Travelling on an airship was different. The salty tang was barely evident and the gentle swaying was completely different from the more forceful rocking of the waves. Not that he missed any of it; three years had been plenty. Besides, the breeze was even stronger up here. It felt nice.
Zuko looked down from the observation tower. Azula was there on top at the front of the airship going through her forms without fire. Over and over until every move was flawlessly incorporated into the next with perfect precision and maximum efficiency. If limiting the amount of force behind each motion. He wondered how she would adapt her style over the next few years as her body matured. It might be amusing.
Ty Lee was no doubt still swinging from the platform underneath the oblong balloon, trying to elicit a reaction from Mai. And the few Dai Li that weren't back home repairing and strengthening the defences were inside their chambers trying to unlock the secret to metalbending. It was possible, they knew it was possible, but still it escaped them. Azula had offered them all great incentives to learn the technique; gold, power, their lives... So every waking moment of their existence that wasn't spent on their duties and regular training was now devoted to meditating on different lumps of metal.
It would change everything. What good were steel weapons and tanks if the enemy could simply bend them apart? Every single offensive weapon they had developed used metal, from personal weapons to arrowheads, tanks to armour to canisters of blasting jelly! Would they be forced back beyond stone, to wood and bone? They could not! Metalbending must be either completely controlled or utterly eradicated; it was too deadly to leave alone.
But there was nothing he could do for the moment. The Dai Li would either discover how it was done, or they wouldn't. Soon they would arrive at the northern air temple and Toph and the Avatar would be captured or dealt with.
He breathed deeply and considered the other passenger with them.
The assassin stood tall at the back of the airship, staring out over the sea. Zuko watched him breathe in and out, over and over, and felt the energy gather and dissipate with each movement. He had never felt anything like it. Even lightning was not like this. Lightning was pure, refined power. This was simply massive amounts of heat and energy gathered and forced into an incredibly tight form.
He was tempted to try it for himself, but the metal arm and leg warned him off. Nothing said don't try this at home like missing limbs.
Still...
The prince kept watching.