Episode 28: The Showdown That Was Always Meant To Be
A/N: I tried. Please don't hate me!
Zuko hated ceremonies. The only procession he'd been looking forward to had been his graduation from college and here he was, missing it, to go to a stupid groundbreaking ceremony directly over the rubble of the building that had been his second home for the past four years. The suit Azula had fitted him into was a solid black with gold buttons. Next to him in the back seat of the limo she wore a matching black dress with golden patterns woven across the neckline and hem.
She was on her phone, probably coordinating with Ty Lee and Mae. They hadn't come back from their shopping trip until late last night and Azula had been in a particularly good mood. It had been unsettling to see her grinning, almost skipping, through the halls as they'd readied themselves over the course of the day.
The drive was depressing to say the least. Silence between the siblings, Zuko tried to amuse himself by staring out the window. Except the only view was a defeated city. It was worse in the evening. The larger buildings seemed even more dilapidated and the lack of light made everything look sinister in an (out-to-get-you) kind of way. He could see small fires burning at the ends of odd alleys just like they'd used to burn in the villages, only now there wasn't a Painted Lady coming to save them.
"Don't be so broody, it's not a good look for you."
Zuko glared at his sister. "Sorry, I'm still working on my aloof chin and superior eyes."
"It's not a joke, brother," she sighed, "people aren't going to respect you if you don't show them their place."
Near pouting, Zuko looked away and Azula sighed again.
"Zuko." She placed a hand on his arm. Her fingernails were long and gold to match her dress. They shone on and off in the light that passed through the window.
"It's time you remember who you are. You are Zuko, son of Ozai, heir to the Phoenix dynasty. You were born for this."
It was encouraging, until she said, "forget that little peasant girl. She was only distracting you."
Zuko looked at her. "What did you say?"
The car stopped.
"Ah, we're here," Azula said, and she turned to exit the car.
Zuko recognized the building as the old inn Ms. Wu used to run. It had a wide open entrance built in the mission style of rounded entryways. The second floor of rooms overlooked a courtyard with a fountain that now also held a small stage and a podium. Beautiful flower arrangements adorned the intricate railings, vines cascading down upon the crowd making a natural veil between the ceremony and the empty rooms that were soon to be demolished. In a depressing moment, Zuko thought of the fact that he could empathize with the inn. Decorated on the outside, on the inside just waiting for the few remains that were left to be crushed.
Snap out of it, Zuko. It's not that bad. Think of all the things you have to be grateful for. You have a diploma, your family back, your company name. Katara and her family are safe.
About a dozen people were already present, men in suits milling about the open space discussing the magnificent progress of the industry.
There were a couple of representatives from the mainland as well as a couple CEO's from neighboring companies. Some were allies, and some his father had invited to gloat his success over. Walking forward, Zuko also noticed a singular member dressed in a peculiar head covering. So the Sun Warrior manager was already here.
As the two heirs parted the crowd, Zuko noticed the small patch of dirt that had been unearthed for the ceremony. The giant stone tiles that had floored this courtyard since it had been built over a hundred years ago had been broken into pieces so that they could push a shovel into its foundation at 'an aesthetic setting'.
His father had always been one for the dramatic. Katara had tried to call him Mcdramaking? She'd obviously never met Lord Ozai, the Phoenix king. Zuko took a moment to wonder if his grandfather had been prone to theatrics as well. Based on what Zuko knew about the avatar initiative, it seemed Azulon had preferred to operate under a more cloak and dagger administration.
Thinking back on the mystery scroll he remembered how much of a let down it had been. Simply the original testament of Sozin, the creator of the industry and Zuko's great great grandfather, demanding that the sons of the Phoenix have an education. The box had been even worse containing page upon page of receipts from the college granting honorary degrees to Sozin, his two sons, and their sons and so on.
Apparently Sozin himself had been denied an education and was looking to embarrass the university for rejecting him.
Zuko took a deep breath in as he followed Azula up the steps to the stage. Sozin had valued education, it was why he'd been so upset to have it withheld from him. It was why he required all Phoenix CEOs to have a degree, even an unearned one. He even wrote it in the bylaws, that's what the box said.
Congratulations, Zuko, on earning what everyone else was simply given.
Story of his life.
Was it irony? That he had been banished for the very baseline on which this company had been built? Irony didn't feel very good.
There were four seats across the stage, one was already occupied by Meng who had arrived two hours before to greet the mainlanders. Another held Mai.
Zuko gulped when he saw her. She didn't even balk, but held his gaze with her own slatted eyes. He hadn't seen her much since he'd started living back at headquarters. She'd been trying to meet with him. Meng had informed him that she'd come by his room several times. Sure, they'd had a thing when they were younger but did she expect him to just pick up where they left off? Act like the last ten years hadn't happened?
He nodded at her and moved to take his own seat on the end. Azula frowned at his seated form and moved to the podium.
"Sir, your shovel." Meng held out a shovel with a golden handle and blade connected with a black rod. Figured.
"I'm supposed to break ground with this?" he asked. "We could feed a family on the handle alone."
Meng hesitated, then smiled. Moving her lips as little as possible, she said, "I suggest you keep those kinds of comments private, sir."
Zuko looked out over the sea of people and noticed many of them were looking at him as they murmured amongst themselves. He nodded at her and took the shovel.
"When does this thing start, anyways?" he asked.
"In about five minutes you should be-"
But Zuko never got to find out what he was meant to be doing in five minutes because Meng was interrupted by a sudden onset of mist filling the courtyard.
Katara felt powerful back in her Painted Lady cloak and hat. For the moment she stood in the doorway, looking in on the unsuspecting crowd, she truly felt like a spirit coming into a corrupt world to set it right.
Ever since her bending had returned the power felt thicker as it flowed through her, like her well had deepened and she had more to pull from. It was easy to grab from any and all nearby water sources and obscure the area with a thin, swirling mist.
The standing crowd gathered a little closer together, the murmuring tones rising with slight distress, and Katara smiled. Her eyes were drawn to the stage, to the people who mattered.
There he was.
He was dressed in a black suit and holding a shovel. As she watched, he brushed his bangs out of his eyes and her gut clenched. Then he noticed the fog and recognition turned to shock on his face.
That's right, she thought. I'm here.
An ethereal tinkling floated down from the far balcony where Suki had been placed with windchimes. Then a heavy thump echoed throughout the building. The vines surrounding the courtyard shivered in the breeze.
"What is this?" one of the businessmen called. "Some more of Ozai's theatrics?"
"Merely a pebble in the shoe, sir."
Katara's shoulders stiffened at the sound of Azula's voice. Her eyes strayed from Zuko to look at his sister and then the other two women on the stage. The apathetic girl was there. Was Ty Lee also here?
Another shock rolled through the building, a couple of the onlookers crying out in fright. Katara twirled her fingers to shift the mist around the perimeter.
"Are you sure, princess?" Katara whispered. Her voice echoed over the stone walls in surround sound courtesy of Suki's technological skills. With a flick of her wrist she sent a tendril of water floating around the area, twirling in a mesmerizing manner and drawing the eyes of all the onlookers.
"Lady," Zuko called, his eyes also following her stream of water as it twisted and bobbed through the pillars and vines, "please don't do this."
"You've angered the spirits, phoenix children. You've harmed my villagers and taken their land without cause. I'm simply here to restore balance." Thickening the fog, Katara slipped further into the courtyard and hid behind some of the vines so that she could move freely around the entire space. Her eyes trained back onto Zuko as he turned about on the stage looking for her.
"Go back to the little cave you crawled out of, peasant, and perhaps I'll save your apartment," Azula paused, then smiled- "for last."
Watching Zuko, Katara saw as he turned his head to glare sharply at his sister before resuming his search of the courtyard. Sensing through the fog, some guards Katara recognized as dressed up Agni Kai bounty hunters started making their way down from the balconies to the bottom floor. So far she counted about ten. Her swirling water continued to move in concentric circles around the stage.
"What is the meaning of this?" Another of the onlookers asked. "You expect us to believe this island is haunted?"
"See for yourself," Katara whispered into the amplifier. The water she'd been manipulating stopped and shot out across the crowd before splashing down onto the floor. Bending to one knee, Katara blew over the layer to create a thin sheet of ice across the floor of the courtyard.
Many of the finely dressed men slipped and fell immediately, sliding across the slick stones and bumping into one another.
"This is an outrage!" a man in red robes called. "You'll be hearing from my lawyers!" And then he slid with very little grace across the ice towards the exit. Several other grumblings followed as others accompanied the first deserter out.
"I've heard of her," another said with definite fear in his voice, "the Painted Lady. They say she took out three cargo ships alone in one night."
Thank goodness for embellishment.
"I heard she's been working with the Blue Spirit, perhaps some of the ancient stories are true."
"I'm not hanging around with all this magic bending about, no thank you. I'll be heading back to the mainland this instant."
As per their plan, nearly all of the dignitaries and investors were making their way to the exits.
"Fine," Azula said, "I'll finish this myself. You want to see bending?" She raised her hands, the gold on her long black sleeves glinting in the afternoon light. "I'll give you bending."
Katara vaguely heard Zuko ask "What are you-?" when flames suddenly burst out from the stage.
There were screams followed by a fast wave of heat and then the smell of ash. When Katara looked up she saw her mist had been evaporated leaving an empty clearing. The remaining crowd had fallen to the ground and were now attempting to crawl to the exit. They trudged through puddles, the wet dirt all that was left of the ice she had laid.
Many of the vines had caught fire and were burning up the balconies. The heated air had thrown Katara's hat clean off giving Azula a clear view of where she was standing. They met eyes.
Azula smiled. "Get her."
Looking left and right, Katara saw Agni Kai's closing in from every direction.
Sokka's voice rang down from the rafters. "Katara, run!" Looking up, she saw him fending off three men in an attempt to make it towards the corner stairs.
In the courtyard, Zuko jumped off the stage and ran towards the men approaching from the west. Mai followed him. Katara didn't get to see if she was helping or stopping him as the Agni Kai's closed in on her.
The nearest man reached for her and she rolled beneath his grasp before booking it for the far exit. Her cloak whipped loudly around her ankles as she threw icicles behind her. Grunts signified her success as she heard a couple thuds of bodies hitting the ground. The door ahead of her burst open and Suki motioned for Katara to hurry up, but just as she was about to jump through the door a wall of blue flame shot forward and she fell back away from the heat.
Katara slammed into the wet ground. Ringing filled her ears and her vision blurred as she tried to regain her bearings. Someone picked her up and she got the sense that her body was flying for a moment before she hit the ground a second time. It was hard to breathe, she couldn't see, and she was pretty sure she'd landed on one of her wrists. Gasping, Katara pushed up, coughing dirt onto the stone floor. When she reached up to brush her hair out of her face, her hand came back sticky.
Blood.
"You."
Katara rolled over to see the phoenix princess walking towards her.
"You have been a thorn in my side from day one," Azula said. "This wasn't how it was supposed to be. I warned you to stay away from him. You're taking everything from me. And now I have you all to myself." Azula raised her palm towards her. Katara tried to call any nearby water to her aide but her head was still fuzzy and she had no idea how much she would need to stop a direct attack. The flame moved towards Katara in a streak as Azula threw her hand out, but just as their bending was about to collide Azula's flames suddenly changed direction.
Katara feared it was a trick until she saw the fire slam harmlessly into a nearby wall and sputter out as crackling sparks.
Katara's eyes turned back to Azula, but she wasn't looking at her.
Zuko stepped out into the main courtyard.
"No," he said, "I told you. I said she was the line."
He moved until he was directly between them facing his sister.
Azula frowned at him. "She came here, she's the one who decided to make a scene."
"I don't care," Zuko said, holding his ground.
Sneering, Azula asked, "You're really going to choose her? Her? Over your own family?"
He didn't even hesitate. "Yes."
Azula's eyes narrowed to slits, her lip twisting into an angry pout. "Poor choice, brother. I guess this is it, then. The showdown that was always meant to be." She stepped back, her hands opening at her sides to reveal dual palms of blue flame.
"It doesn't have to be this way," Zuko tried.
"Apparently it must." Azula threw the first punch, her fire blasting out in a long stream of pure flame.
Zuko rolled out of the way but not before his coattails caught slightly. As he stood up, he shucked off his jacket and threw it to the side.
"So Dad trained you, did he?" Zuko asked, walking briskly in a circle. "This isn't playtime anymore, sister."
"Funny," Azula laughed, "I was going to say the same thing." Twirling, she shot a similar burst that she'd just thrown at Katara towards Zuko. With easy steps he created his own wall of fire that met hers in the middle, shooting outwards like an exploding star. More of the building caught fire and many of the Agni Kais moved towards the edging of the courtyard.
His anger fueled him, but he still felt in control. He had a goal. All the swirling energy he felt constantly prickling beneath his skin had a purpose that centered his mind and calmed his spirit.
As the flames cleared, Zuko saw Azula shooting upwards until she twirled in midair, using her feet to kick several infernos towards him.
He remembered when she had first learned that move...had run to his room to show him. The flashback threatened to distract him but his reflexes were sharp.
Again he countered with his fist, shooting his red fire directly center to hers in order to break the attacks. The explosions took out whatever flowers had remained on the second floor and started on the bannisters. Zuko vaguely registered Sokka swinging around a burning pillar up there when Azula spun another flame towards him.
Taking a solid stance like Toph had taught him in the gym, he used the outside of his hands to part the stream to either side of him. Briefly, he glanced back to see Katara had made her way towards the fountain out of harm's way and appeared to be using the water to heal her injuries.
Get out, he thought towards her. Just get away.
When he looked back to Azula she was kneeling, her breath coming out in heavy pants. This was his chance. Making a fist, he twisted his arm as he extended it so as to form a whirlwind of fire that shot towards his sister. She dodged by jumping to the side, her dress ripping up her leg in the process. Now that he could see her, he noticed one of her sleeves had also been torn away.
Her feet shot out flame that allowed her to rocket forward and she rushed towards him, firing another shot directly at his chest. She obviously didn't carry the same hesitancy he still had about hurting a family member.
Zuko decided to take a play out of her book and sent a burst of fire out from his own feet to jump directly upwards. For a moment his eyes were level with the second floor before he twirled to kick a wave out towards her. As he fell, he brought his hands together and sent a thin sheet in an attempt to disrupt her flow. She circled around him on her path of fire, too quick for him to catch with any single bursts. So he improvised.
Zuko got low, then placed his hands against the ground to swing his legs about his body in a wheel. There was no escape.
Azula fell.
He'd never seen her appear as anything other than formidable. But now? She looked like his little sister. The girl who had to be held back at the door when his father had forced him to leave with nothing but a backpack's worth of things. The girl who had stocked his closet and eaten dinner with him every night for the past two weeks.
She was covered in mud, her hair dripping as she lay on the ground staring at the stone floor and breathing ragged.
"Azula?" he called softly.
Her eyes shut tightly and her mouth pursed. With a growl, she stood up to face him. Then she took a specific stance Zuko remembered. They'd stolen one of the forbidden bending scrolls when they were little and looked through the arts that had been forgotten on purpose. Surely she hadn't meddled with something so dangerous.
"You were supposed to be next!" Azula yelled.
Zuko watched in horror as her fingertips twirled around her body, the air crackling with energy. "Azula, don't!"
"You were supposed to be there to take the name, and you gave everything up!" Her throat spasmed before she said in a choked voice, "You were supposed to stay with me."
"Azula..."
"And instead," she cried, her eyes closing to dispel a fresh wave of tears, "you chose her!" Her eyes snapped over to Katara just as lightning sparked around her. Azula's hand extended, her fingers pointed straight at Katara's heart.