Shyu brought them to an ornate door. Five dragon statues coiled along its surface. Each of the statues had open mouths, as if something was to be placed within each. The door itself loomed over them. It looked like it was built for a giant.
"The statue of Roku rests within this room.", Shyu gestured to the door.
Aang looked at the door. "Oh, the monks sometimes had doors like this in our temples. You have to use your element to open it."
"As expected, the Avatar is very wise." Shyu proudly nodded. "The sages will have to help us open it, however. Each dragon's head is its own lock. Only a fully realized Avatar could open the door on their own."
Shyu put his hand on his chin. "I don't know if there is much point in doing it now. The solstice isn't for another few hours."
"A few hours!?" Zuko burst out, "We have to stay here with that man in this temple?"
"Your father?", Shyu seemed confused. "I mean, he seems rough but-"
Ty Lee put her hand on the sage's shoulder. "Maybe you should speak with your colleagues about setting up for tomorrow." She wore a smile but her words were sharp.
Shyu protested. "But, I've waited decades to meet the Avatar." The saged relented. Ty Lee's push was strong. Her cheerful demeanor hid something deeper. She wasn't taking "no" for an answer. He left to handle his affairs.
With Shyu gone, the gang was left to consider the day's events.
"We have to do something for Azula.", Aang started, looking down. "I've never seen her so afraid before."
Zuko mumbled a resigned "I have."
"Did, did she look like that the day you got your scar?", Aang turned to Zuko.
"How do you know about that?", Zuko exploded.
"Azula told me.", Aang looked down. "When we were training, she lost control of her fire."
"That's not like my sister.", Zuko was perplexed at the monk's words.
"Sifu Jeong Jeong was trying to teach her restraint. She didn't know how to handle it." Aang looked at his hands. "He criticized her for constantly acting like she was out to kill her opponent. She didn't take it well and ran off. She thought it just confirmed she was a monster."
Aang looked back at Zuko. "She told me everything then."
"Then you know why I can't stand that man being here.", Zuko looked away.
"Did he scar your face?", Ty Lee tepidly entered the conversation.
"N-not exactly." Zuko turned the scared half away from Ty Lee. "He, he made Azula do it."
Ty Lee put her hand to her mouth in shock. That shock gave way to disgust. Then angier. "How could he do that?" Her hands were balled. "She must have been terrified."
"She was." Zuko said flatly.
"And you. You're his son. And he did that to you. With his own daughter." She was tearing up. Quietly, she continued. "I'm sorry."
"You didn't do anything!", Zuko burst out before he caught himself. "Sorry. I'm just tired of people apologizing for what he did."
"Azula.", Ty Lee looked away.
"She blamed herself.", Aang mumbled.
"She hasn't stopped." Zuko sighed. "It doesn't help that, for a while, I did blame her."
Ty Lee looked surprised, but Aang seemed to understand. "It's difficult to understand who to blame sometimes. You get hurt and you blame the person who hurt you. Sometimes it's easy to forget who made them do it." Aang sat down next to the door. "I mean, to me, this is all my fault."
Ty Lee leaned forward. "How is this your fault? You can't blame yourself for what Ozai did."
"Yeah, I can.", Aang was frustrated. "I'm the one who let the world get this way."
"Aang, don't. I already said I can't stand people apologizing for him!", Zuko worked himself into a yell. "You got trapped in a volcano! It's not like you ran away and made all this happen!"
"Except I did! I ran away when the monks told me I was the Avatar! I didn't ask to be one! They were going to take me away from everyone I loved and knew! I didn't want to live separate from everyone!" Aang fell to a whisper. "So, I ran away from everyone I knew and loved. And now I'm alone."
Zuko looked angry. He wanted to scream. Aang could tell. He deserved it. Fire Prince Ozai did what he did to these two because Aang let the world get this way.
"Do you really think it's that simple!?", Zuko yelled. "Do you really think anyone blames you for what happened? Could you really have stopped this war from happening when they overran all your temples? Do you think my father would have been a miraculously better person if you never ran away!?"
Zuko got into Aang's face. "And do you really think you're alone right now?"
Aang looked confused. "But, if I was there and did my job the Water Confederation would never have destroyed the Fire Nation. Then, maybe your father wouldn't have been so bitter and-"
Ty Lee sat next to Aang and put a hand on his shoulder. "Aang, you're not alone."
"And the world didn't turn out like this because of you." Zuko was still angry, but not at Aang. "The world is just messed up and unfair. Some people are just mean and good people get hurt. The Avatar can't stop that everywhere."
There was a pause. Ty Lee nodded to Aang that it was time to get up. Aang complied.
Taking a breath. "I can't stop it everywhere. You're right. I still want to fix it everywhere I can." Aang turned to the door. "I need to do my job and put this world back into balance." Aang turned back to Zuko. "But first, I need to help Azula. And I need to help you too. You're my friends. The closest thing to a family I have. Even if you weren't, I couldn't turn my back on either of you."
Zuko nodded. Ty Lee joined in with a cheerful smile to brighten the mood. She said a simple "of course" to compliment her actions.
Fire Prince Ozai was indulging himself. His recent setbacks were...unfortunate. These things happen, however. It was all apart of the plan.
"I know I hardly need to waste my breath explaining that my visit here was not part of my campaign." Ozai tied back his hair. "Some new Water Confederation weapon. High yield explosives sunk my vessel in a single hit."
Azula kept silent. Her father did this often. He wasn't speaking with her. He was thinking out loud.
"If I had to guess, it could be the work of a combustionbender." Ozai fiddled with his beard. "I believe the head of the Ryujin was felled by his pet combustionbender. I wouldn't be surprised if he signed up with the confederates. They were always a treacherous lot."
Azula nodded her head. Her father couldn't see her, but she knew it was expected of her to agree with him. That's what kept her safe. It was never enough to be the best. She had to be loyal to keep father's favor.
There was a time where she liked this attention. Her mother hated her. She always was afraid of her. Kept her distance. Refused to acknowledge her. Father always spoke highly of her ability. Complimented her for her natural impulses. He let her into his inner world.
"It's no matter." Ozai rose. Azula rose with him. "The crew was always expendable. Like that fool who warned us of that storm. Said we'd never make it through. The coward. The ship weathered the storm fine. It was the enemy that sank his subpar vessel." The prince laughed. "I guess he's lucky I kicked him off the boat. Assuming he was able to swim back."
Azula knew when to laugh and when not to laugh. If she laughed now, he would have felt she was mocking him. She wasn't directly addressed for the joke. This was for his pleasure, not hers. She made that mistake once. He forgave her easily that one time. She knew not to repeat mistakes. If only her mother was so wise.
Perhaps it was wrong to think that. Mother didn't try to displease father. She just wasn't good at what she did. She didn't know how to act around him properly. She kept making mistakes.
Azula grimaced. She realized that logic could be applied to Zuko.
"What's wrong, Azula?" Ozai did not turn to see her. "Did my joke upset you? I don't remember you having such a weak constitution."
Weak. Weak meant worthless to father. Weak meant being treated like mother. And like Zuko. Weak was a threat.
"Of course not, father.", Azula spoke in a detached manner. She completely hid her inner turmoil. "I'm just wondering if he didn't get off too easy. You gave him the chance to swim back, after all."
Ozai laughed heartily. "Perhaps I should have given him a matching scar to that welp, Zuko?"
Azula quietly swallowed her disgust and laughed alongside her dad. This was the time to laugh. Anything else would be seen as a sign of disobedience.
She hated herself for laughing. Her brother's life had been hell. Dad made it a joke. He often joked about Zuko. About mother. About their inadequacies. They were fine enough jokes, for a time. Three years ago, it changed. The jokes were cruel. She was disgusting for playing along.
"Come, Azula."
Azula moved without thinking. She had to keep playing this game. For Zuko. For Ty Lee. What would her father do to them if she displeased him? If he just went against her, she would be okay with that. She deserved it for what she did to Zuko. She knew him. She would hurt someone she loved. She couldn't let him touch Zuko and Ty Lee. She needed to endure it until they had an excuse to leave.
The group were waiting. They had discussed a brief plan, but it was just brief. Azula made the plans, usually.
"So, what are we going to do about Ozai?", Aang had started.
"My father is a tough man." Zuko had crossed his arms in thought. "All he respects is himself, power, and his brother."
"I've met people like that all the time during the circus. You get types like that all the time making demands, trying to force refunds, and generally causing problems." Ty Lee had chriped. "None of them were technically royalty, but they all acted like that. They were quick to angier, but rarely followed through on their threats."
Zuko had responded by just showing his scar to Ty Lee.
"Of course, he's different. The principle is the same. If he respects strength, then we have to match it."
"Fight him?", Aang had gotten nervous. "Isn't there another way?"
"No, Ty Lee is right. He's a strong firebender, but the four of us together can take him. After that, he'll be too scared to hurt us again." Zuko had been so confident.
Aang had sweated. He had tried to think of something to say to suggest a different plan of action. Then, he had just exhaled. Even airbenders knew when it was time to stop evading and start attacking.
Here they were. Ready to face Ozai. To set this family straight.
There were flies in their stomach. They felt a little sick. They weren't strangers to fights, but this was personal.
Ty Lee was the first to break the ice. "Is anyone else really nervous right now?"
Aang exhaled. He was glad someone else said it. "Yes." He scratched his head. "I've fought before, but it's so different when it's your friend's father."
Zuko shrugged. "He isn't much of a father. My uncle was more a father than he ever was."
"Oh, the funny old fat man?" Ty Lee bounced. "He was always so nice. He always used to give me candies."
"Of course you'd remember something like that.", Zuko sighed. "And he's your Fire Lord, not a 'funny old fat man.'"
Ty Lee pouted at Zuko.
Aang just laughed. "Come on, we have to be serious." The monk tried to hold in his laughter.
"You're the one still laughing." Zuko poked the Avatar in the shoulder.
Ty Lee jumped in. "For the Avatar, you are pretty fun. I always got the impression they were overly serious and boring."
"I didn't really know too much about my predecessors." Aang looked wistful. "Just some snippets here and there. I'm sure the monks planned to tell me at some point."
"Well, some of your past lives seemed really boring. Like, Szeto was basically just a glorified accountant. If we didn't still have that festival in Ryujin, we'd probably totally forget him." Ty Lee started to count on her fingers. "I don't know too much about Yangchen, other than she's great. Or the one after her, other than he wasn't so great. Kyoshi lived really long and was super mean. And Roku was…" Ty Lee looked to Zuko. "...pretty cool, of course."
Zuko huffed. "It's not like I knew him. He was my great grandfather, not my grandfather. I'm not going to get angry over nothing."
Aang and Ty Lee stared at Zuko.
"What!?", he barked.
"Zuko, you get mad all the time. Like, right now. You're mad.", Aang pointed to Zuko's scrunched up face.
"I'm not mad!," Zuko leaned towards the monk. Then he pulled back. He pulled inward. Then he stretched out. "Okay, I'm mad."
Zuko sighed. "Things are just rough. All my dad taught me to do was hate. I guess I'm just doing what I do best." Zuko pointed to them. "Even now, he's made us all agree the best course of action is to fight him out of the blue." Zuko looked down. "He always gets the worst out of us."
"You still have to stand-up for yourself." Ty Lee leaned in. "Being nice is great, but it only works if the other person respects you. If they just want to step on you, you're wasting your time being nice."
Aang sighed. "The monks taught me to always try to find the peaceful solution." The Avatar looked to Zuko. "They said violence was the last resort." Aang looked down. "But pacifism isn't weakness. Even my mentor, Gyatso, said that sometimes you just have to fight back."
Aang leaned back. "He said it's not the nature of fighting itself that's the problem, but the reason you fight. You can fight to destroy and conqueror or you can fight to protect those around you. The former is cruel and should always be avoided, but the later is sometimes necessary."
Zuko bunched up on the wall. "Uncle said something similar once. When I was first learning the blade, he told me there are two types of swords. Swords meant to kill and swords meat to guard. The difference is the person holding the sword."
Ty Lee scratched her chin. "I don't know how you both get these big philosophical quotes thrown at you all the time." Ty Lee leaned back. "I just try not to hurt people if I don't have to and do the least harm when I do. That's part of the reason why I learned chi blocking."
"Chi blocking?", Aang questioned.
"Fire nation art.", Zuko jumped in. "Only nobles can learn it. It's a martial arts style specifically designed to stop one's ability to bend."
Aang was stupefied.
"It's one of the perks of nobility. I'm one of the few chi blockers in the world. Even you couldn't bend if I struck your chakra points first." Ty Lee made mock strikes to the air. "So you better watch out 'Avatar.'" She punctuated each strike with a "pew-pew."
"Strikes don't go 'pew-pew", Zuko bothered to correct her.
"Some do.", she smiled.
Zuko rolled his eyes. Before he could groan, the sound stuck in his throat. He saw a shadow moving towards them.
It was time.
Father was hungry, Azula could tell. He always was extra grumpy when he was hungry. He must have been trying to find the mess hall. Or cafeteria. Or whatever temple's have.
He clearly didn't know where it was. He wasn't going to ask, Azula knew. He was content to find it on his own. Father was loathed to seek out help from anyone.
Azula knew not to offer it either, even if she could. That would only incur his angier. He would think she thought he was incapable of finding it on his own. He always knew where he was going. Sometimes, he just preferred the scenic route.
The princess' eyes shot open when the pair rounded the corner. Why was everyone waiting there for them? They looked tense. Ready to fight.
No! Where they stupid? Did they understand why she was doing this?
Zuzu, why are you stepping forward?
"Father, we need to talk.", Zuzu was serious. She recognized that look. The same look he had when he challenged father and got his scar.
"Why should I waste words on a disappointment?", Azula knew that her father knew full well what they wanted. He was giving them a chance to back-off, she deduced.
Now Aang is stepping forward. "You can't talk to Zuko that way anymore." Azula wished Aang would shut-up and back-off. She was trying to protect him as much as Zuzu.
And now her father was just cackling. "So the young Avatar thinks he can speak down to the crown prince, does he?"
Azula knew the tipping point was close.
Ty Lee jumped into Ozai's face. Azula was shocked to see her father surprised. He even took a step back. "You will leave Azula and Zuko alone and never come back, you monster!"
Azula had to jump in. She knew her father was just surprised. He'd strike any moment. She had to think. Now. What would stop father.
Azula laughed like a hyena. "Oh, is 'circus girl' trying to scare you father? Not to mention a pipsqueak Avatar and a failed firebender." Azula walked past the group, uncaring. "If they were smart, they'd leave you alone. None of them even have the right to breath the same air as you."
Azula gave them a cold look. Inside, she wanted to cry. She had to protect them. She could bare it. They couldn't. He didn't hurt her, but he'd hurt them.
She saw the hurt first show on Zuko's face. Angier, typical. Aang looked disappointed. Sorry, but you should have known better. Ty Lee was the worst to bear. She was crying. Azula could feel one eye watering.
Fine, she thought, let them hate me. At least they'd be safe.
"Azula," Ty Lee's chocked voice stabbed at Azula's heart. "We know you're just trying to push us away to protect us."
Zuko huffed. "He's just a bully. We don't have to live under him."
Aang just looked at her. Azula knew he wanted to help, but knew it best to let her speak first.
"You must really think I'm weak if I need help from you." Azula swallowed her pain. "I am not a disgrace like you three. I can handle myself."
"So, time with me is difficult then, Azula?" Ozai's voice made Azula's blood run cold. "You can handle yourself around me, is it?"
Azula was terrified. She miscalculated. She should have used a different word. She was better than this. Would he just disown her? Would he brand her face like Zuko? What was he going to do? Please, he screamed in her mind, don't order me to do anything.
"If you wish to prove your loyalty to me, then prove your strength." Ozai gestured to the teens. "Fight off these miscreants so that I may eat my dinner."
Azula's heart dropped. She looked up. They stared back.
Aang was waiting.
Zuko was furious.
Ty Lee. She was...she was still crying.
Azula got into her battle stance. She was ready to strike. The teenagers didn't move. They weren't going to fight back. How could they? And there was Azula's father. Grinning, smugly. He felt he won, as always.
Azula lunged forward. An orange stream of fire rocketed from her fist. It flew towards Ty Lee.
Then it went past the acrobat.
Fire Prince Ozai had little time to react. He barely deflected the blow. His mantle was singed from the blaze.
"So, you are a disappointment too", her father's words were like a cold fire.
"Sorry to disappoint you.", she mocked. Her eyes told her friends to disperse. Ozai got into a battle stance to strike at her.
Before his punch could complete, Azula threw her hands up. A wall of flame followed her fist's arc. Ozai's blast was absorbed.
He readjusted. His legs went into a strong stance. His next strike was too strong to block. Azula was forced to dodge.
However, Ozai had overextended himself and lost awareness of his surroundings. He was forced to lose his footing to dodge a blast of air from Aang.
As he sidestepped, he felt the presence of his son. The boy was posed to strike him. He pivoted on his backfoot.
The princes danced. Zuko's strikes were graceful. His sword flowed through the air. Ozai was forced to step back. Dodging the strikes as best he could. Occasionally, connections were made but Zuko only managed to slice Ozai's flowing robes.
"No firebending?", Ozai had made some distance. He had time to mock.
"Don't need it.", Zuko held his stance.
The two eyed each other for a moment. Ozai sized Zuko up. "Your style has improved. You've been practicing, for once." Ozai fired a quick volley.
Moving like a stream, Zuko sliced the flame in half, dispersing it into smoke and soot. Pivoting from his front foot, he rolled his body forward like the slice of a blade. The young 'disgrace' moved his whole body through the air like a blade. His burst took Ozai by surprise. Zuko's sword sliced off the tip of Ozai's beard.
Ozai smirked. "All that for a haircut?"
The elder prince seized his opportunity and struck at Zuko's rib. The younger prince pivoted on his backfoot, saving his ribs. With his other hand, he curved his blade at his father's shoulder. Ozai jumped back with a burst of flame.
Taking a strong stance apart from Zuko, he fired two torrents from his horse stance. The flames barreling towards the young prince were larger than Zuko's entire body. Zuko was undeterred. Swinging his blades in a circle, Zuko winded them up for the right moment.
Closing his eyes, the young prince fell back into a trance. His mind fell into an ocean. He felt far from his body. He heard the flames come toward him. He waited. The moment would come. He couldn't miss it. He'd be incinerated. He couldn't dodge the strike. It was too big. He could bend it, but he wouldn't use his father's power. He was his own man.
The moment came. Zuko swung his whole body in two strong arcs. One upward then immediately down. His strikes sliced the infernos and dispersed them.
Ozai glared at his disgrace of a son.
"I thought you said you didn't need Firebending?", Ozai mocked.
Confusion flashed across Zuko's face for a moment. The young prince didn't understand his father's meaning. It was probably just another attempt by his father to belittle him, Zuko reasoned. He wanted Zuko to think he was dependent on his power.
Zuko glared at the monster that was his father. The two took a moment to look into each other's eyes. Zuko saw the cold eyes of a killer. Ozai saw something else.
His son's eyes moved ever so slightly to the left. The boy was looking at something other than Ozai.
Ozai swung his fist to the left to knock Ty Lee back. She had lept to strike his chakra points. A clever deception, Ozai thought. He followed that thought with a critique: it was poorly executed.
Ty Lee fell hard against the ground. Ozai was a physically imposing figure, even with his injuries. He was built like a brick house. The prince's strike had nearly broken the girl's rib. Worse, the acrobat felt a horrible burning sensation when he made contact. What confused her was that the skin looked fine, but she felt an intense burn. Ty Lee held her side as she bounced back to her feet.
"Weak," he spoke without emotion, only diversion.
Ty Lee jumped forward from her position. She pushed back the pain. She had to be there for Azula.
Ozai moved into a half-moon stance. With two quick strikes, he sent two small flames flying at Ty Lee. The first was easy to dodge. Ty Lee soon realized Ozai's trap. The second strike was on her injured side. Jumping out of the way put too much strain on her. She felt pain rocket through her body from her ribs.
She grit her teeth.
Closing the distance, she went on the offensive. She kept striking at his chakra points. Every time, Ozai blocked. He never dodged. The crown prince wanted every block to hurt. He could tell Ty Lee's weakness was her fortitude.
Fast? Yes. Precise? Yes. Dangerous? Yes.
Durable? Not as much as the prince. That was his advantage and he planned to press it.
Ty Lee was trained in chi blocking. While Ozai never could learn the art himself, he was familiar with the secrets of the nobles. He didn't doubt most would fall to her moves, especially if they didn't know her style. Ozai was just her worst match-up.
The fight was played on two sets of rules. If Ty Lee made a single connection with Ozai's chakra points, Ozai would begin to topple like a house of cards. Ozai focused on wearing her down. The prince tensed his muscles when she went to strike. He tried to break her fingers every time she missed. His rock-hard muscles were making every missed strike hurt.
Chi strikes left one's fist hollow and one's fingers outstretched. It was a miracle none of the girls fingers had broken yet. Ty Lee knew not to risk pointless strikes, of course. She alternated between closed fists and chi strikes based on opportunities she saw in the fray. The issue came from Ozai's preparedness.
Unlike Bato, he was fully aware of the style. The Fire Prince presented openings to goad Ty Lee into a chi strike. At the last minute, he'd close the opening, tricking Ty Lee into damaging herself. Ty Lee couldn't tell which openings were real and which were traps, even when she caught on to his trick. His outfit didn't help the situation either. His flowing robes made it hard to judge when to strike. The Fire Prince wasn't coming out unharmed, but he could endure more than the acrobat. As long as her strikes didn't hit the chakra point properly, the chi strike did more harm than good.
Still, her only hope was chi blocking him. She needed to wear him down for Azula's sake. She couldn't imagine what he might do to her after she tried to attack. Ty Lee couldn't let up.
The prince smirked. Her hands were getting red. Her strikes were slowing. It was just a matter of time now.
Ozai felt the wind quicken. The Fire Prince side-hopped, dodging Aang's staff. As the Avatar pivoted on his left foot, he picked up air. In a wide arc, he fired the air like a torrent at Ozai. Ozai breathed fire from his mouth, the blaze weathered the gust in the prince's stead.
Getting a moment to breath, Ty Lee felt like her hands had shattered. They weren't broken, but her hands were sore and beginning to swell. She backed off. She had learned the hard way that Ozai wasn't going to let her strike his chakra points. She needed to wait for an opportunity to strike again.
Ozai struck forward. Aang ducked and got behind Ozai. Ozai had seen this tactic before from Airbenders. He wasn't so easily fooled. Aang tried to stick to Ozai's back. Ozai simply dropped and spun his leg in an arc. Aang barely had time to jump out of the way. His position behind Ozai was lost. He tried to hold in the air while he planned where to reposition.
All too quickly the monk realized his mistake. Aang was terrified as he saw the Prince get into a horse stance. He was about to punch forward and litter the air with fire.
Then, a flame struck the prince on his side. His robes caught flame. Ozai simply blew the fire away.
Ozai turned his attention to the attacker: Azula. She was goading her father with a hand gesture.
"I started this, father. You should be focused on me.", she taunted.
Ozai said nothing. Contempt was written across his face. He punched forward. She swung her arms and defected it. Pivoting on her front foot, she spun forward, swinging her back leg like an axe. A wave of fire went towards the prince. He hardly moved. He blocked the strike. Like an earthbender, he weathered the blast.
Ozai eyes said it this time.
"Weak."
He wasn't even fighting them like a firebender, it dawned on Azula. He was mocking them. Fighting against his own style. He didn't see them as worth taking seriously.
Azula screamed as she got into a horse stance. She struck at the air in rapid succession. A volley of fire bolts went hurtling towards her father.
Without moving from his spot, he deflected each blow. He didn't even need to look away or keep an eye on the others. The fire was too much. Her friends had to keep their distance.
Once again, Ozai's eyes spoke for him.
"Weak."
She was furious. Fire burned in her gut. She hated this man. He felt the flames burst forward from her mouth. An inferno of flame consumed Ozai. None of the others could get close.
Ty Lee had to jump back, despite the pain. Aang spun his staff to diffuse the flames trying to consume him. Zuko swung his swords and cut the flames away.
Yet Ozai was unphased.
The Fire Prince shot his arms to both of his sides. The inferno dispensed. While his outer robes had burned away, his skin was untouched.
Azula didn't have to look. She knew what his gaze would say.
"Weak."
She felt alone. Empty. Angry. Afraid. This was everything that terrified her. This was why she never wanted to go against him.
Then, she saw her friends. Still ready to fight. Aang had his staff at the ready. Zuko was ready to strike at any moment. Ty Lee was still holding up her hands to fight, despite her injuries.
Azula smirked. She got into a cat stance, just as she did for Sifu Jeong Jeong. Carefully, she readied herself. Then, like a spring, she struck the air.
Her strike was restrained. The strike wasn't going for overwhelming power. The strike was not intended to kill. She refused to act like a monster, like her father.
A sense of calm washed over the princess. An oddity bordering on absurdity for a battlefield. An empty feeling of determination focusing her mind.
She fired with restraint, as her master taught her. She concentrated the entirety of the flame on her outstretched index fingers. She did her best to compress her chi to the tiniest point possible to maximize its effect.
A blast of blue flame rocketed from her fist. The bolt of fire was accompanied by crackles of lightning. The torrent traveled like a bullet in the air. Lightning spread off the unearthly blue flame like the fire was a thundering storm cloud.
Ozai's eyes widened. With terror in his eyes, he dodged the blast at the last moment. The firebolt exploded as it hit the wall behind the combatants. A crater was left in its wake.
Everyone's jaws were agape, except Azula. Her eyes said one word as they stared at the shocked Ozai.
"Weak."
