Hey guys, I just wrote this now after all the reviews you sent. Believe me, if you thought the last chapter had a huge ending, wait till you see this!

Chap. 22

Revelation Part 2: Ozai's Exploits

"Tier, how in the hell did you know this?" Hierro asked in amazement as he looked over at Azula and Zuko. The siblings were still staring at each other in shock, unable to believe their own eyes. But they weren't the only ones; the rest of the crew and the Avatar gang had seen it too, and gaped in shock, even as Agua and Fuego called back their powers symbols faded away.

"Oh, I figured this out while we were in the cell." The dog answered nonchalantly. "I have to thank you for that Princess; I never would've noticed the scents without such close quarters."

"Scents?" Toph asked in confusion, being the only one left who wasn't staring in amazement, for obvious reason.

"Indeed. The advantage of being a magically-enhanced dog." Tierra said. "But nationality isn't something that can be smelt. But there was something about you two," he said, with a look at the siblings. "Something I couldn't put my finger on. So I did a little checking with some people you might know, Darya and Ruta?"

"You made contact with them?" Oscuirdad gasped as Zuko and Azula broke out of their shock and turned to face the dog.

"Yeah. And they told me a fascinating story. Would you like to hear?" Tierra asked. Before anyone could answer, he began.

"You see, before Ozai became Firelord, he had to earn his keep. Since he wasn't the firstborn heir, he had to prove his worth on the battlefield. He was quite honorable too; going after the weaker Southern Water Tribe constantly, having his soldiers do all the work, then finishing it off, and best of all, claiming the best of the spoils for himself. Isn't that right, Iroh?" the dog asked, looking at the former general.

Iroh nodded, and Tierra continued. "Well it seems that one day, Ozai came across a beautiful Water-Tribe girl in the spoils of his conquest. He instantly knew he'd found his wife, and took her back with him to the Fire Nation. Of course, he had to make some changes so that he wouldn't be marrying a savage Water Tribe member. He took her to the Fire Sages, and using their knowledge, they bleached her skin, dyed her hair black, in short, turned her into a perfect Fire Nation lady. Ozai married her in a month. Some time later, she became pregnant, and eventually gave birth to a bouncing baby boy that we all know and love." He said, motioning towards Zuko.

"But what Ozai didn't know was that this girl had been betrothed back home, and her husband wasn't about to let her go without a fight. It took him a year, but he made his way into the Fire Nation and rescued his lady. Ozai was away on conquest, so he didn't learn of it for three more months. He was enraged, but only at the fact that someone had dared to steal his property. Ozai sent several ships out to find her, while he kept himself content with another captured Water-Tribe girl. In fact, he was so content with her that she gave birth to his second and best loved child, a daughter. So good news for you Zuko; she's not your sister, she's your half-sister"

"Anyway, the man and lady went back to the South Pole, and spent five years there, hidden from Ozai, who believed that his wife had escaped on her own. They were married in the Water-Tribe, and over the five years they spent together, the lady delivered two more children. She and her husband thought that they would be happy forever. But they were wrong."

"Eventually, Ozai turned his attention back to the South Pole. He went with five warships to take back his wife. The Southern Tribe battled back for three days, a valiant effort, but a failed on. Ozai broke through the lines, and demanded his wife or he would destroy the Tribe. The man and the lady knew they could not put the entire tribe in danger, so she was forced to return to the Fire Nation, while the man was told that any attempt to reclaim her would result in her death and the extermination of the tribe. Ozai left, the man eventually remarried the woman his children would know as their mother, and Ozai kept his wife at his side until her death."

Tierra finished his tale, and looked over at Zuko and Azula with an almost sad expression. "Ozai never got over it though." He said. "He hated the mixed blood that flowed in both of your veins, and he spent as much time as he could trying to mold you into Firebenders. He succeeded with you Azula, but Zuko was too much like his mother. Ozai couldn't mold him, and so he chose to hate him instead. Sad really. He still hates you both in his heart. Once the war is over, he plans to throw you both out, and rule the world alone."

Zuko's face remained impassive as he heard this; he had already known this about his father, and had finally grown to accept it. But Azula's face merely grew angry, although a spark in her eyes said otherwise.

"I have had enough of your lies!" she cried out, her voice filled with angry denial. "Your magic put that abomination on my hand, and now you expect me to believe that my father hates me? I am his greatest weapon, and I have made him proud! You will pay for your lies, and if I can't kill you, I'll kill your friends!"

With that, Azula suddenly reached out and grabbed Sokka's collar. Drawing him close, she began to draw the lightning to her. Sokka looked into her face defiantly, unafraid of what was to come. But then something happened. As Azula looked upon Sokka's face, something began to happen to her own. The spark in her eyes began to grow, as her anger began to dissipate. The lightning vanished, as she slowly put him down with a strange look on her face, a look that almost seemed like recognition.

"You know don't you?" Tierra said. "You see it in him. And you'd see it in his sister too. She's there too."

"Tierra, who's there?" Katara asked.

"Don't you know?" the dog asked back. "Didn't you hear my story? That's all you needed to hear."

Behind the dog, Hierro began to think. He had always been the most analytical of the Knights, and this was where he excelled. The spider's mind flowed over the story, trying to think of any detail that could lead to an answer. It had to have something to do with the Water-Tribe, after the lady had been taken back, but what,…..

Suddenly, Hierro let out a gasp, as his mind pieced it together, and as Tierra spoke his thoughts.

"Your mother," the dog said, looking at Zuko and Azula. "The woman who gave birth to one of you and raised both of you," he paused here, as if searching for the right words, then finished it as he looked over at Sokka and Katara, "was their mother too."