Disclaimer: I do not own ATLA nor I never will unless two things happen:
1.- The CEOs are women and I pull off my sexy Hohenheim dance (which is just me stripping into my skivvies to the I'm too sexy song)
2.- Or I trade in my Light Golems fabricated in chibi form to act as personal slaves for them, and in their sleep my golems transform into evil giant robot-like golems and kill them, while making it away to steal the copyright!
Though one can only dream right. Oh well on with the thingamabob.
Ch 6: Hidden Power's Secret
Zuko opened his eyes slowly, shaking away the sleep. When he was completely awake, he staggered to lift himself off the ground, and walked around, trying to find his uncle and the others. As he walked further, he saw a bright, shining light that blinded him, and again the voice of his late cousin echoed in his head.
"Well done, Zuko. You were finally able to dominate the full power that slept inside you. Now, we think that you are finally ready to know the truth behind your power!"
"We?" asked Zuko completely confused, trying to cover his eyes from the intense light. "Who do you mean by 'we?'"
"Zuko," echoed the voice, "There is someone I want you to meet, though you have already met him… in his present life, anyway. Zuko, this is Avatar Roku." Sure enough, after Lu Ten mentioned the Avatar's name, he appeared out of the nothingness that Zuko seemed to be caught in, standing six feet tall, white hair swishing in the soft air current that surrounded him.
"Prince Zuko, it is an honor to make your acquaintance," announced the Avatar as he bowed to Zuko. A little frozen at meeting the last Avatar, Zuko managed to bow a little lower than Roku did, demonstrating his total respect for the legendary bender.
"Prince Zuko, the intense power you carry is not your own. Allow me to explain… Seventeen years ago, I have foresaw the moment when Aang would have to challenge the Fire Lord on his own. And even though Aang brought himself into the Avatar State, he still failed to beat your father, and the cycle was broken!"
The Avatar took a deep sigh, as he came to the hardest part to elaborate. "This was because Aang, since he was frozen in that iceberg for one hundred years, only had the chance to learn all four elements in one year, when a fully matured Avatar must train at least five, in order to bring out the full potential from his bending. In order to prevent the world from losing the balance the Avatar brings, I had to send aid for the next Avatar as soon as possible. My idea was to send a spirit from the other side, and infuse him into a newborn child, so that when the child grew old enough and strong enough, he would be able to bear the powers of the spirit and help Aang defeat the Fire Lord.
"Unfortunately, Zuko, you were the perfect choice for a carrier of the spirit. You were born into the royalty of the Fire Nation, free from all sense of greed and hatred… the polar opposite of the Fire Lords that preceded you.
"These were the main characteristics needed in order for the child to grow along with the spirit and train his body to contain the immense power. Since you were born as royalty of the Fire Nation, we thought that the training required to contain the power would be guaranteed, but were we wrong. After your family betrayed you, you decided to betray yourself by allowing fear and hatred consume you, cutting off your connection with the spirit inside you…until now!
"But when the moment came to choose which Spirit was going to be infused into you, the Blue Spirit volunteered. He was an exact match for you. You were a son born of Fire, and the Blue Spirit volunteered himself, furious at how his beloved nation was brining itself ever closer to the brink of damnation!
"Apparently, you have been able to summon his powers again by clearing up your inner turmoil. That re-established your connection with the spirit. And even better, despite the fact that you did not train to use his powers optimally, by slowly adjusting, you were able to access the maximum power and use it in your duel!
"But unfortunately, your forced awakening of the power does have a price. Since you did not train enough to be able to bear its powers, you experienced a fatal drain in your health. If you summon the Spirit's powers again in your present state, you will not be able to contain them. His powers may end up burning you up from the inside out, or even worse: the power would explode out of your being and destroy everyone near you!"
Zuko was in shock after all that he had heard. He knew that he had to confess the truth about how he awakened the Spirit's power, so he walked up to him and said disappointedly, "The problem is that I can't really summon the power on my own. When I dueled Azula, it was a fluke…I didn't know what I was doing—it simply came out!"
Avatar Roku stared at him intrigued, trying to find a solution for that bump in their preordained plan. "Prince Zuko, please describe to me the emotions that you felt when you accidentally triggered the Blue Spirit's powers."
Zuko thought hard for a moment, his memory fuzzy. He spoke to the Avatar, trying to explain piece-by-piece all that he could remember. "When I saw Lu Ten show me those fatal images of how they were being executed…and then I saw her, Katara's execution, I just felt this great need to save her and all of them. At that moment, I didn't care what the cost was, just as long as I could do something to help her! And when Azula was going to strike back at them at the end of the duel, I thought about her. I could see the fear on her face, and I couldn't stand the fact that I couldn't possibly save her… But then, it was like something in me just snapped, and before I knew it, I was flying as fast as the wind and saved her! I was able to beat a lighting bolt and redirect it!"
The Avatar ran his fingers through his long, silver beard, as he directed yet another question to the exiled prince. "You must have really strong feelings for this girl, don't you now?"
Zuko looked down to his feet, his face and ears turning a bit red. He analyzed how much hell he went through for her, from facing Earthbenders, to taking out an army, to even attacking and beating his sister! He looked back up to meet the Avatar's eyes, and with a sober face, he responded, "Yes, I love her, although I doubt that she feels the same way about me after I deceived her.
"She must probably think probably think I'm scum right about now!" Zuko got depressed when he realized this, and as he paled and shifted his sights to the left, away from the dual gazes of the Avatar and his cousin.
"And, by any chance, is this girl a Waterbender?" asked the Avatar, his tone accented with intrigue. Zuko could not see where this was going to, but he saw no harm in answering the old Avatar his question.
"Actually, she is! Practically a master, and I say that from experience." He said with a bit of pride as he began to remember their little battle at the North Pole. But then Zuko frowned, confused. "She is from the Southern Water Tribe, but what does all of this have to do with the Blue Spirit's powers?"
The Avatar looked down at Zuko. "I guess I broke the mold when I chose you as the Spirit's vessel. Never would I have imagined that you two would turn out to be so alike! You were both exiled, both of you are very strong-willed, and you have the same tastes in women! If I didn't already know, I would have sworn that you were him reincarnated!"
Dazed and still feeling clueless, Zuko only stared. "So how do I manage to summon his powers?"
The Avatar looked at him and said deeply, "The Spirit's power is driven by the power of your emotions. Your strongest one so far was the need to protect that special someone. I think that the Spirit lends you his powers in those situations, because she reminds him of his own loved one!"
His fond smile fading away, the Avatar sobered as he focused in on the prince.
"Zuko, your mission has the fate of the world depending on it. You must stay with the Avatar, helping him train to become a Firebending master. You must also train yourself, so that you can endure the strain that will come from summoning the Spirit's powers during your future battle with the Fire Lord. If all goes successful, then the Spirit will be removed from you… You will be normal again, and you will be able to take your father's throne and end the military advancements. Due to the arrival of Sozin's Comet, you only have nine months to make sure that the Avatar has learned all of the four elements successfully."
Zuko bowed to the Avatar, telling him as he lowered his head, "I will not fail you!"
Zuko then bowed to his cousin before turning to march in the opposite direction.
"Zuko, one more thing," added Lu Ten, before Zuko left the strange realm he was in. "Maybe it would help to tell her why you didn't divulge when you first met. And don't forget to confess how you really feel about her. That will surely make her changed her mind about you!"
Zuko looked back fondly. He knew he was very lucky to have had someone as caring as Lu Ten in his life. Even after his death, he was still giving him advice like an older brother.
Zuko smiled and waved back, saying goodbye to his cousin and the Great Avatar Roku for their advice. He was drawn towards the opposite direction from where they were standing, until a flashing light again blinded him, as he began to make his way back to the realm of the living.
Well this has to be the shortest chapter I've ever written and I feel disappointed in myself for not giving you people more. The thing is that have you ever had that experience where you got some good ideas, but their for the very end of the fic, and you got squat for the middle parts, that are fatally enough the most vital? Well I'm going through that phase right now, probably due to that damn black out that's still going on in my neighborhood, taking away the light I need to light up my idea light bulb.
Well I'm going to rack my head against a brick wall until a hole opens in my skull and the light can finally shine in!
Keep on reviewing, they're the only things that keep me going, that and three daily Lts of coca cola running through my veins.