Chapter 112
Excerpt from an article in The Harmony Ring, written by senior correspondent Suki Arya:
Round 11 of the Pai Sho world championship was not a day to remember for the joint tournament leaders, defending champion Ozai Nakamura and former champion Piandao Mori, neither of them managing to secure a win despite being heavily favored to do so by the bookmakers.
Ozai Nakamura still appeared shellshocked, following his back-to-back defeats to his children. Nobody expected the defending champion to struggle against Aang Jetsun, an opponent Mr. Nakamura had dispatched with ease in their previous two meetings. It appeared that Mr. Jetsun had made the right conclusions from his earlier defeats and had adjusted his strategy accordingly, while Mr. Nakamura failed to bring anything new to the Pai Sho board, and appeared to be surprised by the change of tactics from his opponent. In the end, the defending champion managed to escape with a draw, which allowed him to maintain the tournament lead, but in the eyes of the experts, it was a subpar performance that is certain to give his pursuers a lot of heart.
The Nakamura siblings continued their recently rediscovered strong play in their respective games, with Zuko Nakamura prevailing against Piandao Mori and Azula Nakamura handily defeating Zhao Sakamoto. This remarkable turnaround in the form of the Nakamura siblings must surely be a great concern for both the defending champion and his main rival, Mr. Mori. While most of the experts still are of the opinion that Ms. Nakamura is too far back in the standings to seriously challenge for the title, the same experts are much more optimistic when rating the chances of her brother to snatch the title of the world champion from their father.
In any case, the struggles of the joint leaders once again served as a reminder that the tournament is far from over, and everything can still happen during the remaining nine rounds. And there is no better way to stay in touch with the news from the world championship finals than the next issue of The Harmony Ring, coming your way in two days!
Round 11 results:
Ozai Nakamura 0.5 - Aang Jetsun 0.5
Azula Nakamura 1 – Zhao Sakamoto 0
Zuko Nakamura 1 – Piandao Mori 0
Standings after Round 11:
1. Ozai Nakamura – 7.5
2.-3. Zuko Nakamura, Piandao Mori - 7
4. Azula Nakamura – 6
5. Aang Jetsun – 4.5
6. Zhao Sakamoto – 1
Round 12 results:
Ozai Nakamura 1 - Zhao Sakamoto 0
Azula Nakamura 0.5 – Piandao Mori 0.5
Zuko Nakamura 1 – Aang Jetsun 0
Standings after Round 12:
1. Ozai Nakamura – 8.5
2. Zuko Nakamura - 8
3. Piandao Mori – 7.5
4. Azula Nakamura – 6.5
5. Aang Jetsun – 4.5
6. Zhao Sakamoto – 1
Round 13 results:
Ozai Nakamura 0 - Piandao Mori 1
Azula Nakamura 1 – Zuko Nakamura 0
Zhao Sakamoto 0 – Aang Jetsun 1
Standings after Round 13:
1.-2. Ozai Nakamura, Piandao Mori – 8.5
3. Zuko Nakamura - 8
4. Azula Nakamura – 7.5
5. Aang Jetsun – 5.5
6. Zhao Sakamoto – 1
"Maybe it's time, Ozai," Zhao Sakamoto said, looking over at his boss. Ozai was in a particularly foul mood, courtesy of yet another defeat, his third from the previous five rounds. "You know what I mean," Zhao added, when Ozai hadn't replied, continuing to seethe. "Unleash the heavy artillery and put some healthy respect and fear into those children of yours. You're paying those thugs, after all, might as well have them actually do something."
"I'm thinking about it, believe me," Ozai snarled angrily, slamming his glass on the table with enough force to make the bottle of whiskey jump. "I'm still in the lead, though. And Zuko and Azula are up next on the menu. I can destroy them without outside aid. I am the world champion, remember?"
"Sure," Zhao shrugged, electing not to add that very few of Ozai's previous tournament victories had been achieved without employing some illegitimate means. "When are you going to act, though? If you don't win the next two games, it might be too late. I assume that you don't mean to do them actual harm, just to frighten them?"
"To begin with," Ozai replied. "I don't mind if something happens to the other side of Zuko's face. I wouldn't want to mar Azula, obviously. Keep in mind that they have brought all of their friends with them and that means we have many targets to choose from. Those Water whores just might go missing one day, and Azula would have to end her remaining games in a certain way if she wanted to see them again. The possibilities are endless, Zhao."
"But you won't act just yet," Zhao said. He frowned with both disapproval and disappointment when Ozai shook his head. "I hope you're not leaving it too late, Ozai."
"Have some faith, Zhao. Who's the six times world champion, you or me?" Ozai glared at him. "Besides… you know perfectly well that the scrutiny on us has been increasing as of late. Annoying as that might be, I would rather not risk drawing attention to myself if I can manage to defend the title without resorting to these methods. But rest assured that I will act if I deem it necessary."
"That's good to know," Zhao nodded. "Yes, all that baggage from two years ago is such bullshit. It's so annoying that we have to deal with all of these observers now." After Ozai had cheated Katara Enuaraq out of the title two years ago, the Water Tribes Pai Sho Federation had raised a lot of noise, and this year they had sent three representatives to help oversee the tournament and make sure that all the rules were being followed. They had even managed to circumvent Long Feng and get the Earth Kingdom federation onboard as well, who had sent their own representatives. It was all rather ridiculous, because neither Water Tribe nor Earth Kingdom grandmasters had made it into the finals, so it was clear that the move was intended purely to annoy Ozai. The Water Tribe federation in particular couldn't get over the fact that their own little darling prodigy had been robbed of the title.
"It won't matter," Ozai shrugged. "We'll deal with all dissenters in due time. You know perfectly well that my attention has been split as of late."
"Indeed," Zhao nodded. "Have you spoken with Long Feng lately?"
Ozai frowned, looking annoyed. "He's starting to piss me off more and more," Ozai swore. "First of all, he's completely lost his Pai Sho touch. And now he's freaking out about some stupid article that somehow slipped past his stupid censorship bureau."
"It seems to have created a lot of feelings of unhappiness," Zhao remarked nervously. The reports from Ba Sing Se were not good. The Dai Li had been keeping a lid on the protests for several years now, but under the surface, the resentment hadn't gone away and had been building more and more. Now, some article full of sob stories from the front lines had really kicked the hornet's nest back in the Earth Kingdom capital and there was a very real threat of riots breaking out. With all the Earth Kingdom army reserves deployed, there wasn't much that Long Feng could do to suppress the riots if they became serious, so the situation was deeply worrying. Zhao was relieved that they had all agreed to finish their operations in Yu Dao by the end of the year.
"Eh, fuck the common dregs and fuck their feelings in particular," Ozai spat. "I already told Long Feng what he should have done years ago. He should have simply bought out the most important newspapers and further marginalized the others. It's the easiest way to control the narrative. I literally showed him the blueprint of how to do it here in the Fire Nation."
"Yes, I suppose that's true," Zhao remarked. It wasn't quite as easy as Ozai made it sound, and Zhao was sure that his boss knew it. The Earth Kingdom was such a fragmented political entity, unlike the more monolith structure of the Fire Nation. Solutions that fit the Fire Nation did not necessarily make sense for the Earth Kingdom. Besides, Long Feng was technically a government employee, not someone who could go around and buy up newspapers, even if he had his largely illegally obtained means to do so.
"You're not getting cold feet, are you, Zhao?" Ozai turned to him with a piercing glare.
"Why would I be getting cold feet? I want to be on the winning side, and that's clearly the side you're on," Zhao replied. Inside his head, however, the gears were shifting and turning rapidly. If Ozai had miscalculated one of his plots, Zhao definitely did not intend to go down with the ship. The scenario that all of this ended up backfiring on Ozai seemed unlikely, but if it did come to pass, Zhao was going to say whatever those listening would be interested to hear. His loyalty to Ozai had limits and he was willing to do just about anything to save his own skin.
Katara's twenty-fourth birthday fell smack in the middle between the fourteenth and fifteenth rounds of the championship finals. With Azula having to focus on her tournament performance, all the organizing had fallen onto Yue's shoulders and Katara was more than pleased by what her girlfriend had arranged for them. She was relieved that Yue hadn't tried to reinvent the wheel and go all out to shock her with some kind of a surprise. By this point, the three of them knew each other so well, and Yue had simply chosen something tried and tested that she knew Katara would enjoy. So, the same yacht as for Azula's birthday had been rented, but this time instead of going on a little cruise around the island, they had been taken out to a reef at the northeastern tip of the island, the prime snorkeling spot in the archipelago.
Katara loved being in the water, and she was obsessed with snorkeling any time the opportunity to engage in this activity presented itself. Yue had provided her with the opportunity to snorkel in the most breathtaking location Katara had ever witnessed, the colorful underwater life surrounding the pristine coral reefs never ceasing to amaze Katara. Even if not all of her friends shared Katara's passion for snorkeling, all of them had ended up spending at least some time in the water. Katara, Yue, Suki and Sokka spent most of the two hours happily snorkeling, with Ty Lee and Azula also joining in now and then. Katara was delighted to have managed to convince Azula to join, and once her Fire Nation girlfriend had overcome her fears, she had thoroughly enjoyed the experience. Aang, Zuko and Mai were a little more apprehensive about this activity and preferred to stay on the deck most of the time.
Katara felt a little wistful when it was finally time to head back, but with a lovely party table set up back at the cottage for her friends and loved ones, Katara was definitely looking forward to the rest of the celebrations. She was delighted to see that everyone appeared to be in a good mood. Katara had been worrying about Zuko and Azula not being in the mood for partying, because the previous round had been a little rough for them both. Zuko had faced off against Ozai, and while playing well and dominating his wretched father, he had become overconfident, playing too aggressively and going for too much too early, when a more patient and measured approach would have secured him a certain win. As a result, Ozai had scored a victory that he completely did not deserve, and after the match Zuko had been so angry with himself that Sokka had even told her that Zuko had punched a wall back at the cottage. Fortunately, the paper-thin walls of these cottages were apparently made of papier-mâché and Zuko's fist had gone straight through the wall. They had shared a relieved laugh about it and Zuko appeared to have calmed down since then.
Azula had also been frustrated in her game with Aang, because the Air Nation boy had employed a dogged defense very much in Toph's style, somehow managing to stave off defeat and force Azula to accept a draw after she had exhausted every avenue for a win. With Zhao managing to hold Piandao to a draw, everything in the previous round had gone Ozai's way, which had pissed off all of them, but obviously, Zuko and Azula in particular. But at least everyone appeared relaxed now as they headed back towards the cottage Katara was sharing with Azula and Yue, and it filled Katara with confidence that Zuko and Azula had managed to rebound and were ready to face the next round in a healthy frame of mind. It was especially important in the case of Azula, as she was going up against Ozai, and yet again it was a do or die scenario. Azula was a point and a half behind Ozai, and she couldn't afford to lose the game because she would fall behind far too much. A draw could be tolerated, but in all honesty, Azula needed a win.
As the group of nine slowly walked up to their cottage, it was Sokka who first noticed something out of the ordinary. "What the heck?" he exclaimed nervously, running down the path leading up to the cottage. Katara gave in to her instinct to follow, eventually spotting what had alarmed Sokka. The front door of the cottage had been kicked in, about to fall off from its hinges, and the front windows were all smashed.
"What happened here?" Yue exclaimed in distress as they carefully stepped inside, completely forgetting to be concerned about those responsible potentially still being on the premises. Needless to say, the interior of the cottage revealed the scene of absolute devastation. Seemingly everything had been smashed to pieces and their painstakingly made birthday preparations had been destroyed.
"Oh no, all the stuff for your birthday has been ruined, Katara!" Ty Lee cried. "Who would do something like this?" she added, somewhat unnecessarily.
"Come on, Ty Lee, I'm sure you can imagine whose handiwork this is," Azula replied, visibly grinding her teeth.
"Do you really think this is the work of your father?" Suki asked, looking appalled. "Would he dare to be this brazen?"
"Well, it's not like he did this himself," Azula snapped. Suki flinched at the harsh tone and Azula immediately appeared guilty. "I'm sorry, Suki. This is all just a little… stressful."
"How could it not be?" Suki managed a weak smile, patting Azula on the shoulder. "Damn it, this place really is a mess," she remarked as the group examined the entire cottage together, discovering that literally everything that could be broken and trashed, had been broken and trashed.
Yue was leaning down next to the overturned nightstand, with Zuko's help putting it back upright. Yue looked inside the top drawer, removing her jewelry box and revealing the earrings and necklace safely tucked inside of it. "They haven't taken anything, have they?" Yue said, shaking her head. "Well, I guess that's a relief, even if the place is totally destroyed."
"Yet another proof that the thugs who did this were hired by my father," Azula said stiffly. "This wasn't a robbery. They came here to send a signal. And to scare me ahead of tomorrow's game."
"Is it working?" Ty Lee asked.
"Pfft, as if," Azula scowled. "I don't know what he's playing at, but this is making me all that more motivated to crush him. This was a bad move on his part. Zuko, I think our father might be slipping."
"Be that as it may, your place is still totally trashed, Azula," Zuko remarked, frowning as he looked around. "I suppose if we all pitch in, we could fix it up a little, but-"
"I'm sorry, but can I just say something?" Katara exclaimed loudly. She had been watching all of this carnage while slowly freaking out from the thought that there was an actual band of thugs on this island that Ozai had sent to destroy their cottage. What if they had been on the premises at the time when the thugs showed up? Would they have been beaten, or worse? And who was to say that Ozai wouldn't send the same thugs after them again?
"What is it, Kat?" Yue walked up to her, looking concerned. Azula also appeared anxious, waiting for Katara to elaborate.
"I'm sorry, and I know that this might create an inconvenience, but I don't think I can stay at the cottage tonight," Katara managed, her teeth chattering slightly as she was trembling from fear. "I don't think I would feel comfortable."
"I completely understand," Yue nodded at her. "I don't like the thought of staying here anymore than you do, Kat."
"Don't worry, Kat, we can move to a hotel," Azula attempted a supportive smile, but it felt a little strained.
"I thought you wanted to avoid hotels," Zuko said.
"Well, I think we are making an exception, and it's not just for the sake of Kat and Yue," Azula replied. "I wouldn't feel very comfortable staying here either."
"Maybe you could stay with us, or at Aang's cottage," Sokka suggested.
"That sounds like a good id-" Aang looked only happy to help, before he was cut off by his own girlfriend.
"Well, our cottage is much smaller than yours, Sokka," Mai said quickly. "And we only have two bedrooms. We're not letting Ty Lee room with us, Aang."
"Aww, and here I thought you loved me," Ty Lee whined.
"I do, but not that much," Mai snorted.
"Alright, point taken," Zuko said, rolling her eyes. "You can move in with us, but it's not like we have a lot of free space either. We also have only two bedrooms like Aang's cottage."
"I guess we should give our room to our sisters and Yue," Sokka said. "I'm not sure about the arrangements for tonight, but tomorrow we can pick up some air mattresses in one of the local stores and set them up in the living room."
"I don't like that you have to give up all the comforts in your own cottage, that doesn't sound right," Katara argued. "If anyone should sleep on the floor, it should be us."
"Come now, Kat, let's not be hasty," Azula clearly disagreed, but Katara was having none of that.
"I'm sure we'll think of something," Suki said in a calming and hopeful voice. "Maybe I can put the boys up in my room. On the floor, I mean," she added quickly. Despite the grimness of the situation, Katara couldn't help being a little amused. It was painfully clear that Zuko and Sokka wouldn't be sleeping on the floor.
"Alright, fine, we accept the invitation," Yue said, speaking for all three of them. "We're going to need time to pack up everything that's still intact and hasn't been destroyed."
"It'll go faster if everyone but me stays behind and helps you with packing," Sokka said.
"And what are you going to do?" Zuko gave his boyfriend a searching stare.
"Well, I don't think that we want to haul their suitcases all the way up to our cottage, and I noticed that the phone has been smashed beyond repair, so I was going to double time back to our cottage and call a cab," Sokka explained. "By the time the cab arrives, you will probably be done with the packing."
Zuko blinked. "Damn it, I am so grateful that at least one of us is actually practical and useful to have around during a crisis," he said with a small, self-deprecating chuckle.
"Sorry, I knew you were looking forward to hauling Azula's suitcases, and I'm sure she would have enjoyed watching you toil on her behalf," Sokka laughed. Azula looked quite happy about that mental image. "See you in a bit," he then added, leaning in to kiss Zuko before dashing off.
Shortly after Sokka's departure, they were all hard at work, salvaging what they could from the scene of destruction and helping Katara, Yue and Azula fill their suitcases with their belongings that had survived the carnage. Most of the damage had been done to the cottage itself and the furniture inside it, the intruders not bothering with stuff like their clothes or toiletries, and they hadn't even plundered the drawers for all the yuan they had laying about. But they had broken their Pai Sho board and scattered the tiles. Also, Katara's birthday gifts had been smashed and ruined, leaving her very upset and angry.
"I'm so sorry," Katara was surprised when Azula came up to her, embracing her from behind. "It makes me sick that he'd do something like this, but to pull it off on your birthday? That just makes me so mad on top of already wanting to destroy him for what he did during the finals two years ago."
"I'll be alright, Zula," Katara managed a brave smile at her girlfriend. She was upset and she was rattled, but Katara knew that she had to be strong for Azula. Azula had to play Ozai tomorrow, and she couldn't be worrying about Katara feeling upset. Katara could see that Yue was similarly trying to look a lot less affected than she actually felt. "Besides, it might be quite fun to stay with our brothers and Suki," she added.
"I agree," Yue said, joining her girlfriends. "And once we arrive at Sokka and Zuko's cottage and settle in, we can still have a little bit of a birthday party. Ty Lee just discovered that some of our birthday snacks and a couple of wine bottles actually survived. It'll be fine," she added, mostly for Azula's benefit.
"Well, I suppose," Azula agreed, slightly reluctantly. "Tomorrow, one of you will have to inform the owners and also contact the police. And then we can decide on what to do from there."
"In a way, I think this is also an encouraging sign, as unpleasant as it might be to find our temporary home invaded," Yue said.
"How do you mean that, love?" Katara asked.
"I think I know what Yue means," Azula said. "This attack reeks of desperation. I think Ozai is running scared. It means that instead of him getting to me, I have managed to get to him."
"Hmm, I suppose that makes sense," Katara said thoughtfully. She then pulled both of her girlfriends in for a three-way hug. "We'll get you across the finish line first, Azula, I swear. I was uncertain before, but now I know… your father is going down."
Three days after her father had first encountered that fateful article of the Ba Sing Se Herald, Toph Beifong felt as if she was finally nearing a breakthrough. Lao Beifong had torn up the first newspaper having as much as glanced at the headline, but Toph had made sure for multiple copies of the newspaper to be delivered at the estate, and she then kept placing the copies of the newspaper in strategic locations where they would be noticed by her father. He had torn up a few more copies, but then at some point she had managed to wear him down, and Lao Beifong had actually sat down to read the article. For a man already weighed down by heavy guilt and conscience, this was a hard blow to take.
Now, Toph was spying on her father as he sat in his office and instead of getting his work done, Lao kept staring at the newspaper with a haunted expression written across his features. For Toph, this seemed like a sign that it was finally the time to strike. She crossed the threshold into her father's office, knocking on the doorframe when she was already past the doorstep. Lao looked up at her with a lost and confused stare.
Toph sat down in a chair at her father's desk, assuming a casual posture. "Terrible business, that Yu Dao conflict," Toph remarked. "I can't stop thinking about that article myself. I keep imagining if I had been born a boy and had decent eyesight, maybe I would have also been recruited in the army, and then one day, I'd come back to you in a wooden box like so many of those poor boys."
Lao looked up at his daughter, shaking at her words. "Please… please don't say that, poppet," he managed in a trembling voice. "I would have been able to protect you from the draft, I'm sure."
"I might have gone along with the draft anyway, as a form of protest and solidarity with those who had no option to escape their fate," Toph said. "And do you know why I would do that, father?"
"Why, Toph?" Lao asked quietly.
"Because I know that you could have stopped all of this, but chose not to," Toph replied with a harsh and disapproving stare that made her father flinch. "You're still choosing to stay silent, even if both mother and I can see that the guilt is consuming you."
"You… you don't understand, child," Lao managed weakly.
"What do you think it is that I don't understand?" Toph asked sternly. "That my own father has placed war profiteering together with Ozai Nakamura, Long Feng and other associates above the lives of almost half a million souls?"
"I didn't think it would ever get so bad," her father let out a strangled sob. "The others told me that it would be just a minor operation that would trigger an arms race between the two nations, and then we'd all go back home richer. They never told me that this would escalate into an actual bloody war!"
"But it did and you still went along with it," Toph pointed out.
"Of course, I went along with it!" Lao exclaimed. "I was too afraid to speak up! You don't trifle with men like Ozai Nakamura and Long Feng! I was afraid of what they would do to you and mother, of what they would do to me."
"Somehow, I believe it's the latter that has always been the primary concern for you, father," Toph said. "There's still time to make things right, though."
"How can I possibly make it right, Toph?" her father asked, looking devastated.
"You have to come clean about everything," Toph insisted. "Write a signed confession. It's the only way, father."
"You're asking me to sacrifice myself, and I don't think that I can, even for a cause that is so worthy," Lao Beifong sighed heavily.
"I'm not asking you to sacrifice yourself, father," Toph said. "I'm giving you the only way out that might save your life and perhaps save your soul from eternal damnation."
"I don't understand," Lao shook his head. "As soon as I betray my associates, they will arrange for me to be killed, Toph. They have made that very clear."
"I don't think they'll have the time to deal with you," Toph said, going mostly by the script she had discussed with Azula. "You know how much pressure Long Feng is under right now. If you release a statement this damning, the whole power structure of the Dai Li will collapse. Those coming in to fill the power vacuum will likely be grateful to you for providing them with this chance. You could make a deal with the new regime under the whistleblower protection act."
"That's… some impressive political acumen, Toph," Lao looked thoughtful, but also impressed. "What you're saying, well… it does make sense."
"It's your best option at this point, father," Toph insisted. "The truth will come out sooner or later. If you want to save your own skin, you need to be the one who breaks the truth."
Lao Beifong remained quiet for a while, eventually giving a reluctant nod. "But I'm not staying behind to face the music. I'll sign the statement and then I'm going to take your mother with me, and we're going to take an extended vacation to our mountain villa. Long Feng and the Dai Li might be busy dealing with the fallout, but Ozai Nakamura won't hesitate to send assassins after me," he said.
"Very well," Toph nodded. Despite everything that her father had done, she didn't want to see him dead at the hands of an assassin. Getting him and mother out of the way was the best scenario she could hope for. "Just get that statement signed and then leave it with me. I'll make sure that it falls into the right hands," Toph finished, just about managing to hide the grin of satisfaction on her face.
Round 15 hadn't gone all according to Azula's plan. Unsettled by the destruction of their rented cottage, Azula hadn't played as well as she could have against her father. Thankfully, Ozai had appeared stressed himself, and he hadn't taken full advantage of Azula's distracted state. Their game had ended in a draw on the fifty-fourth move. Azula was now a point and a half behind Ozai for the tournament lead with five rounds to go. It would be tough to cut this lead and surge ahead of her father, but Azula still felt confident about her chances. Her father had left the impression of a man under a lot of stress, probably because of the protests in Ba Sing Se, and Long Feng slowly starting to lose control over the situation. The fact that Ozai had turned to such a desperate move as sending thugs to raid her cottage just to gain a psychological advantage ahead of their game actually felt like an admission of weakness, which only helped to grow Azula's confidence further.
Azula was relieved that neither of her other competitors had taken advantage. Zuko had been frustrated by Zhao into drawing their game, while Aang had played brilliantly and defeated Piandao. Piandao was now a full point behind Ozai, and Zuko was tied on points with Azula. It was still all to play for between the four main competitors. Aang could theoretically win as well, but with a deficit of three whole points, it was extremely unlikely that the Air Nation lad could become the next world champion.
Together with her girlfriends, Azula had looked into renting a new cottage, after it had become clear that there was too much damage done for the owner to quickly restore their smashed place into becoming habitable again. Unfortunately, all the decent cottages were apparently rented out already, so it was either the hotel or staying with Zuko, Sokka and Suki. There were some definite cons to staying with those three, in that Azula and her girlfriends had to really watch themselves if they wanted to fool around a bit. However, there were some pros as well, such as actually feeling a little safer from any future attacks, now that they were hanging out in a larger group of six. Since Katara and Yue had been quite spooked by the attack on the cottage, Azula ended up not protesting the decision to stay with her brother, his boyfriend and whatever Suki was to them. The tournament was coming into the final stretch, anyway. Azula felt like she could do without yet another move from the cottage to a hotel.
With her father appearing affected by the stress and pressure, Azula felt like this would be the perfect time to hit Ozai with another full body blow from an unexpected angle. This was why she had decided to call Toph at her family's Gaoling mansion, hoping for good news. Toph had boasted about coming closer and closer to cracking the resolve of her father. Azula was desperate for everything to come out and punch Ozai square on the chin, leaving her in the perfect position to capitalize on his misfortune.
Having been left on hold by a snooty Beifong estate servant, Azula eventually heard Toph's voice at the other end of the line. "Is that you, Azula?" Toph asked. She sounded excited, which Azula hoped was a good sign.
"It's me, Toph," Azula quickly confirmed.
"I've been trying to call you, but I can't get through on the number you gave me," Toph said. "What's the meaning of that, bitch?"
"Yes, that phone has been destroyed when my father's goons raided our cottage," Azula replied simply. "And don't worry, we're all alive and well, but if you want to reach me, I'll have to give you another number," she said.
"Damn, your father doesn't exactly fool around," Toph remarked, having written down the phone number of the cottage Azula had moved into. "I can understand why you would want to get rid of him, in which case this just might be your lucky day, because I have something for you."
"What do you have for me, Toph?" Azula asked with bated breath, barely able to contain her excitement.
"What you asked for, obviously," Toph replied proudly. "I have my father's signed confession implicating your father and Long Feng in particular."
"That's amazing!" Azula exclaimed. This was more than she could have hoped for, but maybe for once things deserved to go her way. "We need to somehow get it out to the press, because there's not much time left for the story to spread."
"Way ahead of you, Azula," Toph chuckled. "Remember, I'm a Beifong, and that means access. Later today, I'm going on a local TV show, ostensibly to talk about the Pai Sho finals, but I plan to use the opportunity to deliver my father's written statement. This is going out across half the Earth Kingdom. The news will reach Ba Sing Se in a few days, believe me. That's when the real fun will begin."
"Not for Long Feng and the Dai Li," Azula grinned wickedly. The news would take a little more time to spread to the Fire Nation, but with some luck, the brown substance would hit the fan for Ozai right as the tournament entered its final stages. For once, everything seemed to be working out as she had planned it. "Toph, I don't know how I'm going to repay you for doing this," she said gratefully.
"Yes, maybe I should ask you to throw all of our games for the next five years or something," Toph laughed.
"That can be discussed," Azula replied. "Anyway, thank you, Toph. You're an amazing friend," she added, hanging up the receiver. Indeed, if Toph had just delivered the key information that served to topple her father, then that sort of assistance was not something she could put a price on. For Azula, bringing down her father was something she considered priceless.
Next chapter: The tournament is coming to a close, and the walls seem to be closing in on Ozai, but will Azula be able to deliver the knockout punch?