle, then that means our troops are going to have to face the Avatar, too." Koza stated. The others stared at her blankly, worried looks quickly spreading among the group. Clearly nobody had bothered to remember that bit of information. Pale fear formed on Min's face, and Koza suddenly remembered that his father was a Captain in the Fire Nation Army. Between a military Captain and the Avatar, it was no contest who would win that fight. And Min was painfully aware.
"How long has it been since Avatar Roku died? It's been twelve years, right?" One of the boys who had remained silent up until this point said thoughtfully. "So that means that the current Avatar is only twelve years old." This information eased the tension that Koza had unintentionally created. She saw Min's face relax, his pride quickly returning.
"Yeah, you're right. There's no way anyone could master even a single element in just twelve years, let alone all four. Not even the Avatar could pull that off. Even with the Avatar on their side, those sky-walkers don't stand a chance." Min boasted. The others nodded in agreement.
"You said the siege started this morning?" Koza asked.
"Yeah. The Army troops planned to attack all four Temples at once to prevent any of the Air Benders being able to warn the other Temples. We should be getting updates by tomorrow." One of the girls replied. The students didn't have any more chances to dwell on the topic as the gong began to sound all across the courtyard, signaling that it was time for class.
Koza and the others obediently followed in one-by-one, filling into their desks for today's lesson, which was about how the Fire Nation victoriously defeated the great "Blue Flame" uprising. But for the first time in all her years of being in school, Koza found it increasingly difficult to concentrate on the lesson. While her teacher rambled on about espionage, civil war, and deception, her mind was daydreaming about the distant Air Temples, imagining a group of armed Air Benders being outflanked by the bigger and stronger Fire military, taking the cursing monks and nuns away in chains. It was incredibly exciting to be living through such a historical event. Total destruction of an entire Nation's military power; today could very well be written down in next year's textbooks!
By the time Koza's main classes had ended and she was on her way home, the fantasies of justice and war had already faded out of her subconscious. Her thoughts were now replaced with three new Fire Bending techniques her Sifu had gone over today. Although her Bending classes were, by far, her favorite part of the day, Koza was starting to get a little overwhelmed with just how many stances and forms she needed to memorize for even the most basic of Bending. What even was the difference between lion-stance and mountain lion-stance anyway? Plus, her Sifu had started talking about how the strongest Fire Benders powered their blazes using their anger, which was the first time Koza had ever heard of anything like that.
Nevertheless, her and Ojin returned home on time, exiting the Academy and riding home on their carriage. As they entered through the front gate and approached the door, they were greeted by a somewhat-unexpected figure: their mother, Fulay. Usually Uvi was the one who met them at the door, but it seemed like Fulay had gotten home early. She looked somewhat disheveled, with her shoulder-cut hair tied back in a very messy style. She was wearing basic robes, with a red shawl draped around her shoulders- a look she often sported after coming home from her "errands."
"Welcome home, my Ojin." Fulay greeted her son with the loving, over-sweet voice she usually put on whenever they were in public. She reached forwards and gave her son a big, wet kiss on the cheek, which Ojin allowed to happen- though he clearly wasn't happy about it. Fulay then turned to Koza. "Hello, Koza." She said, though she was still sporting her over-the-top persona, her greeting for Koza was significantly less warm than it was for Ojin. But this was just another part of the routine that Koza had gotten used to over the years.
"Hello, Mother."
"And how was school today?" Fulay asked, looking in between the two.
"Fine." Ojin and Koza blandly replied at the same time, pushing past her to enter their house. Dinner held the same atmosphere as breakfast, with the only addition now being Fulay to join the table, sitting next to Ojin. They still remained utterly silent, though, with barely a sound even coming from their chewing mouths. Koza consciously ate quickly, wanting to review over her textbooks before her nightly bath. She shoved the last bits of rice into her mouth and moved her chair back to stand up when, to her surprise, Fulay suddenly cleared her throat.
"Koza, would you mind doing your dear mother a favor, please?" Fulay asked. She was still using that fake sing-song voice that made her sound like she was the most genuine woman on the planet... Keeping up the facade when it was just the three of them in the room, alarm bells began to ring inside of Koza's mind.
"Of course, what do you need?" Koza replied as respectfully as she could muster through gritted teeth. Fulay's smile brightened.
"I have such a craving for lychee nut tea right now, but Uvi told me we just ran out. Would you mind going to the bush in the garden and gathering some for me?" She asked innocently. This wasn't a completely unusual request; Fulay usually hardly spoke to her daughter unless it was to ask for something, usually to clean something or to be a practice dummy for Ojin's Fire Bending. However, gathering fruits to make tea was something her mother would normally ask Uvi to do. Something about this felt off, but she couldn't place why.
"Of course, Mother." Koza replied, giving her mother a curt bow and opened the swinging door that led into the kitchen. It was much smaller compared to the dining room; it seemed even more so with how many cleaning supplies were stacked within the small space. Uvi was currently wiping down the counters she used to prepare the family's meals, and looked up at the sound of footsteps. As soon as she saw who had entered the kitchen, she smiled warmly.
"Do you need something, Miss Koza?" She asked, her genuine kindness a stark contrast to Fulay's.
"No, Uvi, thank you. I'm just going out to the garden for a moment." Replied Koza, moving past the older woman and pushing open the wooden door that led to the outside. The back garden wasn't something Koza's family usually showed off to guests, having a very random and somewhat messy assortment of all kinds of different plants that really didn't go together. A large silver fence separated their land from the neighbor's, a more recent addition to the mess that was the backyard in order to keep out any prying eyes.
Fulay had insisted on planting several fruit-producing plants in the back garden to "save costs," even though most of their produce still came from the local markets. Now, the grass was littered with rotting and decayed fruits that had failed to be picked. At the very back of the garden was a line of stones, placed there in order to separate the suburban land with the wilderness, in the shape of a huge forest that stretched for quite a distance. Koza remembered getting quite the lecture from Uvi as a child when she had curiously wandered said forest. The line of stones was set up to keep people on one side, and danger on the other.
It was warm outside, luckily, but as the sun had already set and the moon was blocked by thick clouds overhead, it was also very dark. Koza found herself blinking hard for her eyes to adjust, taking a single step into the garden, and then immediately tripping over a stray vine. She cursed somewhat loudly and, after getting back to her feet, irritably held her hand forward. A small flame appeared in the middle of her palm, powered by no visible fuel source; it danced and flickered across Koza's skin, but didn't seem to harm her. Now with an actual light source, Koza easily made out the familiar lychee nut bush back by the line of rocks. She walked over to it, making sure to avoid anything else that was tripable, and knelt down to start picking at the large, bulbous fruits.
An audible rustling in the close forest suddenly distracted her from her task. Koza looked up into the veil of darkness and extended her hand out further, expecting to see the shape of a small animal possibly on the prowl. Nothing. Koza waited for a moment and returned her attention to the bush, only to hear a twig snap not a moment later. Native wildlife had all but disappeared from the area, chased away by the large buildings and constant noise of those who had built homes here. All that remained in Ki Lo were a few small rodents and birds, but every once in a while there were reports of hog monkeys stirring up mischief. Seeing as that twig snapping did not sound like a small, Koza could only assume it was a much bigger animal that had made its way to civilization. Deciding the best course of action would be to scare it off back into the wild, Koza let out a heavy sigh, let the lychee nuts she had already picked tumble to the ground, and stepped over the line of stones.
She took a few steps into the woods, moving through gaps in the large trees as she listened carefully for any more movement. It came from just a few steps ahead of her, along with the sound of heavy breath. Koza frowned. This… didn't sound like an animal, at least none she had ever heard. The flame in her palm suddenly grew much larger, filling the entirety of her hand, and also allowing her much better visibility within the dark and twisting woods. Koza wasn't sure what she was looking to find in the forest behind her home, but she was definitely sure that never in a thousand years would she have expected to see a girl; a young girl, no older than she was, leaning against one of the trees. A girl in tattered, smoldering robes, covered in soot and dirt, and shaking from head to toe.
A girl who, from the alarmed look in her wild eyes, wasn't expecting to see Koza, either.