Chapter Five: Measuring the Wind
Azula and her cohorts made their way into the town after a bit of research. A lot of research, actually. She'd had to ask the Earth King if there was any way to measure the wind. Then he'd pointed her in the direction of several 'experts' who turned out to be frauds. The man really was breathtakingly incompetent.
Azula had to spend the next few days asking around. Eventually, she heard about a machine shop that operated in one of the lower districts. Of course, by the time she'd learned that it was almost night. So she ended up having to sleep on it.
And of course, she ended up in prison when the water peasant stumbled across her by chance. Again.
The next loop they went straight to the shop. Then they got lost, sidetracked, and eventually thrown in prison. How did this keep happening to them?
Eventually, they found it. The shop was a one-story building. Within it, she found a large man fiddling with machines. He looked up in surprise as she entered. He had a long, brown beard, and gray eyes.
"Good evening." he said. "How can I help you?"
"Hello." said Azula. "I'm told you possess machines capable of measuring the wind."
"Yes." said the man. "The anemometer. They were invented by the Air Nomads back in the old days to test students skill. Fine invention. Though it took us a little while to figure out how to replicate them."
"Well I'd like to buy one." said Azula.
"Of course." said the man. "Right this way."
He led them through the isles and came to the device. Azua noted it. It didn't look very impressive.
"What exactly do you plan to do with it?" asked the man.
"I'm interested to know more about the wind currents in Ba Sing Se." said Azula. "Which areas get hit the hardest. That kind of thing."
"Well, that sounds fairly interesting. You'll want to put it up on a rooftop, though." said the man. "That'll get you the best result."
Azula paused. "Tell me, where do you think the best place would be?"
"Well in this district?" asked the man. "That would be the old belltower. Used to be used to call town meetings. But it hasn't been used in a long time."
"Why not?" asked Ty Lee.
"Erm, the Dai Li make most of the decisions these days." said the man in a low tone. "They run almost everything, and have, ever since the old Earth King died."
"Why-" began Ty Lee.
"How much for the anemometer?" asked Azula. She didn't want to hear any more about this city.
Later as they walked away, Azula looked at the device that had taken. She smiled. It would take a while. But soon her plans would come about. "Now, we'll be able to test where the winds are coming in.
"Mai, do you have those writing materials?"
"Yes." said Mai. "But it won't do any good."
Azula glanced back in surprise. "What do you mean?"
"If you're right, and time is looping, then tomorrow any notes we make will have never existed." said Mai.
Azula considered that. "Good point. Fine. We'll spend the first half of today writing down the wind speeds on this rooftop. Then at noon I'll spend the rest of the day memorizing them."
"What about the second half of the day?" asked Mai.
"I'll do the other half the next day." said Azula.
"You'll have no time to memorize them." noted Mai.
Azula realized she was right. "...Fine. I'll memorize them as they come. If worst comes to worst, we can go through this again."
"Hey Azula!" said Ty Lee. "I got those coats you wanted. They should keep off the winds."
Azula blinked. She looked at the furry coats. They looked like they could do the job but... "Why pink?"
"What?" said Ty Lee. "You don't like them?"
"Dislike is too weak a word." said Mai. "How many buildings are we doing Azula?"
"All of them." said Azula.
"All of them?" asked Mai.
"Yes." said Azula. "When I'm done this entire city will lie in ashes."
Mai sighed. "...This is going to take a lot of work."
"I know." said Azula. Then she considered just how many buildings she'd have to look at. And then that she would have to remember them all.
And so the testing began. They got to the top of the belltower and set up the device. They then took turns sitting on the roof, writing down the wind speeds and time. It was boring, chilly, and deeply unpleasant.
When they were done, Azula returned to Ba Sing Se and spent hours memorizing everything on it. Apparently, the coup had failed and been defeated during that time. Oh well.
This was horribly dry reading material. The only thing that kept Azula reading was the knowledge that it would disappear in a few hours. And as she did, all she could see was days and days like this one, studying endless reports on wind conditions.
Was this really worth the effort?
Of course not.
Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. This had all taken far too long. She decided that Mai had had a point. Azula had never had much patience for book learning, not like Zuzu. It was much easier to learn by doing. So she stood and got her hair tied together.
There was Ty Lee and Mai. Ty Lee was about to make her usual greeting when Azula put a hand over her mouth. "Okay, change of plans. We aren't going to do every building in the city."
"What?" said Mai.
"Instead we'll find the highest building in each district and measure that." said Azula. "Once we've got a general idea of how the wind blows we can experiment with starting fires. We'll correct any errors we might have then."
"Azula..." said Mai.
"This plan will take diligence and a great deal of work." decided Azula.
"Azula..." said Mai.
"But if we succeed this miserable city will be wiped from the face of the world, once and for all!" continued Azula.
"Azula!" said Mai.
"What?" said Azula, surprised to see her raising her voice.
"What are you talking about?" asked Mai.
Azula sighed. "...Oh right. I suppose I'll have to explain things again."
One explanation later and a purchased anemometer, Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee left. They made their way through the streets. It was a less prosperous district they were walking through. The peasants here had a smell to them, and they were dirtier than the others.
Sure enough, one of them approached her. He was an old man, maybe sixty or seventy. His face was haggard, and he had thin hair and a balding head. "Excuse me, could you spare a few coins-"
Azula shoved him to the ground. He hit the ground and fell there. "Out of the way begger. I've no time for you."
Then she stalked on past. Glancing back, she saw the man stand and limp off, sobbing slightly. Pathetic.
"Azula, that was a bit mean." said Ty Lee.
"I can't stand paupers." snapped Azula. "If they hate being poor so much, why don't they just leap off a bridge and reduce the surplus population. They would actually be providing a service in death they could never match in life."
They reached the building they were going to. And this time they didn't get lost at all. It helped that it was the tallest building they had scaled so far, another belltower. Only this one had had it's top blown off by something. Perhaps in Uncle Iroh's siege of Ba Sing Se?
Certainly, the building looked like it had taken a beating. As Azula scaled up the steps, she saw holes in the wall where stones had hit it. The masonry was falling out, and the mortar was loose. Once Mai tripped on a loose stone and nearly smashed her head on the steps.
Even so, they finally reached the top. And Azula had to admit; this tower had a nice view. She could see practically the entire inner city here. From the palace to the inner wall.
They set up shop and waited. This time Azula had sent Mai to get the coats. So they were pure black instead of pink. Next time Azula would just buy them herself.
It was midway through the operation when they heard voices coming from the stair. "Come on, Lee. This way. This is the best sight in the city."
"Wonderful, more paupers." said Azula with a sigh.
Up the stairs came a brown haired girl with unkept hair, walking with a boy. Azula wondered if she might be able to get some sport from the girl. There were certainly no witnesses, and she could like she might be fun to pin down. Probably a struggler.
Then Azula paused as she saw who she was talking to. Ty Lee blinked from where she was doing hand stands. "Wait, is that..."
"Azula." said Zuko as he saw her.
The girl paused. "Hmm, do you know each other? And isn't that a Fire Nation name?"
"...Our Father was Fire Nation." admitted Zuko suddenly. He said it as though it were some great crime.
"Really? So you're brother and sister?" asked the girl.
"Technically." said Azula, deciding to play along. If she revealed who she was, Zuko could blow the whistle on her. "What are you doing here, Zuzu?"
"Lee." said Zuko. "My name is Lee."
"Have it your way, Lee." said Azula. "What are you doing here?"
"I could ask you the same question." noted Zuko.
"Measuring the wind in this area of town. What about you?" asked Azula.
"Well, I was showing Lee around. I'm Jin." said the girl. "Nice to meet you. So why are you measuring the wind?"
Azula paused. "Alright, I confess. It is my intention to burn this entire miserable city to the ground. To this end, I am measuring the winds in the various areas of town in the hope of ensuring the optimal spread of fire."
Jin laughed. Zuko did not. His eyes narrrowed. "...Why would you want to destroy Ba Sing Se?"
"It's a joke obviously." said Azula. "Is it so hard to believe that I'm curious?"
"Do you want the answer to that?" asked Zuko.
Jin paused. "...So, who are your friends?"
"I am Mai." said Mai, glaring at Jin.
"I'm Ty Lee. I used to work at the circus." said Ty Lee.
"Wow, you must have worked alongside Lee then." said Azula.
"No, different circuses." said Zuko. "Our family broke up when we were young."
"Yes, Zuzu, why don't you tell us about your adventures in the circus?" said Azula. This was surprisingly entertaining.
"Well... why don't you..." began Zuko. "Shut up."
Jin looked at both of them. "Right, so um, I can tell you have... history. What brought you to Ba Sing Se?"
"Just a general all-purpose hatred." said Mai.
"Hatred of what?" asked Jin.
"Everything." said Mai. "Azula, I've got the wind readings for this hour here."
"Thank you Mai." said Azula. "Keep up the good work."
Jin looked between Azula and Zuko. "Well, this has been really... enlightening. I think we ought to go now, though, wouldn't you say, Lee?"
"Yes." said Zuko. "That's probably smart."
They turned and left.
"So what's with that nickname? Uh, Zuzu?" asked Jin.
"Don't ask." said Zuko.
"But-" began Jin.
"Just. Don't." said Zuko.
As their voices faded away, Ty Lee blinked. "When do you think Zuko worked in the circus?"
"Just focus on the job, Ty Lee." said Azula.
"But I am. I'll bet Zuko made a great fireeater." said Ty Lee.
They finished the work. Later that night, while trying to memorize the wind currents, Azula was arrested. She was promptly thrown in prison. Apparently, Zuko had reported her. And evidently, someone had listened.
"Why is it that no matter how much I learn I always end up getting thrown in prison?" asked Azula.
"Maybe it's bad karma." suggested Ty Lee.
Azula smiled. "It doesn't matter. We've gotten what we came from. And even if we fail, I'll just go back to day one. I'll win sooner or later. And there is nothing Zuzu, or the Avatar, can do to stop us."