AN:
Sigh, why can't things ever go according to plan with this story? Is this why so few stories with this pairing exist? Or do I simply possess an abundance of fail when it comes to doing right by my readers?
These interludes are meant to be fillers to break up the time between chapters. A little Tolkienite indulgence to my typical Martinite sensibilities. I never thought I would come off such an infuriating hiatus with an update that contributes nothing to the plot!
But at this point even a useless update is preferable to the sound of silence, showing that at least this tale is not dead, just bedridden.
I do have parents of a real chapter written, one focusing on Zuko, Iroh, and Katara; with a bit of Az thrown in for fun. I am even opening with some lemon free but romantic flashback regarding the main pairing. Screw perfectionism, before another First rolls around I'll have that chapter up, even if I think its garbage.
Enjoy if you can.
Proposed for Distribution to Continental Territories native populations:
A Summarized History of the Fire Nation:
A brief outline of the history of the Home Isles and their inhabitants for outsiders. Assembled by the Department of History and Antiquities of the Royal University , to be edited by the Imperial Agency of InterRealm Relations, Sub Agency of Information Distribution.
Prehistory:
The Home Isles, due to their location and volcanic nature, have long possessed both warm enough environments and rich enough soil to allow civilization to prosper. Excavators discern that much like the coastal regions of the continent, earliest civilizations tended to be based around rivers and other fresh water bodies. While the exact structure of these early civilizations is difficult to surmise, it is popularly regarded as tribes and confederations of tribes. Due to what appear to be shrines in central locations of ruins it is believed that spirit worship featured prominently, perhaps to the point of theocracy.
Age of Agni:
Earliest records taken from oral traditions describe the Home Islands as a collection of city-states, tribal unions, petty kingdoms, and monastic states. This age saw the final prebending wars in which bronze weaponry became dominant. Legend, backed by excavated evidence, suggests the Fire Nation Home Isles witnessed the first bronze working in the world.
It was a time of near constant warfare between the different political entities, driven both by a desire for resources and generational vendettas.
Zeizan Agni, a Prince of Oda, suffers his great disgrace. Popularly it is said that he chose to allow a female assassin to drug him while he guarded his regal brother's bedchamber, however, two other interpretations exist. One is that he raised his sword to his father to prevent the king from slaying a servant girl that had dropped a coveted crystal goblet. Another is that he bedded his brother's wife and got her with child.
To regain his honor and lift his exile from Oda he was tasked with defeating the dragon Amaretsu, who plagued the holdings of Oda with raining fire from the sky.
Arriving at Amaretsu's mountain he discovered the remains of heroes and armies that had challenged and died by Amaretsu's fire. Believing conflict was the road to failure Agni decided on a different approach. Arriving at a nearby town he purchased the largest wagon and filled it with sake and a dye bin. The dye bin he coated with the extract of a poisonous herb that in those days grew in dry riverbeds.
With his wagon loaded thus he ascended the mountain to Amaretsu's cave and called out to her. The Queen of Dragons emerged and was perplexed by the sight of Agni and his baggage, all other men having come with war in their hearts. Agni introduced himself as a Prince of Oda and told of how her majestic form in flowing through the sky inspired his people even as she brought death down upon them. Thus, as a sign of their respect and admiration for Amaretsu, his father the king had sent him to give her an offering of sake.
Amaretsu was flattered by the gift and allowed Agni to empty gourd after gourd into the dye bin that was to serve as her saucer. But the Queen of Dragons was no fool and called on him to share the sake with her, and drink first as he was the guest. Drinking from the final gourd Agni showed the sake to be safe, leaving Amaretsu to drink from the poisoned bin, which she drained in one sip.
As Agni crowed with triumph Amaretsu laughed and admonished the little prince. For a poison so great as to slay a hundred men daunted her not in the slightest. However the cunning of the Prince amused the ancient dragon and she inquired as to why one so clever would pursue such a foolish goal. Hearing his reasoning Amaretsu offered him a deal.
The land was wide and Oda was small in the Isles. If Agni could pass the two tests she set for him she would foreswear her wrath from all domains of his clan. If he failed though he would submit himself to her jaws.
For the first Challenge Agni answered the shadow riddle posed by Amaretsu.
For the second challenge Amaretsu took Agni to the banks of the Baru River and light a torch with her fire. He was required to return the flame to her in her cave. Agni realizing a torcgh was not the flame gathered many pieces of wood and passed the flame to each in turn. Thus he returned to Amaretsu with her flame in hand.
Vexed at his cunning Amaretsu called on a final challenge. To wager his life and the survival of Oda against power over fire as she possessed. Agni accepted the wager. The third challenge was that with only a single night for a head start he had to evade the Dragon Queens wrath for two days.
Agni set out after sunset, and in his cunning doubled back and hide himself in the recesses of Amaretsu's lair while she slept. When Amaretsu departed to search she became ever more wrathful in her hunt. On the second day she burned the Grassy Sea of Gerishu, which to this day are known as the Burned Plains and split Mount Kaiji half to search for Agni within it.
Returning to her lair after the time had passed she found Agni sleeping in her nest and woke the isles with her rage. She granted him the knowledge he sought, laying a sunlight finger upon his brow. Agni endured five days of agony as he gained a lifetimes knowledge in a moment.
Cast out by Amaretsu Agni returned to Oda the first Firebender. Having heard tales of Amaretsu's fury they had believed him dead and when he returned wreathed in flame the people trembled as of before a vengeful spirit. Revealing himself as a living man the people watched in amazement as he initiated them into the art of Firebending.
The Firebenders of Oda lead by Zeizan Agni marched in all directions, carrying all before them with the might of fire. Agni became heir when his elder brother disgraced by Agni's glory committed seppuku. The fall of the King of Oda to the Spring Sickness marked the beginning of the 103 year reign of Agni, his ascension marking year one of the Fire Nation calendar.
The events of Agni's rule chronicled in the Book of Agni depict his conquests and authoring the laws that are the foundation of the Fire Nation. In the fiftieth year of his reign he would abandon Oda as his seat to oversee the construction of the Golden City. Upon it completion in the year 76 would see him recreate his title as Fire Lord.
In the year 100 Agni journeyed into the Spirit world to retake the face of his heir Akulon from the Face Stealer. The day of his departure the Horde came from the East and swept over the islands like a typhoon.
In the year 103 Agni returned from the Spirit world and with the aid of Amaretsu defeated the Thunder Brothers ending the Hordes terror. The battle would be his last the wounds inflicted by the brothers slaying his body and freeing his spirit to ascend to the Divine Realm.
Golden Age:
The ascension of Hideo as Fire Lord marks the start of the Golden Age in which the Fire Lords rule from the Golden Cities.
The First Agni Kai occurs when Crown Prince Kai is challenged for the throne by his elder sister Kirara. The victory of Kirara in the duel elevates her to the position as the Seventh Fire Lord and the first female ruler of the Fire Nation. Under her rule the wars of unification would be completed securing the Home Islands to the rule of the Fire Lords.
As centuries passed the vast Empire came increasingly under the influence of the military governor who commanded the far flung territories. The royal court became increasingly inward looking as the great and powerful gathered in the Golden city to court the Fire Lords favor to the neglect of the realm.
The Darkest Day, a solar eclipse stripped the fire nation of its bending. Forewarned of this event the Water Tribe War Leader Karnon sacked the golden City as his fleet scoured the Nation, plundering the wealth and carrying countless off ito slavery.
The death of the Fire Lord and Crown prince on the darkest day lead to the military governors forming their own petty domains and soon descending into fighting one another. Even the crowning of a new Fire Lord and establishment of a new capital does nothing to relieve the chaos.
Dark Age:
The Fire Lords remain regarded as rulers of the nation, but beyond the Royal Capital hold no power over the warlords.
The Order of Fire Sages is founded to provide spiritual guidance to the prople and neutral advisors to the many factions of the Fire Nation. As descendants of Agni the Fire Lord also holds the title of Grand Sage presiding over the Order and its temples.
The practice among the warlords of dividing their domain between their sons prevents movement towards unification. The demand for Firebenders in the wars allows female fire benders ton take to the battlefield as warriors.
Water Tribe warriors conquer swaths of coastal territories from the War Lords. From their strongholds on the coasts the Sun Water Tribe is established. The culture of this tribe was highly martial in which Waterbenders held the highest citizenship as warriors and captains with Fire Nation slaves on the bottom. The Tribe throughout its existence would raid the shipping lanes and War Lord Domains for plunder and slaves for either their own use or to sell to the Kingdoms of the Continent. Legends say the bending masters of the Sun Water had the power to command absolute obedience from their slaves. This practice abhorred the moon spirit and as a result the Sun Water tribe exclusively worshipped the Ocean Spirit.
In response to the threat posed by the Water Benders the Warlords began to form alliances against a common threat. Fearing conquest the practice of divided inheritance was abandoned to keep family holdings strong. It became customary to send excess heirs into the Order of Fire Sages to remove them as potential succession disputes.
The consolidation of greater domains and alliances between War Lords began to make progress against the Sun Water Tribe. Nearly two hundred years after its establishment the last Great Chieftain of the Sun Water receives a vision from the moon spirit to lead to an epiphany in which he lead his people from the H9ome Isles to settle on Whale Tail Island.
The expulsion of the Sun Water Tribe and creation of the great domains marked the end of the Dark Age.
States Age:
The Domains became de facto States within the Fire Nation governed by hereditary rulers descended from the Warlords. Either as small domain s surviving through alliances or expanding through conquest a new but violent order was established.
The Book of Agni is written for the first time, but disputes over several texts lead to three versions circulating. Disputes over interpretations of Agni's law would create a schism in the Fire Nation between Orthodox Sages under the Fire Lord and the Sun Sages. This would further complicate the wars between the domains until the Sun Sect faded from history into obscurity.
The last Monastic States end as they are either annexed by the nobility or conquered and gifted to the Order of Fire Sages. In a bid to curry favor with the influential order and Fire Lord several Domains begin pogroms against Spirit worship.
Wars see the decline of Alliances as marriage alliances join lesser domains into greater domains. Lesser Domains vanish as forces either being conquered or vassalizing themselves to retain degrees of autonomy.
The wars culminate in the Fire Nation being dominated by the Houses of Peijeti and Vai
, and their respective vassals.
The death of the Peijeti heir at the hands of pirates sets off a war between the two great houses. Having been engaged to the Crown Prince it was believed the Vai had assassinated her to prevent a Peijeti from gaining the title of Fire Lord.
The Great War of Houses lasted for Seven years exhausting the wealth and resources of both sides with massive loss of life. The cumulative naval battle, known as the battle of the Bloody Straits was witnessed by Avatar Genrusai.
A former Fire Sage Acolyte he had remained aloof from the conflict as per the values of his order and the teachings he had received from the Air Nomads. But angered at the loss of life and fearful the war would once again ruin the Fire Nation, intervened in the battle.
Raising the Spear of peace from the depths Avatar Genrusai stood over he straits and called on all the elements to drive he fleets apart. Declaring the war concluded he commanded the leaders to meet in the Royal Capital to make peace or face the wrath of the elements.
The display of the Avatars power coupled wit the poor state f the war collapsed the Great Houses domains leading to the bulk of the nobility lesser and great to gathering at the Royal capital to plead their case before the Avatar.
Under Avatar Genrusai's guidance the domains where abolished in favor of provinces ruled by the nobility but subject to the authority of the Fire Lord and a National military power. The Fire Lord would rule as part of a triumvirate between the throne, the nobility and the Council of Fire Sages.
The crowning of Fire Lord Taira as ruler of the Fire Nation by Avatar Genrusai marked the end of the Stares era and the rebirth of a united Fire Nation.
The Sage Era:
Avatar Genrusai would spend much of the remainder of his life in the Fire Nation overseeing the creation of a lasting peace. He is credited with almost single-handedly introducing the Spiritist beliefs of the Air Nomads to the Fire Nation. While it would never gain acceptance among the Noble and lower classes it would gain popularity in towns and among the Fire Sages adapting its texts to their own. A new sect of the Fire Sages was founded for the sole purpose of serving and training future Avatars as a sign of the Fire Nations eternal gratitude to Genrusai.
Spirit worship restrictions were also relaxed.
Peace saw the natural energy and aggression of the Fire Nation channeled in new ways. A great expansion in the arts occurred with the development in new painting schools, dances based off of former martial arts, architecture free from martial necessity, and innovations in mechanics. Particularly noteworthy was the invention of the Haiku, which while falling out of favor in the Fire Nation would come to flourish on the Continent.
In pursuit of the Air Nomad ideal of detachment the Council of Sages became less concerned with governing ad more focused on the spiritual path of their Order. The Fire Lords and nobility invest heavily in new innovations in agriculture and production.
The first coal engines invented in the Fire Nation.
The role of women becomes more prominent as restrictions on their activities are bypassed by the emergence of new societal roles in fields of art, industry, and mercantile gain prominence. The laws enforcing the proprietary state of daughters are mostly abolished elevating female offspring to the level of sons, with the exception of the parents right to arrange marriages.
Under the patronage of the royal house the first self propelled ship is constructed.
Industrial Revolution and population boom alters the nature of Fire Nation Society with urbanization and the rise of nontitled wealth. Fearing the rise of this newly powerful merchant class the nobility allies with the Fire Lord to reduce the power of the Sages to their benefit.
In response to the environmental degradation, and the poor conditions of the workers in the manufacturing centers an official condemnation was issued by the Council of Sages. Fearful of the threat to their wealth the merchants and nobility throw their support behind Fire Lord Vorlon in dismissing the Council of Sages.
Autocrat Age:
Taking the role of Divine Autocrat based on his descent from holy Agni Fire Lord Vorlon abolished the Genrusai laws in favor of the Golden Age laws in which all authority is vested in Fire Lord based on a divine Right to Rule. Vorlon's 37 year rule saw the further industrialization of the Fire Nation in the face of environmental fall out, shortages, and continued population growth.
These issues would not be addressed in his rule in favor of cementing the prevalence of royal power. Their resolution would fall to his grandson and successor, Sozin the Magnificent.
REJECTED ON GROUNDS OF DEFAMING FIRE NATION SUPERIORITY AND UNDUE MENTION OF THE HERETIC GENRUSAI. COMPLETE REWRITE RECOMMENDED WITH AGENCY REPRESNTATAIVES INNVOLVED IN PROCESS.
-Sub Agency of Information Distribution