Chapter 8-
Cold. All she felt was cold. The ice that had encased her body was melted but not gone.
It surrounded her in a different form. Water.
Azula hates, no, despises water.
The fire in Azula slowly dies down as her body shakes from exhaustion, she has been chained to the ground for about an hour. Her brother and the peasant have left and she sits in the quiet waiting to be taken away. Guards finally approach her, they are careful and afraid of the insane princess. They hold their spears out fearful that she might fight back. But she doesn't.
She just allows them to take her as she feels large heavy hands on her arm getting ready to hoist her up. The chains are undone and her wrist left bruised and bloody from their tightness. She is brought up by a pair of guards and her hands are pressed against her back and cuffed once again. She wants to cry out in pain but she knows she has embarrassed herself enough for the day.
Azula is being transported to what she thought was the royal prison but as she saw the guards take a turn that couldn't have lead to the prison panic starts to take hold of her. Where were they taking her? What were they going to do? She didn't want to die. She was a failure sure. A disgrace to the Fire Nation and it's people but she didn't want to die. She wasn't ready. She was only fourteen. She still had so much she hasn't done yet.
The panic in Azula grew until she was brought to a building instead of an execution site. A slight feeling of relief filled Azula as she realized she wasn't being executed still she was going to a strange place though. The guards stopped for a moment to speak with someone. Azula tried to make out what they were saying but her head was in a hazy a fog so thick she couldn't hear human words.
She was brought inside the building and lead down a long hallway. The walls were painted white but also grey with smoke. Azula's worry started to dissipate when she noticed that this place didn't seem to unpleasant. That feeling was quickly changed when she heard a blood curtailing scream from the end of the hall.
She wanted to know what it was. Who it was. And why it was happening. But it would have to wait.
In a moments notice she was taken from the sight of the door and turned around the corner. The guards and her came to a stop when the door in front of them opened quickly and a man no older than 20 jumped out. He was wearing all white his arms wrapped around himself in what looked like a blanket. No that wasn't a blanket. Was that a, straightjacket?!
Azula ways taken around this man as she struggled to look back at him. He was pinned on the ground to guards in white armor tackled him to the ground. They passed him firmly into the floor when a lady came up to him and kneeled down. She was holding a long and daring syringe. The vile containing a green liquid.
The man screamed. A worried ear tearing scream as the needle was plunged into his arm. "NOT THE NEEDLE ! PLEASE!" The man yelled in utter fear. Once the liquid was gone the man had fallen limp and silent. The guards hoisted him up and threw him back into the room slamming and bolting the door.
Where in the world was Azula and what was going on? Azula's breathing got heavy as she turned back around. She saw a similar door to the mans with her name and the patient number #369 written on the side. Azula started to have a panic attack. She swung her legs and head around while the guards tried to shove her into the room. One of them yelled something as Azula started thrashing about. Next thing she knows the same looking syringe is stuck in her arm. When it comes out she starts to feel dizzy. Her legs grow numb and her head starts to fall. She tries to scream but can't move her mouth. The next thing she knows there is darkness. Then nothing.
Azula wakes up with her head throbbing. She looks around to see she is stuck in a room of all white. Padded walls and a metal sealed door. She feels herself lying down so she tries to get up. Azula swings her legs to the side on the bed and attempts to stand. Next thing she knows her legs give out when she goes to catch herself her arms don't move. She falls with a thud right on her face with a slight whimper Azula rolls over on her back.
She tries to move her arms again to no avail. Looking down at her arms she notices a blanket, no straight jacket tied around her. It's tight, really tight. Azula feels as if she can not breathe. Her steady breaths turn into heaves. As she feels a dampness on her face. Azula parts her lips and taste the metallic taste of iron in her mouth. Azula looks down at the white floor that she had landed on and saw a small pool of blood.
Blood!? Was that her blood. W-what? And where was her armor? Why was she in a straitjacket? Oh Agni what was happening?
Azula's head was slightly clearer though the haze was replaced with pain. The pain was intensifying but she was able to make out words. "She's awake."
"I was about to brief her."
"Yes Doctor, of course doctor."
"Right this way sir."
Azula managed to push herself from the middle of the room to a corner where she could rest her head and back. She leaned back against the wall and look up at the ceiling. She was ready for someone to come in a attack her. Someone big and mean to try to break her. But when the door creaked open it wasn't a soldier or guard who walked in it was an older man with a pair of circular glasses and a greying beard.
He had a white coat on and a balding head. He walked in with an inquisitive look on his face as he turned to the woman next to him and whispered something Azula could not hear. Azula wanting to keep her pride intact pushed her back against the wall and stood herself up. Barely and only with the support of the wall but at least she wasn't sitting on the ground like some peasant brat. The 'doctor' as she guessed smiled and approached her.
"Interesting," He commented wiping his glasses, "you must be quite the strong one princess Azula most wouldn't be able to roll over much less stand after their dose of medication, then again you are the great protege of our nation so I shouldn't expect any less."
Azula wept quiet she knew how these things went silence is always the key.
"Fascinating, so quiet yet your eyes rage with 't worry I will answer any and all question you have about this place."
Azula rose an eyebrow. This was interesting to say the least. But it would take more to break her.
"My name is Dr. Sung." He went on. "You are currently at the Fire Nation's finest mental hospital. We call it the Hospital for the Mentally Questioned."
"We are going to help you princess. We do hope you will cooperate, but if you don't we have plans for that as well." A smirk dance across his face.
"Very well. Shall we begin. This is your nurse Ms. Song she will be watching over you during you stay here.I expect you will treat her kindly, yes ?"
Azula said nothing.
"I will take that as a yes. You will be fed daily and you are required to eat what you are given. If not well… we will see to it that you get feed. Your stay here should be simple. You will be given a year. After a year if we have deemed you sane enough to rejoin society we will notify your brother, the current Fire Lord. You are not like our other guest Princess. They are all her because they need help. While you will be getting that help you are also a war criminal and we will see to it that you are punished as questions?
Silence.
"Very well be stubborn if you must. But just know that we will help you. Our way."
The doctor turned to leave.
"Enjoy today princess. Tomorrow you 'help' will begin."
The doctor and nurse left leaving Azula by herself. Azula let out a deep breath before crippling to the floor. Azula was scared. She had to admit. She was prepared for anything but she couldn't shake this feeling of fear. Azula barrier her head into her arms and wept. She cried for hours when she heard someone's voice. A sweet angelic tone.
"Oh my darling, look at you , poor thing."
'No, no, no, it can't be.'
"My sweet Azula stay strong my dear."
'No.'
"I will be with you through it all."
'No. Shut Up. This isn't real.
"I love you Azula and I always will."
Mother.
Azula doesn't know when she had fallen to sleep but when she woke up she found herself in the same position as the day before, crouch up against the wall the once powerful princess Azula woke up. Her mother was gone as was the blood on the floor. Azula started to calm down and take hold of the situation. She was at some sort of asylum. She has heard about these at school. Crazy people, insane people, psychos were sent here, not princesses though.
Azula had to admit she has been off. Slipping as Zuzu said. But she wasn't crazy. She had seen her mother which was quite odd. But that doesn't mean she belongs in the nuthouse. This couldn't be happening.
Azula thoughts were broken when the door to her cell opened and in came the nurse. Azula who had gotten more control over her limbs with the straitjacket on was able to stand herself up quite quickly and look somewhat dignified. The nurse wheeled in some sort of chair with leather straps on the wrists and ankles.
Azula raised an eyebrow and spoke, "What os the meaning of this!" Her voice was hoarse and rasp especially for trying to sound intimidating "I will not go with you, you second rate, half working, wit-" Azula's head started to get fuzzy again as she noticed the nurse had stuck her with another syringe, a small one this time about half the size. Azula's legs gave out as she fell into the nurse's arms.
The woman turn Azula around and placed her onto the wheelchair carefully. The letter straps were tied tightly around her wrist and ankles causing pain from where the chains had been. The nurse didn't say a word and wheeled Azula out of her room and down the hall. Azula wanted to fight, bend, scream, something but all she could feel were bees in her stomach and a swish swash in her head.
Azula was brought to a room at the end of the hall it was by itself and their were bigger locks on this one. The guard standing outside looked at the nurse then Azula. He proceeded to unbolts the heavy locks and push open the door. Azula was wheeled into the room when she saw the doctor.
The room was terrible bright the light almost burning her eyes, the doctor sat in a leather chair , next to him were two incredible disturbing sights. The first was a small tub of what looked like ice cold water. The next was a bed like contraption with leather straps and a device at the area. It was a metal looking bowl with some sort of tubes sticking out of it. Azula was wheeled up to the doctor who looked her straight in the eyes with a smile.
"Princess Azula our most famous resident, I have set this all up for you, let me explain." The doctor explained in detail " The human brain is quite mysterious, your brother tasked me with finding out what made you so coo coo and erratic it. I believe the best way to do this is to experience your fears upfront."
Azula's fers grew as he went on with his explanation.
"Finding what those fears were was fairly simple once you fell to sleep you started rambling about cold water, groaning about lighting, and your father, oh and something about being a failure but I didn't quite know how to factor those last two in, but I so kindly built this for you."The doctor gestured toward the device "My hope is that in facing your supposed fears you will regain your sanity and be able to leave this place. From my calculation if we keep this same routine up for about a year you should be good as new."
"Let's begin shall we? "
Azula was unstrapped from the chair and brought to the bed device. Ms. Song the nurse lifted her up onto the machine and strapped her nice and tight. The doctor then proceeded to put the pull like device around her head. It was fastened under her chin and tighten to the point of almost choking her. Azula gasped for breath but was barely able to suck in enough air.
"Don't worry princess, you will forget all about the tightness in a few seconds."
The doctor stood up and moved to his desk while there he reach up and hit some sort of button or maybe a dial nothing was clear to Azula.
Next thing she know a surge of electricity is shot through her, she lets out a bloodcurdling scream as her body convulses with the power. She has shot lighting before, killed with it even, but never has she ever been on the receiving end. Her body stopped convulsing when he took his hand off the triggering device. This gave her a second to breath before he hit it again.
This time was even worse as her body convulsed with the energy, she saw her father. Withering in pain she closed her eyes and saw former fire lord Ozai. She saw all the brutal training and sparring sessions that she had with him. The specific one she saw was when she was seven. She had been practicing lighting bending and messed up. Her father had gotten so angry with her that he shot her with a small bolt of lighting. Nothing fatal but still incredibly painful. She started crying and her father had kicked her and told her crying was for the weak and if she did it again he would make the shot fatal. She never cried in the presences of her father ever again. She saw her greatest fear before her eyes. Disappointing him.
She saw a made up scene where she had just returned from the war front and was greeted with a bolt of lighting in her chest. This time it was fatal. She didn't know what she had done to upset him just that this would be the last thing she did. The electricity stopped and she had snapped out of these crazy nightmares.
Next thing she knows she is being lifted off the bed and brought to her knees next to the water, the doctor walked up to her and grabbed her by the hair. Once he had a good grip on her he dunked her head into the water holding it under for multiple second before she was pulled back up. She took heavy, deep breathes. Not allowing her the relief she needed. She was dunked again and again each time being held under longer and brought up for shorter time. Every-time she went under the scenes of her last battle danced in her head.
Water filled her nose and mouth. She was seconds away from drowning when she was brought up and held out of the water. She heaved in and out quickly slurping up waves of air. Without a moment's hesitation she was thrown into the wheelchair.
The doctor kneeled in front of her and took off his glasses. He reached into his coat and pulled out a small cloth. While intensively wiping his glasses he spoke,"That's enough for today don't you think."
Azula was half conscious while she was being wheeled down the hallway. The nurse got to her room and quickly opened the door pushing Azula inside. She threw Azula onto the bed and fastened her to it with straps. The nurse leaves Azula soaking wet in the pitch dark of night. Azula thinks over what had happened to her that day and wondered why Zuko put her here. She wondered if he knew or cared. Probably not. She guessed. Whatever she thought. Nothing to do except cry. So she did. Every night until she had gotten word of her 'sanity'.
While Azula wasn't being tortured with machines and water she was being tortured by the visions of her mother. Lying to her about caring for her and loving her. Things Azula knew well to be lies. She was a monster, monsters don't deserve love and don't need it. She would be fine she reasoned. Someone will come for her. She was the mighty princess conquer of Ba Sing Se. Slayer of the avatar and savior on the Day of Black Sun. Someone would come. She kept waiting. But no one ever did.
