Chapter 17
"We'll get there soon," Aang informed the others, an unusually serious expression gracing his features as he held Appa's reins, the air rushing past them in their haste. "We'll be coming in hot, so everyone be careful, alright?."
"When are we ever not careful, Aang?" Sokka drawled, only to receive stares from the others.
"Oh, I can think of a few times," Katara muttered, but chose not to follow up on it, now was not the time.
"But that doesn't matter, either," Feng retorted, going a different route, "because this will be only the second time you've been in a combat situation like this, and it will be the first for Toph and me. I can't say I know exactly what will happen, but I do know that it's going to be chaotic. Fire Nation Soldiers and Benders will be everywhere, and we will have to keep track of the Earth Kingdom soldiers to make sure our attacks don't hit them, or their attacks hit us. So yes, Sokka, I believe Aang is right to say that we should be careful. It only takes one attack slipping through at the wrong moment for the worst to happen."
"Not…as bluntly as I would have put it, but yes, I agree with Feng." Katara nodded as she rechecked the strap of her Water pouch, making sure that she could easily open and close the lid.
"Alright, you've made your point." Sokka begrudgingly nodded as he did the same, sliding each of his weapons in and out of the sheathes to make sure they wouldn't get caught.
"Here it is!" Aang suddenly yelled from the driver's seat, the ground rushing under them soon replaced by the Wall that divided the Middle and Lower Rings which was then replaced by simply the urban environment of the Lower Ring.
A Lower Ring that was full of screams and fire. Lots and lots of fire.
"Woah!" Aang yelled as he tugged sharply on the reins, directing Appa sideways to avoid a blast of fire that one lucky Firebender had sent after spotting them, revealing to both sides that the Avatar had entered the battlefield.
"That's a lot of Fire," Toph stated as she turned unseeing eyes to the ground below, likely feeling the heat that was created from all the burning buildings. Feng could feel it too, now more than ever due to his recent sensitivity to the air around him.
Ten minutes earlier the air had been a pleasant temperature, with only subtle pollutants that would come from living in a city present in it. Now though, the air had rapidly increased in temperature and had traces of smoke laced throughout.
It gave the air a dirty feeling, one that he didn't like.
"It's go-time people. Aang, can you see anywhere Appa can drop us off? I don't think It'd be safe for him to stay."
Pursing his lips, Aang looked for what Feng was talking about, his grey eyes scanning the city below, eventually settling on an enclosed earthen courtyard around 100 meters from the battlefront. It wasn't the biggest space, but with how Appa could take off vertically it would do, as most importantly it was away from the battle.
"Found one."
"Good," Feng nodded, sounding pleased as he turned back to the battle ahead, his eyes widening in shock as an enormous blast of fire hit the heaviest part of the defense, its power great enough to burst through the earthen shields and engulf the soldiers hiding behind it, causing them to scream as they were burned alive.
All those lives just snuffed out in an instant, Feng noted with horror, his mouth suddenly dry. This… wasn't like anything he'd ever seen or done before. Even when he'd killed, it had never been an innocent just doing their job.
But the Fire Nation apparently didn't care, marching through the scorched remains of what once was an Earth Kingdom barricade, the heated earth doing nothing to them. It was at this moment that a switch flipped in Feng's mind, one that he had been carefully suppressing up until this point, but now was no longer the time.
While Feng had been at the forefront for a long time now, this was not Feng's area of expertise, even if he had participated in a few skirmishes with the others by now.
Taking the solid red mask on his hip, Feng slotted it in place, letting his suddenly constrained breath echo in his ears as a fire roared in his mind, eager to reciprocate the Fire Nation's assault.
"Change of Plans, guys. Aang, Katara, Sokka, you guys land with Appa. Toph, how would you feel like making an entrance?"
"I'd love to Spooky." Toph grinned, even as the other three shared confused looks as Feng picked Toph up by her armpits, placing her against his chest as she latched on like a monkey, seemingly knowing what was about to happen.
"Catch you on the flip side." Feng nodded as he turned to face them, leaping out of Appa's saddle with a backflip, much to their shocked faces as the pair began falling through the air, Feng turning them around mid-air and keeping his legs together as he reached down to his ankles, grabbing onto the handles their and pulling upwards, causing black cloth to spill out as he held his arms out, looking like a bat as his new wings caught the fast-moving air they were falling through, letting Feng and his passenger level out and start gliding to the fight.
"You alright there Toph?" Feng questioned, receiving a squeeze of his ribs in response.
"I'm good for now Feng! But for future reference…warn a girl if you're going to do that!"
Yeah, she was fine.
Only using the occasional blast of air from his feet, it didn't take long for the pair to reach the battlefield, Feng focusing in on the leading figure of Azula who even now was doing a familiar set of movements, aiming it toward a group of five earthbenders.
"Toph! Azula's creating lighting to break through the defense! I can't get there in time! If you drop in, can you create a shield against it?"
Hearing the urgency in his voice, Toph didn't bother going with her usual response, simply nodding against his chest.
"Yes. Tell me when to drop and how far it'll be!"
Hearing her acceptance, Feng directed his flight path straight above the small alleyway the earthbenders had set up in.
"20 meters! Now!"
Trusting his words, Toph let go of the tight grip she had held around Feng's ribcage, releasing herself to fall through the air as she reared her arms back, swinging them down just as she slammed into the earth below, an enormous mound of earth erupting in front of the girl just as Azula unleashed the lightning she had created, the blast wasting itself uselessly on Tophs creation.
"Atta girl." Feng grinned, feeling a moment of levity before suppressing it as he prepared himself for his own landing, circling around just as Azula released a blast of fire in frustration at Toph, the girl doing nothing as she heard the whistle of Feng moving the air.
Not wanting to let her down, Feng performed the opposite action of earlier as he pulled his wings back into their sleeves, using a cord he had sewn in to do so quickly as he was left falling through the air, feet first.
He was ready, however, as the second before he touched down, and before Azula's fire could hit him, he withdrew his war fans and swung his arms downward, creating a strong wedge of air that split the fire down the middle, cushioning Feng's fall at the same time as he merely had to flex his legs a little as he landed, leaving him standing before the stunned eyes of his audience.
"Not just her, Azula." Feng spoke with conviction to her accusation of Toph, taking a step forward which made some of the weaker-willed Fire Nation soldiers take a step back "I was content to let things go you know, but the Fire Nation…you just keep forcing it out of me, you always have. So, just in case you've forgotten my name in the time I've been gone, let me remind you."
Feng let the silence linger as he carefully noted the forces of the battlefield, the Fire Nation Soldiers and the Earth Kingdom soldiers both as he heard people walking up behind him, turning around briefly to see that it was the rest of Team Avatar.
Feeling confident now that he had backup, Feng focused all of his attention forward, on the foes he was about to face. Letting this focus overcome him, Feng uttered his next words comfortably.
"I am the Vengeful Oni…and I am here to hunt."
And without a second pause, Feng focused a large burst of Chi into his fans as he swung them forwards, creating a hurricane-level wind as nearly all of his foes were sent flying backward, taken off their feet and slamming down painfully to the earth below, skidding across the dirt.
Not everyone was, however. No, there was one person still standing strong, having recognized what he was about to do. Likely because they had all recognized what he was going to do a second before Feng had done it, having experienced it before. Princess Azula.
"Feng!" Azula snarled in realization, taking a step forward to kick out a stream of fire, one that Feng deflected with a wave of his fans. "You…you're the one who has struck such fear into the Fire Nation leaders these past few years? A mere human? Spirits and I thought they couldn't be any more pathetic." She laughed.
Seeing as Feng was occupied, the rest of Team Avatar went about doing their own thing, although they stayed in the area to help if they were needed. Katara and Sokka didn't move too far, intercepting Mai and Ty Lee just as they came in from the distance, preventing them from moving in to help Azula while Toph went about burying any Fire Nation soldiers up to their heads where she could.
"Gah!" One yelled as he went down.
"The hell!" These were the words of unlucky soldier number 2.
"Oh come on!" One particularly spirited soldier yelled, unable to even move his neck due to his helmet being pinned in place.
Aang for his part imitated Toph in burying his foes down in the Earth, but at the same time, he also sent steam of wind after stream of wind at the invaders, pushing them back as the Earth Kingdom began to gain back its momentum, the powerful benders of Team Avatar quickly turning the tide.
But Feng was not focused on them. No, Feng was focused on the ferociously fighting form of the princess in front of him, the girl picking up speed as she sent flurries of punches and kicks that created fire at him.
"Father will surely be pleased when I kill you, it might finally shut up all the generals and commanders that keep harping on about you. You will no longer be a thorn in the side of the Fire Nation!" Azula snarled, leaping into the air as she crashed down in front of Feng, a rolling wave of Fire emerging from her foot in Feng's direction.
Normally, he would have dodged such an attack, as he could easily just jump over it, but there were people fighting all behind him, meaning that he couldn't. Instead, he pulled off a variation of the Air Shield that Aang had told him about, funneling the Air upwards instead of sideways to deflect the fire up into the air as Feng rushed through it, covering his eyes as he jumped through the last remnant of the blue flame, kicking out at Azula, not with airbending, but a powerful kick.
The action surprised her as the attack struck Azula with devastating force on her check, colliding with a crack as she was sent flying backward, tumbling to the ground with a grunt of pain, all that the princess would allow even as she held a hand to her injury.
"Perhaps, but you'll have to kill me first for that to happen, and from what I've seen so far, that won't be happening. You surprised me last time with that lightning of yours, I'll admit, but I've only become more powerful since then."
Taking a second to spy a pair of struggling Earth kingdom soldiers to their side, Feng swung his fan casually as a blade of wind was sent out of it, taking the three Fire Kingdom soldiers in the chest as both their armor and their flesh were cut through, the three opposing soldiers crying out as blood splattered from their torsos.
"Nor am I inclined to hold back to protect my identity as an Airbender, seeing as that cat's already out of the bag."
"Oh? Was that meant to be a secret?" Azula replied with a pained smirk, not carrying in the least for her soldiers' lives.
"Yes, it kind of was. I kept it secret for years, successfully, and then you went and put up a bounty of me. Even during my time quite literally slaughtering your leadership, I kept it secret." Feng retorted, earning a scowl from the princess at the reminder of his deeds. "But it also means I don't have to hide it anymore…and you will come to regret that."
Feng had never been a passive fighter, not like Aang was. Yes, he was just as evasive and chaotic as he could be, but just like the wind could be direct, so was Feng. That's why it was no surprise that he kept moving forward, using his enhanced airbending speed to get into Azula's personal space before she could send off another deadly attack of fire.
Because as deadly as she was, Azula was still only a 14-year-old girl. A highly trained 14-year-old girl, but still a 14-year-old girl. Yes, her bending was extremely dangerous, she wouldn't be in the top 10 of all firebenders at her age without a reason, but Firebending, like most bending, relied on range to be useful.
So by moving in, while he was limiting his own bending prowess, it was worse for her as he could still rely on his physical body and skills, his Kyoshi war fans most of all.
"Insolent!" Azula yelled as she thrust a hand toward Feng, the beginning of a swirling burst of fire appearing over her knuckles before Feng knocked it away with his fan, sending her arm upwards into the sky as his knee came rocketing forward, catching the princess in the chest with a crack as she was sent sprawling backward gasping for breath.
Actually, judging by her pained expression, Feng may have just cracked her clavicle. Point to him.
"I told you you'd regret it, just not how. You Firebenders, you're all so reliant on your bending that if you take it away…you're nothing. Just a scared little girl who's at my mercy." Feng muttered, taking a couple of steps forward to kneel in front of her, almost looking like he was helping her from a distance.
He was not, though. Instead, he was simply getting close, letting her stare into his wrathful eyes, the grey in them reflecting the malevolent red of his mask.
"It would be so easy to eliminate you right now, just as the Fire Nation did to the Air Nomads. After all, what is a princess to an entire people? I doubt many that oppose the Fire Nation would mind if I did. If anything, I suspect that I may be congratulated for it." Feng stated lowly, grasping a fan in his left hand as he toggled a switch on it, causing bladed to extend out from the ends of the fins, a dangerous glint shining off of them.
Fear dawned in Azula's eyes as she took notice of the action. Not anger. Not range. Fear. And a part of Feng reviled in it, reviled in the fear he was causing his downed opponent. But another part of him felt off because of it, not enjoying how she was looking at him like he was a monster.
He had been a monster for a long time, had embraced it really, but after spending the past few months as just Feng, as just another teen traveling with the Avatar, instead of a vicious revolutionary, he had come to view it in a different light.
A less favorable light, because Airbenders, or at least Air Nomads… had been pacifists. They had never purposively killed anyone if they could help it, and while Feng knew he would always be more comfortable killing than Aang would like, always willing to take that option if necessary…he didn't want it to be his go-to.
Feng wasn't an idiot, he fully suspected that there were other Airbenders out there, hidden just like he was. Airbenders that, once they thought they were safe, would come out into the open in search of a teacher, of guidance in their ability to shift the winds.
Aang was only one person. A Master Airbender, yes, but he only had so much time in a day, and even after the war was over, he would still have the duties as the Avatar to keep him busy. That meant that being the primary teacher of the other Airbenders would likely fall onto Feng's shoulders…and he didn't want those shoulders to be weighed down with blood.
Ignoring how Aang and the past Air Nomads would have felt by someone like that teacher other Airbenders…Feng himself didn't want his element to be seen as the element of assassins. Of murderers. He could remember what it was like when he was younger, when he wasn't so weighed down with his past.
Airbending had been fun then. It had been freeing, in a way Feng was still trying to recreate. So, while a part of him was surprised at his choice, he didn't mind as he toggled the switch of his fan again, hiding the blades once more.
"But I'm not going to do that, because at the end of the day…you're only a product of the system that made you. You are simply the consequence of your Father's wishes, not yet old enough to know better. So, I want you to remember this day, Pri…No, Azula. I want you to remember that I could have struck you down, that I could have ended your life in this very moment…and that I didn't. Because that is not who I am." Feng stated solemnly, much to Azula's surprise judging by the relief in her eyes that was slowly overtaking her terror.
"That is not who Airbenders are, because at our roots, at our core, Airbenders embody freedom. Just like Earthbenders embody stability and Waterbenders fluidity. As for Fibenders, they currently embody rage, but this was not always the case. At one point, they embodied passion, a passion for life, but that passion has been burned away over the years of war." He paused for a second to let her digest his words before continuing.
"I suspect that your upbringing has left you sheltered, unseeing. When you're next in the Fire Nation, I want you to visit the people, the commoners outside of the royal compound. Look at how they are living, their struggles, their anguish, and realize…they too are the reason we fight this war. Why, despite how hard it is, we shall keep on fighting. Because at the end of the day, we do not fight for ourselves…we fight, for others. Promise me you will do this." Feng asked as he stared directly into the princess' eyes, not breaking their staring contest as a confused expression appeared in them, the girl hesitantly nodded as for the first time, without that cruel smirk on her face, she looked her age.
Like a 14-year-old girl who was in on over her head, and didn't know what to do.
"Good," Feng said, the smile clear in his voice as he reached up to unlatch his mask, disabling the voice change he had made with his bending. Flipping it around, Feng handed the Mask to Azula who grasped it with confusion, not letting go.
"If someone like you can change, at least a little, it gives me hope that others can too. If they can, that means that the knife in the dark is no longer needed, that I can fight freely in the light. I'll be seeing you, Azula," Feng said with familiarity, giving her a final nod as he moved to his feet, standing over her, holding out a hand for her to grab.
"I…" Azula couldn't finish her sentence, not knowing what to say as indecision showed on her face before hesitantly, she began to reach up, moving slowly as Feng's smile widened.
"The Princess is down! Defend the Princess!" A Fire Nation Soldier suddenly shouted out, thrusting forward to create a blast of flame that almost took Feng in the face as in his focus on the princess, he had lost track of his surroundings.
He didn't have the time to defend with his airbending, so instead, he just dropped to the ground, ducking under the flame as he rolled backward, lying on his back as he kicked outwards to create a stream of wind, one that caught the Firebender in the chest that sent him flying backward.
Moving to his feet, Feng moved further back as more and more Fire Nation soldiers moved into position, a number of them Firebenders judging by the special adornment on their armor. Well, that, and the fact that they were sending streams of fire at Feng.
That was kind of a big clue he thought absently as he threw his fans out, swinging around to create a swirling ball of air around his body, one that protected him from the flames coming in every direction as they were snuffed out, creating a firestorm around him that sent temperatures around Feng soaring, almost to the point of burning.
"Gah!" He grunted as a tongue of flame blew through his weakened defense, the normal air shield not able to deflect so much fire as a hole appeared in Feng's clothes over his right shoulder blade, a burn mark already forming.
Watching as the flames disappeared, Feng noted that the Princess was being evacuated by one of the concerned normal Fire Nation soldiers, carrying her in his arms as she grasped onto his mask, still looking at Feng with confusion.
But not rage, Feng noted with a smile in his heart. He was glad, it looked like at least some of his words had gotten through to her, and if that was the case, then his current situation was more than worth it. It was far better than the other scenario anyway, as he'd never had to kill anyone under the age of 30.
People who were firmly stuck in their ways, not someone young like Azula.
"He's still up! Hit him again!" A Firebender yelled, seeing him still standing strong even if sweat was beading down his face. Hearing the words the 10 firebenders reared back for another strike, their arms thrusting forward to each create a stream of fire.
The Average Firebender was not very creative, Feng noted absently even as he searched his mind for a solution to his current predicament. He couldn't beat all of them by himself, not without grievous injury on his part, and from the looks of it, he wouldn't be able to fly out, not with how closed-off the area was.
It was quite a bad situation to be in for an Airbender, not having the space to move. That was more an Earthbenders gimmick, not his own. Now was not the time for such thoughts though, not as 10 streams of fire moved ever closer to him, seeking to burn him to a crisp.
Fortunately, they were all traveling at roughly the same height.
"Not today!" Feng yelled with a grin as he flipped his fans into a reverse grip, the finds facing downwards as he crouched down at the correct height before spinning on the spot, throwing his arms outwards to send a circular blade of wind out from his body in every direction with as much force as possible, catching every stream in the center as the impact of wind caused them to blow, exploding it a circle around Feng as his position was momentarily blocked, giving him a second to think.
instead, he used to act, knowing that the soldiers wouldn't attack in such a predictable way again as he instead holstered his fans, not having practiced this move with them yet. Crouching, he slammed his hands together, harnessing his will to pull the surrounding air around him together, snuffing out the remaining flames as a circular shield of densely packed air revolved around him, revealing his grinning form to the stupefied soldiers.
"Nice try though!" Feng yelled over the swirling winds.
"The hell is that?" One of the Fire Nation soldiers yelled in shock, pointing at the visibly moving air swirling around Feng.
"The hell should I know? Nobody tells me nothing, I didn't even know he was an Airbender! I thought he was just strong!"
"Does that look like something pure strength could do?" A different soldier yelled in frustration, pointing at Feng, making the previous one take a closer look before shaking his head.
"Nope."
"Then he's an Airbender, glad we could clear that up. That still doesn't mean we shouldn't attack though! He's just one person, even if he is the Vengeful Oni!"
"I don't know," A worried-looking Firebender said, "they've said that before about him before a whole garrison of twenty disappeared when they went looking for him. I don't like our chances."
Ah, Feng remembered them. It had been quite the fun time picking them off one by one in the forest they had corned them in. He'd even managed to make a few flee from fear before he'd tracked them down to eliminate them.
Couldn't have any witnesses after all.
"I don't care! Just shoot him!" The frustrated-sounding Firebender yelled, and maybe it was because of his tone, or maybe it was because of his superior rank judging by his decorated armor, but they all listened and attacked Feng with a combination of moves.
Five stuck to the basic stream, likely not knowing anything else, but three seemed to kick out a similar attack, while the gullible one chucked his helmet. Yeah, Feng didn't know why either. The last Firebender though, the one that had ordered the attack, brought his arms to his side as a swirling ball of flame appeared, one that he visibly charged for a few seconds under duress before thrusting his hands forward, sending the concentrated ball of fire flying at Feng's shield.
He wasn't worried though, Feng had tested the Air Fortress extensively with the help of Aang, Katara, and Toph, and while they could still get through it with enough effort, mainly using solid rock and ice, it still took them time.
Which is why he was so surprised that his defense failed when it did. Being the fastest traveling of the attacks, the five streams of fire collided with his shield almost instantly, swirling as the air around Feng pushed them sideways in an explosive manner, actually exploding the outer layer of his shield in a way that sent heat rushing both towards and away from him, making him sweat nervously.
That hadn't happened so quickly before, and he didn't have the time to reform the outer layers as the next three attacks arrived, the somewhat larger and slower flames of the three that had kicked out at him cutting into his shield of air in a way that sent it wavering dangerously, fighting to get out of his control.
"No!" Feng grunted as he doubled down on his efforts, attempting to condense the shield even further to stabilize it, managing to do it at the last second as the air slowed to an almost standstill, now barely noticeable outside of the shimmer it gave.
What was noticeable was the way the ball of fire that the captain had sent struck his shield, deforming against the semi-solid structure before the ball exploded, and released its condensed flame against the condensed shield, setting it alight with the condensed air just acting like a fuel source without the movement, exploding viciously around Feng.
"Ahhhrrrh!" Feng screamed in pain as he was sent flying away, smoke trailing his disoriented and burned form, as he crashed down to the ground near where the others had been fighting, consciousness rapidly leaving him even as pain began to radiate from his face, Katara and Sokka quickly disengaging from the Fire Nation soldiers they were fighting, having moved onto them at some point, to go help Feng.
"Feng! Oh Spirits, what happened?!" Katara yelled in concern as she slid to her knees in front of his blackened body, drawing out the water she had been using to fight to treat Feng as quickly as possible, Sokka standing in front of her with a resolute expression as he prepared himself to fight off any attackers.
Feng couldn't hear her though, being unconscious, but even if he was, his ears would be ringing too much to hear anything, and while he had managed to close his eyes at the last second, using his needing to stave off some of the effects of the explosion instinctively, he was still quite badly hurt.
His entire body suit was now black for an entirely different reason than before, countless holes scattered throughout the clothing, but it had done its duty in protecting him, leaving the skin underneath mostly fine except for some first-degree burns in some places.
The same could not be said for his face, however, which had faced the full brunt of the attack due to Feng having taken off his mask. If he had been wearing it, he would have mostly come out unscathed, but he had not been wearing it.
This meant that he had not come out unscathed, judging by the horrified expression Katara was giving as she rapidly ran her glowing water over Feng's face, desperately trying to heal him.
"Is Feng going to be alright?" Sokka asked with a worried tone, his face scrunching up as he glanced between Feng's body and the battlefield around them, noticing how the Fire Nation soldiers had disengaged after they'd separated.
They'd likely noticed they wouldn't be able to win, not with so many of the other soldiers taken out due to Aang and Toph's efforts, the remaining Earth Bending Forces easily sweeping through the rest.
"I…I don't know." Katara replied, leading to Sokka's worry deepening. He knew from experience that his sister was quite good at fixing up people's injuries, having got plenty of practice in the time they'd traveled with Aang.
If she wasn't sure, then that couldn't be a good thing, especially because even now Sokka could smell the familiar scent of not-quite roast pork, one that he sickeningly recognized.
"Just…do what you can, I'll keep you guys safe," Sokka promised her, earning a nod from the girl as he internally sighed.
The next ten minutes were spent tensely as the battle was finished up, the Fire Nation forces finally being pushed back to their drill and out of the wall. They even managed to raise a temporary barrier around the drill, but none of the Earth Kingdom Soldiers were under any assumption that it would hold.
It would simply give them a minute's notice of the fight beginning.
Content to leave his prisoners to the Earth Kingdom Guards, Aang flew across the field, landing silently next to the others with a slump in his step, clearly exhausted from the previous hour's events.
And then he saw Feng.
"Feng!" Aang yelled as he stumbled closer, trying to get a closer look before Sokka took him by the shoulder, stopping him. "What are you doing?! Feng's hurt!"
"Yes, he is," Sokka nodded solemnly as he fixed Aang with a resolute stare, "and Katara is healing him as best she can, but it isn't pretty. Can you do anything to help her?"
"Of course!" Aang refuted, still trying to push through Sokka's grip even under his unimpressed stare.
"Really? You've suddenly learned Water Bender Healing in the last few hours?"
Sokka's tone was drier than the desert as Aang looked away, scowling as he muttered lowly.
"No."
"Then stay back here." Sokka sighed, releasing his grip on the boy's shoulder even as he stayed where he was, staring at Feng's unconscious body from a distance.
"…do you know what happened?" Aang asked subduedly, worry dancing across his features.
"No, I just know that whatever it was, it sent him flying and that it's bad," Sokka replied, shaking his head with a scowl and crossing his arms. "But I do know this…Feng wasn't the only one hurt by the battle, Aang. Hell, people died, and yet all it accomplished is pushing them back for some time. And all for what, so the Fire Nation can finally say they rule the world?"
Sokka snarled as his hands clenched dangerously, the bones in them creaking.
"This is why I hate the Fire Nation so much, Aang. This is why I think that Fire Lord Ozai needs to go down permanently."
Seeing the guilty expression on Aang's face, some of Sokka's anger faded as he sighed.
"But I don't expect you to kill him Aang. I know that's not the kind of person you are. It's not the kind of person the Air Nomads raised you to be." Even if it would be more convenient if you were, Sokka chose not to say out loud.
"Thanks' Sokka," Aang said softly, staring at the ruins that the attack had left around them. Unknown to Sokka, his words had struck a chord. Killing the Fire Lord would be appropriate after all that his done, the devastation around him being just another example of what they'd done to his people, but the way his insides turned at the thought of death, of killing…he knew he'd never be able to do it.
The wood of his glider stick groaned under the force of his grip.
Even if he wanted to.
…
"Azula!" Ty Lee's concerned voice yelled out upon seeing her bandaged chest, the girl in question lying against a rock as the rest of the Fire Nation Military gathered together, ready to retreat further once they were able to.
"What happened? Are you okay? You're aura's so blue!"
"I'm alright, Ty Lee," Azula said softly, briefly glancing up at her and noting that she and Mai were both unharmed, if a bit dirty, before turning back to the mask in her hands, one that she was fiddling with. "I had a little run-in with our tall Airbender Friend and he…showed me that I was in error."
Even now a pang in her sternum caused her to flinch.
"I may be a better bender than he is…but I'm not the better fighter."
"In what way?" Ty Lee asked curiously, tilting her head in an earnest expression.
"Yes, you have always been skilled at Combat Azula, even when sparing without your fire." Mai agreed.
"That may be true," Azula sighed as she let the red mask fall to her lap, choosing to look up at the covered faces of her friends as she answered them, letting them see the blossoming bruise that was already appearing on her cheek. "But he was simply better. His limbs were longer, his attacks faster…and his experience greater. Why else do you think my sternum is cracked and my face is marred?" Azula said harshly, a hint of her cruelty shining through for a second before she surpassed it.
It was enough for the other two to relax, however, as it was familiar behavior from the princess.
"I'm not surprised either. Well, at least now I'm not. Turns out that our little friend has a bit of a backstory, one that makes him almost as interesting for the Fire Nation as the Avatar."
"Really?" Ty Lee blinked, sounding confused. "But he's, you know, the Avatar. How could the other Airbender, as cute as he is, be so interesting to the Fire Nation? We would have seen posters for his capture if he was, like every other high profile target we have."
"Because he operated under a different name, a different identity, Ty Lee," Mai said coolly, piecing together the puzzle. "But who? I can't think of anyone who would fit his identity, especially as an Airbender."
"I'll give you a clue." Azula smiled darkly as she picked the mask she was fiddling with up by the eyeholes, flipping it around so that it was face up, revealing the shockingly red features of a snarling demon. "The first two don't count." She continued, hearing the shocked gasps of both girls, a rare feat on Mai's part.
"Him?! Are you telling me that Feng, an Airbender, is the flipping Vengeful Oni? The most desired target of the military outside of the Avatar? He is the legend responsible for the deaths of over 100 Fire Nation Leaders known for abusing their power. Feng is that guy?" Mai monologued incredulously, staring at Azula with naked disbelief in her eyes.
"Yep." She was enjoying this far too much, although the small chuckles it gave her made her chest flare up in pain, forcing a grimace to her angular features before it disappeared
"Shit." Mai cursed, much to the surprise of the other.
"Mai!" Ty Lee cried, holding her hands to her chest in despair. "Oh, woe is me, for my friend has turned to the dark side with her wicked words. How shall I ever recover?"
This was enough to make Azula laugh even though it caused her pain.
"Oh, grow up," Mai rolled her eyes, "it's just a swear word, and consdiering the circumstance I think it's appropriate, Feng is literally the Vengeful Oni, that's kind of surprisig. Although…" Mai turned to get a closer look at the mask.
"How did you get that? You said he was a better fighter. Did you take it as a parting gift, or did someone else do it?"
"Neither, I'm afraid. No, while they," Azula sighed, gesturing towards the squad of Firebenders over to her left, the leader of the troupe dressing down one of the members even as his face started to swell, a clear imprint of a standard Fire Nation Military Helmet present on his face, "dealt with him, I got the mask before that."
"The Vengeful Oni-no, Feng, is the one that gave it to me. For some reason. He had me dead to rights. I was laying on the ground, at his mercy with his bladed fans at my throat, and could have died in an instant." Even now that thought still gave her shivers, which the other two girls let her get through before she continued.
"But he didn't. Instead, he just gave me a lecture about himself, about Airbenders and what they embody, and about Firebenders." Azula frowned. "I can't get his words out of my head. He was going on about how air is the element of freedom, and water and earth are blah blah, but then he talked about fire. How, right now, it's the element of rage or aggression, but how it was once passion. How we too have been warped by the 100-year war, and that we suffer from it just as much as the other kingdoms do. Can you believe that?"
"Honestly?" Mai drawled, inspecting one of her knives. "Yes, I can. I haven't seen much of it personally, but when my father overtook the leadership of New Ozai, I got to see the Earth Kingdom peasants who came with it. Did you know the differences I found between them and our own citizens?"
Azula shook her head, a curious expression on her face.
"Nothing. There was no difference aside from the color of their skin and the place of their birth. They were just as poor, just as worn down, just as desperate as our own citizens. Ty Lee can tell you more, she's the one that traveled the colonies with her circus troupe."
"Yeah, I did." Ty Lee said, her smile dimming visibly as it became brittle. "For the average citizen, in either Nation, there was nothing to set them apart. Their auras were just as beat down, their spirits just as downtrodden. They suffer just as much as the Earth Kingdom citizens."
"That…" Azula trailed off, lost in her thoughts. "That's going to take some thought." She finally admitted, going back to playing with the mask. "I'd thought he might be lying about everything, but if he wasn't, if he was telling the truth…I will have much to think about."
Which was surprising enough in itself, Azula could admit in her heart. Feng's display of power, of fear…it stuck with a girl, leaving her unlikely to forget it. To forget him, although there was one thing she could admit, letting a trace of a smirk grace her lips, feeling just a touch more like herself.
Once she was healed, she was going to seek him out for a rematch, where she would prove once and for all that she was the superior fighter. To have him begging for mercy at her feet, just like he did for herself.
The only thing she was unsure of was what she would do when she had him there.
AN: And here we have another chapter, the battle of Ba Sing Se. Let me know what you think of the changes, and the direction I'm taking Azula.
Peace, Ervin.