At first all she could see was a dark haze, but soon enough light entered her vision and she could make out shapes- her brother was still standing before her, as he was as he released the attack of lightning to strike her body; she glared up at her brother, who remained speechless as she returned to her feet with some struggle, her body feeling as it was on fire while she could still move. He returned to form upon realising that she was still continuing their duel, Azula smirking confidently, knowing that if Zuko's smart little lightning trick couldn't beat her that she was practically invulnerable. She couldn't help but laugh at him as she drew out balls of fire, throwing a barrage of flames at him, holding off her powerful attacks; she formed a beam with one hand driving it toward his chest, forcing him to send out his own beam in response- she smirked at him as she put more power into her beam, eventually forcing his own beam back onto him. Failing to hold back her beam of fire, he was struck right in the chest and flung across the ground by the inertia of breaking his own attack at the same time; looking at her brother lying on the ground, she walked over to him with a confident smirk, charging a fist of flames as he approached- her brother looked at her, pleading for mercy.
"A-Azula..." he muttered, closing his eyes to brace for her fire-powered punch to the head, knocking him unconscious; looking upon her brother as the victor of the duel, she couldn't help but chuckle in light of her brother's failed attempt to defeat her.
"Despite all of that- even defeating father, you remained the weakling Zuzu..." she commented, almost with a tone of disappointment- she knew she would at least feel that her father had been avenged with her brother's defeat, but if he was as competent as he seemed, she felt that his practical use as a firebender and leader might have been wasted under her uncle's influence; turning to the man she dare call her blood-relative, she glared him down with intent.
"Uncle- your time is up- I have won." she simply told him, her uncle standing up tall beside Sokka, who looked on in shock from the turn of events.
"Y-you don't need to fight guys-" the Water Tribesman intervened, to which she cut him off before she drew her fists, baring her daggers of flames again.
"Sokka, you aren't completely incompetent are you?" she mocked him, frustrated that he would consider her uncle worthy of mercy- he didn't know him like she did, though if he did he might join his side instead.
"Niece- I have failed you." Iroh conceded, drawing his own fists of flames; she shook her head in disappointment.
"No Uncle- you have failed your nation." she glared him down, spinning around and turning her daggers into long whips of blue fire, throwing them at her uncle, who simply dispersed the flames, shaking his head with disappointment.
"Why did you have to defeat him- this could have been easier." he chided her, whose eyes opened in realisation that her 'fat tea-loving' uncle might actually intend to fight her to the death; he began to draw his hands a motion that mirrored her own only moments earlier- drawing lightning, and at a much faster pace than she had.
Before she could even react, her uncle stopped his movement suddenly, flinching forward in pain- the Princess glanced to his side, realising that Sokka had just chi blocked him, meaning he had no bending; the warrior glanced at him with a sense of near regret, "I'm sorry." he muttered, before Azula repeated the motion her uncle had just attempted, making him turn to her in shock, his eyes wide with fear upon realising what was happening.
"Now- now you will be with your son." she simply stated before drawing out the lightning toward her uncle at such a close range that the explosion it generated forced Azula and Sokka both off their feet.
Reeling from the explosion, she wiped her forehead of sweat, realising that she had finally defeated her brother and uncle, making her the undisputed Fire Lord- she almost laughed upon seeing her uncle's crumpled body by the wall of the barracks, turning to her companion who simply looked on in shock and fear; she stood up and walked toward him as to assist him up but the Water Tribesman scattered away in a crawl, as if he was running from her.
"W-what did you just do-" he stammered to her, glancing at her with such fear that she didn't even believe he could muster.
"I did what had to be done." she told him, her tone conciliatory, knowing all too well that he desired more than anything to avoid needless death.
He looked at her for a moment, and as his mouth opened, it made no sound, and soon enough he started to fade away, as if he was never there to begin with- Azula looked on in shock, realising what had just happened before her eyes wasn't possible- she turned to see her brother and uncle fade away as well, the city dissipating as well before her eyes; soon enough her entire field of view faded into a dark haze- even her own body, as she watched her hands go the same way as the rest. She didn't realise at the time, but everything she had just observed, the things she had done- it never happened, all some warping in her mind- a figment of her imagination. That thought made her shudder in fear- there was one conclusion she didn't want to make, but she uttered it nonetheless.
"Am I dead?"
Standing over his sisters unconscious body, Zuko couldn't help but open his eyes in shock, realising that he had nearly killed his sister with her own lightning attack, albeit one that may have killed him if he hadn't considered to redirect it; his uncle walked to his side in a similar sense of dismay.
"Nephew- you did what had to be done." he consoled the now victorious Fire Lord as he gazed upon his sisters body.
"I thought it might have killed her- because it didn't kill him." he considered, Iroh patting him on the shoulder.
"We should take her the infirmary- you can't just throw her in prison like that." he noted to his nephew who nodded back at him, before suddenly he was flung to the ground- he glanced behind his nephew to see Sokka standing in form having thrown his boomerang, which had struck Zuko square in the head; the retired general sighed as he looked to the Water Tribesman who seemed more than willing to fight him.
"Get away from her- you aren't taking her to any damn infirmary or prison." he glared him down, who looked to him with a conversely hopeful smile.
"You care for her, don't you?" he asked him, who rolled his eyes and stepped closer with his dagger in hand.
"Of course I do- and I'm not going to let you take her away." he grit his teeth, his anger fuming upon seeing the state Azula was in- her entire shoulder was burnt up and darkened from the lightning strike, and her arms and legs flayed over the ground, as if she was dead- her breathing chest was the only thing that stopped the Water Tribesman from attacking him where he stood.
He sighed and looked at him solemnly, "I want the best for my niece, truly- if I can trust you to keep her safe, then it is only best I leave her with you." he noted, before looking down at the dazed Zuko, who was barely returning to consciousness after the hit, "My nephew will not think the same- please go now, before it's too late."
Sokka leaned over to pick up her body, still warm to the touch as he held her up in his arms; he looked to Iroh and nodded with a conciliatory smile, "Thank you- she might have been wrong about you." before he begun to pace away across the sparring ground, knowing that he had to get as far away from the Imperial Guards as possible- he glanced back at him one last time, thankful that the man who Azula despised at least had a heart.
He looked down to her face, noting that she lay emotionless in his arms- it made him wrench in fear; he couldn't let her lose now, not when they had come so far- he didn't just believe she had the potential for being a great Fire Lord, and more than that he truly cared for her- she was the first friend he had made in a long time and now with them at the precipice of something greater, he couldn't give up now. He ran as fast as his legs could carry him, holding her unconscious body in his arms, glancing around the outside wall of the garrison barracks- it was only a small wooden barricade, similar to the walls of Huangwen- he ran up to the wall and placed her down on the ground softly before turning to the walls- their brittle aged wood would do little good against his club; the Water Tribesman heaved his club at the wall as hard as he could, smacking it multiple times as hard as he could before kicking through two of the timbers completely, throwing them to the ground, leaving a safe path of exit before him. He quickly returned to the Princess's side and checked her pulse to make sure she was still breathing, and to his relief she was most certainly still alive- to what it seemed her heart-rate had increased, and her breathing had become somewhat erratic, but he thought it must have been the pain of her injury catching up with her mind; picking the Princess up he slid through the wall and noted her practically half-naked form, with only pants and a band covering her torso- the acknowledgement of it made Sokka blush, but his mind returned to what was important, that being to get her somewhere safe.
Carrying her down the street that his hole had led into, he checked to note for anything that could cover Azula better, noting the lines of shirts, pants and blankets that lay on the balconies of houses- stopping momentarily he reached up and dragged down a blanket to cover her with- he didn't want to steal, but he knew that protecting her, especially in regards to her identity was far more important than that moral argument. Walking down the street, he acknowledged that he himself looked somewhat unusual with his armour- more like a soldier than a commoner in his current form- Sokka knew that he ought to get rid of it, but decided to not waste time to take it off; the protection his armour provided was more important than the time it would take him to rid himself of it. His mind was running like a predator after it's prey- he couldn't help but consider every variable as he turned and checked around corners for guards and onlookers. He refused to look at others as he ran by, going from alleyway to alleyway- by the time he thought himself far away enough from the barracks that no Imperial Guards ought to find them, he considered his options; he could try and escape the city by himself, but then again the Captain and all of her guards offered protection that he himself could not provide- for all he knew they had been arrested and dismissed from duty after her defeat by Zuko- there was also the option of trying to find Kori and Sneers, who he knew at the very least would try and help them in some way to find safety.
He glanced at Azula, who remained unconscious before looking out to the street from the alleyway he had decided to stop in; a few passersby walked through as he stood there, not noticing the two of them. The Water Tribesman took a deep breath before walking out of the alleyway, trying to recollect his surroundings and figure out where he would have to go to find Kori or Sneers. He knew they might be at her house, which he and the Princess had gone to spy on the morning earlier to try and talk to her, only to find out she was giving 'Zuko's girlfriend' a tour- that being Mai, who had nearly killed him with her thrown weapons- something that had scared Sokka to no end, such a reaction seeming foolish in hindsight with the situation he found himself in. He walked through the streets of Yu Dao, catching the eyes of many individuals, who were probably concerned why a soldier was carrying around a woman in a blanket, but no one dare question him, something that he accredited to their utter respect for the Fire Nation military as an institution, something which Azula herself had remarked when considering corruption in their armed forces; he made his way across the city toward where he remembered Kori's house to be- in a rather wealthy district of the city, he noted the higher number of guards immediately and sidestepped his way through some alleyways, finally reaching what he could tell to be her home, which was a small manor house that had another house annexed beside it. Heading around to the back of the property, after he clearly noticed Imperial Guards standing by the building, he considered whether it was a good idea to try and get her help if she wasn't actually there; he climbed over the fence of the garden and quickly checked for passesrby- to his luck there were fewer people around, probably due to what had just unravelled in the barracks- he was unsure if they would even be safe at Kori's house. Walking up to the door, he knocked on it hardly, trying to get the attention of who ever was inside; he heard footsteps after a few moments and sighed in relief- the door opened and he was greeted by the sight of someone he had never seen before- it was a middle aged woman in quite fancy green clothing- the Water Tribesman gulped as the woman looked to him with shock.
"Excuse me- who are you?" she asked him with slight concern, noting that he looked to be a Fire Nation soldier holding a woman draped in a blanket.
"I-I'm friends with Kori- I need to see her- is she home?" he told her, he knew it wasn't a lie, but that didn't make him feel any less shocked by the situation- he presumed the woman was her mother; she turned inside and called out.
"Kori! Someone's here for you!" she called out, and soon a few moments later, hearing footsteps down the stairs, Kori appeared into view, behind her mother.
"Sokka!" she exclaimed, "What's going on- is th- is that the Princess?" she exclaimed, covering her mouth in shock of the Princess's state.
"We've lost- Azula failed in her duel against her brother, and now we have no where to go- I hope that you can find it in your heart to help us." he looked to her with dismay, knowing that for the mean time the Princesses march to the throne had been suspended.
"She gave me something that I feel we've been missing for a while: hope- I will do everything I can to help you two- Sneers can help too." she affirmed him, looking to her mother, who was in shock upon realising the Crown Princess was at their back door unconscious, "I'm sorry I didn't explain it sooner- but I wanted to keep you out of all this- if father had just grown a spine maybe this wouldn't have happened." she explained, still voicing her frustration with her father, who she knew could have acted and prevented the Princesses defeat, and with it the chance to secure the future of their colony.
"I- uh- I'll get some things to help- just give me a moment." she affirmed both of them, knowing that she was obliged to help if her daughter had offered the same- she respected her daughters humility after all being born a noblewoman, despite her own heritage.
"Thank you Mrs. Morishita." he nodded thankfully, who smiled at him momentarily before turning back into the house to find what she would need to tend to Azula.
Kori turned to him and indicated him to enter the house, "Let's take her upstairs- we have a spare room she can lay in." she explained, leading him into their living room before taking the stairs to the first floor; she pointed to the room and looked solemnly at him, "Just put her on the bed in there, you can sit by her if you want." she explained, Sokka nodding with dismay.
"Uh yeah- I just want to help too- I feel like I should have done more to prevent this." he sighed before taking her into the room, dropping her on the bed softly, and using the stolen blanket to cover her; he sat by the bedside and looked at her, Kori closing the door as to give him a moment- the Water Tribe warrior broke his form of determination and sobbed with regret, feeling that all his attempts to try and make her better had just led them to this disastrous end.
"I'm sorry Azula- I failed you- I failed myself."
Rubbing the back of his head, Zuko grunted in pain, realising that he had just been knocked out; the Fire Lord glanced up at his uncle, who looked at him with worried eyes, making him look to him with interest.
"Urgh- what is it Uncle?" he questioned, his uncle clearing his throat before pointing out the situation.
"The Water Tribesman took Azula and ran- I couldn't stop them." he explained, his face contorting into one of pained frustration.
"What? You let them get away?!" he questioned him, who raised his hands defensively.
"I didn't want to fight that boy." he conceded, "We don't know anything about Azula, who she is now- it was wrong of me to judge her as the same girl we left in the palace years ago." he explained himself, the Fire Lord rubbing his nape from the aching pain it received.
"We have to find them- I can't let her just get away- she'll only cause more trouble." he chided his uncle, who looked at him with a sense of dread.
"Nephew- I don't think you understand- this boy, he was willing to try and fight me with no real chance of winning, just to save her- does that sound like loyalty or something else?" he questioned him, who looked to him with a sense of confusion.
"Someone in love with Azula? I mean she isn't the worst looking girl in the Fire Nation, but she's rotten to the core uncle, you know that." he argued, Iroh sighing at him.
"Sometimes nephew, you need to put faith in people you don't know to do the things you can't." he explained, Zuko understanding his proverbial statement well enough.
"I- I don't know if she'll ever be good- she isn't like me uncle." he lamented, his uncle lending out a hand to help him to his feet.
"You're two sides of the same coin- just because you father made her into a weapon of war, doesn't mean that is all she will ever be." he explained as he pulled his nephew back to his feet; he glanced out toward the front of the barracks, "Now- what do we say about Azula?" he questioned him, who scratched his beard.
"Oh yes- her men won't be happy finding out that you defeated her- let alone left her grievously injured." he considered, "You could say her wounds are being tended to- at the very least it might calm them before we are able to find her." he sighed, hoping his niece would try and do the right thing- that Sokka would help her find a better path.
"We? Aren't you the one that let her go?" he questioned his uncle, who raised a finger in his defense.
"Nephew- I did what I thought was right- she shouldn't be our prisoner, she should have the freedom to choose her own path." he explained, to which the Fire Lord raised a hand in objection.
"What if that path involves overthrowing me, again?" he furthered, Iroh sighing in acknowledgement.
"Then we will do what we must." he affirmed his nephew, showing him the support he desired from his uncle- he couldn't have him break ranks at such a crucial time.
"It's time to be Fire Lord." he told his Uncle as he begun to pace his way toward the front of the barracks, making his way through the walkway that led to the street front, where his Imperial Guards stood warding off Azula's guards from approaching; as he stood at the steps, one of her guards pointed him out, and the others chanted in frustration that they were unable to protect their Princess, whose fate was unaware to them- he cleared his throat before he stood before the guards.
"I have defeated my sister, and therefore affirmed my claim of the title of Fire Lord- it would be in your best interest to make your oaths at this moment." he explained himself, the guards looking to him with confusion.
One of them stood forward and removed his helmet, "What did you do to her?" he questioned the Fire Lord, who looked at him with shock, surprised that one of her men would be so bold to speak to him- despite believing he was a traitor, they knew he was in a position of power, so the disrespect was even more shocking.
"She was injured in our duel and is being tended to by physicians." he lied, the guard staring him down- stepping forward once more, closer to the Imperial Guards, who stood prepared to fight.
"Then what?" he questioned so openly that even his uncle seemed surprised of the guards loyalty- perhaps he was speaking in all their interests as to make sure that their oaths to her would be followed.
"Then she will be dealt with like any traitor- with a trial of justice." he simply put, the guard dropping his helmet and stepping into a firebending form that he himself didn't even recognise.
"I swore upon my dying breath to protect her highness- that oath outweighs the outcome of any duel." he told the Fire Lord before raising a fist to the applaud of her other guards, "For the Princess!" he shouted, before bending a wave of fire that knocked the Imperial Guards right off their feet, and within a few moments the entire street was full of brawling guards who could only be distinguished by the ornateness of each other's armour.
He looked on in shock, turning to his uncle as the battle swarmed in front of them, "Sh-should we do something?" he asked his Uncle, who looked on with concern.
"If words will not work, then fists will have to do." he proverbially explained, drawing himself to a firebending form as a number of Azula's guards approached them; Zuko drew his fists and still in the outfit of an Agni Kai duel prepared himself for battle.
The Fire Lord raced forward and sent out a beam of flames which struck his opponents down- scrambling back to their feet they sent out retaliatory blasts, which the two royals dispersed with their firebending; returning to the offensive, the two of them sent out synchronous blasts of fire and struck two of their opponents down, knowing full well that their armour would prevent them from being defeated easily by another firebender. One of the guards did a side-sweep kick which Zuko jumped over before striking a kick at him- another guard threw a whip of flames at his uncle, who used his arms to deflect the flames before bending his own ball of fire at the guards; all of them were forced to jump and dodge his powerful attack as the Fire Lord raced forward and punched one in the head to strike him down- Iroh bellowed out a breath of fire against two of the guards who were flung to the ground by the attack- the last remaining guard before them that was still standing bent out a ring of fire to bend out at the two royals who were able to dodge the attack before simultaneously striking him with fire blasts to the torso, flinging him over and down the staircase that lead down to the road.
Stepping forward into the thick of the battle, Zuko scanned for the leader of the guards, who he knew had incited them to fight him- there were a few guards still fighting the Imperial Guards and he noted the helmet-less leader one sparring two of them with great proficiency; before he could reach the leader, he already knocked out both of the Imperial Guards he was fighting with a cut of flames that burnt through their armour and forced them to fall back to the ground.
The Captain turned to face the false Fire Lord and pointed at him with anger, "Traitor." he muttered before taking form with blades of fire.
Zuko stepped forward and bent a wall of fire toward his opponent, who cut through the flames with a kick and raced toward him with violent intent- his glare was intimidating even for him; the Fire Lord knew that the Captain was a true believer of his sister, someone who didn't just respect her, but was willing to fall in her name.
Sending his blades of fire out as directional waves of fire, the flames cut at his skin as soon as they made contact, the Fire Lord bending a ball of fire which he directed to hit straight in his opponents chest; the Captain was flung back back across the road, rolling as he collided with the ground- he walked forward toward his opponent and glared him down with fists of fire drawn- he needed to give a message, and the leader of the guards would do for an example.
"In the name of our nation- I will not fall to your hands, pretender." the Captain chided him, glaring up at him as he lay on the ground.
Zuko silently looked upon him before preparing a form to send a fire ball at his head- suddenly however he was cut off by the sound of whirring, which immediately signalled the Fire Lord to take cover, rolling to a prone position as he dodged what seemed to be a rain of arrows falling onto the street, striking every Imperial Guard's helmet, not missing a single one, knocking out each and every one of them.
Turning back to face the Captain, his face turned to one of fury, "You will pay f-" he begun, being cut off by an arrow striking him in the shoulder and flinging him to the ground; the Fire Lord cried out in pain, realising that an arrow had just torn right through him.
Reeling in pain, the Fire Lord winced and looked over to his opponent, who returned to his feet and chuckled, "As I was saying..." before he paced off in a hurry, knowing that he ought to get up before the angry teen decided to hunt him down; turning to his Uncle and the Imperial Guards, who were reeling from the attack, Zuko shouted out in rage.
"Get the fucking bastards!" he screamed, the conscious Imperial Guards getting themselves up and chasing down the guards who had escaped from their grasps; his uncle raced over to him, knowing that the arrow wound he had just received was quite painful.
"Nephew- calm down- we need to get you to the infirmary." he told him, grabbing him by the shoulder and helping him to his feet.
"No we need to defeat Azula and her goons- and best before the entire city falls into chaos." he grumbled to his uncle, who looked at him with slight disappointment; the Fire Lord glanced around and realised that the arrows that had just attacked them ought to have come from somewhere, but there was no one to be found, "Who were those archers?" he questioned, Iroh sighing in frustration.
"The Yuyan Archers, my guess- Azula must have them in her pocket." the retired general explained, his nephew looking with interest.
"Who is their commanding officer?" he asked him, his uncle looking on with confusion.
"Why do you ask?" he wondered, the Fire Lord smirking with a plan in mind.
"I have a letter I need to send."
Sitting by Azula's side, Sokka couldn't help but feel sickened by the sight of her- the Princess was injured and unconscious, and he couldn't tell how badly the injury had effected her other than to consider that it had knocked her out in an instant; beside him stood Kori who was administering first aid to her wound, covering it with a herbal oil before covering it with bandages- the injury itself was a large burn that increased in intensity closer to the shoulder- from what he could tell, the injury would be extremely painful, and considered that she mightn't wake for hours at least.
Kori turned to him with a sympathetic face, "I'm sorry Sokka, that's all I can do- all think we can do is wait for her to wake up and keep her safe." she admitted, the Water Tribesman sighing.
"I wish it didn't turn out the way it did- I was so hopeful, but he was right." he lamented to her, who looked to him with confusion.
"Who- and about what?" she glanced at him with a raised brow, the Water Tribesman sighing.
"Her Uncle- he knew this was going to happen, but it was already too late- it's only because of him that we could get away in the end." he explained, making her nod in interest.
"He sounds like a good guy." she noted, the Water Tribesman chuckling in agreement.
"Ah yeah- well she didn't agree with that sentiment," he indicated to Azula, "but she's not always right... which is why we're here." he sighed with regret.
"What else could have you done? It's not like she wasn't going to try and fight her brother- just like how I was always going to try and help Yu Dao." she asked him rhetorically.
He glanced at the Princess for a moment, before turning back to face Kori, "I guess you're right- I just wish it hadn't led this way- I could have tried to get home after the forest, but I wanted to help her more than I wanted to be free." he explained to her.
"Free? You can't be free in this world- you can try, but there's always things holding you back- I think you made the right choice." she noted to him, who smiled at her in appreciation.
"Thanks- I just- I wish there was more I could do- I feel so useless." he lamented, to which she pat his shoulder, indicating out of the room.
"Maybe you should go rest for a bit- you're probably pretty tired after carrying her around the city." she offered him, who sighed before nodding.
"I guess you're right about that one- uh- so can I just go downstairs?" he asked, making her raise a brow.
"Well I'm unsure when my father will return, or more importantly if the Imperial Guards will search my house," she considered, before shrugging her shoulders, "but I'm sure we can hide you both somewhere- don't worry about it." she assured him, making him smile and nod at her.
"Thanks Kori- for everything, really." he affirmed her before standing up and clasping Azula's limp hand one more time- the warmth of her flesh was the only thing that made him certain she was truly alive lying before him.
Walking out of the room, Sokka turned to walk down to the ground floor of the house, where Kori's mother was standing preparing some food for Azula- she knew the basics of treating injuries, after all her daughter was rather rough in her childhood being a skilled earthbender; she smiled at him and indicated for him to sit on the table.
"I hear that you and the Princess are close." she told him, trying to make small-talk in the rather solemn situation.
"Uh- yeah, we've known each other for a few weeks now- she's the first friend I've made outside of my tribe, and let me tell you, she's a little unusual." he explained, Mrs. Morishita chuckling at his rather jocular way of wording his response.
"As should be expected- she's royalty, not just any girl." she noted, the Water Tribesman raising a brow at her indications of their relationship.
"Yes- and it makes everything a little more complicated, as you can see before your eyes." he chuckled, although looked on with a slight of fear upon reconsidering the horrific turn of events.
"I just hope that Yu Dao doesn't get caught in the crossfire of all this- I presume we already are, but one can hope..." she told him with a sense of optimism, making him chuckle at considering the worsening situation.
"Well you're not in luck today- you'll be lucky if Zuko doesn't turn this city upside down trying to find her." he considered, Mrs. Morishita looking to him with a sense of dread.
"There's Imperial Guards just outside guarding the Fire Lord's lady-friend." she explained to him, who raised a brow in consideration- he thought perhaps Mai might lend a hand to help Azula escape the city, seeing that after all they were good friends; his train of thought was broken when the front door of the house opened, making him flinch and draw out his boomerang in reflex, only to see Sneers standing before him with a face of shock.
"Sokka! Why are you here? Aren't you meant to be with the Princess?" he questioned him, who hushed him before stepping closer.
"Be quiet- the guards might hear you!" he gritted his teeth, dropping his tone to indicate him to do the same, "I'm here with A- the Princess, she duelled her brother and lost, and now I'm hiding her from him while she recovers her strength." he explained, Sneers raising a brow at him with confusion.
"Why would you come here of all places- there's firebender goons right over there." he indicated out the door, the Water Tribe warrior nodding with a sigh.
"This was our only option with the walls covered with guards and the gates under tight security- how could I sneak out the woman who just confidently entered the city for everyone to see?" he rhetorically asked him, the Freedom Fighter nodding in concession.
"That makes sense, and it explains all the guards running around- I might be able to help you, although I'm unsure how we could get past the guards of all things." he noted, Sokka smirking at him before pointing upstairs.
"We have your girlfriend for that- a skilled earthbender is a lot of help when you're trying to get past a six feet thick wall of stone."
Sneers nodded in agreement, "Yeah- Kori is pretty good at what she does- I'm sure we could get you out soon- the guards are an issue though." he noted, the Water Tribesman shrugging his shoulders.
"I'm more than willing to smack a few firebender heads for old times sake." he grinned at him, who returned a smirk.
"Ah well- I'm sure I could get back into some of that." he considered before glancing up the stairs, "I need to go talk to Kori- uh- to sort all of this out." he noted, Sokka and Mrs. Morishita both nodding at him before he made his way up the staircase out of sight.
"That boy is a good one- I'm glad my daughter chose to be with him- love is a great thing, isn't it?" Mrs. Morishita reminisced, making him nod in thought of the moment he and Azula had shared in her tent only a few hours prior.
"Yeah- yeah it is." he smiled before stepping up out of his seat; noting that he was going to go back upstairs she handed him the bowl of herbal soup she had prepared, he grasped it with a nod.
"Thank you- for everything, really." he smiled at her before turning to take the bowl upstairs, slowly stepping up each wooden step as not to spill the liquid.
Walking up to the bedroom, he placed the bowl of soup by Azula's bedside, looking back to her with concern- she seemed to be breathing normally now, as if she was asleep rather than knocked out by a blast of lightning; he sat down on the bed and continued to look at her, considering what he ought to do- his body was telling him he probably should sleep- the sun had fallen and the sky was near black- shuffling himself to the side of the bed that was closer to the wall, he pulled himself to lie beside her. He thought back to the last time they had slept in the same bed together, under quite different conditions- one's where he wasn't protecting her against her own family; the situation for the Princess had turned, from the heir of the reigning Fire Lord to an outcast who had lost her only chance to reclaim her birthright- he didn't know what she would do when she woke from her slumber, but he knew that she wouldn't be happy with her loss, though knowing her he thought she would get angry that he had knocked out Zuko rather than her, as to distract herself from the situation she now found herself in- she was so confident that she would win, he was unsure what she would do now she had actually lost her duel. He turned to his side and sighed, grasping his hand around her own, trying to feel if she was still warm, which asserted to her that she wasn't dying or anything of the sorts; he kept holding her delicate hand, unsure if he wanted to let go- he swore at that moment that he would protect her, not just from her enemies but from her own self-doubts and fears- it wasn't right in his eyes that she had lived her life with no one else to help her, to counsel her issues and assure her when she made mistakes. He didn't think that she was the greatest person in the world, but he knew that she had the potential for greater things, and he knew that with enough time and care, those things could be realised.
Suddenly the ground and bed shook underneath him, Sokka raising his head in confusion, "What was that?" he questioned before feeling another shake, although less prominent; he sat himself up on the bed, and looked toward the window that was beside the bed, not making out much but a red haze in the distance, "Fire? What in the name of the spirits is going on?" he questioned, this time louder.
Climbing off the bed he looked out the window, and to his shock he saw a ball of flames fly across the city, crashing nearby, causing an even larger shake; the door opened behind him, turning to look at Kori, who stared back at him with fear, "We're under attack- why would someone attack the city?" she questioned him.
"What do you mean?" he questioned.
The girl stepping closer with frustration, "Fire Lord Zuko wouldn't attack his own people- then who would?" she questioned, the reality dawning on him, sending a chill down his spine.
Turning to look at Azula, he muttered with fear, "We made the wrong allies." beside himself he saw her move for the first time with her own volition, her arms twitching from the shaking of the house; he turned to grasp her hand and leaned over to her face, "A-Azula? Are you awake?" he asked her, the Princesses face twitching and clenching slightly, her eyes remaining shut.
Kori grabbed the herbal soup on the table and handed it to him, "Give it to her- she'll need it."
He nodded, turning back to Azula with the soup, "Azula- drink this- it'll help with the pain." he asked of her, the Princesses eyes opening to look at him.
"D-did I do it?" she asked him, her tone far less confident than usual, although he wasn't surprised.
"Zuko won." he bluntly told her, her eyes turning away from him for a moment.
"So close- but so far..." she mumbled, before glancing back to look him in the eyes, "I'm not worthy... you shouldn't be here." she told him with a solemn voice- for the first time in knowing her, he actually could say that she seemed less confident than him, and he knew that he had screwed up beyond belief; he shook his head at her, trying to dismiss her words that were too hard for him to hear.
"Stop talking nonsense- please, just drink the soup." he requested again, the Princess jutting her head down to sip from the cup as he held it.
As she finished drinking the soup, she glanced back at him, "Whats with the damn shaking?" she questioned, the Water Tribesman sighing in frustration, glaring out the window to note the continuing red glare in the sky.
"I think your Admiral is trying to destroy the damn city." he muttered, Azula making out a light chuckle.
"I wouldn't put it past him- he's crazy, you know." she commented, before turning to Kori with a sense of irony, "Uh- I owe you an apology- my people may be intent on destroying your city just to get to my brother."
She looked back with a sigh, "Well it can't get much worse now, can it?" Sokka turning to her with a sense of dread.
"Don't say that- I feel we're cursed enough already."
Standing on the balcony of his flagship, Admiral Zhao looked out with a smirk upon his fleets attack- despite the carnage of fire enveloping before him, he could help but smile at the thought that he was finally going to defeat his rival and take him to an early grave; his indomitable naval force was larger than the enemy force that lay before him in port, but he knew that Zuko's forces had the advantage of logistical support from the city- they could continue to barrage him in return for as long as they held Yu Dao. He chuckled at the thought that he would now have the opportunity to prove himself before the Princess, earning himself the respect of her men and those who would question his competency- he was not a man who simply wanted to serve as his ruler's attack-dog, but as a war-hero of his nation, someone that would earn bows of respect every place he would go. He turned to his understudy Captain Kazu who looked on in awe of the massive attack that was underway, who cleared his throat before questioning him.
"Admiral, how do you propose we continue with our line of attack? The fleet is bombarding the pretenders ships in port as well as striking the city, for good measure of course." he asked of him, Zhao nodding confidently.
"I believe that there is only one course of action- making landfall to find and kill the pretender himself, as to ascertain the rule of her majesty." he explained before turning to him with interest, "So Captain- how long until we can make landfall?" he asked him, Kazu noting the advancing of the fleet into the bay.
"We must move around the pretenders fleet if we are to make a landing- that will require some time- as soon as his ships are dealt with, the city will fall to us." he explained.
"That is good news, now- have we any word from the Princesses loyalists?" he asked his subordinate, who nodded with a sense of relief.
"Her army from Ba Sing Se is only a day or two from reaching Pohuai- after that they will be more than capable of assisting in our consolidation plans." he read from his most recent logistical notification, the Admiral nodding with a smirk.
"Well then Captain- all we need is to drive our force into this city and within a few days we will have undisputed rule over the colonies." he affirmed his plans, turning to face the city once more, "This will be my greatest victory- I will make those who doubt my loyalty and resolve think twice after I destroy the pretender and his forces." he smirked, Kazu bowing respectfully before returning to the interior of the bridge.
Turning to gaze upon his rival's fleet, he smirked as he grasped the railing- he was on the cusp of a glorious victory- the Water Tribes were one thing, killing a Fire Lord was something completely different. Thinking back to what he had told him when he burnt his face and dishonoured him, Zhao couldn't help but think of a more suitable response to the situation he was in.
"I am your reckoning."