Chapter 3
-Fire Nation-
Prince Ozai stalked authoritatively to the interrogation cell in the Capitol Prison. Weeks on interrogating the misfits that had been rounded up and still, nothing! Now there was only one left, the rest of the useless filth had been carted off and shipped where no one would have to look at them ever again. If this child didn't give him answers, he would be out of leads.
He would have to make sure she had something interesting to tell him then...
Entering the room he saw the pink clad girl struggling with her chains, it almost made him laugh. The child wasn't specifically strong, and without the use of her hands she was useless-just another Circus Freak.
"Comfortable? We offer our "guests" only the finest here." It gave him great satisfaction, taunting the girl.
"You're a monster!" she screams pulling at her chains again.
"I'm not the monster; you and the rest of those freaks are the monsters, poisoning the world, making it unclean. You should be grateful I didn't just execute you on sight, but I need something from you and I know you know what I'm talking about,"
The girl flinched, confirming his suspicions, it did exist. "Tell me!"
"Never!" she says and then spits on his feet, a gesture of great disrespect in any nation. But Ozai appears not to notice this; he simply walks closer to her with a small, dark smile on his face.
"Fine have it your way," he says calmly. He reaches out and wraps his hand around her closed fist. "I've been told you have quite the talented hands. You managed to disable more than a few of my fire benders getting here. Now, wouldn't it just be a shame, to lose such talented hands?"
As he says this the girl's hand grows increasingly hotter, looking up she sees that the Prince's hand is starting to glow a fiery orange from within his closed fist. He intends to sacrifice both of their hands for the information he seeks.
As the flames grow hotter and hotter the girl secedes as the skin on her hand starts to burn and blister. "Stop! Stop! I'll tell you!"
Ozai draws his hand away and the pain begins to fade.
"Tell me." He says, still in the same calm, cold tone.
"Do you know...The Cabbage Guy?"
"You must be joking,"
"No I'm serious!" Before she can go on a man bursts into the room, "My Prince, we've found it!"
His smile widening with sinister glee he turns his attention to the soldier at the door. "Bring it here."
Leaving momentarily, he and another man return carrying something covered in a sheet. Setting it down they draw the sheet off to reveal a large gilded mirror. After waiting a moment, a man appears in the mirror's surface that is not in the room. He is short, balding, a little chubby, but he has a soft kindness to his eyes that reminds one of a kindly grandfather.
"Mirror, mirror on the wall, is this not the fairest kingdom of them all?"
"It might be, if you were a king," the mirror says looking around at the grimy room.
"Mai," The Prince says gesturing over his shoulder to a young woman with a kind of blank look on her face. She then precedes to launch a small dagger. The dagger sails through the air and lodges itself in the bricks and mortar just to the right of the Mirrorman's mirror causing him to jump in his frame. "You were saying?"
"I mean, Yes! It is lovely, and it will be even more so once you are crowned Fire Lord. All you need to ascend your thrown is to marry a Princess of noble birth and the world will be yours."
"A princess...yes. Where can I find such a princess?"
"There are three such princesses, you must only choose one." The Mirrorman disappears and the image of a young woman with blue eyes and silver hair appears. "The first princess is Princess Yue, of the Northern Water Tribe. Said to have been blessed by the moon spirit at her birth, the princess is kind, gentle, and graceful as a rolling wave."
Ozai considers the image of the girl for a moment, then turns saying, "And the other two?"
Appearing momentarily to scowl at Ozai's back, the Mirrorman reveals the image of the second princess, this one with jet black hair and cruel golden eyes. "There is also Princess Azula of the Fire Nation. A gifted fire bender, it is said that the princess is a ruthless fighter with deadly precision and accuracy...I believe she is also your cousin."
"You dare insult me this way?"
"Hey, you asked about the princesses and I'm just telling you. You asked me for my help! Now would you kindly relax, there is only one more princess," with that, the Mirrorman reveals the image of the third princess.
Unlike the other princesses, she is dressed plainly in a dress of blue timed with white fur and slit up the side to reveal dark blue leggings and knee high boots. She has wild, curly, ebony hair, soft mocha coloured skin and piercing blue eyes. She is smiling ever so slightly and looking straight ahead, from the other side of the mirror it looks like she's looking directly at Ozai.
Entranced Ozai walks up to the mirror and runs his hand across the glass as if to caress the girl's face. Transfixed by her image Ozai whispers, "who is she?"
"This is Princess Katara of the Southern Water Tribe," Mirrorman says, you can almost hear the smug smile in his voice. "Little is known about her, for when she was a child she was sent away from the South Pole for her own protection. She can now be found in a tower in the vast Earth Kingdom desert, guarded by a monstrous beast. All who have faced it have perished; the princess is still waiting for her true love rescue her...Prince?"
"She's perfect," the prince says turning to the men who brought the mirror in.
"Uh...Prince Ozai, there's one other thing you should know, every night after the sun sets-"
"Silence! Princess Katara will be my bride, and I will have my crown. Men round up the troops. We're going to have a little tournament."